EDGE Unveils First UAE-made Family of Smart Loitering Munitions at IDEX 2021
21.2.2021 19:08:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
EDGE, an advanced technology group for defence and beyond, today launches its first family of multirotor loitering munitions, the QX range. In addition, Shadow 50 and Shadow 25, Rash 2 gliding munition kit, as well as new variants of the RW24 range – all designed and manufactured in the company’s first year of operations – were unveiled on the first day of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (IDEX 2021), that is underway at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre until 25 February.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210221005030/en/
EDGE launches QX range- its first family of multirotor loitering munitions (Photo: AETOSWire)
The unveiling of the Class-1 electric unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) took place at the EDGE pavilion in the presence of His Excellency Faisal Al Bannai, CEO and Managing Director of EDGE and Ali Al Yafei, CEO of ADASI.
His Excellency Faisal Al Bannai, CEO & Managing Director, EDGE, said: “Right now, drone technology is revolutionising our world with the full potential of unmanned and autonomous capabilities still to be further explored – not just in the military sector, but the commercial sector too.”
He added: “Through launching the first UAE-made family of smart loitering drones, EDGE marks a significant milestone as a key technology enabler and in boosting the country’s autonomous capabilities and AI integration. With the future increasingly relying on unmanned systems that provide a higher degree of tactical flexibility, we have invested extensively to fast-track R&D investments in these domains, bringing related products to market with speed.”
The QX family of loitering munitions comprises four products: QX-1, a micro-UAV, QX-2, a mini-UAV, QX-3, a small UAV, and QX-4, which features an impressive vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) fixed wing. The precision-guided systems use sophisticated AI algorithms to target and strike, boasting an accuracy of 1 m CEP (circular error probable) – with an aim similar to laser guided munitions. Built to launch in any environment or terrain, the entire QX family of UAVs are lightweight, man portable, and comprise VTOL capabilities.
The second range of loitering munitions consists of Shadow 50 and Shadow 25. As the name implies, Shadow 50 can carry a payload of 50kg – exactly double its counterpart. Shadow 25 is a high-speed system equipped with a jet engine and boasts a short reaction time. Delivering high precision strike against fixed targets and advanced guidance capabilities, these UAVs leverage Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and can fly using video navigation systems in GPS denied Environment.
Also launched on Day 1 of IDEX, the Rash 2 is a fixed-wing guidance kit for mortars and other in-house designed payloads, capable of gliding in flight and directing munitions to ground targets, available in different sizes to accommodate varying payload capacity, range, and endurance. ADASI has secured AED 55 million contract to supply Rash 2 to the UAE Armed Forces, marking the first order of the newly launched product.
Three new additions to the RW-24 range were also launched in time for IDEX 2021. The newly unveiled RW-24 Seeker is equipped with a thermal automatic seeker that enable greater accuracy of engagement of moving targets and increased functionality within GPS-denied environments.
The RW-24 Extended Warhead and RW-24 Extended Range variants increase the payload capacity from 8 kg to 13 kg, enabling the drone to carry additional fuel or to increase the size of the warhead.
EDGE is an advanced technology group that ranks among the top 25 military suppliers in the world.
About EDGE
EDGE is an advanced technology group established to develop agile, bold and disruptive solutions for defence and beyond. Enabling a secure future, it is dedicated to bringing innovative technologies and services to market with greater speed and efficiency. Consolidating over 25 entities and employing more than 13,000 brilliant minds, it offers expertise across five core clusters: Platforms & Systems, Missiles & Weapons, Cyber Defence, Electronic Warfare & Intelligence and Mission Support. Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, EDGE is a catalyst for change – set to revolutionise the industry and change its fundamentals.
*Source: AETOSWire
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210221005030/en/
Contact information
Thushara Mohanan
media@edgegroup.ae
+971-555080413/ +971-55-3584520
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Impartner Launches the First CPQ Built for Partners20.8.2026 16:00:00 EEST | Press release
Impartner, the leading partner revenue orchestration platform, today announced the launch ofImpartner CPQ, giving partners a direct path to create and advance quotes within the Impartner PRM platform. The new capability enables faster movement from opportunity to submission while giving vendors control over the rules, products, pricing, and approvals that govern each transaction. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260820479441/en/ Give partners a faster path from opportunity to quote with Impartner's CPQ. For many partnership programs, quoting remains a largely manual process. Partners often depend on vendor sales teams to prepare quotes because traditional CPQ systems are designed primarily for direct sellers or require additional licensing for external users. The result is a slower path from opportunity to revenue, increased administrative work for channel teams, and a partner experience that can limit the impa
Scientist.com Expands R&D Platform Capabilities with SciSure’s Integrated LabOps Inventory and Compliance Services20.8.2026 15:55:00 EEST | Press release
Scientist.com, the life sciences industry’s leading AI-enabled R&D orchestration platform and digital marketplace, today announced an expansion of its platform capabilities through an integration with SciSure’s lab management and EHS compliance tools. The partnership gives biopharma organizations a more unified workflow connecting scientific procurement directly with laboratory operations. “By bringing SciSure’s inventory management, safety, and compliance capabilities into the Scientist.com ecosystem, we are closing the gap between sourcing reagents and safely managing them in the laboratory,” said Jon Zibell, VP of Global Alliances at SciSure. “Together, our platforms connect product information, safety checks, and inventory management, giving research, lab operations, and EHS teams greater visibility from purchase request through disposal.” The integration connects procurement, safety, inventory, and compliance in a single connected workflow. SciSure enriches Scientist.com’s unified
NETFORCE Accelerates Its U.S. Industrial Expansion as a New Intermediate-Force Market Takes Shape20.8.2026 15:23:00 EEST | Press release
For the first time, major U.S. federal agencies are beginning to structure procurement around a new category of intermediate-force equipment, giving officers an additional option between verbal presence and higher levels of force. NETFORCE believes companies establishing themselves at this early stage will benefit from a significant first-mover advantage as this category expands nationwide. This is precisely the market NETFORCE anticipated years ago, having invested heavily in research, industrialization and international intellectual property well before the category attracted attention. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260820951658/en/ COPYRIGHT NETFORCE NETFORCE enters the U.S. market backed by two granted and active U.S. patents — US 11,236,973 B2 (granted 2022, protected through 2038) and US 12,222,193 B2 (granted 2025, protected through 2041). Together with the E-StunGlove® trademark, these assets form pa
Esri Expands World Imagery with Airbus High-Resolution Basemap Coverage for 2,000 Cities Worldwide20.8.2026 15:00:00 EEST | Press release
At the 2026 Esri User Conference (UC), the global leader in location intelligence announced a significant enhancement to its World Imagery basemap through a new agreement with Airbus. The collaboration will enable Esri to provide ArcGIS users with high-resolution imagery coverage for approximately 2,000 cities around the world through the addition of the new Airbus, Nearmap, and Vantor imagery. The added data is part of an enhanced imagery initiative for the World Imagery Basemap, the most widely used map service in ArcGIS, and was highlighted during this year’s Esri UC Plenary. Beginning in the second half of 2026, Airbus will deliver 30 cm imagery designed to provide more current and detailed visual context for ArcGIS users worldwide. Airbus imagery is highly accurate, color-consistent, and provides nearly cloud-free coverage with minimized haze and seasonal variation between contiguous images. As part of the broader World Imagery enhancement program announced at the 2026 UC, Esri al
Cox Capital To Expand Liquidity Solutions for Retail Investors in Private Markets20.8.2026 15:00:00 EEST | Press release
Cox Capital Partners, LP (“Cox Capital”), a provider of liquidity solutions for retail holders of illiquid alternative investments, today announced plans to expand its existing tender offer program for non‑traded business development companies (BDCs) into the rapidly growing interval fund market. The move affirms the company’s role as a provider of liquidity solutions across the private markets landscape for the wealth advisory channel. Over the past six years, Cox Capital has built a platform for sourcing and executing secondary liquidity transactions for retail investors in non‑traded BDCs and other illiquid vehicles, working with financial advisors and intermediaries across independent broker‑dealers, RIAs, and major wirehouses. Cox Capital today announced plans to expand that platform to interval funds, whose growth has given retail investors access to private credit, private equity, and other alternative assets with limited liquidity. Subject to market conditions and regulatory re
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom