Angola Takes Delivery of HT-100 Naval Helicopter Drones From UAE

UAE’s state enterprise EDGE Group has finalized the delivery of six ANAVIA HT-100 Naval rotary-wing unmanned aerial systems (UAS) to the Angolan Navy.

The handover compounds a broader 2023 deal worth 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) to supply Luanda with three corvettes modeled after Abu Dhabi’s Baynunah-class vessel.

Upon commissioning, two aircraft will be stationed on each of the incoming warships, extending the fleet’s maritime surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.

Reflecting ‘International Confidence’

The shipment follows a series of evaluations to confirm the HT-100’s functions, a part of which involved the aircraft’s maiden flight.

It concluded with Factory Acceptance Trials at EDGE Group’s ANAVIA facility in Bilten, Switzerland, where the helicopter drone was demonstrated for the Angolan Navy and Simportex, the Central African nation’s arm for defense and security materiel acquisitions.

Following those tests, the UAS will undergo integration aboard Baynunah-class corvettes as the program closes in on operational deployment.

“This milestone demonstrates our ability to deliver a complete, fully autonomous system for shipborne operations, closely tailored to the customer’s operational requirements,” said Ishan Sahgal, founder and co-CEO of ANAVIA.

“The close cooperation with the Angolan Navy, EDGE, and our industry partners demonstrates our innovative capabilities and further strengthens international confidence in our products.”

The HT-100 System

EDGE’s HT-100 combines electro-optical/infrared sensors, flight control redundancy, first-person-view cameras, and signal-denied flight operability.

The aircraft measures 3 meters (10 feet) long, has a wing diameter of 4 meters (13 feet), a takeoff weight of 120 kilograms (265 pounds), and a payload capacity of 60 kilograms (132 pounds).

It features a shaft turbine and a Flettner double rotor powered by jet fuel, with a tank capacity of up to 60 liters (16 gallons).

The UAS flies up to 65 knots (120 kilometers/75 miles per hour), reaches an altitude of 4,000 meters (13,123 feet), and has endurance of six hours.

HT-100’s Naval variant uses a corrosion-resistant carbon composite airframe to withstand austere weather, constant saltwater exposure, and environments at sea state 3, or those with wave heights from 0.5 to 1.25 meters (1.6 to 4.1 feet).