United Arab Emirates drone capacity

Non-NATO

Fleet estimate2025

unknown

Not disclosed

Source: IISS Military Balance — operation confirmed; no consolidated published fleet count ↗

Manufacturer count2025

unknown

Not disclosed

Source: IISS Military Balance — no authoritative count; majors: EDGE Group/ADASI, Adcom Systems ↗

Defense drone budget (€)2025

unknown

Not disclosed

Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database — SIPRI publishes no UAE military expenditure figure (the UAE has not reported since ~2014); no drone-specific budget ↗

Notable systems2025

high

Wing Loong II / CH-4 (Chinese, operated); domestic EDGE Group/ADASI & Adcom (Yabhon United 40)

Source: New America, World of Drones / CAIG Wing Loong II, Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CAIG_Wing_Loong_II) [system ID] ↗

Combat use indicator2025

high

Confirmed — Wing Loong II used in Libya (Jan 2020 Tripoli military-academy strike, 26 cadets); CH-4 / Wing Loong in the Yemen campaign

Source: BBC Africa Eye, UAE drone strike in Libya — Wing Loong II from Al-Khadim; Yemen use per RUSI, Armed Drones in the Middle East (https://static.rusi.org/20181207_armed_drones_middle_east_web.pdf) ↗

Export status2025

low

Emerging exporter (EDGE Group)

Source: IISS Military Balance ↗

Indigenous production2025

medium

Yes — EDGE Group / ADASI, Adcom Systems

Source: IISS Military Balance ↗

Metrics not listed above are not yet assessed for United Arab Emirates — distinct from “Not disclosed”, which means a metric was assessed but no figure is published.

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