Egyptian Firm To Assemble Sagem Drones

Egyptian AOI-Aircraft Factory has signed an agreement with Sagem (Safran) to assemble the Patroller surveillance drone system for addressing the Egyptian Ministry of Defense requirements.

Under the terms of this agreement, AOI-Aircraft Factory could handle final assembly of Patroller drones in its Egyptian plants, the Sagem announced Thursday.

The agreement also covers system support and commissioning. AOI-Aircraft Factory will develop a dedicated training center in Egypt to train staff for the operation and maintenance of Sagem's drone systems.

Developed in France by Sagem, the Patroller is a versatile long-endurance tactical drone system. It features an open, modular design to handle a broad spectrum of military and security missions, while carrying a multi-sensor payload of up to 250 kg, fuselage or pod-mounted.

The Patroller offers endurance of more than 20 hours, and an operating ceiling of 20,000 feet. Sagem has already conducted a flight demonstration on Patroller showing the simultaneous operation of different sensors: optronic (electro-optical) pod, radar, electronic warfare (EW) system, distress beacon detector and automatic identification system (AIS) receiver.