Four UAE defence companies will take part in the Marrakech Airshow from 7 to 10 October, bringing weapons, drones, military vehicles, aircraft systems and artificial intelligence technologies to the event. EDGE Group, Generation 5 Holding, Multi Level Group (MLG) and Resource Industries will share a UAE national pavilion. The UAE Ministry of Defence and the Tawazun Council for Defence Enablement are supporting the pavilion, while ADNEC Group is organising it.
The companies will use the four-day event to meet military officials, government representatives, international buyers and potential industrial partners.
The UAE is using the show to find new markets for its defence industry and build partnerships in defence and aerospace.
EDGE is the biggest company in the group. Its business covers autonomous systems, precision-guided weapons, air defence, electronic warfare, drones, small arms and ammunition.
The company first took part in the Marrakech Airshow in 2024. It displayed the SKYKNIGHT air-defence system, the GARMOOSHA surveillance drone, guided weapons and loitering munitions.
SKYKNIGHT is designed to protect against rockets, artillery and mortar rounds, precision-guided weapons and drones. Its missiles can engage rocket, artillery and mortar threats at up to 4km, precision-guided weapons at up to 6km and fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and drones at up to 10km.
The system uses missile launchers that can carry up to 60 missiles. It can also work with AESA multi-mission radars and Oerlikon Revolver Guns.
GARMOOSHA is a light rotary-wing surveillance drone for land and naval operations. It has a maximum take-off weight of 540kg, can carry up to 120kg and can stay in the air for up to eight hours. Its operating range is 150km.
EDGE also produces precision-guided weapons through its AL TARIQ and HALCON businesses. AL TARIQ kits can turn standard unguided bombs into guided weapons using satellite and inertial navigation, imaging infrared or laser guidance.
Its HUNTER systems are loitering munitions designed for reconnaissance and precision strikes, including operations involving groups of drones.
The company also makes small arms and ammunition through Caracal and LAHAB. Its products include the EF 9mm pistol, CMP 9 submachine gun, CAR 816 assault rifle and CSR 338 and CSR 50 anti-materiel rifles.
Resource Industries brings a different set of products. The Abu Dhabi-based company focuses on military vehicles, logistics, mobile artillery and heavy equipment.
Its MOREB light strike vehicle is designed for reconnaissance, fast attacks, force protection and weapons transport. The 4×4 vehicle has ballistic and blast protection and can carry systems such as 120mm mortars, counter-drone equipment, multiple rocket launchers and remote weapon stations.
The company also assembles TATRA heavy tactical vehicles in the UAE. The vehicles are available in 4×4, 6×6 and 8×8 versions and can be used for troop transport, radar and command systems and other military equipment.
Resource Industries also produces the MORANA 8×8 self-propelled howitzer. The system uses a 155mm/52-calibre gun and has automated aiming, loading and onboard diagnostic systems.
Its TREVA-30 8×8 armoured recovery vehicle has a 25-tonne winch, a 30-tonne crane and a hydraulic rear fork for recovering armoured vehicles.
Generation 5 Holding focuses on technology that connects air, land, sea, cyber and space systems. Its work includes tactical surveillance drones, aircraft upgrades, flight-control systems, airborne radar and electronic-warfare equipment.
The company also develops AI-based surveillance and targeting tools, video analysis and systems for launching and recovering fixed-wing and vertical take-off and landing drones.
MLG focuses more on digital defence and security. Its work includes artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, biometrics, autonomous mobility and command-and-control systems.
Its technologies include AI and data platforms for intelligence and national security agencies, as well as systems for autonomous transport and unmanned logistics.
MLG also develops DFORCE, a platform for situational awareness, law-enforcement tracking and threat monitoring. Its other products include IDmetric biometric identity systems, OnePass automated access controls and smart gates for border security and critical infrastructure.
The UAE defence industry is increasingly focused on overseas sales. EDGE has recorded revenues of between $4.9bn and $5.06bn, with international orders making up about 76% of its sales. Its export order backlog is worth more than $20bn.
The Tawazun Council plays a central role in the UAE’s defence procurement and industrial policy. It supports the development of local high-tech manufacturing under the country’s wider Operation 300bn industrial strategy.
The UAE pavilion also comes as defence and economic ties between Abu Dhabi and Rabat have grown. A joint declaration signed by King Mohammed VI and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in December 2023 set out a wider framework for cooperation, with the UAE becoming a major foreign investor in Morocco.
Law No. 10-20 provides a legal framework for developing local defence production through joint ventures, technology transfers and domestic assembly.
The Marrakech Airshow is therefore also a market for companies looking for local partners and production opportunities. Israel Aerospace Industries, for example, plans to seek local partnerships and technology transfers at the event.
The Emirati companies will hold business-to-business meetings with foreign delegations during the show. They will also promote major defence events in the UAE, including IDEX for land defence, NAVDEX for naval defence and the International Defence Conference, planned for 2027.
The event will take place at the Royal Moroccan Air Force Base in Marrakech and will bring together defence manufacturers, military delegations and aerospace companies from around the world.
