UAE-based satellite company Space42 announced that its high altitude platform stations (HAPS) subsidiary, Mira Aerospace, has inaugurated a 4,500-square-metre HAPS manufacturing facility in Abu Dhabi—the first of its kind in the MENA region. The facility is expected to produce over 20 HAPS UAVs annually, supporting civil, environmental, and defense applications.
Mira Aerospace CEO Khaled Al Marzooqi emphasized the strategic importance of this investment to meet the rapidly growing global demand for HAPS technology. The facility will also advance R&D efforts and accelerate commercialization of HAPS solutions.
According to DataM Intelligence, the global HAPS market reached $1.64 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $3.13 billion by 2032 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.40%.
This milestone follows Mira’s February 2025 partnership with local training and testing facility XRange to establish a dedicated long-endurance UAV trial hub. In October 2024, Mira developed electro-optical (EO) and telecom payloads supporting environmental monitoring, disaster management, urban planning, agriculture, and direct-to-device connectivity via 5G-enabled HAPS.
Space42’s new facility aligns with the company’s broader strategy to expand vertically integrated manufacturing and data infrastructure. Alongside this, Space42 collaborates with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite operator ICEYE to co-produce low Earth orbit (LEO) Earth observation satellites in the UAE, with two satellites launched to date, the latest in January 2025.
