The United Arab Emirates has deployed at least one of its new Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) Wing Loong II unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to its base at Assab airport in Eritrea, satellite imagery has confirmed.
A DigitalGlobe image from 3 August shows a UAV with dimensions matching those of the Wing Loong II at the base. The deployment of the larger UAV may have prompted the construction of two new 26×21 m aircraft shelters at the base since early March. These shelters are larger than the existing ones that are used by the Dassault Mirage 2000 jets and IOMAX Archangel turboprops the United Arab Emirates has at the base to support military operations across the Red Sea in Yemen.
Source: Jane’s 360