Manufacturer catalog

Calidus

Calidus is an Abu Dhabi-based UAE defense manufacturer active in aerospace, land systems, missiles, and defense systems. Public sources describe a company founded in 2015 that designs, engineers, and produces locally developed platforms, including the B-250 light-attack aircraft family and the ALHEDA missile system.

1 weapons

Calidus sits inside the UAE's push to build sovereign defense-industrial capacity rather than only import finished platforms. Partner and procurement sources describe three principal clusters: Aerospace, Land Systems, and Missiles and Defence Systems, with work spanning aircraft, armored vehicles, guided missiles, simulators, final assembly, testing, and local production partnerships.

The manufacturer's most visible open-source programs are the B-250 turboprop light-attack and trainer family and the ALHEDA/HEDA missile line. Defense News reported the first UAE B-250 order at Dubai Airshow 2019, while ADNEC's IDEX 2025 contract notice named Calidus Aerospace for a Phase 1 HEDA missile-system procurement worth AED 3.76 billion. Later partnership announcements with Safran, Indra, and General Atomics show Calidus using its Abu Dhabi industrial base for aerial delivery, training-simulation, unmanned-aircraft, and command-and-control cooperation.

light-attack and trainer aircraftmissile systemsarmored vehicles and land systemsaerospace manufacturingtraining and simulation partnerships

Notable Systems

ALHEDA missile, Short-range guided missile family, Munitions

ALHEDA missile

Short-range guided missile family

Calidus presents ALHEDA as a ground-to-ground and air-to-ground missile family; ADNEC's IDEX 2025 contract notice identified a Calidus Aerospace Phase 1 HEDA missile-system procurement.

Sources: Calidus ALHEDA missile page, ADNEC IDEX 2025 contracts
Calidus B-250, Single-engine turboprop light attack and trainer aircraft, Aircraft & UAVs

Calidus B-250

Single-engine turboprop light attack and trainer aircraft

The B-250 is the manufacturer's light-attack and trainer aircraft family; Defense News reported a 24-aircraft UAE order in 2019, and later public material describes continued B-250 variants and training-system work.

Sources: Defense News B-250 order, Calidus aerospace solutions

Manufacturer History

  1. Calidus is founded in Abu Dhabi

    Partner announcements from Safran and General Atomics describe Calidus Holding Group as founded in 2015 and headquartered in Abu Dhabi, with aerospace, land-systems, and missile-and-defense clusters.

    Sources: Safran Calidus teaming agreement, GA-ASI Calidus MOU

  2. UAE orders B-250 light-attack aircraft

    Defense News reported that the UAE placed a 24-aircraft order for the Calidus B-250 at Dubai Airshow 2019, describing it as the UAE military's first purchase of a domestically produced aircraft.

    Sources: Defense News B-250 order

  3. HEDA missile-system procurement is announced

    ADNEC's IDEX and NAVDEX 2025 contract notice named Calidus Aerospace for a Phase 1 HEDA missile-system procurement worth AED 3.76 billion.

    Sources: ADNEC IDEX 2025 contracts

  4. General Atomics co-production MOU is signed

    GA-ASI announced an MOU with Calidus Aerospace covering prospective UAE co-production of MQ-9B remotely piloted aircraft, Gambit collaborative combat aircraft, and associated command-and-control systems.

    Sources: GA-ASI Calidus MOU

Website links
Calidus official websiteCalidus aerospace solutionsCalidus missilesCalidus ALHEDA missile page

Public sources use Calidus, Calidus Aerospace, and Calidus Holding Group for closely related UAE defense-manufacturing activity. Calidus Holding Group remains separate in the catalog where weapon records use that exact public-source wording.

Manufacturer Sources

  • Calidus official websitePublisher: Calidus | Note: Supports Calidus' current official web presence and Abu Dhabi-based aerospace and land-defense positioning. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Calidus aerospace solutionsPublisher: Calidus | Note: Supports Calidus' aerospace focus and the B-250 as a Calidus multi-role light-attack aircraft program. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Calidus missilesPublisher: Calidus | Note: Supports Calidus' missile-and-defense-systems focus and identifies ALHEDA as a ground-to-ground and air-to-ground missile family. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Calidus ALHEDA missile pagePublisher: Calidus | Note: Supports ALHEDA manufacturer context, missile-family role, launch-platform framing, and official product background. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Safran Calidus teaming agreementPublisher: Safran | Note: Supports Calidus Holding Group's 2015 founding, Abu Dhabi headquarters, three-cluster structure, and aerospace, land-systems, missile-and-defense focus. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • GA-ASI Calidus MOUPublisher: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems | Note: Supports Calidus Aerospace's 2026 co-production MOU with GA-ASI and repeats Calidus Holding Group's Abu Dhabi headquarters, 2015 founding, and defense-manufacturing cluster structure. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • ADNEC IDEX 2025 contractsPublisher: ADNEC Group | Note: Supports Tawazun Council's IDEX/NAVDEX 2025 announcement of an AED 3.76 billion contract with Calidus Aerospace to procure HEDA Missile System Phase 1. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Defense News B-250 orderPublisher: Defense News | Note: Supports the 2019 UAE order for 24 Calidus B-250 light-attack aircraft, the reported AED 2.273 billion value, and the B-250's close-air-support, counter-terrorism, training, and ISR roles. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Indra Calidus training-centre agreementPublisher: Indra Group | Note: Supports Calidus' 2025 simulator and training-centre partnership in the UAE, including local development, production, integration, certification, and regional training ambitions. | Accessed: 2026-07-11
  • Commons Calidus B-250 imagePublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance and licensing context for the Calidus B-250 display photograph. | Accessed: 2026-07-11

Produced weapons

Category

Munitions

Standalone missiles, bombs, rockets, torpedoes, and guided or unguided explosive payloads.

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