81. Milkor – South Africa
Milkor, a South African defense company established in 1981, has evolved from a world leader in 40mm multiple grenade launcher systems into a comprehensive turnkey defense solutions provider across air, land, sea, and weapons systems.
With a global presence and a history of delivering over 70,000 systems to 67 countries, Milkor is known for its commitment to indigenous development, rapid innovation, and integration of cutting-edge technologies.
In the realm of unmanned aerial systems for defense, Milkor’s flagship product is the Milkor 380. This medium-altitude, long-endurance UAV is designed for multi-role applications including intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, maritime patrols, border security, and increasingly, combat operations.
The Milkor 380 boasts impressive specifications such as an 18.6-meter (61-feet) wingspan, up to 35 hours of endurance, a range exceeding 2,000 kilometres (1,243 miles), and a payload capacity of up to 400 kilograms (882 pounds), enabling it to carry a variety of sensors (EO/IR, SAR, ISAR) and precision-guided munitions.
Milkor is actively exploring in-house missile development for the 380 and is also developing the even larger, high-altitude, long-endurance Milkor 780 UAV, showcasing its ambition to become a top-tier global defense company in the unmanned systems space.
