Space42 completes first public test flight of ApusNeo18 HAPS in UAE

Mira Aerospace, the High Altitude Platform Systems subsidiary of Space42, has carried out the first public test flight of its solar-powered ApusNeo18 aircraft during the Dubai Airshow 2025, marking a major milestone in the UAE’s growing high-altitude aviation sector. The ApusNeo18 reached stratospheric altitudes and demonstrated strong endurance and resilience, confirming its readiness for commercial use. The mission also showcased an advanced Earth Observation payload developed internally by Mira Aerospace, featuring high-resolution optical and infrared sensors capable of transmitting data in real time.

Despite taking place during November—typically an unfavourable season for HAPS operations in the UAE—the test flight validated the platform’s reliability in variable weather conditions, an important requirement for future global deployments.

Khaled Al Marzooqi, CEO of Mira Aerospace, Space42, said: “The successful test flight of ApusNeo18 marks the culmination of a comprehensive testing programme to commercialise our latest payload technology. Sustaining solar-powered flight and reaching stratospheric altitudes in this season demonstrates reliable performance at scale. This achievement accelerates Space42’s mission to deliver premium geospatial intelligence and reflects the pace and precision with which Mira Aerospace is engineering advanced, high-altitude systems.”

ApusNeo18 is the first Mira Aerospace platform to reach commercial maturity, evolving from the ApusNeo14 subscale model. The new model delivers higher altitude, greater payload capacity, and a wider operational envelope.

The aircraft can be utilised in environmental monitoring and disaster response operations. Its proven performance opens high-value commercial opportunities while advancing practical applications that serve national and global needs.

HAPS aircraft bridge the gap between aviation and space. They offer satellite-like persistence with aircraft-level flexibility at lower operational costs.

ApusNeo18 is a lightweight, solar-powered platform designed for sustained stratospheric missions. With an 18-meter wingspan, 18,000-meter altitude ceiling, and 4-kilogram payload capacity, it combines modular construction with in-flight agility, enabling rapid reconfiguration for diverse mission profiles.

ApusNeo18 advances the UAE’s sovereign aerospace capabilities and is a core component of Space42’s AI-powered, multi-orbit architecture. The successful test flight places the UAE among a select group of nations that have publicly demonstrated sustained HAPS performance at stratospheric altitudes, supporting national goals under the UAE Space Strategy 2030.

To scale its capabilities, Space42 will begin production at its dedicated HAPS manufacturing facility in Abu Dhabi, one of the world’s only end-to-end, sovereign HAPS production lines. This industrial investment further strengthens the UAE’s role as a regional hub for high-altitude innovation and dual-use aerospace technology.