Ethiopia is rapidly expanding its military drone capabilities, with two domestic production facilities and thousands of unmanned aircraft reportedly adding new firepower as tensions rise in Amhara, Oromia and Tigray.
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (Somali Report) — Ethiopia has significantly expanded its drone capabilities, establishing at least two domestic production facilities as experts estimate the federal military now possesses thousands of unmanned aircraft of various types.
The expansion is giving Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government greater air power as it battles armed groups across several regions, including Amhara, Oromia and Tigray.
Ethiopia became acutely aware of the military value of drones during the 2020-2022 Tigray war, when Turkish-made unmanned aircraft played a key role in helping federal forces push back Tigrayan fighters who had advanced to within roughly 200 kilometres of Addis Ababa.
Since then, Ethiopia has steadily expanded its drone fleet, purchasing more sophisticated systems while developing domestic production.
In March 2025, Abiy inaugurated SkyWin Aeronautics Industries in Addis Ababa, a factory the government says produces drones for both civilian and military applications.
State-run Ethiopian News Agency reported at the time that the drones were designed and built by Ethiopian professionals.
Abiy said the programme was intended not to fuel conflicts but to strengthen the country’s ability to deter and respond to threats.
But the true scale of Ethiopia’s domestic production remains unclear, with the government accused of restricting information and access to its drone facilities.
Pieter Wezeman of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said the display of domestically produced drones did not by itself demonstrate that Ethiopia had achieved technological self-sufficiency.
“A hall filled with shiny drones tells us little about the actual production capacity,” he said, adding that key technologies, components and equipment could still be imported.
Ethiopia has previously acquired Turkish-made Akinci and Bayraktar TB2 drones, as well as China’s Wing Loong and Iran’s Mohajer-6 systems.
Jeremy Binnie of defence intelligence firm Janes said the SW01 drone displayed at the SkyWin facility closely resembled a commercially available Chinese drone.
If produced in large numbers for the military, such systems could significantly increase the ability of ground units to conduct surveillance, identify targets and direct artillery fire, while some could also carry small bombs, he said.
A second facility, Aeroabay, opened in late 2025 and is reportedly producing thousands of small armed drones.
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Wim Zwijnenburg, a drone specialist at PAX, estimated that the systems cost between $5,000 and $10,000 each.
Most are believed to be FPV, or first-person-view, drones that allow operators to see directly through a camera mounted on the aircraft. Some can be fitted with explosives.
Several are guided through fibre-optic cables, making them more difficult to disrupt using electronic warfare systems.
Internal conflicts
The expansion comes as Ethiopia’s federal government faces armed insurgencies in several parts of the country.
The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) says federal forces have carried out 102 drone strikes in Amhara since the Fano militia uprising began in April 2023.
Drones have also been used in fighting in Oromia, the home region of Abiy.
Magnus Taylor of the International Crisis Group said drones had repeatedly been accused of causing civilian deaths.
The most serious concern is now returning to Tigray, where tensions have risen sharply and fears of a renewed war are growing.
At least 14 drone strikes have been recorded in Tigray this year, including seven in August alone, according to ACLED.
The group said the attacks appeared aimed at disrupting the mobilisation and planning of Tigrayan forces, amid allegations that the regional authorities were conducting forced recruitment.
Zwijnenburg said Ethiopian forces appeared to be using larger remotely piloted military aircraft in Tigray, capable of carrying missiles or precision-guided bombs.
The growing reliance on drones marks a major shift in Ethiopia’s military strategy, offering Addis Ababa a relatively inexpensive means of extending its reach across difficult and conflict-affected terrain while raising fresh concerns over civilian casualties and the escalation of internal wars.
About the Author
Ahmed Omar is a senior journalist for Somali Report, based in Mogadishu. He has two decades of experience reporting on Somalia for international and local media. He covers politics, security, governance, business, trade, economic developments and regional affairs.
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