Service center for Chinese drones will be created in Serbia

15 November, 2024 A CH-92A drone. Photo credits: Serbian Ministry of Defense A service center for Chinese drones manufactured by Aerospace Long-March International (ALIT) will be established in Serbia.

RTV reported about this. Branislav Lucic, Director of the Utva Aviation Plant, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chinese company ALIT at the Chinese Aviation Fair in Zhuhai. In the future, the UAV Maintenance Center will also service Serbian-made Vrabac and Pegaz drones.

A Serbian-made Vrabac UAV.

Photo credits: Wikipedia/Sokolrus

ALIT and Utva will be jointly presented at third markets to find drone users in Serbia. Serbia already operates Chinese CH-92A strike drones, which were publicly demonstrated in 2020.

A CH-92A drone.

Photo credits: Serbian Ministry of Defense

The country became the first known customer of this drone by signing a purchase agreement with the Chinese side in 2018. China will also help Serbia develop the Pegaz drone. Utva CEO Branislav Lucic said that the signed memorandum would bring lasting benefits not only to both organizations, but also to both countries.

"This is a big step for us, and we believe that the service will become a center of innovation, customer support and efficient service delivery. The expertise and knowledge that ALIT brings to the table will ensure that this center will operate to the highest standards, creating value not only for our company but also for the wider market," he said. The Serbian aircraft manufacturer Utva is located in the city of Pancevo.

Its main products are light, sport and training aircraft. Aircraft such as the Utva 75, Utva 76, and Lasta 95 are used by the military pilots from a number of countries for initial flight training. The new products being developed by the company are unmanned aerial vehicles, and the aforementioned Vrabac and Pegaz are manufactured there.

A Serbian Lasta 95 trainer aircraft.

Photo credits: avionslegendaires.net

Another area of the plant's operations is aircraft repair, which is a relatively new industry for it, but allows it to maintain employment of specialists at the enterprise.

According to Scramble, it was here that the Mi-35 attack helicopters purchased from Cyprus were serviced and repaired, although before that, the maintenance and repair of military aircraft was carried out at Moma Stanoilovich.