Egypt’s HAMZA-3 kamikaze drone can fly 1,100 miles and fake a jet’s radar signature

The HAMZA-3 has a trick most kamikaze drones don’t: modular Lüneberg lenses that inflate its radar cross-section to mimic a fighter jet. Enemy air defense systems burn through expensive interceptor missiles on a drone that costs a fraction of the aircraft it pretends to be.

• The fact: Egypt’s state-owned Arab Organization for Industrialization (AOI) unveiled the HAMZA-3 long-range kamikaze drone at World Defense Show 2026 in Riyadh. The prototype on display has been flight- and targeting-tested.
• The delta: Some subsystems were imported from China, with plans to localize full production in Egypt. AOI rushed to complete HAMZA-3 after it wasn’t ready for Egypt’s own EDEX show in December.
• The impact: Egypt is already exporting 20 Hamza drones to an unnamed African country before serial production even begins.

The HAMZA-3 fills the gap between FPV kamikaze drones and cruise missiles

The HAMZA-3 is a flying-wing design with no tail, a carbon fiber body, and a maximum takeoff weight of 210 kg (463 lbs). It carries a 50 kg (110 lb) warhead up to 1,800 km (1,118 miles), powered by a 40-horsepower gasoline engine. Maximum speed is 220 km/h (137 mph) with a ceiling of 5,000 meters and endurance of up to 10 hours, Breaking Defense reports.

Navigation relies on GPS, China’s Beidou satellite system, and an inertial backup. An AI-powered homing head handles image recognition, while a dedicated antenna resists electronic jamming. Control can be fully autonomous or manual through an encrypted video link up to 250 km (155 miles). The drone also supports swarm operations. “It identifies moving targets, and has swarming capabilities,” an AOI official told Breaking Defense.

The dual radar trick is what sets it apart. A radio-absorbing coating provides stealth, while the Lüneberg lenses can be attached to deliberately look like a manned jet on enemy radar. The goal: force air defense batteries into wasting million-dollar missiles on expendable drones.

Egypt is building an entire drone family with Chinese and Turkish partners

AOI signed a deal with China’s NORINCO at EDEX 2025 to co-produce the Hamza-2, an armed surveillance drone based on the ASN-209 platform. Egypt and Turkey also signed a framework for joint Hamza drone production. AOI is sourcing from both countries, assembling domestically, and lining up export customers before production lines are running.

DroneXL’s Take

We’ve covered dozens of kamikaze drones, from Britain’s Modini Dart 250 to the long-range systems in Sudan and the Pentagon’s billion-dollar Drone Dominance Program. Most kamikaze drones try to be invisible. This one can choose to be loud. A radar return that looks like a Su-35 but is actually a cheap expendable drone forces a terrible decision: fire an expensive missile or gamble it’s a decoy. Mix a swarm of these with stealthy ones, and you have a saturation problem that even the Pentagon admits it’s not ready for.

The Chinese supply chain angle matters. Beidou navigation, NORINCO partnerships, imported subsystems. Egypt is building a drone industry fast and cheap, with whatever partners get it there quickest. Expect at least three more Middle Eastern and North African countries to announce similar co-production deals by end of 2026.

Editorial Note: AI tools were used to assist with research and archive retrieval for this article. All reporting, analysis, and editorial perspectives are by Haye Kesteloo.