From helmets to guided weapons

Global Industrial & Defence Solutions was founded in Rawalpindi in 2007, a state-owned consortium of seven companies set up to make Pakistan less dependent on imported arms. It began with the basics: general-purpose bombs, depth charges, grenades, helmets and body armour. Within a decade it had moved on to guidance kits for old bombs, anti-tank and shoulder-fired missiles, and a beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, and today it calls itself Pakistan’s largest defence manufacturer.

The Shahpar family

Its aviation story is unmanned. The Shahpar, a canard pusher drone with a sensor turret built near Islamabad, entered service with the Pakistan Air Force and Army in 2013; according to an engineer of its partner AERO, only the engine and tyres were imported. The Shahpar-II, shown at the Pakistan Day parade on 23 March 2021, added two hardpoints for laser-guided weapons, and Reuters reported that Pakistani sources confirmed its use in the 2025 India–Pakistan conflict.

Shahpar-III

At the IDEAS exhibition in Karachi in November 2024 GIDS unveiled the much larger Shahpar-III, claimed to stay up for 30 hours and carry up to 1,650 kg. Chief executive Asad Kamal called it the culmination of 30 years of hard work. The company also builds the Uqab and Sarkash drones, and exports to the Middle East and Africa.

Mensen

• Asad Kamal · chief executive