IRIA News

Italian police investigators have claimed that an Italy-based defense company that provides high-tech drones to Italian Special Forces was silently and unlawfully purchased by Chinese state companies.

Italian police said Thursday they had raided a company “Alpi Aviation” which specializes in military drones. Italian police believe that the firm was illegally bought by Chinese state firms as a way of acquiring its expertise.

According to Italian police investigators, a Hong Kong-based company had bought 75% stake in the drone company at 90 times its value in 2018. Police investigators claimed that the Hong Kong-based company also had contracts with the Chinese defense ministry.

Italian police worked their way through the tiers of ownership and finally discovered that the real owners of Alpi Aviation were “two important government-owned” Chinese companies. Police investigators stated that there was an intricate web of corporate behind the purchasing company.

The police statement claimed that the sale of defense company violated Italy’s “Golden Power law”, under which “military firms, and strategic companies in critical sectors like energy and telecommunications, can only be sold outside Italy with specific permission from the government”.

A police statement stated that said the company did not notify the Italian government of the change in ownership that occurred in 2018, and the transaction was “opaque” and designed to conceal the new non-Italian ownership.

Italian police investigators claimed that Alpi Aviation had been bought by a Chinese company, not as an investment but “exclusively for the acquisition of its technological and production know-how, including military, with plans allegedly underway to transfer production facilities to the eastern Chinese city of Wuxi.”

The company produces the Strix drones at its facility in Pordenone in northern Italy. The UAV weighs approximately 10 kilograms, and has a wingspan of 3-meters, and can relay video and infrared imagery in real-time. The drone takes about 8 minutes to set up, then it can be launched by catapult, and for landing, it is equipped with a parachute. The drones made by Alpi Aviation have been used by the Italian Air Force during its missions in Afghanistan.

According to the company’s official website, Alpi Aviation develops and produces Strix-DF system to support tactical and special operations forces. The UAV provides aerial surveillance and intelligence data during all light conditions.

The company also undertakes joint research into military drones with Leonardo, the Italian state-controlled defense company, a police official said.

Italy’s tax police officer Col. Stefano Commentucci said, since Alpi Aviation was listed as a supplier for Italy’s Defense Ministry, therefore it was covered by the law. The laws cover the sale of defense and national security, and the defense company, that made drones, aircraft, and space vehicles, was subject to special checks because it supplies drones and other equipment to the Italian military.

The police statement also stated that the company also broke the law on defense exports by failing to notify the Italian government when “it temporarily exported a drone for display at a 2019 Shanghai trade fair”.

The firm listed the drone as a “model aircraft” to avoid limitations on exports set down by the law, the statement added.

However, the lawyers representing the firm denied the accusations, claiming that the managers at Alpi Aviation did not violate the Golden Power law, and the company did not break any rules on arms exports.

Lawyers of the company, Antonio Malattia and Bruno Malattia said that “Alpi Aviation, which firmly denies the company breached ‘golden power’ rules and laws on the transfer of strategic or technological information out of the country, reserves the right to safeguard its reputation”.

The company lawyers also stated that “the change of ownership was transparent and reflected the real value of the company.”

According to Ansa news agency reports, previously, the drone company had also been investigated by the Italian tax police on doubts over violating an arms embargo on selling drones to Iran.