European SAO (ESAO)

European SAO Ltd, trading as ESAO (European Specialised Airborne Operations), is an aircraft operator headquartered in Zurrieq, Malta. It flies aerial data gathering missions across Europe and North Africa. ESAO is a sister company of DEA Aviation Ltd in the UK.

ESAO holds EASA Part-SPO (specialised operations) and Part-CAMO approvals from Transport Malta Civil Aviation Directorate. Its website says it is working toward an Air Operator Certificate (AOC). Its work is backed by its own aircraft management, maintenance and engineering teams and an independently audited compliance and safety team.

Services

• Airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR)
• Aerial survey, including LiDAR survey
• Flight inspection, flight calibration and flight path validation
• Specialist commercial air transport, including air taxi, charter, cargo and dangerous goods

Who it is for

ESAO supports government agencies, businesses and other organisations. Its data is used for security, law enforcement, migration, transport and commercial development work.

Technology

ESAO fits its aircraft with its own sensor and data systems and builds custom setups for each customer. Its in-house teams cover:

• Bespoke software engineering
• High bandwidth data links, including managed satellite communications and video transport
• Live mission monitoring, with real time health checks of systems in the air and on the ground
• Geospatial data processing, security and encryption

Fleet

ESAO flies a fleet of efficient, flexible and modern aircraft for special missions. Its website shows Diamond DA42 aircraft among them.

Contact

European SAO Ltd, Baldacchino Building, Level 1, Valletta Road, Zurrieq ZRQ 9011, Malta. Phone: +356 2702 9034. Operations mobile: +356 7716 6413. Email: contact@esao.aero. Sales: sales@esao.aero. Operations: operations@esao.aero.