Florida will provide the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) with 500 confiscated Chinese drones to be used as target practice at its headquarters in Tampa. Continue reading
MBDA Gets $413M Laser Directed Energy Weapon for UK Royal Navy
– MBDA has been awarded £316 million (USD 413M) contract to deliver new DragonFire systems to the Royal Navy from 2027, after achieving UK first in latest testing by shooting down high-speed drones with new laser system. Continue reading
Merops – the Cheap US Interceptor Drone Making Russia’s $35K Shaheds Obsolete
With plans to establish a drone wall to combat a surge in Russian UAV incursions, multiple states in NATO’s Eastern Flank are now adopting Merops, the battle-tested ‘Shahed-killer’ counter-drone system. Merops has been fast-tracked to countries like Poland and Romania, both of which are witnessing mounting drone incursions from Russia. It is reportedly also being purchased by Denmark, which has seen an uptick in unidentified drone activity. Continue reading
Shield AI and Destinus Partner to Integrate Hivemind Across Platforms in Support of European Defence
– Shield AI and Destinus have announced a strategic partnership to integrate Hivemind, Shield AI’s mission autonomy software, across Destinus’ aerial platforms. Together, the companies are creating the first scalable, cross-platform autonomy architecture jointly developed by next-generation defence leaders in Europe and the United States. Continue reading
Ukraine Scaling Up Production of Anti-Drone Amunition
Several Ukrainian defence companies are preparing to launch mass production of anti-drone rounds. Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal announced the expansion of production, saying the Ministry of Defense has already codified this type of ammunition from several Ukrainian manufacturers and that they are ready for large-scale output. Continue reading
GA-ASI Gets $10M MQ-9A Support Contract for Spain
– General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, was awarded a ceiling $9,687,497 cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price, indefinite contract for Kingdom of Spain Air and Space Force MQ-9A remotely piloted aircraft systems contract logistics support. Continue reading
US Air Force Buying $50 Million in Small Drones to Support Special Ops Missions
The United States Air Force awarded a $50 million contract for small drones to Anduril Industries last month, a move that could help transform MQ-9 Reapers into drone-launching motherships. Continue reading
Lockheed Martin Uses 5th Gen Fighter to Command Drone in Flight
– Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, with industry partners and the U.S. Air Force, controlled an unmanned aerial system (UAS) from the cockpit of a 5th Gen fighter while in flight. Continue reading