Europe

The Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) has completed a successful firing of Rafael's SPIKE LR missiles in a demonstration in Slovenia, December 2020. During the demonstration, the Slovenian Army also fired SPIKE missiles using the new dismounted digital SPIKE launcher ICLU. Both launchers includes a provision for the use of the more advanced SPIKE LR2.

Rheinmetall Defence unveiled today a new armed reconnaissance mission module for their Mission-Master Autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicle (A-UGV). The new mission module includes an intelligence-gathering multi-sensor pack and a remotely controlled weapon station. The system takes the Mission Master a step closer to Rheinmetall’s fully autonomous ‘Wolfpack’ concept

The Royal Air Force (RAF), in partnership with Leonardo, successfully conducted a live trial of a ‘swarming drones’ capability targeting a simulated enemy air defense radar. The demonstration showed how a swarm of BriteCloud-equipped drones overwhelmed the threat radar systems with electronic noise.

The SkyLord family employs XTend’s edge technology with cognitive skills to safely perform dangerous missions. The system uses augmented reality (AR) guidance and control technology to enable an operator to perform complex missions with great ease and precision, using an AR vision system and a single-handed controller. This telepresence interface enables operators to immerse themselves and “step into” a remote reality and engage targets effectively yet safely.

ECA has added an Unmanned Rotorcraft to the Belgian-Dutch MCM Program. The drone will join other unmanned systems organized in a 'Toolbox', that represents the ECA Group integrated MCM capability of the Belgian-Dutch navies. The Toolbox consists of the integrated operation of remotely controlled and autonomous aerial, surface, and underwater systems.

Milrem Robotics company from Estonia has developed a Robotic Combat Vehicle (RCV) known as Type-X, introducing new and exciting manned-unmanned capabilities to modern combat. "Milrem Robotics plans to complete the vehicle prototype by the end of the 3rd quarter of 2020 and begin mobility testing in October." Kuldar Väärsi, Milrem CEO said.

The Spanish electronics consortium Indra announced it will lead the CROWN research and development project to develop and equip European fighters and other aircraft with a combined, software-defined radar, communications, and electronic defense enabling future aircraft to dominate the radioelectronic space.

In a recent firing series held in South Africa, the German-South African joint-venture Rheinmetall Denel Munitions (RDM) demonstrated a dramatic increase in the range of its artillery firepower. The demonstration employed three 155 mm cannons with 52 and 39 caliber lengths, which scored three world records - firing at ranges of 76, 67 and 54 km.

Dozens of unmanned underwater, surface and air vehicles from NATO countries have gathered in Portugal for two weeks in September, testing new technological advances in unmanned maritime systems networks. To beef up its Port defense capability the Portuguese Navy invited IAI to bring its Drone-Guard C-UAS system that provided unprecedented situational awareness and drone defeat capability during the exercise.

Babcock Team 31 has been selected by the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) as the preferred bidder to deliver its new warships. Led by Aerospace and Defence company Babcock, in partnership with the Thales Group, the T31 general-purpose frigate program will deliver the Royal Navy with five light frigates, at an average production cost of £250 million per ship. The first ship is scheduled for launch in 2023. The ships follow Babcocks's Arrowhead 140 design, balancing between global mission capability in blue or white waters, both at an affordable cost. Work on the fleet of five ships will begin immediately following formal contract award later this financial year, with detailed design work to start now and manufacture commencing in 2021 and concluding in 2027.

The UK Ministry of Defence has chosen Leonardo/Thales protection system to protect the RAF Shadow ISTAR fleet. This single-source selection by the MOD follows the recent SALT III international trials hosted by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration in Sweden. There, the integrated Miysis/Elix-IR system, using a jamming waveform developed by the UK MOD’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, proved its ability to defeat Infra-Red missiles in live-fire exercises.

Supacat, Rheinmetall Defence and SCISYS have partnered to showcase at DSEI 2019 the ‘High Mobility Integrated Fires Capability’. Supacat also demonstrates a hybrid, optionally manned autonomous ATMP developed in cooperation with te University of Exeter

Rheinmetall has partnered with WB GROUP of Poland to provide dismounted troops with high precision strike capabilities using loitering munitions, by integrating Rheinmetall's 8x8 all-terrain Mission Master UGV with WB's WARMATE Loitering Munition System.

MBDA provided today a fresh vision of future air warfare. A range of future weapons presented by the company at Paris Air Show 2019, to illustrate the weapons that the Franco-German Future Combat Air System (FCAS) and Britain’s Tempest would carry by 2030-2040.