GBAD - The return of 'FOBS'

[Kirkhill]

Counter-drone system to protect British bases

The Ministry of Defence is investing £240 million in Project PRESAGIUM, an enhanced counter-drone system intended to detect and defeat emerging drone threats.

ukdefencejournal.org.uk

For our military bases? How about for civilian infrastructure and what role will 2nd Division play?

 

[Kirkhill]

Lockheed Martin wins $1.32 billion AIR6500 contract to link Australia’s air and missile defenses with allied forces across the Indo-Pacific

Australia has awarded Lockheed Martin Australia an A$1.32 billion contract to advance and sustain its AIR6500 Joint Air Battle Management System.

defence-industry.eu

I assume this type of cost is or will be managed by ourselves or the Americans through existing or planned investments in NORAD as part of our own IAMD efforts.

 

[Kirkhill]

This one makes sense.

All under arty command.

Sgt Stout M-SHORADs integrated with Howitzers to keep the Howitzers in the fight.

U.S. Army Deploys SGT STOUT Air Defense Vehicle to Shield Howitzers From Drone Strikes

SGT STOUT's air defense vehicle protects US Army artillery from enemy drones in Germany, helping preserve firing tempo and reduce costly battlefield displacement.

www.armyrecognition.com

Essentially the howitzers become fixed infrastructure defended by CUAS artillery netted in with external radars and intelligence.

 

[Kirkhill]

The next step would be to replace the howitzers with SAMs, SSMs, BMAs and CPs.

A lot of Sgt Stout troops.

 

[Kirkhill]

38th Regiment Received Skyguard/Aspide Air Defense Missile Systems

The 38th Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment, named after General-Horunzhy Yuriy Tyutyunnik, has received the Italian-Swiss Skyguard/Aspide air defense missile

militarnyi.com

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2332073630882914

The video is probably best considered with the sound off and lots of pausing......

Observations

An amazing number of types of anti-aircraft systems grouped under one command - everything from M2s in Pickups and Quadcopter Interceptors through UAVs, ManPADS and Medium cannons to SHORAD SAMs. Presumably sectoral responsibility is more important than weapons type.

The operators seem to be older and well fed.

A couple of shots of the reloading operation of a multi-cell SAMs launcher.

 

[Kirkhill]

And in the UK, the continued commercialization of defence.

In the North Atlantic the RN is hiring companies with sensor systems to keep them apprised of the situation.
The Army is hiring companies with sensor systems to keep them apprised of the UAS situation over its bases - a passive, non-deployable asset.

In both cases the effectors are considered separately and engagements are handled by the MOD.

Halo Shield: Passive drone detection for Army bases gets off the ground amid growing threats

Project Halo Shield has seen one of the first passive counter-drone detection systems deployed at a British Army base in Warminster

www.forcesnews.com

 

[Kirkhill]

Interesting concept from the Poles.

A system for launching Quadcopter Interceptors that puts it on a frame comparable to the C6 and the CG84. Bipod mounted, shoulder fired, line of site engagement.

Section or Platoon level.

Poland Unveils MAKO X1 Man-Portable Counter-UAS System

Polish companies WZL-2 and Blackfish have presented the MAKO X1 man-portable counter-drone launcher.

militarnyi.com

 

[Kirkhill]

A sense of the scale of the problem/opportunity

Former Estonian president: Not enough air defense in the world to meet Ukraine's needs

Former President Kersti Kaljulaid told ERR that defense industry representatives say there is currently not enough air defense equipment in the entire world to meet Ukraine's needs and the situation for Ukrainians has deteriorated.

news.err.ee

I am double posting this on the Ukrainian politics thread.

 

[Kirkhill]

Moog RiWP turret for Boxer

4x Stinger 70mm
16x APKWS II 70mm
1x XM914 30x113mm
1x M240 7.62mm

Air defence turret shown on Boxer for the first time

Moog has shown an air defence mission module for the Boxer 8x8 vehicle at Defence Vehicle Dynamics, the first time its Reconfigurable Integrated weapons Platform has been fitted to the wheeled platform. #DVD2026

ukdefencejournal.org.uk

 

[Kirkhill]

NATO moving on from QRA aircraft.

"The revised framework includes

QRA fighter jets,
surface-based air defense systems,
counter-drone equipment such as mobile firing teams and helicopters,
and next-generation sensors

that individual allies are contributing for placement under NATO command."

NATO is shifting from air policing to a new ‘360-degree’ defense as drone and missile threats grow, official says

NATO's new approach to its air defense operations comes amid a sharp rise in Russian drone incursions into allied airspace this year.

www.businessinsider.com

Coming soon to NORAD?

 

[Kirkhill]

For the Counter-Drone mobile firing teams - Slinger

Ukrainian Armed Forces Receive Australian 30-mm Slinger Anti-Drone Modules

The Ukrainian military has received and is already deploying Australian Slinger C-UAS remotely controlled anti-drone modules.

militarnyi.com

 

[Kirkhill]

In this environment, when does a training system become an operational command and control system?

Calian partners with Ukrainian tech and defence company SkyFall for drone training

Calian Group Ltd. has signed a deal to form a partnership with Ukrainian technology and defence company SkyFall that will focus on defence training.

www.bnnbloomberg.ca

 

[Kirkhill]

The Aussie Slinger's Yankee competitor - ACS Bullfrog.

Drone-busting tech startup adds robot machine-gun factory in Austin, office in Silicon Valley

The expansions nearly quadruples the company's manufacturing footprint in Austin while dipping into California's pool of tech engineering talent.

finance.yahoo.com

 

[Kirkhill]

IAMD/GBAD

NATO drills new layered air defence over Romania

NATO has carried out a multinational air and missile defence exercise over Romania as the Alliance shifts from traditional air policing towards a broader system designed to counter aircraft, drones and cruise and ballistic missiles.

ukdefencejournal.org.uk

"NATO has carried out a multinational air and missile defence exercise over Romania as the Alliance shifts from traditional air policing towards a broader system designed to counter aircraft, drones and cruise and ballistic missiles,​

"The Flexible Deterrent Option training on 9 September brought together fighter and tanker aircraft from France, Greece, Romania, Spain and Türkiye, alongside NATO Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft and a tanker from the Multinational MRTT Unit.

"The main focus was Integrated Air and Missile Defence, with the participating forces also conducting Close Air Support training with Romanian ground forces."

....

"The new framework is intended to cover threats including conventional aircraft, uncrewed aerial systems, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, using sensors, command-and-control systems, fighters and other capabilities as parts of a single integrated network."

...

Blue Force

"NATO’s Combined Air Operations Centre at Torrejón in Spain oversaw the activity, providing operational-level command and control while coordinating aircraft and supporting capabilities across the exercise."

(Torrejon is 2500 km from Romania's Black Sea coast - equivalent to the distance from Winnipeg to the Atlantic).

...

Red Force

"NATO AWACS aircraft acted as the principal command-and-control element for the “Red” force, directing tanker aircraft and coordinating with Romanian forces on the ground."

 

[HavokFour]

New kid on the block. They're getting faster,

https://twitter.com/x/status/2101275674413535360

 

[Kirkhill]

Reloading SkyRanger - automatic ammunition resupply

Skyranger Air Defense System to Receive Rheinmetall’s Automatic Reloading System

Rheinmetall is developing a dedicated vehicle for the automatic reloading of Skyranger SAM systems.

militarnyi.com

 

[Kirkhill]

New automatic gun turrets successfully down first Russian jet-powered drones, Air Force says

President Volodymyr Zelensky previously announced that twelve such turrets had been installed where Russian jet-powered drones have been particularly active, including around Kyiv.

kyivindependent.com

 

[GR66]

General Dynamics puts U.S. Army drone defense on a pickup

General Dynamics Land Systems will show a version of its M-SHORAD Increment 4 air defense system mounted on a Ford Ranger pickup truck at the Association of the U.S. Army annual meeting in Washington, D.C., which runs October 12 to

defence-blog.com

General Dynamics will be displaying a pick-up truck mounted M-SHORAD system in Washington this month.

What I find particularly interesting is the palletized mounting system:

The company describes the system as built around a Self-Loading Equipment Dock, or SLED, a self-contained pallet that can be loaded onto different vehicles. It comes in light, medium and heavy variants that carry weapons and sensors on several types of remote weapon stations, which let crews aim and fire from inside or away from the vehicle.


General Dynamics said the system is meant to provide air defense for the U.S. Army’s Mobile Brigade Combat Team, works with the service’s command-and-control systems and can fight drones either on its own or as part of a wider network.

The design follows the path the U.S. Army set for Increment 4. The service first asked industry for ideas in May 2024, seeking air defense for dismounted troops that could fly on a C-130 transport, be dropped by parachute and be carried under a helicopter. In 2025, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George approved the requirements document for the program.

At last year’s AUSA meeting, the Army’s air and missile defense requirements officer, Col. Marc Pelini, described the sled approach as a move away from a fully integrated vehicle toward a pallet that could go in the back of an Infantry Squad Vehicle, a Humvee, a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or even a civilian-style pickup.

A follow-up U.S. Army request for information in March 2026 set out the requirements in more detail. The SLED must keep working when removed from its vehicle, and the vehicle must return to full use once the SLED comes off. The system is to counter small and medium drones, along with fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters supporting enemy ground troops.