FLIR Systems has reached an agreement to purchase Endeavor Robotics from private equity firm Arlington Capital Partners for USD385 million, with the deal expected to be finalised in the next couple of weeks.
In the 2001 National Defense Authorization Act, Congress set an objective of increasing the number of remote-controlled and unmanned systems in service with the US Army. The goal was that by 2015 a third of operational ground combat vehicles would be unmanned. However, this goal was not met. Scott Alexander reports
Russian company Uralvagonzavod (UVZ) is developing two unmanned variants of the T-72B3 main battle tank (MBT), the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on its website on 12 August.
Estonia signed an agreement with six countries on the development of the Modular Unmanned Ground Systems (MUGS), financed by the European Defence Fund (EDF), the Estonian Centre for Defence Investment (ECDI) announced in a press release on 23 August. The project, led by Estonia and including Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, and Spain, aims to develop an unmanned ground vehicle (UGV), command-and-control system, cyber defence, and integrated sensor network. MUGS will initially improve battlefield situational awareness and the efficiency of the manoeuvring and transport capabilities of units, according to the ECDI.
Rheinmetall presented the new Mission Master-Protection unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) armed with the Warmate loitering munition system at the International Defence Industry Exhibition MSPO being held in Kielce, Poland, on 3–6 September 2019, the German company announced in a press release on 3 September.
The Łukasiewicz Research Network’s PIAP Institute, teamed with the CRW Telesystem-Mesko company, unveiled a demonstrator of the ASBOP-Perkun autonomous air defence system at the International Defence Industry Exhibition MSPO being held in Kielce, Poland, from 3–6 September.
The French Armed Forces Ministry (MoD) ordered 56 Nerva and Caméléon unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) from Nexter, associated with ECA, on 26 August 2019 for the army's Scorpion programme, the Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA) – the French armament procurement agency – announced on its website on 20 September. The agency said the light UGVs would contribute to the protection of dismounted soldiers in all kinds of environments, allowing them to counter potential threats at greater ranges. Equipped with different mission modules, the UGVs will allow engineers and infantry to gather intelligence regularly, the DGA added.