APDR News in Brief 09 October 2026

Arkeus Warden Hyperspectral Optical Radar enters army service: Arkeus said  Warden Hyperspectral Optical Radar (HSOR) will enter service with the Australian Army to provide comprehensive wide-area domain awareness for the Army’s Integrator UAS as a part of the Tactical Uncrewed Aerial System (TUAS) Program, strengthening Army’s ability to generate complete domain awareness across land and littoral environments. The capability will support Army commanders to detect, understand and respond across larger areas of the battlespace, improving situational awareness and contributing to decision superiority in complex operating environments. Following down-selection in November 2025, where Warden outperformed advanced sensing technologies from around the world, Arkeus has worked closely with the Australian Army and Insitu Pacific to rapidly integrate, test and validate the Warden on the Australian Army Integrator UAS. With the completion of that process, the Australian Army confirmed acquisition of the first tranche of Warden systems for deployment with the Army’s (TUAS), being delivered and sustained by Insitu Pacific. Warden will be mounted on Insitu Pacific Integrator Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS). Arkeus has been collaborating with Insitu Pacific for a number of years to bring enhanced domain awareness to their Integrator Air Vehicles. Anduril, US Navy invest $6.6 billion to expand submarine industrial base: The US announced Arsenal-2, a new software-defined shipyard backed by a $3.7 billion private capital investment by Anduril Industries. The facility will manufacture critical components for the Virginia-class submarine, adding significant new capacity to America’s submarine industrial base in support of the Navy’s effort to increase attack submarine production. The U.S. Navy has awarded Anduril a contract of up to $2.9 billion, with payments tied directly to demonstrated production outcomes. Arsenal-2 will build complex components and large scale assemblies of the Virginia-class submarine and deliver them to Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding for final assembly. Adding another source of this work will allow more submarine construction to happen in parallel across the industrial base and increase the overall capacity available to the Virginia-class program. Arsenal-2 will be built at Tradepoint Atlantic in Baltimore County, Maryland, where the project will create 3,100 direct jobs support more than 10,000 indirect jobs. The site will drive $2 billion in annual economic output, including an estimated $312 million in wages each year. Permitting and site preparation will begin immediately, with construction commencing as soon as the necessary approvals are in place. Initial operations are expected to come online in 2030, with production scaling progressively thereafter as Anduril builds the workforce, supplier base, infrastructure, and manufacturing throughput required for submarine production. SYPAQ unveils Corvo Vipera tube-launched ISR platform: SYPAQ Systems announced the launch of Corvo Vipera, a compact, tube-launched Small Uncrewed Aerial System (SUAS) designed to provide rapid Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities across the modern battlespace. Derived from the Italian word for “Viper”, the name Vipera reflects the system’s key attributes: fast deployment, agile, precise and ready to provide operators with a decisive tactical advantage when it matters most. Corvo Vipera delivers real-time situational awareness within seconds of deployment, enabling informed decision-making while reducing personnel exposure to threats. Capable of launch from ground vehicles, surface vessels, or by dismounted operators, Corvo Vipera combines operational flexibility with advanced autonomous capabilities. Its innovative folding-boom quadcopter architecture is housed within a compact launch tube, allowing rapid deployment and immediate mission execution in challenging environments. The platform incorporates modular payload and communications subsystems, enabling mission-specific configuration across a wide range of operational requirements. Corvo Vipera’s adaptable command and control architecture supports both mesh IP RF networking and optical fibre tethered communications, providing resilient connectivity and low-signature operation in contested and electronically denied environments. Built upon SYPAQ’s combat-proven avionics, software and sensing technologies, Corvo Vipera provides operators with enhanced battlespace awareness, autonomous functionality and mission-ready performance in demanding operational conditions. ArianeGroup announces successful acceptance test of the M51 strategic missile: On October 6, 2026, the French Defence Procurement and Technology Agency (DGA) and the French Navy, with the support of ArianeGroup, the industrial prime contractor for the M51 missile system, successfully carried out the acceptance test launch of an M51 strategic sea-to-land ballistic missile from the nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) Le Vigilant, off the coast of Finistère. This is the first launch of the strategic missile in its M51.3 version from a nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN). This acceptance test follows the entry into operational service of the third version of the M51 missile, developed and deployed by ArianeGroup, in October 2025. ArianeGroup is the industrial prime contractor for the M51 strategic missile of the French oceanic deterrent force (FOST), on behalf of the DGA. This was the first launch of the M51.3 version of the strategic missile from a nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN). This acceptance test follows the entry into operational service of the third version of the M51 missile, developed and deployed by ArianeGroup, in October 2025. This test, carried out using a missile without a nuclear warhead, was primarily intended to validate the capability of the nuclear ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) Le Vigilant and its crew to launch M51 strategic missiles under operational conditions. IMSAR announces investment from OceanSound Partners: IMSAR announced the completion of a strategic investment from OceanSound Partners, a  private equity firm that invests in technology and technology-enabled services companies serving aerospace, defence, government, and highly regulated end markets. Ryan Smith, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of IMSAR, will continue to lead the company and has retained significant ownership interest alongside the management team. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Springville, Utah, IMSAR develops synthetic aperture radar that delivers all-weather, day-and-night imaging, moving target indication, and change detection in conditions that degrade optical and infrared sensors, across areas far wider than a gimbal-mounted camera’s field of view. The company’s NSP-series radars, onboard processing, and Lisa 3D mission software are integrated on more than 100 unmanned and manned platforms worldwide, spanning Group 2 through Group 5 unmanned aircraft, including the Shield AI V-BAT, AV Jump 20, Textron Aerosonde, Tekever AR3 and AR5, Insitu ScanEagle, and Integrator, as well as light manned ISR aircraft. IMSAR supports U.S. Navy and U.S. Army requirements and equips allied ministries of defense across Europe, the Indo-Pacific and the Americas. IMSAR’s radars are compact, pod-mounted payloads that install through a single connector carrying power, Ethernet, and navigation data, avoiding the custom radomes and airframe modifications competing systems require, and can be removed or exchanged in minutes. Nearly all of the underlying technology, from the electronically scanned antenna to the Lisa 3D operator software, is developed in-house. ADF strengthens regional security through exercise Bersama Lima 2026: Australia has joined Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom for Exercise Bersama Lima 2026. Hosted by Singapore, Bersama Lima brings together Five Power Defence Arrangements nations to train maritime, air and land forces in combined and joint operations across a range of security scenarios, strengthening preparedness, interoperability and collective resilience. Australia’s participation demonstrates the practical application of the 2026 National Defence Strategy by strengthening regional partnerships, enhancing collective deterrence and building the integrated warfighting interoperability required to respond to crises and conflict across the Indo-Pacific. A contingent of around 220 Australian Defence Force personnel, Royal Australian Navy replenishment ship HMAS Stalwart with its embarked MH-60R helicopter and Royal Australian Air Force F-35A Lightning II strike fighter and P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft will participate in the exercise this year. The exercise provides an opportunity for the ADF to integrate maritime, air, land and information capabilities with partner nations, sharpening the procedures and relationships required to employ military force effectively in a modern operational environment. Birdon cuts first metal for next-generation AV-L prototype: Australian-owned maritime engineering company Birdon has cut metal on the Amphibious Vehicle – Logistics (AV-L) prototype for the Australian Army at its Port Macquarie facility. The milestone marks the program’s transition into production under Birdon’s $125 million contract to test one prototype and following successful testing of the prototype, deliver 15 production vehicles as part of the Australian Army’s LAND 8710 Littoral Manoeuvre Program. The new fleet will replace the Army’s ageing Lighter Amphibious Resupply Cargo Vehicle, known as the LARC-V. Designed and built in Australia, the AV-L will provide a step change in the movement of personnel, equipment and supplies between ship and shore, including across beaches, surf zones and difficult coastal terrain. Birdon Chief Executive Officer Jamie Bruce said cutting metal for the AV-L prototype marked an important milestone for the program and Australia’s sovereign defence industrial capability. This milestone signifies the transition of years of engineering, operational research and design development into the production environment,” Bruce said. “This is an Australian-designed capability being built by a highly skilled workforce for the conditions our Defence Force may face across Australia and the Indo-Pacific. “It demonstrates that nationally significant and technically complex Defence capability can be developed and delivered from regional Australia.” SkySight to develop specialised weather forecasting: SkySight Weather has been selected by MORSE Corp to provide specialised weather forecasting services in support of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s Albatross program. The Albatross program seeks to develop effective autonomous aircraft soaring capabilities as evaluated via real-world flight testing. As a subcontractor to MORSE Corp, SkySight will deliver tailored soaring weather forecasts, flight path planning, and weather intelligence to support program planning and operations. The work draws on SkySight’s experience producing high-resolution thermal, ridge and wave forecasts for the weather-sensitive soaring communities and specialized icing and turbulence forecasts for broader aviation communities. “We are pleased to be supporting MORSE Corp and the Albatross team on a unique program where an accurate understanding of soaring weather conditions is critical,” said Matthew Scutter, Founder of SkySight. “This project is a strong fit for our forecasting technology and our experience turning complex weather data into actionable soaring guidance, using our novel Route Forecast tool.” SkySight provides high-resolution weather forecasting and atmospheric modelling services for soaring, aviation, research and emerging aerospace applications. MILLIBEAM’s RAKURAI wins Emerging Technology Award: Australian startup MILLIBEAM has won the Emerging Technology Award at the Land Forces 2026 Innovation Pitchfest and Awards for its next-generation, sovereign counter-uncrewed aerial system (C-UAS), RAKURAI, built on proprietary, world-first radio frequency (RF) architecture. The award recognises technologies that demonstrate a clear understanding of customer needs, a competitive advantage driven by innovation, and a viable market. RAKURAI delivers on all three. Drones have become one of the deadliest threats both on the modern battlefield and domestically. Western officials estimate they now cause 70 to 80 per cent of military casualties in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with many costing only a few hundred US dollars each. Yet current dismounted C-UAS systems are typically operated at platoon level by a single specialist and are expected to protect up to 30 people. A soldier separated from that operator, or a platoon whose operator goes down, is left exposed. Closing this gap requires every soldier to be equipped with C-UAS capability, but today’s handheld C-UAS systems weigh 2 to 7 kg and run for under an hour. This is too heavy for soldiers already carrying around 50 kg worth of kit, and too costly to issue at scale. RAKURAI is designed to address these specific needs, moving beyond conventional systems that are assembled from catalogue components that cap weight, power and band coverage. MILLIBEAM achieves this by co-designing the chips, antennas, power electronics and signal processing as a single, integrated system, removing the losses that make catalogue-built systems heavy and expensive. The result is a sovereign capability that is lightweight (sub-1 kg), delivers more than two hours of continuous operation, an effective operational range beyond 1 km, and wide-band coverage from 0.4 to 6 GHz. DSTA partners with GRASP lab on multirobot systems: Singapore’s Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) has announced a partnership with the University of Pennsylvania’s General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Perception (GRASP) Laboratory to advance innovation in multi-robot systems. Present-day multi-robot systems, which involve a group of robots working as a team to accomplish tasks, rely on stable communication to plan, coordinate and execute their missions. Dynamic and complex environments such as urban landscapes can disrupt critical cross-robot communication. This collaboration aims to develop resilient autonomy techniques, enabling diverse robot teams to successfully complete missions in such environments. With the increased deployment of multi-robot systems, tasking and managing these heterogeneous systems imposes a high cognitive load on human operators. To ease this burden, the partnership will also research and develop edge-optimised agentic AI solutions capable of autonomously translating high-level human objectives and goals into human-approved task plans onboard the robotics platforms. This will enable human operators to supervise missions more effectively, safely and efficiently. For Editorial Inquiries Contact: Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected] For Advertising Inquiries Contact: Group Sales Director Simon Hadfield at [email protected]