Silentium Defense announced the appointment of Matthew Ratnesar as Chief Executive Officer, North America and the establishment of the company’s new U.S. headquarters in Apex, North Carolina. The move signals Silentium Defense’s expansion into the U.S. defence market at a moment when current global conflicts are exposing critical vulnerabilities in traditional radar and air defence systems. The company is continuing to build its U.S. presence to meet rising demand for passive sensing capabilities that support counter-UAS, integrated air and missile defence, and space domain awareness missions.
Ratnesar brings more than three decades of experience across U.S. Army Special Forces, defense technology, cyber, federal acquisition, and executive leadership. He has served as Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology/Operating Officer of defence technology organizations supporting U.S. defence and intelligence customers, with a focus on enterprise transformation, governance reform and scaling mission-critical capabilities into operational environments. In his role as Silentium Defense’s Chief Executive Officer, North America, Ratnesar is responsible for further establishing and leading the U.S. business, strengthening governance, security and operational readiness, along with expanding the company’s role within North American operational environments.
“Silentium has spent years building and proving passive radar capabilities that are now operationally deployed across defence environments. We are now advancing our U.S. operations to strengthen support for existing programs and broaden access to these proven capabilities across the U.S. defence ecosystem.,” said Dr. James Palmer, Global CEO of Silentium Defence. “Matthew’s background in the Special Forces and leadership in defence technology means he has navigated the environments our systems operate in and the standards that U.S. customers require. His appointment is central to our ambition to become the leading provider of passive radar across U.S. and allied defence markets.”
Ratnesar said the appointment came at a critical moment for the sensing technology sector. “Current global conflicts have exposed real vulnerabilities in traditional air defence architectures, and the rapid proliferation of drone-based threats is accelerating demand for exactly what Silentium delivers. Silentium is capable and has a strong delivery record with a clear path to scale here in the U.S. My focus is to build the operational foundation and institutional relationships required to meet that demand.”
Silentium Defence was established in 2017 by co-founders Dr. James Palmer and Simon Palumbo, who commercialized more than a decade of passive radar research into operational, deployable products. The company’s MAVERICK and OMNIGUARD passive radar systems are scalable from lightweight tactical units to wide-field strategic sensors, delivering covert surveillance across land, sea, air and space without emitting signals, requiring spectrum allocation or revealing operator position.
Silentium’s technology has been delivered under the Australian Defence Force’s AIR6500 Joint Air Battle Management System, selected under the LAND 156 counter-drone program and is in active use across U.S. and allied defence and government customers internationally.
Silentium has secured multiple U.S. contracts and is poised for sustained growth across counter-UAS, integrated air and missile defence and space domain awareness missions. In the coming months, Silentium Defense will continue to expand across allied defence markets in response to growing demand for advanced passive sensing capability.
For Editorial Inquiries Contact:
Editor Kym Bergmann at [email protected]
For Advertising Inquiries Contact:
Group Sales Director Simon Hadfield at [email protected]
