Anti-drone (Counter-drone)

The director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has joined a chorus of voices urging Congress to take steps to maintain or expand the counter-drone capacities of US security authorities, backing up his urging with revelations of the agency’s ongoing investigations into UAVs being equipped to transport homemade bombs.

Although not ready for deployment just yet, a new UK anti-drone weapon known as DragonFire has delivered some impressive results in testing at the very time people in Ukraine are hoping for new tech capable of neutralizing the brutal missile and UAV attacks on the nation’s cities.

Leading smart airspace security company Dedrone is integrating Axis Communication cameras into its counter-UAV command and control platform, adding multi-sensor visual assets to its array of artificial intelligence- and machine learning-enhanced tech.

Switzerland delivered more bad news for fans of counter-drone raptor action – but a welcome development for animal rights activists – with the announcement by police in Geneva that two eagles trained to take out drones in flight are being reassigned to other duties.

Leading airspace protection company Dedrone is broadening the range of activity of its drone detection and identification tech into everyday circumstances by teaming up with Johnson Controls, a specialist in building and venue safety services.

Counter-UAV detection and mitigation specialist Dedrone has unveiled its new hand-held DedroneDefender solution for effectively jamming invasive craft in urban environments.

Ukraine officials aghast at Moscow’s merciless aerial attacks on the nation’s cities and civilian targets take note: US airspace security and protection specialist Fortem Technologies has upgraded its DroneHunter F700 anti-UAV system to more effectively defeat even larger and faster Group 3 craft like Russian Orlan-10s and Iranian Shahed-136s.

Moves are afoot in Congress to pass legislation replacing existing laws expiring October 5 authorizing the identification and mitigation of drones posing security threats. Yet a new House of Representatives bill aiming to do that reportedly falls well short of the robust proposals circulated by the White House earlier this year.

Just about the time Iranian drones supplied to Russia began appearing in the skies over Ukraine last week, press reports surfaced purporting a company in Israel is moving to step around the nation’s formal refusal to take sides in the conflict by ushering anti-UAV defense systems to Kyiv using Poland as an intermediary.

Ahead of Thursday night’s kickoff of the National Football League’s (NFL) 2022 season, officials stepped up to reiterate concerns about the looming expiration of legislation that allows a limited number of federal agencies to take out drones invading airspaces or otherwise posing threats during large events.

Counter-drone specialists D-Fend Solutions and Liteye Systems are coming together in a new partnership to improve rouge drone detection and broaden operator response to threats. Their combined capability will allow for multiple detection options and an in-depth defense mechanism, with responses tailored to specific scenarios.

Police officers in England’s south coast city of Bournemouth confiscated at least seven drones operating illegally within the no-fly zone established during a multi-day airshow that wrapped up yesterday.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) says it has begun testing drone detection, tracking, and identification technology around Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

DroneShield has released the latest version of its DroneSentry-C2 Command-and-Control counter-drone software. The company is calling v8.0.0 a “major update” since it contains new sensor integrations as well as performance and security improvements including patches for zero-day vulnerabilities and bug fixes.

Counter-UAV specialist Dedrone is launching a new, quickly deployable DedronePortable detection, tracking, and identification platform – an all-in-one unit that can also disrupt controller contact of intrusive or hostile craft that forces in Ukraine battling Russian invaders will soon be using.

The Qatari Ministry of Interior and Safety and Security Operations Committee (SSOC) for the 2022 FIFA World Cup has decided to hire a US counter-drone specialist to secure the upcoming games. Utah-based Fortem Technologies will be present in the Arab nation this November to provide real-time airspace awareness and detect and defeat dangerous drones.

US lawmakers, government officials, and even major sports organizations are stepping up to back a Biden administration call to create legislation that would considerably expand the number of actors permitted to undertake anti-drone measures to neutralize potential threats from UAVs.

Rapidly expanding counter-drone company Dedrone has closed an over-subscribed $30 million Series C-1 fundraising round that will serve to fuel its continued business expansion in the US and abroad. The successful recruitment of backers comes just seven months after the firm attracted $30.5 million in a December Series C effort.

The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) will be deploying specialized drones to protect next month’s Commonwealth Games against potential Russian attacks, in what officials fear could be retaliatory action against London’s staunch support of Ukraine amid Moscow’s continuing invasion.

Colorado-based anti-drone tech specialist Liteye has won a $12.1 million contract from the US Department of Defense (DoD) to provide an array of platforms enabling multi-domain air and ground security missions both domestically and abroad.

DJI’s status as by far the biggest seller of consumer and enterprise drones on the planet means its UAVs are logically flown most by Ukraine pilots battling Russian invaders. But might that domination change if those operators turn to what they consider safer gear?