Mobile Drone Defeat System Marketed To Airports

Sierra Nevada Corp. has partnered with Rada Technologies and Ascent Vision to offer a mobile drone defeat system for the protection of airports and other high-value targets.

The X-Madis—expeditionary mobile air defense integrated system—is integrated into a light pickup truck and features the Rada RPS-42 pMHR radar for detection, the Ascent camera system CM-202U EO/IR multi-sensor gimbal for identification, and the Sierra Nevada SkyCap counter UAS electronic Mode E jammer. It is priced at approximately $800,000 and has a range of about two to three miles and can be operated while the host vehicle is in motion at speeds up to 40 mph. It requires a crew of two—a truck driver and a system operator.

According to an Ascent spokesman, the entire system was designed to be low weight and low cost, and the speed of the incoming vehicle does not matter. The system was deployed by the U.S. Marine Corps six months ago at undisclosed fixed site security positions in the U.S., but could be available for civil airports within the next six months, the companies said.