Developed as part of AV’s holistically integrated C-UAS strategy, Halo_Shield introduces a unique, tile-based layered defense architecture that is open, scalable, and adaptable to today’s evolving threats. The system is designed to support emerging homeland defense priorities by enabling resilient, area-wide protection of high-value U.S. and allied partner assets, including borders, military installations, and other critical infrastructure. AV is currently demonstrating capabilities and has deployed Halo_Shield tiles at select critical sites.

“The character of the air threat has fundamentally changed,” said Wahid Nawabi, chairman, president, and chief executive officer at AV. “Cheap, massed, and coordinated aerial systems are stressing traditional point defenses. Halo_Shield is our answer—a collaborative, modular approach that brings together the best of AV and a trusted supplier ecosystem to close those gaps.”

At the core of Halo_Shield is a mission-tailored, distributed and domain-specific tile architecture—comprising Sentinel, Terrestrial, Nautical, Aerial and Celestial tiles. Each tile delivers a specialized combination of sensors, effectors, and command-and-control capabilities, drawing on technology from AV and its trusted ecosystem of suppliers. The result is a cost-efficient defense architecture that is offense-ready, extends protection beyond point defense and sustains decisive situational advantage in contested battlespaces across air, land, sea and space.

Designed for plug-and-play integration, Halo_Shield is deployable as portable fly-away kits and integrates seamlessly with existing customer sensors, effectors, and command-and-control frameworks—delivering scalable, resilient, area-wide protection with minimal training and personnel demands. Powered by AV_Halo, AV’s unified software platform, the system is purpose-built yet agnostic, designed to incorporate new capabilities while seamlessly integrating with customers’ existing command-and-control systems.

“Halo_Shield is engineered like an edge processing-capable set of tiles for modern air defense,” said Larry Lloyd, senior vice president of strategic initiatives at AV. “Each tile is a self-contained capability that can operate on its own or snap together to build exactly the defense architecture a mission demands. That modularity lets operators scale, adapt, and reconfigure in real time as threats evolve, without redesigning the system or retraining the force. It’s how you move from static point defense to a living, mission-tailored shield.”

Source: AeroVironment

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AV’s JUMP 20-X Group 3 vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) will equip the Navy with expanded ISR capabilities tailored to support diverse land and maritime missions. The platform enables multi-domain missions with fully autonomous, hands-free operation and more than 13 hours of flight time, a 115-mile (185 km) range, and 30 pounds of payload capacity. With more than 70 different payload integrations, JUMP 20-X is uniquely configurable to meet mission-specific requirements. The system is engineered to eliminate the need for bulky launch and recovery equipment, simplifying logistics and enabling rapid deployment while reducing required operational space.

“We are honored to be selected as a partner to help the U.S. Navy expand its ISR services and enhance mission-critical awareness for warfighters around the globe,” said Shane Hastings, vice president of medium uncrewed systems at AV. “We have the people and product to deliver a superior capability across the fleet and are committed to supporting our customers with a flexible, scalable, full lifecycle ISR solution–any mission, any domain.”

“This is a win for AV and a win for the US Navy,” said Hastings. “Our technology is deployed, proven, and mature. Our team is ready to deliver. We are reshaping our nation’s ISR capabilities.”

Source: AeroVironment

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ESAero is recognized for its deep engineering expertise, innovative electric and hybrid propulsion capabilities, rapid aerospace prototyping, and AS9100 Certified UAS manufacturing. Operating out of a 32,000 sq. ft. design and prototyping facility and a 53,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in San Luis Obispo, CA, with multiple integration and test facilities in the area, ESAero has expanded its operations to support system testing and advanced product development. ESAero’s culture of technical rigor and rapid innovation also aligns with AV’s mission-focused approach and commitment to developing mission-critical solutions tailored to U.S. Department of War requirements.

“ESAero brings an impressive agility in moving from design to manufacturing, which will accelerate AV’s ability to bridge the gap between conceptual design and manufacturing execution,” said Wahid Nawabi, chairman, president, and chief executive officer at AV. “ESAero’s capabilities are vital to addressing the urgent demands of a fast-growing defense tech market, where emerging needs are driving next-generation innovation and product development. We look forward to welcoming the team to the AV family.”

“Joining AV represents a unique opportunity to amplify the reach and impact of our innovative work and achieve greater success,” said Andrew Gibson, president, CEO and co-founder of ESAero. “By combining ESAero’s engineering and manufacturing capabilities with AV’s unmatched expertise in autonomous systems, we are positioned to advance disruptive aerospace technologies and deliver real, timely value for our customers. I’d like to thank the talented ESAero team for their unwavering dedication, whose efforts have brought us to this pivotal point in our journey.”

The acquisition will further solidify AV’s position as a global defense technology leader spanning air, land, sea, space, and cyber domains and enhance the company’s ability to seamlessly transition from innovative design to advanced manufacturing—a capability critical to addressing the urgent demands of an evolving defense tech market, according to the company.

Source: AV

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This award represents the first FFP option being executed against the SCAR Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) to enhance the system performance and operational readiness to aid in swift deployment and operational resilience. Future production options remain open for additional SCAR systems.

To meet the increasing demand signal and reinforce production pipelines for BADGER, AV has expanded manufacturing agreements with several key suppliers. This new framework strengthens the BADGER supply chain and ensures current and future orders for the SCAR program are backed by a robust, scalable production infrastructure—accelerating delivery timelines to meet operational demands. These steps will help drive cost and schedule uncertainty out of the program while delivering operational capability to the Space Force.

“We are delivering unmatched technological superiority to usher in a new era of advanced satellite command and control,” said Wahid Nawabi, AV chairman, president and chief executive officer. “With confidence in the technology and a steadfast commitment to delivering this critical national security priority, our team is scaling BADGER production to match the operational tempo demanded by the Space Force.”

Most key development milestones for the SCAR program have already been completed. AV will deliver the first BADGER unit to the Space Force in the coming months, with more units nearing completion for delivery in early 2026 to support full-scale overseas deployment. The first system’s Mission Support Container, including electronics and software that control the BADGER units, was delivered this summer–ahead of schedule–and is ready for final integration testing.

“The urgent demand for SCAR is backed by a universal recognition of the expansive satellite tracking, telemetry, and control capabilities it will soon deliver to the Space Force,” said Mary Clum, executive vice president for AV’s Space and Directed Energy Group. “We understand. With the technology ready to scale, we have accelerated production and strengthened our supply chain to meet the demand. BADGER is ready. SCAR is coming.”

“The SCAR program is a system of systems that is both a revolutionary leap for satellite command and control and an urgent need to keep pace with the rapidly evolving, contested, congested space domain,” said Dr. Kelly Hammett, director of the U.S. Space Force Space Rapid Capabilities Office. “We applaud the technical achievements of the AV team that have enabled this transformative moment for satellite communications along with their investments in automation, supply chain, and manufacturing that will serve to stabilize costs and increase scale long-term. When industry and government work together to tackle the toughest challenges, we can accomplish big things–and SCAR is certainly a testament to that strength.”

Source: AeroVironment

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Integrating the autonomous, real-time Arkeus HSOR on the long-range, multi-mission AV JUMP 20 is a transformative step forward in reconnaissance technology. Built for congested and degraded visual conditions, the HSOR-equipped JUMP 20 offers long standoff and increased situational awareness in operational environments where visibility is limited, electromagnetic conditions are constrained, and payload flexibility is essential. Utilizing hyperspectral imaging to analyze materials’ unique spectral “fingerprint” enables rapid environmental analysis, including water depth, foliage density, subterranean activity, and more–day and night.

“The JUMP 20 is the first and only uncrewed platform to integrate Arkeus HSOR, which itself is the first real-time, wide-area scan, hyperspectral sensor,” said Trace Stevenson, president of autonomous systems for AV. “The technological innovation is groundbreaking and important. But most important is the capability we can now deliver to the warfighter.”

Leveraging an AI-driven data engine and rapid environmental assessments, the HSOR-equipped JUMP 20 provides operators with persistent detection, classification, location, and tracking of hundreds of contacts simultaneously–across land, sea, littoral, and transitional zones with no recalibration or hardware changes. With more than eight times the range in degraded visual environments as compared with traditional Electro-Optical Infrared (EO/IR) sensors, it is ideal for wide-area ISR, maritime domain awareness, search and rescue, counter narcotics operations, border security, and more.

“This HSOR-equipped JUMP 20 heralds a new era in multi-mission operations for forces that prioritize situational awareness across domains as the cornerstone of operational success,” said Simon Olsen, president and CEO of Arkeus. “Together with AV, we are enhancing operational efficiency and decision-making processes for warfighters in contested, congested battlespaces.”

The JUMP 20 is a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), fixed-wing uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) that provides advanced multi-sensor ISR services. The system delivers 13+ hours of endurance with a Line of Sight (LOS) operational range of 185 km (100nm) and a Beyond Line of Sight (BLOS) range of over 500nm. Operators can set it up and deploy it in less than 30 minutes without the need for launch or recovery equipment. With a 30-pound payload bay and common autopilot and ground control system architecture, the JUMP 20 is a highly customizable, modular platform that can be custom-configured to meet operational or customer requirements.

Source: AeroVironment

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AV’s long-haul laser communications terminals have demonstrated multi-orbit, space-to-space satellite crosslink capabilities while operating in the complex challenges of space environments, including jitter, extreme temperatures, and the absence of atmosphere. The systems offer new capabilities for transferring high-bandwidth data in space–enabling the secure exchange of more data at a faster rate across further distances, including LEO, MEO, GEO orbits, and beyond.

“This contract moves our superior, next-generation long-haul laser communication terminals from the lab to orbit–a significant milestone not only for our team and this technology but for commercial space industry capabilities,” said Mary Clum, executive vice president of AV’s Space and Directed Energy Group. “Since validating the technology earlier this year, we’ve been internally investing in our manufacturing and scaling production to meet the demand signals we’re hearing from our customers. We’re ready to deliver and ready to show what these terminals can do in orbit.”

In March, AV completed a successful two-terminal long-haul, multi-orbit laser communication system demonstration and announced its manufacturing readiness for orbit. The achievement marks a significant breakthrough in the development of space-based laser communication technology with far-reaching implications for commercial sectors.

AV’s laser communication terminals are suitable for satellite bus providers, offering a longer range, greater accuracy, and higher reliability for free-space optical communications. The capability builds upon and advances systems previously developed and deployed by AV, many of which remain in orbit today.

Source: AV

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AV was awarded the $1.4 billion SCAR contract in 2022 by the Space Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO), a direct reporting unit of the Space Force. The program leverages AV’s BADGER system, a multi-band deployable ground communications system that simplifies space mission operations through agile, reconfigurable beamforming tiles. The Space RCO and AV have completed every development milestone for this complex technology and are now focused on integrating and delivering the first BADGER unit this year.

Mercury provides a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based signal acquisition and digital beamforming solution for BADGER based on its Quartz RFSoC and Navigator Design Suite commercial product offerings. The company has been producing hardware for the first four BADGER systems under an initial contract awarded in 2023. The new production agreement signed in April will support two additional BADGER systems.

“We are proud to extend our partnership with AV for this critical national security mission,” said Ken Hermanny, Mercury’s senior vice president of signal technologies. “By leveraging a suite of commercial technologies from the Mercury Processing Platform, AV is integrating and producing this game-changing capability at exceptional speed and scale.”

“The SCAR program will soon transform our nation’s satellite command and control capabilities–a major milestone for securing our strategic advantage in the space domain,” said Mary Clum, executive vice president of AV’s Space and Directed Energy Mission Systems group. “To answer the urgent calls for this critical technology and deliver our BADGER systems with speed and scale, AV has focused significant internal investments on supply chain readiness and manufacturing. Mercury has been a key partner in these efforts, leaning forward to accelerate production and support the Space Force’s mission needs.”

Source: Mercury Systems

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“The Trump Administration understands what has been a long-held belief within the defense industry – there is an immediate and critical need for a layered system that provides a last line of defense to protect America against current threats and next-generation aerial attacks from near-peer and rogue nations,” said Wahid Nawabi, AV chairman, president and chief executive officer. “Together, AV and SNC can rapidly provide novel and affordable defensive solutions, ensuring unmatched limited area ‘under-dome’ protection for critical U.S. infrastructure.”

AV and SNC are building a proven industrial base team focused on providing comprehensive, layered defenses within GDA, that shield specific, limited-area, high-value locations, such as bases, ships, airfields or critical infrastructure, but then can extend its range as new sensors and interceptors are brought online, particularly from space.

AV and SNC are integrating and aligning existing, open architecture solutions using passive and active sensing, radio frequency, directed energy, kinetic energy, electronic warfare and cyber solutions, addressing the complete kill chain to neutralize group 1-4 unmanned aerial systems (UAS), advanced cruise missiles and other next generation aerial threats. Additionally, SNC sister company, Sierra Space, and AV are exploring synergies to address critical GDA challenges.

“An ambitious, next-generation shield that protects the American homeland from more complex threats requires industry ingenuity and collaboration on par with the Manhattan Project,” said SNC CEO Fatih Ozmen. “With our legacy of complex systems integration and open architecture expertise, SNC is thrilled to work with AV to bring together complementary capabilities and cutting-edge technologies to make Americans safer.”

Source: AV and SNC

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BlueHalo, an Arlington Capital Partners portfolio company, was founded as a purpose-built platform providing industry-leading capabilities in several key mission areas: Space Technologies, Counter-Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (cUAS), Directed Energy, Electronic Warfare, Cyber, Artificial Intelligence and other Emerging Technologies including Uncrewed Underwater Vehicles (UUVs). Since its founding in 2019, BlueHalo’s notable accomplishments include being the first to successfully operationally field directed energy (DE) laser weapon systems (LWS) with its LOCUST LWS, being awarded Space Force’s multi-billion dollar program to transform space operations with BADGER, its adaptive phased array product and serving as a leader in Radio Frequency Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (RF C-UAS), delivering its 1000th system last year with its Titan and Titan-SV systems. BlueHalo has focused on cutting-edge research and development allowing for the development of products and services to transform the future of global defense.

BlueHalo estimates that it will achieve more than $900 million in revenues for 2024, in addition to funded backlog of nearly $600 million and a pipeline of multiple billion-dollar opportunities and programs of record. BlueHalo generated approximately $886 million of revenue in 2023, compared to $759 million and $660 million in 2022 and 2021, respectively.¹

The acquisition of BlueHalo will create a diversified Defense Tech company with a highly complementary and differentiated portfolio of solutions in Uncrewed Systems, short and long range Loitering Munitions, Counter UAS, Space Technologies, Electronic Warfare and Cyber, powered by AI and Autonomy. This combination will drive innovation, expand manufacturing capacity and enable us to better support our customers and their critical missions. AV expects that BlueHalo’s portfolio of 10 flagship solution families and more than 100 patents will seamlessly integrate with AV’s complementary existing expertise in the design, development, manufacturing, training and servicing of Uncrewed Systems, Loitering Munitions and Advanced Technologies. AV and BlueHalo believe that these synergies will primarily be identified as administrative and operational cost savings and sharing best practices from each company. The companies’ shared culture of agile innovation and mission expertise will enable the combined entity to develop and deliver next-generation technologies that will have significant military value and redefine the next era of Defense Technology. On a pro forma basis, the combined company is expected to deliver more than $1.7 billion in revenue.

“For over 50 years, AV has pioneered innovative solutions on the battlefield, and today we are poised to usher in the next era of defense technology through our combination with BlueHalo,” said Wahid Nawabi, AV chairman, president and chief executive officer.

“BlueHalo not only brings key franchises and complementary capabilities, but also a wealth of technologies, diverse customers and exceptional talent to AV. Together, we will drive agile innovation and deliver comprehensive, next-generation solutions designed to redefine the future of defense. We are thrilled to welcome the talented BlueHalo team as we unite our strengths, expand our global impact and accelerate growth and value creation for AV shareholders.”

Source: AeroVironment

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