Anduril signs three year contract with RAAF to trial C-UAS system

Anduril Australia has signed a contract of undisclosed value for a three-year trial with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) to demonstrate its parent company’s Counter-Uncrewed Air Systems (C-UAS) and air and ground defence capabilities at RAAF Base Darwin. The intent is to support the defence of Australia’s northern Defence bases against drones and other threats by providing an upgradeable capability-as-a-service.

“Current conflicts have shown us how rapidly warfare has developed,” said David Goodrich OAM, Anduril Australia Executive Chairman and CEO. “It is critical that advanced technology is in place to protect ADF personnel and equipment against air and ground attacks – now and into the future. Our capability-as-a-service approach is designed to anticipate and respond to rapid technological developments.

“Capability-as-a-service is new to defence industry, but frequently used in the tech industry where fast-moving developments need to be rapidly deployed. Hardware and software are regularly updated and upgraded as new developments are available. This is different to the traditional block upgrade process used in Defence where upgrades may only happen annually or even less frequently.”

Anduril’s base protection capability takes a Family of Systems approach, deploying a range of active and passive sensors, and kinetic and non-kinetic effectors, says the company. The system to be trialled will be tailored to RAAF Base Darwin’s specific security requirements and Darwin’s unique environment.

The system is powered by the Lattice OS, an open architecture software platform that allows for effective integration and command and control of Anduril and third party sensors and effectors. Lattice also controls the Ghost Shark Extra Large Autonomous Undersea Vehicle (XL-AUV) the company is developing in partnership with defence in Sydney.

Lattice enables 24/7 persistent awareness and autonomous detection, classification, and tracking of objects of interest, the company says. It alerts users to potential ground or airborne threats and prompts users with options for mitigation or engagement.

The RAAF contract will allow Anduril Australia to deliver counter drone and counter intrusion as a capability-as-a-service. Anduril Australia will undertake continuous hardware and software system updates, and develop and deploy new capability to ensure the system remains relevant and effective against rapidly changing threats. This future-proofs the system at no additional cost to the customer.

“Anduril’s autonomous security capabilities provide 24×7 coverage against an extensive range of threats,” said Goodrich. “Anduril is well known in Australia for its Ghost Shark maritime capability, but we are a multi-domain, multi-product company and I’m delighted to announce this contract with RAAF Base Darwin to share our proven counter UAS solution to provide the best technology to enhance protection of Australia’s northern bases.”

A spokesperson for the Royal Australian Air Force said: “The National Defence Strategy prioritises strengthening of our northern bases. This system will bring advanced technology to counter and deter intrusion of RAAF Base Darwin while building Defence’s understanding of emerging capabilities that can help the ADF to meet future threats.”