MBDA has signed its first export contract with a Middle Eastern country for its advanced SKY WARDEN counter-UAV system, marking a major step in the company’s global expansion in the drone-defense market.
Lorenzo Mariani, MBDA Executive Group Sales and Business Development, described the signing as a significant milestone.
“Signing this export contract marks a crucial step in our commitment to ensuring the security and sovereignty of our partners around the world. SKY WARDEN provides an innovative and comprehensive response to the challenges posed by asymmetric air threats,” he said.
Award-Winning Counter-UAV Solution Designed for Modern Threats
SKY WARDEN was recently awarded the Frontex C-UAS Prize 2025 and recognized as the “best system to protect the EU’s borders.” The system delivers a multi-layered defense capability designed to counter micro, mini, and tactical drones at ranges up to eight kilometers.
The platform builds upon MBDA’s existing multi-sensor, multi-effector C2 architecture, incorporating advanced artificial intelligence (AI) for precise detection, identification, and classification of evolving aerial threats.
Flexible, Scalable, and Combat-Proven Effectors
SKY WARDEN integrates a wide portfolio of complementary effectors tailored to mission needs. These include:
-
Omni-directional and directional jammers
-
MBDA Hit-to-Kill (HTK) drone interceptors
-
MISTRAL 3 missile with a proven success rate exceeding 96%
Sensors and effectors are selected based on operational requirements, ensuring the system remains scalable and adaptable to diverse threat environments.
Modular Architecture Ready for Future Threats
One of SKY WARDEN’s core strengths lies in its modular and upgradeable design. The system can evolve over time through seamless integration of new effectors and sensors, enabling operators to maintain superiority against rapidly developing drone threats.
Its flexible configuration allows for both fixed-site protection and vehicle-mounted mobile operations, making it suitable for base defense, critical infrastructure protection, and forward-deployed missions. SKY WARDEN can also integrate with larger air-defense solutions such as VL MICA and CAMM-ER.
MBDA Strengthens Capabilities with HELMA-P Laser Acquisition
The recent acquisition of the HELMA-P high-energy laser from CILAS further enhances the SKY WARDEN ecosystem. This addition strengthens MBDA’s position in the counter-UAV market by offering operators a wider range of non-kinetic and kinetic engagement options.
