Leonardo DRS Highlighting Advanced and Proven Systems with Allied Interoperability at IDEX 2023

February 16, 2023

Leonardo DRS booth at IDEX 2023

ARLINGTON, VA. – February 20, 2023 – Leonardo DRS Inc., (DRS) will be participating in the 2023 IDEX exhibition between February 20th – 24th in  the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, United Arab Emirates. The company is a leader in advanced electro-optical infrared technologies, force protection capabilities and platform computer networking for the U.S. military and allied militaries around the world. Its products provide allied interoperability in multi-domain operations and support current and next-generation combat systems, giving warfighters the competitive edge today and in future conflicts.

The DRS booth will be located in booth #03-A32 (76.5 ) where we will be highlighting Counter-UAS and Short Range Air Defense systems, advanced thermal weapon sight systems, network computing, and  combat support systems.

“We are proud to partner with Emirati defense industry to support U.A.E. military forces with advanced technology through our long-standing and strong relationship,” said Mike Coulter, President of Leonardo International.

Today’s battlefield brings a range of complex threats from drones to advanced electronic warfare and real time situational awareness loss in combat.

Seeing the entire battlefield and positioning force protection systems where needed is the key to keeping allied forces safe across all domains.

Leonardo DRS is an industry-leader in numerous critical capabilities used by the U.S. military and available to regional allies, including the United Arab Emirates.  DRS offers a diverse portfolio of technologies which include mobile Counter-UAS and short-range Air Defense capabilities, advanced weapon sights, mission command systems, electronic warfare systems, and tactical radars.  These technologies are designed to be interoperable between the U.S. military and its allied militaries.

Leonardo DRS has a long partnership with U.A.E. government and the Emirati defense industry, providing solutions, technology and the support required to increase interoperability between the U.S. and Emirati forces.  This relationship is key to allow U.S. and Emirati forces to strategically operate more closely and to allow Emirati forces to address today’s threats.

Leonardo DRS Capabilities on Display:

Counter-UAS and Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) – Defending forces against a range of UAS threats while supporting warfighters with world-class mobile air defense systems. DRS is working closely with the U.S. government Foreign Military Sales office to offer the mobile C-UAS and M-SHORAD systems to the U.A.E. as soon as possible.

Leonardo DRS provides the U.S. military with urgently needed Air Defense capabilities, protecting soldiers from drones and larger air threats.  DRS is an industry-leader for developing, integrating and test requirements-defined mission equipment packages on different combat platforms.

DRS is the lead vehicle integrator for the U.S. Army’s mobile counter unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) program of record.  The company continues to deliver the two vehicle Mobile-Low, Slow, Small, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Integrated Defeat System (M-LIDS) with a mix of kinetic and non-kinetic defeat technologies.  Today, M-LIDS is deployed globally, protecting soldiers and facilities from drone attacks.

DRS also provides the mission equipment package (MEP) for the U.S. Army’s Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) program.  The user-defined MEP allows soldiers to detect, identify, track, and defeat Group 3 UAS, rotary wing and fixed wing threats with multiple kinetic effectors.  Both Air Defense programs were delivered using accelerated acquisition and rapid prototyping activities.  DRS accepted the challenge to design, develop, integrate, and test these urgently needed capabilities, and it delivered in record time.

Tactical Radar Systems – Leonardo DRS tactical radars from RADA lead the way in defining unseen threats in a small and very capable size. Cutting-edge software defined, 4D AESA pulse Doppler radars enable lifesaving, mission-critical capabilities for the maneuver force. With simultaneous multi-mission capability, our radar systems provide real-time 360° Situation Awareness for operational superiority across multiple domains.

Under the clutter of the dense maritime environment, early and accurate detection of threats is the vital link in the chain of effective defense. This is especially true in littoral waters, where lethal surface and aerial attacks can be mounted with little or no warning.

These advanced compact, lightweight radar systems also sit at the heart of combat-proven Active Protection Systems (APS), Vehicle Protection Systems (VPS) and Hostile Fire Detection (HFD) applications. And the multi-mission AESA 4D pulse Doppler systems rapidly detect, track and classify all relevant threats – small arms, RPGs, ATGMs and tank rounds.

Whether vehicle-mounted or static, the radar platforms provide superior hemispheric surveillance, and simultaneous detection and tracking of aerial and ground threats. Offering comprehensive perimeter and border surveillance, our advanced systems detect, track, and classify intruders: small and slow aircraft, drones, vehicles, vessels, dismounted forces, and more.

Computer Networking: Data Distribution Unit (DDU) – The rugged DDU systems use a combination of hardware and software to enable centralized interaction with platform C4ISR, EW and weapons subsystems. It operated in U.S. military, Homeland Security and industrial environments.

Individual Weapon Sights (WS-17LR) – 17 micron Long Range – The Individual Weapon Sights (IWS-17) are an advanced set of clip-on infrared weapon sights, based on Leonardo DRS’ field-proven 17 µm thermal sensor technology. The IWS-17 combines rugged, lightweight, modular construction with superior thermal imaging technology to give today’s Warfighter the capability to maintain uncompromising performance in day or night and in smoke or fog, significantly increasing survivability and decisive operations on the battlefield.

At the core of the IWS-17 lies decades of experience in the uncooled infrared (IR) weapon systems field.

IWS-Crew Served – The Individual Weapon Sight – Crew Served (IWS-CS) integrates with the M2 .50 caliber machine gun, MK19 grenade machine gun, and the M240B medium machine gun. It wirelessly communicates with a helmet mounted device (HMD) allowing the Soldier to receive the imagery from the sight while remaining behind protective armor.

This advanced technology enables soldiers to acquire and engage targets much more rapidly while providing increased accuracy resulting in first- burst impacts on target. This capability ensures Soldiers are equipped with the best sensors and targeting devices to dominate the battlefield.

Joint Assault Bridge (JAB) – The Joint Assault Bridge (JAB) provides Mobility Augmentation Companies supporting Armored Brigade Combat Teams with a survivable, deployable and sustainable heavy-assault-bridging capability. The JAB provides gap-crossing capability to cross wet or dry gaps, and freedom of maneuver on the battlefield to keep pace with Abrams Heavy Brigade Combat Team operations. The JAB is an M1A1 Abrams tank hull with heavy (M1A2) suspension integrated with a hydraulic bridge launcher system to launch the existing Military Load Class 85 Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge (AVLB). The JAB improves force readiness, survivability, mobility and agility equal to the legacy force.

Mounted Family of Computer Systems (MFoCS) – Developed through years of combat experience, Leonardo DRS’s integrated networking system allows commanders and platform operators to control and interface with sensors, communications equipment, mission command applications, navigational devices, and platform vetronics from any workstation in the platform or command post.

All of the voice, video and data from these platform devices can be connected across the tactical network with adjacent platforms, remote or mobile command posts, higher headquarters and, when desired, with coalition partners.

The system is designed to be agnostic to the network and applications allowing the end users to adopt best-of-breed solutions in terms of communications and data applications such as the Battle Management System.

At the heart of this system is Leonardo DRS’s line of ultra-rugged, MIL-STD qualified hardware and software solutions. It is built from experience the premier supplier of hundreds of thousands of platform computing devices for the U.S. military.  The scalable system also provides new capabilities to integrate various platform C4ISR devices with significant reductions in size, weight, power and cost.

Vehicle Intercom System (VIS) – The Leonardo DRS Vehicle Intercom System (VIS) is an off the shelf product that offers a flexible, future-proof solution to platform-based audio. Designed for Military, Emergency Services vehicles and command posts or any other situation where high-quality intra-crew and intra-fleet voice communications is required. The Leonardo DRS VIS is fully interoperable with most existing tactical and emergency services radio and radio networks.

The Ethernet-based capability of the Leonardo DRS VIS network enables system integrators to construct audio networks using modular building blocks, which can then be deployed from mobile vehicles to Command-and-Control locations.

About Leonardo DRS

Headquartered in Arlington, VA, Leonardo DRS, Inc. is an innovative and agile provider of advanced defense technology to U.S. national security customers and allies around the world. We specialize in the design, development and manufacture of advanced sensing, network computing, force protection, and electric power and propulsion, and other leading mission-critical technologies. Our innovative people are leading the way in developing disruptive technologies for autonomous, dynamic, interconnected, and multi-domain capabilities to defend against new and emerging threats. For more information and to learn more about our full range of capabilities, visit www.LeonardoDRS.com