ABAD Daily NewsAcquisition, military and joint-force developments.

Parrot reports $2 million in Army Marketplace drone orders

BLUF Parrot says U.S. units have placed about $2 million in ANAFI UKR orders through the Army UAS Marketplace since the company joined in Q3. The manufacturer is targeting two-week delivery lead times, not reporting completed deliveries. Its separate SRR manufacturing-readiness selection was publicly disclosed by the Army in August after June flight demonstrations, so it is context rather than a new selection.

Parrot · Regulated manufacturer release

Reported 12 October 2026 · Release posted October 12; aggregated orders cover the period since ANAFI UKR joined the Army marketplace in the third quarter of 2026

The issuer-distributed release displays an exact 07:30 CEST time and says orders total about $2 million, but supplies no ordering units, quantities, individual contract records, delivery completions or acceptance results. The Army’s August account independently confirms that Parrot was one of five vendors selected for SRR manufacturing readiness after a June flyoff; it does not corroborate the current marketplace total.

Sources: U.S. Army: next-generation platoon-level SRR flyoff · 2026-08-10 / Parrot: ANAFI UKR product page

Read the source ↗

Raytheon wins naval-radar target-detection software contract

BLUF Raytheon says the Office of Naval Research awarded it a contract to develop target-detection software for naval radars. Laboratory and field testing are still ahead, with potential transition to SPY-6 and future radars; work runs through 2031. The company disclosed no value, award date, field-test result or deployment commitment.

RTX / Raytheon · Manufacturer primary contract announcement

Contract announced October 12; work is scheduled through 2031

The release identifies ONR as the customer and Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and Andover, Massachusetts, as work locations through 2031. It describes future laboratory and field testing and possible transition into SPY-6 and other radars. No government award notice, contract value, quantity, completed test or transition decision was located.

Read the source ↗

L3Harris gets $250 million GMLRS propulsion follow-on

BLUF L3Harris says Lockheed Martin awarded it a $250 million follow-on contract for standard-range GMLRS propulsion units at the programme’s highest quantity to date. Production is assigned to a new 60,000-square-foot Camden, Arkansas, facility scheduled to open later this year. The release gives no motor count, delivery schedule, award date or customer confirmation.

L3Harris Technologies · Manufacturer primary contract and production announcement

Follow-on award announced October 12; the new Camden facility is scheduled to open later in 2026

The company calls the award the largest quantity in programme history and says it has doubled GMLRS motor output in recent years, but supplies neither counts nor a baseline or measurement period. The new automated Camden facility is scheduled to open later in 2026; planned opening is not completed capacity or production.

Read the source ↗

EU adopts €115 million rapid defence-innovation programme

BLUF The Council of the EU formally adopted the €115 million AGILE programme for defence start-ups and SMEs. It targets four-month grant decisions, test access and products reaching armed forces within one to three years, with the first call expected in early 2027. Those are programme goals—not awards, disbursements, procurements or delivered capability.

Council of the European Union · Official multinational policy and funding decision

Council adoption and press release on October 12, following the July 15 provisional agreement and the European Parliament’s October 6 vote

The Council page displays 10:10 on October 12 but does not declare a time zone, so the feed does not convert it to UTC or use it for exact-time ordering. Final adoption followed a July provisional agreement and October 6 parliamentary vote. The regulation still must be signed, published in the Official Journal and enter into force 20 days later. The four-month grant target, one-to-three-year path to forces and early-2027 call are forward programme terms, not completed outcomes.

Sources: European Union: AGILE featured-news record and source image · 2026-10-12

Read the source ↗

Arizona Guard plans first Gray Eagle 25M company

BLUF General Atomics says Arizona will become the first Army National Guard state with a Gray Eagle 25M company: eight aircraft are expected in September 2027, with four more units scheduled by the end of 2029. The company says three Guard units are congressionally funded and already under contract, but no Guard release, contract value, award record or completed delivery was located.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems · Manufacturer primary fielding-plan announcement

Company announcement October 12 describing summer planning; eight aircraft are expected in September 2027

The manufacturer says summer planning established a September 2027 arrival for eight aircraft, four additional Guard units are scheduled by the end of 2029, and the long-term objective is eight divisional UAS companies. Those are future fielding plans and company statements; the current record does not establish delivery, operational status or all eight planned units as funded.

Sources: General Atomics press-release index · 2026-10-12

Read the source ↗

Anduril unveils modular Steelfin interceptor family

BLUF Anduril unveiled Steelfin, a modular two-stage surface-to-air interceptor family intended for point, lower-tier and upper-tier defense against cruise, ballistic and hypersonic threats. The company says ballistic testing with representative air vehicles is complete and flight tests begin in 2027. Thousands-per-year output and lower cost are plans; no contract, customer, demonstrated intercept or fielding schedule was disclosed.

Anduril Industries · Manufacturer primary announcement

Announcement published October 12; flight testing is planned to begin in 2027

Anduril says it completed ballistic testing with representative air vehicles and plans flight tests in 2027. It also says the family is designed for M903A2, Mk 41, Typhon and emerging containerized launchers and for AEGIS and IBCS integration. Current reporting connects Steelfin to an Army low-cost-interceptor competition, but no customer selection, funded order, launch demonstration, intercept result or production validation was located.

Sources: Breaking Defense: Anduril positions Steelfin for Army low-cost-interceptor work · 2026-10-12

Read the source ↗

IAI unveils mobile POINT@AIR aerostat radar

BLUF IAI unveiled POINT@AIR, a compact mobile aerostat carrying an AESA radar derived from the ELM-2083 family. The company says the elevated sensor offers 360-degree surveillance of air, sea and ground targets and feeds command-and-control networks without fixed infrastructure. No range, operating altitude, endurance, crew, price, test result or customer was disclosed.

CTech / Israel Aerospace Industries · Regional business reporting carrying a manufacturer announcement

Reported 11 October 2026 · Announcement published October 11; first public display planned for AUSA on October 12–14

CTech and Defence Blog independently published the same October 11 IAI announcement, specifications, executive statements and source imagery. IAI’s official tactical-aerostat page supports the established product-family role, but no exact current release was located on its newsroom. POINT@AIR remains a manufacturer-announced system with no disclosed customer or independently published test result.

Sources: IAI: tactical aerostat surveillance product family / Defence Blog: parallel POINT@AIR announcement coverage · 2026-10-11

Read the source ↗

Ukraine says 2026 drone contracts quadrupled

BLUF Ukraine’s Defense Procurement Agency says it has contracted 300% more drones in 2026 than in all of 2025—meaning four times the prior-year volume. FPV contracts are 54% above the full-2025 total and deliveries nearly 3.7 times higher. The ministry gives no unit counts, values or audit basis, so the figures remain official wartime reporting.

Ministry of Defence of Ukraine · Official military procurement reporting

Reported 11 October 2026 · Official article posted October 11; the figures are year-to-date comparisons, but the ministry gives no exact contracting cutoff date

The official page metadata supplies an exact UTC publication time. The ministry’s wording is 300% more than 2025, which is a fourfold total rather than threefold. It separately reports roughly 5.5 times as many drones contracted in recent months as in the same 2025 period, but publishes no unit counts, contract values, methodology or independent audit evidence.

Sources: Euromaidan Press: English-language account of the ministry figures · 2026-10-11

Read the source ↗

NAVAIR plans B-52 integration contract for LRASM

BLUF NAVAIR plans a sole-source Lockheed Martin contract to integrate LRASM on the Air Force’s B-52, covering software updates, testing, test-asset repair and failure reviews. The October 7 notice is an anticipated award—not a signed contract or fielded capability. Reporting says the bomber could carry up to 20 missiles, but NAVAIR has not confirmed loadout or schedule.

Air & Space Forces Magazine · Specialist reporting based on an official procurement notice

Reported 8 October 2026 · NAVAIR notice posted October 7; report published October 8

The report links NAVAIR’s October 7 SAM.gov notice and describes software updates, testing, test-asset repair and failure-review work under an anticipated sole-source contract. The public notice shell was reachable but its detailed text was not retrievable in the available browser. The reported 20-missile figure is an estimate based on B-52 JASSM carriage, not a NAVAIR-confirmed LRASM loadout.

Sources: SAM.gov: anticipated LRASM integration contract opportunity · 2026-10-07

Read the source ↗