Latest news with #UnmannedAircraftSystems
Barnama
21-05-2025
- Business
- Barnama
UPNM, MHS Aviation Sign LoI To Drive Development Of UAS
-- Photograph for illustrative purposes LANGKAWI, May 21 (Bernama) -- Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) today signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with MHS Aviation Berhad, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Boustead Holdings Berhad, to drive the development of unmanned aircraft technology in Malaysia. This strategic collaboration is part of the long-term efforts of both parties in strengthening the research, innovation and training ecosystem in the field of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), a critical domain for the survival of national defence and the competitiveness of the country's high-tech industry. UPNM, in a statement, said that the LoI seals the joint commitment between academia and industry in strengthening the country's UAS technology capabilities through the development of academic modules and specialised field training related to UAS. "Also, the commitment to carry out joint research and knowledge sharing in a strategic and high-impact manner, improving the competencies of UPNM students and officers through industrial training as well as simulation learning and technical workshops," it said. The LoI was signed by UPNM Vice-Chancellor Lt Gen Datuk Arman Rumaizi Ahmad and MHS Aviation Bhd Chief Executive Officer Mohd Fakhrul Arifin Adinan at the Ministry of Higher Education (KPT) Pavilion at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre, here. Arman Rumaizi, in the same statement, said the collaboration will strengthen the competitiveness of researchers and students and position UPNM as a hub of excellence in defence technology, in line with the strategic thrust of UPNM30. "This collaboration is an important stepping stone in realising the aspirations of UPNM 30, which emphasises a holistic approach in uniting military, academic, technological and industrial disciplines," he said. UPNM believes that this collaboration will create more efficient technology transfer, accelerate the development of highly skilled human capital and strengthen the country's strategic preparedness in facing modern security challenges. Meanwhile, Mohd Fakhrul expressed hope that the collaboration can develop the country's UAS capabilities from the grassroots by simultaneously forming human expertise and technological development. Apart from that, it also reflects Boustead's commitment to driving defence innovation and supporting the country's transformation agenda, he said. -- BERNAMA BERNAMA provides up-to-date authentic and comprehensive news and information which are disseminated via BERNAMA Wires; BERNAMA TV on Astro 502, unifi TV 631 and MYTV 121 channels and BERNAMA Radio on FM93.9 (Klang Valley), FM107.5 (Johor Bahru), FM107.9 (Kota Kinabalu) and FM100.9 (Kuching) frequencies. Follow us on social media : Facebook : @bernamaofficial , @bernamatv , @bernamaradio Twitter : @ , @BernamaTV , @bernamaradio Instagram : @bernamaofficial , @bernamatvofficial , @bernamaradioofficial TikTok : @bernamaofficial
Business Standard
09-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Ideaforge Tech reports dismal Q4 outcome
Ideaforge Technology reported net loss of Rs 25.71crore in Q4 FY25 as compared with net profit of Rs 10.33 crore in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations tumbled 80.14% YoY to Rs 20.31 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025. The company reported pre-tax loss of Rs 25.69 crore during the quarter as compared with profit before tax of Rs 14.14 crore in Q4 FY24. The manufacturer of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) reported a negative EBITDA of Rs 174.1 crore for the fourth quarter of FY25, compared to a positive EBITDA of Rs 202.5 crore in the same period last year. EBITDA margins stood at -85.7% in Q4 FY25, sharply down from a positive margin of 19.8% reported in Q4 FY24. Ankit Mehta, CEO, said, FY25 saw a substantial slowdown for the broader drone industry in India, owing to the general elections in the first part and then the slow progress towards procurement initiatives, despite the latent demand. The industry started to regain momentum at the end of the year with the new emergency procurement cycle for CICT operations going into tendering phase in Q4, along with trials of many other civil programs as well towards the end of the same quarter. And thus, while we did not see closure of opportunities to orderbook in Q4, we now see their healthy progression to our L1 pipeline. Our efforts to diversify our revenue base got bolstered at the AeroIndia 2025, where we unveiled the concepts of two new categories of drones, namely, our ZOLT platform for Tactical and YETI for Logistics, unlocking new opportunities and partnerships, such as our partnership with Resonia (Sterlite Group) for tower installation logistics. Our strategic investment in US-based Vantage Robotics has augmented platforms as small as nano drones (<250 g) to our portfolio. The year also marked our transition from a drone manufacturer to a drone solution provider delivering not just best-in-class drones to our customers, but also actionable intelligence through our developments, such as FLYGHT CLOUD for cloud data analytics and FLYGHT DOCKS for consuming Drone-as-a-Service (DaaS). With the launch of NETRA 5 and SWITCH V2, we have demonstrated our ability to build capabilities that can future-proof our forces with unmatched resilience, performance, modularity, and AI. With the augmentation of new categories and greater focus on the global markets, we are seeing increasing momentum towards international opportunities and partnerships. We intend to substantially increase the market opportunity for Indian drones globally and firmly establish them as a default part of the security, safety, and governance infrastructure of any country, city, or enterprise. Despite weak Q4 results, shares of ideaForge Technologies hit an upper circuit of 20 at Rs 463.20, driven by escalating geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan. The spike in investor interest followed reports of heightened conflict along the Northern and Western borders during the intervening night of May 8 and 9, boosting sentiment around defense and surveillance technology companies. Ideaforge Technology (ideaForge) is the pioneer and the pre-eminent market leader in the Indian unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) market. It had the largest operational deployment of indigenous UAVs across India.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
House votes to broaden ban on drones flying over ag operations
Iowa lawmakers are considering a bill to further restrict the use of drones over farmland. (Photo by Ann Froschauer/USFWS) A bill that would further prohibit the ability of a remote-piloted aircraft, or drone, to fly over farmland needs final approval from the Senate before it can be sent to the governor. Senate File 491 was amended on the House floor Tuesday to remove language classifying a 'farmstead' as '40 or more contiguous acres.' The bill builds on a 2024-enacted law that prohibited drones from flying over animal feeding operations and homesteads and created misdemeanor fines up to $2,560 if the drone that flew over these areas was equipped with recording devices. The proposed legislation, which advanced from the Senate March 17, would prohibit the use of a drone, without the landowner's permission, within 400 feet of farm animals, equipment and structures, including animal feeding operations, farmer residences, barns and manure storage. Rep. Derek Wulf, R-Hudson, said the bill 'broadens the scope' of the existing law and 'strengthens' security. 'It protects our livestock and agriculture producers more strongly than the law we passed last year,' Wulf said. Proponents of the bill said livestock are afraid of the remote aircraft and that it invades a farmer's privacy. Opponents of the bill argue it, and the existing law, would be preempted by federal laws that regulate airspace. A fact sheet on the local regulation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems from the Federal Aviation Administration, explains that some privacy-related restrictions on drones, if it interferes with the administration's ability to 'safely and effectively integrate UAS into the national airspace' would be preempted. According to the document, at least 44 states have enacted laws pertaining to unmanned aircraft systems since 2013 and the FAA holds that states are 'generally free to regulate' as long as the laws do not interfere with federal regulations or 'relate to the prices, routes, or services of commercial air carriers.' No lawmakers spoke in opposition to the amended bill on the House floor and the measure advanced 89-7.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Anduril beat 9 competitors to snag a $642 million anti-drone contract for the US Marine Corps
Palmer Luckey's startup Anduril scored a $642 million deal for anti-drone tech in Marine Corps bases. The 10-year contract is meant to help fight smaller drones like the exploding ones in Ukraine. The Defense Department said Anduril was chosen out of 10 total bids. Defense startup Anduril clinched a $642 million contract on Friday to help the US Marine Corps fight smaller drones at its bases. Anduril's new deal is for the Marine Corps Installation-Counter small Unmanned Aircraft Systems program, which is essentially a network of anti-drone defenses for bases and facilities. The announcement comes after Anduril scored a separate five-year $200 million agreement in November to bring counter-drone tech to the Marine Air Defense Integrated System. This mobile air defense system can be mounted on vehicles like Humvees. Like with the MADIS, Anduril's offering for this new contract is to fight smaller drones, which the US military classifies as Group 1 and Group 2. Such drones are typically no heavier than 55 pounds and fly at a maximum altitude of about 3,500 feet, like the exploding commercial drones used in the war in Ukraine. When the Corps first opened its contract in April 2024, it warned of a "security capability gap" for dealing with these smaller drones at its bases. "The sUAS threat poses unique challenges to military installations when compared to those of operational forces," the Corps wrote. The Defense Department said on Friday that 10 companies had submitted proposals for the contract. With Anduril scoring the deal, the department said that 80% of the work until 2035 would be done in Costa Mesa, California, home to Anduril's headquarters. The rest is expected to be performed in Washington, D.C., and other Marine Corps facilities. The announcement did not specify what type of product or how many systems Anduril will deliver. Press teams for Anduril and the Marine Corps did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider outside regular business hours. One of Anduril's main offerings for fighting smaller drones, Anvil, features a quadcopter that flies out from a portable storage box to track and crash into enemy systems. It can also be fitted with explosives to attack bigger targets. Additionally, the company sells electronic warfare jammers called Pulsar, which it's already providing to the Pentagon as part of a $250 million deal from October. Anduril, founded in 2017 by Oculus creator Palmer Luckey, has become a rising star in the defense industry as it emphasizes ready-made designs that can be produced at scale. In that sense, it hopes to reuse the same design to bid for multiple contracts instead of creating each one specifically for a single deal. The firm is also working with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and runs its products on an AI software called Lattice to survey the battlefield and identify threats. One of its biggest scores so far is a $22 billion contract with the US Army to provide soldiers with mixed-reality goggles. The contract was originally awarded to Microsoft but later ceded to Anduril. The firm hopes to expand quickly. In August, Anduril raised $1.5 billion to build a 5 million-square-foot factory in Ohio that it said would "hyperscale" production. Read the original article on Business Insider
