Digital Shield event held in Estonia included the teaming of Leonardo’s MHR AESA radar and an interceptor kamikaze UAV as a demonstration of a C-UAS system.
A photo from Digital Shield, showing a pairing between Leonardo’s MHR (RPS-42) compact AESA radar and a multi-rotor interceptor UAV, was shared on DVIDS.
Digital Shield 2026, held in Estonia as a NATO event, has been a scene of demonstrations for different C-UAS systems.
Interceptor UAVs have gained attention as alternatives to missiles for C-UAS deployment due to their considerably lower costs and large window for manoeuvres against evasions. In particular, types operated by Ukraine have seen success against long-range kamikaze UAVs deployed by Russia thanks to the high speed provided by the multi-rotor forward-flying layout.
MHR radar operating in S-band with an instrumented range of 30 km, depending on target type, is notable for its use in the US Army's IM-SHORAD air defence system as well as Ukraine's Tempest air defence system armed with AGM-114L Hellfire missiles.
The pairing with MHR AESA radar, optimised to detect small to large UAVs, can allow for quicker reactions with feed to the interceptor UAV. This principle is not so different from medium to long-range air defence missiles, which receive midcourse guidance from searching radars until the seeker acquires the target.
Author: Kaan Azman
Editor: Özgür Ekşi
