Welcome back to the #56 edition of The New Defense Post!

In this edition, we'll cover:

The Acutronic Group serves as the hidden backbone to much of the aerospace & defense industry, delivering the picks and shovels needed for next-generation systems.

We are the only manufacturer of micro-turbines, actuators, power systems, rate tables, and vibration test systems with a global footprint across the US and Europe.

Shield has agreed to acquire U.S. radar maker Echodyne for up to $5.3 billion. The companies expect the deal to close in early 2027, subject to regulatory approval. (Shield)

Shield already sells autonomous aircraft and the software that flies them. Echodyne's compact radars help air defense systems detect and track drones. They are used in hundreds of counter-drone and security systems across more than 40 countries, according to the companies. (Echodyne)

To help pay for the deal, Shield is raising $2.5 billion: a $1 billion Series H round at a $28.8 billion valuation, $1 billion in structured equity from Blackstone and $500 million in debt. (Shield)

📰 Our Take: This is what venture capital buys you. Shield can use its valuation and access to financing to buy a radar business that took twelve years to build. Echodyne is already profitable and brings an established customer base: it already supplies Anduril, so Shield would own a supplier used by one of its biggest rivals. (GeekWire, Aerospace America)

British-German startup Hypersonica has raised €100 million in a Series B round co-led by Lightspeed and General Catalyst. Existing investors, including Plural and Germany's innovation agency SPRIND, also took part. (Hypersonica)

Hypersonica is developing hypersonic weapons for long-range strikes. The company says its prototype flew at more than six times the speed of sound in February, over a distance of more than 300 kilometers. The new funding will enable more frequent testing and expansion in the UK and Germany. It aims to complete development by 2029. (Hypersonica)

📰 Our Take: Europe urgently needs its own conventional hypersonic strike capability. The UK has committed £770 million over four years to a joint program with Germany covering stealth and hypersonic weapons. (UK government) Politico reports that Germany plans to have Hypersonica and MBDA build competing hypersonic demonstrators by 2029. (Politico) But funding alone does not guarantee success. The team still has to turn a Mach 6 prototype into a reliable weapon, with control and maneuverability proven through repeated flights.

Ukraine's Ministry of Defense recorded 31,398 logistics and evacuation missions using ground robots in October, more than four times the 7,511 recorded in January. (Ministry of Defense)

Much of the work is resupplying frontline positions and evacuating the wounded. The robots carry water and ammunition along routes exposed to drone attacks while their operators stay under cover. They can bring wounded soldiers back when sending an evacuation team would be too dangerous.

Vladyslav Urubkov of Come Back Alive, a Ukrainian military support foundation, says reliable communications are the biggest operational constraint. Running these missions regularly takes trained crews who can maintain the control links, operate the robots, and repair them between trips. (Come Back Alive interview)

Units have an incentive to use ground robots more often. They plan and report missions through DELTA, the military's digital command system, and earn ePoints once the results are verified. They can spend those points on ground robots, aerial drones, or electronic warfare equipment through Brave1 Market, a state-run defense marketplace. (DELTA, Ministry of Defense) Manufacturers can use the same marketplace to see which units operate their products and how many missions they perform. (Brave1 Market)

The KSE Institute at the Kyiv School of Economics estimates Ukrainian UGV production at $252 million in 2025, roughly six times the 2024 level, with more than 50 companies active in the market. Logistics platforms accounted for 61% of that value. (KSE Institute) In our view, ground robots are still at a much earlier stage of adoption than aerial drones. We expect the mission counts in this chart to climb further as units use them more often and for a wider range of tasks.

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