BlackTalon Ecosystem trains allied military operators at NATO’s BATT26

SPX Communication Technologies has taken part in NATO‘s Baltic TRUST 26 (BATT26) exercise in Riga, Latvia, where its BlackTalon Ecosystem counter-uncrewed systems capability was one of four selected for an operational role and used by allied military operators during a training exercise.

BATT26 is part of NATO’s Allied Command Transformation’s (ACT) Layered Counter Unmanned Aircraft Systems Initiative (LCI-X) programme of operational experimentation, bringing together allied operators with industry.

Why field test NATO’s counter-uncrewed systems capability?

For NATO ACT’s LCI-X Crucible Series, the value of BATT26 is in moving beyond whether systems can connect technically to whether they can deliver battlefield effects. Working with industry throughout the Crucible Series in Romania (1-26), Finland (2-26) and now in Latvia (3-26) allows emerging capabilities to be tested not only for interoperability but for ability to support command decisions, information sharing and coordinated counter-UAS action in a realistic, threat-informed environment.

Photo: SPX Communication Technologies

The exercise puts BlackTalon Ecosystem in front of the operators who will use systems like it and tests how the capability behaves alongside other technologies in the field rather than in isolation.

Adapting capabilities with the integration of data from multiple sensors

Developed by SPX Communication Technologies’ Enterprise Control Systems (ECS), BlackTalon Ecosystem is a fielded open-architecture counter-UAS system. It integrates seamlessly with multiple sensors, including radar, EO/IR, passive RF, acoustic sensing and electronic attack, allowing operators to add or change capabilities fast as threats change rather than redesign a system each time.

That adaptability was put to the test at BATT26. The Latvian training area is heavily forested, so the BlackTalon sensor suite was raised significantly to give operators a clear line of sight over the 30m-plus Baltic pine canopy.

BlackTalon was asked to receive and fuse the available sensor data from six other companies alongside its own and then task it to best serve the mission playing out. This was successfully completed to good effect.

Fielding rapid responses to evolving drone threats

Graeme Forsyth, counter-UxS Product Manager at ECS, said: “Drone activity across the Baltics and Eastern Europe has emerged as a daily operational reality, from incursions over borders to strikes on energy sites. The nations are building capability now and our job is to make sure they can do that with systems that work reliably today and can adapt quickly to new threats as they emerge.”

Photo: SPX Communication Technologies

The themes running through BATT26 reflected NATO’s wider position that no single organisation can deliver counter-UAS capability alone. Interoperability, integration into the wider air command-and-control architecture and close collaboration between industry and military operators are important priorities for countries to successfully mitigate threats.

Advancing the integrated battlefield beyond interoperability

Captain Joe Pisoni, United States Navy, Director of LCI-X, says: “Technical interoperability is only the starting point. The real test is whether military and industry systems can work together in the field, support commanders and give operators the information they need at the speed of the fight. Baltic TRUST 26 allows us to take promising technologies beyond connectivity and prove how they contribute to integrated battlefield capability.”

Graeme said: “Interoperability and integration are how this threat gets beaten. BlackTalon Ecosystem is built to integrate best-in-class capability from a range of providers. As well as being operationally proven, exercises like BATT26 get BlackTalon Ecosystem into the hands of people facing the threat every day.”

BlackTalon Ecosystem remains in the region following BATT26, with further demonstrations and army trials planned across the Baltics and Eastern Europe over the coming months.

Enterprise Control Systems (ECS), part of the SPX Communication Technologies Group, specialises in technologies within the Radio Frequency (RF) spectrum.