Hensoldt Integrates Kinetic Countermeasures Into the Bundeswehr's Counter-UAS ASUL

The Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) has commissioned HENSOLDT to integrate kinetic countermeasures into the ASUL drone defence system, which has been proven in service for many years. This is another pioneering step towards the sustainable combat enhancement of ASUL, following the update of the sensor technology at the beginning of 2025, which included the latest generation of the HENSOLDT SPEXER radar.

ASUL is part of a holistic air defence system: the modular counter-small unmanned aircraft system (C-sUAS) with a scalable and scenario-specific sensor-effector mix is designed for the reliable detection, classification, identification and successful combating of small UAS in real time. To this end, complementary active and passive radar systems, electro-optical sensors and a diverse range of countermeasures, both from HENSOLDT and from proven technology partners, are integrated into a complete system. The C2 software Elysion Mission Core uses powerful, AI-supported algorithms to merge all sensor and effector data, including data from other networked air defence and C-UAS systems, and offers suitable options for action as robust decision support for the operational forces.

ASUL effectors were previously limited to so-called soft-kill capabilities – this spectrum is now significantly expanded by the ability to deploy kinetic countermeasures. To this end, HENSOLDT is integrating the KONGSBERG weapon station into a 10-foot container and adapting it for use with the weapons already in service with the German Armed Forces. A new command container enables close cooperation between the commander, the Elysion operator and the weapon station operators. In future, each ASUL system can be equipped with several of these effectors, depending on the threat situation, in order to effectively secure large areas against UAS, even if they are protected against soft-kill effectors.

ASUL has proven itself comprehensively in various scenarios since 2022, providing valuable operational experience. Building on this experience and current technological developments, HENSOLDT is continuously expanding the modular ASUL system to realise the capability enhancements required by soldiers at short notice.