Anduril Industries is partnering with General Dynamics Land Systems to integrate its Spark Radar onto armored vehicles and other ground platforms, aiming to strengthen maneuver force protection against emerging threats such as drones and precision munitions.
The collaboration brings Anduril’s radar and battle management technologies into GDLS’ vehicle designs from the start, rather than adding them after production. The companies said the integration is a step toward coordinated, multi-vehicle defense systems that connect sensors, radars and command nodes across formations.
On the battlefield, loitering munitions, one-way attack drones and autonomous swarms can strike from multiple directions with little warning, Anduril said in a post announcing the deal.
Spark Radar is designed to detect both air and ground threats “with class-leading range, speed, and fidelity,” while using Anduril’s Lattice command-and-control software to share threat data between vehicles and command posts.
Building Spark Radar into vehicle platforms from the outset will allow tighter integration and improved performance, while providing “a clear path to scalable protection across fleets,” Anduril said in the post.
The company described the effort as part of a broader push to move survivability away from platform-specific defenses toward “coordinated, multi-vehicle systems of systems.”
The companies plan to start with armored vehicles before expanding to command posts, missile launchers, and fires elements.
“General Dynamics Land Systems has long been at the forefront of designing and producing ground combat systems,” said Zachary Mears, Anduril’s senior vice president of strategy and growth.
GDLS is among the world’s largest producers of tracked and wheeled military vehicles, including the Abrams main battle tank and the Stryker combat vehicle.
Integrating Spark Radar into GDLS platforms brings together “their deep expertise in combat vehicle design with Anduril’s modern integrated mission systems: advanced sensing and battle management technologies that deliver robust maneuver protection,” Mears said.
“Together, we’re ensuring maneuver forces have the awareness, modular hard- and soft-kill capability, and integrated layered defenses they need to prevail in increasingly complex threat environments,” he added.
The radar will be key to keeping troops protected during ground operations, said Jeff Massimilla, GDLS vice president for global engineering, design and technology.
“There’s nothing that can substitute for a ground combat vehicle when you need to seize and hold terrain on the battlefield, and this extremely capable Spark Radar is critical to identifying threats and keeping soldiers in the fight,” Massimilla said. “We couldn’t be more excited about our growing number of strategic partnerships with innovative tech companies such as Anduril, and we’re going to continue to work tirelessly to ensure our customers have the power to win.”
GDLS is also partnered with companies like AeroVironment, Applied Intuition and Palantir on its XM30 Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle design effort.
The company is in a head-to-head competition with American Rheinmetall to build a Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle replacement that will likely be hybrid and optionally manned.
Financial terms of the partnership weren’t disclosed.
The collaboration reflects a shared commitment to advancing how ground forces detect and respond to threats, laying the groundwork for “more cohesive, layered defense across maneuver formations,” the companies said.
Jen Judson is an award-winning journalist covering land warfare for Defense News. She has also worked for Politico and Inside Defense. She holds a Master of Science degree in journalism from Boston University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon College.
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