Citadel Defense Scores $5M DOD Contract

Counter-drone provider Citadel Defense just scored another contract with the U.S. defense department in what has become a string of awards from defense agencies worldwide.

According to a Citadel press release, the startup garnered $5 million to protect soldiers from potentially hostile drones on the battlefield using its Titan counter-drone system.

The system uses AI, machine learning and low-collateral electronic countermeasures that “blind” a rogue drone pilot from collecting intelligence and prevent the drone from penetrating protected airspace.  The Titan system also generates a post mission analysis report that highlights threat activity patterns to equip ground command with mission-critical insights.

“Our team is honored to support the military’s efforts by delivering operator-centric and mission-proven CUAS solutions to the front lines,” Citadel Defense CEO Christopher Williams said. “Titan gives U.S. troops and allies an advantage over non-state actors using drones as a weapon.”

According to Williams, senior Pentagon officials have called small drones the greatest threat to military forces since the introduction of IEDs on the battlefield.  “The use of small drones has exploded and is rapidly changing the security environment.  Adversaries have access to affordable and highly capable drone platforms that are easily adapted and weaponized to conduct surveillance and targeting against U.S. forces.”

“We constantly improve the Titan platform to equip operators with capabilities that address and adapt to the rapidly proliferating threat of small UAS across any region of the world,” explained Sean Troyer, Director of Business Development at Citadel Defense and a former U.S. SOCOM member.

More new business

Last month, Citadel Defense announced a development deal with Syzygy Integration to develop a custom solution for the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal government agencies. Company officials say the new application “accelerates situational awareness and coordinated responses to uncooperative drone activity around critical infrastructure, national special security events, military bases and the border.”

In February, an unnamed government agency signed a multi-million dollar contract with Citadel for the Titan system to “protect government assets – including ships, vehicles, robotic platforms, and military bases – from drone threats.”

Last year, Citadel launched a new AI and machine-learning software release for the Titan system. Company officials say the software-hardware combo represents an evolution of the tech after several months of “successful deployments across multiple combatant commands and hundreds of unique environments.”

The counter-drone system leverages the world’s largest dataset adapted for AI-based drone detection. Citadel deploys the system to a global client base, offering protection from rogue drone missions such as recent attacks in Armenia and the Middle East.

In July, Citadel released an AI-powered software suite company officials said will autonomously protect against threats from 98 percent of commercial off-the-shelf drones.

When paired with the Titan system, the counter-drone solution can protect a large military base or airfield via a single interface for around-the-clock coverage.