The new company will support British requirements for counter-drone capabilities, air defense and active protection systems.
Leonardo DRS has established a UK-based subsidiary, DRS UK, which will begin producing tactical radios locally, the company announced Monday.
The purpose-built facility expands the company’s manufacturing footprint and provides a dedicated local presence for UK defence customers, industry partners and systems integrators, according to the announcement. The company did not provide further details about the site or its planned production output.
DRS UK will help meet British requirements for counter-drone capabilities, air defence and active protection systems. It will also act as a strategic hub for Leonardo DRS’s broader tactical-radio business across Europe.
“Establishing DRS UK and launching a full local tactical radio capability strengthens our ability to support customers and partners with the proximity, responsiveness and manufacturing capacity needed to meet evolving operational requirements,” said Leonardo DRS CEO John Baylouny. He added that the investment would enable closer collaboration with UK industry partners and integrators to deliver counter-UAS, air-defence and force-protection capabilities.
A U.S. company with an Italian parent and European ambitions
DRS UK occupies a distinctive position: it is the European subsidiary of Leonardo DRS, the American arm of Italian defence group Leonardo.
In an interview earlier this year, Baylouny said European countries, like the United States, are seeking to acquire needed equipment as quickly as possible and have become less concerned about which country supplies a capability. He described two ways to grow in European markets: selling products and solutions, licensing technology for local production, or combining the approaches.
