General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), Thales Belgium, Octave Intelligence plc, which includes Luciad NV, and dotOcean have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on integration and manufacturing activities related to the operation of multi-domain Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) systems for the MQ-9B SkyGuardian® and SeaGuardian® Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) manufactured by GA-ASI.
H.E. Theo Francken, Belgian Minister of Defence, said: “This collaboration perfectly demonstrates why investing in Defence also means investing in our own economy and technological knowledge. Companies such as Thales Belgium, Octave and dotOcean bring their high-quality expertise on board one of the most advanced unmanned systems in the world. In this way, we not only strengthen our military capabilities, but also create opportunities for our companies, our engineers, and our talent. The MQ-9B SkyGuardian is therefore not only an important capability for Defence, but also a lever for innovation and a strong defence industry.”
“We’re excited to be working with these important aerospace businesses in Belgium,” said GA-ASI CEO Linden Blue. “We look forward to working with Thales, Octave, and dotOcean to help us develop software for our intelligence center that will be rooted in GA-ASI’s situational awareness capability. We expect the human-machine interface, external interface adaptors, and additional automated data exploitation to come from Belgian industry.”
For MQ-9B operators, GA-ASI provides unified, end-to-end ISR operations and a Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination (PED) framework. GA-ASI will look to integrate Thales Belgium’s C4ISR software, which connects stakeholders, enables real-time information sharing and transforms data into a decision-making advantage through technologies such as AI. The integration will also include Octave’s Alto portfolio, formerly Luciad, for high-performance geospatial visualisation, and dotOcean’s data processing capabilities, which transform sensor data into actionable intelligence for AI and system automation. A demonstration of the capability is anticipated later this year, with additional capabilities potentially added through subsequent demonstrations.
The new capabilities are expected to meet the requirements of a growing list of international customers, particularly in Europe. Belgian Defence has joined the UK Royal Air Force as one of the first European countries to begin MQ-9B operations.
“Octave is proud to partner with GA-ASI, Thales, and dotOcean to advance innovation for Belgian Defence and beyond,” said Maximilian Weber, Octave Vice President in Europe. “The integration of Octave Alto, relied on by defense agencies around the world, will bring advanced visualization and real-time situational analysis capabilities to support fast, coordinated decision-making.”
“dotOcean is looking forward to collaborating with GA-ASI, Thales and Octave to enable mission automation by generating actionable data from on-board sensors. We are eager to support maritime and multi domain missions for international defense clients,” said Koen Geirnaert, CEO of dotOcean.
