Teledyne FLIR Defense, part of Teledyne Technologies Incorporated, and STORM have announced a partnership to bring Teledyne FLIR’s Black Recon™ vehicle reconnaissance system to RADS™, the Rapid Adapt and Deploy System. As a RADS Application Partner, Teledyne FLIR will have a standardised route to field Black Recon across additional vehicle types while joining STORM’s growing ecosystem of certified technology partners. The partnership was signed at Eurosatory 2026 in Paris.
Black Recon enables crews to autonomously launch, operate and recover up to three small reconnaissance UAVs from fixed sites or from inside a vehicle. The system provides persistent situational awareness ahead of advancing forces and beyond line of sight. Each UAV is equipped with electro-optical and thermal cameras and can be controlled from the safety of the vehicle cabin, extending the crew’s reach beyond the vehicle itself.
RADS adds another dimension to this capability through its open, modular architecture, which standardises how technology is integrated onto vehicles. This allows Black Recon to be mounted, upgraded or moved between vehicles in minutes rather than requiring bespoke engineering. RADS supports platforms ranging from standard pickups and the RADS Trailer to lighter platforms such as ATVs, UGVs, snowmobiles and boats. The reconnaissance capability can therefore be adapted to different platforms and integrated according to operational requirements. It can also be removed from the vehicle and operated as a standalone personal reconnaissance system, allowing a single operator to deploy it where required within minutes.
For Teledyne FLIR Defense, the partnership also creates a commercial channel to RADS-equipped fleets and STORM’s growing distributor network. As development progresses, the companies will explore additional Teledyne FLIR products and systems suited to RADS.
“Our customers operate in environments where mission requirements change quickly, and they need to add and update capability without taking vehicles out of service,” said Harald Sørensen, Vice President of Norway Operations at Teledyne FLIR Defense. “RADS gives us a standardised way to put Black Recon onto the platforms our customers already field and to do it at scale. We see RADS as a natural foundation for bringing more of our drone portfolio to vehicle fleets over time.”
“It is a real vote of confidence to have a company of Teledyne FLIR Defense’s standing build on RADS,” said Andreas Rist, Founder, STORM. “Black Recon is genuinely exciting technology and having a global leader in sensing and unmanned systems choose our platform means a great deal to us. We are proud to have them as a partner.”
“With RADS you have a whole fleet where every vehicle can run any task and be repurposed as needs change, and a capability like Black Recon can be added, moved between vehicles, or deployed on its own in minutes. That’s exactly what this partnership is built to deliver,” Rist added.
