The recent threat of drone swarms in conflicts such as Ukraine has confronted the armed forces of many countries with a harsh reality: classic air defence does not always work adequately against small, fast and cheap unmanned aircraft. The Hague wants to accelerate the purchase of Skyranger air defence vehicles. The question remains, however: which missile will be placed on this vehicle.
Why the Netherlands wants the Skyranger
The choice of the Skyranger stems from a growing awareness that small and cheap drones now pose a structural threat. State Secretary Gijs Tuinman said earlier that the armed forces “must be better able to deal with enemy drones, helicopters and other air threats.” Dutch planning includes 22 Skyranger systems; it is a considerable investment, with a view to the long term and better protection of ground troops and equipment.
The Skyranger 30, developed by Rheinmetall, is a mobile air defence turret on a Boxer 8×8 vehicle (or ACSV vehicle in the Netherlands) with a 30 mm cannon. That cannon is powerful and fast, but naturally has range limitations. Reports show that the cannon’s effective firing zone is relatively short — and with multiple threats, such as drone swarms, firepower from ammunition alone can quickly run out.
Video Rheinmetall: the Skyranger’s cannon being tested.
Dutch systems currently use short-range weapons such as Stinger missiles for somewhat more distant threats, but that solution has several disadvantages. The Stinger is now outdated, available in limited numbers and has a limited range. When several targets come in at once, there is little time to reload, which drastically reduces the effectiveness of such a defensive layer. America is also working on a replacement for the Stinger that may be available as early as 2028.
The role of MBDA: anti-drone missile DefendAir / SADM
This is exactly where MBDA’s innovation comes in. In Germany, Rheinmetall and MBDA have already started working together to integrate the Small Anti-Drone Missile (SADM) into the Skyranger 30. This project was announced at ILA 2024, with a letter of intent between the two companies.
In November 2025 Germany even formally signed a contract with MBDA for the development and purchase of what is now called “DefendAir” — a mini-missile specifically designed to intercept drones. The German parliament approved around 490 million euros for this programme. Germany is buying no fewer than 650 Skyrangers.
Technology and specifications
DefendAir (SADM) is derived from MBDA’s Enforcer family: a relatively light missile system less than a metre long and weighing around 7.5 kilograms. For the anti-drone role, the missile is fitted with a booster for extra range and a special seeker that can detect and destroy micro and mini UAVs of up to around 150 kg.
Importantly, integration of the launch units has already been provided for in the Skyranger turret. According to MBDA and Rheinmetall, the Skyranger can carry between 9 and 12 of these small missiles, depending on the configuration of the launch tubes. By adding these missiles, the Skyranger extends its range from about 2 km (with the cannon alone) to about 6 km, allowing many more threats to be intercepted.
According to Rheinmetall and MBDA, the cannon and the mini-missile complement each other perfectly: the cannon remains efficient at very short ranges, while the SADM provides a “standoff” layer at somewhat greater distance. German military analysts estimate that a single Skyranger platform with both weapon systems can neutralise up to 30 drones simultaneously in a swarm situation. Because the Netherlands can fire very good but also expensive missiles with NOMADS (see upcoming article), there is certainly still room for a small missile, and this could be an option.
image MBDA
Reactions from MBDA and the military
MBDA’s German management is clearly optimistic about the strategic importance of DefendAir. Thomas Gottschild, Managing Director of MBDA Deutschland, called the missile a “game changer in counter-drone strategy”. He stresses that the system is relevant not only for Germany, but also for other NATO member states: DefendAir is presented as a contribution to the European Sky Shield Initiative, a project for coordinated air defence within Europe.
The German armed forces themselves state that the addition of these missiles enables the Skyranger to show “full” effectiveness against small and micro drones. This considerably reduces the vulnerability of ground troops that depend only on cannons or outdated man-portable missiles.
MBDA also underlines that DefendAir is produced in Germany, at MBDA’s Schrobenhausen complex. This means that a large part of the added value stays within Germany itself — strategically attractive for both German industrial and military sovereignty.
What does this mean for the Netherlands?
Although the Netherlands has not yet officially announced that it will also buy the SADM/DefendAir missile, the combination of Skyranger and this new missile is exactly what the Dutch armed forces are visibly looking for: a greater range against drones than the 30 mm gun alone can offer, without relying on outdated man-portable missiles such as the Stinger.
The motivation is logical in light of recent war experience: Ukraine has repeatedly shown that drone swarms can be used effectively for reconnaissance, artillery strikes and disrupting logistics lines. The inflexible and relatively limited range of legacy air defence, combined with mass attacks by cheap drones, forces innovation.
For the Netherlands, integrating this missile on the Skyranger could also be a strategic step towards a layered SHORAD defence: with cannon and mini-missile in one platform, a powerful and mobile system emerges that can respond at several threat levels. Such a system could operate within national defence plans but also contribute to NATO air defence, especially in cooperation with other European partners.
Moreover, using a missile already in development in Germany increases the chance of interoperability and joint procurement between member states. MBDA itself hints that there is “strong international interest” in DefendAir from other countries.
