Echodyne announces its inclusion as a primary radar system within Trust Automation’s Small-Unmanned Air Defense System (SUADS) Counter-UAS platform, to be delivered to the U.S. Air Force under a $490M IDIQ contract announced in August 2025. EchoShield is the market-leading medium range radar that reliably and consistently generates precise location data for all drone types and configurations. A commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) radar system, EchoShield’s industry standard interfaces and rich data options create a baseline data set that more accurately slews optical sensors, cues effector options, and accelerates reaction time. Boasting advanced classification capabilities built on recursive neural network (RvNN) machine learning models, EchoShield tracks all movement and pinpoints system and operator attention where and when it matters. Rapidly Deployable Small-Unmanned Air Defense System (RD-SUADS), Fixed Site Small-Unmanned Air Defense System (FS-SUADS), and Expeditionary Small-Unmanned Air Defense System (EX-SUADS) platforms adhere to the Sensor Open Systems Architecture (SOSA) standard with EchoShield radars being the first fully integrated SOSA solution in the platform. The RD-SUADS platform is a self-contained, self-powered C-UAS system fitted to standard pallet sizes for easy transport via military aircraft, while the FS-SUADS is for deployment at permanent military installations and can be integrated as a group or standalone for diverse redundant base protection and 360-degree security. The EX-SUADS detection only system is designed for checked baggage transportation and sized to fit with cases in larger SUV vehicles.
“Integrating Echodyne’s advanced radar into our RD-SUADS, FS-SUADS, and EX-SUADS systems enhances both detection range and accuracy, enabling operators to identify threats sooner and respond with greater confidence,” said Ty Safreno, CEO at Trust Automation, Inc. “These systems provide agile, comprehensive C-sUAS capability that helps protect warfighters and critical facilities through elevated situational awareness.”
“It is becoming more and more evident that the fidelity of radar data, its accuracy in all data dimensions, is a critical attribute of any radar system,” said Eben Frankenberg, CEO at Echodyne. “The new table stakes for every defensive system is actionable data at the range of reaction and with the precision to consistently direct kinetic effectors onto fast, nimble, UAS threats.”
Trust Automation is driven by a commitment to exceed customer expectations and support the warfighter with reliable, mission-ready technology. Founded in 1990, the company has provided advanced manufacturing, engineering development, and domestic production of motion control, motor control, and integrated power solutions serving the defense, semiconductor, and industrial automation markets. The company has experience supporting customers as a Tier 1 supplier and now is a prime contractor on a U.S. Air Force IDIQ contract. Trust Automation specializes in custom solutions across motor design, motor drive electronics, motion controls subsystems, RF control subsystems, RF systems integration, and advanced tracking applications. Its capabilities also include custom assemblies, product adaptation for unique operational requirements, and clean-sheet system design from concept through production. Over 35 years in domestic advanced manufacturing supporting national security and critical technologies with a legacy rooted in the Department of Defense.
Echodyne designs and builds advanced radar solutions that unlock new capabilities for intelligent systems and autonomous machines and shatter price-performance barriers for sensor arrays. Our combination of patented metamaterials electronically scanned array (MESA®) technology with powerful software ultimately means significantly greater situational awareness that increases safety and saves lives. The company first radar is the size of a paperback book, weighs less than bowling pin, draws less power than a light bulb, yet outperforms every comparable radar on the market. We are just getting started. Echodyne delivers commercial radar solutions for end users and integrators in Government and Defense, Critical Infrastructure Protection, Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS), and Autonomous Vehicle markets globally. The company is based in Kirkland, Washington and backed by Bill Gates, NEA, Madrona Venture Group, Baillie Gifford, Vulcan Capital, Vanedge Capital, and Irongrey among others.
