FN America

AimLock and FN America unveiled a joint counter-drone weapon system at SOF Week 2026 in Tampa on May 19, combining AimLock's artificial intelligence targeting technology with one of the most widely deployed remote weapon stations in the Western military market to create a system capable of detecting, tracking, and automatically calculating firing solutions against small drones without requiring a complete platform overhaul. The system, called Dune, integrates AimLock's autonomy software into FN America's FN DEFNDER MEDIUM remote weapon station, giving existing vehicles a networked, AI-assisted capability to engage drone swarms using weapons already in their inventory. The demonstration took place with the Dune system mounted on a BC Customs SXV XL 6x6, a purpose-built utility terrain vehicle capable of carrying up to 4,500 pounds with 46 square feet of deck space and powered by a Cummins R2.8 turbodiesel engine, which the manufacturer says can reach 60 miles per hour in under 12 seconds and fits inside a CH-47 Chinook helicopter for roll-on/roll-off transport. The choice of a light utility vehicle as the demonstration platform is deliberate: one of the Dune solution's core selling points is that it can be mounted on whatever vehicle a unit already operates, rather than requiring specialized hardware. FN America, the U.S. subsidiary of Belgian weapons manufacturer FN Herstal, produces the DEFNDER MEDIUM as a remotely operated weapon station designed for installation on light, medium, and heavy vehicles, with the crew operating the weapon from inside the vehicle rather than exposing themselves to fire. The system can mount weapons ranging from 7.62mm machine guns up to 30mm cannons, combining stabilized fire control and networked targeting to extend accurate engagement out to roughly 2 kilometers, and its modular design allows multi-weapon compatibility without structural redesign of the host platform, according to Army Recognition's coverage of the DEFNDER at DSA 2026. The DEFNDER family has been tested for counter-drone operations in NATO exercises, with FN Herstal demonstrating the system at the NATO Non-Lethal Technology Exercise in Sardinia in March 2025 where it engaged small unmanned aerial systems as part of a layered sensor-and-effector defense concept, according to Shephard Media. AimLock, a Colorado-based defense company founded in 2013 that has been developing autonomous targeting technology for over a decade, contributes the intelligence layer. The company's Keystone Core Targeting Module, which AimLock describes on its website as combining sensor management, computer vision, artificial intelligence, networks, and sensor fusion with advanced fire control, target tracking, and platform management, serves as the computational core of the Dune solution. When integrated into the DEFNDER MEDIUM, the Keystone CTM enables the weapon station to detect an incoming drone, classify it, track its trajectory, and automatically calculate the optimal firing solution, with a human operator retaining the authority to approve and execute the engagement. AimLock CEO Bryan Bockmon described the system's core logic to Business Insider at SOF Week 2025: "If that doesn't work," referring to electronic warfare countermeasures, "this is the last line of defense." The Dune system is designed to be that last line, providing a kinetic kill option when jamming and spoofing fail, which they increasingly do against fiber-optic guided drones and AI-enabled systems that carry no exploitable radio link. The Dune's weapon compatibility covers the primary small-caliber ammunition types already in military inventories: 30x113mm cannon rounds, 12.7x99mm heavy machine gun ammunition, and 40x53mm grenade launcher rounds, plus airburst programmable, proximity-fuzed, and conventional variants across those calibers. Programmable airburst ammunition, which detonates at a preset distance rather than on contact, is particularly effective against small drones because a direct hit on a fast-moving target the size of a dinner plate is difficult to achieve consistently, while an airburst cloud of fragments near the target is not. The multi-caliber compatibility means defense customers can configure the system around whatever ammunition supply chain they already maintain rather than introducing new logistics requirements. AimLock's broader technology portfolio shows a pattern of pairing the same Keystone CTM with progressively more capable platforms. In October 2025, the company announced a partnership with Overland AI to integrate the Keystone system into Overland's ULTRA autonomous ground vehicle, covering the same mission sets the Dune targets: counter-UAS, force protection, direct action, integrated defense, strike anti-armor, and support by fire, according to Army Recognition's reporting on the AUSA 2025 announcement. The Dune collaboration with FN America represents a different entry point into the same ecosystem, targeting customers whose existing DEFNDER MEDIUM installations can be upgraded with AimLock's autonomy suite rather than procuring an entirely new vehicle.

FN America

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