WASHINGTON -- On October 20, 2025, California-based drone manufacturer Seasats unveiled a new unmanned surface vessel (USV), dubbed Quickfish, which it demonstrated for the Navy. The new USV is reportedly a high-speed intercept vessel designed to provide positive video ID capabilities of other maritime vessels on the open ocean. The vessel itself is 17 feet in length and can travel faster than 35 knots.

According to Seasats, an unnamed U.S. defense prime has already purchased a Quickfish, and international partners in Australia, the Philippines, and Japan have signed agreements for local manufacturing and distribution. The Quickfish joins an influx of new unmanned surface vessels coming into the market, demonstrating the U.S. Navy’s heightened interest in leveraging unmanned technology on the water.

Source: Breaking Defense
Associated URL: https://breakingdefense.com/2025/10/usv-maker-seasats-unveils-high-speed-interceptor-quickfish/?utm_campaign=Skydio&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9KUGoKL3lR7BqfKYaQXaQnIIWTd0FWIMZ1Z1oig7PR9hvl8ccF3wkQZ6ZkqzdWwT72dk4uMCq_iuk8t1CFceouNswOsg&_hsmi=3860355

SEOUL - Northrop Grumman Corporation and LIG Nex1 formalized their commitment to enhance the Republic of Korea's air and missile defense capabilities by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at the Seoul ADEX International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition.

Through this collaboration the companies will leverage their respective specialized defense technologies during a series of technical exchanges and engineering assessments.

Northrop Grumman's expertise in air and missile defense command and control systems, as demonstrated in the Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS), complements LIG Nex1's role in Korea's indigenous missile defense systems. These systems include Cheongung-II (M-SAM II), Korean Air and Missile Defense system, L-SAM, and command, control, communications, and intelligence system integration.

Experts: Jeremy Knupp, vice president, global command and control solutions, Northrop Grumman: "Northrop Grumman is committed to developing innovative, sovereign solutions that enhance the performance and effectiveness of current and future integrated air and missile defense systems. This partnership with LIG Nex1 underscores our dedication to collaborating with the Korean defense industry to deliver advanced, cost-effective capabilities that strengthen Korea's homeland defense and ensure adaptability to evolving threats."

Tae-Sik Park, president, missile system group, LIG Nex1: "We are pleased that this cooperation with Northrop Grumman opens up broader opportunities to explore various projects in both domestic and international air defense missile markets."

Details on Northrop Grumman’s IAMD Command and Control Capabilities: IBCS is a revolutionary system that delivers fire control quality and battle management, unifying current and future systems regardless of source, service or domain. Through its network enabled, modular, open and scalable architecture, IBCS fuses sensor data for a single, actionable picture of the full battlespace. This ready-now capability gives warfighters more time to assess and respond to threats, serving as a foundational element for enabling joint and coalition, multi-domain operations IBCS is in production and will be fielded as part of the U.S. Army's program of record for integrated air and missile defense modernization.

Source: Northrop Grumman
Associated URL: https://news.northropgrumman.com/partnerships/Northrop-Grumman-LIG-Nex1-Collaborate-to-Strengthen-Republic-of-Korea%E2%80%99s-Air-and-Missile-Defense-Capabilities

SEOUL - AeroVironment, Inc. has announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that positions Korean Air as its priority partner in the Republic of Korea.

This alliance will focus on integrating and adapting AV's JUMP 20 Group 3 vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL), fixed-wing uncrewed aircraft to meet the specific needs of the Korean Defense market. It also establishes a foundation for long-term joint research and development, sustained innovation, and local production - supporting efforts by the Korean Ministry of National Defense to grow its unmanned system infrastructure and expand manufacturing within the country.

"This agreement signals our growing international footprint, market presence, and commitment to delivering adaptable solutions in collaboration with trusted, in-country partners around the world," said Larry Satterfield, AV's Senior Director of Business Development for Asia Pacific. "With incredible mission flexibility and a rapidly growing global demand for the platform, JUMP 20 will anchor our partnership with Korean Air and meet Korea's emerging defense needs."

By leveraging AV's operational track record and Korean Air's defense ecosystem, the collaboration ensures Korea's armed forces gain a mission-ready MUAS solution built to meet evolving regional and global defense challenges.

With proven endurance, range, and multi-payload flexibility, JUMP 20 is the ideal platform for advanced intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations and a wide range of evolving mission demands. It has emerged as the global Group 3 platform of choice, with recently awarded contracts across Europe, including Denmark, Italy, and multiple other NATO allies.

Source: AeroVironment
Associated URL: https://www.avinc.com/resources/press-releases/view/av-and-korean-air-sign-memorandum-of-understanding-to-advance-medium-unmanned-aircraft-systems-for-the-republic-of-korea