Finnish Army Tests Rheinmetall Skyspotter as NATO Seeks Affordable Counter Drone Defenses.

Rheinmetall has successfully demonstrated its Skyspotter counter small UAS system during Finnish Armed Forces air defense trials at the Lohtaja firing range in December 2025. The test is significant for NATO forces as militaries seek affordable, mobile ways to counter mass drone threats proven on battlefields such as Ukraine.

Rheinmetall announced on December 16, 2025, that its Air Defence division completed a live demonstration of the Skyspotter counter small unmanned aerial system capability during the Finnish Armed Forces Ground-Based Air Defence Demo Days. Conducted at the Lohtaja firing range under winter conditions and forested terrain, the trial evaluated the system’s ability to detect, track, and defeat targets ranging from fast jet drones to small quadcopters in an operationally realistic environment, according to company statements.
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30 mm revolver cannon firing programmable KETF airburst rounds that scatter tungsten pellets to knock down small drones fast and cheaply, ideal against mass UAS attacks (Picture source: Rheinmetall).

Skyspotter is best understood as a deployable counter-UAS node that concentrates sensing, identification, electronic attack, and command and control into a modular package. Rheinmetall presents it as a multi-sensory early warning and reconnaissance system with an open architecture, allowing users to tailor sensors and effectors as threats evolve. At Lohtaja, the company also showcased a rapidly deployable configuration mounted on a Rheinmetall HX military truck, underlining an operational focus on mobility and survivability rather than fixed site protection alone.

From a technical standpoint, the Skyspotter sensor container integrates S-band and X-band radars with detection ranges of approximately 5 km and 7.5 km, respectively, paired with an electro-optical verification package combining daylight and thermal cameras with a laser rangefinder. Automatic acquisition, tracking, and identification functions are designed to work against small targets flying low and slow in cluttered environments, a defining feature of the drone threat observed in Ukraine. Passive emitter locator sensors can be added to detect and geolocate drone control links without emitting radar energy, improving survivability against counterfire.

Operational relevance comes from how Skyspotter is designed to cue effectors quickly while protecting the operators. Rheinmetall demonstrated an architecture combining Skyspotter, dislocated passive sensors, and a dedicated command and control shelter positioned at a safe distance from emitting elements. This reflects battlefield lessons from Ukraine, where counter-drone teams quickly become high-value targets and must rely on dispersion, concealment, and rapid relocation to survive.

A key armament element highlighted during the Finnish demonstration is Rheinmetall’s emphasis on a gun-based hard kill solution built around a 30 mm revolver cannon firing programmable KETF ammunition. This ammunition type ejects a cloud of tungsten subprojectiles in front of the target, creating a lethal cone that significantly increases hit probability against small, agile drones. The kinetic nature of the effect is particularly relevant in the face of mass drone attacks, where reliance on expensive missiles alone is neither sustainable nor affordable.

The Skyranger 30 turret offers a clear benchmark for this approach. Rheinmetall describes an effective engagement range of up to 3,000 meters, a nominal rate of fire of around 1,200 rounds per minute, and more than 250 ready rounds, with options to integrate short-range air defence missiles for layered coverage. Tactically, this allows commanders to combine electronic attack to disrupt drones, gunfire for close-in defeat, and missiles for higher altitude or longer range targets, all within a single integrated system.

Finland’s interest in such capabilities mirrors a wider trend across NATO. The war in Ukraine has shown that drones are no longer niche reconnaissance tools, but mass-produced weapons used for surveillance, strike, and attrition. Western armies are now racing to rebuild short-range air defence and counter UAS layers that were allowed to atrophy after the Cold War. In this context, Rheinmetall’s demonstration was less about showcasing technology and more about proving that a layered, mobile, and affordable counter-drone shield can function under realistic field conditions.

For Western forces, Skyspotter represents an important step toward scalable counter-drone defence. Its combination of containerized sensors, mobile integration, passive detection options, and cost-effective kinetic defeat aligns closely with the harsh lessons emerging from Ukraine. When drones are numerous, persistent, and dangerous, counter-drone systems must be equally numerous, survivable, and economical enough to be used every day of the war.