Traditional providers of maritime surveillance aircraft and systems are being challenged by smaller companies offering lower-cost solutions that are especially attractive to smaller countries whose priorities are littoral protection. At the recent Maritime Domain Awareness and Coastal Surveillance Conference and Exhibition in Singapore, organized by IQPC, major OEMs such as Airbus D&S, Dassault Aviation, Saab and Thales were outnumbered by a clutch of lesser-known entities. Some of them have already achieved sales success in Asia.

Swedish company S&T Airborne Systems has provided the MSS6000 end-to-end coastal surveillance system to Malaysia (on Maritime Agency CL-415 amphibians) and Vietnam (on Marine Police C212 twin turboprops). It includes a ground station for mission planning and post-flight processing; integration of airborne sensors (fixed and handheld) and operator consoles; and flight crew displays. Olav Fast, director of global sales, said that S&T has also provided a mission command center to Vietnam. He introduced the company’s new MSS7000 system, which offers larger but lighter displays and includes new screen layouts and an integrated ship image database. The latter allows identification of small or rogue vessels not transmitting the maritime automatic identification system (AIS), Fast told the conference.

Marcus Gurtner of Austrian company Airborne Technologies described his company’s customization of various twin-engine aircraft for surveillance missions. Although it is working on Beechcraft King Airs for “about eight customers,” Airborne Technologies suggests three low-cost high-wing twins for maritime surveillance, ranging in size from the Tecnam MMA through the Vulcan Air P68 Observer to the Vulcan Air A-Viator. Airborne Technologies has pioneered lightweight carbon fiber and electrically powered deployment mountings for sensors, and a self-contained, battery-powered reconnaissance pod, which was launched at the last Singapore Airshow. Airborne Technologies works closely with Scotty, another Austrian company that specializes in turnkey small airborne satcom systems.

Other exhibitors at the IQPC event in Singapore included Aerodata, a German company that has added special-mission conversions to its previous specialty of ATC flight inspection aircraft. It has supplied its AeroMission integrated system on five Dornier 328s now used by AeroRescue for SAR in Australia, and on two King Air B200s used by Malta for maritime patrol.

Hawker Pacific of Australia exhibited maritime surveillance solutions based mostly on the King Air.

Momentum Aviation Group (MAG) is an American company that has provided aerial surveillance services to the U.S. government and others using aircraft as diverse as the Cessna 206, Selex Falco UAV and Mi-8/17 helicopters.

Optimare is a German company that offers the Medusa integrated system, various elements of which can be found on Royal Thai Navy, German Navy and Netherlands Coast Guard Do-228s; Spanish Maritime Safety Agency CN-235s; Portuguese Air Force C-295s; and Chinese Oceanic Adminstration Harbin Y-12s.