Signal No. 22 · Ukrainian interceptor drones and German SHORAD · 23 March 2026

WirtschaftsWoche reports continued delays to Rheinmetall’s Skyranger 30 Flugabwehrpanzer. The new chassis is not ready, delaying final assembly. The Bundeswehr is now examining “Brückenlösungen” — bridge solutions — built around mobile counter-drone systems and interceptor drones from Diehl, Tytan, or H&K to cover the SHORAD gap until the heavier platform enters series production. Rheinmetall’s counter-proposal, according to WiWo, is to mount the Skyranger turret on proprietary trucks rather than the Boxer chassis, enabling deliveries from Q3/2026 while deferring radar integration to a later retrofit. That would also sideline KNDS, Boxer’s co-producer. A new “anchor client” procurement approach — binding manufacturers early to accelerate mass production, as with loitering munitions this year — is also reportedly under consideration.

In an interview with The Economist, Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, provided an unusually detailed public account of the force’s operating model. Soldiers target Russian personnel, not armour, at least 30 per cent of the time. Every mission is logged on video and fed into business-intelligence software. Teams operate 3–5 km behind the line in an ecosystem of 15 interlocking functions, including jamming, surveillance, mine-laying, and explosive production. Brovdi cited a cumulative casualty rate of 1 per cent, a 400:1 exchange ratio, and a materiel cost of $878 per kill. On NATO interest, he said: “Which drone is best? The best drone is an ecosystem.”

Ukraine's General Staff confirmed overnight strikes on the Transneft–Port Primorsk oil terminal in Leningrad Oblast — Russia's largest oil-loading port on the Baltic Sea, the endpoint of the Baltic Pipeline System, handling approximately 60 million tonnes per year (~1–1.5 million bpd). The strike was carried out by drones from the SBU's Alpha Special Operations Centre. Governor Drozdenko confirmed a fuel tank damaged and fire; RFE/RL satellite imagery showed at least four tanks on fire. Oil-loading operations were suspended on the evening of 22 March and had not resumed as of noon on 23 March. Reuters reported that Ust-Luga port, 80 km south, also suspended operations — two Baltic export terminals offline simultaneously. The General Staff also confirmed a strike on the Bashneft-Ufaneftekhim refinery in Ufa (6–8 million tonnes/year, 1,400 km from the border). Primorsk is a central node for Russia's shadow fleet circumventing sanctions.

The EDF-funded MARTE programme (Main ARmoured Tank of Europe) reached its half-time milestone on 23 March, one year after the official kick-off in December 2024. The consortium — coordinated by MARTE ARGE GbR, a joint venture between KNDS Deutschland and Rheinmetall Landsysteme — has delivered a comprehensive CONOPS and a full requirements catalogue for a future European main battle tank to the European Commission, which formally confirmed the submissions. A market study, led by Indra Sistemas, assessed technological readiness across the European defence industrial base. The next phase focuses on design and architecture of the MBT as a complete system, led by KNDS Deutschland, Rheinmetall Landsysteme, and Leonardo. The target: Preliminary Design Review within 24 months of kick-off — by late 2026.

Eleven European states participate: Germany (lead), Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Spain, and Sweden. The core industrial team adds Leonardo (Italy), Indra Sistemas (Spain), and SAAB (Sweden) to the German ARGE. In total, 51 entities from 12 countries contribute. The EDF grant is approximately €20 million. According to a European Commission reply to the European Parliament, a follow-up R&D action for MARTE is "high on the agenda" — suggesting Brussels and member states are already discussing the transition from study phase to full-scale development.