Saudi Arabia will locally manufacture the Orion-H9 handheld jammer, developed by TRD Singapore, as part of a joint venture. (TRD Singapore)

Saudi Arabia has struck a deal with counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) manufacturer TRD Singapore to locally manufacture its Orion-H9 radio frequency (RF) jammer.

The agreement, disclosed at the World Defense Show (WDS) 2024 held in Riyadh from 4 to 8 February, is part of a joint venture (JV) called TRD Middle East Industry Co, established between TRD Singapore and domestic defence company Rakaa Holding.

Under the JV, TRD Middle East Industry Co will take charge of developing the Orion-H9 jammer in Saudi Arabia.

The CEO of TRD Singapore, Sam Ong, informed Janes that the company is looking to localise its other manportable systems such as the Orion-D handheld C-UAS jammer and the mobile Orion C2 (command-and-control) system. After this,the company aims to scale up manufacturing, offering the user its fully integrated system of systems solutions. This integrated suite, Ong explained, combines its manportable, vehicle, and fixed site systems.

The standard model of Orion-H weighs approximately