Smart Weapons Market Report

Market Insights

The smart weapons market was estimated at US$ 15 billion in 2021 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.0% during 2022-2028 to reach US$ 30.7 billion by 2028. The impact of COVID-19 on the overall market revenue is deemed to be less. Although manufacturing delays hit the industry for a short duration in 2020 and 2021.

A smart weapon is a type of weapon that can be guided to its target without human intervention. Smart weapons such as bombs, missiles, and projectiles guided by lasers, satellite or radar prove to be more accurate than the normal weapons. Smart weapons, also known as precision-guided weapons, are expected to hit the target precisely without causing heavy collateral damage. These weapons are controlled and guided by the use of external operating systems that operate from far-away locations.

Smart weapons have instigated a change in war engagement & defence strategies owing to their vast range of characteristics. For instance, smart cruise missiles collect data from navigation satellites for maintaining an accurate flight course. Smart guns make use of safeguards that makes sure it operates only when activated by an authorized person, which in turn helps in reducing self-harm, misuse and gun theft scenarios. This feature in smart guns employs technology such as RFID chips, mechanical locks, biometric sensors, fingerprint recognition, and magnetic kit.

The growth of the smart weapons market is majorly driven by demand for precision strike weapons that reduce collateral damage and constant fear of national security across many unstable economies of the world. Further, a constant rise in the defence budget of many countries along with an increased spending on upgradation of weapons technology are some of the prominent factors that boost market demand. For example, by end of September 2021, the U.S. Navy finalized a contract with Northrop Grumman Corp. for producing the AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Extended-Range Missile. However, the growth of the smart weapons market is restrained by factors such as unfavourable government regulations and high purchase cost. Nonetheless, standardization of smart weapons and rising instances of terrorism extends lucrative opportunities to the industry players during the forecast period.

There have been several developments in the defence industry directed at smart weapons in the recent years, which would boost the overall market. Some of them are:

1. In September 2019, Israel-based Rafael Advanced Defence Systems completed its acquisition of Aeronautics, a leading Israeli unmanned aerial systems developer expanding its product portfolio by integrating missile systems, directed energy weapons, communications and advanced active protection armour.
2. In February 2020, U.S.-based General Dynamics Corp. was awarded a US$ 883 Million contract to modernize the U.S. army training program. The contract includes improving the Army’s individual and collective expeditionary training systems major combat training centres.
3. In February 2020, Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. was awarded a US$ 240 Million contract for replacement of T-38 trainer aircraft wings
4. January 2021 – MBDA signed a contract with the UK Ministry of Defense to equip a new mini spear 3 network-enabled cruise missile for its F-35B combat Jets. The value of contract was worth US$ 750mn.
5. Feb 2021- Lockheed Martin signed a contract worth US$ 414mn with the US Navy and Airforce to supply LRASM, an anti-ship, precision-guided standoff missile based on the successful joint air-to-ground standoff missile.
6. May 2022, Saab, a defence giant and its armed forces partners completed a two-day series of live-fire demonstrations, including a series of night-time firings, the largest such demonstration at the company’s facilities since 2014. With Sweden formally petitioning to join NATO after decades of balancing between the alliance and Russia, a new spotlight is being cast on its domestic defense industry.
7. One of the utilities of the Saab-designed weapons is that they exit the launcher tube and only after initially airborne does the rocket motor ignite. This “shoot and scoot” capability of the system makes it possible for the troops firing the weapon to not reveal their position — a weakness of several previous-generation ATGMs (Anti-tank guided mission, smart weapon)

Segment Analysis

Based on type, the smart weapons market is divided into missiles, munitions, guided rockets, guided projectiles, precision guided firearms and others. The missiles segment held the largest share of the market in 2021 owing to the increasing demand for missiles from the defence forces. The munitions segment is expected to grow at the fastest rate owing to growing demand for next-generation precision-guided munitions.

Technololy Type:

The smart weapons market is segmented into satellite guidance, radar guidance, infrared guidance, laser guidance and others. The laser guidance segment is projected to show continued demand in the near future due to its high accuracy, reliability and quick hit capability. The satellite guidance segment is projected to grow at an exponential rate during the forecast period owing to the rising demand for GPS-guided smart weapons that can operate smoothly even during bas weather conditions.

Platform Type:

The market is segmented into Land, Maritime and Airborne. The land segment is expected to grow at then fastest CAGR during the forecast period due to rapid expansion of military forces across the world along with a rise in procurement of smart weapons by land-based forces. The airborne segment is expected to grow at a rapid rate in the near future.

Regional Analysis of Smart Weapons Market

• North America was the largest smart weapons market in 2021 and is forecast to lead the market during the forecast period.
• This is due to the high defence budget, technological advancements, favourable regulations and presence of key manufacturers in the region.
• However, Asia-Pacific is expected to witness the fastest demand growth by 2028 owing to the surge in investments in the defence sector, rise in terrorism activities and unstable socio-political scenarios in the region.
• Further, emerging economies such as India and China are also investing heavily on smart weapons, apart from modernizing their existing military equipment.

Key Players

There is stiff competition in the smart weapons market. The growth of the companies is directly dependent on the industry conditions and government support. These companies differentiate their smart weapon offerings on the basis of their quality and their penetration in the target and emerging markets. Also, there have been some major mergers and acquisitions in the industry in recent years, which significantly influenced the competitive dynamics. For example:

1. Rafael introduced “firefly”, a miniature loitering ammunition in June 2018. The miniature ammunition could be used in conjunction with an electro-optical precision integration kit to deliver precision guidance to surface-to-surface multiple rocket launch systems and could also be used by dismounted soldiers.
2. In January 2019, Germany’s GIWS, a joint venture between Rheinmetall and Diehl Defence, confirmed its relaunch of SMArt 155 artillery projectile to be undertaken between 2022 and 2024.
3. In July 2020, BAE Systems acquired the ‘Collins Aerospace Military Global Positioning System’ business from Raytheon Technologies Corp. The deal enhances BAE System’s existing electronic systems business portfolio through inclusion of Raytheon’s anti-spoofing and anti-jamming technology that allows accurate navigation across a range of defence missions.

The following are the major players in the smart weapons market:

• Lockheed Martin
• MBDA, Inc.
• The Boeing Co.
• BAE Systems
• General Dynamics Corporation
• Orbital ATK
• Textron, Inc.
• Northrop Grumman
• Raytheon Company
• Thales Group
• Rheinmetall AG
• Denel Dynamics
• Israel Aerospace Industries
• Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd
• L3Harris Technologies Inc.
• L-3 Fuzing And Ordnance Systems Inc.
• Alliant Techsystems Inc.
• Diehl Stiftung & Co. KG, General Dynamics
• United Technologies Corporation
• China Aerospace Science & Industry Corp.

Research Methodology

This report offers high-quality insights and is the outcome of detailed research methodology comprising extensive secondary research, rigorous primary interviews with industry stakeholders and validation and triangulation with Stratview Research’s internal database and statistical tools. More than 1,000 authenticated secondary sources, such as company annual reports, fact book, press release, journals, investor presentation, white papers, patents, and articles have been leveraged to gather the data. We conducted more than 10 detailed primary interviews with the market players across the value chain in all four regions and with industry experts to obtain both the qualitative and quantitative insights.

Report Features

This report provides market intelligence in the most comprehensive way. The report structure has been kept such that it offers maximum business value. It provides critical insights into the market dynamics and will enable strategic decision making for the existing market players as well as those willing to enter the market. The following are the key features of the report:

• Market structure: Overview, industry life cycle analysis, supply chain analysis
• Market environment analysis: Growth drivers and constraints, Porter’s five forces analysis, SWOT analysis
• Market trend and forecast analysis
• Market segment trend and forecast
• Competitive landscape and dynamics: Market share, product portfolio, product launches, etc.
• Attractive market segments and associated growth opportunities
• Emerging trends
• Strategic growth opportunities for the existing and new players
• Key success factors