Aero, Thales expand L-39 Skyfox counter-drone role with guided rockets

Aero Vodochody and Thales Belgium have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to further develop the counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) capabilities of the L-39 Skyfox jet, including continued integration and testing of Thales’ 70 mm rocket system. 

The Skyfox, developed as the L-39NG and renamed in October 2024, is a two-seat jet trainer and light combat aircraft. It succeeds the L-39 Albatros, which first flew in 1968. Aero built almost 3,000 Albatros jets, around 700 of which remain in civil and military service. Aero flew the first serial-production Skyfox on April 21, 2023. 

The company first displayed the type in an armed configuration at the Dubai Airshow 2025, fitting it with two LAU-32 rocket launchers and two 12.7 mm gun pods and the Phoenix pod developed by SiNAB Technologies, highlighting its ability to detect, track and neutralize aerial threats. 

Aero then presented the counter-drone configuration, which it calls Drone Hunter, to the Czech public for the first time at NATO Days in Ostrava on September 19, 2026. The company said the configuration demonstrated how the Skyfox could be adapted for C-UAS and other emerging missions. 

Thales develops 70 mm rockets for drone interception 

A Thales FZ275 70 mm rocket. (Credit: AeroTime)Aero’s announcement does not identify the rocket variant covered by the MoU. Thales Belgium’s FZ275 semi-active laser-guided rocket has a range of 1,500 to 7,000 meters (approximately 0.9 to 4.3 miles). 

At Eurosatory 2026 in June, Thales also unveiled the LGR275 Proxy, a laser-guided 70 mm rocket equipped with a proximity fuse designed to detonate near small drones instead of requiring a direct hit. 

The weapon forms part of a broader push to develop cheaper ways of engaging relatively inexpensive unmanned aircraft without expending conventional air-to-air missiles. 

Guided rockets emerge as lower-cost counter-drone weapons 

The Skyfox is not the only combat aircraft being paired with guided rockets for counter-drone missions. France has begun fitting Rafale fighters with Thales’ 68 mm laser-guided rockets as a lower-cost alternative to air-to-air missiles against drones. 

Aero has delivered Skyfox aircraft to Vietnam, Hungary and the Czech state-owned company LOM PRAHA. On June 18, 2026, it announced additional orders from Angola and a civil customer in North America. 

As of October 5, 2026, Aero had not announced a customer for the Drone Hunter configuration. The post Aero, Thales expand L-39 Skyfox counter-drone role with guided rockets appeared first on AeroTime.

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