SkeyDrone and DronePort Sint-Truiden Launch National Counter Drone Testing and Expertise Centre

- Steenokkerzeel/Sint-Truiden, Belgium.

SkeyDrone and DronePort Sint-Truiden are proud to announce a strategic partnership to establish Belgium’s first permanent Drone Detection & Counter-UAS (C-UAS) Testing and Expertise Centre. This national hub will enable manufacturers of detection and C-UAS systems to test, validate and demonstrate their solutions, and integrate them into a comprehensive, multi-layered C-UAS system designed for both defence and civil authority use.

With drones becoming increasingly present in society, both for legitimate and malicious purposes, the demand for robust, interoperable C-UAS solutions has never been greater. In Belgium and across Europe, government agencies, critical infrastructure operators, and defence forces are seeking integrated detection and mitigation capabilities that are tested, validated, and proven in operational settings. Meeting this demand calls for state-of-the-art infrastructure combined with advanced system integration expertise, precisely what this new centre will deliver.

Complementary Strengths, Shared Vision

  • DronePort Sint-Truiden will provide the physical infrastructure and secure, real-world operational environment necessary for continuous testing, demonstrations, and stakeholder collaboration, opening its facilities to a wide range of parties developing both C-UAS systems and advanced drone technologies, and creating an environment where opposing technologies can challenge each other to enhance and future-proof airspace security.
  • SkeyDrone, as operator of Belgium’s national backbone drone detection network and U-space service provider, will enable the technical integration of the various subsystems, manage the interfaces with civil aviation stakeholders, safeguard compliance with regulatory frameworks, and connect participating solutions to its existing detection network.  

National Operational Backbone

Looking ahead, SkeyDrone envisages to operate its national base detection network and services from DronePort Sint-Truiden. This network already serves critical infrastructure across Belgium, including airports, strategic energy production and distribution sites, prisons, and offshore wind farms, as well as several local police zones. From DronePort Sint-Truiden, SkeyDrone plans to deliver real-time monitoring and alerting services nationwide.

Strategic Impact

This partnership will:

  • Establish Belgium’s national testbed for C-UAS innovation, accelerating time-to-market for Belgian and European technology providers.
  • Strengthen Belgium’s technological sovereignty in C-UAS capabilities.
  • Offer defence and civil authorities a trusted platform for evaluating and selecting integrated solutions.
  • Position Belgium as a European reference centre for drone detection and non-kinetic counter-drone technologies.

Ward Decaluwé, CEO of DronePort Sint-Truiden, commented: “With this C-UAS Centre, DronePort Sint-Truiden further establishes itself as the beating heart of Belgium’s drone ecosystem. By combining our unique infrastructure with SkeyDrone’s expertise, we are creating an innovation hub where authorities, technology providers, and end users can collaborate to address one of today’s most pressing airspace security challenges.”

Hendrik-Jan Van Der Gucht, Managing Director of SkeyDrone, added: “The establishment of this centre marks a pivotal step in building a safer and more resilient airspace. By leveraging DronePort’s operational environment and integrating it with our national detection backbone, we’re not only enhancing our service capabilities but also fostering a collaborative environment where industry, government, and defence can co-create the future of airspace security.”

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