AARTOS DDS Anti-Drone System Protects G20 Summit in Brazil with “Made in Germany” Technology

The Brazilian presidency of the G20 is focused on global sustainability, social integration, and technological cooperation. The summit, taking place in Rio de Janeiro, brings together high-ranking representatives from over 30 nations at the Museum of Modern Art. To protect against drones, the world’s most successful anti-drone system, AARTOS DDS from AARONIA AG, is being deployed.

As part of the summit, Brazilian civil and military special forces have developed a security concept to optimally protect the high-ranking participants. A significant challenge is safeguarding against illegal drones, especially due to the complex topography of the urban setting of the venue. The Brazilian Federal Police has established the anti-drone monitoring center “Central de Monitoramento Antidrones (CMA),” which is operationally supported on-site by four specialists from AARONIA AG. An AARTOS X9 is integrated into the security architecture of the summit.

The largest of the AARTOS systems is particularly suited for this demanding application. A three-tier sensor fusion is crucial here, utilizing RF direction finding, radar, and camera systems. The passive RF direction finding provides information about speed, flight direction, and altitude of the detected object through 3D direction finding. Additionally, it delivers important data such as the pilot’s location, frequency used, and drone protocol type. This information is provided in real-time without the drone pilot being aware of detection.

Following RF direction finding is radar. An active radar verifies the results of RF detection and can also detect autonomous drones that do not emit a radio signal. A high-resolution EO/IR camera enables identification of whether a drone poses an immediate threat (e.g., transporting explosives) or if it is operated by a hobbyist who has lost their way.

This triad allows the CMA to monitor sensitive areas in central Rio as well as the event venue—the Museum of Modern Art—along with Santos Dumont and Galeão international airports and hotels where participants are accommodated, covering a radius of nearly 40 kilometers.

“The excellent collaboration with Brazilian security authorities allows my team and me to contribute to the safety of delegations at the highest level,” explains Stephan Kraschansky, CEO of AARONIA GmbH Austria, a subsidiary of German AARONIA AG. “The precise drone detection and our RTSA Suite PRO software provide seamless 360° monitoring. This ensures effective protection against unauthorized drone operations in such a large and topographically challenging area.”

It is hoped that this summit will proceed without incidents involving dangerous drones, as was the case during the G20 summit in Bali in 2022, which was also protected by AARTOS. Summit participants can rest assured that they are optimally protected by Brazilian security authorities and specialists from AARONIA.