Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace
supplier of defence and space related systems and products
Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace (KDA) is one of three business units of Kongsberg Gruppen (KONGSBERG) of Norway and a supplier of defence and space related systems and products, mainly anti-ship missiles, military communications, and command and weapons control systems for naval vessels and air-defence applications. Today, the company is probably best known abroad for its development/industrialisation and production of the first passive IR homing anti-ship missile of the western world, the Penguin, starting delivery in the early 1970s (when Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace was part of KONGSBERG's predecessor Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk). As of 2021, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace had 3,500 employees.
Space related activities are conducted within Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace's Space & Surveillance division and Kongsberg Satellite Services. Notable space related products from Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace are the Booster Attachment and Release Mechanisms for ESA's Ariane 5. In the early 1990s, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace was involved with NASA's JPL and Germany's DASA in software development of the test/checkout system, as well as spacecraft hardware production, for the NASA/ESA Cassini–Huygens space probe. Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has also delivered the Solar Array Drive Mechanism for ESA's Rosetta space probe.
On 22 November 2008, Norwegian Minister of Defence Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen opened a new Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace plant that will produce parts for the aircraft recently chosen as Norway's future fighter, the F-35 Lightning II.
Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has expanded its presence in the commercial space sector through a $12 million strategic investment in SpinLaunch, supporting the development and commercialization of the Meridian Space low Earth orbit (LEO) broadband satellite constellation. As part of this partnership, Kongsberg NanoAvionics was chosen as the exclusive supplier for the initial deployment, securing a €122.5 million contract to deliver 280 microsatellites and two prototypes, including an in-orbit demonstrator planned for 2026.
The collaboration highlights Kongsberg’s commitment to innovative, sustainable satellite communications, with the Meridian constellation expected to deliver significantly higher broadband capacity than current market offerings and enable rapid, large-scale deployment using advanced launch technology.
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