{"id":105453,"date":"2026-10-16T17:25:37","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T14:25:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/?p=105453"},"modified":"2026-10-16T17:27:38","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T14:27:38","slug":"skyforce-sfera","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/","title":{"rendered":"SkyForce develops platform for automated interception of high-speed aerial targets"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ukrainian defence company SkyForce developed SFERA, a system that automates the control and coordination of <a href=\"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/tags\/interceptor-drones\/\">interceptor drones<\/a>. The team is testing automated interception algorithms, including those designed to engage high-speed and jet-powered targets, the company told Defender Media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The platform combines a control system, optical navigation and autonomous interception technologies. It aims to create a versatile solution that can integrate with various unmanned platforms and interceptors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the company, SFERA lets an operator select a drone to intercept a target, while the drone is automatically controlled throughout the mission. The operator can abort the interception mid-flight, after which the drone will land automatically in a safe area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The platform allows operators to add new unmanned aircraft, configure their launch parameters, and select interception scenarios based on the target\u2019s characteristics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The system is undergoing field testing. It supports several interceptor types that can be deployed at different locations, independent of the control centre. Communications are established via radio or a TCP connection over the internet, including Starlink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">During testing, the team is refining interception algorithms based on the &#8220;one sortie, one target&#8221; principle. To improve reliability, the team can deploy two interceptors against a target: a primary drone and a backup that duplicates its actions if something goes wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The company also announced an optical navigation technology that operates without a satellite connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyfall-stargate\/\"><strong>Read more<\/strong>: SkyFall unveils new StarGate hexacopter for casualty evacuation<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":105451,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"pmpro_default_level":"","_featured_category_order":0,"_article_badge":"featured","footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-105453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-innovation","pmpro-has-access"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Defender Media\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DefenderMediaUA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"914\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Olha Pokotylo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@DefenderMediaUA\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@DefenderMediaUA\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Olha Pokotylo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Olha Pokotylo\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f74a702eea54fbacb266efb3640cbfdc\"},\"headline\":\"SkyForce develops platform for automated interception of high-speed aerial targets\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":244,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-1.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Innovation\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/\",\"name\":\"SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-1.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00\",\"description\":\"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-1.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-1.webp\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":914,\"caption\":\"\u0411\u0435\u0437\u043f\u0456\u043b\u043e\u0442\u043d\u0438\u043a Zeus \u0432\u0456\u0434 SkyForce. \u0424\u043e\u0442\u043e \u0432\u0438\u0440\u043e\u0431\u043d\u0438\u043a\u0430\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/skyforce-sfera\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"SkyForce develops platform for automated interception of high-speed aerial targets\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"DEFENDER\",\"description\":\"Defence Tech\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Defender Media\",\"alternateName\":\"Defender Media\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/cropped-ico.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/06\\\/cropped-ico.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Defender Media\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/DefenderMediaUA\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/DefenderMediaUA\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/defender-media\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/t.me\\\/DefenderMedia\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f74a702eea54fbacb266efb3640cbfdc\",\"name\":\"Olha Pokotylo\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Olha Pokotylo\"},\"description\":\"Journalist at Defender Media Over 20 years of experience in media, having worked as a journalist, section editor, and news editor. Since 2016, specialised in SMM, managing social media pages for humanitarian and news projects.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/pokotyloolha\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/thedefender.media\\\/en\\\/author\\\/olha-pokotylo\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception","description":"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception","og_description":"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.","og_url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/","og_site_name":"Defender Media","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DefenderMediaUA","article_published_time":"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":914,"url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Olha Pokotylo","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@DefenderMediaUA","twitter_site":"@DefenderMediaUA","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Olha Pokotylo","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/"},"author":{"name":"Olha Pokotylo","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f74a702eea54fbacb266efb3640cbfdc"},"headline":"SkyForce develops platform for automated interception of high-speed aerial targets","datePublished":"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/"},"wordCount":244,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp","articleSection":["Innovation"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/","url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/","name":"SkyForce develops platform for automated high-speed interception","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp","datePublished":"2026-10-16T14:25:37+00:00","dateModified":"2026-10-16T14:27:38+00:00","description":"SFERA supports several types of interceptor, which can operate independently of the control centre. Read more on the Defender Media.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/skyforce-1.webp","width":1200,"height":914,"caption":"\u0411\u0435\u0437\u043f\u0456\u043b\u043e\u0442\u043d\u0438\u043a Zeus \u0432\u0456\u0434 SkyForce. \u0424\u043e\u0442\u043e \u0432\u0438\u0440\u043e\u0431\u043d\u0438\u043a\u0430"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/2026\/10\/skyforce-sfera\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"SkyForce develops platform for automated interception of high-speed aerial targets"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/","name":"DEFENDER","description":"Defence Tech","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#organization","name":"Defender Media","alternateName":"Defender Media","url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/cropped-ico.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/cropped-ico.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Defender Media"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/DefenderMediaUA","https:\/\/x.com\/DefenderMediaUA","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/defender-media\/","https:\/\/t.me\/DefenderMedia\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/f74a702eea54fbacb266efb3640cbfdc","name":"Olha Pokotylo","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f2854b9ec0478c3a72a54b57c3dbaaf3ee8990f8fc04ca611038848374fa1e2e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Olha Pokotylo"},"description":"Journalist at Defender Media Over 20 years of experience in media, having worked as a journalist, section editor, and news editor. Since 2016, specialised in SMM, managing social media pages for humanitarian and news projects.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/pokotyloolha\/"],"url":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/author\/olha-pokotylo\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=105453"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105453\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":105461,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/105453\/revisions\/105461"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/105451"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=105453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=105453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedefender.media\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=105453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}