Netherlands MOD purchases 8 V-BAT systems for reconnaissance, surveillance

Air

11 July 2025

Ryan Tseng, co-founder and chief strategy officer at Shield AI; Vice Admiral René Tas, commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy; Vice Admiral Jan Willem Hartman, Netherlands national armaments director and commander of the Materiel and IT Command, and Commodore Frank Lenssen, director of operations, Royal Netherlands Navy. Photo: Supplied, Shield AI, Royal Netherlands Navy

The Netherlands Ministry of Defence has procured eight V-BAT unmanned aircraft systems to enhance maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations for the Royal Netherlands Navy and Marine Corps.

The deal with defence manufacturer Shield AI was publicly announced at the “Maritime Uncrewed” event hosted by the Royal Netherlands Navy in Den Helder, where officials highlighted the V-BAT acquisition as part of a broader effort to modernise the force.

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The V-BAT is the only single-engine ducted-fan vertical take-off and landing unmanned aircraft system with the ability to launch and recover in confined spaces such as shipborne and austere environments.

The decision to procure V-BAT reflects a decisive and focused push to field battle-proven, autonomy-enabled systems capable of operating in contested environments and without reliance on global navigation satellite system (GNSS) for navigation or mission execution.

This decision was informed in part by V-BAT’s demonstrated success in Ukraine, where the platform is executing long-range, long-endurance ISR and targeting with complete independence from GNSS, according to the company.

V-BAT also conducted a successful month-long flight trial during NATO’s REPMUS 2024 exercise, where V-BAT conducted maritime ISR operations aboard the HNLMS Johan de Witt.

That event helped validate the system’s shipboard performance and informed the Dutch Ministry’s decision-making process.

“V-BAT was built for the types of missions the Dutch Navy and Marine Corps are preparing for – dynamic, distributed and high-stakes,” Shield AI president and co-founder Brandon Tseng said.

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“It’s operational today, proven in the most demanding combat environments, and delivers mission-critical capabilities unmatched by any other system.

“The Netherlands has a strong reputation for fielding cutting-edge capabilities quickly and effectively, and it’s great to see them join a growing list of US allies and partners choosing V-BAT for its flexibility, performance and mission readiness.”

Robert Dougherty

Robert is a senior journalist who has previously worked for Seven West Media in Western Australia, as well as Fairfax Media and Australian Community Media in New South Wales. He has produced national headlines, photography and videography of emergency services, business, community, defence and government news across Australia. Robert graduated with a Bachelor of Arts, Majoring in Public Relations and Journalism at Curtin University, attended student exchange program with Fudan University and holds Tier 1 General Advice certification for Kaplan Professional. Reach out via email at

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