Awarded $3.7M data-sharing contract for Canada's Guardian drone program

Canada's Guardian drone program gains a data-sharing boost as MDA Space's 49North unit secures a CAD 3.7 million contract from GA-ASI. 49North will build a Coalition Shared Database to enable secure, real-time sharing of surveillance video and sensor data between the Royal Canadian Air Force and NATO allies during joint operations, while maintaining strict access controls over who can see what. The effort reinforces interoperability within Team SkyGuardian Canada, a GA-ASI-led domestic consortium that also includes CAE and L3Harris WESCAM. It supports the procurement of 11 CQ-9B Guardian drones for the RCAF by 2028, part of a broader strategy to link space-derived data handling with terrestrial defense. The database will be built and tested at 49North's Richmond, British Columbia facility before deployment to the main drone control centre in Ottawa by August 2027.

The contract is an add-on to a 2024 package worth $74.4 million for the Canadian drone program, which previously covered ground-control stations and targeting software. Joe Armstrong, president of 49North, framed the win as a demonstration of sovereign C4ISR capabilities and deep mission experience, stressing the importance of high-assurance coalition data sharing. MDA Space leverages decades of space-derived expertise in managing large intelligence pipelines, paralleling its RADARSAT work, and translating that know-how into a broader terrestrial defense strategy. Development will occur in Richmond, with the Ottawa control centre slated for August 2027, underscoring Canada's aim to diversify and strengthen domestic and allied defense networks.