Belgium has acquired defensive kamikaze drones from Latvia, built to detect and eliminate hostile unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The purchase is part of a larger 50-million-euro ($57 million) counter-drone program, though officials have not disclosed how much of that budget is allocated to Origin Robotics.
Brussels is also planning a broader 500-million-euro ($579 million) investment to expand its counter-UAV capabilities with next-generation radars and more advanced jamming systems, but no completion timeline has been provided.
The BLAZE system is a portable, man-launched weapon designed to destroy enemy drones, including fast maneuvering UAVs and loitering munitions. It uses a high-explosive fragmentation warhead and integrates radar guidance with EO/IR sensors and AI-based target recognition. Operators must confirm target identity before firing.
The system includes multiple safety layers, a mission-abort feature that works even during the final approach, and a self-destruct mechanism triggered if communication is lost, boundaries are crossed, or a critical malfunction occurs.
Optimized for rapid field use, BLAZE is shipped in a case that doubles as both a launcher and charging station. It can be set up in under 10 minutes without tools and supports multiple launches within minutes.
