What is the Arion-SMET deployment at United States?

Arion-SMET, built by Hanwha Aerospace, is recorded as a deployment at United States on the DEPLOY registry. Hanwha Aerospace operates the deployment directly.

Who operates Arion-SMET at United States?

Hanwha Aerospace, the manufacturer of Arion-SMET, operates this deployment directly. This is a maker-deploys-its-own-product arrangement rather than a customer pilot.

When did the Arion-SMET deployment at United States go live?

The deployment is recorded as starting December 1, 2023 on the DEPLOY registry. Earlier activity may exist but is not yet sourced.

Have there been incidents at the Arion-SMET deployment at United States?

No active incidents affecting this deployment are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Absence of recorded incidents is not a guarantee no incident occurred; DEPLOY records only sourced incidents and suppresses retracted ones.

Deployment

Arion-SMET at United States

Name: Arion-SMET at United States
Start: 2023-12-01T12:00:00.000Z
Location: United States

6x6 battery-electric UGV (550 kg payload, ~100 km range) for autonomous off-road squad support; first Korean UGV in US Foreign Comparative Testing (Hawaii, Dec 2023), competing for US Army S-MET Increment II.

Arion-SMET by Hanwha Aerospace · Catalog entry · 2 sources · not yet field-verified

Track Arion-SMET at United States

Recent coverage

Hanwha Aerospace Secures $33.5M Contract to Equip South Korean Army with AI Combat Robots - streamlinefeed.co.keGoogle News · 2026-07-16
Hanwha Aerospace wins Army unmanned ground vehicle deal: arms agency - The Korea TimesGoogle News · 2026-07-16
Hanwha Aerospace teams with Milrem Robotics - upi.comGoogle News · 2026-05-15

See all coverage →

Machine-readable surfaces

Markdown mirror: /deployments/hanwha-arion-smet-us-fct.md
JSON-LD: embedded in this page’s head
REST API: /v1/robots/92e7ab0a-3b3b-4975-9a02-d36ed32fc8e2
Data documentation: /data
Query this programmatically: Deploy MCP

Footage

PRIMARY SOURCE

Courtesy of Hanwha Aerospace

Hanwha Aerospace footage of its Arion-SMET 6x6 squad-support uncrewed ground vehicle completing a US Foreign Comparative Test. Arion-SMET operates via teleoperation, follow-me, and waypoint navigation, and the armed variant uses a human-operated remote weapon station; 'successfully completes' is the maker's claim.

The Hanwha Arion-SMET underwent a US military Foreign Comparative Testing field evaluation in Hawaii in December 2023, competing alongside contenders such as the HDT Hunter WOLF and GDLS MUTT/TRX for the US Army S-MET Increment II production decision anticipated in late FY2027.

Key facts

Operator: US military (Foreign Comparative Testing)
Program: US FCT, Hawaii, Dec 2023; competing for US Army S-MET Increment II
Lifecycle stage (re-verified 2026-06-07): Pilot under US Army S-MET Increment 2 evaluation. Hanwha Arion-SMET is one of multiple contenders for the S-MET Inc 2 production decision (late FY2027). Competes against HDT Hunter WOLF, GDLS MUTT/TRX, and others.

Safety record

No incidents on record for Arion-SMET at United States.

Only active incidents are counted. Retracted incidents are excluded from this summary but remain reachable at their canonical URLs.

Trust tier: Catalog entry · 2 sources · not yet field-verifiedhow tiers work →
Last updated: 2026-06-29
Model: Arion-SMET
Company: Hanwha Aerospace
Location: United States
Status: pilot
First seen: 2023-12-01
ID: 92e7ab0a-3b3b-4975-9a02-d36ed32fc8e2

Timeline

Dec 2023
First recorded
Arion-SMET first documented operating at United States.
Dec 2023
created
Jun 2026
field updated
key facts: lifecycle enrichment added → Lifecycle stage (re-verified 2026-06-07)
Jun 2026
Current status: pilot, reviewed
Latest recorded state. New status transitions append here as the deployment-status recorder produces them.

On the deployment map

Arion-SMET operates in United States. Explore the full verified map:

Sources (2)

Methodology: Verified · 2 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-06-29

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-06-29

Maturity + lifecycle

Maturity stage: pilot

Lifecycle: active

Architectural position

Cohort: defense_ugv

Sources by quality tier

2: unclassified; Unclassified source

The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.

Common questions

What is the Arion-SMET deployment at United States?: Arion-SMET, built by Hanwha Aerospace, is recorded as a deployment at United States on the DEPLOY registry. Hanwha Aerospace operates the deployment directly.
Who operates Arion-SMET at United States?: Hanwha Aerospace, the manufacturer of Arion-SMET, operates this deployment directly. This is a maker-deploys-its-own-product arrangement rather than a customer pilot.
When did the Arion-SMET deployment at United States go live?: The deployment is recorded as starting December 1, 2023 on the DEPLOY registry. Earlier activity may exist but is not yet sourced.
Have there been incidents at the Arion-SMET deployment at United States?: No active incidents affecting this deployment are recorded on the DEPLOY registry. Absence of recorded incidents is not a guarantee no incident occurred; DEPLOY records only sourced incidents and suppresses retracted ones.

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