Codan (CODAF), Peraso (PRSO): Jamming Now Sets Drone Radio Specs

Between 27 May and 19 August 2026, Codan (CODAF), Peraso (PRSO) and Mobilicom (MOB) each told earnings calls that battlefield jamming has changed how drone radios are selected, turning jam resistance from a selling point into a condition of winning orders [1][2][3].

Drone radios used to be picked on speed and price

Every drone carries a data link radio that passes commands, telemetry and video between the ground operator and the aircraft. How far the aircraft can fly and how clear the picture is both depend on it. Military small drones are graded by weight, from the lightest Group 1 up to Group 3 aircraft weighing a few hundred kilograms. Buyers of radios for that class used to compare throughput, size, power draw and price, because everyone assumed the link would simply stay up.

The battlefield removed that assumption. Peraso's CEO said on 11 August that his company's own capability has not changed in years; what changed is that "traditional wireless technology that was used to control drones now is getting jammed by the enemy," and that the sub-6 GHz radios in common use are congested, easy to detect and easy to suppress in a contested electromagnetic environment [2]. Buyers responded by writing low probability of intercept, jam resistance and GPS independence into procurement specifications, moving those attributes from extras to requirements and changing how competing products are compared.

What the three companies disclosed

Codan is an Australian communications equipment maker whose DTC unit supplies data link radios for small drones. On its 19 August full-year results call, management said DTC is now on US blue lists — the qualified-supplier lists a US program office can select from without a waiver — and has taken first orders for radios on multiple US programs of record, meaning equipment programs already inside a multi-year budget. It also completed the purchase of US anti-jamming specialist Adaptive Dynamics at the end of July, so that DTC can compete against the "very high-end and high-priced military radios typically deployed in this space" [1]. Six months earlier, on 18 February, the same CEO could only describe dialogue and pending testing and evaluation when asked about the US market [4].

Codan's Communications order book stood at $380 million at 30 June, up 50% year over year, and defense customers rose to 58% of that segment's revenue from 38% the prior fiscal year [1]. Peraso said that over the past two to three months a NATO technology consortium has brought it new drone customers and design engagements every week, and that the related business has produced seven-figure revenue [2]. Mobilicom said on 27 May that its backlog was up roughly 150% year over year and that it had won a follow-on order on a US program of record after a $1.5 million order in late 2025 [3].

The buyer changed, and so did how long an order lasts

These radio vendors used to sell to drone airframe makers, whose orders tracked a rolling four-to-six-month forecast and whose cost targets capped the price. Once the military writes the specification, admission to a qualified-supplier list becomes the first gate, and what lies beyond it is an order inside a multi-year budget, which lengthens how long the revenue lasts. Jam resistance also pushes the product into a higher price band, which is why buying an anti-jamming company is a move up the price ladder rather than a way to ship more units at the old price.

The limits are worth keeping. Codan's CEO said the share it took this year came more from its ability to supply than from technology, which he ranked second [1]; if that holds, the position lasts only as long as the supply advantage does. Competing answers to the same problem are also being funded: AIRO Group said on 14 May that onboard AI lets its aircraft complete missions in GPS-denied conditions, which reduces dependence on the link altogether [5]. What to check next is Codan's next disclosure of the Communications order book and the defense revenue share, and how quickly the US program orders convert into revenue — management placed that in fiscal 2027 and 2028 and excluded it from fiscal 2027 guidance [1].

Companies this change may affect:

• M-tron Industries (MPTI): Makes the oscillators and RF filters inside these radios and radars, one layer below the data link, and said on 13 August that backlog rose 37.2% year over year to $84.0 million on new counter-drone and electronic warfare orders plus repeat tactical radio orders [6].
• Frequency Electronics (FEIM): Makes precision atomic clocks, which answer the GPS-independence half of the same specification; management said on 15 July that GPS is frequently jammed and spoofed in these theaters and can no longer be relied on for position, navigation and timing, expanding the company's accessible market [7].
• Knowles (KN): Supplies RF filters and capacitors used in radar, detection and jamming equipment, and said on 23 July that the defense market is growing faster than it expected in May 2025, specifically in electronic warfare [8].

Sources

[1] Drillr · Codan Limited (CODAF) · 2026-08-19 · FY2026 full-year earnings call

"DTC's sweet spot today stretches from the high end of Group 1 through to Group 3. The acquisition of Adaptive Dynamics will help us to compete with very high-end and high-priced military radios typically deployed in this space by delivering increased resistance to jamming and interference."

[2] Drillr · Peraso (PRSO) · 2026-08-11 · FY2026 Q2 earnings call

[3] Drillr · Mobilicom (MOB) · 2026-05-27 · FY2026 Q1 earnings call

[4] Drillr · Codan Limited (CODAF) · 2026-02-18 · H1 FY2026 results call

[5] Drillr · AIRO Group (AIRO) · 2026-05-14 · FY2026 Q1 earnings call

[6] Drillr · M-tron Industries (MPTI) · 2026-08-13 · FY2026 Q2 earnings call

[7] Drillr · Frequency Electronics (FEIM) · 2026-07-15 · FY2026 Q4 earnings call

[8] Drillr · Knowles (KN) · 2026-07-23 · FY2026 Q2 earnings call

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