The global military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market is expected to grow from US$ 15,099.84 million in 2021 to US$ 21,394.01 million by 2028. It is estimated to register a CAGR of 5.1% during 2021-2028.

Unmanned systems have become an integral part of military forces worldwide, reducing the risk of human lives. Due to various benefits offered by UAVs, many countries, such as the US, India, and China, have allocated substantial budgets to deploy more UAVs in their military forces, primarily for surveillance applications. Deploying optronics surveillance and sighting systems on unmanned platforms facilitates the transmission of surveillance and imagery data. The integration of unmanned systems with communication antennas and other surveillance equipment assist in various critical missions. Therefore, the increasing deployment of UAVs for airborne and naval surveillance and mapping missions is resulting in a growing need for optronics surveillance and sighting systems that can be effectively integrated within the UAV platform without hampering its overall efficiency. Thus, several major industry players, including Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. and Lockheed Martin, emphasize on developing and offering optronics surveillance and sighting systems for UAV platforms.

The military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market is segmented into technology, device type, platform, and geography. Based on technology, the market is categorized into image intensification, military laser systems, and electro-optics/infrared systems. The electro-optics/infrared segment held the largest share in the market in 2020. In terms of device type, the market is segmented into night vision devices, handheld thermal imaging devices, integrated observation equipment, standalone infrared, seismic and acoustic sensors, and others. In 2020, the seismic and acoustic sensors segment accounted for the most prominent share of the market. Based on platform, the market is classified into ground, airborne, and naval platforms. The ground segment accounted for the largest share in the market in 2020. Geographically, the market is categorized into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific (APAC), the Middle East & Africa (MEA), and South America (SAM). Among these, North America led the global market in 2020.

The outbreak of COVID-19 amongst armed forces personnel across Europe have had a substantial impact on military capabilities. While not all outbreaks have been reported in open sources, they have had a noticeable communal living and difficulty in identifying and isolating potential COVID-19 cases and their contacts. The armed forces have been a critical component of national crisis response across European countries. Initially, this covered general military support, such as assistance with command and control, repatriation of citizens, logistics, disinfection of public spaces and also in some countries, support to police and internal security.

In addition to supporting hospitals, the armed forces also supported the nursing and social care systems in many countries. This experience identified some friction in managing the demand in national health systems and at European level as well, which had also constrained strategic casualty regulation and evacuation in the event of major conflict in Eastern Europe.

Moreover, the requirement of continuous surveillance for military operations has driven the market for military optronics surveillance & sighting systems across European countries during the FY 2020. Some of the countries across Europe have also revealed their plans for new M&A and increasing investments on defense technologies, which is expected to aid the growth of the market during the forecast period.

The overall military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market size has been derived using primary and secondary sources. Exhaustive secondary research has been conducted using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market. The process also serves the purpose of obtaining an overview and forecast for the military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market concerning all segments. It also provides the overview and forecast for the market based on the segmentation provided concerning five key regions-North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, and South America. Also, primary interviews were conducted with industry participants and commentators to validate data and gain more analytical insights into the topic. Participants of this process include industry experts, such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers, and national sales managers, along with external consultants such as valuation experts, research analysts, and key opinion leaders specializing in military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market.

Some of the key players operating in the global military optronics surveillance & sighting systems market are HENSOLDT; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Thales Group; L3Harris Technologies, Inc.; Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.; Raytheon Technologies Corporation; Safran; Ultra; Teledyne FLIR LLC; and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd.