Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS (KDA), one of two operating companies of
Kongsberg Gruppen (KOG) of
Norway, is a supplier of
defence and
space related systems and products, mainly
anti-ship missiles, military communications, and command and weapons control systems for naval vessels and air-defence applications. Today, the company is probably best known abroad for its development/industrialisation and production of the first passive
IR homing anti-ship missile of the western world, the
Penguin, starting delivery in the early 1970s (when KDA was part of KOG's predecessor
Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk). The latest product which attracts huge interest is the
PROTECTOR Remote Weapon Station which is fielded by the US Army (main armament of the
Stryker ICV Vehicle), the
Canadian Army and the
Australian Army. As of 2005, Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace had 1,421 employees.