Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market - Global Industry Size, Share, Trends, Opportunity, and Forecast, 2021-2031

The Global Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market is projected to expand from USD 5.53 Billion in 2025 to USD 7.81 Billion by 2031, reflecting a CAGR of 5.92%. Aircraft Survivability Equipment (ASE) encompasses a comprehensive array of defensive systems, such as laser countermeasures, threat warning receivers, and electronic jamming devices, specifically engineered to detect and neutralize hostile targeting against military and rotary-wing aircraft. This market growth is primarily fueled by rising geopolitical tensions and the extensive proliferation of sophisticated portable air defense systems, which necessitates a heightened focus on protecting airborne assets. Additionally, the systematic modernization of defense fleets to withstand evolving radar and infrared threats provides consistent support for industry expansion, independent of temporary technological trends.

However, a major obstacle impeding wider market growth is the technical complexity and high expense associated with integrating modern defensive suites into legacy airframes. This retrofitting process often faces interoperability issues that burden procurement budgets and delay deployment. As reported by the Aerospace Industries Association, the aerospace and defense industry generated 995 billion dollars in sales in 2024, highlighting the enormous scale of capital required to sustain these essential fleet maintenance and modernization efforts within the global defense sector.

Market Drivers

The expansion of Global Defense Budgets and Procurement Allocations serves as the primary catalyst for the Aircraft Survivability Equipment market, allowing nations to address the critical need for fleet readiness against peer-level adversaries. As governments prioritize the protection of high-value aerial assets, increased funding is explicitly directed toward acquiring advanced defensive suites capable of countering sophisticated threats. This fiscal growth enables defense ministries to overcome earlier cost barriers associated with retrofitting legacy platforms and integrating next-generation countermeasures. According to NATO's Secretary General’s Annual Report in April 2025, European Allies and Canada invested a combined total of 486 billion dollars in defense during 2024, a 19.4% real-term increase that underscores the financial commitment fueling this sector’s expansion.

Simultaneously, the growing emphasis on Electronic Warfare and Situational Awareness is reshaping market requirements, as operators demand integrated systems capable of detecting threats well before engagement. This driver compels manufacturers to develop networked solutions that fuse data from multiple sensors, thereby enhancing the decision-making speed and survivability of aircrews in contested environments. Illustrating this trend, RTX reported in January 2025 that its Collins Aerospace division secured a contract potentially worth 904 million dollars to continue developing the Cooperative Engagement Capability, a vital system for integrated fire controls and sensor networking. The scale of industry activity supporting these modernization efforts is immense; according to BAE Systems in February 2025, the company reported a record order backlog of 77.8 billion pounds, reflecting sustained global demand for advanced defense technologies.

Market Challenges

The main challenge restricting the Global Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market is the technical intricacy and substantial expense required to integrate modern defensive systems into legacy aircraft. As nations attempt to upgrade older fleets with advanced threat warning receivers and countermeasures, they frequently encounter severe interoperability failures where new digital suites cannot communicate effectively with outdated airframe architectures. This misalignment forces defense departments to divert capital toward complex custom engineering solutions rather than acquiring additional units, directly reducing the volume of equipment procurement and stalling market momentum.

Moreover, these retrofitting difficulties extend project timelines, causing significant delays in the operational deployment of critical survivability assets. The financial burden of these sustainment efforts is immense, often consuming funds originally allocated for new acquisitions. According to the Aerospace, Security and Defence Industries Association of Europe (ASD), the European defense sector alone generated a turnover of 183.4 billion euros in 2024, highlighting the massive scale of capital tied up in these industrial efforts. Consequently, the high costs and logistical bottlenecks associated with modernization programs limit the addressable market size, as budget-constrained operators are forced to scale back or postpone vital upgrades.

Market Trends

The integration of Artificial Intelligence for Cognitive Threat Detection is revolutionizing the market as operators seek to counter frequency-agile radars and unknown emitters that traditional library-based systems cannot identify. This technological shift enables defensive suites to utilize machine learning algorithms for real-time signal processing, allowing aircraft to characterize and jam novel threats instantaneously without relying on pre-programmed threat databases. Reflecting this demand for intelligent adaptability, Saab announced in March 2024 that it received an order valued at approximately 291 million euros from Airbus Defence and Space to integrate the AI-enabled Arexis Electronic Warfare sensor suite onto German Eurofighter aircraft.

Concurrently, the widespread adoption of Directed Infrared Countermeasure (DIRCM) Technology is replacing expendable flare systems to provide robust protection against advanced Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS). Unlike traditional countermeasures that can be bypassed by modern seekers, laser-based systems physically blind the guidance mechanism of incoming heat-seeking missiles, ensuring higher survivability for slow-moving platforms like transport aircraft and helicopters. Evidencing this transition toward active laser defense, Elbit Systems reported in December 2024 that it was awarded contracts with an aggregate value of 175 million dollars to supply Directed Infrared Countermeasure (DIRCM) Self-Protection Suites for a NATO European country’s fleet.

Key Players Profiled in the Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market

• Northrop Grumman Corporation
• BAE Systems
• Saab AB
• Aselsan A.S.
• Elbit Systems Ltd.
• Chemring Group
• Thales Group
• Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.
• Terma A/S
• Ruag Holding AG

Report Scope

In this report, the Global Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market has been segmented into the following categories:

Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market, by Fit:

• Line Fit
• Forward Fit

Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market, by Subsystem:

• Electronic Support
• Electronic Attack
• Non-Combat Systems

Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market, by Platform:

• Combat Aircraft
• Combat Helicopter
• Special Mission Aircraft
• UAV

Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market, by Region:

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• South America
• Middle East & Africa

Competitive Landscape

Company Profiles: Detailed analysis of the major companies present in the Global Aircraft Survivability Equipment Market.

Available Customization

The analyst offers customization according to your specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:

• Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players (up to five).

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