DSEI UK 2025: Ares launches Rooster C-UAS round in 7.62 mm

Ares Armaments Australia, a defence company based in South Australia, has launched Rooster, a new type of small arms ammunition designed to counter unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS) using existing assault rifles during DSEI UK 2025. The Rooster C-UAS round has been successfully field-tested, the company told Calibre Defence and demonstrated a 500% increase in the probability of hitting a fast-moving aerial target compared to regular small arms rounds. 

The Rooster round is designed to be used in standard-issue small arms rifles without any modifications to the weapon itself. It combines a single projectile’s accuracy with the effect of a shotgun blast on the target, which helps to increase its hit probability.  “The Rooster fragments wherever we set the fragmentation to, not on leaving the barrel,” Jason Murray, the co-founder at Ares Armaments told Calibre Defence via email.  “This means that it maintains a similar ballistic performance to a conventional rifle round up until it fragments,” he explained. 

This is quite an important aspect of the design. Other counter-drone solutions using shotgun cartridges are inherently limited in their range by the way that shotgun cartridges work. Unlike a single, aerodynamically-designed bullet, shotgun pellets are small, individual spheres with poor ballistic coefficients. This means they are not efficient at cutting through the air, causing them to lose velocity and kinetic energy rapidly. As a result, they are only effective out to 50 or 60 metres, depending on the metal used for the pellets and the target drone.

“The initial version is a 7.62×51 mm round, but the technology could be applied to other calibres like 6.8 mm, .338, and .50BMG,” Jason added. The 7.62 mm round comes in two variants: a close-range round that is effective out to 100 m, and a long-range round designed to address targets between 100 – 500 m. Design work started in January this year, seeking to help address the growing demand for a kinetic C-UAS solution that can be carried by infantry or used in a civil context. “The close-range variant is designed to support a layered defence and doesn’t require any modification of 7.62×51 platforms and can be used with flash hiders and suppressors,” Jason said. This allows a user to simply change magazines, if a drone threat is present. The long-range version is designed for remote weapon stations, and will provide its added reach with an artificial intelligence (AI) targeted system. 

According to the company, the design also aims to reduce the risk of collateral damage and shrapnel fallout. This is a crucial consideration for military and civilian C-UAS applications where the use of a projectile could pose a risk to friendly forces or the public.

The company states that the Rooster round has been proven in field tests, where it was used to engage and neutralise drones. Testing confirmed that the round remains compliant with SAAMI specifications for small arms ammunition, ensuring its safe and reliable use in service rifles, the press release states. SAAMI, or Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute, is an organisation in the United States that creates and publishes standards for the firearms and ammunition industry.

The Rooster round will be presented on the Ares Armament stand at DSEI, Stand 114, Hall S2. 

Company Profile: Ares Armaments Australia

Ares Armaments Australia is a privately held defence company based in South Australia. The company specialises in the design and manufacture of small arms munitions and related technologies. It was founded to develop and provide defence solutions for military and civilian security applications, with a focus on counter-UAS capabilities and other threats. It has also partnered with Limitless Aero, to offer the Limitless UAS-armament range to Indo-Pacific customers. 

Calibre comment

It is clear that there is no agreement on the optimal route to countering drones for dismounted infantry. Russian and Ukrainian forces have developed “drone busters,” which are typically soldiers armed with shotguns, drone detectors, and jammers. They accompany vehicles and specialist crews and provide some form of point defence. Some see the shotgun as providing an essential part of the solution and have developed specific cartridges designed to defend against drones. However, shotguns do not provide the type of range that Ares states its Rooster C-UAS round can achieve. 

Another element is the use of advanced assault rifle sights that improve the accuracy of infantry against drones, and recent tests with the SMASH 3000 have been used to demonstrate this. The complexity lies in the amount of equipment that dismounted soldiers have to carry. However, a magazine of ammunition in their existing assault rifle calibre could be included at a relatively low additional burden to the soldier, which is perhaps what has driven development of the Rooster round.

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on September 7, 2025. Credit for the lead image is Ares Armament, it shows the Rooster rounds in 7.62 mm.