Polish Robots Join EU Military Trials in Switzerland
Poland's PIAP institute sent two uncrewed ground vehicles to ALPEX 2026, an EU-led operational experimentation campaign hosted by the Swiss Armed Forces.
Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in Robotics
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Poland's Łukasiewicz-PIAP research institute sent the HUNTeR and IBIS TRANSPORT uncrewed ground vehicles to ALPEX 2026 in Switzerland. The campaign, run by the European Defence Agency and the Swiss Armed Forces, tests unmanned systems under realistic conditions.
Why it matters
The trials give PIAP a chance to test its technology alongside other nations' forces and gather feedback from military users. ALPEX is part of the EU's OPEX program of operational experimentation campaigns.
The HUNTeR is a six-wheeled hybrid robot driven by two electric motors, with an onboard generator charging its battery, and weighs more than 4 tonnes at about 4.7 meters long. Its maximum speed is 50 km/h, and the source does not report its performance results from the trials.
The players
European Defence Agency
The EU body that co-runs ALPEX 2026 and oversees the Union's defence research and capability development efforts.
Łukasiewicz-PIAP
A Polish research institute that developed the HUNTeR and IBIS TRANSPORT uncrewed ground vehicles sent to the Swiss trials.
The details
ALPEX 2026 is run by the European Defence Agency with the Swiss Armed Forces and focuses on four tasks: tactical logistics, casualty evacuation, reconnaissance and surveillance, and multinational robotic interoperability. It follows the first EU-level OPEX campaign held in Italy in summer 2025.
Timeline
Summer 2025: First EU-level OPEX campaign held in Italy.
May 2026: EDA announced Switzerland would host the Bure campaign.
2026: ALPEX 2026 field trials take place in Switzerland.
Autumn 2026: Second OPEX campaign scheduled in Portugal.
The Tech Race
ALPEX 2026 extends the EU's OPEX program, which began with the first EU-level campaign in Italy in summer 2025. The Swiss trial tests uncrewed ground vehicles against military requirements in logistics, evacuation, and reconnaissance.
The trials test whether uncrewed ground vehicles can handle tactical logistics and casualty evacuation under realistic conditions. Results and feedback from military users will shape how such systems are developed and adopted.
The takeaway
Uncrewed ground vehicles are moving from laboratory demonstrations into multinational military testing, where interoperability across nations' forces is being measured directly. Ongoing campaigns will show whether these systems can perform the logistics and evacuation roles they are being built for.
What happens next
A second OPEX campaign is scheduled in Portugal in autumn 2026.
Further reading
Explore more on Robotics developments shaping military and industrial uncrewed systems.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Defence Blog.
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