Land Warfare
Tempo continues on VBL Ultima and Hornet production
Efforts are stepping up to provide 800 enhanced VBL vehicles for the French Army and new remote weapon stations for vehicles in the Scorpion programme
Air Warfare
France proceeds alone with enhanced NH90
SOF variant of NH90 offers a number of improvements but France must still convince other operators to adopt it.
Air Warfare
Airbus goes further than before in arming C295
An armed version of the C295 has finally undergone test flights and ground tests in Spain.
Air Warfare
Spy’Ranger family growth reflects appetite for unmanned ISR
A new optronic ball will fly by the end of the year, and Thales is considering other sensors for Spy’Ranger.
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Land Warfare
EOD remains most prominent application for French UGVs
30th June 2021
Dealing with IEDs and mines appears still to be a core focus for French UGV developers, although some progress is being made on fully autonomous systems.
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Air Warfare
French Reapers prepare to add hitting power in Africa
28th June 2021
Change is afoot for the French fleet of MQ-9 Reapers.
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Air Warfare
SOFINS puts UAV innovation on the menu
23rd June 2021
Novel applications to be displayed at an upcoming French SOF exhibition include the integration of acoustic shot detection technology on a mini-UAV.
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Air Warfare
Will the force be with VADER?
22nd June 2021
The first ISTAR aircraft developed by the French Air and Space Force will be sent to Mali in July.
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Naval Warfare
France stays sanguine on Greek frigate prospects despite stiff competition
21st June 2021
Naval Group spearheads French industry efforts to meet Greek future frigate requirements, as the decision day looms.
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Defence Notes
COVID-19 and lack of big-money deals hit French exports in 2020
7th June 2021
Official figures show that French defence equipment export orders took a big hit last year.
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Training
More PC-21s to boost French pilot training
4th June 2021
Up to 13 additional PC-21 aircraft will be used by the French Air and Space Force for Phase IV training.
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Special Operations
France eyes CORVUS as alternative to Skylark
3rd June 2021
French SOF take a do-it-yourself approach to drone development.
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Land Warfare
Arquus upgrades two dozen Qatari VABs but eyes a bigger prize
2nd June 2021
Rapid overhaul of some VAB 6x6 vehicles for Qatar could be followed by a fleet-wide upgrade.
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Special Operations
French SOF operators team with SMEs on innovations
26th May 2021
New equipment for French SOF is based on ideas from the coalface.
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Unmanned Vehicles
France sets its sights on hundreds more small UAVs
18th May 2021
An RfP from the French military calls for 500 nanodrones and microdrones, as part of a broader vision to strengthen its UAV fleet. Responses are due by 25 May.
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Training
ARES bulks up with Mirages
14th May 2021
French red air operator ARES is expanding its fleet with 18 Mirage 2000s but which air force is supplying them?
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Naval Warfare
France pushes on with FDI
5th May 2021
While delivery of the first-in-class FDI vessel is delayed slightly, the timeframe for the next two frigates has been pushed forward.
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Air Warfare
Egyptian follow-on Rafale contract signature depends on bank loan confirmation
5th May 2021
Order from Egypt for 30 more Rafales will not affect deliveries to the French Air and Space Force, and the contract does not include industrial offsets for Egyptian companies.
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Land Warfare
C-UAV demands put BASSALT to the test
4th May 2021
A counter-UAV system originally developed for the civil aviation sector is being used in Mali to protect French forces.
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Special Operations
French SOF awaits next VPS 2 batch
28th April 2021
An extra 35 special patrol vehicles were ordered for French SOF because of delays in the VLFS programme.
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Special Operations
Arquus VLFS and PLFS take to the road
27th April 2021
French SOF await two new vehicle types.
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Special Operations
France augments SOF capabilities
16th April 2021
French SOF chiefs recognised a need to refresh equipment for operations on land, at sea and in the air.
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Special Operations
French elite forces train African partners in Ivory Coast
14th April 2021
A growing facility near Abidjan offers counter-terrorism and special forces training for African militaries.
