Germany injects funding into land, sea and air programmes
The German Navy is buying an unnown number of Skeldar V-200s for installation aboard two Braunschweig-class corvettes.
Some €600 million is being spent in Germany on a range of defence procurement initiatives.
The Budget Committee of the German Parliament has given the green light to about €600 million of investment in a series of defence procurement programmes.
A total of 44 new tracked armoured engineering vehicles (based on the Leopard 2A4 main battle tank) will be acquired for €295 million to replace the Pionierpanzer Dachs, which entered service in 1989.
The German Navy will equip two of its Braunschweig-class (K130) corvettes with an undisclosed number of Skeldar V-200 VTOL UAVs (known as Sea Falcon in German service), in a two-phase procurement programme worth €78 million.
Six other countries have already ordered the V-200, according to Shephard Defence Insight.
‘In a pilot phase, the drones will be adapted to the needs of the Bundeswehr, and a subsystem consisting of two [Sea Falcon] aircraft and a ground control station for the corvette will be delivered and installed,’ the German Armed Forces announced on 14 April.
Subsequently, the navy will acquire two additional systems – one for training, including the simulator component – plus control stations and other onboard equipment.
In addition, the German Armed Forces are renting seven Airbus H135 helicopters for €63 million from ADAC Luftfahrttechnik until the end of 2024. These helicopters will be based at the International Helicopter Training Centre in Bückeburg.
The EC135 is an interim solution until a new light multipurpose helicopter enters service in the mid-2020s.
‘In addition to a high availability of the machines, the rental model is also more economical than a temporary dissolution for the planned transition period,’ the German Armed Forces explained.
The German Air Force fleet of Tornado fighter aircraft will receive a new radar warning system, requiring €105 million of investment, as there are no spare parts available for the existing system in the medium term.
In terms of multinational operations and with the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) 2023 deployment in mind, the German Armed Forces is spending €59 million on enabling data exchange, IT networking and the coordinated use of platforms, sensors and systems.
As part of our promise to deliver comprehensive coverage to our Defence Insight and Premium News subscribers, our curated defence news content provides the latest industry updates, contract awards and programme milestones.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Defence Notes
-
![Ukraine turns legacy Kongsberg land turrets into semi-autonomous USV weapons]()
Ukraine turns legacy Kongsberg land turrets into semi-autonomous USV weapons
The company told Shephard that Ukraine is operating modified Protector weapon stations originally supplied for armoured vehicles, with human operators authorising engagements from hundreds of kilometres away.
-
![UK urged to prioritise sea, air and space over heavy armour]()
UK urged to prioritise sea, air and space over heavy armour
A report from the Council on Geostrategy argues the UK should move away from a traditional balanced force and shift investment to naval, air and space capabilities, backed by a larger fleet of attack submarines and deeper AUKUS integration.
-
![Thales: deployment speed to determine winners in ‘production versus production’ era]()
Thales: deployment speed to determine winners in ‘production versus production’ era
At its technology summit in London, attended by Shephard, Thales UK examined the importance of speed to delivery, the growing focus on cross-domain capabilities and how procurement reform could be crucial for future battlefield advantage.
-
![Orchestrating operational readiness across every defence domain]()
Orchestrating operational readiness across every defence domain
Are all systems ready for the next mission? Have upgrades been applied? Are all assets aligned to deploy together, on time and fully prepared? In modern defence operations, readiness is no longer measured platform by platform. It is measured by how well people, assets, data and decisions move together — across land, sea and air.
