Contract award
UK MoD awards Leonardo with £1 billion New Medium Helicopter contract
2nd March 2026
The £1 billion contract has secured jobs at Leonardo’s Yeovil site and will provide the British forces with 23 new medium-lift helicopters.
Global defence news, analysis and data insights across air, land, naval and military training. Shephard’s team of expert journalists cover new equipment and technology coverage, capability development, acquisition plans, contract awards and more.
2nd March 2026
The £1 billion contract has secured jobs at Leonardo’s Yeovil site and will provide the British forces with 23 new medium-lift helicopters.
27th February 2026
This month we saw a major presence from Turkish, Russian and Chinese companies at the World Defense Show with new vehicles from major suppliers, while elsewhere there were evolving mortar programmes and artillery modernisation efforts.
On the show floor at DSEI 2025, representatives from ST Engineering and ARIS, and retired Italian general Ivan Caruso outlined the background to the teaming agreement with land warfare expert Christop...
At DSEI 2025, James Gray, Managing Director and CEO of Raytheon UK (part of RTX), outlines the company’s century-long presence in the UK and its evolving role across defence, aerospace, cyber, and tra...
27th February 2026
Ireland has a maritime area ten times the size of its land mass but has a limited naval capacity and faces an ongoing threat to critical underwater infrastructure. A new strategy is looking to address the challenge.
27th February 2026
The NATO agency gave further updates on the next stages of its rotorcraft programme and timelines for the next three years, with the initiative aimed at replacing ageing medium-lift helicopters in various NATO countries.
26th February 2026
A potential announcement within days could end speculation around the UK Ministry of Defence’s procurement direction for the NMH programme.
26th February 2026
A growing push towards increasing mobility and lethality across forces can be seen in recent contracts and modernisation efforts, with advancing mortar technology playing an integral role in modern warfare.
26th February 2026
The Royal Navy’s Maritime Aviation Transformation (MATX) initiative aims to modernise aviation capabilities to use uncrewed systems where possible, supporting its goal of a hybrid air wing by 2040.
26th February 2026
Integration issues, bureaucracy and undefined policies and authorities could hamper the full implementation of the “shield” to defend the US territory against aerial threats.
25th February 2026
While several UAV programmes remain unawarded in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia is forecast to be the biggest spender with its potential MQ-9B and Gambit deals overshadowing others in the region.
25th February 2026
The US launched the Gauntlet test in February as part of its accelerated attack drone procurement effort while also exploring various naval capabilities that could lead to procurements down the line. Shield AI’s V-Bat, meanwhile, has been s...
25th February 2026
While the US struggles to modernise the 50-year-old land leg of its nuclear triad, China has been rapidly developing and fielding new nuclear capabilities.
24th February 2026
The procurement of the future USN Golden Fleet is planned to be less bureaucratic than previous strategies, involving AI-enabled designs and scheduling tools to increase productivity and avoid delays.
24th February 2026
As Ireland looks to replace its RG32M 4x4 armoured patrol vehicles and Piranha III 8x8 armoured personnel carriers, a reported deal with France would rule out other European platforms that were being considered.
24th February 2026
The Proteus demonstrator is being pitched as a key platform showcasing the UK’s capabilities to build autonomous systems, with Leonardo in ongoing discussions about the future of the programme with the Royal Navy and UK Ministry of Defence.
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