• Naval Warfare

  US Coast Guard faces the “greatest readiness challenge since World War II”, says Homeland Security Secretary

  13th May 2025

  The service currently has diverse problems in its procurement programmes and capability gaps in its inventory, writes Shephard’s North America editor Flavia Camargos Pereira.

• Air Warfare

  Boeing E-7A still in South Korean AEW&C competition, despite dropout reports

  10th July 2025

  The E-7A is one of three aircraft submitted for the South Korean AEW&C II competition, which seeks to acquire four more aircraft of the type for its air force by 2028.

• Land Warfare

  Leopard MBT: Alpha beast gets a reboot (updated 2025)

  6th March 2025

  Leopard MBTs are German-made main battle tanks that have been in service since the Cold War and have undergone several upgrades to remain competitive in modern warfare. This article traces the history and development of the Leopard 1 and 2, its variants, its operational service and its future prospects.

• Land Warfare

  Will we see a rise in MBT alternatives in future armoured warfare?

  25th November 2025

  In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of militaries procuring alternative vehicles to the traditional tank. The spread of these vehicles appears to be driven by the ever-increasing cost of MBTs and the changing nature of the modern battlefield.

• Air Warfare

  Paris Air Show 2025: Teaming success for E-7 and MQ-28 as Ghost Bat targets Europe

  17th June 2025

  Boeing has announced the successful flight trial of a MQ-28 Ghost Bat uncrewed aerial system (UAS) teaming with an E-7 Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft against an airborne target.

• Defence Notes

  Spain unveils new multi-billion euro defence investment plan

  24th April 2025

  The new plan outlined how Spain would reach 2% of its GDP spend on defence by 2025, with €1.9 billion earmarked for new equipment acquisition with several land, naval and air platforms disclosed to be replaced or upgraded.

• Defence Notes

  Details revealed on Germany’s big spending plans

  28th October 2025

  In May this year, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the government plans to position Germany as “Europe's strongest conventional army”. A new blueprint outlines how this is going to occur through massive investment.

• Air Warfare

  Norway cleared for possible $2.6 billion HH-60W helicopter FMS

  14th July 2025

  The possible sale for nine HH-60W by the US government could make Norway the first Foreign Military Sale customer for the rescue and combat helicopter and add to the country’s ongoing acquisition of Sikorsky-made helicopters.

• Defence Notes

  Avalon 2025: Australian defence budget meets the low expectations of show attendees

  26th March 2025

  The Australian Budget was marked by tax cuts and a looming general election which led to little hope that there would be a substantial defence boost even with a big bill for nuclear submarines due.

• Naval Warfare

  Germany goes for more US equipment for F127 frigates with SPY-6 radar choice

  13th October 2025

  If the foreign military sale request is approved, Germany would be the first country outside the US to acquire the technology, which is currently used extensively by the US Navy.

• Land Warfare

  DSEI 2025: Milrem’s Havoc 8×8 robot to undergo live firing trials next year

  14th September 2025

  The Havoc uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV) was unveiled at IDEX 2025 in February. It is built around a hybrid electric powertrain which provides silent running over medium distances and silent watch for extended periods of time.

• Land Warfare

  Precision on Demand: The New Age of Loitering Weapons (Podcast)

  10th October 2025

  Loitering munitions provide vital capabilities in the disrupted and unpredictable modern battlespace, from real-time ISR to a virtually “on demand” strike capability. Rafael is looking to the future of the technology, empowering systems to operate with increasing autonomy in hostile environments.

• Air Warfare

  F-15EX and shipbuilding win big in proposed $150 billion US defence funding boost

  1st May 2025

  The legislation outlined additional budget to enhance air, land and naval platforms, including next-generation air and uncrewed naval programmes.

• Air Warfare

  “Gloves are off” as US Defense Secretary memo calls for sweeping drone procurement reform

  14th July 2025

  US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has promised to usher in a new era of “military drone dominance”.

• Land Warfare

  Levelling up – how autonomous fire control tackles unmanned lethality head-on

  6th November 2025

  As autonomous weapon systems proliferate, it is now essential to use the same core technologies to counteract and neutralise them.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Black Hornet 3 (Ukraine Aid) [UK & Norway]

  Programme Background Russo-Ukraine War Since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, UAVs have proved vital to the country's defence. Consequently, as in this programme, the ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  FPV Drones (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background Statement of Intent On 14 June 2024, the Deputy Minister for Strategic Industries Serhiy Boyev, Minister of Defence of Ukraine Rustem Umerov and the Minister ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  ISR Drones (Second Batch) (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background First Batch On 20 March 2024, Kajsa Ollongren, Minister of Defence of the Netherlands, announced that, following a 19 March Ukraine Defense Contact ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Latvian Drones (2025) (Ukraine Aid) [Latvia]

  Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG) In January 2024, the Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG), a multi-nation organisation that coordinates military aid for Ukraine, established a ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  GA-ASI Drone [Ukraine]

  Programme Background MQ-9A Reaper - April 2022 On 13 April 2022, Forbes reported that Ukraine was talking with GA-ASI to acquire the MQ-9A Reaper. Ukrainian officials ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Vector / Scorpion (Contracted) [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Previous Orders & Donations On 29 March 2022, the US Embassy in Warsaw announced that Quantum Systems had donated an unknown quantity of ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 600 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background $300 Million USAI (1 April 2022) On 1 April 2022, the US DoD announced a $300 million military aid package for Ukraine following ...

• Loitering munitions

  One-Way Attack Drones (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Programme Background 2024/2025 Military Aid Package On 12 January 2024, the UK government announced it would provide Ukraine with £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion) in military ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 300 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Presidential Drawdown (16 March 2022 & 13 April 2022) On 16 March 2022, President Biden announced $800 million in security assistance to Ukraine through ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  CV90 [Sweden]

  Programme Background As the domestic manufacturer and original operator of the CV90 IFV, Sweden has had a continuous fleet of CV90s in service since the ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Combat Fighter Jet [Ireland]

  Programme Background  In February 2025, the Irish Minister for Defence and Tánaiste Simon Harris highlighted Irelands need to procure a new combat fighter jet to combat ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Latvian Drones (2024) (Ukraine Aid) [Latvia]

  Background Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG) In January 2024, the Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG), a multi-nation organisation that coordinates military aid for Ukraine, established a drone ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) (Phase I) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) provides short-range day and night ISR to US Army units at the squad, platoon and other small ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Drones (Ukraine Aid) [Norway]

  Programme Background September 2024 On 3 September 2024, the Norwegian government announced that "Ukraine will get more drones donated to their frontline, and more air ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  SkyRanger R70 (Ukraine Aid) [Canada]

  Programme Background On 19 February 2024, the Canadian Defence Minister, Bill Blair, announced that the country would donate more than 800 SkyRanger R70 UAVs to ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Akash-NG missile

  The Akash-NG (New Generation) missile is an advanced surface-to-air missile system developed by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to enhance the country's air ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Vespa-15

  The Vespa-15 is a first-person view (FPV) rotary-wing UAV manufactured by a Ukrainian company.  In May 2025, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Ukraine announced it ...

• Core systems: cameras and IR detectors

  Ophir 26-105mm f/1.6 LWIR continuous zoom

  Ophir's plethora of IR optics includes a wide range of long-range zoom lenses for every application. Ophir's budget range has been extended to include a ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - small

  Kazhan

  The E620 Kazhan is a Ukrainian-made rotary-wing attack drone. It is available in hexacopter and quadcopter configurations and can drop 60mm, 82mm, and 120mm mortar shells. ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Black Hornet 3

  The Black Hornet 3 is the next generation of the PD-100 Black Hornet, the world's smallest nano-UAS. This new model of the Black Hornet provides ...

• Unguided Tank Ammunition

  DM73

  The 120mm × 570 armour-piercing fin-stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS) DM73 is a kinetic-energy (KE) round with an enhanced propulsion unit. It is produced by Rheinmetall ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Cetus Lite

  The Cetus Lite is a fixed-wing UAV from Abris Design Group. The company describes the aircraft as a mobile system that is hand-launched. It is ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Cetus Plus

  The Cetus Plus is a fixed-wing UAV from Abris Design Group.  The manufacturer describes it as a universal UAV designed to perform various tasks like photo ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Beetle

  The Beetle is a rotary-wing octocopter from Abris Design Group. According to the manufacturer, the UAV provides photo and video ISTAR and signal relay for first-person ...

• Alpha/Omega

  Alpha and Omega are multipurpose frame tents that require minimal maintenance and can be used in extreme climatic conditions. The Omega is more spacious and ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  CB90

  Combatboat (Stridsbåt) 90 (CB90) is a class of small, rapid attack boats designed for raiding and inshore/nearshore coastal protection operations or deploying up to 20 ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - micro

  Corvo PPDS

  The Corvo Precision Payload Delivery Systems (PPDS) is a micro fixed-wing drone constructed from cardboard. It is a low-cost, single-use drone for delivering supplies and equipment ...

• EO/IR systems

  USG-212

  Described as a plug-and-play turnkey solution, the USG-212 is an EO/IR camera gimbal from Ukrspecsystems. It appears to be out of production. The gimbal has ...

• Main battle tanks

  Type 10

  Mitsubishi developed the 120mm-armed Type 10 MBT to meet the requirements of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) and publicly revealed a prototype in February 2008. ...

• Short Range Missile Defence Systems: 0 to 20 km range

  MIM-23 Hawk

  The MIM-23 HAWK (Homing All the Way Killer) is an American medium-range surface-to-air missile system developed by Raytheon in the 1950s to provide mobile air ...