• Special Operations

  SOFIC 2017: Rifle optics continue to advance

  8th May 2017

  Technology advances and decreasing costs means that most infantry units today have adopted rifle optics for their individual weapons, following in the footsteps of the …

• Defence Helicopter

  LAAD 2017: Helibras outlines helo upgrade prospects

  6th April 2017

  Brazilian helicopter manufacturer Helibras, based in Itajubá, Brazil, is looking to grow further through additional Panther and Dauphin upgrades.Currently, there are two ongoing contracts at …

• Defence Helicopter

  Lord placing bets on future

  18th May 2017

  Lord Corporation is a key contributor to the next-generation of rotorcraft through its participation in the build of both the Boeing-Sikorsky SB>1 Defiant and Bell …

• Digital Battlespace

  Leonardo receives Link-11/Link-22 sets orders

  16th May 2017

  Leonardo DRS has received multiple orders for its Link-11 and Link-22 data terminal sets and associated communication equipment, systems and services, the company announced on 11 …

• Land Warfare

  ​Saab presents mockup of new mobile RBS 70 NG air defence launcher

  12th May 2017

  Saab Dynamics has unveiled a full scale mockup of its RBS 70 NG (New Generation) RWS short range air defence (SHORAD) missile launcher at its …

• Defence Notes

  IMDEX Asia: Saab looks to Asia-Pacific market for Swordfish

  12th May 2017

  Saab, which has been attempting to bait several Asia-Pacific air forces with its Swordfish maritime patrol aircraft, has sharpened its offering.One improvement confirmed by the …

• Naval Warfare

  IDEF2017: STM offers new frigate

  11th May 2017

  Turkish shipbuilder STM has unveiled its TF4500 design for the first time at IDEF 2017.A model on the company stand shows a 4,500t air defence …

• Defence Helicopter

  Safran awarded UH-72A CLS contract

  11th May 2017

  Safran Electronics and Defense, Avionics USA has received a five-year contract from Airbus Helicopters to provide contractor logistics support (CLS) services for the US Army's …

• Digital Battlespace

  Production of AN/SPY-6(V) AMDR begins

  9th May 2017

  Raytheon will begin low rate initial production of the AN/SPY-6(V) Air and Missile Defense Radar (AMDR) under a $327 million contract modification from the US …

• Defence Notes

  MBDA awarded £539 million missile contracts

  25th April 2017

  MBDA has been awarded contracts worth a combined £539 million for new missile systems for the UK armed forces, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) …

• Land Warfare

  LAAD 2017: Brazil FMS upgrades roll on

  6th April 2017

  Mistaken reports of the arrival of the first upgraded M109A5+ self-propelled howitzer to the Brazilian Army have been rebuffed by manufacturer BAE Systems.The company has …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sea Venom cleared for Lynx exports

  6th April 2017

  European missile manufacturer MBDA has successfully completed air carriage and jettison trials of its new Sea Venom anti-ship missile from a Royal Navy Lynx Mk8 …

• Land Warfare

  ​LAAD 2017: Guarani slows down

  5th April 2017

  As the Brazilian defence budget gets more constrained the army is being forced to delay it major programmes.The VBTP-MR Guarani 6x6 armoured vehicle programme is …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  LAAD 2017: Avionics hopes for UAS expansion

  4th April 2017

  Avionics Services is aiming to increase the presence of the company's Caçador UAV in South America at LAAD 2017.Caçador is based on the Israel Aerospace …

• Special Operations

  SOFIC 2017: SOF Expands Science and Technology Directorate

  15th May 2017

  Reflective of a desire to ‘move at the speed of SOF,’ the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) Acquisition, Technology & Logistics (SOF AT&L;) community has …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Data links

  Data links | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390 [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirement The aircraft deliveries were scheduled to start by the end of 2016 and continue over a period of ten years. However,  the first ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-130H Replacement [Sweden]

  Programme Background Requirements Sweden has five C-130H aircraft (designated Tp-84) and one KC-130H. Two C-130Es bought in the 1960s have retired, but the six H ...

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

  Hermes 900 [Chile]

  Methodology Unit cost In 2024, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) acquired one Hermes 900 for 50 million reais ($9.14 million), giving each drone an estimated ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  H145M [Brazil]

  Background  Brazilian leadership announced in February 2022 that the Sabre Mil Mi-35M Hind-E attack helicopters were being retired from active service. This decision came as a ...

• Fighter - multirole

  JAS 39E/F Gripen [Brazil]

  Background In 2016, Gripen’s Project and Development Center was opened in Sao Paulo to allow Sweedish and Brazillian engineers to work together in the Gripen ...

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

  Hermes 900 [Colombia]

  Methodology Unit cost In 2024, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) acquired one Hermes 900 for 50 million reais ($9.14 million), giving each drone an estimated gross ...

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

  Hermes 900 (5) [Brazil]

  Background First three batches (2014-2024) Across three purchases, Defence Insight estimates that Brazil has acquired five Hermes 900 UAVs. In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one ...

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

  Hermes 900 (1-4) [Brazil]

  Background First batch (2014) In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one Hermes 900 UAV to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). The drone is called the RQ-900 in Brazilian ...

• Maritime patrol

  C295 add-on [Brazil]

  Programme Background  In 2014 Brazil signed a contracted for two additional C-295 SAR platforms with the option to acquire one additional platform. In 2018, reports ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Polar Support Vessel [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirements In June 2020, the Brazilian Navy released a Request for Proposal (RfP) to procure a new Antarctic vessel to be manufactured in Brazil. The ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air-to-surface missiles

  MAR-1

  The MAR-1 is a Brazilian air-to-surface anti-radiation missile (ARM) developed by Mectron in collaboration with the Aerospace Technology and Science Department (DCTA) of the Brazilian ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Harpia

  Described as the UAV with the most onboard technology in Latin America, Harpia is a multifunctional fixed-wing Brazilian drone developed by Advanced Technologies Security & Defence.  The Uruguayan ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  EMB-312 Tucano

  The EMB-312 Tucano (Brazilian designation T-27) is a trainer and light attack aircraft developed by Embraer to meet the training requirements of the Brazilian Air ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  TPTS

  Tactical Procedures Training Simulators (TPTS), operating with SWARM software, can be used to provide most core training elements to pilots or offload training tasks from ...

• Guided munitions

  SMKB (Smart-MK-Bomb)

  The Smart-MK-Bomb, or the SMKB, is a precision guidance kit developed by Mectron and designed to turn Mk 82 and Mk 83 bombs into guided munitions.

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Albatroz Vortex

  The Albatroz Vortex from Stella Tecnologia is a development of the company's Albatroz UAV.  The key differentiator is that the Vortex is fitted with an ATJR ...

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

  Condor

  The Condor, or Atobá XR, is an in-development MALE-class UAV from Stella Technologia.  The development of the multi-role is tied to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), which has ...

• Trainer, Transport

  EMB-121 Xingu

  The EMB-121 Xingu is a twin-turboprop light transport and advanced multi-engine trainer aircraft developed by Embraer based on the EMB-110 Bandeirante. Its maiden flight was ...

• Land: battle management systems

  Arkhe Mission & Combat

  Launched in 2017, Atech's Arkhe Mission & Combat solutions offer a variety of solutions enabling operator to conduct missions from planning to execution and debriefing. It ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390/C-390 Millennium

  The KC-390 is a high-wing, twin-turbofan, T-tail design intended to meet the needs of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) for a tanker/transport aircraft. Developed and ...

• Fighter - air superiority

  F-5E/F Tiger II

  The F-5E (single-seat)/F (twin-seat) Tiger II is an air superiority fighter developed by Northrop Grumman based on the original F-5 Freedom Fighter. Production of the ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• EO/IR systems

  Skyward

  The SkyWard system is an advanced Infrared Search and Track (IRST) solution developed for next-generation airborne platforms, including 5th-generation fighter aircraft.  Designed with modularity in ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Saber M60

  The Saber M60 is a low-altitude air-defence radar developed by the Brazilian Army's CTEx (Army Technology Centre) in collaboration with Bradar, part of Embraer Defence ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  RBS 70 system

  The RBS 70 was developed in the 1970s to meet the Swedish Army’s requirement for a low-cost, easy-to-use MANPADS which could function in extreme climatic ...