• Land Warfare

  US Southern Command seeks industry partners to modernise its ISR inventory

  22nd November 2023

  SOUTHCOM is interested in testing advanced sensors and technologies fitted with artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities, as well as with renewable energy or alternative power sources.

• Naval Warfare

  Saab teams up with ThayerMahan to strengthen Australia’s undersea capabilities

  8th November 2023

  New partnership to explore sovereign undersea warfare capabilities opportunities in Australia was announced at the ongoing Indo-Pacific Maritime exhibition in Sydney.

• Defence Notes

  A full year of continuing resolutions would be ‘devastating’ for defence plans, warns US senator

  8th December 2023

  The chair of the Senate Committee on Appropriations alerted that a full year of continuing resolutions would force the Pentagon to freeze 330 new programmes including the B-21 stealth bomber, C3BM developments and shipbuilding projects.

• Naval Warfare

  French Navy gets reach to receive next batch of amphibious landing crafts

  17th November 2023

  There has been slow progress getting the first pair of Engins de Debarquement Amphibie – Standards (EDA-S) amphibious landing craft into service with the French Navy but this has been expected to change.

• Naval Warfare

  New Italian FREMM funding initiated as final French FREMM enters service

  21st November 2023

  Both the Italian and French navies are taking deliveries of their FREMM frigates as part of wider surface fleet modernisation and expansion plans.

• Air Warfare

  Roke to launch C-UAS system and showcases AI architecture on Boston Dynamics UGV

  3rd November 2023

  Roke will attempt to integrate systems and its own architecture to create a C-UAS system ready for launch in 2024.

• Naval Warfare

  Tender expected for new Dutch auxiliary ships

  5th October 2023

  The Royal Netherlands Navy has announced plans to replace its ageing auxiliary ships with a fleet of new vessels.

• Naval Warfare

  New US Navy chief of naval operations sworn in after long delay

  3rd November 2023

  The swearing in of Adm Lisa Franchetti had been delayed which has been predicted to have medium-term effects on the service.

• Training

  KAI, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and LIG Nex1 to develop naval training solutions

  3rd November 2023

  The Korean defence consortium will aim to provide modern naval training solutions for current and future warships domestically and abroad.

• Land Warfare

  The Abrams tank: US heavy metal looks set to roll on for decades (updated 2024)

  19th January 2024

  The Abrams tank has been the mainstay of US battle groups for decades and looks set to continue its substantive role beyond 2050. Further upgrades have been proposed for the in-demand MBT as plans are unveiled for a substantially updated new version.

• Air Warfare

  French Navy tests VSR700 naval UAS demonstrator on multi-mission frigate

  2nd November 2023

  The latest Naval Aerial Drone System trials aimed to showcase the UAS performance capabilities in surveillance and intelligence missions.

• Naval Warfare

  Royal Navy's MEWSIC protection system passes critical tests

  13th November 2023

  The MEWSIC system has been designed to detect radar signals over an extended area and will be built by a consortium consisting of Babcock, Elbit Systems UK and QinetiQ.

• Training

  US Navy embraces AI to enhance training

  25th September 2023

  In a strategic move to expedite training development and analysis, the US Navy is planning to harness the power of AI.

• Land Warfare

  Netherlands to proceed with their own All-Terrain Vehicle buy after plans for joint procurement fail

  9th October 2023

  The procurement of new amphibious tracked All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) for the Netherlands Marines under the Future Littoral All Terrain Mobility Band Vagn (FLATM BV) has been pushed back again.

• Training

  I/ITSEC 2023: Lockheed Martin launches latest version of Prepar3D training solution

  28th November 2023

  This latest release of Prepar3D offers improvements in realism and efficiency, catering to training scenarios across aviation, maritime and ground domains, according to Lockheed Martin.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | ULTRA [US]

  The USAF, and more specifically the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), has invested in the ULTRA aircraft from DZYNE Technologies, with the drone possibly developed ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | ULTRA [US]

  The USAF, and more specifically the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), has invested in the ULTRA aircraft from DZYNE Technologies, with the drone possibly developed ...

• Military UAS - small

  Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV) [US]

  Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. This ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ULTRA [US]

  Background Origins The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Center for Rapid Innovation (CRI) conceived and developed the aircraft with DZYNE Technologies. According to The War ...

• Military UAS - small

  Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV) [India]

  Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. This ...

• Submarines: nuclear/attack

  PROSUB - SSN [Brazil]

  Programme Background Following the successful delivery of the four Riachuelo-class SSK, which is due to all enter service between 2020 and 2023, the construction of ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Data links

  Data links | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  US Air Force Air Base Defence Parsons [US]

  Background In 2023, it was announced that US-based Parsons Corporation had secured a $18 million contract to protect US Air Bases in Europe and Africa from ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Project Mosquito [UK]

  Beginning in 2019, the UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), in collaboration with the Royal Air Force (RAF), began a development programme for a new ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Project Mosquito [UK]

  Beginning in 2019, the UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), in collaboration with the Royal Air Force (RAF), began a development programme for a new ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | Light Replenishment Oiler (T-AOL) [USN]

  The US Navy wants to procure a new class of medium-sized supply ships aimed at refuelling, rearming, and resupplying naval assets. The Navy’s proposed FY2025 budget requests $7.7 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - small

  Hybrid Tiger

  Manufactured by the Naval Research Laboratory, the Hybrid Tiger is an electric UAV. As its name suggests, the platform features a hybrid power generation unit. ...

• Air: UAS radar

  RASAR

  The real-time, autonomous, synthetic aperture radar (RASAR) is a self-contained radar designed for installation under the wing of UAS for counter-IED and FOPEN (Foliage Penetration) missions. It is ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  SA-400 Jackal

  The SA-400 Jackal is a heavy-payload-capability, long-endurance VTOL UAS that had its first flight in 2013. It is an optionally piloted vehicle, so it can ...

• Military UAS - small

  Outlaw SeaHunter

  Outlaw UAVs are used by military and research agencies for training, testing, data collection and system development. In the 114-137kg maximum take-off weight class, SeaHunter ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ShadowHawk

  The ShadowHawk is a VTOL UAV that can be transported and launched/recovered within a small area. The ShadowHawk is able to maintain aerial surveillance at ...

• Air: EO/IR – Jamming Systems

  AN/AAQ-45

  Leonardo’s AN/AAQ-45 Distributed Aperture Infrared Countermeasures is designed to equip rotorcraft. The system is being installed on Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk medium-lift utility helicopters used ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Havoc

  Havoc is a MALE modular payload UAS designed for customers with varying missions and payload requirements. Features include tool-less assembly, rolling take-off and landing and ...

• Military - USVs

  MAST

  The Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST) was developed by ASV Global and Roke Manor Research under funding from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. It ...

• Air-launched ASW torpedoes, Ship-launched torpedoes

  Shyena/TAL

  Shyena, also known as TAL (The Advanced Light Torpedo), is an Indian lightweight anti-submarine torpedo developed by the Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (affiliated to ...

• Subsystems: software

  SWARM

  CHI Systems worked with Lockheed Martin on a programme for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to build software models that imitate human behaviour, and ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Bat

  Northrop Grumman is developing the Bat family of medium-altitude, multi-mission UAS. The company announced two variants of the UAS (3.7m and 4.3m) and a rotary-wing ...

• Light UGVs

  Dragon Runner

  The Dragon Runner UGV, manufactured by QinitiQ, has two versions: the Dragon Runner 10 (DR10) and the slightly larger Dragon Runner 20 (DR20). All Dragon ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  CLS-200

  The CLS-200 is part of the Yates Electrospace Corporation Silent Arrow family. It is a powered cargo-carrying one-use UAV, based on the company's GD-2000 glider.  In ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  XQ-67A

  In February 2024, GA-ASI first released images of the XQ-67A, a drone developed under a contract for thge USAF's Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS) developmental programme. It ...

• Military UAS - small

  Skate

  The Skate is a small, man-packable VTOL UAV designed for performing short-range ISR at the tactical level. A thrust-vectoring system provides a near-VTOL capability, enabling ...