• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus DS continues SATCOM work with UK

  10th November 2016

  With a mere six years until the end of Skynet, the UK’s sovereign satellite communications capability, attempts are being made to ensure continuing capacity. The UK …

• Defence Helicopter

  Afghans MD 530F proving worth, says NATO

  8th November 2016

  The MD530F Cayuse Warrior light attack helicopter has been cited as one of the improvements in the Afghan national defence and security forces (ANDSF) over …

• Defence Helicopter

  Euronaval 2016: Poland and France escalate helicopter spat

  17th October 2016

  Poland’s decision to cancel a multi-billion dollar deal to procure helicopters from Airbus Helicopters is having wider political ramifications, with the French government reportedly withdrawing …

• Training

  RAF receives A400M cargo hold trainer

  7th November 2016

  The British Royal Air Force (RAF) has taken delivery of an A400M Cargo Hold Trainer – Enhanced (CHT-E) from Rheinmetall and Airbus Defence and Space, Rheinmetall …

• Defence Notes

  Indo Defence 2016: What to expect in Indonesia (video)

  1st November 2016

  On the eve of Indonesia's premiere defence show, Indo Defence 2016, land warfare editor Tim Fish runs through some of the country's key military programmes …

• Land Warfare

  Indo Defence 2016: Infantry weapon prototypes unveiled

  4th November 2016

  The Indonesian Army has developed two new prototype infantry weapons that the service wants to test to see if they can enter production. Both displayed …

• Defence Helicopter

  Singapore selects H225M and CH-47F

  7th November 2016

  Singapore’s Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) selected the Airbus Helicopters H225M Caracal and Boeing CH-47F Chinook as part of Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) efforts to …

• Digital Battlespace

  Indo Defence 2016: Teaming to offer digital vehicles

  8th November 2016

  Thales has teamed with Indonesian companies PT Len and PT Pindad to develop a fully networked vehicle proposal. The company brought a modified 4x4 Bushmaster, named …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indo Defence 2016: Boeing looks to leverage Apache sale

  3rd November 2016

  Boeing is eyeing Vietnam as the next potential regional opportunity for its military rotorcraft, after getting a ‘foot in the door’ in Indonesia. The company …

• Land Warfare

  NATO nations to lead battalions in Baltic States

  4th November 2016

  At the NATO defence ministers meeting in Brussels in October, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced that Canada, Germany, the UK and the US will lead with …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indo Defence 2016: Indonesian H225Ms ready for action

  3rd November 2016

  The Indonesian Air Force is due to take delivery of six H225M CSAR helicopters following customisation work carried out by PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI).  First …

• Naval Warfare

  Countdown to construction

  14th November 2016

  Australian industry is gearing itself up for a busy next few years as naval shipbuilding programmes firm up, part of a wider fleet regeneration programme …

• Defence Notes

  Zhuhai 2016: Hints detected of Chinese BMD development

  3rd November 2016

  There were small hints of a Chinese ballistic missile defence (BMD) system when Shephard attended the 11th Zhuhai Air Show in China. One was the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Bittium receives Estonian order

  8th November 2016

  Bittium will deliver a tactical communications system to the Estonian defence forces under a purchase order announced on 3 November. The tactical communications system will …

• Digital Battlespace

  Indo Defence 2016: Terma widens SE Asia maritime surveillance

  3rd November 2016

  Danish surveillance radar manufacturer Terma is to fit its Scanter 4100 radar to the second upgraded Indonesian Navy Fatahillah-class corvette. A spokesperson from the company …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT (1-9) [NATO]

  Programme Background Following operations in Libya and extensive analyses by the European Defence Agency (EDA), it was agreed at the NATO Summit in 2012 that ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT Follow-On (NATO)

  Following operations in Libya and extensive analyses by the European Defence Agency (EDA), it was agreed at the NATO Summit in 2012 that the EDA ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  MH-60R Seahawks [Norway]

  Programme Background NH90 NFH cancellation  The Norwegian government announced the termination of the NH90 NFH helicopter contract for 14 NH90s with NHIndustries in June 2022. Seahawk Acquisition ...

• Tanks

  New MBT [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Tanks

  M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) - (Greece)

  Programme Background EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  UAV Tactical Level [Norway]

  Programme Background Request for Information (RfI) In September 2022, the Norwegian Defence Material Agency (NDMA) launched a request for information in preparation for a possible ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) - (Italy)

  Programme Background EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded ...

• Maritime patrol

  MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  Programme Background In 2017, Germany and France announced that they would be working towards developing an MPA to replace their current fleets in service. The ...

• Tanks

  Leopard 2A8 [Netherlands]

  Programme Background Bidders and Suppliers The Leopard 2A8, the latest in the Leopard family, was selected by the Royal Dutch Army as per announcements in ...

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

  Bayraktar TB2 [Kuwait]

  Background Contract Award On 18 January 2023, Baykar announced signing a $370 million export contract with Kuwait for the Bayraktar TB2. According to the announcement, ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton - Germany (Cancelled)

  Programme Background Germany requested to buy four MQ-4C Triton HALE UAVs from Northrop Grumman. On 5 April 2018, the US State Department announced that it ...

• Corvettes

  European Patrol Corvette (EPC) [France]

  Programme Background Requirements The European Patrol Corvette (EPC) is one of the new PESCO (Permanent Structured Cooperation on Defence and Security) projects. PESCO was established ...

• AEW&C

  Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (1-6) [NATO]

  Programme Background NATO’s E-3A AWACS fleet is set to retire in 2035, after 50 years of service. To plan for the required follow-on capability, NATO's ...

• Corvettes

  European Patrol Corvette (EPC) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirements The 2021-2023 Documento Programmatico Pluriennale (DPP) - a multi-year defence planning document from the Italian MoD - includes a plan to acquire eight "Patrol Ships", ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Land: air defence radar

  APIS

  APIS is a passive high-resolution primary radar system developed by Indra. It is the first passive system in the world capable of offering images using ...

• Uncrewed aerial systems engines

  AE50R

  The AE50R is an aviation gasoline single rotary engine with an output of 40.4kW. The engine is certified according to European Aviation Safety Agency Part ...

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

  LOTUS

  The LOTUS, Low Observable Tactical Unnamed System, is a tactical UAV especially designed for border patrol ISR operations.  The development of the project is funded by ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Mistral 3

  The Mistral 3 is the latest member of the Mistral family of very short-range surface-to-air missiles. It entered service in 2018 and has been chosen ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2H

  Safran Helicopter Engines received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) engine type certification for its Arriel 2H engine, installed in the Avicopter AC312E, in April 2018. ...

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

  AR5

  First announced in October 2012, the AR5 is a MALE UAS designed for SAR, surveillance and maritime patrol missions. The AR5 can be flown manually or commanded ...

• Trainer

  Gabriel-TP

  Gabriel-TP is a low-wing, two-seat tandem trainer aircraft aimed at both military and civilian customers. It is certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in ...

• Air: NVGs

  PNL-3M Orlik

  PNL-3M are high-performance, lightweight, passive stereoscopic NVGs for helicopter crew members. Certification by European Aviation Safety Agency also enables civilian use. The device can be ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCH 170

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCH 170 is a fixed-wing loitering munition from MBDA. Similar in design to the Switchblade 300, the catapult launched system ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  Standard 3

  Jointly developed by ATR and Thales, The Standard 3 avionics suite has been specifically designed for ATR-600 aircraft. It offers the pilot user-friendly interface, along ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCX 50

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCX 50 is a rotary-wing loitering munition from MBDA.  According to reports, the RCX 50 is designed to support ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  DroneGun

  DroneGun enables controlled management of an adversarial UAS, causing no damage to the UAV or surrounding area. It either forces the drone to perform a ...

• Military - USVs

  NOMARS

  The No Manning Required Ship (NOMARS) is a US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) effort to develop a first-of-its-kind large uncrewed surface vessel.

• Uncrewed aerial systems engines

  Trident 100TD2

  The Trident 100TD2 is a compression-ignition engine that is capable of operating on various types of heavy fuel. It is claimed to offer up to ...

• Space: radar systems

  ESA Sentinel-1

  Sentinel-1 is a planned constellation of four satellites with two already in orbit and two on order. They carry a payload of a C-band SAR ...