• Land Warfare

  Czechs pick preferred partner for mobile air defence requirement

  2nd October 2020

  The selection of Rafael as preferred bidder for the Czech Republic's mobile air defence requirement is notable for including a strong element of local industrial workshare

• Defence Notes

  Slovenia approves defence fund to 2026

  8th October 2020

  Slovenia pledges to spend €780 million on weapons, equipment and infrastructure to accelerate the modernisation of its armed forces — but is this enough?

• Air Warfare

  Air Warfare magazine: loyal wingmen, the future of air power and more

  7th October 2020

  Read the latest edition of Air Warfare for free in our app or on your desktop. What's inside this edition: Comment In mid-September, the defence …

• Military Logistics

  Philippines pursues new transport aircraft

  12th September 2020

  The Philippine Air Force (PAF) is looking to purchase five Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Hercules aircraft to bolster its inadequate transport fleet, according to the head …

• Defence Helicopter

  Germany cancels heavy-lift helicopter acquisition

  29th September 2020

  Germany has announced the cancellation of the long running CH-53G heavy-lift helicopter replacement tender, citing budgetary difficulties and after close examination of industry offers. The …

• Defence Helicopter

  Montenegro accepts first Bell 505

  18th September 2020

  The Montenegro Air Force accepted its first Bell 505 Jet Ranger X helicopter, with another to follow under a €3.3 million ($3.69 million) order with Bell …

• Digital Battlespace

  India to order two Phalcon AWACS

  7th September 2020

  As military tensions with China in eastern Ladakh show no sign of easing, India is looking to accelerate its long-delayed acquisition of two Phalcon ELW-2090 …

• Land Warfare

  PREMIUM: ​UK tests Polaris DAGOR vehicle

  6th October 2020

  Polaris has provided two DAGOR vehicles for trial purposes to the 3 Commando Brigade. A tweet from the Chief of the General Staff showed pictures of the vehicle, although the MoD remains tight-lipped as to its future acquisition plans.

• Land Warfare

  Arnold Defense announces two major orders for FLETCHER (sponsored)

  13th October 2020

  USSOCOM and an undisclosed European specialist unit place orders for the land-based 2.75in rocket launcher.

• Air Warfare

  Super Tucanos touch down in the Philippines

  22nd September 2020

  The first batch of long-awaited Embraer A-29B Super Tucano light attack aircraft began touching down in the Philippines on 19 September after completing an arduous multi-stop journey …

• Military Logistics

  ARNG seeks to carry heavier helicopter loads

  21st September 2020

  Equipment from South Carolina-based Helibasket is being included in an effort to modernise the external load capabilities of helicopters operated by the US Army National …

• Defence Helicopter

  Czech Mi-17s to receive AMPS upgrade

  14th September 2020

  BIRD Aerosystems is to upgrade and improve Airborne Missile Protection Systems (AMPS) it had previously provided to the Czech Air Force, under a contract worth …

• Digital Battlespace

  Anzac-class upgrade includes video encoders

  22nd September 2020

  US-based Delta Digital Video is to supply video encoders to Saab Australia for integration with the CCTV system on Anzac-class frigates operated by the Royal …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell Boeing to retrofit Ospreys with LAIRCM system processor

  17th September 2020

  Naval Air Systems Command has ordered 24 additional integrated aircraft survivability equipment kits for the MV-22 Osprey from Bell Boeing, in a contract modification worth $16.4 …

• Naval Warfare

  More of the same for Malaysian maritime forces during COVID-19?

  20th October 2020

  The after-effects of COVID-19 could raise questions over the long-term sustainability of Malaysian maritime forces; even before the pandemic began, the government was struggling to recapitalise ageing assets and introduce more modern capabilities.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Programme Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System - AHTS (TH-57 Replacement)

  Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single engine 407GXi. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH-90 [Spain]

  Programme Background Along with a range of other air programmes, the Spanish Government announced the nation has set aside 1 billion euros (USD$1.162 billion) to ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T-India-Air Force

  An official contract announcement is expected during the Aero India 2021 exhibition in Bangalore, although negotiations have dragged on for more than five years and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M (Contracted) [Germany]

  Programme Background Previous Usage The German Armed Forces ordered 15 H145M helicopters, with the initial two delivered in December 2015, for the Kommando Spezialkräfte. These ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Model 301 Fire Attack

  The Model 301 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters AS365-series helicopters.

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• 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 ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Model 316 Fire Attack

  The Model 316 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters H225 and AS332 L-series helicopters.

• AC67 Airbus Helicopters H135 interior

  Bucher has developed the AC67 medical interior for the Airbus Helicopters H135 in cooperation with ADAC Luftrettung.The lightweight, modular design features a floor with integrated ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175, a seven-tonne class aircraft powered by twin PT6C 67E engines. The civilian variants produced by Airbus ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  H125M

  The H125M (formerly the AS550 B3e Fennec) is a military version of the civil H125. The helicopter has a reduced radar signature due to the use ...