• Uncrewed Vehicles

  USN experiments with 3D-printed UAVs

  11th August 2015

  The US Navy (USN) used a 3D printer to construct key components for a UAV aboard the amphibious warfare ship USS Essex. In a project …

• Military Logistics

  Paris Air Show: KHI eyes export market

  25th June 2015

  Kawasaki Heavy Industries’ (KHI) military cargo aircraft will be operational with the Japanese Air Self Defence (JASD) force by 2017, Shephard has learned at the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Paris Air Show: Octopod spreads its tentacles

  22nd June 2015

  German company Aerodata unveiled its new all-in-one surveillance pod, the Octopod, at the Paris Air Show this year.  The company’s new product contains eight different …

• Digital Battlespace

  Paris Air Show: IAI unveils modular AESA radars

  12th June 2015

  Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has unveiled the new Ultra range of UHF active electronically scanned array (AESA) modular radars at the Paris Air Show. The …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  China advances UAV tech

  3rd June 2015

  China's UAV industry is emerging in both military and civilian sectors, employing 3D-printed UAVs and a new military UAV. A Chinese Antarctic Expedition Team has …

• Digital Battlespace

  Japan’s E-2D Hawkeye buy gets closer

  3rd June 2015

  Japan’s acquisition of the Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft has moved a step closer. The AEW capability is particularly important …

• Naval Warfare

  USN to operate latest aircraft launcher

  1st June 2015

  Select sailors from the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) have completed training and are ready to operate and maintain the newest …

• Digital Battlespace

  Core Systems servers for USN

  29th May 2015

  Core Systems has provided rugged COTS servers, Core custom servers and displays to the Avaya Shipboard Team for various US Navy hull ships, it announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  Thales selected for UK's Merlin airborne surveillance helicopters

  26th May 2015

  The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) and prime contractor Lockheed Martin have selected the Thales Searchwater radar and Cerberus mission system for the Royal Navy’s …

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX Asia: Cape-class construction nears end

  22nd May 2015

  Construction of the final vessel of the eight Cape-class patrol boats for the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service was being concluded, according to Austal …

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX Asia: USN addresses issues in Asia

  21st May 2015

  A hot regional topic right now is the issue of reclamation of islets in the South China Sea, with China leading the way in terms …

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX Asia: Twenty warships dock for exhibition

  20th May 2015

  Twenty warships from the Asia-Pacific region are tied up at Changi Naval Base for this year’s IMDEX Asia maritime defence exhibition. Originating from Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, …

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX Asia: USS Fort Worth makes itself at home in Changi

  19th May 2015

  The Freedom-class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) USS Fort Worth departed San Diego on 17 November 2014 to begin her 16-month rotational deployment to Singapore, arriving …

• Naval Warfare

  IMDEX Asia: USN confirms LCS deployment plans

  16th May 2015

  The US Navy (USN) has publicised its plans for Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) forward deployments to Singapore, with a spokesperson confirming to Shephard that four …

• Digital Battlespace

  Northrop Grumman introduces SABR-GS radar

  11th May 2015

  Northrop Grumman has introduced its Scalable Agile Beam Radar – Global Strike (SABR-GS) developed for the US Air Force B-1B Lancer. The development of the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Light attack, Trainer

  IAR-99 Replacement (Romania)

  On 29 August 2017, Leonardo announced that the IAR-99 trainer technology demonstrator (TD) will be fitted with company's Vixen 500E AESA radar. The Vixen 500E AESA ...

• Tiltrotors

  V-22 Osprey (USN)

  Programme Background Requirement According to USN FY2023 Budget Estimate documentation, the V-22 programme provides an aircraft to meet the amphibious and vertical assault needs of ...

• Military UAS - MALE, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  MQ-8C Fire Scout (USA)

  Programme Background Timeline According to the Naval Air Systems Command, having first ordered the MQ-8B in 2009, the UAV has become a pillar of the ...

• Military UAS - small

  RQ-21A Blackjack / STUASLO - Replacement Units (USN)

  Programme Background Joint USN and USMC Procurment The RQ-21 Blackjack, or STUALSO, was a combined United States Navy (USN) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) programme ...

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

  MQ-25 Stingray (13-76) [USN]

  Background Initial Requirements - Unmanned Carrier Launch Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) The programme looked different when it began. In 2013, the USN awarded four ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4 Triton (Announced/Contracted) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The MQ-4C Triton programme, developed under the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) programme, required an uncrewed system to provide persistent real-time intelligence, surveillance ...

• Military UAS - small

  RQ-21A Blackjack / STUASLO - Replacement Units (USMC)

  Programme Background Joint USN and USMC Procurment The RQ-21 Blackjack, or STUALSO, was a combined United States Navy (USN) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) programme ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The FVL-MS programme seeks to develop and acquire a family of systems, including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, to replace rotary life aircraft utilised ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract (US Navy) [US]

  As of November 2020, the US DoD had signed 14 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all branches of ...

• Maritime patrol

  Maritime Patrol Aircraft Procurement [Italy]

  Programme Background In an appearance before the Italian parliament’s Foreign and Defence Affairs Committee on 14 July 2022, Italian Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Adm ...

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

  MQ-25 Stingray (10-12) [USN]

  Background Initial Requirements -  Unmanned Carrier Launch Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) The programme looked different when it began. In 2013, the USN awarded four Preliminary ...

• Landing craft and hovercraft

  LCAC 100 Class (SSC) [USN]

  Programme Background Timeline The major role of the SSC will be deployment from landing ships in support of USN and USMC operations and the transport ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101-Norway

  AgustaWestland is also providing initial support and training services, including spares at each of the operating bases and aircrew training. It will then provide performance ...

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

  Blackwing (Second Batch) [USA]

  Programme BackgroundFirst Batch The Blackwing originated from a 2013 initiative to develop a low-cost submarine-launched UAS for the US Navy. Following successful tests with the ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) [USN]

  Background Requirement The USN wants to acquire carrier-capable loyal wingman drones. These drones will have a high level of autonomy, allowing them to work alongside crewed aircraft.  ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Sea: naval surveillance radar

  AN/SPY-3

  The AN/SPY-3 is a multifunction naval radar developed and manufactured by Raytheon. Its intended uses include horizon and surface search, navigation, periscope detection, discrimination, and ...

• Fighter - multirole, Fighter - naval

  F-35C

  The F-35C Lightning II, also known as the F-35 carrier variant (CV), is a fifth-generation multirole combat aircraft in carrier configuration. It has larger wings and ...

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

  MQ-8C Fire Scout

  The MQ-8C is a newer version of the Fire Scout and is based on a Bell 407 commercial helicopter. It offers a greater range, endurance and ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-79

  The AN/APG-79 is an agile beam radar with a solid-state digital array that scans at nearly the speed of light, enabling detection and tracking of ...

• Sea: naval surveillance radar

  AN/SPY-6(V)1 (AMDR)

  Raytheon's Air and Missile Defence Radar (AMDR), now officially designated as AN/SPY-6(V)1 is a three-dimensional AESA naval surveillance radar designed to simultaneously defend against ballistic missiles, hypersonic ...

• Fighter - electronic warfare

  EA-18G Growler

  The EA-18G Growler is a variant in the F/A-18 family of aircraft that combines the F/A-18F Super Hornet platform with a sophisticated electronic warfare suite. It ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Raven ES-05

  The Raven ES-05 is an AESA fire-control radar developed by Leonardo in close collaboration with Saab for the Gripen E/F. It features a repositionable AESA ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-63(V)2

  The AN/APG-63(V)2 is a significant radar upgrade for the U.S. Air Force F-15C aircraft. This upgrade replaces the mechanically-scanned antenna (MSA) with an AESA antenna,  ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Grifo E

  The Grifo-E is an advanced fire-control radar developed by Leonardo, featuring Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) technology for enhanced situational awareness. It employs Active Electronically Scanned ...

• Military - UUVs

  Snakehead LDUUV

  The Snakehead Large Displacement Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle (LDUUV) is a US Navy (USN) Uncrewed Underwater Vehicle (UUV) designed to be launched from submarine Dry Dock Shelters ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  RBE2

  The AESA RBE2 is the first AESA radar produced in Europe for combat aircraft. The active phased array replaces the passive array in the RBE2 currently ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Vixen-1000E

  The Vixen 1000E is an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar designed for fighter and interceptor aircraft, incorporating a roll-repositionable antenna with a ±100º field ...

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

  MQ-8B Fire Scout

  The MQ-8B Fire Scout is a rotary-wing UAV that provides situational awareness and precision targeting support for the US Armed Forces. The MQ-8B Fire Scout, ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-82(V)1

  The AN/APG-82(V)1 is an X-band active electronically scanned array radar system that combines the AN/APG-79 processor with the AESA antenna of the AN/APG-63(V)3. The system ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Giraffe 4A

  The Giraffe 4A is a multi-function S-band AESA radar system combining air surveillance, ground-based air defence, and weapon locating capabilities in a single platform.