• Defence Notes

  Threod Systems launches new ISR divisions

  25th March 2020

  Estonia-based Threod Systems on 24 March announced the creation of two new divisions ­ – Cloud ISR and Homeland Security ISR – as part of a …

• Training

  Belarus goes ahead with Defender-Europe 20 counter exercise

  24th March 2020

  Belarus has announced plans to go ahead with a number of military exercises which are intended as a countermeasure against NATO’s Defender-Europe 20 drill. In …

• Land Warfare

  UVZ demonstrates Msta-S to Middle Eastern clients

  25th March 2020

  Rostec company Uralvagonzavod (UVZ) demonstrated the upgraded Msta-S self-propelled howitzer to undisclosed Middle Eastern customers at the Nizhny Tagil Institute of Metal Testing’s (NTIIM’s) Staratel …

• Land Warfare

  Czech Army procures new fuel tankers

  23rd March 2020

  The Czech Army is improving its refuelling and fuel transportation processes with the procurement of seven CAPL and two CNS semitrailer fuel tankers. The Czech …

• Digital Battlespace

  Waveform translation simplifies special forces communications

  3rd April 2020

  Joint terminal attack controllers (JTACs) have numerous tools at their disposal to communicate with aircraft overhead providing close air support (CAS). In recent years, US …

• Defence Helicopter

  Construction Helicopters obtains NATO/Afghanistan service contract

  19th March 2020

  Construction Helicopters has been awarded a $33.9 million contract modification through the FMS process to support NATO’s Air Command-Afghanistan and the Combined Security Transition Command. …

• Air Warfare

  Germany shows tentative interest in Apache

  27th March 2020

  Shephard understands that the German federal government has asked its US counterpart for information about the Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter. Over the years, Boeing …

• Naval Warfare

  USN says it needs Virginia option sooner rather than later

  12th March 2020

  Following the best part of two weeks of testimony on the USN’s plans as part of the FY2021 Presidential Budget Request, civilian and military officials …

• Defence Notes

  NATO HQ staffer tests positive for COVID-19

  9th March 2020

  NATO confirmed on 9 March that a member of staff at its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium has tested positive for coronavirus. The individual had recently …

• Naval Warfare

  UK risks loss of influence should MCM capability slip

  23rd March 2020

  Senior former UK defence officials have said that the country should renew its MCM fleet once the current Hunt and Sandown classes leave service, given the importance of their …

• Digital Battlespace

  US continues effort to harden UAVs against electromagnetic attack

  25th March 2020

  DARPA is bringing its Collaborative Operations in Denied Environments (CODE) initiative to a conclusion, with the programme transitioning to the USN. CODE was one of …

• Digital Battlespace

  Netherlands acts fast on cyber

  12th March 2020

  The Dutch Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 11 March that it is setting up a rapid response cyber security team comprising experts from a …

• Land Warfare

  Czech Republic receives new Pandur II variants

  26th March 2020

  The Czech Republic is improving the mobility and situational awareness of its ground forces through new command/staff and communication (liaison) variants of the 8x8 Pandur II. …

• Defence Notes

  Defence awakens to European COVID-19 nightmare

  18th March 2020

  The impact of COVID-19 has caused widespread disruption to the European defence industry which has introduced exceptional operational measures to protect the health of armed forces personnel, …

• Land Warfare

  Slovakia selects Spike LR2 ATGM

  5th March 2020

  Slovakia signed a contract with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems for delivery of an unspecified number of fifth-generation Spike LR2 ATGMs and dismounted advanced integrated …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Ballistic Missile Defence [Finland]

  Background Finland's 2025-2036 Long-Term Defence Plan allocated $1.7-2.6 billion for two long-range air defense systems designed against short-range ballistic missiles, with delivery targeted from 2029 and ...

• Destroyers

  Maya Class (27DDG) (1-2) [Japan]

  Programme Background The 27DD Maya class destroyers were previously known as the Improved Atago class because they are an addition to the existing two Atago-class destroyers that have entered service. ...

• AEW&C

  Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (1-10) [NATO]

  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 Alliance ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton [NATO]

  Background NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum During the July 2026 NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum in Ankara, Türkiye, NATO announced that Denmark, Finland, Germany and Norway ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) [NATO]

  Background Purchase While NATO doesn’t have its own forces and depends on its allies, the alliance does have some of its own assets and equipment. In ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-390 Options [Portugal]

  Programme Background Leadership from Embraer and the Portuguese Air Force formalised a contract that includes 10 aircraft options that can be utilised by any NATO ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) [Greece]

  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 in ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) - [Italy]

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

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-390 [Portugal]

  Programme Background Leadership from the Portuguese Air Force and Embraer signed a contract for a sixth C-390, with the option for ten additional aircraft for ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M [NATO]

  Background 2026 announcement At the July 2026 NATO Summit Defence Forum, government officials from Belgium, Croatia, France, Poland, Spain, Turkey, and the UK launched an ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  MRZR D4 [Belgium]

  Background In September 2025, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) awarded Polaris a framework agreement to supply vehicles across the alliance. This framework is intended to ...

• ISR/special mission

  EC-37B Compass Call (1-10) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The retirement of the EF-111A in 1990 left the USAF largely out of the operational and tactical level radar jamming business. Lockheed Martin ...

• Military UAS - small

  Jump 20 [Denmark]

  Background 2020 Tender In January 2018, Denmark's three main political parties signed the Danish Defence Agreement, a cross-party defence white paper covering the period between ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT Follow-On [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 ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  Skyranger 30 [Germany]

  Background The SPD-led approach Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Germany has been under consistent pressure to increase its defence spending. In the immediate ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Major networking projects

  Ballistic Missile Defence

  In early 2010, NATO acquired the first phase of an initial theatre ballistic missile defence capability to protect alliance forces. 

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-2

  Between 1,000 and 2,000 BMD-2 (Boevaya Mashina Desantnaya - Airborne Combat Vehicle) amphibious IFVs were produced for the Soviet Airborne Forces (VDV) by the Volgograd ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-4M

  The BMD-4M is based on the BMD-4, which has been in the Russian Army's airborne forces (VDV) service since 2004. It was developed to provide an ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-1

  The Volgograd Tractor Plant (now known as the Volgograd Machine-Building Company) developed the BMD-1 amphibious IFV specifically to meet the requirements of the Soviet Union's ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

  The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) System, developed by the United States, provides advanced sea-based and land-based protection against ballistic missile threats.  Using the AN/SPY-1 ...

• Land: battle management systems

  BMD-Flex

  BMD-Flex is a modular C2 software system for integrated air and missile defence. Built on T-Core, BMD-Flex’s features and functions can be tailored, ranging from ...

• Land: manned turrets

  Bereg

  KBP developed the Bereg one-person turret (referred to as a ‘combat module’ in Russia) to provide an upgrade option for the Russian-designed BMD-series airborne IFV ...

• Land: manned turrets

  Bakhcha

  The Bakhcha is the latest version of the two-man turret originally developed for the BMP-3 tracked IFV, which entered Soviet Army service in 1987.  It ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Aegis Ashore

  Aegis Ashore is the first operational land-based version of the Aegis Combat System originally developed by Lockheed Martin for the US Navy's Ballistic Missile Defence ...

• Cannons

  2A70

  The 2A70 is a 100mm cannon that has been designed to equip infantry fighting vehicles, including the BMP-3, BMP-3F and the BMD-4M.

• Major networking projects

  NATO SATCOM

  Leonardo has been awarded a turnkey contract to rationalise and upgrade NATO’s SATCOM systems and associated infrastructure. The company will design, build, test, commission and ...

• Major networking projects

  NATO DCIS

  Airbus is delivering the NATO Deployable Communication and Information System (DCIS). The project represents a major upgrade in the capability of NATO Response Forces (NRF) ...

• Land: RWS

  Qimek NATO

  Rheinmetall's RWS family includes the Qimek single-weapon RWS and the Nanuk dual-weapon RWS. The Qimek NATO combines full stabilisation, long-range day/night all-weather sights and a ...

• Land: RWS

  Nanuk NATO

  Rheinmetall's RWS family includes the Qimek single-weapon RWS and the Nanuk dual-weapon RWS, which was introduced in 2008. The Nanuk NATO combines full stabilisation, long-range ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BTR-MDM

  The BTR-MDM Rakushka is an amphibious tracked armoured vehicle developed by Kurganmashzavod to meet the Russian Airborne Forces' (VDV) need for a new air-droppable APC. ...