• Naval Warfare

  SDSR gives Royal Navy OPV boost

  23rd November 2015

  The UK will purchase a further two offshore patrol vessels for the Royal Navy (RN), it has been announced as part of the Strategic Defence …

• Naval Warfare

  RAN’s third AWD build underway

  23rd November 2015

  Construction on the third Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD) for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has begun, with the keel for the vessel laid by the …

• Digital Battlespace

  US successfully tests Patriot system

  23rd November 2015

  The US Army has successfully completed the first in a series of flight tests for the latest Post-Deployment Build 8 (PDB-8) upgrades to Raytheon's Patriot …

• Defence Notes

  UK force deployment at risk

  21st November 2015

  The underlying basis for UK defence policy – to deploy forces strategically – is being undermined by technology and tactics adopted by potential adversaries. In …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Rising sun beckons for Global Hawk

  20th November 2015

  The US State Department has approved a possible foreign military sale (FMS) of three RQ-4 Global Hawk UAVs to Japan, with associated equipment, in a …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Triton UAS starts testing

  20th November 2015

  The MQ-4C Triton UAS has entered operational assessment (OA) with the US Navy as it moves toward its Milestone C review and entry into low-rate initial …

• Naval Warfare

  Merger possible for Ukraine maritime forces

  20th November 2015

  The Ukrainian Navy and State Border Service could be merged into the State Border Guard Service in a bid to improve maritime security, consolidate assets …

• Training

  RAAF trainers set for upgrade

  20th November 2015

  DiSTI has been awarded a contract from Boeing to upgrade Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F/A-18E maintenance trainers, the company announced on 18 November. The …

• Defence Notes

  China snares Su-35 fighters…finally

  20th November 2015

  After protracted negotiations, Russia has finally inked a deal with China for the sale of 24 Sukhoi Su-35 multirole fighters. Sergey Chemezov, the CEO of …

• Military Logistics

  QinetiQ technical services for UK

  20th November 2015

  QinetiQ will deliver technical services for the UK’s fast jet and A400M heavy-lift aircraft programmes under new agreements with the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) …

• Defence Helicopter

  Argentina requests US helicopters

  20th November 2015

  The US State Department has approved a potential foreign military sale (FMS) to Argentina for Bell 412EP helicopters and associated equipment, the Defense Security Cooperation …

• Defence Helicopter

  Robinson's R44 Cadet to debut in 2016

  19th November 2015

  Robinson Helicopter has announced that it plans to debut the R44 Cadet, a two-person R44 helicopter, in the first quarter of 2016.  The Cadet, designed …

• Land Warfare

  Australia goes IFV shopping

  19th November 2015

  Australia has issued an RfI for a new tracked infantry carrier for the Australian Defence Force (ADF).  Issued under Project Land 400 Phase 3 for …

• Defence Helicopter

  CAE begins NZ Seasprite support

  19th November 2015

  CAE has started the delivery of maintenance and support services for the New Zealand Defence Force's (NZDF's) SH-2G(I) helicopter synthetic training devices, the company announced …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Apache and Gray Eagle team up in Korea

  19th November 2015

  The US Army is able to conduct aerial manned-unmanned teaming missions in South Korea, according to an announcement from General Atomics on 18 November. In …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Data links

  Data links | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390 [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirement The aircraft deliveries were scheduled to start by the end of 2016 and continue over a period of ten years. However,  the first ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-130H Replacement [Sweden]

  Programme Background Requirements Sweden has five C-130H aircraft (designated Tp-84) and one KC-130H. Two C-130Es bought in the 1960s have retired, but the six H ...

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

  Hermes 900 [Chile]

  Methodology Unit cost In 2024, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) acquired one Hermes 900 for 50 million reais ($9.14 million), giving each drone an estimated ...

• Fighter - multirole

  JAS 39E/F Gripen [Brazil]

  Background In 2016, Gripen’s Project and Development Center was opened in Sao Paulo to allow Sweedish and Brazillian engineers to work together in the Gripen ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  H145M [Brazil]

  Background  Brazilian leadership announced in February 2022 that the Sabre Mil Mi-35M Hind-E attack helicopters were being retired from active service. This decision came as a ...

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

  Hermes 900 [Colombia]

  Methodology Unit cost In 2024, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) acquired one Hermes 900 for 50 million reais ($9.14 million), giving each drone an estimated gross ...

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

  Hermes 900 (5) [Brazil]

  Background First three batches (2014-2024) Across three purchases, Defence Insight estimates that Brazil has acquired five Hermes 900 UAVs. In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one ...

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

  Hermes 900 (1-4) [Brazil]

  Background First batch (2014) In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one Hermes 900 UAV to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). The drone is called the RQ-900 in Brazilian ...

• Maritime patrol

  C295 add-on [Brazil]

  Programme Background  In 2014 Brazil signed a contracted for two additional C-295 SAR platforms with the option to acquire one additional platform. In 2018, reports ...

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

  Hermes 900 [Undisclosed European Country]

  Background Various Contracts On 18 November 2024, Elbit Systems announced it had awarded various contacts with a combined $335 million to an undisclosed European country. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air-to-surface missiles

  MAR-1

  The MAR-1 is a Brazilian air-to-surface anti-radiation missile (ARM) developed by Mectron in collaboration with the Aerospace Technology and Science Department (DCTA) of the Brazilian ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Harpia

  Described as the UAV with the most onboard technology in Latin America, Harpia is a multifunctional fixed-wing Brazilian drone developed by Advanced Technologies Security & Defence.  The Uruguayan ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  EMB-312 Tucano

  The EMB-312 Tucano (Brazilian designation T-27) is a trainer and light attack aircraft developed by Embraer to meet the training requirements of the Brazilian Air ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  TPTS

  Tactical Procedures Training Simulators (TPTS), operating with SWARM software, can be used to provide most core training elements to pilots or offload training tasks from ...

• Guided munitions

  SMKB (Smart-MK-Bomb)

  The Smart-MK-Bomb, or the SMKB, is a precision guidance kit developed by Mectron and designed to turn Mk 82 and Mk 83 bombs into guided munitions.

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

  Albatroz Vortex

  The Albatroz Vortex from Stella Tecnologia is a development of the company's Albatroz UAV.  The key differentiator is that the Vortex is fitted with an ATJR ...

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

  Condor

  The Condor, or Atobá XR, is an in-development MALE-class UAV from Stella Technologia.  The development of the multi-role is tied to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), which has ...

• Trainer, Transport

  EMB-121 Xingu

  The EMB-121 Xingu is a twin-turboprop light transport and advanced multi-engine trainer aircraft developed by Embraer based on the EMB-110 Bandeirante. Its maiden flight was ...

• Land: battle management systems

  Arkhe Mission & Combat

  Launched in 2017, Atech's Arkhe Mission & Combat solutions offer a variety of solutions enabling operator to conduct missions from planning to execution and debriefing. It ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390/C-390 Millennium

  The KC-390 is a high-wing, twin-turbofan, T-tail design intended to meet the needs of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) for a tanker/transport aircraft. Developed and ...

• Fighter - air superiority

  F-5E/F Tiger II

  The F-5E (single-seat)/F (twin-seat) Tiger II is an air superiority fighter developed by Northrop Grumman based on the original F-5 Freedom Fighter. Production of the ...

• 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 ...

• EO/IR systems

  Skyward

  The SkyWard system is an advanced Infrared Search and Track (IRST) solution developed for next-generation airborne platforms, including 5th-generation fighter aircraft.  Designed with modularity in ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Saber M60

  The Saber M60 is a low-altitude air-defence radar developed by the Brazilian Army's CTEx (Army Technology Centre) in collaboration with Bradar, part of Embraer Defence ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  RBS 70 system

  The RBS 70 was developed in the 1970s to meet the Swedish Army’s requirement for a low-cost, easy-to-use MANPADS which could function in extreme climatic ...