• Defence Helicopter

  Farnborough 2016: V-280 comes to the UK (video)

  14th July 2016

  Shephard spoke to Bell Helicopter about the arrival of its V-280 Valor mock-up to UK shores, the first time it has made an appearance at …

• Defence Notes

  JSOW C-1 completes operational tests

  14th July 2016

  Raytheon and the US Navy have successfully completed all operational tests for the Joint Standoff Weapon C-1 (JSOW C-1), making it ready for service in …

• Defence Helicopter

  Farnborough 2016: Spanish Navy AB212 upgrade advances

  14th July 2016

  The third of seven upgraded AB212 helicopters will be delivered by October this year to the Spanish Ministry of Defense’s Directorate General of Armament and Material, Sener confirmed …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Farnborough 2016: Unmanned Hoverbike set for production

  14th July 2016

  Malloy Aeronautics is pushing ahead with the development of its unmanned Hoverbike and expects to be ready to begin production in 2017, Shephard learned at Farnborough …

• Defence Helicopter

  Farnborough 2016: Armed Black Hawk breaks cover (video)

  14th July 2016

  Shephard spoke with PZL Mielec about its armed Black Hawk helicopter, which is making its first appearance at the Farnborough International Airshown 2016 (FIA 2016) …

• Defence Helicopter

  Farnborough 2016: New player enters race for UH-60As

  14th July 2016

  Another player is looking to offer refurbished ex-US Army UH-60As on the civil utility and military market through a comprehensive cockpit modernisation programme. Flight displays …

• Digital Battlespace

  Japan to receive Leonardo SIT-422/5J

  14th July 2016

  Leonardo-Finmeccanica is to supply its SIT-422/5J interrogator to the Japan Ground Self Defense Force (JGSDF) under a deal announced on 12 July. The SIT-422/5J will …

• Digital Battlespace

  Farnborough 2016: The future of naval weapons (video)

  14th July 2016

  At this year's Farnborough International Airshow, Shephard spoke with Michael Ryan, the deputy programme manager at Naval Air Systems Command's (NAVAIR) Precision Strike Weapons office. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Cubic to provide TCDL for Watchkeeper

  14th July 2016

  Cubic Mission Solutions (CMS) has received a three-year extension award of $1.4 million from UAV Tactical Systems (U-TacS) to provide additional Tactical Common Data Links …

• Military Logistics

  Engility to support Air Cushion Vehicles

  14th July 2016

  Engility has received a five-year, $29 million, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to support the US Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City Division (NSWC PCD) and the navy's …

• Digital Battlespace

  Raytheon working on NGR technology

  14th July 2016

  Raytheon and the US Army Research Laboratory (ARL) have entered a collaborative alliance through a $1.1 million grant to develop Scalable, Agile, Multimode, Front End …

• Land Warfare

  Australia receives first 40mm AGLs

  14th July 2016

  The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has taken delivery of its first batch of 40mm General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems MK47 Mk 0 lightweight automatic …

• Digital Battlespace

  Farnborough 2016: Elbit launches Spectro XR

  13th July 2016

  Elbit Systems has launched the Spectro XR (Extra Range), electro-optic payload, designed for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions. The ultra-long range ISTAR …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Farnborough 2016: Tip of the Spear

  13th July 2016

  With electronic warfare threats and counter-UAS systems increasing in proliferation, companies are looking at ways to protect and harden existing UAS systems for today's battlespace. …

• Defence Helicopter

  Farnborough 2016: T129 nears full weaponisation

  13th July 2016

  The Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) T129 ATAK attack helicopter is expected to be fully weaponised by the end of the year after final qualification tests …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Light attack, Trainer

  PC-21 (Project Air 5428) [Australia]

  The new PTS, including aircraft, flight training simulators and learning environments is being acquired from a single capability contractor, Team 21, which consists of Lockheed ...

• Transport, Transport/tanker aircraft

  Project Air 7404 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement Australia is thinking ahead to an enlarged transport fleet to replace the current C-130Js. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) was the second ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A (Project Air 6000 Phase 2A/B) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) took delivery of 18 F-35A aircraft as of March 2020 and the remaining aircraft are expected to ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton (5-6) [Australia]

  Background Four Contracted Units In the summer of 2020, Northrop Grumman announced that the Australian Government provided $333 million for three MQ-4C Tritons and associated GCS. ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Medium Range Air Defence [Australia]

  Background Faced with a growing threat from China and a vast land and sea territory to protect, Australia is seeking to establish a medium-range ground-based ...

• Patrol boats

  Evolved Cape Class (13-14) [Australia]

  Programme Background Austal was awarded a contract to build six 'Evolved'Cape-class patrol boats for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) on 1 May 2020 (see separate ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) [Australia]

  Background Older Efforts On 23 April 2021, the US State Department's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) approval announcement revealed that Australia had requested to buy up ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Project Air 7003 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement The Royal Australian Air Force has been without a UAS capability since the Heron was withdrawn in mid-2017. According to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, ...

• OPVs

  Arafura Class (Project SEA 1180) (1-6) [Australia]

  Programme Background Australia's new class of Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV), the Arafura-class, will replace the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) fleet of Armidale and Cape-class patrol ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-28 Ghost Bat [Australia]

  Background Goal As stated by the Head of Air Force Capability, Air Vice-Marshal Robert Denney, in March 2022, the Ghost Bat will be an "operational system ...

• Loitering munitions

  Mission Talon Strike [Australia]

  Background Request for Tender (RFT) On 19 May 2025, the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA), an agency aimed at streamlining defence invocation for the Australian Defence ...

• Military UAS - small

  VTOL UAV [New Zealand]

  Background Defence Capability Plan (DCP) In April 2025, the New Zealand government published the DCP, a document that is essentially a blueprint for what procurements ...

• Trainer

  Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirements The RAAF is seeking a future solution that provides a ‘relevant, adaptable, affordable and safe LIFTS out to 2050’ for training pilots ...

• Military UAS - small

  DEF129 (Tactical UAS) [Australia]

  Programme Background Programme Announcement The Australian Army announced the Project Land 129 Phase 3 programme in 2017. This announcement led to the release of an industry ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Harpii Szpon (Loyal Wingman) [Poland]

  Background Market Evaluation On 6 November 2023, speaking at the IQPC International Fighter Conference (IFC) 2023 in Madrid, Major General Cezary Wiśniewski, the Deputy General Commander of the ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  Air-5416 Project Echidna

  Air-5416 Project Echidna was an initiative launched in 2001 by BAE Systems for the Australian DoD. Its goal was to overhaul the self protection systems ...

• Trainer

  King Air trainer

  Textron / Beechcraft King Air trainers are a family twin-engine aircraft based on King Air 90, 100, 200 and 350 utility aircraft. The King Air ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  Australian Defence Force MRH90 Training

  As prime contractor for the ADF's MRH90 training programme, CAE has provided two MRH90 full-flight mission simulators (FFMS), training facilities and engineering and support services. ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  RAAF Hawk Mk 127 FMS

  Under subcontract to BAE Systems, CAE is designing and manufacturing three Hawk Mk 127 full-mission simulators (FMS) for the Royal Australian Air Force that will ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Wanderer

  The Wanderer is a low-altitude, low-cost, long-endurance UAV produced in-house by the Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF) Jericho Disruptive Innovation Group and the Australian Government's Defense Science ...

• Light attack

  Hawk 200

  The Hawk 200 is a single-seat light attack iteration of the Hawk 100 (see separate entry) and Advanced Jet Trainer or AJT (see separate entry). ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-28A Ghost Bat

  The MQ-28A Ghost Bat is a loyal wingman-type, Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), MALE fixed-wing drone being developed by Boeing Defence Australia. Its development began in ...

• Military - USVs

  Bluebottle

  Bluebottle is a persistent, autonomous, uncrewed surface vessel from Ocius Technology in service with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF). In ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  Predator Mission Trainer (PMT)

  The CAE Predator Mission Trainer (PMT) is an integrated platform that combines the features of CAE's UAS mission trainer with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems' Predator-specific ...

• Maritime patrol

  Challenger 604

  Bombardier Challenger CL-604 MPAs are in service with the Royal Danish Air Force and the Korea Coast Guard. The first of three Danish aircraft entered ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Phantom 4 (Series)

  Designed for aerial photograph applications by DJI, the Phantom 4 series of UAVs includes the Phantom 4 Pro, Phantom 4 Pro V2.0, Phantom 4 Advanced ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Hawkei

  Thales Australia developed the 4x4 Hawkei for the Australian Army's Land 121 Phase 4 Protected Mobility Vehicle – Light (PMV-L) project.  The prototype was unveiled in ...

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  AN/ALR-2001

  BAE Systems’ AN/ALR-2001 Electronic Support Measure (ESM) is thought to be based on Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) Elta Systems division’s EL/M-8382 ESM. The AN/ALR-2001 is ...

• Air-to-surface missiles

  AGM-88E AARGM

  The AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) is a supersonic, medium-range, air-launched tactical missile compatible with US and allied strike aircraft. Designed to upgrade the AGM-88 ...

• Military UAS - mini

  M Solar-X

  First revealed in August 2020, in February 2024, at its symposium, the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) showcased the M Solar-X. This solar-powered fixed-wing drone was ...