• Defence Notes

  Brazil's strike chaos stirs military coup talk

  31st May 2018

  The Brazilian Army is often called to help when things go wrong, so it was no surprise to see soldiers deploy during a crippling truckers' …

• Defence Helicopter

  SB>1 Defiant blades issue appears solved

  22nd August 2018

  The Sikorsky-Boeing in-development SB>1 Defiant demonstrator team appear to have resolved production issues concerning the future medium class helicopter's blades. Manufacturing issues of the components, being …

• Defence Notes

  Key words missing from US-North Korea summit statement

  12th June 2018

  Two key words were conspicuous by their absence from the joint statement signed by US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un …

• Military Logistics

  GAO highlights DoD planning deficiencies

  20th August 2018

  The US has not yet incorporated leading practices of a strategic management planning framework in Department of Defense (DoD) retrograde and reset guidance. That deficiency, …

• Defence Notes

  NATO's eastern allies want increased naval, air presence

  8th June 2018

  The nine member countries on NATO's eastern flank want an 'increased presence' by the alliance in their region, Polish president Andrzej Duda said after a …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  FT-100FH continues flight testing

  20th August 2018

  FT Sistemas has moved ahead in the flight test campaign of its newly designed Flettner Helicopter FT-100FH unmanned rotorcraft, the company announced on 15 August. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Boeing carries out synchronised UAV flight tests

  21st August 2018

  Boeing has successfully completed the first tranche of synchronised UAV flight tests using new on-board autonomous C2 technology developed by Boeing Australia with the support …

• Land Warfare

  UK completes first trials of Land Ceptor

  29th May 2018

  The first firing trials of the British Army's Land Ceptor missile system have been carried out near the Baltic Sea on a Swedish test fire …

• Defence Notes

  Heavy fighting as Taliban attack western Afghan city

  15th May 2018

  Afghan aircraft on 15 May bombed Taliban positions in the western city of Farah after the insurgents launched a major attempt to capture the provincial …

• Defence Notes

  Taiwan scrambles fighter jets to track China bomber drill

  25th May 2018

  Taiwan on 25 May scrambled fighter jets to shadow Chinese bombers conducting a drill around the island, just hours after Beijing welcomed Burkina Faso's move …

• Training

  ITEC 2018: Australian Army licenses VBSFires

  23rd May 2018

  SimCentric has announced that the Australian Defence Force (ADF) has procured a perpetual enterprise licence for VBS3Fires FST. The contract was signed this month. The …

• Training

  US Army evaluates aviation training bids

  21st August 2018

  The US Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE) is currently assessing responses for its Advanced Helicopter Flight Training Support (AHFTS) requirement. The contract is currently …

• Defence Notes

  NATO chief hails German defence spending boost

  7th June 2018

  NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg hailed on 7 June German plans to increase defence spending by 80% by 2024 as 'a step in the right direction' …

• Naval Warfare

  Opinion: Southeast Asia’s mixed record on airborne maritime patrol

  22nd August 2018

  The P-8A maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft (MPRA) has become a ‘poster boy’ in the Indo-Pacific region. Gradually supplanting the P-3C Orion as a workhorse …

• Military Logistics

  Sarcos to continue exoskeleton development

  20th August 2018

  Sarcos Robotics has received a second contract from the US Air Force to continue development of an exoskeleton for logistics applications. The first contract was …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Joint Light Helicopter (HIL) Programme

  Programme Background The French Ministry of the Armed Forces has elected to bring the launch of the French Armed Forces’ HIL programme forward to 2021. ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH [France]

  Programme Background In 2001, the French government made its first purchase of 34 NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopters, followed by a second order in 2013 for ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - mini

  Micro & Mini Drones (France)

  Programme Background RequirementOn 23 April 2021, an RfP was published by the Direction de la Maintenance Aéronautique (DMAé) to supply around 500 micro and nano drones for the ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | OPV Procurement (1-2) [Montenegro]

  During Euronaval 2024, the French Ministry of Armed Forces and Veterans announced that Montenegro signed a contract for the acquisition of two OPV 60. Both ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  Naval: shipboard communication systems | OPV Procurement (1-2) [Montenegro]

  During Euronaval 2024, the French Ministry of Armed Forces and Veterans announced that Montenegro signed a contract for the acquisition of two OPV 60. Both ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT (13-15) [France]

  In June 2020, The French government has pledged to buy new military heavy-lift helicopters and accelerate plans for naval drone, ISTAR and tanker aircraft programmes as ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 300 [France]

  Programme Background Plans to Purchase At Eurosatory 2022, Col. Arnaud Goujon, the French Army's chief of plans, told the media that the French Army was ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 Special Forces [France]

  Programme Background In French service, advanced H225M Caracals with aerial refuelling capabilities are used by SOF units of the French Air Force (FAF) and French ...

• OPVs

  OPV Procurement (1-2) [Montenegro]

  Programme Background Timeline During Euronaval 2024, the French Ministry of Armed Forces and Veterans announced that Montenegro signed a contract for the acquisition of two ...

• OPVs

  OPV 58 S [Senegal]

  Programme Background Senegal ordered three OPV 58 S patrol vessels on 17 November 2019. A procurement contract was signed between the Ministry of Armed Forces ...

• Loitering munitions

  Colibri [France]

  Background Origins French Ministry of Armed Forces spokesperson Hervé Grandjean stated in a press conference in May 2022 that the Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) and ...

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

  French MALE UAVs [France]

  Background Requirements The French Ministry of the Armed Forces wishes to develop a French MALE offering comparable to the MQ-9 Reaper, which would, it is hoped, promote ...

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

  UX11 (Ukraine Aid) [France]

  Programme Background First Batch On 6 September 2023, Sébastien Lecornu, the French Minister of Defence, announced Delair was providing Ukraine with more than 150 drones. ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  PLFS [France]

  Programme Background The Sabre, then known as the Sherpa FS, was developed as a response to a 2014 requirement for three types of new vehicles ...

• Loitering munitions

  Larinae [France]

  Background Origins French Ministry of Armed Forces spokesperson Hervé Grandjean stated in a press conference in May 2022 that the Direction Générale de l'Armement (DGA) ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Counter-UAS systems

  Boreades

  Boreades is a modular anti-UAV system developed by CS. This suite combines multi-sensors and multi-effectors in order to enable the detection, identification and neutralisation of rogue ...

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

  UAS 100

  The UAS 100 is an autonomous, three-engined platform, modular UAS manufactured by Thales in partnership with Issoire Aviation, Hionos and with the support of the ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Vespa-15

  The Vespa-15 is a first-person view (FPV) rotary-wing UAV manufactured by a Ukrainian company.  In May 2025, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Ukraine announced it ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Tundra 2

  The Tundra 2 is a rotary-wing UAV from Hexadrone. It is described as a new, modular, plug-and-play, and multi-trade drone. Hexadrone's website states that the French Armed ...

• OPVs

  OPV 60

  The OPV 60 is designed to conduct surveillance missions in coastal and EEZ waters. The ship can be armed with a 40mm naval gun and ...

• EO/IR systems

  Euroflir 350

  The Euroflir 350 is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised optronic system. According to Safran, it is effective at long ranges, can track mobile targets, designate important areas for ...

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

  H160M

  Airbus is developing the H160M to meet the requirements of the French military for the Joint Light Helicopter (Hélicoptère Interarmées Léger, or HIL) programme. It ...

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

  Lanner

  Unveiled at Eurosatory 2024, the Lenner is a modified variant of the Pengion C VTOL drone, specifically modified to meet the SDTL (Light Tactical Drone System) program ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH

  Developed as a multinational programme between France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the European NH90 was designed to meet NATO requirements for multirole capability from ...

• Land: handheld NV devices

  O-NYX

  The Thales O-NYX is a Ultra-Compact Night Vision Goggle used by the French armed forces. They have an enlarged field of vision to 51° compared ...

• Pistols

  Glock Pistol

  The Glock family of pistols have been in widespread service since the Glock 17 was selected for Austrian military and police service in 1982. The company's ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Mistral 2

  MISTRAL is a man-portable, fully digital, heat-seeking missile designed to meet the requirements of all branches of the armed forces to defend against air threats. ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  TDS-FA/-TA/-H

  Thales’ TDS family is comprised of Radar Warning Receivers (RWRs) designed to equip a range of fixed-wing aircraft. The product series includes the TDS-FA designed ...

• Loitering munitions

  Toutatis

  The Toutatis is an in-development loitering munition from Thales. According to Thales, the platform is effective against groups of fighters and unarmored and light-armoured vehicles. Unveiled at ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Sky Keeper

  The Sky Keeper is a rotary-wing UAV from Milton International.  The UAV is capable of carrying a 10kg payload and features a modular gimbal, meaning ...