• Defence Helicopter

  DefExpo 2020: LUH achieves a milestone

  7th February 2020

  The Indian single-engine Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) was awarded initial operational clearance (IOC) at DefExpo 2020 on 7 February. First, …

• Defence Notes

  Croatia sets out its 2020 procurement vision

  7th February 2020

  Salient features of the Croatian defence procurement programme for 2020 were unveiled on 6 February, with new detail provided on plans to purchase new aircraft …

• Defence Helicopter

  National Technologies Associates receives US DoD IDIQ contract

  28th January 2020

  National Technologies Associates will support the US Presidential Helicopters Program Office under a $104.9 million IDIQ contract announced by the US Department of Defense on …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Singapore Airshow 2020: ROKAF stands up Global Hawk unit

  5th February 2020

  The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) established a new reconnaissance squadron in late 2019, to coincide with the arrival of the country’s first RQ-4B …

• Training

  Merlin helicopters train on HMS Queen Elizabeth

  31st January 2020

  Trainees from 824 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm are undertaking a month-long deployment on HMS Queen Elizabeth in the North Sea for …

• Training

  UK Cold Weather Survival training underway

  30th January 2020

  The UK’s Aviation Task Force 2 is undergoing a Cold Weather Survival Course as part of the annual Exercise Clockwork deployment.Aviation Task Force 2 is …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  MCA investigating UAS to support SAR missions

  7th February 2020

  A new project has been announced by the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) to boost search and rescue (SAR) capabilities. The project will investigate …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AQS-24B​ components being manufactured in Australia

  6th February 2020

  Northrop Grumman has begun manufacture of AQS-24B towed minehunting system components in Australia, the company announced on 6 February. Manufacture is being carried out with …

• Defence Helicopter

  Rheinmetall, Thales team for rocket solutions

  7th January 2020

  Rheinmetall and Thales have signed an agreement to jointly support future developments, qualification and production of 70mm (2.75”) guided and unguided rocket solutions for opportunities …

• Defence Helicopter

  Kenya to receive MD-530F​ helicopters in US FMS

  24th January 2020

  The Kenya Defence Force (KDF) is to receive six MD-530F helicopters under a US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme. The programme was announced by the …

• Defence Notes

  DefExpo 2020: Indian missiles abound but are yet to be fielded

  10th February 2020

  Indian state-owned entities displayed a number of missiles at DefExpo 2020 in Lucknow, including a couple for the first time, indicating practical progress on several …

• Defence Helicopter

  First CMV-22B arrives at NAS Patuxent River

  6th February 2020

  The US Navy’s first CMV-22B Osprey tiltrotor has arrived at Naval Air Station Patuxent River following its ferry flight from Bell’s Amarillo Assembly Center in …

• Defence Helicopter

  Battle of the CH-47F vs CH-53K heats up in Israel

  30th January 2020

  The Israeli Air Force's (IAF's) quest to find a replacement for its ageing CH-53 Yas'ur heavy-lift transport helicopter took a significant step forward with the …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army orders Apache retrofit kits

  29th January 2020

  Boeing has received funding from the US Army for retrofit kits and software development for the Apache attack helicopter, the US Department of Defense announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  Malaysia decides to retire Nuri helicopter fleet

  9th January 2020

  The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) will phase out its Sikorsky S-61A Nuri fleet, said its newly appointed chief Gen Ackbal Samad on 7 January. …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow On

  Programme Background In March 2019, Airbus stated that it expected orders from the US Army for between 12 and 15 UH-72A helicopters. In March 2020, ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Programme Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System - AHTS (TH-57 Replacement)

  Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single engine 407GXi. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH-90 [Spain]

  Programme Background Along with a range of other air programmes, the Spanish Government announced the nation has set aside 1 billion euros (USD$1.162 billion) to ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Future Aircrew Training Program (Helicopter Procurement) - Canada

  Programme Background The FAcT requires to graduate 120 pilots, 40 combat systems officers and 36 airborne electronic sensor operators per year with 15% fluctuation. Training services ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Spain]

  Programme Background  In May 2025, Spain announced the National Helicopter Plan as part of the country's wider effort to rearm in response to American pressure. ...

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

  H135M [Spain]

  Programme Background Spain announced the National Helicopter Plan in May 2025 culminating in five contracts awarded to Airbus on 18 December 2025, including procurement programmes ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Model 301 Fire Attack

  The Model 301 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters AS365-series helicopters.

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

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• 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 ...

• Model 316 Fire Attack

  The Model 316 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters H225 and AS332 L-series helicopters.

• AC67 Airbus Helicopters H135 interior

  Bucher has developed the AC67 medical interior for the Airbus Helicopters H135 in cooperation with ADAC Luftrettung.The lightweight, modular design features a floor with integrated ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175 and works to fill a gap in the H175 helicopter family, as well as offer ...

• H160

  Airbus Helicopters unveiled a full-scale model of the H160 medium twin rotorcraft on 3 March 2015 at Heli-Expo. The utility helicopter, the first to be ...