• Uncrewed Vehicles

  US demos 3-D printed UAV

  9th January 2017

  The US Army Research Laboratory (ARL) has tested a 3-D-printed UAS created with a new on-demand system as part of the Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiments. …

• Digital Battlespace

  A-10C Thunderbolt IIs get LARS V-12

  9th January 2017

  A new Lightweight Airborne Recovery System (LARS) V-12 is being installed on the US Air Force’s (USAF) A-10C Thunderbolt II aircraft assigned to active duty …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Vanilla Aircraft UAV sets record

  9th January 2017

  The VA001 UAS has set a long-endurance record for combustion-powered UAS in the 50-500kg (Group 1) class, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced …

• Special Operations

  France confirms first Scorpion vehicle orders

  9th January 2017

  The first orders will be placed in 2017 for France’s new Griffon and Jaguar vehicles as the French Army’s Scorpion programme continues to move forward.  …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  The year ahead: Military UAVs

  9th January 2017

  Unmanned aerial vehicles are now a firmly established capability in nearly all advanced militaries. In 2017, expect to see western militaries invest more in complex …

• Digital Battlespace

  US orders new secure intelligence-sharing network

  6th January 2017

  BAE Systems will work to enhance intelligence sharing capabilities for the US Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) under a five-year $49 million contract announced on …

• Land Warfare

  Ukroboronprom to produce M16

  6th January 2017

  Ukroboronprom company Ukroboronservis has announced that it will work with US company Aeroscraft to produce NATO standard small arms weapons in Ukraine. Ukroboronprom announced the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Prox acquisition presents opportunities

  6th January 2017

  Flir Systems’ acquisition of Prox Dynamics has bolstered its presence in the unmanned space, marking its entry into producing end-to-end systems and presenting particular opportunities …

• Military Logistics

  US Army orders JCB forklifts

  6th January 2017

  JCB will deliver over 1,600 light-capability rough terrain forklifts to the US Army under a $142 million contract announced on 5 January. The new 527-58M …

• Digital Battlespace

  US Army awards AFATDS 7.0 contract

  6th January 2017

  The US Army has announced contract award for its Advanced Field Artillery Tactical Data System (AFATDS) 7.0 programme, which will modernise its fires command and …

• Military Logistics

  Airbus to support UK’s Atlas A400M

  6th January 2017

  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has negotiated a £410 million contract with Airbus Defence and Space to provide in-service support for the Royal Air …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  French DGA selects Spy'Ranger UAS

  6th January 2017

  Thales’ Spy’Ranger mini UAS has been selected by the French armed forces, with the company set to supply up to 70 systems to the DGA …

• Training

  Pilatus details PC-21 orders

  5th January 2017

  Pilatus Aircraft has signed three orders worth $292 million to deliver a total of 21 PC-21 fixed-wing trainer aircraft, the company announced on 4 January. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Perched landing fixed-wing UAS in development

  5th January 2017

  BMT Defence Services has developed a new UAS designed to perform perched landings using machine learning algorithms. The UAS has been developed in partnership with the …

• Land Warfare

  The year ahead: ROW land procurement

  5th January 2017

  Outside of the Americas and Europe, for land procurement there are some highlights to look out for in 2017, despite the fact there are fewer …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-60M Black Hawk [Latvia]

  Programme Background In August 2018, the Latvian government approved the acquisition of four UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters. The UH-60Ms are intended for both military and ...

• Transport

  C-130J [USA]

  Programme Background The C-130J Super Hercules is a four-engine turboprop transport aircraft developed by Lockheed Martin to replace aging C-130 variants. The US and foreign ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A Joint Strike Fighter - USAF

  Background The programme’s early competitive phase included three different airframe designs. Boeing submitted one design, Lockheed Martin submitted another, and McDonnell Douglas submitted a third ...

• Transport

  King Air 360 [Nigeria]

  Programme Background On 7 October 2021, Nigeria’s Budget Office published its proposed budget details. The Nigerian Air Force requested 10.86 billion Nigerian Naira (US$26.4 million) ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  Light Attack/Trainer Aircraft - Ghana

  In 2013, the Chief of Ghana Air Force stated that A-29 is their preferred platform and this position was also submitted to the Government. In ...

• Bomber

  B-21 Raider [USA]

  Programme Background Development The US DoD is developing a new long-range bomber called the B-21 Raider, previously known as LRS-B. At least 100 units are ...

• Trainer

  Trainer Aircraft (1-12) [Vietnam]

  Programme Background After years of operating Russian-built military equipment, Vietnam is more willing to procure US-supplied equipment following the lifting of the arms embargo in ...

• Military UAS - mini

  RemoEye-006A [Bolivia]

  Background Ceremony In June 2013, the Bolivian air force inducted its first two UAVs into service, with the models, FAB 0001 and FAB 0002, being ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Barak MX [Thailand]

  Background Thailand is procuring the Barak MX air defence system, which will be operated by the Anti-Aircraft Regiment of the Security Force Command. The system ...

• CUAS - jammers

  Airbase Air Defence Systems CUAS [US]

  Background The US Air Force's Budget Documentation for FY 2027 included $1.529 billion for Air Base Air Defence, part of which was to be used for ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 [Jordan]

  Background Requirement The Jordanian Air Force has a requirement for training helicopters that are to be used in the King Hussein Air College. The country currently ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  US Air Force Air Base Defence Missile Defence [US]

  Background The US Air Force's (USAF) Air Base Air Defence Missile Defence (ABAD MD) programme is part of the Air Force Physical Security System and sits ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Tornado Replacement (F-35A) [Germany]

  Background Requirement In March 2020, it emerged that the German government was considering  30 F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to replace 45 nuclear-capable Tornados. The remaining 40 Tornados ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V (1-8) [Bulgaria]

  Programme Background Requirement Bulgarian MoD plans to procure 16 new-built fighter aircraft to replace its fleet of 15 Russian-manufactured MiG-29 fighters. Lockheed Martin’s F-16 Block ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-47 Penetrating Counter Air (PCA) [USA]

  Background Requirement Originally conceived as a replacement for the F-22, the PCA was designed to counter various air threats, including integrated air defence systems and ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: EO/IR – Jamming Systems

  AN/AAQ-45

  Leonardo’s AN/AAQ-45 Distributed Aperture Infrared Countermeasures is designed to equip rotorcraft. The system is being installed on Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk medium-lift utility helicopters used ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  J/ALQ-8

  Like Israel, Japan elected to outfit its McDonnell Douglas/Boeing F-15J/DJ combat aircraft with an indigenous self-protection system. This takes the form of Mitsubishi Electric’s J/ALQ-8 ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  FAB-T Force Element Terminal

  The Family of Advanced Beyond Line-of-Sight Terminals - Force Element Terminal (FAB-T FET) is a nuclear-hardened SATCOM solution designed for airborne applications. Produced by Raytheon, ...

• Unguided Medium Calibre Ammunition

  25mm PGU-48/B

  The 25mm PGU-48/B is a medium-calibre armour-penetrating round manufactured by American Rheinmetall. The US Air Force uses the PGU-48/B with its F-35 aircraft.

• Unguided Medium Calibre Ammunition

  25mm PGU-23/U

  The 25mm PGU-23/U is a medium-calibre training round manufactured by General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems. The US Air Force utilises it with its AC-130 and ...

• Land: soldier modernisation systems - industry programmes

  Warrior Systems

  General Dynamics Mission Systems is prime contractor and system integrator for the US Army’s Warrior soldier systems, which include Air Warrior, Future Force Warrior, Land Warrior ...

• Air: mission management systems

  TBMCS

  Theater Battle Management Core Systems (TBMCS) is a US joint C2 integrated BMS used to plan and execute air campaigns in theatres of operations worldwide. ...

• 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 ...

• Unguided Medium Calibre Ammunition

  30mm PGU-13B High Explosive Incendiary

  The 30mm 30mm PGU-13B High Explosive Incendiary (HEI) is a medium-calibre munition manufactured by Northrop Grumman. The US Air Force uses the PGU-13B HEI with ...

• 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 ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  CLS-200

  The CLS-200 is part of the Yates Electrospace Corporation Silent Arrow family. It is a powered cargo-carrying one-use UAV, based on the company's GD-2000 glider.  In ...

• Trainer

  T-6A/B Texan II

  The T-6 Texan II is a single-engine trainer aircraft, which was developed from the Pilatus PC-9 to meet the training requirements of USAF and USN ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-4 Phantom II family

  The F-4 Phantom II is a two-seat multirole fighter developed originally by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing) to meet USN interceptor requirements. It soon became a unified ...

• 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 ...

• Loitering munitions

  Sureshastra

  The Sureshastra, or Smart Unmanned Munitions System (S-UMS), is a jet-powered, catapult-launched loitering munition manufactured by Veda Aeronautics.  In 2023, the Indian Air Force (IAF) acquired ...