• Digital Battlespace

  Land Forces 2018: CEA unveils GBAD radar

  5th September 2018

  CEA Technologies displayed the first-of-type ground-based CEATAC radar – which stands for CEA Tactical – at Land Forces 2018 in Adelaide. The short/medium-range AESA radar …

• Land Warfare

  Thai army inducts Skyguard AA system

  31st August 2018

  The Royal Thai Army (RTA) has accepted a new antiaircraft system into service, the Skyguard 3 fire control radar and 35mm Oerlikon twin-cannon GDF 007, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Land Forces 2018: Elbit on the charge with Rhino and WINBMS

  11th September 2018

  During Land Forces 2018 in Adelaide, where Elbit Systems of Australia was highlighting its Weapons Integrated Battle Management System (WINBMS), Defence Minister Christopher Pyne announced …

• Training

  RAAF receives P-8A Poseidon simulator, training systems

  20th August 2018

  The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has received P-8A Poseidon simulator and training systems at RAAF Base Edinburgh, the Australian Department of Defence announced on …

• Defence Helicopter

  Land Forces 2018: Australia outlines helicopter plans till 2040

  4th September 2018

  One topic at the CASG 3rd Army Aviation Symposium, hosted at Land Forces 2018 in Adelaide, was a session on Australian Army plans for helicopters, …

• 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 …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Hermes bags new customer in Philippines

  23rd August 2018

  The Philippines is expected to receive a first Hermes 450 MALE UAV from Elbit Systems sometime before the year’s end.  The first aircraft ‘was supposed …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  UK government consults on further drone misuse powers

  29th July 2018

  The UK government has initiated a consultation process to prevent the misuse of drones, with deterrents such as the issuance of on-the-stop fines for offenders …

• Special Operations

  New night vision capabilities from Qioptiq

  22nd August 2018

  Excelitas Technologies’ Qioptiq company is utilizing this week’s “Modern Warfighting Symposium,” co-sponsored by the Global SOF Foundation and US Army Special Operations Command and held …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  ManTech receives UAS systems technical support contract

  7th August 2018

  ManTech has received a four-year $45 million task order from the US Air Force Installation Contracting Agency to provide technical upgrades for next generation UAS …

• Land Warfare

  USAF, Army team for sensor to shooter prototype

  16th August 2018

  The US Army and the US Air Force (USAF) recently convened for a summit focused on applying and integrating open architecture technologies and approaches to …

• Naval Warfare

  ManTech selected for maritime aircraft tech upgrades

  6th August 2018

  ManTech has received a $71 million four-year task order from the US Air Force for technology transformation in maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, the company …

• Special Operations

  SOF looks to small UAS

  9th August 2018

  USSOCOM has requested industry information for a spectrum of small unmanned aircraft systems (SUAS) following a sources sought announcement issued on August 7.  The announcement was …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Thailand willingly submits to Dominator

  3rd August 2018

  Thailand is buying Dominator XP long-endurance UAVs from Aeronautics in Israel, according to a report to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange on 30 July. The …

• Land Warfare

  Saab’s support contract for Arthur system extended

  31st July 2018

  Saab has received a one-year contract extension from the UK Ministry of Defence to continue providing logistical support for the Arthur weapon locating system, the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• ISR/special mission

  MC-27J [Algeria]

  Programme Background Algeria has a long standing ISR aircraft requirement to support its Beech 1900 fleet comprised of six aircraft. The new ISR fleet is ...

• ISR/special mission

  C-208B ISR [Tunisia]

  Programme Background Requirement The acquisition of the C-208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft is part of Tunisia’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its ISR capabilities in response ...

• Military UAS - mini

  U&C reconnaissance drones [US Army]

  Methodology PGO The programme has been assigned a PGO of 100%, as a contract has been awarded. Unit cost It has not been clarified what ...

• ISR/special mission

  King Air 350ER ISR [Kuwait]

  Programme Background In February 2018, the US State Department has approved an estimated $259m potential foreign military sale of King Air 350ER intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  Long-Endurance UAV [US AFRICOM]

  Programme Background Ageing MQ-9A Reapers In November 2022, Shephard reported that GA-ASI would continue supporting contractor SMX with its MQ-9A after winning a $2.3 billion task ...

• Military UAS - small

  Black Hornet 3 PRS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army operated approximately 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS between 2013 and 2017, when the decision was made to retire ...

• ISR/special mission

  Shadow R1 [UK]

  Background The RAF is moving forward with an ambitious plan to transform its intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) force to enable greater interoperability ...

• ISR/special mission

  Baekdu-II [South Korea]

  Programme Background This ISR aircraft programme, which first appeared on the 2020-24 Mid-Term Defense Acquisition Plan, comprises four Baekdu-II aircraft. These will add to two ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  ISR Civilian-Made UAVs [Taiwan]

  Background Civilian-made, Military-specification As reported by Shephard in April 2025, to accelerate the acquisition process and urgently build a larger UAV inventory, Taipei is enlisting the private ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW-4

  The SW-4 is aimed at the basic and advanced pilot training, troop transport and ISR missions. Its Polish designation is Puszczyk. The SW-4s are based ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  A-29 Super Tucano Afghanistan

  Media reports suggest that with the hourly cost of $1000, the A-29 is a successful platform for counter-insurgency missions. Its operational capability from unprepared airstrips, ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  In April 2026, AeroVironment (AV) and Shield AI announced that they had been selected to compete for a US$800 million task order to provide Contractor-Owned, ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  In April 2026, AeroVironment (AV) and Shield AI announced that they had been selected to compete for a US$800 million task order to provide Contractor-Owned, ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | Multi-Mission Aircraft (1-14) [Canada]

  The objective of the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft project is to equip the Canadian Armed Forces with a long-range manned Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) and ...

• Data links

  Data links | Multi-Mission Aircraft (1-14) [Canada]

  The objective of the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft project is to equip the Canadian Armed Forces with a long-range manned Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) and ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  Zeus

  The Zeus is an Argentine tactical-class UAV from Aerotec, in partnership with its Polish technology partner, Ekolot Aerospace & Defense (EAD). The aircraft is modular and ...

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

  Silent Falcon

  The Silent Falcon is a solar-electric sUAS with long-endurance capabilities for extended-range missions. The UAS can be used for commercial and military applications. The entire ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - small

  Jackal

  The Jackal is a small UAV manufactured by FLY BVLOS, Flyby Technology and Maxwell Innovations. The system features a plug-and-play system, meaning new equipment and technologies can be ...

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

  Delta

  The Delta is a UAV with a VTOL capability before rotating and operating as a conventional fixed-wing aircraft when airborne.  Manufactured by Fly BVLOS, Nigeria was expected ...

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

  Indago

  Indago is a small quadrotor UAV with VTOL. It is equipped with a large-screen handset and is marketed as 'whisper-quiet' with a noise level of ...

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

  Canary

  Volatus Aerospace has stated that its civilian Canary rotary-wing cargo-carrying UAV can be adapted for military use in last-mile resupply operations.  Payloads are housed internally ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Ageon ISR

  Ageon ISR is a multi-INT C2/PED solution supporting cross-domain collection, ingestion, processing, exploitation and dissemination from tactical units to the global enterprise and cloud. Ageon ...

• Land: battle management systems

  AIMS-ISR

  AIMS-ISR is a software package used to process the video footage and data gathered from the cameras and other sensors fitted to airborne, ground-based and ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  ENVOY

  The ENVOY is a multi-mission rotary-wing UAV with a tandem-rotor design and a payload carrying capacity of 180kg. General Dynamics renamed the system ENVOY in mid-2025.  ...

• Air: UAS radar

  EchoFlight

  The Echoflight radar by Echodyne is a Lightweight Metamaterials ESA (MESA®), a Detect-and-Avoid (DAA) 4D radar designed for mid-sized UAVs flying below the visual line of sight (BVLOS) ...

• UAS: communication systems

  muLTElink

  Produced by uAvionix, the muLTElink is a multiple-link airborne radio system designed for uncrewed platforms in particular. It combines C-Band, LTE, ISM and Viasat L-Band communications, ...

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

  DrN-15 (series)

  The DrN-15 is a hexacopter mini-UAV from ST Engineering. The platform is highly customizable and can carry various payloads depending on a user's requirements.  All DrN ...

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

  Nauru 500C

  The Nauru 500C ISR is a VTOL-capable small fixed-wing UAV from Xmobots. Designed for ISR missions, the UAV features XSIS-EO and XSIS-EOLWIR stabilised sensors. The UAV features ...

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

  Outlaw SeaHunter

  Outlaw UAVs are used by military and research agencies for training, testing, data collection and system development. In the 114-137kg maximum take-off weight class, SeaHunter ...

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

  Viper 1000C

  The Viper 1000C is a fixed-wing MALE UAS. Designed to carry EO/IR sensors over vast distances, it can be employed in a wide variety of ...