• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2019: New Skynet 6 competition announced

  11th September 2019

  A new competition for the Skynet 6 military satellite communications project was announced at DSEI 2019, seeking an an industry partner to operate and manage …

• Naval Warfare

  Thai navy’s new OPV enters service

  3rd October 2019

  A new OPV entered Royal Thai Navy (RTN) service on 27 September, with the modernised design giving more punch and performance. As well as being …

• Defence Helicopter

  US DoD orders APKWS II

  26th September 2019

  BAE Systems has received an IDIQ contract from US Naval Air Systems Command for the procurement of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) II, the …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army carries out UH-60V testing

  1st October 2019

  The US Army has concluded operational testing of the UH-60V Black Hawk helicopter cockpit upgrade. The UH-60V Black Hawk capability will be a retrofit for …

• Defence Helicopter

  MSPO 2019: Clock ticks for Romanian rotary plans

  28th August 2019

  The Romanian MoD struggle to procure new rotary platforms has been a long-running issue, overdue correction, not only to enhance troop transport and supply capabilities …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sikorsky show brings CH-53K double act to town

  25th September 2019

  Manufacturer Sikorsky has held meetings and CH-53K King Stallion flight demonstrations with German and Israeli delegations as it looks to encourage both that the aircraft …

• Defence Notes

  Spain selects industrial coordinator for FCAS

  12th September 2019

  Indra has been appointed by the Spanish government as the national industrial coordinator of the European Future Combat Air System (FCAS) programme, the company announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  MD Helicopters to support Kenyan MD 530Fs

  16th September 2019

  MD Helicopters has received a contract to provide training and support for the Kenya Defence Force MD 530F Cayuse Warrior helicopters.The support includes Contractor Logistics …

• Defence Helicopter

  Philippines awaits S-70i deliveries

  19th September 2019

  Despite the Philippines turning efforts to introduce 16 new combat utility helicopters for the Philippine Air Force (PAF) into a drawn-out saga, Shephard has confirmation that …

• Military Logistics

  French Air Force receives KC-130J tanker

  23rd September 2019

  The French Ministry of Defence has taken delivery of its third C-130J Super Hercules aircraft, delivered in the KC-130J tanker configuration.The aircraft will give the …

• Training

  Thales simulator for Uzbek Air Force

  20th September 2019

  Thales has supplied the Uzbek Air Force with a flight simulator for Ecureuil helicopters under a contract announced on 18 September.   The simulator will …

• Defence Helicopter

  First production Mi-38 set for delivery

  16th September 2019

  The first production Mil Mi-38 helicopter has been declared ready for customer delivery and will be operated by Russian Helicopter Systems, a privately owned Russian …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell fired up for FARA with 360 Invictus

  2nd October 2019

  Manufacturer Bell has unveiled its Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft Competitive Prototype [FARA CP] contender – the 360 Invictus – distinguished by a lift-sharing fixed-wing, tandem cockpit, …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indian Air Force inducts AH-64E Apache

  10th September 2019

  The Indian Air Force (IAF) has formally inducted the AH-64E Apache helicopter into its inventory at Air Force Station Pathankot. The IAF has received eight …

• Defence Helicopter

  ​DSEI 2019: Leonardo stiffens up over AW149 Egyptian order

  13th September 2019

  Manufacturer Leonardo is still unwilling to confirm that a reported order of 20 AW149 helicopters to Egypt has been completed, or that any negotiations about …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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

  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 - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

• 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

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• 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 - multirole

  Ka-226T-India-Air Force

  An official contract announcement is expected during the Aero India 2021 exhibition in Bangalore, although negotiations have dragged on for more than five years and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M (Contracted) [Germany]

  Programme Background Previous Usage The German Armed Forces ordered 15 H145M helicopters, with the initial two delivered in December 2015, for the Kommando Spezialkräfte. These ...

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 - 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175, a seven-tonne class aircraft powered by twin PT6C 67E engines. The civilian variants produced by Airbus ...

• 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 - scout/light attack

  H125M

  The H125M, formerly the AS550 C3e Fennec, is a military version of the civil H125. The helicopter platform is manufactured by Airbus Helicopters, through the manufacturer's ...