• Defence Notes

  Britain's RAF intercepts six Russian bombers over Black Sea

  15th August 2018

  Britain's Royal Air Force said Wednesday it had intercepted six Russian bomber planes flying close to NATO air space over the Black Sea. The Eurofighter …

• Defence Notes

  Iran announces new fighter jet

  20th August 2018

  Iran will unveil a new jet fighter in the week of 20 August and upgrade its missile defences to meet threats from Israel and the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Russia shows off new 'anti-stealth' digital radar

  28th August 2018

  Russian industry has unveiled a new 2D VHF radar that combines long-range detection with high mobility and digital signal processing to significantly improve resolution and …

• Defence Notes

  Ballistic missile defence for NATO

  26th July 2018

  Lockheed Martin and ThalesRaytheonSystems have teamed to develop a territorial ballistic missile defence (BMD) command and control capability (C2) for NATO. Under the teaming agreement, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Viasat’s VISION software passes FAST test

  13th August 2018

  Viasat’s Visual Integrated SATCOM Information, Operation and Networking (VISION) software has successfully passed NATO’s First Article System Test (FAST), the company announced on 7 August. …

• Defence Notes

  Turkey crisis risks souring military ties with US

  14th August 2018

  The crisis in US-Turkish relations, which already has put Turkey's economy under massive strain, also risks souring military ties between the two NATO allies, unleashing …

• 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 …

• Land Warfare

  India approves NASAMS for air defence umbrella

  1st August 2018

  The Indian Air Force (IAF) is planning to obtain the NASAMS 2 air defence system via a government-to-government sale with the US. India’s Defence Acquisition …

• Defence Notes

  Taliban 'showing strength' with assault on Afghan city: analysts

  14th August 2018

  A major Taliban assault on Ghazni has triggered five days of fighting with Afghan security forces, with reports of scores dead and the strategic centre …

• Military Logistics

  Hensoldt installs ASR-NG system in Australia

  15th August 2018

  Hensoldt has completed installation of the second final Airport Surveillance Radar - Next Generation (ASR-NG) air traffic control system in Australia to improve flight safety …

• Defence Notes

  NATO probing reports nine Afghan police killed in US air strike

  7th August 2018

  NATO is investigating reports that at least nine Afghan police officers were killed in a US air strike during heavy fighting with the Taliban in …

• Defence Helicopter

  Overhaul of AAF’s first Mi-17V-5 complete

  8th August 2018

  Slovakian aircraft repair company Trenčín (LOTN) has completed the general overhaul of the first Afghan Air Force (AFF) Mi-17V-5 helicopter, the Slovak Ministry of Defence …

• Defence Notes

  Georgia hosts major joint drills with NATO forces

  1st August 2018

  Georgia on 1 August launched large-scale joint military exercises with NATO forces on the tenth anniversary of its war with Russia, which strongly opposes Tbilisi's …

• Defence Notes

  Sweden and Finland say Russia has 'false' defence information

  3rd August 2018

  Sweden and Finland, both non-NATO countries, have called Russia's recent comments on their defence cooperation with the Western alliance ‘false’ amid simmering tensions in the …

• Defence Helicopter

  FN Pods qualified for HForce

  8th August 2018

  FN Herstal has integrated its self-contained airborne FN Pod system onto the Airbus H145M helicopter, the company announced on 2 August. This system, which includes …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Ballistic Missile Defence [Finland]

  Background Finland's 2025-2036 Long-Term Defence Plan allocated $1.7-2.6 billion for two long-range air defense systems designed against short-range ballistic missiles, with delivery targeted from 2029 and ...

• Destroyers

  Maya Class (27DDG) (1-2) [Japan]

  Programme Background The 27DD Maya class destroyers were previously known as the Improved Atago class because they are an addition to the existing two Atago-class destroyers that have entered service. ...

• AEW&C

  Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (1-10) [NATO]

  Background NATO’s E-3A AWACS fleet is set to retire in 2035, after 50 years of service. To plan for the required follow-on capability, NATO's Alliance ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton [NATO]

  Background NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum During the July 2026 NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum in Ankara, Türkiye, NATO announced that Denmark, Finland, Germany and Norway ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) [NATO]

  Background Purchase While NATO doesn’t have its own forces and depends on its allies, the alliance does have some of its own assets and equipment. In ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-390 Options [Portugal]

  Programme Background Leadership from Embraer and the Portuguese Air Force formalised a contract that includes 10 aircraft options that can be utilised by any NATO ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) [Greece]

  Background EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded in ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) - [Italy]

  Background ENGRT phase I EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded in December 2022. Phase I ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-390 [Portugal]

  Programme Background Leadership from the Portuguese Air Force and Embraer signed a contract for a sixth C-390, with the option for ten additional aircraft for ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M [NATO]

  Background 2026 announcement At the July 2026 NATO Summit Defence Forum, government officials from Belgium, Croatia, France, Poland, Spain, Turkey, and the UK launched an ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  MRZR D4 [Belgium]

  Background In September 2025, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) awarded Polaris a framework agreement to supply vehicles across the alliance. This framework is intended to ...

• ISR/special mission

  EC-37B Compass Call (1-10) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The retirement of the EF-111A in 1990 left the USAF largely out of the operational and tactical level radar jamming business. Lockheed Martin ...

• Military UAS - small

  Jump 20 [Denmark]

  Background 2020 Tender In January 2018, Denmark's three main political parties signed the Danish Defence Agreement, a cross-party defence white paper covering the period between ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT Follow-On [NATO]

  Programme Background Following operations in Libya and extensive analyses by the European Defence Agency (EDA), it was agreed at the NATO Summit in 2012 that ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  Skyranger 30 [Germany]

  Background The SPD-led approach Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Germany has been under consistent pressure to increase its defence spending. In the immediate ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Major networking projects

  Ballistic Missile Defence

  In early 2010, NATO acquired the first phase of an initial theatre ballistic missile defence capability to protect alliance forces. 

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-2

  Between 1,000 and 2,000 BMD-2 (Boevaya Mashina Desantnaya - Airborne Combat Vehicle) amphibious IFVs were produced for the Soviet Airborne Forces (VDV) by the Volgograd ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-4M

  The BMD-4M is based on the BMD-4, which has been in the Russian Army's airborne forces (VDV) service since 2004. It was developed to provide an ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMD-1

  The Volgograd Tractor Plant (now known as the Volgograd Machine-Building Company) developed the BMD-1 amphibious IFV specifically to meet the requirements of the Soviet Union's ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System

  The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) System, developed by the United States, provides advanced sea-based and land-based protection against ballistic missile threats.  Using the AN/SPY-1 ...

• Land: battle management systems

  BMD-Flex

  BMD-Flex is a modular C2 software system for integrated air and missile defence. Built on T-Core, BMD-Flex’s features and functions can be tailored, ranging from ...

• Land: manned turrets

  Bereg

  KBP developed the Bereg one-person turret (referred to as a ‘combat module’ in Russia) to provide an upgrade option for the Russian-designed BMD-series airborne IFV ...

• Land: manned turrets

  Bakhcha

  The Bakhcha is the latest version of the two-man turret originally developed for the BMP-3 tracked IFV, which entered Soviet Army service in 1987.  It ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Aegis Ashore

  Aegis Ashore is the first operational land-based version of the Aegis Combat System originally developed by Lockheed Martin for the US Navy's Ballistic Missile Defence ...

• Cannons

  2A70

  The 2A70 is a 100mm cannon that has been designed to equip infantry fighting vehicles, including the BMP-3, BMP-3F and the BMD-4M.

• Major networking projects

  NATO SATCOM

  Leonardo has been awarded a turnkey contract to rationalise and upgrade NATO’s SATCOM systems and associated infrastructure. The company will design, build, test, commission and ...

• Major networking projects

  NATO DCIS

  Airbus is delivering the NATO Deployable Communication and Information System (DCIS). The project represents a major upgrade in the capability of NATO Response Forces (NRF) ...

• Land: RWS

  Qimek NATO

  Rheinmetall's RWS family includes the Qimek single-weapon RWS and the Nanuk dual-weapon RWS. The Qimek NATO combines full stabilisation, long-range day/night all-weather sights and a ...

• Land: RWS

  Nanuk NATO

  Rheinmetall's RWS family includes the Qimek single-weapon RWS and the Nanuk dual-weapon RWS, which was introduced in 2008. The Nanuk NATO combines full stabilisation, long-range ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BTR-MDM

  The BTR-MDM Rakushka is an amphibious tracked armoured vehicle developed by Kurganmashzavod to meet the Russian Airborne Forces' (VDV) need for a new air-droppable APC. ...