• Defence Helicopter

  Airbus sidesteps cause of FARA exclusion

  26th April 2019

  After its Future Attack Reconnaisance Aircraft (FARA) X3 high speed technology based proposal was deemed unacceptable by the US Army and excluded from a list of …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sikorsky HH-60W makes first flight

  22nd May 2019

  The Sikorsky HH-60W combat rescue helicopter achieved its first flight at Sikorsky's West Palm Beach, Florida site on 17 May. The test flight, which lasted …

• Training

  TRU unveils Canadian FAcT strategy

  31st May 2019

  TRU Simulation + Training has announced that it is offering aircraft and synthetic training equipment to a number of the bidders on the Royal Canadian …

• Naval Warfare

  Rugged Computers for Maritime and Minotaur Mission Success (sponsored)

  7th May 2019

  Systel will showcase its next-generation rugged computing solutions at the Sea-Air-Space conference booth #2147 in National Harbor, MD May 6-8, 2019. Systel’s rugged, high-density computing …

• Defence Helicopter

  South Korea reboots naval helicopter tender

  22nd May 2019

  The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) in South Korea reissued an RfP on 2 May in its pursuit of obtaining 12 additional naval helicopters for …

• Defence Helicopter

  USMC weighs up FVL options

  29th May 2019

  The USMC is keeping a close eye on FVL developments as it holds out, for the time being, on a specific acquisition process for a …

• Defence Helicopter

  Putin pledges an increased Mi-28NM order

  20th May 2019

  Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted that the Russian MoD is set to increase an order to be placed in the coming months for the Mi-28NM …

• Defence Helicopter

  MDHI enhances MD 969 capabilities

  18th April 2019

  MD Helicopters (MDHI) has enhanced the capabilities of its MD 969 twin attack helicopter with the integration of Systima Technologies’ seven-Shot common launch tube (CLT) …

• Naval Warfare

  Canada requests MK 54 lightweight torpedoes

  21st May 2019

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a potential foreign military sale of MK 54 lightweight torpedoes to Canada, the Defense Security Cooperation …

• Defence Helicopter

  Qatar requests AH-64E Apache helicopters

  13th May 2019

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a potential foreign military sale of AH-64E Apache attack helicopters to Qatar, the Defense Security Cooperation …

• Defence Helicopter

  Quad A 2019: MD Helicopters Swift disqualified from FARA

  17th April 2019

  The US Army has officially disqualified MD Helicopters' Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) Swift demonstrator from competition consideration.  In response, the OEM is claiming the decision …

• Defence Helicopter

  Boeing pushes forward with Defiant

  20th May 2019

  Boeing plans to operate the push propulsor on its Defiant SB>1 coaxial helicopter this year after completing the first flight into hover in Q1 2019. …

• Naval Warfare

  First Australian AOR commences test phase

  29th May 2019

  The first of two new auxiliary oiler replenishment (AOR) vessels being built for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has started its test phase. Navantia told …

• Defence Helicopter

  Insight: What next for the FARA five?

  24th April 2019

  The US Army’s decision to select five industry design proposals for its Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) competition can be read as a first clear …

• Defence Helicopter

  Croatia's OH-58D Kiowa Warrior pilots train

  15th May 2019

  The second and third group of pilots in the helicopter squadron of the 93rd Air Base of the Croatian armed forces have undergone advanced training …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F -Kenya

  Crew transition training took place at the MD Helicopters headquarters in Mesa, Arizona, with field service support, armament, and gunnery training scheduled to occur at ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  MD 530G - Malaysia

  Procured for an urgent operational requirement for gunships to support Eastern Sabah Security Command operations, helicopter deliveries had to slip from a planned delivery of ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530G Lebanon

  The Armed MD 530G Scout Attack Helicopter features next-generation all-glass cockpit that includes: two Genesys Aerosystems IDU-680 6” x 9” LCD primary displays, Tek Fusion ...

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

  Uncrewed MD 500 Replacement [South Korea]

  Background Uncrewed Replacement of the MD 500 Throughout the 2010s, South Korea appeared interested in replacing its fleet of crewed MD 500 helicopters that were manufactured under licence ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Project Land 2097 Phase 4 [Australia]

  Programme Background According to the RfI, under Project Land 2097 Phase 4, the selected helicopter must comprise a commercial or military off-the-shelf solution that is ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) First Batch (South Korea)

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Army)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Navy)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (Second Batch) [South Korea]

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton - Germany (Cancelled)

  Programme Background Germany requested to buy four MQ-4C Triton HALE UAVs from Northrop Grumman. On 5 April 2018, the US State Department announced that it ...

• 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

  UH-72 Follow-On [USA]

  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 - multirole

  Multirole Helicopters [Poland]

  Programme Background In 2020, Poland announced the launch of the Perkoz programme to acquire 32 support helicopters to replace its fleet of Mi-2 aircraft stationed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  New Exploration and Escort Helicopter (NEES) (Phase II) [Italy]

  Programme Background Phase I In 2017, the Italian government signed a contract with Leonardo to replace its fleet of AW129 Mangusta attack helicopters with the ...

• 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 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F Cayuse Warrior

  An evolution of the OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopter, the MD 530F was initially Federal Aviation Administration-certified in July 1985 as the Model 369FF. It ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  MDHI Glass Cockpit

  The American aerospace manufacturer MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI) has designed and developed a glass cockpit specifically for MD 500E AND MD 520N aircraft. It is ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 500

  US-based MD Helicopters' MD 500 is a single-engine light helicopter derived from the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse developed for the US Army in the early 1960s and ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  IDU-680

  The IDU-680 is Genesys Aerosystems’ 3D synthetic vision integrated Electronic Flight Instrument System. The system includes a Highway in the Sky navigation system, geo-referenced hover ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN HMP

  The FN HMP (Heavy Machine Gun Pod) is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a 50cal FN M3P heavy machine gun. It is available ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530G

  The MD 530G is the newest addition to the MD Helicopters (MDHI) line of light scout attack platforms. It has increased-capacity landing gear and a ...

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

  KUS-VH

  The Korean Air Korean Air Unmanned System-Vertical Helicopter (KUS-VH) is a large, rotary-wing UAV based on the MD 500. The first flight of the platform ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  6XX

  Publicly unveiled at Heli-Expo in March 2017, the MD Helicopters 6XX is the next evolution in the MD 500 series and is a redesigned, single-engine ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C30

  The M250-C30 and -C30P are the exclusive powerplants for the Bell 206L-4 LongRanger and the MD Helicopters MD 530F and MD 530G. In addition, the AH-6i is ...

• EO/IR systems

  LEO-III

  The LEO-III, or LEO-III HD, was an airborne observation system with HD sensors and video outputs. It was a COTS, gyro-stabilised platform containing a multi-sensor HD ...

• Airborne rockets - unguided

  Aculeus MD-36 and MD-432

  The Aculeus MD-36 unguided multi-dart rocket provides 36 darts for the neutralisation of columns of light armoured vehicles. The Aculeus MD-432 provides 432 darts to ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C47E

  The C47E is the latest growth variant of the C47B/8 engine. In addition to a hot-and-high Value Improvement Package Kit, the C47E also includes dual-channel ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  MD-1366 EBEM

  The US government selected the MD-1366 Enhanced Bandwidth Efficient Modem (EBEM) from ViaSat to set the DoD standard for high-speed, high-performance,flexibility and compatibility in a ...

• EO/IR systems

  Wescam MX-10

  The Wescam MX-10 EO/IR low-weight imaging system is designed for low-altitude tactical surveillance and reconnaissance missions from crewed and uncrewed aircraft. The MX-10 has had a close ...

• Military UAS - MALE, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT)

  The Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT) is an in-development UAV from Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) based on an MD 500 twin-seat American commercial helicopter airframe. With the ...