• Defence Notes

  Japan set to make its F-15 fleet more lethal

  30th October 2019

  Japan is moving forward an ambition to modernise its Boeing F-15J fighter fleet, with the US State Department approving, on 29 October, the major upgrade …

• Land Warfare

  Israeli weapons manufacturer recalibrating for small arms future

  3rd October 2019

  Alongside detailing elements of its future business roadmap, Israel Weapons Industries (IWI) said that configuring its own weapon systems to a new 6.8mm, or even …

• Defence Helicopter

  Honeywell improving T55 engine

  17th October 2019

  Honeywell is working on new engine improvements to power the CH-47 Chinook helicopter, the company announced on 14 October. The upgraded T55 engine introduces advanced …

• 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 …

• Land Warfare

  Philippines inaugurates rocket, missile and aviation units

  3rd October 2019

  The Philippine Army activated three new units at Fort Magsaysay on 3 October, symbolising the growing capabilities and aspirations of the service. They included rocket …

• Defence Notes

  Podcast: Revolutions in Vertical Flight S1 E3 - The Tiltrotor

  20th December 2019

  Welcome to Shephard Studio’s podcast series on Revolutions in Vertical Flight, sponsored by our partner Bell. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. The Revolutions in Vertical Flight …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell teams with Collins Aerospace for FARA

  30th September 2019

  Bell Textron has teamed with Collins Aerospace Systems for the US Army’s Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) competitive prototype programme. As part of a contract …

• Digital Battlespace

  SCD details new contracts

  26th September 2019

  Semi Conductor Devices (SCD) has received a number of new contracts totaling $20 million from customers in North America, Europe and Israel, the company announced …

• Military Logistics

  Kongsberg subcontracts Marvin for F-35 work

  1st October 2019

  Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has signed a NOK162 million ($17.82 million) contract with Marvin Engineering for the supply of air-to-air pylons for the F-35 Joint …

• Naval Warfare

  Israel Shipyards scores with new OPV design

  25th September 2019

  Just four months after the launch of its new OPV design, the OPV-45, Israel Shipyards has secured its first order for the new vessel type. …

• 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 …

• Training

  Cobra Warrior comes to a close

  24th September 2019

  Exercise Cobra Warrior has come to a close at RAF Waddington, the Royal Air Force announced on 20 September.The multi-national tactical training event saw affiliated …

• Defence Helicopter

  Collins awarded contract for USN helicopter visual systems

  2nd October 2019

  Collins Aerospace has been awarded a $24.7 million contract to provide engineering and manufacturing development for the Enhanced Visual Acuity (EVA) system for US Navy …

• Military Logistics

  Marshall selected to provide NASAMS containers

  4th October 2019

  Marshall Aerospace and Defence (ADG) has been selected by Kongsberg to provide container systems to house the fire distribution centre for one of its National …

• Training

  Kongsberg and BISim team for Protector training

  27th September 2019

  Norway’s Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and Bohemia Interactive Simulations (BISim) have announced the signing of a framework agreement to jointly develop simulation solutions for the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  MALE UAV [Argentina]

  Background Requirement Argentina has an outstanding requirement for a MALE class UAV to conduct ISR operations in Argentina airspace and along the country's long coastline. ...

• Loitering munitions

  Harop [Morocco]

  Programme Background In November 2021, Haaretz reported that a $22 million drone sale between Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and Morocco had occurred. That publication and ...

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

  Heron TP [India]

  Programme Background Emergency Procurement The Narendra Modi-led Indian government granted the Armed Forces Rs 500 crores to upgrade their warfighting capabilities due to the ongoing ...

• Loitering munitions

  Mini Harpy [Estonia]

  Programme Background Russia's Aggression In February 2023, Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said the country was set to procure loitering munitions to enhance its indirect ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering Munitions [Japan]

  Programme Background Appreciation of Loitering Munitions After years of not operating loitering munitions and armed UAVs, Japan's position towards them has changed. Belatedly, the MoD realised ...

• Loitering munitions

  Harop (Amphibious Transport Ships) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background Multifunctional Support Vessels In September 2024, the Dutch MoD announced that the Royal Netherlands Navy would receive two new Multifunctional support vessels from Dutch ...

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

  Orbiter 3 (Croatia)

  Programme Background The Croatian government launched a competitive tender for the procurement of a short-range UAV in October 2017. Although the tender was opened on ...

• Loitering munitions

  Harop [Israeli Navy]

  Programme Background MADEX 2023 At MADEX 2023, IAI displayed the Mini-Harpy, dubbed the Green Dragon, loitering munition in a 12-system launcher mounted to an Israel ...

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

  Artillery UAV [Thailand]

  Programme Background Requirement & Replacement The Royal Thai Army (RTA) was understood to be seeking a new tactical UAV to replace four legacy Israel Aerospace Industries ...

• Loitering munitions

  Mini-Harpy [Israeli Navy]

  Programme Background MADEX 2023 At MADEX 2023, IAI displayed the Mini-Harpy, dubbed the Green Dragon, loitering munition in a 12-system launcher mounted to an Israel Navy Sa'ar 6 ...

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

  Intra-Theatre Lift [UK]

  Programme Background  Relationship to the Heavy Lift Challange The Royal Navy (RN) embarked on the Heavy Lift Challenge, now called the Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC), to explore ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering Munition PODS [UK]

  Programme Background PODS As the Royal Navy states, Persistent Operational Deployment Systems (PODS) are "interchangeable modules that can be fitted to the surface fleet. Similar in ...

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

  WanderB (Morocco)

  Programme Background History Morocco has a history of UAV deals with Isreal. In 2021, Morocco reportedly acquired four Hermes 900 units from Elbit Systems. Equally, according ...

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

  ThunderB (Morocco)

  Programme Background History Morocco has a history of UAV deals with Isreal. In 2021, Morocco reportedly acquired four Hermes 900 units from Elbit Systems. Equally, according ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-46A (Israel)

  Programme Background Boeing, according to reports, would not grant Israel Aerospace Industries permission to convert used 767s into tanker planes. Consequently, according to Channel 12 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military - UUVs

  BlueWhale

  BlueWhale is an autonomous uncrewed underwater vessel (UUV) developed by Israel's Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  ELL-8385

  Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) ELL-8385 is an integrated electronic support measure designed to equip Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV). Open source imagery intelligence indicates that the ...

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

  Rotem

  The Rotem, or Rotem L, is a loitering munition based on a multi-rotor UAV. Manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), the quadcopter features an EO/IR camera payload ...

• Military UGVs

  RobDozer

  The RobDozer, or Panda, is an uncrewed ground combat engineering system manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and ELTA Systems.  The UGV is designed for breaching tasks, ...

• Loitering munitions

  ASN-301

  The ASN-301 is a Chinese anti-radiation loitering munition. Likely based on Israel's Harpy drone, the ASN-301 features a delta-wing configuration and a pusher propeller, and ...

• Anti-ship missiles

  Gabriel IV

  The Gabriel IV is a significant advancement in the Gabriel family of anti-ship missiles. It incorporates a jet engine, enabling over-the-horizon (OTH) attack capabilities and ...

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  ELI-3120

  Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) ELI-3120 is a Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) system designed for use at the operational and tactical levels. The ELI-3120 architecture also includes ...

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  ELK-7071

  Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) EL/K-7071 is an integrated electronic support measure designed to equip UAVs. While not explicitly stated by the system’s manufacturer, it is ...

• Loitering munitions

  Kargi (Improved)

  At ADEX 2022, Lentatek unveiled a new, as-yet-unnamed version of the Kargi loitering munition.  Instead of Kargi's radio frequency (RF) seeker, this new version features an under-nose EO/IR ...

• Military UGVs

  RobARC

  The RobARC, or Sahar, is a military UGV manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). The UGV's payload comprises a variety of sensors, allowing the Sahar to detect above-ground, ...

• Military UGVs

  RoBattle

  The RoBattle, or LR3, is a six-wheeled military UGV developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).  Intended to assist troops engaged in mobile operations, it is a ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range, Self-propelled missile systems

  ABISR

  The ABISR is a medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), introduced around 2017.  ABISR is a more compact and mobile counterpart ...

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  ELI-3001 AISIS

  Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) ELI-3001 Airborne Integrated Signals Intelligence System equips the Israeli Air Force’s (IAF) three Gulfstream G-550 Shavit SIGINT aircraft. IAI’s official literature ...

• Short Range Missile Defence Systems: 0 to 20 km range

  SPYDER-SR

  Rafael Advanced Defense Systems developed the SPYDER-SR (Short-Range) air defence system with support from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to provide rapid-response, all-weather protection against various ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM, Data links

  ELK-1891 SATCOM

  The ELK-1891 is a full duplex X- or Ku-band SATCOM network, intended for uninterrupted mid-rate OTH communications (eg voice, data, compressed video). Each subscriber port ...