• Defence Helicopter

  New CMV-22B Osprey wing established

  16th October 2019

  The US Navy has established a new CMV-22B Osprey wing, Fleet Logistics Multi-Mission Wing (COMVRMWING) 1, as part of the integration of the aircraft into …

• Defence Helicopter

  Viper ready to strike with venom in Asia-Pacific

  8th October 2019

  Buoyed by several regional attack helicopter acquisition programmes ongoing in Asia-Pacific, Bell is pushing its Viper and Venom duo hard. At the moment, there are …

• 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 Notes

  Podcast: Analysing People’s Liberation Army armaments, talking helicopters with Leonardo and assessing the Somali piracy threat

  11th October 2019

  Welcome to Episode 38 of The Weekly Defence Podcast. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. Sign up to an early email alert of future podcasts here.

• Defence Helicopter

  India to upgrade helicopters after fratricide incident

  8th October 2019

  The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) newly appointed Chief of Air Staff R.K.S Bhadauria opened the force’s 87th anniversary on a transparent note when he officially …

• Defence Notes

  German probe opens into suspected internal spying at Airbus

  19th September 2019

  German prosecutors have opened an investigation into suspected internal spying by employees of European aviation giant Airbus over two arms projects, sources said on 18 …

• Naval Warfare

  Airbus upgrades OceanFinder

  23rd September 2019

  Airbus Defence and Space has upgraded its OceanFinder digital maritime service to introduce new features for the detection, identification and tracking of collaborative and non-collaborative …

• Defence Helicopter

  V-22 fleet logs 500,000 flight hours

  9th October 2019

  The Bell-Boeing V-22 tiltrotor programme has reached a new milestone, with the fleet logging a combined 500,000 flight hours. More than 375 Ospreys are flying …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2019: Boeing sticks to FARA vow of silence

  14th October 2019

  Manufacturer Boeing is continuing to shroud its US Army Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA)  proposal in secrecy, on grounds that any other strategy would risk …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2019: Defiant delays return to haunt SB>1

  15th October 2019

  The SB>1 Defiant programme has been hit by a delay of two months following a precautionary step to modify a main gearbox joint on a …

• 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 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 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Thailand requests AH-6i helicopters

  25th September 2019

  The government of Thailand wants eight AH-6i helicopters from the US government under a foreign military sale. The US State Department has made a determination …

• Digital Battlespace

  ADEX 2019: Raytheon-led team offers ISTAR aircraft to ROKAF

  15th October 2019

  The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) has a requirement for up to four intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) aircraft, and one contender …

• Defence Helicopter

  Trio chase the Antipodean Tiger’s tail

  5th September 2019

  Submissions for an Australian Army RfI to replace the Tiger helicopter under Project Land 4503 Armed Reconnaissance Capability closed at the end of August, with …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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 - transport/heavy lift

  H225M [France]

  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 Puma ...

• Military helicopters - attack, Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M / H145M Add-On [Romania]

  Methodology As part of a potential initial order for 12 H225M helicopters, Romania has included the option to acquire 30 additional helicopters from Airbus. Shephard estimates this ...

• 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 - multirole

  H135 [UK]

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

• 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 - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of light ...

• 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

  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 - light/training

  Future Aircrew Training Program [Canada]

  Background The FAcT requires to graduate 120 pilots, 40 combat systems officers and 36 airborne electronic sensor operators per year with 15% fluctuation. Training services are ...

• 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 - 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 - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) (TH-57 Replacement)

  Programme Background Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single ...

• 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. ...

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 ...

• 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 - 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 - 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175 and works to fill a gap in the H175 helicopter family, as well as offer ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Light Armed Helicopter

  The South Korean government selected Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in July 2014 to develop the Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) and the related Light Civil Helicopter ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AS365 N3+ Dauphin

  The AS365 N3+, manufactured by Airbus Helicopters (formerly Eurocopter), was developed from the Dauphin series of medium, twin-turboshaft rotorcraft. The AS365 N3+ was launched at the 2009 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Flexrotor

  Flexrotor, or U030 Flexrotor, is a VTOL small UAS manufactured by Aerovel. It can integrate different types of payloads, including electro-optical systems and advanced sensors, to suit ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH

  Developed as a multinational programme between France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the European NH90 was designed to meet NATO requirements for multirole capability from ...