• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Rockwell Collins tech in BVLOS UAS flight

  1st September 2017

  Rockwell Collins and Black & Veatch have successfully demonstrated a beyond visual line-of-sight (BVLOS) UAS flight along almost ten miles of power line infrastructure, the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Philippines eyes extra ScanEagles, and much more…

  25th September 2017

  The US has contracted a further batch of six ScanEagle tactical UAV systems for Manila, while the Philippine Army has requested several tiers of new …

• Digital Battlespace

  Thales introduces COMTICS

  19th September 2017

  Thales has launched COMTICS, a resilient, high-availability shipboard information distribution system designed to provide operational services to naval personnel at sea. The advanced communication system …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DSEI 2017: Qinetiq shows new Titan configuration

  13th September 2017

  Qinetiq North America (QNA) showcased its Titan UGV equipped with a RGP protection unit and ISR sensor suite for the first time at DSEI. The …

• Naval Warfare

  DSEI 2017: Supacat riding the waves (video)

  15th September 2017

  Supacat unveiled its high performance SC12 RIB at DSEI 2017 and demonstrated its capabilities on the River Thames in London during the show. Supacat has …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  MDM 2017: 3D printing, UAV threats underestimated

  21st September 2017

  The potential threat to future military operations represented by 3D printing and small commercial UAVs has been underappreciated and underestimated.That was the opinion of one …

• Defence Notes

  DSEI 2017: What to expect (video)

  11th September 2017

  Shephard editor Grant Turnbull talks about the positive economic tone at DSEI 2017 compared with previous shows that were fixated on diminishing budgets. This edition of …

• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2017: Raytheon to improve Shadow capability

  15th September 2017

  A new collaboration between the Royal Air Force and Raytheon UK will improve aspects of the Shadow surveillance aircraft, including an incremental upgrade of the …

• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2017: Land C4ISR integration concept unveiled

  19th September 2017

  Systems engineering specialist Drumgrange displayed its Land C4ISR Integration concept for tactical ground vehicles at this year's DSEI. Aimed at supporting mobility operations, the vehicle-mounted …

• Special Operations

  Special warfare applications for Wave Glider

  20th September 2017

  Naval customers and Liquid Robotics are considering a variety of ‘special warfare applications’ for the next-generation Wave Glider unmanned surface vessel (USV), company officials have …

• Digital Battlespace

  NavHub system for German armed forces

  15th September 2017

  Rockwell Collins’ NavHub navigation system has been selected by the German Ministry of Defence to provide Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) availability to a variety …

• Land Warfare

  DSEI 2017: BAE connects to the tactical edge

  13th September 2017

  The BAE Systems Tactical Hotspot Concept Demonstrator tactical ground vehicle, designed to support strike brigades during expeditionary operations, will begin an 18-month evaluation programme with …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DSEI 2017: Wave Glider makes a splash

  14th September 2017

  The latest iteration of the Liquid Robotics Wave Glider USV is now able to survive in demanding environments up to sea state six and greater, the …

• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2017: Unsheathing the Broadsword

  14th September 2017

  BAE Systems’ Broadsword wearable technology will achieve internal certification by the end of September, company officials have disclosed, while customers continue to evaluate systems ahead …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DSEI 2017: Leonardo predicts unmanned rotary dominance

  13th September 2017

  Leonardo is well into Phase 2 of its Rotary Wing Unmanned Air System (RWAS) capability concept demonstrator (CCD) for the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• ISR/special mission

  MC-27J [Algeria]

  Programme Background Algeria has a long standing ISR aircraft requirement to support its Beech 1900 fleet comprised of six aircraft. The new ISR fleet is ...

• ISR/special mission

  C-208B ISR [Tunisia]

  Programme Background Requirement The acquisition of the C-208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft is part of Tunisia’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its ISR capabilities in response ...

• ISR/special mission

  King Air 350ER ISR [Kuwait]

  Programme Background In February 2018, the US State Department has approved an estimated $259m potential foreign military sale of King Air 350ER intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ...

• Military UAS - mini

  U&C reconnaissance drones [US Army]

  Methodology PGO The programme has been assigned a PGO of 100%, as a contract has been awarded. Unit cost It has not been clarified what ...

• Military UAS - small

  Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC) [UK]

  Programme Background Requirement & Objective The RN identified a requirement to acquire an RPAS to transport cargo and supplies between ships and personnel. When mature, it ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  Long-Endurance UAV [US AFRICOM]

  Programme Background Ageing MQ-9A Reapers In November 2022, Shephard reported that GA-ASI would continue supporting contractor SMX with its MQ-9A after winning a $2.3 billion task ...

• Military UAS - small

  Black Hornet 3 PRS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army operated approximately 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS between 2013 and 2017, when the decision was made to retire ...

• ISR/special mission

  Shadow R1 [UK]

  Background The RAF is moving forward with an ambitious plan to transform its intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) force to enable greater interoperability ...

• ISR/special mission

  Baekdu-II [South Korea]

  Programme Background This ISR aircraft programme, which first appeared on the 2020-24 Mid-Term Defense Acquisition Plan, comprises four Baekdu-II aircraft. These will add to two ...

• Military UAS - mini

  ISR Drones (First Batch) (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background First Batch On 20 March 2024, Kajsa Ollongren, Minister of Defence of the Netherlands, announced that, following a 19 March Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) meeting, ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Drone Action Plan (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background APOS On 6 October 2024, the Dutch Minister of Defense, Ruben Brekelmans, visited Kharkiv and Kyiv. During his visit to Ukraine, he announced a new ...

• ISR/special mission

  King Air 350ER -Canada

  Background Canadian Special Forces was looking to procure ISR aircraft to support their missions both overseas and domestically.  There were few Canadian suppliers to sell the ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A add-on [Canada]

  Programme Background Canadian Air Force is operating 15 C-3P (Canadian designation CP-140) special mission aircraft in service. They were acquired between 1980-91 and expected to ...

• Military UAS - small

  Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  Background ISR services In April 2026, several companies announced that the USN had selected them to provide Contractor-Owned, Contractor-Operated (COCO) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  A-29 Super Tucano Afghanistan

  Media reports suggest that with the hourly cost of $1000, the A-29 is a successful platform for counter-insurgency missions. Its operational capability from unprepared airstrips, ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - tactical

  Zeus

  The Zeus is an Argentine tactical-class UAV from Aerotec, in partnership with its Polish technology partner, Ekolot Aerospace & Defense (EAD). The aircraft is modular and ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Silent Falcon

  The Silent Falcon is a solar-electric sUAS with long-endurance capabilities for extended-range missions. The UAS can be used for commercial and military applications. The entire ...

• Military UAS - small

  Jackal

  The Jackal is a small UAV manufactured by FLY BVLOS, Flyby Technology and Maxwell Innovations. The system features a plug-and-play system, meaning new equipment and technologies can be ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Delta

  The Delta is a UAV with a VTOL capability before rotating and operating as a conventional fixed-wing aircraft when airborne.  Manufactured by Fly BVLOS, Nigeria was expected ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Indago

  Indago is a small quadrotor UAV with VTOL. It is equipped with a large-screen handset and is marketed as 'whisper-quiet' with a noise level of ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Canary

  Volatus Aerospace has stated that its civilian Canary rotary-wing cargo-carrying UAV can be adapted for military use in last-mile resupply operations.  Payloads are housed internally ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ENVOY

  The ENVOY is a multi-mission rotary-wing UAV with a tandem-rotor design and a payload carrying capacity of 180kg. General Dynamics renamed the system ENVOY in mid-2025.  ...

• Air: UAS radar

  EchoFlight

  The Echoflight radar by Echodyne is a Lightweight Metamaterials ESA (MESA®), a Detect-and-Avoid (DAA) 4D radar designed for mid-sized UAVs flying below the visual line of sight (BVLOS) ...

• UAS: communication systems

  muLTElink

  Produced by uAvionix, the muLTElink is a multiple-link airborne radio system designed for uncrewed platforms in particular. It combines C-Band, LTE, ISM and Viasat L-Band communications, ...

• Land: battle management systems

  AIMS-ISR

  AIMS-ISR is a software package used to process the video footage and data gathered from the cameras and other sensors fitted to airborne, ground-based and ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Ageon ISR

  Ageon ISR is a multi-INT C2/PED solution supporting cross-domain collection, ingestion, processing, exploitation and dissemination from tactical units to the global enterprise and cloud. Ageon ...

• Military UAS - mini

  DrN-15 (series)

  The DrN-15 is a hexacopter mini-UAV from ST Engineering. The platform is highly customizable and can carry various payloads depending on a user's requirements.  All DrN ...

• Military UAS - small

  Nauru 500C

  The Nauru 500C ISR is a VTOL-capable small fixed-wing UAV from Xmobots. Designed for ISR missions, the UAV features XSIS-EO and XSIS-EOLWIR stabilised sensors. The UAV features ...

• Military UAS - small

  Outlaw SeaHunter

  Outlaw UAVs are used by military and research agencies for training, testing, data collection and system development. In the 114-137kg maximum take-off weight class, SeaHunter ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Viper 1000C

  The Viper 1000C is a fixed-wing MALE UAS. Designed to carry EO/IR sensors over vast distances, it can be employed in a wide variety of ...