• Defence Helicopter

  Crowsnest flight test programme picks up steam

  5th April 2019

  Following ‘aero-mechanical’ first flight trials held at Leonardo’s Yeovil facility on 28 March, Lockheed Martin, prime contractor of the Crowsnest Airborne Surveillance and Control (ASaC) …

• Defence Notes

  LAAD 2019: News round up from Rio (video)

  5th April 2019

  Across the land, sea and air domains the Shephard Media news team talk through some of the highlight's of this year's LAAD 2019 exhibition in Rio …

• Military Logistics

  Kazakhstan’s Border Service orders C295

  25th March 2019

  Airbus has received an order to deliver one C295 medium transport aircraft to the Border Service of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the company announced on …

• Defence Notes

  Classified note confirms French weaponry in Yemen: report

  15th April 2019

  French weapons are being used by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia in Yemen, according to a classified military note revealed on 15 April …

• Training

  Australia’s HATS achieves IOC

  3rd April 2019

  The Australian Defence Force’s Helicopter Aircrew Training System (HATS) has successfully achieved initial operating capability (IOC), the Australian Department of Defence announced on 1 April. …

• Defence Helicopter

  USCG awards MH-65 components contract

  2nd April 2019

  The US Coast Guard (USCG) has awarded a $21.3 million contract to Tyonek Manufacturing Group to procure 89 wiring harness packages for its MH-65 short …

• Defence Helicopter

  IAF inducts first batch of Chinooks

  29th March 2019

  The Indian Air Force (IAF) has formally inducted its first CH-47F(I)-Chinook heavy lift helicopters into its inventory at Air Force Station Chandigarh, the Indian Ministry …

• Defence Helicopter

  Kaman receives AH-1Z blade skin contract

  4th April 2019

  Kaman Composites Wichita will manufacture and supply composite skin to core assembly structural components for the Bell AH-1Z helicopter blades, Kaman announced on 1 April. …

• Special Operations

  SOFINS 2019: French Special Operations Command shows off new flight suit

  4th April 2019

  The French Special Operations Command (COS) has designed its very own next-generation tactical flight suit for air crew members, service officials have disclosed to Shephard. …

• Defence Helicopter

  SB>1 Defiant completes first flight

  25th March 2019

  The Sikorsky-Boeing SB>1 Defiant aircraft carried out its first flight on 21 March at Sikorsky's facility in West Palm Beach, Florida. The helicopter is being …

• Defence Helicopter

  Taiwan to order 30 more Black Hawks for army

  4th April 2019

  The Republic of China Army (ROCA) will order an additional 30 UH-60M Black Hawks. This has become necessary to fill out the Army Aviation and …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell, Rolls-Royce partner on advanced propulsion systems

  26th March 2019

  Bell Helicopter has signed a teaming agreement with Rolls-Royce for the development of an optimised propulsion system and continued risk reduction efforts aimed at the …

• Defence Helicopter

  Arnold Defense receives rocket launcher order

  26th March 2019

  Arnold Defense has received a $53.8 million contract from the US Department of Defense for the delivery of 2.75-inch rocket launchers and subcomponents.The orders will …

• Defence Helicopter

  LAAD 2019: Lockheed keen to offer armed Black Hawks in Brazil and beyond

  4th April 2019

  With a large number of UH-60 Black Hawks already operating in Brazil, Lockheed Martin could offer up its armed version to the country for its …

• Defence Helicopter

  Plane glass for plain protection

  26th March 2019

  With ground-based attacks during theatre operation a real threat to military helicopters, Israel-based OSG has developed an ultra-light ballistic window that protect these aircraft, the …

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 ...