• Defence Notes

  UK watchdog reveals $22 billion hole in military equipment plan

  4th December 2023

  The UK National Audit Office (NAO) has delivered a scathing evaluation of the MoD's Equipment Plan for 2023–33, revealing a nearly £17 billion 'blackhole' in the budget.

• Defence Notes

  Boom time has arrived for South Korean defence exports (Opinion)

  9th October 2023

  The Asian country to make the most spectacular and stellar success in terms of arms exports is none other than South Korea, a nation of 51.7 million citizens.

• Training

  Hadean bridges synthetic environment to physical world

  20th September 2023

  Hadean is set to participate in the inaugural industry-led event October Sky in Sydney, Australia.

• Land Warfare

  Sentient demonstrates AI-powered ViDAR sensor for Australia

  5th October 2023

  During the test ViDAR was focusing on using advanced deep learning and computer vision technology to efficiently detect, locate, and track small targets in complex environments.

• Training

  Singapore Army experiments with robot dog teaming at Exercise Forging Sabre

  26th September 2023

  The Singapore Army is testing robotic dogs and UAVs for urban operations on exercise in the US.

• Defence Notes

  Germany to provide Ukraine with additional air-defence systems and Gepard anti-aircraft guns

  11th October 2023

  The German government has announced a billion-euro-plus package of equipment for Ukraine which includes Patriot and IRIS-T air defence systems and Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns.

• Training

  Elbit UK’s Joint Fires Synthetic Trainer delivers nearly 5,000 training hours

  21st September 2023

  Elbit Systems UK’s Joint Fires Synthetic Trainer (JFST) has officially achieved Initial Operating Capability (IOC).

• Air Warfare

  Canada to quadruple aerial tanker fleet with nine CC-330 Husky multi-role aircraft

  26th July 2023

  The significant expansion of strategic air-to-air refuelling capability is set to strengthen the Canadian Armed Forces' operational reach and enhance its ability to support more missions, with specific focus on the High North.

• Digital Battlespace

  Orbiting the Future: How New Satellite Technologies are Revolutionising Global Communications

  26th September 2023

  With the satellite industry at a pivotal juncture, Intelsat is investing in advanced technologies like 5G and optical communications, striving to enhance worldwide connectivity and address emerging governmental needs.

• Air Warfare

  India to add to Su-30MKI fleet with new order

  26th September 2023

  India will order a dozen extra Su-30 fighters from Russia, these to be assembled by HAL within India.

• Naval Warfare

  Brazil’s nuclear-powered submarine project reaches new milestone

  10th October 2023

  The first steel plates of a test section for the future nuclear-powered attack submarine ‘Álvaro Alberto’ have been cut during a ceremony organised by Itaguaí Construções Navais (ICN) and the Brazilian Navy.

• Land Warfare

  DSEI 2023: BAE Systems readies new versions of Armored Multi Purpose Vehicle with European exports in mind

  13th September 2023

  BAE Systems is displaying the US Army's Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle at DSEI for the first time and is evolving new variants with an eye on the European M113 APC replacement market .

• Defence Notes

  US Army seeks innovative new battlefield roles for drones

  13th September 2023

  The US Army recently tested deployment of UAS to identify casualties on the battlefield and in disaster response scenarios. Drones were used to assess the vital signs of wounded soldiers from the sky.

• Air Warfare

  Germany's potential SCAF exit for GCAP unpacked

  3rd November 2023

  The leaked information about Germany leaving the Future Combat Air Systems (FCAS/SCAF) project and joining the rival Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) hints at the growing complexities and tensions within the Franco-German partnership.

• Air Warfare

  Japan receives its full complement of Global Hawks

  4th July 2023

  All three of Japan's Global Hawk HALE UAVs have now come home to roost in the Asian nation.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Puma 3 AE (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Military Aid - $300 Million On 1 April 2022, the US DoD announced a $300 million military aid package for Ukraine to "bolster Urkaine's capacity ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract (US Navy) [US]

  As of November 2020, the US DoD had signed 14 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all branches of ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  M1165 Special Ops HMMWV [USA]

  Programme Background The HHMWV or Humvee has been in US service since 1983. The M1165A1B3 is a special operations variant of the platform.  In 2015, the ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 300 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Presidential Drawdown (16 March 2022 & 13 April 2022) On 16 March 2022, President Biden announced $800 million in security assistance to Ukraine through ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A Joint Strike Fighter - USAF

  According to the US FY2021 budget document, Turkey's removal from the JSF program and transition to the alternate supply chain sources may challenge to achieve ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B STOVL - US Navy

  The JSF programme will develop and field a family of aircraft that meets the needs of the US DoD and US allies with the F-35A ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract [US Air Force]

  As of November 2020, the US DoD had signed 14 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all branches of ...

• Loitering munitions

  Point Blank [US]

  Programme Background As IAI stated in a 19 January 2023 press release, it had been awarded a multi-million-dollar contract by the Irregular Warfare Technical Support ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  BQM-177A [US Navy]

  Background Previous Purchases The BQM-177A was designed for the USN and has been in service with the USN for many years. Indeed, in August 2022, Shephard reported ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 600 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background $300 Million USAI (1 April 2022) On 1 April 2022, the US DoD announced a $300 million military aid package for Ukraine following ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35C Carrier Variant

  The US Navy is planning to order 130 F-35Cs between FY2026 and FY2030 under the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. The purchase is estimated be ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Phoenix Ghost (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Presidential Drawdown (21 April 2022) Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, on 21 April 2022, President Biden announced an $800 ...

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

  Puma LE [Kosovo]

  Background Contract Award On 21 January 2022, the US Department of Defence (DoD) announced that AeroVironment had been awarded an $11.01 million firm-fixed contract for Puma ...

• Loitering munitions

  ALTIUS-600M (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background On 24 February 2023, the US DoD announced that the Biden Administration had released an additional aid package under the Ukraine Security Assistance ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  M1152A1B2/M1165A1B3 HMMWV [USA]

  Programme Background The HMMWV has been in US service since the 1980s. Despite the introduction of newer platforms, the US DoD continues to utilise the ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Pistols

  M9

  M9 is the US DoD designation for the military-specification 9mm Beretta 92FS, selected in 1985 to replace the 45cal M1911A1 in US service. Sales to ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  Igla/SA-18

  The 9K38 Igla (US DoD designation SA-18, NATO reporting name Grouse ) IR-homing MANPADS was developed by KBM and entered service in 1983 to meet the requirements ...

• Loitering munitions

  Point Blank

  Point Blank Weapon System is a hand-launched electro-optical VTOL-capable loitering munition developed by Isreal Aerospace Industries (IAI). IAI has been awarded a contract by the US ...

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

  ScanEagle 3

  Insitu unveiled the ScanEagle 3 at the Xponential exhibition in Denver in May 2018. The platform has twice the payload capacity of its ScanEagle predecessor ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  BAT-850

  Pathfinder's BAT-850 VSAT is a carbon fibre, tri-band terminal with auto-acquisition capability. Suitable for flyaway (case-based) and vehicle-mounted applications, it is in service with the ...

• Autonomous GPADS

  Airborne Systems has developed a family of smart systems ranging in payload capacity from 90-4,536kg. Utilising the technology developed and used in ram-air canopies, Guided ...

• Air: aerial targets, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  BQM-177A/i

  The BQM-177A subsonic aerial target (SSAT) was designed for the USN, and the BQM-177i is the export variant. The BQM-177 provides realistic threat emulation for ...

• Crew-served grenade launchers

  Striker 40/MK47

  General Dynamics is systems integrator for the Striker 40 (MK47 AGL in US service). The complete system comprises the weapon, AN/PWG-1 Lightweight Video Sight and ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  URC-300

  The URC-300 is a software-defined radio designed for line-of-sight, ground-to-air communications in particular. Introduced in 2020, it adheres to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) standards as well ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Banshee Tactical Radio

  Developed by Fenix Group, the Banshee Tactical Radio (BTR) is a communications system that uses 4G/LTE connectivity to provide secure mesh networking capability on the ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  AN/ARC-231 Skyfire

  The AN/ARC-231 Skyfire is an airborne VHF/UHF/LOS and DAMA SATCOM system. This system supports US DoD requirements for airborne, multi-band, multi-mission, secure anti-jam voice, data ...

• Air-to-air missiles

  9M39 Igla-V

  The 9M39 Igla-V (‘needle’) is a Russian IR homing SAM adapted for helicopter use. It is an air-launched version of the Igla MANPADS, which the ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  Global Observer

  The AeroVironment Global Observer HALE UAV was a developmental HALE UAV designed for various civil, commercial and government applications.  Development of the platform began in 2007 ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  CLWS

  Developed by Boeing, Compact Laser Weapon System (CLWS or CLaWS) is a medium-range, low-power laser C-UAS system. According to the reports, the CLWS prototype has ...

• Data links, Land: Radio and SATCOM, UAS: communication systems

  QNT-200

  The Collins QNT-200 is a dual-channel software-defined radio (SDR) designed for size, weight and power-constrained platforms. Using IP-based mesh networks, it offers high-bandwidth mobile networking ...