• Naval Warfare

  IDEX 2019: Russia brings out Pantsir-ME

  17th February 2019

  Russian manufacturer Rostec showcased its Pantsir-ME shipborne missile and gun air defence system, a new iteration of the Pantsir-S1 ground-based system, at IDEX 2019 for …

• Digital Battlespace

  IDEX 2019: Hensoldt to show new sensor solutions

  15th February 2019

  Hensoldt is set to appear at 2019’s International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi to present its new PrecISR airborne multifunction radar, in addition to …

• Defence Helicopter

  UK Merlin Mk4/4a programme hit by delays

  7th February 2019

  The UK's ongoing AW101 Merlin Mk4/4a delivery programme has been delayed beyond its original end date of December 2020 after manufacturer Leonardo and the MoD …

• Military Logistics

  Ivory Coast orders C295 transport aircraft

  23rd January 2019

  The Ministry of Defence of Ivory Coast has placed an order for one C295 medium transport aircraft, Airbus Defence and Space announced on 21 January. …

• Defence Helicopter

  West 2019: Marines highlight MV-22B enhancements

  18th February 2019

  The United States Marine Corps aviation community utilised last week’s West 2019 gathering in San Diego, California to highlight some of the new software and …

• Defence Helicopter

  IDEX 2019: Royal Bahraini Air Force battles on all fronts

  11th February 2019

  The Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) has ‘some serious issues to address right now’, the service’s commander, Maj Gen Hamad bin Abdullah al Khalifah, told …

• Training

  Afghan Air Force facing UH-60 training and recruitment headache

  5th February 2019

  A report from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) has made clear that the country's UH-60 Black Hawk programme is beset by pilot …

• Defence Helicopter

  Serbia purchases Mi-35Ms and Mi-17V-5s

  18th January 2019

  Russia has received an order to supply seven Mi-35 and three Mi-17V-5 helicopters to Serbia, with delivery planned for completion in 2019. This agreement has …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indonesia orders 17 new helicopters

  10th January 2019

  The Indonesian military has signed up for 17 new helicopters with PTDI, according to an announcement by the Indonesian aerospace company delivered on 9 January. …

• Military Logistics

  Safran opens turbine blade research centre

  8th February 2019

  Safran has opened a new research centre for advanced turbine blades used on airplane and helicopter engines at its plant in Gennevilliers, France, the company …

• Defence Helicopter

  EDA awards medevac contracts

  8th February 2019

  The European Defence Agency (EDA) has awarded multiple framework contracts for the provision of fixed and rotary wing medical evacuation services. The contracts have gone …

• Defence Helicopter

  USAF’s new rescue helicopter hits a snag

  6th February 2019

  The USAF’s future HH-60W CRH has encountered a host of technical glitches in its development phase, causing a long delay in its first flight, according …

• Defence Helicopter

  RCAF CH-146 Griffons to receive upgrades

  30th January 2019

  Bell Helicopter Textron Canada is to undertake design work for the upgrade of the Royal Canadian Air Force’s (RCAF's) CH-146 Griffon helicopters under the Griffon …

• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus to support DARPA’s Blackjack programme

  16th January 2019

  Airbus Defense and Space has received a contract from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a satellite bus in support of …

• Defence Notes

  IDEX 2019: Sudan adapts to Western allies over Yemen

  14th February 2019

  Trying to get Sudan’s Su-24Ms to work with the rest of the Saudi-led coalition during the Yemen War has led to the Sudanese Air Force …

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

  Programme 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 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

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

• 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 - 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 - 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 (Helicopter Procurement) - Canada

  Programme 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 ...

• 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. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M [Spain]

  Programme Background Spain announced the National Helicopter Plan in May 2025 culminating in five contracts awarded to Airbus on 18 December 2025, including procurement programmes ...

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 ...