• Digital Battlespace

  E-2D flies with aerial refuelling kit

  20th December 2016

  Northrop Grumman has successfully completed the first flight of its E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft equipped with aerial refuelling equipment, it was announced on 15 December. The …

• Digital Battlespace

  US intel cell aids largest Daesh airstrike

  19th December 2016

  The US-led coalition fighting Daesh in Iraq and Syria launched one of its biggest strikes on 8 December aided by a secretive ‘new capability’ known …

• Digital Battlespace

  Terma, CET Group in new partnership

  17th December 2016

  Danish company Terma and CET Group, an information technology specialist based in Dubai, will form a partnership to promote the former company’s wide area protection …

• Naval Warfare

  Italian Air Force receives first P-72As

  16th December 2016

  Leonardo-Finmeccanica has delivered the first two of four ATR 72MPs to the Italian Air Force.  The aircraft, designated P-72A in Italian service, will replace the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Deal reached for Qatari early warning radar

  15th December 2016

  The United States Defence Secretary has announced that an agreement has been reached to allow Qatar to purchase a long range early warning radar (EWR) …

• Digital Battlespace

  Boeing delivers upgraded E-3A to NATO

  15th December 2016

  Delivery to NATO of E-3A Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft with cockpit upgrades has now begun with the first of 14 aircraft now …

• Naval Warfare

  PAE wins maritime surveillance contract

  15th December 2016

  PAE will deliver command, control, communications, and surveillance capabilities to the Tunisian Navy for maritime surveillance under a contract announced on 12 December. The equipment …

• Defence Notes

  Analysis: Saudi Arabia - A close customer (part 2 - air)

  14th December 2016

  As we have already seen in Part 1 – Land, the close defence relationship between Saudi Arabia's ruling House of Saud and Western governments is …

• Digital Battlespace

  Additional radars targeted for Kuwait

  14th December 2016

  Kuwait looks likely to expand its military radar coverage following the US State Department approval of a foreign military sale (FMS) to the country for …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Enhanced Epsilon 140 introduced

  14th December 2016

  Octopus ISR Systems Europe has introduced an enhanced version of the Epsilon 140 UAV gimbal with dual sensor payload, the company announced on 13 December. …

• Digital Battlespace

  Saab clocks AN/TPS-80 order

  8th December 2016

  Saab will supply Northrop Grumman with additional components and subsystems for the US Marine Corps AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) system under an $18.6 …

• Digital Battlespace

  Increased bandwidth ready for launch

  8th December 2016

  The eighth Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS) satellite was launched on the evening of 7 December and highlights an ongoing requirement for increased bandwidth. This latest WGS …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  FLIR Systems Acquires Prox Dynamics

  5th December 2016

  FLIR Systems has acquired Norway’s Prox Dynamics, manufacturer of the Black Hornet nano UAS, FLIR announced on 30 November. The purchase, for approximately $134 million, …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop Grumman details Tern progress

  2nd December 2016

  Northrop Grumman has cleared two milestones for the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA’s) Tactically Exploited Reconnaissance Node (TERN) programme, the company announced on …

• Naval Warfare

  Flight2 for Chilean P-3 Orions

  1st December 2016

  The Chilean Navy’s P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft will be fitted with Rockwell Collins’ Flight2 integrated avionics system, the company announced on 29 November. The avionics …

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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 - fixed-wing, 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 - fixed-wing, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  ISR Civilian-Made UAVs [Taiwan]

  Background Civilian-made, Military-specification As reported by Shephard in April 2025, to accelerate the acquisition process and urgently build a larger UAV inventory, Taipei is enlisting the private ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW-4

  The SW-4 is aimed at the basic and advanced pilot training, troop transport and ISR missions. Its Polish designation is Puszczyk. The SW-4s are based ...

• 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, ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  In April 2026, AeroVironment (AV) and Shield AI announced that they had been selected to compete for a US$800 million task order to provide Contractor-Owned, ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  In April 2026, AeroVironment (AV) and Shield AI announced that they had been selected to compete for a US$800 million task order to provide Contractor-Owned, ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | Multi-Mission Aircraft (1-14) [Canada]

  The objective of the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft project is to equip the Canadian Armed Forces with a long-range manned Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) and ...

• Data links

  Data links | Multi-Mission Aircraft (1-14) [Canada]

  The objective of the Canadian Multi-Mission Aircraft project is to equip the Canadian Armed Forces with a long-range manned Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) and ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 - fixed-wing, 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 - rotary-wing, 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 - fixed-wing, 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, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  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, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, 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, ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  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 - fixed-wing, 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 - fixed-wing, 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 - fixed-wing, 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 ...