• Air Warfare

  February Drone Digest: US manufacturers face the Gauntlet and find success abroad

  25th February 2026

  The US launched the Gauntlet test in February as part of its accelerated attack drone procurement effort while also exploring various naval capabilities that could lead to procurements down the line. Shield AI’s V-Bat, meanwhile, has been stirring up global interest.

• Air Warfare

  Spain air focus: Demand builds with $19.7 billion up for grabs in unawarded contracts

  29th January 2026

  Despite Spain’s modest GDP spend on defence, the country still has a range of fixed-wing and UAV programme requirements as yet unawarded, with a potential US$3.10 billion set to be spent over the next decade.

• Air Warfare

  UAE air focus: Domestic industries set to dominate the $5.24 billion UAV market

  12th November 2025

  Foreign suppliers may be seeking ways to break into the guarded UAE drone market, where domestic firms dominate much of the US$5.24 billion value and a large share of spending is already tied to a single major deal.

• Air Warfare

  Eastern European helicopter modernisation could open doors for Western manufacturers

  19th March 2026

  With some Eastern European countries already upgrading their helicopter fleets to incorporate Western technology, the region presents potential future opportunities for defence companies.

• Air Warfare

  January Drone Digest: MALE, rotary-wing and loitering munition UAVs dominate early 2026

  27th January 2026

  The first month of 2026 has seen activity in the MALE, rotary-wing, and loitering munition UAV markets, with significant investments and commitments from Germany, Turkey, the UAE and the US. At the same time, questions over loitering munition performance in Ukraine highlight the growing scrutiny alongside rising demand.

• Land Warfare

  World Defense Show 2026: Middle East remains focused on US equipment and local industry involvement

  10th February 2026

  Vehicle procurement in the Middle East continues to target big-ticket main battle tanks, with lighter platform purchases also potentially on the horizon including tactical, infantry fighting and armoured personnel carrier vehicles.

• Defence Notes

  High tension in the High North – a wake-up call for NATO’s future Arctic defence efforts?

  20th January 2026

  Any potential ‘Arctic Sentry’ mission would be months in the planning, but with tensions high in the region given the US’s push for Greenland, NATO countries will need to continue to emphasise their commitment to the region, analysts have said.

• Air Warfare

  Anduril awarded latest OPF-L contract with around $155.2 million still up for grabs

  20th January 2026

  As the US Marine Corps continues to push loitering munitions as a core battlefield tool, Shephard looks at how the latest contract award factors into future potential purchases.

• Air Warfare

  Scaling for diverse fleet needs: How many CCA will be acquired per crewed aircraft?

  23rd February 2026

  There is currently no industry standard in the ratio of uncrewed to crewed aircraft. Because collaborative combat aircraft vary widely in capability and crewed-uncrewed teaming availability, while country-specific requirements vary, it is unlikely that a single CCA configuration will meet all operational needs.

• Air Warfare

  Saab Gripen E/F: the multirole fighter that’s seeing a resurgence (updated 2026)

  14th April 2026

  The single-engine multirole fighter jet is seeing heightened demand with a sizeable orderbook and expanding export potential, as Shephard summarises the aircraft’s latest orders and developments.

• Air Warfare

  Poland air focus: Drones, transport aircraft and tankers dominate potential procurement plans

  19th December 2025

  With a rising defence budget and equipment list, Poland’s air market is set to grow as the country continues to modernise its transport and helicopter fleets while seeking out uncrewed aerial vehicles and loitering munitions.

• Land Warfare

  RAFAEL and Israel MOD: IRON BEAM 450 Development Completed, Delivery to IDF Soon

  5th September 2025

  IRON BEAM is the world’s only fully mature and operational high-power laser interception system, capable of intercepting missiles and UAVs.

• Air Warfare

  December Drone Digest: Germany, Australia and US champion indigenous UAV production

  30th December 2025

  One of the key trends seen in December has been the rise in indigenous investment within the UAV market, particularly across certain countries, with Germany, Australia and the US focusing on their commitments to sovereign development.

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy to invest more than $700 million in laser-related R&D efforts in FY2026

  26th January 2026

  The US Navy’s acceleration of its laser weapon development initiatives reflects a decisive shift towards ultimately having a “laser on every ship” across tomorrow’s surface fleet.

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy starts acquisition process for uncrewed maritime systems for support missions

  10th November 2025

  The USN is interested in uncrewed capabilities that can carry out explosive ordnance disposal, mine countermeasures, force protection, ISR and anti-submarine missions.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Sky Scout-X [Thailand]

  Programme Background At the Defence & Security (D&S;) 2019 show in Bangkok, RV Connex displayed a variant of this Sky Scout, the Sky Scout-X. This ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M [Türkiye]

  Turkey has become the second country to receive the new-generation A400M airlifter, with the first of ten aircraft handed over by Airbus Defence and Space ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  DP18A [Thailand]

  Background 2023 According to Aero Technology Industry Company Limited (ATIL) officials, speaking to Janes at Defence & Security (D&S;) 2023 in Bangkok, the company was at ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow On

  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, ...

• Trainer

  S-211 Replacement [Philippines]

  Programme Background Requirement The Philippines is looking at replacement options for its ageing fleet of S-211 trainer jets. The S-211s have been in operation with ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Anka-S (Saudi Arabia)

  Programme Background Desired Procurement Saudi Arabia has reportedly been in negotiations to procure six Anka UAVs since 2013. It has not been disclosed which Anka ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)

  Programme Background Five prototypes will be manufactured for developmental tests. Indian Air Force will buy 36 AMCA Mark-I aircraft from 2029-30. The Mark-I configuration will ...

• 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 ...

• Trainer

  T-4 Replacement [Japan]

  Programme Background The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) has been using the T-4 as an intermediate trainer jet since 1988, but now the Acquisition, Technology ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Sistema RPAS Táctico de Altas Prestaciones (SiRTAP) [Colombia]

  Background MoU In 2017, it was announced that Spain was jointly developing a MALE UAV with Colombia to meet the ISR requirement of both armed ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  S-70i (Philippines)

  The Black Hawk is believed to have been the most expensive of the aircraft that had been shortlisted for the PAF project, others being the ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Requirement Turkish Air Force ordered 100 F-35A aircraft as a partner nation, however, the country was removed from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Sistema RPAS Táctico de Altas Prestaciones (SiRTAP) [Serbia]

  Background MoU In 2017, it was announced that Spain was jointly developing an MALE UAV with Colombia to meet the ISR requirement of both armed ...

• Landing craft and hovercraft

  EDA-S [France]

  Programme Background Following the announcement of the 14-ship contract, the DGA approved the design of the first two standard amphibious landing craft (EDA-S) in October 2019, ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Camcopter Project (Thailand)

  Programme Background Batch One In November 2019, as reported by Shephard, Schiebel was awarded a TBH600 million ($18.76 million) contract from the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Naval guns

  Gökdeniz

  Gökdeniz, also known as Korkut-D, is a 35mm Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) developed by Turkish Aselsan. It was unveiled for the first time at IDEF ...

• Land: RWS

  D-RWS

  The Dual-RWS (D-RWS) is designed to be installed on the Republic of Korea Marine Corps' Korean Amphibious Assault Vehicle fleet. Weighing approximately 350kg, it is ...

• Transponders and IFF

  IFF Mk XIIA(S)

  Aselsan IFF Mk XIIA(S) is a Mode 5/S compatible long-range IFF interrogator. According to the manufacturer, it may be mounted to a standard 19-inch rack ...

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  PC-21 FTD

  Airbus D&S; has technical responsibility for overall system integration and the geo-specific database within the consortium for the development and production of the Pilatus PC-21 ...

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  AN/ALQ-213(V) DAC

  Terma’s AN/ALQ-213(V) electronic warfare management unit is used extensively on General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon series combat aircraft around the world. The AN/ALQ-213(V) is ...

• OPVs

  OPV 58 S

  The OPV 58 S is a versatile patrol vessel developed by the French company Piriou. The vessels have been designed primarily for surveillance, identification and ...

• Deployable/static missile systems

  Bavar 373

  The Bavar 373 is a medium/long range ground based air defence missile system developed by Iran. It is claimed to offer similar capabilities between S-300PMU2 ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  CMS (Vikrant-Class)

  The Combat Management System abroad INS Vikrant is developed by TATA Power's Strategic Engineering Division, the Indian MoD's Weapon and Electonic System Engineering Establishment and ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  Distributed and Networked Mission Training

  Airbus D&S; networks training systems to enable joint and distributed mission training across local and national boundaries, generating realistic and needs-oriented scenarios. The solution uses ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BTR-MDM

  The BTR-MDM Rakushka is an amphibious tracked armoured vehicle developed by Kurganmashzavod to meet the Russian Airborne Forces' (VDV) need for a new air-droppable APC. ...

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

  Sky Scout-M

  Unveiled at the Defense & Security (D&S;) 2023 exhibition in Bangkok, the Sky Scout-M is a combat version of the Sky Scout from RV Connex.  ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  BTR-3

  Kharkiv Morozov Machine Building Design Bureau produced the first 8x8 BTR-3-series amphibious APC in 2001. The series includes the BTR-3U, the BTR-3U Guardian (variant for ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  TEagle Eye III

  Thailand’s state-owned Defence Technology Institute (DTI) unveiled the TEagle Eye III fixed-wing UAV in November 2015 at the country's Defence and Security (D&S;) exhibition. It ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN D-HMP 250

  The FN D-HMP (Digital Heavy Machine Gun Pod) 250 is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a .50 cal FN M3P heavy machine gun, ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar, Air: surveillance radar

  AN/APY-1/2

  The S-band AN/APY-1 radar is installed in a large rotodome above the fuselage of the Boeing KE-3A/E-3A/B Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft ...