• Defence Notes

  US military foresees growing use of 3D printing

  13th November 2025

  Advanced manufacturing has evolved to meet military requirements and now supports multiple US critical assets, including Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, F-18, F-22, F-35, Bradley, HMMWV and Patriot.

• Land Warfare

  Australia and Canada approved for $2.5 billion HIMARS buys

  3rd October 2025

  Australia already operates M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) after receiving first units in March and conducting the first firings in August. Canada’s order comes in the face of a commitment from the government to move away from US products.

• Air Warfare

  Boeing prepared to go fast on CxR uncrewed tiltrotor concept

  3rd November 2025

  The Collaborative Transformational Rotorcraft is designed with the potential to meet a range of mission requirements, from reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition to contested logistics.

• Land Warfare

  US orders more Humvees after Israeli contract, boosting vehicle’s prospects

  30th July 2025

  The AM General High-Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV or Humvee) is one of the most widely used vehicles with more than 250,000 vehicles in service with as many as 20 countries. The orders are a boost for the platform which was singled out for a reduction in numbers in a recent US Army reform document.

• Land Warfare

  Lockheed Martin demonstrates Spike and is selected for next stage of US Army requirement

  28th August 2025

  The Spike non-line-of-sight (NLOS) missile is used by several countries as an air-launched weapon but the recent trials were ground-launched from a vehicle and involved three shots.

• Air Warfare

  AUSA 2025: IAI presents its bid for US Army’s next-generation VTOL UAS requirement

  13th October 2025

  The OmniRaider uncrewed aerial system is described by Israel Aerospace Industries as an “Americanised” version of its ThunderB-NG vertical take-off and landing UAS of which there are hundreds in service.

• Air Warfare

  US Army awards nearly $6 billion in contracts for CUAS interceptors and UAS systems

  1st October 2025

  A contract of $5 billion was awarded to Raytheon by the US Army, while a $982 million contract award for uncrewed systems was scooped to Mistral Group.

• Land Warfare

  British Army fires Javelin from Boxer as Australia set for lightweight launchers

  20th August 2025

  Australia has received approval to buy Javelin Lightweight Command Launch Units (LwCLU) on the same day as the British Army announced the first firing from a Boxer armoured vehicle, a sign of the continuing interest in the weapon. Billons-of-dollars of Javelin missiles and systems have been ordered in the past two years.

• Defence Notes

  GAO highlights the need for more commercial data and availability improvements

  9th October 2025

  The US Government Accountability Office recently released two reports; one into the availability of selected equipment and another looking at how the government gets data and intellectual property rights through contracting.

• Air Warfare

  AUSA 2025: US Army and Bell squeeze MV-75 programme

  17th October 2025

  The MV-75, previously V-280, was originally designed as an assault aircraft which would replace some of the Black Hawk helicopters and add speed as a tilt-rotor platform. It is now envisioned to add a greater multirole capability reminiscent of the Black Hawk fleet.

• Land Warfare

  Bidders for Australia’s long-range fires requirement push development of offerings

  23rd October 2025

  Lockheed Martin is competing against a joint Kongsberg and Thales team to meet Australia’s requirement for a land-based, long-range fires system to protect Australia’s northern approaches. Both bidders have announced recent developments on associated missiles.

• Digital Battlespace

  AUSA 2025: Persistent Systems to complete its largest order by year’s end

  15th October 2025

  Persistent Systems received its largest ever single order for its MPU5 devices and other systems earlier this month and has already delivered the 50 units to the US Army’s 4th Infantry Division.

• Defence Notes

  What will next-gen counter-UAS capabilities for the US look like?

  21st November 2025

  Future US counter-uncrewed aerial system solutions are likely to require a flexible, multi-layered approach to tackle a broad spectrum of new threats as they emerge.

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2025: AM General “on target” for JLTV full-rate production in 2026 as it uncrews a Humvee

  15th October 2025

  AM General believes it has completed working with customers for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicles to reach a final version of the vehicle and to prepare to begin producing vehicles under full rate production.

• Land Warfare

  DSEI 2025: AM General has partner lined up for British Army vehicle programme

  15th September 2025

  AM General’s Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) A2 is in low-rate initial production and the company is looking for export orders, notably the UK’s Land Mobility Programme (LMP), to add to a recent approval for Canada to buy vehicles.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  MQ-1 Gray Eagle [US Army]

  Background Required Quantity Although the US Army first envisioned a requirement for 132 MQ-1C Gray Eagles, the US Army's Army Acquisition Objective (AAO) was increased ...

• Main battle tanks

  NGCV: DLP

  Programme Background Requirement The DLP is one of five vehicle families being developed for the US Army's NGCV programme. Expanded to include five programmes in ...

• AGMV 1.1

  Programme Background The US Army has been seeking a lightweight, air-droppable, high mobility vehicle since as early as 2014, when it initiated its Ultra Light ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  AMPV [USA]

  Programme Background Platform Development The US Army initiated the AMPV programme to acquire a replacement for several variants of the M113 tracked APC, which has ...

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

  Heavy Lift VTOL (HVTOL) (Forecast) [US Army]

  Background USMC In September 2021, Kaman unveiled its Kargo UAV, which had been specifically designed to meet the requirements of the Joint Tactical Autonomous Aerial ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract [US Army]

  Programme Background As of January 2021, the US DoD had signed 15 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all ...

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

  Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) (Increment 2) [US Army]

  Programme Background Programme Objective The Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) was to provide a tactical ISTAR capability for US Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs). It was intended to ...

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

  Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) (Increment 1) [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Objective The Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) was to provide a tactical ISTAR capability for US Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs). It was ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Stryker (Sergeant Stout) [USA]

  Programme Background As part of the Army Transformation Initiative the US DoD is fundamentally reorganising the structure of the US Army. As part of this all Infantry ...

• Loitering munitions

  Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile System (LMAMS) [US Army]

  Background First Contract In June 2011, the US awarded AeroVironment a $4.9 million series-production contract for the loitering munition, satisfying the US Army's Lethal Miniature ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Switchblade 300 (USA)

  Programme Background AeroVironment has been providing the Switchblade 300 loitering munition to the US Army under the long-standing Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile Systems (LMAMS) programme ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) [Tranche 1] / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) (USA)

  Programme Background The Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) Programme The RPUAS programme will provide the Battalion and below-ground manoeuvre elements within the US Army with an ...

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

  Group 4/5 UAV [US Army]

  Background Request for Information (RfI) On 5 June 2024, the American DoD published an RfI with an original response date of 19 July 2024. The ...

• Landing craft and hovercraft

  US Army Maneuver Support Vessel Light (MSVL)

  Programme BackgroundThe Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) or MSV(L) contract was awarded by the US Army to Vigor in 2017 and are being built to replace ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) [USA]

  Programme Background US Army's Future Vertical Lift Programme The FLRAA is one of three strands of a broader army programme. The others are the Future ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  US Army AVCATT PDSS

  L3Harris Technologies is the prime contractor for the US Army’s Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer (AVCATT) Post Deployment Software Support (PDSS) programme. L3Harris Technologies is ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  US Army Flight School XXI OFT/RCTD

  L3Harris Technologies is a major subcontractor to CSC on the US Army’s Flight School XXI (FSXXI) programme. L3Harris Technologies has built or is under contract ...

• Maritime patrol

  US-2

  The ShinMaywa US-2 is an amphibious short take-off and landing aircraft used primarily by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) for SAR. 

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  OH-58 Kiowa

  The single-engine OH-58 Kiowa, derived from the Bell 206, entered US Army service in 1969 as a light observation helicopter. More than 2,200 were built for ...

• Towed guns

  M198

  The US Army developed the M198 155mm towed howitzer from 1969 to replace the M114 155mm howitzer. From 1978, 1,600 weapons were built by Rock ...

• Towed mortars

  M120/M120A1

  The M120/M120A1 120 mm Towed Mortar System is a US-built version of the Soltam K6 mortar that was accepted into US Army service in 1990.

• Light tanks

  M10 Booker

  The US Army awarded General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) a contract worth US$1.14 billion to supply 96 light tanks under the Mobile Protected Firepower (MPF) ...

• JPT

  Designed for military applications, the Joint Platform Tablet (JPT) features a rugged design, including a military-grade aluminium case, dual-core processor, 128GB removable hard drive and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72A/B Lakota

  In 2006, the US Army selected a version of the medium-sized, twin-engine H145, designated the UH-72A Lakota,  to meet its requirement for a new Light ...

• Armoured engineer vehicles

  M1150 ABV

  The M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV) project, launched by the USMC in 2002, is a joint programme to meet the requirements of both the US ...

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

  RQ-7 Shadow 200

  The Shadow 200, designated RQ-7B by the US Army, is flown by the army brigade combat teams and combat aviation brigades along with the UAV ...

• REBS

  The Rapidly Emplaced Bridge System (REBS) is a 13m dry-gap bridge. It was designed by GDELS to meet a US Army requirement to provide a ...

• Land: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  AN/PLQ-9 Thor-III

  Sierra Nevada’s AN/PLQ-9 Thor-III is the standard Counter Improvised Explosive Device (CIED) manpack system in service with the US Army and US Marine Corps (USMC). ...

• DSB

  WFEL was selected in 1996 to develop the M18 Dry Support Bridge (DSB) for the US Army. The company designed, manufactured and integrated the DSB ...

• Individual grenade launchers

  M320 GLM

  The M320 Grenade Launcher Module (GLM) is a further development of the HK AG36 (see separate entry) to meet a US Army requirement. The M320 ...