• Digital Battlespace

  DefExpo 2020: India crafts a suite of special mission aircraft

  6th February 2020

  In India the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) is working on several projects to give the Indian Air Force (IAF) dedicated special mission aircraft …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  NATO AGS deliveries marked in ceremony

  20th January 2020

  Delivery of two RQ-4D UAS for NATO’s Alliance Ground Surveillance (AGS) programme has been marked in a ceremony at Sigonella Air Base, Italy, where the …

• Defence Helicopter

  DefExpo 2020: LUH achieves a milestone

  7th February 2020

  The Indian single-engine Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) was awarded initial operational clearance (IOC) at DefExpo 2020 on 7 February. First, …

• Naval Warfare

  Fincantieri signs naval MoU with Qatar MoD

  24th January 2020

  Fincantieri has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Qatar through Barzan Holding for Qatar Emiri Naval Forces support, …

• Defence Notes

  Poland takes over NATO VJTF lead

  13th January 2020

  On 1 January 2020 the Polish Army took over the lead of NATO’s Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) from Germany.The core of the …

• Defence Notes

  Czech Republic set to boost defence spending

  28th January 2020

  The Czech MoD plans to significantly increase defence spending, with around a quarter of its budget to be invested in new or modernised military equipment. …

• Land Warfare

  Russian Ground Forces in Siberia to receive Typhoon-K armoured vehicles

  23rd January 2020

  The Russian MoD plans to add a batch of eight Typhoon-K armoured vehicles, armed with a remote-controlled weapon station, to the fleet of combat vehicles …

• Naval Warfare

  DefExpo 2020: MBDA launches missile bids in India

  6th February 2020

  MBDA has a half-century-long history of missile cooperation in India, and the next step on the journey was a recent bid by L&T; MBDA Missile …

• Defence Notes

  Opinion: Make or break time for UK defence

  18th January 2020

  For the British Armed Forces, 2020 began with an abrupt start as the aftermath of the strike by the US military on Iranian Qods Force …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indonesia to give its Panthers sharper claws

  21st January 2020

  After receiving all but one of the 11 AS565MBe Panther helicopters it ordered from Airbus Helicopters in 2014, the Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL) is now planning to upgrade …

• Naval Warfare

  India seeks subs and shuffles Sukhois to counter China

  23rd January 2020

  India’s top naval leader has said that seven to eight Chinese warships, including submarines, are present in the Indian Ocean at any one time. To …

• Defence Notes

  Raytheon receives $768 million for AMRAAM production

  6th January 2020

  Raytheon has received a contract from the US Department of Defense for Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) Production Lot 33. The $768.2 million contract, awarded on …

• Naval Warfare

  China commissions its most sophisticated surface combatant

  14th January 2020

  The People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has commissioned the largest surface combatant ever built for China’s navy. The first Type 055 guided-missile destroyer was commissioned in …

• Naval Warfare

  Maritime Strike Tomahawk development delayed

  16th January 2020

  Programme prioritisation factors have contributed to a delayed IOC for the Maritime Strike Tomahawk (MST), with the milestone not now expected to be achieved this year.  …

• Training

  UK adds long-overdue helicopter aircrew training capacity

  22nd January 2020

  The UK MoD has signed a £183 million ($240 million) Military Flying Training System (MFTS) contract to add capacity to train rotary-wing pilots, filling a long-overdue shortfall. This …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Transport

  Medium Transport Aircraft (DROP) [Poland​]

  Programme Background Requirement Poland acquired the C-130E Hercules over a decade ago under the US FMS programme. Deliveries started in 2009 and ran through to ...

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

  Action Plan of the Georgian Defence Force (FlyEye) [Georgia]

  Programme Background Action Plan of the Georgian Defence Forces 2020-30 In July 2021, the Georgian Minister of Defence, Juansher Burchuladze, outlined the country's military modernisation plan. ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A (1-32) [Poland]

  Programme Background During MSPO 2021, Lockheed Martin announced details related to F-35A manufacturing for the Polish Air Force. According to J.R McDonald, Lockheed Martin’s VP, business ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Gryf [Poland]

  Background Requirements The Polish Ministry of Defence (MoD) identified the need for several ingeniously produced UAVs to provide ISTAR and strike capabilities for its armed forces ...

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

  Force Protection Drone Systems [Poland]

  Background Force Protection In November 2024, the Polish Defence Ministry's Armaments Agency signed a PLN 499 million (US$127.6 million) agreement with WB Group for 12 Force Protection drone ...

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

  Gladius [Poland]

  Programme Background Contract Signing On 6 May 2022, the Minister of National Defense, Mariusz Błaszczak, the president of the WB GROUP, Piotr Wojciechowski and the head ...

• Main battle tanks

  Wilk

  Programme Background The Wilk programme was included in the Polish MoDs Technical Modernisation Plan of the Polish Armed Forces for 2021-2035. It was primarily aimed ...

• Main battle tanks

  K2 (Phase 1) [Poland]

  Programme Background Requirement Poland's K2 purchase is the successor of the Wilk programme which aimed to replace the country's Soviet-era T-72 and PT-91 MBTs with a ...

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

  FlyEye (Framework Agreement) (Uncontracted) [Poland]

  Background Pre-2023 Contracts Across three orders, one in the early 2010s, another in December 2018 and another in February 2022, the Polish Territorial Defence Force ...

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

  Zefir (Uncontracted) [Poland]

  Programme Background Inception The Zefir programme required a MALE UCAV with an operating radius of up to 1000km. In 2018, Defence24 reported that Poland could ...

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

  Bayraktar TB2 [Poland]

  Programme Background Requirement Under the Gryf programme, the Polish MoD identified the need for an indigenously produced MALE UAV to provide ISTAR and strike capabilities at ...

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

  Zefir (Contracted) [Poland]

  Programme Background Inception The Zefir programme required a MALE UCAV with an operating radius of up to 1000km. In 2018, Defence24 reported that Poland could procure ...

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

  FlyEye (Framework Agreement) (Contracted) [Poland]

  Background Pre-2023 Contracts Across three orders, one in the early 2010s, another in December 2018 and another in February 2022, the Polish Territorial Defence Force ...

• Loitering munitions

  Warmate (2022) [Poland]

  Background 2022 Order Following a purchase of the drone in 2027, on 30 April 2022, Defence 24 reported that the Polish Armament Agency had ordered ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  PGZ-19R

  The PGZ-19R is a low-altitude, short-range tactical fixed-wing UAV. Based on the E-310 demonstrator, the platform has been designed to carry ISR sensors, search and rescue and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AW149

  The AgustaWestland 'AW149' is an 8t-class multirole battlefield helicopter developed by AgustaWestland (now Leonardo) launched in 2006, making its maiden voyage in 2009. For combat ...

• Self-propelled guns

  Krab

  Poland selected a modified version of the BAE Systems AS90M Braveheart 155mm/52cal turret to meet its requirement for a new SPH. Poland’s HSW is prime ...

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

  BSP-U

  The BSP-U, or Gladius/Gladius 2, is a Polish-made UAV. Defence 24 confirmed that the platform is not a loitering munition, suggesting that it could be a UCAV or a striking ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BMP-1

  The BMP-1 (Bronevaya Maschina Piekhota-1) is a tracked amphibious IFV that was developed in the Soviet Union during the 1960s.  Entering service with the Soviet ...

• Main battle tanks

  Challenger 2

  The 120mm-armed Challenger 2 MBT was introduced into British Army service in 1994 as a replacement for the Challenger 1, which was successfully employed in ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM, Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  R&S M3SR Series4400

  Rohde & Schwarz M3SR Series4400 is a VHF/UHF radio system designed for stationary and shipborne applications. It offers several proprietary frequency-hopping waveforms as well as data link ...

• ISR/special mission, Maritime patrol

  A320neo M3A

  Currently under development by Airbus, the A320 M3A is the Maritime Patrol version of the civilian A320neo aircraft. The aircraft can be fitted with a wide ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW-4

  The SW-4 is a light, single-engine, multi-mission helicopter designed to carry up to five people (pilots included) and to be operated during the day and ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  FA-50

  Based on the T/TA-50 trainer/light attack aircraft, the FA-50 is further developed and upgraded with a tactical data link, precision-guided munitions, and a self-protection subsystem. ...

• EO/IR systems

  LRF Mod 4EC/6EC

  The Mod 4EC and Mod 6EC were designed specifically for remotely operated small platforms. The modules can be attached to Mini-Typhoon, CLAWS and other systems ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  AN/SQQ-89

  The AN/SQQ-89 is an ASW combat system incorporates and processes all the sonar information and LAMPS sensor data. Manufactured by Lockheed Martin, there are currently ...

• Unguided Medium Calibre Ammunition

  Next Generation Combat Vehicle Ammunition

  The Next Generation Combat Vehicle Ammunition (NGVA) is a family of ammunition being developed by the US Army's Armaments Center and manufactured by General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems ...

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

  ENBATA

  ENBATA is a multi-mission, ITAR-free MALE UAV produced by the French company AURA AERO. The aircraft was developed at the request of the General Directorate ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  R35010

  The Radmor R35010 personal role radio is a handheld, lightweight radio intended to operate in a small radio network between combat team members.  The R35010 ...