• Defence Helicopter

  CH-53K arrives in Germany

  4th April 2018

  A Sikorsky CH-53K heavy lift helicopter has arrived in Holzdorf, Germany, for its international debut at the ILA Berlin Air Show 2018, Lockheed Martin announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell Helicopter awarded H-1 work

  30th March 2018

  Bell Helicopter has been awarded a delivery order against a previously issued basic ordering agreement for engineering and logistics in support of the US Navy’s …

• Defence Helicopter

  Thales rockets in successful HForce testing

  7th March 2018

  Thales rocket systems have undergone successful test firings using Airbus Helicopters’ HForce weapon management system, the former company announced on 5 March. Two test campaigns …

• Defence Helicopter

  Saudi Arabia requests continuation of MSS contract

  26th March 2018

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a potential foreign military sale to Saudi Arabia of continued maintenance support services (MSS), the Defense …

• Defence Helicopter

  ​USMC weighs up V-22 missile options

  3rd April 2018

  The USMC is considering placing forward facing missiles and rockets on its Bell-Boeing MV-22 Osprey fleet as it looks to bridge a current gap in escort capability. …

• Defence Notes

  Taliban vows 'serious revenge' over Afghan airstrike

  5th April 2018

  The Taliban has vowed to ‘take serious revenge’ after an Afghan airstrike in an area controlled by the militant group killed or wounded dozens of …

• Defence Helicopter

  Bell 407s to support MQ-8 Fire Scout UAS

  23rd March 2018

  Bell Helicopter has received a contract from the US Naval Air Systems Command to provide three Bell 407  helicopters to support MQ-8 Fire Scout UAS …

• Defence Helicopter

  Choules conducts flight trials for CH-47F

  29th March 2018

  The Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN)  landing ship dock HMAS Choules has conducted first of class flight trials for the CH-47F Chinook helicopter, the RAN announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  MBDA receives Brimstone CSP contract

  29th March 2018

  MBDA has received a £400 million contract from the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) for the Brimstone air-to-surface missile Capability Sustainment Programme (CSP), the company …

• Defence Helicopter

  US accelerates CV-22 stationing in Japan

  4th April 2018

  Five Bell-Boeing CV-22 Ospreys belonging to the USAF were unloaded from a ship at the port of Yokohama in Japan on 4 April.  This is significant because the …

• Digital Battlespace

  BIRD delivers nationwide C4I system

  28th March 2018

  BIRD Aerosystems has delivered a nationwide C4I system to an unnamed customer, the company announced on 26 March. The new system incorporates information from different …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA Global: Army could shift FVL focus to lighter option

  27th March 2018

  Army leaders may shift their Future Vertical Lift (FVL) focus to a lighter, attack reconnaissance helicopter in the wake of the Pentagon's new National Defense …

• Defence Helicopter

  KBRwyle to support NAWCAD

  22nd March 2018

  KBRwyle has received a contract to provide engineering and technical services to the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD), KBR announced on 19 March. …

• Naval Warfare

  Ocean waves farewell to UK Royal Navy service

  27th March 2018

  The UK Royal Navy’s former helicopter carrier HMS Ocean was decommissioned in a ceremony at Devonport naval base on 27 March, bringing an end to 20 …

• Naval Warfare

  Philippines receives final TC-90s from Japan

  26th March 2018

  Japan has completed delivery of all five second-hand Beechcraft King Air aircraft to the Philippines, with the final three planes participating in a turnover ceremony …

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 ...