• Defence Notes

  China becomes fourth-largest arms exporter

  18th March 2014

  China has become the world’s fourth largest weapons exporter amid continued growth in international arms sales, according to a new study by Sweden-based think-tank SIPRI.  …

• Defence Helicopter

  Russia stages helicopter exercises near Ukraine border

  18th March 2014

  The Russian army started a new round of military exercises close to the border with Ukraine on 17 March. Held at a training center in …

• Naval Warfare

  Russia moves to enhance maritime security

  17th March 2014

  The Russian government is considering a set of measures to enhance the level of security in its ports, amid the ever-deteriorating geopolitical environment and the …

• Land Warfare

  On the brink: Russia completes military exercises

  4th March 2014

  Russia’s army has completed a set of military exercises on the Ukrainian border and its forces remain on standby. The exercises that ran from 26 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Afghanistan receives additional Mi-17s

  14th February 2014

  Russia has commenced delivery of a new batch of Mi-17 Helicopters to Afghanistan, as part of a controversial contract with the Pentagon to supply an …

• Naval Warfare

  Defexpo 2014: TKMS competes for Indian naval programmes

  9th February 2014

  ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems is engaging in India on two submarine programmes – the Project P-75(I) diesel-electric acquisition and the Shishumar-class (Type 209/1500) upgrade. A spokesman …

• Land Warfare

  First five Oplot tanks for Thai Army arrive in country

  7th February 2014

  The delivery of Oplot Main Battle Tanks (MBT) to the Kingdom of Thailand by Ukraine continues to progress with the arrival of the first five …

• Land Warfare

  Defexpo 2014: Saab teams up for air defence

  7th February 2014

  Saab has teamed with Bharat Forge to pursue Indian Army procurement programmes for air defence systems, the company has revealed. Saab announced the move at …

• Land Warfare

  Defexpo 2014: MBDA Mistral awaits VSHORADS progress

  6th February 2014

  MBDA is displaying its Mistral MANPAD system at the Defexpo in Delhi as the company awaits a decision on the Indian Army’s Very Short Range …

• Digital Battlespace

  SGA14: Asian EW threat set to evolve

  6th February 2014

  The future of EW in the Asia-Pacific is going to evolve past the traditional threats and into an uncontrollable, networked cyber realm, a senior EW …

• Naval Warfare

  Defexpo 2014: DCNS updates on Indian sub programme

  4th February 2014

  French shipbuilder, DCNS, has announced that the first Scorpene submarine built under licence by Mazagon Docks (MDL) will be commissioned in 2015. Issued in a …

• Defence Helicopter

  HeliVert to produce commercial AW139 helicopters

  31st January 2014

  Russian Helicopters and AgustaWestland joint venture, HeliVert, has been given the go-ahead to produce the AW139 commercial helicopter. The Register of the Interstate Aviation Committee …

• Land Warfare

  Syrian negotiations limited by military stalemate

  29th January 2014

  Expectations remain low of a fruitful outcome at the UN-sponsored international summit in Geneva, Switzerland that is aimed at ending the grinding three-year civil war …

• Naval Warfare

  New Zealand joins anti-piracy effort

  22nd January 2014

  A frigate from the Royal New Zealand Navy is set to join NATO’s anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden, for three weeks from 23 …

• Land Warfare

  Ukrainian army plans modernisation

  20th January 2014

  The Ukrainian army is set to undertake an extensive rearmament programme from 2017 that will include the purchase of new equipment and modernisation of their existing …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - MALE

  Akinci [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Two Export Contracts In January 2022, the Daily Sabah reported that Baykar had "recently" signed its first export contract for the Akinci. Haluk Bayraktar ...

• Loitering munitions

  Deep-strike, low-cost, loitering munition [Ukraine]

  Background 30,000 On 2 December 2024, Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov told Reuters that Ukraine was targeting the production of 30,000 deep-strike loitering munitions in 2025. Three ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Heavy Lift Helicopter [Philippines]

  Programme Background Procurement from Russia In November 2021, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed that a contract had been signed to acquire 16 Mi-171 heavy ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Vector / Scorpion (Selected) [Ukraine]

  Programme Background 500 Systems Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Quantum-Systems has provided many drones to Ukraine. Over 400 units have been provided as aid ...

• Military UAS - mini

  SkyRanger R70 (Ukraine Aid) [Canada]

  Programme Background On 19 February 2024, the Canadian Defence Minister, Bill Blair, announced that the country would donate more than 800 SkyRanger R70 UAVs to ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T- Air Force [India]

  Programme Background India had operated a diverse and antiquated fleet of helicopters to support its high-altitude operations along contested borders with China and Pakistan. Reducing ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T - Army [India]

  Programme Background India had operated a diverse and antiquated fleet of helicopters to support its high-altitude operations along contested borders with China and Pakistan. Reducing ...

• Military UAS - small

  T-150 (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Programme Background Virtual Address On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. On 3 May 2022, the UK's Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, virtually addressed the Ukrainian ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Black Hornet 3 (Ukraine Aid) [UK & Norway]

  Programme Background Russo-Ukraine War Since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, UAVs have proved vital to the country's defence. Consequently, as in this programme, the ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Quantix Recon (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background April Meeting In mid-April, just shy of two months after Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, the Ambassador and the Defence Attaché at the Embassy of Ukraine met ...

• Main battle tanks

  Merkava Mk3 [Cyprus]

  Programme Background Following the announced donation of 41 T-80U/UK tanks to Ukraine, Cyprus is actively seeking a replacement MBT for its Armed Forces. Cyprus offered ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  S-400 [India]

  Background India is modernising its air defence by procuring  S-400 LRSAM systems (Triumf Missile System), which are planned to be used by the Air Force.  The fifth system ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leopard 2A8 [Germany]

  Background Germany has operated the domestically produced Krauss-Maffei Wegmann Leopard 2 since its inception in the 1970s. Spanning now eight versions, the Leopard 2A8 is the latest ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Next Generation Fighter Aircraft (Vietnam)

  Programme Background Requirement The Vietnam People's Air Force (VPAF) operates an ageing fleet of Su-22 aircraft as well as Su-27s and Su-30s. According to expert commentary, ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Su-35 Egypt

  Background Contract signature In 2019, it was reported that Egypt had signed a contract at the end of 2018 for "several dozen" Su-35 multirole fighter ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Main battle tanks

  T-80UD

  The 125mm-armed T-80UD MBT is a variant of the T-80 which was in production in Ukraine when the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. An ...

• Loitering munitions

  AQV 100 Scalpel

  The AQV 100 Scalpel, or AQV-100, is a low-cost loitering munition manufactured by One Way Aerospace.  The drone is operated using a first-person view and ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Mini 2

  The Mini 2 is a micro rotary-wing drone from DJI. It features a 3-axis gimbaled 12MP camera for photographs and 4k/30fps for video capture. Shephard believes ...

• Transport

  An-140

  The An-140 is a light turboprop military transport aircraft developed from the An-140 regional airliner, which first flew in September 1997. It is designed to ...

• Air: sonar systems

  VGS-3

  The VGS-3 is a dipping sonar for the Ka-27/Ka-28 helicopter developed by the State Enterprise Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Hydrodevices.

• Loitering munitions

  Shahed-236

  The Shahed-236, or MC 236, is a successor to the Shahed-126. It is a loitering munition designed in Iran. The drone was presented to Russia in ...

• Fighter - air superiority

  MiG-29

  The MiG-29 (NATO reporting name Fulcrum) is an air superiority fighter aircraft designed to engage air targets in any weather, day and night.  The production ...

• Loitering munitions

  FP-5 Flamingo

  The FP-5 Flamingo is a ground-launched UAV system/cruise missile developed and manufactured by Fire Point. The system is designed to engage ground targets and is ...

• Fighter - ground attack

  Su-25

  The Su-25 (NATO reporting name Frogfoot) is a single-seat ground attack aircraft developed for close combat air support missions. Production of the Su-25 began in ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Orlan-10/10E

  Developed by the Russia-based Special Technology Center, the Orlan-10 is a medium-range UAS with many variants, such as the 10E, an export version introduced in 2017. The ...

• Air-to-surface missiles

  Kh-59/Kh-59E

  The Kh-59, designated by NATO as the AS-13 "Kingbolt," is a TV command-guided air-launched cruise missile. It has been offered on the export market as Kh-59E.

• Land: coastal surveillance radars

  Predel-E

  The Predel-E is a coastal surveillance radar produced by Russian manufacturer Concern Morinformsystem-Agat JSC. The system is intended as an over-the-horizon surveillance system, designed to ...

• Artillery rockets

  9M55

  9M55 is a family of 300 mm artillery rockets developed for the BM-30 Uragan MLRS developed by the Soviet Union.

• Military UAS - mini

  Matrice 300 RTK

  The Matrice 300 RTK is a rotary-wing UAV manufactured by DJI. Despite being primarily aimed at industrial applications, militaries utilise it for ISR tasks.  In ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  SURA HMTDS

  SURA is a helmet-mounted display system produced in Ukraine. Notably, it offers off-boresight acquisition capability to pilots and can cue the aircraft's sensor systems using ...