• Naval Warfare

  TAGOS-25 surveillance ship design advances

  11th August 2023

  The design of seven new TAGOS-25 ocean surveillance ships for the USN's Military Sealift Command (MSC) is being developed by shipbuilder Austal USA.

• Training

  British Army resumes Ajax training as review criticises MoD procurement

  16th June 2023

  British Field Army units have resumed training on the beleaguered Ajax platform as a mammoth review into the procurement of the vehicle is made public.

• Air Warfare

  Poland receives first AW101 anti-submarine helicopter

  8th August 2023

  Leonardo has delivered the first of four AW101 Merlin maritime helicopters to Poland.

• Air Warfare

  A welcome observer? Workshare wrangles loom as Belgium joins SCAF future fighter effort

  12th September 2023

  Of the three major Western next-generation fighter programmes, the (arguably) French-led SCAF has received the least attention in English-speaking media. As Belgium gains observer status on the programme, what will this mean for the workshare arrangements between France, Germany and Spain?

• Special Operations

  UPDATED: Romania orders Polaris DAGOR special operations vehicles

  12th July 2023

  Polaris has been awarded a contract to provide 50 of its DAGOR ultralight tactical vehicles to Romania, joining other NATO countries such as Canada, the UK and US as operators.

• Naval Warfare

  Can a new operational profile fix Canada's submarine problem?

  20th September 2023

  The four Victoria-class diesel-electric attack submarines (SSKs) of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) are in the midst of an evolution into a new operations and maintenance regime. Shephard investigates whether this will solve the navy's recurring issues with having only one boat (or even none) operational for long periods.

• Land Warfare

  Elbit to supply surveillance radars to UK armed forces

  23rd May 2023

  The 90 portable Ground-Based Suveillance Radar units will feature capture software to monitor operator performance.

• Air Warfare

  Indonesia orders Anka UAVs from Turkiye

  3rd August 2023

  Indonesia becomes the eighth customer for the Anka, as Turkiye further cements its positions as a major supplier of UAVs.

• Air Warfare

  Elbit Systems to equip Philippine maritime patrol aircraft

  11th July 2023

  The Israeli company will integrate maritime patrol mission systems onto an ATR 72 turboprop for the Philippine Air Force.

• Naval Warfare

  Work starts on first Canadian Coast Guard Arctic patrol ship

  14th August 2023

  Construction on the first of two new patrol ships for the Canadian Coast Guard has started at Irving Shipbuilding in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

• Land Warfare

  UK weighs up tracked and wheeled options for Mobile Fires Platform artillery programme

  5th June 2023

  The business case for the British Army's Mobile Fires Platform artillery system will be submitted this summer with contenders including offerings from Hanwha, KMW, BAE Systems Bofors and Rheinmetall.

• Naval Warfare

  Canada advances second attempt at submarine support

  9th August 2023

  As the Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN’s) fleet of four Victoria-class submarines transitions to a new operational profile and maintenance cycle a new support regime for the boats is planned.

• Air Warfare

  BAE Systems FalconWorks air R&D division takes flight

  11th July 2023

  BAE Systems FalconWorks division's ambitious mission is to shape the future of aviation by pushing boundaries and delivering groundbreaking solutions for the UK and international customers.

• Air Warfare

  Honeywell urges Pratt & Whitney to share F-35 engine data or risk costly maintenance and reduced reliability

  21st September 2023

  'We're getting into a zone where [the engine and the cooling] are going to be out of phase with each other... which means you're going to have to take the [F-35] jet down twice for overhaul and replacement of systems,' Honeywell official tells Shephard.

• Air Warfare

  Return of the mach: MBDA positions itself to lead European counter-hypersonic development at Paris Air Show

  21st June 2023

  MBDA is leading a consortium of companies seeking to develop a counter-hypersonic interceptor over the next three years with the support of four European countries.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  Tanker Transport Aircraft [Thailand]

  Programme Background  The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) is on track to acquire their first transport tanker aircraft. The new aircraft will be designed to ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Amphibious Vehicles) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Logistics, Ammunition Carrier and Mortar Carrier Variants) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• Main battle tanks

  Main Battle Tank Upgrade [Australia]

  Programme Background Between 2006 and 2007, the Australian Army received 59 M1A1 AIM SA Abrams MBTs under Project Land 907 Phase 1. These vehicles were planned to ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Small UAV [Belgium]

  According to reports, the Belgian Land Force is set to launch various procurement programmes to expand and diversify its UAV fleet. One of these is ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Small UAV [Belgium]

  According to reports, the Belgian Land Force is set to launch various procurement programmes to expand and diversify its UAV fleet. One of these is ...

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

  DEF129 (Small UAS) [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement The Australian Army identified a need for a small UAS to provide an organic ISR capability to units operating at the tactical ...

• Military UAS - small

  Bug Nano UAS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army previously took delivery of 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS in 2013 to support operations in Afghanistan. After these ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Project Land 400 Phase 3 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement: 2015 RfI The Land 400 Phase 3 programme will procure a new tracked IFV to replace the Australian Army's legacy fleet of ...

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

  Bayraktar TB3 [Turkish Army]

  Background Land Forces Command Delivery In late October 2024, Haluk Bayraktar, Baykar's CEO, stated that the Bayraktar TB3 had entered mass production and could be exported ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Eitan 8x8 [Israel]

  Programme Background Due to the provisions of the US Foreign Military Financing (FMF) system, there is a chance that the Eitan could be mass produced ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  ACV - Additional Order 1 (US - USMC)

  Programme Background The Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) programme is intended to provide a replacement for the USMC's fleet of Amphibious Assault Vehicle 7 (AAV7) tracked ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Land Mobility Programme (Light Mobility Vehicle) [UK]

  This programme briefly introduces the wider Land Mobility Programme and then focuses on the Light Mobility Vehicle (LMV) programme. Information on the LPM and HPM can ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Land 400 Phase 2 - Boxer CRV [Australia]

  Programme Background History The Land 400 Phase 2 programme will procure a replacement for the ASLAV, a derivative of the General Dynamics Land Systems Light Armoured Vehicle ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  ACV - Additional Order 2 (US - USMC)

  Programme Background The Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) programme is intended to provide a replacement for the USMC's fleet of Amphibious Assault Vehicle 7 (AAV7) tracked ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Deployable Shelter Systems

  Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group provides integrated deployable shelters for C2, ground control of unmanned systems, C4ISTAR and laboratories. Examples include the Watchkeeper UAV GCS, ...

• Major networking projects

  Project Marshall

  The Joint Military Air Traffic Services project was initiated by the UK MoD in November 2005 to identify and evaluate options for the future delivery ...

• Deployable Hospital Systems

  Marshall has two types of deployable field hospitals. The first is a shelter-based solution, whose users include the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Mobile Deployable Hospital ...

• Land: vehicle surveillance/target acquisition systems

  Hawkeye Land Surveillance Systems

  Launched at DSEI 2015, the Chess Dynamics Hawkeye family of multi-sensor surveillance systems is designed to provide short- to extended-range optical surveillance and target acquisition ...

• Laser-directed energy weapons

  DragonFire

  DragonFire is a laser weapon system built for the UK MoD and manufactured by a consortium of manufacturers. The primary manufacturer is MBDA, though they ...

• Workshops

  Marshall offers a range of integrated, shelter-based workshops. These include several systems now in UK service: the Deployable Machine Shop fitted with the tools needed ...

• Patrol boats

  Guardian Class

  The Guardian-class Pacific Patrol Boats are being manufactured under the Pacific Patrol Boats Replacement project by the Australian shipbuilding company Austal. The project is aimed ...

• Transport

  C-130J Super Hercules

  The C-130J Super Hercules is the latest model of the C-130 Hercules four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft. The C-130J primarily performs the tactical portion of ...

• Land Ops

  ESS Land Ops goggles provide eye protection and fog-resistance for ground troops and are authorised by the US Army for use over prescription eyewear. Land ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Superav Land

  The Superav Land 8x8 is a modular vehicle with a large diameter turret ring that can be adjusted to fit a wide variety of remote-controlled ...

• Land: air defence radar, Land: indirect fire location radar

  KRONOS Land

  KRONOS is a mobile multifunctional C-band radar system designed by Leonardo to support air and coastal defence tactical operations.  The system simultaneously performs surveillance, dedicated target ...

• Land: soldier modernisation systems - national programmes

  Land 125

  In 1994, Australia initiated Project Wundurra to develop an integrated soldier combat system, and by 2005 this had evolved into the multi-phase Land 125 programme ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Land Ceptor

  MBDA Land Ceptor is a medium-to-long range ground-based air defence missile system based on the Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM) family of surface-to-air missiles developed ...

• Land: RWS

  RCG30

  The Mechatronics division of Denel Land Systems unveiled its RCG30 unmanned turret at the African Aerospace & Defence exhibition in September 2018. Armed with a ...

• Artillery rockets

  EXTRA

  EXTRA is an Israeli 306 mm GPS/INS guided artillery rocket developed by IMI (Now a subsidiary of Elbit Systems as Elbit Systems Land) for use ...