• Defence Helicopter

  Elbit Systems announces DCoMPASS follow-on order

  7th October 2013

  Elbit Systems Electro-optics Elop will supply its Digital Compact Multi Purpose Advanced Stabilized System (DCoMPASS) electro-optical (EP) payload systems to the air force of an …

• Digital Battlespace

  RAF considers Tornado simulator extension

  7th October 2013

  As the RAF’s GR-4 Tornado simulator celebrates ten years in service, military and industry are considering ways to extend the life of the system to …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  US Army to use LTAS aerostats during NIE 14.1

  4th October 2013

  Trailer-mounted aerostat launcher systems supplied by Lighter Than Air Systems (LTAS) will be used during the US Army’s Network Integration Experiment (NIE) 14.1 to provide …

• Digital Battlespace

  US Army EMARSS programme transfers to PEO Aviation

  2nd October 2013

  The US Army’s Enhanced Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System (EMARSS) programme has been transferred to the US Army’s Program Executive Office (PEO) Aviation, where …

• Land Warfare

  US Army orders Mantis i23 gimbaled sensor payloads

  2nd October 2013

  The US Army has ordered Mantis i23 gimbaled sensor payloads from AeroVironment for its fleet of RQ-11B Raven unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). The contract, worth …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop Grumman powers up MQ-8C Fire Scout

  24th September 2013

  The MQ-8C Fire Scout UAV is inching closer to deployment with the US Navy following initial ground testing and engine runs at Naval Base Ventura …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  High five for Phantom Eye

  20th September 2013

  Boeing Phantom Works has conducted the fifth flight test of its Phantom Eye HALE demonstrator, which saw the UAV reach an altitude of 28,000ft. The …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop Grumman details Triton radar development progress

  19th September 2013

  Northrop Grumman is in the midst of risk-reduction tests of the Multi-Function Active Sensor (MFAS) to be installed on the US Navy’s Triton unmanned aircraft …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Aurora announces Orion UAS’ first flight

  18th September 2013

  The Orion unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) being developed by Aurora Flight Sciences successfully completed its first flight on 24 August. The company announced the news …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Bluefin AUVs integrated with new sonar payload

  18th September 2013

  Bluefin Robotics’ autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) are now able to be integrated with the L-3 Klein UUV-3500 Side Scan Sonar payload. The new payload is …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Government body calls for Reaper transparency

  16th September 2013

  A UK government official representing the ‘All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Drones’ has challenged the Ministry of Defence’s use of armed UAVs, calling for …

• Digital Battlespace

  Australia tests SeaVue radar for environmental monitoring

  16th September 2013

  Raytheon has demonstrated the capability of an upgraded SeaVue radar on board an Australian Customs and Border Protection Service (ACBPS) Dash 8 maritime surveillance aircraft. …

• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2013: FLIR displays SeaFLIR 280-HD

  13th September 2013

  FLIR Systems is displaying the SeaFLIR 280-HD, a stabilised compact HD multi-sensor marinised imaging system for surveillance and targeting applications.  ‘SeaFLIR 280-HD is the only …

• Digital Battlespace

  DSEI 2013: L-3 furthers EW products

  13th September 2013

  The third generation of L-3 Linkabit’s PRD-13(V)3 electronic support measures system has completed field trials in a tactical on-the-march (OTM) configuration ahead of delivery to …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Selex ES announces new Falco UAS contract

  11th September 2013

  Selex ES has announced that it will supply its Falco unmanned aerial system (UAS) to an unnamed country in the Middle East. The €40 million …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• ISR/special mission

  MC-27J [Algeria]

  Programme Background Algeria has a long standing ISR aircraft requirement to support its Beech 1900 fleet comprised of six aircraft. The new ISR fleet is ...

• ISR/special mission

  C-208B ISR [Tunisia]

  Programme Background Requirement The acquisition of the C-208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft is part of Tunisia’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its ISR capabilities in response ...

• ISR/special mission

  King Air 350ER ISR [Kuwait]

  Programme Background In February 2018, the US State Department has approved an estimated $259m potential foreign military sale of King Air 350ER intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance ...

• Military UAS - mini

  U&C reconnaissance drones [US Army]

  Methodology PGO The programme has been assigned a PGO of 100%, as a contract has been awarded. Unit cost It has not been clarified what ...

• Military UAS - small

  Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC) [UK]

  Programme Background Requirement & Objective The RN identified a requirement to acquire an RPAS to transport cargo and supplies between ships and personnel. When mature, it ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  Long-Endurance UAV [US AFRICOM]

  Programme Background Ageing MQ-9A Reapers In November 2022, Shephard reported that GA-ASI would continue supporting contractor SMX with its MQ-9A after winning a $2.3 billion task ...

• Military UAS - small

  Black Hornet 3 PRS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army operated approximately 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS between 2013 and 2017, when the decision was made to retire ...

• ISR/special mission

  Shadow R1 [UK]

  Background The RAF is moving forward with an ambitious plan to transform its intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) force to enable greater interoperability ...

• ISR/special mission

  Baekdu-II [South Korea]

  Programme Background This ISR aircraft programme, which first appeared on the 2020-24 Mid-Term Defense Acquisition Plan, comprises four Baekdu-II aircraft. These will add to two ...

• Military UAS - mini

  ISR Drones (First Batch) (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background First Batch On 20 March 2024, Kajsa Ollongren, Minister of Defence of the Netherlands, announced that, following a 19 March Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) meeting, ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Drone Action Plan (Ukraine Aid) [Netherlands]

  Programme Background APOS On 6 October 2024, the Dutch Minister of Defense, Ruben Brekelmans, visited Kharkiv and Kyiv. During his visit to Ukraine, he announced a new ...

• ISR/special mission

  King Air 350ER -Canada

  Background Canadian Special Forces was looking to procure ISR aircraft to support their missions both overseas and domestically.  There were few Canadian suppliers to sell the ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A add-on [Canada]

  Programme Background Canadian Air Force is operating 15 C-3P (Canadian designation CP-140) special mission aircraft in service. They were acquired between 1980-91 and expected to ...

• Military UAS - small

  Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) services [USN]

  Background ISR services In April 2026, several companies announced that the USN had selected them to provide Contractor-Owned, Contractor-Operated (COCO) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  A-29 Super Tucano Afghanistan

  Media reports suggest that with the hourly cost of $1000, the A-29 is a successful platform for counter-insurgency missions. Its operational capability from unprepared airstrips, ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - tactical

  Zeus

  The Zeus is an Argentine tactical-class UAV from Aerotec, in partnership with its Polish technology partner, Ekolot Aerospace & Defense (EAD). The aircraft is modular and ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Silent Falcon

  The Silent Falcon is a solar-electric sUAS with long-endurance capabilities for extended-range missions. The UAS can be used for commercial and military applications. The entire ...

• Military UAS - small

  Jackal

  The Jackal is a small UAV manufactured by FLY BVLOS, Flyby Technology and Maxwell Innovations. The system features a plug-and-play system, meaning new equipment and technologies can be ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Delta

  The Delta is a UAV with a VTOL capability before rotating and operating as a conventional fixed-wing aircraft when airborne.  Manufactured by Fly BVLOS, Nigeria was expected ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Indago

  Indago is a small quadrotor UAV with VTOL. It is equipped with a large-screen handset and is marketed as 'whisper-quiet' with a noise level of ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Canary

  Volatus Aerospace has stated that its civilian Canary rotary-wing cargo-carrying UAV can be adapted for military use in last-mile resupply operations.  Payloads are housed internally ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ENVOY

  The ENVOY is a multi-mission rotary-wing UAV with a tandem-rotor design and a payload carrying capacity of 180kg. General Dynamics renamed the system ENVOY in mid-2025.  ...

• Air: UAS radar

  EchoFlight

  The Echoflight radar by Echodyne is a Lightweight Metamaterials ESA (MESA®), a Detect-and-Avoid (DAA) 4D radar designed for mid-sized UAVs flying below the visual line of sight (BVLOS) ...

• UAS: communication systems

  muLTElink

  Produced by uAvionix, the muLTElink is a multiple-link airborne radio system designed for uncrewed platforms in particular. It combines C-Band, LTE, ISM and Viasat L-Band communications, ...

• Land: battle management systems

  AIMS-ISR

  AIMS-ISR is a software package used to process the video footage and data gathered from the cameras and other sensors fitted to airborne, ground-based and ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Ageon ISR

  Ageon ISR is a multi-INT C2/PED solution supporting cross-domain collection, ingestion, processing, exploitation and dissemination from tactical units to the global enterprise and cloud. Ageon ...

• Military UAS - mini

  DrN-15 (series)

  The DrN-15 is a hexacopter mini-UAV from ST Engineering. The platform is highly customizable and can carry various payloads depending on a user's requirements.  All DrN ...

• Military UAS - small

  Nauru 500C

  The Nauru 500C ISR is a VTOL-capable small fixed-wing UAV from Xmobots. Designed for ISR missions, the UAV features XSIS-EO and XSIS-EOLWIR stabilised sensors. The UAV features ...

• Military UAS - small

  Outlaw SeaHunter

  Outlaw UAVs are used by military and research agencies for training, testing, data collection and system development. In the 114-137kg maximum take-off weight class, SeaHunter ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Viper 1000C

  The Viper 1000C is a fixed-wing MALE UAS. Designed to carry EO/IR sensors over vast distances, it can be employed in a wide variety of ...