• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DSEI 2021: Blue Bear emphasises swarm control

  19th September 2021

  UK SME Blue Bear has put a 20-drone swarm through its paces.

• Digital Battlespace

  Singapore tests AI-powered command system

  23rd September 2021

  Singapore is developing and trying out ever more capable battlefield command systems.

• Training

  Familiar engine problem looms over new Russian trainer aircraft

  10th September 2021

  Where does development of the UTS-800 leave Russian MoD plans to buy the Yak-152 trainer aircraft?

• Training

  Red Flag ups the training ante

  5th August 2021

  The USAF has strengthened its 'red air' capabilities at Nellis AFB with the addition of F-35s flown by trained aggressor pilots.

• Air Warfare

  Indonesia awaits new-build Hercules

  14th September 2021

  New aircraft - including transport, air-to-air refuelling and amphibious aircraft - are on their way to Indonesia.

• Naval Warfare

  Silent Sentinel secures Mexican naval base coastal surveillance contract

  1st September 2021

  Silent Sentinel cameras will form part of a new Mexican coastal surveillance system.

• Naval Warfare

  Sperry Marine launches additional military layers for VisionMaster

  25th August 2021

  New features are designed to offer military functionality at a lower cost than traditional naval systems.

• Training

  JASDF seeks successor for the T-4 trainer jet

  19th August 2021

  Japan requires a new and modern trainer jet to train its pilots, with perhaps 200+ to enter service.

• Training

  Saab ships second Red Hawk airframe section to Boeing

  27th July 2021

  On completion of the Engineering and Manufacturing Development phase of the T-7A trainer aircraft programme for the USAF, Saab will undertake production of aft airframe sections as its new US facility.

• Land Warfare

  PLA fields new artillery systems and a ‘Chinese LARC’

  4th August 2021

  The range of rocket and tube artillery systems in PLA service continues to grow from an already impressive and diverse foundation.

• Land Warfare

  Germany places record order for laser light modules

  21st July 2021

  Framework contract for Rheinmetall could see delivery of up to 130,000 LLM-VarioRay laser light modules by the late 2020s.

• Land Warfare

  UK IPA report shows some acquisition improvements

  20th July 2021

  Recent IPA annual reports have been a roll call of MoD failings but the latest version could see procurement turning a corner for the better — aside from the Ajax project.

• Naval Warfare

  Full “Sense-to-Effect” Torpedo Countermeasure Capability (Sponsored Whitepaper)

  27th July 2021

  For over a hundred years submarines have lurked beneath the waves, providing a silent and current threat to surface shipping, both commercial and military. During World War I, the sinking of the RMS Lusitania by a torpedo fired from a German U-Boat showed the tactical advantages of having an underwater capability in maritime operations.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  USAF tests new autonomy core aboard MQ-20 Avenger

  1st July 2021

  The test flight was designed to showcase the modularity, portability, and scalability of the Skyborg autonomy core system (ACS).

• Training

  Draken and Collins to boost UK collective air training

  14th July 2021

  Collins Aerospace and Draken Europe are working together to boost the UK's live collective aviation training but Draken might have other targets in its sights.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - micro

  Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) (Tranche 2) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  Background The Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) programme The RPUAS programme will provide the battalion and below-ground manoeuvre elements within the US Army with an organic, ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  T-X / T-7A Red Hawk [USAF]

  Background On 27 September 2018, it was announced that the Boeing-Saab team had been awarded a contract for the programme. The initial contract was worth $813 million ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Edge 130 [US]

  Programme Background First Order As reported by Shephard, In October 2024, the US Customs and Border Protection force submitted a $1.6 million order to acquire Edge ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Teal 2 (Customs and Border Protection Force) [US]

  Programme Background First Order Global News Wire reported that Red Cat had filled an order for 54 Teal 2 units from the US Customs and ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [Nigeria]

  Programme Background Rumours On 11 October 2021, Bello Matawalle, the Governor of Zamfara State, stated that several companies had signed an MoU with the Nigerian Government. ...

• Trainer

  Hawk Trainer Replacement [UK]

  Background The UK has outlined plans to replace the country's Hawk T1 and Hawk T2 trainers, allowing the aircraft to be retired. The Hawk T1 ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Golden Eagle (Ukraine Aid) [NATO Member]

  Programme Background 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the usage and effectiveness of micro and mini UAV platforms ...

• Loitering munitions

  Long-Range Attack Munition (LRAM) [USMC]

  Background Force Design 2030 The USMC Force Design 2030 is a modernisation effort to create a lighter, more agile maritime force. The update to the ...

• Military UAS - small

  Penguin [Ukraine]

  Background Long-Standing Deal Red Wire announced in September 2025 that its wholly owned subsidiary, Edge Autonomy, had delivered additional aircraft from its Penguin uncrewed aerial system ...

• Loitering munitions

  Red Dragon [US Army]

  Methodology Unit cost Based on the loitering munition’s maximum speed and payload, and a Shephard model, the estimated gross and flyaway unit cost of the ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Akinci [Ethiopia]

  Programme Background On 15 November 2023, SavunmaSanayiST reported that Baykar had exported its Akinci drone to Ethiopia due to a photograph which showed the drone featuring an ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Akinci [Libya]

  Programme Background 2022 Reports In October 2022, various Libyan media outlets reported that the country was eyeing a possible procurement from Baykar, possibly the Akinici ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [Mali]

  Programme Background Six Drones On 22 December 2022, Joseph Dempsey, a research associate at IISS, tweeted photographs showing a Baytraktar TB2 adorned with the Malian ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M-Forecast [Indonesia]

  Programme Background The TNI-AU currently relies on 17 Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules and L-100-30 aircraft, including five C-130Hs transferred from Australia. Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) is ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  Light Attack/Trainer Aircraft [Serbia]

  Programme Background Serbia is looking to purchase around 20 light attack/trainer aircraft to replace its ageing Soko J-22 and G-4 trainer fleet in service. In ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Surface-to-air missiles

  HHQ-10 / FL-3000N

  The Hai Hong Qi-10 (Naval Red Flag-10), or HHQ-10 for short, is a Chinese naval surface-to-air missile. Its export version is the Flying Leopard 3000 ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Aleksandar Unifier

  The Aleksandar Unifier is an armoured 4x4 that was unveiled at a Serbian military parade to commemorate the Day of Serbian Unity, Freedom, and the National ...

• Military - USVs

  Voyager

  Voyager is an Uncrewed Surface Vessel (USV) built by US-based Saildrone. Voyager has been used by the US Navy (USN) and is one of three ...

• Subsystems: software

  Network Defense Trainer

  The Scalable Network Defense Trainer is an LVC simulation system for delivering realistic hands-on cyber training. It enables students to experience cyber attacks launched against ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-20 Avenger

  The MQ-20 Avenger, or Predator C, is a long-endurance UAS designed to perform high-speed, covert ISR and precision-strike missions over land or sea. The UAV is ...

• Naval: COMINT and ELINT systems

  Seal Family

  The naval ESM Seal family can provide: self-protection functions, with the capability to drive active ECM equipment (jammers) or passive ECM equipment (chaff/flares) automatically; tactical ...

• Military UAS - mini

  WingXpand

  Unveiled at the Special Operations Force Industry Conference in May 2022, the WingXpand is a fixed-wing platform manufactured by a company with the same name. Branded ...

• Weapon sights for day use

  Romeo Red Dot Sights

  The Romeo line of red dot sights are parallax-free and feature (MOTAC) motion-activated illuminated glass reticles. The dual reticle option, on select models, toggles between ...

• Laser pointers

  Lima Laser Sights

  Lima red and green laser fore grips are low-profile rail-mounted laser sights. The laser operates in momentary-on mode, with an additional continuous mode on the ...

• Unguided Mortar Ammunition

  81mm Infra-Red Illumination Mortar Bomb

  Austrian company Hirtenberger's 81mm Illumination-Infra-Red Mk5 (81mm ILL-IR Mk5) is an infra-red-light generating mortar bomb designed to provide illumination over a wide area.

• Military UAS - micro

  Fang

  Fang is a first-person view (FPV) UAS for precision strike roles. The drone is aimed to launch in Q2 2025. Developed by Red Cat, the drone ...

• Unguided Mortar Ammunition

  60mm Illumination - IR

  Austrian company Hirtenberger's 60mm Illumination - Infra-Red Mk2-S (60mm ILL-IR Mk2-S) is designed to illuminate a large area with infra-red light for a prolonged period.

• Multipurpose missiles

  Red Arrow 73

  The Red Arrow 73, also known as the HJ-73, was a copy of the Russian 9M14 Malyutka. The Red Arrow 73 was China's first-generation antitank ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Black Widow

  The Black Widow is a rotary-wing micro UAV from Red Cat. Unveiled at AUSA 2024, the AI-enabled drone is designed for instant ISR tasks and ...

• Unguided Mortar Ammunition

  120mm IR Illumination Mk2 Mortar Bomb

  Austrian company Hirtenberger's 120mm Infra-Red Illumination Mk2 (120mm IR-VIS Mk2) mortar bomb is to illuminate large areas with visible light for a prolonged period—the round works ...