• Defence Helicopter

  Leonardo signs UK Wildcat support deal

  10th January 2017

  Leonardo Helicopters will continue supporting the UK’s Wildcat helicopter fleet under a £271 million contract with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 9 January. …

• Defence Helicopter

  The year ahead: The Asia-Pacific region

  5th January 2017

  Within the Asia-Pacific region the year just passed was pretty much dominated by the machinations of one country – China – and there is little …

• Defence Helicopter

  The Year Ahead: Military helicopter market

  4th January 2017

  Recent global events have starkly cast the reduction in military spending across the Western world in the past six or seven years in a fresh …

• Defence Helicopter

  Ka-226T production for India moved to Siberia

  4th January 2017

  Russian Helicopters has announced plans to set up a second production line for the Ka-226T at the Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant (U-UAP) in eastern Siberia. It …

• Defence Helicopter

  AHM achieves G Inspection

  3rd January 2017

  Airbus Helicopters Malaysia has carried out a G Inspection of a Southern Vietnam Helicopter (VNHS) AS332 L2 helicopter, the company announced on 29 December. VNHS …

• Defence Helicopter

  Serbia takes nine H145Ms

  3rd January 2017

  Airbus Helicopters and the Serbian government have signed for nine H145Ms. The aircraft will be received by the Serbian Air Force and Police. The order for …

• Defence Helicopter

  TUM developing new simulation software

  2nd January 2017

  The Technical University of Munich (TUM) is developing new simulation software to improve helicopter pilot training for extreme flight conditions. Turbulent air flows near oil …

• Defence Helicopter

  Spain receives Tiger HAD/E helicopter

  30th December 2016

  The first Tiger HAD/E helicopter in Block 2 configuration was delivered to the Spanish Army in mid-December, OCCAR has announced. The new helicopter will join …

• Defence Helicopter

  Luftwaffe SF to join army and navy

  27th December 2016

  German H145M Light Utility Helicopter Special Operations Forces (LUH SOF) crews will become part of the Bundeswehr's special forces as of 1 April 2017 as …

• Defence Helicopter

  Kongsberg, Leonardo ink agreements

  27th December 2016

  Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace will provide maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of dynamic components on NH90 and AW101 helicopters under agreements signed with Leonardo on 22 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Rockwell Collins partners with Taqnia

  27th December 2016

  Rockwell Collins and Taqnia Aeronautics will collaborate on military rotary and fixed wing avionics opportunities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia under an agreement announced …

• Defence Helicopter

  Panther prowls in the Middle East

  26th December 2016

  With a long history in the Middle East, Airbus Helicopters could see the newest variant of the Panther being utilised by current operators of the …

• Defence Helicopter

  Airbus continues US Army UH-72A support

  23rd December 2016

  Airbus Helicopters will support the US Army's UH-72A Lakota fleet of utility and training helicopters under a Contractor Logistics Support contract announced on 21 December. …

• Defence Helicopter

  Russia moves rotary from Syrian airbase

  23rd December 2016

  The key T4 airbase in Syria, a perceived next target for Daesh in its operations in Syria, could be emptied of Russian aircraft and moved …

• Defence Helicopter

  Myanmar bulks up on helicopters and aircraft

  23rd December 2016

  The Myanmar Air Force inducted four Airbus Helicopters H120 rotorcraft in a ceremony to mark the service’s 69th anniversary on 15 December.  These are believed …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F -Kenya

  Crew transition training took place at the MD Helicopters headquarters in Mesa, Arizona, with field service support, armament, and gunnery training scheduled to occur at ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  MD 530G - Malaysia

  Procured for an urgent operational requirement for gunships to support Eastern Sabah Security Command operations, helicopter deliveries had to slip from a planned delivery of ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Uncrewed MD 500 Replacement [South Korea]

  Background Uncrewed Replacement of the MD 500 Throughout the 2010s, South Korea appeared interested in replacing its fleet of crewed MD 500 helicopters that were manufactured under licence ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Project Land 2097 Phase 4 [Australia]

  Programme Background According to the RfI, under Project Land 2097 Phase 4, the selected helicopter must comprise a commercial or military off-the-shelf solution that is ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD-530G [Lebanon]

  Background Order context The Lebanese MD-530 order was placed during a visit of US Central Command Commander General Joseph Votel in December 2017.  MD 530F ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  US Air Force Air Base Defence Missile Defence [US]

  Background The US Air Force's (USAF) Air Base Air Defence Missile Defence (ABAD MD) programme is part of the Air Force Physical Security System and sits ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) First Batch (South Korea)

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Army)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Navy)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (Second Batch) [South Korea]

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton [Germany]

  Background Global Hawk Early in the development of the Global Hawk, the German MoD also expressed interest in procuring the aircraft as a replacement for ...

• 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 - multirole

  Multirole Helicopters [Poland]

  Programme Background In 2020, Poland announced the launch of the Perkoz programme to acquire 32 support helicopters to replace its fleet of Mi-2 aircraft stationed ...

• 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 - transport/heavy lift

  H225M [France]

  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 Puma ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F Cayuse Warrior

  An evolution of the OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopter, the MD 530F was initially Federal Aviation Administration-certified in July 1985 as the Model 369FF. It ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  MDHI Glass Cockpit

  The American aerospace manufacturer MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI) has designed and developed a glass cockpit specifically for MD 500E AND MD 520N aircraft. It is ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 500

  US-based MD Helicopters' MD 500 is a single-engine light helicopter derived from the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse developed for the US Army in the early 1960s and ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  IDU-680

  The IDU-680 is Genesys Aerosystems’ 3D synthetic vision integrated Electronic Flight Instrument System. The system includes a Highway in the Sky navigation system, geo-referenced hover ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN HMP

  The FN HMP (Heavy Machine Gun Pod) is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a 50cal FN M3P heavy machine gun. It is available ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530G

  The MD 530G is the newest addition to the MD Helicopters (MDHI) line of light scout attack platforms. It has increased-capacity landing gear and a ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  KUS-VH

  The Korean Air Korean Air Unmanned System-Vertical Helicopter (KUS-VH) is a large, rotary-wing UAV based on the MD 500. The first flight of the platform ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  6XX

  Publicly unveiled at Heli-Expo in March 2017, the MD Helicopters 6XX is the next evolution in the MD 500 series and is a redesigned, single-engine ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C30

  The M250-C30 and -C30P are the exclusive powerplants for the Bell 206L-4 LongRanger and the MD Helicopters MD 530F and MD 530G. In addition, the AH-6i is ...

• EO/IR systems

  LEO-III

  The LEO-III, or LEO-III HD, was an airborne observation system with HD sensors and video outputs. It was a COTS, gyro-stabilised platform containing a multi-sensor HD ...

• Airborne rockets - unguided

  Aculeus MD-36 and MD-432

  The Aculeus MD-36 unguided multi-dart rocket provides 36 darts for the neutralisation of columns of light armoured vehicles. The Aculeus MD-432 provides 432 darts to ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C47E

  The C47E is the latest growth variant of the C47B/8 engine. In addition to a hot-and-high Value Improvement Package Kit, the C47E also includes dual-channel ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  MD-1366 EBEM

  The US government selected the MD-1366 Enhanced Bandwidth Efficient Modem (EBEM) from ViaSat to set the DoD standard for high-speed, high-performance,flexibility and compatibility in a ...

• EO/IR systems

  Wescam MX-10

  The Wescam MX-10 EO/IR low-weight imaging system is designed for low-altitude tactical surveillance and reconnaissance missions from crewed and uncrewed aircraft. The MX-10 has had a close ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT)

  The Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT) is an in-development UAV from Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) based on an MD 500 twin-seat American commercial helicopter airframe. With the ...