• Defence Notes

  Typhoon trials Brimstone

  15th March 2017

  The Royal Air Force's (RAF) Eurofighter Typhoon has successfully completed a new series of flight trials with MBDA's Brimstone air-to-surface weapon at BAE Systems' site …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop poised to support German Triton bid

  9th March 2017

  Northrop Grumman has confirmed that Germany will select the US Navy's MQ-4 Triton in a move that will see it effectively replace the cancelled Euro …

• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus adds Intelsat General as Skynet partner

  9th March 2017

  Intelsat General has become the newest company to join Airbus Defence and Space's channel partner programme for Skynet 5 military satellite communication services, Airbus announced …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GA-ASI selects Hughes for Predator B RPA

  8th March 2017

  Hughes Network Systems has been selected to work on the satellite communications system for the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) Type Certifiable Predator B UAS, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Salamandre HF waveform ready

  8th March 2017

  Thales is completing the development of a new 4G advanced waveform for high-frequency (HF) radio systems.The new wideband technology is designated as HF XL and …

• Digital Battlespace

  Lockheed receives fifth AEHF payload

  7th March 2017

  Northrop Grumman has delivered the fifth payload for the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) programme to Lockheed Martin, the company announced on 6 March.The payload …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  ​Heli-Expo 2017: VSR700 ready to fly

  7th March 2017

  The shipborne VSR700, a unmanned helicopter VTOL system, is fast approaching its first flight without a safety pilot.The aircraft is derived from a light civil …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Avalon 2017: ADF progresses UAV capability

  6th March 2017

  Australia's latest acquisition - the Schiebel Camcopter S-100 system - was on display at the Avalon Air Show near Melbourne, where the three branches of …

• Defence Helicopter

  Heli-Expo 2017: Thales sees avionics decline

  3rd March 2017

  The well-publicised depression in the helicopter market is having a knock-on effect for companies across the supply chain, not least those that provide high-end electronics …

• Digital Battlespace

  Estonia, Spain join EU SatCom Market

  3rd March 2017

  Spain and Estonia have joined the European Defence Agency's (EDA's) EU SatCom Market project, becoming the 21st and 22nd members to join the initiative, the …

• Naval Warfare

  McMurdo awarded UK SAR upgrade contract

  3rd March 2017

  McMurdo has been awarded a contract by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to enhance its search and rescue (SAR) satellite technology, the company …

• Land Warfare

  Avalon 2017: Thales preps protected vehicles

  3rd March 2017

  Thales Australia displayed Bushmaster and Hawkei protected vehicles at the Avalon Air Show, including a Bushmaster demonstrator aimed at the British Army's Multi-Role Vehicle - …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Stratobus prepares for lift-off

  2nd March 2017

  Thales Alenia Space is on course to fly a full-scale prototype of its Stratobus high-altitude 'drone satellite' by 2020, with a sub-scale demonstrator expected to …

• Defence Helicopter

  Avalon 2017: NorthStar offers Australia an alternative

  1st March 2017

  NorthStar Aviation is offering the Australian Defence Force (ADF) an alternative solution to meet its requirement for a deployable light attack and reconnaissance helicopter for …

• Training

  Scott AFB using C-130H Hercules FuT

  27th February 2017

  A new ground aeromedical evacuation (AE) fuselage trainer (FuT) has entered service at US Scott Air Force Base, putting into use a C-130H Hercules aircraft …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions

  Medium-Range Loitering Munition with LEO Satellite Data Link [South Korea]

  Background New Project In April 2025, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) announced a new project titled “Development of Medium-Range ...

• Loitering munitions

  Long Range One-way Platforms [US]

  Solicitation In October 2024, the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) released a solicitation for long-range, one-way platforms. The DIU noted recent conflicts highlighted the asymmetric impact of low-cost, ...

• Military UAS - small

  Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF) GUARD [Ireland]

  Background Problem As stated on the project’s website in 2022, Ireland is the “softest target in the EU for smugglers” due to its 3,171 km ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Micro UAV [Argentina]

  Background Tender The EA and MoD in April 2021 announced Public Tender 0090/2021 (UOC: 84/135), which saw the General Directorate of Material begin the process of ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  CH-4 (First Batch) [Pakistan]

  Programme Background First Batch According to the Pakistan Exim Trade Info website, five aircraft were delivered to the country on 15 January 2021. According to a ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  BZK-005 [Sudan]

  Methodology PGO and programme status Defence Insight has assigned this programme a PGO of 100% since it is complete. Units required Defence Insight estimates that ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [Pakistan]

  Programme Background Requirement Following a 2019 skirmish with India, Pakistan placed newfound importance on EW and ISR, primarily due to the significant advantage gained during that ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Seeker 400 (1-6) [UAE]

  Background Long history The UAE has a long history of transactions with Denel Dynamics. The country has been purchasing various Seeker systems from as far ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  CH-4 (Second Batch) [Pakistan]

  Background First Batch According to the Pakistan Exim Trade Info website, five CH-4 aircraft were delivered to the country on 15 January 2021. According to a satellite ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Wing Loong II [Pakistan]

  Background Original Effort On 6 October 2018, the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) announced on social media that it would acquire 48 Wing Loong II UAVs. ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  NH90 - NFH [Italy]

  Background  Programme history The Italian Navy took delivery of its first NH90 NFH helicopter in Full Operational Capability (or Step B) configuration in 2011. The ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-9A Reaper [Spain]

  Programme Background First Contract The US State Department approved a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) of MQ-9 Block 5 aircraft and associated parts, equipment, and logistical ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Turkish UCAV [Saudi Arabia]

  Background Desired Procurement Saudi Arabia reportedly began negotiations to procure six Anka UAVs in 2013. It had not been disclosed which Anka variant was requested, ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-60M Black Hawk (Second Contract) [Croatia]

  Programme Background Western Technology With the help of the US, Croatia has attempted to improve its military technology, replacing Soviet equipment, such as the Mi-8/Mi-17. ...

• 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 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Space: radar systems

  RISAT-1

  Radar Satellite-1 (RISAT-1) is a microwave remote-sensing satellite carrying an SAR payload operating in C band (5.35GHz), which enables imaging of surface features during both ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  OceanTRx 4MIL

  The OceanTRx 4MIL is a ruggedised maritime SATCOM solution featuring simultaneous multi-band communication and advanced antenna management capabilities.  It was introduced at the Euronaval 2022 ...

• Major networking projects

  Skynet 6 SATCOM

  Skynet 6 is designed to replace Skynet 5. The PFI contract for Skynet 5,  held by Paradigm Secure Communications and Airbus DS, ends in 2022. As ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Osprey u8 HGL

  Launched in 2023, Kymeta Osprey u8 HGL is a hybrid Geostationary/Low-Earth Orbit terminal that provides satellite communications on the move. Notably, it can be mounted ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM, UAS: communication systems

  Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT)

  Orbit's Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT) is a family of stabilised VSAT systems suitable for installation on smaller vessels and airborne platforms including uncrewed vehicles. 

• Military Satellites - ISR

  Radarsat-2

  Owned and operated by MDA, Radarsat-2 was launched in late 2007 as a follow-on radar satellite to Canada’s Radarsat-1. The satellite's resolution ranges from a ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  SURFSAT-L

  Produced by Thales, SURFSAT-L is a SATCOM terminal designed for medium to large surface vessels. According to the manufacturer, it is designed to achieve a ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  MONDO Satellite Terminal

  The Multi Orbit Network, Dual Operation (MONDO) Satellite Terminal is a developmental SATCOM solution that provides continuous communication links on GEO, LEO and MEO networks. ...

• Military Satellites - ISR

  Helios

  The Helios system consists of the Helios 2A and Helios 2B satellites, the latter of which was launched in December 2009, five years after Helios ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Multi-Orbit Tactical Terminal

  Intelsat Multi-Orbit Tactical Terminal (MOTT) is a ruggedised terminal with a low-profile design. The vehicle-mountable terminal features an electronically steered array antenna, edge computing capabilities ...

• Data links

  GSNC

  Global Secure Network Connection (GSNC) provides a global data communications solution for military aircraft, including bomber, refuelling and transport aircraft. The GSNC system uses Iridium ...

• Space: radar systems

  ESA Sentinel-1

  Sentinel-1 is a planned constellation of four satellites with two already in orbit and two on order. They carry a payload of a C-band SAR ...

• Space: radar systems

  NISAR

  The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) is a joint programme between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to build and launch an observation ...

• Space: radar systems

  TerraSAR-X and ​TanDEM-X

  TerraSAR-X and the more advanced TanDEM-X (TerraSAR-X add-on for digital elevation measurement) are designed to operate closely together to generate an accurate 3D image of ...

• Military - USVs

  USV-12

  The USV-12 is an uncrewed surface vessel (USV) developed by HAVELSAN and VN Maritime Technologies. The modular platform is designed for defence, maritime security, and search ...