• Defence Notes

  Paris Air Show: Sharper sting for Boeing's Super Hornet

  10th June 2019

  Boeing expects to deliver the first two network-centric Super Hornet F/A-18 Block III aircraft in 2019 for testing and evaluation by the US Navy.  Separately, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Harris to supply radios to New Zealand Army

  10th May 2019

  New Zealand announced in Q1 2019 that Harris Defence Australia had been chosen to deliver a new tactical communications network for the New Zealand Army, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Orbit announces new MPT 87 airborne terminal

  9th May 2019

  Orbit Communication Systems has introduced a new airborne Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT) 87 designed to provide multi-role capability for military and government users. The advanced MIL-STD …

• Digital Battlespace

  AUVSI 2019: EchoGuard radar set for certification

  3rd May 2019

  Echodyne’s EchoGuard ESA radar is expected to be Federal Communications Commission certified, in a matter of weeks or months, Shephard has learned.   Company use of …

• Digital Battlespace

  Australia speeds up transport fleet communications

  30th April 2019

  Australia’s Department of Defence (DoD) has announced that it would roll out broadband on more of the country's C-130J Hercules aircraft fleet. Honeywell will provide …

• Digital Battlespace

  Quad A 2019: Hughes detects DoD anti-jamming SATCOM push

  18th April 2019

  Broadband satellite network provider, Hughes expects the US Navy and US Army to concentrate their SATCOM programmes on reviewing and procuring anti-jamming capabilities, as each …

• Digital Battlespace

  Hughes awarded PTES work

  18th April 2019

  Hughes Network Systems has received a contract from Boeing to develop mission management, system control, networking and ground hub capabilities. The company will participate in …

• Land Warfare

  New armed reconnaissance vehicle for US military

  9th April 2019

  The US Office of Naval Research has awarded up to $20.5 million for the development of a new ‘at the edge’ armed reconnaissance vehicle. Winning …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2019: UAVOS pushing unmanned helicopters for lidar ops

  30th April 2019

  The future of lidar missions in oil and gas, mapping to power line inspections could very much be in the hands of unmanned helicopters, further …

• Digital Battlespace

  Orbit receives order for TVRO system spares

  19th March 2019

  Orbit Communications Systems has received an order worth $3 million from an unnamed European navy to provide maritime Television Receive-Only (TVRO) satcom systems spares and …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  LIMA 2019: Grin, Reaper, for regional opportunities abound

  26th March 2019

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) is sensing many opportunities around the Asia-Pacific region for its MQ-9 UAV family, starting with a Malaysian requirement for …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  LIMA 2019: Malaysia expresses a liking for large UAVs

  28th March 2019

  Malaysia issued a rather general RfI for a MALE UAV last December, and three OEMs from China, Turkey and the US exhibited their potential solutions …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GA-ASI continues MQ-9B development

  28th February 2019

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) is continuing with the ontime development of its new remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), the MQ-9B, the company announced on 24 …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Inmarsat selects Alpha for UAV Pop-up Lab

  25th February 2019

  Alpha Unmanned Systems has been selected to participate in Inmarsat’s UAV Pop-up Lab, a programme aimed at exploring the advantages of satellite-enabled UAS with commercial …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Avalon 2019: Firebird deliveries to US agency are imminent

  28th February 2019

  Northrop Grumman highlighted developments of its optionally manned Firebird MALE aircraft platform designed for both overland and littoral surveillance at the Avalon Air Show. It …

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 ...

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

  Dominator XP [Thailand]

  Programme Background Purchase As reported by Shephard, in September 2023, the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) inducted three Dominator XPs. The RTAF purchased the trio ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  CH-47F Chinook (Singapore)

  Programme Background In July 2020, photos have emerged on the internet of the first Boeing CH-47F Chinook destined for the Republic of Singapore Air Force ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering Munitions (Special Mission Brigade) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Drone Ambition As reported by Shephard, South Korea has ambitions to possess a large arsenal of drones. In May 2024, the presidential office ...

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

  Anka-S (Second Batch) [Turkey]

  Programme Background First Batch Based on comments by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and Turkish media in 2018, Shephard believes that Türkiye acquired 26 Anka-S drones ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  New Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (NWJFAC) (1-31) [India]

  Programme Background Requirements The Indian Navy is seeking replacements for a large proportion of its 19 46-49m-long waterjet-powered fast attack craft, several of which are approaching ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Portugal VTLB

  Programme Background The Portuguese Army planned to allocate funds for the procurement of 167 VTLBs during the Military Programming Law running from 2015 until 2026. ...

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

  Akinci [Turkey]

  Programme Background Unveiling & Testing Unveiled at TEKOFEST Istanbul Aviation, Space and Technology Festival in September 2019, the Akinci completed its first flight in December 2019. In June 2021, ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  RQ-4 Global Hawk (Japan)

  Programme Background Selection & Contract AwardIn 2015, Northrop Grumman's RQ-4 Global Hawk UAS and E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft were selected by Japan to ...

• Submarines: conventional, attack

  Submarines Procurement (1-2) [Greece]

  Programme Background Requirements As of 2025, the Hellenic Navy (HN) submarine force consists of four Type 214, four Type 209/1200 and two Type 209/1100. With ...

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

  MQ-9B SkyGuardian [Belgium]

  Programme Background FMS Contract On 26 March 2019, the US State Department announced that it had approved a possible FMS of four MQ-9B SkyGuardians for an estimated ...

• 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 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Greenerwave LEO/GEO Terminal

  Greenerweave's LEO/GEO Terminal is a Ku-band SATCOM solution which benefits from the manufacturer's proprietary technology to reduce manufacturing costs and power requirements. Unveiled in March ...

• 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. ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Revolution 450mp

  Introduced in 2023, the 450mp is a small form factor SATCOM modem which supports multiple orbits and waveforms. Notably, the man-portable modem supports the manufacturer's Evolution ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  FoldSat LEo Ku OW Mil

  The FoldSat LEo Ku OW Mil is a ruggedised SATCOM terminal developed by OneWeb. Launched in September 2023, it provides person-portable communications with a foldable ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  King Cobra

  The Fleet 394 'King Cobra' is a 2m-class Naval SATCOM terminal designed by EM Solutions. It provides simultaneous Ka-Band and X-Band coverage. According to the manufacturer, it ...

• Towed guns

  105mm LEO

  Denel Land Systems began development of the 105mm Light Experimental Ordnance (LEO) in 1995 to meet a South African Army technical requirement for a 105mm ...

• 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 ...

• EO/IR systems

  LEO-II

  The LEO-II airborne observation system was a COTS, gyro-stabilised platform containing a multi-sensor payload and a laser pointer, which is available simultaneously in the turret. ...

• Space: radar systems

  TecSAR

  TecSAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar Technonology Demonstrator) is designed for LEO IMINT and carries an X-band radar payload with multi-beam electronic steering. The system is also ...

• 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 ...

• Air: mission management systems

  LEO-III-HD

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

• Core systems: cameras and IR detectors

  Leo MW

  Leo MW is a compact detector designed for optimised SWaP mediumwave IR (3-5µm) applications. It features a digital output camera link.

• 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 ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Vireo

  Produced by CesiumAstro, Vireo is a Ka-band, multi-beam payload communication system designed for commercial and military applications. The system enables uplink and downlink operations from ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  RESA L Ka

  Requtech's RESA L Ka is an integrated, electronically scanned array antenna terminal for Ka-Band LEO, MEO or GEO constellations for on-the-move and on-the-pause applications. Unveiled ...