• Training

  Training begins in earnest for Indian C295 transport aircraft crews

  15th May 2023

  Airbus has already begun training the first batch of flight crews for the Indian Air Force's C295 fleet and will also supply a CAE simulator under the contract.

• Training

  IT2EC 2023: Get ready to explore the future of military training and simulation in Rotterdam

  17th April 2023

  The IT2EC military training and simulation event returns to Rotterdam in April 2023. Sanjay Khetia, director of PLEXSYS and chairman of IT2EC told Shephard what attendees can expect when visiting the show this year.

• Defence Notes

  SOF Week 2023: USSOCOM chief highlights special forces lessons learned from Ukraine relationship

  15th May 2023

  USSOCOM Commander Gen Bryan P Fenton has highlighted the importance of relationship-building between US SOF and their Ukrainian counterparts since 2014.

• Training

  Indra begins delivery of fighting vehicle sim to Spanish Army

  17th May 2023

  The delivery of the combat vehicle training systems includes a first section simulator made up of four vehicle simulators to several Spanish Army bases.

• Air Warfare

  Bell awards subcontracts for Canadian Griffon helicopter modernisation

  27th April 2023

  Bell will complete modernisation work on the first nine Canadian Armed Forces CH-146s, with the remainder of the 85 aircraft upgraded by Alpine Aerotech and Heli-One Canada.

• Air Warfare

  Turkiye’s strong desire to buy F-16 from US persists, defying previous statements

  1st June 2023

  Turkiye's renewed interest in the long-gestating F-16 deal, despite geopolitical hurdles and a potential ban on adding indigenous weapons, highlights the significance of this strategic acquisition for Ankara's military capabilities.

• Defence Notes

  How integration of multiple sensors can enhance US missile defence

  24th April 2023

  The Pentagon is working on designing, developing and delivering capabilities to the armed services to enable them to counter ballistic, hypersonic and cruise missiles.

• Special Operations

  SOF Week 2023: USSOCOM to consolidate Program Executive Offices into single entity

  10th May 2023

  The US Special Operations Command plans to merge PEO C4 and PEO Special Reconnaissance into PEO Tactical Information Systems.

• Land Warfare

  Inflation hits US Army modernisation plans

  26th April 2023

  As the increase in the branch’s budget proposal did not cover the inflation rates, the army is losing its spending power, impacting its acquisition and development programmes.

• Air Warfare

  India seeks new source of engines for ageing Russian Mi-17 helicopters as supply chain problems hit

  8th May 2023

  India is struggling to keep Russian-origin Mi-17 helicopters in the air, as spares prove difficult to source from the OEM.

• Training

  Hadean proves British Army CTTP solution resilience in austere environment

  6th April 2023

  Hadean has completed scene-setting works for the British Army's Collective Training Transformation Programme as industry anxiously awaits developments on the nearly $800 million competition.

• Air Warfare

  Baykar unveils Kemankeş mini cruise missile to augment TB2 drone's strike capability

  9th May 2023

  The 35kg Kemankeş air-launched mini cruise missile is intended to extend the offensive range of carrier platforms such as the Bayraktar TB2 UAV.

• Training

  Red 6 seals new partnership despite unclear progress on previous programmes

  15th March 2023

  Lockheed Martin says Red 6's augmented reality system could be implemented into fifth-generation fighters, such as the F-35 or F-22 in the future.

• Naval Warfare

  Royal Navy embarks on assessment phase to arm Type 31 frigates with Mk 41 VLS

  18th May 2023

  This week, the UK Royal Navy confirmed that it intends to equip the future Type 31 frigates with the Mk41 VLS.

• Naval Warfare

  Contenders for Malaysia’s LMS Batch 2 tender emerge at LIMA 2023

  6th June 2023

  Apart from making progress with its troubled LCS programme, the priority for Malaysia's navy right now is the next three Littoral Mission Ships.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Tanks

  Al-Khalid-I

  Programme Background Pakistan operates a vast fleet of Chinese and Ukrainian MBTs primarily aimed at deterring regional rivals such as India. In order to build ...

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

  Wing Loong I [Eygpt]

  Programme Background SIPRI According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), in 2016, Eygpt ordered around 10 Wing Loong I aircraft from China, which were ...

• Landing platform docks/dock landing ships

  San Antonio LPD 17 Flight I [USN]

  The LPD 17 Flight I ships are the first flight of the San Antonio-class Landing Platform Docks (LPD). Procured between FY1996 and FY2017, the vessels ...

• Tanks

  Arjun Mark-II

  Programme Background While original plans envisioned the production of up to 250 Arjun Mk IIs, the programme's many delays have prompted the Indian Army to ...

• Submarines: conventional, attack

  KSS-III (Boats 1-3) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Timeline The new KSS-III Dosan Ahn Chang-Ho-class submarines for the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) are a significant advance on the earlier KSS-II ...

• Tanks

  Al-Khalid-II

  Programme Background Pakistan operates a vast fleet of Chinese and Ukrainian MBTs primarily aimed at deterring regional rivals such as India. In order to build ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  New Exploration and Escort Helicopter (NEES) (Phase II) [Italy]

  Programme Background Phase I In 2017, the Italian government signed a contract with Leonardo to replace its fleet of AW129 Mangusta attack helicopters with the ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) (Phase II) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) provides short-range day and night ISR to US Army units at the squad, platoon and other small ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  PKX-B Batch II (1-4) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Contracts Award On 24 November 2022, HJ Heavy Industries was awarded a contract worth KRW212 billion ($160 million) to build four PKX-B Batch-II fast attack ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  PKX-B Batch II (5-8) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Contracts Award On 24 November 2022, HJ Heavy Industries was awarded a contract worth KRW 212 billion ($160 million) to build four PKX-B ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  PKX-B Batch II (13-22) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Contracts Award On 24 November 2022, HJ Heavy Industries was awarded a contract worth KRW212 billion ($160 million) to build four PKX-B Batch-II ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  PKX-B Batch II (9-12) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Contracts Award On 24 November 2022, HJ Heavy Industries was awarded a contract worth KRW212 billion ($160 million) to build four PKX-B Batch-II ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) (Phase I) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The Soldier Borne Sensor (SBS) provides short-range day and night ISR to US Army units at the squad, platoon and other small ...

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

  Wing Loong I [Uzbekistan]

  Programme Background On 16 November 2023, Uzbekistan announced that the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, had ...

• Amphibious assault ships

  LHDs Procurement [Spain]

  Programme Background Requirements The Spanish Navy currently operates the LHD Juan Carlos I, which entered service in 2010 and is the fleet's flagship. Although a ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Subsystems: software

  SWORD

  The SWORD is a high-level, automated war-game solution for training, analysis and planning. Developed in close relation with armies worldwide, the SWORD immerses brigade and ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  TAOS

  In Tactical Aircraft Online Services (TAOS), live Aero L-29 jets are flown by experienced combat pilots alongside a wingman flying a ground-based flight simulator, controlled ...

• Land: fire support simulators

  FIDex

  Fidelity has merged the technology of its JTAC and IDF product lines. It released FIDex (Fidelity Extreme) at I/ITSEC 2011 with its first demo of ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators, Land: tactical engagement simulators

  VBS Blue IG

  At I/ITSEC 2017, Bohemia Interactive Simulations (BISim) unveiled a new simulation technology to help international militaries train for operations. VBS Blue IG, an upgrade from the ...

• Subsystems: visual

  EP-8100

  At I/ITSEC 2015, Collins Aerospace (formerly Rockwell Collins) unveiled its EP-8100 image generation system, which is driven by real-time, simulation-specific graphics cards and software. It ...

• Subsystems: visual

  WholeEarth Synthetic Environment

  Rockwell Collins unveiled its enhanced synthetic training environment, WholeEarth, at I/ITSEC 2015 and the official release occurred in May 2016. The high-resolution complete Earth database ...

• Air: mission management systems

  I-C2F

  The Integrated Command and Control Framework (I-C2F) provides an end-to-end C2 architecture delivering J1-J9 functionality across the joint battlespace. As well as C2 messaging and ...

• Air-to-air missiles, Surface-to-air missiles

  I-Derby ER

  Rafael Advanced Defense Systems developed the I-Derby ER missile as an extended-range evolution of the earlier Derby and I-Derby missiles. Building on the proven foundation ...

• Sea: tactical training

  Sub Command

  Sub Command was developed by Sonalysts, released in 2001, and published by Electronic Arts. Sub Command continues the legacy of 688(I) Hunter/Killer. The player takes ...

• Light UGVs

  TMR-I MTF

  The Elektroland TMR-I MTF is the larger of the TMR-I platforms offered by the company at twice the weight of the TMR-I Khan (see separate ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Carcará I

  Carcará I is a simple flying-wing UAV developed to meet Brazilian Army specifications for an unmanned platform to provide tactical reconnaissance at platoon level. A ...

• Air: mission management systems

  I-TaCCS

  Integrated Tactical Command and Control Services (I-TaCCS) is a secure, scalable C2 system. Core applications of I-TaCCS are used by several countries, allowing interoperability within ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Skylark I-eVTOL

  The Skylark I-eVTOL is, as its name suggests, an electric-powered VTOL capable development of the Skylark I. Manufactured by Elbit Systems, the drone can be controlled ...

• Destroyers

  Udaloy II Class (Project 1155.1)

  The Udaloy II class (Project 1155.1) destroyer in service with the Russian Navy is a follow-on of the original Udaloy I-class but is more of an ...

• Ultra-light UGVs

  Scorpion UGV

  Endeavor developed the Scorpion UGV for the Pentagon's Common Robotic System – Individual (CRS-I) programme. CRS-I is designed to be a backpackable robot weighing less than 11kg. ...