• Training

  PLA is forced to alter its recruitment cycle

  30th January 2020

  The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) recently implemented important changes to the PLA’s recruitment processes, moving its intake of conscripts from once per year to twice, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Pony Express 1 mission launched

  17th January 2020

  Lockheed Martin has launched the Pony Express 1 mission as a hosted payload on Tyvak-0129, a next-generation Tyvak 6U spacecraft, the company announced on 16 …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Falco Xplorer​ UAS takes off

  17th January 2020

  Leonardo’s Falco Xplorer UAS has undertaken its maiden flight from Trapani Air Force base, the company announced on 17 January. The aircraft flew for around …

• Naval Warfare

  Malaysian navy welcomes its first Chinese-built ship

  20th January 2020

  Malaysia’s first Littoral Mission Ship (LMS), KD Keris, arrived home at RMN Kota Kinabalu on 17 January, following its commissioning at its place of construction …

• Digital Battlespace

  Raytheon signs partner for SPY-6 array structures

  15th January 2020

  Raytheon and Major Tool & Machine have signed an exclusive teaming agreement to develop array structures for the US Navy's SPY-6 radar programme.The agreement will …

• Land Warfare

  Romania signs framework contract for Iveco trucks

  10th January 2020

  Iveco Defence Vehicles has signed a framework agreement with the Romanian Ministry of National Defence for more than 2,900 high mobility trucks. The framework contract …

• Land Warfare

  US Army cancels OMFV solicitation

  17th January 2020

  The US Army has terminated the current acquisition process of the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle (OMFV), after only one bid was received in the competition …

• Special Operations

  Malaysian Army calls for special forces vehicles

  13th January 2020

  Malaysia issued two tenders on 9 January inviting Finance Ministry-registered companies to supply special operations vehicles (SOV) for the Malaysian Army’s Gerakhas special forces unit. …

• Digital Battlespace

  Indra receives F110 radar component contract

  16th December 2019

  Indra has signed a contract with Lockheed Martin to supply the main components of the AESA S-band anti-air radar antenna for the Spanish Navy’s F110 …

• Naval Warfare

  Taiwan tests missiles and integrates Mk 41 VLS

  17th January 2020

  Taiwan’s National Chung-Shan Institute of Science & Technology (NCSIST) successfully launched two Hsiung Feng III (HF-III) anti-ship missiles from the Jiu Peng Missile Range on …

• Defence Notes

  What is the Tor-M1?

  10th January 2020

  To learn more about our Defence Insight service, arrange a free trial. With Western officials suggesting that Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 was hit by …

• Defence Notes

  Iran in the dock over potential Ukrainian airliner downing

  10th January 2020

  Don't miss out on more news and analysis from Shephard Media. Sign up to our Premium News. Firm conclusions about how Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 crashed, killing all 176 …

• Defence Notes

  Air review 2019: Turkey and Trump F-35 trouble overshadows future fighters

  30th December 2019

  Of all the stories that made headlines in 2019, few could claim to have caught fire in the same way as Turkey’s removal from the …

• Naval Warfare

  Raytheon receives AEGIS equipment contract modification

  19th December 2019

  US Naval Sea Systems Command has issued Raytheon a $123.5 million contract modification for the AEGIS weapon system, the US Department of Defense announed on …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Kratos receives target drone orders

  8th January 2020

  Kratos Defense & Security Solutions’ Unmanned Systems Division (KUSD) has received new orders worth approximately $6 million for its jet powered unmanned aerial target drone …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Fighter - multirole

  Multirole Fighter [Morocco]

  Background FMS approval In March 2019, the US State Department announced that it had approved a possible FMS of 25 F-16V Block 72 aircraft to ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V [Turkey]

  Background Requirement Turkish Air Force ordered 100 F-35A aircraft as a partner nation, however, the country was removed from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme in ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  IAR-99 Replacement (Romania)

  On 29 August 2017, Leonardo announced that the IAR-99 trainer technology demonstrator (TD) will be fitted with company's Vixen 500E AESA radar. The Vixen 500E AESA ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Horizon 2 - Multirole Fighter Programme [Philippines]

  Programme Background Requirement The Philippines wants a fighter able to perform score missions such as air-to-air combat, air-to-ground tasks and reconnaissance, including over water. It ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Project Halcon I [Spain]

  Programme Background The Spanish Air Force began requirements assessments, although potential suppliers including Boeing (F/A-18E/F), Lockheed Martin (F-35), Airbus-BAE-Leonardo (Eurofighter Typhoon) are already engaged with ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Multi Role Combat Aircraft [Bangladesh]

  Programme Background The Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) continues its quest to acquire a new multirole combat aircraft. Under the country’s Forces Goal 2030 plan, which ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V (9-16) [Bulgaria]

  Programme Background In April 2022, the US State Department approved a potential FMS worth $1.673 million to procure eight F-16Vs to Bulgaria. The aircraft are ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101-Norway

  AgustaWestland is also providing initial support and training services, including spares at each of the operating bases and aircrew training. It will then provide performance ...

• Fighter - multirole

  H-X Fighter Programme [Finland]

  Programme Background In June 2020, Finnish MoD announced that the Hornet fleet life extension programme is neither cost-effective solution nor sufficient in terms of Finland’s ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A [Denmark]

  Programme Background  Denmark joined the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program in 2002 during the System Development and Demonstration phase and has influenced technical elements ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Mobile Short Range Radar [Austria]

  Background As part of its efforts to modernise its ground-based air defence (GBAD) network, Austria is seeking to acquire 14 mobile short-range radar systems. According ...

• Short Range Missile Defence Systems: 0 to 20 km range

  RapidRanger [Portugal]

  Background In October 2024, Portugal signed a contract through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) for the supply of three Thales RapidRanger systems, part ...

• AEW&C

  AEW&C Aircraft [India]

  Programme Background India is planning to increase its AEW&C; capabilities with indigenous radar systems.  A330 Bid In 2015, the IAF has requested to procure six ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)

  Programme Background Five prototypes will be manufactured for developmental tests. Indian Air Force will buy 36 AMCA Mark-I aircraft from 2029-30. The Mark-I configuration will ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V [Jordan]

  Background 2022 FMS On 3 February 2022, the US State Department announced that it has approved a potential sale of 12 F-16 C Block 70 aircraft,  ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-83 SABR

  The AN/APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) is an active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire control radar being developed by Northrop Grumman using its own ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V Block 70/72

  The F-16 Block 70/72, also referred to as the F-16V, is a fourth-generation multirole fighter aircraft. It is the latest version of Lockheed Martin's F-16 ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Raven ES-05

  The Raven ES-05 is an AESA fire-control radar developed by Leonardo in close collaboration with Saab for the Gripen E/F. It features a repositionable AESA ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-81

  AN/APG-81 is operating in the X-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire control radar designed by Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems for the F-35 “Lightning” all-weather ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-63(V)2

  The AN/APG-63(V)2 is a significant radar upgrade for the U.S. Air Force F-15C aircraft. This upgrade replaces the mechanically-scanned antenna (MSA) with an AESA antenna,  ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-68

  The AN/APG-68 is a pulse-Doppler radar with increased range, modes, and resolution compared to the APG-66 radar. The F-16C/D Block 25 was the first Fighting ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  USAF F-16 Training System

  L3Harris Technologies is supporting approximately 180 F-16 pilot and maintenance trainers as part of the USAF’s F-16 Training System. Programme contract options extend through 2019. ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-82(V)1

  The AN/APG-82(V)1 is an X-band active electronically scanned array radar system that combines the AN/APG-79 processor with the AESA antenna of the AN/APG-63(V)3. The system ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16C/D Block 25, 30/32, 40/42

  The F-16C/D ('C' one-seat, 'D' two-seat designation) is the second generation of the F-16 Fighting Falcon family. The production of the F-16C/D began in 1983 with ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16C/D Block 50/52/52+

  A member of the F-16 Fighting Falcon family, the F-16C/D Block 50/52 ('C' single-seat, 'D' dual-seat) is a third-generation multirole fighter that was rolled out ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-76

  The AN/APG-76 is a Ku-band multimode radar system providing high-resolution synthetic aperture radar capabilities with moving target indicator overlays. The system was developed primarily for ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-79

  The AN/APG-79 is an agile beam radar with a solid-state digital array that scans at nearly the speed of light, enabling detection and tracking of ...

• Air: Displays

  F-16 Center Pedestal Display

  Produced by Elbit Systems of America, the F-16 Center Pedestal Display (CPD) provides a high-resolution colour display that replaces several legacy instruments on F-16 aircraft. 

• Air: air combat simulators

  Air Combat Training

  Boeing has experience in delivering training for fixed-wing air combat platforms including F-15C/E, F-16, F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, F-22 and MV/CV-22.

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-63(V)3

  The AN/APG-63(V)3 is the latest advancement Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) upgrade of the APG-63 radar family, initially fielded on the F-15C/D Eagle. Evolving from the ...