• Defence Notes

  UK to step up Ukraine forces training

  29th June 2015

  The UK will step up its training programme for the Ukrainian armed forces, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon announced at the NATO Ministerial meeting in Brussels …

• Naval Warfare

  BAE bags vessel traffic management contract

  26th June 2015

  BAE Systems has been awarded a contract for installing a vessel traffic management system in Portsmouth Harbour and the Eastern Solent in the UK, the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus introduces Wel2Go portfolio

  26th June 2015

  Airbus Defence and Space has introduced a new Wel2Go portfolio of scalable welfare satellite communication services for UK military personnel, the company announced on 23 …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Paris Air Show: US military pursues hoverbikes for troops (video)

  25th June 2015

  A hoverbike concept originally developed for cattle mustering in Australia has caught the eye of the US military, which is now looking to develop the …

• Military Logistics

  Paris Air Show: KHI eyes export market

  25th June 2015

  Kawasaki Heavy Industries’ (KHI) military cargo aircraft will be operational with the Japanese Air Self Defence (JASD) force by 2017, Shephard has learned at the …

• Defence Notes

  Gulf temperatures reduce WR-21 output

  25th June 2015

  The high temperatures in the Arabian Gulf have resulted in increasing wear and reductions in power generation for the UK Royal Navy’s T45 destroyers when …

• Defence Helicopter

  Blade 2015 underway in Italy

  25th June 2015

  The European Defence Agency's (EDA) Blade Helicopter Exercise Programme (HEP) is underway in Italy. More than 1,000 military personnel and 30 helicopters have come together …

• Defence Notes

  Poland joins NATO’s 2% club

  24th June 2015

  Poland’s defence spending has reached above the 2% benchmark according to a NATO report, amid general reductions by many other European alliance members. The NATO …

• Digital Battlespace

  MoD launches Project Morpheus

  22nd June 2015

  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has formally launched Project Morpheus to consider and develop a replacement for its current Bowman tactical communications system, it …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Cobham, GA-ASI sign support deal

  18th June 2015

  Cobham Aviation Services has teamed up with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) to create an affiliation that covers whole life support for the latter's products …

• Military Logistics

  UKMFTS late by six years

  16th June 2015

  The UK National Audit Office (NAO) published a report on 12 June that indicates that the Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) new UK Military Flying Training …

• Defence Helicopter

  Paris Air Show: What’s in store?

  12th June 2015

  Although the biennial air show in Paris has become increasingly dominated by the commercial airline sector, much like its British counterpart at Farnborough, there will …

• Naval Warfare

  BAE starts building second UK OPV

  9th June 2015

  BAE Systems in Glasgow has started construction on the second Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) for the Royal Navy, the future HMS Medway, on 8 June. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Paris Air Show: Watching the Watchkeeper

  8th June 2015

  The UK’s Watchkeeper tactical UAS could operate from austere airstrips by 2017, it has emerged. During a media briefing at the Thales facility at Gennevilliers …

• Defence Helicopter

  UK buys new heli simulators

  3rd June 2015

  Lockheed Martin and AgustaWestland have been awarded contracts totalling £80 million to deliver synthetic training systems for the UK's Chinook Mk6 and Merlin Mk4/4A helicopters, it was announced …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme [UK]

  Programme Background The next-generation platform concept is part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, which sought to deliver a Future Combat Air System ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing

  FPV & Attack Drones (Ukraine Aid) [UK & Norway]

  Background £450 million On 11 April 2025, the UK MoD announced a £450 million package for Ukraine, which included £350 million from the UK from this ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Fleet Solid Support (FSS) (1-3) [UK]

  Programme Background Requirement The 2015 Strategic Defence & Security Review (SDSR) highlighted the requirement for three Military Afloat Reach & Sustainability (MARS) Fleet Solid Support (FSS) ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Magni-X (UK)

  Programme Background On 12 January 2022, Elbit Systems UK announced it had been awarded a contract from the UK MoD's Defence Equipment & Support's Future Capability ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Typhoon Tranche 3A - Qatar

  As a part of the agreement to sell Typhoon, the UK is establishing a ‘Joint Operations Squadron’ (to be known as 12 Squadron) with the ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Mobile Fires Platform [UK]

  Programme Background Post-Cold War Requirements Following the end of the Cold War, the UK operated a single 155mm artillery system, the AS90. The UK procured ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  Ukraine - UK supplied Fast Inshore Attack Craft (FIAC)

  Programme Background It was first reported in late September 2020 that the UK could provide eight Barzan-class fast attack craft to Ukraine. The platform has been ...

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

  AR3 (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Background £270 Million investment On 15 September 2025, the UK MoD noted that, since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the UK ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Multi-Role Vehicle (Protected) (MRV-P) Package 1 (UK)

  Programme Background Requirement The MRV-P programme was intended to procure replacements for a diverse fleet of 4x4 and 6x6 vehicles purchased during the wars in Iraq ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B [United Kingdom]

  Programme Background The total cost of the currently funded programme as reported through the UK Major Projects Report is expected to be £10.5 billion ($13.5 ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  30,000 FPV Drones (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Programme Background IDCC On 9 January 2025, the UK MoD announced that 30,000 FPV drones would be sent to Ukraine after the awarding of £45 million ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A Poseidon [UK]

  Programme Background In July 2016, the UK government announced that it had ordered nine aircraft for service with the RAF. Under this frame, in January ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  CATV [UK]

  Programme Background CATV The CATV programme was initiated in 2019, when the UK, Germany, Netherlands and Sweden signed an MoU to share acquisition costs for ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  New Medium Helicopter (NMH) [UK]

  Programme Background NMH Market Interest Day On 11 November 2021, the MoD communicated the requirements of the £1 billion ($1.34 billion) New Medium Helicopter (NMH) ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  UK MFTS

  The Military Flying Training System (MFTS) programme, is a private finance initiative involving the MoD and Ascent, a JV of Lockheed Martin and Babcock, which was ...

• Trainer

  Phenom 100

  Phenom 100 is a very light jet originally developed for single owner-pilot operation but later gained popularity as a jet trainer aircraft. The platform first ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  CAE 700MR

  The CAE 700MR FTD is a full mission simulator platform for military helicopter-specific flight and mission training. It is a fixed-base system based on CAE's ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  UK MSHATF

  The Medium Support Helicopter Aircrew Training Facility (MSHATF) opened for training at RAF Benson, England in July 1999. It provides training services to personnel from ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  UK/ARC341 (ADRA)

  The Advanced Digital Radio Airborne (ADRA) provides a Bowman VHF radio capability to helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. It is fully compatible with the Bowman VHF ...

• Submarines: nuclear, attack

  AUKUS SSN

  The AUKUS-SSN will be the submarine design resulting from the AUKUS trilateral pact between Australia, the US and the UK. Expected to incorporate technology from ...

• Major networking projects

  Project Marshall

  The Joint Military Air Traffic Services project was initiated by the UK MoD in November 2005 to identify and evaluate options for the future delivery ...

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  ASTOR FBFCT

  The Fixed Base Flight Crew Trainer (FBFCT) is a Level 5+ FTD for the UK RAF’s Airborne Standoff Radar (ASTOR) platform. The ASTOR FBFCT is ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BvS10 Beowulf

  BAE Systems Hägglunds launched the BvS10 Beowulf articulated tracked ATV at the September 2015 DSEI exhibition in the UK. The Beowulf is an unarmoured variant ...

• Light UGVs

  T7

  The T7 is a multi-mission robotic system designed for military, police and hazardous missions. At DSEI 2017, the UK MoD awarded the Harris Corporation a ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  CAPSTONE

  CAPSTONE is a rotary-wing UAV manufactured by Certe Aerospace, which collaborates with various UK-based defence companies.  Described as a sovereign, scalable, air power capability, CAPSTONE performed ...

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

  Sparta

  Unveiled in mid-2025, the Sparta is a fixed-wing small UAV from Quantum Systems. It is a mothership that can host and launch smaller drones, such ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  ADR+ Bowman VHF/Centaur

  The ADR+ is the VHF vehicle and manpack radio member of the ADR family of VHF radios developed initially for the UK Bowman programme. The ...

• Air: chaff, flare and decoy systems

  Vicon 78

  Thales’ Vicon-78 is a lightweight countermeasures dispensing system. The system is featured in several integrated defence systems, and is capable of firing both chaff and ...

• Air-to-surface missiles

  Storm Shadow/SCALP EG

  The Storm Shadow is an air-launched cruise missile developed by France, Italy and the UK. It is known as the Storm Shadow in the UK ...