• Land Warfare

  Eurosatory: Piranha a flying fish?

  6th June 2016

  Plans are afoot to conduct a flight test of transporting a Piranha 5 8x8 armoured personnel carrier by air. Vehicle manufacturer General Dynamics European Land …

• Defence Helicopter

  Cobham to support ETPS, RWTES

  6th June 2016

  Cobham Helicopter Services has received a £2 million contract from QinetiQ to provide helicopter support to the UK's Empire Test Pilots' School (ETPS) and Rotary …

• Defence Helicopter

  Russia pushes mobile sim

  3rd June 2016

  Russian Helicopters has taken its mobile training simulator for the Mi-8MTV1 helicopter to the KADEX military exhibition that is currently being held in Astana, Kazakhstan. …

• Defence Helicopter

  ILA 2016: Boeing reaches for heavy lift

  3rd June 2016

  The German Heavy Transport (STH) helicopter programme is a priority for Boeing, which is putting forward its Chinook CH-47F twin rotor helicopter. The numbers needed …

• Defence Helicopter

  ILA 2016: Airbus Helicopters everyone's friend in Germany

  2nd June 2016

  As the competition to replace Germany’s CH-53G helicopters with a new platform heats up, Airbus Helicopters is keeping its options open. This takes place amid …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Sikorsky demos S-76 autonomous flight

  1st June 2016

  Sikorsky has successfully demonstrated a 30 mile autonomous flight of its Sikorsky S-76 medium-size commercial utility helicopter, it announced on 31 May. The demonstration completes …

• Defence Helicopter

  ILA 2016: Sikorsky builds up heavy lift offering

  1st June 2016

  With a request for proposal (RFP) for Germany’s Heavy Transport (STH) helicopter programme expected in 2017, Sikorsky is ramping up its efforts to win the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Airbus DS awarded German satcom contract

  1st June 2016

  Airbus Defence and Space (Airbus DS) has been awarded a $126.78 million contract by the German armed forces to provide commercial satellite communication services until …

• Defence Helicopter

  Aussie Tiger achieves FOC… finally

  1st June 2016

  The Tiger Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) of the Australian Army achieved final operating capability (FOC) on 14 April, a mere seven years behind the original …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  SOFIC 2016: Airbus pushes Zephyr for military applications

  31st May 2016

  Airbus Defence & Space used the SOFIC exhibition to promote the potential military applications of its Zephyr High Altitude Pseudo Satellite (HAPS) system. ‘Zephyr is …

• Defence Helicopter

  Ukraine advances Mi-24PU2 upgrade

  31st May 2016

  Ukraine's Mi-24PU2 helicopter upgrade has entered into flight testing phase, according to Ukoboronprom, the holding company that controls a vast majority of the country's arms …

• Defence Helicopter

  HMAS Canberra trials Chinooks

  31st May 2016

  The HMAS Canberra (L02), a Canberra class landing helicopter dock ship of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), conducted deck and handling trials with two Boeing …

• Defence Helicopter

  Aurora tests AACUS capabilities

  30th May 2016

  Aurora Flight Sciences has been testing the new capabilities of the Autonomous Aerial Cargo/Utility System (AACUS) for the US Marine Corps (USMC), which announced it …

• Defence Helicopter

  HeliRussia 2016: Russia to get Arctic helicopters

  30th May 2016

  According to Russian Helicopters holding, the Russian MoD is set to take on strength in 2016 and 2017 with an initial batch of five Mi-8AMTSh-VA …

• Defence Helicopter

  South Korea receives first Apaches

  30th May 2016

  South Korea has sped up deployment of its new attack helicopters due to concerns over North Korea’s bellicose military stance, including a fourth nuclear test …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow-On [USA]

  Programme Background In March 2019, Airbus stated that it expected orders from the US Army for between 12 and 15 UH-72A helicopters. In March 2020, ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M [France]

  Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 Puma ...

• Military helicopters - attack, Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M / H145M Add-On [Romania]

  Methodology As part of a potential initial order for 12 H225M helicopters, Romania has included the option to acquire 30 additional helicopters from Airbus. Shephard estimates this ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 [UK]

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

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of light ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH-90 [Spain]

  Programme Background Along with a range of other air programmes, the Spanish Government announced the nation has set aside 1 billion euros (USD$1.162 billion) to ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Future Aircrew Training Program [Canada]

  Background The FAcT requires to graduate 120 pilots, 40 combat systems officers and 36 airborne electronic sensor operators per year with 15% fluctuation. Training services are ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) (TH-57 Replacement)

  Programme Background Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175 and works to fill a gap in the H175 helicopter family, as well as offer ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Light Armed Helicopter

  The South Korean government selected Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in July 2014 to develop the Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) and the related Light Civil Helicopter ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AS365 N3+ Dauphin

  The AS365 N3+, manufactured by Airbus Helicopters (formerly Eurocopter), was developed from the Dauphin series of medium, twin-turboshaft rotorcraft. The AS365 N3+ was launched at the 2009 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Flexrotor

  Flexrotor, or U030 Flexrotor, is a VTOL small UAS manufactured by Aerovel. It can integrate different types of payloads, including electro-optical systems and advanced sensors, to suit ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH

  Developed as a multinational programme between France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the European NH90 was designed to meet NATO requirements for multirole capability from ...