• Naval Warfare

  EUNAVFOR using UAV to track pirates

  6th February 2015

  The commander of EUNAVFOR says he expects his counter-piracy force operating off the Horn of Africa to be strengthened and also rates the usefulness of …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sikorsky begins S-97 Raider ground tests

  5th February 2015

  Sikorsky Aircraft has begun bladed ground testing for its S-97 Raider armed reconnaissance rotorcraft, the company announced on 4 February. This marks a major milestone …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Black Hawks to get Thales i-FMS200

  5th February 2015

  Northrop Grumman has selected Thales to supply its i-FMS200 flight management software for the US Army's UH-60L Black Hawk helicopters, the latter announced on 4 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Boeing signs support contract for US aircraft

  4th February 2015

  Boeing signed the second phase of a contract for providing support for 11 aircraft with the US Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), the company announced on …

• Military Logistics

  First Malaysian Airbus A400M makes maiden flight

  4th February 2015

  The first Airbus A400M airlifter for the Royal Malaysian Air Force has successfully completed its maiden flight, the company announced on 3 February. The Spanish …

• Defence Helicopter

  Vietnam grounds veteran UH-1 fleet

  4th February 2015

  The Vietnamese military grounded its entire Bell UH-1 Iroquois fleet after the crash of an example on 28 January. The craft had taken off from …

• Defence Helicopter

  China and Russia edge closer to heavy-lift platform

  4th February 2015

  Despite some slow progress in recent years, the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) continues to jointly develop a heavy-lift helicopter with its partner Russian …

• Defence Helicopter

  US budget: Army dares Congress to blink first

  3rd February 2015

  The US Army has placed itself firmly on a collision course with Congress over its controversial aviation restructure initiative (ARI). Essentially making the argument that …

• Defence Helicopter

  Ukraine mulls lessons of war

  3rd February 2015

  Throughout the military conflict in the breakaway east of the country, Ukraine’s helicopter units have seen occasional successes, but have also suffered painful losses. The …

• Defence Helicopter

  Northrop to deliver five ALMDS pods to US Navy

  3rd February 2015

  Northrop Grumman will continue the production of AN/AES-1Airborne Laser Mine Detection System (ALMDS) under a new US Navy contract, the company said on 2 February. …

• Defence Helicopter

  Hungary searches for Hip replacement

  2nd February 2015

  The Eastern European military market continues to unearth significant opportunities, with Hungary now firming up plans for a 30 transport helicopter order. Tactical helicopters will …

• Military Logistics

  A&P selected to fit out RFA MARS tankers

  29th January 2015

  A&P Group has been awarded a multi-million pound UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) contract to complete the fit-out of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s new fleet …

• Defence Helicopter

  RNLAF NH90 helicopters to get MASE EW pods

  29th January 2015

  Terma has won a contract to integrate the Modular Aircraft Survivability (MASE) Pod onto Dutch air force NH90 helicopters, the company announced on 27 January. …

• Naval Warfare

  Canadian Offshore Patrol Ship contract awarded

  29th January 2015

  The Public Works and Government Services department of Canada has awarded a contract for six Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS) to Irving Shipbuilding, the department …

• Defence Helicopter

  Airbus Helicopters bullish in face of low oil price

  27th January 2015

  Despite the recent plunge in oil prices creating some short-term pain, Airbus Helicopters is bullish that strong opportunities remain for larger rotorcraft such as the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F -Kenya

  Crew transition training took place at the MD Helicopters headquarters in Mesa, Arizona, with field service support, armament, and gunnery training scheduled to occur at ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  MD 530G - Malaysia

  Procured for an urgent operational requirement for gunships to support Eastern Sabah Security Command operations, helicopter deliveries had to slip from a planned delivery of ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Uncrewed MD 500 Replacement [South Korea]

  Background Uncrewed Replacement of the MD 500 Throughout the 2010s, South Korea appeared interested in replacing its fleet of crewed MD 500 helicopters that were manufactured under licence ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Project Land 2097 Phase 4 [Australia]

  Programme Background According to the RfI, under Project Land 2097 Phase 4, the selected helicopter must comprise a commercial or military off-the-shelf solution that is ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD-530G [Lebanon]

  Background Order context The Lebanese MD-530 order was placed during a visit of US Central Command Commander General Joseph Votel in December 2017.  MD 530F ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  US Air Force Air Base Defence Missile Defence [US]

  Background The US Air Force's (USAF) Air Base Air Defence Missile Defence (ABAD MD) programme is part of the Air Force Physical Security System and sits ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) First Batch (South Korea)

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Army)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Bell 505 (South Korea - Navy)

  Programme Background Requirement South Korea operates an ageing fleet of Bell UH-1s and MD 500s for training purposes. The country has already replaced a part of ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (Second Batch) [South Korea]

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton [Germany]

  Background Global Hawk Early in the development of the Global Hawk, the German MoD also expressed interest in procuring the aircraft as a replacement for ...

• 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 - multirole

  Multirole Helicopters [Poland]

  Programme Background In 2020, Poland announced the launch of the Perkoz programme to acquire 32 support helicopters to replace its fleet of Mi-2 aircraft stationed ...

• 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 - 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 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530F Cayuse Warrior

  An evolution of the OH-6 Cayuse light observation helicopter, the MD 530F was initially Federal Aviation Administration-certified in July 1985 as the Model 369FF. It ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  MDHI Glass Cockpit

  The American aerospace manufacturer MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI) has designed and developed a glass cockpit specifically for MD 500E AND MD 520N aircraft. It is ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 500

  US-based MD Helicopters' MD 500 is a single-engine light helicopter derived from the Hughes OH-6A Cayuse developed for the US Army in the early 1960s and ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  IDU-680

  The IDU-680 is Genesys Aerosystems’ 3D synthetic vision integrated Electronic Flight Instrument System. The system includes a Highway in the Sky navigation system, geo-referenced hover ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN HMP

  The FN HMP (Heavy Machine Gun Pod) is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a 50cal FN M3P heavy machine gun. It is available ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  MD 530G

  The MD 530G is the newest addition to the MD Helicopters (MDHI) line of light scout attack platforms. It has increased-capacity landing gear and a ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  KUS-VH

  The Korean Air Korean Air Unmanned System-Vertical Helicopter (KUS-VH) is a large, rotary-wing UAV based on the MD 500. The first flight of the platform ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  6XX

  Publicly unveiled at Heli-Expo in March 2017, the MD Helicopters 6XX is the next evolution in the MD 500 series and is a redesigned, single-engine ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C30

  The M250-C30 and -C30P are the exclusive powerplants for the Bell 206L-4 LongRanger and the MD Helicopters MD 530F and MD 530G. In addition, the AH-6i is ...

• 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 ...

• Airborne rockets - unguided

  Aculeus MD-36 and MD-432

  The Aculeus MD-36 unguided multi-dart rocket provides 36 darts for the neutralisation of columns of light armoured vehicles. The Aculeus MD-432 provides 432 darts to ...

• Helicopter engines

  M250-C47E

  The C47E is the latest growth variant of the C47B/8 engine. In addition to a hot-and-high Value Improvement Package Kit, the C47E also includes dual-channel ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  MD-1366 EBEM

  The US government selected the MD-1366 Enhanced Bandwidth Efficient Modem (EBEM) from ViaSat to set the DoD standard for high-speed, high-performance,flexibility and compatibility in a ...

• EO/IR systems

  Wescam MX-10

  The Wescam MX-10 EO/IR low-weight imaging system is designed for low-altitude tactical surveillance and reconnaissance missions from crewed and uncrewed aircraft. The MX-10 has had a close ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT)

  The Night Intruder 600 Vertical Take-Off (NI-600VT) is an in-development UAV from Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) based on an MD 500 twin-seat American commercial helicopter airframe. With the ...