• Land Warfare

  Dutch reverse MBT decision

  9th December 2014

  The Royal Netherlands Army (RNLA) is planning to reinstate a limited tank capability, it has emerged. Shephard has learned that the Dutch military has commenced …

• Land Warfare

  Airshow China: NORINCO brings heavy armour

  11th November 2014

  China North Industries Corporation (NORINCO) is exhibiting at the 10th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai for the first time this year.  Among …

• Land Warfare

  Russia plans 70% land modernisation by 2020

  10th October 2014

  Russia intends to buy more than 5,000 new combat vehicles and will upgrade 6,000 vehicles as part of a programme to modernize its forces. Oleg …

• Land Warfare

  Belgian army withdraws Leopard 1 MBTs

  18th September 2014

  The Belgian military’s land component conducted a final live fire exercise with the Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) Leopard 1 MBT on 10 September, it has emerged.  …

• Land Warfare

  Indian artillery goes backwards

  2nd September 2014

  If it seemed that Indian defence procurement programmes are somewhat static, it now seems they are going in reverse. The new Indian government is going …

• Land Warfare

  Japan to reform ground forces

  7th August 2014

  Japan’s Defence White Paper published yesterday has outlined some wide ranging changes to the Japan Self-Defence Force. Although the main focus is on securing the …

• Land Warfare

  Is this the beginning of European land consolidation?

  2nd July 2014

  French military vehicles manufacturer Nexter and the German armaments producer KMW have signed an agreement to create a joint holding company. The two industrial giants …

• Land Warfare

  DVD2014: UK Challenger 2 LEP upcoming

  26th June 2014

  The British Army’s Challenger 2 MBT Life Extension (CR2 LEP) upgrade is expected to kick off early next year. The Initial Gate (IG1) for the …

• Land Warfare

  Further MMP validations planned for 2014-15

  9th May 2014

  The Missile Moyenne Portee (MMP) system from MBDA is expected to complete long range testing and missile firings over the next 18 months. A spokesperson …

• Defence Helicopter

  Defense Services Asia: Russia advances Malaysia connection

  17th April 2014

  Rosoboronexport courted the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) with tanks, attack helicopters, boats, and medium and short-range air-defence systems at the Defence Services Asia (DSA) exhibition …

• Land Warfare

  Defence Services Asia: Ketua Tentera Darat Menekankan Pembangunan

  10th April 2014

  Isu kewangan Malaysia telah menyebabkan kekangan atas perbelanjaan pertahanan tetapi Panglima Tentera Darat Malaysia, Jeneral Datuk Raja Mohamed Affandi Bin Raja Mohamed Noor, walaupun mengakui …

• Land Warfare

  FIDAE: Ruag proposes Leopard upgrade

  28th March 2014

  The Chilean Army is in the study phase of potential mid-life upgrade (MLU) for its Leopard 2A4 MBTs and Ruag is proposing its MLU package, …

• Land Warfare

  Elbit Systems wins MBT upgrade contract

  20th March 2014

  Elbit Systems will perform work to upgrade a number of systems on an unnamed Asia-Pacific customer’s main battle tank fleet under a new contract, worth …

• Land Warfare

  Defexpo 2014: New Arjun Catapult on display

  10th February 2014

  A new variant of the Arjun fitted with a 130mm M46 rifled gun system has been put on display at the Defexpo exhibition in Delhi. …

• Land Warfare

  First five Oplot tanks for Thai Army arrive in country

  7th February 2014

  The delivery of Oplot Main Battle Tanks (MBT) to the Kingdom of Thailand by Ukraine continues to progress with the arrival of the first five …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Main battle tanks

  MBT [Tunisia]

  Programme Background The Tunisian MoD has not disclosed any intention to modernise or replace its M60A3s, but an unconfirmed report published by Tactical Report in January ...

• Main battle tanks

  New MBT [Spain]

  Programme Background One of the long-term needs identified in the Spanish Army's Force 2035 modernisation plan is a next-generation MBT. To this end, the Spanish ...

• Main battle tanks

  New MBT [Belgium]

  Programme Background Belgium formally retired its MBT capability in 2014, when it took the last of its 132 KMW Leopard 1A5BE MBTs out of service. ...

• Main battle tanks

  New MBT [Colombia]

  Programme Background The Colombian Army has evaluated several offers for MBT platforms in the past, though none of these have progressed to the formal contract ...

• Main battle tanks

  M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Main battle tanks

  T-55 Replacement [Peru]

  Programme Background Peru received 280 T-55 MBTs from the Soviet Union during the 1970s. Despite their age, these tanks continue to see service, alongside even ...

• Main battle tanks

  New MBT [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Main battle tanks

  C1 Ariete Replacement [Italy]

  Programme Background Background Following nearly 20 years of service within the Italian Army, the C1 Ariete MBT is due for an upgrade or replacement. Suffering ...

• Main battle tanks

  Botswana K2 MBT

  Programme Background The only indication that the Botswana Ground Force was considering the acquisition of the K2 MBT came from a report in Botswana's The ...

• Main battle tanks

  MBT replacement [Slovenia]

  Programme Background When Slovenia became independent in 1991, it inherited 54 M-84 MBTs from the former Yugoslav National Army. In the years after independence, the Slovenian ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leclerc Upgrade (UAE)

  Programme Background The UAE MoD has not disclosed any intention to modernise or replace its Leclerc MBTs, but an unconfirmed report published by the Asian Defence ...

• Main battle tanks

  VT4 Haider (Pakistan)

  Programme Background Pakistan appears to have commenced its programme to acquire a new military off-the-shelf MBT in 2015, when several MBT designs were tested under ...

• Main battle tanks

  MBT [Egypt]

  Programme Background The Egyptian Army operates a vast number of MBTs, including 1,130 General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) M1A1 Abrams assembled in fits and starts between 1984 ...

• Main battle tanks

  Wilk

  Programme Background The Wilk programme was included in the Polish MoDs Technical Modernisation Plan of the Polish Armed Forces for 2021-2035. It was primarily aimed ...

• Main battle 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 ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Main battle tanks

  MBT-2000

  Norinco originally developed the Type 90-II for China's People's Liberation Army (PLA), but when it was not selected by the PLA, it continued to develop and ...

• Land: vehicle simulators

  MBT-S

  The DynaSim Main Battle Tank Simulator (MBT-S) is a medium-fidelity training system for crews and platoon/company commanders. It provides interoperable simultaneous tactical training of multiple ...

• Crew-served assault/anti-tank weapons

  130 mm MBT gun

  The 130mm L/52 main battle tank (MBT) gun is produced by Rheinmetall and forms part of the company’s Future Gun System. The L/52 is compatible ...

• Main battle tanks

  Al-Khalid/Al-Khalid-I

  In 1990, China and Pakistan agreed to jointly develop a new MBT which would be manufactured by HIT for the Pakistan Army.  The Al-Khalid is ...

• Light tanks

  Type 100 Tank

  Officially unveiled at the September 2025 V-Day parade, the Type 100 Tank is claimed by China to be a fourth-generation Main Battle Tank (MBT), making ...

• Land: vehicle surveillance/target acquisition systems

  GPTTS

  Deployed on the Korean K1 MBT, the Gunner’s Primary Tank Thermal Sight (GPTTS) is an integrated FCS that combines direct-view optics, a Gen I 120-channel ...

• Unguided Tank Ammunition

  120mm CAN

  The 120mm Canister (CAN), manufactured by KNDS, is designed to provide crews with an effective close-defence solution against various threats. The round is STANAG 4385 ...

• Land: vehicle surveillance/target acquisition systems

  ELRF M1/LRFD M1

  The ELRF M1 eyesafe laser range finder (LRF) and the LRFD M1 LRF/designator both bolt onto the gunner’s primary sight on the M1 Abrams MBT. ...

• Land: battlefield and ground surveillance radar

  P-200 Credo-1

  The P-200 Credo-1 is a tripod-mounted, pulse-Doppler ground/coastal surveillance radar capable of detecting and tracking a variety of targets. This includes people, vehicles, ships and ...

• Main battle tanks

  VT4 (MBT-3000)

  The 125mm-armed VT4, also known as the MBT-3000, is the latest MBT developed and manufactured by Norinco. Displayed internationally for the first time at Eurosatory in ...

• Main battle tanks

  EMBT

  KNDS (KMW + NEXTER Defense Systems) presented its first joint product, the EMBT (European Main Battle Tank) demonstrator, at the June 2018 Eurosatory defence exhibition. The EMBT mounts ...

• Land: battlefield and ground surveillance radar

  RATAC-S

  The Radar d’Aide au Tir d’Artillerie de Campagne (RATAC-S) is a multipurpose radar designed to detect, locate and classify ground targets or low-flying aircraft at ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leopard 2 Next Generation

  Aselsan unveiled its Leopard 2 Next Generation (NG) MBT upgrade proposal for the Turkish Land Forces Command’s fleet of almost 300 Leopard 2A4s at Turkey’s ...

• Main battle tanks

  KF51 Panther

  Rheinmetall unveiled the KF51 Panther at Eurosatory 2022. The MBT uses Leopard 2 components in its bare chassis but with a brand new turret. Its main armament is the ...

• Light tanks

  CV90120-T

  BAE Systems developed the CV90120-T as a private venture to provide customers with a vehicle that combines the firepower of a 120mm-armed MBT with the ...