• Defence Notes

  NATO shakes off infighting amid public rifts

  3rd December 2019

  NATO has insisted it is continuing to deliver on its defence commitments despite public comments from partner nations that suggest a number of high-profile disagreements …

• Naval Warfare

  Naval Group progresses in Dutch sub programme

  16th December 2019

  Naval Group has announced that it has been down-selected by the Netherlands Ministry of Defence (MoD) for its Submarine Replacement programme. Naval Group is one …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Predator B providing California wildfire recon

  28th November 2019

  A California Air National Guard (CA ANG) Predator B/MQ-9 RPAS is providing real-time reconnaissance for California’s Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) firefighting …

• Digital Battlespace

  Japan MoD contracts for SSR antenna sets

  25th November 2019

  Lockheed Martin and its Japanese partner, Aegis Ashore Japan, have contracted with the Japanese Ministry of Defense to produce two Solid State Radar (SSR) antenna …

• Land Warfare

  Lockheed tests PAC-3 performance

  8th November 2019

  Lockheed Martin has demonstrated the PAC-3 Cost Reduction Initiative (CRI) interceptor’s ability to counter tactical ballistic missile targets during testing that took place at White …

• Defence Notes

  Vietnam publishes its first White Paper in a decade

  13th December 2019

  Vietnam issued its much-anticipated defence White Paper on 25 November, the fourth such document to be published since the inaugural edition in 1998 and a …

• Land Warfare

  Danish Army orders Protector RWS

  10th December 2019

  Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace will deliver Protector Remote Weapon Stations (RWS) to the Danish Army under a contract with the Danish Ministry of Defence Acquisition …

• Training

  I/ITSEC 2019: Lockheed outlines F-35 training and maintenance infrastructure

  3rd December 2019

  Running parallel to the physical development of the F-35 fighter programme, platform manufacturer Lockheed Martin is continuing to work to provide the services operating the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Orbiter 4 UAS completes 25hr flight

  12th December 2019

  Aeronautics Group’s Orbiter 4 UAS has completed a 25 hour flight, setting a new endurance record for the platform. The flight was performed at mission …

• Defence Helicopter

  First H145 SAR helicopter delivered to Germany

  11th December 2019

  The first H145 helicopter has been delivered to the German armed forces’ search and rescue service by Airbus Helicopters, the company announced on 10 December.Germany’s …

• Training

  German Army to upgrade combat vehicle sims

  5th December 2019

  Saab is to carry out a mid-life upgrade programme of the German Army’s AGDUS combat vehicle simulators, the company announced on 4 December. The $18.9 …

• Digital Battlespace

  AOC 2019: DARPA makes its case for Mosaic Warfare

  29th October 2019

  In an effort to move away from overarching CONOPS or C2 structures, DARPA has used the platform of AOC 2019 to make its case for …

• Digital Battlespace

  US Army moves out with new radar jamming R&D

  12th November 2019

  The US Army has put electronic warfare manufacturer BAE Systems on contract for research and development of advanced radar jamming technologies - a collaboration that …

• Land Warfare

  DARPA OpFires programme makes progress

  9th December 2019

  Aerojet Rocketdyne has carried out a series of subscale propulsion-system test firings for the DARPA Operational Fires (OpFires) programme.Under OpFires, DARPA is working to develop …

• Defence Notes

  Podcast: Revolutions in Vertical Flight S1 E6 - the Future of VTOL Innovation

  20th December 2019

  Welcome to Shephard Studio’s podcast series on Revolutions in Vertical Flight, sponsored by our partner Bell. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. The Revolutions in Vertical Flight …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | Invincible Class (Type 218SG) (5-6) [Singapore]

  In March 2025, the Singapore Ministry of Defence (Mindef) announced it would acquire two more submarines to complement its four Type 218SG Invincible-class submarines. Speaking to ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  Naval: shipboard communication systems | Invincible Class (Type 218SG) (5-6) [Singapore]

  In March 2025, the Singapore Ministry of Defence (Mindef) announced it would acquire two more submarines to complement its four Type 218SG Invincible-class submarines. Speaking to ...

• Loitering munitions

  Small-Sized Suicide Drones [South Korea]

  Programme Background Drone Ambition As reported by Shephard, South Korea has ambitions to possess a large arsenal of drones. In May 2024, the presidential office ...

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

  Joint Tactical Autonomous Aerial Resupply System (JTAARS) / Medium ULS-A [USA]

  Background US Marine ULS-A programmes The US Marines are seeking a family of Unmanned Logistics Systems-Air (ULS-A), which will provide logistics and ground units with their ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Type 707 (1-2) [Germany]

  Programme Background Requirements The German Navy approved an acquisition to start replacing the two ageing Rhön-class (Type 704) class single-hulled tankers, which were constructed in the ...

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

  Switch V2 [India]

  Background June 2025 In June 2025, India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced the signing of 13 contracts under the Emergency Procurement (EP) mechanism. The procurements, ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Wolf 2 [Germany]

  Programme Background The Wolf 2 was designed by Mercedes-Benz to replace the German Bundeswehr's ageing fleet of Wolf utility vehicles. The Bundeswehr is currently replacing its ...

• Transport

  C-130 Replacement [Greece]

  Programme Background Requirement The existing C-130 fleet of the Hellenic Air Force has faced operational readiness issues, with only one or two airframes in service at ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  F-5E/F Adversary Trainer US Navy

  The F-5N is a single seat, dual engine supersonic land based fighter. It is designed to a service life of 9000 flight hours. The aircraft ...

• Landing platform docks/dock landing ships

  Second LHD [Turkey]

  Programme Background Timeline On 29 October 2023, during the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Turkey, Turkish President Recep Erdogan stated that the Navy is ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  CH-47F (Australia)

  Programme Background The government of Australia has requested to buy four CH-47F cargo helicopters with unique modifications: eight T55-GA-714A aircraft turbine engines, five AN/AAR-57 common ...

• OPVs

  58m OPV Procurement [Guyana]

  Programme Background Timeline In April 2024, OCEA announced the signing of a Letter of Intent (loI) with the Guyana Defence Force for the procurement of an ...

• Loitering munitions

  Nagastra-1 (Second Batch) [India]

  Background Emergency Procurements In June 2025, India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced the signing of 13 contracts under the Emergency Procurement (EP) mechanism. The procurements, which ...

• AEW&C

  E-7 Wedgetail (737) - UK

  Programme Background Seeking to replace its six ageing Boeing E-3 Sentry AEW&C;, the British Royal Air Force awarded Boeing a £1.89 billion contract in 2019 covering the ...

• Corvettes

  Ada Class Corvettes (1-2) [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Timeline In October 2020, the MoD of Ukraine and the President of the Turkish Defence Industries signed a memorandum of understanding. This outlined ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Guided munitions

  LG-155

  Unveiled for the first time at Saha Expo 2024, the LG-155 is a 155 mm artillery round developed by Roketsan. This laser-guided projectile is engineered ...

• Deployable/static missile systems

  Oerlikon Laser Gun

  Rheinmetall showcased the applications for its High Energy Laser (HEL) guns for the first time at IDEX 2015 in Abu Dhabi. The Oerlikon Laser Gun ...

• Laser-directed energy weapons

  Locust

  BlueHalo's Locust is a laser weapon system. The system delivers a complete kill chain, providing a layered and broadband detection capability that is coupled with electronic ...

• Light machine guns

  LSAT LMG

  Textron Systems Unmanned Systems is developing and maturing a Lightweight Small Arms Technologies (LSAT) family of weapons and ammunition with the US Army that fires ...

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

  Attritable Multirotor First Person View (AM-FPV)

  Unveiled in May 2025, the Attritable Multirotor First Person View (AM-FPV) is a low-cost, rapidly deployable platform for strike and ISR missions, inspired by battlefield lessons from ...

• Land: COMINT and ELINT systems

  MEWS

  The Modular Electronic Warfare System (MEWS) is a land COMINT sensor that was jointly developed by L3 TRL and Qinetiq. Utilising L3 TRL compact receiver ...

• Land: fire control systems

  Oerlikon Skymaster

  Oerlikon Skymaster is the command and control unit of Rheinmetall's Skynex air defence system. The Skymaster is intended to support tactical and operational level air ...

• Land: air defence radar

  X-TAR 3D

  The X-Band Tactical Acquisition Radar 3D (X-TAR 3D) air surveillance and acquisition radar is the newest member of Rheinmetall’s X-TAR family. The fully coherent phased-array ...

• Loitering munitions

  Lumberjack

  The Lumberjack is a one-way attack drone from  Northrop Grumman. The company describes it as a force multiplier.  The drone follows an open systems architecture, ...

• Land: COMINT and ELINT systems

  Smartscan- MEWS

  MEWS (Modular Electronic Warfare System) is a software-driven spectrum surveillance system covering two megahertz to three gigahertz. It is designed to detect, collect and geolocate ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  CM32/33/34 Yunpao

  The CM32 Yunpao (Cloud Leopard) family of 8x8 armoured vehicles has been developed to meet the requirements of the Republic of China Army to replace ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  SBTS

  The Shore-Based Sonar Training System (SBTS), launched in 2016, incorporates technology from the Model 997 Hull/Bow-Mounted Sonar Model 980 ALOFTS system to help support sonar ...

• Subsystems: visual

  Apogée 7

  Apogée 7 is an integrated COTS-based image generation system. It provides functions enhancing overall fixed- or rotary-wing simulation efficiency, image quality and supports large-area realistic ...

• Land: handheld NV devices

  NVS 7 Binocular Series

  Based on the NVS 7-3AG NVG, the NVS 7 Binocular Series uses Gen III auto-gated NV technology and is suitable for defence, marine and SAR ...

• Land: handheld NV devices

  Jaguar

  MKU's Jaguar 14 monoculars and Jaguar 7 binoculars have Gen III technology with military-grade Schott lenses. An automatic bright light cut-off sensor provides protection from ...