• Naval Warfare

  USN orders nine more Arleigh Burke Flight III destroyers

  3rd August 2023

  The USN will receive nine more DDG 51 Arleigh Burke-class Flight III destroyers, six from Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) and three from General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, under a deal likely to be worth around $1.8 billion each ship.

• Air Warfare

  Rheinmetall breaks ground on F-35 fuselage plant

  1st August 2023

  The Rheinmetall F-35A factory is set to produce at least 400 fighter jet fuselages for Germany and other NATO operators.

• Land Warfare

  Netherlands orders General Dynamics floating bridges

  24th July 2023

  General Dynamics European Land Systems has received an order from the Royal Netherlands Army for three Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB) floating bridge systems.

• Air Warfare

  Australia orders 20 C-130Js to replace and expand current RAAF fleet

  25th July 2023

  The Royal Australian Air Force’s fleet of Lockheed Martin C-130J transport aircraft will be renewed by a $6.6 billion order for 20 new aircraft.

• Land Warfare

  Dedicated recon model of Otokar Akrep II vehicle ready for export

  28th July 2023

  Otokar has introduced a reconnaissance variant of the Akrep II 4x4 armoured vehicle, equipped with a remote weapon station and advanced surveillance features. The export-ready vehicle offers adaptable weapon systems and hybrid electric drive options.

• Defence Notes

  Rheinmetall buys Expal Systems to expand ammunition production to meet booming orders

  1st August 2023

  Rheinmetall has finalised its acquisition of Expal Systems, significantly boosting its ammunition production capacity and strengthening Rheinmetall's position as a NATO supplier and enhancing its product portfolio.

• Air Warfare

  Indonesia orders Anka UAVs from Turkiye

  3rd August 2023

  Indonesia becomes the eighth customer for the Anka, as Turkiye further cements its positions as a major supplier of UAVs.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  More Black Hornet UAVs bound for Ukraine as part of Norway order

  18th July 2023

  Teledyne FLIR Defense will supply Black Hornet 3 nano-UAVs to Ukraine, as part of a Norway MoD order. The pocket-sized drones provide crucial reconnaissance capabilities.

• Defence Helicopter

  India turns to leasing companies to plug military helicopter gaps

  27th July 2023

  India's MoD is inviting proposals for leasing 20 reconnaissance and surveillance helicopters for the Indian Army. Vendors are cautious due to a past unfulfilled naval RfI, but leasing offers new opportunities for defence acquisition.

• Naval Warfare

  No easy options: Australia's navy faces complex surface fleet choices

  14th September 2023

  As part of Australia’s Defence Strategic Review (DSR), a report into the Royal Australian Navy’s (RAN’s) future surface fleet force structure was directed to be completed separately. Shephard examines its likely outcomes and how Australia might balance capability with affordability

• Land Warfare

  Rheinmetall secures another major contract for artillery ammunition replenishment

  19th July 2023

  Rheinmetall has signed a framework contract worth €1.3 billion for artillery ammunition replenishment, including shells and fuses, to replenish stores of ammunition used in the war in Ukraine.

• Special Operations

  UPDATED: Romania orders Polaris DAGOR special operations vehicles

  12th July 2023

  Polaris has been awarded a contract to provide 50 of its DAGOR ultralight tactical vehicles to Romania, joining other NATO countries such as Canada, the UK and US as operators.

• Defence Helicopter

  Boeing receives last contract for CH-47F Chinook Block I

  6th July 2023

  Boeing has received a contract worth up to $793 million to produce 18 CH-47F Chinook helicopters for South Korea and an additional aircraft for Spain, marking the conclusion of Block I orders.

• Land Warfare

  Bundeswehr orders over €285 million worth of trucks from Rheinmetall

  3rd July 2023

  The German Bundeswehr has ordered a further 357 military trucks worth over €285 million from Rheinmetall under an existing framework contract.

• Air Warfare

  Germany to postpone decision on Eurofighter sale to Saudi Arabia until at least 2025

  13th July 2023

  The ongoing block on the export of the fighter aircraft to Saudi Arabia is likely to impact the Eurofighter consortium's plans to sell around 200 jets in the next two years.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Hybrid effector systems

  Lightweight Marine Air Defence Integrated System [US]

  Background The US Marine Corps' (USMC) Lightweight Marine Air Defence Integrated System (L-MADIS) supports deployed Marine Expeditionary Units with non-kinetic C-UAS capabilities and a shoulder-fired surface-to-air weapon for ...

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

  Edge 130 [US]

  Programme Background First Order As reported by Shephard, In October 2024, the US Customs and Border Protection force submitted a $1.6 million order to acquire Edge ...

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

  MEUAS IV (US)

  Programme Background MEUAS History The first iteration of the MEUAS programme began in the early 2000s when the ScanEagle was acquired through the programme and ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Z1 [US Army]

  In March 2026, Heven announced that it had been awarded a Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) from the US Army Contracting Command for its Blue-UAS-approved Z1 ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Z1 [US Army]

  In March 2026, Heven announced that it had been awarded a Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) from the US Army Contracting Command for its Blue-UAS-approved Z1 ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Cobra II Armoured Tactical Vehicle - 2 (EGM-ZTA-2)

  Some of the Cobra IIs delivered to the SGD are armed with an Aselsan SARP RWS. Based on the value of the June 2016 contract ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  CV90 (Ukraine Aid) [Denmark & Sweden]

  Programme Background Following the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Ukraine was the recipient of a number of Western systems, many of which ...

• Trainer

  M-345 (Future procurement) [Italy]

  Background Development On 29 December 2017, Aermacchi's M-345 High Efficiency Trainer (HET) prototype aircraft successfully completed its first flight from Venegono Superiore airfield in Varese, ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Secure Personnel Transport Vehicle [Colombia]

  Background Colombia is understood to have a requirement for as many as 100 APCs capable of carrying up to 20 troops and protecting their occupants ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leopard 2A8 [Croatia]

  Programme Background Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Croatia became the latest in a string of Eastern/Central European countries to bolster its ...

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

  FALKE (2022-2023) [Germany]

  Background Inception In November 2022, the German Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) published details on its desire to award a ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | C-27 (first and second batch) [Peru]

  In 2013 and 2014, Peru placed two orders for two units each of the C-27J Spartan. Shephard estimates that at the time of contract, the combined procurement ...

• Data links

  Data links | C-27 (first and second batch) [Peru]

  In 2013 and 2014, Peru placed two orders for two units each of the C-27J Spartan. Shephard estimates that at the time of contract, the combined procurement ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | C-27 (first and second batch) [Peru]

  In 2013 and 2014, Peru placed two orders for two units each of the C-27J Spartan. Shephard estimates that at the time of contract, the combined procurement ...

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

  Vector / Scorpion (Contracted) [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Previous Orders & Donations On 29 March 2022, the US Embassy in Warsaw announced that Quantum Systems had donated an unknown quantity of ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Land: battlefield and ground surveillance radar, Land: coastal surveillance radars

  CHR

  The Compact Hemispheric Radar (CHR) is a family of sensors used in active protection systems for land vehicles manufactured by RADA Electronic Industries in Israel. The ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Erieye

  The S-band Erieye is a long-range airborne early warning and control radarthat detects and automatically tracks air and surface targets across a largearea. The radar has ...

• Sea: naval surveillance radar

  Pozitiv-ME1.2

  The Pozitiv-ME1.2 is a three-dimensional naval surveillance radar manufactured in Russia. It is designed to search, detect, and track air and surface targets. According to ...

• Land: air defence radar

  pMHR

  The Portable Multi-Mission Hemispheric Radar (pMHR) is the smallest in the family of MHRs manufactured by Israeli company RADA Electronic Industries. The radar provides hostile ...

• Land: air defence radar

  ieMHR

  The ieMHR radar is a three-dimensional pulse-doppler radar previously manufactured by Israeli company RADA Electronic Industries and is currently produced by Leonardo. It is designed ...

• Maritime patrol

  340 MSA

  The Saab 340 MSA incorporates a mission management system connected to onboard sensors for all-weather monitoring of large maritime areas. The aircraft is equipped with automatic ...

• Land: C2 simulators

  C2 Training

  Saab provides doctrinal-based simulation that enables trainees to dynamically execute plans and orders from their own C2 system. Commander and staff can perceive and comprehend ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Mildef Tarantula

  The Tarantula is a High Mobility Armoured Vehicles from Malaysian defence manufacturer Mildef International Technologies.  First revealed in February 2021, the Tarantula has already received orders from ...

• Main battle tanks

  VT2

  The 125mm-armed VT2 tracked MBT, which was unveiled at DSA 2012, is the export version of the People's Liberation Army Type 96A. As of early ...

• Land: battlefield and ground surveillance radar, Land: coastal surveillance radars

  Three-Dimensional Perimeter Surveillance Radars

  The Three-Dimensional Perimeter Surveillance radars are hemispheric surveillance radars manufactured by RADA in Israel. They provide border and perimeter surveillance through detection, classification and tracking ...

• Land: battle management systems

  MFoCS

  Mounted Family of Computing Systems (MFoCS) is a modular family which is designed to integrate existing FBCB2, future JBC-P and WIN-T capability into a modular ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Maatla 4x4

  Paramount's Maatla 4x4 is a Light Protected Vehicle (LPV) aimed at the African off-road armoured vehicle market. Announced at the African Aerospace and Defence Expo (AAD 2022) in ...

• Data links

  Link Y Mk2

  Thales Link Y Mk2 is used to securely exchange tactical data and orders via a self-managing, adaptive radio network between multiple military platforms. Designed for ...

• Main battle tanks

  Yatagan

  The Yatagan tank, sometimes referred to as the T-84-120, is an improved T-84 armed with a NATO-standard 120mm smoothbore gun developed by KMDB for the ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Kozak-2

  The Kozak-2 light armoured vehicle, and its Kozak 2M upgraded model, are produced by NPO Practika. It is marketed as a multi-purpose vehicle that can ...