• Air Warfare

  Germany's potential SCAF exit for GCAP unpacked

  3rd November 2023

  The leaked information about Germany leaving the Future Combat Air Systems (FCAS/SCAF) project and joining the rival Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) hints at the growing complexities and tensions within the Franco-German partnership.

• Air Warfare

  Shield AI, Sentient Vision collaborate on AI-enabled wide-area imagery

  15th August 2023

  Shield AI and Sentient Vision Systems will jointly develop a wide area motion imagery (WAMI) solution, integrating Sentient's Visual Detection and Ranging (ViDAR) onto Shield AI's V-BAT UAS.

• 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.

• Digital Battlespace

  Rafael enhances Drone Dome with CRFS's RFeye technology

  14th July 2023

  Rafael has successfully integrated CRFS's RFeye technology into its Drone Dome solution, enhancing detection and geolocation capabilities for countering hostile UAVs.

• Training

  ASTi to deliver 27 new SERA MQ-9 training systems

  9th August 2023

  ASTi has received a contract award from SAIC for 27 instances of its Simulated Environment for Realistic ATC (SERA) product.

• Digital Battlespace

  MARSS launches containerised C2 centre for counter-UAS

  7th July 2023

  MARSS has unveiled the NiDAR X-JOC, an all-in-one containerised C2 centre with UAS detection and countermeasures capabilities to protect critical sites against UAS.

• Air Warfare

  Quantum Systems, Airbus, and Spleenlab team up to research artificial intelligence from drone swarms

  3rd July 2023

  The German Armed Forces Planning Office has awarded Airbus Defence and Space, Quantum-Systems and Spleenlab a research contract to demonstrate and analyse the AI building blocks required for swarms of tactical UAS.

• Air Warfare

  BAE Systems Phasa-35 UAS soars into the stratosphere

  17th July 2023

  BAE Systems has achieved the first stratospheric flight of the Phasa-35 High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) uncrewed aerial system (UAS). Weighing 150kg, the drone flew to over 66,000ft in altitude and could offer long-endurance ISR and communication capabilities.

• Air Warfare

  Northrop Grumman says no to prime role on US Air Force NGAD fighter programme

  28th July 2023

  'We're not planning to respond to the NGAD request for proposal as the prime,' Northrop Grumman's CEO said, revealing the company's decision to opt out of heading up the USAF's Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) programme.

• Training

  French Navy conducts first anti-drone training exercise

  3rd July 2023

  France's Naval Action Force (FAN) has conducted a dedicated exercise to train ship crews, marine riflemen and fast jet pilots in countering asymmetric drone threats.

• Land Warfare

  US DoD announces additional weapons and support for Ukraine

  26th July 2023

  The US DoD has authorised $400 million more in security assistance for Ukraine, including air defence munitions, artillery, armoured vehicles and anti-armour weapons, in support of operations against Russian forces.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  ESEN Gördes demonstrates S-100 UAS navigation system

  25th July 2023

  The ESEN GöRDES vision based navigation system was successfully demonstrated on the Schiebel Camcopter S-100 UAS, showcasing its capability to operate in GPS-denied environments and offering a jam and spoofing resilient platform.

• Land Warfare

  Rising Anti-Armour Threats in Ukraine Spotlight Need for Active Protection Systems (Studio)

  6th September 2023

  Amid the evolving threats in modern warfare, active protection systems (APS), like Rafael’s Trophy, offer advanced defence for armoured vehicles.

• Naval Warfare

  France and Italy's Horizon-class destroyers to receive mid-life upgrade

  1st August 2023

  The Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation (OCCAR) has awarded Naviris and Eurosam a €1.5 billion ($1.65 billion) contract for the mid-life upgrade (MLU) of the French Navy’s Forbin-class destroyers and Italian Navy’s Orrizonte-class destroyers.

• Digital Battlespace

  Insitu reveals next-generation sensor demo at US Army exercise

  4th July 2023

  Insitu Pacific showcased advanced sensors on board its Integrator UAS during the US Army's Project Convergence 2022.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  DEF129 (Nano UAS) [Australia]

  Programme Background DEF129 The Australian Ground Service has combined various army procurement efforts under the DEF129 programme to increase the abundance and proliferation of UAVs ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Aeromobila A Pilotaggio Remoto (Mini) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirement Released on 5 August 2021, the Italian MoD's Multi-Year Defence Programme Document for 2021-2023 announced a programme aimed at acquiring a mini-UAS capable ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Aeromobila A Pilotaggio Remoto (Micro) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirement Released on 5 August 2021, the Italian MoD's Multi-Year Defence Programme Document for 2021-2023 announced a programme aimed at acquiring a micro-UAS capable ...

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

  RQ-20 Puma [Belgium]

  Programme  Requirement The Belgian MoD outlined plans to procure more mini and tactical UAS in its Strategic Vision for Defence published in 2016. According to ...

• Military UAS - small

  Bug Nano UAS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army previously took delivery of 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS in 2013 to support operations in Afghanistan. After these ...

• Military UAS - small

  Puma 2 AE [Germany]

  Programme Background The Germany navy had an urgent requirement for three UAS required for reconnaissance and identification in maritime operations. A platform was required that ...

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

  Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS (BWUAS) [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Goal The Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS (BWUAS) programme stems from the Military Sealift Command and Fleet Forces Command identifying, in 2018, a ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Class 2 Tactical UAS [Ireland]

  Background EU Tender On 13 March 2024, the Irish Department of Defence released a planning notice on the EU tenders website, confirming that the Irish ...

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

  Mini UAS [Spain]

  Programme Background Fuerza 35 Project This project is a Spanish Army initiative to create and maintain an effective force by forming flexible and cohesive operational ...

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

  General-Purpose UAS [Australia]

  Programme Background Banned As reported by Shephard in August 2023, in the past, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) used commercial UAS from companies such as DJI for ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Long Range Reconnaissance (LRR) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  Under its Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) programme, the US Army plans to procure a Family of Small UAS (FoSUAS) to provide an organic ISR capability ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Long Range Reconnaissance (LRR) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  Under its Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) programme, the US Army plans to procure a Family of Small UAS (FoSUAS) to provide an organic ISR capability ...

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

  Indigenous UAS (South Korea)

  Programme Background South Korea's Total UAS Budget The government of South Korea wants to grow its domestic UAS industry. To do this, it was reported in ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Anafi [Sweden]

  Programme Background Sweden announced on 7 February 2024 that Defence Material Works had procured drones for the Home Guard on behalf of the Armed Forces. ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  MALE UAV (Finland)

  Programme Background Defence Report 2017 The Government's Defence Report 2017 stated that Finland's fighter capability could not be replaced wholesale by UAVs. Therefore, the FDF ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  Maveric UAS

  The Maveric is a small, lightweight UAS designed to perform covert ISR missions at the tactical level. In order to camouflage the drone, its profile ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Academy

  IAI has established a UAS Academy for training and certification of operators and technicians. The academy was established to meet a perceived need for skilled ...

• Lynx UAS

  The Lynx is an sUAS used for large-area precision agriculture and surveying and has an endurance of 3h with the standard mapping payload. Its hand-launched ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  UAS 100

  The UAS 100 is an autonomous, three-engined platform, modular UAS manufactured by Thales in partnership with Issoire Aviation, Hionos and with the support of the ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Heavy UAS

  The Heavy UAS, or Cargo Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, is, as its name suggests, a cargo-carrying UAV.  Manufactured by Honeywell Aerospace, the VTOL capable UAV's horizontal flight ...

• Hex Mini UAS

  The Hex Mini is a hexacopter UAS capable of autonomous operation. Launched in under 10min, the system is constructed of sturdy materials and supports gyrostabilised ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Operator Training

  To help in the development of training applications for UAS pilots, Presagis offers a suite of integrated COTS software that can be used for the ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Mission Trainer

  The UAS Mission Trainer combines an open architecture with COTS hardware and simulation software that minimises the use of proprietary designs to provide a platform-agnostic ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  Howler C-UAS

  Developed by Raytheon, the Howler is a counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS), which includes a Ku-band Radio Frequency Sensor (KuRFS), a command-and-control system, and a Coyote ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  Cobham C-UAS

  Unveiled at the AUVSI 2017 trade show in Dallas, Texas, the Cobham C-UAS primarily consists of wideband omnidirectional, directional helix (single- or dual-band), directional flat ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  Skylock C-UAS

  Skylock, an Avnon Group company, has developed a C-UAS system that is intended to bring sensors, jammers and a laser effector into a single deployable ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Small UAS CISR

  Cubic's Secure ISR Radio (SCISR) for small unmanned aerial systems is a rugged common data link (CDL) multi-band (L, S, and C) full-duplex transceiver for ...

• UAS: Integrated systems - uncrewed

  AsteRx-m2 UAS

  The AsteRx-m2 UAS is a GNSS receiver designed to be easily integrated into UAS applications to provide centimetre-level RTK positioning. The system’s standard connectors enable ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  C-UAS Solution

  The C-UAS Solution uses goniometry, radar technologies and various sensors to detect and remove UAS from the air. So far, the solution has been proven effective against ...

• Foremost UAS Range

  The Foremost UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) Range is an area of restricted airspace, located near the village of Foremost, for UAS research and development or ...