• Defence Helicopter

  DSEI 2015: Netherlands expands Chinook fleet

  11th September 2015

  The Netherlands will order 14 Boeing CH-47F MYII Chinook medium transport helicopters, it was announced by the Dutch MoD on 7 September. The €838.1 million …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sino-Russian AHL details emerge

  11th September 2015

  More solid details have emerged regarding Aviation Corporation of China’s (AVIC) 10t-class Advanced Heavy Lift (AHL) helicopter thanks to the display of a scale model …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DSEI 2015: Next-gen Zephyr in the making

  10th September 2015

  Airbus Defence and Space is making its next-generation version of high altitude pseudo-satellite (HAPS) Zephyr.  The new UAV will have a 35m wingspan in comparison to …

• Defence Helicopter

  Armed Z-19E prepped for export

  10th September 2015

  A light armed attack helicopter from the Harbin Aircraft Industry Group (HAIG) broke cover at the China Helicopter Exposition, held from 9-13 September, in Tianjin. …

• Defence Helicopter

  DSEI 2015: UK defence report

  10th September 2015

  As industry gathers in London for the biennial defence carnival that is DSEI, much talk will centre on the likely outcomes of the UK’s forthcoming …

• Defence Helicopter

  Aussie Chinook fleet in-country

  9th September 2015

  Seven CH-47F Chinook helicopters have now been delivered to the Australian Army, Boeing announced on 9 September, with the most recent delivery taking place in …

• Defence Helicopter

  HAL LCH completes hot & high trials

  7th September 2015

  HAL has announced the successful completion of hot and high-altitude trials on the third prototype of its Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) in Leh.  The trials, …

• Defence Helicopter

  Raytheon bags AN/AQS-22 sonar contract

  4th September 2015

  Raytheon has been awarded a $33 million contract to produce, deliver, integrate, and test AN/AQS-22 Airborne Low Frequency Sonar (ALFS) systems to the US Navy, it …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army finally commits to guided rockets

  4th September 2015

  The US Army has begun to acquire smart guidance kits for its 70mm (2.75in) rocket systems and is fielding them to frontline units for evaluation, …

• Defence Helicopter

  MSPO 2015: Caracal fights on

  4th September 2015

  The Polish procurement of the EC725/H225M Caracal for their utility helicopter requirement is in the final stages of a re-adjustment, it has emerged. Airbus Helicopters, …

• Naval Warfare

  RAN ASMD programme progresses

  3rd September 2015

  On-dock production activities as part of HMAS Ballarat’s Anti-Ship Missile Defence (ASMD) upgrade are now complete, and the vessel has returned to the Material Control …

• Defence Helicopter

  Brunei MPTC plans to become ATO

  2nd September 2015

  The CAE Brunei Multi-Purpose Training Centre (MPTC) plans to become an Approved Training Organization (ATO) according to European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) guidelines and procedures, …

• Defence Helicopter

  US approves Boeing upgrade of UK Apaches

  1st September 2015

  The UK has inched closer to a decision on its attack helicopter replacement, with the US formally approving an FMS sale of up to 50 …

• Naval Warfare

  USCG orders Air Data Computers

  1st September 2015

  The US Coast Guard (USCG) has awarded a contract to the Defense Solutions division of Curtiss-Wright to provide Air Data Computer technology for its MH-65 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Russian high-speed testbed revealed

  1st September 2015

  A high-speed helicopter testbed based on a Mi-24K attack helicopter will take to the air for the first time in late 2015, it has emerged. …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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 - 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 ...

• Military helicopters - attack, Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M / H145M Add-On [Romania]

  Methodology As part of a potential initial order for 12 H225M helicopters, Romania has included the option to acquire 30 additional helicopters from Airbus. Shephard estimates this ...

• 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 - multirole

  H135 [UK]

  Programme Background Airbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of light ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH-90 [Spain]

  Programme Background Along with a range of other air programmes, the Spanish Government announced the nation has set aside 1 billion euros (USD$1.162 billion) to ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  Future Aircrew Training Program [Canada]

  Background The FAcT requires to graduate 120 pilots, 40 combat systems officers and 36 airborne electronic sensor operators per year with 15% fluctuation. Training services are ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) (TH-57 Replacement)

  Programme Background Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175 and works to fill a gap in the H175 helicopter family, as well as offer ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  Light Armed Helicopter

  The South Korean government selected Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in July 2014 to develop the Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) and the related Light Civil Helicopter ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AS365 N3+ Dauphin

  The AS365 N3+, manufactured by Airbus Helicopters (formerly Eurocopter), was developed from the Dauphin series of medium, twin-turboshaft rotorcraft. The AS365 N3+ was launched at the 2009 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Flexrotor

  Flexrotor, or U030 Flexrotor, is a VTOL small UAS manufactured by Aerovel. It can integrate different types of payloads, including electro-optical systems and advanced sensors, to suit ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  NH90 TTH

  Developed as a multinational programme between France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, the European NH90 was designed to meet NATO requirements for multirole capability from ...