• Naval Warfare

  DSA 2022: Japan commissions first ship in new frigate class

  25th March 2022

  Both Japan and South Korea are building frigates, with the former commissioning the first of a new class and the latter launching the last of a class on 22 March.

• Defence Notes

  US postpones Minuteman III test launch in bid to ease nuclear tension

  3rd March 2022

  The US decision to delay a test launch of the Minuteman III land-based strategic nuclear missile was taken to de-escalate tensions with Russia, after Vladimir Putin ordered a special alert of nuclear forces last week.

• Naval Warfare

  RN will have to play catch-up to achieve hypersonic ambitions

  18th February 2022

  Comments from the head of the RN about hypersonic ambitions came shortly before UK officials met with their French counterparts to progress the joint Future Cruise/Anti-Ship Weapon project.

• Air Warfare

  Sweden contracts Saab for continued Gripen C/D support

  12th April 2022

  Saab has received another order from the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration to keep its Gripen C/Ds in service until 2035.

• Training

  US to provide accelerated equipment training to Ukraine

  5th May 2022

  Training programmes set up by the US will prepare Ukrainian soldiers to become instructors on their return. Options for virtual training are also being explored.

• Air Warfare

  India pushes ahead with Ka-31 AEW purchase

  23rd February 2022

  India's fleet of Ka-31 AEW helicopters is ageing, and new examples are needed to equip forthcoming warships.

• Air Warfare

  Drones can wait as modernising Serbia looks to France for fighters

  20th April 2022

  As Serbia was already taking steps to expand and modernise its air force before the Ukraine war, has how the conflict altered its defence policy and which security partners is it now looking towards?

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop Grumman confirms suspension of Firebird production

  19th April 2022

  Northrop Grumman has suspended production in its long-running Firebird programme.

• Air Warfare

  Bangkok looks to the future with new Thai fighters

  17th January 2022

  Thailand wants nothing less than the fifth-generation F-35 in order to modernise its fighter fleet.

• Digital Battlespace

  Singapore Airshow 2022: Rafael lines up new RecceLite targeting pod demo

  18th February 2022

  Rafael will host customers for a live demonstration of its popular RecceLite ISR targeting pod later this year.

• Land Warfare

  Estonia to acquire new armoured vehicles in Q2 2022

  1st April 2022

  Estonia has concluded a market survey for new 4x4 and 6x6 platforms and is seeking suppliers able to deliver new vehicles by the end of 2024.

• Defence Helicopter

  The Combat Veteran - 40 Years of the Chinook in the UK

  10th January 2022

  The Chinook has served in every RAF campaign of the past 40 years. But in Afghanistan, it faced greater pressure than ever before.

• Air Warfare

  India pursues indigenous loitering munitions

  12th April 2022

  India is fast-tracking development of loitering munitions for the army, with an EoI exercise under way and recent testing of various types.

• Air Warfare

  No skylarking as Elbit demonstrates new UAS

  11th April 2022

  Elbit Systems demonstrates its dual-propulsion Skylark 3 Hybrid system at RAF Upavon on Wiltshire.

• Digital Battlespace

  SBIRS GEO-5 joins Space Force

  10th February 2022

  The fifth Space Based Infrared System Geosynchronous Earth Orbit satellite has been accepted into service with the US Space Force.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Light attack, Trainer

  PC-21 (Project Air 5428) [Australia]

  The new PTS, including aircraft, flight training simulators and learning environments is being acquired from a single capability contractor, Team 21, which consists of Lockheed ...

• Transport, Transport/tanker aircraft

  Project Air 7404 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement Australia is thinking ahead to an enlarged transport fleet to replace the current C-130Js. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) was the second ...

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

  Harpii Szpon (Loyal Wingman) [Poland]

  Programme Background Market Evaluation On 6 November 2023, speaking at the IQPC International Fighter Conference (IFC) 2023 in Madrid, Major General Cezary Wiśniewski, the Deputy General Commander of ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A (Project Air 6000 Phase 2A/B) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) took delivery of 18 F-35A aircraft as of March 2020 and the remaining aircraft are expected to ...

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

  Loyal Wingman [Australia]

  Background Older Efforts On 23 April 2021, the US State Department's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) approval announcement revealed that Australia had requested to buy up ...

• Data links

  Data links | Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  In June 2020, Australia issued a Request for Information (RfI) for a Future Lead-In Fighter Training System (LIFTS) in a requirement called Project Air 6002 Phase ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  In June 2020, Australia issued a Request for Information (RfI) for a Future Lead-In Fighter Training System (LIFTS) in a requirement called Project Air 6002 Phase ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  In June 2020, Australia issued a Request for Information (RfI) for a Future Lead-In Fighter Training System (LIFTS) in a requirement called Project Air 6002 Phase ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  In June 2020, Australia issued a Request for Information (RfI) for a Future Lead-In Fighter Training System (LIFTS) in a requirement called Project Air 6002 Phase ...

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

  Project Vixen [UK]

  Programme Background Project Goal The Royal Navy uses Leonardo crewed Merlin (AW101) helicopters fitted with CROWSNEST pods to provide airborne early warning capabilities for carriers. An early ...

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

  Project Air 7003 [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirement The Royal Australian Air Force has been without a UAS capability since the Heron was withdrawn in mid-2017. According to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) [USN]

  Programme Background Requirement The USN wants to acquire carrier-capable loyal wingman drones. These drones will have a high level of autonomy, allowing them to work alongside crewed ...

• Patrol boats

  Evolved Cape Class (11-12) [Australia]

  Programme Background Austal was awarded a contract to build six 'Evolved'Cape-class patrol boats for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) on 1 May 2020 (see separate ...

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

  Low-Cost Uncrewed Air Systems (LANCA) Follow-On Project [UK]

  Programme Background Project Mosquito Beginning in 2019, the UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL), in collaboration with the Royal Air Force (RAF), began the ...

• OPVs

  Arafura Class (Project SEA 1180) (1-6) [Australia]

  Programme Background Australia's new class of Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV), the Arafura-class, will replace the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) fleet of Armidale and Cape-class patrol ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  Australian Defence Force MRH90 Training

  As prime contractor for the ADF's MRH90 training programme, CAE has provided two MRH90 full-flight mission simulators (FFMS), training facilities and engineering and support services. ...

• Trainer

  King Air trainer

  Textron / Beechcraft King Air trainers are a family twin-engine aircraft based on King Air 90, 100, 200 and 350 utility aircraft. The King Air ...

• AMAS

  AMAS – Australian Minesweeping System – was developed with the assistance of the Defence Science & Technology Organisation and the Royal Australian Navy. It adopts ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  RAAF Hawk Mk 127 FMS

  Under subcontract to BAE Systems, CAE is designing and manufacturing three Hawk Mk 127 full-mission simulators (FMS) for the Royal Australian Air Force that will ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  NGJ

  Raytheon's Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) was selected by the USN in 2013 to replace the legacy ALQ-99 systems used on the EA-18G electronic attack aircraft. ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  AN/ALQ-210

  Lockheed Martin’s AN/ALQ-210 is an Electronic Support Measure (ESM) outfitting the Sikorsky MH-60R Romeo naval support helicopter. The manufacturer’s official literature says that the product ...

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

  Wanderer

  The Wanderer is a low-altitude, low-cost, long-endurance UAV produced in-house by the Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF) Jericho Disruptive Innovation Group and the Australian Government's Defense Science ...

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  Air-5416 Project Echidna

  BAE Systems’ commenced its work on the Australian Department of Defence’s Air-5416 Project Echidna initiative in 2001. The rationale of the programme was to overhaul ...

• Light attack

  Hawk 200

  The Hawk 200 is a single-seat light attack iteration of the Hawk 100 (see separate entry) and Advanced Jet Trainer or AJT (see separate entry). ...

• Air: chaff, flare and decoy systems

  Vicon-XF

  Thales’ Vicon-XF is a countermeasure dispensing system which can equip an array of platforms, primarily large aircraft and rotorcraft, according to the manufacturer’s official literature. ...

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

  MQ-28A Ghost Bat

  Initially, as a multirole system to escort crewed aircraft, the MQ-28A Ghost Bat has been reimagined as a proving platform. Its development began in 2013 and ...

• Maritime patrol

  Challenger 604

  Bombardier Challenger CL-604 MPAs are in service with the Royal Danish Air Force and the Korea Coast Guard. The first of three Danish aircraft entered ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  Predator Mission Trainer (PMT)

  The CAE Predator Mission Trainer (PMT) is an integrated platform that combines the features of CAE's UAS mission trainer with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems' Predator-specific ...

• Air: COMINT and ELINT systems

  AN/ALR-2001

  BAE Systems’ AN/ALR-2001 Electronic Support Measure (ESM) is thought to be based on Israel Aerospace Industries’ (IAI) Elta Systems division’s EL/M-8382 ESM. The AN/ALR-2001 is ...

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

  Phantom 4 (Series)

  Designed for aerial photograph applications by DJI, the Phantom 4 series of UAVs includes the Phantom 4 Pro, Phantom 4 Pro V2.0, Phantom 4 Advanced ...