• Defence Notes

  Opinion: US-China military engagement proves a dead end

  20th February 2019

  In 2008 the USMC Commandant Gen James Conway visited the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy Marine Corps. He gave a pep talk along the lines …

• Land Warfare

  Northrop Grumman expands ABL facility

  8th March 2019

  Northrop Grumman has commenced rocket motor production at its new modernised tactical motor manufacturing facility at the Allegany Ballistics Laboratory (ABL) in West Virginia, the …

• Defence Helicopter

  West 2019: Marines highlight MV-22B enhancements

  18th February 2019

  The United States Marine Corps aviation community utilised last week’s West 2019 gathering in San Diego, California to highlight some of the new software and …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Rostec touts the KUB-BLA loitering weapon for the Russian MoD

  12th March 2019

  Russia’s Kalashnikov company and the Russian MoD are set to begin negotiations on the possible delivery of the KUB-BLA expendable unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV). …

• Military Logistics

  Collins to support Portugal’s C-130H modernisation effort

  4th March 2019

  Collins Aerospace has been selected to provide support to the Portuguese Air Force’s C-130H Hercules military transport aircraft modernisation effort, the company announced on 27 …

• Training

  IFTS takes delivery of first M346 trainers

  18th February 2019

  The first two new M-346 aircraft for the joint Leonardo-Italian Air Force’s International Flight Training School (IFTS) have been delivered marking a significant milestone for …

• Land Warfare

  AFRL research targets advanced AAA weaponry

  27th February 2019

  The Air Force Research Laboratory Sensors Directorate and the National Museum of the US Air Force Collection Management Division are teaming up to help address …

• Training

  Adacel receives ATMP support contract

  18th February 2019

  Adacel Systems has received a subcontract from Lockheed Martin Rotary and Mission Systems to support the US Army’s Training Aids, Devices, Simulators and Simulations (TADSS) …

• Special Operations

  SOF munition enhancements explored

  8th March 2019

  United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) have successfully conducted initial testing of an enhanced variant of the Dynetics …

• Defence Helicopter

  HH-60W CRHs prepare for flight test

  4th March 2019

  Two fully assembled HH-60W Combat Rescue Helicopters (CRH) built for the US Air Force are being prepared for their maiden flights. The Sikorsky-built helicopters will …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Aeryon’s Skyranger receives TAA certification

  27th February 2019

  Aeryon’s SkyRanger small UAS has received ‘safe to operate’ certification from the UK’s Type Airworthiness Authority (TAA), Marlborough Communications (MCL) announced on 22 February.   …

• Military Logistics

  Airbus certifies A400M CHT refuelling unit

  26th February 2019

  Airbus, together with the Spanish Air Force Test Centre, has successfully completed the certification flight tests for the A400M Cargo Hold Tanks (CHT) refuelling unit, …

• Naval Warfare

  Singapore launches Invincible-class submarine

  18th February 2019

  The Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) launched the first of its four Type 218SG diesel-electric submarines at ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems’ (TKMS) yard in Kiel, Germany …

• Land Warfare

  US Army awards contract for additional FMTVs

  4th March 2019

  Oshkosh Defense has received $75 million in orders to deliver 354 Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles (FMTV) A1P2 trucks and trailers to the US Army, …

• Digital Battlespace

  US Army selects DataPath to provide communications links

  28th February 2019

  DataPath has received a contract from the US Army to provide communications services in support of the Homeland Defense and Defense Support of Civil Authorities, …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-1Y [Romania]

  Programme Background The Romanian MoD has a long-standing requirement for new rotary platforms, including troop transport, supply and attack configurations. According to the the Romanian Military ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Next Tactical Aviation Capability Set (nTACS) [Canada]

  Programme Background The Royal Canadian Air Force has unveiled its new nTACS programme that aims to replace the RCAFs ageing fleet of CH-146 Griffon helicopters ...

• 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 - tactical

  Omen [UAE]

  Background Joint Venture In November 2025, EDGE Group and Anduril unveiled the EDGE-Anduril Production Alliance, a joint venture in which the two companies collaborated on ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Tracked Support Vehicle [Spain]

  Programme Background Requirement Spain has an inventory of ageing M113s in various configurations, at least 20 of which were transferred to Ukraine in 2022. According ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-X III Phase II (F-35) [South Korea]

  Programme Background On 14 September 2014, South Korea signed an FMS contract under the first phase of F-X III programme to supply 40 F-35As for ...

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

  Multidomian Micro Drones [USSOCOM]

  Background Special Notice On 14 November 2024, a Special Notice was released that informed the industry that the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) was looking for ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35B (1-12) [Singapore]

  Programme Background Singapore is renowned as a discerning and demanding customer, so its selection of the F-35 must be seen as a vote of confidence ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Project Corvus [UK]

  Background Retirement In November 2024, speaking in the House of Commons, Defence Secretary John Healey stated that the WK 450 Watchkeeper was to be retired as ...

• 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 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A Japan Follow On

  The F-35 full-rate production is expected to be further delayed following an October 2020 US DoD announcement that postponed the simulation tests, originally planned for 2017 ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A Poseidon [UK]

  Programme Background In July 2016, the UK government announced that it had ordered nine aircraft for service with the RAF. Under this frame, in January ...

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

  Tactical Drone System (SDT) (1-14) [France]

  Background Tactical Drone System (SDT) programme The French Army launched the SDT programme to replace the Sagem (now Safran) Sperwer Intermediate Tactical Drone System (SDTI) ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A (1-60) [Italy]

  The 2019 and 2020 budget contained significant funding for the F-35 programme: €690 million ($775 million) in 2019 and €859 million ($962 million) in 2020, ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  Next Generation Trainer [Slovakia]

  Programme Background As Slovakia is set to receive 14 Lockheed Martin F-16Vs by the end of 2023, the Slovak Air Force (Vzdušné sily Slovenskej Republiky: ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  Field Artillery Training Systems

  The ICE Field Artillery Training Systems for the M109A6 Paladin and M270/M270A1 MLRS provides instrumented real-time data and performance monitoring during training and live-fire missions. ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  ITAS-TESS

  The Improved Target Acquisition System – Tactical Engagement Simulation System (ITAS-TESS) is a laser-based system designed to conduct simulated weapons engagement during crew and collective ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  TESS

  The Tactical Engagement Simulation System (TESS) is a transparent training instrumentation system designed for the AH-64 Apache Longbow Force-on-Force collective training for live aerial gunnery ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  I-HITS

  The Initial Homestation Instrumentation Training System (I-HITS), developed for the US Army, provides high-fidelity, scalable CTC training capabilities for missions including force-on-force, urban operations, joint ...

• Subsystems: software

  Tactical Simulation Tool Suite

  Saab's Tactical Simulation Tool Suite is a software package for creating entity simulations and complex tactical scenarios. The software can be used as a standalone ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  Area Weapons Effects Simulation

  Cubic’s indirect fire and Area Weapons Effects Simulators (AWES) determine the extent of simulated injuries and damage sustained by soldiers and vehicles in a combat ...

• Air: chaff/flare/decoy systems

  BriteCloud

  Leonardo's BriteCloud is a digital radio frequency memory (DRFM) expendable active decoy (EAD). The device is designed to disrupt incoming missiles' RF tracking systems and ...

• Subsystems: visual

  G10 Image Generator

  Incorporating multiple CPU and GPU processing cores, the latest Generation10 (G10) Image Generators offer 54 billion textured pixels-per-second (peak) per channel. Using leading-edge graphics technologies, ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  CATS CTC

  The CATS Combat Training Centre (CTC) trains armed forces in simulated opposition. Features: direct-fire weapon effect simulation with laser engagement systems; area weapon effect simulation ...

• Subsystems: software

  Simulation

  From physics-based dynamics and intelligent entity behaviours to tactical and operational missions, Presagis simulation software tools address the rigorous challenges of M&S; applications. Its simulation ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  MANWORN II DPU

  The MANWORN II Dismounted Player Unit (DPU) is a flexible position location tracking system suitable for individual through brigade-level training. MANWORN II DPU features GPS ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  Helicopter Cabin/Door Gun Trainer

  The airborne cabin/door gun training system was jointly developed with Saab. It uses existing weapon installations enabling any flight to be used as a training ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  Magnet

  Magnet is an infantry micro-tactical weapon training system with AAR capability. It is based on a control system and laser engagement technology, which enables the ...

• Naval: COMINT and ELINT systems

  Q CIEW

  Q CIEW is a family of COMINT and EW (CIEW) systems focused on counter-terror and counter-insurgency operations in a land environment, supported by naval, air ...

• Land: vehicle simulators

  LETS

  The US Army maintains a large fleet of locomotives and rail vehicles throughout the US to facilitate the movement of equipment and supplies and provides ...