• Digital Battlespace

  Marshall prepares for E-7 Wedgetail work

  22nd July 2019

  Marshall Aerospace and Defence will commence preparatory work for the E-7 Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C;) programme under a contract with Boeing.The risk …

• Naval Warfare

  First RAF P-8A flies

  16th July 2019

  The first P-8A Poseidon being built for the Royal Air Force (RAF) has completed its first flight.The aircraft will now transfer out of Boeing Commercial …

• Defence Notes

  UK caught out by pace of A2/AD change

  17th July 2019

  The acceleration of Russian anti-acces/area denial (A2/AD) advances, visibly characterised by the country’s efforts to move out with and deploy new highly sophisticated stealth air …

• Military Logistics

  Construction begins at RAF Lakenheath

  17th July 2019

  Construction has begun on facilities that will be home to two US F35 squadrons at RAF Lakenheath. The site will include the construction of a …

• Naval Warfare

  Boeing awarded UK P-8A support

  12th July 2019

  Boeing will support the UK Royal Air Force’s P-8A programme under a foreign military sales agreement with the US Department of Defense announced on 11 …

• Defence Notes

  UK ‘likely’ to add remote carrier to Tempest programme

  27th June 2019

  The UK government has given its strongest hint to date that remote carrier and combat cloud solutions will be added to the BAE Systems led Tempest …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AI to push automated C-UAS system

  17th July 2019

  Leonardo will further automate its Falcon Shield counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) platform in the coming years, with the increased introduction of AI one of a number of planned upgrades.   …

• Defence Notes

  Paris Air Show: FCAS takes centre stage as fighter talk peaks

  17th June 2019

  As with the last edition of the Farnborough Air Show where former UK defence secretary Gavin Willamson presented the UK’s future fighter Tempest concept, France …

• Defence Notes

  Paris Air Show: Diehl’s Safran deal proposes new glide munition

  26th June 2019

  Diehl Defence and Safran signed a cooperation agreement on 17 June at the Paris Air Show to develop a new glide munition to equip current …

• Training

  UK MFTS to get more aircraft and sims

  18th June 2019

  Ascent Flight Training, the company running the UK’s Military Flying Training System (MFTS) programme, is to ‘increase the output and the capacity’ of the project …

• Military Logistics

  F-35 Lightning aircraft take off for exercise

  23rd May 2019

  Royal Air Force (RAF) F-35B Lightning fighter jets have flown to Cyprus to take part in their first overseas training exercise, the UK Ministry of …

• Digital Battlespace

  RAF trials BriteCloud decoy from Typhoons

  27th May 2019

  Leonardo has been contracted by the UK Ministry of Defence to support trials of the BriteCloud 55 expendable active decoy (EAD) on the Royal Air …

• Training

  New simulation technology for UK, US pilots

  21st May 2019

  The UK Ministry of Defence has awarded a contract to Boeing Defence UK to deliver a new simulation technology which can replicate up to three …

• Defence Notes

  Sweden seeks defence growth if budget demands met

  22nd May 2019

  With increased military activity in the Baltic Sea and Russia’s aggression in the air and on the ground, it is hardly surprising Sweden is looking …

• Digital Battlespace

  Indra to supply deployable radar to RAF

  15th May 2019

  Indra has received a contract to supply the UK Royal Air Force with an advanced long-range air defence deployable radar, the company announced on 13 …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme [UK]

  Programme Background The next-generation platform concept is part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, which sought to deliver a Future Combat Air System ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - small

  Tempest 50 [USAF]

  Programme Background Contract Award On 18 December 2024, the US DoD announced that the USAF had awarded Firestorm Labs a $100 million Small Business Innovation Research ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B [UK]

  Programme Background The total cost of the currently funded programme as reported through the UK Major Projects Report is expected to be £10.5 billion ($13.5 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme [Italy]

  Background Shephard notes that the Italian, British and Japanese components of GCAP are tracked in separate entries. Programme timeline 2019: In September 2019, the UK and Italian governments ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  StormFighter [UK]

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

• Military UAS - small

  StormShroud: Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) [UK]

  Background Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) Strategy Reflecting on lessons learned from the cancellation of the Mosquito programme, the Royal Air Force (RAF) redefined the role ...

• ISR/special mission

  Shadow R1 [UK]

  Background The RAF is moving forward with an ambitious plan to transform its intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) force to enable greater interoperability ...

• AEW&C

  E-7 Wedgetail (737) [UK]

  Programme Background Seeking to replace its six ageing Boeing E-3 Sentry AEW&C;, the British Royal Air Force awarded Boeing a £1.89 billion contract in 2019 covering the ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M [UK]

  Background RAF base at Brize Norton built a new training facility for A400M pilots and crew. The aircraft will look to reach full operation capability by 2022 ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Protector RG1 [UK]

  Background Programme goal The programme aims to replace the MQ-9A Reapers in the RAF's inventory until they are formally retired in October 2025. The MQ-9B will deliver a UK ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A Poseidon [UK]

  Background In July 2016, the UK government announced that it had ordered nine aircraft for service with the RAF. Under this frame, in January 2019, ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  CH-47ER Chinook [UK]

  Background Formally known as the Chinook Capability Sustainment Program the UK is planning to replace its 14 oldest CH-47s with 14 new-build CH-47F (ER). The ...

• AEW&C

  E-7 Wedgetail (Second Order) [UK]

  Programme Background Seeking to replace its six ageing Boeing E-3 Sentry AEW&C;, the British Royal Air Force awarded Boeing a £1.89 billion contract in 2019 ...

• Transport

  Command Support Air Transport Recapitalisation [UK]

  Programme Background The tender, originally released on 28 October 2021, required industry bidders to put forward aircraft that can achieve a minimum unrefuelled range of ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 (Second Batch) [Morocco]

  Programme Background Morocco's military modernisation In 2017, Morocco established a five-year plan to modernise the military equipment of its navy, army and airforce to bring ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  Praetorian DASS

  The Praetorian Defensive Aids Sub-System (DASS) for the Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft provides protection against air-to-air and surface-to-air threats. It integrates an Electronic Support Measure ...

• Data links

  Pioneer Express (GRRIP, AN/PSC-15)

  The Pioneer Express (GRRIP, AN/PSC-15) is a small, lightweight flyaway communications system that allows access to secure and non-secure networks and can be used in ...

• CUAS - interceptors

  Gobi Tempest C-UAS

  Gobi Tempest is a high-speed UAS designed to intercept hostile group 2-3 UAS. The system is manufactured by the French company Harmattan AI; through a ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - small

  Tempest 50

  The Tempest 50 is an American loitering munition and UAV from Firestorm Labs. Uniquely, 50 units of the UAV a month can be produced from ...

• EO/IR systems

  RAPTOR

  The Reconnaissance Airborne Pod for Tornado (RAPTOR), based on Raytheon's DB-110, was developed for the UK RAF Tornado GR4s. RAF specifications required target recognition with ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  AN/VRC-99A

  The AN/VRC-99A is a programmable, wideband, secure, open-architecture tactical communications system providing virtual circuit and datagram service. These services are designed for reliable, simultaneous, multichannel ...

• EO/IR systems

  DJRP

  The Digital Joint Reconnaissance Pod (DJRP) is a tactical EO/IR reconnaissance system. It provides simultaneous high resolution and wide field-of-view EO imagery and horizon-to-horizon day/night ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  Tornado GR4 Synthetic Training Service

  Thales provides its Tornado GR4 Synthetic Training Service (TSTS) through its 100%-owned subsidiary, Ace. The service is a complete suite of synthetic training for Tornado ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  Air Combat Training

  Boeing has experience in delivering training for fixed-wing air combat platforms including F-15C/E, F-16, F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, F-22 and MV/CV-22.

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  FIASTS

  Thales, through 100%-owned subsidiary Merlin, is delivering a ‘packaged’ training and maintenance system for RAF aircrew through the FsAST Integrated Aircrew Synthetic Training Service (FIASTS). ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming, Air: Electronic Attack - Pod

  Sky Shadow-2

  Leonardo’s Sky Shadow-2 electronic attack pod was designed for the Panavia Tornado-GR4A ground attack aircraft in service with the RAF. 

• Fighter - multirole

  Tornado (IDS/ADV)

  The Tornado is a family of two-seat, twin-engine, variable-sweep wing multirole fighters manufactured by Panavia, a trans-European consortium of BAE Systems, Airbus Space and Defence ...

• Air: Displays

  Tornado Advanced Radar Dsiplay & Information System (TARDIS)

  The Tornado Advanced Radar Display & Information System (TARDIS) is developed by BAE Systems, UK, specifically for the UK's Royal Air Force's (RAF) fleet of ...

• Air: transport/tanker simulators

  A400M Training

  Thales is the principal training provider for the Airbus A400M with a contract to provide FFSs and flat-panel trainers. Four A400M FFS and two flat-panel ...

• Loitering munitions

  Arash (series)

  The Arash is a series of Iranian loitering munitions with varying technical specifications.  The long-range aircraft comes in two near-identical variants, the smaller Arash-1 and the ...