• Defence Notes

  EDA members look beyond traditional research partners

  9th December 2021

  EDA member countries are ramping up efforts to involve universities, academic institutions, start-ups, SMEs and non-defence related companies in their programmes to develop innovative solutions.

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2021: Hanwha Defense eyes US market

  19th October 2021

  South Korean firm Hanwha Defense is keen to team up with US suppliers as a means of accessing DoD procurement programmes.

• Land Warfare

  GM Defense bets on electric power

  22nd October 2021

  GM Defense has developed a battery pack that offers the flexibility to use pouch cells stacked either vertically or horizontally. It also allows vehicles to be built in multiple configurations and offers an upgrade path for legacy GM Defense vehicles.

• Digital Battlespace

  AUSA 2021: Ultra presents new RAIN information system

  19th October 2021

  RAIN delivers faster information flow to troops and a beta version is set for release, says Ultra.

• Military Logistics

  USAF approves fourth ICR for Pegasus

  9th December 2021

  The KC-46A Pegasus is now capable of supporting almost 70% of USAF aircraft, says Air Mobility Command.

• Land Warfare

  Defence Insight - All about the Ajax

  3rd November 2021

  The Ajax family of tracked vehicles is being procured by the UK MoD to replace the remaining legacy Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) (CVR(T)) in service with the British Army.

• Land Warfare

  EDA launches new land collaborative projects

  25th November 2021

  New PESCO initiatives include the EU Military Partnership, a platform to discuss strategies, and establishment of a Main Battle Tank Simulation and Testing Centre.

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2021: US Army plans next OMFV steps

  16th October 2021

  The US Army intends to release a draft RfP in Q1 2022 aiming to collect feedback from the industry and shape requirements for the next stages of the OMFV programme. The RfP for phases 3 and 4 will be published in May 2022.

• Land Warfare

  The future of the OMFV (Opinion)

  21st October 2021

  With the M2 Bradley IFV approaching retirement, the pressure is on for the US Army to select its successor. AUSA provided the opportunity for those with hats in the ring to reveal their designs.

• Land Warfare

  Czechs to reassess IFV acquisition programme

  11th November 2021

  Questions once again surround the future of the Czech IFV acquisition programme, after an expert committee in the MoD found that none of the three competitors met all the requirements.

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2021: Is NGSW ‘the dog that didn’t bark’?

  15th October 2021

  A lack of information at AUSA suggests a lack of progress in the Next Generation Squad Weapons programme for the US Army.

• Naval Warfare

  AUKUS nations sign naval nuclear propulsion information-sharing agreement

  22nd November 2021

  The Australian Department of Defence said a new agreement only allows for sharing naval nuclear propulsion information and not the transfer of equipment.

• Training

  I/ITSEC 2021: Vertex Aerospace wins more T-1A business

  25th November 2021

  Vertex Aerospace has won another year supporting the US Air Force's T-1A Jayhawk multi-engine training fleet.

• Land Warfare

  EOS unveils laser-sharp turret

  17th November 2021

  EOS in Australia is now offering a laser weapon turret as protection against airborne threats such as UAVs and loitering munitions.

• Land Warfare

  Finland and Estonia to order additional K9s

  1st November 2021

  Finnish defence minister Antti Kaikkonen has approved a plan to purchase five K9s this year and another five in 2022, while Estonia is also moving to acquire more of the South Korean-made SPHs.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  MQ-1 Gray Eagle [US Army]

  Background Required Quantity Although the US Army first envisioned a requirement for 132 MQ-1C Gray Eagles, the US Army's Army Acquisition Objective (AAO) was increased ...

• Main battle tanks

  NGCV: DLP

  Programme Background Requirement The DLP is one of five vehicle families being developed for the US Army's NGCV programme. Expanded to include five programmes in ...

• AGMV 1.1

  Programme Background The US Army has been seeking a lightweight, air-droppable, high mobility vehicle since as early as 2014, when it initiated its Ultra Light ...

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

  Heavy Lift VTOL (HVTOL) (Forecast) [US Army]

  Background USMC In September 2021, Kaman unveiled its Kargo UAV, which had been specifically designed to meet the requirements of the Joint Tactical Autonomous Aerial ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  AMPV [USA]

  Programme Background Platform Development The US Army initiated the AMPV programme to acquire a replacement for several variants of the M113 tracked APC, which has ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract [US Army]

  Programme Background As of January 2021, the US DoD had signed 15 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) (Increment 2) [US Army]

  Programme Background Programme Objective The Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) was to provide a tactical ISTAR capability for US Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs). It was intended to ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) (Increment 1) [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Objective The Future Tactical UAS (FTUAS) was to provide a tactical ISTAR capability for US Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs). It was ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow On

  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, ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Stryker (Sergeant Stout) [USA]

  Programme Background As part of the Army Transformation Initiative the US DoD is fundamentally reorganising the structure of the US Army. As part of this all Infantry ...

• Loitering munitions

  Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile System (LMAMS) [US Army]

  Background First Contract In June 2011, the US awarded AeroVironment a $4.9 million series-production contract for the loitering munition, satisfying the US Army's Lethal Miniature ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Switchblade 300 (USA)

  Programme Background AeroVironment has been providing the Switchblade 300 loitering munition to the US Army under the long-standing Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile Systems (LMAMS) programme ...

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

  Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) [Tranche 1] / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) (USA)

  Programme Background The Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) Programme The RPUAS programme will provide the Battalion and below-ground manoeuvre elements within the US Army with an ...

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

  Group 4/5 UAV [US Army]

  Background Request for Information (RfI) On 5 June 2024, the American DoD published an RfI with an original response date of 19 July 2024. The ...

• Landing craft and hovercraft

  US Army Maneuver Support Vessel Light (MSVL)

  Programme BackgroundThe Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) or MSV(L) contract was awarded by the US Army to Vigor in 2017 and are being built to replace ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  US Army AVCATT PDSS

  L3Harris Technologies is the prime contractor for the US Army’s Aviation Combined Arms Tactical Trainer (AVCATT) Post Deployment Software Support (PDSS) programme. L3Harris Technologies is ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  US Army Flight School XXI OFT/RCTD

  L3Harris Technologies is a major subcontractor to CSC on the US Army’s Flight School XXI (FSXXI) programme. L3Harris Technologies has built or is under contract ...

• Maritime patrol

  US-2

  The ShinMaywa US-2 is an amphibious short take-off and landing aircraft used primarily by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) for SAR. 

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  OH-58 Kiowa

  The single-engine OH-58 Kiowa, derived from the Bell 206, entered US Army service in 1969 as a light observation helicopter. More than 2,200 were built for ...

• Towed guns

  M198

  The US Army developed the M198 155mm towed howitzer from 1969 to replace the M114 155mm howitzer. From 1978, 1,600 weapons were built by Rock ...

• Towed mortars

  M120/M120A1

  The M120/M120A1 120 mm Towed Mortar System is a US-built version of the Soltam K6 mortar that was accepted into US Army service in 1990.

• Light tanks

  M10 Booker

  The US Army awarded General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) a contract worth US$1.14 billion to supply 96 light tanks under the Mobile Protected Firepower (MPF) ...

• JPT

  Designed for military applications, the Joint Platform Tablet (JPT) features a rugged design, including a military-grade aluminium case, dual-core processor, 128GB removable hard drive and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72A/B Lakota

  In 2006, the US Army selected a version of the medium-sized, twin-engine H145, designated the UH-72A Lakota,  to meet its requirement for a new Light ...

• Armoured engineer vehicles

  M1150 ABV

  The M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV) project, launched by the USMC in 2002, is a joint programme to meet the requirements of both the US ...

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

  RQ-7 Shadow 200

  The Shadow 200, designated RQ-7B by the US Army, is flown by the army brigade combat teams and combat aviation brigades along with the UAV ...

• REBS

  The Rapidly Emplaced Bridge System (REBS) is a 13m dry-gap bridge. It was designed by GDELS to meet a US Army requirement to provide a ...

• Land: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  AN/PLQ-9 Thor-III

  Sierra Nevada’s AN/PLQ-9 Thor-III is the standard Counter Improvised Explosive Device (CIED) manpack system in service with the US Army and US Marine Corps (USMC). ...

• DSB

  WFEL was selected in 1996 to develop the M18 Dry Support Bridge (DSB) for the US Army. The company designed, manufactured and integrated the DSB ...

• Individual grenade launchers

  M320 GLM

  The M320 Grenade Launcher Module (GLM) is a further development of the HK AG36 (see separate entry) to meet a US Army requirement. The M320 ...