• Uncrewed Vehicles

  PHASA-35 flies in Australia

  18th February 2020

  The solar-electric Persistent High Altitude Solar Aircraft (PHASA-35) has completed its first flight, BAE Systems announced on 17 February. Designed to operate unmanned in the …

• Digital Battlespace

  India gets defence export order from Armenia

  5th March 2020

  Four Indian Swathi weapon locating radars (WLRs) have been sold to Armenia for around $40 million. Deliveries are believed to have started, Shephard has learned. …

• Naval Warfare

  C-UAS laser makes USN debut

  9th March 2020

  The USN has installed a first-of-a-kind laser on a destroyer, in order to blind the sensors of hostile unmanned aircraft.  This marks a major development …

• Naval Warfare

  MBDA succeeds in first trial firing of Sea Venom

  6th March 2020

  MBDA has carried out its first qualification firing trial for the Sea Venom/ANL anti-ship missile. The test was carried out at the DGA Essais de …

• Training

  Australia invests in training equipment

  12th March 2020

  The Australian Department of Defence is intensifying its efforts to improve how armed forces personnel are trained, with the award to Raytheon Australia of a …

• Naval Warfare

  US delivers four patrol vessels to Djibouti

  3rd March 2020

  The US delivered four 27ft Defender patrol vessels to the Armed Forces of Djibouti (FAD) as part of a train-and-equip defence partnership. The delivery was …

• Naval Warfare

  Australia gifts Guardian-class patrol vessel to Fiji

  6th March 2020

  The Royal Australian Navy gifted a newly built patrol boat to the government of Fiji on 6 March, in a ceremony at shipbuilder Austal’s Henderson …

• Naval Warfare

  BAE Systems wins USN contract for AEGIS services

  3rd March 2020

  BAE Systems was awarded a $188.2m contract to provide the US Navy with system engineering, integration and testing services for the AEGIS Weapons and Combat …

• Naval Warfare

  Japan roars ahead with Li-ion batteries

  7th March 2020

  The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) commissioned its first lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery-powered submarine on 5 March. This makes Japan the first nation in the world to …

• Naval Warfare

  US formulates Tri-Service Maritime Strategy

  5th March 2020

  One of the key themes throughout the AFCEA West 2020 conference in San Diego on 1-3 March was the expanded vision of integrated sea service …

• Air Warfare

  Boeing gets advanced contract modification for Poseidon delivery

  9th March 2020

  Boeing was awarded an $800 million advanced contract modification to procure long-lead materials and support for P-8A Poseidon production and delivery. The contract was confirmed …

• Digital Battlespace

  Avtomatika develops SATCOM protection for Meridian satellite

  10th March 2020

  Avtomatika Group, part of Russia’s state-owned Rostec conglomerate, has developed a software system to protect transmissions between the Meridian military communications satellite (14F112) and its …

• Naval Warfare

  New Pakistani OPV transits the Bosphorus

  3rd March 2020

  The newest warship in the Pakistan Navy passed south through Istanbul on 29 February, albeit without certain weapons and sensors that will be installed when …

• Naval Warfare

  France and Italy sign naval agreement

  28th February 2020

  France and Italy have signed an intergovernmental agreement that reaffirms support for the Naviris joint venture. Naviris is a 50/50 joint venture of France’s Naval …

• Naval Warfare

  Russia’s Volkhov submarine begins dockside trials

  3rd March 2020

  The Admiralty Shipyard begun dockside trials of the Project 636.3 diesel-electric Volkhov submarine (known as Improved Kilo-II by NATO) at its base in St Petersburg. …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | ULTRA [US]

  The USAF, and more specifically the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), has invested in the ULTRA aircraft from DZYNE Technologies, with the drone possibly developed ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | ULTRA [US]

  The USAF, and more specifically the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), has invested in the ULTRA aircraft from DZYNE Technologies, with the drone possibly developed ...

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

  Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV) [US]

  Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. This ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ULTRA [US]

  Background Origins The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Center for Rapid Innovation (CRI) conceived and developed the aircraft with DZYNE Technologies. According to The War ...

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

  Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV) [India]

  Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. This ...

• Submarines: nuclear/attack

  PROSUB - SSN [Brazil]

  Programme Background Following the successful delivery of the four Riachuelo-class SSK, which is due to all enter service between 2020 and 2023, the construction of ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Data links

  Data links | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | Future Naval Fighter China

  China is planning to deploy stealth naval fighter aircraft with vertical take-off landing capabilities to operate from Peoples Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)'s future Type 075A class ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Expeditionary Medical Ship (EMS) [USN]

  Background Requirements The EMS is based on the Spearhead-class Expeditionary Fast Transport vessel, featuring a catamaran design, providing hospital-level care, with three operating rooms, as well as ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | Light Replenishment Oiler (T-AOL) [USN]

  The US Navy wants to procure a new class of medium-sized supply ships aimed at refuelling, rearming, and resupplying naval assets. The Navy’s proposed FY2025 budget requests $7.7 ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  Naval: shipboard communication systems | Light Replenishment Oiler (T-AOL) [USN]

  The US Navy wants to procure a new class of medium-sized supply ships aimed at refuelling, rearming, and resupplying naval assets. The Navy’s proposed FY2025 budget requests $7.7 ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Polar Support Vessel [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirements In June 2020, the Brazilian Navy released a Request for Proposal (RfP) to procure a new Antarctic vessel to be manufactured in Brazil. The ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  Hybrid Tiger

  Manufactured by the Naval Research Laboratory, the Hybrid Tiger is an electric UAV. As its name suggests, the platform features a hybrid power generation unit. ...

• Air: UAS radar

  RASAR

  The real-time, autonomous, synthetic aperture radar (RASAR) is a self-contained radar designed for installation under the wing of UAS for counter-IED and FOPEN (Foliage Penetration) missions. It is ...

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

  SA-400 Jackal

  The SA-400 Jackal is a heavy-payload-capability, long-endurance VTOL UAS that had its first flight in 2013. It is an optionally piloted vehicle, so it can ...

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

  Outlaw SeaHunter

  Outlaw UAVs are used by military and research agencies for training, testing, data collection and system development. In the 114-137kg maximum take-off weight class, SeaHunter ...

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

  ShadowHawk

  The ShadowHawk is a VTOL UAV that can be transported and launched/recovered within a small area. The ShadowHawk is able to maintain aerial surveillance at ...

• Air: EO/IR – Jamming Systems

  AN/AAQ-45

  Leonardo’s AN/AAQ-45 Distributed Aperture Infrared Countermeasures is designed to equip rotorcraft. The system is being installed on Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk medium-lift utility helicopters used ...

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

  Havoc

  Havoc is a MALE modular payload UAS designed for customers with varying missions and payload requirements. Features include tool-less assembly, rolling take-off and landing and ...

• Military - USVs

  MAST

  The Maritime Autonomy Surface Testbed (MAST) was developed by ASV Global and Roke Manor Research under funding from the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory. It ...

• Air-launched ASW torpedoes, Ship-launched torpedoes

  Shyena/TAL

  Shyena, also known as TAL (The Advanced Light Torpedo), is an Indian lightweight anti-submarine torpedo developed by the Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (affiliated to ...

• Subsystems: software

  SWARM

  CHI Systems worked with Lockheed Martin on a programme for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to build software models that imitate human behaviour, and ...

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

  Bat

  Northrop Grumman is developing the Bat family of medium-altitude, multi-mission UAS. The company announced two variants of the UAS (3.7m and 4.3m) and a rotary-wing ...

• Light UGVs

  Dragon Runner

  The Dragon Runner UGV, manufactured by QinitiQ, has two versions: the Dragon Runner 10 (DR10) and the slightly larger Dragon Runner 20 (DR20). All Dragon ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  CLS-200

  The CLS-200 is part of the Yates Electrospace Corporation Silent Arrow family. It is a powered cargo-carrying one-use UAV, based on the company's GD-2000 glider.  In ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  XQ-67A

  In February 2024, GA-ASI first released images of the XQ-67A, a drone developed under a contract for thge USAF's Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS) developmental programme. It ...

• Light UGVs

  Jackal

  Launched in September 2014, Clearpath Robotics' Jackal is a small, portable, integrated and weatherproof UGV. It has been built on a metal chassis and has four wheels ...