• Land Warfare

  First capability of Israel’s Iron Beam laser to be delivered by the end of December

  1st December 2025

  Iron Beam is a family of high-energy laser weapon systems currently in development by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and is designed to provide a low-cost kinetic effect against aerial threats at short distances.

• Air Warfare

  Industry makes strides on CCA programme as USAF makes nearly $1 billion funding request

  21st April 2026

  Anduril’s YFQ-44A has successfully undergone USAF experimental testing for Increment 1, while an engine has officially been selected for Northrop Grumman’s YFQ-48A – a potential candidate for Increment 2 of the air force’s CCA programme.

• Air Warfare

  With a wave of upgrades, the MQ-9B is ready for high-tech warfare

  1st July 2026

  The modern battlefield is evolving rapidly — threats range from stealthy cruise missiles to coordinated drone swarms. General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) is meeting these challenges head-on with a series of transformative upgrades to its MQ-9B SkyGuardian® and maritime SeaGuardian® remotely piloted aircraft.

• Defence Notes

  High tension in the High North – a wake-up call for NATO’s future Arctic defence efforts?

  20th January 2026

  Any potential ‘Arctic Sentry’ mission would be months in the planning, but with tensions high in the region given the US’s push for Greenland, NATO countries will need to continue to emphasise their commitment to the region, analysts have said.

• Air Warfare

  Anduril awarded latest OPF-L contract with around $155.2 million still up for grabs

  20th January 2026

  As the US Marine Corps continues to push loitering munitions as a core battlefield tool, Shephard looks at how the latest contract award factors into future potential purchases.

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy to invest more than $700 million in laser-related R&D efforts in FY2026

  26th January 2026

  The US Navy’s acceleration of its laser weapon development initiatives reflects a decisive shift towards ultimately having a “laser on every ship” across tomorrow’s surface fleet.

• Land Warfare

  Boxer lands another order as contracts and opportunities build momentum

  13th August 2026

  As Germany prepares its €25 billion order under the Arminius framework – the biggest Boxer procurement to date – the platform could become an increasingly powerful contender in European competitions.

• Air Warfare

  Singapore Airshow 2026: RSAF refreshes air transport capability as part of force modernisation

  2nd February 2026

  Singapore is understood to have received three of four ex-Spanish C-130Hs from Blue Aerospace in recent weeks.

• Naval Warfare

  Ukraine’s new long-range 12m autonomous vessel can deploy other drones

  3rd September 2026

  Ukraine’s UForce unveiled the MV11 uncrewed surface vessel, designed to launch and support other naval drones at sea, fuelling debate over the future of autonomous maritime task groups.

• Naval Warfare

  European navies line up $105.8 billion in unawarded contracts for 2026

  6th February 2026

  France, Germany and Italy lead the way on unawarded naval defence opportunities that could be awarded this year, but across Europe countries are ramping up their spending efforts to face geopolitical challenges.

• Air Warfare

  December drone digest: Germany, Australia and US champion indigenous UAV production

  30th December 2025

  One of the key trends seen in December has been the rise in indigenous investment within the UAV market, particularly across certain countries, with Germany, Australia and the US focusing on their commitments to sovereign development.

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy to acquire and test uncrewed surface vessel prototypes by the end of FY2026

  30th March 2026

  The new autonomous surface vessels are planned to be operationally fielded in FY2027, following the completion of on-water trials.

• Land Warfare

  How to breach a minefield: from traditional systems to modern techniques in action

  21st September 2026

  The news from Ukraine has again shown that antitank minefields and other obstacles on the battlefield, such as deep trenches, can play a key role in both offensive and defensive operations. Given this, there will always be a need to clear them, both during and after a conflict.

• Air Warfare

  Swedish Air Force faces up to the challenge of new aircraft and an uncrewed horizon

  31st August 2026

  Sweden is an outlier as a smaller nation with its own indigenous fighter aircraft and airborne early warning platform and is now looking at how local company Saab Aerospace can meet the plans for a collaborative combat aircraft.

• Naval Warfare

  Can Portugal solve NATO’s uncrewed systems development challenge?

  23rd June 2026

  NATO has spent more than a decade building one of the world’s most sophisticated maritime uncrewed experimentation ecosystems, but still lacks a way to translate this testing into alliance-wide operational capability. Portugal now believes it has the answer.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-72 Follow-On [USA]

  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, ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering Munitions [Thailand]

  Programme Background Roadmap In February 2024, the RTAF unveiled its White Paper 2024. Incorporating lessons from the Russo-Ukrainian War, the Israel-Hamas War, and other events such ...

• Military UAS - small

  Shipborne Small UAV [Portugal]

  Background Shipborne UAV trials In August 2026, during the Iniciativa Mar Aberto 2026 mission, the Portuguese Navy conducted shipborne flight trials of uncrewed aircraft from ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  DP18A [Thailand]

  Background 2023 According to Aero Technology Industry Company Limited (ATIL) officials, speaking to Janes at Defence & Security (D&S;) 2023 in Bangkok, the company was at ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Shipborne MALE UAV [Portugal]

  Background Shipborne UAV trials In August 2026, during the Iniciativa Mar Aberto 2026 mission, the Portuguese Navy conducted shipborne flight trials of uncrewed aircraft from the Gama-class frigate NRP Álvares ...

• Minehunters

  Mine Sweeping Hunter II (MSH-II) [South Korea]

  Programme Background Requirements Under the Mine Sweeping Hunter II (MSH-II) programme, South Korea is seeking a replacement for the Ganggyeong-class minehunters, which are due to leave service ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [Kosovo]

  Programme Background Presidential Visit On 26 February 2022, Baykar announced on Twitter that its Ozdeminir National UAV R&D; and Production Campus had been visited by Vjosa ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Sistema RPAS Táctico de Altas Prestaciones (SiRTAP) [Colombia]

  Background MoU In 2017, it was announced that Spain was jointly developing a MALE UAV with Colombia to meet the ISR requirement of both armed ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V [Jordan]

  Background 2022 FMS On 3 February 2022, the US State Department announced that it has approved a potential sale of 12 F-16 C Block 70 aircraft,  ...

• Main battle tanks

  MGCS [Germany]

  Background The MGCS programme was initiated in June 2018 when France and Germany signed an LoI to develop a common next-generation MBT platform. Although the ...

• Main battle tanks

  MGCS [France]

  Background The MGCS programme was initiated in June 2018 when France and Germany signed an LoI to develop a common next-generation MBT platform. Although the ...

• Main battle tanks

  MGCS [Italy]

  Background The MGCS programme was initiated in June 2018 when France and Germany signed an LoI to develop a common next-generation MBT platform. Although the ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-390 [Hungary]

  Programme Background The aircraft for Hungary will be specially configured for tactical transport operations, air-to-air refuelling of the service's Saab Gripen C/D fighters, and medical ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Sistema RPAS Táctico de Altas Prestaciones (SiRTAP) [Serbia]

  Background MoU In 2017, it was announced that Spain was jointly developing an MALE UAV with Colombia to meet the ISR requirement of both armed ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F/A-18C/D (Secondhand) [Malaysia]

  Programme Background Requirement Malaysia has required new multirole aircraft since the early 2010s, for which the country’s Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) programme was launched in ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - small

  AVE-C/D

  The AVE-C/D is a flight control system UAV demonstrator (AVE-C) and stealth UAV demonstrator (AVE-D), forming part of the R&D; programme initiated by the French ...

• Sea: naval fire control radar

  AKR-D

  The AKR-D family comprises fire control radar systems designed by Aselsan for naval platforms. They include the Ku-band AKR-D Block-A1 with an instrumented range of ...

• Towed guns

  D-30

  Developed for the Soviet Army the D-30 (military designation 2A18) 122mm towed howitzer entered Soviet service in 1963. Artillery Plant 9 estimates that there are ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  FN Airborne Digital Suite

  The FN Airborne Digital Suite is an integrated weapons system designed to provide high levels of operational capability to airborne platforms and reduce pilot workload. ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  SG200-D

  Leonardo's SG200-D radar warning receiver is a UK-specific variant of the Leonardo SEER family. SG200-D is self-protection equipment which detects and identifies emitters in high-density ...

• Land: long-range observation/surveillance/targeting systems

  Long View CR-D

  Launched at Eurosatory 2014, the Long View CR-D (LVCR-D) is based on the combat-proven LVCR. The upgraded LVCR-D adds a diode-pumped laser designator to the ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  D-Tiger

  Thai Defense Industry (TDI) unveiled its D-Tiger 4x4 armoured tactical vehicle at Defense & Security 2022 in Bangkok. The D-Tiger is aimed at export sales, with ...

• Land: RWS

  D-RWS

  The Dual-RWS (D-RWS) is designed to be installed on the Republic of Korea Marine Corps' Korean Amphibious Assault Vehicle fleet. Weighing approximately 350kg, it is ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN D-HMP 250

  The FN D-HMP (Digital Heavy Machine Gun Pod) 250 is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a .50 cal FN M3P heavy machine gun, ...

• Helicopter guns

  FN D-HMP 400 LCC

  The FN D-HMP (Digital Heavy Machine Gun Pod) is a self-contained airborne weapon system armed with a .50 cal FN M3P heavy machine gun, compatible ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  HİSAR-D RF

  The Hisar-D, also known as Hisar-D RF, is the naval variant of Türkiye's Hisar family of surface-to-air missiles, specifically designed for deployment from maritime platforms. ...

• Helicopter engines

  D-136/D-136 Series 1

  The D-136 and D-136 series 1 turboshaft engines are used to power the Mi-26 and Mi-26T Halo twin-engine transport helicopters, the world’s largest rotorcraft. The engine's main ...

• Self-propelled guns

  SOKO SP RR 122mm

  Yugoimport unveiled the prototype of the SOKO SP RR (Self-Propelled Rapid Response) 122mm SPH in 2010. It mounts the D-30J, a locally built version of ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16C/D Block 25, 30/32, 40/42

  The F-16C/D ('C' one-seat, 'D' two-seat designation) is the second generation of the F-16 Fighting Falcon family. The production of the F-16C/D began in 1983 with ...

• Data links

  MIDS LVT-3 FDL

  For the MIDS LVT-3 Fighter Data Link (FDL) the USAF sought lower volume and cost than Class 1 and 2 JTIDS. The contract was awarded ...