• Air Warfare

  Leonardo AW249 prototype performs tests in Spain

  8th August 2023

  The aircraft carrying out hot weather tests in Spain represents the second iteration of the AW249 NEES Fenice attack helicopter.

• Land Warfare

  US DoD announces additional weapons and support for Ukraine

  26th July 2023

  The US DoD has authorised $400 million more in security assistance for Ukraine, including air defence munitions, artillery, armoured vehicles and anti-armour weapons, in support of operations against Russian forces.

• Air Warfare

  PLA shows off new UCAV, while CH-5 achieves sale to Iraq

  27th September 2023

  China's aerospace industry continues to develop and sell advanced UAVs both at home and on the international market and has displayed UCAVs at the China Helicopter Exhibition in Tianjin.

• Defence Helicopter

  India turns to leasing companies to plug military helicopter gaps

  27th July 2023

  India's MoD is inviting proposals for leasing 20 reconnaissance and surveillance helicopters for the Indian Army. Vendors are cautious due to a past unfulfilled naval RfI, but leasing offers new opportunities for defence acquisition.

• Defence Helicopter

  Poland sets course for Black Hawk helicopter procurement

  25th July 2023

  Poland is on the path to bolster its military capabilities as it launches a procurement drive for Lockheed Martin S-70i Black Hawk helicopters.

• Land Warfare

  Brazilian Army outlines future acquisitions under Land Forces 2040 programme

  15th August 2023

  The army is interested in procuring C2, EW, ISR and communication solutions as well as helicopters. It also plans to invest in AI, automation and 3D printing as well as in bio, cyber and quantum technologies.

• Land Warfare

  Patria MUSCL – Enabling covert airspace surveillance

  7th September 2023

  Airspace surveillance is like playing hide and seek. Except you are both hiding and seeking at the same time, and you are doing it in multiple domains – on land, in the air, and in the electromagnetic spectrum.

• Defence Helicopter

  IAI and Odysight.ai unveil visual health monitoring system for UH60 helicopters

  31st July 2023

  IAI and Odysight.ai have unveiled a visual-based health monitoring system for UH-60 helicopters, enhancing safety and availability through real-time monitoring and predictive maintenance.

• Air Warfare

  Australia receives its first UH-60M Black Hawks

  8th August 2023

  Sikorsky has been extremely rapid in delivering Black Hawks to Australia, with the first two already handed over.

• Defence Notes

  Ukraine and Taiwan? What the US will spend Biden's extra 40.1 billion defence dollars on

  23rd August 2023

  The additional budget proposal addresses critical needs for emergency funding for the Pentagon, partners and allies.

• Defence Helicopter

  Hungary receives first two H225M multipurpose helicopters from Airbus

  25th July 2023

  The Hungarian Defence Forces have taken delivery of the first two H225M multi-purpose helicopters from Airbus.

• Air Warfare

  Insight: Is the Bayraktar TB2 UAV living up to expectations?

  15th September 2023

  Sold to well over 20 countries and combat-proven in Nagorno-Karabakh, Ukraine and elsewhere, the Bayraktar TB2 has been an export success for its Turkish manufacturer. Shephard Defence Insight analyses the aircraft's design and capabilities and reviews in depth who is buying it and why.

• Training

  Babcock to train British Army soldiers through engineering apprenticeship

  11th August 2023

  Babcock International has been awarded a six-year contract to continue to support the British Army in delivering one of the biggest apprenticeship programmes in the UK.

• Digital Battlespace

  Aselsan to exhibit YILDIRIM-100 DIRCM for helicopters at IDEF 2023

  24th July 2023

  Aselsan has unveiled a new Directional Infrared Counter Measures (DIRCM) system, the YILDIRIM-100.

• Defence Helicopter

  Boeing to produce 21 more Apache helicopters for US Army and international customer

  24th July 2023

  Boeing has received a contract modification to produce an additional 21 AH-64E Apache helicopters for the US Army and an international customer, bringing the total to 205.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - attack

  Mi-28UB - Russia

  Programme BackgroundThe Russian MoD plans to acquire up to 60 Mi-28UB aircraft for the Russian Air Force by mid-2020s. Moscow signed a contract with Russian Helicopters ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Mi-28UB - Forecast [Russia]

  Programme Background The Russian MoD plans to acquire up to 60 Mi-28UB aircraft for the Russian Air Force by mid-2020s. Moscow signed a contract with Russian ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Ka-52K Katran [Russia]

  Programme Background The Ka-52K Katran is a navalised version of the Ka-52 Alligator reconnaissance and attack helicopter.  The history of the Ka-52K is aligned with ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-60A [Portugal]

  Programme Background At the end of February 2025, the Portuguese Minister of National Defence said that as part of the Portuguese Army's Support, Protection & ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  AW119Kx [Bosnia and Herzegovina]

  Programme Background  In May 2025, the U.S. State Department approved an FMS to Bosnia and Herzegovina for approximately $100 million including 8 AW119Kx helicopters and a ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Mi-26T2 Halo [Russia]

  Programme Background The original Mi-26 was initially revealed to the West at the Paris airshow in June 1981. In terms of carrying capacity (weight and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-1Y Venom (Czechia)

  Programme Background Czech Armed Forces intended to use the UH-1Y Venom helicopters in various missions including utility, search and rescue, aerial reconnaissance, air-to-ground support and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  CH-47D Replacement [Thailand]

  Programme Background The RTA divested its six Boeing CH-47D Chinooks after failing to sell the 25-year-old aircraft on the second-hand market. Thailand found Chinook maintenance ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T- Air Force [India]

  Programme Background India had operated a diverse and antiquated fleet of helicopters to support its high-altitude operations along contested borders with China and Pakistan. Reducing ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  T129 (Nigeria)

  Programme Background Requirement The Nigerian Air Force has an ongoing requirement for attack helicopters in order to assist the country's ongoing counter-insurgency operations. Nigeria already ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T - Army [India]

  Programme Background India had operated a diverse and antiquated fleet of helicopters to support its high-altitude operations along contested borders with China and Pakistan. Reducing ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Naval Utility Helicopters [India]

  Programme Background The programme would have involved the formation of a joint venture between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and another local or foreign manufacturer. In June ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-1Z Viper [Czech Republic]

  Programme Background On 3 May 2019, it was announced that the US State Department had approved a possible FMS of four AH-1Z Vipers to the Czech ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Heavy-lift Helicopter STH [Germany]

  Programme Background The German government issued a tender in March 2019 for the procurement of heavy-lift helicopters under the Schwerer Transporthubschrauber (STH) program, 60 units are ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Heavy Lift Helicopter [Philippines]

  Programme Background Procurement from Russia In November 2021, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana confirmed that a contract had been signed to acquire 16 Mi-171 heavy ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Mi-38

  Russian Helicopters' Mi-38 medium-lift helicopter is designed to compete with the Leonardo AW101 and Sikorsky S-92 in both the civil and military markets. The first ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Mi-28UB

  Russian Helicopters unveiled the Mi-28UB rotorcraft at the International Aviation and Space Salon (MAKS 2013) exhibition. As the combat training modification of the Mi-28NE Night ...

• Model 327 Fire Attack

  The Model 327 is a belly tank/refill hose system designed for the Russian Helicopters Ansat.

• Model 328 Fire Attack

  The Model 328 is a belly tank/refill hose system designed for the Russian Helicopters Ka-32.

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

  BAS-750

  The BAS-750, or БАС-750, is a rotary-wing UAS unveiled at Army 2022 by Russian Helicopters. Described as a multifunctional UAV, it can host various payloads to complete several mission ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Mi-28N/Mi-28NM

  The Mi-28N is a Russian attack helicopter manufactured by Russian Helicopters for use by the Russian Armed Forces. The helicopter is twin-engined with tandem seating ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  NSTsI-V

  Developed by KRET, the NSTsI-V is a helmet-mounted targeting and display system for pilots. The system projects an image onto the transparent screen in front of ...

• Helicopter guns

  YAK-B

  The YAK-B is a four-barrel 12.7x108mm Gatling gun. The system is remotely controlled, using a gas-operated mechanism, and offers a high rate of fire. It ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ansat

  The Ansat is a light, multipurpose, twin-engine helicopter designed and built by Kazan Helicopters. The helicopter is able to carry up to six fully equipped troops, ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Mi-171Sh

  The Mi-8AMTSh (domestic)/Mi-171Sh (export) is a civil and military transport helicopter that was developed from the Mi-8MT/Mi-17 by the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant. The type is built ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  Rychag-AVM

  KRET’s Rychag-AVM radio frequency jammer is designed to perform electronic attack against hostile communications and radar systems. The Rychag-AVM ensemble is mounted onboard dedicated Mil ...

• Land: RWS

  Nanuk Russian

  Rheinmetall Canada's Nanuk RWS family includes this variant for non-NATO weapons, which combines full stabilisation, long-range day/night all-weather sights and a versatile weapon cradle that ...

• Land: RWS

  Qimek Russian

  Rheinmetall's Qimek single-weapon RWS family includes a variant for non-NATO weapons, which combines full stabilisation, long-range day/night all-weather sights and a versatile weapon cradle for ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  Kopyo-A

  The Kopyo-A is a Russian, multipurpose radar intended for deployment on helicopters. It is designed for coastal monitoring, search and detection of sea surface and ground ...

• Military helicopters - attack, Military helicopters - multirole

  Mi-35M

  The Mi-35M is a multirole combat helicopter used for ground attack, assault and cargo transport. It is the current production version of Rostvertol's Mi-24/35. Designed ...