• Uncrewed Vehicles

  UK confirms Zephyr purchase

  3rd February 2016

  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) will invest in two Zephyr High Altitude Pseudo Satellites (HAPS) in a deal worth £10.6 million. The contract will …

• Land Warfare

  Rheinmetall awarded Skyguard contract

  3rd February 2016

  Rheinmetall has been awarded a $425.39 million order by an undisclosed international customer to modernise its Skyguard air defence systems, the company announced on 2 …

• Naval Warfare

  Malaysia to allow armed guards

  3rd February 2016

  With Southeast Asia the worst region globally for piracy attacks last year, one new course of action taken by Malaysia is to permit armed guards …

• Defence Helicopter

  MD 530Gs boost Malaysian firepower

  2nd February 2016

  The Malaysian Army had been seeking attack helicopters for a number of years, although budgetary constraints stymied that goal. However, the recently announced contract for …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  New partnership targets VTOL UAS market

  2nd February 2016

  A new partnership between Hankuk Carbon of Korea and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) will target the development and manufacture of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) …

• Defence Helicopter

  Malaysia confirms MD 530G purchase

  1st February 2016

  MD Helicopters (MDHI) is to supply six MD 530G scout attack helicopters to Malaysia’s Ministry of Defence, the company announced on 1 February. First deliveries …

• Defence Helicopter

  Apache Guardians get ViaSat STTs

  1st February 2016

  ViaSat will produce approximately 90 Link 16 Small Tactical Terminals (STT) for the Lots 5 and 6 of the AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopter production line. …

• Digital Battlespace

  SpaceDataHighway: no longer science fiction

  1st February 2016

  The SpaceDataHighway programme has reached a significant milestone with the first EDRS-A relay satellite launched into geostationary orbit on 30 January. The satellite will now …

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy orders more P-8As

  1st February 2016

  The US Navy has awarded a contract to Boeing under which the company will build additional P-8A Poseidon aircraft for the Royal Australian Air Force …

• Naval Warfare

  CCG monster deploys to SCS

  1st February 2016

  The China Coast Guard (CCG) has delivered a statement of intent with its deployment of the largest coast guard vessel in the world to the …

• Land Warfare

  Stryker lethality review complete

  29th January 2016

  The plan to upgrade US Stryker armoured vehicles with a new automated turret and gun is moving ahead despite budgetary concerns. A preliminary design review …

• Naval Warfare

  Second OPV for Royal Thai Navy

  29th January 2016

  The Royal Thai Navy will receive a second 90m OPV after BAE Systems confirmed they had signed a new contract with Bangkok Dock for the …

• Land Warfare

  Cook on track with Ajax

  28th January 2016

  Tracks for the British Army’s new Ajax armoured reconnaissance vehicle will be provided by Cook Defence Systems. The company was selected on 16 December 2015 …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sikorsky provides early challenge for Lockheed

  28th January 2016

  Lockheed Martin executives predict a sharp fall in commercial helicopter sales due to the poor state of the oil and gas market. Following the company’s …

• Military Logistics

  Philippine sealift vessel launched

  28th January 2016

  The first Strategic Sealift Vessel (SSV) for the Philippine Navy (PN) was launched by PT PAL in Surabaya, Indonesia on 17 January. LD 601, the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions

  DELI [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Speaking to Shephard at SAHA Expo 2022, a spokesperson stated that the platform was expected to enter into service with the Turkish Armed ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [UK]

  Background Rumours In mid-October 2022, Mustafa Varank, Turkey’s minister of industry, revealed to CNN Turk that the UK was interested in Turkish armed drones. The ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) (Tranche 2) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  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 organic, ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Micro UAV [Argentina]

  Background Tender The EA and MoD in April 2021 announced Public Tender 0090/2021 (UOC: 84/135), which saw the General Directorate of Material begin the process of ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-64E Apache (Indian Air Force)

  Programme Background The Indian Army was originally granted co-ownership of the 22 Apaches by the Indian MoD. However, the IAF refused to cede them to ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Ground Master 403 Radar [Egypt]

  Background In 2020, Egypt ordered four of France-based Thales Ground Master 403 radars, the mobile member of their GM400 radar family.  At least one of the ...

• Military UAS - small

  ScanEagle [Czechia]

  Programme Background Earmarked The ACR took delivery of ten ScanEagle systems (100 UAVs), which were received as a donation from the US in 2015. In ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Sovereign UAS Challenge [Australia]

  Background Chinese Drones Banned As reported by Shephard in August 2023, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) previously used commercial UAS from companies such as DJI ...

• Military UAS - small

  Domestically developed UAV [Mexican Army]

  Background Domestic development In 2025, President Claudia Sheinbaum announced initiatives for the Army and Navy to independently develop UAV prototypes, as part of a broader ...

• Military UAS - small

  HUSAR (2023 Order) [Germany]

  Programme Background First Order In 2015, the German Army launched the HUSAR programme to identify a replacement for its Airbus Defence & Space KZO and ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Akinci [Libya]

  Programme Background 2022 Reports In October 2022, various Libyan media outlets reported that the country was eyeing a possible procurement from Baykar, possibly the Akinici ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  TUAS [Malaysia]

  Programme Background Tender & Requirments The Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) issued a tender in May 2020 to provide a new Tactical Uncrewed Aerial System (TUAS). ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Wizjer [Poland]

  Programme Background Requirements In its Technical Modernisation Programme 2013-2022, the Polish Ministry of National Defense (MND) identified the need for several new types of UAVs ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Aerial Logistics Connector (ALC) [USMC]

  Background US Marine ULS-A programmes The US Marines are seeking a family of Unmanned Logistics Systems-Air (ULS-A) that will provide logistics and ground units with their ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  OC-135B Replacement [USA]

  Programme Background The modification and Treaty Certification works include Digital Visual Imaging System kits, design and development for mission system integration (structural design, interphone communications systems, ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - small

  Skylark 3

  The Skylark 3 is a small UAS manufactured by Elbit Systems. It is designed for both dismounted and vehicle-based operations.  It can perform a range of ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  M12 Monitor

  The Saxon Remote Systems M12 Monitor UAV is a commercial and military system designed to perform a range of roles such as surveillance, pipeline inspection ...

• Military UAS - small, Military UAS - tactical

  Resolute Eagle

  The Resolute Eagle is a tactical Group 3 UAS with fuselage and underwing payload bays, which is able to carry multiple sensors. The UAS has been ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  SICX-10E

  The SICX-10E is a rotary-wing UAV suitable for a range of military and civil roles, including tactical ISR, bomb damage assessment, homeland security, aerial surveillance, ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  SICX-25

  The SICX-25 is a rotary-wing UAV suitable for a range of military, commercial and civil missions, including tactical ISTAR, bomb damage assessment, civil air surveillance, ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  30 June

  Developed by the Egyptian Ministry of Military Production, the 30 June is a MALE fixed-wing UAV designed for reconnaissance missions.  Additionally, it features an electromagnetic system and ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Wulung

  The Wulung is an Indonesian tactical UAV. First displayed at the Indo Defence Expo and Forum in November 2014, the aircraft entered mass production in May ...

• EO/IR systems

  Skybox

  The Skybox allows gimballed camera systems developed for small UAVs to be integrated on the nose of manned helicopters. It accommodates cameras such as DJI’s ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Yagu

  Plasan unveiled the Yagu 4x4 at the March 2018 Expo Seguridad event. It is based on the Arctic Cat Wildcat 4 1000 commercial all-terrain vehicle. The ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  StratoAirNet

  The StratoAirNet is a lightweight MALE UAV that is solar-powered and designed for commercial and military applications. It can accommodate multiple payloads weighing up to ...

• Air: mission management systems

  TM-100 Map and Video Management system

  Trakka Systems introduced a new TM-100 Map and Video Management system at HAI Heli-Expo 2017 in Dallas. The augmented reality mapping system with metadata video and audio ...

• EO/IR systems

  Geodetic photomapping and monitoring payload and blind zone cameras

  Heliatica unveiled a geodetic mapping and monitoring payload with Geoscan at Heli-Expo 2017. The system is designed to fit two Sony DSC-RX1 (24MP resolution) cameras ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  EJ-30

  Produced by Industrial Complex Engineering Robots in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Military Production, the EJ-30 is a MALE UAV with visual similarity to the ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Dragonfish (Series)

  The Dragonfish is a series of mini fixed-wing tiltrotor UAVs from Autel Robotics. The series consists of the Lite, Standard and Pro dragonfish, with the ...

• OPVs

  Shachi Class (Project 21)

  Project 21 (P-21) Naval Offshore Patrol Vessels (NOPVs)  was intended to enhance the maritime surveillance and patrol capabilities of the Indian Navy. The design of ...