• Defence Notes

  Challenging year ahead for defence industry

  8th January 2014

  US aerospace and defence companies will continue to face challenges in the coming years despite the negotiated budget deal, industry representatives have suggested.  Under the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  FAA's UAV test sites finally revealed

  7th January 2014

  The FAA has finally selected the six operators to run UAV test sites that will assist the integration of unmanned systems into the national airspace …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  First French Reaper delivered to Africa

  6th January 2014

  The first MQ-9 Reaper system for the French Air Force has been delivered to the Sahel region of Africa ahead of its initial deployment in …

• Defence Helicopter

  India scraps AW101 deal

  2nd January 2014

  India has terminated the $750 million agreement signed with AgustaWestland in 2010 for 12 AW101 VVIP/VIP helicopters on the grounds of a breach of the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Northrop Grumman transfers SATCOM tech to aircraft comms system

  27th December 2013

  Northrop Grumman has successfully demonstrated a new SATCOM-derived aircraft communications system on-board its Firebird demonstrator aircraft, the company has revealed. The new ‘high-functioning, low-cost communications …

• Defence Helicopter

  Military helicopter industry to decline by half

  27th December 2013

  Frost and Sullivan has predicted that US DoD spending on military helicopters will decrease by almost half from $12.4 billion in 2012 to $6.7 billion …

• Digital Battlespace

  ATK and Hughes complete USAF weather satellite study

  24th December 2013

  An ATK-led team has completed a 12 month study into network-centric small satellites for future weather systems with a demonstration of the technology on 14 …

• Military Logistics

  First PW4062 engines for KC-46 tanker delivered

  23rd December 2013

  The first PW4062 engines for the KC-46 test aircraft have been delivered to Boeing’s Everett, WA, facility by Pratt & Whitney. The flight test aircraft …

• Defence Helicopter

  Pakistan to collaborate with Turkey on T-129

  20th December 2013

  The Pakistan Aeronautical Complex has signed a work share agreement with Turkish Aerospace Industries, paving the way for any future Pakistani purchase of the T-129 …

• Defence Helicopter

  AgustaWestland opens new office in Seoul, RoK

  18th December 2013

  AgustaWestland is looking to strengthen its presence in the Republic of Korea (RoK) helicopter market with the opening of a new office in Seoul. The …

• Defence Helicopter

  Raytheon receives miniaturised GPS receiver order

  18th December 2013

  The US Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center has placed the first order with Raytheon for the MAGR 2000-S24 miniaturised airborne GPS receiver under …

• Digital Battlespace

  Raytheon awarded DDG 1000 programme contract option

  16th December 2013

  Raytheon will produce and assemble the remaining hardware and electronics for the US Navy’s Zumwalt-class of multi-mission destroyers, DDG 1000 and 1001. The company was …

• Defence Helicopter

  Sikorsky to advance VTOL X-Plane programme

  13th December 2013

  The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Sikorsky Phase 1 of the VTOL Experimental Aircraft (X-Plane) programme.   The new contract, valued …

• Naval Warfare

  MBDA to continue MCM- ITP programme work

  13th December 2013

  MBDA will continue research and development work for the Materials and Components for Missiles - Innovation and Technology Partnership (MCM-ITP) programme, following the issue of …

• Digital Battlespace

  Textron AirLand's ISR/Strike platform takes flight

  13th December 2013

  Textron AirLand has completed the first flight of its Scorpion ISR/Strike technology demonstrator, with a 1.4 hour flight from McConnell AFB in Wichita, Kansas. The …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) [USA]

  The Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) programme seeks to develop and acquire a family of systems, including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, to replace rotary life aircraft ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) [USA]

  The Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) programme seeks to develop and acquire a family of systems, including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, to replace rotary life aircraft ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike (FVL-MS) [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The FVL-MS programme seeks to develop and acquire a family of systems, including crewed and uncrewed aircraft, to replace rotary life aircraft utilised ...

• 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 - maritime

  MH-60R Seahawk (Saudi Arabia)

  The sale is aimed at improving Saudi Arabia’s capability to meet current and future threats from enemy weapon systems, provide the capability to identify, engage ...

• 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 ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35C Carrier Variant

  The US Navy is planning to order 130 F-35Cs between FY2026 and FY2030 under the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. The purchase is estimated be ...

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

  Large ULS-A / 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), which will provide logistics and ground units with their ...

• Fighter - naval

  Future Naval Fighter China

  The PLAN started development work in 2011 for the Type 075 with the aim of increasing the "vertical" amphibious assault capability, with the mountainous East ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B STOVL Future Procurement - US Navy

  US Navy has ordered 122 F-35B aircraft until FY2020, the remaining 202 fighters will be acquired at a rate of 10 and 17 per year ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing

  VTOL UAV [New Zealand]

  Background Defence Capability Plan (DCP) In April 2025, the New Zealand government published the DCP, a document that is essentially a blueprint for what procurements ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  V-247 Vigilant

  The V-247 Vigilant is a tiltrotor UAV from Bell. Officially introduced in 2016, it features an open modular architecture and can host several payloads. These include ...

• Air: Displays

  F-15 Replacement Vertical Situation Display

  BAE Systems Replacement Vertical Situation Display (RVSD) replaces the legacy VSD units on F-15E aircraft. The AMLCD display offers a larger display size and is compatible ...

• Military UAS - MALE, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Korean Future Vertical Lift (KFVL)

  Unveiled at KADEX 2024, the Korean Future Vertical Lift (KFVL) is a family of uncrewed helicopters from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). Despite being in the ...

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

  Aerosonde Mk 4.8 HQ FTUAS

  From the Texton family of Aerosonde UAS, the Aerosonde Mk 4.8 Hybrid Quad (HQ) FTUAS is a tactical drone purpose-built to meet the US Army's Future Vertical Lift ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  S-97 Raider

  The S-97 Raider helicopter is based on the five-year, company-funded X2 Technology Demonstrator project. Like the X2, the S-97 Raider will feature twin coaxial, counter-rotating ...

• Surface-to-air missiles, Surface-to-surface missiles

  RIM-174 Standard ERAM SM-6 Block I/IA

  The SM-6 (RIM-174 Standard ERAM) is a surface-to-air supersonic missile launched from cruisers and destroyers, capable of successfully engaging crewed and uncrewed, fixed- or rotary-wing ...

• Helicopter engines

  T901

  The Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP) is the US Army's effort to build a 50% more powerful and 25% more fuel-efficient engine for its Black ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AVX JMR

  AVX Aircraft proposed a compound helicopter with coaxial rotors, small wings and dual ducted-fan propulsors for the US Army’s JMR-TD FVL programme. In April 2015, ...

• Cumulus One

  Cumulus One is an autonomous fixed-wing drone manufactured by Sky-Watch. The aircraft’s structure is made from carbon fibre and Kevlar. The system has mission planning ...

• Helicopter engines

  T900

  The Improved Turbine Engine Program is the US Army's effort to build a 50% more powerful and 25% more fuel-efficient engine for its Black Hawk ...

• EO/IR systems

  Pan-Tilt-Zoom Camera with Laser Rangefinder

  Pan-Tilt-Zoom Camera with Laser Rangefinder is a surveillance system with a laser rangefinder. Performance includes 1/3in charge-coupled device colour sensor, NTSC or PAL format. Resolution ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  SB-1 Defiant

  The SB-1 Defiant is a JMR-TD aircraft. Sikorsky and Boeing announced in February 2013 that they would submit a joint proposal to build a demonstrator ...

• Military helicopters - multirole, Tiltrotors

  TR36TD

  Karem Aircraft was one of four contenders for the US Army's JMR-TD, which is a precursor to the FVL project that will replace the UH-60 ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Super Komar

  The Super Komar is an upgraded version of the Komar, featuring digital signal processing. Air-to-air modes include boresight, head-up display search, look-up/down, range-while-search, track-while-scan (TWS) and vertical manoeuvre. ...

• Military - UUVs

  Roving Bat

  The Roving Bat is a multipurpose, hybrid ROV and crawler built by Exail. It is designed for close inspection and cleaning operations of immersed vertical structures ...