• Naval Warfare

  Philippines inaugurates National Coast Watch Centre

  4th May 2015

  The Philippines inaugurated its National Coast Watch Centre (NCWC) on 28 April 2015. Located at the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) headquarters in Manila, this nerve …

• Naval Warfare

  Damen details new OPV design

  4th May 2015

  Damen has released details of its newest Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) at the OPVs & Corvettes Asia Pacific conference in Singapore on 20 April. The …

• Defence Notes

  USA and Japan revise ‘defence guidelines’

  3rd May 2015

  In a long-awaited move, the US and Japan updated their ‘Guidelines for US-Japan Defense Cooperation’ during bilateral 2+2 talks in New York on 27 April. …

• Naval Warfare

  MDA to continue supporting Canadian RADARSAT-2 systems

  1st May 2015

  MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) will continue to provide operation support for Canada's RADARSAT-2 ground systems, the company announced on 28 April. The agreement is …

• Digital Battlespace

  Saab develops Mk4 version of PS-05/A radar

  1st May 2015

  Saab has developed an Mk4 version of the PS-05/A radar for the Gripen C/D aircraft, offering increased performance and operating range, as announced on 28 …

• Military Logistics

  Lockheed teams with Project Lifesaver, Loen Engineering

  30th April 2015

  Lockheed Martin is teaming with Loen Engineering and Project Lifesaver International to bring advanced technology for first response agencies, it announced on 27 April. Lockheed's …

• Naval Warfare

  US Coast Guard selects Sagem BlueNaute system

  30th April 2015

  Sagem’s BlueNaute heading reference system has been selected by the US Coast Guard to upgrade 12 of its Juniper WLB class vessels, the company announced …

• Military Logistics

  US mulls possible C-130J support to India

  30th April 2015

  The US State Department has approved a possible foreign military sale of follow-on support for C-130J Super Hercules aircraft to India, the Defense Security Cooperation …

• Naval Warfare

  Philippines orders ten MRRVs from JMU

  29th April 2015

  The Philippines have ordered ten 40m Multi-Role Response Vessels (MRRVs) for the Philippine Coast Guard in a project awarded to Japan Marine United (JMU). The …

• Naval Warfare

  Sweden and Finland to establish joint naval force

  29th April 2015

  The Royal Swedish Navy (RSwN) and the Finnish Navy will establish a joint naval task force in 2017. According to RAdm Jan Thomqvist, chief of …

• Digital Battlespace

  Northrop navigation systems for Canadian coastal vessels

  29th April 2015

  Northrop Grumman has received a contract to design and provide gyrocompass navigation systems for 12 Royal Canadian Navy Kingston-class maritime coastal defence vessels (MCDVs), as …

• Military Logistics

  US Navy tests MAGIC CARPET software

  29th April 2015

  The US Navy's aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush has field-tested its new Maritime Augmented Guidance with Integrated Controls for Carrier Approach and Recovery Precision …

• Naval Warfare

  MDA to upgrade Canadian CP-140 radar surveillance systems

  29th April 2015

  MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) has received two contract amendments to provide software upgrades to the radar surveillance systems on Canada's CP-140 Aurora aircraft fleet. …

• Naval Warfare

  UK offers assets for Mediterranean rescue operations

  28th April 2015

  The UK government has offered to send the HMS Bulwark LPD amphibious ship and three Merlin helicopters to assist in migrant rescue operations in the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Exelis launches UAS situational awareness tool

  28th April 2015

  Exelis has launched Symphony RangeVue, an airspace situational awareness tool specifically designed for unmanned aerial system (UAS) operations in the US, the company announced on …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Maritime patrol

  Challenger 650 ISR [UAE]

  Background First order In February 2019 at IDEX, the UAE announced that it will procure a new special mission aircraft with an option for the ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Seeker 400 (1-6) [UAE]

  Background Long history The UAE has a long history of transactions with Denel Dynamics. The country has been purchasing various Seeker systems from as far ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Acquisition of an Initial Depth Support Drone Capacity (ADAPT) [France]

  Background Aftermath of SDT To fill the capability void left by the cancellation of the second section of the Tactical Drone System (SDT) programme, three ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Chinese UAVs [Bangladesh]

  Background Request for Proposals (RFP) In 2023, as reported by Shephard at the time, the Bangladesh Army released a 106-page tender document to gather information ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-9A Reaper (First batch) [Netherlands]

  Background Acquisition decision The Netherlands cancelled a project to procure an MALE UAV in 2007. Six years later, in 2013, it was revealed that the ...

• Military UAS - small

  Jump 20 [Denmark]

  Background 2020 Tender In January 2018, Denmark's three main political parties signed the Danish Defence Agreement, a cross-party defence white paper covering the period between ...

• ISR/special mission

  ISTAR Aircraft [South Korea]

  Programme Background 2018 - Issue of RfI The South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) stated that Seoul planned to procure additional aircraft to minimise potential surveillance ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  RQ-4 Global Hawk [Japan]

  Background Selection and contract award In 2015, Northrop Grumman’s RQ-4 Global Hawk UAS and E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft were selected by Japan ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  RQ-4 Global Hawk [South Korea]

  Background Requirments Seoul required UAS assets to help monitor its neighbour to the north and, increasingly, Chinese activities in waters and in the air near ...

• Military UAS - small

  AR3 (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Background £270 Million investment On 15 September 2025, the UK MoD noted that, since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the UK ...

• Military UAS - small

  Gladius [Poland]

  Programme Background Contract Signing On 6 May 2022, the Minister of National Defense, Mariusz Błaszczak, the president of the WB GROUP, Piotr Wojciechowski and the head ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-9A Reaper (9-12) [Italy]

  Background Initial purchases (1-6) The Italian Air Force acquired four MQ-9A Reapers in the Block 1 standard in 2008. A further two UAVs were acquired ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Tactical UCAV [Czechia]

  Programme Background Inception In November 2017, the Chief of Staff of the Army of the Czech Republic (ACR) announced that the service had earmarked CZK1 billion ...

• Military UAS - small

  Intra-Theatre Lift [UK]

  Background  Relationship to the Heavy Lift Challenge The Royal Navy (RN) embarked on the Heavy Lift Challenge, now called the Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC), to explore cargo-carrying ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-9A Reaper (Second batch) [Netherlands]

  Background First batch Following a cancelled MALE UAV project in 2007, the Dutch MOD revealed its intention to acquire four MQ-9A Reapers from General Atomics ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - tactical

  AR5

  First announced in October 2012, the AR5 is a MALE UAS designed for SAR, surveillance and maritime patrol missions. The AR5 can be flown manually or commanded ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  AN/APY-10

  The AN/APY-10 is an airborne maritime surveillance radar manufactured by Raytheon. It is designed to equip the USN'S Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and has ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  AN/ZPY-1 STARLite

  The AN/ZPY-1 Small Tactical Radar-Lightweight (STARLite) is a synthetic aperture radar and GMTI sensor for UAVs, manufactured by Northrop Grumman. It offers strip and spot synthetic ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar, Air: surveillance radar

  AN/APS-137B(V)5

  The AN/APS-137B(V)5 is a maritime patrol radar manufactured by Raytheon. It provides both multi-resolution synthetic aperture radar and inverse synthetic aperture radar (ISAR), allowing performance over the ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  TriSAR

  The Tri-mode Synthetic Aperture Radar (TriSAR) is a real-time, high-resolution land and maritime surveillance radar designed by Array Systems Computing in Canada. It is suited ...

• Air: helicopter radar

  AN/DPY-1 Lynx Block 30

  The multi-mode AN/DPY-1 Lynx Block 30 is a reduced weight, power and volume variant of the AN/APY-8. It is a high-resolution, wide-area surveillance, Ku-band synthetic ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  Seaspray 7500E V2

  The Seaspray 7500E V2 is a long-range, maritime-focused multi-mode surveillance radar produced by Leonardo and manufactured in the UK. The system can rapidly interleave radar modes ...

• Subsystems: software

  Radar Simulation Systems

  The Digital Radar Landmass Simulator (DRLMS) model accurately simulates real-world terrain and cultural feature returns, as well as weather patterns and targets. Configurable parameters allow ...

• Air: surveillance radar

  AN/APY-3

  The AN/APY-3 is a large, phased-array, ground surveillance, side-looking airborne radar with synthetic aperture radar/moving target indication (MTI) capability. It is the primary sensor of ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  TacSAR

  The Tactical Synthetic Aperture Radar (TacSAR) is an airborne reconnaissance system designed by Collins Aerospace (now part of Raytheon). It is intended for land and ...

• Military UAS - small

  AR3

  The AR3, or AR3 Net Ray, is an autonomous small-UAS designed to support land-based and maritime missions.  In May 2025, the Royal Air Force announced ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  MOSAIC

  The MOSAIC is a three-dimensional, AESA-based, multi-mode surveillance radar manufactured by Telephonics. It is designed for maritime, littoral and overland surveillance missions for rotary- and fixed-wing ...

• Air: surveillance radar

  ASTOR

  The Airborne Stand-Off Radar (ASTOR) is abattlefield surveillance synthetic aperture radar/moving target indication (MTI) system installed in the UK RAF's Raytheon SentinelR1 aircraft, a version ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Black Swan

  The Black Swan is a cargo-carrying drone manufactured by Dronamic.  In February 2026, the company released the Detect & Defend version, a military variant of the platform ...

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  Seaspray 7300E V2

  The Seaspray 7300E V2 radar is an airborne, maritime, multi-mode surveillance radar manufactured by Leonardo. It is designed for the detection of small maritime targets in ...