• Defence Notes

  DSEI 2023: Will UK defence be 'on pause' until the next general election?

  11th September 2023

  The 2023 edition of DSEI will be the last to be held during the current UK Parliament. With an election due within 16 months, is this the ‘end of term’ for the current government, and what are the prospects for the MoD and British defence more widely?

• Air Warfare

  Teal snags USAF deal for sUAS and sets sights on Ukraine and domestic market

  10th August 2023

  UAV manufacturer Teal Drones believes the market is opening up for its Teal 2 quadcopter sUAS in the US and in Europe as approved status is confirmed for the system in the former and strong interest from the latter, particularly in Ukraine where it expects to begin shipping the Teal 2s this year.

• Air Warfare

  Tactical advantage – is the best replacement for a C-130 another C-130?

  18th September 2023

  While designs like the Embraer C-390 have chalked up some export successes, Shephard analyses whether a true competitor (or successor) to Lockheed's C-130J currently exists. Or will the Hercules production line simply remain open for decades to come?

• Defence Helicopter

  US approves AH-64 Apache attack helicopters for Poland

  23rd August 2023

  Poland is poised to enhance its military might through acquiring AH-64 Apache attack helicopters from the US.

• Land Warfare

  New Russian 8x8 armoured vehicle breaks cover at Army-2023 event

  21st August 2023

  Russia's VPK (Military Industrial Company) presented a new 8x8 platform during the Army-2023 show near Moscow earlier in August. While the vehicle was displayed under the designation BTR-82A (Advanced), Shephard has established that it is not an upgraded version of the venerable BTR-82 platform, but a completely new design.

• Air Warfare

  Ukraine lessons: is bringing an attack helicopter to a missile fight too dangerous?

  15th September 2023

  According to multiple OSINT sources, Russian forces have lost possibly as many as 200 rotary-wing aircraft since February 2022. Some of these occurred in early high-profile operations, but most have been attrition casualties during the ongoing fighting. Shephard analyses the nature of these losses, and what lessons NATO attack helicopter operators should draw.

• Land Warfare

  US military accelerates acquisition and adoption of artificial intelligence

  28th July 2023

  Speeding up the procurement process and increasing the integration of data across the Department of Defense are part of the Pentagon's strategy to increase the use of AI and ML.

• Land Warfare

  Polaris adds remote weapon station to MRZR Alpha light vehicle

  28th June 2023

  Polaris displayed an MRZR Alpha vehicle fitted with a Kongsberg Protector RS2 remote weapon station (RWS) at the Modern Day Marine (MDM) expo in Washington DC.

• Air Warfare

  Malaysian Army leases Black Hawk helicopters

  7th June 2023

  Malaysia is leasing a quartet of Black Hawks, giving the army its first taste of operating the American-built helicopter.

• Land Warfare

  Poland orders more Spike LR anti-tank missiles

  7th August 2023

  Poland has ordered more Spike LR anti-tank guided missiles under a deal worth PLN400 million ($99.2 million) with deliveries to begin almost immediately through local manufacturer of the system, Mesko.

• Defence Notes

  Is the Pentagon ready to confront biological threats?

  4th September 2023

  The Pentagon recently released its Biodefense Posture Review and has also requested over $1 billion in its FY2024 budget proposal to fund capabilities and readiness to face chemical and biological threats.

• Digital Battlespace

  Australia greenlights Land 200 Phase 3 Battlefield Command System

  14th July 2023

  The pursuit of a battlefield management system is back on the table for the Australian Army.

• Land Warfare

  Poland's HOMAR-K MLRS completes mobility trials as deliveries near

  4th August 2023

  The HOMAR-K, a Polish version of Hanwha's K239 Chunmoo MLRS, successfully completed its mobility tests at a state-run proving ground in South Korea in late July.

• Training

  Exercise Talisman Sabre 2023 was all about countering China (Opinion)

  16th August 2023

  The recently concluded Talisman Sabre exercise in Australia, the largest ever in the series, was conducted with the threat of an aggressive China and PLA uppermost in mind.

• Land Warfare

  Saab wins A$56 million contract for Carl-Gustaf M4 weapons

  4th July 2023

  Saab Australia has been awarded an A$56 million contract by the Australian Department of Defence to supply additional Carl-Gustaf M4 weapons for delivery in 2024-2025.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Sky Scout-X [Thailand]

  Programme Background At the Defence & Security (D&S;) 2019 show in Bangkok, RV Connex displayed a variant of this Sky Scout, the Sky Scout-X. This ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A400M [Türkiye]

  Turkey has become the second country to receive the new-generation A400M airlifter, with the first of ten aircraft handed over by Airbus Defence and Space ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 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, ...

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

  Anka-S (Saudi Arabia)

  Programme Background Desired Procurement Saudi Arabia has reportedly been in negotiations to procure six Anka UAVs since 2013. It has not been disclosed which Anka ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)

  Programme Background Five prototypes will be manufactured for developmental tests. Indian Air Force will buy 36 AMCA Mark-I aircraft from 2029-30. The Mark-I configuration will ...

• Trainer

  S-211 Replacement [Philippines]

  Programme Background Requirement The Philippines is looking at replacement options for its ageing fleet of S-211 trainer jets. The S-211s have been in operation with ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  Long-Endurance UAV [US AFRICOM]

  Programme Background Ageing MQ-9A Reapers In November 2022, Shephard reported that GA-ASI would continue supporting contractor SMX with its MQ-9A after winning a $2.3 billion task ...

• Trainer

  T-4 Replacement [Japan]

  Programme Background The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) has been using the T-4 as an intermediate trainer jet since 1988, but now the Acquisition, Technology ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  S-70i (Philippines)

  The Black Hawk is believed to have been the most expensive of the aircraft that had been shortlisted for the PAF project, others being the ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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-16V [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Requirement Turkish Air Force ordered 100 F-35A aircraft as a partner nation, however, the country was removed from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme ...

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

  Camcopter Project (Thailand)

  Programme Background Batch One In November 2019, as reported by Shephard, Schiebel was awarded a TBH600 million ($18.76 million) contract from the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) ...

• Aircraft carriers

  Gerald R. Ford Class (CVN 79 to CVN 81) [USN]

  Programme Background Timeline The Gerald R. Ford-class consists of four nuclear-powered aircraft carriers (CVNs) to keep the carrier force at 11. The first of the ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Naval guns

  Gökdeniz

  Gökdeniz, also known as Korkut-D, is a 35mm Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) developed by Turkish Aselsan. It was unveiled for the first time at IDEF ...

• 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 ...

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  PC-21 FTD

  Airbus D&S; has technical responsibility for overall system integration and the geo-specific database within the consortium for the development and production of the Pilatus PC-21 ...

• Transponders and IFF

  IFF Mk XIIA(S)

  Aselsan IFF Mk XIIA(S) is a Mode 5/S compatible long-range IFF interrogator. According to the manufacturer, it may be mounted to a standard 19-inch rack ...

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  AN/ALQ-213(V) DAC

  Terma’s AN/ALQ-213(V) electronic warfare management unit is used extensively on General Dynamics/Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon series combat aircraft around the world. The AN/ALQ-213(V) is ...

• Deployable/static missile systems

  Bavar 373

  The Bavar 373 is a medium/long range ground based air defence missile system developed by Iran. It is claimed to offer similar capabilities between S-300PMU2 ...

• OPVs

  OPV 58 S

  The OPV 58 S is a versatile patrol vessel developed by the French company Piriou. The vessels have been designed primarily for surveillance, identification and ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  CMS (Vikrant-Class)

  The Combat Management System abroad INS Vikrant is developed by TATA Power's Strategic Engineering Division, the Indian MoD's Weapon and Electonic System Engineering Establishment and ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  Distributed and Networked Mission Training

  Airbus D&S; networks training systems to enable joint and distributed mission training across local and national boundaries, generating realistic and needs-oriented scenarios. The solution uses ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BTR-MDM

  The BTR-MDM Rakushka is an amphibious tracked armoured vehicle developed by Kurganmashzavod to meet the Russian Airborne Forces' (VDV) need for a new air-droppable APC. ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Sky Scout-M

  Unveiled at the Defense & Security (D&S;) 2023 exhibition in Bangkok, the Sky Scout-M is a combat version of the Sky Scout from RV Connex.  ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  BTR-3

  Kharkiv Morozov Machine Building Design Bureau produced the first 8x8 BTR-3-series amphibious APC in 2001. The series includes the BTR-3U, the BTR-3U Guardian (variant for ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  TEagle Eye III

  Thailand’s state-owned Defence Technology Institute (DTI) unveiled the TEagle Eye III fixed-wing UAV in November 2015 at the country's Defence and Security (D&S;) exhibition. It ...

• 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, ...

• Land: battle management systems, Naval: Combat Management Systems

  SENIN

  The French Navy has chosen Airbus D&S; and SODENA for development and installation of SENIN on its entire fleet of the ECDIS electronic cartography system. ...