• Defence Notes

  Avalon 2017: F-35A woos Australia

  3rd March 2017

  The platform generating the greatest interest at the Avalon Air Show was the arrival of the Lockheed Martin F-35A fighter, with a pair of the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Avalon 2017: First Growler screams into Australia

  28th February 2017

  The Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF) first pair of Boeing EA-18G Growler airborne electronic attack aircraft made their public debut on 28 February as the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Katfish completes phase one sea trials

  13th March 2017

  Kraken Sonar has completed phase one sea trials of its Katfish towed synthetic aperture sonar system, the company announced on 8 March. Katfish is an …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Northrop poised to support German Triton bid

  9th March 2017

  Northrop Grumman has confirmed that Germany will select the US Navy's MQ-4 Triton in a move that will see it effectively replace the cancelled Euro …

• Special Operations

  Special ops flock to Flintlock

  8th March 2017

  The international special operations community has once again amassed across West Africa as part of Exercise Flintlock, designed to further develop the capabilities of indigenous …

• Digital Battlespace

  Salamandre HF waveform ready

  8th March 2017

  Thales is completing the development of a new 4G advanced waveform for high-frequency (HF) radio systems.The new wideband technology is designated as HF XL and …

• Defence Notes

  Hobart completes Sea Acceptance Trials

  8th March 2017

  The Royal Australian Navy's (RAN's) first air warfare destroyer, the future HMAS Hobart, has successfully completed Sea Acceptance Trials following 21 days at sea off …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Kelvin Hughes introduces SMS-D radar

  7th March 2017

  Kelvin Hughes has developed a new UAS detection system called the SMS-D designed for the detection and tracking of small aerial targets.The integrated, medium-range, radar-based …

• Digital Battlespace

  Lockheed receives fifth AEHF payload

  7th March 2017

  Northrop Grumman has delivered the fifth payload for the Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) programme to Lockheed Martin, the company announced on 6 March.The payload …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  ​Heli-Expo 2017: VSR700 ready to fly

  7th March 2017

  The shipborne VSR700, a unmanned helicopter VTOL system, is fast approaching its first flight without a safety pilot.The aircraft is derived from a light civil …

• Defence Notes

  China boosts defence budget by 7%

  7th March 2017

  China's National People's Congress (NPC) provided no breakdown on numbers on its defence budget increase, but NPC spokesperson Fu Ying confirmed an increase of 7%. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Avalon 2017: ADF progresses UAV capability

  6th March 2017

  Australia's latest acquisition - the Schiebel Camcopter S-100 system - was on display at the Avalon Air Show near Melbourne, where the three branches of …

• Naval Warfare

  McMurdo awarded UK SAR upgrade contract

  3rd March 2017

  McMurdo has been awarded a contract by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) to enhance its search and rescue (SAR) satellite technology, the company …

• Naval Warfare

  Azerbaijan receives border patrol ship

  3rd March 2017

  The Azerbaijani Coast Guard recently received its third Tufan-class (Saar 82) patrol ship, designed by Israel Shipyards and built at the Türkan shipbuilding and maintenance …

• Land Warfare

  Digital Terminal Control System for Hawkei

  3rd March 2017

  Rockwell Collins will integrate the Digital Terminal Control System (DTCS) into the Integral Computing System (ICS) of the Hawkei protected mobility vehicle-light system. The company …

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, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  MQ-8C Fire Scout (USA)

  Programme Background Timeline According to the Naval Air Systems Command, having first ordered the MQ-8B in 2009, the UAV has become a pillar of the ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Global Fast Sealift [USN]

  Background Requirements At Sea Air Space 2026, Hanwha Ocean and Gibbs and Cox displayed the Global Fast Sealift concept design. The vessel is intended as a ...

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

  MQ-25 Stingray (13-76) [USN]

  Background Initial Requirements - Unmanned Carrier Launch Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) The programme looked different when it began. In 2013, the USN awarded four ...

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

  MQ-25 Stingray (10-12) [USN]

  Background Initial Requirements -  Unmanned Carrier Launch Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) The programme looked different when it began. In 2013, the USN awarded four Preliminary ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  MH-60R Seahawk (India)

  Programme Background On 25 February 2020, a letter of acceptance for 24 MH-60Rs, worth approximately $2.12 billion, was signed by India and the US in Delhi. ...

• AEW&C

  E-2D [USA]

  Programme Background The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye (AHE) is an all-weather, twin engine, carrier-based, Airborne Command, Control and Surveillance aircraft designed to extend task force defence ...

• 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

  Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) [USN]

  Background Requirement The USN wants to acquire carrier-capable loyal wingman drones. These drones will have a high level of autonomy, allowing them to work alongside crewed aircraft.  ...

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

  MQ-25 Stingray (1-9) [USN]

  Background Initial Requirements - Unmanned Carrier Launch Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) The programme looked different when it began. In 2013, the USN awarded four ...

• Military - USVs

  MUSV [USN]

  Programme Background Requirements In March 2026, the US announced it would be replacing its Modular Attack Surface Craft (MASC) programme with a Medium Uncrewed Surface ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton (28-68) [USN]

  Background Requirement The MQ-4C Triton programme, developed under the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) programme, required an uncrewed system to provide persistent, broad-area intelligence, surveillance ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System (AHTS) (TH-57 Replacement)

  Programme Background Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single ...

• OPVs

  Hisar Class (1-2) [Turkey]

  Background Requirements The thoughts behind the acquisition of this type of OPV, which comes in a baseline and a convertible variant, is an OPV that ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Anti-ship missiles

  Naval Strike Missile (NSM)

  The Naval Strike Missile (NSM) is a subsonic, sea-skimming, anti-ship and land-attack missile. The original name was the Nytt sjømålsmissil, but this was later dropped ...

• Frigates

  FF(X) Frigate

  The FF(X) frigate is a vessel derived from Huntington Ingalls Industries' (HHI) National Security Cutter (NSC). It was designed in response to the cancellation of ...

• Land: Integrated Defensive Systems

  Low Band Transmitter

  The Low Band Transmitter-Antenna Group (LBT-AG), developed by Cobham, has been in production since 2005. The LBT is designed to protect strike aircraft, ships and ...

• Air-to-surface missiles, Anti-ship missiles

  JSM

  The Joint Strike Missile (JSM) is a multi-role version of the Naval Strike Missile. Norway funded the programme to develop and produce the JSM for the ...

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

  MQ-8B Fire Scout

  The MQ-8B Fire Scout is a rotary-wing UAV that provides situational awareness and precision targeting support for the US Armed Forces. The MQ-8B Fire Scout, ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F/A-18E/F Super Hornet

  The F/A-18E/F Super Hornet was developed to perform naval strike missions for the USN. The primary mission for the F/A-18E/F is a strike fighter that ...

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

  MQ-8C Fire Scout

  The MQ-8C is a newer version of the Fire Scout and is based on a Bell 407 commercial helicopter. It offers a greater range, endurance and ...

• Frigates

  Independence Class (LCS)

  The USN’s Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) programme was originally envisaged to be 50 ships, which would provide a coastal platform that would take over from ...

• Destroyers

  Zumwalt Class

  The DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class is formed by a series of next-generation multi-role destroyers 21st century. They were designed to host the latest in sensors and weapons ...

• Frigates

  Hunter Class Guided Missile Frigate

  During Indo Pacific 2023, BAE Systems Australia unveiled a Guided Missile variant of the Hunter-class frigate (ASW). Compared to the baseline ASW configuration, the proposed ...

• Frigates

  Constellation Class (FFG)

  The USN has selected Fincantieri Marinette Marine to build up to ten frigates under the FFG(X) next-generation future guided-missile frigate programme. The new Constellation-class will replace ...

• OPVs

  Hisar Class

  Turkish Military Factory and Shipyard Management company ASFAT has built two Hisar-class OPVs at Istanbul Naval Shipyard for the Turkish Navy. Four more platforms are on order, but the ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  SCOTT

  The Synthetic Cognition for Operational Team Training (SCOTT) system was developed for the USN to train teamwork and communication skills for E-2C flight crews interfacing ...

• Air: aerial targets

  GQM-163A Coyote SSST

  The GQM-163A Coyote Supersonic Sea Skimming Target (SSST) was developed for the USN to emulate two-stage anti-ship cruise missiles in support of air defence weapon/combat ...

• Trainer

  Saab 340 trainer

  The Saab 340 trainer aircraft is based on the Saab 340 regional airliner. It is used by the USN for pilot training. The aircraft replaced ...