• Naval Warfare

  Italian Navy readies for next-generation vessels

  1st March 2018

  Leonardo is set to supply parts of its combat suite offering to the Italian Navy (IN), as the service prepares to accept new vessels under …

• Training

  Italian Air Force receives eighteenth M-346

  5th March 2018

  Leonardo has delivered the eighteenth M-346 trainer aircraft to the Italian Air Force, the company announced on 27 February. The delivery of the aircraft took …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Leonardo’s AWHERO moves towards certification

  1st March 2018

  Leonardo’s AWHERO remotely piloted helicopter is progressing towards certification in 2019, the company announced on 25 February. Leonardo is assembling two new prototypes at its …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Industry readies for UK counter-UAS requirement

  27th February 2018

  While the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) remains tight-lipped about its urgent capability requirement for a counter-UAS (C-UAS) system one industry member has confirmed its …

• Training

  Milestone for L-39NG jet trainer project

  2nd March 2018

  Known for its development of fast-jet training aircraft, Czech Republic aircraft manufacturer Aero Vodochody has taken a major step towards the first flight of its …

• Defence Helicopter

  For US Army aviation Chinook comes out winner, other fleets ramp down

  23rd February 2018

  US Army leaders have billed their FY19 budget request as a jumping-off point for the FY20 budget, one they say will contain major changes to …

• Digital Battlespace

  EO/IR Special Report: Leonardo eyes Asia SAR market

  20th February 2018

  Infrared detector technology has a wide appeal in the Asia-Pacific, not least to support airborne search and rescue (SAR) operations in the aftermath of natural …

• Defence Helicopter

  Wildcat's weaponised wing takes shape

  16th February 2018

  A newly-designed Leonardo AW159 Wildcat weapons-carriage wing is currently under development and will enter Royal Navy (RN) service as part of the UK MoD's Future Anti-Surface …

• Defence Helicopter

  UK helo engine support wanted

  19th February 2018

  Leonardo Helicopters is seeking an engine support provider for the UK Ministry of Defence’s Merlin and Apache helicopters. Bids are being invited for the £1.1-£1.4 …

• Land Warfare

  Rheinmetall to lead GOSSRA consortium

  22nd February 2018

  Rheinmetall will lead a consortium for the European Commission’s Generic Open Soldier Systems Reference Architecture (GOSSRA) project, the company announced on 19 February.The European Defence …

• Defence Notes

  Singapore Airshow 2018: Leonardo to deepen Asia-Pacific footprint

  12th February 2018

  Leonardo is planning a significant network expansion in the Asia-Pacific region, with the company expecting to increase the number of regional offices it has by …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Patroller to play key role in OCEAN2020

  13th February 2018

  Safran’s Patroller UAS will play a central role in the OCEAN2020 project being led by Leonardo. The European Defence Fund programme aims to develop a …

• Defence Helicopter

  AW609 in place for takeoff with UAE JAC

  7th February 2018

  The first military examples of the Leonardo AW609 tiltrotor are on course for delivery in 2019, Brig Gen Saeed Ali Al Ali, deputy cdr of …

• Defence Helicopter

  EO/IR special report: Promising outlook for Asia military helo market

  13th February 2018

  By virtue of spending estimates between now and 2027 the military EO/IR Asia-Pacific market is forecast to become the second biggest globally – behind North …

• Defence Helicopter

  The bell tolls for Philippine helicopter deal

  14th February 2018

  Bringing to an end one of the Philippines’ shortest ever military deals, the government has formally cancelled its contract for 16 Bell 412EPI helicopters for …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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 ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  AW119 Koala [Israel]

  Background Pre-contract timeline The initial request for information regarding a replacement system for the Israeli Bell 206 training platforms was released to industry in 2015, ...

• Light attack

  M-346 Procurement (1-24) [Nigeria]

  Programme Background On 9 December 2023, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Chief of Air Staff Marshal Amao said the country expects delivery of 54 new ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  New Medium Helicopter (NMH) [UK]

  Background NMH Market Interest Day On 11 November 2021, the MoD communicated the requirements of the £1 billion ($1.34 billion) New Medium Helicopter (NMH) programme ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AW139 [Greece]

  Programme Background Reportedly, during a December 2023 meeting of the Greek Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Hellenic Air Force (HAF) proposed the purchase of 14 ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Background  Requirement In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  MH-139 (UH-1N Huey Replacement)

  Background  Competing bids In competition with the Boeing/Leonardo bid was Sikorsky with a HH-60U offer, and Sierra Nevada with an upgrading offer of UH-60As to ...

• Main battle tanks

  C1 Ariete Replacement [Italy]

  Background Following nearly 20 years of service within the Italian Army, the C1 Ariete MBT is due for an upgrade or replacement. Suffering from poor ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  Next Generation Trainer/Light Combat Aircraft [Austria]

  Background Requirements Austria is replacing the Saab 105 training fleet, which was retired from service in 2020. Austria's 2019 White paper calls for replacing it with a ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AW139M (1-7) [Algeria]

  Programme Background In 2016, Leonardo partnered with the Algerian National Defence Ministry to establish a second international production line for AW139 helicopters. By March 2025, ...

• Trainer

  Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS)/T-45 Replacement [USN]

  Programme Background Requirements The US Navy’s (USN) Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS) programme is intended to replace the troubled T-45 Goshhawk trainer. The June 2024 RFI includes ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  Bids and suppliers Airbus Helicopters Though not involved in the final bid stage, Airbus Helicopters had originally put the H225M forward to meet the Polish ...

• Transport

  C-130J (Replacement) [Italy]

  Background C-130J history Italy originally procured 20 C-130J aircraft between 2002 and 2005. In March 2022, a US$402.8 million (€380 million) contract for technical support ...

• Light attack

  M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirement Brazil operates several A-1 (AMX) light attack aircraft, which were produced by Embraer in partnership with Leonardo in the 1980s. Similarly, the ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  Rotorsim

  Rotorsim, the joint venture equally owned by Leonardo and CAE, provides training solutions on Leonardo Helicopters platforms through high-fidelity simulator systems. Rotorsim currently operates in ...

• Naval guns

  Leonardo 76/62 Sovraponte

  The 76/62 Sovraponte (Overdeck) is a medium-calibre gun developed by Leonardo that weighs 30% less than the legacy OTO 76/62 Super Rapid and does not penetrate below decks. ...

• Directed energy weapons

  Italian LDEW (Leonardo/MBDA)

  As announced in December 2024, Leonardo and MBDA are collaborating to produce a Fire Unit Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) for the Italian Navy. The ...

• Major networking projects

  MARS Communications Suite

  Leonardo has been contracted by South Korean shipbuilder Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) to supply a suite of communications systems for the UK RN's ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Proteus

  Proteus is a technology demonstrator that Leonardo is developing in collaboration with the UK MoD's Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S;) Future Capabilities Group and the ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-119 (TH-73A Thrasher )

  The US Navy announced on 13 January 2020 that Leonardo had been awarded a US$176.5 million contract for the production of 32 TH-119 helicopters in ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  IVCS

  The Integrated Voice Communications System (IVCS) is a shipboard communications system that combines naval telephones and intercom equipment into one system. It consists of terminals, ...

• Trainer

  M-346

  The M-346 is a Lead In Fighter Trainer (LIFT), developed by Alenia in partnership with Yakovlev as the Yak/AEM-130 before the partnership was disbanded. The first ...

• 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 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AW169M

  The AW169M is the customised military version of the multirole AW169. The 4.5t-class helicopter is designed to perform a range of light utility and armed ...

• Land: battle management systems

  MFoCS

  Mounted Family of Computing Systems (MFoCS) is a modular family which is designed to integrate existing FBCB2, future JBC-P and WIN-T capability into a modular ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  AW139M

  As the military variant, the AW139M includes FLIR, self-protection equipment (including IR detection and countermeasures) and heavy-duty landing gear. The helicopter features a digital avionics ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Astore

  The Astore is a weaponised variant of Leonardo's Falco EVO drone. The drone's autonomous modes operate within the man-in-the-loop principle and can be fitted with ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  WAH-64 Apache

  The WAH-64/AH1 Apache is a variant of the Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow, developed and built by Leonardo from 1996 to meet British Army requirements. One ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  AW119Kx

  The AW119Kx is a light, single-engine multirole helicopter. Launched in October 2012, it is available in civil and military variants, with the military version designated AW119M. ...