• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Innovative Chinese UAVs appear, including a triple-engine platform

  22nd January 2020

  A large UAV from the Tengden Technology Company in China performed its maiden flight on 16 January, the platform being notable for the three turbocharged …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Orbital UAV begins shipping second engine type

  15th January 2020

  Orbital UAV has begun shipping a new engine model to Boeing Insitu under its Long Term Agreement (LTA) with the company. The five-year LTA with …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Indonesia rolls out indigenous MALE UAV

  3rd January 2020

  On 30 December, PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) rolled out the first prototype of an indigenously developed MALE UAV that has been christened the Elang Hitam …

• Naval Warfare

  Pakistan Navy inducts ATR 72 aircraft and Luna NG UAVs

  7th January 2020

  The Pakistan Navy (PN) has inducted two ATR 72 aircraft – one in the Sea Eagle maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) configuration and another as a …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  German armed UAV plans spiked by parliament

  20th December 2019

  The German parliament has voted to reject a motion to purchase armed drones for the country’s armed forces, it confirmed in a 20 December statement. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  D&S 2019: Thai military charts course towards armed UAVs

  18th November 2019

  The Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) does not currently operate any armed UAVs, but it has already taken steps to develop and introduce a future …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Australia decides on Reaper variant

  29th November 2019

  On 28 November the Australian Department of Defence announced which one of two shortlisted MQ-9 MALE UAVs it will buy to equip the Royal Australian …

• Defence Notes

  D&S 2019: DTI shows cornucopia of R&D projects for Thai military

  20th November 2019

  The Defence Technology Institute (DTI), a Thai MoD agency, displayed a number of different projects it is currently engaged in at Defense & Security 2019 …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  John Deere and VoloCopter introduce agricultural UAV

  8th November 2019

  John Deere and Volocopter have introduced a new jointly-developed agricultural unmanned aerial vehicle. The VoloDrone UAV is equipped with a John Deere crop protection sprayer, …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Airbus reveals classified ‘untrackable’ low observable UAV

  5th November 2019

  Manufacturer Airbus has shown off a classified Low Observable UAV Testbed (LOUT) for the first time, with a bold claim that the platform’s stealth profile …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Lockheed and USAF carry out ATHENA C-UAV testing

  8th November 2019

  Lockheed Martin has demonstrated alongside the US Air Force the ability of its Advanced Test High Energy Asset (ATHENA) laser weapon system to engage and …

• Naval Warfare

  D&S 2019: Singapore achieves final Independence

  13th November 2019

  ST Engineering handed over the last of eight Independence-class Littoral Mission Vessels (LMV), one that is christened Fearless, to the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  UK government awards C-UAV technology contracts

  7th November 2019

  The UK government has awarded £2 million in funding to support 18 projects that will develop new technologies that are able to detect, disrupt and …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AOC 2019: Ascent integrates new system onto X-MADIS

  6th November 2019

  Unmanned technology and engineering company Ascent Vision Technologies (AVT) has announced that it has integrated the CM262 optic system into its X-MADIS (eXpeditionary Mobile Air …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GE Aviation, Hybrid Project​ team up for VTOL UAS

  29th October 2019

  GE Aviation has teamed with Hybrid Project to provide a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV capability for high endurance commercial applications. The teaming arrangement …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Intra-Theatre Lift [UK]

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

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

  StormShroud: Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) [UK]

  Background Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) Strategy Reflecting on lessons learned from the cancellation of the Mosquito programme, the Royal Air Force (RAF) redefined the role ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) (Project Vanquish) [UK]

  Background Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) Strategy Reflecting on lessons learned from the cancellation of the Mosquito programme, the Royal Air Force (RAF) redefined the role ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Mini UAV (Bulgaria)

  Programme Background The Bulgarian Army wants to procure UAVs to enhance the organic tactical ISR capabilities of its ground forces. According to Bulgarian media, a ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Mini UAV - Land Exploration and Reconnaissance Vehicle (VERT) [Spain]

  Background VERT In June 2025, the Spanish Government announced a €72 million (US$82.5 million) investment in the Vehículo de exploración y reconocimiento terrestre (VERT), which translates ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Micro UAV - Land Exploration and Reconnaissance Vehicle (VERT) [Spain]

  Background VERT In June 2025, the Spanish Government announced a €72 million (US$82.5 million) investment in the Vehículo de exploración y reconocimiento terrestre (VERT), which translates to the land exploration ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Small UAV [Belgium]

  According to reports, the Belgian Land Force is set to launch various procurement programmes to expand and diversify its UAV fleet. One of these is ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Small UAV [Belgium]

  According to reports, the Belgian Land Force is set to launch various procurement programmes to expand and diversify its UAV fleet. One of these is ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Mi2 Challenge [USN]

  Programme Background Requirements The USN wants a UAV to be flown in austere environments without dedicated launch or recovery equipment; since it would be launched ...

• Military UAS - small

  Small UAV (Bulgaria)

  Programme Background The Bulgarian Army wants to procure UAVs to enhance the organic tactical ISR capabilities of its ground forces. According to Bulgarian media, a ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Parrot Anafi (Singapore)

  Programme Background On 7 February 2022, the Singapore Army posted photographs on Facebook that showed the Anafi UAV used as training devices in a five-day ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - small

  Thor [Israel]

  Background Various Contracts On 3 December 2024, the Israeli Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced it had purchased “advanced drones and autonomous systems” from Elbit Systems in various ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Fixed-Wing VTOL UAV (Malaysia)

  Programme Background Tender Issued As reported by Shephard, on 18 June 2021, Malaysia issued a tender for fixed-wing hybrid VTOL UAVs.  Requirement The tender stated that Malaysia required ...

• Military UAS - small

  Penguin C (Latvia)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Latvian MoD signed an agreement with Latvian companies UAV Factory and Atlas Aerospace to procure UAVs for the LNAF. Under ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 ...

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

  AR3 EVO

  Unveiled at DSEI 2025, the AR3 EVO is a small fixed-wing UAV from Tekever. The system is highly modular and can be configured in a ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 ...

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

  ARX

  Unveiled at Xponential 2024, the ARX is a fixed-wing drone developed by Tekever.  It features common electronics and software with other Tekever drones. Unlike those ...

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

  AR2 Carcará

  The AR2 Carcará is a hand- or catapult-launched mini-UAV designed to support search and rescue, surveillance and patrol operations in amphibious and maritime environments. It is ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  AR4

  The AR4 is a hand-launched mini-UAS designed for rapid mobile deployment. Manufactured by Tekever, the UAS is suitable for both military and commercial ISTAR applications.  A ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8N

  The PT-8D is an IR system from Overwatch Imaging. It is fitted with multiple HD thermal cameras and has been designed to conduct missions at dusk ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8D

  Marketed as a cost-effective solution, the PT-8D is a wide-area search and ISR payload from Overwatch Imaging. It features an RGB colour camera and a ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8DN

  The PT-8DN is a versatile day-night payload from Overwatch Imaging.  It has dual RGB sensors of different focal lengths and an HD LWIR sensor. It also ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - small

  VTOL UAV

  The Defence Technology Institute launched the VTOL UAV R&D; project in cooperation with the Naval Research and Development Office, Royal Thai Navy and private sector ...

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

  MCOM UAV

  The Mundo Compuesto (MCOM) UAV is a fixed-wing UAV designed to provide surveillance during both day and night for military and security force users. It uses ...

• Universal UAV

  Universal UAV is designed for multiple missions in the field of surveillance and reconnaissance, monitoring forest fires or fisheries. It consists of a carbon-fibre composite ...

• UAS: Integrated systems - uncrewed

  UAV TRS

  Celestia’s UAV Tactical Recovery System (TRS) assures controlled and safe landing of a UAV at a pre-designated GPS location. It can be deployed on command ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAV Simulators

  Elbit Systems has developed simulation systems to train personnel in UAV operation, from generic UAV training for initial screening procedures up to full mission, high-fidelity ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAV Training

  Resource UAS offers a range of UAV training, from foundation courses to live flying on a range of aircraft. Each can be tailored to suit ...