• Defence Notes

  Material advances for QinetiQ

  27th May 2016

  QinetiQ and the UK's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) have signed a renewed £10 million, five-year contract to develop advanced defence materials, it announced …

• Land Warfare

  Leopard finds home in Indonesia

  27th May 2016

  The first eight Leopard 2 RI main battle tanks (MBT) reached Indonesian shores in May. With ‘RI’ denoting the Republic of Indonesia, these vehicles taken …

• Digital Battlespace

  GDMS delivers Manpack radios

  26th May 2016

  General Dynamics Mission Systems (GDMS) has delivered 30 new two-channel digital Manpack networking radios to the US Army for evaluation, marking the first deliveries under …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  DRS, Roboteam team for CRS-I

  26th May 2016

  DRS Technologies and Roboteam have signed a strategic teaming agreement covering the development of a solution for the US Army's Common Robotic System – Individual …

• Defence Notes

  UK considers laser-equipped Phalanx

  26th May 2016

  The UK could test a Phalanx close-in weapon system equipped with a directed-energy weapon capability, with the first demonstrations potentially taking place in 2018. The …

• Land Warfare

  New power pack packs a punch

  25th May 2016

  Today’s soldiers, including special forces, are burdened with an excess of batteries to power the increasing number of electronic items they carry.  The UK arm …

• Land Warfare

  SOFIC 2016: Blood supply for SOF

  25th May 2016

  Pelican BioThermal has secured its first significant military orders for its Golden Medic field blood transport container. According to Adam Tetz, director of marketing for …

• Digital Battlespace

  DRS to enhance FPAs for DARPA

  25th May 2016

  DARPA has awarded a contract to DRS Technologies to improve its infrared focal plane arrays (FPAs) as part of the Lambda Scale programme, the company …

• Naval Warfare

  Raytheon delivers Railgun containers

  25th May 2016

  Raytheon has started deliveries of pulse power containers for the US Navy Railgun programme, it announced on 23 May. The containers have multiple pulsed power …

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy accepts USS Zumwalt

  24th May 2016

  The US Navy has accepted the delivery of the future USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000), a guided missile destroyer and the lead ship of the Zumwalt …

• Land Warfare

  Thales thermal cameras for Indian T90s

  24th May 2016

  Thales has been awarded a contract from Beltech to provide its Catherine thermal imaging cameras for installation in Indian T90 main battle tanks (MBTs), it …

• Training

  ITEC 2016: UK military medics prepare for future (video)

  24th May 2016

  Now the war in Afghanistan is over, medics across the British armed forces are adapting their training to prepare for contingency operations.   At ITEC …

• Training

  ITEC 2016: Titan & Calytrix announce Vanguard v.1

  24th May 2016

  TitanIM, in conjuncture with Calytrix Technologies, used the recent ITEC event in London to announce that Titan Vanguard CX version 1.0 will be released on …

• Digital Battlespace

  Orbital bags proximity sensor order

  23rd May 2016

  Orbital ATK has been awarded a $16 million order for its DSU-33D/B proximity sensors, with deliveries to begin in mid-2016, it announced on 19 May. …

• Digital Battlespace

  ADF C-RAM to merge with air defence capability

  23rd May 2016

  The Australian Defence Force's (ADF) counter-rocket, artillery and mortar (C-RAM) capability will be absorbed into a new ground-based air defence system to be tendered later …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• MPVs - 4x4

  Land 121 Phase 4 [Australia]

  Programme background Three suppliers were originally down-selected to meet the Land 121 Phase 4 requirement: Thales Australia, General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) and Force Protection ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35C (FY2021-2025) [USA]

  Background In order to achieve their ultimate goal of 340 F-35C fighters, the U.S. Navy contracted a total of 101 platforms between FY2021 and FY2025. ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35C (FY2026-2030) [USA]

  Background In order to achieve their ultimate goal of 340 F-35C fighters, the U.S. Navy contracted a total of 101 platforms between FY2021 and FY2025. ...

• Loitering munitions

  Project Instigator [UK]

  Background Prior Information Notice (PIN) On 21 October 2024, the MoD published a PIN in collaboration with the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S;). The notice announced ...

• Loitering munitions

  Phoenix Ghost (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Background Presidential Drawdown Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, on 21 April 2022, President Biden announced an $800 million Presidential Drawdown security ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Amphibious Vehicles) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Logistics, Ammunition Carrier and Mortar Carrier Variants) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• Main battle tanks

  Main Battle Tank Upgrade [Australia]

  Programme Background Between 2006 and 2007, the Australian Army received 59 M1A1 AIM SA Abrams MBTs under Project Land 907 Phase 1. These vehicles were planned to ...

• Long Range Missile Defence Systems: > 90km range

  Land Ground Based Air Defence [UK]

  Background In November 2023, the UK published the Land Ground Based Air Defence (GBAD) Prior Information Notice, which informed industry of the future direction of the ...

• Loitering munitions

  Land Lethality Pipeline [UK]

  Background Defence Investment Plan (DIP) In late June 2026, the UK published its delayed Defence Investment Plan (DIP), which outlined plans to spend £298 billion ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Land Mobility Programme (Light Mobility Vehicle) [UK]

  This programme briefly introduces the wider Land Mobility Programme and then focuses on the Light Mobility Vehicle (LMV) programme. Information on the LPM and HPM can ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB3 [Turkish Army]

  Background Land Forces Command Delivery In late October 2024, Haluk Bayraktar, Baykar's CEO, stated that the Bayraktar TB3 had entered mass production and could be exported ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Light utility vehicle replacement [Portugal]

  Background The Portuguese Army currently operates several classes of light utility vehicle, including the Mercedes G-Wagon, Toyota Land Cruiser, Land Rover Defender and Mitsubishi L200. ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  ACV (Batch 2) [USA]

  Background The Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) programme is intended to provide a replacement for the USMC's fleet of Amphibious Assault Vehicle 7 (AAV7) tracked vehicles. ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  NASAMS [Australia]

  Background The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) initiated the LAND 19 Phase 7b programme, which intends to replace the Bofors RBS 70 VSHORAD system with ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Trainer, Transport

  EMB-121 Xingu

  The EMB-121 Xingu is a twin-turboprop light transport and advanced multi-engine trainer aircraft developed by Embraer based on the EMB-110 Bandeirante. Its maiden flight was ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  Hawkei

  Thales Australia developed the 4x4 Hawkei for the Australian Army's Land 121 Phase 4 Protected Mobility Vehicle – Light (PMV-L) project.  The prototype was unveiled in ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Aertos 121

  The Digital Aerolus Aertos 121 ducted-fan quadrotor UAV is an improved version of the Aertos 120 infrastructure inspection platform. It is designed as an asset for ...

• Towed mortars

  Soltam K6 120mm Lightweight Towed Mortar

  The Soltam K6 120mm Lightweight Towed Mortar has a maximum range of 7,200m using conventional unassisted bombs. The K6 was selected for US Army service ...

• Land: air defence radar

  KRONOS Land

  KRONOS is a mobile multifunctional C-band radar system designed by Leonardo to support air and coastal defence tactical operations.  The system simultaneously performs surveillance, dedicated target ...

• Land: soldier modernisation systems - national programmes

  Land 125

  In 1994, Australia initiated Project Wundurra to develop an integrated soldier combat system, and by 2005 this had evolved into the multi-phase Land 125 programme ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Land Ceptor

  MBDA Land Ceptor is a medium-to-long range ground-based air defence missile system based on the Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM) family of surface-to-air missiles developed ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Superav Land

  The Superav Land 8x8 is a modular vehicle with a large diameter turret ring that can be adjusted to fit a wide variety of remote-controlled ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  ALADIN

  ALADIN is a miniature system consisting of a man-portable GCS and a hand-launched air vehicle with exchangeable sensor payloads.  The UAV, which can be operated ...

• Transport

  C-40 Clipper

  The USN began replacing its ageing fleet of 29 McDonnell Douglas C-9B Skytrain aircraft in 1997 with the C-40A Clipper, a military version of the ...

• Towed guns

  Boran

  Turkey’s Makina ve Kimya Endustrisi Kurumu (MKEK), working with Aselsan, has developed the 105mm Boran towed artillery gun to meet a Turkish Land Forces Command ...

• Land: vehicle surveillance/target acquisition systems

  T-VIEW-Land

  The T-VIEW-Land is a lightweight EO/IR, gyro-stabilised sensor, installed on vehicles for day/night observation. It incorporates two cameras: a thermal imager and a colour charge-coupled ...

• Naval guns, Land: RWS

  Naval/Land Rogue

  The Land Rogue is an RWS developed by Reutech for installation on armoured vehicles. Capable of being armed with a 7.62mm machine gun, a 12.7mm ...

• LTVs - 4x4

  G-Wagon

  Mercedes-Benz G-Wagons are designed to meet specific military needs and have been in production since 1979. The vehicle comes in several variants, including 4x4 and 6x6 versions. ...

• Military vehicle engines

  V903

  The V903 is a series of heavy-duty V8 diesel engines developed to power military vehicles. Production began in 1981 after the 500 hp VTA-903-500 variant ...