• Digital Battlespace

  Japan considers EW aircraft and greater offensive capabilities

  2nd January 2018

  Japan’s MoD is considering the acquisition of electronic warfare (EW) aircraft to blunt enemy air defences and command networks, with several jets to be procured …

• Training

  ESG launches new cyber security centre

  8th January 2018

  ESG Elektroniksystem- und Logistik-GmbH (ESG) officially opened its new Cyber Simulation and Training Centre (CSTC) in Munich on 1 January. The company had been previously …

• Land Warfare

  BAE Systems to start M109A7 FRP

  3rd January 2018

  BAE Systems has received a contract from the US Army to begin full-rate production of M109A7 self-propelled howitzer and M992A3 ammunition carrier vehicles. The contract …

• Land Warfare

  GDA 2017: Raytheon to assist Qatari Patriot capability

  6th December 2017

  Raytheon has been awarded a $150 million FMS contract to assist the Gulf state of Qatar with its missile defence programme, one of a number …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AeroVironment announces new Joint Venture

  4th January 2018

  AeroVironment and Japan’s SoftBank Corp have formed a joint venture to develop solar-powered high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) UAS for commercial operations. Called HAPSMobile, the joint venture …

• Military Logistics

  Japan's first KC-46A tanker ordered

  2nd January 2018

  Boeing has received a contract to deliver a KC-46A Pegasus tanker and logistics support to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), the company announced on …

• Training

  I/ITSEC 2017: TREX accelerates US DoD simulation and training effort

  28th November 2017

  In an effort to streamline its contracting activity the US Department of Defence (DoD) has contracted the non-profit organisation, National Security Technology Accelerator (NSTXL) to …

• Land Warfare

  Saudi Patriot systems working overtime

  5th January 2018

  Saudi Arabia’s air defence capability, centred around the Patriot system, has been working overtime in recent months attempting to intercept a series of missile attacks …

• Special Operations

  USSOCOM publishes TALOS wish list

  3rd January 2018

  US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) is seeking technologies from industry to accelerate the delivery of innovative Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) capabilities to SOF.TALOS …

• Defence Notes

  China’s military asked to prepare for war

  5th January 2018

  Chinese President Xi Jinping has issued a blunt call for China's military to be ready for war and unafraid to die defending the country, as …

• Special Operations

  JSSD-K construction work set to begin

  2nd January 2018

  Work is set to begin on a new joint logistics operations centre for the US Special Operations Command Central’s Joint Special Operations Forces Support Detachment …

• Special Operations

  Serbia looks to SOF reorganization

  29th December 2017

  Serbia is to consider a reorganisation of its Special Forces in order to handle emerging counter-terrorism (CT) tasks, a senior service office has disclosed.Speaking to …

• Defence Helicopter

  Milpower power converters for AH-64E Apache

  28th December 2017

  Milpower Source has announced that it will provide rugged DC-DC and AC-DC power converters for use in the US Army’s AH-64E Apache helicopter. Designed by …

• Special Operations

  USSOCOM looks to alternate mobility designs

  2nd January 2018

  US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) is investigating alternative propulsion designs for its Light Tactical All-Terrain Vehicle (LTATV) fleet.  The command's interest in possible hybrid, fuel …

• Land Warfare

  Nioa wins Aussie munitions contract

  29th November 2017

  Nioa has received a contract worth $95 million from the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) to supply munitions to the Australian military over the next …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Puma 3 AE (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Military Aid - $300 Million On 1 April 2022, the US DoD announced a $300 million military aid package for Ukraine to "bolster Urkaine's capacity ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  M1165 Special Ops HMMWV [USA]

  Background The HHMWV, or Humvee, has been in US service since 1983. The M1165A1B3 is a special operations variant of the platform.  In 2015, the US ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 300 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Presidential Drawdown (16 March 2022 & 13 April 2022) On 16 March 2022, President Biden announced $800 million in security assistance to Ukraine through ...

• Loitering munitions

  Point Blank [US]

  Programme Background As IAI stated in a 19 January 2023 press release, it had been awarded a multi-million-dollar contract by the Irregular Warfare Technical Support ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  BQM-177A [US Navy]

  Background Previous Purchases The BQM-177A was designed for the USN and has been in service with the USN for many years. Indeed, in August 2022, Shephard reported ...

• Loitering munitions

  Switchblade 600 (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background $300 Million USAI (1 April 2022) On 1 April 2022, the US DoD announced a $300 million military aid package for Ukraine following ...

• Loitering munitions

  Phoenix Ghost (Ukraine Aid) [US]

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

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

  Puma LE [Kosovo]

  Background Contract Award On 21 January 2022, the US Department of Defence (DoD) announced that AeroVironment had been awarded an $11.01 million firm-fixed contract for Puma ...

• Loitering munitions

  ALTIUS-600M (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background On 24 February 2023, the US DoD announced that the Biden Administration had released an additional aid package under the Ukraine Security Assistance ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  M1152A1B2/M1165A1B3 HMMWV [USA]

  Background The HMMWV has been in US service since the 1980s. Despite the introduction of newer platforms, the US DoD continues to utilise the platform ...

• 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. ...

• Loitering munitions

  Lethal Unmanned Systems (LUS): Switchblade [US]

  Background DoD Contract On 27 August 2024, the US DoD announced that AeroVironment had been awarded a ceiling $990 million hybrid (cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price) contract to provide “an ...

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

  Puma 2 AE [Estonia]

  Programme Background The US DoD announced that it had awarded AeroVironment an $8.868 million firm-fixed-price contract to supply an undisclosed number of RQ-20B Puma AE ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-46A (3-6) [Japan]

  On 30 October 2020, the US DoD announced that it awarded a $342 million contract to Boeing for two Japanese KC-46A tanker aircraft. Work will be performed ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  ACV-30 PRTV [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. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Pistols

  M9

  M9 is the US DoD designation for the military-specification 9mm Beretta 92FS, selected in 1985 to replace the 45cal M1911A1 in US service. Sales to ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  Igla/SA-18

  The 9K38 Igla (US DoD designation SA-18, NATO reporting name Grouse ) IR-homing MANPADS was developed by KBM and entered service in 1983 to meet the requirements ...

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

  ScanEagle 3

  Insitu unveiled the ScanEagle 3 at the Xponential exhibition in Denver in May 2018. The platform has twice the payload capacity of its ScanEagle predecessor ...

• Loitering munitions

  Point Blank

  Point Blank Weapon System is a hand-launched electro-optical VTOL-capable loitering munition developed by Isreal Aerospace Industries (IAI). IAI has been awarded a contract by the US ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  BAT-850

  Pathfinder's BAT-850 VSAT is a carbon fibre, tri-band terminal with auto-acquisition capability. Suitable for flyaway (case-based) and vehicle-mounted applications, it is in service with the ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  URC-300

  The URC-300 is a software-defined radio designed for line-of-sight, ground-to-air communications in particular. Introduced in 2020, it adheres to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) standards as well ...

• Air: aerial targets, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  BQM-177A/i

  The BQM-177A subsonic aerial target (SSAT) was designed for the USN, and the BQM-177i is the export variant. The BQM-177 provides realistic threat emulation for ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Banshee Tactical Radio

  Developed by Fenix Group, the Banshee Tactical Radio (BTR) is a communications system that uses 4G/LTE connectivity to provide secure mesh networking capability on the ...

• Crew-served grenade launchers

  Striker 40/MK47

  General Dynamics is systems integrator for the Striker 40 (MK47 AGL in US service). The complete system comprises the weapon, AN/PWG-1 Lightweight Video Sight and ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  AN/ARC-231 Skyfire

  The AN/ARC-231 Skyfire is an airborne VHF/UHF/LOS and DAMA SATCOM system. This system supports US DoD requirements for airborne, multi-band, multi-mission, secure anti-jam voice, data ...

• Air-to-air missiles

  9M39 Igla-V

  The 9M39 Igla-V (‘needle’) is a Russian IR homing SAM adapted for helicopter use. It is an air-launched version of the Igla MANPADS, which the ...

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

  Global Observer

  The AeroVironment Global Observer HALE UAV was a developmental HALE UAV designed for various civil, commercial and government applications.  Development of the platform began in 2007 ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  CLWS

  Developed by Boeing, Compact Laser Weapon System (CLWS or CLaWS) is a medium-range, low-power laser C-UAS system. According to the reports, the CLWS prototype has ...

• Weapon sights for day use

  CompM4/M4s

  The US DoD has bought over one million Aimpoint sights since 1997. The US Army is now fielding the CompM4s as the latest version of ...

• Heavy machine guns

  M2HB

  US Ordnance is one of two US M2HB heavy machine gun manufacturers which has received multi-year contracts to supply weapons to the US DoD. The ...