• Air Warfare

  Saab shows uncrewed concept and accelerates programme with first flight due in 2027

  24th August 2026

  Saab expects to fly two collaborative combat aircraft demonstrators, A1 and A2, before the end of the decade, but has stressed that the A3-001 mock-up unveiled on 21 August is only a concept for what could follow in the 2030s.

• Land Warfare

  Milrem outlines plans for Havoc and Vector as Ukrainian THeMIS numbers set to double

  5th March 2026

  Milrem’s THeMIS uncrewed ground vehicle is one of the most battle-proven medium UGV platforms in service, with the company looking to have production versions of new large platforms ready before the end of the decade.

• Land Warfare

  NATO’s Crystal Arrow factors in Ukrainian UGV lessons as European interest grows

  19th May 2026

  One goal of NATO’s Exercise Crystal Arrow was to identify the potential uses of uncrewed ground vehicles – as seen on the Ukrainian battlefield – and put platforms into the hands of users.

• Air Warfare

  Eurosatory 2026: The H160M’s agnostic approach to drones draws global interest

  16th June 2026

  As Airbus Helicopters advances its H160M Guépard programme towards targeted first delivery in late 2028 for the French Army, the platform’s “agnostic” approach to drone integration could offer a window into how Western militaries are rethinking the relationship between crewed rotorcraft and uncrewed systems.

• Air Warfare

  FIA 2026: Honeywell Aerospace targets expansion following June spin-off

  24th July 2026

  Honeywell Aerospace charted its growth strategy as a standalone company, with CEO Jim Currier pointing to record defence budgets and a $19 billion backlog as drivers of expansion.

• Air Warfare

  Sikorsky unveils new Nomad VTOL drone family

  7th October 2025

  The tailsitting vertical take-off and landing drones are designed to be scalable with Group 3 to Group 4 variants, with each one focused on meeting US Army reconnaissance requirements.

• Defence Notes

  UK’s latest defence robotics and autonomy competition looks to break new ground

  14th July 2026

  The UK Ministry of Defence is backing early-stage, high-risk autonomy concepts that could redefine how military systems are developed and deployed.

• Land Warfare

  Estonia builds Asia-Pacific links as it looks to scale defence industry capabilities

  12th February 2026

  Collaboration between Estonian defence companies and well-aligned firms in Asia-Pacific will form a key part of Tallinn’s ambitions to significantly grow its defence industrial base.

• Air Warfare

  The growing importance of the Blue UAS Cleared List

  21st October 2025

  Inclusion on the Defense Innovation Unit’s Blue UAS Cleared List is set to become ever more crucial for uncrewed aerial vehicle manufacturers due to the access it gives to the US market, which is set to expand significantly over the next 10 years.

• Land Warfare

  Textron unveils a smaller, low-cost variant of the Ripsaw family of UGVs

  29th April 2026

  Ripsaw M1 has been designed to support the US Marine Corps’ littoral missions by carrying diverse types of payloads and performing multiple missions. Shephard spoke with Textron to find out more.

• Air Warfare

  AUSA 2025: Sikorsky’s uncrewed Black Hawk to fly next year

  13th October 2025

  The uncrewed UH-60L Black Hawk or U-Hawk is built around the company’s Matrix autonomy technology and, after less than a year of development, is expected to fly in 2026.

• Land Warfare

  Northrop Grumman pushing ahead with smaller Integrated Battle Command System

  8th September 2026

  Northrop Grumman’s Integrated Battle Command System is in service with Polish forces and is being introduced to US forces, with further development underway on the original platform as well as a smaller, more mobile system.

• Land Warfare

  DroneShield signs agreements and US contract in the face of surging demand

  30th June 2026

  DroneShield has been at the forefront of CUAS capability despite being founded only 12 years ago. The company’s early move into the counter-drone arena has put it on the crest of the rapidly expanding technology field.

• Air Warfare

  World Defense Show 2026: Airbus details A400M upgrade as second Indonesia aircraft delivery looms

  16th February 2026

  With the A400M set for a capability upgrade, Airbus officials are bullish about the aircraft and its market potential for both new and existing customers with the improvements geared towards meeting future requirements.

• Defence Notes

  Details revealed on Germany’s big spending plans

  28th October 2025

  In May this year, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the government plans to position Germany as “Europe's strongest conventional army”. A new blueprint outlines how this is going to occur through massive investment.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - micro

  DEF129 (Nano UAS) [Australia]

  Programme Background DEF129 The Australian Ground Service has combined various army procurement efforts under the DEF129 programme to increase the abundance and proliferation of UAVs ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Aeromobila A Pilotaggio Remoto (Mini) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirement Released on 5 August 2021, the Italian MoD's Multi-Year Defence Programme Document for 2021-2023 announced a programme aimed at acquiring a mini-UAS capable ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  C-UAS [Portugal]

  Background Portugal's Military Programming Law 2023–2034 includes $8.8724 million (€8.2 million) to acquire counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS) by 2034. It is assumed that this acquisition requires ...

• Military UAS - micro

  Aeromobila A Pilotaggio Remoto (Micro) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirement Released on 5 August 2021, the Italian MoD's Multi-Year Defence Programme Document for 2021-2023 announced a programme aimed at acquiring a micro-UAS capable ...

• Military UAS - small

  Bug Nano UAS (UK)

  Programme Background The British Army previously took delivery of 160 first-generation Black Hornet PD-100 nano UAS in 2013 to support operations in Afghanistan. After these ...

• Military UAS - small

  Puma 2 AE [Germany]

  Programme Background The Germany navy had an urgent requirement for three UAS required for reconnaissance and identification in maritime operations. A platform was required that ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Small UAS [Spain]

  The Spanish Army examined the Russo-Ukrainian War in early 2024 and incorporated many learnings into its Fuerza 35 Project, a restructuring and procurement modernisation initiative. ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Small UAS [Spain]

  The Spanish Army examined the Russo-Ukrainian War in early 2024 and incorporated many learnings into its Fuerza 35 Project, a restructuring and procurement modernisation initiative. ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS (BWUAS) [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Goal The Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS (BWUAS) programme stems from the Military Sealift Command and Fleet Forces Command identifying, in 2018, a ...

• Hybrid effector systems

  Border C-UAS Defence [Latvia]

  Background Latvia's long-term blueprint for its armed forces lists a comprehensive C-UAS element with an approximate range of three to four km. This programme is ...

• CUAS - jammers

  C-UAS [Taiwan]

  Background Taiwan announced a requirement for portable C-UAS systems with capabilities that include passive detection, takeover, spoofing and jamming. The systems are planned to strengthen ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  Finnish Border Guard C-UAS Capability

  Background In response to the growing UAS threat, the Finnish Border Guard was given €44 million for procurements to strengthen drone detection, identification, and countering capabilities. ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Medium Range Reconnaissance (MRR) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  Under its Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) programme, the US Army plans to procure a Family of Small UAS (FoSUAS) to provide an organic ISR capability ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Medium Range Reconnaissance (MRR) / Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) [USA]

  Under its Rucksack Portable UAS (RPUAS) programme, the US Army plans to procure a Family of Small UAS (FoSUAS) to provide an organic ISR capability ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Class 2 Tactical UAS [Ireland]

  Background EU Tender On 13 March 2024, the Irish Department of Defence released a planning notice on the EU tenders website, confirming that the Irish ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - mini

  Maveric UAS

  The Maveric is a small, lightweight UAS designed to perform covert ISR missions at the tactical level. In order to camouflage the drone, its profile ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Academy

  IAI has established a UAS Academy for training and certification of operators and technicians. The academy was established to meet a perceived need for skilled ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  UAS 100

  The UAS 100 is an autonomous, three-engined platform, modular UAS manufactured by Thales in partnership with Issoire Aviation, Hionos and with the support of the ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Heavy UAS

  The Heavy UAS, or Cargo Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, is, as its name suggests, a cargo-carrying UAV.  Manufactured by Honeywell Aerospace, the VTOL capable UAV's horizontal flight ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Operator Training

  To help in the development of training applications for UAS pilots, Presagis offers a suite of integrated COTS software that can be used for the ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAS Mission Trainer

  The UAS Mission Trainer combines an open architecture with COTS hardware and simulation software that minimises the use of proprietary designs to provide a platform-agnostic ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  Skylock C-UAS

  Skylock, an Avnon Group company, has developed a C-UAS system that is intended to bring sensors, jammers and a laser effector into a single deployable ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  Howler C-UAS

  Developed by Raytheon, the Howler is a counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS), which includes a Ku-band Radio Frequency Sensor (KuRFS), a command-and-control system, and a Coyote ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  UAS Concept 1

  In July 2022, BAE Systems revealed two UAV concepts. The UAS Concept 1 is described as a small, versatile aircraft designed to augment existing forces ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Small UAS CISR

  Cubic's Secure ISR Radio (SCISR) for small unmanned aerial systems is a rugged common data link (CDL) multi-band (L, S, and C) full-duplex transceiver for ...

• UAS: Integrated systems - uncrewed

  AsteRx-m2 UAS

  The AsteRx-m2 UAS is a GNSS receiver designed to be easily integrated into UAS applications to provide centimetre-level RTK positioning. The system’s standard connectors enable ...

• CUAS - hybrid effector systems

  Cobham C-UAS

  Unveiled at the AUVSI 2017 trade show in Dallas, Texas, the Cobham C-UAS primarily consists of wideband omnidirectional, directional helix (single- or dual-band), directional flat ...

• CUAS - detectors

  MAUI

  The Mobile Application for UAS Identification (MAUI) is an acoustic sensor that operates on smartphones using the microphone to detect Group 1 (small, lightweight) UAS, ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS

  The Blue Water Maritime Logistics UAS is a developmental cargo-carrying platform heavily based on the Skyways commercial available V2.5 Hybrid-Electric UAS.  Following a 2019 industry event, the Naval ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Silent Falcon

  The Silent Falcon is a solar-electric sUAS with long-endurance capabilities for extended-range missions. The UAS can be used for commercial and military applications. The entire ...