• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUSA 2017: GM SURUS about UGVs

  11th October 2017

  GM has unveiled its Silent Utility Rover Universal Superstructure (SURUS), a large multipurpose hydrogen-electric UGV at the AUSA exhibition in Washington DC.  Based on commercial …

• Military Logistics

  AUSA 2017: Ammo plant accident fuels innovation

  11th October 2017

  Delivering more than 1.6 billion small and medium caliber bullets in 2016 – 5.56mm, 7.62mm, .50 caliber and some 20mm – the Lake City Army …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Gray Eagle production transitions to ER model

  13th October 2017

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) has transitioned its production line from the MQ-1C Gray Eagle to its new long-range variant MQ-1C ER Gray Eagle extended …

• Defence Notes

  AUSA 2017: Ukraine shows military might via US partnerships

  9th October 2017

  The Ukrainian defence industry has grown in strength since Russia's invasion in 2014, military and industry officials noted at an AUSA 2017 press conference in …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUSA 2017: Leonardo leads the fight against UAS threat

  11th October 2017

  Under an urgent requirement for the US Army Leonardo DRS has been awarded a $42 million contract for a counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS). The C-UAS …

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2017: BAE showcases SHORAD for Bradley (video)

  9th October 2017

  BAE System has brought its concept of the Bradley IFV equipped with its maneuver short range air defence (M-SHORAD) solution. Shephard spoke with Mark Signorelli, deputy and VP …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2017: FVL progress on point (video)

  6th October 2017

  The US Army's Future Vertical Lift (FVL) programme seeks to shape the services helicopter fleet of the future.  Dan Bailey, programme director for JMR/FVL with …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  NAVSEA cancels EOD robotic systems solicitation

  10th October 2017

  The US Navy Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) has cancelled solicitations for the Advanced Explosive Ordnance Disposal Robotic Systems (AEODRS) Increments 2 and 3. The circumstances …

• Defence Helicopter

  GE Aviation details T901-GE-900 testing

  12th October 2017

  GE Aviation has successfully completed testing of its T901-GE-900 turboshaft engine prototype in support of the US Army’s Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), the company …

• Naval Warfare

  Raytheon to supply JSOWs to Qatar

  10th October 2017

  Raytheon Missile Systems has received a $172.8 million contract from the US Department of Defense to provide AGM-154C Block III Joint Standoff Weapons (JSOW) to …

• Digital Battlespace

  Saab radar for US Coast Guard

  4th October 2017

  Saab will supply the Sea Giraffe agile multi-beam, multi-mode radar (MMR) for the US Coast Guard under a contract with the US Navy announced on …

• Defence Notes

  SSRO loses outspoken chief executive

  17th October 2017

  The UK's Single Source Regulations Office (SSRO) has suffered a further set back with the surprise resignation of the organisation’s outspoken chief executive. The resignation of …

• Special Operations

  AUSA 2017: SOCOM gets new vehicle camouflage

  10th October 2017

  US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has started to receive deliveries of a new camouflage system for its lightweight ground vehicles.  The new system is being …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Regulation key sticking point for civil UAS market

  18th October 2017

  The need to introduce effective regulations to better manage the civil unmanned industry was the main topic of conversation on the first day of the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Chinese anti-stealth T-radar: Fact or fiction?

  8th October 2017

  In early October, Chinese-language media in Hong Kong and China began reporting a breakthrough in anti-stealth radar technology with the testing of a new terahertz …

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 ...