• Defence Notes

  Opinion: The Venezuelan conundrum

  19th November 2018

  Once one of the most vibrant economies in the world, Venezuela in more recent times has suffered from prolonged periods of political and financial instability, …

• Defence Helicopter

  Erickson to provide aerial services to USPACOM

  6th November 2018

  Erickson has received an IDIQ contract from the US Department of Defense to provide dedicated rotary wing and fixed wing aircraft to the US Pacific …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AN/ZPY-4 radar contract for Fire Scout

  30th October 2018

  Telephonics has received a contract to supply its AN/ZPY-4 maritime and overland surveillance radar system for use on the US Navy's MQ-8B Fire Scout UAS, …

• Land Warfare

  Russian Airborne Troops to get the Sprut-SDM1

  12th November 2018

  The Airborne Troops branch of the Russian military is set to get its first Sprut-SDM1 self-propelled tank destroyers in 2020. According to the branch’s Commander-in-Chief, …

• Naval Warfare

  RAN commissions HMAS Brisbane

  1st November 2018

  The Royal Australian Navy has commissioned the second Australian-built Hobart-class guided missile destroyer, HMAS Brisbane, at the Garden Island Naval Base in Sydney, the Australian …

• Training

  Mixed reality training systems for T-38C programme

  11th October 2018

  FlightSafety and Global Simulation have received a contract to provide ten mixed reality training systems for the T-38C programme, FlightSafety announced on 9 October. The …

• Military Logistics

  US Navy outlines LMSR contractor operations

  25th October 2018

  The Department of the Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC) is looking for contractor support to operate and maintain eight Large, Medium-Speed, Roll-on/Roll-off vessels (LMSRs) that …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indo Defence 2018: Profense sets the pace with M134

  8th November 2018

  Profense’s M134 Gatling Gun has been operational in Indonesia since 2014, a purchase the company believes is down to the weapon's key features, such as …

• Defence Notes

  Pentagon grounds global fleet of F-35s after crash

  11th October 2018

  The Pentagon grounded the global fleet of F-35 stealth fighters on 11 October, as a result of the first ever crash of the costliest plane …

• Defence Helicopter

  Insight: Can the US win legacy fleet battle ahead of FVL transition?

  1st November 2018

  As the US military continues to build momentum on its Future Vertical Lift (FVL) programme, more and more attention is being afforded to how it …

• Defence Notes

  Indo Defence 2018: Indonesia’s defence capabilities enhanced through sharing practices

  8th November 2018

  The island nation of Indonesia is one of independence; however, through ongoing and new transfer of technology (ToT) programmes the indigenous production of equipment is …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Blighter to supply C-UAS radar to Liteye

  31st October 2018

  Blighter Surveillance Systems will supply its counter-UAS radar technology to Liteye Systems, the company announced on 25 October. Liteye is working on a contract to …

• Digital Battlespace

  Northrop to upgrade E-8C central computers

  8th October 2018

  Northrop Grumman has received a $17.5 million contract for a fifth generation upgrade to the central computers on 16 aircraft in the US Air Force's …

• Defence Helicopter

  Kongsberg opens helicopter MRO facility

  2nd November 2018

  Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace has opened a new helicopter maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Kongsberg, Norway, the company announced on 31 October. A …

• Military Logistics

  ORBCOMM, Savi to track, monitor DoD assets

  6th November 2018

  Savi and ORBCOMM have secured a multi-million dollar order to deliver telematics products and services that will track and monitor around 24,000 military assets for …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Fighter - multirole

  JAS 39E/F Gripen (Brazil)

  In 2016, Gripen’s Project and Development Center was opened in Sao Paulo to allow Sweedish and Brazillian engineers to work together in the Gripen development ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Data links

  Data links | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | M-346 FA [Brazil]

  Brazil is evaluating the procurement of up to 30 Leonardo M-346 light attack aircraft under a potential agreement with Italy, aimed at modernising its aerial ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390 [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirement The aircraft deliveries were scheduled to start by the end of 2016 and continue over a period of ten years. However,  the first ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  C-130H Replacement [Sweden]

  Programme Background Requirements Sweden has five C-130H aircraft (designated Tp-84) and one KC-130H. Two C-130Es bought in the 1960s have retired, but the six H ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Hermes 900 [Chile]

  Methodology Unit cost In 2024, the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) acquired one Hermes 900 for 50 million reais ($9.14 million), giving each drone an estimated ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Hermes 900 (5) [Brazil]

  Background First three batches (2014-2024) Across three purchases, Defence Insight estimates that Brazil has acquired five Hermes 900 UAVs. In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Hermes 900 (1-4) [Brazil]

  Background First batch (2014) In 2014, Elbit reported supplying one Hermes 900 UAV to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB). The drone is called the RQ-900 in Brazilian ...

• Transport

  C-130 Replacement [Greece]

  Programme Background Requirement The existing C-130 fleet of the Hellenic Air Force has faced operational readiness issues, with only one or two airframes in service at ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Polar Support Vessel [Brazil]

  Programme Background Requirements In June 2020, the Brazilian Navy released a Request for Proposal (RfP) to procure a new Antarctic vessel to be manufactured in Brazil. The ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Hermes 900 [Undisclosed European Country]

  Background Various Contracts On 18 November 2024, Elbit Systems announced it had awarded various contacts with a combined $335 million to an undisclosed European country. ...

• Loitering munitions

  Loitering munitions [Brazilian Navy]

  Background Growth Acceleration Plan (PAC) As reported by Shephard, in August 2023, the Brazilian government announced plans to invest BRL 52.8 billion ($10.6 billion) in new ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air-to-surface missiles

  MAR-1

  The MAR-1 is a Brazilian air-to-surface anti-radiation missile (ARM) developed by Mectron in collaboration with the Aerospace Technology and Science Department (DCTA) of the Brazilian ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  EMB-312 Tucano

  The EMB-312 Tucano (Brazilian designation T-27) is a trainer and light attack aircraft developed by Embraer to meet the training requirements of the Brazilian Air ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  TPTS

  Tactical Procedures Training Simulators (TPTS), operating with SWARM software, can be used to provide most core training elements to pilots or offload training tasks from ...

• Guided munitions

  SMKB (Smart-MK-Bomb)

  The Smart-MK-Bomb, or the SMKB, is a precision guidance kit developed by Mectron and designed to turn Mk 82 and Mk 83 bombs into guided munitions.

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Condor

  The Condor, or Atobá XR, is an in-development MALE-class UAV from Stella Technologia.  The development of the multi-role is tied to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), which has ...

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

  Albatroz Vortex

  The Albatroz Vortex from Stella Tecnologia is a development of the company's Albatroz UAV.  The key differentiator is that the Vortex is fitted with an ATJR ...

• 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 ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  KC-390/C-390 Millennium

  The KC-390 is a high-wing, twin-turbofan, T-tail design intended to meet the needs of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) for a tanker/transport aircraft. Developed and ...

• Land: battle management systems

  Arkhe Mission & Combat

  Launched in 2017, Atech's Arkhe Mission & Combat solutions offer a variety of solutions enabling operator to conduct missions from planning to execution and debriefing. It ...

• Fighter - air superiority

  F-5E/F Tiger II

  The F-5E (single-seat)/F (twin-seat) Tiger II is an air superiority fighter developed by Northrop Grumman based on the original F-5 Freedom Fighter. Production of the ...

• EO/IR systems, Land: unattended sensor/surveillance systems, Sea: ship surveillance and fire control systems

  SHAPO

  SHAPO is a multi-sensor, gyro-stabilised observation payload. It is intended for UAVs, helicopters, light aircraft, patrol boats, aerostats, airships, armoured vehicles and masts. Sensors include a ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Saber M60

  The Saber M60 is a low-altitude air-defence radar developed by the Brazilian Army's CTEx (Army Technology Centre) in collaboration with Bradar, part of Embraer Defence ...

• EO/IR systems

  Skyward

  The SkyWard system is an advanced Infrared Search and Track (IRST) solution developed for next-generation airborne platforms, including 5th-generation fighter aircraft.  Designed with modularity in ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  RBS 70 system

  The RBS 70 was developed in the 1970s to meet the Swedish Army’s requirement for a low-cost, easy-to-use MANPADS which could function in extreme climatic ...