• Defence Notes

  DSEI 2017: Joint Forces Command fosters ‘miltech’ industry

  13th September 2017

  The head of Joint Forces Command (JFC) has laid out an ambition for his command to become the ‘information command’ as he continues efforts to …

• Digital Battlespace

  ViaSat receives cybersecurity software contract

  1st September 2017

  The Tactical Local Area Network (TACLAN) Field Computing Device - Wearable (FCD-W) platform is to be protected by ViaSat’s cybersecurity software, the company announced on …

• Naval Warfare

  USCG orders HC-144 missionisation equipment

  6th September 2017

  TFab Defense Systems (TFD has received a contract from the US Coast Guard to manufacture and deliver Minotaur mission system workstation units for the HC-144B …

• Defence Notes

  DSEI 2017: UK procurement process could eliminate innovation

  11th September 2017

  Ahead of DSEI the UK procurement process has come under scrutiny as industry leaders question its future flexibility.  ADS Group chief executive, Paul Everitt laid …

• Naval Warfare

  USCG releases RFI for long-range UAS

  5th September 2017

  The US Coast Guard (USCG) Research and Development Center has released a request for information (RFI) to learn more about land-based long-range and ultra-long endurance …

• Defence Helicopter

  DSEI 2017: Omnetics connecting next-gen army missions

  5th September 2017

  Omnetics has been delivering connectors of the micro-  and nano-minature variety to the US Army for more than 25 years. With cyber security threats to …

• Land Warfare

  US Army releases active protection roadmap

  30th August 2017

  As the US army contemplates whether it will field an active protective system (APS) for its current fleet of vehicles, the service has unveiled a …

• Defence Helicopter

  Australia requests MH-60R upgrade

  4th September 2017

  The US State Department has approved a potential foreign military sale for an Australian MH-60R helicopter upgrade programme, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced on …

• Special Operations

  Georgian SF become NATO certified

  8th September 2017

  The Georgian Special Operations Forces (GEO SOF) has successfully completed NATO certification to operate a Special Operations Task Group (SOTG), defence sources have confirmed to …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Roboteam receives MTGR orders

  31st August 2017

  Roboteam has received two orders for the Micro Tactical Ground Robot (MTGR) in support of US and international military missions, the company announced on 29 …

• Defence Notes

  South Korean defence budget set for boost

  31st August 2017

  Alarmed by Kim Jong-un’s shenanigans across the border, Seoul announced on 29 August that it proposed to boost defence spending next year by 6.9% to …

• Special Operations

  USAF receives enhanced digital GPS receiver

  30th August 2017

  Rockwell Collins has delivered enhanced Digital GPS Anti-Jam Receivers (DIGAR) for airborne platforms to the US Air Force Special Operations Command, the company announced on …

• Digital Battlespace

  General Dynamics secures CAC2S contract

  4th September 2017

  General Dynamics Mission Systems has won a full-rate production contract from the US Marine Corps (USMC) for the Common Aviation Command and Control System (CAC2S) …

• Naval Warfare

  HII selected to repair USS Fitzgerald

  28th August 2017

  Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding division has been selected by the US Navy to repair the guided missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald when it returns …

• Land Warfare

  DSEI 2017: Patria’s containerised mortar system demo'd

  6th September 2017

  Patria’s New Mortar (Nemo) Container has successfully completed its first test firings on a truck platform.  Announced on 1 September, the technology had been through …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 - 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. ...

• Military UAS - MALE

  XQ-58A Valkyrie [USMC]

  Programme Background Contract Award On 30 December 2022, the US DoD announced that it had awarded Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems a $15.52 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to ...

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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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

  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 - 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 ...

• Directed energy weapons

  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 ...

• Data links, Land: Radio and SATCOM, UAS: communication systems

  QNT-200

  The Collins QNT-200 is a dual-channel software-defined radio (SDR) designed for size, weight and power-constrained platforms. Using IP-based mesh networks, it offers high-bandwidth mobile networking ...