• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUSA 2016: Roboteam bids for common robotics

  26th September 2016

  Roboteam see success with US military programmes like the Common Robotics System - Individual (CRS-I) as an opportunity for the company. The RfP for CRS-I …

• Training

  USS Bataan completes training exercise

  27th September 2016

  USS Bataan (LHD 5), a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship of the US Navy, has taken part in the two-week PHIBRON-MEU Integrated Training (PMINT) exercise off …

• Defence Notes

  BAE to upgrade more Mk 45 naval guns

  29th September 2016

  BAE Systems has been awarded a $50 million contract option by the US Navy to upgrade four additional Mk 45 naval guns on its guided …

• Digital Battlespace

  BAE awarded naval data-sharing contract

  30th September 2016

  BAE Systems has received a contract worth up to $84.7 million to provide the US Navy with the Network Tactical Common Data Link (NTCDL) system, …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  MQ-8B laser designates for Seahawk

  30th September 2016

  The US Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 23 has successfully used an MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned autonomous helicopter as a laser designator platform for an MH-60S …

• Digital Battlespace

  AUSA 2016: GMS ‘King Cobra’ strikes at the military market

  7th October 2016

  Quick question - who is the oldest computer manufacturer in the United States? According to Ben Sharfi, CEO of General Micro Systems (GMS), it’s his …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Integration testing complete for first CPB

  3rd October 2016

  The first Certifiable Predator B (CPB), which itself will be the template for the future UK Protector UAV, has completed integration testing and is expected …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUSA 2016: Army to lease robot mules

  26th September 2016

  The US Army may expedite its plans to field so-called ‘robotic mules’ – or unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) – that can carry soldier’s equipment on …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GA-ASI demos UAS communications pod

  30th September 2016

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has successfully demonstrated the ability of its Network Centric Communications Pod’s (NCCP) to provide a robust communications data link. The demo …

• Land Warfare

  AUSA 2016: GMV influence continues

  29th September 2016

  One major theme from recent AUSA annual meetings that is likely to be repeated in 2016 is the presence on extremely lightweight vehicle platforms.  The …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2016: Helicopter engine replacement for the future

  26th September 2016

  The replacement of the T700 engine onboard the UH-60 Black Hawk and AH-64 Apache, through the Improved Turbine Engine Program (ITEP), remains a longer-term option …

• Defence Helicopter

  AUSA 2016: Future attack helo lighter, more lethal

  5th October 2016

  The replacement of the AH-64E Apache attack helicopter under the Future Vertical Lift (FVL) programme is likely to see a smaller, lighter helicopter introduced, rather …

• Naval Warfare

  US Navy gets AQS-24B upgrade kits

  23rd September 2016

  Northrop Grumman has made the delivery of the first of three lots of AQS-24B mine-hunting sonar upgrade kits to the US Navy’s Naval Surface Warfare …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUSA 2016: Textron unveils Synturian

  4th October 2016

  Textron Systems used this week’s AUSA 2016 event to debut and launch its new ‘Synturian’ family of unmanned system support products.  The Synturian family is …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Triton UAS achieves milestone C

  27th September 2016

  The US Navy has received milestone C approval for the MQ-4C Triton UAS programme, it was announced on 22 September. The approval clears the way for …

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, Reconnaissance/patrol vehicles

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract (US Navy) [US]

  As of November 2020, the US DoD had signed 14 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all branches of ...

• 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 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A Joint Strike Fighter - USAF

  According to the US FY2021 budget document, Turkey's removal from the JSF program and transition to the alternate supply chain sources may challenge to achieve ...

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

  Puma LE (Kosovo)

  Programme Background 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 LE. ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B STOVL - US Navy

  The JSF programme will develop and field a family of aircraft that meets the needs of the US DoD and US allies with the F-35A ...

• MPVs - 4x4, Reconnaissance/patrol vehicles

  JLTV Oshkosh Contract [US Air Force]

  As of November 2020, the US DoD had signed 14 contracts with Oshkosh Defense covering the delivery of approximately 17,731 JLTVs to all branches of ...

• 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

  Lethal Unmanned Systems (LUS) [US Army]

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

• Fighter - naval

  F-35C Carrier Variant

  The US Navy is planning to order 130 F-35Cs between FY2026 and FY2030 under the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. The purchase is estimated be ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Phoenix Ghost (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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. ...

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 ...

• 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

  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 ...

• Autonomous GPADS

  Airborne Systems has developed a family of smart systems ranging in payload capacity from 90-4,536kg. Utilising the technology developed and used in ram-air canopies, Guided ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...