• Defence Notes

  Asian spending exceeds global average

  25th April 2017

  Defence spending in Asia and Oceania has risen considerably last year according to data released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).In fact in …

• Defence Helicopter

  Rotorcraft Asia: L3 Wescam enters the MatriX

  21st April 2017

  L3 Wescam, the company well known for its range of sensors and imaging systems, is enjoying growth in the Asia-Pacific market, and at Rotorcraft Asia …

• Defence Helicopter

  Quad A 2017: Lakotas upgraded for the future

  19th April 2017

  The US Army is overseeing several modernisation efforts for the service's fleet of UH-72A Lakotas.Although the type only entered service in 2007, the H145-derived UH-72A, …

• Military Logistics

  Tapestry earns five-year contract for GDMS

  19th April 2017

  Tapestry Solutions has received a five-year follow-on contract to support ground transportation In-Transit Visibility (ITV) for the US Army's logistics operations in Afghanistan, the company …

• Training

  TCM ATIS awarded Program of Record status

  18th April 2017

  The US Army has awarded Program of Record status to the Training and Doctrine Command Capability Manager - Army Training Information System (TCM ATIS), which …

• Naval Warfare

  Leonardo to provide APS for USCG cutters

  18th April 2017

  Leonardo DRS has received a contract worth $10.7 million from Eastern Shipbuilding to provide integrated hybrid electric drive systems for the US Coast Guard's (USCG's) …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  MQ-8C undertakes first flight aboard LCS

  17th April 2017

  Northrop Grumman's MQ-8C Fire Scout has successfully completed its first flight aboard a US Navy Independence class Littoral Combat Ship (LCS), USS Montgomery (LCS-8), the …

• Defence Helicopter

  Singapore enhancing its Apache fleet

  17th April 2017

  A Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow featuring numerous modifications similar to the Israel Defense Forces AH-64D-I Saraf was recently spotted on an evening training flight in …

• Military Logistics

  Iraq requests training and support services

  14th April 2017

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a potential $1.06 billion foreign military sale to Iraq for pilot and maintenance training, contractor logistical …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Lockheed, USAF demo manned/unmanned teaming

  12th April 2017

  Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), US Air Force (USAF) Test Pilot School and Calspan Corporation have carried out a successful …

• Digital Battlespace

  Comtech wins shipboard troposcatter system order

  12th April 2017

  Comtech Systems has received a follow-on order for shipboard troposcatter systems for the US military, the company announced on 10 April.The system supports offshore, beyond-the-horizon …

• Land Warfare

  Triumph to supply gun bodies for M777

  12th April 2017

  Triumph Group has received a $15 million contract to provide gun bodies for BAE Systems' ultra-lightweight M777 howitzer, the company announced on 10 April. The …

• Military Logistics

  Kuwait requests airbase infrastructure

  11th April 2017

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a $319 million foreign military sale to Kuwait for facilities and infrastructure construction support services, the …

• Training

  KC-135 simulator cleared for networking

  10th April 2017

  CAE USA's KC-135 Stratotanker aircrew training system has received authorisation to operate on the US Air Force's Distributed Training Center Network.The authorisation clears the way …

• Special Operations

  ​Gulf SOF operators refine tactics

  9th April 2017

  Special operations forces from across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) coalition continue to refine their approach to counter-terrorism (CT) and counter-insurgency (COIN) missions as part …

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 ...