• Naval Warfare

  Belgium Naval & Robotics, FSR team for MCM

  16th November 2018

  Belgium Naval & Robotics has partnered with Flanders Ship Repair (FSR) to bid for the programme to supply twelve mine hunting vessels for the Belgian …

• Military Logistics

  First A330 arrives in ROK for testing

  15th November 2018

  The first Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft built for the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) has arrived in-country, where it will …

• Naval Warfare

  Fincantieri lays keel for third PPA

  16th November 2018

  Fincantieri has begun construction of the Italian Navy’s third Multipurpose Patrol Ship (PPA) at its shipyard in Riva Trigoso, Genova, the Organisation for Joint Armament …

• Defence Notes

  Indo Defence 2018: What's hot at the show (video)

  7th November 2018

  As Indo Defence 2018 kicks off in Jakarta Shephard takes a look at some of the pertinent topics and equipment being covered at this year's event. 

• Military Logistics

  First series production KC-390 flies

  15th October 2018

  Embraer has completed the maiden flight of the first series production KC-390 military transport and aerial refuelling aircraft, the company announced on 9 October. As …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Malaysia lays groundwork for ScanEagle 2 arrival

  23rd November 2018

  The Royal Malaysian Navy (RMN) inaugurated a nucleus UAS team on 21 November in preparation for the 2019 induction of ScanEagle 2s provided by the …

• Digital Battlespace

  AOC 2018: BAE Systems focused on fifth generation fighter market

  21st November 2018

  Electronic warfare developer BAE Systems will be primarily using this year's AOC as an opportunity to speak with clients and potential customers about the company's …

• Naval Warfare

  Zhuhai Air Show 2018: New ballistic anti-ship missile showcased

  12th November 2018

  A new anti-ship missile, yet another from China, impressed with its characteristics at Airshow China 2018. What is more, this CM-401 ballistic missile is available …

• Military Logistics

  Safran opens new facility in Sydney

  9th November 2018

  Safran Electronics and Defense Australasia has established a new high-technology facility in Sydney, which was officially opened by the Australian government on 6 November. The …

• Land Warfare

  Zhuhai Air Show 2018: Naval air defence gun becomes a landlubber

  9th November 2018

  Attracting attention on the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) stand at Airshow China 2018 was a large JRVG-1 self-propelled 76mm gun weapon system mounted on …

• Defence Notes

  Opinion: Khashoggi affair having little effect on Saudi arms sales

  9th November 2018

  As Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) seeks to strengthen his grip on power, the kingdom has embarked on a series of …

• Training

  HTT 40 enters spin testing phase

  15th November 2018

  Hindustan Aeronautics’ (HAL's) HTT 40 basic trainer aircraft has begun its spin test phase by successfully entering into a two turn spin and subsequently recovering …

• Land Warfare

  Indian Army inducts first M777 ULHs

  15th November 2018

  The Indian Army has inducted its first M777A2 ultra lightweight howitzers (ULH) built by BAE Systems. The 155mm M777 systems will be deployed to their …

• Training

  Simthetiq to support Brazilian armed forces’ training

  14th November 2018

  Simthetiq will provide an enterprise license of its high fidelity 3D simulation models for use in the Brazilian armed forces’ combat simulators. The contract will …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Alpha selects Robotic Skies for global support

  16th November 2018

  Alpha Unmanned Systems has selected Robotic Skies to develop and implement a global support plan for its Alpha 800 unmanned helicopter and future commercial UAS, …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT (1-9) [NATO]

  Programme Background Following operations in Libya and extensive analyses by the European Defence Agency (EDA), it was agreed at the NATO Summit in 2012 that ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  MH-60R Seahawks [Norway]

  Programme Background NH90 NFH cancellation  The Norwegian government announced the termination of the NH90 NFH helicopter contract for 14 NH90s with NHIndustries in June 2022. Seahawk Acquisition ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT Follow-On [NATO]

  Programme Background Following operations in Libya and extensive analyses by the European Defence Agency (EDA), it was agreed at the NATO Summit in 2012 that ...

• Main battle tanks

  New MBT [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Main battle tanks

  M1A2 Abrams SEPv3 [Romania]

  Programme Background Requirement The Romanian Army's MBT fleet is composed of T-55 variants that are due to be retired in the mid-2020s. Although Romania's TR-85 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) - (Greece)

  Programme Background EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Penguin C VTOL [Croatia]

  Background Announcment Redwire Corporation announced on 12 November 2025 that its wholly owned subsidiary, Edge Autonomy, had been contracted to deliver the Penguin C VTOL ...

• Maritime patrol

  MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  Programme Background In 2017, Germany and France announced that they would be working towards developing an MPA to replace their current fleets in service. The ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) - (Italy)

  Programme Background EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded ...

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

  Bayraktar TB2 [Kuwait]

  Background Contract Award On 18 January 2023, Baykar announced signing a $370 million export contract with Kuwait for the Bayraktar TB2. According to the announcement, ...

• Military UAS - HALE

  MQ-4C Triton - Germany (Cancelled)

  Programme Background Germany requested to buy four MQ-4C Triton HALE UAVs from Northrop Grumman. On 5 April 2018, the US State Department announced that it ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leopard 2A8 [Netherlands]

  Programme Background Bidders and Suppliers The Leopard 2A8, the latest in the Leopard family, was selected by the Royal Dutch Army as per announcements in ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  UAV Tactical Level [Norway]

  Background Request for Information (RfI) In September 2022, the Norwegian Defence Material Agency (NDMA) launched a request for information in preparation for a possible procurement ...

• Corvettes

  European Patrol Corvette (EPC) [France]

  Programme Background Requirements The European Patrol Corvette (EPC) is one of the new PESCO (Permanent Structured Cooperation on Defence and Security) projects. PESCO was established ...

• Corvettes

  European Patrol Corvette (EPC) [Italy]

  Programme Background Requirements The 2021-2023 Documento Programmatico Pluriennale (DPP) - a multi-year defence planning document from the Italian MoD - includes a plan to acquire eight "Patrol Ships", ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Land: air defence radar

  APIS

  APIS is a passive high-resolution primary radar system developed by Indra. It is the first passive system in the world capable of offering images using ...

• Uncrewed aerial systems engines

  AE50R

  The AE50R is an aviation gasoline single rotary engine with an output of 40.4kW. The engine is certified according to European Aviation Safety Agency Part ...

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

  LOTUS

  The LOTUS, Low Observable Tactical Unnamed System, is a tactical UAV especially designed for border patrol ISR operations.  The development of the project is funded by ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2H

  Safran Helicopter Engines received European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) engine type certification for its Arriel 2H engine, installed in the Avicopter AC312E, in April 2018. ...

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

  AR5

  First announced in October 2012, the AR5 is a MALE UAS designed for SAR, surveillance and maritime patrol missions. The AR5 can be flown manually or commanded ...

• Trainer

  Gabriel-TP

  Gabriel-TP is a low-wing, two-seat tandem trainer aircraft aimed at both military and civilian customers. It is certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in ...

• Air: NVGs

  PNL-3M Orlik

  PNL-3M are high-performance, lightweight, passive stereoscopic NVGs for helicopter crew members. Certification by European Aviation Safety Agency also enables civilian use. The device can be ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCH 170

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCH 170 is a fixed-wing loitering munition from MBDA. Similar in design to the Switchblade 300, the catapult launched system ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Capa-X

  The Capa-X is a VTOL-capable fixed-wing drone from Survey Copter, a subsidiary of Airbus. The drone has been linked with France's Système de Drone Tactique Léger (SDTL) ...

• Laser-directed energy weapons

  Tryzub Laser

  Ukraine's Tryzub (Trident) laser was revealed during the European Defence Industry: Prospects for Cooperation with the Ukrainian Defence Industry conference in 2025. Video footage from ...

• Air: Integrated cockpit systems

  Standard 3

  Jointly developed by ATR and Thales, The Standard 3 avionics suite has been specifically designed for ATR-600 aircraft. It offers the pilot user-friendly interface, along ...

• Loitering munitions

  Akeron RCX 50

  Unveiled in April 2025, the Akeron RCX 50 is a rotary-wing loitering munition from MBDA.  According to reports, the RCX 50 is designed to support ...

• Counter-UAS systems

  DroneGun

  DroneGun enables controlled management of an adversarial UAS, causing no damage to the UAV or surrounding area. It either forces the drone to perform a ...

• Military - USVs

  NOMARS

  The No Manning Required Ship (NOMARS) is a US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) effort to develop a first-of-its-kind large uncrewed surface vessel.

• Uncrewed aerial systems engines

  Trident 100TD2

  The Trident 100TD2 is a compression-ignition engine that is capable of operating on various types of heavy fuel. It is claimed to offer up to ...