• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Drone manufacturers ignore reports of market saturation

  12th April 2018

  Despite reports of drone market saturation, two Asia-based companies are showcasing their solutions for the first time at Commercial UAV Expo in Amsterdam with a …

• Defence Helicopter

  US agrees guided missile sale to Qatar

  9th April 2018

  The United States approved a deal to sell Qatar $300 million in guided missiles on 9 April, on the eve of President Donald Trump's White …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Leica partners with DJI on new drone solution

  11th April 2018

  Leica Geosystems, headquartered in Switzerland, is showcasing a prototype of its newest UAS solution for the first time at the Commercial UAV Expo in Amsterdam. …

• Naval Warfare

  CAMM 3-cell ExLS completes qualification trials

  9th April 2018

  MBDA and Lockheed Martin have completed qualification of MBDA’s Common Anti-air Modular Missile (CAMM) from Lockheed Martin’s Extensible Launching System (ExLS) 3-cell standalone launcher following …

• Land Warfare

  Poland prepares for next phase of Patriot buy

  11th April 2018

  Just two weeks since Poland sealed the deal on its initial purchase of Patriot air and missile defence systems, Warsaw is now looking to immediately …

• Land Warfare

  DefExpo 2018: MKU goes on the offensive with weapon MoUs

  14th April 2018

  MKU, the Indian firm known for its protective products such as ballistic vests and armour products, heralded a move into a new area at DefExpo …

• Defence Notes

  MDA hopeful of missile defence investment boost

  18th April 2018

  The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is hoping for additional dollars to bolster directed energy and hypersonic weapons development, as well as space-based sensors to detect …

• Naval Warfare

  Thomas Hudner completes builder's trials

  3rd April 2018

  The US Navy's future USS Thomas Hudner has successfully completed builder's trials, NAVSEA announced on 2 April. The vessel is being built by General Dynamics …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Going large, Ewatt showcases new quadcopter

  12th April 2018

  Ewatt Aerospace provided a preview of its EWZ-242 quadcopter UAS at the Commercial UAV Expo in Amsterdam ahead of the system's official launch at Farnborough …

• Defence Notes

  BAE counting on UK defence spending as profits fall

  22nd February 2018

  BAE Systems announced a drop in annual net profit on 22 February but said it expected government defence spending to remain a priority. Profit after …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Airbus outlines unmanned strategies

  12th April 2018

  As drones become more commonplace Airbus is continuing to explore the use of unmanned technologies throughout a variety of different applications. During the Commercial UAV …

• Special Operations

  Kuwait requests King Air 350ER ISR aircraft

  26th February 2018

  The US State Department has made a determination approving a potential foreign military sale of King Air 350ER ISR aircraft to Kuwait. In a package …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  European UAS airspace integration on the horizon

  11th April 2018

  As the European transport commissioner pushes for a more open drone market in the continent, the SESAR Joint Undertaking (SJU) will begin implementing its U-Space …

• Military Logistics

  KC-46 gets fuel on-load certification

  6th April 2018

  Boeing’s KC-46 tanker programme has completed its required Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) fuel on-load testing, the company announced on 4 April. The certification was achieved …

• Land Warfare

  RUAG Australia to produce ballistic armour

  23rd February 2018

  BAE Systems and Patria have selected RUAG Australia to produce ballistic armour in support of their bid for the Australian Army’s Land 400 Phase 2 …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) [Japan]

  Programme Background Shephard notes that GCAP's Japanese, British and Italian components are tracked in separate entries. Programme Timeline 2020: The Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency of Japan issued ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, 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 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  JAS-39C/D Gripen Replacement [Czech Republic]

  Programme Background Requirements The Czech Republic Air Force operates 14 Gripens (12 JAS 39C and two JAS 39D variants) under a lease agreement that runs ...

• Fighter - electronic warfare

  Jamming and Escort Electronic Attack Aircraft (luWES) [Germany]

  Programme Background According to earlier reports, Berlin had earlier decided to procure 15 EA-18G Growlers over the Eurofighter Typhoon ECR concept, which is expected to be ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Multirole Fighter [Turkiye]

  Programme Background Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Turkey had already paid $1.4 billion into the programme, while its defence industry has ploughed significant ...

• Trainer

  Hawk 127 Replacement (Future Lead-In Fighter Training System- Project Air 6002 PH1) [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirements The RAAF is seeking a future solution that provides a ‘relevant, adaptable, affordable and safe LIFTS out to 2050’ for training pilots ...

• Fighter - multirole

  TF-X Kaan Next Generation Fighter [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Requirement Geopolitical factors have spurred aircraft development in Türkiye. With its removal from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter project following the Russian S-400 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Eurofighter Typhoon First-Batch [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Requirement The Turkish Air Force has operated two main fighter platforms, the F-16 and F-4, for several decades. As older F-16 airframes and ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A [Denmark]

  Denmark joined the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program in 2002 during the System Development and Demonstration phase and has influenced technical elements of the ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A (1-60) [Italy]

  The 2019 and 2020 budget contained significant funding for the F-35 programme: €690 million ($775 million) in 2019 and €859 million ($962 million) in 2020, ...

• Fighter - naval

  F-35B (1-30) [Italy]

  The 2019 and 2020 budget contained significant funding for the F-35 programme: €690 million ($775 million) in 2019 and €859 million ($962 million) in 2020, ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Project Halcon I [Spain]

  Programme Background The Spanish Air Force began requirements assessments, although potential suppliers including Boeing (F/A-18E/F), Lockheed Martin (F-35), Airbus-BAE-Leonardo (Eurofighter Typhoon) are already engaged with ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-18 Replacement Phase II/Project Halcon II [Spain]

  Programme Background The Spanish Air Force began requirements assessments, although potential suppliers, including Boeing (F/A-18E/F), Lockheed Martin (F-35), and Airbus-BAE-Leonardo (Eurofighter Typhoon), are already engaged ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | Eurofighter Typhoon First-Batch [Türkiye]

  The Turkish Air Force is modernising its fleet, focusing on Eurofighter Typhoons to complement its F-16s and the in-development Kaan fighter. Türkiye plans to acquire ...

• Data links

  Data links | Eurofighter Typhoon First-Batch [Türkiye]

  The Turkish Air Force is modernising its fleet, focusing on Eurofighter Typhoons to complement its F-16s and the in-development Kaan fighter. Türkiye plans to acquire ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  F-35 Training System

  BAE Systems is involved in F-35 Lightning II Training System design and sustainment, working with prime contractor Lockheed Martin. BAE Systems leads the instructional systems ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers, EW test systems

  Model 527

  The Model 527 radar signal simulator is used for end-of-runway and walk-around radiated RWR testing to verify the operational status of the aircraft and its ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming, Air: chaff, flare and decoy systems

  AN/ALE-55 FOTD

  The ALE-55 Fibre Optic Towed Decoy (FOTD) is a high-powered electronic off-board countermeasure that works with an aircraft’s onboard EW equipment to defeat radiofrequency (RF) threats. It ...

• EW test systems

  A2PATS

  Advanced Architecture Phase Amplitude and Time Simulator (A2PATS) is a real-time EM test environment simulator for military platforms and installed systems, designed to deliver mission ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  HAPS / PHASA-35

  The High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) is a solar-electric Persistent High Altitude Solar Aircraft (PHASA-35).  Produced by BAE Systems and Prismatic, the platform is designed to provide a persistent, ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-81

  AN/APG-81 is operating in the X-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire control radar designed by Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems for the F-35 “Lightning” all-weather ...

• Fighter - multirole

  MiG-35

  The MiG-35 (NATO reporting name Fulcrum F) is a multirole fighter, the latest variant of the MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter family.  The production of the MiG-35 ...

• EO/IR systems

  F-35 Lightning II Advanced EOTS

  The F-35 Lightning II Electro-Optical Targeting System (EOTS) is a sensor that combines targeting forward-looking IR (FLIR) and IR search and track (IRST) capabilities for ...

• Fighter - multirole, Fighter - naval

  F-35B

  The F-35B Lightning II is a fifth-generation multirole combat aircraft with short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) capability. The USMC is the main customer for the F-35B, ...

• Air-to-surface missiles

  SPEAR-EW

  The SPEAR-EW missile, developed by MBDA in collaboration with Leonardo, is an air-to-surface weapon designed to perform Suppression of Enemy Air Defence (SEAD) missions. This ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  F-35 Gen III HMDS

  The F-35 Gen III helmet-mounted display system (HMDS) is provided by a joint venture between Elbit Systems of America and Rockwell Collins, developed for the F-35 ...

• Air: Integrated Defensive Systems

  AN/ALQ-178V(5)+

  The AN/ALQ-178(5)+ is an internally mounted self-protection system designed and developed by Aselsan and BAE Systems for the Turkish F-16C fighter aircraft. The system comprises ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35I Adir

  The F-35I Adir is an F-35A Lightning II variant customised to meet the requirements of the Israel Defense Forces to replace the F-16 fleet in ...

• Air-to-surface missiles, Anti-ship missiles

  JSM

  The Joint Strike Missile (JSM) is a multi-role version of the Naval Strike Missile. Norway funded the programme to develop and produce the JSM for the ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A

  The F-35A Lightning II is a fifth-generation multirole combat aircraft with CTOL capabilities. It is a multinational programme led by the US DoD, bringing together ...