• Defence Helicopter

  USMC begins Super Stallion reset

  16th August 2016

  The US Marine Corps (USMC) has begun a complete reset of its ageing CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters to address systemic issues and increase the …

• Defence Notes

  AIM-9X Block I fired from F-35A

  16th August 2016

  Raytheon, along with the US Navy and US Air Force, has successfully test-fired three AIM-9X Block I short-range, air-to-air missiles from an F-35A aircraft. All …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army aviation takes the fight to Daesh

  15th August 2016

  The US Army’s deployment back to Iraq has given helicopter units the first operational experience of working as attack/reconnaissance units following the service’s recent restructure …

• Land Warfare

  NATO requests precision munitions

  15th August 2016

  The US State Department has approved a possible foreign military sale (FMS) of precision-guided munitions to the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) for an …

• Military Logistics

  Engineering support contract for MTSI

  15th August 2016

  Modern Technology Solutions (MTSI) has been awarded a $28 million modernisation and engineering support contract by the US National Guard Bureau (NGB) for the Air …

• Digital Battlespace

  ViaSat's encryptors NSA-certified

  15th August 2016

  ViaSat’s KG-250XS and IPS-250X secure network encryptors have been certified by the National Security Agency (NSA), clearing them for purchase by US government organisations, the …

• Military Logistics

  Thai air force tests Guardian CAFFS

  15th August 2016

  Caylym has demonstrated its Guardian Containerized Aerial Fire Fighting System (CAFFS) for the Royal Thailand Air Force (RTAF) as the force looks to bolster its …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  US Navy destroyer tests RQ-20B Puma

  15th August 2016

  AeroVironment’s RQ-20B Puma small UAS is being tested by the US Navy aboard a Flight I Guided Missile Destroyer, the company announced on 11 August.  …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army eyes new helo protection in 2020s

  12th August 2016

  The US Army has set a date of 2023 to begin equipping its helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft with new self-protection systems that can warn against …

• Land Warfare

  Challenger 2 - and RUAG makes five

  12th August 2016

  RUAG Defence has put in a bid for the British Challenger 2 main battle tank Life Extension Project (CR2 LEP) just before the deadline on …

• Naval Warfare

  USCG orders 39 response boats

  12th August 2016

  The US Coast Guard (USCG) has placed a $15 million order with Metal Shark Aluminum Boats for 39 Response Boats-Small II (RB-S IIs) and associated …

• Naval Warfare

  GCC turns up the volume

  12th August 2016

  Port and coastal facility infrastructure developments ongoing among GCC countries are providing a number of opportunities for international defence and security companies, particularly for those …

• Military Logistics

  DCS awarded KC-46A mission planning order

  12th August 2016

  DCS will carry out mission planning software development and integration for the US Air Force’s KC-46A programme, the company announced on 8 August. The work …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Japan professes desire for Israeli UAVs

  12th August 2016

  The Japan Self-Defence Force (JSDF) is buying three Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk Block 30 UAVs, but it is simultaneously exploring cooperation with Israel because …

• Military Logistics

  Alion awarded DDG 51 support contract

  11th August 2016

  Alion Science and Technology has been awarded a five-year, $145 million contract from the US Naval Sea Systems Command to support the navy's DDG 51 …

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 ...