• Defence Notes

  Hopes for more Eurofighter orders

  1st August 2016

  Airbus Defence and Space is optimistic that more orders for the Eurofighter Typhoon will be placed by Middle Eastern countries. At a recent Airbus trade …

• Training

  US Army orders I-MILES systems

  1st August 2016

  The US Army has placed orders with Cubic Global Defense worth more than $10 million for new Instrumentable-Multiple Integrated Laser Engagement System Individual Weapon Systems …

• Defence Helicopter

  UK gets final upgraded Merlin Mk2

  1st August 2016

  The UK Ministry of Defence’s (MoD’s) Merlin Capability Sustainment Programme (MCSP) has marked a significant milestone with the handover of the final upgraded Merlin Mk2 …

• Defence Helicopter

  RAN MH-60R fleet nears completion

  1st August 2016

  The final MH-60R Seahawk helicopter destined for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) via the US foreign military sales (FMS) programme has been delivered by Lockheed …

• Defence Notes

  BAE bags gun contract for Type 26 ships

  29th July 2016

  BAE Systems will supply the Maritime Indirect Fires System (MIFS) for the Type 26 Global Combat Ship under a $245 million contract from the UK …

• Land Warfare

  Night-vision advances for US armour

  29th July 2016

  The US Army is looking to enhance the ‘eyes’ of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle and M1 Abrams tank with high-definition infrared technology that will allow …

• Land Warfare

  US orders Carl-Gustaf ammunition

  29th July 2016

  The US Department of Defense (DoD) has ordered $5.4 million worth of ammunition for its Carl-Gustaf man-portable weapon system from Saab, the company announced on …

• Land Warfare

  Symphony Block 40 approved for FMS

  29th July 2016

  Lockheed Martin’s Symphony Block 40 counter-improvised explosive device (C-IED) system has been approved by the US Navy for sale to coalition and partner forces, the …

• Training

  Cubic to support USMC aviation training

  29th July 2016

  Cubic Global Defense (CGD) has received a five-year $73 million order from the US Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Division, to support aviation training …

• Land Warfare

  New RG-31 MRAP version rolled out

  28th July 2016

  The first production unit of the latest version of the RG-31 mine-resistant ambush protected (MRAP) route clearance vehicle has been rolled out by the US …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Ravens swoop on Ukraine

  28th July 2016

  Ukraine has received a batch of RQ-11B Raven UAS as part of a non-lethal equipment package funded by the US. Reports indicate that 24 systems, …

• Digital Battlespace

  Metova to provide cyber range to US ANG

  28th July 2016

  Metova CyberCENTS will provide a cyber range for the US Air National Guard's (ANG) Virtual Interconnected Training Environment (VITE), it was announced on 26 July. …

• Training

  Boeing boosts training business

  28th July 2016

  Boeing continues to boost its training business following the award of a $27 million contract for continued work at F-15C/F-15E Mission Training Centers (MTC) and …

• Digital Battlespace

  Warp speed for Beidou constellation

  28th July 2016

  Last month China’s State Council released a white paper outlining its national Beidou (which translates as Compass) satellite positioning, navigation and timing system. But it has …

• Training

  Second T-50A takes flight

  28th July 2016

  The second T-50A configured aircraft built by Lockheed Martin and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has taken flight, completing a test flight in Sacheon, South Korea.  …

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 ...