• Air Warfare

  UK delays E-7 Wedgetail initial operational capability to 2026

  7th May 2025

  The E-7 Wedgetail programme had been classified as ‘red’ in a previous UK government report, denoting that it would either not meet cost, timeline or capability targets.

• Land Warfare

  Egypt approved for $4.7 billion upgrade of its Abrams main battle tanks

  3rd January 2025

  The approval is for the upgrade of 555 of Egypt’s M1A1 Abrams tanks into M1A1SA configuration.

• Land Warfare

  US Army LTAMDS enters production phase

  22nd April 2025

  LTAMDS was approved in multiple flight trials and assessments.

• Land Warfare

  Ireland plans for radar capability in 2026

  22nd April 2025

  The Irish Government has previously outlined ambitious plans, the furthest reach of these being the possible purchase of fighter aircraft to provide a capability the country’s defence force currently doesn’t have. A more advanced procurement effort for a primary radar is being fast tracked.

• Air Warfare

  M-345 officially enters service as trainer for Italian Air Force

  13th June 2025

  The Leonardo M-345 High-Efficiency Trainer (HET) basic/advanced trainer is similar to the M-346, which is the second part of the Italian Air Force’s training system, but is a substantially smaller and less powerful aircraft.

• Air Warfare

  Elbit to deliver EW self-protection suites for a European country’s C-390 and H225M aircraft

  10th December 2024

  The system to be installed includes a digital radar warning receiver, infra-red missile warning system, laser warning system, countermeasure dispenser system and DIRCM (Directed Infrared Countermeasure) system.

• Air Warfare

  Embraer affirms “limited” US tariff impact with 72% growth in defence revenues for Q1 2025

  6th May 2025

  The growth in Q1 2025 was supported by strong C-390 Millennium sales, according to the company’s CEO. Of the US$1.1 billion revenue increase, defence aircraft sales accounted for 13% of the total.

• Defence Notes

  What role could holographic and 3D capabilities play in the warfare of tomorrow

  4th June 2025

  Holographic and 3D technologies have been lauded by some for their ability to provide technical and operational advantages for military training and planning. But is the hype truly justified?

• Naval Warfare

  Italy orders two ships as work begins on others along with deliveries and updates

  27th June 2025

  The Italian Navy is being refreshed with two new ships ordered, while in the past six months steel was cut for a new frigate, an enhanced frigate was delivered and Horizon-class frigates passed a design review.

• Defence Notes

  Why is the defence market “exploding exponentially” for autonomous targeting capabilities?

  5th May 2025

  Solutions that identify, engage and destroy targets with minimal or no human intervention are becoming critical on tomorrow’s battlefield.

• Land Warfare

  MilDef to supply customised switches for BvS10 under $7.3 million deal

  16th December 2024

  More than 1,000 BvS10 all-terrain armoured vehicles have been ordered and more than 500 delivered. The platform is focused on extreme cold weather operations and is being delivered to meet the US Army’s Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicle (CATV) requirement.

• Naval Warfare

  Malaysia signs NSM launcher deal, issues Littoral Combat Ships support LOI and acquires first USV

  29th May 2025

  As LCS delays persist, RMN re-arms Lekiu-class frigates and embraces unmanned systems amid budget constraints.

• Air Warfare

  Belgium considers additional F-35 order to boost fleet

  24th April 2025

  The statement from Prime Minister Bart De Wever during a parliamentary session follows the country’s Easter Agreement which would see it increase defence spending to 2% of GDP by the end of 2025.

• Land Warfare

  Hegseth issues rallying cry for army transformation

  1st May 2025

  US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has outlined an ambitious plan to reform, reshape and redirect the US Army in an overhaul which would see a reduction in formations and less manned attack helicopters.

• Air Warfare

  Pentagon approves $100 million Bell 412 sale to Zambia

  14th January 2025

  The deal highlights Zambia’s ongoing pursuit to buy more Bell 412s to round out its diverse helicopter fleet.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  Medium Range Air Defence [Portugal]

  Background Portugal's Military Programming Law 2023-2034 includes a requirement for medium-range air defence. In order to facilitate this, Portugal has joined the European Sky Shield Initiative ...

• Medium Range Missile Defence Systems: 20-90km range

  GEM-T Missiles [Sweden]

  Background A coalition of European countries has signed a $5.6-billion contract to procure 1,000 Patriot Guidance Enhanced Missile (GEM-T) interceptors under the auspices of the NATO Support ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• Man-portable missile systems

  Mistral SHORAD [Hungary]

  Background Hungary is a member of the common procurement programme for MISTRAL 3 ground-based air defence systems for protection against air threats. The project's framework ...

• 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) - [Italy]

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

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU next generation rotorcraft technologies project (ENGRT) [Greece]

  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 in ...

• 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, ...

• Main battle tanks

  Leopard 2A8 [Netherlands]

  Background The Leopard 2A8, the latest in the Leopard family, was selected by the Royal Dutch Army as per announcements in September 2024.  Given the ...

• 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 ...

• AEW&C

  Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (1-10) [NATO]

  Background NATO’s E-3A AWACS fleet is set to retire in 2035, after 50 years of service. To plan for the required follow-on capability, NATO's Alliance ...

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 - 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 - 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 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Capa-X

  The Capa-X, or U050, 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 ...

• 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 ...

• CUAS - jammers

  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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• Space: radar systems

  ESA Sentinel-1

  Sentinel-1 is a planned constellation of four satellites with two already in orbit and two on order. They carry a payload of a C-band SAR ...

• Air: chaff/flare/decoy systems

  Sky Buzzer

  Hensoldt’s Sky Buzzer is a towed anti-radar decoy originally developed by the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS). The system is designed to protect ...