• Defence Notes

  At least 28 killed in attack on Burkina army HQ

  2nd March 2018

  At least 28 people were killed on Friday in an attack on the military headquarters in Burkina Faso, three security sources, two in France and …

• Defence Notes

  A rigid US military culture could hinder efforts to counter Russia, China

  27th February 2018

  A US military culture entrenched in self assurance and fear of failure could pose the biggest stumbling block when it comes to anticipating strategic surprises …

• Digital Battlespace

  ETSO certification for Thales’ ADU 3208

  17th January 2018

  Thales’ Air Data Unit (ADU) 3208 has achieved European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certification, the company announced on 12 January. The ADU 3208 has received …

• Defence Notes

  Turkey court rejects appeal to free Greek soldiers

  5th March 2018

  A Turkish court 5 March rejected a request for the release of two Greek soldiers arrested last week for illegally entering the country, local media …

• Naval Warfare

  Australia launches aerial surveillance programme

  1st February 2018

  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has begun an aerial surveillance service across the Central and Western Pacific region as part of the government’s $2 …

• Defence Notes

  Kremlin says Russia not interested in 'arms race'

  2nd March 2018

  The Kremlin denied that Russia was violating any arms control agreements and said it did not want to be part of an arms race, after …

• Defence Notes

  Opinion: US and China must work out AI arms controls

  28th February 2018

  Americans have a saying about God and guns, and it goes something like this: ‘God made man, but Winchester made them equal’. In the future, …

• Special Operations

  Venezuela to enhance SOF capabilities

  12th March 2018

  Venezuela’s special operations forces are set to receive a USD $20 million uplift in materiel and equipment, according to President Nicolas Maduro. Announcing the news …

• Defence Notes

  Top US military leader calls for BMDS space sensors

  28th February 2018

  With the US eyeing ways to bolster its Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS), the head of Strategic Command said the time has come to send …

• Defence Notes

  New US advisors hope to give Afghan soldiers vital boost

  5th March 2018

  A brigade of seasoned American soldiers has arrived in Afghanistan in recent days on a much-trumpeted mission to offer a new type of training – …

• Defence Helicopter

  Honeywell introduces RECON HUMS

  1st March 2018

  Honeywell has introduced a new Health and Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) technology, RECON, to help civil and defence helicopter operators ensure aircraft availability while increasing …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Australia awards MCM USV contract

  2nd March 2018

  Steber International, an Australian manufacturer of fibreglass boats, won a contract worth more than A$6 million ($4.7 million) late last year to build five USVs …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Skeldar V-200 selected for OCEAN2020

  24th January 2018

  UMS Skeldar has received a contract to provide unmanned surveillance capabilities using the Skeldar V-200 UAS as part of the OCEAN2020 programme, the company announced …

• Training

  Ethiopian Air Force opens L-39 sim centre

  9th March 2018

  Considered by many as one of the best trained and equipped air forces in Africa, the Ethiopian Air Force (EAF) has just opened a new …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Puma II AE for Canada’s MCDVs

  5th March 2018

  AeroVironment’s Puma II AE maritime miniature UAS has been selected for fielding aboard the Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN) Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels, the company announced …

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 ...

• Transport/tanker aircraft

  A330 MRTT Follow-On (NATO)

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

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 - rotary-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  UAV Tactical Level [Norway]

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

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 - 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 ...

• 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 ...

• AEW&C

  Alliance Future Surveillance and Control (1-6) [NATO]

  Programme 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 ...

• 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 ...

• Surface-to-air missiles

  Mistral 3

  The Mistral 3 is the latest member of the Mistral family of very short-range surface-to-air missiles. It entered service in 2018 and has been chosen ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...

• 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 ...