• Naval Warfare

  Malaysian naval helicopters are due from 2022

  26th January 2021

  Malaysia's navy has ambitious procurement plans, if money allows, and naval helicopters have already been ordered.

• Naval Warfare

  New Zealand has learned amphibious lessons

  24th February 2021

  HMNZS Canterbury has allowed the RNZN to dip its feet in the water in terms of learning amphibious operations.

• Land Warfare

  Smart munitions hold the key for Derivatsiya

  19th February 2021

  The tactical role of 2S38 Derivatsiya-PVO may be diminished unless guided or programmable munitions can be successfully integrated.

• Defence Helicopter

  Israel enhances Seahawk sensors and weapons suite

  27th January 2021

  SH-60Fs are expected to operate from Sa’ar 6 corvettes with Elta ELM-family maritime radar and other classified sensors, as well as Spike missile variants.

• Military Logistics

  UK firm to provide composite wing components for A400M

  7th January 2021

  ​Components will be supplied by Teledyne CML to the Airbus A400M composite wing box assembly line in Filton.

• Military Logistics

  Uruguay puts KC-130H to use

  18th January 2021

  First operational flight to Antarctic base comes after Uruguay procured two ex-Spanish Hercules aircraft.

• Training

  UK seeks simulator for Artemis

  20th January 2021

  Satellite simulator will be used in support of UK sovereign space capability programme.

• Defence Helicopter

  Development of Z-20 variants in full swing for PLA

  13th January 2021

  The PLA is exploring new missions for the Z-20 medium helicopter, as the aircraft looks set to become the backbone of rotary-winged fleets in China.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Manufacturers deliberate FVL Maritime Strike options

  9th February 2021

  As a search for successors to MH-60 and MQ-8 aircraft under the US Navy's Future Vertical Lift Maritime Strike effort begins in earnest, attention turns to which new systems could compete for programme spoils.

• Defence Notes

  IDEX 2021: Spotlight shines on procurement programmes

  22nd February 2021

  Data and case studies from the Shephard Defence Insight team illustrate the state of play in Middle Eastern defence procurement.

• Military Logistics

  Boeing to provide Morocco with ‘peculiar’ aircraft GSE and other support

  2nd February 2021

  Integrated logistics deal also includes initial spares for RMAF.

• Defence Helicopter

  Hungarian H145M fleet is almost complete

  23rd December 2020

  Hungarian Air Force now has 16 H145M helicopters plus eight Zlin light trainers.

• Defence Notes

  Suspension of investment plan could hit Slovenian procurement

  26th January 2021

  Temporary suspension of a €780 million scheme to improve and modernise the armed forces may affect and delay Slovenian long-term procurement programmes.

• Defence Helicopter

  Lebanon completes restoration of another AB 212

  18th January 2021

  Five AB 212s are being refurbished under a five-year programme announced in early 2020.

• Defence Helicopter

  Rolls-Royce to make more Osprey engines

  1st February 2021

  Engine manufacturer receives order for 33 additional AE1107C engines for the V-22 and MV-22 Osprey.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Programme Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System - AHTS (TH-57 Replacement)

  Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single engine 407GXi. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  SW4 Puszczyk Replacement [Poland]

  Programme Background  In 2002, Poland order 47 SW4 training helicopters from Italian manufacturer Leonardo; as of Spring 2025, the Ministry of Defence is looking to ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T-India-Air Force

  An official contract announcement is expected during the Aero India 2021 exhibition in Bangalore, although negotiations have dragged on for more than five years and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M (Contracted) [Germany]

  Programme Background Previous Usage The German Armed Forces ordered 15 H145M helicopters, with the initial two delivered in December 2015, for the Kommando Spezialkräfte. These ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Naval Utility Helicopters (India)

  Programme Background The program will witness the formation of a joint venture between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and another local or foreign manufacturer. In June ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training

  H145

  The light, twin-engine EC145 began as an initiative to increase the cabin size of the BK 117 C1 aircraft, involving Kawasaki of Japan and Airbus ...

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter (covered in a separate entry). It is ...

• Model 301 Fire Attack

  The Model 301 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters AS365-series helicopters.

• Model 316 Fire Attack

  The Model 316 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters H225 and AS332 L-series helicopters.

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175, a seven-tonne class aircraft powered by twin PT6C 67E engines. The civilian variants produced by Airbus ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• AC67 Airbus Helicopters H135 interior

  Bucher has developed the AC67 medical interior for the Airbus Helicopters H135 in cooperation with ADAC Luftrettung.The lightweight, modular design features a floor with integrated ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  EWR-99

  Dassault is not traditionally associated with electronic warfare subsystems, instead being equated with the manufacture of combat aircraft and business jets. Nonetheless, the company did, ...