• Defence Notes

  Poland joins NATO’s 2% club

  24th June 2015

  Poland’s defence spending has reached above the 2% benchmark according to a NATO report, amid general reductions by many other European alliance members. The NATO …

• Defence Helicopter

  Ukraine crisis drives rotorcraft buys

  24th June 2015

  Concerns about political rumblings to its east and dependence on Russia to maintain its helicopter fleet has reshaped the Czech Air Force’s procurement priorities. The …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Paris Air Show: Security instability creates new UAV markets

  18th June 2015

  Textron Systems is exploring new opportunities in the western and eastern European UAV markets following instability created as a result of the conflict in the …

• Land Warfare

  Poland plans $42bn modernisation

  1st June 2015

  Poland plans to invest up to 150 billion zlotys ($42 billion) to modernise its armed forces over the next 10 years. The planned volume of …

• Naval Warfare

  Sweden and Finland to establish joint naval force

  29th April 2015

  The Royal Swedish Navy (RSwN) and the Finnish Navy will establish a joint naval task force in 2017. According to RAdm Jan Thomqvist, chief of …

• Defence Helicopter

  Poland’s plans for a future diversified helicopter fleet

  22nd April 2015

  On 21 April Polish President Bronisław Komorowski brought a long process and months of speculation about the country’s procurement plans to an end by announcing …

• Defence Notes

  China set to receive S-400 air defence system from Russia

  16th April 2015

  After prolonged negotiations that have spanned years, it appears China is finally purchasing the Almaz-Antei S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile (SAM) system from Russia. This was …

• Land Warfare

  Ukroboronprom suggests T-72 tank upgrade

  25th March 2015

  Ukroboronprom has suggested an upgrade of around 300 T-72 tanks currently in the Ukrainian Army reserve to improve the defensive capabilities of the Ukrainian armed …

• Naval Warfare

  China ‘confirms’ construction of second aircraft carrier

  23rd March 2015

  Everyone has known for a long time that China is indigenously building a second aircraft carrier to bolster the solitary Liaoning imported from Ukraine. In …

• Digital Battlespace

  No R&R for RAF ISTAR

  13th March 2015

  There are ‘significant challenges’ operating in contemporary environments, says the UK RAF ISTAR command. The RAF had been looking forward to 12 months of ‘recuperation …

• Land Warfare

  Ukraine to get 50 modified armoured vehicles

  24th February 2015

  Ukraine's state-owned defence firm Ukroboronprom will overhaul and manufacture 50 infantry fighting vehicles (IFV-1) for the Ukraine military, the company announced on 20 February. The …

• Land Warfare

  US delivers mortar radars, training to Ukraine

  17th February 2015

  The US Army has delivered lightweight counter-mortar radars for the Ukrainian Army and performed mortar round tracking training, it has been announced. A US army …

• Land Warfare

  Thailand tests BTR-3E with CMI 90mm gun

  9th February 2015

  Thailand has tested a variant of the BTR-3E 8x8 armoured personnel carrier (APC) fitted with a turret from CMI Defence. The turret is the CSE …

• Military Logistics

  Hesco demonstrates defensive barriers in Ukraine

  9th February 2015

  Hesco Bastion has demonstrated its defensive barrier products at a National Guard training facility in Novi Petrivtsi, Kiev (Ukraine), as announced by the company on …

• Defence Helicopter

  Ukraine mulls lessons of war

  3rd February 2015

  Throughout the military conflict in the breakaway east of the country, Ukraine’s helicopter units have seen occasional successes, but have also suffered painful losses. The …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  RQ-35 Heidrun (Ukraine Aid) [Germany]

  Programme Background Early 2024 On 28 March 2024, the German Federal Government provided an update on the military aid it had given to Ukraine. In ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Akinci [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Two Export Contracts In January 2022, the Daily Sabah reported that Baykar had "recently" signed its first export contract for the Akinci. Haluk Bayraktar ...

• 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 ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Phoenix Ghost (Ukraine Aid) [US]

  Programme Background Presidential Drawdown (21 April 2022) Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, on 21 April 2022, President Biden announced an $800 ...

• Patrol boats

  FPB 98 (Ukraine)

  Programme Background The international competition had been launched in the Spring of 2018 by the Ukrainian Ministry of Interior for the reinforcement of the State ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 (Aid & Discounted Units) [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Pre Invasion Units The Ukrainian Army purchased 12 TB2 units in January 2019 for a reported $69 million. Deliveries began in June 2019, ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  UX11 (Ukraine Aid) [France]

  Programme Background First Batch On 6 September 2023, Sébastien Lecornu, the French Minister of Defence, announced Delair was providing Ukraine with more than 150 drones. ...

• Military UAS - rotary-wing, Military UAS - small

  T-150 (Ukraine Aid) [UK]

  Programme Background Virtual Address On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. On 3 May 2022, the UK's Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, virtually addressed the Ukrainian ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  CV90 [Ukraine]

  Programme Background Announced at the NATO Defense Ministers’ Meeting in Brussels in June 2023, Ukraine formally signed a Joint Declaration on Cooperation in the Procurement and Operation ...

• 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, Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  FPV Drones (Ukraine Aid) [Lithuania]

  Programme Background 3000 FPV Drones On 5 April 2024, the Lithuanian MoD announced it would purchase around 3,000 Lithuanian-made FPV drones to give to Ukraine to ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Drones (Ukraine Aid) [Norway]

  Programme Background September 2024 On 3 September 2024, the Norwegian government announced that "Ukraine will get more drones donated to their frontline, and more air ...

• Military UAS - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  FPV Drones [Lithuania]

  Programme Background Ukraine FPV Drones On 5 April 2024, the Lithuanian MoD announced it would purchase around 3,000 Lithuanian-made FPV drones to give to Ukraine ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  One 150 (Ukraine Aid) [Luxembourg]

  Programme Background According to information obtained by Army Recognition from the Luxembourg Ministry of Defense, the country has delivered six One 150 UAVs to Ukraine ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Latvian Drones (Ukraine Aid) [Latvia]

  Programme Background Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG) In January 2024, the Ukrainian Defence Contact Group (UDCG), a multi-nation organisation that coordinates military aid for Ukraine, established a ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Shpak

  Shpak is a mini rotary wing, FPV style, UAV manufactured by RSI Europe. Primarily designed to carry explosives, the drone was developed to help Ukraine ...

• Tanks

  T-80UD

  The 125mm-armed T-80UD MBT is a variant of the T-80 which was in production in Ukraine when the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. An ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Supercam S350/S350F

  The Supercam S350/S350F is a mini fixed-wing that Supercam Unmanned Systems Group manufactures. The Russian UAV features a modular design and has been primarily designed ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Pro

  The Pro VTOL is a fixed-wing UAV from DeltaQuad. It is available in three models, the Map, View and Cargo variants, which primarily impact the attached payload. ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  REX

  The REX is an in-development Ukrainian mini-attack drone. It can hold and subsequently drop various munitions weighing up to 10kg and can locate, fix, track, ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Observer-S

  The Observer-S is a UAV produced by Def C of the Intecracy Group in Ukraine. Its main purpose is aerial survey and reconnaissance. It is ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - mini

  Astero

  Manufactured by Nordic Wing, the Astero is a fixed-wing mini UAV designed for ISR missions. The drone is equipped with a NightHawk 2 camera. In the ...

• Military UAS - micro, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  Black Hornet 3

  The Black Hornet 3 is the next generation of the PD-100 Black Hornet, the world's smallest nano-UAS. This new model of the Black Hornet provides ...

• Loitering munitions

  HF-1

  The HF-1 is a loitering munition produced by Helsing in cooperation with Ukrainian companies. Germany is acquiring and supplying a vast quantity of the aircraft to Ukraine ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  Patriot R2

  The new-generation Patriot R2 UAS is used for military and civil/commercial applications and provides reconnaissance support. It was designed in response to fighting that occurred ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  SURA HMTDS

  SURA is a helmet-mounted display system produced in Ukraine. Notably, it offers off-boresight acquisition capability to pilots and can cue the aircraft's sensor systems using ...

• Aircraft carriers

  Liaoning (Type 001)

  Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier, is a refurbished cold war-era aircraft carrier that was commissioned in 2012. The ship is a former Soviet Navy aircraft ...

• Air-to-air missiles

  Vympel R-27

  The Vympel R-27 (NATO reporting name AA-10 Alamo) is a Soviet air-to-air missile. It remains in service with the Russian Air Force and is also ...

• EO/IR systems

  NightHawk2-UZ

  The NightHawk2-UZ is a dual EO-IR stabilised camera turret from NextVision designed for long-range observation applications that demand low weight. The 350g sensor's IR camera has a 1280x720p ...

• Crew-served assault/anti-tank weapons

  Stugna

  The Stugna-P is an anti-tank guided missile system designed and manufactured in Ukraine by the Kyiv-based Luch design bureau.  It features a laser-guided system with ...