• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Leonardo invests in Skydweller Aero

  12th November 2019

  Leonardo has announced its investment in Skydweller Aero, a US/Spanish company specialising in large-scale solar-powered UAS. The initiative will result in the development and deployment …

• Defence Notes

  RAF given glimpse of new Poseidon maritime patrol era

  31st October 2019

  A formal UK P-8A Poseidon MRA1 handover ceremony between Boeing and the RAF took place  at the manufacturers assembly facility in Seattle on 29 October, in an …

• Defence Notes

  Norway declares IOC for F-35A

  7th November 2019

  The Royal Norwegian Air Force’s fleet of Lockheed Martin F-35As has achieved initial operational capability (IOC), becoming the third European country to declare the milestone …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  BAE Systems in unmanned tech demo

  4th November 2019

  BAE Systems has been part of a demonstration for the Australian Army to investigate the potential of integrating autonomous technologies on the future battlefield. Held …

• Defence Helicopter

  British Army keen to push new Apaches into MUM-T role

  28th October 2019

  The British Army wants to prioritise manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) for its incoming fleet of AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters, but first intends on making sure …

• Defence Notes

  Podcast: Revolutions in Vertical Flight S1 E5 - The Dream of Urban Air Mobility

  20th December 2019

  Welcome to Shephard Studio’s podcast series on Revolutions in Vertical Flight, sponsored by our partner Bell. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. The Revolutions in Vertical Flight …

• Defence Notes

  Asia-Pacific dominates MPA market

  8th November 2019

  The global market for procurement of new maritime patrol aircraft (MPAs) is forecast to be worth $28 billion between 2019 and 2029 and is dominated …

• Naval Warfare

  UK Ministry of Defence Police to get new patrol craft for naval bases

  15th October 2019

  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has invited a number of UK-based companies to tender RfP’s for the procurement of up to 20 police patrol …

• Training

  Exercise Bersama Lima 19 concludes

  25th October 2019

  Exercise Bersama Lima 19 has come to an end in Malaysia following 17 days of joint exercises between the Five Power Defence Arrangement (FPDA) countries of …

• Defence Notes

  UK politicians preach NATO solidarity ahead of crunch Brexit talks

  14th October 2019

  A busy few days of diplomacy has kick-started a week that may in many ways define how the UK approaches defence and international relations in …

• Naval Warfare

  UK F-35s land onboard HMS Queen Elizabeth

  14th October 2019

  UK F-35 Lightning jets have landed onboard HMS Queen Elizabeth for the first time as part of operational trials being carried out off the East …

• Digital Battlespace

  LEO to provide ‘game changing’ capability

  7th November 2019

  Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite technology is set to provide a ‘game-changing’ capability for armed forces demanding flexible and cost-effective connectivity almost anywhere in the …

• Special Operations

  Hundreds of night vision devices headed to German Special Forces

  1st November 2019

  German special operations forces are due to receive an additional order of Image Intensification (I2) Ground Panoramic Night Vision Goggles (GPNVGs), Shephard has been informed. …

• Training

  Joint Warrior gets underway in UK

  11th October 2019

  More than 3,000 troops from 14 participating nations have arrived in the UK for NATO exercise Joint Warrior. The multinational, biannual military exercise will take …

• Digital Battlespace

  AOC 2019: Risks inherent with domain convergence

  23rd October 2019

  The last five years has seen much debate in the global EW community regarding the convergence of electronic and cyber warfare domains. Yet merging these …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• 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 ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme [UK]

  Programme Background The next-generation platform concept is part of the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, which sought to deliver a Future Combat Air System ...

• Sealift/replenishment vessels

  Fleet Solid Support (FSS) (1-3) [UK]

  Programme Background Requirement The 2015 Strategic Defence & Security Review (SDSR) highlighted the requirement for three Military Afloat Reach & Sustainability (MARS) Fleet Solid Support (FSS) ...

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

  Magni-X (UK)

  Programme Background On 12 January 2022, Elbit Systems UK announced it had been awarded a contract from the UK MoD's Defence Equipment & Support's Future Capability ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Typhoon Tranche 3A - Qatar

  As a part of the agreement to sell Typhoon, the UK is establishing a ‘Joint Operations Squadron’ (to be known as 12 Squadron) with the ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  Ukraine - UK supplied Fast Inshore Attack Craft (FIAC)

  Programme Background It was first reported in late September 2020 that the UK could provide eight Barzan-class fast attack craft to Ukraine. The platform has been ...

• APCs/IFVs - 4x4, Reconnaissance/patrol vehicles

  Multi-Role Vehicle (Protected) (MRV-P) Package 1 (UK)

  Programme Background Requirement The MRV-P programme was intended to procure replacements for a diverse fleet of 4x4 and 6x6 vehicles purchased during the wars in Iraq ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) [Japan]

  Programme Background Shephard notes that GCAP's Japanese, British and Italian components are tracked in separate entries. Programme Timeline 2020: The Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency of Japan issued ...

• Maritime patrol

  P-8A Poseidon [UK]

  Programme Background In July 2016, the UK government announced that it had ordered nine aircraft for service with the RAF. Under this frame, in January ...

• UAS: communication systems

  UAS: communication systems | Armed Micro Drone [UK]

  On 19 May 2023, the UK MoD published a request for information on armed micro UAV capabilities to help it better understand the marketplace, introduce possible ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  UAS: flight control systems | Armed Micro Drone [UK]

  On 19 May 2023, the UK MoD published a request for information on armed micro UAV capabilities to help it better understand the marketplace, introduce possible ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  New Medium Helicopter (NMH) [UK]

  Programme Background NMH Market Interest Day On 11 November 2021, the MoD communicated the requirements of the £1 billion ($1.34 billion) New Medium Helicopter (NMH) ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | F-35B Follow-On UK

  The Royal Air Force is planning to acquire 90 F-35B Joint Strike Fighters from 2026, in addition to the 48 aircraft which London had ordered for delivery ...

• Data links

  Data links | F-35B Follow-On UK

  The Royal Air Force is planning to acquire 90 F-35B Joint Strike Fighters from 2026, in addition to the 48 aircraft which London had ordered for delivery ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  Air: Helmet-mounted displays | F-35B Follow-On UK

  The Royal Air Force is planning to acquire 90 F-35B Joint Strike Fighters from 2026, in addition to the 48 aircraft which London had ordered for delivery ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  UK MFTS

  The Military Flying Training System (MFTS) programme, is a private finance initiative involving the MoD and Ascent, a JV of Lockheed Martin and Babcock, which was ...

• Trainer

  Phenom 100

  Phenom 100 is a very light jet originally developed for single owner-pilot operation but later gained popularity as a jet trainer aircraft. The platform first ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  CAE 700MR

  The CAE 700MR FTD is a full mission simulator platform for military helicopter-specific flight and mission training. It is a fixed-base system based on CAE's ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  UK MSHATF

  The Medium Support Helicopter Aircrew Training Facility (MSHATF) opened for training at RAF Benson, England in July 1999. It provides training services to personnel from ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  UK/ARC341 (ADRA)

  The Advanced Digital Radio Airborne (ADRA) provides a Bowman VHF radio capability to helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft. It is fully compatible with the Bowman VHF ...

• Sea: naval surveillance radar

  Quadome

  The Quadome is an AESA Naval Air and Surface surveillance Radar developed by Hensoldt UK. The radar will equip the future Fleet Solid Support ships ...

• Submarines: nuclear, attack

  AUKUS SSN

  The AUKUS-SSN will be the submarine design resulting from the AUKUS trilateral pact between Australia, the US and the UK. Expected to incorporate technology from ...

• Major networking projects

  Project Marshall

  The Joint Military Air Traffic Services project was initiated by the UK MoD in November 2005 to identify and evaluate options for the future delivery ...

• Air: fixed-wing flight simulators

  ASTOR FBFCT

  The Fixed Base Flight Crew Trainer (FBFCT) is a Level 5+ FTD for the UK RAF’s Airborne Standoff Radar (ASTOR) platform. The ASTOR FBFCT is ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  ADR+ Bowman VHF/Centaur

  The ADR+ is the VHF vehicle and manpack radio member of the ADR family of VHF radios developed initially for the UK Bowman programme. The ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  BvS10 Beowulf

  BAE Systems Hägglunds launched the BvS10 Beowulf articulated tracked ATV at the September 2015 DSEI exhibition in the UK. The Beowulf is an unarmoured variant ...

• Military UGVs

  T7

  The T7 is a multi-mission robotic system designed for military, police and hazardous missions. At DSEI 2017, the UK MoD awarded the Harris Corporation a ...

• Data links

  AN/URC-138

  The AN/URC-138 is a Link 16 interoperable terminal originally developed for the Sea Harrier. It has the same Link 16 crypto as JTIDS/MIDS. The system ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Warthog

  The Warthog is based on the ST Kinetics Bronco all terrain tracked carrier (ATTC) and was developed to meet a UK MoD urgent operational requirement ...

• Air: maintenance simulators

  GenSkill

  Pennant has developed, in consultation with the UK RAF, the GenSkill trainer to introduce students to the hand skills necessary to work on aircraft components. ...