• Land Warfare

  BAE and Rheinmetall enter tank battle

  23rd December 2016

  BAE Systems and Rheinmetall have both been selected to start the competitive assessment phase for the Challenger 2 Life Extension Programme (CR2 LEP), it was …

• Land Warfare

  The year ahead: ROW land procurement

  5th January 2017

  Outside of the Americas and Europe, for land procurement there are some highlights to look out for in 2017, despite the fact there are fewer …

• Defence Notes

  Fourth Astute class boat named

  20th December 2016

  The fourth submarine of the Royal Navy’s Astute class has been officially named Audacious during a ceremony at BAE Systems’ Submarines site in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. …

• Digital Battlespace

  Improved data links for F-16 FMS

  21st December 2016

  Foreign military sales customers for the US F-16 aircraft are to benefit from improved tactical Link 16 communication capabilities for the aircraft. Rockwell Collins and …

• Land Warfare

  BAE Systems rolls out AMPV

  15th December 2016

  The US Army has received its first Armoured Multipurpose Vehicle (AMPV) prototype from manufacturer BAE Systems. BAE Systems will manufacture all five variants of the …

• Land Warfare

  BAE Systems rolls out ACV 1.1 design

  14th December 2016

  BAE Systems rolled out its Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) 1.1 prototypes, based on Iveco's SuperAV platform, for the United States Marine Corps on 13 December. The prototypes will be …

• Military Logistics

  BAE Systems wins AWD support

  13th December 2016

  BAE Systems Australia will support the Royal Australian Navy’s three Hobart class Air Warfare Destroyers (AWDs) as they are delivered and transitioned into service under …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Next phase of civil airspace UAS integration trials begin

  15th December 2016

  A new phase of trials for the integration of UAS into UK airspace has begun using a BAE Systems Jetstream 31 flying testbed, the company …

• Defence Helicopter

  The year ahead: The Asia-Pacific region

  5th January 2017

  Within the Asia-Pacific region the year just passed was pretty much dominated by the machinations of one country – China – and there is little …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  FCAS demonstrator phase to start in 2017

  17th December 2016

  Senior officials from the UK and France signed an agreement on 16 December that will enable the next phase of the Future Combat Air System …

• Naval Warfare

  More suppliers join Type 26 programme

  12th December 2016

  BAE Systems has awarded manufacturing equipment contracts to six more companies for Type 26 Global Combat Ship programme, bringing the total investment to date in the …

• Defence Helicopter

  US Army orders MK90 propellant grains

  12th December 2016

  BAE Systems will supply the US Army with additional MK90 propellant grains under a $69 million contract announced on 7 December. The MK90 grain is …

• Defence Notes

  Analysis: Saudi Arabia - A close customer (part 2 - air)

  14th December 2016

  As we have already seen in Part 1 – Land, the close defence relationship between Saudi Arabia's ruling House of Saud and Western governments is …

• Land Warfare

  Finland to decide on Korean artillery

  19th December 2016

  Finland is moving towards the acquisition of new self-propelled artillery howitzers, with a decision expected early in 2017. The Nordic country has plans to buy …

• Naval Warfare

  OPV river flows for Royal Navy

  9th December 2016

  The long expected contract for ships four and five of the River-class Batch 2 programme for the Royal Navy (RN) was announced on 8 November.  …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Skyborg [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Intention Skyborg is one of three USAF Vanguard programs outlined in the Air Force Science and Technology 2030 initiative. The program intends ...

• 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 - mini, Military UAS - rotary-wing

  FPV Drones [Moldova]

  Programme Background Lithuanian Drones Lithuania's Minister of National Defense, Laurynas Kasciunas, announced that Lithuanian-produced thermal night vision devices and FPV drones had begun being delivered to Moldova during ...

• 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, Military UAS - small

  V-Bat [Netherlands]

  Background Contract Award On 9 July 2025, Shield AI announced that the Netherlands MoD had acquired eight V-Bat, specifically the V-Bat 400, aircraft to enhance the maritime intelligence, surveillance ...

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

  V-Bat 128 (Brazil)

  Programme Background On 7 February 2022, Sheild AI announced on its website that it had signed a contract with VSK Tactical which included the 'purchase of [the] V-Bat ...

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

  Group Unmanned Isr DronE (GUIDE) [Netherlands]

  Background Competition On 14 March 2025, the Netherlands announced on the EU tendering website a competition sounding the future procurement of 514 UAVs for intelligence, surveillance, ...

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

  Loyal Wingan [Japan]

  Programme Background Drone Appetite Released in December 2022, the Defence Building Program (DBP) called on the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) to replace some human assets with uncrewed ...

• Loitering munitions, Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Replicator 1 [US]

  Programme Background Announcement & Requirement In late August 2023, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks announced the Replicator programme, an effort to galvanise an industry which ...

• Military UAS - tactical

  Mi2 Challenge [USN]

  Programme Background Requirements The USN wants a UAV to be flown in austere environments without dedicated launch or recovery equipment; since it would be launched ...

• Loitering munitions

  Artemis [US]

  Background Origin Artemis began in 2024 due to the US European Command and Indo-Pacific Command's demand for UAVs that met the following requirements. As part ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  XM30 Mechanized Infantry Combat Vehicle [USA]

  Programme Background Requirement The OMFV programme is the latest of several attempts to develop a Bradley replacement.  Designed to be capable of operating with or without ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Air Launched Effect (ALE) [South Korea]

  Programme Background KF-21 Boramae Crewed Fighter The Republic of Korea's Air Force (ROKAF) plans to acquire the KF-21 Boramae fighter, replacing F-4E Phantom II and ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  ACV-30 PRTV (USA)

  Programme Background The Armoured Combat Vehicle (ACV) programme is intended to provide a replacement for the USMC's fleet of Amphibious Assault Vehicle 7 (AAV7) tracked ...

• ARV (USMC)

  Programme Background The ARV constitutes one component of a wider USMC effort to develop an interconnected network of manned and unmanned platforms more suited to ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions

  Viper 10

  The Viper 10 is a rotary-wing first-person view (FPV) drone from Baltic Viper. The loitering munition quadcopter has a 4kg payload, a reinforced communication system, and ...

• UAS: flight control systems

  Hivemind

  Developed by Shield AI, Hivemind is an ecosystem of tightly integrated AI software tools and interfaces that leverages several factors to deliver  intelligent and resilient autonomy ...

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

  Netra 5

  Launched at Aero India 2025, the Netra 5 is a rotary-wing UAV manufactured by ideaForge. It can host a 900g EO/IR camera and drop a ...

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

  GA-10FPV-AI

  The GA-10FPV-AI is a Lithuanian FPV quadcopter drone manufactured by Granta Autonomy. The drone can carry a 3kg payload and operate in GNSS-denied environments. In September 2024, Granta Autonomy ...

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

  TETTRON TM-450

  The Tettron TM-450 is a micro rotary-wing UAV manufactured by Thunder Tiger. The primary mission of the drone is to provide short-range reconnaissance (SRR), particularly ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  INTeACT

  Developed by BAE Systems, INTeACT is a next-generation combat management system for surface vessels with a dedicated software development kit (SDK). Notably, it includes AI-powered ...

• Loitering munitions

  FWD-LM01

  The FWD-LM01 is a loitering munition unveiled by Flying Wedge Defence & Aerospace at the Paris Air Show 2025. The manufacturer states the drone is built for ...

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

  UAS Concept 1

  In July 2022, BAE Systems revealed two UAV concepts. The UAS Concept 1 is described as a small, versatile aircraft designed to augment existing forces ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  Jump 20-X

  Unveiled at IDEX 2025, the Jump 20-X is an advancement of AeroVironment's Jump 20 UAV. It is a small (Group 3), fixed-wing, VTOL-capable aircraft with a heavy-fuel ...

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

  Nova 2

  The Nova 2 is a rotary-wing UAV designed by Sheild AI. The platform features Level 5 autonomy, allowing it to autonomously traverse complex domains without an operator's ...

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

  UAS Concept 2 / Autonomous Collaborative Platform (ACP)

  In July 2022, BAE Systems revealed two UAV concepts, one later being branded Concept 2, or the Autonomous Collaborative Platform (ACP), at DSEI 2023.  Signage near ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Cinder

  Dragoon Technology is a UAV being developed for the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU)'s Artemis effort.  In May 2025, Teledyne FLIR announced it had teamed with Dragoon to offer ...

• Military UGVs

  Robotics Technology Demonstrator

  BAE Systems unveiled its Robotics Technology Demonstrator (RTD) at the AUSA exhibition in 2019. Designed to meet the requirements of the US Army's Robotic Combat ...

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

  Inquisithor

  Shephard saw the Inquisithor at DSA 2024. It is a quadcopter UAV from ProLab Engineering. It is highly customisable and can be changed to a user's requirements ...

• Air: aerial targets, Loitering munitions

  Super Simsek

  The Super Simsek (Süper Şimşek) is an improved version of the Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) training drone turned loitering munition.  The drone has reconfigurable payload options ...