• Land Warfare

  Australia sees inexplicably steep price rise for additional HIMARS

  21st August 2023

  Questions need to be asked at the steep inflation, in the order of a magnitude of 2.5, that the US is asking for HIMARS.

• Land Warfare

  German Army to field Australian-made Boxer vehicles in export reversal

  12th July 2023

  Germany, the designer and builder of the Boxer, will turn to Australia for new 8x8 vehicles. Meanwhile, Hanwha continues to march forward with Australia's AS9 155mm SPHs.

• Land Warfare

  Australia orders more Bushmaster 4x4 vehicles from Thales in vital orderbook boost

  18th May 2023

  Australia has ordered dozens more Bushmaster vehicles to replenish army stocks, providing a much-needed boost to the manufacturer's backlog.

• Training

  RAAF ponders Hawk 127 replacement tender

  6th March 2023

  The Defence Strategic Review may already have pushed the RAAF's efforts to find a replacement jet trainer to the right.

• Air Warfare

  Australia donates two PAC-750 aircraft to PNG

  13th March 2023

  Australia is donating a pair of PAC-750 XSTOL aircraft to Papua New Guinea.

• Land Warfare

  Updated: Formal negotiations start on supply of Australian-built Boxers to Germany

  6th April 2023

  Production of Australian-assembled Boxer 8x8 vehicles has commenced in Queensland, and talks have begun over exporting some back to Germany.

• Air Warfare

  Australian Army aviation reconstitutes with host of new platforms

  8th March 2023

  New aviation platforms are all on the way for Australian Army - UH-60M Black Hawk, AH-64E Apache Guardian and Integrator UAVs.

• Air Warfare

  Honeywell seals F-35 and Hawk jet support deals for Asia-Pacific region

  1st March 2023

  Honeywell has signed agreements with BAE Systems Australia and Rosebank Engineering to provide maintenance, repair and overhaul services for the RAAF's Hawk 127 fleet and F-35 wheels and brakes.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  BAE and Innovaero debut Strix, Australia’s first domestic armed VTOL UAS

  1st March 2023

  At the Avalon Airshow, BAE Systems Australia debuted Australia’s first domestically designed, built and armed VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) uncrewed air system (UAS), the Strix.

• Air Warfare

  Boeing plans its first overseas aircraft assembly plant

  22nd September 2021

  Should the RAAF proceed with its Loyal Wingman programme, the unmanned aircraft will be built in Australia.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Insitu Pacific cooperates with Innovaero on UAVs

  1st June 2021

  An innovative Australian manufacturer sews up cooperation with the larger Insitu Pacific UAV maker.

• Air Warfare

  Australia selects SUAS+ while TUAV contenders prepare bids

  7th May 2020

  The Australian Army has two important UAV projects under way at present. The Small UAS ‘Plus’ (SUAS+) project has recently selected a winning platform, while …

• Defence Helicopter

  Pacific 2019: Leonardo offers helicopters and UAVs to Australia

  9th October 2019

  Leonardo has two Australian Army helicopter tenders and two UAV competitions – one for the army and the other for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) …

• Defence Notes

  Podcast: Avalon, counter-UAV tech, armoured vehicle market and more

  8th March 2019

  Welcome to Episode 7 of The Weekly Defence Podcast. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and more. Sign up to an early email alert …

• Training

  Avalon 2019: ADF pushes simulation

  1st March 2019

  The Australian Defence Force (ADF) ‘needs to improve how simulation is perceived’ according to the keynote speaker at the Aerospace Simulation Conference during the Avalon …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Loyal Wingman [Australia]

  Background Older Efforts On 23 April 2021, the US State Department's Foreign Military Sales (FMS) approval announcement revealed that Australia had requested to buy up ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Project Land 4503 [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian Army has begun its search for a successor to the Tiger Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH), with an RfI issued by the ...

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

  MQ-28 Ghost Bat [Australia]

  Programme Background Goal As stated by the Head of Air Force Capability, Air Vice-Marshal Robert Denney, in March 2022, the Ghost Bat will be an "operational ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  Skylark II

  The Skylark II is a fixed-wing UAV that can be used for various military and security applications, including tactical covert surveillance and reconnaissance, perimeter security ...

• EO/IR systems

  CM234

  The CM234, sometimes called the CM234 Spitfire, combines seven sensors in a compact payload with four-axis active stabilisation. It is fitted to the STRIX and the Integrator ...

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

  STRIX

  The STRIX is a prototype tandem-wing UAV that BAE Systems Australia is developing in collaboration with Innovaero. It is slated to begin operational service in 2026 and can be ...

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

  Fury

  The Fury Autonomous Air Vehicle (AAV), or YFQ-44A, is a fixed-wing drone designed by Anduril to accelerate autonomous drone development, testing, and fielding.  Anduril acquired the jet-powered drone design when it ...

• Land: manned turrets, Land: RWS

  T2000

  The T2000 is a medium-calibre turret that will be produced in Australia for export and potential applications with the Australian Defence Force. Available in both ...

• Air: helicopter radar, Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar, Air: UAS radar

  PicoSAR

  The PicoSAR is a compact multi-mode Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) surveillance radar weighing 10 kg, suitable for UAS, fixed-wing, and helicopter platforms.

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

  Gambit (Series)

  The Gambit Series are five UAV variants based around the Gambit Core, a common system containing the platform's hardware: landing gear, baseline avionics, chassis, and other essential functions.  ...

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

  MQ-28A Ghost Bat

  Initially, as a multirole system to escort crewed aircraft, the MQ-28A Ghost Bat has been reimagined as a proving platform. Its development began in 2013 and ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-64E Apache Guardian

  The AH-64E is the current configuration of Boeing's Apache attack helicopter. It is the backbone of the US Army attack helicopter fleet and is fielded by several ...