• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Zephyr 7 HAPS flies for 11 days non-stop

  29th August 2014

  The Zephyr 7 High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) has reached a number of new programme milestones, completing an 11 day non-stop flight in winter weather conditions …

• Digital Battlespace

  Australian Defence Force to upgrade GPS capabilities

  27th August 2014

  The Australian government has approved a project to upgrade and enhance the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF’s) Global Positioning System (GPS) capabilities. Minister for Defence David …

• Naval Warfare

  Somali pirates bide their time

  27th August 2014

  A former hostage held for more than four years by Somali pirates believes that attack levels in the Indian Ocean will rise again if ship-owners …

• Naval Warfare

  Hacker threat to marine logistics, warns IMB

  22nd August 2014

  The International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has warned that shipping and the logistics supply chain is becoming the ‘next playground for hackers’ as criminals target valuable …

• Digital Battlespace

  XTAR announces Leidos airborne ISR support contract

  21st August 2014

  XTAR will support Leidos in the testing of manned airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft serving US military missions around the globe, under a …

• Digital Battlespace

  Lockheed Martin introduces maritime test bed

  21st August 2014

  Lockheed Martin has developed a new maritime test bed to assist the US Navy in validating sophisticated intelligence, communications and sensor systems before they are …

• Defence Helicopter

  First RAN Landing Helicopter Dock nears delivery

  19th August 2014

  The first Landing Helicopter Dock (LHD) ship under construction for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has sailed on her final contractor sea trials before delivery …

• Defence Helicopter

  Northrop Grumman to upgrade US Army UH-60L cockpit

  15th August 2014

  Northrop Grumman will conduct work to modernise the cockpit of the US Army’s UH-60L Black Hawk helicopters under a contract announced on 15 August. The …

• Digital Battlespace

  QinetiQ to continue UK MoD synthetic mission training

  11th August 2014

  QinetiQ will continue to provide synthetic air and land mission training for the UK military for the next five years under a £33 million contract …

• Land Warfare

  Japan to reform ground forces

  7th August 2014

  Japan’s Defence White Paper published yesterday has outlined some wide ranging changes to the Japan Self-Defence Force. Although the main focus is on securing the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Japan moves to strengthen ISR capabilities

  7th August 2014

  Japan’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has announced a raft of C4ISR initiatives as part of its latest defence white paper in response to the ‘increasingly …

• Land Warfare

  Excalibur Ib cleared for full rate production

  1st August 2014

  The US Army has approved the Excalibur Ib precision guided projectile for full rate production (FRP), bringing the system’s low rate initial production phase to …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Simlat develops Maveric S&T solution

  21st July 2014

  Simlat has developed a simulation and training system for the Prioria Maveric small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platform. The solution has already been delivered to …

• Military Logistics

  Farnborough: Cascade moves on C-130K maintenance

  17th July 2014

  New avionics are being integrated into two C-130K Hercules transport aircraft destined for Mexico and will be delivered by Cascade Aerospace in Q1 2015, it …

• Digital Battlespace

  Farnborough: Airbus chooses Scorpion (video)

  15th July 2014

  The Thales Scorpion helmet mounted sight and display (HMSD) system has been selected by Airbus Helicopters for integration with its future helicopter weapons systems, the …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Surface-to-surface missiles, Loitering munitions

  Project Brakestop [UK]

  Programme Background Information Notice On 25 September 2024, the UK MoD published a prior information notice on Project Brakestop, which informed the industry about the upcoming ...

• Loitering munitions

  Medium Range Precision Strike (MRPS) [UK]

  Programme Background Prior Information Notice (PIN) On 21 October 2024, the MoD published a PIN in collaboration with the Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S;). The notice ...

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

  Dominator XP [Thailand]

  Programme Background Purchase As reported by Shephard, in September 2023, the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) inducted three Dominator XPs. The RTAF purchased the trio ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  CH-47F Chinook (Singapore)

  Programme Background In July 2020, photos have emerged on the internet of the first Boeing CH-47F Chinook destined for the Republic of Singapore Air Force ...

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

  MQ-9B SkyGuardian (US)

  Programme Background On 6 March 2023, GA-ASI announced that the Air Force Special Operations Command (ASFOC) had contracted three MQ-9B SkyGaurdians, making it the first US customer of the ...

• Transport

  VC-25B - USAF

  The modifications to the 747-8 aircraft will include an electrical power upgrade with dual Auxiliary Power Units that are usable in flight, a mission communication ...

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

  Anka-S (Second Batch) [Turkey]

  Programme Background First Batch Based on comments by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and Turkish media in 2018, Shephard believes that Türkiye acquired 26 Anka-S drones ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | SSN(X) Programme [USN]

  The US Navy may be far from reaching the end of procuring the current Virginia-class nuclear attack submarines (SSNs), but that does not mean planning for ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  Naval: shipboard communication systems | SSN(X) Programme [USN]

  The US Navy may be far from reaching the end of procuring the current Virginia-class nuclear attack submarines (SSNs), but that does not mean planning for ...

• Fast attack/patrol craft and interceptors

  New Water Jet Fast Attack Craft (NWJFAC) (India)

  Programme Background Requirements The Indian Navy is seeking replacements for a large proportion of its 19 46-49m-long waterjet-powered fast attack craft, several of which are approaching ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Mi-28NE Night Hunter

  Algerian military's follow-up order suggests that the country is satisfied with the Mi-28NE Night Hunters' performance in operational conditions in the desert environment featuring sandstorms ...

• Light attack, Trainer

  F-5E/F Adversary Trainer US Navy

  The F-5N is a single seat, dual engine supersonic land based fighter. It is designed to a service life of 9000 flight hours. The aircraft ...

• Loitering munitions

  ZT-180 [Russia]

  Programme Background Claims On 23 February 2023, DER SPIEGEL reported that, according to information it had gathered, China and Russia were negotiating the purchase of 100 ZT-180 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  HH-60W - Combat Rescue Helicopter (CRH)

  According to the FY2021 Base funding, the HH-60W helicopter unit cost is $43.2 million. The HH-60W will be capable of employment day or night, in ...

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

  Joint Tactical Autonomous Aerial Resupply System (JTAARS) / Medium ULS-A [USMC]

  Programme Background US Marine ULS-A programmes The US Marines are seeking a family of Unmanned Logistics Systems-Air (ULS-A), which will provide logistics and ground units with ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: surveillance and maritime patrol radar

  AN/APQ-181

  The AN/APQ-181 is a low-probability-of-intercept radar fitted to USAF Northrop Grumman B-2 stealth bombers. During the B-2 Radar Modernization Program – completed in 2012 – the ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  CreoLand HP

  CreoLand HP is a 10W MANET radio designed for command centres, long-range applications, artillery and special forces units. Notably, it offers a data throughput of 100Mbps ...

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

  H10 Poseidon

  The H10 Poseidon is a fixed-wing VTOL-capable UAV manufactured by Swamrly. Due to the UAV's electric propulsion system, small-radar cross-section, lack of detachable thermal signature and ability to operate ...

• Air: UAS radar

  ANKA SATCOM Radome

  The ANKA SATCOM Radome is a structural component developed by the Turkish defence manufacturer Meteksan Savunma Sanayi. It is designed for the protection of Ku-band ...

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

  Khronos

  The Khronos is a tethered, fully automated UAV for ISR missions in GPS/GNSS-denied and RF-denied environments. The drone's manufacturer, Elistair, stated that it could be deployed from a ...

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

  DT-101

  The DT-101 is a small fixed-wing UAV from Deftech. The VTOL-capable platform features SATCOM with up to 10Mbs bandwidth capability. DefTech lists various payloads for ...

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

  ARX

  Unveiled at Xponential 2024, the ARX is a fixed-wing drone developed by Tekever.  It features common electronics and software with other Tekever drones. Unlike those ...

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

  DT-001

  The DT-001 is a tandem wing UCAV from Deftech. It can host a range of non-offensive payloads, such as IO/EO cameras and an airborne LIDAR. ...

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

  Spider VTOL

  The Spider VTOL is a mini electrical fixed-wing UAV. Unlike traditional VTOL UAVs with dedicated motors, propellors and structural parts for performing take-off and landing, the Spider ...

• Data links

  MAQA Terminal 3.8m Flyaway Variant

  The Modular Aperture Quad-Band Antenna (MAQA) Terminal is designed to provide a ruggedised, mobile, quad-band SATCOM terminal that supports operations with the WGS constellation, legacy ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  AN/VRC-118(V)1

  The AN/VRC-118(V)1 is a Mid-tier Networking Vehicular Radio (MNVR) which provides warfighters with the ability to share situational awareness. The MNVR utilises two joint tactical ...

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

  BLADE-55

  The Ballistic Loitering Attack Drone (BLADE, or BLADE-55) is a multi-role, weaponised rotary-wing UAV from Alare Technologies.  The drone can notably host two NAMMO M72 LAW weapons. Additionally, the ...

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

  Disruptor

  Publically unveiled at AUSA 2024, the Disruptor is a loitering munition and UAV manufactured by AEVEX Aerospace. The Group III aircraft utilises a pneumatic launcher or Rocket Assisted ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  AN/ARC-231 Skyfire

  The AN/ARC-231 Skyfire is an airborne VHF/UHF/LOS and DAMA SATCOM system. This system supports US DoD requirements for airborne, multi-band, multi-mission, secure anti-jam voice, data ...

• Major networking projects

  ISOM

  Integrated SATCOM Global Information Grid Operations and Management (ISOM) develops a scalable and policy-based management system that enables automatic allocation and provisioning of SATCOM resources. ...