• Land Warfare

  AI3 programme completes further flight testing

  21st August 2013

  The US Army’s Accelerated Improved Intercept Initiative (AI3) programme has reached a new milestone, with Raytheon successfully intercepting and destroying a low quadrant elevation (QE) …

• Digital Battlespace

  Roke’s new military base station ready for evaluation

  20th August 2013

  Roke has unveiled a wide area man-portable military base station called SmartLink, designed for military, security and public safety operations. The system is now available …

• Defence Helicopter

  General Dynamics receives Hydra 70 rocket order

  19th August 2013

  General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products will produce Hydra 70 air-to-ground rockets for the US Army under a $67.5 million contract announced on 16 August. …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2013: USN reveals UCLASS development path

  16th August 2013

  The programme manager for the US Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) programme has announced that a draft RfP will be launched …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2013: DHS prepares to adopt DFSS technology

  16th August 2013

  BAE Systems will test its Digital Fused Sensor System (DFSS) on-board an Air Robot quadrotor for the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in September, …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2013: MQ-8 tidies up APKWS integration

  15th August 2013

  The US Navy’s MQ-8 Fire Scout is on the verge of concluding a weapons test programme with BAE Systems’ Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS), …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2013: Seaglider acquisition adds to Kongsberg AUV offerings

  14th August 2013

  Kongsberg has acquired the Seaglider AUV to add to its portfolio of unmanned maritime platforms. Originally developed by the University of Washington, under an Office …

• Digital Battlespace

  E-2D Advanced Hawkeye enters full-rate production

  13th August 2013

  The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft will move into full-rate production following the award of a $617 million contract to Northrop Grumman by the US Navy …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2013: ‘Wave Relay’ unveiled for UAV swarm ops

  13th August 2013

  Persistent Systems is integrating a MANET communications capability onto an undisclosed US customer’s UAV for use in ‘swarm’ applications, company officials have revealed. Speaking to …

• Defence Helicopter

  Northrop Grumman CIRCM completes Preliminary Design Review

  12th August 2013

  Northrop Grumman’s Common Infrared Countermeasure (CIRCM) has completed Preliminary Design Review (PDR), marking the end of the company's technology demonstration programme.  Northrop Grumman is developing …

• Digital Battlespace

  Analysts warn against reliance on Chinese weather satellites

  8th August 2013

  The US Department of Defense (DoD) is in danger of relying on Chinese state-owned satellites for future meteorological service requirements should a suitable alternative fail …

• Digital Battlespace

  US Army completes second 'Enterprise Challenge'

  2nd August 2013

  The US Army has completed the second iteration of Exercise ‘Enterprise Challenge’ with the demonstration of its Distributed Common Ground System-Army (DCGS-A) capability. Held at …

• Digital Battlespace

  Northrop Grumman SABR selected for F-16 AESA upgrade

  1st August 2013

  Northrop Grumman will supply its Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) for the US Air Force and Taiwan F-16 radar modernisation and upgrade programme, following the …

• Digital Battlespace

  Boeing Defence Australia to support RAAF Wedgetail

  30th July 2013

  Boeing Defence Australia (BDA) has assumed responsibility for the sustainment of the Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) fleet …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  FAA grants Puma UAV commercial use certificate

  29th July 2013

  The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted the AeroVironment Puma AE small unmanned aircraft system (SUAS) a Restricted Category rating, clearing the way for …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Loitering munitions

  Long Range One-way Platforms [US]

  Solicitation In October 2024, the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) released a solicitation for long-range, one-way platforms. The DIU noted recent conflicts highlighted the asymmetric impact of low-cost, ...

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

  DTIF GUARD (Ireland)

  Programme Background The Problem As stated by the project's website, Ireland is the "softest target in EU for smugglers" due to its 3171km of coastline, ...

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

  Seeker 400 - First Batch (UAE)

  Programme Background The UAE has a long history of transactions with Denel Dynamics. The country has been purchasing various Seeker systems from as far back ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  NH90 NFH-Italy

  Programme Background  The Italian Navy has taken delivery of its first NH90 NFH helicopter in Full Operational Capability (or Step B) configuration in November 2013. ...

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

  CH-4 (First Batch) [Pakistan]

  Programme Background First Batch According to the Pakistan Exim Trade Info website, five aircraft were delivered to the country on 15 January 2021. According to a ...

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

  Micro UAV (Argentina)

  Programme Background Tender The EA and MoD in April 2021 announced Public Tender 0090/2021 (UOC: 84/135) which saw the General Directorate of Material begin the process ...

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

  CH-4 (Second Batch) [Pakistan]

  Programme Background First Batch According to the Pakistan Exim Trade Info website, five aircraft were delivered to the country on 15 January 2021. According to ...

• 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 - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Bayraktar TB2 [Pakistan]

  Programme Background Requirement Following a 2019 skirmish with India, Pakistan placed newfound importance on EW and ISR, primarily due to the significant advantage gained during that ...

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

  Wing Loong II (Pakistan)

  Programme Background Negotiations On 6 October 2018, the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) announced it would acquire 48 Wing Loong II UAVs in a social media post. ...

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

  Seeker 400 - Second Batch (UAE)

  Programme Background The UAE has a long history of transactions with Denel Dynamics. The country has been purchasing various Seeker systems from as far back ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  UH-60M Black Hawk (Second Contact) [Croatia]

  Programme Background Western Technology With the help of the US, Croatia has attempted to improve its military technology, replacing Soviet equipment, such as the Mi-8/Mi-17. ...

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

  MQ-9A Reaper [Spain]

  Programme Background First Contract The US State Department approved a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) of MQ-9 Block 5 aircraft and associated parts, equipment, and logistical ...

• Reconnaissance/patrol vehicles

  VBMT Rec Multirole Armoured Reconnaissance Vehicle

  Technical Requirements The Brazilian Army released two documents outlining the technical and operational requirements for the VBMT Rec in early 2020. These elucidate a number ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - HALE

  Long-Endurance UAV [US AFRICOM]

  Programme Background Ageing MQ-9A Reapers In November 2022, Shephard reported that GA-ASI would continue supporting contractor SMX with its MQ-9A after winning a $2.3 billion task ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Space: radar systems

  RISAT-1

  Radar Satellite-1 (RISAT-1) is a microwave remote-sensing satellite carrying an SAR payload operating in C band (5.35GHz), which enables imaging of surface features during both ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  OceanTRx 4MIL

  The OceanTRx 4MIL is a ruggedised maritime SATCOM solution featuring simultaneous multi-band communication and advanced antenna management capabilities.  It was introduced at the Euronaval 2022 ...

• Major networking projects

  Skynet 6 SATCOM

  Skynet 6 is designed to replace Skynet 5. The PFI contract for Skynet 5,  held by Paradigm Secure Communications and Airbus DS, ends in 2022. As ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Osprey u8 HGL

  Launched in 2023, Kymeta Osprey u8 HGL is a hybrid Geostationary/Low-Earth Orbit terminal that provides satellite communications on the move. Notably, it can be mounted ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM, UAS: communication systems

  Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT)

  Orbit's Multi-Purpose Terminal (MPT) is a family of stabilised VSAT systems suitable for installation on smaller vessels and airborne platforms including uncrewed vehicles. 

• Space: radar systems, Space: satellite surveillance systems

  Radarsat-2

  Owned and operated by MDA, Radarsat-2 was launched in late 2007 as a follow-on radar satellite to Canada’s Radarsat-1. The satellite's resolution ranges from a ...

• Naval: Radio and SATCOM

  SURFSAT-L

  Produced by Thales, SURFSAT-L is a SATCOM terminal designed for medium to large surface vessels. According to the manufacturer, it is designed to achieve a ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  MONDO Satellite Terminal

  The Multi Orbit Network, Dual Operation (MONDO) Satellite Terminal is a developmental SATCOM solution that provides continuous communication links on GEO, LEO and MEO networks. ...

• Space: satellite surveillance systems

  Helios

  The Helios system consists of the Helios 2A and Helios 2B satellites, the latter of which was launched in December 2009, five years after Helios ...

• Land: Radio and SATCOM

  Multi-Orbit Tactical Terminal

  Intelsat Multi-Orbit Tactical Terminal (MOTT) is a ruggedised terminal with a low-profile design. The vehicle-mountable terminal features an electronically steered array antenna, edge computing capabilities ...

• Data links

  GSNC

  Global Secure Network Connection (GSNC) provides a global data communications solution for military aircraft, including bomber, refuelling and transport aircraft. The GSNC system uses Iridium ...

• Space: radar systems

  ESA Sentinel-1

  Sentinel-1 is a planned constellation of four satellites with two already in orbit and two on order. They carry a payload of a C-band SAR ...

• Space: radar systems

  NISAR

  The NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar (NISAR) is a joint programme between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to build and launch an observation ...

• Space: radar systems

  TerraSAR-X and ​TanDEM-X

  TerraSAR-X and the more advanced TanDEM-X (TerraSAR-X add-on for digital elevation measurement) are designed to operate closely together to generate an accurate 3D image of ...

• Space: satellite surveillance systems

  KH-11

  The first of 16 KH-11 satellites was launched in 1976, and five remain in service, with the latest launch believed to have been in August ...