• Defence Notes

  Farnborough 2022: Mexican aerospace bounces back after COVID-19 but military aviation procurement remains sluggish

  26th July 2022

  Following a damaging period of decreased exports amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mexican aerospace industry has begun to bounce back with a particular focus on UAV procurement.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Fire Scout demonstration reveals rapid mine countermeasures benefits

  11th July 2022

  The USN has conducted tests of a prototype airborne mine countermeasures system aboard the MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Hermes takes off in Switzerland

  20th June 2022

  The ADS-15 UAV (the Swiss designation for the Hermes 900) performed its first test flight on 15 June before planned transfer to the Swiss Air Force in the second half of the year.

• Land Warfare

  Indian Army explores light armoured recce vehicles through RfI

  5th July 2022

  The latest in a slew of Indian Army RfIs is seeking domestically designed and built 4x4 lightly armoured reconnaissance vehicles.

• Defence Notes

  Russian weapons riddled with Western electronic components, RUSI finds

  10th August 2022

  Russian weapons used in its invasion of Ukraine are full of Western-made electronic components, a report from the RUSI think tank has found.

• Digital Battlespace

  Alpha UASs feature robust GNSS-denied navigation capability

  9th June 2022

  UAV Navigation provides military-grade VECTOR-600 autopilot for Alpha 800 and Alpha 900.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Luxembourg, Leonardo and Skydweller sign off on solar-powered UAV collaboration

  17th June 2022

  A new agreement between Luxembourg, Leonardo and Skydweller will focus on UAS ISR opportunities.

• Naval Warfare

  Japan selects JMU as main contractor for new OPVs

  4th July 2022

  Japan is proceeding with a series of a dozen OPVs ideal for use in its southwest region against intruding Chinese vessels.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Royal Thai Navy chooses Hermes 900

  8th June 2022

  The Hermes 900 will add improved range, mission endurance and altitude capabilities to the Royal Thai Navy UAV fleet.

• Air Warfare

  India resurrects dormant effort to obtain shipborne UAVs

  6th July 2022

  The Indian Navy has been lagging in an attempt to acquire a shipborne UAV, but a new RfI has reignited the effort.

• Digital Battlespace

  Eurosatory 2022: MKS introduces UAV lenses

  16th June 2022

  MKS Instruments' new reduced-sized 18-255mm Ophir LightIR image can be fitted on tactical UAV IR cameras.

• Land Warfare

  US Marine Corps seeks to apply lessons from Russo-Ukrainian war

  25th July 2022

  The US Marine Corps has been learning lessons from the war in Ukraine and is now focusing on the acquisition and deployment of UAVs and artillery systems with long-range capabilities.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Kappa optronics joins Eurodrone supplier base

  17th June 2022

  Kappa optronics has received an order from Airbus to provide company materials for the multinational Eurodrone programme.

• Air Warfare

  NZ issues RfP for surveillance and reconnaissance UAVs

  1st June 2022

  New Zealand has been relatively slow on the uptake of UAVs, but this is about to change as it now looks for three categories of unmanned aircraft.

• Land Warfare

  Eurosatory 2022: New features enhance Scarabée

  13th June 2022

  Arquus has remodelled its Scarabée reconnaissance vehicle with a hybrid stealth operating mode, a new antitank missile and new night-vision cameras.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Intra-Theatre Lift [UK]

  Programme Background  Relationship to the Heavy Lift Challange The Royal Navy (RN) embarked on the Heavy Lift Challenge, now called the Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC), to explore ...

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

  Carrier-UAV: Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) [UK]

  Background Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) Strategy Reflecting on lessons learned from the cancellation of the Mosquito programme, the Royal Air Force (RAF) redefined the role ...

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

  StormShroud: Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) [UK]

  Background Autonomous Collaboration Platform (ACP) Strategy Reflecting on lessons learned from the cancellation of the Mosquito programme, the Royal Air Force (RAF) redefined the role ...

• Military UAS - mini

  Mini UAV (Bulgaria)

  Programme Background The Bulgarian Army wants to procure UAVs to enhance the organic tactical ISR capabilities of its ground forces. According to Bulgarian media, a ...

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

  Mini UAV - Land Exploration and Reconnaissance Vehicle (VERT) [Spain]

  Background VERT In June 2025, the Spanish Government announced a €72 million (US$82.5 million) investment in the Vehículo de exploración y reconocimiento terrestre (VERT), which translates ...

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

  Micro UAV - Land Exploration and Reconnaissance Vehicle (VERT) [Spain]

  Background VERT In June 2025, the Spanish Government announced a €72 million (US$82.5 million) investment in the Vehículo de exploración y reconocimiento terrestre (VERT), which translates to the land exploration ...

• 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 ...

• Military UAS - small

  Small UAV (Bulgaria)

  Programme Background The Bulgarian Army wants to procure UAVs to enhance the organic tactical ISR capabilities of its ground forces. According to Bulgarian media, a ...

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

  Parrot Anafi (Singapore)

  Programme Background On 7 February 2022, the Singapore Army posted photographs on Facebook that showed the Anafi UAV used as training devices in a five-day ...

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

  Thor [Israel]

  Background Various Contracts On 3 December 2024, the Israeli Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced it had purchased “advanced drones and autonomous systems” from Elbit Systems in various ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Fixed-Wing VTOL UAV (Malaysia)

  Programme Background Tender Issued As reported by Shephard, on 18 June 2021, Malaysia issued a tender for fixed-wing hybrid VTOL UAVs.  Requirement The tender stated that Malaysia required ...

• Military UAS - small

  Penguin C (Latvia)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Latvian MoD signed an agreement with Latvian companies UAV Factory and Atlas Aerospace to procure UAVs for the LNAF. Under ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Family of UAVs [Bangladesh]

  Programme Background RfP The Bangladesh Army released a 106-page tender document to gather information about different platforms that would enable the force to "standardise" its UAV ...

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

  Tempest 50 [USAF]

  Programme Background Contract Award On 18 December 2024, the US DoD announced that the USAF had awarded Firestorm Labs a $100 million Small Business Innovation Research ...

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

  UAV-2 Gavilan [Ecuador]

  Background Domestic Development Development of the UAV-2 Gavilan by CIDFAE began in 2009, with the FAE unveiling the UAV in 2014. Reportedly, the FAE has five ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

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

  AR5

  First announced in October 2012, the AR5 is a MALE UAS designed for SAR, surveillance and maritime patrol missions. The AR5 can be flown manually or commanded ...

• 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

  AR3

  The AR3, or AR3 Net Ray, is an autonomous small-UAS designed to support land-based and maritime missions.  In May 2025, the Royal Air Force announced ...

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

  AR2 Carcará

  The AR2 Carcará is a hand- or catapult-launched mini-UAV designed to support search and rescue, surveillance and patrol operations in amphibious and maritime environments. It is ...

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

  AR4

  The AR4 is a hand-launched mini-UAS designed for rapid mobile deployment. Manufactured by Tekever, the UAS is suitable for both military and commercial ISTAR applications.  A ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8N

  The PT-8D is an IR system from Overwatch Imaging. It is fitted with multiple HD thermal cameras and has been designed to conduct missions at dusk ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8D

  Marketed as a cost-effective solution, the PT-8D is a wide-area search and ISR payload from Overwatch Imaging. It features an RGB colour camera and a ...

• EO/IR systems

  PT-8DN

  The PT-8DN is a versatile day-night payload from Overwatch Imaging.  It has dual RGB sensors of different focal lengths and an HD LWIR sensor. It also ...

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

  VTOL UAV

  The Defence Technology Institute launched the VTOL UAV R&D; project in cooperation with the Naval Research and Development Office, Royal Thai Navy and private sector ...

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

  MCOM UAV

  The Mundo Compuesto (MCOM) UAV is a fixed-wing UAV designed to provide surveillance during both day and night for military and security force users. It uses ...

• Universal UAV

  Universal UAV is designed for multiple missions in the field of surveillance and reconnaissance, monitoring forest fires or fisheries. It consists of a carbon-fibre composite ...

• UAS: Integrated systems - uncrewed

  UAV TRS

  Celestia’s UAV Tactical Recovery System (TRS) assures controlled and safe landing of a UAV at a pre-designated GPS location. It can be deployed on command ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAV Simulators

  Elbit Systems has developed simulation systems to train personnel in UAV operation, from generic UAV training for initial screening procedures up to full mission, high-fidelity ...

• Air: UAV simulators

  UAV Training

  Resource UAS offers a range of UAV training, from foundation courses to live flying on a range of aircraft. Each can be tailored to suit ...

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

  QTP-UAV

  The Quad Tilt Prop UAV (QTP-UAV) is an electric platform that is designed to provide VTOL capability with high-speed horizontal flight.