• Uncrewed Vehicles

  App to the future

  15th November 2016

  A new British company believes it has a solution to one of the major challenges to expansion of the unmanned aircraft industry - air-traffic control.  …

• Defence Notes

  Indo Defence 2016: Four-way dogfight for F-5 replacement

  24th October 2016

  The race is still on for the Indonesian Air Force’s (TNI-AU) F-5E fighter replacement programme. Despite the air force expressing strong interest in the Sukhoi …

• Digital Battlespace

  Saab receives Gripen helmet display order

  8th November 2016

  Saab has received an order from the Swedish Defence Material Administration for a helmet mounted display system for the Swedish Air Force’s Gripen E fighter …

• Defence Notes

  Zhuhai 2016: Hints detected of Chinese BMD development

  3rd November 2016

  There were small hints of a Chinese ballistic missile defence (BMD) system when Shephard attended the 11th Zhuhai Air Show in China. One was the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  No deals, just demos at UW

  10th November 2016

  Saab has detailed the activities of the systems used during the recent Unmanned Warrior exercise off the coast of Scotland last month. These include the …

• Defence Helicopter

  Afghans MD 530F proving worth, says NATO

  8th November 2016

  The MD530F Cayuse Warrior light attack helicopter has been cited as one of the improvements in the Afghan national defence and security forces (ANDSF) over …

• Digital Battlespace

  Euronaval 2016: Kelvin Hughes sees French potential

  26th October 2016

  Eager to explore the potential in the French domestic and export markets, UK-based Kelvin Hughes attended Euronaval to make its case for the SharpEye radar. …

• Naval Warfare

  South Korea to bolster coast guard

  13th November 2016

  The Korea Coast Guard (KCG) has unveiled a plan to bolster its fleet and improve maritime security in waters surrounding South Korea. The initiative first …

• Defence Helicopter

  Indo Defence 2016: Protecting Natuna

  24th October 2016

  With the increased focus on South China Sea disputes and alleged illegal fishing by Chinese fishing vessels, the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI) have begun expanding …

• Digital Battlespace

  BAE Systems to continue ARC work

  4th November 2016

  BAE Systems has been awarded a $13.3 million contract modification from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to extend work on its Adaptive Radar …

• Military Logistics

  Raytheon receives JPALS contract

  21st October 2016

  Raytheon will complete development of the Joint Precision Approach and Landing System (JPALS) under a $255 million contract from the US Navy announced on 19 October. …

• Military Logistics

  Zhuhai 2016: Y-20 family eyes expansion

  10th November 2016

  Two newly received units of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) Y-20 Kunpeng transport aircraft participated in the Zhuhai Air Show from 1-6 November. …

• Defence Notes

  NZ defence plan rectifies vague white paper

  16th November 2016

  New Zealand released its 2016 Defence Capability Plan on 16 November offering some clarity on future defence projects. It follows the release of the Defence …

• Military Logistics

  Cobham to develop MV-22B refuelling system

  27th October 2016

  Cobham has been awarded a contract to develop a palletised aerial refuelling system to enable the US Marine Corps (USMC) MV-22B Osprey to refuel other …

• Military Logistics

  KC-30A refuels F-16D+ Falcon

  25th October 2016

  A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft has spent a week in Singapore for trials with the Republic of Singapore …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Light attack, Trainer

  IAR-99 Replacement (Romania)

  On 29 August 2017, Leonardo announced that the IAR-99 trainer technology demonstrator (TD) will be fitted with company's Vixen 500E AESA radar. The Vixen 500E AESA ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V [Türkiye]

  Programme Background Requirement Turkish Air Force ordered 100 F-35A aircraft as a partner nation, however, the country was removed from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101-Norway

  AgustaWestland is also providing initial support and training services, including spares at each of the operating bases and aircrew training. It will then provide performance ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Horizon 2 - Multirole Fighter Programme [Philippines]

  Programme Background Requirement The Philippines wants a fighter able to perform score missions such as air-to-air combat, air-to-ground tasks and reconnaissance, including over water. It ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Project Halcon I [Spain]

  Programme Background The Spanish Air Force began requirements assessments, although potential suppliers including Boeing (F/A-18E/F), Lockheed Martin (F-35), Airbus-BAE-Leonardo (Eurofighter Typhoon) are already engaged with ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Multi Role Combat Aircraft [Bangladesh]

  Programme Background The Bangladesh Air Force (BAF) continues its quest to acquire a new multirole combat aircraft. Under the country’s Forces Goal 2030 plan, which ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-15SA Saudi Arabia

  The aircraft deal includes 170 APG-63(v)3 AESA radar sets, 193 F-110-GE-129 Improved Performance Engines, 100 M61 Vulcan Cannons, 338 Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems amongst ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V (9-16) [Bulgaria]

  Programme Background In April 2022, the US State Department approved a potential FMS worth $1.673 million to procure eight F-16Vs to Bulgaria. The aircraft are ...

• Fighter - multirole

  H-X Fighter Programme (Finland)

  Programme Background In June 2020, Finnish MoD announced that the Hornet fleet life extension programme is neither cost-effective solution nor sufficient in terms of Finland’s ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A Denmark

  Denmark joined the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program in 2002 during the System Development and Demonstration phase and has influenced technical elements of the ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) [Japan]

  Programme Background Shephard notes that GCAP's Japanese, British and Italian components are tracked in separate entries. Programme Timeline 2020: The Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency of Japan issued ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Project Quadriga [Germany]

  Programme Background Under Project Quadriga, Berlin is seeking a replacement for its 33 Typhoon Tranche 1. Furthermore, Germany is offering its Tranche 1 fleet to ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA)

  Programme Background Five prototypes will be manufactured for developmental tests. Indian Air Force will buy 36 AMCA Mark-I aircraft from 2029-30. The Mark-I configuration will ...

• AEW&C

  Airbus A330 AWACS (India)

  Programme Background India is planning to increase its AEW&C; capabilities with indigenous radar systems. IAF has requested to procure six Airbus 330 airliner to host ...

• Frigates

  FFX Batch III - 1 [South Korea]

  Programme Background The new Chungnam-class (FFX Batch III) will consist of six new improved anti-aircraft detection vessels to replace the ageing escort and patrol ships ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-83 SABR

  The AN/APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) is an active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire control radar being developed by Northrop Grumman using its own ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16V Block 70/72

  The F-16 Block 70/72, also referred to as the F-16V, is a fourth-generation multirole fighter aircraft. It is the latest version of Lockheed Martin's F-16 ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  Raven ES-05

  The Raven ES-05 is an AESA fire-control radar developed by Leonardo in close collaboration with Saab for the Gripen E/F. It features a repositionable AESA ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-81

  AN/APG-81 is operating in the X-band active electronically scanned array (AESA) fire control radar designed by Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems for the F-35 “Lightning” all-weather ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-63(V)2

  The AN/APG-63(V)2 is a significant radar upgrade for the U.S. Air Force F-15C aircraft. This upgrade replaces the mechanically-scanned antenna (MSA) with an AESA antenna,  ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-82(V)1

  The AN/APG-82(V)1 is an X-band active electronically scanned array radar system that combines the AN/APG-79 processor with the AESA antenna of the AN/APG-63(V)3. The system ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-68

  The AN/APG-68 is a pulse-Doppler radar with increased range, modes, and resolution compared to the APG-66 radar. The F-16C/D Block 25 was the first Fighting ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  USAF F-16 Training System

  L3Harris Technologies is supporting approximately 180 F-16 pilot and maintenance trainers as part of the USAF’s F-16 Training System. Programme contract options extend through 2019. ...

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-76

  The AN/APG-76 is a Ku-band multimode radar system providing high-resolution synthetic aperture radar capabilities with moving target indicator overlays. The system was developed primarily for ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16C/D Block 25, 30/32, 40/42

  The F-16C/D ('C' one-seat, 'D' two-seat designation) is the second generation of the F-16 Fighting Falcon family. The production of the F-16C/D began in 1983 with ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-16C/D Block 50/52/52+

  A member of the F-16 Fighting Falcon family, the F-16C/D Block 50/52 ('C' single-seat, 'D' dual-seat) is a third-generation multirole fighter that was rolled out ...

• Air: Displays

  F-16 Center Pedestal Display

  Produced by Elbit Systems of America, the F-16 Center Pedestal Display (CPD) provides a high-resolution colour display that replaces several legacy instruments on F-16 aircraft. 

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-79

  The AN/APG-79 is an agile beam radar with a solid-state digital array that scans at nearly the speed of light, enabling detection and tracking of ...

• Air: air combat simulators

  Air Combat Training

  Boeing has experience in delivering training for fixed-wing air combat platforms including F-15C/E, F-16, F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, F-22 and MV/CV-22.

• Air: AEW/fire control radar

  AN/APG-77

  The AN/APG-77 is a low-probability-of-intercept fire control radar for the F-22 Raptor. It is designed to significantly improve capability in air-to-air combat, allowing the pilot ...