• Defence Notes

  Aero India 2019: Indian Rafale deal comes under scrutiny

  20th February 2019

  The Comptroller & Auditor General’s (CAG) report on capital acquisitions in the Indian Air Force (IAF) was tabled in parliament on 13 February. It examined …

• Defence Notes

  Spain joins France and Germany on new combat fighter

  12th February 2019

  Spain will join a Franco-German project to build a new fighter plane to replace the Eurofighter and Rafale, the defence ministry said on 11 February …

• Military Logistics

  Safran opens turbine blade research centre

  8th February 2019

  Safran has opened a new research centre for advanced turbine blades used on airplane and helicopter engines at its plant in Gennevilliers, France, the company …

• Military Logistics

  OCCAR orders new support ships for French Navy

  5th February 2019

  The European Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR) has awarded a €1.7 billion contract to Chantiers de l’Atlantique and Naval Group to deliver four new …

• Land Warfare

  Thailand buys more VN1s from China

  6th February 2019

  The Royal Thai Army (RTA) has approved the purchase of 39 more VN1 8x8 armoured vehicles from Norinco, following a first order of 34 vehicles in …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Delair opens UAS maintenance centres in US

  31st January 2019

  Delair has expanded its customer service operations with the qualification and opening of its first two UAS repair and maintenance centres in the US, the …

• Defence Notes

  Pence demands EU isolate Iran as Israelis and Arabs unite

  15th February 2019

  US Vice President Mike Pence demanded on 14 February 2019 that Europeans drop a nuclear deal with Iran and join in seeking to cripple the …

• Military Logistics

  CNIM receives contract for French EDA-S

  24th January 2019

  CNIM, in partnership with Socarenam, Mauric and CNN MCO, has received a contract to replace the French Navy's existing landing craft with 14 new Standard …

• Defence Helicopter

  NH90 MTT ready for the high seas

  8th February 2019

  Although there are numerous NH90 sub-variants, more than there are customer nations, there are currently two main variants, the Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH) and NATO …

• Defence Notes

  Franco-German treaty a step toward 'European army': Merkel

  22nd January 2019

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday that a new Franco-German friendship treaty was a step toward the creation of a future joint European army. Merkel …

• Defence Notes

  African arms market to grow by 50% over five years

  24th January 2019

  Africa's arms market is likely to grow by 50% over the next five years, analyst Stephane Konan said at a four-day trade show in Ivory …

• Digital Battlespace

  European heavyweights Airbus, Altran targeted by cyberattacks

  31st January 2019

  European aerospace and defence group Airbus has launched an inquiry into the origin and targets of a cyberattack detected earlier in January 2019, the same …

• Defence Notes

  Indian defence budget to rise… but not by enough

  7th February 2019

  On 1 February, the Indian government announced a FY2019/20 interim defence budget amounting to INR3.019 trillion ($42.7 billion), excluding pensions, the highest ever figure in …

• Defence Notes

  Iran denies any intention of boosting range of missiles

  29th January 2019

  Iran has ‘no intention of increasing the range’ of its missiles, a senior defence official said Tuesday, amid threats of European as well as US …

• Digital Battlespace

  EDA's SATCOM pooling project enters next phase

  21st January 2019

  The European Defence Agency’s (EDA's) Governmental Satellite Communications (GOVSATCOM) Pooling and Sharing Demonstration project entered into the execution phase on 15 January. The project is …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

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

  Bayraktar TB2 [Mali]

  Programme Background Six Drones On 22 December 2022, Joseph Dempsey, a research associate at IISS, tweeted photographs showing a Baytraktar TB2 adorned with the Malian ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Mi-171Sh

  While the Burkinabe Armed Forces declined to discuss the deal when contacted by Shephard, a Burkinabe military source did acknowledge that the aircraft were being ...

• Mine-protected vehicles, MPVs - 4x4

  Surplus Maxxpro [Bangladesh - Batch 1]

  Programme Background The Bangladesh Army requires MRAPs to provide protected mobility to its troops deployed on UN peacekeeping missions in Mali and the Central African ...

• Mine-protected vehicles, MPVs - 4x4

  Surplus Maxxpro [Bangladesh - Batch 2]

  Programme Background The Bangladesh Army requires MRAPs to provide protected mobility to its troops deployed on UN peacekeeping missions in Mali and the Central African ...

• Special operations vehicles

  Fardier SOV

  Programme Background The French Army's airborne units previously operated 280 Lohr FL500 Fardier utility vehicles to carry heavy equipment. Those vehicles increased the tactical mobility ...

• Mine-protected vehicles, MPVs - 4x4

  UN Peacekeeping Vehicles [Bangladesh]

  Programme Background The Bangladesh Army requires 4x4 armoured vehicles to provide protected mobility to its troops deployed on UN peacekeeping missions in Mali and the ...

• Minehunters

  Mine Warfare Vessels [France]

  Programme Background Requirements France’s Mine Warfare Vessels programme is aimed at replacing the ageing Eridan-class minehunters. The programme will follow the Future Naval Mine Action System ...

• 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 - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  MQ-9 Reaper [France]

  Programme Background 2013 (Block 1) The then-French Defence Minister, Kean-Yves Le Drian, confirmed on 31 May 2013 that France had ordered its first two MQ-9 platforms. The ...

• APCs/IFVs - 6x6, APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Wheeled Armoured Vehicles (Sri Lanka)

  Programme Background Requirement The Sri Lankan army operates armoured vehicles from several countries, with Russia and China being its biggest suppliers. Its wheeled APC inventory ...

• Air: Radio and SATCOM

  Air: Radio and SATCOM | MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  French Navy is planning to purchase up to 22 MPA aircraft to replace its ATL2 fleet in service. Germany and France agreed to develop a ...

• Data links

  Data links | MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  French Navy is planning to purchase up to 22 MPA aircraft to replace its ATL2 fleet in service. Germany and France agreed to develop a ...

• Air: Head-up displays

  Air: Head-up displays | MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  French Navy is planning to purchase up to 22 MPA aircraft to replace its ATL2 fleet in service. Germany and France agreed to develop a ...

• Transponders and IFF

  Transponders and IFF | MAWS/PATMAR [France]

  French Navy is planning to purchase up to 22 MPA aircraft to replace its ATL2 fleet in service. Germany and France agreed to develop a ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) - (Greece)

  Programme Background EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) EU Next Generation Rotorcraft Technologies Project (ENGRT) was announced in early 2022 and the project contract was awarded ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Air: mission management systems

  FINDSAT - BFT System

  Using geo-satellite positioning, Nexter’s BFT system (FINDSAT) is capable of identifying and locating friendly personnel who are not equipped with networked information or radio systems. ...

• Military UGVs

  THeMIS

  Milrem's Tracked Hybrid Modular Infantry System (THeMIS) is a modular, hybrid UGV.  The vehicle's modular design and open architecture allow it to be reconfigured to ...

• Land: indirect fire location radar

  GA10

  The Ground Alerter 10 (GA10), developed by Thales, is a portable Counter-Rocket, Artillery, and Mortar (C-RAM) early warning system. It provides 360° azimuth coverage with ...

• Air-to-surface missiles

  HOT 3

  Designed to destroy reactive armour, the HOT (Haut subsonique Optiquement Téléguidé Tiré d'un Tube, or High Subsonic, Optical, Remote-Guided, Tube-Launched) family has demonstrated its multipurpose capability. Tens ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Mi-8/Mi-17

  The Mil Mi-8 (NATO reporting name Hip) is a twin-engine, multirole, medium helicopter developed from 1960 to meet Soviet military requirements. More than 18,000 examples of the ...

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

  Heron Mk 1

  The Heron, now called the Heron Mk I, is a MALE UAS manufactured by Isreal Aerospace Industries' (IAI) Malat Division. Designed for various missions, including ISTAR and artillery fire ...

• Military UGVs

  Probot

  The 4x4 Professional Robot (Probot) is suitable for various applications, both indoor and outdoor, and is designed to carry a payload of up to 700kg. ...

• Air: Helmet-mounted displays

  TopOwl

  The TopOwl binocular helmet-mounted sight and display has been chosen by 16 countries for their army, navy and/or air force attack and transport helicopters. It ...

• MPVs - 4x4

  Puma M36 Mk 5

  OTT developed the Puma M36 Mk 5 to meet the needs of African customers for a lower-cost vehicle that offers a greater payload than its ...

• Frigates

  La Fayette/Kang Ding Class

  The La Fayette-class frigates have a stealthy design and are in service with France and Taiwan, with some variance between the ships on length and ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  VBCI

  Nexter developed the VBCI to meet a French Army requirement for an infantry fighting vehicle to replace the tracked AMX-10P. The 8x8 design was specified ...

• Land: air defence radar

  Protivnik-GE

  The Protivnik-GE is a mobile 3D surveillance radar distributed by Russian supplier Rosoboronexport and is currently used by the Russian Armed Forces and the Egyptian ...

• Air: Electronic Attack - Jamming

  SPREOS

  Bird Aerosystems’ SPREO is a Directional Infrared Countermeasure (DIRCM) designed to protect rotary and fixed-wing aircraft against incoming infrared (IR) guided surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles. ...

• Fighter - multirole

  Rafale

  The Rafale is a delta-wing agile aircraft with forward canards, which allow for short landing and slower speeds, powered by two Snecma M88 engines. The ...

• Trainer

  TB 30 Epsilon

  The Socata TB 30 Epsilon is a light truboprop trainer aircraft. The first aircraft flew in 1979 and entered service in 1983. It is in ...