• Naval Warfare

  LPDs and MCMVs ahoy! India launches RfIs

  26th August 2021

  Once thought to be further down the priority list, the Indian Navy is once again relaunching efforts for LPDs and MCMVs.

• Air Warfare

  USMC turns to augmented reality for better Osprey pilot safety

  12th August 2021

  DVLS keeps pilots spatially oriented to the terrain and obstacles and works with existing night vision devices to enable safer landings, says L3Harris.

• Land Warfare

  Army-2021: Russia expands its Arctic arsenal

  27th August 2021

  New medevac vehicle and tracked APC highlight commitment to protected mobility in the High North.

• Air Warfare

  UH-60V joins Pennsylvania National Guard

  12th August 2021

  First US Army unit operates Black Hawk with avionics upgrade.

• Naval Warfare

  IDEF 2021: Roketsan pursues parallel development of heavy and lightweight torpedoes

  23rd August 2021

  The AKYA heavy torpedo has undergone firing trials and will equip Turkish submarines, while Roketsan's developmental ORKA has surface- and air-launched applications.

• Training

  Training capability jumps as TH-73A arrives

  10th August 2021

  The first of an initial batch of 32 TH-73A Thrasher training helicopters has arrived at NAS Whiting Field to provide the USN with a much-improved training capability.

• Air Warfare

  Israel and US negotiate on CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter numbers

  15th August 2021

  Next steps for Israel's CH-53K King Stallion order are likely to include a final fleet number being confirmed by negotiating parties.

• Air Warfare

  IDEF 2021: Curtain rises for HETS helicopter safety system

  17th August 2021

  Turkish-made Helicopter Obstacle Detection System blends lidar and other technologies.

• Air Warfare

  India begins romance with first MH-60 Romeos

  20th July 2021

  The USN has handed over the first pair of MH-60R anti-submarine warfare helicopters to India, but they will remain on American soil for now.

• Naval Warfare

  HMS Prince of Wales gears up for mixed F-35B, helicopter operations

  26th August 2021

  The UK’s second Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, will embark four F-35Bs in September, paving the way for future front-line operations.

• Defence Notes

  Poland lays groundwork for sovereign surveillance satellite capability

  26th July 2021

  Development of a domestically made microsatellite constellation would plug a gap for Polish defence and security.

• Military Logistics

  Airbus carries on with Lakota support

  8th June 2021

  US Army issues a new contract for UH-72 contractor logistics support.

• Air Warfare

  Polish Navy’s AW101 takes first flight

  20th July 2021

  Leonardo’s AW101 for the Polish Navy takes the first flight to test its main airframe, control system and engine handling.

• Air Warfare

  Bell restarts Venom production to meet Czech order

  20th July 2021

  Commonality of parts with the AH-1Z has allowed Bell to maintain important component supply chains for UH-1Y manufacturing.

• Air Warfare

  Three down, one to go for Thai medium tactical airlift requirement

  22nd June 2021

  The Royal Thai Army has ordered another C295W aircraft from Airbus.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System - AHTS (TH-57 Replacement)

  Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single engine 407GXi. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T-India-Air Force

  An official contract announcement is expected during the Aero India 2021 exhibition in Bangalore, although negotiations have dragged on for more than five years and ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M (Contracted) [Germany]

  Programme Background Previous Usage The German Armed Forces ordered 15 H145M helicopters, with the initial two delivered in December 2015, for the Kommando Spezialkräfte. These ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Naval Utility Helicopters (India)

  Programme Background The program will witness the formation of a joint venture between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and another local or foreign manufacturer. In June ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H-145M (Serbia)

  Serbia's aircraft will be equipped with a fast roping system, high-performance camera, fire support equipment, ballistic protection as well as an electronic countermeasures system. The ...

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

  Système de Drone Aérien pour la Marine (SDAM) [France]

  Programme Background Requirement The requirement for the SDAM programme is a rotary-wing VTOL-capable UAV with a modular configuration capable of hosting a range of payloads. ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Model 301 Fire Attack

  The Model 301 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters AS365-series helicopters.

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter. It is marketed as a multi-role platform ...

• Model 316 Fire Attack

  The Model 316 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters H225 and AS332 L-series helicopters.

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175, a seven-tonne class aircraft powered by twin PT6C 67E engines. The civilian variants produced by Airbus ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• AC67 Airbus Helicopters H135 interior

  Bucher has developed the AC67 medical interior for the Airbus Helicopters H135 in cooperation with ADAC Luftrettung.The lightweight, modular design features a floor with integrated ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  EWR-99

  Dassault is not traditionally associated with electronic warfare subsystems, instead being equated with the manufacture of combat aircraft and business jets. Nonetheless, the company did, ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  H125M

  The H125M (formerly the AS550 B3e Fennec) is a military version of the civil H125. The helicopter has a reduced radar signature due to the use ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M

  The medium-weight, 11t-class H225M (formerly known as the EC725) is the latest military Super Puma/Cougar family member.  Technical features include a modular design of mechanical ...

• H160

  Airbus Helicopters unveiled a full-scale model of the H160 medium twin rotorcraft on 3 March 2015 at Heli-Expo. The utility helicopter, the first to be ...