• Training

  Lockheed T-50A completes first flight

  3rd June 2016

  Lockheed Martin has successfully completed the first test flight of the T-50A, its proposed aircraft for the US Air Force Advanced Pilot Training (APT) programme, …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  UDT 2016: Private firm to field unmanned survey fleet

  3rd June 2016

  An American company is bidding to become the second largest operator of Hugin AUVs in the world. It will begin taking delivery of its 14 …

• Military Logistics

  GD wins ESB-5 materials contract

  3rd June 2016

  General Dynamics NASSCO has been awarded a $106 million contract for advance procurement of long lead time material for the US Navy's Expeditionary Mobile Base …

• Training

  ITEC 2016: Latest VBS3 version launched by BISim

  9th May 2016

  Serious games technologies have been a key component of military virtual simulation for more than a decade now and Bohemia Interactive Simulations’ (BISim) VBS3 forms …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Eurosatory: THeMIS UGV ready

  6th June 2016

  Milrem will showcase their THeMIS (Tracked Hybrid Modular Infantry System) at Eurosatory 2016, with one live demonstration featuring an equipped ST Kinetics remote weapon system …

• Defence Notes

  US lifts Vietnam arms embargo

  26th May 2016

  The first order of business during US President Barack Obama’s state visit to Vietnam was to lift a long-standing arms embargo on lethal weapons on …

• Land Warfare

  Eurosatory: BAE chases Challenger 2 as GD withdraws as prime

  3rd June 2016

  BAE Systems Land UK has announced its strategic partnership plan for the Challenger 2 Life Extension Project (LEP), which will remove General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) …

• Military Logistics

  BAE to repair two US Navy ships

  27th May 2016

  BAE Systems has disclosed details on two contracts awarded in May, worth $61.7 million, or $68.6 million with all options exercised, to repair and maintain …

• Naval Warfare

  Austal seals Pacific contract

  5th May 2016

  Austal has signed an AU$280 million (US$210 million) contract with Australia’s Department of Defence (DoD) to build and maintain 19 patrol boats for South Pacific …

• Military Logistics

  ANZAC sustainment contract signed

  3rd May 2016

  The Royal Australian Navy’s ANZAC class frigates will be sustained under a new open-ended contract announced by the Australian Department of Defence on 29 April. …

• Defence Helicopter

  US extends AAR's Afghan flight ops

  25th May 2016

  The US Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM) has issued an extension on an existing contract with the AAR's Airlift Group subsidiary for rotary-wing flight services in Afghanistan, …

• Naval Warfare

  Raytheon delivers Railgun containers

  25th May 2016

  Raytheon has started deliveries of pulse power containers for the US Navy Railgun programme, it announced on 23 May. The containers have multiple pulsed power …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  GA-ASI tests DAA system aboard UAS

  3rd June 2016

  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) has successfully tested a Detect and Avoid (DAA) system that includes its Due Regard Radar (DRR) on a Guardian UAS …

• Military Logistics

  KC-30A offloads 50 million lbs of fuel

  1st June 2016

  A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) KC-30A Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) deployed for Operation OKRA has reached a major milestone, offloading 50 million pounds of …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Predator B Big Wing flies 37 hours

  2nd June 2016

  The Big Wing Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper UAS variant has completed its longest endurance flight of 37 hours, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) announced on 1 June.  The endurance …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Logistics, Ammunition Carrier and Mortar Carrier Variants)

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  Land 400 Phase 3 (Amphibious Vehicles) [Australia]

  Programme Background The Australian DoD released the initial RfI for the Land 400 Phase 3 programme in November 2015. Following consultations with local industry, the ...

• Tanks

  M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams [Poland]

  Programme Background Requirement Since the early 2010s Poland wanted to upgrade its Soviet-era tank fleet due to modernisation requirements, the need to increase interoperability with NATO ...

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

  Drone40 (Ukraine Aid) [Australia]

  Programme Background In August 2022, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), a think tank, held a podcast with Ukraine's ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, in which ...

• APCs/IFVs - 8x8

  Land 400 Phase 2 - Boxer CRV (Australia)

  Programme Background History The Land 400 Phase 2 programme will procure a replacement for the ASLAV, a derivative of the General Dynamics Land Systems Light Armoured Vehicle ...

• Landing craft and hovercraft

  Littoral Manoeuvre Vessel - Medium (Project Land 8710 Phase 1A) [Australia]

  Programme Background Requirements Australia has set out requirements for a fleet of up to 18 Littoral Manoeuvre Vessels - Medium (LMV-M) with the release of ...

• Submarines: nuclear, attack

  Second Hand SSNs [Australia]

  Programme Background Timeline In September 2021, it was announced in a trilateral announcement between Australia, the US and the UK that Australia, in a shock ...

• Tanks

  M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams [Poland - Forecast]

  Programme Background Requirement The Polish Army wants to replace its legacy Soviet T-72 MBTs with new NATO-standard platforms to increase interoperability with its allies and ...

• Naval: Combat Management Systems

  Naval: Combat Management Systems | AUKUS-SSNs (1-5) [Australia]

  In September 2021, it was announced in a trilateral announcement between Australia, the US and the UK that Australia, in a shock move, will not ...

• Naval: shipboard communication systems

  Naval: shipboard communication systems | AUKUS-SSNs (1-5) [Australia]

  In September 2021, it was announced in a trilateral announcement between Australia, the US and the UK that Australia, in a shock move, will not ...

• Tanks

  Viatura Blindada de Combate-Carro de Combate (VBC-CC) [Brazil]

  Programme Background Several key technical requirements have been outlined by the Brazilian MoD. Among the most important are that the platform should weigh less than ...

• Submarines: nuclear, attack

  AUKUS-SSNs (1-5) [Australia]

  Programme Background AUKUS Australia announced on 16 September 2021 that the contract with Naval Group signed in 2016 had been cancelled. Although not a surprising ...

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

  Project Air 7003 (Australia)

  Programme Background Requirement The Royal Australian Air Force has been without a UAS capability since the Heron was withdrawn in mid-2017. According to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  MH-60R (Spain)

  Programme Background On 16 March 2022, the US State Department approved an FMS to Spain for eight MH-60R helicopters and associated equipment and weaponry for $950 ...

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

  MQ-4C Triton (Contracted) [Australia]

  Programme Background Three Contracted Units In June 2018, the Government provided Second Pass (Tranche 1) Approval to procure the first of six air vehicles, supporting ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Naval: RF, IR and acoustic decoys

  Nulka

  The Nulka active anti-ship missile decoy was originally conceived in Australia, and developed under a joint Australian-US programme. BAE Systems Australia is prime contractor, while ...

• S-64 Helitanker Fire-fighting Equipment

  Erickson's 10,031l tank for the S-64 helitanker drops water, retardant or foam mix at a rate of around 95l/h. Microprocessor-controlled tank doors offer eight individual ...

• Submarines: nuclear, attack

  AUKUS SSN

  The AUKUS-SSN will be the submarine design resulting from the AUKUS trilateral pact between Australia, the US and the UK. Expected to incorporate technology from ...

• Air: helicopter flight simulators

  HATS

  In October 2014, the Australian government approved a A$700 million (US$530 million) contract award to Boeing Defence Australia, teamed with Thales Australia, to provide the ...

• Land: tactical engagement simulators

  CVTESS

  Saab's Combat Vehicle Tactical Engagement Simulation System (CVTESS) is a laser-based simulator which supports every version of the Abrams Main Battle Tank and the Bradley ...

• Tanks

  M1A2 SEPv3

  The M1A2 System Enhancement Package 3 (M1A2 SEPv3, also known as M1A2C) is the latest production-standard variant of the Abrams MBT. Designed primarily to address ...

• AEW&C

  Global 550 CAEW

  The G550 CAEW aircraft is a Gulfstream G550 adapted for AEW&C;, EW and ISTAR missions in Australia, Israel, Italy, Singapore and the US. The base platform is ...

• Frigates

  Adelaide Class

  The Adelaide-class guided missile frigates (FFG) were based on the US Navy's Oliver Hazard Perry design, with the first four ships in class built for ...

• Crew-served assault/anti-tank weapons

  FGM-148 Javelin

  The Lockheed Martin-Raytheon Javelin JV developed the FGM-148 Javelin for the US Army’s requirement for an Advanced Anti-Tank Weapon System-Medium. Selected in 1989, the first ...

• APCs/IFVs - tracked

  AS21 Redback

  First unveiled in scale model form at the Land Forces 2018 exhibition, the AS21 Redback is a tracked IFV developed to meet the Australian Army's Land ...

• Data links, UAS: communication systems

  MUMT-X

  The Manned/Unmanned Teaming - eXpanded (MUMT-X) system allows AH-64E helicopters to communicate with and control UAS in flight. Capable of transmitting data and video across four ...

• Crew-served assault/anti-tank weapons

  Spike LR2

  The Spike LR2 (NT-S) is Rafael’s fifth generation of the Spike missile and is backwards-compatible with existing Spike launchers.  Two warheads have been developed: a ...

• Tanks

  M10 Booker

  The US Army has awarded General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) with a contract worth US$1.14 billion to supply 96 light tanks under the Mobile Protected ...

• Fighter - multirole

  F-35A

  The F-35A Lightning II is a fifth-generation multirole combat aircraft with CTOL capabilities. It is a multinational programme led by the US DoD, bringing together ...

• Towed guns

  105mm Light Gun

  The 105mm Light Gun was designed and manufactured by Royal Ordnance Nottingham (now BAE Systems), with the first guns introduced to the British Army in ...