Archive: News & Articles

The war in Ukraine has clearly shown the value of anti-ship missiles. Both Bulgaria and Greece are NATO member states that, due to significant threats and a risk of war, must strengthen their capabilities in this regard. One of the lessons learned from the Russian full-scale aggression against Ukraine initiated in 2022 relates to the […]

The US Navy is working to preserve the operational capability of a P-8A Poseidon multi-mission maritime patrol aircraft that overshot the runway at Marine Corps Base Hawaii on 20 November 2023 and ended up in Kaneohe Bay off the eastern coast of Oahu. The P-8A, which has the tail number 561 and is assigned to […]

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has downselected for contenders for its Speed and Runway Independent Technologies (SPRINT) X-Plane project, the first phase of which was initiated on 1 November 2023. The four contenders are Aurora Flight Sciences, Bell Textron, Northrop Grumman Aeronautic Systems and Piasecki Aircraft Corporation. Phase 1A of the programme […]

Israel’s Elbit Systems announced on 27 November 2023 that it has been awarded a contract by Airbus Defense and Space to supply its Direct Infrared Counter Measures (DIRCM) and infrared missile warning systems for installation on Canada’s A330-based Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft. The contract will be performed over a period of five years. Canada […]

Boeing reported on 20 November 2023 that it continues to transition towards low-rate initial production (LRIP) of the MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopter after completing the programme’s research, development, test & evaluation (RDT&E) phase. The sixth and final test aircraft was delivered to the US Air Force (USAF) in October, Boeing noted. “Delivering all of the […]

Embraer announced on 23 November 2023 that it has delivered to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) the fifth and final EMB 145 airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft upgraded to the E-99M standard. The first EMB 145 AEW&C aircraft upgraded under the E-99M programme was delivered to the FAB on 27 November 2020. “The […]

PZL Mielec, Lockheed Martin’s Polish subsidiary, has delivered the first four new-generation, European-manufactured Sikorsky S-70M Black Hawk utility helicopters to Romania’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, Lockheed Martin announced on 24 November 2023. Two more Black Hawks are on schedule to arrive by the end of 2023. Purchased as part of the European Union’s Vision 2020 […]

European missile house MBDA and Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) have signed an agreement to deepen co-operation, MBDA announced on 24 November 2023. The agreement will see the companies explore new opportunities for the integration of new MBDA weapons onto KAI platforms and the export of both together via a joint marketing approach. The agreement was […]

Air mobility and airlift capabilities represent critical assets, as they guarantee deployment and sustainability of forces, both globally as well as within the European theatre. Both assets cover a wide range of tasks, such as strategic long-range outsized cargo transport, intra-theatre logistics, special operations or medical evacuation and provide access to theatres across the globe. […]

Numerous classes of conventionally-armed air-to-ground munitions (AGMs) are in service. Many are currently being upgraded. New, even higher-performance tactical AGMs are being developed. Bomb Guidance Kits Despite the plethora of missiles in modern inventories, aerial bombs remain a major tool of warfare. Unguided gravity bombs have largely been replaced by precision bombs, whereby legacy gravity […]

The BAE Systems Digital GPS Anti-jam Receiver (DIGAR) has been selected to continue into the next phase of the Phase 4 Enhancements (P4E) programme on the Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft, the company announced on 16 November 2023. DIGAR will boost the protection of the aircraft from GPS signal jamming, spoofing, and radio frequency (RF) interference, allowing […]

A General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) Mojave has become the largest uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) ever to be launched from a UK Royal Navy aircraft carrier. Controlled from aboard the carrier, the Mojave took off from the deck of the carrier HMS Prince of Wales on 15 November 2023 while the ship was on […]

Lockheed Martin has successfully completed a production-qualification short-range flight test with the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), the company announced on 16 November 2023. The test firing, recently conducted from a High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launcher in conjunction with the US Army at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, was the shortest-range test flown to […]

Leonardo and the Italian Ministry of Defence’s Directorate of Aeronautical Armaments and Airworthiness (Armaereo) have signed a purchase contract to supply the Slovenian Ministry of Defence with a second C-27J Spartan tactical transport aircraft, Leonardo announced on 21 November 2023. The contract follows a government-to-government agreement signed by Italy and Slovenia on 17 November 2021, […]

NATO announced on 15 November 2023 that it has selected the Boeing E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft as its next-generation command-and-control aircraft. The alliance intends to buy six E-7As via the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism to replace its 14 E-3A Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft, which […]

The US State Department has approved a brace of missile-related Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to South Korea, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency has announced. On 14 November 2023 the US State Department approved an FMS to South Korea of Standard Missile 6 Block I (SM-6 Blk I) surface-to-air missiles. Worth an estimated USD 650 […]

Edge Group entities secured some significant unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) orders during the 2023 Dubai Air Show, which ran from 13 to 17 November. On 16 November it was announced that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Armed Forces had ordered 100 Reach-S fixed-wing UAVs for armed surveillance missions. The Reach-S has been developed by Edge […]

Abu Dhabi-based Edge Group announced at the 2023 Dubai Air Show on 15 November that its has been awarded an AED 4.1 Bn (EUR 1 Bn) contract for the supply of air-launched munitions by the defence ministry of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Edge entity Lahab Defence Systems, the United Arab Emirates’ sole munitions manufacturer, […]

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has published a notification of intent to procure H145 aircraft from Airbus Helicopters to serve British forces operating in Brunei and Cyprus. The notification, issued on 13 November 2023, covers the procurement of six H145 helicopters, along with three years of support services, and was stated to have a […]

Brazilian defence manufacturer Mac Jee is in the process of developing a new loitering munition called the Anshar. The system was announced at the Dubai Air Show, which runs from 13-17 November 2023. Named after the god of the celestial horizon from Babylonian mythology, the Anshar was developed in Brazil by Mac Jee using its […]

The B-21 Raider, the next-generation strategic bomber of the US Air Force (USAF), made its maiden flight on 10 November 2023. Although no official acknowledgements of the flight were released by the USAF or the aircraft’s manufacturer, Northrop Grumman, in the days following the event, video footage of the first B-21 taking to the skies […]