Archive: News & Articles

Adriatic Sea Defense & Aerospace (ASDA) is a specialised tri-service defence exhibition in a large and growing market focused on International Defence, Homeland Security, Cyber Security, Security & Protection and Aerospace. The costal Croatian city of Split hosted the fifth ‘Adriatic Sea Defence & Aerospace Exhibition and Conference’ (ASDA) from 10 to 12 April 2019. […]

In late March 2019, Rheinmetall and its South African subsidiary Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) demonstrated the capabilities of their ammunition to around 800 customers and prospects from 53 countries at the Denel Overberg test site in the South African province of the Western Cape. This was the third time that RDM hosted the Munition Capability […]

The Serbian government sees its defence industry as a strategic national asset that it wishes to sustain and grow. Increasing defence exports helps to sustain the defence industry and also brings in foreign currency, which boosts the Serbian economy. The defence industry also presents a means of attracting Foreign Direct Investment. Across the course of […]

The command and control of air operations places a premium on  connectivity. Having responsive tools and communications to this end is a sine qua non for mission success. The numbers speak for themselves. When it is fully deployed, NATO’s Air Command and Control System (ACCS) will cover ten million square kilometres of NATO’s European territory. […]

Interview with Bernhard Berset, Chief Test Pilot of armasuisse and Project Leader Evaluation NKF. ESD: Mr Berset, what is the subject of Swiss flight testing, what does it cover and what is the focus? Berset: During the test phase, which is part of the regular procedure of a procurement project, the capabilities and characteristics of […]

The renewed Swiss attempt to procure new fighter jets is open to all Western manufacturers. The procurement project will also include long-range surface-to-air missiles (BODLUV). Given a volume of up to CHF8Bn (US$8.45Bn), the programme will leave its mark on the Swiss Air Force and the Ministry of Defence, but also on Swiss politics and […]

Interview with Lieutenant General Rudy Debaene, National Armament Director of the Ministry of Defence of Belgium. ESD: In many western countries, the changed security-political situation in Europe has induced governments to allocate additional funds for defence and armament. To what extent and in what way has this trend influenced things in your country? LtGen Debaene: […]

The airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft is a high value asset that not many countries can afford. As a commanding officer of an AEW squadron recently told the author, “Our aircraft can peer hundreds of miles into our adversary’s air space, giving us notice of their intentions. We can watch all their aircraft’s manoeuvres to […]

Platforms to fulfil the heaviest load-carrying demands can be counted on one hand. When not counting the medium category of an AW/EH-101 or NH-90 below 15 tonnes MTOW, there are just two or three Western types, plus one upcoming Eastern type. In light of the ongoing tender for the German Bundeswehr’s heavy-lift helicopter requirement, this […]

Interview with Vice Admiral H.N. (Rtd) Kyriakos Kyriakidis, National Armaments Director at the Ministry of Defence of Greece. ESD: In many western countries, the changed security-political situation in Europe has induced governments to allocate additional funds for defence and armament. To what extent and in what way has this trend influenced things in your country? […]

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) – which consist of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) plus sensors, command & control, and launch elements – have become indispensable assets for military Intelligence, Reconnaissance and Surveillance (ISR) missions. While different nations have different classification systems, UAS are generally categorised according to their size and performance parameters, whereby large UAV […]

Interview with Vice Admiral H.N. (Rtd) Kyriakos Kyriakidis, National Armaments Director at the Ministry of Defence of Greece. ESD: In many western countries, the changed security-political situation in Europe has induced governments to allocate additional funds for defence and armament. To what extent and in what way has this trend influenced things in your country? […]

Interview with Raimo Jyväsjärvi, National Armaments Director at the Ministry of Defence of Finland. ESD: In many western countries, the changed security-political situation in Europe has induced governments to allocate additional funds for defence and armament. To what extent and in what way has this trend influenced things in your country? Jyväsjärvi: This is indeed […]

Armed forces rely on Casualty Evacuation (CASEVAC) and Medical Evacuation (MEDEVAC) aircraft to transport wounded (combat), injured (non-combat), and ill personnel. While the borders between both types of mission can be fluid (and the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, even by armed forces), there are some general factors defining each. CASEVAC is normally an emergency […]

Interview with Morten Tiller, National Armament Director at the Ministry of Defence of Norway. ESD: In many western countries, the changed security-political situation in Europe has induced governments to allocate additional funds for defence and armament. To what extent and in what way has this trend influenced things in your country? Tiller: Defence spending in […]

Interview with Vice Admiral Carsten Stawitzki, National Armaments Director at the German Ministry of Defence. ESD: What are the most important military aerospace programmes in your country, both current and forthcoming? Stawitzki: As of now, we are particularly focussing on the EUROFIGHTER and A400M programmes with regard to our fixed wing capabilities. Once the 143rd […]

The retrofit of Tranche 1, the integration of the E-Scan radar and a possible replacement of the Spanish fleet of 85 F-18 aircraft are the most important pillars for the future of the jet-fighter in Spain. In July 2020, the Spanish Air Force will receive its last EUROFIGHTER jet, reaching the 72 deliveries agreed in […]

With aircraft becoming sensor-rich and computerised, more than ever before, the cockpit transforms into a sophisticated and automated human-machine system, that translates machine sensing to human situation awareness, and human commands into machine actions. Despite the orthodox approach to flying, military aviators cannot escape the changes we all experience in our daily life, changes that […]

Interview with Rear Admiral Nils Andreas Stensønes, Chief of the Royal Norwegian Navy. In October and November last year, Norway hosted Trident Juncture 18. More than 50,000 participants, 150 aircraft, 60 naval vessels and up to 10,000 vehicles from 30 nations came to Norway for the biggest NATO exercise held in Norway since the Cold […]

Launched on 27 February, Blue Homeland 2019 was Turkey’s largest naval exercise in the country’s history, testing its ability to wage war simultaneously in the Black Sea, Aegean Sea and Eastern Mediterranean. The exercise was designed to build confidence and stability throughout Turkey and to contribute to NATO’s common objectives and should therefore be analysed […]

The Brazilian Armed Forces are in the midst of several major modernisation programmes. ESD had the opportunity to speak with General Edson Leal Pujol, Commander of the Brazilian Army. ESD: The Army’s vehicle fleet is receiving significant resources for the modernisation of MBTs, the production of GUARANIs, the upgrade of all M113 variants, for 4×4 […]