The Djiboutian Air Force is to operate a pair of Grand Carvan EX aircraft (pictured), which the US is selling as part of a wider effort to increase security around the Horn of Africa. (Textron)  Djibouti is to receive two Textron C-208B Grand Caravan EX aircraft as the United States looks to enhance security across the Horn of Africa.  US Army Contracting Command awarded the contract on 13 March, with the manufacturer disclosing that the aircraft will be owned and operated by the Djiboutian Air Force (Force Aerienne du Djibouti: FAD).  “The t...

Italy is acquiring the latest AIM-9X Block II+ air-to-air missile to equip its fleet of F-35 (pictured) combat aircraft. (Italian Air Force)  The United States has approved the sale of 66 Raytheon AIM-9X Block II+ Sidewinder short-range air-to-air missiles to Italy, announcing a potential USD90.6 million sale on 15 March.  The US Department of State approval covers the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of an additional 28 Block II+ missiles to add to the 38 previously approved, as well as training missiles, related equipment, training, and support...

The acquisition of Bayraktar TB2 MALE tactical UAVs will allow the Maldives to patrol its exclusive economic zone for a range of up to 300 km. (BAYKAR/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)  The Maldives has inducted Baykar Bayraktar TB2 medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) tactical unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) while forming a new Air Corps to conduct air operations with the type.    Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu formally inducted three UAVs on 15 March and said the acquisition is part of an effort to enhance the military capab...

The maritime reconnaissance version of the Indian Navy's Dornier Do 228 aircraft. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to upgrade the Indian Navy's Dornier Do 228 fleet.  The contract, announced on 15 March, has a value of INR28.9 billion (USD348.6 million) and will cover the mid-life upgrade (MLU) of 25 Do 228s in the Indian Navy, including the installation of associated equipment. According to the MoD, the MLU will include the replacement of the aircraft's...

A Bayraktar Akıncı takes off with a Roketsan Çakir cruise missile for the test-firing announced on 1 March. (Baykar)  The Baykar Bayraktar Akıncı unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is carrying out firing trials with versions of the Roketsan MAM-L and MAM-T guided bombs that can be used against targets concealed by cloud cover, the UAV's Turkish manufacturer announced on 15 March.  Both the MAM-L, which is the standard munition for Baykar's UAVs, and the MAM-T, a small glide bomb, usually use semi-active laser guidance, but the company said it was...

The HAL Dhruv ALH has become a mainstay of the Indian Army's rotary-wing capabilities. In this image, an Indian Army Dhruv hovers as Australian Army troops from the 13th Brigade conduct a drill in India in 2022. (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to acquire 34 Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) Dhruv Mk IIIs.  The INR80.7 billion (USD973.8 million) contract was announced on 13 March and covers 25 ALH Dhruv Mk IIIs for the Indian Army with role-specific...

The UK is to get 14 new CH-47 Chinook ER helicopters, which will be similar in appearance to the ‘fat tank' Chinook HC5 variant (pictured) already in RAF service. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  The UK has recommitted to its previously announced plan to buy new Boeing Chinooks, with the Secretary of State for Defence, Grant Shapps, announcing a buy of 14 helicopters on 14 March.  Speaking during a visit to British forces exercising in Poland, Shapps reiterated the plan to buy the new CH-47 Chinook Extended Range (ER) helicopters, which had been subjec...

The Chinese PLA conducted air operation over the Western Pacific, in the vicinity of the Japan's southwestern islands and Taiwan on 9–10 and 12 March 2024. (Japan Ministry of Defense/Taiwan Ministry of National Defense/Janes)  The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) conducted a long-range operation over the Western Pacific with special mission and combat aircraft.  The operation, conducted over three days from 9 to 10 March and on 12 March, according to data from the Japan Ministry of Defense (MoD), was potentially an effort to gauge Japan...

The 36th F-35, delivered in 2014, was CF-19, the US Marine Corps' first F-35C carrier variant. The Milestone C decision has slipped for nearly a decade beyond initial projections, even as the production has continued. (Lockheed Martin)  The US Department of Defense (DoD) approved the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II to enter full-rate production, according to a 12 March announcement, even as deliveries remain suspended.  William LaPlante, the DoD undersecretary of defence for Acquisition and Sustainment, signed the full-rate production/Miles...

The Indian Air Force's No 18 Squadron at Sulur Air Force Station operated 20 HAL Tejas FOC Mk 1 aircraft, such as this aircraft (LA-5018). This is a representative photo of the Tejas FOC Mk 1. (HAL)  The Indian Air Force (IAF) has reported its first loss of a Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk 1 fighter aircraft to an air crash on 12 March.  The IAF said in a statement that the aircraft had crashed during an “operational training sortie”. According to the air force, the pilot “ejected safely”. The IAF added that a “court of inquiry has been...

Poland has been approved for USD3.68 billion of air-launched missile sales to equip its front-line fighter force, including the F-16 (pictured here). (Polish Ministry of National Defence)  The US government has cleared the sale of air-launched missiles to Poland for a combined USD3.68 billion. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the US Department of State approvals in three separate notifications on 12 March.  These notifications covered 821 Lockheed Martin AGM-158B-2 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles with Extende...

In a screenshot from a New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) video, the Royal New Zealand Air Force's (RNZAF's) first C-130J-30 Hercules emerges from the Lockheed Martin paint shop with RNZAF and squadron livery on 15 February 2024. (New Zealand Defence Force)  The New Zealand government has issued a tender for the sale of its old Lockheed Martin C-130H Hercules aircraft as it prepares to induct five new C-130J-30s in 2024.    The tender specified that the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) seeks to sell four of the five C-130Hs currently opera...

A Swedish Gripen and a German Eurofighter seen trailing a Russia Tu-134 during what was one of two maiden interceptions by SwAF combat aircraft since Sweden joined NATO the day before. (NATO)  Swedish Air Force (SwAF) Saab Gripen combat aircraft have intercepted Russian aircraft for the first time since the country joined NATO. NATO Allied Air Command announced that the milestone took place on 11 March, the day after Sweden officially joined the alliance on 10 March.  According to the alliance, SwAF Gripen C fighters operating alongside Belgi...

A B-52H Stratofortress assigned to the 419th Flight Test Squadron takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, California, in 2020. The aircraft conducted a captive-carry flight test of the AGM-183A ARRW, a programme that is zeroed out in the FY 2025 budget. (US Air Force/Matt Williams)  The US Air Force (USAF) requested just shy of USD517 million to continue development of Raytheon's Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile (HACM) hypersonic air-breathing missile in its fiscal year (FY) 2025 presidential budget request, but zeroed out the procurement of t...

A computer-generated image (CGI) showing how, under the ASCEND2LEO programme, Fleet Space's Centauri satellites are being leveraged to develop a low Earth orbit satcom system that can connect defence assets and personnel. (Fleet Space Technologies)  South Australia-based Fleet Space Technologies has demonstrated push-to-talk (PTT) capabilities using a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite as part of an Australian military project on satellite communications (satcom).  Fleet Space implemented a “software update” to its Centauri 4 satellite, currentl...

Germany is buying 35 F-35A aircraft, which it intends to use in the nuclear and conventional strike roles. (Lockheed Martin via Janes/Gareth Jennings)  The German Luftwaffe has welcomed the recent announcement that the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) has been granted its nuclear certification, saying it was an important reason for buying the aircraft.  In a statement posted on 13 March, the Luftwaffe said it was an important decision by the Joint Program Office (JPO) to award the F-35A its nuclear operational cer...

The US Navy's FY 2025 budget request continues to fund F-35 aircraft. (US Marine Corps)  The fiscal year (FY) 2025 US Navy (USN) budget requests include USD16.2 billion for the procurement of 75 aircraft, modifications, spares, and support equipment, including 13 F-35Cs, 13 F-35Bs, and 15 CH-53Ks, according to budget documents released on 11 March.  However, the FY 2025 request represents a slight financial retreat for the USN, which requested USD17.3 billion in FY 2024 for 88 aircraft, including 19 F-35Cs and 16 F-35Bs.  In addition, the USN...

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is slated to receive newly produced RD-33 engines, which will allow the IAF to increase the service life of its Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 fleet. (Hindustan Times via Getty Images/Pardeep Pandit)  Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has been contracted to deliver over 100 Klimov RD-33 engines for the Indian Air Force's (IAF's) Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-29 force.  The engines will be produced by HAL at its Koraput Division (in east India) as part of a INR52.497 billion (USD634.4 million) contract announced on 1 March by the...

The Indian Army and the Indian Air Force (IAF) are each procuring 25 units of Big Bang Boom Solutions' long-range Vajra Sentinel C-UAS (pictured). (Big Bang Boom Solutions)  Chennai-based Big Bang Boom Solutions (BBBS) has secured two contracts worth more than INR2 billion (USD24 million) to provide its counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) to the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force (IAF).  Janes understands that the Indian Army and the IAF will each receive 25 units of BBBS' long-range Vajra Sentinel C-UAS by mid-2025.  In an interview t...

The US Coast Guard's FY 2025 budget request includes funding for the HC-130J programme management. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  The US Coast Guard (USCG) fiscal year (FY) 2025 budget request of about USD13.8 billion represents a slight decrease from the USD13.9 billion FY 2024 amount, annualised to reflect the continuing resolution spending restrictions and the USD13.9 billion enacted for FY 2023, according to budget documents released on 11 March.  The FY 2025 request includes USD1.1 billion to recapitalise legacy surface assets and make capital i...