Artist's impression of the Pohjanmaa-class corvettes. (RMC)  Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC) has announced the start of production of the first Pohjanmaa-class multi-purpose corvette on order for the Finnish Navy.  A steel-cutting ceremony was staged at RMC's shipyard in Rauma, Finland, on 30 October.  Under its Squadron 2020 fleet renewal programme, the Finnish Navy is procuring four Pohjanmaa-class corvettes from RMC under a EUR647.6 million (USD707.4 million) design and construction contract awarded in 2019, with the build to be carried o...

The Taurus KEPD 350 cruise missile during integration tests with a Spanish Air Force EF-18. (Spanish Air Force)    Integration of the Taurus KEPD 350 air-launched cruise missile into a Ukrainian Su-24 combat aircraft would take a couple of months and training crews for its use would take three or four months, Joachim Knopf, CEO of MBDA Deutschland-Saab Dynamics 67:33 joint venture Taurus Systems, told international journalists, including   Janes,  visiting MBDA Deutschland on 27 October. Integration of Taurus into F-16 combat...

Ansar Allah's video purportedly showing the weapons launched at Israel showed what appeared to be a Zulfiqar ballistic missile. (Ansar Allah)  The Iranian-backed Yemeni group Ansar Allah (Houthis) confirmed on 31 October that it has launched ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) at Israel, warning that it would continue to do so for as long as the military operation against Hamas continues.  The spokesman for the group's armed wing said it had launched a large number of ballistic and “winged” missiles earlie...

An F-35A Lightning II drops a mock B61-12 at Sandia National Laboratories' Tonopah Test Range in November 2020. The new B61-13 will augment the B61-12. (Sandia National Laboratories)  The US Department of Defense (DoD) announced that it would construct a new type of nuclear gravity bomb, designated B61-13, to complement B61-12 production.  The new bombs are intended to replace some of the B61-7 stockpile while retaining a similar nuclear yield, according to a 27 October announcement. Although production of a new bomb is ongoing, designated th...

TDW is resuming production of the DM22, the Bundeswehr's designation for the original DM12 off-route anti-tank mine modified so that it can be disarmed. (MBDA)  MBDA subsidiary TDW will resume production of the Panzerabwehrrichtmine Deutsches Modell 22 (PARM DM22) off-route anti-tank mine after it was stopped over a decade ago, the subsidiary's managing director, Andreas Seitz, told international journalists including Janes visiting MBDA Deutschland on 27 October.  The budget committee of the Bundestag, Germany's parliament, has approved the...

The R‐Han rocket, pictured above, being test‐fired from a locally developed Rantis MLRS. (Kementrian Pertahanan Indonesia)  The Indonesia Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced in late-October that state-owned arms manufacturer PT Pindad has completed the development of a 122 mm multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) known as the R-Han 122B.  In a social media post, the MoD said that PT Pindad conducted a “series of successful trials on the system” before declaring its completion of development.  The MoD added it is now working on finalising the c...

One of two MANTIS C-RAM systems received by the 11th Slovak Air Force Brigade Nitra from Germany on 24 October. (MOCR)  The 11th Slovak Air Force Brigade Nitra received two Modular, Automatic and Network-capable Targeting and Interception System (MANTIS) counter-rocket, artillery, and mortar (C-RAM) defence systems from Germany on 24 October, the Ministry of Defence of the Slovak Republic (Ministerstvo obrany SR: MOSR) announced on its website the same day. The ministry said the systems would reinforce the capabilities of Slovakia's ground-ba...

ST-1 is an experimental unmanned mine detector that is being actively tested in the field. (Mykhailo Fedorov/Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine)  Ukrainian innovators from the Brave1 defence technology cluster are developing an unmanned mine detector called ST-1.  According to Mykhailo Fedorov, minister of digital transformation for Ukraine on 27 October, the mine detector autonomously searches for mines and works, on average, four times faster than a human.  This will “significantly speed up the process of demining Ukrainian terri...

A 3D diagram of Japan's EM railgun. (Japan Ministry of Defense)  The Japan Ministry of Defense (MoD) has given further details on its intentions behind the country's electromagnetic (EM) railgun programme.  As reported by Janes on 18 October, Japan has carried out the first shipboard test firing of an EM railgun.  It was carried out with co-operation from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF), the MoD's Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) announced via an official social media page on 17 October.  In response to question...

The KaraOk anti-tank guided weapon (pictured above) is fitted with a tandem high-explosive anti-tank warhead designed to defeat explosive reactive armour. (Rocketsan Missiles Inc)  The Malaysian Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) has selected Turkey's defence company Roketsan's KaraOK anti-tank guided weapon (ATGW) for the Malaysian Army requirement of 18 medium-range anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) systems, Rahayu Bahaudin, general manager at Malaysia's Ketech Asia, told Janes on 26 October.  The contract has been signed, and Ketech Asia – which i...

The US State Department has approved the possible FMS of six HIMARSs to Latvia. (ECDI)  The US State Department has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and related equipment worth USD220 million to Latvia, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced in a press release on 24 October.  The agency said Latvia has requested six M142 HIMARSs; 12 M30A2 Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System (GMLRS) Alternative Warhead pods with Insensitive Munitions Propulsion S...

The US State Department has approved the possible FMS of 36 AIM-120C-8 AMRAAMs and related equipment for Lithuanian NASAMS, pictured during its first live firing during Exercise ‘Silver Arrow 2023' in Norway. (Norwegian Armed Forces)  The US State Department has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAMs) and related equipment worth USD100 million for the Lithuanian National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA...

Seen during fit trials for the F-35, the AARGM-ER anti-radiation missile has been approved for sale to Finland. (Northrop Grumman)  The United States government has approved the sale of the Northrop Grumman AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile – Extended Range (AARGM-ER) to Finland.  Announced by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), the State Department's approval covers up to 150 of the anti-radiation missiles, as well as related equipment and services for an estimated USD500 million.  Although not mentioned in the ap...

The Bundeswehr will procure 2,600 DM22s starting in 2026, with an option for 10,000 more. (TDW)  The budget committee of the Bundestag, Germany's parliament, has approved the production and delivery of an initial 2,600 Panzerabwehrrichtmine Deutsches Modell 22 (PARM DM22) anti-tank mines to replace mines sent to Ukraine, the German Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on its website on 19 October. The EUR68 million (over USD72 million) that the DM22s will cost will come from funds allocated to partner countries for equipment and training and m...

A British Army AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopter showcasing its weapons package. Part of this package will comprise the JAGM missile, whose approval was granted on 23 October. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  The United States government has approved the sale of the Lockheed Martin AGM-179A Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) to the United Kingdom.  The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the State Department's approval on 23 October, saying that 3,000 missiles and related items are to be acquired for an estimated USD957.4 mill...

The Bundestag budget committee has approved the procurement of the AWS and Arrow 3 missiles for around EUR4 billion. (IAI)  The budget committee of the Bundestag, Germany's parliament, has approved the procurement of the Arrow Weapon System (AWS) and Arrow 3 missiles, the German Federal Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on its website on 19 October. The procurement is worth around EUR4 billion (USD4.24 billion) and will be funded by the EUR100 billion Zeitenwende special fund approved by Germany after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.  Germa...

Aircraft carrier USS   Dwight D Eisenhower  and its strike group are being shifted for deployment for better US force protection in the Middle East.  (Michael Fabey)    The United States has shifted the USS   Dwight D Eisenhower  Carrier Strike Group (CSG) to the Central Command area of responsibility (AOR) and deployed a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery as well as additional Patriot battalions to locations throughout the region to increase force protection for US forces, the Pe...

A B-52H Stratofortress takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, California, in 2021, to conduct a captive-carry flight test of the AGM-183A ARRW Instrumented Measurement Vehicle 2. (US Air Force/Matt Williams)  The US Air Force (USAF) launched a Lockheed Martin AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) on 12 October.  “This test launched a full prototype operational hypersonic missile and focused on the ARRW's end-to-end performance,” the USAF said in a statement. “The air force gained valuable new insights into the capabilities of thi...

KAI expects to complete integration of the Mistral ATAM with its Marine Attack Helicopter by 2027. (Janes/Akhil Kadidal)  MBDA has received a contract from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) to integrate its Mistral Air-to-Air Missile (ATAM) system on the new Marine Attack Helicopter (MAH).    The contract was announced on 17 October, during the Seoul International Aerospace and Defence Exhibition (ADEX) 2023. An MBDA spokesperson told   Janes   during ADEX 2023 that the contract was signed earlier this year.   The Mistral AT...

The KAI MCH will deploy its BAE Systems Archerfish Mine Neutralisation System and its Teledyne Gavia autonomous underwater vehicle in its interior cargo section to reduce drag on the helicopter. (Janes/Akhil Kadidal)  Korea Aerospace Industries' (KAI's) new Mine Countermeasures Helicopter (MCH) will have two out of its three deployable anti-mine assets located within the aircraft's internal cargo bay.  According to a project member in KAI, the helicopter, which is currently under development, will store both its BAE Systems Archerfish Mine Ne...