Wallace and Błaszczak signed a statement of intent on 18 November to co-operate on Poland's Narew ground-based SHORAD system. (Polish MND)  UK defence secretary Ben Wallace and Polish Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak signed a statement of intent on 18 November to co-operate on Poland's Narew ground-based short-range air defence system (SHORAD), their two ministries announced on their websites the same day.    Błaszczak said Poland's Armament Inspectorate (AI) had recommended the MBDA Common Anti-Air Modular Missile (CAMM) f...

The C-2 featured at the Dubai Airshow 2021, as Japan looks to market the airlifter to the Middle East in general, and the UAE in particular. (Mohammed Najib)    Japan is pitching its Kawasaki C-2 airlifter to Middle Eastern customers, paying particular attention to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), senior Japanese defence sources told   Janes   on 17 November.   The Japanese Ministry of Defense displayed the C-2 at the Dubai Airshow 2021, held from 14 to 18 November, and is in advanced talks with the UAE that are coming to fr...

The AEC BARIQ VTOL UAV with a portable GCS at the Dubai Airshow 2021. (Janes/Akshara Parakala)  Advanced Electronics Company (AEC), a Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) company, exhibited its first iteration of indigenously developed vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) swarm-capable BARIQ unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at the Dubai Airshow 2021.  The BARIQ is a multirotor hybrid-powered small UAV developed to carry out intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), and cargo missions. The air vehicle (AV) is specifically designed...

The University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) has been awarded a five-year contract valued at up to USD88 million to pursue research and development into autonomous systems for potential exploitation by the US Air Force (USAF).  Awarded by the...

An artist's impression of an A400M in Indonesian Air Force markings. The Indonesian Ministry of Defence ordered two A400Ms on 18 November 2021 and signed an LOI for four additional aircraft. (Airbus Group)  Indonesia has signed for two Airbus A400M Atlas multirole tanker and transport aircraft, becoming the 10th operator and the third export customer for the type.  On 18 November, Airbus announced that the contract will become effective in 2022 and includes a comprehensive maintenance and training support package. The value of the deal and th...

 The F-16V shares the same outer mould-line of the standard Fighting Falcon, but features several advanced systems, including an active electronically scanned array radar. (Lockheed Martin Aeronautics)                          

IAI's POP300D is one of the sensor systems Edge and IAI will be collaborating on in the Gulf region. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced on 18 November that it had signed two agreements with Emirati defence conglomerate Edge at the Dubai Airshow covering unmanned surface vessels (USVs) and electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) system maintenance.  The first agreement covers the development of a new USV between IAI and Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB), with ADSB to be responsible for platform design, control system and pa...

Quantum-Systems Vector tiltrotor fixed-wing eVTOL unmanned aerial vehicle by ESG at the Dubai Airshow 2021. (Janes/Akshara Parakala)  Germany's Guardion counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS), a co-operation of ESG, Diehl Defence, and Rohde & Schwarz, has integrated Quantum-Systems Vector unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for wide area surveillance operations, the company announced at the Dubai Airshow 2021, held from November 14 to 18.  ESG, the system integrator and software provider of Guardion, chose electric vertical take-off and landing (e...

Seen here during its earlier roll-out, the first P-8A Poseidon for Norway was officially handed over on 18 November. (Boeing)  Boeing delivered the first P-8A Poseidon maritime multimission aircraft (MMA) for Norway on 18 November.  Named Vingtor after the Norse god, aircraft 9582 was formally handed over to the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency (NDMA) during a ceremony at the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Washington.  The Royal Norwegian Air Force (RoNAF) is to receive five P-8As in total, with the remainder to be named Viking, Ulabrand, Hugi...

RTAF Air Chief Marshal Chanon Mungthanya, after a flight in one of the T-6 aircraft Thailand has ordered from Textron Aviation Defense. (Textron Aviation Defense LLC)  Textron Defense announced on 18 November 2021 that the 12 Beechcraft T-6TH Texan II turboprop-powered trainer aircraft it is currently manufacturing for the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) are nearing completion. Textron revealed the aircraft have passed technical inspection checkpoints ahead of schedule. The RTAF made the order in September 2020 in a deal worth USD162 million, whi...

The EDGE Halcon Reach-S armed MALE UAV at the Dubai Airshow 2021. (Janes/Akshara Parakala)  United Arab Emirates' (UAE's) EDGE Group subsidiary Halcon showcased the full-scale model of Reach-S fixed-wing armed medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at the Dubai Airshow 2021.  Halcon showed the model carrying four Desert Sting-16 (DS-16) precision-guided weapons and an electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) sensor, suggesting the primary intention of the UAV is to be used in surveillance and combat roles.  The UAV features...

Seen shortly after being offloaded from a cargo aircraft in early October, the six ‘Little Bird' helicopters for Lebanon have been revealed to be a previously unknown MD 530F+ standard. (Lebanese Army)  Six MD Helicopters Inc (MDHI) MD 530 ‘Little Bird' scout and light-attack rotorcraft delivered to Lebanon in October have been revealed to be a previously unknown MD 530F+ standard.  The United States Embassy in Beirut disclosed the new standard on 16 November, when it noted the official handover of the helicopters to the Lebanese Armed Forces...

EDGE Halcon's series of UAVs with payloads at the Dubai Airshow 2021. (Janes/Akshara Parakala)  United Arab Emirates' (UAE's) EDGE group subsidiary Halcon unveiled Hunter, a family of tube- and hand-launched electric unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), at the Dubai Airshow 2021.  The family of UAVs includes the fixed-wing tube-launched Hunter 2, Hunter 5 and Hunter 10, with the numbers denoting the payload each can carry (in kg), and a rotary-wing version. All the AVs are custom designed, operate using GPS and optical navigation and can be emplo...

A model of the AeroVironment Switchblade 300 loitering munition on display at the 2021 Association of the United States Army trade show in Washington, DC. The company deployed the munition from its Arcturus Jump 20 UAV for the first time. (Janes/Pat Host)  AeroVironment deployed its Switchblade 300 loitering munition from the company's Arcturus Jump 20 Group 3 vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during flight for the first time in August.    Brett Hush, company vice-president and general manager for tactica...

Since the first KC/C-390 (top) was formally received by the FAB on 4 September 2019, the type has been fielded in numerous operations across Brazil, including supporting the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. (Brazilian Air Force)  The Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira: FAB) has reduced the contract for its acquisition of the Embraer KC/C-390 Millennium transport aircraft from 28 to 15 units after negotiations for a contract modification failed.  The decision was announced on 12 November by the FAB's Commander, Lieutenant Brigadie...

The Emirati defence group Edge announced during the Dubai Air Show 2021 that it has received a AED3.2 billion (USD871 million) contract from the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces to deliver Thunder bomb guidance kits and Desert Sting guided bombs m...

US Army officials want to evaluate high-power microwave (HPM) systems large enough to protect fixed sites from incoming drones and if they find promising ones, they plan to award subsequent prototyping contracts.  Charged with evaluating counter-dr...

The CMD announced on 10 November that its 90th Guards Tank Division would receive it first nine ‘Terminator' armoured vehicles on 1 December following testing. (Russian MoD)  Russia's Central Military District (CMD) has been receiving new equipment in 2021.  The CMD announced on the Russian Ministry of Defence (MoD) website on 10 November that its 90th Guards Tank Division would receive its first company of nine ‘Terminator' tank support combat vehicles (BMPTs) on 1 December. CMD Commander Colonel General Alexander Lapin reported that new tec...

The Al-Tariq range of bomb guidance kits on display at the show Dubai Airshow, with the new variant for MK 83 bombs seen at the top between a Mk 82 variant with fold-out wings on the left and a Mk 83 variant without the wing on the right. (Janes / Akshara Parakala)  The Al-Tariq bomb guidance kit can now be used with 1,000 lb MK 83 warheads, the Emirati defence group Edge announced during the Dubai Airshow held from 14–18 November.  The Al-Tariq was previously integrated with the 250 lb MK 81 and 500 lb MK 82 bombs, giving them a standoff ran...

The Israeli defence industry has made its first forays into the Gulf defence market with a number of major companies exhibiting at the Dubai Airshow, marking their first formal appearance in the region.  Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has been h...