Boeing's NGAD concept art, which may or may not represent its notional bid. (Boeing)  The US Air Force (USAF) on 18 May announced the release of a solicitation for engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) of the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) platform, intended to replace the Lockheed Martin F-22 as the service's high-end fighter jet.  The solicitation is classified, and details such as desired cost and specifications were not immediately available, although it likely requests an aircraft with a longer range than current fighters...

The RAF has 28 Hawk T2 jets at RAF Valley in Wales that it uses for the Advanced Fast Jet Training programme. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has outlined how it intends to solve the ongoing engine problem with the BAE Systems Hawk T2 advanced jet trainer aircraft, with a view to increasing availability and removing the bottleneck in the UK military pilot training pipeline.  Addressing the House of Commons Defence Committee (HCDC) on 17 May during the hearing titled, ‘Are air force gaps leaving UK exposed?', Director...

The first MESA radar being installed on Boeing 737 NG airframe undergoing modification into the E-7A Wedgetail for the UK Royal Air Force in November 2022. Despite cutting its planned procurement to three aircraft, the MoD has opted to retain its purchase of five radar systems, which it will now use for spares. (Boeing)  The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) has defended its decision to continue with the purchase of five radar sets for its Boeing E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning Mk1 (AEW1) programme, despite the procurement having been reduced to...

The A400M (pictured) is set to becomes the RAF's sole fixed-wing medium-lift transport aircraft when the C-130J is retired in the coming weeks. The service says it will have transitioned all of the capabilities, including the niche special forces duties, over to the aircraft by 2025. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) is confident that it can fully transition the niche special operations forces (SOF) capabilities of the Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules to the Airbus A400M Atlas airlifter in the next couple of years, the new...

RT-1000, the first version of RAIVEN, will support a wide array of missions, including the US Army's Future Vertical Lift modernisation effort. First flight tests are scheduled for 2024. (Raytheon)  Raytheon's new multispectral, artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) sensor and targeting platform, dubbed RAIVEN, was the company's attempt to close emerging capability gaps in legacy EO/IR systems developed in the post 9/11 era.  “There was a … demand for EO/IR products during the global war on terror and so we devel...

New Zealand's total military expenditure is forecast by Janes Defence Budgets to reach the equivalent of about USD5 billion by the end of the decade. The spike in 2019 was caused by a one-off recognition of veterans' entitlements. (Janes Defence Budgets)  New Zealand announced on 18 May a 2023–24 defence budget of NZD6.52 billion (USD4.07 billion), a nominal 6% increase over the allocation of NZD6.15 billion in 2022–23.  In the new budget, the ‘Vote Defence Force' allocation receives NZD5.15 billion, while the Vote Defence appropriation rece...

The UK fields 23 Puma helicopters that are scheduled to be replaced via the New Medium Helicopter procurement programme. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) may seek to extend the service life of the Westland-Aerospatiale SA 330E Puma HC2 medium-lift rotorcraft as it looks to mitigate potential delays to the New Medium Helicopter (NMH) replacement programme and other issues.  Speaking to the House of Commons Defence Committee (HCDC) on 17 May, Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) Designate Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton sa...

Poland's KAI FA-50 light attack aircraft ordered in 2022 will be equipped with the PhantomStrike radar, with deliveries expected by 2025. (KAI)  Poland's FA-50 Fighting Eagle aircraft – manufactured by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) – will be equipped with Raytheon's PhantomStrike radar, a Raytheon spokesperson confirmed to Janes on 17 May.  The PhantomStrike active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar is a compact platform designed for light attack aircraft, rotary-wing aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and stationary platfor...

An USMC MQ-9. (US Marine Corps)  The US Marine Corps (USMC) has taken receipt of its first two extended-range General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) MQ-9s.  The two newbuild aircraft will be operated by Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3 (VMU-3) from Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.    “These aircraft will be based out of Hawaii, fulfilling an immediate need for a long-range, long-endurance, land-based [large-size] UAS [unmanned aircraft system] to conduct persistent maritime domain awareness and data re...

Screengrab from an Airbus video shown at the AOC Europe 2023 conference in Bonn, Germany, showing a Luftwaffe A400M aircraft in a stand-off jammer configuration for the luWES airborne electronic attack requirement. (Richard Scott)  Airbus Defence and Space has revealed a stand-off jammer (SOJ) adaptation of its A400M Atlas airlifter as a potential solution for Germany's Luftgestätze Wirkung im Elektromagnetischen Spektrum (luWES) programme.  Showcased for the first time at the AOC Europe 2023 conference and exhibition in Bonn, Germany, from 1...

The Shahed-136 displayed at the IRGC exhibition in Qom with the information poster behind it. (Mehr News Agency)  Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) released performance specifications for the Shahed-136 one-way attack unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) when it displayed one publicly for the first time in an exhibition in Qom from 13 May.  The poster behind the UAV said it has a range of 2,500 km, which is the same performance that Yemen's Houthi rebels attributed to the Shahed-136 they unveiled as the domestically produced Waeid in Marc...

Germany's new EUR2.7 billion military support package for Ukraine includes four IRIS-T SLM systems with a total of 12 launchers. (Diehl)  Major European countries pledged more military support for Ukraine during a tour by President Volodymr Zelensky of their capitals on 14 and 15 May.  During a joint press conference with Zelensky in Berlin on 14 May, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a new military equipment support package worth a total of EUR2.7 billion (USD2.9 billion) for more Leopard 1 tanks, Marder infantry fighting vehicles (IFV...

Having declined to join its international partners in the Mk III upgrade, Germany will now retire its Tigers with no dedicated attack helicopter replacement. Instead, it will employ the H145M in the light attack helicopter role. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Germany plans to retire its Airbus Helicopters Tiger attack fleet in favour of acquiring more Airbus Helicopters H145M utility rotorcraft that it can arm with long-range air-to-surface missiles.  Reuters cited a Bundeswehr spokesperson as confirming the plan that had been reported in the Germa...

The second KAI KF-21 prototype launches a mid-range air-to-air Meteor missile during the aircraft's armament trials in late March 2023. (Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA))  Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) KF-21 fighter aircraft has passed a “provisional combat suitability evaluation”, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said on 16 May.  DAPA said the milestone – achieved following two years of trials – is intended to accelerate aircraft manufacturing ahead of the initial KF-21 production phase in 2024.  KAI'...

Romania retired the last of its MiG-21s on 15 May, bringing 61 years of operational service to an end. (Romanian Ministry of National Defence)  The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) has retired from service the last of its MiG-21 LanceR (R for Romania), with the final airframes being officially withdrawn on 15 May.    The RoAF marked the retirement with ceremonies at the 71st and 86th airbases in Campia Turzii and Borcea, respectively, before the last three aircraft from each base departed for the 95th Air Base in Bacau for storage.   Janes...

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence released concept imagery of an F-16 in Ukraine livery to mark Ukraine's Air Force Day on 7 August 2022, reinforcing the message that this is the Western combat aircraft it wants. (Ukraine Ministry of Defence)  Since the earliest days of Russia's renewed invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Kyiv has asked for one thing above all others – Western fighter jets.  Ahead of the Russian invasion, Ukraine fielded a range of Soviet Union-era combat aircraft that it inherited in 1991, and while theUkrainian Air Force...

Having declined to join its international partners in the Mk III upgrade, Germany will now retire its Tigers with no dedicated attack helicopter replacement. Instead, it will employ the H145M in the light attack helicopter role. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Germany plans to retire its Airbus Helicopters Tiger attack fleet in favour of acquiring more Airbus Helicopters H145M utility rotorcraft that it can arm with long-range air-to-surface missiles.  Reuters cited a Bundeswehr spokesperson as confirming the plan that had been reported in the Germa...

Malloy Aeronautics T-600 heavy-lift quadcopter has been demonstrated as part of the UK UASHLC challenge. (Crown Copyright)  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has reopened the Uncrewed Air Systems Heavy Lift Capability (UASHLC) framework to new suppliers, the authority announced on 12 May.  With a GBP95 million (USD118 million) financial headroom, the UASHLC framework is intended to accelerate the development of a range of autonomous heavy-lift unmanned aircraft system (UAS), inform maritime operating concepts, and evaluate the applicability of...

AeroVironment's Switchblade 300 Block 20, showcased at SOF Week 2023, has twice the endurance of its predecessor and hosts a modular payload and a side tilt camera. (Andrew White)  US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) is prioritising loitering technologies to support counter-violent extremist organisation (C-VEO) operations and strategic competition, service leaders said.  “Loitering capabilities has been one of the big things on my mind” this year, Colonel Anh Ha, programme executive officer Special Operations Forces (SOF) Warrior, said a...

A US Marine Corps field radio operator from the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit sets up satellite communication at Camp Korean Village, Iraq, in 2008. (US Department of Defense)  The Pentagon's Space Development Agency (SDA) is soliciting industry proposals for space vehicle (SV) prototype variants and associated payloads for the Transport Layer of the agency's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture (PWSA).  PWSA programme officials are looking to acquire 100 Tranche 2 Transport Layer (T2TL) ‘Alpha' variant low-Earth orbit (LEO) SVs and as...