‘Drones', or unmanned aerial vehicles, have been central to Ukraine's war effort, as evidenced in this screenshot of an operator's view of a TB2 strike against a Russian position. The UK is now promising to deliver to Kyiv new long-range attack drones of an unspecified type. (Ukrainian General Staff)  The United Kingdom is to deliver to Ukraine “new long-range attack drones with a range of over 200 km”, the British government announced on 15 May.  The pledge was made during a meeting in London between UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Ukr...

India's Tejas Mk 2 fighter aircraft. (Janes/Akhil Kadidal)  India's Tejas Mark 2 project is intended to provide the Indian Air Force (IAF) with a more advanced version of the Tejas Mark 1 light combat aircraft (LCA). The aircraft's key role is to give the IAF the ability to wield a wide range of stand-off weapons.    The IAF previously told   Janes   that it requires about 180 aircraft.   Janes   understands this is on the condition that the aircraft has better capabilities than the baseline Tejas Mk 1. The IAF mandat...

In keeping with its focus on long-range strike capability, Australia hopes to upgrade its Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fleet to the Block 4 standard. This is to integrate the JSM with the aircraft. This missile has a maximum range of 300 n mile. (Commonwealth of Australia)  Australia's rejection of the Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider for acquisition has prompted it to focus on improving its long-range strike capabilities using existing aircraft.  Janes assesses that this decision was made based on factors of long-range deterrence, plus acqu...

Spanish Secretary of State for Defence María Amparo Valcarce formally receiving the first Airbus H135 helicopter for the Spanish Air Force on 9 May. (Spanish Ministry of Defence)  The Spanish Air Force (Ejército del Aire Español: EdAE) has officially received into service its first Airbus Helicopters H135 rotorcraft, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced.  Secretary of State for Defence María Amparo Valcarce and CEO of Airbus Helicopters Spain Fernando Lombo signed the certificate of delivery during a ceremony at the Albacete production fac...

A rendering of the Chinook in Luftwaffe markings. Germany has been approved to buy 60 such helicopters for an estimated USD8.5 billion. (Boeing)  The US has approved the sale of Boeing CH-47F Block 2 Chinook helicopters to Germany for an estimated USD8.5 billion.  Announced on 11 May, the US Department of State's approval for the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) covers 60 extended-range helicopters, as well as mission equipment, spares, training, transportation, and support.  “The proposed sale will improve Germany's heavy-lift capability. German...

Airmen and riggers with the 1st Special Operations Squadron Logistics Readiness Squadron load a Rapid Dragon Palletized Weapon System aboard an MC-130J Commando II in December 2021. (USAF)  US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) to demonstrate its ‘Rapid Dragon' missile launch capability in November 2023, the command's acquisition executive, Jim Smith, said at SOF Week in Tampa, Florida, on 9 May.  The weapon is to be launched from a US Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) MC-130J Commando II at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, and fol...

As the lead effects integrator for the Tempest, MBDA is now “in active discussions” with one or more potential Japanese companies to team on GCAP. (BAE Systems)  MBDA is “in active discussions” with one or more potential Japanese companies to team on the new Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a senior official said on 10 May.  Speaking at the company's Stevenage facility, managing director MBDA UK and group engineering director Chris Allam said that work is ongoing to bring in a Japanese partner to work alongside MBDA UK and MBDA Italy on th...

Seen in its wings-folded stowed configuration, the air-launched Storm Shadow is a long-range cruise missile with a published range ‘in excess' of 250 km. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  The United Kingdom is donating MBDA Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine, UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace said.  Wallace made the announcement in the House of Commons on 11 May, saying the donation was in line with other long-range weapon systems gifted to Kyiv. He added that the conventional cruise missiles would enable the Ukrainian armed forces to push back Russi...

The first FA-50 for Poland was rolled out in March 2023. (KAI)  Poland is to equip its soon-to-be-delivered Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Fighting Eagle light combat aircraft with the Lockheed Martin AN/AAQ-33 Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods (ATP).  The US State Department approved the sale of 34 Sniper ATPs on 9 May, saying the pods will enhance the FA-50's abilities to identify targets, track, and engage from a standoff distance, while increasing interoperability with US and NATO forces. The estimated value of the proposed deal is U...

Japan's defence budget is forecast by  Janes   to grow strongly over the next few years.  (Janes Defence Budgets)  Japan's biggest defence companies – Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) – have said they expect orders for military equipment to expand rapidly on the back of the country's growing defence budget.  The companies reported on 10 May strong increases in defence-related revenues and profits for fiscal year (FY) 2022. The two firms also said that Japan's new defence polic...

A still of an Ethiopian Bayraktar TB2 with MAM-L guided bombs. (Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation)  The Ethiopian Air Force is operating at least four Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), a television documentary has confirmed.  Released on the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) YouTube channel on 2 May, the documentary showed four TB2s inside a building that could be identified as one of the hangars at the air force's main Harar Meda base, south of Addis Ababa. Another two TB2s were shown at Bahir Dar Air Base, 370 km to the...

An Embraer KC-390 in Portuguese markings. (Embraer)  Brazil is negotiating with several countries to sell the Embraer KC-390 Millennium tactical transport aircraft, Brazilian Air Force (FAB) commander Lieutenant Brigadier Marcelo Kanitz Damasceno told the Brazilian senate's Foreign Relations and National Defense Committee (CREDN) on 4 May.  Lt Brig Damasceno revealed Austria, the Czech Republic, Egypt, India, Rwanda, South Africa, South Korea, and Sweden as potential buyers for the KC-390.  The KC-390 has to date been purchased by Brazil, Hun...

India's Tejas Mk 2 fighter aircraft is intended to replace a range of combat aircraft in the Indian Air Force, including the Mirage 2000. The Tejas Mk 2 is also intended to compete with the Saab Gripen internationally. (Janes)  India's Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk 2 programme is languishing without funding, months after the project was approved by New Delhi.  The Tejas Mk 2 is intended to provide the Indian Air Force (IAF) with a 4.5-generation medium-weight-class fighter aircraft. The aircraft is designed to be an improvement over th...

The first flight of a Brazilian F-39E Gripen fighter operated from Saab's airfield in Linköping, Sweden. (Saab)  Brazil's Embraer inaugurated its Saab F-39E Gripen final assembly line on 9 May in Gavião Peixoto, State of São Paulo, where it will assemble 15 of the multimission fighters for the Brazilian Air Force (FAB).  The first Gripen fully assembled in Brazil will be delivered to the FAB in 2025.  The new production line will be capable of carrying out future upgrades and integrating new weapons, said Micael Johansson, president and CEO o...

OSS's Wrapped Rib Antenna (pictured) will be fitted onto SSTL's CarbSAR satellite. (Soundmotive.tv)    UK space companies – Oxford Space Systems (OSS) and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) – have joined forces to develop a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite that is supportive of the UK ISTARI multisatellite constellation programme, CEO of OSS Sean Sutcliffe told   Janes   on 9 May.   An in-orbit demonstrator (IOD) of the system, which integrates OSS's deployable Wrapped Rib antenna on SSTL's CarbSAR satellite, wi...

India's acquisition of 56 Airbus C295s will allow it to replace the ageing Avro 748s across three squadrons in the air force. (Airbus)  The first of 56 Airbus C295 military transports on order by the Indian Air Force (IAF) has successfully completed its maiden flight.  According to Airbus, the aircraft conducted a successful take-off on 5 May from Seville, Spain, at 1145 h local time. It landed at 1445 h local time, following a three-hour flight.  Jean-Brice Dumont, head of Military Air Systems at Airbus Defence and Space, said that the “prog...

Climate change is creating a greater security burden for the US Coast Guard in the Arctic. (Michael Fabey)  The US should develop a US Arctic intelligence strategy, according to a recent report released by the Wilson Center's Polar Institute on 8 May.    “The US intelligence community (IC) and its customers would benefit from a pan-Arctic approach that views the region as a whole instead of through the current, fragmented lens split across three different combatant commands (European Command, Northern Command, and Indo-Pacific Command),”...

The third-generation UNWAS system enables 24/7 highly automated and cost-efficient surveillance and protection of underwater pipelines, subsea cables, ports, and harbours. (Image Soft)  Image Soft, a Finnish underwater and maritime technology company, launched on 8 May the latest version of its Underwater Surveillance System (UNWAS) designed to protect subsea cables, pipelines, and harbours.  The new third-generation UNWAS system is a highly automated maritime surveillance system that detects, locates, and classifies all underwater threats su...

Diseños Casanave has sold its CW-40D ISR drone to armed forces of Peru. (Erich Saumeth C)  Peruvian company Diseños Casanave has sold its CW-40D intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) unmanned aircraft system (UAS) to the armed forces of Peru, the company told   Janes   on 5 May.   The sale took place in January 2023, but the company declined to reveal the numbers sold.  According to Diseños Casanave, the CW-40D is a fixed-wing vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drone with a hybrid (electric battery and gasoline) engi...

A rendering of CesiumAstro's Vireo AESA RF communications payload integrated into Tranche 1 satellites for the SDA's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture. (CesiumAstro)  Raytheon will integrate CesiumAstro's active electronically scanned array (AESA) radio frequency (RF) communications payload into its low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites being developed for the Pentagon's Space Development Agency (SDA).  Raytheon programme officials plan to integrate seven Vireo AESA RF payloads into the company's prototype satellite systems being develope...