Romania plans to submit a request for the F-35 by the end of 2024, with the first operational squadron after 2030. (US DoD)  Romania has firmed up plans to acquire the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), with a senior official saying the Ministry of Defence (MoD) will submit a formal letter of request to the US government before the end of 2024.  In comments reported by the Romanian MoD on 8 March, Lieutenant General Teodor Incicaș, head of the General Directorate for Armaments, said that the groundwork for this proc...

The trial operation of an MQ-9B SeaGuardian with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force is intended to assess the adaptability of the RPAS for manned-unmanned teaming with naval vessels and manned aircraft. Here, an MQ-9B co-operates with the   USS Coronado  in 2021 for warfighting enhancements. The MQ-9B is seen carrying one sonobuoy dispenser system pod in a port wing hardpoint.  (US Navy/Chief Petty Officer Shannon Renfroe)  A new trial programme to be conducted in Japan will assess the country's ability to replace some...

The Nigerian Army has selected the armed MD 530F Cayuse Warrior Plus to meet its rotary-winged counter-insurgency requirement. (MD Helicopters)  Nigeria has selected the MD Helicopters (MDH) MD 530F Cayuse Warrior Plus (CWP) light attack helicopter, it was announced on 7 March.  The Arizona-based company said it is to supply 12 CWP helicopters to the Nigerian Army “to assist in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations”. MDH did not disclose a contract value or delivery timeline.  Previously referred to as the MD 530F+, the CWP sta...

One of the UK RN's seven Banshee RPAS air vehicles, pictured in a hangar at RNAS Culdrose. The Banshee is bringing a step-up in RN RPAS capability. (Dr Lee Willett)  The UK Royal Navy (RN) has purchased seven QinetiQ Banshee Jet 80+ remotely piloted air systems (RPAS), as the next step in building its unmanned aircraft system (UAS) capability.  The Banshees will support two primary tasks for 700X Naval Air Squadron (NAS), the maritime UAS centre of expertise.    “First, it's about building remote pilots' experience of operating that type...

Singapore's A330 MRTT conducts air-to-air refuelling operations to extend the endurance of participating fighter aircraft, including F-35s, at Exercise ‘Pitch Black' 2022. (Ministry of Defence, Singapore)  Singapore's Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen confirmed during a parliamentary address in February 2023 that the country will exercise an option to purchase eight more F-35B Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft. This is in addition to the acquisition of four airframesit announced in 2019.  The F-35Bs will replace the Republic of Singapore Air For...

The Italian Air Force will fit its C-27J fleet with modernised avionics, upgraded systems, and a new self-protection suite. (Leonardo)  Italy has launched an upgrade programme for its fleet of C-27J Spartan tactical airlifters, with Leonardo and the Italian Defence Ministry's Air Force Armament and Airworthiness Directorate (Armaereo) signing a contract on 7 March.  Under this contract, the Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana: AMI) will fit its fleet with modernised avionics, upgraded systems, and a new self-protection suite. It...

China's Y-5U unmanned transport aircraft has over 3 m  3  more cargo space than the manned Y-5 aircraft in service with the People's Liberation Army (PLA). A cargo delivery system is also being designed for the aircraft.  (AVIC/Janes)  China has successfully demonstrated take-off and landing operations of its Y-5U utility and transport unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).  The Y-5U is an unmanned version of the Shijiazhuang Aircraft Industry Company Y-5B biplane transport aircraft. In a statement on its English-languag...

An Ashwin AAD interceptor launched from Wheeler Island. (Government of India Press Information Bureau)  South Asia has traditionally been protected from neighbouring territorial conquests by a geological ‘Maginot Line' consisting of the Himalayas in its north and northeast and the Hindu Kush mountain range in the northwest.  In recent years, the vulnerability of the region – especially northern India – has been highlighted by tensions over territory and China's military modernisation. This escalating threat perception has prompted India and P...

UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed and Malaysia's king Al-Sultan Abdullah inspect unidentified UAVs at the end of Exercise ‘Desert Tiger 6'. The detla-wing type's engine is obscured by the wing of a larger UAV, probably a Wing Loong II. (National Palace of Malaysia)  Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that have not previously been seen in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), including what appeared to be a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2, were seen in coverage of an exercise the Emirati and Malaysian armed forces held at the end of February.  After w...

The Indian Army's newly acquired A-SADS system comprises two UAV models. (Janes/NewSpace Research & Technologies/Akshara Parakala)  The Indian Army has acquired its first batch of “swarming” unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).  The acquisition follows a request for information (RFI) issued by the Indian Army in mid-2021. The USD15 million contract was won in September 2021 by Newspace Research & Technologies Pvt Ltd (NRT), a startup company based in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.    Speaking to  Janes  , the company said i...

Seen in Afghan Air Force service before the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in 2021, the MD 530F Cayuse Warrior will be the basis of MD Helicopters' future sales campaign for new military customers. (US Air Force)  MD Helicopters (MDH) is to consolidate the different platforms it had previously marketed to military customers, focusing instead on upgraded MD 500 and new-build MD 530 airframes only.    Speaking to  Janes  at the IQPC International Military Helicopter (IMH) 2023 conference held in London from 21 to 23 February, compa...

Boeing is to be the training and services provider for Airbus Helicopters' New Medium Helicopter offering to the UK Ministry of Defence, responsible for aircrew, groundcrew, and maintenance training, should the H175M be selected. (Airbus)  Boeing is to be the training and services provider for Airbus Helicopters' New Medium Helicopter (NMH) offering to the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), it was announced on 6 March.  Boeing Defence UK will provide aircrew, ground crew, and maintenance training, if the H175M is selected to replace the Airbus Pum...

Australia expects to use on-order UH-60M Black Hawks to provide dedicated support for special forces operations. (Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation)  The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has decided against acquiring 16 light helicopters to support special forces operations, Major General Stephen Jobson, the commander of the Australian Army's Aviation Command, has disclosed.  Speaking to journalists at the Avalon 2023 international airshow on 1 March, Maj Gen Jobson said that project Land 2097 Phase 4 had been cancelled owing to forthcoming overlap...

Saudi Arabia and the UK are to further the defence aviation co-operation that has seen the former operate a number of the latter's combat aircraft types, such as the Eurofighter Typhoon. However, while the Saudi defence minister said that this would see his country join the UK in its FCAS effort, the UK MoD has said this is not the case, and that the two are instead pursuing “a partnering feasibility study” to look at future co-operation. (BAE Systems)  The United Kingdom has said that Saudi Arabia is not joining its Future Combat Air System...

IAI ARC 840 SDR-NCO airborne communication system is compliant with the latest SCA 4.1 standard, set by the US Joint Tactical Networking Centre. (IAI)  Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) subsidiary Elta Systems has launched a new airborne software-defined radio (SDR).  Announced by IAI on 2 March, the ARC 840 SDR – Network Centric Operations (SDR-NCO) system is the latest in Elta's portfolio of military airborne communications that provides voice, video, and data communications.  Operating on very high frequency (VHF), ultra-high frequency (UH...

The HAL HTT-40 basic turboprop trainer will augment the IAF's training aircraft numbers, which are currently below establishment strength. (Hindustan Aeronautics Limited)  The Indian government has approved the acquisition of 70 Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF)  In an announcement on 1 March, the government said that the procurement has a value of INR68.283 billion (USD827.78 million). HAL is required to supply the aircraft over a six-year period. The acquisition also includes as...

BAE Systems Australia's in-development Razer precision-guided munition is being designed for deployment from unmanned combat aerial vehicles and helicopters. (BAE Systems)  BAE Systems Australia has announced that it is designing and developing a new air-launched guided munition called the Razer.  The company said in the announcement on 28 February that the Razer is being conceived as a “low-cost air-launched precision-guided munition that is designed to transform a 40–50 kg standard non-guided munition into a precision air-launched weapon at...

Teledyne FLIR SkyRanger R70 integrated on a Ford F-150 truck, along with the Cameleon V5 Enterprise and the TacFLIR 380-HD surveillance system. (Janes/Akshara Parakala)  Teledyne FLIR showed a counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) concept that integrates its SkyRanger R70 UAS, a TacFLIR 380-HD multisensor surveillance system, and the Cameleon V5 Enterprise intrusion detection software on a Ford F-150 truck at IDEX 2023, which was held in Abu Dhabi from 20 to 24 February.  Speaking to Janes, Adam DeAngelis, Teledyne FLIR's head of global ma...

BAE Systems Australia unveiled its strike-capable Strix UAS at Avalon 2023. The system is predominantly aimed at the land and maritime markets. (Julian Kerr)  A new multimission unmanned aircraft system (UAS) – combining the advantages of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) and fixed-wing flight – was launched by BAE Systems Australia at the Avalon 2023 international airshow on 28 February.  Named the Strix, the tiltable body and X-wing-configured UAS – which has four hybrid engines – combines the convenience of VTOL with the range and speed...

The Ukrainian defence intelligence displays the UH-60A. (Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine)  Imagery released by the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine shows that the service is operating a UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter.  Two images of a UH-60A in a paint scheme that features the Ukrainian flag and roundels were posted by the directorate on social media. In one image the helicopter is pictured next to an Mi-24. Accordingto the intelligence service, both helicopters have b...