One of the Royal Danish Air Force's first four F-35As departs Luke Air Force Base in Arizona ahead of its transatlantic crossing to Denmark. (Danish MoD/Lockheed Martin)  The first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft for Denmark arrived in-country on 14 September.  The first four aircraft arrived at Flyvestation Skrydstrup (Skrydstrup Air Base) from Luke Air Force Base (AFB) in Arizona, where it had been part of the international training effort. Their arrival was attended by senior Danish government and mil...

The 12.7 mm XT112 sniper rifle, pictured above from the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition 2023, features a detachable 10-round magazine and has an effective range of 2,000 m. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense's (MND's) Armaments Bureau has unveiled the 12.7 mm XT112 sniper rifle at the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition 2023 (TADTE 2023) held in Taipei from 14 to 16 September 2023.  Under development by the 205th Arsenal, which is based in the southern city of Kaohsiung, the new rifle...

Leonardo Helicopters showcased the AW149 it is bidding for the UK NMH requirement at the DSEI 2023 event in London. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Leonardo Helicopters has highlighted recent exports success as it prepares for the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to launch the second phase of its New Medium Helicopter (NMH) requirement.  Timed to coincide with the biannual DSEI defence exhibition in London, the announcement on 11 September is part of a wider push by Leonardo to promote itself as ‘The Home of British Helicopters' as it looks to secure th...

A mock-up of the Eurofighter Typhoon featuring Halcon II livery was displayed at the Paris Air Show 2023. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Spain has officially launched its anticipated Halcon II follow-on buy of Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft, budgetary documents released by the government show.  Published by the Council of Ministers on 12 September, the documents say that 25 additional Eurofighters (designated C.16 in national service) will be acquired to replace the Boeing EF-18 Hornet (C.15M) aircraft that the Spanish Air Force (Ejército del...

An Australian Army trooper launches a Wasp AE UAV during an exercise in Queensland in August 2021. The Australian Army has contracted three companies from eastern Australia to develop UAVs that can support logistics operations as it accelerates efforts to automate supply and casualty evacuation missions. (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Australian Army is encouraging industry to develop unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that can facilitate logistics operations.  Three companies from eastern Australia have been contracted to develop medium-lift...

Known as the Mwari in its ITAR-free configuration and as the Bronco II in its ITAR-compliant configuration, Paramount's light attack and ISR aircraft is now set to target European customers following recent success in Africa. (Paramount)    South Africa's Paramount Group is targeting European requirements as it looks to expand the growing customer base for its Mwari/Bronco II light attack and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft, senior company officials told   Janes  on 12 September.   Speaking at...

The RAF intends to field the Striker II HMD on its Typhoon combat aircraft in 2027–28. (BAE Systems)  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has contracted BAE Systems to further develop its Striker II helmet-mounted display (HMD) for the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 combat aircraft.  The GBP40 million (USD49.9 million) award announced on 12 September at DSEI 2023 in London will see the company produce a number of test helmets for trials at its Warton site in northern England.  News of the contract came weeks after Group Captain Matthew D'Aubyn, Air Ca...

Lockheed Martin promoted its Black Hawk for the UK bid at DSEI 2023. (Lockheed Martin via Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Lockheed Martin has partnered with StandardAero to assemble the Black Hawk helicopter in the UK should it be selected for the New Medium Helicopter (NMH) requirement.  Speaking at the DSEI 2023 defence exhibition in London, the chief executive of Lockheed Martin UK, Paul Livingston, said StandardAero will establish a line for the S-70M Black Hawk helicopter at its Gosport facility in southern England, from where it will assemble p...

People watching a South Korean news broadcast in Seoul showing a parade to mark North Korea's 75th founding anniversary on 9 September 2023. Spotted at the parade were what appears to be the M1985 multiple launch rocket system that has been incorporated into red tipper trucks with false load coverings. (Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images)  North Korea has displayed what appears to be a fleet of multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) units that have been disguised as civilian vehicles.  These units were showcased during a paramilitary parade...

An artist's impression of the future fighter aircraft that Italy, Japan, and the UK are developing under the GCAP programme. (BAE Systems)  The three countries partnering on the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) have announced an agreement to work to develop an industrial construct for the delivery of the sixth-generation combat aircraft.  Announced on the opening day of the DSEI 2023 defence exhibition in London, the agreement between the three national industrial primes of Mitsubishi for Japan, Leonardo for Italy, and BAE Systems for the U...

The US Army's LRHW could be delayed in fielding because of a recent flight cancellation. (US Navy)  The US Department of Defense (DoD) cancelled a flight test scheduled for the US Army's Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) on 6 September, the Pentagon told reporters on 7 September.    The flight test scheduled at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Florida, was cancelled after undergoing pre-flight checks, DoD Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters. The army declined to confirm if the cancellation would push the army over th...

The site of the planned USAF squadron operations centre at RAAF Base Darwin. (ESRI/Janes)  A United States-Australia infrastructure development plan to support the deployment of United States Air Force (USAF) aircraft in Australia has officially extended to two locations across the country's Northern Territory.    A US government contracting document from July 2023 states that a “United States Air Force squadron operations facility” will be set up at the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base in Darwin.   Janes   earlier report...

The US Navy installed a 3D printer on the amphibious assault ship USS   Bataan   in November 2022.  (US Navy)  The US Navy (USN) is striving to bolster the use of additive manufacturing (AM) in shipbuilding and ship repairs, according to Rear Admiral Jason Lloyd, chief engineer and deputy commander for Ship Design, Integration and Naval Engineering at Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA).  “We have a national imperative to make additive manufacturing an interchangeable process for other types of manufacturing,” Rear...

ST Engineering is partnering with Wigetworks Private Limited to create several variants of the Airfish 8 wing-in-ground (WIG) aircraft. (ST Engineering)  ST Engineering and Wigetworks have started a joint venture (JV) to develop multiple versions of the Airfish 8 wing-in-ground (WIG) effect aircraft.  Wigetworks Private Limited, a Singapore-based company, is developing the Airfish 8 for commercial and “parapublic” applications. The “Airfish 8 will be the baseline product. Variants can be developed based on [the] Airfish 8”, an ST Engineering...

Airbus is impatient for the UK MoD to proceed with its New Medium Helicopter requirement, for which it is offering the H175M. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Airbus has repeated its call for the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to progress its New Medium Helicopter (NMH) requirement at a quicker pace, with a senior official telling Janes and other defence media that it is “chomping at the bit” to fulfil the requirement with its H175M offering.  Speaking ahead of the DSEI 2023 defence exhibition in London, Lenny Brown, managing director of Airbus Helicop...

Pictured at the Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose on 5 September is one of two Crowsnest-configured Merlin HM2 helicopters from 820 NAS now embarked on HMS   Queen Elizabeth  for CSG23/Operation ‘Firedrake'.  (Richard Scott/NAVYPIX)  The UK Royal Navy (RN) has achieved initial operating capability (IOC) for its much-delayed Crowsnest airborne surveillance and control (ASaC) capability.  Crowsnest is a role-fit for the Merlin HM2 helicopter, which swaps out the standard mission console and sonics suite for an ASaC...

A TV screen at a railway station in Seoul shows an image of the launch of North Korea's new ‘tactical nuclear attack submarine'. (Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)  North Korea has unveiled a new “tactical nuclear attack submarine”, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on 8 September.  The submarine was launched and handed over to the Korean People's Navy (KPN) on 6 September in a ceremony at the Sinpo shipyard on the country's northeast coast that marked the country's 75th founding anniversary and was...

A Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon intercepts a Russian Sukhoi Su-27 ‘Flanker' over the Baltic region. The House of Commons Defence Committee has warned that recent cuts to the UK's combat aviation capabilities have left the country ‘dangerously exposed' in the face of Russia's ongoing aggression in Ukraine. (Crown Copyright)  Cuts to the UK's combat air power over recent years have left the country “dangerously exposed” in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a parliamentary report has determined.  Published on 11 August, the...

Soldiers fire the army's new M1A2 SEPv3 tank at Fort Cavazos, Texas, on 18 August 2020. (US Army)  After years of upgrading the Abrams M1A2, the US Army wants to try a newbuild for the main battle tank (MBT), officials announced on 6 September.  The effort to develop the M1E3 Abrams – designated with an ‘E' to represent the prototype phase – will replace the upgrade process for the M1A2 system enhancement package version 4 effort, Brigadier General Geoffrey Norman, director of the Next Generation Combat Vehicle Cross Functional Team, said in...

The Slinger, pictured above from the demonstrations, has a maximum ammunition load of 150 rounds. The Slinger's thermal imager has a detection range of more than 13,700 m, a recognition range of more than 5,100 m, and an identification range of more than 4,000 m. (EOS)  Canberra-based Electro Optic Systems (EOS) demonstrated its directed energy and kinetic counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UASs) capabilities in the presence of “potential export customers from Europe, the Middle East, North America, and Southeast Asia”, the company announce...