Victoria-class submarine HMCS   Windsor  sails through Halifax Harbour. The submarine class is slated for modernisation.  (Royal Canadian Navy)  Initial work packages under Phase 2 of the Royal Canadian Navy's (RCN's) Victoria-class submarine Modernization (VCM) project are scheduled to go out for tender.  According to a Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) official, requests for proposals (RFPs) for two VCM Phase 2 projects – flank sonar array modernisation and periscope modernisation – “are expected to...

An artist's impression of the CH-53K in Israeli service. The IDF is to receive 12 helicopters, which it will use for heavy lift, long-range personnel recovery, and special mission insertion/exfiltration duties. (Lockheed Martin)  The US Navy (USN) has contracted Lockheed Martin to build a further eight CH-53K King Stallion heavy-lift helicopters for Israel, the company announced on 24 August.  The Foreign Military Sales (FMS) agreement was part of a wider USD2.7 billion contract for the manufacture of 35 Lot 7 and Lot 8 helicopters to be deli...

India's Nirbhay cruise missile, displayed above at Defexpo 2020 in Lucknow, will be equipped with Small Turbofan Engines, enhanced radio frequency seekers, and other subsystems to transform it into the proposed Long-Range Land Attack Cruise Missile. (Janes/Rahul Udoshi )  India's Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh, has accorded an Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) to procurethe Long-Range Land Attack Cruise Missile (LRLACM) for the Indian Air Force.  The AoN is the sixth step in Indian defence procurem...

Boeing Australia FSR Luc de Leacy (left) and USAF Airman First Class Anthony Cardoni on the flight deck of a USAF C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft during a field test of Boeing's ATOM technology. (Boeing)  Boeing has conducted the first field test of an augmented reality (AR)-based maintenance technology it has developed to enable swift repair of deployed aircraft.  The technology, named Augmented Training Operations Maintenance (ATOM), was tested on a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft belonging to the United States Air F...

The Indonesian Army's Harimau tanks on display at Indo Defence 2022. Harimau is equipped with the CMI Defence Cockerill 3105 turret, which is fitted with a 105 mm high-pressure gun and a bustle-mounted autoloader. (Janes/Andrew Galer)  Indonesia's PT Pindad has conducted a series of final tests on the Harimau medium tank, the company announced on 23 August.  According to the company, it “successfully” completed firing test to validate the function and feasibility of the Harimau tank at the Cipatat Pusdikif shooting range on 22 August.  The fi...

MD Helicopters is to deliver six new and six upgraded MD 530F CWP helicopters to an undisclosed Middle Eastern customer. (MDH)  MD Helicopters (MDH) has been contracted to deliver new and upgraded MD 530F Cayuse Warrior Plus (CWP) light attack helicopters to an undisclosed Middle Eastern customer.  The award announced earlier in August covers six new helicopters and ‘glass cockpit' upgrades to six already delivered helicopters, with deliveries of all 12 to commence in 2024.  Jordan, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia are Middle Eastern countries that...

Poland's first K239 Chunmoo MRL mounted on a Polish Jelcz vehicle was delivered by sea to the Port of Gdańsk, Poland, on 21 August. (Polish Armaments Agency)  Poland's first K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher (MRL) mounted on a Jelcz launch vehicle was delivered by sea to the Port of Gdańsk on 21 August 2023, the Polish Armaments Agency (AA) announced on its website on the same day.    Asked for more details, Hanwha Aerospace sent   Janes  a press release on 23 August, originally distributed only to Polish media on 29 June,...

The Chinese joint air-sea combat readiness operation on 19 August 2023 saw 27 PLA aircraft fly into Taiwan's air-defence identification zone. (Taiwan Ministry of National Defense/Chinese Ministry of National Defense)  China said it launched a joint air and sea combat readiness operation around Taiwan on 19 August in response to a senior Taiwan politician's visit to the United States.  The Chinese Ministry of National Defense (MND) claimed that it had launched fighter jets, bombers, and airborne mission aircraft of the People's Liberation Army...

The first newbuild AH-64 delivery to Poland is scheduled for 2027. (Boeing)  On 21 August the US State Department announced its approval of Poland's USD12 billion purchase of 96 Boeing AH-64E Apache attack helicopters.  If Poland follows through with the full purchase – the approval does not necessarily commit the country to do so – it would become the largest operator of AH-64s outside the US. The helicopters are to be purchased via the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process.  Poland submitted the request to purchase the AH-64s – along with as...

A Royal Danish Air Force F-16BM participated in the recent Royal International Air Tattoo in the UK. This aircraft, along with others from Denmark and the Netherlands, is to be transferred to Ukraine. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Denmark and the Netherlands have pledged to transfer Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft to Kyiv, with a joint communiqué announcing the proposed transfer on 20 August.  The two F-16 operators made their announcement some six weeks after they disclosed in mid-July their membership in a coalition of Europ...

Polish Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak speaking in front of the first two FA-50 combat aircraft to be delivered to the Polish Air Force. (Polish Ministry of National Defence)  Poland has received into service the first of 48 Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 Fighting Eagle light combat aircraft.  The induction of the first two aircraft was announced by the Polish Minister of National Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak, at Mińsk Mazowiecki on 21 August. Błaszczak was speaking ahead of the Radom Air Show 2023, where the jets will be...

Based on available information, it is likely that the upgraded air-launched variant of Japan's Type 12 missile and the US-origin Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range could be used to turn Japan's cargo aircraft into lethal platforms. (Janes)  Transport aircraft of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) could be equipped with long-range missiles to improve the country's stand-off strike capabilities.    A Japan Ministry of Defense (MoD) spokesperson confirmed to   Janes   that the MoD and the Japan Self-Defense...

The 4×4 Waran launcher vehicle of the Gladius system with the FT-5 tactical reconnaissance UAV mounted. To the left is the training version of the BSP-U strike UAV. (Jakub Link-Lenczowski)  The Polish army unveiled the components of its new Gladius artillery strike-reconnaissance system during a military parade on 15 August, displaying a commander's vehicle and a mobile launcher vehicle, the FT-5 tactical unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and the training version of the BSP-U strike UAV (BSP-U(T)).  Huta Stalowa Wola's (HSW) Waran 4×4 is used as...

At Exercise ‘Talisman Sabre', which took place in Queensland, Australia, in July and August 2023, the NZDF participated in joint drills incorporating activities including air combat and maritime operations, amphibious landings, and ground force manoeuvres. (Tim Fish)  New Zealand's first National Security Strategy (NSS) was released on 4 August alongside the first two parts of a new defence review that highlight the threats the country faces and how it plans to respond.  The NSS is a cross-governmental analysis of the challenges that face New...

A BGM-71F TOW 2B missile is fired from a US Army 4×4 High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle during an exercise at Joint Multinational Training Command in Grafenwoehr, Germany. (US Army)  The US Army selected Raytheon Technologies for a USD322.5 million contract that requires the company to build tube-launched, optically tracked, wire-guided (TOW) 2B top-attack missiles, according to a 15 August announcement.  The procurement will produce TOW weapons for the army, the US Marine Corps, and international customers with a ceiling of USD400 mi...

A refuel is conducted on a Royal Australian Air Force E/A-18G Growler at RAAF Base Darwin during Exercise ‘Talisman Sabre 2023'. (Department of Defence, Commonwealth of Australia )  Australia is starting to resurface the runway at a key air force base in its Northern Territory. The project is aligned with Australia's effort to strengthen military presence in its northern maritime approaches.  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) said on 13 August that a “significant package” of resurfacing works for the runways at Royal Australian Air F...

In June 2023 the RCCTO oversaw the launch of a Tomahawk missile from the army's prototype Mid-Range Capability system. (US Army)  The US Army fired a cruise missile for the first time since 1944, completing the operational tests necessary to deliver the first Mid-Range Capability (MRC) weapon system by the end of fiscal year (FY) 2023, the service announced recently.  The US Army's 1st Multi-Domain Task Force (MDTF) worked with the US Navy to launch a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile from an MRC system on 27 June, according to an army release. Th...

A refuel is conducted on a Royal Australian Air Force E/A-18G Growler at RAAF Base Darwin during Exercise ‘Talisman Sabre 2023'. (Department of Defence, Commonwealth of Australia )  Australia is starting to resurface the runway at a key air force base in its Northern Territory. The project is aligned with Australia's effort to strengthen military presence in its northern maritime approaches.  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) said on 13 August that a “significant package” of resurfacing works for the runways at Royal Australian Air...

RAAF F/A-18A Hornets from No 77 Squadron fly in formation with JASDF fighter aircraft, including the F-15J and F-2A, during Exercise ‘Bushido Guardian 2019' conducted out of Chitose Air Base in Japan. (Department of Defence, Commonwealth of Australia)  A landmark agreement between Canberra and Tokyo that allows the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and Japan Self-Defence Forces (JSDF) to train and operate on each other's territories came into force on 13 August.  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) said the Australia-Japan Reciprocal Acc...

The US Army demonstrates its ‘lone wolf' quadruped unmanned ground vehicle at a reception for lawmakers on 26 July 2023. (Janes/Meredith Roaten)  The US Army's ‘robotic dog' technology development programme is exploring how it could add an infantry rifle as a payload, the service told Janes recently.  The Ghost Robotics-made Vision 60 Quadruped Unmanned Ground Vehicle (Q-UGV) is currently being integrated with different sensors to see how well it can perform reconnaissance and other missions, Bhavanjot Singh, senior scientific technical manag...