The GM400α radar from Thales is replacing the MPR (pictured) in Nieuw Milligen while the new Herwijnen radar station is fitted with the long-range SMART-L Multi-Mission/Fixed system. (Netherlands Ministry of Defence )  The Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) has retired its 52-year-old Medium Power Radar (MPR) based in Nieuw Milligen, the Netherlands Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on 2 April.  The MPR in Nieuw Milligen has been in service since 1971, supporting the RNLAF Nieuw Milligen air operations control station (AOCS) with air surve...

A still from a DICI video shows a Norinco VN22 at the Al-Rabie factory. (Defence Industry Commission of Iraq)  Iraq's state-owned defence industry has said it has begun producing Norinco VN22 6×6 armoured vehicles.  The Defence Industry Commission of Iraq (DICI) posted a video on its Facebook page on 1 April in which engineer Mustafa Ati Hassan, the president of the Military Industrialization Authority, stood next to a VN22 to announce the start of production of a 6×6 vehicle he did not name at the Al-Rabie factory, which is in southeast Bagh...

SkyWiper Omni (pictured), developed by NT Service, is an omnidirectional jammer being procured by the Lithuanian MND, which has a 500 m domed range. (Janes/Olivia Savage)  Lithuania-based NT Service has been contracted to deliver counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UASs) to the Lithuanian military to meet an urgent requirement to combat ‘drones'.  The contract, valued at EUR8.03 million (USD8.72 million) and spanning 36 months, involves the provision of anti-drone dome systems and individual suppressors, according to a contract notice publis...

A convoy of Cold Weather All-Terrain Vehicles perform command-and-control operations for the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center training rotation in Fort Greely, Alaska. (Janes/Meredith Roaten)    Life in the Arctic can shift from -40ºF with 20 to 30 mph winds one week to the snow melting away as temperatures climb closer to 40ºF every day the next week. This kind of chaos makes the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center (JPMRC) 24-02 training rotation an excellent trial for new US Army equipment and operations in contest...

A 5.56 mm XT112 assault rifle prototype showcased at TADTE 2023. The rifle has a firing range of 600 m. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Republic of China Army (RoCA) has granted the permission to produce a new direct fire support variant of the Cloud Leopard 8×8 wheeled armoured combat vehicle (ACV) and a new 5.56 mm assault rifle called XT112, Taiwan's state-owned Central News Agency (CNA) reported in late March.  According to the CNA, the ACV – fitted with a 105 mm gun – passed initial combat readiness testing with the RoCA in October 2023, while...

A US Army soldier with the 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, inspects a MAPS Gen 1 A-PNT component installed on a tactical vehicle. (US Army)  The US Army's combat capabilities development directorate is seeking industry input on an Assured Position, Navigation, and Timing (A-PNT) capability specifically designed for dismounted operations.  Officials from the research and technology integration directorate at the service's Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (C5ISR) Center are s...

An Australian Army AS9 Huntsman self-propelled howitzer test-fires a practice round at the Proof and Experimental Establishment in Port Wakefield. (Commonwealth of Australia)  South Korea's Hanwha Aerospace initiated the production of the first AS9 ‘Huntsman' self-propelled howitzer (SPH) and AS10 armoured ammunition resupply vehicle (AARV) for the Australian Army on 28 March at its Changwon facility, the company said in a social media post in late March.  Following initial production of two AS9s and one AS10 at the Changwon facility, all the...

A Malaysian Army PT-91M main battle tank. The country has begun investigations into “critical problems” plaguing the fleet, including issues with the vehicle's transmission and fire-control systems. (Malaysia Ministry of Defence)  Malaysia has formed a joint investigation team to rectify a list of “critical problems” that plague the country's fleet of PT-91M ‘Pendekar' main battle tanks (MBTs).  This team comprises operators of the equipment and representatives from the contractor that supplies maintenance services and spare parts to these ta...

The USN CNO noted the need for the development of directed energy weapons, such as the laser system shown in this artist's rendition. (Lockheed Martin)  Recent US Navy (USN) operations in the Red Sea have underscored the importance of logistics, according to Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the USN chief of naval operations (CNO).  Adm Franchetti also noted the importance of developing new weapons and related capabilities to match emerging threats.  The CNO made the comments during a discussion for Defense One that was shown online on 27 March.  “I'v...

A company graphic showing Magal Solutions' integrated military base solution, featuring sensor integration into the company's Fortis X C5I software solution. (Magal Solutions)  Magal Solutions is incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) tools into its military base protection solutions to enhance data fusion and analysis capabilities, the company has told Janes.  Part of Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Magal's major focus for armed forces is an integrated military base solution. This combines sensors – such as short- and long-range cameras...

A Silvus Technologies StreamCaster MANET radio paired with an Echodyne MESA radar is demonstrated during a US armed forces readiness exercise. (Echodyne)  Mobile networking company Silvus Technologies is developing a pared down variant of its StreamCaster mobile ad hoc network (MANET) radio, specifically designed to provide networked radio communications capability for small unmanned aircraft systems (UASs).  Company officials are preparing to release “our next generation” of the small UAS-specific StreamCaster variant later this year, Silvus...

Chile plans to acquire MRAP Hunter TR-12s. (Erich Saumeth Cadavid)  The Ministry of the Interior and Public Security of Chile, through the police special operations group Carabineros, has acquired four Hunter TR-12-24-type vehicles made by Colombian defence company Armor International, the company has confirmed to Janes.  The Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles will be assigned to the Public Order Control Prefecture (COP), in development of order control operations on public roads, as well as security and surveillance. The TR-12...

The Brazilian Navy has organised to better modernise its forces with programmes such as the development of the Riachuelo-class submarines, the lead ship shown here. (Brazilian Navy)  The Navy Directorate-General for Material (Diretoria-Geral do Material da Marinha: DGMM) of the Brazilian Navy has designed a new plan to better organise its role in the modernisation of the service, the DGMM told Janes.  This modernisation, known as the ‘The Navy of Tomorrow', is guided by the Navy Strategic Plan 2040, which establishes strategic programmes to p...

The armament of the T-72 MBT (pictured above) – taking part in an Indian Army exercise in November 2022 – includes a 125 mm main gun, a 7.62 mm co-axial machine gun, and a 12.7 mm gun. The Indian Army seeks to integrate the CALM system into the tank. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Indian Army has outlined a programme to procure canister-launched anti-armour loiter munition (CALM) systems and associated accessories to enhance the operational efficiency of the mechanised infantry.  According to an initial procurement notice issued by the Indian Army...

A Silvus Technologies StreamCaster radio mounted on a Ghost Robotics V60-legged unmanned ground vehicle (UGV). (Silvus Technologies)  California-based mobile networking company Silvus Technologies is working with US Army officials to provide mobile ad hoc network (MANET) radio capability to ground units on the move, a critical requirement to the service's evolving command post architecture under the Integrated Tactical Network (ITN).  The on-the-move (OTM) capability being developed by the company's StreamCaster MANET radio got a fiscal shot...

The US Navy wants to acquire two attack submarines, such as New Jersey shown here, per year through the 2030s. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  The US Navy (USN) intends to achieve and sustain a force-structure fleet of 350 ships after fiscal year (FY) 2037, according to the Report to Congress on the Annual Long-Range Plan for Construction of Naval Vessels for Fiscal Year 2025, often called USN's 30-yearshipbuilding plan, sent to US lawmakers on 19 March.  The USN's proposed FY 2025 budget includes procurement of six manned ships in FY 2025 and 57 mann...

Lithuania is purchasing omnidirectional C-UASs and individual suppressors from NT Service. The company developed a handheld jammer, displayed at DSEI 2023, called Skywiper Electronic Drone Mitigation 4 – System (EDM4S) that could be offered as part of the procurement and which is already in service with the Lithuanian military. (Janes/Olivia Savage)  Lithuania-based NT Service has been contracted to deliver counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UASs) to the Lithuanian military to meet an urgent requirement to combat ‘drones'.  The contract, va...

As they did in ‘Cold Response 2022', US marines are learning to use Bandvagn 206s for Arctic operations in ‘Nordic Response 2024'. (Janes/Michael Fabey)  The Arctic environment has spurred the US Marine Corps (USMC) as the land-component lead for ‘Nordic Response 2024' NATO exercise held in March in Norway to recalibrate the most effective and safest way to move equipment and people, according to Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Fitzsimmons, senior watch officer for the exercise's Combat Operations Center.  “Our infantry manoeuvre element is leaning...

A Patgb 300 CAVS showing the unique Swedish modifications to the platform. These include a roof-mounted Kongsberg RS4 Protector ROWS and two banks of four smoke dischargers mounted beneath the windshield. (Patria Land Oy)  Patria and the Swedish Armed Forces announced that Sweden placed a SEK5.3 billion (USD507.4 million) order for 321 Patria 6×6 Common Armoured Vehicle Systems (CAVS) on 20 March.  Designated Patgb 300 (Pansarterrängbil 300: Armoured All-Terrain Vehicle 300) in Swedish service, the vehicles are planned to be delivered in armo...

The Royal Netherlands Army's VOSS soldier system incorporates a vest, backpack, E-Lynx PNR-1000 radio, and the Raptor end-user device. It is designed for mounted and/or platoon-level infantrymen. (Netherlands Ministry of Defence)  The Netherlands Armed Forces' Improved Operational Soldier Systems (Verbeterd Operationeel Soldaat Systeem: VOSS) being delivered by Elbit Systems and Thales has ‘limitations', Janes has learnt.  Primarily, the limitations are with electronic devices such as the radios, because the requirements have changed since th...