Drone Evolution's Sentinel tethered UAV, displayed at DSEI 2023, is suited for forward operating bases or border security. (Janes/Olivia Savage)  The UK-based Drone Evolution has debuted a new tethered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) at DSEI 2023, held from 12 to 15 September in London.    Known as Sentinel, the UAV can be used as an airborne surveillance solution or as a rebroadcasting node that can eliminate blackspots, enabled with Steatite's MPU5 Mesh radio, Toby Townrow, co-founder and business development director at Drone Evolution,...

FFG Wisent 1 MCT at DSEI 2023. This vehicle is identical to those procured for Ukraine in January 2023, with the exception of the cover over the louvres at the side of the engine compartment. (Janes/Sonny Butterworth)  Flensburger Fahrzeugbau Gesellschaft (FFG) used DSEI 2023 to display the Mine Clearing Tank (MCT) variant of its Wisent 1 armoured engineering vehicle (AEV), eight of which have been supplied to Ukraine.  The 42.6 tonne Wisent 1 MCT is based upon a former German Bergepanzer 2 armoured recovery vehicle (ARV), which has been adap...

The Alakran-S mounted on a Polaris MRZR Alpha 4 all-terrain vehicle at DSEI in September 2023. The mortar is shown in its deployed position, with the screen for the fire-control system on the left side. (Janes/Sonny Butterworth)  Milanion New Technologies Global Systems (NTGS) and Polaris Government & Defense publicly displayed the Alakran-S 81 mm mortar system mounted on a Polaris MRZR Alpha 4 4×4 vehicle for the first time at the DSEI 2023 exhibition in London.  The Alakran-S (the ‘S' denoting ‘small') made its debut at IDEX 2023 mounted on...

GDLS–UK displayed a TRX UGV with Brimstone missiles at DSEI 2023. (Janes/Nicholas Fiorenza)  General Dynamics Land Systems–UK (GDLS–UK) displayed a TRX heavy tracked unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) with Brimstone missile launchers at the DSEI 2023 defence exhibition held in London on 12–15 September. The UGV has two pods with four MBDA Brimstone missiles each and two remotely operated weapon stations, one with a MAG 7.62 mm machine gun and the other with an M2 12.7 mm machine gun.  A GDLS–UK representative told Janes that his company had propos...

Rheinmetall unveiled a C-UAS version of its Mission Master XT UGV at DSEI 2023. (Janes/Nicholas Fiorenza)  Rheinmetall unveiled a counter-unmanned aircraft system (C-UAS) version of its 4×4 Mission Master XT (Extreme Terrain) unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) at the DSEI 2023 defence exhibition, held in London from 12 to 15 September.  The UGV has a remote-controlled weapon station with a Dillon Aero 7.62 mm gatling gun with a rate of fire of 3,000 rds/min and a range of 1,200 m, and a FLIR 3D dual-use (land and air) radar that can detect micro-U...

HK421 7.62 mm machine gun, right-hand side. (Janes/Amael Kotlarski)  Heckler & Koch (H&K) debuted its new lightweight 7.62×51 mm chambered machine gun at DSEI 2023 in London.  The new weapon has the HK421 designation and is derived from the company's MG5 series of 7.62 mm general-purpose machine guns (GPMGs). Compared with the MG5A2 – the standard infantry model fitted with a 460 mm-long barrel – the HK421 with its 421 mm-long barrel (the longest currently on offer) is approximately 2.7 kg lighter. The company also offers a 330 mm-long barre...

Mossberg ‘Vanisher' breacher shotgun (Janes/ Amael Kotlarski)    Mossberg's new highly compact ‘Vanisher' breaching shotgun was designed at the request of a specialist UK-based unit, company representatives told   Janes  at DSEI 2023 in London.    Based on the 500/590 series of 12-bore, pump-action shotguns, the company made some notable changes to the design to meet the units very specific requirements.  The very strict overall length limitation meant that the use of the traditional tubular magazine had to be abandoned i...

Examples of the extended reality flight simulators that are being supplied by Ryan Aerospace to the US Navy. (Ryan Aerospace)  Ryan Aerospace (Australia) has secured a USD28 million contract to supply the US Navy (USN) with extended reality flight simulators.  Under the deal, Ryan Aerospace will supply 50 units of the equipment, which it refers to as immersive training devices (ITDs), to the USN's Naval Aviation Training Next (NATN) programme.  The ITDs can be configured to simulate a wide range of aircraft types.  Each unit consists of a vir...

IDV Robotics' Viking UGV at DSEI 2023 (Janes/Ares Simone Monzio Compagnoni)    The Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) has purchased two IDV Robotics Viking Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs),   Janes  has learned.   Speaking at DSEI 2023 in London, IDV Robotics' head of sales and marketing, Robert Mohacsi, said that the vehicles will undergo testing for operations in extreme weather conditions.    The Viking UGV is a 6×6 electric and diesel hybrid platform that features a large payload bay. It is primarily de...

Elbit Crossbow lightweight turret mortar system on show at DSEI 2023 in London. (Janes/Andrew Galer)    Elbit Systems revealed further details of its Crossbow lightweight turret mortar at DSEI 2023 in London and displayed a mock-up that    included the system that allows the barrel to be loaded in any position. Crossbow was first announced at the IAV 2023 conference.   Using a novel ratchet system, one of the six immediately available rounds rotates on a turntable and then moves on a ratchet arc within the loader housing so...

The first full-scale prototype of the Homar-A MLRS launcher was unveiled at MSPO 2023. (Lockheed Martin)  Janes learnt more details about the framework agreement the Polish Armaments Agency (AA) and Lockheed Martin announced on 11 September, which they had signed for the procurement of M142 High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) missile launcher components for Poland's Homar-A Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) at DSEI 2023 held in London from 12 to 15 September.  Under the agreement, signed after it was approved by Polish Minister...

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...

A computer-generated image of the P2012 Sentinel SMP equipped with sensors such as an EO/IR pod and IMSAR's NSP-7 radar for ISR operations. (IMSAR)  Taiwan's Apex Aviation and Utah-based IMSAR have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition 2023 (TADTE 2023) to provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) services to the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) of Taiwan.  IMSAR will integrate its NSP-7 radar system into Tecnam's P2012 Sentinel Special Mission Platform (SMP) ai...

ST Engineering's 120 mm Ground Deployed Advanced Mortar System. (Janes/Andrew Galer)  ST Engineering is developing a new lightweight 120 mm mounted mortar system that is aimed at providing a quickly deployable capability that can be easily fitted to a range of light utility vehicles, such as a Toyota Land Cruiser.  The company displayed the Ground Deployed Advanced Mortar System (GDAMS) at DSEI 2023 in London. The system is still in development and due for qualification in the first quarter of 2024; depending on the orders received for GDAMS...

The Scout Vehicle, pictured above from TADTE 2023, weighs 7.5 tonnes in its combat form and has a maximum range of 500 km. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Taiwanese Ministry of National Defense's (MND's) Armaments Bureau has unveiled the prototype of a new 4×4 light tactical vehicle called Scout Vehicle at the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition 2023 (TADTE 2023) held in Taipei from 14 to 16 September.  Under development by the 205th Arsenal, based in the southern city of Kaohsiung, the vehicle is designed to perform reconnaissance, sur...

The JLTV can support a RBS-70 NG launcher with up to three missiles mounted. The system is controlled entirely from the interior of the vehicle, with the operators benefitting from the JLTV's armoured protection. (Janes/Christopher Petrov)  A collaborative effort between Oshkosh and Saab to provide short-range air defence on the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) was unveiled at DSEI 2023 in London.  The vehicle is equipped with an RBS-70 NG man-portable air-defence system (MANPADS). In addition, the JLTV has been fitted with Saab's Barracu...

The Norwegian Army will receive new COMINT and jamming solutions from R&S to enhance situational awareness. (Forsvaret)    The Norwegian Army will be equipped with new communications intelligence (COMINT) and jamming solutions from Rohde & Schwarz (R&S),   Janes   learnt at DSEI 2023, held from 12 to 15 September in London.   The new electronic warfare (EW) solutions are being delivered under the Heimdall project, which will enable the Norwegian Army to detect, locate, and analyse information faster and more efficiently whi...

Estonia and Latvia signed a framework agreement with Diehl on 11 September for IRIS-T SLM air-defence systems. (Diehl)    Estonia and Latvia will receive training, along with the Luftwaffe, in Germany on the IRIS-T surface-launched medium range (SLM) air-defence systems that the two Baltic countries are jointly procuring, a Diehl Defence representative told   Janes  on the first day of DSEI 2023, held in London from 12 to 15 September.   The training will take place at the ground-based air-defence (GBAD) training facility...

The deployable variant of Saab's Giraffe 1X radar displayed at DSEI 2023, which has been acquired by the UK military. (Janes/Olivia Savage)  Saab has launched a deployable variant of its Giraffe 1X 3D radar at DSEI 2023, held from 12 to 15 September in London.  Known as the Deployable Set, the new configuration is designed as a compact, robust, and highly deployable radar that can be easily transported and quickly set up.  A key difference with the deployable variant is its ability to operate on the move when deployed on naval vessels or land...

A model of ST Engineering's Next Generation Protected Vehicle fitted with the company's Hybrid Electric Drive Kit. (Janes/Huw Williams)    ST Engineering expects to complete testing of its Hybrid Electric Drive Kit and Next Generation Protected Vehicle (NGPV) – on which the kit is installed – within six    to 12 months.     Speaking to   Janes  at DSEI 2023 in London, Jensen Chew, vice-president and product director of electrification and 4×4 vehicles at ST Engineering, said that testing had so far taken pla...