A Chinese surveillance balloon flies above in Charlotte, North Carolina, in the United States on 4 February 2023. The incursion prompted the US Department of Defense to include USD90 million in last-minute ISR investments in its FY 2024 budget proposal. (Peter Zay/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)  The fallout from the detection and eventual shoot-down of a Chinese high-altitude intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) balloon operating in US airspace prompted several last-minute changes in the US Department of Defense (DoD) budg...

The 155 mm/39 calibre M777 ultra lightweight howitzer, displayed above undergoing trials with the UK Army, has a maximum range of 24.7 km using unassisted rounds and a sustained rate of fire of 2 rds/min. India and the US are exploring the development of a 155 mm/52 calibre M777 with an extended range. (BAE Systems Landsystems UK)  India and the US are exploring the development of an extended-range, longer barrel variant of the M777 155 mm/39 calibre ultra lightweight howitzer (ULH), manufacturer BAE Systems told Janes.  Ravi Nirgudkar, manag...

THAAD is intended to engage targets both inside and outside the earth's atmosphere. (US Missile Defense Agency)  The US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) has requested USD484.7 million for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) programme in fiscal year (FY 2024).  This funding would integrate the THAAD capability into the US Army's Integrated Air and Missile Defense Battle Command System (IBCS) and continue development of an 8th THAAD battery, according to the agency's budget documents, published on 13 March.  A battery typically consists...

US Soldiers in an M1 Abrams tank compete in the Strong Europe Tank Challenge at the Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany, in June 2018. The US Army will enhance 34 of its Abrams MBTs to the System Enhancement Package (SEP) v3 configuration if its FY 2024 budget request is enacted. (US Army )  If enacted, the US Army's budget request would cut ground vehicles out of enduring programmes and reinvest in procurement and research, development, test, and evaluation (RDT&E) for newer programmes, according to budget documents released on 13 March....

Swedish Defence Minister Pål Jonson (right) and High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell (left) hosted an informal meeting of EU defence ministers in Stockholm on 7–8 March, where a plan for increasing and accelerating the production of artillery shells was discussed. (Swedish government/Johannes Frandsen)  European Union (EU) defence ministers meeting informally in Stockholm on 7–8 March discussed a plan for increasing and accelerating the production of artillery shells. High Representative of the E...

Thales UK DSA offering on display at the 2023 Future Soldier Technology Conference. Synaps (left), AN/PRC-148E Spear (middle), and SquadNet radio (right). (Janes/Olivia Savage)  Thales intends to pitch its tactical radios for the UK Dismounted Situational Awareness (DSA) Tactical Radio Sub-Lot competition.  Depending on the UK Ministry of Defence's (MoD) requirements, the company will present its SquadNet, Javelin, AN/PRC-148E Spear, or Synaps handheld radio for the Tactical Radio Sub-Lot competition, Ciaran McCloskey, product line manager fo...

The 341st Missile Security Operations Squadron carry out security drills at a launch facility, near Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana. (US Air Force)  The US Air Force (USAF) has contracted US information technology company Persistent Systems to provide mobile ad hoc networking (MANET) capability to the service's security forces, tasked with protecting major intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) fields and installations in the continental United States (CONUS).  Officials from Air Force Global Strike Command inked a USD75.5 million deal...

The IAF has developed a low-cost C-UAS that can jam and spoof hostile UAVs. The C-UAS was unveiled at Aero India 2023 in Bangalore in February. (Janes/Oishee Majumdar)  The proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and the ways in which these platforms are leveraged by India's adversaries, has pushed the country to prioritise the development of counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UASs).  On the one hand, India is concerned about China and Pakistan's growing arsenal of military UAVs, which are often operated in an intelligence, surve...

Romania plans to seek parliamentary approval to procure a battalion of M1 Abrams tanks, seen on exercise in the country in 2016. (Romanian MoD )  Romania plans to seek parliamentary approval to procure a battalion of M1 Abrams tanks under a government-to-government agreement, Lieutenant General Teodor Incicaș, the national armaments director, told the podcast of the Ministry of National Defence's weekly Observatorul Militar (Military Observer). He said the Romanian Land Forces General Staff considers it the best choice for equipping one of th...

UK Royal Navy commandos conduct cold weather training in the Arctic. (UK Royal Navy/Crown Copyright)  The UK has set up a military base in Northern Norway that will act as a hub for Royal Marines commandos operating in the region.  The purpose-built site, called Camp Viking, is located in Øverbygd, about 40 mile south of Tromsø, and will be used to support the UK's commando-led Littoral Response Group (LRG) (North), which is designed to operate alongside NATO and UK Joint Expeditionary Force partners in the High North and Baltic Sea regions....

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 Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) recently conducted a flight test of its Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the northeastern coast of Odisha.  The ITCM is a technology demonstrator pro...

The Javelin, displayed here at Aero India 2023 held in Bangalore, is a medium-range, manportable, shoulder-fired, fire-and-forget, lock-on before launch (LOBL) ATGM system. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The US Department of State has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of Javelin FGM-148F anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) and related equipment to the Australian government for an estimated cost of USD60.18 million.  The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 7 March that Canberra has requested to buy 255 such Javelins...

Denmark has awarded contracts to Elbit Systems for eight PULS MRLs (pictured) and 19 ATMOS SPHs. (Elbit Systems)  Denmark has awarded contracts to Elbit Systems for 155 mm/52 calibre Autonomous Truck Mounted howitzer System (ATMOS) self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) and Precise and Universal Launching System (PULS) multiple rocket launcher (MRL) artillery systems, a spokesperson for the Danish Ministry of Defence's (MoD's) Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organisation (DALO) confirmed to Janes on 6 March. The procurement includes training, spar...

Hungary has acquired new E-LynX software-defined radios from Elbit Systems in soldier and vehicular configurations. (Elbit Systems)  The Hungarian Defence Forces (HDF) will receive new soldier and vehicular radios under the Zrínyi programme.  The new radios are being supplied by Elbit Systems, Colonel János Pölöskei, branch leader for the Command and Control Systems Development Branch at HDF Command – Force Planning Directorate, announced at SAE Media Group's 2023 Future Soldier Technology conference on 6 March.  Col Pölöskei told Janes that...

The military version of ATAK has been selected as the BMA of choice for the DSA programme. (ATAK )  The Tactical Assault Kit (TAK) has been selected as the preferred battle management application (BMA) solution for the British Army's Dismounted Situational Awareness (DSA) programme.  Speaking at SAE Media Group's 2023 Future Soldier Technology Conference on 6 March, David Dalby, TacSys Delivery Team Soldier Systems Portfolio lead for the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), said that the solution was selected because it enables integration with inte...

Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak approved a framework agreement between the Polish Armaments Agency and a consortium of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa companies led by Huta Stalowa Wola for the delivery of 1,400 Borsuk IFVs and specialised variants. (Polish MND)  Poland will procure 1,400 Borsuk infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) and specialised variants from a consortium of Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa companies led by Huta Stalowa Wola (HSW), the Polish Ministry of National Defence (MND) and the Armaments...

The US Department of State has approved a possible FMS to the UK of 600 Javelin FGM-148F anti-armour missiles, pictured in production. (JJV)  The US Department of State approved a possible US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to the United Kingdom of 600 Javelin FGM-148F anti-tank missiles for an estimated cost of USD125 million, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced in a press release on 28 February.  The possible sale also includes US government technical assistance and other logistics and programme support.  The prime cont...

The Colombian Army mounted its Rafael Spike ER missile systems on M966 Humvee trucks. (Roberto Jose García Hernandez )  The Colombian Army in February 2023 showcased its Rafael Spike ER anti-tank missile systems for the first time, having quietly purchased them in 2019 and receiving them a year later.  The army revealed the updated systems during a ceremony in Bogotá on 14 February. Military sources told Janes that the service acquired a small batch of three launch units and more than 15 missiles to reinforce defences against armoured threat...

An Ajax Ares armoured personnel carrier on the Bovington training range during a visit by Wallace on 22 February. (Ben Birchall – Pool/Getty Images)  The Ajax armoured vehicle programme has turned a corner, according to senior UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials. The Chief of the General Staff of the British Army General Patrick Sanders tweeted on 25 February, “The Ajax programme has turned a corner. The vehicles' world-leading find-and-kill capabilities will be transformational for the army's fleet.” UK media reported the same day that De...

The Rhino protected mobility vehicle is based on a commercial Toyota Land Cruiser 79-series chassis and can carry up to eight personnel. The version of the vehicle displayed on MIC's stand at IDEX 2023 had minor visual differences compared with a photograph of the vehicle shown in the product's brochure. (Janes/Sonny Butterworth)  Sudan's Military Industry Corporation (MIC) introduced its Rhino and Rhino 2 protected mobility vehicles at IDEX 2023 held in Abu Dhabi from 20 to 24 February.  Both vehicles appear to be renamed identical copies of...