USN Secretary Carlos Del Toro touted the EW capabilities of the EA-18G Growlers. (US Navy)  Recent global conflicts highlight the increasing use of electronic warfare (EW) in military operations, US Navy (USN) Secretary Carlos Del Toro said on 12 December during a keynote speech at the Association of Old Crows' (AOC's) 60th Annual International Symposium & Convention at National Harbor, Maryland.  “For the US and our NATO allies, the conflict in Ukraine reinforces the emphasis we place on developing and maintaining a ready, interoperable comb...

The Formidable-class frigate, RSS   Steadfast  , is seen here in the Singapore Strait.  (Janes/Ridzwan Rahmat)  Singapore's ST Engineering Marine has received a contract to undertake a part of the mid-life upgrade (MLU) work that will be carried out on the country's Formidable-class frigates.  ST Engineering Marine is a subsidiary of ST Engineering. Under the contract, the company will design and engineer the class' new marine and electrical systems. These include the frigate's ship management and power generation...

The new vessels will be an improved variant of the FBG's OPV   Turva  , which was commissioned into service in 2014.  (John Pagni)  Polish shipbuilder Baltic Operator held a steel-cutting ceremony for the first of two Modified Turva-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) on order for the Finnish Border Guard (FBG) at Gdansk Shipyard on 12 December.  Finnish shipyard Meyer Turku was awarded a contract for the two newbuilds in June 2022. Baltic Operator has been subcontracted to build the hulls, with outfitting taking...

Amur Shipyard has received a new licence that will enable it to build Gorshkov-class frigates. (Russia's Northern Fleet Press Service)  Amur Shipyard in Komsomolsk-on-Amur has received a new licence to carry out the construction, maintenance, and sale of weapons and military equipment, Russia's Ministry of Industry and Trade for the Khabarovsk Territory has announced.  According to the statement, issued on 7 December, licensed products also include warships of Project 22350 Gorshkov class.  This announcement follows on from an earlier stateme...

The Akash Air Force Launcher (pictured above) carries three Akash anti-aircraft surface-to-air missiles on a wheeled tractor-trailer combination. (DRDO)  The Indian Air Force and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) have demonstrated the enhanced capability of the Akash semimobile surface-to-air (SAM) missile system to intercept four unmanned aerial targets from a single firing unit, the DRDO said in a social media post on 17 December.  According to the demonstration footage released by the DRDO, the Akash system's central...

The Bluebottle USV will be operated by the RNZN for seven months. (Tim Fish)  The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) will experiment with a new variant of the Bluebottle unmanned surface vehicle (USV) that will help inform future capabilities of uncrewed systems in the service.  The USV was delivered to RNZN's Devonport Naval Base on 8 December on HMNZS Aotearoa, which had completed a five-month international deployment with the frigate HMNZS Te Mana. In a ceremony on 13 December RNZN Maritime Component Commander Commodore Garin Golding said trial...

Queen Elizabeth  pictured in the South China Sea during its inaugural deployment to the Indo-Pacific region in 2021.  (Royal Navy)  The UK's planned carrier strike group (CSG) deployment to the Indo-Pacific region in 2025 will include a port call to Japan, UK Defence Secretary Grant Shapps has announced.  The 2025 naval task force, which will include an aircraft carrier, its escorts, and F-35 combat aircraft, will work alongside the Japan Self-Defense Forces and other partners to help defend peace and stability in the Indo-Pacif...

The DART AE is a 3.5 m long single-use hypersonic vehicle powered by a SPARTAN scramjet engine that, according to developer Hypersonix Launch Systems, has a top speed of Mach 7 and a range of 1,000 km. (Hypersonix Launch Systems)  Australian firm H...

The maritime capability coalition will support Ukraine's two newly acquired ex-Royal Navy Sandown-class mine countermeasure vessels,   Chernihiv   (ex-HMS   Grimsby)   and   Cherkasy  (ex-HMS   Shoreham   ), which were commissioned into service in July 2023.   Cherkasy   is pictured during the flag-raising ceremony, which was held in Glasgow, Scotland.  (Armed Forces of Ukraine)  The United Kingdom and Norway have established a maritime capability coalition...

The US Army announced the Precision Strike Missile had undergone qualification testing in November 2023. (US Army )  The first Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) weapons have been delivered to the US Army, representing the programme reaching initial operating capability (IOC), the service announced on 8 December.    Lockheed Martin plans to deliver three early operational capability (EOC) missiles out of 26 surface-to-surface missiles that are part of PrSM Increment 1 to the army before the end of the year, Paula Hartley, vice-president an...

Thales has secured a contract to provide a GM400α long-range air-surveillance radar (pictured) to the Royal Malaysian Air Force. (Thales)  Thales has secured a contract from the Malaysian Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) to provide a long-range air-surveillance radar to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF).    A spokesperson for Thales told   Janes   on 12 December that the company will provide its Ground Master 400 Alpha (GM400α) radar to the RMAF.   The radar will be installed in the coastal town of Bintulu, located in the ce...

The 405th Army Field Support Brigade's Tele-Maintenance and Distribution Cell-Ukraine in Jasionka, Poland, briefs a Ukrainian defence official. (US Army)    The Pentagon is working on expanding access to intellectual property (IP), sustainment training, and depot access for Ukrainians, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment Christopher Lowman told   Janes  on 29 November.   While the US has already begun providing some things to Ukraine, the country and the whole region will need more support in the coming years to...

The upgraded Hamina-class missile boats have been comprehensively equipped for their size and are capable of monitoring and countering air, surface, and underwater threats. (Finnish Navy)    The Finnish Navy's Hamina-class fast attack craft (FAC) mid-life upgrade (MLU) and modernisation programme has officially concluded and all four vessels have been returned to    active duty.   A ceremony to mark the milestone was held at the Finnish Navy's base in Turku on 12 December, the service announced the same day.  The Hamina-cla...

GA-ASI's Mojave STOL RPAS demonstrator takes off from HMS   Prince of Wales  on 15 November.  (Crown Copyright)  The UK Royal Navy's (RN) ambitions to introduce a hybrid carrier air wing blending both crewed and uncrewed aircraft moved a step closer during November 2023 with a first flight demonstration of a tactical short take-off and landing (STOL) remotely piloted air system (RPAS) from a Queen Elizabeth-class (QEC) carrier.  Performed from HMS Prince of Wales towards the end of the ship's Westlant 23 deployme...

A ground-based interceptor was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, on 11 December. This was the first flight test of a three-stage booster operating in two-stage mode, meaning the third-stage was not ignited. (Missile Defense Agency)  The US Missile Defense Agency (MDA) conducted a test of the upgraded Ground-Based Interceptor (GBI), the first test of the capability to use the two-stage boost mode that is designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) across a wider engagement envelope, the agency announc...

Slovenia has signed a programme agreement with Germany to procure the IRIS-T SLM. (Diehl Defence)  The Slovenian Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on its website on 6 December that it had signed a programme agreement with the German Federal MoD to buy the IRIS-T SLM (Surface Launched Medium Range) air-defence system from Diehl Defence. The agreement was signed by Slovenian State Secretary for Defence Damir Črnčec and his German counterpart, Benedikt Zimmer, in accordance with the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the joint procurement of...

The US Army announced the Precision Strike Missile had undergone qualification testing in November 2023. (US Army)  The first Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) weapons have been delivered to the US Army, representing the programme reaching initial operating capability (IOC), the service announced on 8 December.  Lockheed Martin plans to deliver three early operational capability missiles out of 26 surface-to-surface missiles that are part of PrSM Increment 1 to the army before the end of the year, Paula Hartley, vice-president and general manag...

Aegis Ashore is a four-storey deckhouse and launch tower, which will provide a static home in Romania and Poland for the SPY-1D(V) radar, SM-3 missiles, and other systems taken from the US Navy's BMD ships. (Missile Defense Agency)  The US Navy (USN) is scheduled to officially accept the Aegis Ashore site in Poland by mid-December, according to Rear Admiral Douglas Williams, the acting director of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA).  “The navy will formally accept Aegis Ashore Poland into their inventory on December 15,” Rear Adm Williams told...

Ansar Allah released a photograph on 1 November showing a Zulfiqar launch to illustrate its attacks on Israel. (Ansar Allah)  The Yemeni rebel group Ansar Allah (Houthis) has been launching Zulfiqar ballistic missiles and Quds cruise missiles at Israel, not new types of weapons, according to two letters submitted to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) by Gilad Erdan,the Israeli ambassador to the UN.  The letters said Zulfiqars were launched from Yemen towards Israel on 31 October, 4 November, 9 November, and 14 November. The one on 4 N...

Sterenn Du  has been reactivated by Naval Group for use as an experimental testbed for large unmanned platforms and autonomous systems.   (Naval Group)    French shipbuilder Naval Group has started experimental at-sea trials with the medium unmanned surface vessel (MUSV)   Sterenn Du  from its unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) centre of expertise in Saint-Mandrier.     A Naval Group spokesperson told   Janes  that the trials, expected to continue well into 2024, include testing manned-unmanned tea...