The US government has approved the sale of the AWS to Germany. (IAI)  The US government has approved the sale of the Arrow Weapon System (AWS) to Germany, the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD) announced on its website on 17 August. The approval paves the way for the IMOD, the German Ministry of Defence (MoD), and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) to sign a USD3.5 billion agreement on the procurement, Israel's largest ever defence deal, according to the IMOD.  The Israeli and German MoDs will sign a letter of commitment to start work immediate...

The Royal Australian Navy Hobart-class destroyer, HMAS   Sydney  , firing a Harpoon missile during Exercise ‘Pacific Vanguard 2022'. The class will soon be equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles.  (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Royal Australian Navy's (RAN's) fleet of Hobart-class air warfare destroyers will be equipped with the Tomahawk cruise missile, making Australia one of only three countries to field this weapon alongside the US and the UK.  The matter was disclosed by Australia's Deputy Prime Minister and...

The HIMARS, pictured above from a US Army exercise, can hit targets at a range of 70 km using the Multiple Launch Rocket System Family of Munitions, both guided and unguided, and 300 km with the MGM-142 Army Tactical Missile System. (US Army/Sgt 1st Class Steven Queen)  The US Department of State has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of M142 High-Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARSs) and related equipment to the Australian government for an estimated cost of USD975 million.  The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (D...

The Standard Missile-3 Block IIA missile, pictured above launching from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Hawaii, is jointly developed by the US and Japan. The MDA said the GPI joint development with Japan will be pursued in a construct similar to that used for the SM-3 missile. (US MDA)  The US and Japan have initiated the joint development of a Glide Phase Interceptor (GPI) to counter hypersonic weapons, the US Department of Defense (DoD) announced on 18 August.  According to the DoD, during the January 2023 Security Consultative Commit...

Raytheon Technologies is building the Lower Tier Air and Missile Defense Sensor for the US Army's integrated missile defence architecture in Guam. (Raytheon)  The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) transitioned its power to the US Army in June 2023 on the integrated missile defence of Guam effort, service leaders announced recently.  The memo – signed by Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks – establishing Army Sustainment Command as the lead service for Guam's defence, went out in June, Lieutenant General Robert Rasch, director of the Rapid C...

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...

A US Army HIMARS launcher from the 17th Field Artillery Brigade fires its first salvo at the Lancelin Defence Training Area in Western Australia as part of Exercise ‘Highball'. (Commonwealth of Australia)  The Australian Defence Force (ADF) and the US Army have carried out a live firing of the High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) against a maritime target in a bid to hone this capability for Australia.  The activity was carried out in Western Australia as part of Exercise ‘Highball', which was conducted by the ADF in conjunction wit...

The Australian DoD has accelerated the acquisition of a range of guided weapons including Tomahawk cruise missiles (pictured above). (US Navy)  The Australian Department of Defence (DoD) has outlined a short-term plan to accelerate the domestic development of guided weapons as part of the Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance (GWEO) Enterprise, which was launched in 2021.    A DoD spokesperson told   Janes   that the Australian government has committed AUD2.5 billion (USD1.6 billion) over the next four years to accelerate the G...

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...

The ZSSW-30 30 mm remote-controlled weapon station will become a primary weapon for future and current APCs and IFVs replacing the manned Hitfist 30P turrets. (Jakub Link-Lenczowski)  Three months before Poland's parliamentary elections, Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak has announced three contracts that will provide several types of armoured vehicles for the Polish army during the next 12 years.  The first contract, announced on 14 August, was signed between the Polish Armaments Agency (AA) and state-owned Polish Armaments Grou...

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 computer-generated image of the final configuration of the Polish Navy's first Miecznik frigate. (PGZ)  A steel-cutting ceremony was held for the first Polish Project 106 Miecznik (Swordfish)-class frigate at the Polish Armaments Group (Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa: PGZ) Naval Shipyard in Gdynia, Poland, on 16 August.  Under the Miecznik programme, which is valued at around PLN8 billion (USD1.95 billion), PGZ Naval Shipyard is building three frigates for the Polish Navy in co-operation with strategic partners Babcock (as the platform design pro...

The northern lights glow behind a Patriot M903 launching station assigned to 5th Battalion, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Regiment, during Exercise ‘Arctic Edge 2022' at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, on 5 March 2022. The Patriot system allows soldiers to detect, analyse, and defend against incoming air and missile threats. (USAF)  The latest US security assistance package will allocate about USD200 million worth of equipment for Ukraine, including 155 mm and 105 mm artillery rounds and ammunition for air-defence systems, according to a 14 Augu...

Swedish Leopard 2 MBTs and CV90 AFVs donated to Ukraine will receive additional ammunition from Sweden following a military aid package. (Krauss-Maffei Wegmann)  The Swedish government is preparing a SEK3.4 billion (USD313.4 million) military aid package for Ukraine, the authority announced on 15 August.  The assistance includes ammunition and spare parts for several of the equipment donated to Ukraine by Sweden, including the CV90 armoured fighting vehicles (AFVs) and Leopard 2 main battle tanks (MBTs).  In addition, Sweden intends to supply...

Kongsberg's Cortex Typhon C-UAS solution is being delivered to Ukraine. The collective solution integrates the company's RWS and surveillance systems from Teledyne FLIR Defense. (Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace)  Ukraine will receive new counter unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) from Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace to enhance the capabilities of its armed forces.  According to a Kongsberg announcement on 14 August, the company will deliver several Cortex Typhon systems for GBP56 million (USD71 million), funded by the International Fund for Ukrain...

The ATMOS system has already been demonstrated to Brazilian officials and is being actively marketed in Brazil. (Victor Barreira)  The Brazilian Army released its long-awaited request for proposal (RFP) and request for tender (RFT) for a 155 mm self-propelled wheeled artillery system on 2 August, a major milestone for the service's effort to replace part of its M114A1 howitzers.  The Brazilian Army Commission in Washington (CEBW) issued the document on behalf of the Logistics Command that intends to meet self-propelled, wheeled 155 mm howitze...

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...

GRSE has launched an autonomous underwater vehicle (pictured) that can be used to support mine countermeasures, underwater monitoring, and search-and-rescue missions. (GRSE)  India's state-owned Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) has launched an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) that can be used for a range of military operations.    A GRSE spokesperson told   Janes  in early August that the AUV, named Neerakshi, is equipped with mine-detection technologies to assist mine countermeasures (MCM), and sensors and im...

The Switchblade UAV, designed by AeroVironment, is one of the many unmanned systems supplied to Ukraine through the US Department of Defense. (AeroVironment Inc)  Some of the US drones being sent to Ukraine are shaping the US Army's future competitions for unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) and counter-UAS technology, the service's acquisition chief said on 7 August.  The army's newly announced Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) weapon development programme is meant for developing load-bearing attack munitions for infantry units....

Belarus is seeking to establish an indigenous Shahed production facility. An Iranian-made Shahed-136 is seen in an underground facility, in a video released by Iran's IRGC in March 2022. (IMA Media)  Belarus is likely seeking to establish an indigenous Iranian Shahed loitering munition production facility, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said on 31 July.  Belarusian Defence Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin and his Iranian counterpart Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Ashtiani met in Iran on 31 July to sign a memorandum of und...