CAVS will contribute to participating countries seeking to increase the mobility of their armies, including in Arctic conditions. (Patria)  The Finnish-led 6×6 Common Armoured Vehicle System (CAVS) programme continues to progress, Janes learnt at Defence IQ's International Armoured Vehicles (IAV) 2023 conference being held in London from 23 to 26 January.  CAVS variants include armoured personnel carrier (APC), heavy APC (HAPC), engineer, logistic support, and command-and-control versions, with future possibilities including indirect fire veh...

France's Safran Group has offered the AASM-Hammer smart bomb to Indonesia for integration in the Dassault Rafale, KAI T-50I, and potentially the KAI KF-21 jet. (Safran)  The Indonesian government is in talks with France's Safran Group for the potential acquisition and domestic assembly of Armement Air‐Sol Modulaire (AASM) Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range (Hammer) smart guided bombs.  The Indonesian Ministry of Defense's (MoD's) Directorate General of Defense Potential said that it had discussed Safran Group's offer of the air-to-s...

The US Navy still plans to fast-track the integration of the Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic weapon system into its DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyers. (US Navy)  The US Navy (USN) still plans to fast-track the integration of the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) hypersonic weapon system into its DDG 1000 Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyers, with the aim to complete the first live-fire tests in 2025, according to Vice Admiral Bill Galinis, commander of the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA).    Speaking to reporter...

The Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting at Ramstein Air Base on 20 January failed to agree to send Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv (photo of Polish Leopard 2PL). (PGZ)  The Ukraine Defense Contact Group met at Ramstein Air Base, Germany, on 20 January but failed to come to an agreement on sending Leopard 2 tanks to Kyiv.    The new German Defence Minister, Boris Pistorius, said that Berlin had not reached a decision on supplying Ukraine with Leopard 2 tanks. However, he    ordered his ministry to conduct an inventory of the different...

The UK is accelerating the British Army's Mobile Fires Platform programme to replace its AS90 SPHs (pictured above). (Crown copyright)  UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace announced to the House of Commons on 16 January that he is accelerating the British Army's Mobile Fires Platform (MFP) programme, so that it delivers during the 2020s rather than the 2030s. He said he has also directed an interim artillery capability to be delivered, subject to commercial negotiation.  Janes understands that the UK now plans for the MFP to enter service in 202...

Regulus Cyber launches Ring, a flexible modular C-UAS solution that can defeat unmanned swarms from a 5 km range. (Regulus Cyber)  Israeli company Regulus Cyber has launched a new counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) effector that is capable of neutralising a wide range of unmanned threats including swarms, the company announced on 19 January.  Known as ‘Ring', the portable or fixed C-UAS solution utilises global navigation satellite system (GNSS) manipulation to allow the user to take control of the unmanned threat by pushing back, holding...

The MMT-40 light tank uses a 2S1 Gvozdika hull, the example of which is shown in the image. This image shows Serbia's 2S1 during field trials in 2020. (Serbian MoD)    The Myanmar Army has unveiled    the MAM-03 multiple rocket launcher (MRL) and MMT-40 light tank commemorating the 75th anniversary of the country's independence.   According to video footage released by the state-owned broadcaster Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV), the MAM-03 and MMT-40 were seen participating in the independence day parade. Both capabilit...

DAPA said that it has signed a contract with Hanwha Aerospace to mass-produce 120 mm SPMs and fire command vehicles. Pictured above is an example of a 120 mm SPM integrated into an M113-type tracked armoured personnel carrier. (Hanwha Defense)  South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has announced the full-scale deployment of120 mm self-propelled mortars (SPMs) in the Republic of Korea (RoK) Army by 2025.  DAPA said in a recent press release that it has signed a “follow-up mass production” contract worth KRW584 billion...

The US Department of State has approved the sale of Volcano anti-tank munition-laying systems to Taiwan, the example of which is pictured above. The Volcano can rapidly dispense up to 960 mines from expendable canisters mounted on as many as four launcher racks. (Janes/Patrick Allen)  The US Department of State has approved the possible Foreign Military Sales (FMS) of Volcano anti-tank munition-laying systems to Taiwan for an estimated cost of USD180 million.  In a recent press release, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announ...

The Hero-30 weighs 7.7 kg and has a range beyond 15 km. (Janes/Daniel Wasserbly)  The Argentine Ministry of Defense (MoD) on 27 December signed a contract with the Israeli MoD's Directorate of International Defense Cooperation to buy Uvision's Hero-120 and Hero-30 loitering munitions.  Argentine Defence Minister Jorge Taiana and head of the Israeli directorate Yair Kulas signed the contract.  This is the first time a Latin American country has bought Uvision's series of loitering munitions, and is part of a programme launched in 2022 by the A...

North Macedonia will continue the procurement of the JLTV in 2023, including the Heavy Guns Carrier A1 (JLTV-HGCA1) pictured, six of which entered service in mid-2022, all equipped with the Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace M153 Protector Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station carrying an M2HB-QCB (Heavy Barrel-Quick Change Barrel) 50 calibre (12.7×99 mm NATO) machine gun. (Igor Bozinovski)  The Macedonian parliament approved a 2023 national budget on 23 December that includes EUR274.6 million (over USD292 million) for defence. EUR88.79 million...

SMT Motiv showcased K15 5.56 mm light machine gun at the DX Korea 2022 exhibition, which was held in Seoul from 21 to 25 September 2022. (Janes/Jon Grevatt)  South Korean firearms manufacturer SNT Motiv has delivered the first batch of K15 light machine guns (LMGs) to the Republic of Korea (RoK) Army.  According to a press release by SNT Motiv, the 5.56 mm K15 LMGs will replace the ageing fleet of K3 LMGs with the RoK Army.  SNT Motiv said that the new K15 guns are integrated with day and night sighting devices, which were not available in th...

A mock-up of the modular twin-tube launcher of Cheongeom missile, which is a standard configuration for the Light Armed Helicopters developed by Korea Aerospace Industries. (Janes/Kelvin Wong)    South Korea's Defense Acquisition Programme Administration (DAPA) announced that the development of the    Cheongeom air-launched anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) has been completed.   Cheongeom, which has been in development since November 2015, will be integrated into the Light Armed Helicopters (LAHs) developed by Korea Aerospace...

India's state-run Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Limited unveiled the Dhanush 155 mm/52 calibre towed howitzer (pictured above) at Defexpo 2022, held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. This is one of the gun options available to the Indian Army. (Janes/Kapil Kajal)  The Indian Army has outlined detailed requirements supporting its acquisition of 155 mm/52 calibre towed gun systems.  In a request for information (RFI) document issued by the army, the service confirmed that the guns would be procured from local industry.  The RFI said that the Indi...

The Bundeswehr will procure 118,718 G95A1 assault rifles from Heckler & Koch in 2024–26. (Heckler & Koch)  On 14 December the budget committee of the Bundestag, the German parliament, approved the retrofit of Puma infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) and the procurement of BvS10 all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and Heckler & Koch HK416A8 assault rifles.  The budget committee approved around EUR850 million (USD900 million) for the retrofit of 143 Pumas so all IFVs of the type are of the same operational technical standard.  It approved another EUR405...

The acquisition of Tomahawk cruise missiles will strengthen Japan's ability to strike back at regional adversaries in the event of war. The subsonic cruise missile can be fired from surface ships, such as in this case of a launch from the USS   Curtis Wilbur  in the Philippine Sea in May 2019.  (US Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Taylor DiMartino)  The Japanese government has approved three new security documents that will reshape the country's military strategy, increase the national defence budget,...

HII's Mission Technologies division's REMUS AUVs are armed with Kraken Robotics' synthetic aperture sonar. (Kraken Robotics Systems)    Canada's Department of National Defence (DND) awarded two separate contracts that, combined, are worth about USD57.9 million to Kraken Robotics Systems of Mount Pearl, Newfoundland, to supply the modular mine-countermeasures (MCM) system for the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN), the DND confirmed to   Janes  .   The formal contract is scheduled to be signed in January 2023, and the acquisition wil...

India has conducted a flight test of theAgni-V intermediate‐range ballistic missile.Pictured above is an image from an earlier trial of the Agni-V. (Defence Research and Development Organisation)  India's Strategic Forces Command (SFC) has conducted a flight test of the Agni-V intermediate‐range ballistic missile (IRBM) from APJ Abdul Kalam Island off the northeastern coast of Odisha, the Indian Army said.    A senior Indian Army official told  Janes  that the SFC validated the maximum operational range of the missile with th...

Rheinmetall and UVision are developing Hero-R rotary-wing loitering munition. (Rheinmetall)  Rheinmetall and UVision are developing Hero-R rotary-wing loitering munition, officials from the two companies told defence journalists in Berlin on 7 December.  Dirk Wecker, head of strategic programmes/mission systems at Rheinmetall Electronics, said the multirotor Hero-R can be launched from a mission pod on a vehicle and has a 10-minute flight time. An example he gave of its employment was landing Hero-Rs in the corners of trenches to destroy them...

NVL Group and its local partner MTG Dolphin started production of the second of two multipurpose modular patrol vessels for the Bulgarian Navy in Varna on 14 December. (NVL)  The Bulgarian Navy's multipurpose modular patrol vessel (MMPV) programme has marked another milestone with the start of production of the second ship.  German shipbuilder NVL Group (formerly Lürssen Werft) staged a steel-cutting ceremony for Smeli (11), the second of two MMPVs on order, at the yard of its local shipbuilding partner MTG Dolphin in Varna, Bulgaria on 14 De...