The UAE's fourth Saab GlobalEye was delivered on 18 April. (Ministry of Defence of the United Arab Emirates)  The Ministry of Defence (MoD) of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced on 24 April that a reception ceremony for an early warning aircraft had been held at Al-Dhafra Air Base.  It cited Major General Ibrahim Nasser al-Alawi, the commander of the Air Force and Air Defence (AFAD), as saying the aircraft was a “qualitative addition” that will help protect the country's strategic interests.  The MoD released a video showing a Saab Glob...

Lockheed Martin has secured a AUD500 million contract to provide a Joint Air Battle Management System to the Australian Defence Force. (Lockheed Martin Australia)  Lockheed Martin has secured a contract worth AUD500 million (USD323 million) from the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) to build a Joint Air Battle Management System (JABMS) for the Australian Defence Force (ADF).  The JABMS will be built under the second tranche of the DoD's Project Air 6500 Phase 1, Lockheed Martin announced on 24 April.  According to the DoD, Project Air 6...

Seen being carried by a US Air Force F-16, the Sniper ATP is built in Florida in the US and Bedfordshire in the UK. Lockheed Martin is now ramping up UK component production to meet increased customer demand. (Lockheed Martin)    Lockheed Martin is building a new production line for AN/AAQ-33 Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod (ATP) components at its Ampthill, Bedfordshire site in the UK, seeking to meet anticipated demand from NATO allies and other customers for the system, the company has told   Janes  .     The UK-based...

The Brazilian Navy wants to improve the radar capabilities of its OPVs. (Victor Barreira)  As part of an effort to update its Amazonas-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs), the Brazilian Navy is acquiring a new air and surface search radar with identification friend-or-foe capability (IFF), according to the Navy Weapon Systems Directorate (Diretoria de Sistemas de Armas da Marinha: DSAM).    The Brazilian Naval Commission in Washington, DC, (Comissão Naval Brasileira em Washington: CNBW) on behalf of the DSAM has    requested a...

The IqAF is to equip all 34 of its F-16 combat aircraft with the AIDEWS electronic warfare suite. (Lockheed Martin)  Iraq is to equip its Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft with the L3Harris AN/ALQ-211 Advanced Integrated Defensive Electronic Warfare Suite (AIDEWS) electronic warfare (EW) system, the US Department of Defense (DoD) disclosed on 22 April.  The DoD requires the retrofit of the AIDEWS system into 34 Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) F-16C/D Block 52M aircraft located at Martyr Brigadier General Ali Flaih Air Base (Ali Flai...

Sonar 2087 (the variable depth towed body is pictured here) remains the RN surface fleet's principal long-range ASW sensor. SEA's software application is designed to automatically determine the optimum deployment depth of an active sonar projector and the receive array within the water column. (Richard Scott/NAVYPIX)  UK company Systems Engineering and Assessment (SEA) has been tasked to demonstrate a software application designed to enhance the performance of the UK Royal Navy's (RN's) principal surface ship anti-submarine warfare (ASW) sona...

The Bundeswehr has ordered 258 sets of AGDUS   systems   for its Puma IFVs following successful integration tests.  (PSM GmbH)  The Bundeswehr is receiving new training simulators for its Puma infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs).  In total, 258 sets of Training Device, Duel Simulator (Ausbildungsgerät Duellsimulator: AGDUS) systems are being delivered for the Puma IFVs by the end of 2026, the Bundeswehr announced on 15 April.  The EUR109 million (USD116 million) contract will be financed from the EUR100 billion Bund...

A screenshot of the Hadean POLI constructive simulation displayed through the 4C Strategies Exonaut training management software. (Hadean)  Hadean and 4C Strategies have successfully integrated a constructive simulation with Exonaut exercise management software, utilising Hadean's spatial computing platform.  The integrated solution, displayed at the International Training Technology Exhibition & Conference (IT²EC) 2024 in London, enabled Hadean's Pattern of Life Indicator (POLI) constructive simulation to be controlled from within 4C Strate...

Red Sea operations have depleted inventories of USN missiles, such as SM-6s, being shown fired here. (US Navy)  After providing defence against recent Iranian missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) attacks – as well as other attacks in or near the Red Sea – the US Navy (USN) needs funding to restock its weapons inventory, USN Secretary Carlos Del Toro testified on 16 April during a Senate Appropriations Committee (SAC) hearing on navy posture.  Estimating that the navy has defended against about 130 attacks in recent months, Del Toro said,...

The Royal Navy is planning to deploy the DragonFire laser weapon (pictured) from one of its warships in 2027. (Crown Copyright)    The UK Royal Navy (RN) will install the DragonFire laser directed energy weapon (LDEW) onboard    one of its warships five years earlier than planned under new procurement reforms introduced by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) in April.   Announcing the accelerated schedule on 12 April, the RN said that earlier plans to deploy the system in 2032 are being brought forward to 2027 as the need for...

The Netherlands has ordered seven additional GM200 MM/C radars from Thales after having ordered an initial nine in February 2019. Pictured is the first GM200 MM/C radar being handed over to the Royal Netherlands Army in Hengelo in February 2024. (Dutch MoD/Sgt Maj Gregory Fréni)  The Dutch Command Materiel and IT (COMMIT) procurement authority has ordered seven additional Ground Master 200 Multi-Mission/Compact (GM200 MM/C) radars from Thales.  The contract includes an option for two additional radars, according to a Thales announcement on 15...

A mock-up of the Eurofighter EK displayed at the ILA 2022 airshow in Berlin. The proposed escort jammer pod is seen in the foreground. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)  Hensoldt is considering how to proceed with its plans to offer a new airborne electronic attack (AEA) capability to Germany, following its recent acquisition of Elektroniksystem- und Logistik-GmbH (ESG).    A company representative told   Janes   on 12 April that having previously proposed a joint solution with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems for Step 2 of the Eurofighte...

A full-scale model of Aselsan's first Deringöz AUV under development on display at UDT 2024. The company is set to start work on a smaller version this year. (Janes/Kate Tringham)  Aselsan has outlined plans to start expanding its family of Deringöz autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) this year as the first prototype under development progresses through its trials programme.  Speaking to Janes at the Undersea Defence Technology (UDT) 2024 conference and exhibition in London on 9 April, an Aselsan spokesperson told that the first prototype i...

A scale model of the active array for the miniature version of Düfas on display at UDT 2024. (Janes/Kate Tringham)  Turkish manufacturer Aselsan is progressing development of a miniature version of its Düfas low-frequency towed active sonar system for unmanned surface vessels (USVs), which it expects to complete this year.  Speaking to Janes at the Undersea Defence Technology (UDT) 2024 conference and exhibition in London on 10 April, an Aselsan spokesperson said the company has been working on the smaller version, dubbed Düfas-M, since 2022...

NATO has selected SitaWare HQ as its primary C2 software for land operations. Pictured is a screenshot visualising SitaWare HQ's geographic information system. (Systematic)  Systematic's SitaWare Headquarters (HQ) software has been selected by NATO as its primary command-and-control (C2) solution for land operations.  The software, selected as part of a EUR28.21 million (USD30.47 million) contract, aims to provide the Future Land Command and Control (FLC2) system (Demeter), supporting NATO land forces at strategic and operational levels.  The...

The Babcock Immersive Training Experience (BITE), unveiled at IT²EC 2024, was configured to imitate a bunker control room, equipped with communication devices and video feeds, including from UAVs and social media. (Janes/Olivia Savage)  Babcock unveiled a new modular, immersive training system at the International Training Technology Exhibition & Conference (IT²EC) 2024 held from 9 to 11 April in London.  Known as the Babcock Immersive Training Experience (BITE), the system is designed to provide trainees with a realistic training environment...

VBS4 24.1, the latest version of BISim's VBS4 virtual simulation software pictured being used by MoD personnel with commercial-off-the-shelf hardware, is due to be released in May. (Bohemia Interactive Simulations )  The latest version of Bohemia Interactive Simulations' (BISim's) Virtual Battlespace 4 (VBS4) environment will feature munition-equipped unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the company announced at the International Training Technology Exhibition & Conference (IT2EC) 2024 held from 9 to 11 April in London.  VBS4 is a virtual desktop...

Saildrone has partnered with Thales Australia to enhance the capabilities of its Surveyor-class USVs (pictured) by equipping them with Thales Australia's BlueSentry thin-line fibre-optic towed array. (Saildrone)  Thales Australia has signed an agreement with California-based Saildrone to collaborate on integrating its BlueSentry sonar system into Saildrone's Surveyor-class unmanned surface vessels (USVs).  The agreement, announced at the Navy League Sea-Air-Space 2024 global maritime exposition in National Harbor, Maryland, on 8 April, will h...

DSIT's DogFish sonar system is designed for use on underwater vehicles. (DSIT)  DSIT Solutions publicly unveiled its new multimission sonar system designed for operation onboard underwater vehicles at the Undersea Defence Technology (UDT) 2024 conference and exhibition, held in London from 9 to 11 April.  The system, named DogFish, was developed in response to the proliferation of threats in the underwater environment from manned and unmanned vessels. It has the capability to autonomously detect, track, and classify submarines, mini-submarine...

A CIR Fuchs Kampfwert-Steigerung Radio Multiband (KWS RMB) radar reconnaissance vehicle during electronic warfare exercise ‘Vigilant Owl' held in Lithuania at the end of 2023. (Bundeswehr/Stefan Uj)  German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced in a press conference on 4 April that he had approved the restructuring of the Bundeswehr in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022. The restructuring aims to make the Bundeswehr combat ready and optimise it for defending Germany and its NATO allies.  The restructu...