Jane's Defense News

US defence manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced an investment in nanosatellite specialist Terran Orbital on 29 June. The transaction, made both in cash and in-kind investments, saw Lockheed Martin Ventures, an arm of the company that focuses on strategic investments in disruptive technologies,

The US Navy has awarded a USD9.6 million Foreign Military Sale (FMS) contract to Raytheon for the procurement of five launcher control processors for the Takanami-class destroyers operated by the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF). The US Department of Defense (DoD) announced on 29 June that

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) will increase its ability to deal with terrorism-related contingencies by expanding the use of its reserve troops in homeland security operations alongside its regular and active conscript forces from July 2017. The new initiative was announced by Defence Minister

The US Air Force Materiel Command (AFMC) on 29 June issued a Sources Sought notice for a rapidly-fielded and developed hypersonic, conventional air-launched strike weapon. According to the notice, capabilities statements are being sought from potential sources "that are capable of

The UK "is in a very good place" as it prepares for the start of carrier trials of its Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) towards the end of next year, the chief of the Royal Air Force (RAF) told Jane's on 28 June. Speaking days after the Royal Navy's (RN's)

Argentina's Fábrica Argentina de Aviones SA (FAdeA) on 29 June rolled out the first IA-63 Pampa III destined to the Argentine Air Force. This is the first of an initial small order for three aircraft and is to be followed by a second larger batch that is being negotiated. The aircraft's first

EVENT Assailants armed with assault rifles and machetes attacked a police station on 29 June in the central Kalamu neighbourhood of Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), wounding four police officers including a brigadier-in-chief. One assailant was killed and three

China has continued enhancing its dual-use facilities on three artificial islands in the South China Sea (SCS) by building new shelters and installing additional radar and communications structures there, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) at the Center for Strategic and

Key Points President Sisi considers his position secure and is likely to stand for re-election in 2018 with the backing of the military. The executive and legislative branches are willing to over-rule the judicial branch at the risk of civilian protests. Mass demonstrations are unlikely under

Key Points The Islamic State holds less than 2 sq km of Mosul, Iraq, with the coalition expecting to reclaim the city within days Islamic State leadership has fled Raqqa, Syria, and the group no longer has a central city for running its organisation Three years after the Islamic State declared

Finnish defence minister Jussi Niinistö agreed a Statement of Intent with his NATO counterparts on 29 June, facilitating Finland's membership of a working group on co-operation on ammunition procurement. Invited to participate alongside fellow non-NATO member Sweden, Finland hopes to take

Rostec unveiled an export version of the Russian Instrument Design Bureau (KBP)-designed integrated gun and surface-to-air missile (SAM) naval weapon system Pantsir-M, designated Pantsir-ME, at the International Maritime Defence Show (IMDS) in St Petersburg. Pantsir-ME is a fully automated

The Israeli Ministry of Defense (MoD) and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on 26 June that they had awarded a contract for the largest and most complex technological project in Israeli military history. The contract worth "hundreds of millions of shekels" was awarded to a

The Kenya Air Force (KAF) has received Bell AH-1F Cobra attack helicopters that were donated by Jordan, a source close to the KAF has told Jane's . The source declined to state how many aircraft are being transferred to Kenya. Kenya's acquisition of at least one Cobra was revealed in May, when

Key Points The northern German city of Hamburg will host the G20 summit on 7 and 8 July and local authorities expect at least 100,000 protestors to stage rallies promoting anti-capitalist, anti-globalisation, pro-Kurdish, and other causes. Violence is likely to break out during some of the

MBDA is to introduce a new unpowered, stand-off air-launched munition capability to its air-to-surface guided weapons portfolio, through the development of what the company describes as a "family of all-up-round glide weapons" with the designation 'SmartGlider'. Optimised as a

The Mexican Secretariat of the Navy (SEMAR) launched a new Tenochtitlan-class coastal patrol vessel (CPV) at Naval Shipyard 1 on 27 June, SEMAR said in a statement. ARM Chichén-Itzá (PC 340) is the tenth ship in the Tenochtitlan class, a Mexican-produced variant of the Dutch-designed

European satellite specialist Thales Alenia Space is proposing a maritime surveillance version of its Stratobus multimission, autonomous, stratospheric airship. The Stratobus is described by the company as “midway between a satellite and an unmanned aerial vehicle” and can be used to

Former SNCF and Air France executive Florence Parly has been appointed as defence minister of France; the second appointment to the helm of the Ministry of Defence in a month after Parly’s predecessor stepped down after less than four weeks. Parly’s appointment on 21 June followed the

There is growing evidence that the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) is co-operating with the Iranian-backed group Hizbullah, a senior Israeli officer has told Jane's . "Hizbullah uses LAF military assets for intelligence-gathering activities," said Lieutenant Colonel Kamil Tapash, the deputy