Author: Elodie Collins (Elodie Collins)

Thales and its partner Schiebel have completed factory acceptance testing of the Camcopter S-100 unmanned air system for the U.K. Ministry of Defence’s Peregrine program. In a press release, Thales said the aircraft demonstrated “exceptional capabilities” to all requirements of the test, the final step the companies needed to secure to begin deliveries to MoD....

The Australian Defence Force has renewed its contract with Serco to provide logistics and base support for its operations in the Middle East.  The expansion contract for MELABS, short for Middle East Logistics and Base Support Services, is a continuation of the agreement that the two organizations originally signed in 2011.  Mark Irwin, group chief...

The Japan Air Self-Defense Force has deployed two of its F-35A Lightning II fighter jets to Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal in the Northern Territory, marking the first time it has sent the military aircraft overseas.  Japan’s vice minister of defense for international affairs, Kiyoshi Serizawa, and Kazuhiro  Suzuki, the ambassador to Australia, were present at...

The New Zealand government is cutting back its spending by up to $2.4 billion over the next four years in response to global economic uncertainties and failure to meet tax revenue forecasts. Finance Minister Grant Robertson, in a press release issued Monday, said public agencies are directed to roll back expenditures on consultants and contractors to...

Thales has begun designing a Maritime Autonomy and Small-Medium Enterprise Collaboration Precinct that would support the Royal Australian Navy’s Mine Countermeasures and Military Survey Capability SEA1905-1 program. The company estimates that the precinct, set to be built at its Carrington site in Newcastle, New South Wales, would inject $25.6 million into the Hunter economy within its...

The U.S. Department of State has approved the possible sale of F-16 Infrared Search and Track systems and related equipment to Taiwan under the Foreign Military Sales program. Lockheed Martin, which manufactures the fighter jets, is the principal contractor for the proposed acquisition. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the United States submitted the...

The Competition and Markets Authority in the U.K. said it has given the green light for U.S.-based computer chip and software maker Broadcom’s acquisition of cloud technology company VMware after determining that the deal does not weaken market competition. Reports said regulators launched an investigation over concerns that the combination of the two technology companies...

Chinese researchers have proposed the use of camera data to steer an unmanned aerial vehicle toward a target in places where GPS is under attack. In a study published in the journal Engineering, the researchers explained that a done can use its on board cameras to estimate the target’s position and how quickly it is moving....

Neither Russia nor Ukraine have not been able to establish air superiority after over a year and a half of conflict, according to the commander of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa.  Speaking to reporters at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Air Force Gen. James B. Hecker said the ongoing war...

Romania’s parliament has approved the purchase of fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II fighter jets. The Romanian Ministry of National Defence expects to sign a letter of acceptance with the U.S. government for 32 Lockheed Martin-made aircraft in 2024.  A spokesperson for the Romanian MND told Breaking Defense that the first aircraft under the Eastern European country’s F-35 Endowment...