Rheinmetall will manufacture autonomous unmanned ground vehicles for Japan. The German defense company recently secured a multimillion-dollar contract from the Japanese Ministry of Defence to deliver Mission Master SP UGVs by early 2025. Japanese company Marubeni Aerospace, the program’s prime contractor, will train under and collaborate with Rheinmetall on the UGVs’ delivery and support. The...
Category: General News
Thales Australia to Integrate Sonar Tech Into Saildrone USV
Thales Australia has entered a partnership agreement to integrate its BlueSentry towed array sonar into Saildrone’s Surveyor uncrewed surface vehicle. The companies announced their partnership on the sidelines of Sea-Air-Space 2024 at National Harbor, Maryland, on Monday. According to Thales, the thin-line towed array provides enhanced surveillance and monitoring for open-ocean surveys and maritime domain...
Accenture Expands Business in Japan With Acquisition of System Integrator Climb
Accenture has announced a deal to acquire Climb, a Japanese company that provides system integration, IT infrastructure management and operations services. The acquisition will enable Accenture to use Climb’s expertise to support Japan-based companies’ digital transformation efforts and allow Climb’s local experts to strengthen Japan’s information communication technology sector, Accenture said. According to Atsushi Egawa,...
Italy’s Fincantieri Prepares for Opportunities in Undersea Market Growth; Pierroberto Folgiero Quoted
Italian ship manufacturer Fincantieri is preparing for the anticipated growth of the undersea market over the coming years, according to company CEO Pierroberto Folgiero. In an interview with Breaking Defense, Folgiero predicted that the market would be worth up to $400 billion by 2030. “Underwater will be what was space 40 years ago,” the CEO...
Rheinmetall Breaks Ground on $68M Hybrid Production Plant in Hungary; Christoph Mueller Quoted
Rheinmetall is investing $68 million in a new production facility in Szeged, Hungary. According to Christoph Mueller, CEO of Rheinmetall Power Systems, the site will expand the company’s presence in the country, noting that it already has operational plants in Budapest, Zalaegerszeg and Varpalota. “We are delighted to further expand our presence in Hungary, one...
Norway Responds to ‘Deteriorating’ Security Environment With Increased Defense Spending Plan
Norway wants to increase defense spending in preparation for a potential conflict with Russia. “As our security environment is deteriorating, we need to spend more on and pay more attention to defense and preparedness,” said Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, the country’s minister of finance. Under the Norwegian government’s long-term defense plan, about $60 billion will be invested over...
US Sanctions UAE-Based Shipper Oceanlink Maritime Over Ties With Iran
The United States has issued a new round of sanctions targeting an organization involved in shipping commodities on behalf of Iran‘s General Staff of the Armed Forces and Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. According to a press release, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control is blocking the use of 13...
US Turns Over First ISR-Capable Beechcraft King Air 350ER to Canadian Government
The United States has delivered the first of three Beechcraft King Air 350ER aircraft to Canada for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations. The Army Program Executive Office’s Aviation Fixed Wing Project Office turned over the ISR platform on Feb. 22 at L3Harris Technologies’ facility in Greenville, Texas. L3Harris won the contract in November 2020 to...
US Trains With Aussie, New Zealand Counterparts to Neutralize Mine Threats
Mine warfare units from the United States, Australia and New Zealand participated in Exercise Dugong 24, which tested their capabilities to neutralize sea mines. The training ran from March 4 to 22 and involved integration, training and tactical stages, with the latter phase tasking the participants to conduct mine countermeasures and explosive ordnance disposal operations....
Canberra Bares Three Defense Science Appointments to Support Warfighting Capabilities
The Australian Department of Defence has announced the appointment of Emily Hilder as head of the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator, a new government agency formed in May 2023 to transition game-changing concepts into capabilities that provide a warfighting advantage to the Australian Defence Force. The department said Hilder brings 20 years of industry and academic...










