Sagar Defence Engineering has opened a new facility in Pune to manufacture Uncrewed Surface Vehicles as part of its partnership with Liquid Robotics, the plant will enable local manufacturing, ocean testing and sustainment of unmanned maritime systems, including capacity building for the Wave Glider platform.
Boeing has announced two major defence awards: a nearly USD 4.7 billion FMS contract to supply 96 AH-64E Apaches to Poland, and a USD 2.47 billion U.S. Air Force order for 15 KC-46A tankers, expanding global fleets of both platforms.
The NTSB’s preliminary fndings into the crash of UPS Flight 2976 indicate the left engine and pylon separated after takeoff, with early analysis identifying fatigue cracking in the pylon aft mount. The accident killed three crew and 11 people on the ground.
Germany has introduced its first Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, the largest combat aircraft in Bundeswehr service, which replaces the P-3C Orion fleet and will be stationed at Nordholz air base for surveillance and anti-submarine operations across the strategically vital GIUK gap in the North Atlantic. Germany will operate eight Poseidons by 2028, with crews training alongside NATO partners including the US, UK, Norway and Australia.
Saab, Boeing and BAE Systems have signed a Letter of Intent to collaborate on the UK’s next fast-jet training programme, proposing a system built around the T-7 trainer aircraft. The companies plan a UK-based assembly line, integrated live-synthetic training capabilities and expanded supply-chain opportunities, while also positioning the collaboration for future international pilot-training requirements.
Boeing has introduced a unified e-commerce website that consolidates its distribution products and services into a single platform. The company said the launch is part of a wider modernization effort, including updated support systems, enhanced AOG response capabilities and new data-integration tools designed to streamline customer access and supply-chain operations.
Turkey signed separate agreements at the International Defence Industry Fair in Istanbul last week, with plans to purchase 40 Eurofighter aircraft from the United Kingdom and sell 48 of its indigenous Kaan fighter aircraft to Indonesia.
Boeing and the Royal Australian Air Force have successfully demonstrated Manned Unmanned Teaming of two MQ-28 Ghost Bat drones with an E-7A Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft, with plans for future teaming with the F/A-18 and F-35 fighters.
It turns out the U.S. Army was right about the M10 Booker. It was definitely not a light tank, being too heavy to be operated in many of the typical service conditions where it was expected. Plans for buying 96 M10 Booker vehicles at a cost of $1.14 billion are now scrapped.
The U.S. Air Force has already flown multiple prototypes of the new F-47 fighter, which is part of the Next Generation Air Dominance program that includes uncrewed loyal wingman drones and new adaptive engines. It is planned to be cheaper than the F-22, with a larger fleet and an export version.
As NATO races to supply Ukraine before Trump takes office, Europe is struggling to touch two percent of its GDP on defence expenditure while Russia plans to spend more than 32 percent of its national budget on its military.
A total of 168 KC-46A tankers are on contract around the world with the latest order for the aircraft worth $2.38 billion. The order for the P-8A worth $1.6 billion brings the number of aircraft on contract to 207, of which 135 have been ordered by eight other countries.
Boeing issued a ‘global No Technical Objection (NTO)’ confirming there are no technical issues to any Boeing-built defence aircraft and derivatives operating on synthetic aviation turbine fuels at the maximum allowable limit of a 50-50 blend with conventional fossil fuels.
The Starliner is an astronaut capsule that is supposed to reusable up to ten times and includes an expendable service module. According to Boeing, ‘Wilmore and Williams are also the first to launch on an Atlas V rocket.’
Using a digital F/A-18 Super Hornet and an MQ-25 Stingray unmanned refueler in a simulator lab, “a Boeing-led team virtually demonstrated an F/A-18 pilot commanding an unmanned MQ-25 to release a refueling drogue and refuel the Super Hornet, using existing communications links on both platforms,” according to a statement by the company.
