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Lithuania and other European Union (EU) member nations have discussed the joint procurement of additional artillery ammunition to support the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The discussions were held during an informal meeting of EU defence ministers in Stockholm, Sweden.

Organised between the 7-8 March, the meeting was presided by defence ministers of Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine, Sweden, and Germany, among other EU nations.

AFSOC will employ the MQ-9B in the armed overwatch role. (General Atomics)
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) has secured US Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) as the first US operator of its MQ-9B SkyGuardian unmanned aircraft system (UAS).
AFSOC is to acquire three systems comprising an undisclosed number of air vehicles, as it looks to enhance its unmanned overwatch capability currently conducted with the MQ-9A Reaper.
GA-ASI did not disclose a contract value or a delivery timeline.

The U.S. Army knows that artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are critical to maintaining an edge over current and future threats in data-driven operations. AI-enabled systems will be needed to support a broad range of tasks rapidly and accurately, and on the modern battlefields in Ukraine and in any future conflict, success comes from […]
The post Pipeline as a Product: How Project Linchpin Plans to Deliver Artificial Intelligence for the Army appeared first on War on the Rocks.

India’s Nirbhay cruise missile, displayed above at Defexpo 2020 in Lucknow, will be equipped with small turbofan engines, enhanced radio frequency seekers, and other subsystems to transform it into the proposed Long-Range Land Attack Cruise Missile. (Janes/Rahul Udoshi )
India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) recently conducted a flight test of its Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM) from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the northeastern coast of Odisha.

A US marine rides in a M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) during joint exercise Scarlet Dragon in Dugway, Utah, on 2 February 2023. (US Marine Corps photo by Lance Corporal Emma Gray)
A recently formed team in the US Department of Defense (DoD) plans to explore the possibility of setting up a new organisation to improve joint warfighting by the US armed forces.

A model of the Switchblade 300 loitering munition is displayed at the 2021 Association of the United States Army annual trade show in Washington, DC. (Janes)
Obtaining warheads for AeroVironment’s Switchblade 300 and 600 tube-launched loitering missiles has become a “challenge”, because the Ukraine war has boosted demand for the explosive parts, according to the company’s chief executive.

Russia’s investment in nuclear submarines is causing concern among Western allies after the country’s submarines were deployed in the Atlantic off the US coast and near European NATO nations.
Putin has sought to expand Russia’s submarine capabilities, prompting growing fears among NATO countries and their allies. There have been comparisons between current submarine military spending and the Cold War era.

Boeing will begin production of the first 13 MH-139A Gray Wolf helicopters following the award of a $285 million contract from the US Air Force for aircraft, maintenance, and support services.
“Advancing the program from testing and evaluation to production is an important step in bringing the MH-139 into service and providing the US Air Force with additional missile safety for decades to come,” Azeem said. Khan, Boeing’s MH-139 program manager. “We are working diligently to start deliveries next year.

The MH-139A in December 2019 at Duke Field in Florida. (US Air Force)
The US Air Force (USAF) on 7 March approved the Boeing MH-139 for production and issued a contract for 13 low-rate initial production (LRIP) helicopters.
The Boeing MH-139, a derivative of the Leonardo AW-139, is intended to replace the Bell UH-1 in USAF service for ‘VIP transport’ in Washington, DC, and security troops in nuclear missile fields.

“We have a few more certification activities that we’re working on,” Boeing programme manager Azeem Khan told
Janes
.

In less than a decade, Turkey has become a drone superpower. In 2018, the defense industry exported $871.5 million worth of unmanned aerial vehicles, an increase of 80 percent from the previous year.
The Baykar company, which makes the TB2 model, which has seen extensive use in recent wars across the globe, particularly in Ukraine, is a major player in this sector. Baykar has produced more than four hundred TB2 for export.
The TB2 is, however, only one of several types offered by Baykar.