Belgian Defense is selling twenty-five Alpha Jet training aircraft based in France, but will only be available from December 2019 onwards, according to military sources.

The deadline to participate in this tender, which covers the 25 aircraft as well as various equipment -- including engines -- the technical documentation and a simulator, has been set for 7 November, according to a notice published by the Defence staff’s Directorate-General of Matériel Resources (DG-MR).

These small twin-jet training aircraft, 33 of which were originally acquired in 1973, entered service between 1978 and 1980, and are now approaching the end of their service life despite an upgrade carried out beginning in 2000.

Italy will cut 500 million euros ($578.25 million) in armaments spending in its 2019 budget, Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said in an interview with online media Tiscali News. “We will scrap 500 million euros in spending for useless armaments, which are not used to defend the country but are only a way of spending money,” Di Maio said, without specifying what would be cut.

The German navy has begun planning to replace its fleet of 21 Westland Sea Lynx anti-submarine warfare helicopters, which are due to be retired in 2025. The navy has begun planning to replace its fleet of 21 Westland Sea Lynx anti-submarine warfare helicopters, which are due to be retired in 2025.

U.S. weapons maker Lockheed Martin Corp and German peer Rheinmetall AG said on Thursday they will make a joint bid to supply the German navy with MH-60R Seahawk helicopters built by Lockheed's Sikorsky unit.  The two firms are also cooperating on a bid to supply new heavy-lift helicopters to the German air force, as announced in February, for a contract that could be worth around 4 billion euros ($4.6 billion).

Europe's Airbus is also likely to bid for the contract with its NH90 Sea Lion multi-role naval helicopter, as is AgustaWestland, part of Italy's Leonardo Finmeccanica SpA, which built the current fleet of helicopters.

The heavy artillery Panzerhouwitser 2000NL self-propelled howitzer and the CV90 infantry combat vehicle are being taken care of. The so-called midlife updates (MLU) will keep these combat systems deployable and relevant until the end of their lifespan, State Secretary for Defence Barbara Visser announced today through separate letters to Parliament.

 What will happen to the Panzer howitzer 2000NL First, the electronics are modernized and the ventilation system replaced. The ammunition loading system will also undergo an adaptation. For example, long-range projectiles will also be fired at the normal rate of fire. Finally, the armor is modernized and the night vision equipment is improved.

The Lithuanian Armed Forces has received the delivery of 54 Unimog U5000 trucks from the Nato Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA).

Later this month, the Defence Materiel Agency under the Ministry of National Defence is expected to sign an updated agreement with the Nato agency for the procurement of the Unimog vehicles in 2019.

Based on preliminary data, Daimler would need to supply an additional 110 trucks to the Lithuanian Armed Forces by September next year.

A fleet of 142 trucks can be ordered and delivered to the country between 2020 and 2021.

Russian units operating the S-400 air defence system will receive the 40N6 advanced long-range surface-to-air missile which was recently has been accepted for service in the Russian Army.

The main improvement in the 40N6 over the earlier generation missiles is that its maximum distance of attack is 380 kms for aerodynamic targets while the maximum distance covered by current missiles of the S-400 system is 250 Kms.

The 40N6 has an export version, 40N6E which could be offered for sale internationally. Earlier this month India had signed a US$5.6 billion deal to buy the S-400 system. The type of missile in the system has not been made public.

The 40N6 is a surface-to-air very long-range missile designed to strike early warning and electronic warfare aircraft, airborne command posts, strategic bombers and hypersonic cruise and ballistic missiles.

The missile can travel up to 380 km for aerodynamic targets and up to 15km for ballistic weapons at an altitude ranging from 10 m to 35 km. The average flight speed is 1,190 m/s.

The Portuguese Ministry of Defence (MoD) has selected Leonardo’s AW119Kx as its new multirole single engine helicopter to meet its future operational requirements.

The Portuguese Air Force is set to take delivery of five aircraft with an option for a further two units. Deliveries are to start in late 2018 from Leonardo’s plant in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, USA), with completion of deliveries by early 2020.

The contract awarded by the Portuguese MoD is valued in excess of €20 million. The AW119Kx helicopters will be used to perform a wide range of roles including training, MEDEVAC, troop transport and short range maritime search and rescue (SAR) and may be used for firefighting.

The choice of the American F-35 fighter plane as a replacement for the aging F-16 has been made, but the government - and more specifically Prime Minister Charles Michel - has yet to see how the decision is interpreted, preferably as a European decision. That has been heard from several sources within the government .

The federal government started in March 2017 the selection procedure for a new fighter plane. Initially it was a contract of 3.6 billion euros, with a value of 15 billion euros through the service life of the aircraft, that is estimated to last about forty years.

The American offer was formally valid until October 14, the same day when local elections took place in Belgium, but was extended by two weeks until the end of October, according to a reliable source. After two meetings of the “core” cabinet, on October 4 and last week, the most senior ministers had all the information to make a well-founded decision.

Several government sources indicate that the choice has already been made for the F-35. "The government is still looking for a formula to explain the American choice," they stated, without wanting to be cited by name.

The Government has approved the purchase of mortar ammunition for the Army for an estimated value of 21,052,700 euros.

The tender will include  60, 81, and 120mm  including sub-caliber training rounds.

The purchase of the ammunition will be executed via  a framework agreement with the winning bidder. The Ministry of Defense considers this procedure appropriate, based on the mortar consumption forecasts prepared by the Army Staff (EME) and the figures of previous years, which determine a recurrent use of this type of ammunition.

The U.S. government is considering the transfer of Oliver Hazard Perry type frigates to Ukraine; the move that clearly aims to boost the country's defense capability at sea, the Ukrainian Military Portal reported citing a source in the Ukrainian Navy.

The undisclosed source in the Ukrainian Navy confirmed that the U.S. Embassy turned to Ukraine's defense ministry with the respective offer. “But we haven't decided yet; one has to take everything into account - the crew training, the price of service of these vessels, the price of maintenance works et cetera,” the source claimed.

Oliver Hazard Perry type frigates may be of use in the Black Sea waters; they can't be deployed in the Sea of Azov, though, as these ships' water draught is too big for these waters.

These warships were designed in the United States in the mid-1970s as general-purpose escort vessels inexpensive enough to be bought in large quantities to replace World War II-era destroyers and complement 1960s-era Knox-class frigates. The Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates were designed primarily as anti-aircraft and anti-submarine warfare guided-missile warships intended to provide open-ocean escort of amphibious warfare ships and merchant ship convoys in moderate threat environments in a potential war with the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact countries. They could also provide air defense against 1970s- and 1980s-era aircraft and anti-ship missiles.

The United States State has approved a Foreign Military Sale to the United Kingdom of 16 H-47 Chinook (Extended Range) helicopters made by Boeing for an estimated cost of $3.5 billion.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale Friday.

The Government of United Kingdom has requested a possible sale of sixteen H-47 Chinook (Extended Range) helicopters; thirty-six (36) T-55-GA-714A engines; forty-eight (48) embedded GPS inertial navigation units; twenty (20) common missile warning systems; twenty-two (22) radio-frequency countermeasures; nineteen (19) multi-mode radars; nineteen (19) electro-optical sensor systems; forty (40) M-134D-T mini­ guns; and forty (40) M240H machine guns.

The Slovakian MOD will propose the Cabinet approve the procurement of the Vydra (‘Otter’) 8x8 armored IFV. Up to 16 SVK firms could become involved in the production of the IFV.

Next week the MOD will initiate interdepartmental consultations on the proposal. As the MOD has stated before, the document will be Unclassified. In addition to technical company trials, verification trials and military trials, the IFV prototype has successfully undergone additional verification and military trails in order to test the proposed adjustments to the vehicle.

 Speaking at a press conference at the MOD today, Minister of Defence Peter Gajdoš said: “The vehicle is the result of international Slovak-Finnish development and most of it will be produced in Slovakia. The price of a single vehicle in the serial production, including all components, will not exceed €3.33 million, VAT excluded, in other words, the vehicle will cost up to €4 million, VAT included.

“According to analysis, up to 16 Slovak and 1 Czech defence companies can participate in its production. Thanks to this historically largest modernization, and I count the production of the Zuzana 2 SpGH in, up to 800 jobs may be created.”

Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly announced that the Atlantic 2 maritime patrol aircraft will be modernized in depth, to be both more operational and more numerous.

 The Directorate General of Armament (DGA) has just ordered the renovation of six Navy Atlantic 2 maritime patrol aircraft. In total, the fleet of refurbished maritime patrol aircraft will consist of eighteen aircraft, all delivered over the period of the 2019-2025 Military Planning Law.

 The DGA awarded contracts to Dassault Aviation and Thales on October 11, 2018 for the upgrade of six Atlantic 2 maritime patrol aircraft (ATL2). The upgrade of the first twelve aircraft has already been contracted, so this new order will bring to eighteen upgraded aircraft the French Navy’s Atlantic 2 fleet, instead of the fifteen originally planned.

The modernization of the aircraft focuses on the replacement of certain equipment with digital equipment derived from the best technologies currently available: tactical computer, optronic and acoustic intelligence systems, and radar. In particular, the new radar -Searchmaster- benefits from the active antenna technology developed by Thales for the Rafale.

 In addition to the two co-contractors Dassault Aviation and Thales, the project also involves Naval Group for information processing software and the Aeronautical Industry Service (SIAé) of the Ministry of the Armed Forces for the evolution of the visualization consoles as well as other minor modifications.

Italy will cut €450 million from its planned defense spending in 2019 by suspending helicopter and missile purchases and canceling an office move by the defense ministry to help shore up social welfare and tax cuts.

Italy’s total outlay on defense in 2019 will be announced in parliament in the next few days, as Rome’s populist government seeks support by members of parliament for its state budget, which contains billions of euros for a new wage for the unemployed.

During 2019 all ongoing purchases of NH-90 helicopters for the Italian Army and Navy will be suspended. Upgrades to Tornado aircraft will also be suspended . The two measures would save €370 million.

Italy’s purchase of the MBDA Camm-Er missile defense system will also be put off for a year, saving €30 million in 2019.

Another €50 million — to reach the total of €450 million — will come from the cancellation of plans to move the headquarters of Italy’s armed forces out of their separate buildings in Rome’s city center to a unified HQ in the suburbs.

On 24^th October, President Putin signed a decree empowering the incorporation of Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) into Rostec, the high-tech holding that controls most of Russia’s defense industry.

According to the order, the transfer is to be completed within 18 months and effectively transfers  the National aircraft industry under Rostec’s control.

Swedish Saab has received an $18.7 million order for ammunition for the Carl-Gustaf weapon system from the Latvian Ministry of Defence, the company announced on 24 October.

The Latvian armed forces have been using Carl-Gustaf weapon system for more than 20 years.

Employing a wide range of ammunition types, the Carl-Gustaf system allows dismounted soldiers to neutralize armored vehicles, clear obstacles and defeat enemies in buildings.

Independent marine and naval architecture consultancy, Tymor Marine, headquartered in Aberdeen, has been awarded a contract to deliver a vessel mid-life extension survey for the Irish Naval Service.

Tymor will survey the Irish Navy's P50 class vessels to assess the condition of their structure, systems, equipment and machinery and provide a full analysis and report containing independent recommendations for integrity maintenance and upgrade activity.

The vessel survey will provide evidence of vessel integrity and where possible make an estimation of remaining endurance, highlighting priority sites requiring attention. The contract will also include a review of planned maintenance and inspection activity, make recommendations for cost-efficient preventative actions and upgrades, provide an assessment of machinery hours linked to the vessel's planned mode of operation over the course of its future activities and advise on remedial action, taking into account the availability and cost of spares and repairs.

Latvia has received Stinger air-defense systems from Denmark in scope of the bilateral agreement signed between Latvian and Danish defence ministries last year.

Stinger air-defense systems include air defence missiles and their launch platforms. National Armed Forces will use Stinger systems for company-size air defence purposes. Stinger systems will protect combat units from aerial attacks by enemy air force.

Latvia will collaborate with NATO and other allied forces on operational, maintenance and train the trainer courses for the staff of the National Armed Forces to ensure smooth introduction of Stinger air-defence systems.

Latvian troops travelled to Finland this august to undergo Stinger operators’ training. While training, troops also developed Stinger operator training module based on courses provided in Finland. The new module will be implemented by the newly-created Air Force Training Centre of National Armed Forces. Necessary training equipment (simulators) will be delivered in 2019.

Maintenance of Stinger air-defence systems will be contracted to NATO Support and Procurement Agency. Maintenance contract will include regular missile testing to verify compliance with safety and combat/operational standards.

Germany's opposition Left party drew a Defense Ministry admission Wednesday that only 39 percent of large items delivered to the German armed forces in 2017 did not require further improvement before deployment.

The quality of items delivered was "still improvable," said Parliamentary State Secretary Peter Tauber, who until February was general-secretary of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic (CDU) party.

The admission, which came in response to an inquiry from Left parliamentarian Matthias Höhn, coincides with German troop involvement in a major NATO exercise in Norway and follows calls for improved readiness from defense officials, including Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen.

Tauber's reply, cited by the German DPA news agency, said the Bundeswehr strove to have 70 percent of its weapons systems ready for operations at any time. In 2017, only 39 percent of new deliveries were ready for deployment.

 Especially worrisome were Airbus A400M military transport aircraft and the Puma infantry tank delivered since 2010 by a German consortium comprising Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) and Rheinmetall Defence.

 Airbus describes its A400M as "the most advanced, proven and certified airlifter available, combining 21st century, state-of-the-art technologies to fulfill the current and upcoming Armed Forces' needs."

 The armored vehicle consortium said the Puma provides its crew with "protection technologies of the latest generation."

In 2013, the Defense White Paper stipulated that, by 2030, 15 frigates would have to equip the Navy. This directly implies the arrival of a new frigate in the forces, the intermediate size frigate (FTI). The lead ship of this class has now been ordered, and should be delivered before 2023. This ambitious project is the result of the collaboration of the Directorate General of Armament, Naval Group, Thales and MBDA.

 The Intermediate Frigate (FTI) will be stealthy with a smaller and lighter size than other frigates. It will still be 120 meters long and will displace 4,500 tonnes. The FTI will have a permanent crew of 120 people and be able to accommodate up to 150 passengers. Among them, she will probably embark commandos because the FTI has the capability to operate two ECUME Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boats (RHIB).

 The vessel was also designed to operate an NH-90 NFH helicopter and well as a drone. According to Chief Engineer Grégory, who has worked extensively on this program, the Marine Aerial UAV System (SDAM) is a serious candidate, but may not be the only one.

An armed frigate to intervene on all fronts

 According to the Armed Force Minister’s description, this vessel is "a jewel of technology." This frigate of the future is, in any case, an example of operational versatility because it will intervene against all kinds of threats, whether they are air, surface or underwater.

 The great innovation of this of the FTI is in the equipment it aligns for the air defense mission. This will be the first French frigate to be equipped with a single mast in the middle of the hull, which will carry a SEA FIRE digital multi-function radar with fixed panels (other vessels are equipped with two masts with rotating radars). This new technology will provide the radar, and the other embarked sensors, with an unobstructed, 360° field of view.

 To complete her anti-aircraft equipment, the FTI frigate will carry 16 Aster air-intersept missiles is vertical launchers on the forward beck. The peculiarity is that the SEA FIRE radar will combine the detection of the threat with the real-time update of the trajectory of the missiles after launch.

 To engage surface threats, the FTI will be armed with 8 Exocet MM40 Block 3C missiles and 76mm guns. A small novelty compared to its bigger sisters is that the FTI frigate will be equipped with so-called "non-lethal" weapons. This is a new passive electronic warfare solution that, using light or sound stimuli, can deter attackers.

The frigate will also be able to respond to submarine assaults with MU90 torpedoes.