2026 - Weeklydefencenews

February 16, 2026
Admin
Land Platforms
Procurement & Contracts

Rheinmetall Wins $237M NATO Contract

NATO’s procurement agency has initiated deliveries of 120mm tank ammunition from Rheinmetall valued at roughly €200 million. The order falls under a Basic Contractual Instrument signed in 2025 that...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Air Platforms
R&D

Apache Fires Proximity Anti-Drone Round

The US Army has demonstrated a new counter-UAS capability by live-testing the XM1225 proximity-fused round from an AH-64 Apache helicopter. Fired from the aircraft’s M230 Chain Gun, the 30×113mm...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Unmanned Systems
Procurement & Contracts

Camcopter S-100 Heads to Greek Navy

Greece’s Hellenic Navy has selected Schiebel’s Camcopter S-100 UAS for its new FDI frigates, beginning with HS Kimon. The VTOL drone can conduct day-and-night missions in adverse weather and...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Unmanned Systems
Procurement & Contracts

EU States Start Long-Range Drone Program

Six European nations have signed a letter of intent to collaborate on a cost-effective loitering munition capable of striking targets beyond 500 kilometers. The ELSA initiative envisions a scalable...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Unmanned Systems
Procurement & Contracts

Ground Robots Go on Sale in Ukraine

Ukrainian forces can now directly procure ground robotic systems through the DOT Chain Defence online marketplace, broadening access to automation technologies. Initially piloted with limited brigades, the platform rapidly...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Air Platforms
Procurement & Contracts

Hivemind Chosen for YFQ-44A Autonomy

Shield AI has been selected by the US Air Force to deliver its Hivemind autonomy software for integration into Anduril’s YFQ-44A under the Collaborative Combat Aircraft program. Acting as...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Naval Platforms
R&D

US Navy Gets 8th John Lewis Tanker

Construction has officially begun on the US Navy’s future USNS Ruth Bader Ginsburg (T-AO 212), the eighth John Lewis-class replenishment oiler, following a keel-laying ceremony at General Dynamics NASSCO’s...

February 16, 2026
Admin
Air Platforms
R&D

HENSOLDT to Boost CA-1 Europa With AI

Two German defense firms, Helsing and HENSOLDT, have partnered to evolve the CA-1 Europa uncrewed aircraft into an autonomous intelligence node for multi-domain warfare. The platform will combine Helsing’s...

February 15, 2026
Admin
Naval Platforms
New Product Launches

$2.8B Announced for Nuclear Sub Base

Australia has announced an initial investment of AUD 3.9 billion ($2.8 billion) to support construction of a nuclear submarine facility under the AUKUS partnership with the United States and...

Azerbaijan Orders SAM-120 Mortars

Slovakia has signed a framework agreement to supply Azerbaijan with 96 SAM-120 self-propelled mortar systems, with options that could expand the order to as many as 300 units. The...