Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov posted a photo on 24 May, showing a Ukrainian Air Force Su-24MR ‘Fencer' aircraft carrying a Storm Shadow missile. (Ukraine Ministry of Defence)

Ukraine is using its Sukhoi Su-24 ‘Fencer' strike aircraft to carry the MBDA Storm Shadow cruise missiles recently received from the United Kingdom.

This delivery method was revealed by Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov, who on 24 May posted a photo of a Ukrainian Air Force Su-24 aircraft with a Storm Shadow on each of its inboard underwing pylons.

“I was glad to host [UK Defence Minister] Ben Wallace in Kyiv. We had a very meaningful discussion focused on priorities for increasing Ukraine's defence capabilities, particularly providing long-range weapons such as Storm Shadow,” Reznikov said in a tweet that included the image of the Su-24 carrying the Storm Shadow.

While it had been reported that the Su-24 was most likely the means by which the Ukrainian Air Force was employing the Storm Shadow, Reznikov's tweet provided the first official confirmation. Wallace has so far declined to answer any questions surrounding the use of the Storm Shadow in Ukraine.

The Leonardo tiltrotor AW609 can support various security-centric applications such as cargo carrier, special operations, personnel recovery, and ‘homeland security'. (Leonardo)

Weststar Aviation Services (Weststar), a Malaysian aviation company, has signed an agreement with Leonardo to operate a single AW609 tiltrotor helicopter in the country.

According to the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (LIMA) Exhibition 2023 on 24 May, Weststar will operate the aircraft under lease. LIMA is being held from 23 to 27 May in Langkawi, Malaysia.

Janes assesses this could potentially result in future security-related applications for the AW609 by Malaysia. Weststar has established a precedent of leasing its company helicopters to the Malaysian military.

A company spokesperson told Janes during LIMA that Weststar leased four Leonardo AW139s to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) in 2021. The leasing was intended to fill a capability gap left by the RMAF's retirement of its Nuri helicopters in 2020, according to information held by Janes .

The ULAQ search-and-rescue unmanned surface vessel displayed at LIMA 2023. (Janes/Nishant Kumar)

Turkish firm Meteksan Defence unveiled a model of the new search-and-rescue (SAR) variant of its ULAQ unmanned surface vessel (USV) at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (LIMA) Exhibition 2023.

Meteksan's international sales director Burak Akbaş told Janes on 23 May that the company is positioning the SAR USV to meet requirements in Southeast Asia. He said the platform has been developed for coastguard SAR operations.

The ULAQ SAR USV has an overall length of 7.5 m, a beam of 2.3 m, and a draft of 0.7 m. It can operate at a speed of more than 25 kt and has a range of more than 150 n mile.

The USV is fitted with electro-optical and infrared cameras, a laser designator, a rangefinder, and satellite communications. Unlike other variants of the ULAQ, the SAR USV has the capability to launch a tethered unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).