An Italian Air Force ATR 72 maritime surveillance aircraft takes off from Malaysia in 2017. In Italian service, this aircraft is known as the P-72A. (Leonardo)

The Malaysian government has ordered two Leonardo ATR 72-600 maritime patrol aircraft (MPA).

In an announcement during the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (LIMA) Exhibition 2023, on 25 May, the Malaysian Ministry of Defense (MINDEF) said that the two aircraft represented “Phase 1” of the aircraft's acquisition.

Argentina's few remaining A-4ARs have effectively served out their lifespans. The future of the fleet is unclear. (Santiago Rivas)

Latin American fighter fleets were regularly modernised through the 1980s, with aircraft such as the French Mirage family, British Hawker Hunter, and American F-5 Tiger II and A-4 Skyhawk flying routinely. Most regional air forces have since seen their budgets constrained and fleet renewals restricted in terms of size and capability.

US marines filing into an MV-22 on USS Kearsarge off the coast of North Carolina during Exercise ‘Bold Alligator' in 2012. (Janes/Mike Fabey)

Boeing's Philadelphia, Pennsylvania V-22 factory, which produces the fuselage and other major equipment for the joint Bell-Boeing tiltrotor aircraft, may close as soon as 2025, according to a Boeing official.