Dassault Aviation has formalized an industrial cooperation agreement with Portugal’s national aerospace association, advancing its campaign to replace the Portuguese Air Force’s aging fleet of 28 Lockheed Martin F-16AM/BM Fighting Falcon aircraft.

Signed on September 23, 2026, at the French Embassy in Lisbon, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) connects the French manufacturer with AED Cluster Portugal. In a press release issued the same day, Dassault stated the agreement will explore potential areas of cooperation between the Portuguese industrial sector and the primary Rafale program partners, which include Thales and Safran.

The fighter replacement program

The Portuguese Air Force (Força Aérea Portuguesa) is currently evaluating options to modernize its combat capabilities as its F-16AM/BM fleet nears the end of its service life. In December 2025, the Portuguese Air Force Chief of Staff publicly indicated a preference for the United States-built Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II. The Portuguese Ministry of Defense has not finalized a formal decision or purchase order, leaving the procurement process open to competing bids.

This pending status has allowed European aerospace manufacturers to pitch alternative platforms. Dassault Aviation officially submitted its bid proposing the Rafale fighter to the Portuguese Government and Air Force in July 2026.

Leveraging local industry

The MoU with AED Cluster Portugal, an organization comprising more than 180 companies, universities, and research institutes, represents a calculated offset strategy. By offering to integrate Portuguese firms into the global supply chain for the Rafale, Dassault aims to provide localized economic benefits to support its bid.

Dassault is not alone in this approach. Swedish manufacturer Saab has proposed the JAS-39 Gripen E, offering technology transfers and local production partnerships with Portuguese aerospace company OGMA. Other European manufacturers, including Airbus with the Eurofighter, have also emphasized European defense sovereignty in their respective pitches to Lisbon.

AirPro News analysis

The competition in Portugal highlights a recurring tension in European defense procurement. On one side is the operational pull of the F-35A, which offers fifth-generation capabilities and seamless interoperability with a growing number of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies. On the other side is the strategic push to sustain the European defense industrial base.

Dassault’s MoU is designed to shift the procurement conversation from purely military specifications to broader economic and political benefits. By promising high-value aerospace work to local industry, European bidders are attempting to make their platforms politically attractive to government decision-makers, even when military leadership has signaled a preference for the American alternative.

Sources: Dassault Aviation

The U.S. Department of State approved a $425 million Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to the Government of Denmark on September 22, 2026, authorizing the procurement of three additional Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission helicopters. The acquisition will expand the Royal Danish Air Force (RDAF) fleet to 12 aircraft, bolstering the nation’s anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and maritime surveillance capabilities across the Baltic Sea, North Atlantic, and Arctic regions.

According to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) press release, the principal contractors for the procurement will be Lockheed Martin Corporation and its subsidiary, Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. The approval marks a continuation of Denmark’s ongoing effort to modernize its rotary-wing maritime strike and reconnaissance forces.

Equipment package and strategic capabilities

The $425 million package includes the three airframes, T700-GE-401D engines, and the AN/AQS-22 Advanced Low Frequency Sonar (ALFS). Naval Technology reported that the deal also encompasses eight embedded global positioning and navigation equipment systems and three digital magnetic anomaly detection systems, which are critical for locating submerged submarines.

The U.S. Department of State outlined the strategic intent of the procurement in its official announcement, emphasizing regional stability and infrastructure protection.

“The proposed sale will improve Denmark’s capability to meet current and future threats by providing increased security for its critical infrastructure. Denmark will use the enhanced capability to strengthen its homeland defence.”

The department added that the RDAF will have no difficulty integrating the new aircraft and associated services into its existing armed forces structure.

Fleet expansion and Arctic security

Denmark placed its initial order for nine MH-60R helicopters in 2012, with deliveries occurring between 2016 and 2018. Janes reported that the current fleet is operated by Eskadrille 723 out of Karup airbase. Defensemirror.com noted that Denmark is actively upgrading these existing aircraft into a dedicated ASW force, equipping them with sonar systems and Mark 54 torpedoes to anchor the country’s northern defense strategy.

The helicopter procurement aligns with expanding security cooperation between the United States and Denmark. The Times of India reported that on September 22, 2026, the two nations signed a separate security agreement at the United Nations General Assembly regarding Greenland. This concurrent agreement allows the U.S. military to modernize and expand its activities at Pituffik Space Base, further integrating the defense postures of both nations in the high north.

AirPro News analysis

We view this procurement as a direct response to the shifting security architecture in the Baltic and Arctic theaters. By expanding its MH-60R fleet and standardizing on the AN/AQS-22 ALFS and magnetic anomaly detection systems, Denmark is transitioning its rotary-wing maritime force from a primary focus on surface surveillance and search-and-rescue to high-end anti-submarine warfare. The concurrent agreement regarding Pituffik Space Base underscores a coordinated NATO effort to secure the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom (GIUK) gap against subsurface threats, placing the RDAF’s expanded Seahawk fleet at the center of allied maritime domain awareness.

Sources: U.S. Department of State

BAE Systems Australia and California-based aviation technology firm Skyryse have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to integrate their respective flight control technologies, targeting the development of next-generation autonomous and optionally piloted Commercial-Aircraft.

In a press release issued on September 23, 2026, the companies confirmed that Skyryse’s software-defined SkyOS will serve as the preferred aircraft operating system and flight control logic provider for joint projects. These projects will utilize BAE Systems Australia’s Vehicle Management System (VMS) to address growing demand across government, defense, and commercial sectors for modernized, highly automated fleets.

Integrating SkyOS and VMS architectures

The partnership brings together two distinct approaches to flight automation. BAE Systems Australia has spent 40 years developing sovereign autonomy technologies through its VMS architecture. By pairing this hardware and systems integration experience with Skyryse’s software platform, the companies intend to develop capabilities for both rotary and fixed-wing aircraft, including future clean-sheet designs.

Andrew Gresham, Managing Director of Defence Delivery for BAE Systems Australia, stated that the collaboration will allow the defense contractor to leverage its decades of VMS development to grow collective opportunities in the autonomous aircraft market.

“Together, Skyryse’s Software-defined SkyOS and BAE Systems Australia’s Vehicle Management System bring complementary capabilities that can help deliver the next generation of optionally piloted and autonomous aircraft for our customers in an increasingly competitive and evolving environment,” Gresham said.

Skyryse designed SkyOS to combine human-rated flight software with autonomous capabilities within a certifiable platform. Mark Groden, Founder and CEO of Skyryse, noted that software is becoming the defining technology in aviation as operators look to accelerate the adoption of autonomous capabilities.

Expanding autonomous capabilities in defense and commercial sectors

Both companies bring recent momentum in uncrewed and highly automated flight to the MoU. In April 2025, BAE Systems Australia entered into a 10-year agreement with Boeing Defence Australia to integrate its VMS into the MQ-28 Ghost Bat uncrewed aircraft. The Ghost Bat program represents a major push into collaborative combat aircraft for the defense sector.

Skyryse has similarly expanded its footprint in both defense and civil aviation. In June 2026, the company announced a Partnerships with Robinson Helicopter Company to integrate SkyOS into the Robinson R66, aiming to develop a Group 4 unmanned aircraft system (UAS) for defense applications. Earlier in the year, on March 5, 2026, Skyryse revealed plans to introduce a universal emergency autoland capability for Helicopters and airplanes directly within the SkyOS architecture.

The California firm is backed by significant capital to fund its certification efforts. In February 2026, Skyryse closed a Series C funding round that raised $300 million, bringing the company’s valuation to over $1.15 billion.

AirPro News analysis

We view this Memorandum of Understanding as a clear indicator of how traditional defense primes are adapting to the rapid pace of software development in the aviation sector. By partnering with a well-funded technology firm like Skyryse, BAE Systems Australia can potentially bypass the lengthy internal development cycles typically required for next-generation flight control logic. Skyryse gains a highly credible, established defense partner to help validate and scale its SkyOS platform beyond civil applications.

The explicit mention of “certifiable” software highlights the primary hurdle for autonomous aviation. The industry has proven that uncrewed flight is technically feasible, but certifying those systems for mixed airspace and human-rated operations remains the critical bottleneck. This partnership appears structured specifically to tackle that Certification challenge by combining BAE Systems Australia’s systems engineering rigor with Skyryse’s software architecture.

Sources: BAE Systems Australia