Aircraft Weapons Market - Growth, Trends, and Forecasts (2020-2025)

The aircraft weapons market is anticipated to register a CAGR of more than 5% during the forecast period.

• The increasing demand for next-generation fighter aircraft to strengthen the air combat capabilities of the countries through various procurement and modernization schemes is anticipated to generate demand for the aircraft weapons market.

• The demand for new remote weapons, like autocannons and machine guns, which are mounted on to the military helicopters, is anticipated to further propel the market’s growth during the forecast period.

• The integration of autonomy and artificial intelligence to further increase the capabilities of the weapon systems is expected to open new market opportunities for aircraft weapons in the coming future.

Key Market Trends

The Rotary-wing Aircraft Segment will Register the Highest CAGR During the Forecast Period

Many helicopters are being upgraded with new and advanced weapon systems. While many countries dedicated attack helicopters that possess a wide range of armaments, there are also weapon stations attached to utility and transport helicopters. These customizations are being widely adopted by the countries that lack the funds for procuring dedicated attack helicopters. For instance, in December 2019, MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI) announced a strategic teaming agreement with Elbit Systems Ltd (ESL) to deliver next-generation weapons and mission management capabilities to its MD 530G Block II (BII) scout attack helicopter. The pilot-centric integrated weapons system (IWS) is comprised of a helmet display and tracking system (HDTS), weapons management system (WMS), and mission management system (MMS). Also, the integration of autonomy and artificial intelligence to further increase the capabilities of the weapon systems is supporting this growth. Russia is testing a new electronic attack system onboard Mi-28N attack helicopter, which has an artificial intelligence capability of analyzing the target automatically without the help of a manual operator. The pilot only needs to pick a target from those suggested by the system by pressing a button on the LCD display, while the system performs the rest of the operations. Such developments are propelling the growth of the segment, with the highest demand during the forecast period.

Asia-Pacific will Experience the Highest Growth During the Forecast Period

The Asia-Pacific region is anticipated to witness the highest growth due to increasing military spending by the Asia-Pacific countries, like China, India, Japan, and Indonesia, due to various territorial issues and political confits across the land and sea borders. With the growing military spending, countries are procuring new fighter jets and attack helicopters to strengthen their air capabilities, which is subsequently generating demand for the aircraft weapons market in the region. China and India are indigenous manufacturers, as well as procure fighter aircraft from the western countries. Currently, their fleet consists of 1,232 and 538 fighter aircraft, respectively. With fleet modernization plans in place, countries are procuring new aircraft. India has plans to induct 123 Tejas Mark IA aircraft in the coming years. The government already placed an order for 83 aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF). Similarly, Taiwan is in plans to procure fighter aircraft from the United States, while Indonesia received new fighter jets from Russia in 2019. Such robust procurement plans of the countries in the region are anticipated to drive the growth of the market during the forecast period.

Competitive Landscape

The aircraft weapons market is fragmented, due to the presence of several manufactures of weapon stations as well as ammunition. Also, there are additional players who manufacture bombs and air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles. Some of the prominent players in the aircraft weapons market are General Dynamics Corporation, Rostec, Raytheon Company, MBDA, and Lockheed Martin Corporation. General Dynamics Corporation provides armaments to F-35 Lightning II, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Hornet, and F-22 Raptor programs, whereas Rostec provides armaments for Sukhoi Su-57, HAL Tejas, MiG-35, MiG-29, and Kamov Ka-50 programs. Companies are developing and certifying their new and advanced weapon systems for new helicopter models. For instance, Sikorsky developed and certified a new weapons system retrofit kit for the Black Hawk helicopters in 2018. The weapons tested during the development and certification phase included fixed-forward GAU-19 and M134 guns, among others. Also, with increasing orders from its customers, the Lockheed Martin Corporation announced to ramp-up the production of AGM-158C Long-range Anti-ship Missile (LRASM) in late 2018. Such plans of the OEMs to increase the production to support the armed forces around the world, while increasing profits, are expected to propel the market’s growth, while expanding their geographical presence.

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