Special Purpose

Military Aviation News

Suspected U.S. Drone Strike In Yemen Kills 4 Al Qaeda Militants

05/19/2013

A suspected U.S. drone strike killed four al-Qaida militants Saturday in a southern Yemeni province once overrun by the group, according to security officials. The officials said the attack took place around dawn in an area called Deyqa in Abyan province. Officials spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to brief the media.

Yemen blames jet crashes on ‘systematic sabotage' of air force

Yemen's air force has been the target of "sabotage", the country's military aviation chief said in a televised interview, days after a fighter jet crashed in the capital Sanaa. "The air force is the target of systematic sabotage," General Rashed al-Janad told the private channel Al-Saida in the interview broadcast late on Friday. He said the Sukhoi SU-22 that crashed in Sanaa last Monday, killing the pilot, was caused by "shots hitting the aircraft" as it prepared to land at a base next to the c

China’s Lijian UCAV “Sharp Sword” spotted taxiing

China’s first jet-powered stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), the Lijian or “Sharp Sword,” was recently spotted undergoing taxiing tests in China, AIN reports. The Lijian prototype rolled off the assembly line late last year after three years’ joint development by Hongdu Aviation Industry and Shenyang Aircraft , subsidiaries of the state-owned China Aviation Industry (Avic).

Libyan air force jets on air surveillance along southern, eastern borders

Determined to stamp out arms and drug trafficking as well as stop illegal immigrants from entering the country, Libyan air force jets have continued to conduct air surveillance along the nation's southern and eastern borders, Yusuf al-Takouss, spokesman for the Air Force, told journalists Friday. 'The Mig 21 combat planes and other types of aircraft involved in the campaign took off from the military airport in Sheba (south) to monitor border movements,' he said .

Navy’s X-47B performs first touch-and-go landing on an aircraft carrier

The Navy’s unmanned X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System demonstrator (UCAS-D) made it’s first touch-and-go landings on an aircraft carrier on the USS George H.W. Bush on Friday. Don Blottenberger, UCAS-D Deputy Program manager, commented, “This landing, rubber hitting deck, is extremely fulfilling for the team and is the culmination of years of relative navigation development. Now, we are set to demonstrate the final pieces of the demonstration.”

Rafale Fades Some More

France has again cut the number of Rafale jet fighters it will buy, from 234 to 225. Originally, France planned to buy 294 Rafales but only 200 have actually been ordered so far and about 120 delivered. Four have been lost due to accidents. Seven years ago the French Air Force activated its first squadron of Rafale fighters.

Russia Seeks New Arms Deals on Growing Latin American Market

Russia will actively seek new deals on the Latin American arms market, which it expects to reach a value of $50 billion in the next ten years, the head of a Russian Technologies (Rostec) high-tech state corporation delegation said on Saturday.

Russian Military Inspectors to Make 2 Flights Over US

A group of Russian military observers will carry out two inspection missions over the United States under the Open Skies Treaty between May 19 and June 3, the Russian Defense Ministry said. The Russian inspectors, accompanied by U.S. officials, will be flying on board a Tupolev Tu-154 LK-1 plane from the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio and the Travis Air Force Base in California.

Airbus Targets A400M Military Airlifter Sales Push at Paris Show

Airbus SAS plans to use next month’s Paris air show to bolster export prospects for its A400 military cargo plane as it rushes to meet a mid-year deadline to deliver the first model to the French air force. “Le Bourget is going to be a break-out point for exports,” Domingo Urena-Raso, the Airbus Military chief executive officer, said in an interview, referring to the airport north of Paris where the aerospace industry will gather starting June 17.

France Expects 1st Batch of Reapers Soon

New Zealand Describes Defense Goals for 2013-2016

Pentagon Asks Congress to Move $9.6 Billion to Priority Projects

Fiscal Fight Takes Toll on Military Readiness

Last A-10s in Europe depart

On this day: American Starfighter aircraft breaks record flying twice the speed of sound

Canada must rule its Arctic waves

Soldiers, Boko Haram In Fierce Battle

US sending troops to Italy in case of Libya unrest

China Seeks A Nimitz Moment

L-159s could be heading for Poland