April 07, 2012 Military Aviation News

Eurofighter Signs Support Deal with European Partners

04/07/2012

Eurofighter signed a new, five-year support contract with NETMA, the NATO management agency that represents the four European partner nations in the combat aircraft program. As before, the Eurofighter industrial partners will deliver support to the individual air forces. Alenia values its part of the deal, to support the Italian air force, at more than $660 million. BAE Systems says its contract to support the UK Royal Air Force (RAF) is worth $708.5 million.

Boeing confident bid about to fly with Brazilian Air Force

04/07/2012

A potential $4.3 billion deal between the Boeing's defense unit and the Brazilian government that has bounced on and off the table for years is back in play. And a Boeing Co. official said this week that the company expects to learn by June if it finished atop the process that has pitted aerospace makers from three nations in a bid to supply state-of-the-art fighter jets to the Brazilian Air Force.

DHS eyes military blimp to stop illegal border traffic

04/07/2012

The Homeland Security Department is vetting surveillance blimps as possible additions to its Southwest border fleet of unmanned aircraft, DHS officials said. To more quickly capture illegal entrants, drug smugglers and gunrunners, DHS Customs and Border Protection increasingly is embracing robotic technologies once relegated to battlefields.

F-35 jet still popular with aerospace industry

04/07/2012

The F-35 jet has been the whipping boy for auditors and politicians all week, but it remains the darling of Canada’s aerospace industry. Industry veterans are shrugging off the vitriol of “scandal” and “fiasco” by remaining focused on the $12 billion they say the troubled program can bring to Canada. “It’s a state of the art platform,” says Maryse Harvey, an official at Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC).

Precision Air Drops Keep Remote Bases Fighting

04/07/2012

A cold, isolated outpost high in the mountains of Afghanistan was running low on fuel, which provides all the power and heating for forces there. Within six hours, the fuel tank would be empty, with no way to keep warm as temperatures drop below freezing.

Defence auditors raise concerns about frigate, patrol plane upgrades

04/07/2012

Defence Department officials have been kept in the dark on a $369-million program to upgrade maritime patrol planes while a $2.8-billion dollar modernization effort for the navy’s frigates could be running into trouble. Two newly released reports from Defence Department auditors have raised concerns about military equipment programs being handled by the same organizations that had overseen the troubled plan to purchase of the F-35 stealth fighter.

U.S. Navy Jet Crashes in Virginia Beach; Six Injured

04/07/2012

A U.S. Navy F/A-18D Superhornet has crashed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, destroying a number of homes, although so far no fatalities have been reported. Both pilots ejected after dumping at least some of the malfunctioning jet’s fuel. Six people, including both pilots, were injured, three seriously, when the plane crashed into an apartment building not far from its airbase, local officials said.

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