May 19, 2014 Military Aviation News

Crash risk for British fighter jets as collision warning equipment not installed

05/19/2014

Virtually every commercial airliner and military aircraft worldwide has a warning system in place. But despite near misses occurring at the rate of one every two weeks, the devices have not been fitted to either the £60million Typhoon, or to Tornado GR4s – the RAF’s two combat jets. RAF sources claimed the equipment had been left out for financial reasons – leaving pilots to rely on eyesight and ground radar to avoid crashes.

Israel details Lavi trainer benefits

05/19/2014

The introduction of the Alenia Aermacchi M-346 "Lavi" advanced jet trainer aircraft into the Israeli air force's inventory will enable the service to reduce the time of its pilot training course by six months. Speaking to the Israeli air force magazine, the commander of the fighting training department at the service's flight academy – identified only as Lt Col Gal – said the M-346 will enable the unit to certify a fighter pilot in 18 months.

Forces need shot in arm from new defence minister

05/19/2014

From a worsening civil-military divide to a moribund defence production sector, from the lack of strategic decision-making or higher defence reforms to huge operational gaps in military capabilities, India's new defence minister will have to fix them all. After eight years of a "holding operation" by the risk-averse A K Antony, the country's longest-serving defence minister ever, the Indian defence establishment needs to be seriously jolted out of its status-quoist stupor.

Britain 'should consider scrapping F-35 stealth fighter'

05/19/2014

Britain's long-delayed £70 million stealth fighter may need to be cancelled because of its poor performance, according to an analysis by a senior American air force officer. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter being built for British and US forces is based on outdated ideas of air warfare, it is claimed. The aircraft could be unable to evade enemy radar and be too expensive for long campaigns.

British jet heads to Nigeria to help with search for missing schoolgirls

05/19/2014

A Sentinel reconnaissance aircraft left RAF Waddington on Sunday morning bound for the Ghanian capital of Accra, west of Nigeria and close to where Islamist terror group Boko Haram are believed to be holding the girls. The high-tech surveillance jet will assist US aircraft in attempting to find the schoolgirls, who were abducted in northeastern Nigeria on April 15.

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