July 21, 2014 Military Aviation News

Experts: Don't Bet on Revival of 2nd F-35 Engine

07/21/2014

The revival of the Pentagon’s storied F-35 alternative engine program is unlikely despite a US Senate panel raising that possibility, experts say. Finding billions of dollars for such an effort within the Pentagon’s already capped budget would prove a herculean task, particularly if sequestration caps return in 2016, these experts say.

Russia conducts aerial exercises over Finland

07/21/2014

Russian military aircraft will be patrolling Finnish airspace Sunday and Monday as part of annual Open Skies exercises. The military drills will also see the Russians conduct surveillance runs in Estonia.

Russia led missile attack on Malaysia plane

07/21/2014

Ukrainian officials said “irrefutable evidence” proves that Russia’s military operated the missile system that blew a Malaysia Airlines jet from the sky, killing 298 people. “This terrorist act was committed with the help of the Russian Federation. We know clearly that the crew of this system were Russian citizens,” Vitaly Naida, Ukraine’s chief of counterintelligence, told reporters on Saturday.

Weapons School students get first look at upgraded B-1s

07/21/2014

For the first time students from the U.S. Air Force Weapons School got to fly with the newly upgraded Sustainment Block-16 B-1B Lancer during the student's Integration Phase (IT) at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Airmen from the 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron here brought the B-1B to Nellis AFB, allowing weapons school students hands-on time with the new technology.

China Spy Ship Lurks as Vessels Join U.S. in Naval Drill

07/21/2014

China sent a surveillance vessel to waters off Hawaii even as the country participated for the first time in the world’s largest international naval exercise led by the U.S. The auxiliary general intelligence ship is outside U.S. territorial seas, yet within the 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone, Captain Darryn James, chief spokesman for the U.S. Pacific Fleet, said in an e-mailed statement yesterday.

Despite Opposition, US War Funding Likely To Pass

07/21/2014

Republicans and Democrats showed a rare display of bipartisanship last week when members of both parties criticized the Pentagon’s $58.6 billion war budget request, but experts say Congress will likely approve the measure. US lawmakers directed the majority of their frustration at a$5 billion White House request for the newly created counterterrorism partnership fund.

There's a technical fix to ensure civilian airliners aren't shot down

07/21/2014

The awful crash of Malaysian Flight 17 in the Ukraine combat zone seems likely to have been caused by a long-range surface-to-air missile. At this writing, who launched the missile remains undetermined. Regardless of who's guilty - why is a modern software-driven weapon capable of striking a civilian jet in the first place? All commercial airliners send out transponder signals that identify them as civilian. In most cases, what's employed is a protocol called Mode C, which is not used by militar

India's 20-Year Late LCA Faces Fresh Delays

07/21/2014

India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Mark-1, already 20 years late, likely will miss its final operational clearance (FOC) deadline set for the end of 2014, an Indian Air Force source said. In the run-up to the FOC stage, handling tests are being performed on only one aircraft while the remaining five are still in production. Ideally, handling flight tests should be performed on at least six aircraft to ascertain their operational readiness, the source said.

All Articles