April, 2016 Military Aviation News
04/30/2016
A specter is haunting Asia—the specter of full Chinese domination in the South China Sea. Latest reports suggest that China could soon move ahead with building military facilities on the Scarborough Shoal, a contested land feature it has occupied since 2012. This would allow China, according to a Mainland source, to “further perfect” its aerial superiority across the contested waters.
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04/30/2016
The U.S. Air Force awarded Raytheon a $90 million first-lot production contract for the next-generation Multi-Spectral Targeting System. The AN/DAS-4, the latest variant of the MTS family of sensors, incorporates greater fire control and target location accuracy technology delivering more accurate coordinates for higher precision weapon engagements.
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04/30/2016
On 22 April, Japan’s X-2 prototype stealth fighter carried out its maiden flight. Under development by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), since 2009, at the request of the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the X-2 (formerly ATD-X) is at present a small-scale demonstrator. It will test different technologies (propulsion, stealth and avionics) which could be embedded within fifteen years on future Japanese fighters. To date, the development costs of the programme stand at around 320 million euros.
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04/30/2016
A U.S. Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey descended on Edwards to link up with a Marine F-35B Joint Strike Fighter April 28. Both aircraft are assigned to Marine Operational Test & Evaluation Squadron 22 (VMX-22) out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma in Arizona. VMX-22 has a detachment here where Marines are testing and evaluating their version of the JSF, which is the short take-off and vertical landing variant.
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04/30/2016
Although the experimental X-2 will never be an operational fighter, it is the most visible part of a broad Japanese industrial effort, fully backed by the government, to develop technologies necessary for advanced fighters, such as stealth, thrust vectoring control, sensors and advanced engines.
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04/30/2016
The professionalism displayed by China's navy in some of the world's most contested seas is masking an underlying challenge to the existing order in the East China Sea and South China Sea that must be resisted, according to a report by an Australian security think tank. "Beijing's newly acquired taste for maritime 'rules of the road' is lowering the risk of accidental conflict," wrote Ashley Townshend and Rory Medcalf in a report published Friday.
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04/30/2016
China has denied a US request for an aircraft carrier group led by USS John C. Stennis to make a port visit to Hong Kong, the US State Department said on Friday, confirming earlier media reports. Pentagon spokesman, Commander Bill Urban, said another US warship, the USS Blue Ridge, was currently in Hong Kong on a stop-over and the US expected that to continue.
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04/30/2016
Chronic maintenance problems with the aging F-18 Hornet are hobbling the Marines, leaving them with less than 60 percent of the strike fighters they need to conduct training and operations, the Marine deputy commandant for aviation testified recently as reported at Breaking Defense. Units deployed overseas are fully equipped, as they need to be, but this removes capability from training and non-deployed units even though squadron size has been lessened.
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04/30/2016
With tensions rising in the Baltic Sea following an incident involving two Russian fighters and the USS Donald Cook, US officials claim that an Su-27 has performed another “unsafe” flyby of an American surveillance aircraft in the region. Two US defense officials claim that a Russian jet performed a "barrel roll" within 100 ft. of a US Air Force RC-135 spy plane, according to the Telegraph.
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04/30/2016
US President Barack Obama’s administration plans to abandon the plan to subsidize the $700 million deal to sell F-16 fighter jets to Pakistan, a senior US State Department official said Friday.
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04/29/2016
The United States has increasingly carried out what have been called freedom of navigation exercises in the South China Sea. This month, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter visited a warship in the South China Sea in an effort to show America’s commitment to security in the area.
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04/29/2016
It also said delays in deliveries of its new A350 and A320neo airliners were creating a drain on cash. The world's second largest aircraft maker reported a 23% fall in first quarter operating profits to €501m ($568m; £390m). Chief executive Tom Enders said: "2016 turns out to be the challenging year we anticipated."
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04/29/2016
On 28 April, just days after the developmental aircraft’s many flaws were enumerated at a Senate hearing, the US House Armed Services Committee agreed on a defence policy that would fund 11 more F-35s in fiscal year 2017, on top of the 63 aircraft already requested by the US services.
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04/29/2016
On Apr. 21, a Russian Air Force MiG-31 jet intercepted a U.S. P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft flying in international airspace near Kamchatka Pensinsula, in Russia’s Far East, where a firing range used also to test intercontinental ballistic missiles launched from Borei-class strategic nuclear submarines is located.
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04/29/2016
Top U.S. military leaders faced skepticism Thursday on Capitol Hill as they made the case that President Barack Obama's strategy in Iraq and Syria is beginning to show results against the Islamic State. Appearing before the Senate Armed Service Committee, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Gen. Joseph Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, described growing momentum against the group, which has lost ground to U.S.-backed fighters in Syria and Iraq in recent months.
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04/29/2016
The production of the first prototype of JF-17B aircraft was initiated by both the countries at an induction ceremony held in Chengdu Aerospace Corporation in southwestern Sichuan province's Chengdu city.
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04/29/2016
Five of six Air Force F-35 fighter jets were unable to take off during a recent exercise due to software bugs that continue to hamstring the world’s most sophisticated—and most expensive—warplane. During a mock deployment at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, just one of the $100 million Lockheed Martin F-35s was able to boot its software successfully and get itself airborne during an exercise designed to test the readiness of the F-35, FlightGlobal reports.
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04/29/2016
The concept was rolled out by Adm. Scott Swift during an April 26 all-hands call on the destroyer Momsen, which was docked in Hawaii on a port visit. “I think this is going to revolutionize where we are with expeditionary strike groups,” Swift said. “The three-ship PAC SAG that [destroyers] Decatur, Momsen and Spruance are part of will pave the way for another SAG, just like this one, attached to the large-deck amphib so that it will become what I’m calling an ‘Up-Gunned ESG.’”
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04/29/2016
For the time being, the US is the preeminent participant in drone warfare, its Reapers and Predators clouding the skies over the Middle East. But other nations have their own unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) programs, and the future could see a drone race between Washington and Beijing.
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04/28/2016
Two F-22 Raptors from the 95th Fighter Squadron, Tyndall Air Force Base landed at Šiauliai Air Base, Lithuania today, accompanied by a KC-135 Stratotanker, from the 100th ARW, RAF Mildenhall. The Aircraft and crew were welcomed by the Lithuanian President, Dalia Grybauskaite who commented that with the arrival of these aircraft, the United States is actively honoring its commitments and demonstrating its ability to protect the region.
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04/28/2016
The Israeli military has bought some new locally developed Roetm L UAVs for their infantry to use in urban combat. What is unique about the Roetm L it is a lightweight (4.5 kg/10 pound) quad-copter that not only carries the usual day/night cameras but is also armed with two 450g (one pound) grenades that can be armed and released by operator command.
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04/28/2016
Speaking on the sidelines of the fifth Moscow Conference on International Security, Menendez said that his country’s delegation arrived at the conference with great expectations. "We are about to sign a treaty between Russia and Uruguay on defense and military cooperation," the official said.
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04/28/2016
Saab has selected a Brazilian company for simulators, training systems and ground support systems for Gripen fighters for the Brazilian Air Force. The fighters - 36 in all - will mainly be built in Brazil under a contract that came into effect last year. The Brazilian company to produce the simulators and traing systems is Atech Negocios em Tecnologia S/A, Saab said, and is an example of Saab's commitment to deliver industrial cooperation as part of the Brazilian Gripen NG program.
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04/28/2016
The chairman of the US Senate House Armed Services Committee says lawmakers aren't likely to authorise the retirement of any more legacy warplanes until there is “no doubt” that the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II can adequately fulfil its intended roles.
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04/28/2016
The Air Force F-35 is using “open air” ranges and computer simulation to practice combat missions against the best Chinese and Russian-made air-defense technologies – as a way to prepare to enemy threats anticipated in the mid-2020s and beyond. The testing is aimed at addressing the most current air defense system threats such as Russian-made systems and also focused on potential next-generation or yet-to-exist threats, Harrigian said.
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04/28/2016
The United Kingdom's Royal Air Force (RAF) has ramped up its bombing campaign against ISIS.
Enhanced Paveway III (EPW III) bombs, the largest in RAF's arsenal, successfully hit two entrances to an underground bunker as part of the coalition's efforts to combat ISIS. The strikes, which occurred on April 21, targeted a large complex of tunnels and bunkers in the terraced hillsides above the Euphrates in western Iraq, according to a press release from the Ministry of Defense.
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04/28/2016
One of the first lessons a president learns is that every word he says weighs a ton, Calvin Coolidge once said. The same is true of Canadian prime ministers, which is perhaps why you haven’t heard Justin Trudeau talk recently about blocking Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter jet from the competition to replace the venerable CF-18s.
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04/28/2016
The situation in the South China Sea has grown even more complex over the past week, with A-10 attack planes flying maritime patrols over a coral reef chain known as Scarborough Shoal. It’s less than 150 miles to the west of the Philippines, and considered a site where Beijing may carry out “land reclamation” and continue its military expansion in the region this year, prompting concern from the United States and its partners in the region.
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04/28/2016
Cairo’s cooperation with Moscow and Paris on the sales to Egypt of the Mistral helicopter carriers France originally built for Russia is progressing "in leaps and bounds," Mohamed Elkeshky, Egypt’s deputy defense minister, told Sputnik on Wednesday.
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04/27/2016
Russia’s state arms exporter Rosoboronexport and the Irkut manufacturer plan to deliver three Yak-130 (Mitten) advanced jet trainers and light attack aircraft to Myanmar by the end of the year, Russian media reported Tuesday, citing defense cooperation sources.
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04/27/2016
Air Force pilots of the 1980s-era stealthy B-2 Spirit bomber plan to upgrade and fly the aircraft on attack missions against enemy air defenses well into the 2050s, service officials said. “It is a dream to fly. It is so smooth,” Maj. Kent Mickelson, director of operations for 394th combat training squadron, told Scout Warrior in an interview.
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04/27/2016
U.S. defence giants Lockheed Martin and Boeing have stepped up their battle in Denmark to win a $5 billion order for combat jets which is due to be decided next month, with an advertising blitz in newspapers and on billboards by Boeing reflecting the importance they give to winning the deal.
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04/27/2016
House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry drafted a bill that would stop the Air Force from using funds in their 2017 budget to retire or reduce the use of the A-10 Warthog until the Pentagon's weapons tester completes comparative tests between the A-10 and the F-35 Lightning II.
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04/27/2016
Last week, the Pentagon said forces loyal to the Syrian government were beginning "to mass and concentrate combat power around Aleppo." The US spokesman said: "It is primarily [the] al-Nusra [Front] who holds Aleppo, and, of course, al-Nusra is not part of the cessation of hostilities. So it's complicated. We're watching it." As so often with recent Russian military campaigns, the media message has been at variance with the reality of events on the ground.
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04/27/2016
The latest in military technology and the addition of up to 450 more U.S. troops announced yesterday will enhance the U.S.-led coalition’s efforts to enable ground forces in the campaign to defeat Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorism in Iraq and Syria, the deputy commander for operations and intelligence for Operation Inherent Resolve told Pentagon reporters today.
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04/27/2016
The MOD has released unseen footage of its latest fighters jets being flown by British RAF personnel in the US. The F-35B Lightning II, a state-of-the-art stealth aircraft, is shown alongside its US counterparts at Marine Air Corps Station Beaufort, South Carolina. Britain will receive 138 of the advanced aircraft this summer, but they will will first be seen by the public at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford in July and the Farnborough Air Show in Hampshire.
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04/27/2016
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter's record on cost, schedule and performance has been a scandal and a tragedy, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee told senior Pentagon officials Tuesday during a withering critique of the most expensive weapons program in U.S. military history.
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04/27/2016
Lockheed Martin today announced the CH-53K helicopter has achieved its first external lift flight by successfully carrying a 12,000 pound external load. "Achieving our first external lift signifies another milestone for the CH-53K program," said Mike Torok, Sikorsky's Vice President of CH-53K Programs.
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04/27/2016
With a successful first flight on April 25th, Boeing has added the fourth and final flight test aircraft to the KC-46 Pegasus fleet, a 767-2C. During the 1 hour, 40 minute flight, test pilots performed operational engine checks, flight controls and environmental systems checks and took the 767-2C to a maximum altitude of 39,000 feet prior to landing at Boeing Field, south of Seattle.
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04/26/2016
We will be well positioned to provide additional 90 aircraft, if New Delhi confirms its need for 126 combat aircraft, Dassault CEO Eric Trappier said. In an interview with French news daily, Challenges, Dassault Aviation CEO Eric Trappier said Monday that, “Significant progress in the Rafale deal with India has been made and I sense a real determination to succeed, possibly in the coming weeks.”
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04/26/2016
Alongside an active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar, helmet mounted display and sight (HMD/S), high off-boresight (HOBS) air-to-air missiles, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is also considering to equip the forthcoming JF-17 Block-III with an infrared search and track (IRST) system.
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04/26/2016
Four French air force Dassault Rafale Cs and eight Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoons deployed to RAF Leeming in mid-April for Exercise Griffin Strike. The manoeuvres were intended to validate part of the Combined Joint Expeditionary Force (CJEF) component of the bilateral Lancaster House Treaty, signed in 2010.
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04/26/2016
Shafi Amrar the head and principal recruiter of Islamic State (IS) in India was reportedly killed in a drone strike few days ago, said sources. Shafi Amrar (26), a resident of Bhatkal in Karnataka, was allegedly in charge of recruiting members for the ISIS in India.
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04/26/2016
Germany is planning to open an air base in southern Turkey that will assist its military in an intensified campaign against the Islamic State group in Syria. The planned $73 million base will be built as an extension to the Incirlik base, which both the German and U.S. military use for refueling missions to Syria, Spiegel reported.
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04/26/2016
Manila: Confirming reports of patrols by US aircraft over the South China Sea, Manila on Monday said these were part of “maritime situational awareness” flights carried to assert Philippine claims to disputed island territories. Brigadier Restituto Padilla, Armed Forces of the Philippines spokesman, said four US fixed-wing aircraft, and two attack helicopters flew over the area of the Panatag Shoal from Clark Air Base north of Manila on April 19.
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04/26/2016
The Japan Air-Self Defense Force (JASDF) had to dispatch its fighter jets 571 times during fiscal year 2015 to intercept Chinese military aircraft approaching or intruding Japanese airspace, Japan’s Defense Ministry revealed, according to The Japan Times.
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04/26/2016
Desert Storm remains the benchmark for a modern air campaign. In 40 days, a diverse assembly of coalition airpower managed to shatter one of the world’s largest military establishments, paving the way for the mere 100 hours it took ground forces to eject the Iraqi military from Kuwait. The air campaign was preceded by the most effective defense suppression effort ever, dismantling the Iraqi air defense system in 72 hours.
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04/26/2016
Congress waded back into the debate over the Air Force’s A-10 retirement plans today, unveiling House legislation that would restrict funds for the service to move ahead with sunsetting the attack plane. In his markup of the defense policy bill, House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry prohibits the Air Force for using FY17 funds to retire, prepare to retire, or place in storage any A-10 aircraft, which primarily conduct close-air support.
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04/26/2016
Two American F-22 Raptor 5G stealth fighter jets and a refueling aircraft have been deployed to an airfield in Romania as manifestation of NATO’s support to its Eastern European members against “Russian aggression.” The US Air Force aircraft arrived at the air base on the Black Sea, less than 400km from the Russian military stronghold of Sevastopol on the Crimean Peninsula.
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04/25/2016
An Air Force Mobility Command accident report released April 15 pinpointed the cause of a C-130J crash in Afghanistan last year: a forgotten night-vision googles case jammed behind the control yoke used to steer the plane. The pilot had used the case so he didn't have to manually hold the yoke in place to keep the elevators as high as possible for unloading and loading cargo.
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04/25/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry and the Russian Helicopters company have signed the first serial contract on the delivery of Mil Mi-28UB combat training helicopters to Russia's Aerospace Forces, as well as a contract on the delivery of Mil Mi-26 helicopters as part of the state defense order.
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04/25/2016
Despite tight budgets across the region, sales executives say they are busier than ever after a five-year lull - and both industry and government sources say the next months could see several multibillion-dollar deals from Malaysia to Vietnam. A trade conference held in Kuala Lumpur this week thronged with would-be buyers and salesmen from Russian, French, British, Chinese, Pakistani and American firms. Held every other year, attendees reported it was busier than ever.
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04/25/2016
Drones may soon have the capability to save thousands of lives each year by detecting terrorists' improvised explosive devices and active land mines from long-ago wars thanks to innovative technology developed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The proven detection technology that also can detect chemical and nuclear weapons and drugs was successfully miniaturized and attached to an unmanned aircraft by Fusion Technology Lab graduate students about five months ago.
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04/25/2016
Jointly built by helicoptering powerhouses Boeing and Textron, the V-22 Osprey is a marvel of engineering. Launching and landing vertically, flying at speeds in excess of 300 mph and as high as five miles in the sky, the Osprey can carry up to 32 troops (or 15 tons of cargo) into combat, to battlefields as far as 1,000 miles distant.
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04/25/2016
A day after North Korea's foreign minister told The Associated Press that his country is ready to halt its nuclear tests if the United States suspends its annual military exercises with South Korea, President Obama said Sunday that Washington isn't taking the proposal seriously and Pyongyang would "have to do better than that."
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04/24/2016
Coming close on the heels of its deal with Rafael for modern weapon systems including Air to Air Missiles, Air Defence Systems and Large Aerostats, Reliance Defence Ltd along with Ukraine based State Corporation ANTONOV have agreed to cooperate on dual version transport aircraft for Military, Para military and Commercial use in India.
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04/24/2016
Earlier this month, Nahal infantry field commanders hunkered down in a field in northern Israel, pinned down by mock enemy fire. They were on a “mission” to destroy targets similar to a rocket launcher hidden in a building in the middle of a Hezbollah-controlled village in southern Lebanon.
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04/24/2016
UK-based BAE Systems (International) Ltd is optimistic of its Eurofighter Typhoon bid and is now awaiting the Malaysian government’s decision to replace the current MiG-29N fleet for the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF). Managing Director for South-East Asia and India, John Brosnan, said it was up to the Malaysian government to evaluate the proposals and select the aircraft that would meet the requirement.
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04/24/2016
On April 18, the U.S. Air Force’s massive B-52 Stratofortresses launched their first strikes against the Islamic State. In the mission over Qayyarah, Iraq, the lumbering warplanes dropped GPS- or laser-guided bombs onto a nondescript set of buildings. But despite being icons of American military power, the bombers might not be the best tools for the job.
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04/24/2016
After flying through Bahrain, Egypt, France, Portugal and Canada, 12 Indian Air Force aircraft, including the Russian origin Su30 MKI, reached the United States to take part in the prestigious Red Flag air exercise. The planes, which arrived in Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, will take part in the exercise starting on April 28 and will undertake war games along with NATO forces.
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04/24/2016
Now is not the time to stop and regroup in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford said after leaving Baghdad. “The momentum has swung and … my experience tells me once you’ve got somebody in a headlock, you don’t let them go,” the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said today in an interview on his way to Cairo, Egypt’s capital city.
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04/24/2016
India has a record of sour defence deals. While the Rafael deal with France to buy 36 fighters jets at nearly `60,000 crore is stuck over a year despite announcement made by PM Narendra Modi during his Paris visit in April 2015, India’s biggest defence buy with its old military hardware partner Russia threatens to crash. It is thrice bigger than the French deal and concerns 127 Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) costing over $25 billion.
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04/24/2016
North Korean foreign minister said that the country would halt nuclear tests if the United States stops military manoeuvres with South Korea, Associated Press reported. "Stop the nuclear war exercises in the Korean Peninsula, then we should also cease our nuclear tests," Ri Su Yong told the Associated Press in an interview.
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04/24/2016
Russia’s impressive improvements to its conventional forces arsenal, especially with respect to the signals intelligence (SIGINT) and electronic warfare (EW) capabilities it displayed in Syria, “may be gaining the envy of some in Washington,” according to one US military analyst. Here are two of the Russian spy planes which impressed the West.
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04/23/2016
Russian forces in Syria have fired at least twice on Israeli military aircraft, prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to seek improved operational coordination with Moscow, Israel's top-selling newspaper said on Friday. The unsourced report in Yedioth Ahronoth gave no dates or locations for the incidents nor any indication Israeli planes were hit. Russia mounted its military intervention in Syria in September to shore Damascus up amid a now 5-year-old rebellion.
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04/23/2016
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday clarified that the long-awaited deal for 36 French Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft was not complete as yet but at an "advanced stage" and that the intention was to "close it quite soon". Parrikar's clarification came a day after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced on its official Facebook page that the deal had been finalised at $8.8 billion.
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04/23/2016
When two C-130H aircraft arrived at Robins in the fall of 2013, each would play a significant role nearly two years later in a country over 7,000 miles away. The nose of one aircraft, scheduled to be retired, served as a donor to a second C-130. The second had experienced a hard landing and suffered structural damage to its nose, prior to its arrival for unscheduled depot level maintenance at the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex.
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04/23/2016
Finnish Defence Forces are considering adding drones to its shopping list for new fighter jets. Officials are said to have put out feelers to acquire hardware that could replace Hornets altogether in the next decade. Defence contractors have also been asked to table proposals to boost the aerial power of multi-purpose fighter jets with drones.
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04/23/2016
A drone command center has been installed aboard an aircraft carrier for the first time, signifying the Navy’s commitment to a future of unmanned aviation. The center was installed aboard the San Diego-based USS Carl Vinson last week; the next one will be placed aboard the Norfolk-based USS Dwight D. Eisenhower next year, according to the Navy.
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04/23/2016
Combat aircraft from the Russian air group at the Hmeymim airbase were not conducting missions near Damascus where a military plane reportedly crashed on Friday, a spokesman for the airbase said.
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04/23/2016
On Wednesday, reports surfaced that Beijing was preparing for North Korea’s fifth nuclear test by deploying troops along its border with the country. According to a statement from the Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, 2,000 Chinese troops were tasked with measuring radioactive emissions along the border should Pyongyang follow through with its test.
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04/23/2016
The plane took off from Nagoya Airfield (Komaki Airport) in Aichi Prefecture at around 08:50 a.m. local time on Friday (23:50 GMT on Thursday) and landed safely at Gifu Air Field in Gifu Prefecture at 09:13 a.m. (00:13 GMT), Defense Ministry Program Manager Hirofumi Doi told Bloomberg by phone. Japan is now the fourth nation, after the United States, Russia and China to test fly its own stealth jet.
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04/22/2016
A monster US military aircraft capable of delivering devastating nuclear strikes has dropped its first bombs on Islamic State . The B-52 Stratofortress bomber was originally designed to unleash destruction on the Soviet Union during the Cold War. But now the huge eight-engine aircraft has turned its firepower on ISIS as its first bombs exploded in the northern Iraq city of Mosul on Monday.
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04/22/2016
A week after Russian military aircraft buzzed dangerously close to U.S. Navy ships and Air Force spy planes, Congress is considering bringing back production of stealthy F-22 Raptor air-to-air fighter jets. Lawmakers have tacked a provision onto a defense bill that will determine how much it would cost and how difficult it would be to ramp up production of the Air Force's fifth generation dogfighter. They also want to know about possible options for exporting F-22s to allies.
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04/22/2016
Late last month, the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency - the Pentagon arm responsible for coordinating sales of military equipment to our allies - notified Congress of an impending sale of military aircraft to the United Kingdom. And believe it or not, this one's nearly twice as big as the Chinook and Apache contracts combined.
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04/22/2016
Denmark will expand it's military mission in Syria, as part of a US-led coalition fighting against ISIS in the region. The European nation's decision to engage in the full spectrum of combat operations in Iraq and Syria will see the country deploying seven F-16 fighters and a C-130J transport aircraft for the mission. The mission will involve four of the seven F-16 fighter jets conducting air strikes, with the other three to be kept in a reserve capacity.
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04/22/2016
The US Marine Corps is pressing forward with a fleet-wide maintenance reset of the Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion as it awaits delivery of the CH-53K King Stallion replacement, which has flown for the first time with an external load.
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04/22/2016
A number of foreign nations are awaiting delivery of China’s CH series military drones, one of the country’s most popular products in the international arms market. The drone family, bearing the name Cai Hong, which means rainbow in Chinese, is considered by experts to be among the most lethal drones on the planet. The newest and largest capacity combat drone in the series, the CH-5, is awaiting government approval for export.
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04/22/2016
Earlier this month, the British Royal Navy ship HMS Protector made history. An ice patrol ship, Protector sailed the frigid waters off Antarctica. But instead of using a helicopter to scout an ice-free route, the Protector had an unlikely helper — a drone. And not just any drone: a 3D printed drone that was manufactured onboard the ship itself.
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04/22/2016
Lockheed Martin received a $116.8 million contract from the U.S. Air Force for continued production of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range (JASSM®-ER).
This contract exercises an option in the Lot 14 contract and includes 100 JASSM-ER missiles. Work under this contract option is expected to be complete by June 2019. The award brings the total number of JASSM and JASSM-ER missiles delivered or under contract to more than 2,700.
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04/22/2016
The presence of the Russian air defense systems does not allow anyone to violate Syria’s airspace, the Syrian prime minister told Sputnik. "We are reassured by the fact of the presence of the modern air defense systems, S-300 or S-400. Because they are guarding the sovereignty of the Syrian airspace, not allowing aircraft of any modifications to violate Syrian airspace," Wael Nader Halqi said.
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04/22/2016
Intelligence sharing between the United States and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states is very important in the fight against terrorism, and has been steadily improving, US President Barack Obama said in a press conference on Thursday.
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04/21/2016
The FBC-1 fighter jet, also known as the Flying Leopard, is independently developed and manufactured by Xi'an Aircraft Industry Corp. in northwest China. The aircraft contains two cabins, with the forecabin holding the cockpit while the rear cabin controls the weapons. Until now, the cockpit has been occupied only by male pilots. The Air Force of the People's Liberation Army has decided to modify the jet's cockpit to better accommodate female pilots.
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04/21/2016
The Spanish Navy has a midterm problem to tackle or maybe it would be more accurate to say it has a dilemma the country’s next defense minister must solve: Should the force continue with fixed-wing combat aviation and, if yes, is the F-35B the solution?
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04/21/2016
As the NATO-Russia Council prepared to meet for the first time in almost two years, U.S. and Russian officials traded barbs over who’s to blame for a recent spike in military tensions. The ambassadorial level meeting set for Wednesday at alliance headquarters in Brussels was to be the first time the format, which comprises NATO and Russian officials, has been convened since June 2014.
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04/21/2016
Drones are firing more weapons than conventional warplanes for the first time in Afghanistan and the ratio is rising, previously unreported US Air Force data for 2015 show, underlining how reliant the military has become on unmanned aircraft. The data show strikes by unmanned aircraft accounted for 56% of weapons deployed by the air force in Afghanistan in 2015, up dramatically from 5% in 2011.
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04/21/2016
India is keen on manufacturing a second line of fighters besides Tejas, and within 6 months, will begin the process of deciding which foreign manufacturer will make the jets in India, sources told NDTV. The Ministry of Defence has already had several rounds of discussions on this issue.
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04/21/2016
On Wednesday, China deployed troops along its border with North Korea as Pyongyang prepared for what will be its fifth nuclear test amid rising tensions on the Korean peninsula. Beijing deployed 2,000 troops to the border, according to a statement by The Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, a nongovernmental organization based in Hong Kong.
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04/21/2016
The United States exerted military pressure on Russia by deploying its destroyer Donald Cook near the westernmost Russian exclave of Kaliningrad last week, Russian Envoy to NATO Alexander Grushko said Wednesday.
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04/21/2016
The Dongfeng-41 is a Chinese nuclear solid-fueled road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missile that can fire six to 10 nuclear multiple independently targetable warheads at a distance of more than 10 thousand kilometers.
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04/21/2016
The PAK-DA, which is being developed by Tupolev, is expected to be a subsonic flying-wing aircraft that is roughly analogous to the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit and the US Air Force’s forthcoming Long Range Strike-Bomber, National Interest wrote.
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04/21/2016
The first export contract on delivering Russian-Indian BrahMos cruise missiles to a country in the Asian-Pacific Region will be signed by the end of 2016, BrahMos Aerospace spokesman Praveen Pathak said Wednesday. “It’s too early to be specific since negotiations are continuing, but we plan that by the end this year there will be one solid contract,” Pathak told RIA Novosti in an interview.
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04/20/2016
Republicans on a key defense committee in the U.S. House of Representatives want the Air Force to study the cost of restarting production of the F-22 fighter jet. The House Armed Services Committee’s Tactical Air and Land Forces Subcommittee, headed by Rep. Mike Turner, a Republican from Ohio, on Tuesday proposed legislation that would direct Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James "to conduct a comprehensive assessment and study of the costs associated with resuming production.
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04/20/2016
Russia has broken an agreement with the US by allowing its warplanes to carry out “simulated attacks” on American jets over Syria, according to a new analysis. Last week, the US accused Russia of “aggressive” and “unsafe” manoeuvres after two Su-24 strike aircraft flew within 30ft of an American destroyer in the Baltic. Across Europe, Russian fighters and bombers have been intercepted while probing the air defences of Nato countries.
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04/20/2016
The US wants greater special forces and naval cooperation with Gulf states to counter Iran’s “destabilizing activities” in the region, a senior official said on the eve of Obama’s visit to Saudi Arabia. Over the past 15 years the US has sold combat aircraft to Gulf states, but the senior American defense official said Iran’s activities “won’t be countered” in that way, AFP reported.
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04/20/2016
Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have become an essential support element, providing Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance prior, during and after air strikes. But current platforms are too slow and vulnerable to operate in contested airspace. The US Air Force and DARPA are looking at new concepts of operations that will enable unmanned platforms to support the future air component in all operational environments.
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04/20/2016
The House Armed Services Committee has been a bastion of the more-more-more club, rejecting Administration reductions to defense programs, opposing mandated sequestration cuts and urging higher levels of arms spending.
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04/20/2016
The British government released licences for the export of £7m of arms to Saudi Arabia in the last three months of 2015, taking the total value of such licences since the country entered the civil war in Yemen to £2.8bn.
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04/20/2016
After three dozen rounds of negotiations since April 2015, India will finally sign an €7.8 billion (US $8.9 billion) contract next month with France to purchase 36 Dassault Rafale fighter aircraft. "We are in advanced stages of negotiations and the contract will be inked soon," said a source in the Indian Ministry of Defense (MoD).
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04/20/2016
The Danish Parliament has approved by a majority vote a decision to strengthen the country’s military assistance in the fight against Daesh terrorist organization in Syria and Iraq, the government’s press service said Tuesday. "In the coming months, Denmark will provide F16 fighter jets, special forces and a [C-130J] transport aircraft to support the anti-Daesh international coalition," the press service said in a statement.
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04/20/2016
In a corresponding statement the leaders of about a dozen armed factions announced the formation of a so-called “joint operation room” to coordinate new attacks on government forces. The statement came just hours after the chief negotiator of the Syrian opposition delegation in Geneva called to ignore the months-long ceasefire and resume the fighting.
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04/19/2016
For every military aircraft that makes it into service, a thousand projects survive only in tattered blueprints in filing cabinets or as lonely prototypes in museums. Here, courtesy of War Is Boring’s David Axe and Hush-Kit’s Joe Coles, are 10 warplanes that might have been.
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04/19/2016
Russia’s military has received more than 1,200 new and modernized aircraft over the past three years, the Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said at a Russian aviation industry conference last week, according to TASS.
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04/19/2016
A batch of three Russian Sukhoi Su-25 strike fighters has been delivered to Iraq and will soon enter service, an Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman said. Nasir Nouri Mohammed al-Tamimi said on Monday the new jets will strengthen Iraq's capabilities in combating terrorist groups such as the Islamic State, according to a report from Tass, a government-owned Russian new agency.
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04/19/2016
Problems with the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter’s software could lead to a fleet-wide grounding, a new report by the Government Accountability Office says. In an analysis released late last week, the GAO reports that problems with the software system, known as the Autonomic Logistics Information System (ALIS), are serious enough that “it could take the entire F-35 fleet offline.”
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04/19/2016
China's South China Sea fleets have conducted training drills with upgraded methods that resemble actual combat conditions to increase the fleets' combat effectiveness, according to an article published by the PLA Daily on Sunday.
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04/19/2016
India's Light Combat Aircraft Tejas, which was several years in the making, has now caught the attention of foreign buyers with Sri Lanka and Egypt evincing interest in the indigenously built fighter jet. Sri Lanka had recently rejected Pakistan's JF-17 aircraft built with Chinese help, while Egypt had last year signed a contract for 24 French-made Rafale fighter jets.
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04/19/2016
"The delivery of the UN humanitarian goods under the cover of Russian fighters was successful," the Russian military said in a statement. Over the weekend, an IL-76 cargo plane dropped pallets of food and medicine for the 200,000 residents of the Syrian city of Deir Ezzor. The city is in the heart of territory held by Daesh, also known as IS/Islamic State, and the humanitarian mission was accompanied by Russian Su-30s.
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04/19/2016
Turkey’s foray into drone technology comes amid increased crackdowns against political and intellectual dissent as well as on the country’s Kurdish minority, while emboldening the government’s imperial ambitions.
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04/19/2016
The UK Ministry of Defense has admitted a "communications issue" which led to a manual about a joint exercise off the Scottish coast containing codewords and "special instructions" being sent out accidentally to fishermen and ferry operators.
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04/19/2016
China and India are interested in purchasing the Russian S-400 Triumf air defense systems, but the priority will be given to the Russian army, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aide for military-technical cooperation said.
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04/18/2016
A Chinese military aircraft has for the first time publicly landed at a new airport on an island China has built in the disputed South China Sea, state media said on Monday, raising the prospect that China could base fighter jets there.The United States has criticized China's construction of artificial islands in the South China Sea and worries that it plans to use them for military purposes, even though China says it has no hostile intent.
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04/18/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry announced on April 12 “the crash of a Russian Mi-28H attack helicopter near the city of Homs“ the previous night. The two pilots were killed in the crash, and their bodies were recovered by Russian special forces who transferred them to Hmeimim airbase in northern Syria.
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04/18/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry on Sunday refuted media reports of a dangerous encounter of Russian and U.S. aircraft over the Baltic. "The reports of foreign media are not true, which said a Russian Su-27 allegedly flew in dangerously close proximity to a U.S. RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft in the skies over the Baltic Sea on April 14," the ministry's spokesman Igor Konashenkov told reporters.
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04/18/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry and Irkut Corporation have successfully reached a deal for the supply of 30 Yak-130 combat training aircraft to the Russian Aerospace Forces, the ministry’s press service said.
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04/18/2016
After years of rejecting to be part of the US camp, India appears to be more than willing to sign the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA). All these years even after signing the civilian nuclear deal, India was wary of the idea of a logistical support agreement. For the US, getting India this close to signing is a coup as the latter is not only the most populous democracy in the world, but also one of the most aggressive military arms buyers.
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04/18/2016
On April 14, a U.S. Air Force RC-135U Combat Sent electronic intelligence gathering aircraft flying a routine mission (in international airspace) over the Baltic Sea was intercepted by a Russian Su-27 in “an unsafe and unprofessional manner,” Navy Capt. Danny Hernandez, U.S. European Command spokesman told the CNN.
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04/18/2016
On Sunday, local media reported citing government sources in Seoul that Pyongyang is likely to carry out an additional nuclear test before early May, as North Korea had increased activity at its Punggye-ri nuclear test site. “We are in a situation, in which we don't know whether North Korea could stage any provocation to avoid isolation and consolidate its internal unity," Park said, as quoted by the Yonhap news agency.
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04/18/2016
With the decades-long Azeri-Armenian conflict over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region burning out of control for four intense, blood-soaked days at the beginning of this month, questions have emerged over the secretive role played by Israel in the conflict.
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04/18/2016
Iran has displayed what is believed to be a part of the Russian-made S-300 air defense missile system during a military parade in Tehran, Tasnim Nes Agency reports. The parade, which is held to mark the National Army Day, was attended by foreign military attaches and experts.
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04/17/2016
The Liberal government’s defence policy review will be revealed to Canadians like the infamous water torture: drip by drip. The latest pellet of water concerns the potential privatizing of search and rescue, a crucial operation that is currently under the operational control of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Clearly the Trudeau Liberals are a regime that reverses the legitimate role of government.
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04/17/2016
For the second time in five months, Defense Secretary Ash Carter landed aboard a US Navy aircraft carrier in the bitterly contested South China Sea, sending a deliberate message to China on American power in the region.
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04/17/2016
A Russian fighter jet flew dangerously close to a U.S. RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft on Thursday in the latest military provocation by Moscow over the Baltic Sea, the U.S. European Command said Saturday. “On April 14, a U.S. Air Force RC-135 aircraft flying a routine route in international airspace over the Baltic Sea was intercepted by a Russian Su-27 in an unsafe and unprofessional manner,” said Navy Capt. Danny Hernandez.
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04/16/2016
Indian defense officials have agreed to an $8.8 billion deal to buy 36 Rafale jet fighters from French military aviation firm Dassault. The formal procurement pact is expected to be signed within three weeks, with initial deliveries of the jets to begin in 18 months according to reports by Indian news outlet NDTV. The sale had been expected to be completed earlier this year, ahead of a planned visit to India by French president François Hollande.
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04/16/2016
As part of the September 2015 fanfare visit by Xi Xinping to the United States, the United States and China signed an arrangement on rules of behavior for safety of air-to-air encounters of military aircraft. The deal is supposed to avert aviation incidents in international airspace between military aircraft of the United States and China.
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04/16/2016
Secretary of State John Kerry said a U.S. warship in the Baltic Sea could have opened fire on Russian fighter jets buzzing it earlier this week. The unarmed fighter planes flew within 75 feet of the missile destroyer USS Donald Cook on Monday, making "numerous, close-range and low altitude passes," a U.S. European Command statement said. They returned with a Russian attack helicopter Tuesday "in a simulated attack profile and failed to respond to repeated safety advisories," the U.S. Navy said.
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04/16/2016
The Russian aviation industry will deal with development of a new strategic airlift aircraft for the Armed Forces and the civilian market, Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said on Friday.
"We will have to seriously work on a promising aircraft system; I mean an extra heavy airlift aircraft," the deputy minister said.
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04/16/2016
The United States deployed more military aircraft in Turkey and Qatar, as a sign of the importance that this country gives to aircraft in the fight against the Islamic State, said today the newspaper Stars and Stripes. The Pentagon confirmed in the last hours the arrival in the Incirlik base in Turkey's territory of a squadron of EA-6B Prowlers aircraft. Their main mission is to intercept and disrupt communications of the terrorist group.
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04/16/2016
The deployment of Marine EA-6B Prowler jammer planes to Turkey came amid growing concerns about the potential anti-aircraft threat from ISIS and other militant groups in Syria.
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria claimed Thursday that its "air defense" fighters had downed a Syrian government warplane in the southern Syrian province of Suwayda. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group based in London, said the pilot safely ejected and was not captured.
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04/16/2016
Canada's Discovery Air Defence Services reports it has helped provide aggressor and dissimilar combat training to the German Air Force. The training in Germany involved the flying of two company A-4N Skyhawks in the first-ever German Air Force Eurofighter Fighter Weapons Instructor Course.
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04/16/2016
Danish company Flatirons Solutions has teamed with Airbus Defense and Space in a bid to supply the Danish Air Force with Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft. Under the agreement signed Thursday, Flatirons will provide its CORENA Suite software for production and ongoing management of Danish Eurofighter Typhoon maintenance publications, including airframe and engine manuals.
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04/16/2016
In a military buildup certain to inflame tensions with China, the United States said Thursday it will send troops and combat aircraft to the Philippines for regular, more frequent rotations, and will conduct more joint sea and air patrols with Philippine forces in the South China Sea.
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04/16/2016
North Korea declared itself a nuclear power in 2005. The United States, Japan and South Korea, as well as Russia and China, took part in talks with North Korea on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula between 2003 and 2009, when Pyongyang withdrew from the talks.
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04/15/2016
The U.S. naval officer at the center of a burgeoning spy scandal may not have simply betrayed his country: He may have also helped China compromise Washington's most-sophisticated tool for tracking Beijing's submarines, ships, and planes. The surveillance aircraft potentially exposed in the espionage case are America's high-tech "eyes in the sky" in the western Pacific, the EP-3E Aries II and P-8A Poseidon.
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04/15/2016
The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is flying its Israel Aerospace Industries Heron unmanned air vehicle at RAAF Amberley in Queensland, marking the first time the aircraft has operated alongside manned military aircraft at one of its home bases.
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04/15/2016
The CIA, working in conjunction with Washington’s principal allies in the Middle East, including the governments in Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, is preparing a so-called “Plan B” involving a dramatic escalation in the arming of Western-backed “rebels” fighting the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad.
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04/15/2016
The Islamic State shot down on Thursday a military plane, which is believed to belong to the Syrian army in the area of Khalkhalah in Suwayda province in southern Syria, reported the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
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04/15/2016
Turkish military aircraft on Thursday violated Greek airspace six times, flying over a number of Greek islands, the Greek General Staff said in a statement. Earlier in the day, a source in the Greek Defense Ministry told RIA Novosti that Athens had placed its Armed Forces on combat readiness due to “Turkish provocations.”
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04/15/2016
United States said Thursday it has been conducting joint South China Sea patrols – and eventually will conduct air patrols – with the Philippines, while dispatching U.S. troops and combat aircraft there on more frequent rotations.
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04/15/2016
State-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited or HAL is in talks with Swedish aerospace major Saab, makers of single engine Gripen fighter planes, to collaborate on the upgraded version of the indigenously developed Light Combat Aircraft 'Tejas' which will replace IAF's aging fleet of MiG combat jets.
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04/15/2016
The United States on Thursday revealed for the first time that American ships have started conducting joint patrols with the Philippines in the South China Sea, a somewhat rare move not done with many other partners in the region.
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04/15/2016
Boeing continues its role as the United States’ leading provider of attack helicopters with a contract to remanufacture 117 AH-64D Apaches to the new, more capable AH-64E model. The agreement, which also includes the acquisition of Longbow Crew Trainers, logistical support and spares, carries a total contract value of about $1.5 billion.
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04/15/2016
Russian Foundation for Advanced Research Projects on Thursday announced a competition for the best project to build a flying laboratory based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) technologies.
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04/14/2016
Despite plentiful signs that Russia-China relations are growing ever closer, naysayers suggest that Moscow and Beijing are constrained from moving beyond a tepid collaboration. An awkward Cold War history, cultural misunderstanding, geopolitical competition, economic and demographic asymmetries and even a visceral contempt are said to comprise the myriad reasons why Chinese and Russians just cannot get along, let alone engage in strategic coordination.
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04/14/2016
Air Force Special Operations Command plans to fly small, tactical off-board drones from its AC-130 gunships in combat for the first time later this year, which will give crews better views of the battlefield. Tactical off-board sensing, or TOBS, is intended to improve AFSOC’s targeting capabilities in poor weather or other challenging conditions.
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04/14/2016
The U.S. Air Force operates a small fleet of radar planes that can track the movement of ground forces day or night, rain or shine. No kidding, the planes can peer through the murkiest sandstorm to pinpoint the location of hostile forces, identifying what kind of vehicles they are operating, what direction they are moving in, and at what speed.
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04/14/2016
The Canadian government has launched a defense review that is widely expected to scale back or eliminate some of the military’s planned equipment programs and could see niche roles emerge for the country’s military. But the Liberal Party government, which came to power in October promising a leaner, more agile Canadian military, has assured Parliament that some key roles, such as search and rescue operations and equipment, will remain untouched.
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04/14/2016
Current Saudi orders “include 150 combat aircraft and thousands of air-to-surface missiles and anti-tank missiles from the [United States], 14 combat aircraft from [Britain] and an undisclosed but large number of armoured vehicles from Canada with turrets from Belgium,” the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute noted in its 2016 review of global arms sales.
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04/14/2016
The U.S. Air Force said on Wednesday said it still expected to declare an initial squadron of Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets ready for combat between August and December, despite delays in the jets' computer-based logistics system. The four-star generals who run Air Combat Command and Air Force Materiel Command reviewed flight milestones and other aspects of the $379 billion F-35 program at Hill Air Force Base in Utah last week.
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04/14/2016
Russian media reports that Jordan is consulting with Moscow on buying a batch of Su-32s, a export derivative of Russia’s Su-34 Fullback fighter-bomber, which itself is an evolution of the Su-27 Flanker series of fighter aircraft.
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04/14/2016
In one of the most aggressive actions in recent memory, Russian warplanes conducted “simulated attacks” on the a U.S. Navy vessel in the Baltic Sea on Tuesday, repeatedly flying within 30 feet of the ship, according to a defense official.
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04/14/2016
North Korea has allegedly deployed one or two Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missiles (also known as Rodong-B or BM-25) on its eastern coast, South Korean media reports. The missiles were spotted in the area of the eastern port city of Wonsan, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said early on Thursday citing government sources.
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04/14/2016
As the Pentagon prepares to increase its troop numbers in Iraq to combat Daesh, the terrorist group’s presence in Egypt is having the opposite effect, prompting a US military drawdown.
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04/13/2016
Sikorsky Aircraft, now a division of Lockheed Martin, has received a U.S. Army contract to build seven specialized variants of its UH-60M Black Hawk combat helicopter for the Mexican military. The $54 million contract, through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales program, will cover the construction and modification of the "uniquely configured" Black Hawks for Mexico, according to a Defense Department contract notice.
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04/13/2016
When someone on the ground shines a laser at an aircraft cockpit, there’s not much a pilot can do, and the effect can be disorienting and dangerous to crew and passengers. But a new line of eyewear developed to combat the increasing problem of laser flashes has been developed and is now available for preorder.
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04/13/2016
Russian pilots recently carried out the longest ever non-stop flight for a MiG-31 supersonic interceptor jet in the 36-year history of the aircraft. The flight lasted seven hours and four minutes. The pilots covered a distance of nearly 5,000 miles between military airfields in the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Astrakhan Region with three mid-air refueling procedures performed en route.
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04/13/2016
Russia portrayed last month’s drawdown from Syria as a victory and a homecoming after a six-month deployment in which its air force turned the tide of the long-running conflict. So it was a surprise when Russian state outlets reported in recent days that powerful new Russian helicopters were seeing Syrian combat for the first time.
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04/13/2016
The Air Force released basing criteria April 12 that will be used to select candidate bases for a potential new MQ-9 Reaper wing with units at up to two locations. The Air Force is pursuing additional locations to help diversify assignment opportunities for personnel within the MQ-9 enterprise, provide increased opportunities for leadership from within the community, and provide flexibility to enhance integration with other organizations and capabilities.
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04/13/2016
A Russian Mi-28 helicopter crashed in Syria Tuesday, according to a statement by the Russian Ministry of Defense. Its two crew members were killed, and the aircraft was said to have crashed because of technical reasons.
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04/13/2016
The U.S. Air Force has deployed its top-of-the-line F-22 fighters to Europe for the second time in a year in a show of commitment to NATO allies, the U.S. European Command announced Monday. F-22 Raptors from 95th Fighter Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base in the Florida panhandle arrived at Royal Air Force Lakenheath in England on Monday for a deployment that will last into next month, the command said in a statement.
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04/13/2016
US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to discuss the strategic importance of the US-India relationship and bilateral defense cooperation, the US Department of Defense said in a press release on Tuesday.
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04/13/2016
Russian-made S-300 air defense systems would play an important role in maintaining Iran’s national security. At the same time, Moscow is interested in supporting Tehran on a number of issues, including the fight against Daesh in Syria, the settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh, and deterring Turkey.
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04/13/2016
Russian Su-24M2 Fencer bomber pilots carried out a successful nighttime destruction of simulated enemy airfields in Khabarovsk Territory, the Eastern Military District spokesman said Tuesday.
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04/12/2016
F-22 stealth jets are back in Europe for more exercises with NATO and partner allies, U.S. European Command announced Monday. The Raptors deployed to RAF Lakenheath, England, from the 95th Fighter Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, and will continue training in Europe until May, EUCOM said. The exact number of fighter jets and airmen was not disclosed.
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04/12/2016
The Land of the Rising Sun has been quietly strengthening its military capabilities and procuring advanced equipment amid the ongoing debate over whether to amend Article 9 of the country’s constitution. Though officially called the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Forces (JMSDF), the Japanese Navy boasts an impressive array of hardware and if the country’s ruling party has its way with the constitution, its capability will only get stronger.
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04/12/2016
Shot by photographer Anton Balakchiev during the recent Thracian Thunder 2016 exercise, this short but rather interesting video shows a Bulgarian Air Force Su-25 Frogfoot performing a low passage over a hill where photographers had gathered to shot the aircraft flying low level missions.
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04/12/2016
The Indian Air Force (IAF), which is currently battling its lowest strength of fighter jets in a decade, today started its bi-annual “commanders conference” to enhance its operational capability. The five-day conference will be discussing various means and methods to improve operational capability, including the induction of new fighter jets. Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh inaugurated the conference this morning.
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04/12/2016
As the global fight against ISIS continues, no relationship has become more important to our country than the strong and critical relationship forged between the United States and Turkey.
With the future of the Middle East evolving on a daily basis, Turkish-U.S. relations are critical to regional security and the management of regional crises.
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04/12/2016
India and the United States may sign an agreement for the coproduction of Lockheed Martin F-16V and Boeing F/A-18 fighter aircraft, according to Indian and U.S. defense officials. The deal is likely to involve technological transfers and the local production of U.S. fighter jets in India to meet Indian Prime Minister’s Narendra Modi’s so-called Make in India Initiative.
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04/12/2016
The Air Force recently approved two initiatives for the remotely piloted aircraft career field. First, eight RPA reconnaissance squadrons will be redesignated as attack squadrons. Second, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III authorized RPA aircrews to log combat time when flying an aircraft within designated hostile airspace, regardless of the aircrew's physical location.
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04/12/2016
Much of the recent strategic analysis on the South China Sea has largely focused on the naval sphere, with the acquisition of new submarines by Vietnam and Malaysia and the US Navy conducting freedom of navigation missions in the contested waters. In contrast, the aerial domain has either been forgotten or only mentioned in passing. The absence of analysis on air power means that several questions have been left unanswered.
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04/12/2016
The People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) kicked off a joint training exercise this weekend, Xinhua news agency reports. The military drill, code-named “Shaheen (Eagle)-5” began on April 9 in Pakistan and is scheduled to run for three weeks until April 30.
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04/12/2016
Russia has delivered the first batch of the S-300 air defense systems to Iran, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said Monday. The delivery of the first batch of Russian S-300 systems has been earlier announced by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
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04/11/2016
An online black market for for weapons sales is now flourishing in the Middle East and North Africa, according to a new study that found sales of machine guns, rocket and grenade launchers, and anti-aircraft guns for sale on Facebook in Libya.
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04/11/2016
Ongoing air wars in Middle East have caused an unexpected dip in the Pentagon’s stockpile of air-to-ground munitions — and Washington has been slow to address the supply problem. The Pentagon has had months to deal with it. “We're expending munitions faster than we can replenish them,” USA Today quoted Air Force chief of staff Gen. Mark Welsh as saying in December.
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04/11/2016
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov stated that the Bulgarian army and border police are capable of guarding the country's borders on their own without the need for assistance from NATO. Borisov said this after he attended the joint training of the navy and border police held in the bay of Burgas on Sunday.
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04/11/2016
Russia’s Aerospace Forces will receive by the end of this year the sixth set of the S-400 Triumph air defense missile system, says a release by the Russian Defense Ministry press service received by TASS on Sunday. "Within the framework of the rearmament with new samples of weapons and military equipment in 2016.
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04/11/2016
It is no secret that all branches of the United States military have been keeping a close eye on 3D printing technology. With the variety of uses across all industries, 3D printing has proven its versatility. Besides the ongoing research in a number of directions, such as 3D printing of replacement bones, battle armor, and vehicle parts, the Navy has already successfully tested ballistic missiles containing 3D printed components.
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04/11/2016
Sporadic fighting gripped parts of Yemen on Sunday, hours before a UN-brokered ceasefire aimed at laying the groundwork for upcoming peace talks was due to take effect. The new ceasefire, which was timed to start at midnight (1am UAE), is supposed to be the cornerstone of a long-lasting peace deal negotiated between Yemen’s warring parties from April 18 in Kuwait.
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04/11/2016
BAE Systems (International) Ltd, a UK multinational defence, security and aerospace company that has been vying for the contract to replace the Royal Malaysian Air Force’s (RMAF) Russian-made Mikoyan MiG-29 fighter jet fleet since 2011, remains keen on the deal. And in the current challenging economic environment when governments all around the world are tightening their expenditure, it believes it has the better offer on the table.
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04/11/2016
Washington's unwillingness to take actions toward the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), designated as a terrorist group by Turkey, may result in Ankara closing the Incirlik airbase to the US, an adviser to the Turkish president said.
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04/11/2016
The Obama administration plans to prevent Russia from selling its Sukhoi Su-30 multirole fighters to Iran by vetoing the approval for the possible deal at the UN Security Council, but the US president could well cross his latest self-imposed "red line" like he's done in the past, Washington Times columnist L. Todd Wood asserted.
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04/11/2016
Russia and Belarus have completed the formation of their joint air defense system in the Eastern European region of collective security, the deputy commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces said earlier this week.
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04/10/2016
For a base on the strategic Horn of Africa, the Obama administration will evidently overlook a lot. It has tolerated the leader of Djibouti deploying lethal force against political foes and extending his autocratic rule while allowing the Chinese Navy to open its first overseas base in Africa. The Chinese base will thus be in proximity to a more than 4,000-strong ((HOW MANY??)) American military presence that includes the largest United States drone installation outside Afghanistan.
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04/10/2016
U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq and Syria yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
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04/10/2016
U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers arrived at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, on Saturday joining Operation Inherent Resolve, the American-led campaign against the Islamic State group. The deployment marks the first time the Air Force will use the Cold War-era warplanes — from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana — in the counter-ISIS fight in Iraq and Syria. The service did not disclose the exact number of bombers it deployed.
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04/10/2016
Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry has dismissed the recent Armenian media reports, which said that allegedly an Azerbaijani unmanned aerial vehicle was downed over the city of Khankendi, located in the Azerbaijani lands occupied by Armenia.
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04/10/2016
According to an article on the UK Ministry of Defence website, the Ministry of Defence has announced contracts worth 167 million pounds to upgrade and build new facilities at RAF Marham, the future home of the UK F-35B Lightning II squadrons.
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04/10/2016
Recall the movie “Jaws,” when Police Chief Martin Brody warns shark-hunter Quint that “We’re gonna need a bigger boat”? That, essentially, is the argument that some defense industry analysts are making regarding the selection of an aircraft to house the next Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS).
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04/10/2016
Although the U.S. Navy’s $40 million Laser Weapon System (LaWS) just looks like a backyard telescope on steroids, this piece of equipment may herald the future of warfare — at sea, in the air and on the ground. The first weapon of its kind the Navy has ever deployed, LaWS is mounted on the deck of the USS Ponce, which is based in the Persian Gulf region. In a series of successful tests run in late 2014 after its installation.
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04/10/2016
Secretary of Defense Ash Carter leaves Saturday for a two-week visit that will take him to India, the Philippines and through the Gulf region. The visit has a dual purpose: to bolster partnerships in the Pacific, and then to discuss the ongoing fight against the Islamic State group, commonly known as ISIS or ISIL.
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04/10/2016
A top U.S. general says the Air Force is reviewing the future of its close air-support aircraft, a role currently filled by the A-10 Warthog, which first flew in 1975. "My requirements guys are in the process of building a draft-requirements document for a follow-on (close air-support) airplane," said Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes, the deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and requirements.
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04/09/2016
The Russian Commission for Military Technical Cooperation has confirmed Egypt as the North African buyer of 50 MiG-29M fighter jets and released fresh details of the Egyptian purchase of several other weapons systems worth at least $5 billion in 2015. In February Russian officials confirmed the sale of 50 MiG-29M fighter jets to a North African country but declined to identify the buyer.
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04/09/2016
India is in talks with the US for possible procurement of about 100 latest drones - both armed and surveillance versions - worth USD 2 billion to bolster its arsenal keeping China and Pakistan in mind. The issue is likely to figure in the talks between the two sides as US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter visits India next week.
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04/09/2016
Just ahead of crucial talks with US defence secretary Ashton Carter, defence minister Manohar Parrikar said that any discussions on America's proposal to sell the F16 Super Viper or F/A 18 Super Hornet to India hinged on the US government's guarantee to permit technology transfer.
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04/09/2016
On March 19, Staff Sgt. Louis F. Cardin, 27, was killed during an Islamic State-launched rocket attack in Iraq. According to reports, Cardin, of California, and several other members of his unit came under enemy rocket fire at a base in Makhmour, southeast of the Islamic State-controlled city of Mosul, very near the front line.
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04/09/2016
BAE Systems is set to build engineering and training facilities at RAF Marham in Norfolk in preparation for the arrival of the UK's first F-35 Lightning II aircraft in 2018. The £118m contract award coincides with a major production milestone for the UK aircraft - the completion of the tenth UK aft fuselage ahead of schedule. The fuselage will now be delivered to the F-35 final assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas.
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04/09/2016
VFC-111, the Sundowners, provide fleet adversary support with their F-5Ns out of gorgeous Key West, Florida. For a recent air show there, headlined by the Blue Angels, the squadron put together their own little four-ship demo team, and by the looks of the video below they did not disappoint.
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04/09/2016
An amphibious force loaded with Marine aircraft for the ISIS fight entered U.S. Central Command Tuesday. The amphibious assault ship Boxer, dock landing ship Harpers Ferry and amphibious transport dock New Orleans, with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked, were in the Indian Ocean when they entered 5th Fleet, the Boxer said in a news release.
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04/09/2016
With the retirement pace fast exceeding the replacement rate, the Indian Air Force faces an ageing aircraft fleet. Shortfalls in squadron strength apart, the IAF is plagued by a long list of ailments reflective of bad planning which is adversely impacting India’s air- power capability.
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04/09/2016
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un issued an order to conduct on Saturday the "jet test of a new type high-power engine of inter-continental ballistic rocket and personally came to the Sohae Space Center to guide the test," North Korea’s Central News Agency (KCNA) said as quoted by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency on Saturday.
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04/09/2016
US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter said that a team from the US Department of Defense is holding negotiations in India on potential co-production of fighter jets.
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04/09/2016
The Algerian Air Force (AAF) has ramped up its order of Russian-made Mi-28NE "Night Hunter" attack helicopters from the eight initially reported in January to 42, the Russian-language newspaper RIA-Novosti reported.
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04/08/2016
The U.S. State Department has approved the possible sale of nearly 3,000 GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs and associated equipment, training, and support to Australia, according to a Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) news release. The sale is still subject to approval by U.S. Congress before it can proceed.
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04/08/2016
Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) is beginning production of the Command, Control, Communications and Computing (C4) systems developed for the Adir - F-35I, Israel's variant of the Fifth Generation Fighter F-35. The company recently completed system definition, prototyping and testing phases.
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04/08/2016
The Air Force is taking a key step toward developing a dedicated close-air support plane to replace the A-10 "Warthog," a top general said Thursday. “My requirements guys are in the process of building a draft-requirements document for a follow-on CAS airplane,” Lt. Gen. Mike Holmes, the deputy chief of staff for strategic plans and requirements, said. “It’s interesting work that at some point we’ll be able to talk [about] with you a little bit more.”
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04/08/2016
Once upon a time, aircraft avoided radar detection by flying low, sometimes ridiculously low. The benefits were obvious; the Earth is a lumpy sphere, and low altitude provides both cover and concealment. No sensor, be it radar, visual, infrared, or electronic surveillance, can see through a hill. The appearance of an aircraft at low level is often a surprise, and aircraft traversing gaps in terrain at high speed are fleeting targets at best.
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04/08/2016
Due to open in 2018, three new buildings on the site with provide training facilities for pilots and ground crews for the UK's first F-35 Lightning II fighter II aircraft. Work on building the three facilities will start this month. The project is being funded by the Ministry of Defence.
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04/08/2016
Israel has done amazing things with their imported U.S. fighter aircraft, innovating and tailoring their capabilities to meet their unique needs. They want to continue this legacy with the F-35. Part of this initiative now includes the ability to externally modify their new stealth jets with the addition of conformal fuel tanks.
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04/08/2016
Egypt and France plan to sign several agreements this month to purchase some €1 billion of weaponry. The agreement includes the sale of fighter aircraft, navy vessels and a military satellite communication system.
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04/08/2016
Beijing’s relations with former regional allies continue to deteriorate as Chinese regime steadfastly continues development efforts throughout the South China Sea.
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04/08/2016
As US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter prepares for a visit to India next week, analysts warn the Indian Government to steer clear of any agreement likely to hamper relations with China.
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04/07/2016
The Sun rises over the land Down-Under, morning dew accumulated from the night before evaporates from the warmth of the golden glow permeating from the east as light ushers forth a new day in Spring. As members from the RAAF leave their loved ones at home ahead of a new day for one of the best jobs in the world, their concentration is transfixed ahead of them they are eager to accomplish the tasks set, ready for one of the biggest exercises the RAAF have ever participated in.
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04/07/2016
Hailed as the most expensive weapon in history, costing an estimated $400 billion to develop so far, the Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jet can dogfight, drop bombs and spy on emery territory. While the US' plane is eight years late and recently had problem with its radar system, a video shows it dropping a particular type of laser-guided bomb for the first time.
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04/07/2016
Despite trouble locking in combat jet sales in 2015, concerns about an erosion in US military exports because of the American government’s burdensome and often sluggish approvals process might be overstated.
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04/07/2016
India has asked the United States to stand guarantee for transfer of technology, if any US-based company bids for the fighter jet programme under the “Make in India” initiative. This was part of the two-day talks held between the defence policy groups of the two countries in the run-up to the meeting between Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and his US counterpart Ashton Carter. The two leaders will meet for delegation-level talks on April 12 in New Delhi. Carter will arrive in Goa on April 10.
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04/07/2016
Airmen with the 35th Fighter Wing conducted a two-day surge exercise April 4-5 with F-16 Fighting Falcons at Misawa Air Base.
"During surge operations, we're validating our wing's ability to generate (aircraft) in a simulated combat scenario," said Capt. Josh Plocinski, the 14th Fighter Squadron chief of standardization and evaluation.
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04/07/2016
I wrote previously on the need to revisit the decision to procure 126 units of the Rafale at Rs 1,000 crore a piece for India’s multi-role combat aircraft requirement and was happy to see that this was done by the Defence Ministry led ably by Manohar Parrikar. Instead of that large acquisition, Prime Minister Modi announced on his recent visit to France that a smaller number of aircraft (36) would be purchased, at a significantly lower price.
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04/07/2016
Discovery Air Defence Services Inc. ("DA Defence"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Discovery Air Inc., recently deployed aircraft from Wittmundhafen, Germany to participate in the annual Dissimilar Air Combat Training ("DACT") exercise hosted by the Spanish Air Force at Gando Air Base, Canary Islands.
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04/07/2016
NATO intends to cooperate with the Islamic Coalition against the Daesh terror group, the alliance’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a speech at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC.
"If the question is whether we [NATO] are going to work together with the Islamic Coalition to counter ISIL [Daesh or Islamic State], then the answer is — yes," Stoltenberg stated on Wednesday. "I welcome that Islamic Countries are going together to fight ISIL."
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04/07/2016
Commander of the Belarusian Air Force Maj. Gen. said that Belarus will receive the fourth and final battalion of S-300 air defense systems as well as another four Yak-130 combat trainers in 2016.
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04/07/2016
Nearly $5 trillion in trade passes annually through the highly contested region of the the South China Sea. China lays claim to most of the area, but there are conflicting claims by Vietnam, Brunei, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Indonesia.
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04/06/2016
The pilot of a Syrian warplane shot down by rebels south of Aleppo has been captured, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said. The plane was hit by a surface-to-air missile and caught fire before falling in the Talat al-Iss highland, according to the group. The aircraft, reportedly a Su-22, had been on a reconnaissance mission, Syria's military confirmed.
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04/06/2016
F-16 Fighting Falcon pilots from the 80th Fighter Squadron practiced combined flying operations March 28-31 alongside counterparts from the South Korean air force’s 19th Fighter Wing at Jungwon Air Base during Buddy Wing 16-3. Buddy Wing training, conducted multiple times a year, polishes the ability of South Korean and U.S. pilots to train and operate as a combined force.
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04/06/2016
The Indian defence establishment is showing "increasing interest" in the American offer to supply F/A-18 "Super Hornet" fighters to IAF under the Make in India programme, even as US defence secretary Ash Carter is all set to come visiting from April 10 to 12 to further crank up the bilateral strategic partnership.
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04/06/2016
The Air Force is hoping to remedy its lack of infrastructure in Europe with more modular, small-scale bases and runways, the head of U.S. Air Forces Europe said Tuesday. Gen. Frank Gorenc explained that base restructuring under the European Infrastructure Consolidation initiative, which led to the pending closures of RAF Mildenhall, Alconbury and Molesworth, and 12 other installations across Europe, has prompted the Air Force to increase its missions with NATO partners using alternative sites a
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04/06/2016
Italian aerospace and defense supplier Finmeccanica SpA on Tuesday said it has signed a contract with Kuwait for the sale of 28 Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets as the Middle East country follows its neighbors in modernizing its air force.
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04/06/2016
As Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continues his brutal crackdown on Kurdish communities in the country’s southeast, Ankara has also stepped up its efforts abroad. On Tuesday, officials confirmed that the Turkey’s military carried out airstrikes against PKK militants in northern Iraq.
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04/06/2016
Amid North Korea’s recent push to improve its nuclear capabilities, South Korean officials claim that Pyongyang can mount a nuclear warhead on a medium-range missile.
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04/06/2016
Indonesia, India and Malaysia have expressed interest in buying Russian-made Su-34 and Su-35 jets. Su-34 jet fighters/bombers were deployed to Syria from the first day of the operation. They destroyed terrorist infrastructure facilities and command points. Su-35s were deployed to Syria later. They provided protection for the striking force.
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04/06/2016
S-400 is by far Russia's most advanced surface-to-air missile system that has a range of 248 miles and is capable of tracking and destroying all existing aerial targets, including ballistic and cruise missiles.
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04/06/2016
A Lockheed Martin-built Miniature Hit-to-Kill (MHTK) interceptor was successfully launched from a Multi-Mission Launcher (MML) in an engineering demonstration on April 4 at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico.
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04/05/2016
Lebanese authorities denounced today that four Israeli combat aircraft overflew regions in the Beqaa Valley and around the Anti-Lebanon Mountains, at the border with Syria, at medium altitude. Although they did not give details, the sources quoted by the official news agency NNA said the four violations of the air space followed other disrespectful actions against the sovereignty of this Arab country by Israel, especially in southern border towns.
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04/05/2016
Russian Mi-28N ('Havoc-B') attack helicopter has made its combat debut in Syria, according to the footage provided by Russia`s Ministry of Defense (MoD). The footage shows the usage of at least one Mi-28N helicopter in fighting against the Islamic State terrorists near the city of Palmyra (Homs province).
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04/05/2016
The command, control, communications and computer (C4) system is being developed by Israel Aerospace Industries’ Lahav division, which announced on 3 April it had completed the system definition, prototyping and testing phases ahead of production.
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04/05/2016
The Bulgarian government has approved three programs to acquire new fighter jets, modernize the country’s Mikoyan MiG-29 aircraft and purchase new patrol vessels, worth a total of 2.42 billion leva (US $1.4 billion), reports local news agency Novinite.
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04/05/2016
The United States and the Philippines began this year’s iteration of their annual war games on Monday as China issued a pointed warning about outside interference in the ongoing South China Sea disputes. Some 8,000 U.S. and Philippine will participate in the Balikatan exercises, which will run from April 4 to April 15. Australian troops will also participate in Balikatan this year, while several countries sent observers.
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04/05/2016
Armenia’s president has warned that renewed fighting in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh could spiral into all-out war after a third day of fighting. “A further escalation of military action could lead to unpredictable and irreversible consequences, right up to a full-scale war,” President Serzh Sarksyan said in a speech opening a meeting with foreign ambassadors in the Armenian capital Yerevan.
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04/05/2016
They were the mischievous creatures blamed for causing mechanical failures and faults on aircraft during World War Two and later the destructive monsters in a hit film franchise. So Gremlins might not seem like the first choice for a fleet of robotic aircraft being developed by the US military. But the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has given the go ahead for four firms to begin building the craft.
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04/05/2016
The Air Force’s first operational overseas F-35A Lightning II fighters will call Alaska home starting in 2020. Eielson Air Force Base, just south of Fairbanks, was chosen after a lengthy analysis of the area’s operational considerations, installation attributes, environmental factors and cost, the Air Force said in a Monday statement.
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04/05/2016
Combat use of Ka-52 Alligator attacks helicopters by the Russian Aerospace Forces was caught on camera for the first time in history. The Syrian Army published on one of its YouTube channels a video taken near the town of Al-Qaryatayn. On April 3, the Syrian Army and its allies backed by Russian airstrikes fully liberated Al-Qaryatayn from Daesh militants.
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04/05/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry has ordered over 30 Su-30SM jet fighters, after the aircraft successfully made its combat debut in the Syrian campaign. Pilots described it as an "exceptionally reliable" aircraft.
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04/04/2016
The Admiral Kuznetsov heavy aircraft carrier of the Russian Navy in autumn will arrive in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea, its aviation grouping will include fighters Sukhoi Su-33 (Flanker-D) and Mikoyan MiG-29K (NATO reporting name: Fulcrum-D), a source told TASS on Saturday.
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04/04/2016
U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. Officials reported details of yesterday’s strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
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04/04/2016
According to an announcement by the US Air Force on Friday, US aircraft units from the 131st Fighter Squadron at Barnes Air National Guard Base in Massachusetts and the 194th Fighter Squadron at Fresno Air National Guard Base in California will support NATO air surveillance missions in Iceland and conduct flying training in the Netherlands.
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04/04/2016
Indonesian Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu has confirmed his intention to sign a contract on the purchase of the Su-35 multi-purpose fighter jets during his upcoming visit to Russia in the next few days. The minister made this statement in an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday.
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04/04/2016
Amid growing bonhomie between India and the US, 12 Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft, including the Russian origin Sukhoi-30MKI (Su-30MKI), will fly to Alaska this month to take part in the prestigious Red Flag air exercise that will see them in action alongside the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces during the war games.
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04/04/2016
Vitaly Kuzmin CC BY-SA 3.0
What if the US Went to War - Russia, China?
WE ARE THE MIGHTY
10:24 AM
We Are The Mighty takes a look at how the world’s three most powerful militaries stack up in 4 major categories:
With the rhetoric about global trade deficits heating up on the campaign trail, it might appropriate to momentarily shift our focus away from the asymmetric threats of the Taliban and ISIS and look at the world of conventional warfare. Here’s how the world’s three most powerful m
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04/04/2016
US military experts will fly over the territory of Russia under the Treaty on Open Skies on April 4-9, head of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center Sergei Ryzhkov said Sunday.
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04/04/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry and the Irkut aircraft manufacturer have signed a contract to supply over 30 multipurpose Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jets to the Russian Aerospace Forces by the end of 2018, the ministry's press service said in a statement Sunday.
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04/03/2016
In early 2016 Israel decided to add up to six more Heron TP (also known as Eitan or Heron 2) UAVs by the end of 2016. This came after Germany decided to lease three to five Heron TPs instead of the similar American Reaper. Despite some reliability problems (and several crashes) since it entered service in 2008 the Heron TP has proved to be very useful as a surveillance aircraft and could also carry missiles as needed.
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04/03/2016
THOUSANDS of US and Filipino soldiers will launch on Monday annual war games that this year are being seen as a show of strength in the face of China’s increasing assertiveness in the region. The 11-day Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercises are expected to show how the Philippines, though severely outgunned, can counter China with the help of the United States, its longest-standing ally.
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04/03/2016
The U.S. deployed 12 F-15C Eagles to Iceland on Friday, an indication of the return of an American military presence on the North Atlantic island nation. The deployment of the aircraft to Iceland demonstrates U.S. commitment to a “free” and “secure” Europe, the Air Force said in a press statement.
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04/03/2016
The U.S. and its partners in the coalition targeting Islamic State group militants in Iraq and Syria have conducted more than 11,000 airstrikes since the campaign began, and refueling tankers have been key to those missions.
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04/03/2016
Jointness in defense planning and acquisition is supposed to save money by minimizing redundancy and duplication between the military services. But these benefits often prove illusory in practice, and they never seem to materialize in efforts to build a joint fighter jet. Recent comments by the F-35’s program chief suggest that reality might finally be sinking in.
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