May 03, 2016 Military Aviation News
05/03/2016
Beijing denied a US aircraft carrier permission to make a port call in Hong Kong, a US consulate official says, a rejection that comes amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea. The Chinese Foreign Ministry told the US on Thursday night the visit by the USS John C. Stennis would not be allowed, said the official, who requested anonymity.
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05/03/2016
Framed by a matted khaki sky, a Royal Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drone armed with four Hellfire missiles and two GBU-12 laser-guided bombs takes off from this undisclosed location. The unmanned aircraft is on its way to Iraq or Syria as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the coalition air war against the Islamic State, the terrorist army also known as ISIS. There is a 16.1 percent chance the Reaper will return to this base with fewer rockets and bombs, according to RAF data.
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05/03/2016
While critics of the F-35 welcome a showdown with the purpose-built ground-attack A-10, US fighter pilot Lt. Colonel Joshua Wood doesn’t share the same enthusiasm. As commander of the US Air Force’s 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron — a division tasked with developing new tactics for frontline fighters — Lt. Wood believes the showdown would not deliver any reasonable insights as results could be skewed.
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05/03/2016
The US Army wants to find the right balance between when it uses soldier and contract maintainers for its fleet of aircraft, but right now the levels are “out of balance,” according to the new Army Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command (AMCOM) leader. “I think we are contractor heavy,” Brig. Gen. Doug Gabram said at the Army Aviation Association of America’s Mission Solutions Summit on Friday.
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05/03/2016
The U.S. and its NATO allies are dusting off their old playbooks this week during a trip abroad by Defense Secretary Ash Carter, citing the myriad threats facing Europe as the impetus for the Pentagon's pushing the Cold War alliance back onto a continental war footing.
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05/03/2016
Known for an ability to keep flying after taking multiple rounds of enemy machine gun fire, land and operate in rugged terrain, destroy groups of enemy fighters with a 30mm cannon and unleash a wide arsenal of attack weapons, the A-10 is described by pilots as a “flying tank” in the sky -- able to hover over ground war and provide life-saving close air support in high-threat combat environments.
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05/03/2016
For the first time since the end of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the AAF has engaged in live combat using modern-day fixed-wing combat aircraft. In April, the Afghan Air Force (AAF) reached a major milestone in its development. For the first time since the end of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the AAF has engaged in live combat using modern-day fixed-wing combat aircraft.
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05/03/2016
The U.S. Army awarded LONGBOW Limited Liability Company (LLC) a $57.1 million foreign military sale contract to provide the Indian Air Force with LONGBOW Fire Control Radar (FCR) systems for their new Apache AH-64E helicopters. LONGBOW LLC is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman Corporation.
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05/03/2016
The US State Department has approved a possible $30-million worth sale of air-to-surface Hellfire Missiles and associated equipment to France, the Defense Cooperation Agency said in a press release on Monday. "The estimated MDE [Major Defense Equipment] cost in this amendment is $25 million. The total estimated cost is $30 million," the release stated.
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