May 19, 2016 Military Aviation News

EgyptAir flight disappears from radar

05/19/2016

An EgyptAir flight heading from Paris to Cairo disappeared from radar with 69 people on board, the airline said. The plane was flying at 37,000 feet when it disappeared shortly after entering Egyptian airspace, the airline tweeted. A total of 69 people were on board -- 59 passengers and 10 crew members.

Air Force B-52 crashes in Guam, crew bails to safety

05/19/2016

A B-52H Stratofortress crashed around 8:30 a.m. on Andersen Air Force Base's flight line, the base's public affairs office has confirmed. All seven aircrew members safely exited the aircraft. No injuries have been reported. Emergency responders are on scene, according to Andersen's public affairs.

HOW GOOD ARE THEY? THE LATEST INSIGHTS INTO CHINA’S MILITARY TECH

05/19/2016

It’s that time of year again, and the end of an era. On Friday, the Obama Administration released the last annual Pentagon China report under its watch. Working the China military observers’ graveyard shift this weekend, I published analyses of the report’s overall content, and its key omissions — namely, any mention whatsoever of China’s maritime militia of “little blue men” trolling for territorial claims.

The New York Times Editorial Board Oppose Sale Of U.S. Military Aircraft to Nigeria

05/19/2016

Fourteen months after the election of President Muhammadu Buhari in Nigeria, the Obama administration is considering selling his government 12 warplanes. It is a thorny decision because Mr. Buhari is an improvement over his disastrous predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, and is fighting Boko Haram, the Islamist extremists who have terrorized the region. But he has not done enough to end corruption and respond to charges that the army has committed war crimes in its fight against the group.

LEVERAGING THE RAF MARHAM AND RAF LAKENHEATH STRATEGIC OPPORTUNITY: THE USAF AND THE RAF SHAPE 21ST OPERATIONAL CAPABILITIES

05/19/2016

With the RAF and the USAF setting up four squadrons of aircraft between them at two nearby RAF bases, there is a clear opportunity to shape a common sustainment solution. And the impact of so doing could be significant on the North Sea neighbors, namely, the Danes the Norwegians and the Dutch.

S. Korea to pick foreign jet engine by June to equip indigenous combat jets

05/19/2016

South Korea will select a foreign jet engine maker to power the country's first indigenously-developed combat aircraft by next month, the defense procurement agency said Wednesday. European jet engine giant Eurojet Turbo GmbH is competing against U.S. rival General Electric (GE) for the South Korean deal to procure engines for its high-profile indigenous fighter jet project, known as the Korean Fighter Experimental, or KF-X.

Why Concerns Over Drone Proliferation Are Overblown

05/19/2016

In a recent article in Foreign Policy, “Terrorist Have Drones Now. Thanks, Obama,” James Barmfort summarizes the conventional wisdom in the media and among analysts about the diffusion of drones. According to this view, drones represent a “game-changer” that could promote instability and conflict around the world and even lead to a shift in the distribution of military power in the international system.

PICTURES: Saab rolls out first Gripen E fighter

05/19/2016

Saab has unveiled its next-generation Gripen E fighter, some three years before delivering its first of at least 96 production examples to the air forces of Sweden and Brazil. Rolled out at the Swedish manufacturer's Linköping site in Sweden on 18 May, aircraft 39-8 is the first of three test aircraft which will support the Gripen E programme.

‘Unsafe and Unprofessional’: Chinese Intercept US Jet Over South China Sea

05/19/2016

According to the US Department of Defense, two Chinese military aircraft intercepted a US military reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea in an “unsafe” manner this Tuesday.

Can’t the U.S. Air Force Be Trusted to Buy a Few Helicopters?

05/19/2016

Senator John McCain of Arizona, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wants to blow up the Pentagon’s Under Secretariat for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics (USD AT&L). More specifically, his committee’s writing of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2017 would cleave that office into two new under secretariats, for research and engineering (USD R&E), and management and support (USD M&S).

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