June, 2016 Military Aviation News
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06/30/2016
Qatar and Nigeria have become the latest buyers of the Super Mushshak basic trainer produced by the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) at Kamra. Pakistan media reported the number sold to Nigeria as 10 but did not disclose the quantity for Qatar. Other countries that have been listed as customers are Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia and South Africa.
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06/30/2016
The defence ministry is moving fast to end the critical shortage of fighter jets in the Indian Air Force (IAF) which has been decommissioning squadrons flying MIG-21s that have been in service for over 50 years.
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06/30/2016
The Air Force introduced the first of 21 fully built HH-60G Pave Hawk Operational Loss Replacement (OLR) helicopters June 28 at a ceremony in Huntsville, Alabama. The HH-60G is used to conduct combat search and rescue operations. The OLR program will restore the service’s HH-60G fleet to its authorized size, replacing aircraft lost in nearly 15 years of deployed combat operations since 9/11.
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06/30/2016
Service members from the 388th Fighter Wing and Reserve 419th Fighter Wing led the first off-station deployment exercise of seven Lockheed Martin-built F-35A Lightning II units that works to meet initial operational capability targets within the year.
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06/30/2016
Gabon is considering whether to bring an elderly B-model variant of the Lockheed Martin C-130 back to flyable condition, in order to double the size of its air force’s transport fleet.
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06/30/2016
Two years after the US Marine Corps' planned first transatlantic crossing with the short take-off and vertical landing F-35B was thwarted by an engine fire, a trio of the jets have touched down at RAF Fairford in the UK.
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06/30/2016
Rafael will supply 164 examples of its Litening targeting pod to the Indian air force, for use on four types of combat aircraft including New Delhi’s Sukhoi Su-30 fighters. Guy Oren, director of Rafael's electro-optical systems unit, says the pods will be delivered in the next couple of years.
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06/30/2016
Embraer is to give its developmental KC-390 tanker/transport an international debut at the Farnborough air show, ahead of a multi-national promotional tour for the jet-powered type.
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06/30/2016
MBDA’s Storm Shadow cruise missile has been used by the Royal Air Force in the campaign against Islamic State militants in Iraq for the first time, with the weapon having been deployed by Panavia Tornado GR4s operating from its Akrotiri base in Cyprus.
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06/29/2016
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 the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
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06/29/2016
Defense leaders from both sides of the Atlantic scrambled this week to play down the impact of Britain's decision to leave the European Union, saying the United States' closest military relationship would be sheltered from the upheaval that may lie ahead. A British official said the United Kingdom remains committed to its membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and will continue to partner with the United States against the Islamic State and other shared threats.
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06/29/2016
Jaysh Al-Islam announced that it has destroyed a helicopter belonging to the Syrian regime in eastern Ghouta and shot down another war plane near the Seine Airport in eastern Qalmoun with an OSA launcher system. The spokesman for Jaysh Al-Islam Islam Alloush said that this is “a message that military action will continue until the regime is overthrown”.
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06/29/2016
Russia will not be able to showcase its military prowess during the upcoming Farnborough airshow to be held from 15 July to 20 July 2016. Reliable sources told defenseworld.net Tuesday that Russian companies such as United Aircraft Corporation and Rosoboronexport will not be allowed to display their warplanes during the Farnborough airshow to be held in the U.K next month.
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06/29/2016
Advanced missile technology that went into Russia's deadly S-400 Triumf missile defense system is powering the South Korean ballistic and air defense missile programs. Partly in response to North Korea's deployment of nuclear missiles and submarines, Seoul has beefed up its armaments industry with generous doses of Russian technology. Among the most critical projects are a submarine-launched ballistic missile and the M-SAM Cheolmae-2 medium- to long-range surface-to-air missile.
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06/29/2016
A top Chinese newspaper has slammed the U.S. for deploying two aircraft carriers along with their accompanying ships to the Philippine Sea to conduct training drills near the South China Sea. “The U.S. picked the wrong target in playing this trick on China,” said The People’s daily in a commentary on June 22. The newspaper belongs to the country’s ruling Communist Party.
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06/29/2016
The F35 Lightning II, due in today from the USA, will make its debut at two major shows this summer – the Royal International Air Tattoo on July 8 and the Farnborough air show the week after. The rear fuselage of every F-35 Lightning II aircraft built are manufactured and assembled at BAE Systems facility in Samlesbury.
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06/29/2016
Warships from a record 26 nations — including the United States and China — converge near Hawaii this week for a five-week series of exercises to promote international security, goodwill and cooperation on the high seas. Well, good luck with that. The massive Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) war games will take place amid increasing tension and competition in waters of the Asia-Pacific region and will include warships from at least seven nations with competing claims or interests in the region.
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06/29/2016
The Air Force introduced the first of 21 fully built HH-60G Pave Hawk Operational Loss Replacement (OLR) helicopters June 28 at a ceremony in Huntsville, Alabama. The HH-60G is used to conduct combat search and rescue operations. The OLR program will restore the service’s HH-60G fleet to its authorized size, replacing aircraft lost in nearly 15 years of deployed combat operations since 9/11.
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06/29/2016
Russia supplied Iraq with a new batch of Mi-28NE "Night Hunter" military helicopters, the Iraqi Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. "These helicopters will make a great contribution in support of ground forces in their operations aimed at targeting terrorist positions and destroying [their] armoured vehicle packed with explosives," the ministry said in a statement published on its website.
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06/28/2016
The Afghan government is mulling to purchase aircraft and other military equipment from Russia, it has been reported. The Russian Ambassador to Afghanistan Alexandar Mantytskiy has said the Afghan deputy foreign minister Hekmat Khalil Karzai has shared the issue with his Russian counterpart Igor V. Morgulov.
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06/28/2016
Two years after its aborted international debut in the UK, the F-35 Lightning II is set to finally turn up in force for the upcoming Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) and the Farnborough Air Show next month. The US Defense Department and aircraft prime Lockheed Martin are making up for the no-show in 2014, which was caused by engine troubles, with as many as five jets arriving in the UK to display at the back-to-back aviation shows.
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06/28/2016
The first off-station deployment exercise for the F-35A Lightning II confirmed that the Air Force’s newest fighter jet is on track to reach initial operational capability later this year. A declaration of IOC means the F-35A will be combat ready. Seven F-35A aircraft and 181 personnel from Hill’s active duty 388th Fighter Wing and Reserve 419th Fighter Wing pushed the aircraft to its limits at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, during the training June 6-17.
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06/28/2016
The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a legendary aircraft?—?an icon of the Vietnam War and the archetype of the third-generation jet fighter designs that entered service in the 1960s. More than 5,000 of these heavy supersonic fighters were built, and hundreds continue to serve and even see combat in several air forces today.
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06/28/2016
The Indian Air Force plans to put much-delayed Tejas in combat role by next year after raising in July the first squadron of the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft which it counts "superior" to Pakistan's JF 17 fighters. State-run HAL will hand over the first two Tejas aircraft to Indian Air Force (IAF) on July 1 which will make up the 'Flying Daggers 45', the name of the first squadron of the LCA which will be based in Bangalore for the first two years before being moved to Sulur in Tamil Nadu.
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06/28/2016
A turbine-based combined cycle (TBCC) propulsion system to enable routine hypersonic flight by a vehicle that can take-off and land from a runway is back on the agenda at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) after a five-year hiatus.
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06/28/2016
An Indian air force Sukhoi Su-30 MKI aircraft has carried a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile aloft for the first time, a key milestone toward the eventual deployment of the capability. The twin-seat aircraft carried the 2,500kg missile during a 45 minute sortie from the Hindustan Aeronautics airport in Bengaluru, said the Indian aerospace firm in a statement.
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06/28/2016
In its push for full independence, Taipei looks to the Obama administration for support, a move that could result in a catastrophic war. On Monday, Taiwan announced plans to test-fire the newly acquired US-made Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile defense shield next month amid heightened tensions with China.
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06/28/2016
Russian military analyst Vladimir Tuchkov sorts through Russian and US Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) platforms, laying out the two countries' capabilities and offering insights into the future trajectory of the development of Russian systems.
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06/27/2016
Are China’s claims and actions in the South China Sea violations of international law? As early as by the end of this month, a court of arbitration in The Hague is expected to hand down the first ruling on the issue in a case initiated by the Philippines based on the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea. The struggle between China and the international community over the “rule of law” is about to get into full swing.
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06/27/2016
After decades of financial and technological strangulation, the Iranian air force—at one time among the most advanced in the world—finally has an opportunity to modernize and potentially become a serious aerial opponent for the United States and other rivals.
The gradual lifting of international sanctions on Iran that began in January—a reward for Tehran agreeing to scrap its nuclear program—means the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force could, in theory, buy new jet fighters.
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06/27/2016
The Nigerian Air Force (NAF), has concluded arrangement to acquire 10 super mesh training aircraft from Pakistan Air Force to boost the country’s security. The Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar, made the disclosure on Saturday at the graduation of Student Pilot Course (SPC) 41B in Kaduna. He said that the aircraft would be inducted into the 301 Flying Training School, Kaduna.
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06/27/2016
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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06/27/2016
The US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has launched its Advanced Full Range Engine (AFRE) program to develop an aircraft propulsion system that could operate over the full range of speeds required from low-speed take-off through hypersonic flight.
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06/27/2016
Russian Aerospace Forces will receive six S-400 Triumph air defense missile systems in 2016, Aerospace Forces Commander Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said Sunday. "The industry is reaching its full capacity, so this year we will receive six S-400, and next year, we won't slow down the pace as well," Bondarev said.
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06/26/2016
The capability risks that the United States Navy took in the immediate aftermath of the Cold War are coming back to haunt the service as Russia, China and Iran seek to challenge American forces at sea. Increasingly, rival powers are challenging American sea control—something that the U.S. Navy has not encountered since the implosion of the once mighty Soviet Navy in 1991.
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06/26/2016
How long will it be before American and Russia jets dogfight in the skies over Syria? That possibility seems more likely after the latest in a string of confrontations between American and Russian aircraft. Earlier this month, Russian aircraft bombing U.S.-backed rebels fighting ISIS and the Syrian government almost confronted U.S. Navy fighters, according to the Los Angeles Times.
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06/25/2016
U.S. warplanes in Afghanistan have launched airstrikes against Taliban targets in recent days under new authority granted to the top commander there to help Afghan forces achieve “catastrophic success,” Defense officials said.
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06/25/2016
The following article originally published at the Conference of Defence Associations Institute. It is republished with permission. It may be read in its original form here. CDA Institute guest contributor Peter Layton, a Visiting Fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute in Queensland Australia, offers his thoughts on Canada’s potential plan to acquire Super Hornets as a bridging capability.
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06/25/2016
Cool GoPro footage shot by 492nd and 493rd Fighter Squadrons during Arctic Fighter Meet 2016. From May 23 to 27, the 48th Fighter Wing from RAF Lakenheath, trained alongside the Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish air forces during exercise Arctic Fighter Meet 2016. Seven jets (F-15C and F-15E) from the 492nd and 493rd Fighter Squadrons deployed to Bodø airbase, Norway, to conduct BFM (basic fighter maneuvers) and DACT (Dissimilar Air Combat Training) to improve combined air operations.
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06/25/2016
The Republic of Singapore Air Force’s (RSAF) Peace Carvin V’s (PC V) F-15SG fighter detachment topped a week-long Gunfighter Flag exercise in Idaho, United States in April, clinching the Overall Best Squadron award. It competed alongside teams from air bases in the US, as well as RSAF PC II’s F-16 detachment in the quarterly-held exercise. Other external units from the United States Navy, Air National Guard and United States Marine Corps were also invited to participate.
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06/25/2016
A squadron of the indigenously designed and built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas will be commissioned and thereafter join the ranks of frontline jets like Sukhoi 30MKI, Jaguar, Mirage 2000 among others in securing the Indian airspace.
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06/25/2016
The Islamic State group is about to feel the sting of this 27-year-old gator as it heads out on its first major deployment in more than a decade. The amphibious assault Wasp is back in the fight. For the first time in 11 years, the Wasp will deploy to the Middle East with two other aging vessels: the dock landing ship Whidbey Island and the amphibious transport dock San Antonio. The three ships in the amphibious ready group have a combined age of 68 years.
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06/25/2016
About 1,000 units of indigenously manufactured multi-function display (MFD) for installation in India's frontline Sukhoi 30 MKI fighter aircraft has been handed over to state-run HAL. The displays were manufactured by Samtel HAL Display Systems (SHDS), a joint venture between Samtel Avionics and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
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06/25/2016
Russian engineers are working to adapt the all-new Zagon-2 antisubmarine corrected air bomb for use by Mi-14 helicopters, RIA Novosti wrote citing Techmash Concern’s CEO Sergei Rusakov.
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06/24/2016
Saber Strike 16, this year’s iteration of a long-standing U.S. Army Europe-led cooperative training exercise, brought together 14 NATO Allies and regional partners to train alongside one another and enhance the relationships that are essential to successful future operations. Integration of air and ground operations is a major point of emphasis in the exercise.
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06/24/2016
One week after Russian aircraft bombed American-backed rebels in Syria, U.S. officials say they are still waiting for Russia to explain the incident that has put the two militaries at risk of confrontation. Russian aircraft on June 16 dropped cluster bombs on a New Syrian Army unit garrisoned at a base in al-Tanf, a remote desert outpost where the borders of Iraq, Syria and Jordan meet.
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06/24/2016
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics rolled out its first F-35 bound for Israel Wednesday where the sleek stealth fighter is so greatly anticipated it is known as "Adir," Hebrew for mighty, powerful and great. Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman was among the foreign, state and local dignitaries at Lockheed's complex in west Fort Worth to see the F-35 unveiled and then described as the weapon that will become the backbone of Israel's security needs far into the 21st century.
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06/24/2016
The Marine Corps is moving towards a future in which small dispersed units can protect themselves from incoming enemy drones with laser weapons and from missiles and aircraft with Stinger missiles, with both weapons netted into a detection system and mounted atop Humvees, Joint Light Tactical Vehicles and other combat vehicles.
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06/24/2016
With most of its F/A-18 strike fighters unable to fly on any given day, the Marine Corps is resurrecting 23 Hornets from the “boneyard” and getting another seven aircraft from the Navy.
The move comes as the Marine Corps and Navy struggle to keep F/A-18s in the skies until the F-35 joint strike fighter can replace the services’ aging aircraft.
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06/24/2016
By all rights, the Airbus Defence & Space A400M should be a soar-away success story in both the domestic and export markets – but at the moment the programme is looking dangerously vulnerable.
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06/24/2016
India’s defence ministry is considering the acquisition of an additional batch of BAE Systems Hawk advanced jet trainers. New Delhi indicates it could purchase as many as 30 examples of the Mk132 variant, which would be licence-built by Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL).
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06/24/2016
Airbus Defence & Space is eyeing a potential opportunity for European industry to develop a next-generation combat aircraft to replace the German air force’s Panavia Tornado fleet post-2030.
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06/24/2016
Lockheed Martin today announced the CH-53K King Stallion successfully completed an external lift of a 27,000 pound payload at Sikorsky’s Development Flight Test Center in West Palm Beach, Fla.
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06/24/2016
Russian enterprises within the Techmash group are working on the modernization of the helicopter mine dispensing system for the Mil Mi-8 and Mi-17, the group's general director, Sergey Rusakov, said Thursday.
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06/23/2016
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg condemned on Wednesday recent launches of ballistic missiles by North Korea. Earlier in the day, South Korean media reported that North Korea appeared to have test-fired another medium-range ballistic missile, a second one on Wednesday.
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06/22/2016
At least 15 Boko Haram terrorists have been killed in Borno State, North-East Nigeria after the Nigeria Air Force (NAF) carried out its first major air campaign in the region. The operation was carried out under the recently launched ‘Operation Gama-Aiki’ mission. An Alpha Jet bombed the convoy of the militants in the northern part of Borno state, officials said.
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06/22/2016
India’s 36 rafale fighter deliveries may be delayed further if Egypt opts to purchase 12 Rafale optional under the contract signed with France in February 2015. In the wake of the visit of French President François Hollande in Egypt in April this year , negotiations between the Egyptian army and Dassault Aviation have started to purchase twelve Rafale optional under the last year’s contract, La Tribune reported quoting sources as saying last week.
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06/22/2016
The state-sponsored television channel RT aired footage of a Russian combat aircraft carrying cluster munitions in Syria at the Khmeimim Air Base. In a news report about Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu’s visit to the airbase on June 18, RT broadcast images of RBK-500 ZAB 2.5SM incendiary cluster bombs, say independent researchers.
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06/22/2016
Assuming its planned appearance at the Farnborough International Airshow goes ahead, the Lockheed Martin F-35 will be the most significant new military aircraft to be seen in the skies of southern England for many years. It has been a long wait for British eyes, the nation being the first overseas partner to sign up to the Joint Strike Fighter program, as it became. Britain joined following the signing of a government-to-government memorandum of understanding way back in 1995.
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06/22/2016
Since World War II, the sine qua non of maritime power has been the carrier strike group, that assemblage of warships and other assets which together comprise the floating fortress that is the king of combat sea power. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army–Navy (PLAN) is in the process of building its carrier strike group, although it currently only possesses one carrier still in the process of training aircraft operations.
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06/22/2016
Aircraft Carriers, specifically American aircraft carriers, seem to be taking quite a thrashing these days in the press. Some claim they are old and obsolete—no better than all of those expensive Battleships at the end of World War II—destined for the scrapper. Others argue they are undefendable, thanks to the proliferation of ballistic and cruise missiles all over the globe—heck, even non-state actors can get their hands on such weapons these days.
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06/22/2016
Norway has revealed a proposed defence spending plan that allows for the acquisition of a new maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) to replace its six-strong fleet of Lockheed P-3 Orions. Presented to parliament on 17 June, the white paper recommends a gradual rise in the nation’s defence budget over the 2017-2020 period to result in a NKr7.2 billion ($870 million) increase over 2016 levels.
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06/22/2016
South Korea claims that the North has fired another mid-range ballistic missile, its second of the day. Officials with South Korea's Defense Ministry said earlier that Pyongyang had conducted a failed launch, with the missile falling into the Sea of Japan.
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06/22/2016
Egypt’s Mistral-class helicopter carrier delivered from France is taking part in military exercises, which are jointly conducted by the French and Egyptian navies in the Mediterranean Sea.
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06/22/2016
These days not an hour goes by without an aircraft, piloted or not, traversing the skies above Iraq and Syria. Damascus-led forces and their allies, including Russia, as well as France, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, the UK and the US have been spotted using an array of drones in their counterterrorism efforts. Daesh is not excluded as well.
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06/21/2016
There have been several close encounters between Russian and U.S. and allied manned and unmanned aircraft over Syria since Moscow deployed a contingent of combat planes to Latakia, in northwestern Syria, at the end of September 2015. On Oct. 10, 2015, a Russian Su-30SM had close encounter with an unspecified U.S. combat plane supporting Operation Inherent Resolve.
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06/21/2016
The commander of US troops in Europe says Nato cannot rapidly deploy large forces to Eastern Europe in the way that Russia can. Lt-Gen Ben Hodges was speaking to the BBC's Hardtalk programme during large Nato exercises in north-western Poland. "The Russians are able to move huge formations and lots of equipment a long distance very fast," he said.
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06/21/2016
The Israeli Air Force (IAF) will be forever revolutionized in the coming months. Global defense and advanced technologies manufacturer Lockheed Martin plans to unveil the first of the fifth-generation fighter jets in the F-35 Lightning II series, one of the world’s most advanced stealth fighter jets, on Wednesday. The Israeli defense establishment has said the new plane is a true game changer for the Jewish state as it will make Israel unique in all aerial capabilities against its enemies.
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06/21/2016
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney says the Trudeau government should choose the very best fighter jet to confront the growing threat from Russia as he urged Canada to play a more forceful role within NATO and the United Nations. In a prepared text for a major foreign policy speech to the NATO Association of Canada on Monday night, Mr. Mulroney warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin is attempting to create a new Eurasian union dependent on Moscow.
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06/21/2016
The Navy just concluded the multi-day deployment of two carrier strike groups to the Philippine Sea, a rare move that comes at a sensitive time ahead of an international tribunal’s ruling on territorial claims by China and other nations in the nearby South China Sea.
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06/21/2016
Sikorsky company PZL Mielec used NATO’s multi-national exercise Anakonda to debut an armed version of the S-70i Black Hawk in mid-June. On display in Drawsko Pomorskie, Poland, the rotorcraft attracted visitors including Polish defence minister Antoni Macierewicz.
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06/21/2016
In 2017, the Marine Corps will 3D print certain parts for their most sought after rotorcraft. Naval Air Systems Command officials announced earlier this month that they plan to print roll out parts for the new CH-53K King, H-1, MV-22B Osprey, and light/attack Helicopters, including the AH-1Z Viper, as well as the Stallion, which is still in the early phases of production.
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06/21/2016
The first two Xian Y-20 military transport aircraft have been delivered to the Chinese air force, officially making it the largest military plane currently in production. Earlier this month, Zhu Qian, head of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) indicated that Beijing intends to purchase a vast fleet of heavy transport aircraft, in addition to new stealth fighters.
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06/21/2016
Baku and Ankara are holding joint military drills in Turkey, the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry said Monday. "According to the military plan of bilateral cooperation, Azerbaijan and Turkey launched the ISIK-2016 military drills," a press release from the ministry reads.
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06/20/2016
Finally responding in public to shrinking demand for its new A400M military transport, AirBus executives admitted that they screwed up and recently provided details. AirBus said the main problems were with the engines it selected for the A400M. These came from an inexperienced supplier and AirBus was late in realizing how bad the problems were. There were many lesser problems, mainly with not adding features users needed if they were to replace existing C-130s and similar transports with the A40
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06/20/2016
Ten years after Second Lebanon War, Hezbollah is armed with surface to air missiles and a vast rocket arsenal, and the fifth-generation aircraft will be key in helping the IAF tackle these threats.
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06/20/2016
Boeing and Tata Advanced Systems today celebrated the foundation laying of a new facility in Hyderabad for its joint venture named TATA Boeing Aerospace Limited (TBAL). The joint venture has been established to co-produce Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselages and other aerostructures, as well as to pursue integrated systems in aerospace.
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06/20/2016
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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06/20/2016
On Saturday, at a ceremony at a naval shipyard in Istanbul, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey would soon begin the design and production of a domestically built aircraft carrier. "There isn't any obstacle to producing our own aircraft carrier. It is possible with this determined government and state," he said. "Turkey cannot fall into laziness in the defense and military issues. The strategic point of our country doesn't allow this."
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06/20/2016
Potential adversaries such as China are closing in on the U.S. technological edge in the skies at the same time the Air Force has a shortage of hundreds of fighter pilots and its fleet of fourth-generation aircraft is aging. Maj. Gen. Jerry D. Harris, vice commander of the Air Combat Command, delivered that message to four Ohio congressmen Saturday in a House Armed Services Committee field hearing at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.
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06/20/2016
Defeating so-called anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) threats—such as zones defended by advanced Russian and Chinese built integrated air defense systems—is a top priority for the United States as the world enters an era of renewed great power competition.
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06/20/2016
Two US aircraft carriers have started exercises in the Philippine Sea, defense officials said Sunday, as Washington’s close ally Manila faces growing pressure from Beijing in the South China Sea. The US Pacific Command said the USS John C. Stennis and USS Ronald Reagan, among the world’s largest warships, began conducting air defense drills, sea surveillance, and long range strikes on Saturday.
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06/19/2016
Leading aerospace company Boeing and Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) have joined hands to set up a facility in Hyderabad to co-produce helicopter fuselages and other aerostructures. The JV, named Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited (TBAL), has been established for producing Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselages and other aerostructures besides pursuing integrated systems in aerospace.
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06/19/2016
Russian airstrikes targeted the base of U.S.-backed Syrian fighters near the Jordanian border this past week, according to U.S. defense officials, prompting the most aggressive response from the Pentagon since Russia began its air campaign over Syria last year.
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06/19/2016
They resemble miniature Reaper drones, but the nimbler Sandstorm’s mission will veer sharply from its weapons-laden cousin as the Department of Energy explores using unmanned aircraft to respond to nuclear emergencies.
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06/19/2016
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh and the man who would succeed him, Vice Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein, both said this week that automatic spending caps are what spurred the service’s decision to push for the retirement of the plane.
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06/19/2016
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) participated in the United States Air Force (USAF)-hosted Exercise Red Flag - Alaska, held from Jun 1 to 17, the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) announced on Saturday (Jun 18).
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06/19/2016
“We want to be part of the country’s future combat missions and make our parents proud,” said the three female fighter pilots, beaming with pride. The trio entered the annals of history on Saturday as they were commissioned into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in the presence of Defence minister Manohar Parrikar at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal here on Saturday.
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06/19/2016
Airmen are testing their mettle at Red Flag Alaska 2016, a series of four Pacific Air Forces training exercises held at Eielson Air Force Base and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, that bring together pilots from across the U.S. military and allied nations. The second of the four exercises ended June 17, with the next portion scheduled to begin August 4.
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06/18/2016
As the international court at The Hague grapples with the Philippines’ case brought against China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea, and while Beijing and Washington trade verbal jabs almost daily over the issue, the U.S. Navy has sent four fighter aircraft, E/A-18G Growler airborne electronic attack planes and 120 support personnel, to the Philippines to help train the country’s forces and patrol its airspace and sea lanes, the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet said in a statement on Thursday.
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06/18/2016
North Korean hackers reportedly infiltrated a computer network belonging to a South Korean aerospace firm’s computer network and made off with blueprints for the F-15 Eagle—the American-designed jet fighter that forms the backbone of the U.S. and South Korean air forces. But don’t panic quite yet. There’s not much Pyongyang’s engineers can actually do with the blueprints.
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06/18/2016
Argentina is reportedly negotiating with France to purchase F-1 Mirage fighter aircraft. The talks also involve the possible purchase of engines to power 20 Argentinian Pucaras aircraft that are currently grounded. "The transaction provides excellent value, and under very favorable conditions," Defense Minister Julio Martinez told La Nacion during a visit to France. "The Argentine Air Force cannot do without supersonic aircraft. Our pilots must be able to train in modern aircraft."
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06/18/2016
United Aircraft Corporation is gearing up to start serial production of the Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA fifth-generation stealth fighter according to Russian media reports. The eighth prototype T-50—which is nearly compliant with Moscow’s requirements for a next-generation fighter—is set to make its first flight on June 20.
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06/18/2016
India's indigenous basic trainer aircraft, Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 (HTT-40), on Friday made its inaugural flight here in the presence of defence minister Manohar Parrikar. The two-seater aircraft designed and developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited was flown by Group Captain C Subramaniam and Group Captain Venugopal for about 10 to 15 minutes at the HAL airport here.
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06/18/2016
Spain’s first A400M tactical transport has been painted at Airbus Defence & Space’s San Pablo final assembly site in Seville, as the manufacturer conducts preparations for its debut flight within the coming weeks.
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06/17/2016
The U.S. Seventh Fleet has sent a detachment of EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft to the Philippines for training and for maritime domain awareness missions. Four EA-18Gs assigned to Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 138, an expeditionary unit deployed to Japan to support Seventh Fleet, flew June 15 to Clark Air Base on the island of Luzon for exercises with the Philippine Air Force (PAF).
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06/17/2016
Israel’s first cadre of F-35 pilots are headed next month to the United States to begin simulator and ground-based training on the new stealth fighter, the first two of which are scheduled to arrive here by the end of the year.
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06/17/2016
After a wait of over three decades, the IAF will finally get its hands on the first squadron of indigenous Tejas next month with the delivery of the fourth Light Combat Aircraft. However, the first squadron will be made of up of just four Tejas aircraft, in stark contrast to at least 16
aircraft that usually makes up for one squadron globally.
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06/17/2016
Defense contractors could submit bids by next week on a new contract to supply more than 100 sets of new A-10 aircraft wings, with help from a new $100 million that cleared the House on Thursday. An amended version of the U.S. Department of Defense appropriations bill for fiscal 2017 passed the House 282-138, largely along party lines, with a new appropriation to supply wing upgrades to the A-10 fleet at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township and elsewhere.
(Read More...)
06/17/2016
Lockheed Martin and Raytheon have been awarded contracts by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) for the next phase of a project to develop collaborative control technology for unmanned air systems.
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06/17/2016
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress in 2014 that an authorisation had been granted to provide 24 of the type to Qatar, and a $667 million contract was signed on 7 June. In addition to the aircraft, one Longbow radar crew trainer will also be provided, plus ground support equipment and Thales radios. Deliveries will commence in 2019, and the contract will complete in May 2020.
(Read More...)
06/17/2016
Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, along with the Government of the Republic of Turkey and members of the Turkish aerospace industry have activated contractual agreements under the Turkish Utility Helicopter Program (TUHP) to produce the T70 utility helicopter based on Sikorsky’s successful multi-role Black Hawk utility aircraft.
(Read More...)
06/17/2016
US Naval Forces Central Command said that the US Navy is conducting airstrikes against Daesh from two operational theatres for the first time after the amphibious assault ship Boxer joined the strikes from the Persian Gulf.
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06/17/2016
The issue of establishing Russian military bases in Belarus is not under discussion at the moment, the Belarusian ambassador to Russia told Sputnik on Thursday.
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06/17/2016
Afghanistan sent an official request to Russia for the delivery of helicopters to Kabul, Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Karzai said Thursday. The deputy foreign minister is on an official visit to Moscow, noting that one of the main goals of his trip was to urge Russian partners to provide military support to Afghanistan.
(Read More...)
06/16/2016
The American business magazine, Forbes, observed that Saudi Vision 2030, laid out by Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, second deputy premier and minister of defense, and approved by the Council of Ministers, “would, in an unpredictable manner, enable Saudi Arabia to realize its dream of becoming one of the world’s major weapon manufacturers after having long been a major weapons importing country”.
(Read More...)
06/16/2016
The Botswana Defence Force (BDF) has confirmed negotiations with Swedish aircraft manufacturer Försvarets Materielverk (FMV) are underway for the acquisition of between eight and 12 JAS Gripen "C" and "D" aircraft variants to replace its ageing fleet of US-made F-5 fighter jets.
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06/16/2016
A Chinese ship was "shadowing" a U.S. aircraft carrier in the western Pacific on Wednesday, a U.S. official told CNN. The incident took place as the USS John C. Stennis was sailing to join warships from Japan and India as part of annual maritime exercises conducted by those nations.
(Read More...)
06/16/2016
As additive manufacturing continues to prove its place in the aerospace industry for both prototypes and finished parts, refined and powerful software solutions that capitalize on new workflows continue to be in high demand with the world's top aerospace engineering firms.
(Read More...)
06/16/2016
Saab of Sweden will model its Indian aerospace business line after the company’s venture into Brazil, with plans to create dedicated manufacturing and maintenance facilities for fighter aircraft in India, according to Jan Widerström, chairman of Saab India. Addressing a news conference here, Widerström said the company had aligned supply of the Gripen E fighter aircraft under the “Make in India” policy.
(Read More...)
06/16/2016
The mass production of Y-20 heavy military transport aircraft is set to begin as early as this year. According to Chinese media, the aircraft will also join the military forces around the same time.
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06/16/2016
Poland is likely to send four F-16 fighter jets to take part in a reconnaissance mission in the Middle East prior to the NATO summit scheduled to be held in Warsaw on July 8-9, Polish Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz said Wednesday.
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06/16/2016
The Belarusian Air Force already has Russian-made Su-27 and MiG-29 aircraft in service. Asked about what plans Belarus might have to purchase new aircraft from Russia, Ravkov told RIA Novosti that Minsk intends to "purchase Su-30SM-type aircraft for the armed forces."
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06/15/2016
The Chinese military has a new warplane with an unusual purpose: to beam propaganda and disinformation into hostile territory. In that way, the new, four-engine Y-8GX7 psychological operations plane—also known by its Chinese name, Gaoxin-7—is analogous to the U.S. Air Force’s EC-130J, which it says “conducts military information support operations and civil affairs broadcasts in F.M. radio, television and military communications bands.”
(Read More...)
06/15/2016
An United Arab Emirates (UAE) military aircraft has crashed over Yemen, killing two people on board. The General Command of the UAE Armed Forces said in a statement that the pilot and his co-pilot were killed when their military helicopter went down on Monday.
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06/15/2016
The U.S. Marine Corps is progressing with a new project to arm its MV-22 Osprey aircraft with new weapons such as laser-guided 2.75in rockets, missiles and heavy guns – a move which would expand the tiltrotor’s mission set beyond supply, weapons and forces transport to include a wider range of offensive and defensive combat missions, Corps officials said.
(Read More...)
06/15/2016
The saying “putting the cart before the horse” surely pre-dates the invention of flight, yet it couldn’t be more accurate to describe the Air Force’s shifting and flawed arguments for retiring the A-10 well ahead of schedule, and before we have a proven, tested replacement.
(Read More...)
06/15/2016
U.S. Apache helicopters have entered the fight in Iraq against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told reporters yesterday. "Commanders have used the Apache capability that we positioned there and that [President Barack Obama] authorized them to use some months ago," Carter said as he traveled to Brussels for meetings with his fellow NATO defense ministers.
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06/15/2016
The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) got an early start preparing for the carrier onboard delivery (COD) transition from the C-2 Greyhound to the V-22 Osprey, with the ship’s crew bringing in the tiltrotor aircraft to participate in the command assessment of readiness and training (CARAT) II basic training event.
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06/15/2016
The UK’s Project Centurion activity is on track to deliver a seamless transition between the UK Royal Air Force’s Panavia Tornado GR4 strike aircraft and the multi-role Eurofighter Typhoon later this decade, according to BAE Systems.
(Read More...)
06/15/2016
A Vietnamese fighter jet is missing after vanishing from radar during a training flight along the South China Sea coastline. "We haven’t found the jet yet, we are still looking," according to Senior Lieutenant General Vo Van Tuan, deputy armed services chief of staff.
(Read More...)
06/15/2016
Currently, three countries, the United States, Russia and China, are developing strategic next generation bombers.
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06/14/2016
Kuala Lumpur datelined report in Jane’s Defence Weekly on April 21, 2016 stated Pakistan remains optimistic about regional sales of JF-17 fighter planes. The report, however, noted that the optimism was tempered by the reality that the Sino-Pak joint venture from the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) has had no takers outside Pakistani Air Force (PAF) despite its projection as the best for air defense and ground attack missions.
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06/14/2016
As Iraqi forces backed by U.S. support engage the Islamic State across multiple battlefronts in Iraq, Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter announced Monday that American Apache helicopter gunships had been used in combat for the first time since President Obama authorized their use in April.
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06/14/2016
The crash of an ageing MiG-27 fighter jet of the Indian Air Force (IAF) in Jodhpur today has yet again raised a question mark on the need to operate such vintage aircraft. For the IAF, operating the 1970s MiG-27 is a fait accompli — that is to keep flying outdated fighter jets just to maintain a minimum level in terms of numbers.
(Read More...)
06/14/2016
Imagine flying virtually undetected with a clear 360-degree view of your environment.
With advanced targeting and radar systems, you can identify and engage air and ground targets using a combination of infrared search and track technology. Secure datalinks allow you to share information across your entire network – on the ground, in the air and over the seas – improving the lethality and survivability of your entire fleet.
(Read More...)
06/14/2016
This year, over 10,000 servicemen from 13 NATO and partner nations are taking part in the drills. Participating nations include three Baltic states, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
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06/14/2016
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, has told a meeting of European defense ministers that next month's Warsaw summit will agree four new battalions which will be established in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland, as well as an overall increase in defense spending.
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06/13/2016
Saudi Arabia’s pursuit of the war in Yemen, at considerable cost in blood and treasure, is a literal affirmation of the term “backdoor strategy.” However, both the “door” and the actual contours of that strategy remain submerged beneath the murky waters of Mideast politics.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
The Air Force is upgrading its entire fleet of MQ-9 Reaper drones in order to give them much more endurance to stay above key strategic areas and conduct surveillance and strike missions, service officials told Scout Warrior. The Reaper is a large, armed drone with a 66-foot wingspan in service around the globe. The upgrades, called the Reaper Extended Range, in include the addition of two 1,350-pound fuel tanks.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
U.S. drone operators had been stalking the baby-faced British terrorist for days with infrared cameras and other sensors before the order came to kill him. As night fell on April 25, a U.S. warplane dropped a guided bomb that obliterated the SUV occupied by 23-year-old Raphael Saihou Hostey near Mosul, Islamic State's stronghold in Iraq.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
The General Command of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Armed Forces in Abu Dhabi said on Sunday a military helicopter crashed while the pilot and his assistant were killed. The crash occurred during a "routine flight in international waters" in the Persian Gulf, said the statement released by UAE state news agency WAM.
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06/13/2016
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.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
The Baltic states and Poland are in discussions with defence contractors to create a regional anti-aircraft missile shield to protect against Russian aircraft. Fearful of the build-up of Russian troops on their borders and in the Baltic Sea enclave of Kaliningrad, the four countries believe they must develop capabilities to restrict the Kremlin’s military manoeuvrability and tip the military balance of power in the region back in their favour.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
Botswana, one of the best run nations in Africa, is spending billions to upgrade its armed forces. This includes ordering eight Swedish Gripen JAS 39C jet fighters. Normally this would cost about half a billion dollars (including maintenance facilities, training and tech support).
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
When the new head of defence at Boeing laid out her priorities for the business in April, making jet fighters didn’t make the cut. Leanne Caret has made waves inside and outside the company with the stark admission that a company which has produced fighters for decades won’t be making them beyond the early 2020s.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
The Danish fighter competition is over, it would seem, as the parliament has officially approved a program for 27 F-35 Lightning IIs. As I noted last week, the purchase price remains indeterminate, so the Danish Defense Ministry may be seriously unprepared for the final bill, if it’s really taking seriously the source-selection team’s calculations.
(Read More...)
06/13/2016
An A-10 pilot told Scout Warrior the aircraft was the most "rugged" he had ever flown. The Air Force now plans to keep the A-10 flying well into the next-decade.
(Read More...)
06/12/2016
Militaries from NATO countries are taking part in the Baltops training exercises, which have been held since 1971. The US-led exercise is involving around 6,000 troops, 50 ships, 60 aircraft and one submarine in the Baltic Sea. Nations bordering Russia called on US to bolster its number of troops as the country continue to parade its power.
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06/12/2016
In the Pentagon briefing room, filled with requisite overstuffed chairs surrounding a heavy wooden table, the future of drone warfare flashed on a large screen. The depiction wasn’t a single, ominous glider high over a training camp in Afghanistan, or another flashpoint in the long war on Al Qaeda. Instead it was dozens of synchronized drones, looking like a swarm of wasps, slicing through the layered air defenses of an enemy, unnamed but possibly China or Russia.
(Read More...)
06/12/2016
During our visit to Jacksonville Naval Air Station, we had a chance to talk with Lt. Alan Tucker, the VP-16 Squadron Maritime Tactics Instructor (SMTI). He has surface fleet experience and came to the P-8 four years ago and started as a weapons school instructor in VP-30. VP-30 is the squadron where initial training for P-8 crews occurs.
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06/12/2016
Reviving production of the U.S. military’s pricey F-22 Raptor jet may not be so far-fetched after all, Bloomberg News reports. Although canceled over cost a few years ago, the stealth fighter still has its supporters and now a House subcommittee has asked Air Force to investigate what it would cost to begin building the aircraft again, Bloomberg reported this week.
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06/12/2016
U.S. generals, who for months have been arguing in favor of employing more air power in Afghanistan to counter the Taliban’s advances, are finally getting their wish. Defense officials on Friday announced that the White House has approved an expansion of U.S. airstrikes against the fundamentalist group, giving more authority to U.S. commanders to call in aerial backup for Afghan and U.S. forces on the ground.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
Boeing is modifying 30 legacy F/A-18C Hornets recovered from the aircraft “boneyard” at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base to a “C+” standard at the request of the U.S. Marine Corps. The updated strike fighters will support two new squadrons, the manufacturer said. Thus far, Boeing has delivered two F/A-18C+ fighters to the Marines from its maintenance facility at Cecil Field, Fla. Five more fighters were undergoing the update and four were expected to arrive by September.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
UK defence and security company BAE Systems has unveiled plans to build the world’s first autonomous military drone, proposing a scenario where unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) would work alongside conventional manned aircraft.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
BAE Systems is proceeding with design and wind-tunnel testing of a new wing for the evergreen Hawk jet trainer. The work, which is being done in the UK, was prompted by Indian interest in producing a “combat” version of the aircraft, as a follow-on to the current licensed production of the Mk132 advanced jet trainer (AJT) version by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). BAE and HAL signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in May 2015 to explore future cooperation, and discussions continue.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha, on an official trip to Sweden, has flown the Gripen fighter aircraft, a move that comes at a time when the government is in the process of shortlisting a combat assault plane under 'Make in India' initiative. Air Chief Marshal flew the Gripen at the Saab's facility at Linkoping in Sweden yesterday, IAF officials said on Friday. He flew the Gripen D aircraft with Wing Commander (Flying) Michael Lundquist.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
When the new head of defense at Boeing Co. laid out her priorities for the business in April, making jet fighters didn’t make the cut. Leanne Caret has made waves inside and outside the company with the stark admission that a company which has produced fighters for decades won’t be making them beyond the early 2020s.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
The wars in Syria and Iraq feature long list of stakeholders that are connected to a tangled web of shaky alliances, tacit allowances and contradicting goals. Yet since Russia pulled its fixed-wing tactical fighters and attack aircraft out of Syria, the US appears to be enjoying less complex and volatile skies over the war-torn country.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
IF YOU THINK it’s hard to make a helmet that costs $400,000 without the liberal use of solid-gold elements or diamond-encrusted details, you don’t know about the F-35 fighter jet. To go with what is possibly the most expensive and complicated weapon ever designed, defense contractor Rockwell Collins has designed a pilot helmet so advanced, it’s hard to say whether it’s an accessory for the plane, or the plane is an accessory for the helmet.
(Read More...)
06/11/2016
The U.S. Air Force has for the first time armed combat aircraft with a new laser-guided rocket made by BAE Systems for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the company announced. The service has equipped its F-16 fighter jets and A-10 ground-attack aircraft with the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System, according to a press release this week from the British defense giant.
(Read More...)
06/10/2016
Exactly half the South African Air Force’s fleet of26 Gripen fighter jets is actively flying while the other half is in rotational storage due to a lack of funding. This is according to Defence and Military Veterans minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, who was responding to a parliamentary question on 6 June.
(Read More...)
06/10/2016
A new series of test flights to explore the capabilities of Britain’s Taranis unmanned combat air vehicle is being discussed by industry and the Ministry of Defence (MoD), according to a BAE executive. The British completed what was thought to be the third and last series of test flights from a site at Woomera, Australia, in the autumn of 2015. An analysis of the missions data continues ahead of a decision on where to go next with the program, said Martin Rowe-Willcocks.
(Read More...)
06/10/2016
After more than a decade in which building Eurofighter Typhoon jet fighters has been the backbone of BAE Systems PLC’s combat aircraft production, the defense company is shifting its focus to the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and what may come next.
(Read More...)
06/10/2016
The United States considers the intercept of an American RC-135 reconnaissance aircraft by Chinese J-10 jet over the East China Sea was a case of unprofessional airmanship, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said in a briefing on Thursday.
(Read More...)
06/10/2016
Defense contractor Lockheed Martin said in a press release that government of Denmark has backed an order of 27 F-35 fighter jets from the United States, which amounts to $3 billion.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
In the United States the two premier military flight demonstration teams (The navy Blue Angels and air force Thunderbirds) both lost aircraft on the same day, something that had never happened before. The Blue Angels lost a pilot as well but these crashes had lots of side effects. More people see military flight demonstration teams as a waste of taxpayer funds, while others defend them as vivid showcases of military power.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to let Israeli aircrafts fly freely in Syrian and Lebanese skies, Arab48.com reported on Tuesday. The Israeli Minister of Jerusalem Affairs Ze’ev Elkin, who was Netanyahu’s translator and attended a Tuesday meeting, said that Netanyahu and Putin have a “credible” relationship, noting that Netanyahu is “using” it.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
There seems to be nothing that Russia's Sukhoi Su-30SM Flanker-H cannot do. In addition to its main tasks in Syria, the supermaneuverable fighter aircraft helped attack planes that took part in the Moscow-led counterterrorism operation to lock on to ground targets.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
Canadian governments of different political stripes have spent more than a decade trying to figure out whether to buy new fighter jets and which one to buy. The Conservatives developed an aversion to military-procurement commitments, deferring some, bungling others; Liberals, by contrast are in the habit of politicizing military procurement decisions.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
Officers have until July 31 to apply to the Air Force Test Pilot School to attend an in-residence engineering Ph.D. program. The engineering program, run by the Air Force Institute of Technology, is open to all eligible active duty officers, the Air Force Personnel Center said in a Tuesday release.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
The company behind the F-35 is pushing back against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assertion the stealth fighter “does not work,” even as the U.S. Air Force says the planes should be ready for war in the fall. Retired lieutenant-general Charles Bouchard, chief executive of Lockheed Martin Canada, said it was “disheartening” to hear Trudeau’s comment on Tuesday, in which the prime minister blasted the F-35 as a plane that “does not work and is far from working.”
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
Two F-16 fighter pilots who survived a midair collision in Georgia are home with their families, the commander of the South Carolina National Guard said Wednesday. "The pilots are in good shape," Maj. Gen. Robert Livingston Jr. told reporters at a news conference on the tarmac of the 169th Fighter Wing at McEntire Joint National Guard Base.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
While criticizing Israeli policy, US National Security Advisor Susan Rice has nonetheless promised to provide a large military aid package to the Middle Eastern nation.
(Read More...)
06/09/2016
Russia’s state arms exporter Rosoboronexport plans to promote its drones, including the Takhion and Granat-4, on the global market, the company said Wednesday.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
The Pentagon collected its final F-22 Raptor from Lockheed Martin Corp. four years ago. Amid the Cold War’s end and shrinking defence budgets, the most advanced fighter jet ever built was deemed both unnecessary and unaffordable.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
Russia’s new stealth fighter made an eyebrow-raising surprise appearance on June 5—soaring over the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow ripped from Ukraine in early 2014. The T-50—Russia’s answer to the U.S. Air Force’s F-22—is far from war-ready. Indeed, the twin-engine, radar-evading warplane is suffering such serious design, quality-control, and financing problems that it might never enter frontline service in large numbers.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's second meeting in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin in less than two months Tuesday underscores increasingly closer relations between the U.S. ally and Russia as Moscow's influence grows in the Middle East. Russia's military campaign in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is showing no sign of ending, despite the Kremlin's March announcement of a partial withdrawal of forces.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
Some things just don’t work out. Sometimes the best of intentions and plenty of money can’t overcome problems that were inherent in the design of a thing. And when the thing gets built, the shortcomings predicted from dispassionate analysis become showstoppers. There is no shame in abandoning projects as long as they are killed off quickly enough so that not too much damage is done.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
The US Army has proven in a recent live-fire test that a MQ-1 Gray Eagle with a Lockheed Martin joint air to ground missile (JAGM) can beat the capability offered today by the AGM-114 Hellfire against moving targets.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
Denmark has received the first three of an eventual nine Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk anti-submarine warfare helicopters to replace its fleet of ageing Westland Lynx 90s. To be operated by the Royal Danish Air Force, the remainder of the order will be delivered by mid-2018.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
The Boeing Company has won a two-thirds-of-a-billion dollar US Army foreign military sales contract to supply the Gulf Arab nation of Qatar with 24 Apache ground-support helicopters, the US Department of Defense announced.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
In January, the China Daily reported that the People’s Liberation Army Air Force was preparing to develop a new fleet of stealth fighters and heavy transport aircraft. The latter, the Xian Y-20 transport, was in particularly high demand, given Beijing’s lack of a "fast and reliable platform" to deliver arms and soldiers over long distances.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
The South China Sea issue is again going to be in the limelight as India, the US and Japan are set to hold a trilateral naval exercise in the Western Pacific Ocean off the east coast of Okinawa. The trilateral exercise called ‘Malabar Exercise' will start on Friday and run through June 17 and is likely to strengthen naval ties between India, the US and Japan amid militarization of South China Sea by China.
(Read More...)
06/08/2016
Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and US-based Sikorsky Aircraft corporation signed contracts worth $3.5 billion to start the production of helicopters for the needs of the Turkish army, Turkey's center of technology said on Tuesday .
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
The planes never seem to stop coming and going. After six months in the Persian Gulf, the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier has moved to the Mediterranean Sea, from where its bombers are jetting off faster and more frequently to strike ISIS targets in war-ravaged Syria and Iraq.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
Croatia and Tunisia are the first nations to receive OH-58D Kiowa Warrior armed scout helicopters retired by the U.S. Army. Tunisia, announced most recently as a recipient, will use the helicopters to battle Islamic extremists, according to the Department of Defense.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
The U.S. Air Force has just released its latest official strategy for controlling the sky for the next 15 years. And for the first time in generations, the “air-superiority” plan doesn’t necessarily include a new fighter jet. That’s right—the world’s leading air force, the operator of the world’s biggest and most sophisticated fleet of fighter planes, isn’t currently planning on developing a major new fighter. The Air Force may be getting the F-35—its current fighter.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
What is China’s next big move in the South China Sea? Ask the experts this question and tally their predictions. The action that will get the most votes is likely to be the imposition of an air defense identification zone (ADIZ). Indeed, a widespread view among the South China Sea watchers is that China will sooner or later declare an ADIZ in this semi-closed maritime domain, where it has reclaimed thousands of acres of land to build long airstrips, high-frequency radars, combat aircraft.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
For the first time in nearly four years, the US Navy has four aircraft carrier strike groups deployed at the same time. Two more carriers are carrying out local operations, making for six of the fleet’s ten active carriers underway — an unusually high percentage. And another is preparing to go.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
As the Canadian government debates whether to buy the infamous F-35, it may be forced to buy the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet fighter to insure its air force remains airborne.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
The Afghan military has increased its airstrikes against the Taliban over this year, but civilian casualties are an increasing concern, given that the air force relies on unguided, or "dumb," bombs.
(Read More...)
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06/07/2016
Russian warplanes based in Syria have destroyed four illegal oil production facilities on Daesh controlled territory in Syria in the past 24-hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said Monday.
(Read More...)
06/07/2016
Not a single aerobatics team in the world performs breathtaking flying maneuvers on combat aircraft as opposed to combat training warplanes except for Russia's world-famous Swifts and Russian Knights, former elite test pilot Vladlen Rusanov told the Vzglyad newspaper.
(Read More...)
06/06/2016
At security summit, Beijing vows to ignore pending international court ruling while US steps up military patrols. Asia's largest defence summit concluded on Sunday amid growing fears of a legal and military showdown in the South China Sea over China's rapid construction of artificial islands with ports, airstrips and helipads in one of the world's most bitterly contested waterways.
(Read More...)
06/06/2016
Global defence contractors are circling for business in Asia, with countries from Australia to Vietnam upgrading and adding everything from submarines to fighter jets as China expands its military reach. According to consultancy IHS Jane’s report, the combined defence budgets in the Asia-Pacific region will grow from $435 billion last year to $533 billion in 2020, furthering a shift in global military spending away from Western Europe and North America toward emerging markets, especially in Asia
(Read More...)
06/06/2016
An essay in "The National Interest" analyzes nuclear-weapons competition between the U.S. and Russia. The essay argues that U.S. - Russian strategic nuclear deterrence - involving bombers, ICBMs and submarines - will remain for decades to come.
(Read More...)
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06/06/2016
With the recent announcement by U.S. President Barack Obama that the United States will lift a decades-old embargo on the sale of military equipment to Vietnam, the question arises—given that the president’s decision is partially seen as a move to counterbalance China’s growing military power in the region—in what way a U.S.-Vietnamese weapons deal could potentially influence the military balance in the region, and in particular, the South China Sea.
(Read More...)
06/06/2016
The Gripen aircraft and the F16 jets have different communication systems and for security reasons the US will not unlock the link of the F16 jet's system allowing communication between the F16 jet and the Gripen aircraft. For the purpose of the drill, the air force and navy were able to overcome the restriction and talk to the US-made planes anyway. "The [Thai] air force has for some time requested the unlocking but the US has never agreed on that," said an air force source.
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06/06/2016
One of the most eagerly awaited dogfights in aviation history is about to take place. The Americans have supplied their ally Pakistan with the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, the most advanced jet in their inventory, while the Indians have opted for the Russian MiG-21. It will be the first aerial combat between Mach 2 (twice the speed of sound) aircraft.
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06/06/2016
Global defense contractors are circling for business in Asia, with countries from Australia to Vietnam upgrading and adding everything from submarines to fighter jets as China expands its military reach.
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06/06/2016
The Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov has disproved rumors about a Russian Aerospace Forces' war plane, allegedly downed in Syria's Aleppo.
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06/06/2016
Russia's Aerospace Forces will receive more than 100 advanced planes and helicopters in 2017, Aerospace Forces Commander Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said Sunday. "Yes, we can say so," Bondarev said, answering a question on whether Aerospace Forces will receive more than 100 aircraft.
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06/05/2016
The Nigerian Air Force said it had deployed additional aircraft to the South South region of the country to support the ongoing military operation against the new militant group, the Niger Delta Avengers.
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06/05/2016
Russia's Western Military District leadership had conversation with Chinese military delegation on a wide range of issues, the district’s spokesman said Saturday.
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06/05/2016
Four illegal oil production facilities controlled by the terrorist group Daesh, also known as IS/Islamic State, have been destroyed by Russian fighter jets.
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06/03/2016
In what is a really incredible coincidence, a U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 and a U.S. Navy Blue Angels F/A-18 have crashed on Jun. 2, 2016. The first incident occurred to the Thunderbirds F-16 shortly after the demo team performed a flyover at the annual Air Force graduation ceremony in Colorado Springs, attended by President Barack Obama.
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06/03/2016
RUSSIA'S military has announced plans for more than 2,000 air, sea and land exercises over the summer, in an attempt to discourage Nato from further build-ups of troops in eastern Europe.
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06/03/2016
Malaysia is in the final stages of studying companies that meet the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF's) multirole combat aircraft (MRCA) requirement to replace its ageing MiG-29 fighter aircraft. "We are now in the final stages of studying which of the companies are able to meet with our requirements and the decision to be made is not for a short term, RMAF chief, Tan Sri Roslan Saad was quoted as saying by Malaysia Digest during the RMAF 58th anniversary at Kuantan Air Base Tuesday.
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06/03/2016
A shrinking and rapidly aging aircraft fleet. An underperforming, “bet it all” fighter program that is grossly over budget and many years behind schedule. A tactical air plan that will be insolvent in just five years. A culture that is laughably slow at adapting to the unmanned aircraft revolution, and a totally irrational vendetta towards the most effective tactical platform it has to fight ISIS, the A-10 Warthog.
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06/03/2016
A prototype of Piaggio Aero's P.1HH Hammerhead unmanned air vehicle crashed into the sea near Sicily during a test flight on 31 May. The P180 Avanti II twin-pusher-derived prototype – registration CPX621 – was operating from Vincenzo Florio airport in Trapani, Sicily. It is believed to have lost communication with its ground control station, after which it crashed into the Mare di Levanzo around 4.3nm (8km) north of Isola di Levanzo island.
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06/03/2016
Lockheed Martin successfully completed the initial flight test of its T-50A configured aircraft. The T-50A is the company’s aircraft offering in the U.S. Air Force’s Advanced Pilot Training competition. “The aircraft in its new configuration with the 5th Gen cockpit and other upgrades performed flawlessly,” said Mark Ward, Lockheed Martin T-50A lead test pilot, after his flight in Sacheon, South Korea.
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06/03/2016
Defense contractor Northrop Grumman has received a US Navy contract to maintain the company’s MQ-4C Triton drone used in its oceans’ surveillance program, the US Department of Defense announced.
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06/03/2016
According to the general director of the Duks designing company, Russia’s new short-range maneuverable combat air-to-air missiles based on the R-73 short-range missile have begun being delivered to the military.
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06/02/2016
The US military will lose air superiority by 2030 unless a host of new capabilities and sweeping changes to acquisition processes can be adopted and fielded within the next 14 years, including a new penetrating counter-air system, the US Air Force says in a newly-released strategy document.
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06/02/2016
Recently, Rep. Martha McSally suggested that the Air Force conduct a fly-off between the F-35 and the A-10 to see which did better at providing Close Air Support (CAS). But effective CAS is about more than just the capabilities of the aircraft involved. It requires an Air Force community with intimate knowledge of the Army’s maneuver tactics, mindset and intent.
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06/02/2016
Ahead of Kazakhstan’s defense expo KADEX 2016, which will run through the weekend, Astana got some good news from Russia. As TASS reported earlier today, Kazakhstan should be getting the first delivery of Mil Mi-35M (NATO reporting name: Hind-E) combat helicopters by the end of the year.
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06/02/2016
Current restrictions on U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan and a heavy reliance on civilian contractors are eroding the skills and cohesion of units deployed to the country, according to information from the Army given to the House Armed Services Committee and provided to The Washington Post.
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06/02/2016
As China spends billions to upgrade and reorganize the People's Liberation Army, the deficiencies in competing Asia-Pacific militaries are coming into focus. And even some of China's much heralded military advances are drawing attention for their shortcomings. Here is a snapshot of some of Asia's less illustrious military kit.
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06/02/2016
The use of the MIG-29N fighter aircraft will be reduced following increasing operating expenses, said Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) chief, Tan Sri Roslan Saad. He said apart from that, the capabilities of the fighter aircraft were also getting more limited as the aircraft have been in service for 21 years since they were first used in 1995.
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06/02/2016
Lockheed Martin has been awarded a 5-year, single award indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract with a ceiling value of $424 million by the U.S. Naval Air Warfare Center – Weapons Division (NAWC-WD) to support the Aircrew Electronic Warfare Tactical Training Range (AEWTTR) program in Ridgecrest, Calif. The company will provide tactical training products and services for Navy pilot training through development of threat radar emitter simulators.
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06/02/2016
The Pentagon announced that L-3 Communications had been awarded almost a $2 billion US Air Force contract to guarantee the supply of airframes for the next generation of air refueling tankers.
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06/02/2016
Russian airstrikes have severely damaged oil facilities controlled by the terrorist group Daesh, also known as IS/Islamic State, in Syria's al-Hasakah Province, according to the Russian military.
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06/02/2016
The experience of weapons, hardware, and aviation utilized in Syria is being used to train servicemen, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Wednesday.
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06/01/2016
Three months after the first prototype was unveiled on February 2, the home-grown Hindustan Turbo Trainer-40 (HTT-40), a basic trainer aircraft, took to the skies for the first time on Tuesday and completed a basic flight of about 25 minutes without glitches.
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06/01/2016
The first Boeing P-8A Poseidon multi-mission aircraft (MMA) destined for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) made its first flight last week. The event illustrates Australia’s effort to enhance its maritime domain awareness and security against a backdrop of the rise of China and India.
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06/01/2016
Four nations will join this summer’s Rim of the Pacific drills in Hawaii, increasing the number of countries participating in the world’s largest international maritime exercise to 27. Brazil, Denmark, Germany and Italy will take part for the first time in the biennial RIMPAC, which is slated to begin June 30 and end Aug. 4, the Navy said Tuesday. China, which joined the exercise in 2014, will also participate.
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06/01/2016
In 2013, two OV-10 aircraft participated in an experimental flight and were deployed to Iraq in order to combat mission operatives against ISIS. The aircraft—which debuted in the 1960s—successfully completed a total of 120 combat sorties in a two-and-a-half month period, leaving naysayers to speculate if this legacy aircraft would be more profitable and suitable for the war against one of the most dangerous terrorist organizations in the world.
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06/01/2016
Global defense contractors are circling for business in Asia, with countries from Australia to Vietnam upgrading and adding everything from submarines to fighter jets as China expands its military reach.
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06/01/2016
The JF-17 multi-role combat aircraft is capable enough to meet Pakistan's defence requirements, a top Pakistani minister said on Tuesday. Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer said Pakistan had a fleet of the state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder aircraft which carried all specifications of any advanced fighter jet.
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06/01/2016
The Israeli air force's chief flight test engineer wants an early as possible delivery of its Lockheed Martin F-35 test asset, to expedite the process of adapting locally-produced weapon systems to the aircraft.
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06/01/2016
Israel's air force has been briefed on the status of the US Air Force's in-development Boeing KC-46A tanker, and has an immediate request for at least two examples. A recently-announced delay to the USAF programme is one reason behind the Israeli air force pushing for a decision, a source in the country indicates. "An early decision will expedite the delivery," the source adds.
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06/01/2016
Figures released by the UK government show 43 air strikes have been carried out in Syria by the Royal Air Force under its Operation Shader since offensive activities were extended into the country in December: only a fraction of the total since the campaign began over Iraq in September 2014.
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06/01/2016
The second most populated country on the planet looks to make strides away from dependence on Western arms manufacturers in an unprecedented change to national policy. In a bid to upgrade rocket weapon systems for its fleet of helicopters, India announced that it will break from its state-run Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), which holds a monopoly on the country’s defense contracting needs, to procure munitions from private Indian manufacturers.
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