Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Boeing Awarded Contract for Major Upgrade to French AWACS Fleet

02/04/2010

The Boeing Company today announced that it has been awarded a $324 million Foreign Military Sales contract from the Electronics Systems Center at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., to upgrade France's fleet of four E-3F Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft, as well as the fleet's ground system.

Boeing NC3S Project Vigilare Completes 1st Data Transmission With Wedgetail

02/04/2010

Boeing Defence Australia, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company, today announced that Project Vigilare, a Network Centric Command and Control System (NC3S) solution for Australia, recently completed its first data transmission with a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Wedgetail Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft using Link 16.

Airbus close to agreement on delayed A400m military transport plane

02/03/2010

Ministers are expected to meet again in Berlin on Thursday, after talks between the countries and the company broke down last week. Airbus had set a deadline of January 31 to reach a resolution.

Lockheed vows to beat performance targets on F-35

02/03/2010

Lockheed Martin Corp said on Tuesday it was working closely with the Pentagon to ensure its $300 billion F-35 fighter jet program met, or beat, new schedule and cost targets after a Pentagon shake-up.

F-50 and M-346 face off in Singapore trainer bid

02/03/2010

Singapore’s choice of an advanced jet training system is due next month and could be crucial to the future export prospects of Italy’s M-346 Master and Korea’s T-50 Golden Eagle. These dissimilar training jets have been bid here by rival prime contractors, ST Aero and Lockheed Martin, respectively. The decision here is likely to influence the United Arab Emirates, which notably failed last November to confirm its previously announced selection of the M-346 over the T-50.

On for 27 yrs, LCA project gets Rs 8,000 crore more

02/03/2010

What Tejas wants, Tejas gets. The much-delayed Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) programme will get an additional funding of Rs 8,000 crore.

FACTBOX: Russia's fifth-generation fighter T-50 (PAK FA)

02/03/2010

Russia's fifth-generation fighter performed its maiden flight on Friday.

Sudanese Air Force deploys Russian military aircraft

02/02/2010

Sudanese Air Force has been deploying Russian fixed- and rotary-wing platforms for conventional warfare and counter-insurgency operations, according to worldtribune.com .

Gates Shakes Up Leadership for F-35

02/02/2010

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Monday that he was replacing the general in charge of the Pentagon’s largest weapons program — the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter — and withholding $614 million in award fees from the contractor, Lockheed Martin.

Pentagon budget calls for more unmanned aircraft

02/02/2010

U.S. Defense officials outlined plans to double production of unmanned aircraft, part of an expanded 2011 budget unveiled Monday that emphasizes the importance of international hot spots and natural disasters as well as large-scale warfare, as provided under a new strategy document.

Unmanned Black Hawk?

02/02/2010

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. announced a billion-dollar venture Monday that it hopes will respond to military demand for technology to fight two wars, including Black Hawk helicopters that can see and fly on their own.

Russia successfully tests Sukhoi T-50 Stealth fighter jet

02/02/2010

On December 29, 2010, a prototype Sukhoi T-50 fifth-generation fighter took off on its maiden flight at 11.19 a.m. in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Russia's Far East.

Lockheed Martin Receives $59 Million For Sniper® Advanced Targeting Pods

02/01/2010

Lockheed Martin has received $59 million from the U.S. Air Force for additional Sniper® Advanced Targeting Pods (ATP). This order represents the second increment on the U.S. Air Force’s Sniper ATP Lot 9 contract, originally awarded in September 2009, bringing the total value of the Lot 9 buy to $95 million.

Pilot error likely to blame for Russian jet fighter Jan. 14 crash

02/01/2010

A Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter crash in the Far East earlier this month was likely caused by pilot error, a source close to the investigation said on Saturday.

The Thais gear up for Gripen

02/01/2010

Training is underway at the Swedish Armed Forces Technical school in Halmstad and will continue until the end of the year. The technical training also includes a On the Job Training (OJT) part at the Swedish Air Force Wings F 7 in Såtenäs and F 17 in Ronneby. As part of their training, technicians spent time at Saab’s Gripen manufacturing hub in Linköping. The technicians’ training programme forms part of Thailand’s 2008 procurement contract for six Gripen fighter jets.

Boeing Begins In-country C-17 Pilot Training for Royal Australian Air Force

02/01/2010

Boeing and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) today welcomed the first class of C-17 Globemaster III student pilots at RAAF Base Amberley.

First Stealth Fighter Makes Test Flight

02/01/2010

A prototype of Russia’s first stealth fighter successfully completed its long-delayed maiden flight Friday, receiving a warm welcome from government officials who hope that the jet will become a new centerpiece for its aging air fleet.

IAF Pokhran blitz to showcase its firepower

02/01/2010

IAF is all set to conduct a high-voltage firepower exercise to showcase its `shock and awe' capabilities to both domestic as well as international audiences.

Boeing, HAVELSAN Install Simulator and Support Hardware for Turkey's Peace Eagle AEW&C Program

01/31/2010

The Boeing Company and industry supplier HAVELSAN announced today that they have completed installation of Mission Simulator and Mission Support Center hardware for Turkey's Peace Eagle Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) program.

Purchase of U.S. F-16 jets and submarines still under discussion: Taiwan Premier

01/31/2010

The exclusion of F-16C/D jets and of submarines from the recent United States arms deal did not mean that those purchases would not go ahead, Premier Wu Den-yih said Sunday.

Draft Defense Department budget avoids weapons cuts, adds aircraft

01/31/2010

The Obama administration's 2011 defense budget avoids the controversial weapons cuts of last year, according to a draft copy, and continues to shift modest amounts of money to weapons programs such as helicopters, unmanned planes and Special Operations units that are in heavy use Afghanistan and Iraq.

A deal on the extra costs of Airbus’ A400M military transport edges closer

01/31/2010

The A400M is massively over budget and four years behind schedule and the aircraft manufacturer wants the seven governments who have ordered it to pay more.

Lockheed Strengthening Fuselage in Navy’s F-35 Model

01/30/2010

Lockheed Martin Corp. is fixing a structural weakness in the Navy version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter that limits the jet’s ability to launch from aircraft carriers, according to a company spokesman.

Russia to start receiving fifth-generation fighters in 2013

01/30/2010

The first batch of Russian fifth-generation fighters will go into service in 2013, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Friday.

French AWACS Leaves The 80s

01/30/2010

France is spending $300 million to upgrade its four E-3F AWACS (Air Warning And Control System) aircraft. The upgrade will replace ancient (mainframe based) computers with PC type networked hardware. This will enable regular upgrades with new processors and data storage equipment. New software will introduce a Windows type interface, and joysticks. This is similar to an upgrade performed on American AWACS. French AWACS will remain able to closely cooperate with E-3 type AWACS used by other natio