Military Aviation News Archive

Pentagon confirms 1-year delay for JSF

02/17/2010

Pentagon officials on Feb. 16 confirmed Deputy Defense Secretary Bill Lynn’s announcement one day prior that the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program will be delayed by about one year.

Modified military aircraft drones being readied for protesters

02/17/2010

Police forces all over the UK will soon be able to draw on ... modified military aircraft drones [to] carry out surveillance on everyone from protesters and antisocial motorists to fly-tippers, and will be in place in time for the 2012 Olympics.

Future Remotely Piloted Aircraft Will Do More Than Surveillance

02/17/2010

The widespread introduction of unmanned aerial vehicles to the battlefield during the last decade has been called revolutionary. But their applications so far have mostly been in the reconnaissance and surveillance realm, with only a handful of aircraft able to fire weapons.

Finance offer to save A400M

02/17/2010

EUROPEAN aerospace giant EADS has received an new finance offer from partner governments which could rescue the troubled A400M military transport project, a company spokesman said on Monday.

Boeing Targets Indian Market

02/17/2010

Boeing is looking further ahead in the Indian defense procurement and development market as it now enters the third and final phase of field trials for the proposed F/A-18IN for India’s 126 Medium Multirole Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) competition.

Emirates throw wrench in Dassault works

02/17/2010

France's Dassault Aviation, desperate to find the first foreign customer for its multi-role Rafale fighter, is concentrating on a potential sale of 60 of the jets to the United Arab Emirates.

India to spend further $200b for arms

02/17/2010

While Pakistani leaders and judiciary are locked in an unending internal battle and the armed forces are engaged in an ongoing treacherous terrorism network Pakistan’s arch rival India has embarked on a huge armament programme that is seen as genuine threats to both Pakistan and its strategic ally China.

Lockheed Martin may sell fifth generation F-35 to India

02/16/2010

US defence major Lockheed Martin Tuesday said it may consider selling the fifth generation fighter aircraft F-35 if approached by the Indian Air Force (IAF). “We will consider this if the IAF approaches us,” Orville Prins, vice president for Lockheed Martin India’s operation, told reporters at the sixth edition of Defexpo India.

RAF chief: Don't cut fighter jets

02/16/2010

Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, the Chief of the Air Staff, insisted that air power must not be seen as an “optional luxury” when Britain’s future defence capability is considered.

Northrop Grumman's Fire Scout Unmanned Aerial System Demonstrates Critical Resupply Capability

02/16/2010

Northrop Grumman Corporation has successfully demonstrated that its MQ-8B Vertical Unmanned Aerial System (VUAS) can resupply U.S. or coalition troops deployed on a combat mission.

Boeing Completes P-8A Weapons Ground Vibration Tests

02/16/2010

Boeing successfully completed stores (weapons) ground vibration testing on P-8A Poseidon test aircraft T1 on Feb. 5 in Seattle. The tests will provide data to validate predictions of aircraft performance prior to flight testing at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., later this year.

Eurofighter Typhoon Heads to India for MMRCA Evaluation

02/15/2010

Coinciding with the starting signal for India’s largest defence exhibition, DEFEXPO 2010 (15-18 February 2010), a German Air Force Eurofighter fighter aircraft will be heading to India today. However, this aircraft will not be making acrobatic manoeuvres for the visitors of the show but, rather, will be thoroughly examined by the Indian Air Force (IAF) as part of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) MMRCA programme. The Eurofighter will join India’s ongoing programme, which has been ini

Electronic Attack Prominent In Defense Budget

02/15/2010

Electronic and computer attack—the futuristic segment of the Pentagon’s arsenal—will benefit from the proposed 2011 military spending plan, but identifying all the key pieces is difficult without close scrutiny.

Russia, India to sign 5th-generation fighter deal in March

02/15/2010

Russia and India will sign the first contract on the manufacturing of a fifth-generation jet fighter in late February-early March, a Russian defense industry official said Monday.

Starlite, Starlite, Show Me What You See Tonight

02/14/2010

The U.S. Army has received its first production models of the AN/ZPY-1 Starlite lightweight radar. This system weighs 65 pounds (29.5 kg), occupies 34 cc (1.2 cubic feet), uses 750 watts of power and costs about $2.3 million each. The Starlite was designed for use in the army's new 1.5 ton MQ-1C Sky Warrior UAV. Starlite can deliver photo quality black and white images of what is down there, in any weather. The army has developed software that enables the Starlite images to be transmitted to ex

In the Cold of Morning, Descending Into Conflict

02/14/2010

The helicopter was filled with men and dark in its cabin when a voice cut over the whir of the rotors.

India to exercise options for six more Lockheed C-130-30Js

02/13/2010

American defence contractor, Lockheed Martin, has said it expects the Government of India (GoI) to shortly issue a Letter of Request (LoR) to the United States government for the acquisition of an additional six C-130-30J Super Hercules transport aircraft.

Boeing begins C-17 training in Australia

02/13/2010

The Australian air force says a new training program is under way supported by Boeing's C-17 Globemaster III Aircrew Training System.

Israel presses U.S. for F-35 deal

02/13/2010

Israel is pressing the U.S. administration to clinch a deal for up to 75 F-35 Stealth fighters but Lockheed Martin wants to sell the fifth-generation fighter to Arabs as well.

Eurofighter Typhoon targets 300 additional orders in next 20 years

02/13/2010

The four-nation Eurofighter consortium foresees substantial growth opportunities on the world market, with India playing a crucial role, it said Friday.

Spanish unions urge campaign to save A400M project

02/13/2010

Spain's two biggest trade unions said Friday they would call on European colleagues to mobilise to save the over-budget Airbus A400M military plane project from being scrapped.

Boeing Airborne Laser Testbed Team Destroys Boosting Ballistic Missile

02/12/2010

The Boeing Company, industry teammates and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency on Feb. 11 successfully demonstrated the speed, precision and breakthrough potential of directed-energy weapons when the Airborne Laser Testbed (ALTB) engaged and destroyed a boosting ballistic missile.

Bangladesh wants to buy fighters, helicopters and maritime patrol aircraft

02/12/2010

Bangladesh has vowed to buy a squadron of new fighters and has resumed efforts to purchase two maritime patrol aircraft.

Sukhoi PAK FA: Technical Analysis

02/12/2010

On 29 January 2010, the Sukhoi PAK-FA, which could variously be described as a technology demonstrator, the first prototype of the future T-50 fighter, or an intermediate step between the two, took to the air for the first time from the freezing runway of Dzemgi Air Force Base (shared with the KnAAPO plant) at Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Russian Far East Siberia. A fundamental step has at last been accomplished in the development of the long-expected Russian response to the American F-22 RAPTOR a

Teamcenter software from Lockheed Martin helps keep hundreds of F-35 aircraft suppliers on the same page

02/12/2010

Leaders of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program are partnering with U.S. and international aerospace leaders, including Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. These three primary partners are supported by up to 600 suppliers. In all, the parties involved in the production of the F-35 reside in more than 30 countries, spanning 17 time zones.