Military Aviation News Archive

First U.S. Black Hawk leaves Polish arms plant

03/15/2010

The first U.S. Black Hawk S-70i military helicopter to be made outside of the United States was unveiled in Poland on Monday at a plant that once serviced Nazi aircraft and built planes for the Communist bloc.

Russian arms transfers to North Africa: Fuelling an arms race?

03/15/2010

New SIPRI data on global arms transfers published today reveal that Russia remains the second largest arms exporter in the world. According to SIPRI data, the volume of Russian arms exports for 2005-2009 is of a similar level to that for 2000-2004.

Qatar Emiri Air Force Laud C-17 Fleet's Achievements

03/15/2010

Boeing and the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF) celebrated Qatar's deployment of C-17 Globemaster III airlifters during an Air Force Day ceremony held March 10 at Doha International Airport.

T-50: Russia's secret fighter jet with 'human intellect'

03/14/2010

We can expect a real breakthrough when the Russian-Indian collaboration on the creation of a fifth-generation prototype aircraft based on the experimental T-50 starts to become a reality.

Venezuela's Chavez Receives Chinese Planes Armed with Missiles, Rockets and Bombs

03/14/2010

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez formally took delivery of the first four K-8W airplanes out of 18 purchased in China for military training purposes, which, however, came armed with machine guns, air-to-ground missiles, bombs and rockets, and said that this armament increases military capability for “defending the sovereignty of this sacred land and of this revolution”

How Drone Pilots Wage War

03/13/2010

Drone pilots sit in air-conditioned rooms far away from the anti-terror wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. They guide their weapons systems with joysticks and monitors. The remote warriors work with a high degree of precision -- and at a fraction of the cost of a fighter jet.

As Its Arms Makers Falter, Russia Buys Abroad

03/13/2010

Ask a Russian what the country makes well, and the answer, more often than not, will be the Kalashnikov rifle.

Russia signs $1.5-bln fighter jet contract with India

03/13/2010

Russia and India have signed a $1.5-billion contract on the supplies of 29 more MiG-29K carrier-based fighter jets to New Delhi, the head of the Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG said on Friday.

Flying fox

03/12/2010

WHILE most kids harboured straightforward ambitions of being a teacher, accountant or lawyer, Patricia Yapp had her head in the clouds.

AgustaWestland has been awarded a contract by the Indian Air Force for twelve AW101 helicopters

03/12/2010

AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, has been awarded a contract with a value of EUR 560 million by the Indian Air Force for the supply of 12 AW101 helicopters for government transport.

EADS still looks to U.S. expansion

03/12/2010

Northrop Grumman Corp's decision not to bid in a multibillion-dollar U.S. aerial tanker competition was a setback for the ambitions of its partner EADS, but the European company still hopes to boost U.S. revenue to $10 billion by 2020.

Joint Strike Fighter soars to $95M

03/12/2010

The cost of a single Joint Strike Fighter has soared to $95 million in the past eight years, a 50 percent increase, Pentagon officials told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.

Tanker Deal Gives a Lift to Boeing

03/12/2010

Northrop Grumman’s withdrawal this week from a $40 billion contest to build aerial refueling tankers provides Boeing with some welcome certainty about its future as a major builder of military aircraft.

Ground Forces Highlight Singapore Air Show

03/12/2010

On one side of the static display at Singapore’s February air show was a row of almost a dozen front-line combat aircraft. In terms of their basic design, the newest was the F-15, ordered into development just over 40 years ago. With “the local customer”—as the Singapore armed forces are known in the nation—thus far committed to the F-35, the rest of the fighter world stayed away, and news was to be found in the exhibit halls.

Dhaka plans purchase of more combat aircraft, missiles

03/12/2010

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said her government plans to procure fighter aircraft, surface-to-air missiles, helicopters and other armament to strengthen the armed forces.

F-35B STOVL-mode Flight

03/12/2010

The first Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter passes overhead at 40 knots (46 mph) prior to a slow landing at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., on Wednesday, March 10.

US-Europe tensions rise over arms deals, exports

03/11/2010

The United States and Europe face growing tensions over restrictions on export deals involving BAE Systems (BAES.L) while European politicians protest the collapse of efforts to sell aerial tankers to the United States.

IAF's AN-32 aircraft upgradation begins

03/11/2010

The first batch of five military transport aircraft of Indian Air Force has arrived in Ukraine for overhaul and modernisation.

UAV Could Be Battlefield Ambulance

03/11/2010

The Israel Defense Forces medical corps is looking at procuring an innovative unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that will evacuate critical casualties directly from the battlefield to the hospital. This would get more wounded to the hospital within the “golden hour,” the critical time in which a medical evacuation has the best chance of saving a wounded soldier’s life.

US Faces Helicopter Shortage in Afghanistan

03/11/2010

As the threat of roadside bombs and ambushes has escalated in Afghanistan, U.S. and coalition forces have been forced to move everything from food supplies to mail delivery away from the ground and into the air. That, in turn, has prompted another problem: a critical lack of cargo helicopters.

Northrop Grumman Successfully Demonstrates Capabilities of LITENING Targeting System on U.S. Navy F/A-18E/F

03/11/2010

Northrop Grumman Corporation today announced it successfully demonstrated its LITENING advanced targeting capabilities on the U.S. Navy's premier fighter/attack aircraft, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, marking the eighth U.S. combat aircraft to fly the advanced targeting system.

Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy Is ‘Effective, Suitable And Mission Capable’ For USAF Operations

03/11/2010

The Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation (OT&E) Center has rated the Lockheed Martin C-5M as "effective, suitable and mission capable" based on results from OT&E testing completed in January 2010.

Hawker Beechcraft Delivers 500th T-6 Military Trainer to U.S. Government

03/10/2010

Hawker Beechcraft Corporation (HBC) this week announced the delivery of the 500th Beechcraft T-6 military trainer to the United States Government. The milestone aircraft, a T-6B, went to the U.S. Navy and will be based at Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Fla. Deliveries began in 2000 after the aircraft was initially selected to fill the Joint Primary Aircraft Training System role for the U.S. Air Force (USAF) and the U.S. Navy (USN) in 1996.

EADS loses £692m as new military plane costs spiral upwards

03/10/2010

The parent of European aerospace giant Airbus lost €763m (£692m) last year after paying €1.8bn in penalties and extra costs over its controversial new military transporter plane.

China warns US against selling F-16s to Taiwan

03/10/2010

China on Tuesday warned the United States against any future arms sales to Taiwan, including F-16 fighter jets the island has been pushing for in hopes of upgrading its air defense capabilities.