Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Taiwan says it cannot afford new U.S. anti-submarine helicopters

05/05/2022

Taiwan signalled on Thursday that it had abandoned a plan to buy advanced new anti-submarine warfare helicopters from the United States, saying they were too expensive. Taiwan had earlier said it was planning to buy 12 MH-60R anti-submarine helicopters, made by Lockheed Martin Corp unit Sikorsky, but domestic media said the United States had rejected the sale as not being in line with the island's needs.

Where Are the Afghan Air Force’s Aircraft Now?

05/04/2022

More than eight months ago, as the Western-backed Afghan government of Ashraf Ghani crumbled, a portion of the Afghan Air Force flew out of the country and landed in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. The Afghans eventually made their way to processing centers in countries like the United Arab Emirates and then on to the United States. Their planes remained in Central Asia, and for now that seems to be where they’ll stay.

Chinese aircraft carrier battle group enters Pacific: Japan military

05/04/2022

Taiwan's military on Tuesday said it had a clear grasp of the activities of nearby Chinese forces a day after Japan's Self-Defense Force said China's Navy had recently deployed an aircraft carrier battle group into the Pacific Ocean. Military spokesman Sun Li-fang said Taiwan's military closely monitors Chinese military maneuvers in waters and airspace surrounding Taiwan, and would take "appropriate response measures," without elaborating.

Greater Threat Doesn’t Necessarily Mean More B-21s Needed: Brown

05/04/2022

Heightened threats from Russia and China don’t automatically translate to a need for more than 100 B-21 Raiders, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. told the Senate Armed Services Committee on May 3. The service may simply bolster the number of escorts that go with the new bomber to do the long-range strike role, he said.

Turkish defense contractors enjoy sales bonanza in Asia

05/04/2022

A thick dossier of documents passed from one hand to another among officials lined up on a red carpet at the Col. Jesus Villamor Air Base in Manila. Inside the hangar stood two T129 attack helicopters produced in Turkey. "They are to be used against enemies of our state -- terrorists trying to destroy our country," Delfin Lorenzana, the defense secretary of the Philippines said at the April 6 handover ceremony.

The new upgrades for the F-22 have been teased both in official Air Force artworks and FY23 budget.

05/04/2022

25 years after it entered service in the U.S. Air Force, the F-22 Raptor is scheduled to receive some major upgrades to keep its edge over future adversaries. Some of these upgrades were unveiled last week in the Fiscal Year 23 Budget request documentation and in an official artwork shared by Gen. Mark Kelly, the Commander of Air Combat Command, in a post about the 15th anniversary of the approval of the first F-22 flight demonstration.

Vermont verve added to NATO air power with deployment of Guard’s F-35s to Germany

05/04/2022

U.S. combat jets from New England will soon fly the skies of Eastern Europe. Eight F-35 Lightning II aircraft from the Vermont Air National Guard arrived Monday at Spangdahlem Air Base to bolster NATO and support its air policing mission, U.S. Air Forces in Europe–Air Forces Africa said in a statement Tuesday.

Azerbaijan closes airspace for Russia military aircraft

05/03/2022

The Azerbaijani edition of The Azeri Times reported that, following Turkey, neighboring Azerbaijan closed its airspace for Russian military aircraft. According to The Azeri Times, this is due to intentions to disrupt the transportation of military cargo between Russia and Armenia. “Azerbaijan has closed its airspace to Russian military aircraft. As a result, Russian military aircraft carrying military supplies from Armenia to Russia were forced to fly over Iran and the Caspian Sea on their way

In first, Australian tanker refuels Japanese jet midair

05/03/2022

An Australian tanker has refueled a Japanese fighter jet in the air for the first time as part of interoperability trials between the two Asia-Pacific nations. A Royal Australian Air Force KC-30A tanker aircraft was deployed to Japan April 4-27, during which it participated in a flight test engineering program with Japan Air Self-Defense Force Mitsubishi F-2 jets.

Russian Victory Day Parade Cut By 35%, Emphasizing Ukraine’s Battlefield Prowess

05/03/2022

As Russia scales up anti-West rhetoric, Russia has scaled down their May 9 Victory Day Parade by almost 35 percent. The cuts are so dramatic, and the planned parade so humiliating, that Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin, will likely do almost anything to keep the World from focusing overly much upon Russia’s dwindling military prospects.

Ukrainian army damaged 1,000 tanks, 200 aircraft, 2,500 armored vehicles of Russian forces, claims Zelensky

05/02/2022

Since the beginning of the war, over 1,000 tanks, around 200 aircraft and at least 2,500 armored fighting vehicles of Russian forces have been destroyed by the Ukrainian army, claimed President Volodymyr Zelensky, as per media reports. The invading Russian army still have more equipment to carry out attacks, he added.

1st Fighter Jet To Host Hypersonic Missiles – US Air Force To Opt For Its ‘Top Dogfighters’ For Strike Missions

05/02/2022

Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall and Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown testifying before the House Armed Services Committee said this while revealing their plans for the F-15EX. Instead of replacing numerous older F-15C/D Eagle fighters with the newer, more capable F-15EXs, the Air Force will replace the older F-15s with remotely piloted drones or nothing at all in case the drones weren’t feasible.

Allies Step Up Military Support for Ukraine

05/02/2022

The United States and its allies have shifted from providing small arms and defensive equipment to hastily ratcheting up deliveries of heavy weaponry to Ukraine as the brutal Russian war there intensifies.

Denmark accuses Russian spy plane of violating airspace

05/02/2022

On Friday, a Russian AN-30 propeller plane was flying east of Bornholm, a Danish island in the Baltic, before it headed towards Swedish territory. “It is completely unacceptable and extremely worrying in the current situation”, Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod wrote on Twitter on Sunday. Danish F16 fighter jets countered the incursion and the plane then left Danish airspace.

It Would Be Historically Ironic If Greek S-300s End Up In Ukraine

05/01/2022

Ukraine is again calling on its Western allies, including Greece, to supply it with more Russian-built military hardware. Athens has considerable quantities of Russian equipment Ukraine is familiar with, including BMP-1 tracked infantry fighting vehicles, 9K33 Osa and Tor-M1 short-range and S-300PMU-1 long-range air defense missile systems. If the latter systems ultimately ends up in Ukraine’s arsenal, that would be historically ironic given how Greece came into possession of them in the first p

NATO fighter jets scrambled ‘multiple times’ this week in response to Russian aircraft

05/01/2022

NATO fighter pilots took to the skies several times since Tuesday to track and head off Russian aircraft over the Black and Baltic seas, according to NATO. The Russian planes turned back after each encounter. The alliance announced on Friday that planes took off “multiple times” from April 26-29 to track unidentified planes over the seas before confirming them as Russian aircraft.

Israeli Air Force Fighter Pilot explains how he was able to land his F-15 Baz with One Wing Missing

05/01/2022

One aircraft that perhaps came closest to destroying an Israeli F-15 Baz in ‘combat’ was the venerable McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. These nimble little aircraft have been used by both the US Navy and the Israeli Air Force (IAF) as ‘Red Air’ aggressors, using their agility to humble mightier opponents.

Serbia shows off new Chinese missiles in display of military power

05/01/2022

Serbia on Saturday showed off its new Chinese-made surface-to-air missiles and other military hardware purchased from both Russia and the West, as the country seeks to perform a delicate balancing act over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Members of the public and the media were invited to the display at the Batajnica military airfield near Belgrade, where Chinese and French missiles were lined up beside Airbus helicopters, Chinese-armed drones and Russian MIG-29 jets.

Ukrainian defenders destroy 60 enemy vehicles in JFO area

04/30/2022

The Ukrainian military destroyed 11 Russian tanks and more than 40 units of other equipment in the area of the Joint Forces Operation on Friday, April 29. According to Ukrinform, the press service of the Joint Forces Operation announced this on Facebook. On April 29, in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, Ukrainian Joint Forces successfully repelled 14 attacks by Russian invaders. Ukrainian defenders destroyed 11 Russian tanks, seven artillery systems, 27 armored vehicles, an armored combat vehicl

Armed Overwatch Program Nears Source Selection (UPDATED)

04/30/2022

Despite the U.S military’s shift to great power competition with China and Russia, Special Operations Command says it still needs aviation platforms that can support isolated commandos conducting irregular warfare in remote areas. To fulfill the mission known as “Armed Overwatch,” the command launched an initiative in 2020 to acquire 75 near-production-ready manned, propeller-driven turboprop aircraft.

Building Alliances and Competing with China

04/30/2022

The near-monopoly on remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) that the United States once enjoyed is rapidly eroding as other countries build and export their own unmanned aircraft. Their persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and precision strike capabilities, as well as lower cost, are huge force multipliers, and countries around the world are recognizing the asymmetric advantages RPAs provide.

China’s Crashed Fighter Plane Unearths ‘Key Secrets’; Are PLAAF Pilots Getting Trained By Russian Instructors?

04/30/2022

A Hongdu JL-10 or L-15 supersonic advanced jet trainer flown by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) crashed in Caolu Village in Yucheng County, Henan Province’s Shangqiu City, on April 23. Both pilots of the aircraft successfully parachuted before the crash and were found in a field, waiting to be rescued. A video taken after the crash that went viral on social media led to suspicions that the instructor pilot in the video was Russian.

Morocco moves to become maintenance hub for F-16s, C-130s

04/30/2022

In an attempt to become a military aircraft maintenance center for neighboring African nations, Morocco has signed a strategic partnership with Belgian firms Sabca and Sabena Aerospace, alongside American giant Lockheed Martin, for the maintenance and support of F-16 and C-130 Hercules aircraft.

Brazil orders more Gripen jets, mulls another large buy

04/30/2022

Brazil is set to order four Saab-Embraer F-39E jets in addition to the 36 already purchased in 2014 under a $4.7 billion contract. The country is also considering ordering another batch of at least 30 F-39E fighters — the local designation of the JAS 39E Gripen NG.

Colombia chooses South Korea’s TA-50, FA-50 as next jet trainers, officials say

04/30/2022

Colombia’s Air Force has chosen a mix of TA-50 and FA-50 Golden Eagles as its next jet trainers, military sources told Defense News. The Air Force plans to acquire at least 20 advanced jet trainers with air-to-air and air-to-ground combat capabilities under a project estimated to be worth $600 million.