Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

US aircraft carrier is in northern Aegean Sea to ensure flight operations if tensions escalate in region

03/06/2022

The American aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman has been in the northern Aegean Sea this week in part to ensure it can conduct flight operations from there if tensions escalate in the region due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to a US official familiar with the carrier’s current task.

White House weighs three-way deal to get fighter jets to Ukraine

03/06/2022

The U.S. remains in discussions with Poland to potentially backfill their fleet of fighter planes if Warsaw decides to transfer its used MiG-29s to Ukraine, four U.S. officials tell POLITICO. The ongoing talks, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pleads with Congress for help, underscore the frantic push to find weapons to equip Ukrainian forces as they continue to fight off the massive Russian invasion.

Letter from Kyiv: Putin’s War on Ukraine is ‘Pozor Rossii’

03/05/2022

The following is a report from Reuben F. Johnson, who has written for Breaking Defense in recent years from Ukraine. This piece was written over several days, as Johnson relocated from shelter to shelter to avoid Russian strikes in the Kyiv area, with limited access to internet and power. Given that, statistics and facts on the ground may have shifted by publication; as Johnson himself put it in an email, “everything is fluid right now.”

US Sanctions Against Russia Take India's Materiel Upkeep Concerns From Bad to Worse

03/05/2022

The Indian Air Force’s (IAFs) optimism over being able to source spares to ensure operability for its fleet of Russian combat and other military aircraft, despite punitive US-led sanctions imposed on Moscow over its Ukraine invasion, is belied by the recurring component shortages the force has always faced, even when no embargoes existed.

The Russian army is failing – but not enough to lose the war

03/05/2022

There have been three major surprises for military analysts since the Russian military invaded Ukraine. The first has been the extent of the difficulties faced by the Russian army in terms of logistics, coordination of forces, morale and mobility. The second has been the failure of the Russian air force to achieve air superiority over Ukrainian air defences, and to operate against Ukrainian ground forces at scale. The third has been the extraordinary unity and effectiveness of the Ukrainian resi

Indonesian Air Force readies pilots to fly Rafale fighter jets

03/05/2022

Air Force Chief of Staff Marshal Fadjar Prasetyo is preparing special pilots to fly the 4.5 generation Dassault Rafale fighter jets that Indonesia had bought from France. "We have prepared several pilots, but we have not determined the number. However, we have readied the criteria and those who are eligible to fly the Rafale," Prasetyo remarked after the 2022 Indonesian Air Force Leadership Meeting at the Air Force Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, Friday.

RAF F-35 jets join NATO mission following Russian invasion

03/05/2022

RAF F-35 Lightning aircraft have joined NATO's Enhanced Vigilance Patrols for the first time – an operation started in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The activity ensures policing of the skies over NATO member states. Lightning jets from RAF Marham have taken part alongside Typhoon aircraft from RAF Coningsby and RAF Akrotiri.

Ukraine still has 'significant majority' of its military aircraft -U.S. official

03/05/2022

Ukraine still has a "significant majority" of its military aircraft available nine days after Russian forces started their invasion of the country, a U.S. defense official said on Friday. Vastly outmatched by Russia's military, in terms of raw numbers and firepower, the fact that Ukraine's own air force is still flying and its air defenses are still deemed to be viable has surprised military experts.

Putin 'Overestimated' Russia's Military in Ukraine, But He's Still a Threat, Air Force Secretary Says

03/04/2022

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin overestimated the power of his military forces when deciding to invade Ukraine, as reports of low morale among troops, equipment woes and a lack of airpower emerge from the battlefield. But Kendall told reporters that none of Russia's failures in Ukraine has made it less of a threat in his eyes.

Fire out at key Ukraine nuclear plant, no radiation released

03/04/2022

No radiation was released from a Russian attack at Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant in Ukraine and firefighters have extinguished a blaze at the facility, U.N. and Ukrainian officials said Friday, as Russian forces pressed their campaign to cripple the country despite global condemnation.

Resist and Die, Russia Tells Ukrainians

03/04/2022

The Russian army has been shelling residential areas of Kharkiv with Grad and Smerch multiple launch rocket systems, as CEPA previously reported. Air attacks have also been stepped up, with as Many as 30 combat aircraft violating Ukraine’s airspace, mainly from Belarus, with attacks including a number against the civilian population, according to the Ukrainian General Staff on March 2. Since the start of the Russian invasion, more than 180 missiles have been fired at the territory of Ukraine.

Russia Deploys Its ‘Heavy-Duty’ Sukhoi Su-34 Fighter Bombers For Ukraine Ops; Kyiv Claims It Shot Down One Aircraft In Kharkiv

03/04/2022

Videos surfaced online show as many as seven SU-34 fighter-bombers flying over the northeastern city of Kharkiv. Furthermore, images of FAB-500 unguided bombs, presumably dropped by Su-34s on a civilian location in Kharkiv, were also shared on the internet. Experts interpreted this as a sign of things to come, implying that the Russian military has begun employing tactical aviation for bombing missions. Previously, only Su-25 assault aircraft were believed to be deployed for support missions.

Ukraine war: why Nato is refusing to enforce a no-fly zone

03/04/2022

In the pre-war discussions between the US and Russia, Joe Biden warned Russia about the consequences of aggression, but explicitly excluded the possibility of the use of armed force by the United States. Now as Ukrainian civilians come under severe attack and refugees are pouring into other central European countries, the clamour for a military response from Nato is getting louder.

Details Emerge on New Unmanned Long-Range Bomber and Fighter Projects

03/04/2022

The Air Force’s “4+1” fighter plan is still intact despite Secretary Frank Kendall’s new “imperative” to develop a fighter-like unmanned airplane, and the Air Force is well into developing a concept of operations for a new unmanned long-range bomber that might be attritable, if the price is right.

Where is the Russian Air Force? Experts break down why they might be hiding

03/04/2022

If the past 80 years of warfare have taught us anything, it’s that air supremacy, the term for making an enemy air force incapable of resistance, is essential for winning a conventional war. That’s why experts are scratching their heads trying to figure out why the Russian combat air force, despite being 15 times the size of its Ukrainian foe, has not achieved anything close to air supremacy.

US Air Force Discusses Tactics with Ukrainian Air Force as Russian Advance Stalls

03/03/2022

U.S. and NATO intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance assets on NATO’s eastern flank are providing tactical information to the Ukrainian Air Force as new air defense assistance arrives inside Ukraine, though the U.S. is being careful to avoid steps that might be seen as escalatory, a defense official told Air Force Magazine.

IAF sends four C-17 aircraft for evacuation of Indians

03/03/2022

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has launched three C-17 transport aircraft to Romania, Hungary and Poland on Wednesday morning, Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, Vice-Chief of the Air Force, said. A fourth C-17 was sent later in the day. The C-17 was sent as it can fly non-stop to these countries.

Why Ukraine Isn’t Getting Fighter Jets From The EU

03/03/2022

Despite reports to the contrary, the European Union (EU), will not be sending fighters to the Ukrainian Air Force to aid in their fight for their survival against the Russians. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed on Tuesday that European Union members will not lend fighter jets to the war in Ukraine after reports were surfacing that they were intending to do just that.

Ukrainian military shoot down two Russian fighter aircraft in Kyiv region

03/03/2022

“On the night of March 1, a fierce air battle broke out in Kyiv region between a pair of MiG-29 fighters of the Air Force Tactical Aviation Brigade and a pair of Russian Su-35S aircraft. As a result of the air battle, the two Russian planes were destroyed. Along with air-to-air missiles, S-300 surface-to-air missiles of the local anti-aircraft missile brigade of the Air Command ‘Center’ were fired on the occupiers,” the Air Force Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine posted on Facebook.

Up to 30 Russian combat aircraft violate airspace of Ukraine in past 24 hrs

03/03/2022

In the past 24 hours, up to 30 Russian combat aircraft violated the airspace of Ukraine, mainly from the Republic of Belarus, shelling the civilian population. The press service of the Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

Ukrainians Are Cleverly Using Javelin Missiles to Destroy Russian Armor

03/02/2022

As Russian armored vehicles attempt to close in on Kyiv, Ukrainian defense forces are closing off key “intersections” and “choke points,” disabling or destroying Russian supply lines, and using Javelin anti-tank missiles to decimate Russian forces and halt their advance.

What happened to Russia's Air Force? U.S. officials, experts stumped

03/02/2022

Before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, U.S. intelligence had predicted a likely blistering assault by Moscow that would quickly mobilize the vast Russian air power that its military assembled in order to dominate Ukraine's skies. But the first six days have confounded those expectations and instead seen Moscow act far more delicately with its air power, so much so that U.S. officials can't exactly explain what's driving Russia's apparent risk-adverse behavior.

No fighter plane transfers to Ukraine through allied airspace

03/02/2022

NATO airspace will not be used to transfer fighter planes to the Ukrainian military, alliance leaders said Tuesday after a meeting in Poland, where top U.S. commanders were on hand for high-level security talks. Ukraine has requested additional military hardware from the West to help stave off Russia’s full-scale invasion, which was on its sixth day when the NATO talks occurred.

Amid fears of Russian air dominance, US to send anti-aircraft Stingers to Ukraine

03/01/2022

The U.S. for the first time has approved the direct delivery of Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine as part of a package approved by the White House last week. During the Cold War, the CIA covertly supplied Stingers to Afghan guerrillas fighting Russian forces. Now Ukrainian forces locked in an intensifying fight to repel Russia will get more of the shoulder-fired weapon, which has a 4-kilometer range.

Which countries are sending military aid to Ukraine?

03/01/2022

As the war between Ukraine and Russia continues to escalate after Moscow sent its troops into its neighbouring country, several countries across the globe are sending military aid to Kyiv. According to Ukraine’s health ministry, the conflict has killed more than 350 civilians since the beginning of Russia’s invasion.