Military Aviation News Archive
05/16/2020
Lt. Col. Jason Monaco soared six miles above lush wilderness, his fighter jet streaking across the icy blue sky. He banked his two-seat F-16D to the right, shooting around an eight-jet formation maneuvering against him and his fellow pilots. Gazing through a dark visor, he glimpsed his adversary's jet for the first time. Then, bad news. "Well," he said, "we just died."
Read More...
05/16/2020
Details are still limited, but an Air Force F-22 Raptor fighter jet has crashed at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and the pilot is now at a local hospital in stable condition. The aircraft was flying a routine training sortie at the time and was not involved in a flyover earlier in the day that was part of a larger nation-wide salute healthcare workers and first responders on the frontlines of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic as some outlets initially reported.
Read More...
05/15/2020
Recent foreign satellite images suggest that China has deployed early warning aircraft and anti-submarine aircraft on the Yongshu Reef in the South China Sea amid increased US military activities in the region, as Chinese experts said on Thursday that China has the right to deploy defensive weapons there according to military threats China is facing.
Read More...
05/15/2020
CHINA'S military aircraft have been spotted landing on one of its manmade islands in the disputed South China Sea as tensions in the region continue to escalate. Satellite images show a PLANAF at the Fiery Cross Reef on the strategically located Islands situated north of the South China Sea. Jane's Information Group, a defence intelligence group, warned the sighting could be further signs the People’s Liberation Army Navy Air Force is starting to use it as a base of operations.
Read More...
05/15/2020
The largest procurement program in the Department of Defense (DOD), the F-35 Lightning II is a strike fighter aircraft being procured in different versions for the United States Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy. Current DOD plans call for acquiring a total of 2,456 F-35s. Allies are expected to purchase hundreds of additional F-35s, and eight nations are cost-sharing partners in the program with the United States.
Read More...
05/15/2020
The Air Force has ceased formation landings as part of its undergraduate pilot training after a November 2019 crash of two T-38C aircraft at Vance Air Force Base claimed two lives. The Air Force's Air Education and Training Command (AETC) confirmed the decision Wednesday morning.
Read More...
05/15/2020
India plans to switch to locally made fighter jets, two years after asking global companies to submit proposals to supply 114 combat aircraft in the world's biggest warplane contract. The country's air force is finalizing plans to induct indigenously made Light Combat Aircraft called Tejas to boost the capability of its aging combat aircraft fleet, Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat said in an interview in New Delhi. It will buy an additional 83 jets, apart from an earlier deal for 40 aircraft,
Read More...
05/14/2020
Multiple companies who faced off in the Air Force’s light attack experiment will again compete for a similar contract from U.S. Special Operations Command. Sierra Nevada Corp., Textron Aviation, Air Tractor, and Leidos are offering aircraft for a three-phase armed overwatch competition that ends with live-fly demonstrations in November. That demo follows the Air Force’s nearly three-year light attack effort that ultimately fell short of a full-fledged buy.
Read More...
05/12/2020
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) delivered the required certification notifying Congress of the possible sale on October 10 last year. It said that the proposed sale was intended to provide a replacement for “Tunisia’s aging trainer fleet” and explained that it would allow the country to continue to train pilots for counter-terrorism and border security missions.
Read More...
05/12/2020
The Directorate for Air Armaments and Airworthiness (DAAA) has approved and certified the new M-345 trainer aircraft which has been designed and manufactured by Leonardo. Certification by the DAAA (an agency within the Italian MoD) is the result of more than 200 flights with in-flight and on-ground tests carried out in collaboration with the Italian Air Force.
Read More...
05/11/2020
Pakistani Air Force Aircraft have been flying patrols close to the Indian territory inside their space together with their F-16, JF-17 and Mirage III fighter planes. Indian airbases have been additionally on alert in view of the heightened actions of the Pakistan Air Force. A high authorities official revealed that Pakistan has heightened fighter aircraft activity after the killing of Indian Army Colonel Ashutosh Sharma in an encounter with Pakistani terrorists within the Handwara forests.
Read More...
05/10/2020
Defying clouds in the sky and Covid-19 on the ground, Russia’s deadliest bombers, nimblest fighter jets and strongest transport aircraft flew over the capital in celebration of Soviet victory over Nazi Germany 75 years ago. V-Day is one of the most important national holidays in Russia, and this year was supposed to have seen massive celebrations throughout the country. But Covid-19 and its lockdowns threw a wrench into the plans, forcing the postponement of most festivities.
Read More...
05/10/2020
The most powerful navies in 2030 will be a reflection of the broader state of the world. Some countries are invested in preserving the current international order, and see naval power as a means to maintain it. Other emerging countries are building navies commensurate with their newfound sense of status, often with an eye towards challenging that order.
Read More...
05/10/2020
Elon Musk, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the SpaceX Corporation as well as Tesla Motors, proclaimed at the United States Air Force (USAF) Air Warfare Symposium in February 2020 that the days of the fighter aircraft are over. Unprecedented technological advances over the last half a decade or so portend an imminent transformation of warfighting. Many current warfare concepts are likely to become obsolete.
Read More...
05/09/2020
A Chinese Shaanxi Y-8 military transport plane entered Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) Friday (May 8), leading a jet from the island’s Air Force to broadcast a warning.
According to the Ministry of National Defense, the Chinese military plane had been training off Taiwan’s southwest coast around noon before it briefly encroached on Taiwan’s ADIZ, CNA reported.
Read More...
05/09/2020
The first two V-22 Osprey aircraft bound for Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) units arrived in Japan at U.S. Marine Corps Air Station, Iwakuni, according to a recent Marine Corps news release. “The V-22 off-load marked the first time JGSDF V-22s arrived on Japanese soil,” said in a statement. Japan ordered the first five Ospreys aircraft for the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force in July 2015 for $332 million.
Read More...
05/09/2020
An Indian Air Force fighter aircraft has crashed in Punjab. "A MiG-29 fighter aircraft crashed today near Hoshiarpur district of Punjab. The pilot managed to eject safely," IAF officials said. The pilot was rescued by a helicopter.
Read More...
05/08/2020
Why build one stealth bomber when two would be better? That is likely the thinking behind China’s People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s current strategy. It has released a bit of information on its Xian H-20 stealth bomber, which seems to be similar to the U.S. Air Force’s B-2 Spirit in form and function—and resembles the iconic “flying wing” that one almost expects with stealth aircraft.
Read More...
05/08/2020
The U.S. is pulling two Patriot missile batteries and some fighter aircraft out of Saudi Arabia, an American official said Thursday, amid tensions between the kingdom and the Trump administration over oil production. The official said the decision removes two batteries that were guarding oil facilities in Saudi Arabia but leaves two Patriot batteries at Prince Sultan Air Base in the Saudi desert, along with other air defense systems and jet fighters.
Read More...
05/08/2020
A pair of RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft conducted air strikes against Daesh targets in north-east Iraq on the night of 28 April. The jets, operating out of RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus were also accompanied by a Voyager A330 MRTT aerial refuelling tanker and additional fighter aircraft involved with the multinational coalition against Daesh.
Read More...
05/08/2020
The 30-day extension is a response to the coronavirus pandemic that has disrupted business operations globally, especially in the aerospace sector. “The COVID-19 pandemic is presenting numerous challenges for businesses and their workforce, including the eligible suppliers for the Future Fighter Capability Project,” said a spokesperson for the department in a statement on May 6.
Read More...
05/08/2020
Leidos subsidiary Dynetics has won a $12.3m valued phase 1 of the Air Combat Evolution (ACE) programme, Technical Area 3 (TA3). The ACE TA3 (Alpha Mosaic) contract was awarded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Strategic Technology Office (STO). As an initial challenge scenario, the programme uses aerial dogfighting for implementing artificial intelligence (AI) into high-intensity air conflicts, which increases the soldier’s trust in combat autonomy.
Read More...
05/08/2020
Two U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer strategic bombers, after a transatlantic flight, conducted training bombing at the Tapa training ground in Estonia, the Pentagon said on Wednesday. According to a 28th Bomb Wing press release, the flight, which lasted more than 25 hours, included integration and interoperability training with Danish F-16s overflying Bornholm Island in the Baltic Sea. The B-1s also worked with Estonian Joint Terminal Air Controllers to provide training with inert devices at Tapa Ra
Read More...
05/07/2020
Israeli RAFAEL will supply Litening-5 and RecceLite systems to equip Leonardo's M-346FA light combat aircraft. This is the first integration of 5th generation EO pods to Leonardo's M-346FA platform. The M-346FA is the multi-role combat variant of the M-346 advanced jet trainer.
Read More...
05/06/2020
American defence and aviation giant Leidos announced on 4 May that the company has teamed up with Paramount Group US and Vertex Aerospace to deliver the Bronco II, a new purpose-built, multi-mission aircraft. The aircraft will provide support to the Armed Overwatch Prototype Program, run by US Special Operations Command (SOCOM).
Read More...