Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

UK's Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 vs Russia's Sukhoi Su-30 and Su-27: RAF releases photos of face-off near Estonia's airspace

07/03/2019

The RAF released photos of the Eurofighter Typhoon jets, part of Operation AZOTIZE of the Baltic Air Policing mission in Estonia, intercepting the Russian Sukhoi Su-30s on June 14 and 15. Ten days later, the Typhoons were directed to intercept two Russian Sukhoi Su-27 fighters.

Hill F-35s join big allies in combat exercise over the Mediterranean

07/03/2019

Troops and jets from Hill Air Force Base recently took to the sky with a pair of the United States’ most well-known allies. According to the U.S. Air Forces Central Command Public Affairs office, members of Hill’s 388th Fighter Wing flew their F-35 Lightning IIs with counterparts from the United Kingdom and Israel during “Exercise Tri-Lightning” on June 25.

Practice Makes Perfect: F-35s and F-16s Conclude 8 Hour War Game

07/03/2019

The active duty 388th Fighter Wing (FW) and Reserve 419th FW conducted a very unique integrated defensive counter-air exercise from Apr. 30 to May 2, 2019 at the Utah Test and Training Range. The friendly and enemy forces were made up of F-35 Lightning IIs from Hill Air Force Base (AFB), F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 311th Fighter Squadron at Holloman AFB, New Mexico, and 80th FS at Kunsan Air Base, South Korea, and a team of contracted aggressor pilots from Draken International.

Second deadly German military air crash in a week

07/02/2019

An army helicopter crashed in northern Germany on Monday (Jul 1), killing the pilot, defence officials said, in the second fatal crash in a week for a military plagued with equipment problems. The aircraft hit the ground in Aerzen, near Hamelin in northwest Germany, at around 1.45pm (1145 GMT). The reason for the crash is not yet known.

Three-nation F-35 exercise demonstrates air power interoperability

07/02/2019

F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft from the U.S, United Kingdom and Israel participated in Exercise Tri-Lightning over the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, June 25. Exercise Tri-Lightning was a one-day defensive counter air exercise involving friendly and adversary aircraft from the three participating countries and consisted of active and passive air defense operations. This exercise is a demonstration of the interoperability between the U.S., U.K. and Israel using the F-35A, F-35B and F-35I respect

Senate Calls for Additional HH-60Gs for Air National Guard

07/02/2019

The U.S. Senate is calling for additional Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk combat search and rescue helicopters (CSAR) for the Air National Guard to account for delays in the HH-60W Combat Rescue Helicopter program and planned replacements of HH-60Gs lost in combat.

CHINA MAY BUY MORE ADVANCED RUSSIAN JETS, IGNORING U.S. SANCTIONS

07/02/2019

China is reportedly considering an offer to purchase more advanced Russian fighter jets, once again ignoring U.S. sanctions. The state-run Tass Russian News Agency cited the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation as saying Wednesday it was "expecting a response from China on our offer to purchase modern weapons and military equipment manufactured in Russia, including additional batches of Su-35 fighter jets."

Russia offers more Sukhoi Su-35S fighters, which can detect F-35 stealth jets, to China

06/29/2019

The +9 g capable Su-35S is a supermanoeuvrable fighter with thrust vectoring engines. Russia claims the Su-35S jet is a quantum leap from Sukhoi’s Su-27 fighter and is just behind the 5th Generation Su-57 stealth aircraft, which the Russian Air Force has started to deploy, in terms of technology.

F-35 Test And Evaluation Centre – Behind The Scenes

06/29/2019

This is the moment a Royal Air Force Voyager refuels a £190 million UK F-35B combat aircraft over the Nevada Desert in a test of the capabilities of the UK’s most advanced warplane. As the tempo increases to prepare the UK’s F-35B for deployment, we exclusively go behind the scenes of the test centre in Edwards, California. The mid-air process is similar to that of refueling a Typhoon currently on Operation Shader and takes up to five minutes per jet to refuel.

Naval Aviation Facing Unexpected Budget Shortfall; Options to Slow Spending Being Considered

06/28/2019

The naval aviation community is facing a budget shortfall of at least $100 million for the current fiscal year and may have to cut back flight hours and other operations between now and the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year, USNI News learned. Commander of Naval Air Force Atlantic Rear Adm. Roy Kelley has notified Navy leadership and the numbered fleets that the aviation community is considering not scheduling additional flyovers until the new fiscal year.

Turkey hints at other partners for first national fighter jet

06/28/2019

The mock-up model of Turkey's first national and domestically developed national combat aircraft, the TF-X, debuted last week at the Paris Air Show. Being developed by Turkish aerospace engine manufacturer, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), the aircraft is expected to be one of the best combat aircraft in the world. Reportedly, the first flight is planned for 2023. In 2017, the Turkish Kale Group established a partnership with British Rolls-Royce to produce an aircraft engine for the TF-X.

Eurofighters collided at high altitude: Luftwaffe

06/28/2019

Germany's air force has disclosed further details about the fatal collision between two Eurofighter combat aircraft that took place near Rostock on 24 June. The pair were part of a formation of three single-seat Eurofighters practising an air combat mission at an altitude above 9,800ft, the Luftwaffe says.

PICTURES: UK F-35s make operational debut

06/28/2019

The UK gave an operational debut to its Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning force in mid-June, with the fifth-generation type having flown missions over Iraq and Syria alongside Royal Air Force (RAF) Eurofighter Typhoons.

Russia Reportedly Developing Its Own AC-130-Like Gunship From Converted An-12 Cargo Planes

06/27/2019

Russia is reportedly looking to develop an AC-130-like gunship armed with a pair of 57mm automatic cannons, as well as additional smaller guns. The first phase of the project would involve the conversion of an Antonov An-12 Cub cargo plane into a flying testbed to experiment with different weapons and tactics, techniques, and procedures.

IAF F-35'S TRAIN WITH US AND UK F-35'S FOR FIRST TIME

06/27/2019

Earlier this week, IAF F-35's took part in an international exercise with the United States and the United Kingdom for the first time, an IDF spokesperson announced on Wednesday. During the exercise, known as Tri-Lightning, Israeli F-35's trained alongside F-35's from the US and UK over the Mediterranean Sea. IAF forces practiced defense scenarios against changing threats in various advanced fighter aircraft, including the F-35.

Chinese military tests heavy aerial delivery with unmanned transport aircraft

06/26/2019

The Chinese military has tested an unmanned transport plane that successfully delivered cargo at a designated area, making it a future prospect for airdropping cargo through parachutes in real battle conditions, official media here reported on Monday.

Five Sobering Lessons From Iran's Downing Of America's Most Capable Drone

06/26/2019

Iran's destruction of a U.S. Global Hawk unmanned aircraft with a surface-to-air missile near the Strait of Hormuz should be a wake-up call for proponents of autonomous or remotely-piloted warfighting systems. The era of drone warfare is not upon us, because the vehicles currently available for military purposes are too limited in their capabilities to survive combat with a reasonably well-equipped adversary.

UK F-35Bs flying combat missions over Syria, Iraq

06/26/2019

Britain’s most advanced military aircraft, the F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, has flown its first missions over Syria and Iraq as part of ongoing operations against remnants of the Islamic State group, the U.K.'s defense secretary said. Defense Secretary Penny Mordaunt said in a statement released Tuesday that that the jets’ first operational mission from a British air base in Cyprus was made following a highly successful training period.

UK’s newest F-35B combat aircraft successfully completed its first operational missions

06/26/2019

The U.K. Ministry of Defense has confirmed that its newest and most advanced fighter jet, the Lightning F-35B, has successfully completed its first operational missions. On Tuesday, the Ministry of Defense has announced F-35Bs have flown alongside Typhoon aircraft on operational flights over the skies of Syria and Iraq, as part of the ongoing fight against Daesh.

Probe begins into fatal German Eurofighter crash

06/26/2019

An investigation is under way into a fatal collision involving of a pair of German air force Eurofighter combat aircraft near Rostock on 24 June. The two jets were part of a formation of three single-seat Eurofighters from the Luftwaffe's 73 Squadron, which had taken off for a training flight from their base at Rostock airport, close to the Baltic Sea.

Japan Says Fighter Jets Scramble After Russian Military Aircraft Violate Airspace

06/24/2019

The Japanese military says its fighter jets were forced to scramble after two Russian military aircraft violated its airspace. The Defense Ministry said in a statement on June 20 that two Russian TU-95 bombers approached southern Japanese islands, including Kyushu, from the north before heading north toward the Japanese mainland.

Donald Trump says military action against Iran still 'on the table'

06/23/2019

President Donald Trump said Saturday he's still considering military action against Iran after it downed an unmanned US military aircraft, saying the use of force is "always on the table until we get this solved." The president said he aborted a military strike set for Thursday after learning 150 people would be killed. "I don't want to kill 150 Iranians. I don't want to kill 150 of anything or anybody unless it's absolutely necessary," he told reporters as he left the White House for a weekend.

UK RAF Eurofighter Typhoon jets intercept Russian Sukhoi Su-30 fighters near Estonian airspace

06/22/2019

United Kingdom's Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon jets have been regularly tracking, monitoring and intercepting Russian fighters in the skies near the Estonian border as part of Operation AZOTIZE of the Baltic Air Policing mission. RAF Typhoon jets on Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) intercepted Russian Sukhoi Su-30 fighter aircraft flying to the north of Estonia twice in two days.

South China Sea: Satellite image shows Chinese fighter jets deployed to contested island

06/22/2019

A satellite image obtained by CNN shows China has deployed at least four J-10 fighter jets to the contested Woody Island in the South China Sea, the first known deployment of fighter jets there since 2017. The image was taken Wednesday and represents the first time J-10s have been seen on Woody or any Chinese-controlled islands in the South China Sea, according to ImageSat International, which supplied the image to CNN.

These are the jets Iran would use in a fight with the US

06/22/2019

After 40 years of sanctions and arms embargoes, Iran's air force has slowly become an eclectic mishmash of aging platforms sourced through various channels. If war were to break out between Iran and the United States today, US pilots would find themselves squaring off with Iranian pilots in a swarm of old American, Soviet, and Chinese jets. Some of these planes, like the Northrop F-5 Tiger II, have seen update efforts over the years. Others, however, are thought to be barely sky-worthy.