Military Aviation News Archive

Pentagon Doesn't Know Who It Kills with 'Signature' Drone Strikes

08/06/2015

In June, when a CIA drone strike killed an al-Qaeda leader who the agency did not know was among a group of militants, the United States showed that it continues to fire drone missiles at targets whose identities are a mystery.

Syria army plane crash toll rises to 37: activists

08/05/2015

A Syrian military aircraft that crashed during a bombing run over rebel-held territory killed at least 37 people and injured more than 60, activists said. The victims died when the plane crashed Monday in the town of Ariha in Idlib province, and in preceding airstrikes, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which originally said 31 were killed.

Pentagon Requests Funding To Accelerate Harrier Data Link Upgrades

08/05/2015

The Pentagon has asked for an additional $7.5 million in the current fiscal year for the Marine Corps to get started on installing the Link 16 communication system on its fleet of Boeing AV-8B Harriers. In a reprogramming request to Congress, the Defense Department wrote that “funding is required to begin Link 16 Tactical Datalink integration into the AV-8B aircraft for relevancy, safety improvements, and interoperability.

China and Russia to Hold Military Exercise in Sea of Japan

08/05/2015

Russia and China are scheduled to hold joint military drills in the waters and airspace of the Sea of Japan, Bejing's Defense ministry announced. The exercises are set to take place between August 20 through August 28 in the Peter the Great Gulf and other areas of the Russian coast, reported The BRICS Post.

Air Force upgrading radars on its AWACS fleet

08/05/2015

The Air Force has kicked off a $60 million overhaul of communications on its E-3 Sentry fleet to better track enemy aircraft. It is installing the AN/UPX-40 system, meant to eliminate ground clutter to better detect, identify and track enemy and friendly low-flying aircraft, according to a news release on the system. The AWACS aircraft will use the information to send intercepting aircraft to enemy targets.

UK Extends Tornado Squadron To Keep Up Iraq Bombing Effort

08/05/2015

The British government has reprieved a squadron of Tornado GR4 strike jets from being axed in order to maintain its operations against Islamic State group targets in Iraq. The announcement that 12 (Bomber) Squadron will be kept flying for a further year was made by British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon during a visit to Baghdad on Aug. 3.

Tejas Mk-II: India may avail consultancy from European manufacturers who bid for MMRCA deal

08/05/2015

India could avail consultancy from some of European aircraft manufacturers who had bid for the multi-crore tender for fighter jets, won by Rafale, for the development of the Mark-II version of Light Combat Aircraft Tejas, timeline for which has been extended.

India Cancels $12B Combat Jet Program

08/05/2015

India has canceled its $12 billion program to purchase 126 medium multirole combat aircraft. According to a July 30 press release from the Indian Ministry of Defence, "The RFP issued earlier for procurement of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) has been withdrawn. In this multi-vendor procurement case, the Rafale aircraft met all the performance characteristics stipulated in the Request for Proposal (RFP) during the evaluation conducted by Indian Air Force."

Saudi-Led Coalition Deploys Nearly 3,000 Troops in Yemen - Reports

08/05/2015

A ground force of 2,800 pro-government troops, accompanied by tanks and armored personnel carriers, pushed toward a Houthi-controlled military base in Yemen Monday as Saudi-led coalition airstrikes cleared their path.

NATO Says 8 Aircraft ‘Currently Sufficient’ to Protect Baltic Airspace

08/05/2015

NATO estimates that reducing its air patrols over the Baltic states in half would be appropriate for the current level of threat, a NATO official told Sputnik on Tuesday. On Monday, NATO announced its plans to halve the number of military aircraft it had allocated to the Baltic Air Policing Mission. The program is aimed at helping Baltic NATO members Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia improve their capability, readiness, and responsiveness to deter against aggressors in the region.

Japan Suspends US Base Relocation Work for 1 Month

08/05/2015

Japan will suspend work on the relocation of a US military base in Okinawa Prefecture for 30 days to ease tensions with local authorities, the country’s cabinet chief announced Tuesday. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga was quoted by the Kyodo agency as saying at a news conference that Tokyo will hold “intensive consultations” with the local authorities to resolve an ongoing standoff.

Turkey To Buy Reconnaissance Aircraft

08/04/2015

Turkey’s procurement authorities approved a new contract to acquire reconnaissance and observation aircraft. The procurement agency, the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM), released a request for information (RfI) to which potential bidders must reply no later than Aug. 12.

Dozens dead as Syrian army plane crashes in rebel-held town

08/04/2015

A Syrian military aircraft crashed while on a bombing run over the rebel-held northwestern town of Ariha on Monday, leaving at least 23 people dead, a monitoring group said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it was not immediately clear how many of the dead were from the crash and how many from the prior bombardment.

Beijing South China Sea Military Expansion: World's Largest Aircraft Carrier Dock Helps China Expand Naval Ambitions

08/04/2015

China has reportedly built the world's largest aircraft carrier dock at its naval base in the South China Sea. The 700 meter-long dock is able to accommodate ships on both sides, allowing it to service two aircraft carriers or other large ships at the same time.

Nato reports surge in jet interceptions as Russia tensions increase

08/04/2015

World powers are reporting surges in airspace violations and instances where aircraft are scrambled to intercept foreign jets, amid a sharp rise in geopolitical tensions in Europe and Asia. Nato member aircraft were forced to conduct more than 500 scrambles over Europe in 2014 – a fourfold increase on the previous year. Nearly 85% of these were to intercept Russian aircraft.

How China's expert fighter jet designer avoids America's mistakes

08/04/2015

There's aircraft designers, and then there's ace designers. There are thousands of engineers around the world producing planes, but ace designers only come along once every few decades. The United States had Kelly Johnson, the designer of the SR-71 Blackbird. Germany's Willy Messerschmitt produced a line of famous fighter planes. The Soviet Union's Mikhail Simonov created the muscular Su-27 fighter-bomber to compete with America's F-15 Eagle.

U.S. Military Aircraft to Defend ‘Moderate’ Syrian Rebels

08/04/2015

U.S. military aircraft will provide defensive air cover to “moderate” Syrian rebels, the Pentagon announced on Monday. My colleague, Richard Sisk, has the story on Military?.com: The small group of lightly equipped “moderate” Syrian rebels vetted and trained by the U.S. and now on the ground in northern Syria will be provided with limited defensive air cover, a Pentagon official said Monday.

Lockheed Martin Technology Helps Pilots and UAS Operators Share Data, Stay Safe

08/04/2015

As Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) take to the skies, it is essential for safety that UAS operators and pilots are aware of each other. To help provide this shared situational awareness, Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) has deployed the first components of a UAS traffic management (UTM) system that is available to the UAS community now.

Saudi-Led Coalition Deploys Nearly 3,000 Troops in Yemen - Reports

08/04/2015

US Begins Launching Armed Drones From Turkish Airbase Read more

08/04/2015

The United States has started flying armed drones from a Turkish airbase, but they have not conducted any airstrikes against the Islamic State yet, according to US media reports citing Pentagon on Monday.

Egypt kills leading IS militant in Sinai

08/03/2015

Egyptian armed forces killed a leading member of the country's Islamic State affiliate in a shootout outside his North Sinai home, the army spokesman said in a statement on Saturday. Selim Suleiman al-Haram, identified in the statement as a leader of the militant group known as Sinai Province, was asked to turn himself in by a group of soldiers that surrounded his house in the town of Sheikh Zuweid, the army said.

U.S. to defend Syrian rebels with airpower, including from Assad

08/03/2015

The United States has decided to allow airstrikes to defend Syrian rebels trained by the U.S. military from any attackers, even if the enemies hail from forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, U.S. officials said on Sunday. The decision by President Barack Obama, which could deepen the U.S. role in Syria's conflict, aims to shield a still-fledging group of Syrian fighters armed and trained by the United States to battle Islamic State militants -- not forces loyal to Assad.

First F-35 squadron in military history becomes operational

08/03/2015

Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 based in Yuma, Arizona, is the first squadron in military history to become operational with an F-35 variant, according to a Marine Corps release. A five-day Operational Readiness Inspection that ended July 17 cleared the way for Friday’s announcement.

Latvian military spots ‘Russian navy ship’ near its borders

08/03/2015

Latvia’s National Defense Forces say a Russian naval ship was spotted nine kilometers from the country’s territorial waters. According to the Latvian military’s official Twitter feed, the vessel was a Russian mine launcher, the Aleksandr Obukhov, which had entered the country’s exclusive economic zone, an area stretching some 200 nautical miles from its shores.

IAF fighters makes first staging visit to Kingdom

08/03/2015

A flying contingent of the Indian Air Force (IAF) are on a maiden visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They are in the Kingdom from Aug. 1-4. Indian Embassy Charge d’Affaires Hemant Kotalwar, while addressing a press conference, called the visit significant, and yet another feature that is set to give the Indo-Saudi relations a boost.