Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

UAE Restarts Rafale Talks With France

04/20/2015

The United Arab Emirates has restarted talks on ordering the Dassault Rafale, with a planned major upgrade of the fighter jet in contrast to the off-the-shelf deals for Egypt and India, said an Arabian Gulf official source familiar with the issue. "Yes, there are renewed discussions," the gulf source said April 14. The talks could take some time "to reach an understanding" that meets the needs of the UAE Air Force, the source said.

Could Israeli F-35s turn the tables on Iranian S-300 missiles?

04/20/2015

Over the long years of its development, the F-35 fighter jet has been pummeled from every angle. What haven’t we heard: It’s overweight and underpowered; it’s a single engine when it should be a twin; its engine may suffer from a serious design and structural problem; its wings are too short, its stealth capacity too tenuous, its cost too prohibitive.

In the captain's seat

04/20/2015

There is something about the procurement of fighter aircraft from Western commercial sources that generates interest far greater than perhaps the sum of its economic or strategic content. The entire spectacle of open tendering, nail-biting selection followed by endless negotiations, all played out in the public arena, resembles a soap opera more than the very serious business of dealing with a strategic weapon system for war fighting.

Airbus to set up final assembly lines for military aircraft, helicopters in India

04/20/2015

Aircraft manufacturer Airbus SAS of Toulouse said it is willing to set-up final assembly lines and establish supply chain and related infrastructure for military transport aircraft and helicopters in India. The defence and space unit of Airbus has also plans to develop and manufacture electronic sensors with a partner in India, and has advanced discussions to support state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltdâ€™s combat aircraft programmes.

Iran Rolls Out New Programmable Drone

04/20/2015

"Basir is a self-control drone that moves according to the flight plan in the specified routes and land in the same take-off point after ending its mission," an official of the Northwestern city of Zanjan's 216 Armored Brigade Mohammad Mohammadi said Saturday, Fars news agency reported.

Greek and Turkish jets harass each other over international waters

04/19/2015

Two Greek F-16 jets intercepted two F-16 jets belonging to the Turkish Air Force on Saturday, according to a press release from the Turkish General Staff Headquarters. According to the report, the fighter jets were on a training flight in international air space over the Mediterranean Sea. Turkish General Staff said that the Turkish military planes were intercepted by the Greek planes for a total of 2 minutes and 40 seconds, prompting the Turkish jets to respond in kind.

Yemen militia says it is besieging rebels at strategic base

04/19/2015

Militiamen loyal to Yemen's exiled president besieged an air base Saturday once crucial to the U.S. drone program targeting al-Qaida militants in the country, trying to dislodge the Shiite rebels holding the complex, a spokesman said. Qa'ed Nasser, a spokesman for the pro-Hadi militia, said his fighters launched several attacks on the Al-Annad air base amid airstrikes by a Saudi-led coalition targeting the rebels, known as Houthis.

'So others may live': HSC-25 routinely saves lives

04/19/2015

On a wall inside the HSC-25 command building at Andersen Air Force Base, a plaque hangs emblazoned with the phrase "So others may live." It's flanked on the sides and below by more than 1,000 smaller plaques, each commemorating a successful rescue, medevac or firefighting mission. Flight training officer Lt. Monica Mondloch said new plaques appear on the wall every few months, memorializing the mission's date, crew members and location.

Europe faces a 'real threat' from Russia, warns US army commander

04/19/2015

The commander of the US army in Europe has warned that Nato must remain united in the face of a "real threat" from Russia. "It's not an assumption. There is a Russian threat," Lt-Gen Frederick "Ben" Hodges said. "You've got the Russian ambassador threatening that Denmark will be a nuclear target if it participates in any missile defence programme. And when you look at the unsafe way Russian aircraft are flying without transponders in proximity to civilian aircraft, that's not professional conduc

‘36’ - Let the force be with India

04/19/2015

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to buy 36 Rafale multi-role fighter jets off-the-shelf from France in a government-government deal was a surprise, but it was timely and bold, putting at rest rumors and debates that tend to show the country and its decision-making process in poor light. We are bombarded with information and some disinformation. Invariably, facts get dulled when emotions rise.

The U.S. Realignment of the Persian Gulf Regional Security Complex

04/18/2015

The Persian Gulf sits at the nexus of multiple regional security complexes overlaid one upon another, creating a delicately balanced yet dangerously volatile mosaic of cultural politics and armed forces. As a result, the calculated political positioning of states within the region have ramifications that produce a ripple effect across the entire globe.

Female officer on way to becoming fighter pilot

04/18/2015

An Air Force officer is on her way to realizing her dream of being a fighter pilot, as she is undergoing flight training at an air force base in the eastern county of Taitung. After three months of training at the base, 1st Lt. Kao Tzu-yu completed a mission of flying an F-5E fighter solo that included mid-air drills such as rolls, on Wednesday.

Vietnam's military aircraft crash into sea after collision, 2 pilots missing

04/18/2015

Two military aircraft allegedly collided with each other during a training session off the coast of the central province of Binh Thuan on Thursday, with the fate of the two pilots still unknown. The Russian-made fighter jet Su-22M4 were believed to crash into the East Sea about 10 to 15 nautical miles north of Phu Quy Island.

Luke AFB conducts first F-35 training deployment

04/18/2015

he 56th Fighter Wing performed the first F-35 training deployment from Luke Air Force Base April 4 through 18, sending 10 aircraft to Nellis AFB, NV, for two weeks to see how well the team could conduct operations elsewhere. The 10 aircraft comprise half of Luke's current fleet of F-35 Lightning IIs.

Selex to supply Skyward-G IRST system for Swedish Gripen E fighters

04/18/2015

Selex has been awarded a contract to supply its Skyward-G infrared search-and-track (IRST) systems to Saab.Under the contract, Selex will deliver 60 Skyward-G systems for installation on-board the Swedish Air Force's Gripen E multi-role combat aircraft fleet. Manufactured at Selex's facility in Nerviano, Italy, the Skyward-G is a long-range electro-optical sensor designed to register heat emissions from other aircraft, helicopters, as well as threats from the ground and sea surface.

China warns Japanese air, sea surveillance patrols increasing safety hazards

04/18/2015

Beijing issued a statement saying Japanese spy vehicles posed a threat to Chinese ships and planes. The comments come just days after Tokyo said it has been increasingly forced to scramble fighter jets in response to Russian and Chinese incursions. In a statement sent to Reuters, China's Defense Ministry said that Beijing “has a grip on the tracking and surveillance by Japanese ships and aircraft.”

Beijing Shocks US With Unbelievable Progress of Airstrip in South China Sea

04/18/2015

New satellite imagery shows the extent of China’s construction of artificial islands in the South China Sea. Fiery Cross Reef could soon serve as a military-grade runway in the middle of the ocean. And despite its own military presence in the region, US officials are in panic.

DARPA carries out full PCAS prototype demo using MV-22

04/17/2015

The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) tested a prototype of the Persistent Close Air Support (PCAS) system for the first time during the US Marine Corps’ Talon Reach exercise. A full-system PCAS was tested during the exercise in March in an effort to demonstrate the system’s ability to share real-time situational awareness data between air and ground.

GOP lawmaker works to save A-10 in defense bill

04/17/2015

Rep. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) says lawmakers are working on a measure in the annual defense policy bill to keep the A-10 attack jet flying. “It’s best to be in the chairman’s mark because then it’s paid for. That’s what we’re working on,” the retired Air Force colonel and former A-10 fighter pilot said Thursday during an interview with The Hill.

This photo of X-47B combat drone taking fuel from tanker proves we are one step closer to unmanned aerial refueling

04/17/2015

On Apr. 16, “Salty Dog 502?, one of the two Unmanned Carrier Air Vehicle demonstrator (UCAS-D) aircraft of the X-47B program performed autonomous aerial refueling (AAR) test, plugging the in-flight refueling (IFR) probe into the hose of a Omega Air tanker off the coast of Maryland.

Saab, Embraer formalize deal for Brazil's fighter program

04/17/2015

Saab of Sweden and Embraer of Brazil have formalized their partnership to supply Gripen NG fighters for Brazil's F-X2 air force project. The agreement signed earlier this week follows a previous Memorandum of Understanding on management of the F-X2 project for the Brazilian Air Force and the transfer of Gripen technology.

NEURON European Stealth combat drone has started operational tests in Italy

04/17/2015

The first example of the nEUROn UCAV (Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle), the full-scale technology demonstrator developed by France, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Switzerland and Greece, has started a new testing phase in Sardinia.

SECNAV: F-35C should be Navy's last manned strike jet

04/17/2015

The operational use of the carrier-based joint strike fighter could mark the beginning of the end of the Navy's manned bombing sorties, if the Navy secretary gets his way. The F-35C "should be, and almost certainly will be, the last manned strike fighter aircraft the Department of the Navy will ever buy or fly," Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said in a speech Wednesday at the annual Sea-Air-Space Exposition outside Washington, D.C. Fighter jocks would still be needed for dogfighting.

Fighter jet makers eye Indian riches after scaled-back French deal

04/17/2015

Foreign fighter jet makers see a multi-billion dollar opportunity in India's decision to scale back purchases of high-end aircraft from France, which may free up cash in the world's largest arms importer to buy a new fleet of mid-range planes. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced last week that India would buy 36 French Rafale jets for an estimated $4.3 billion (2.88 billion pounds), in effect ending talks on a larger deal for 126 planes that would have sucked up some $20 billion.

Venezuela Has Its Eye on Russia as Arms Supplier

04/17/2015

“Right now we have no arms delivery contracts with Russia, but we are considering such a possibility and deciding exactly which types of Russian-made military hardware we really need,” Brigadier-General Rafael Jose Nunez said. He also mentioned the “high probability” of the Latin American country signing contracts with Russia on repairing and upgrading weapons previously purchased from Moscow.