Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Experts recommend fighter plane for developing nations

12/30/2014

China could export a modern fighter jet to developing countries to take a bigger share of the international military aircraft market and boost its aviation industry, experts have suggested. "The FC-1 Fierce Dragon can meet the air defence tasks of most developing nations that can't afford more advanced, fifth-generation fighter jets," said Wang Ya'nan, deputy editor-in-chief of Aerospace Knowledge magazine.

Boeing, U.S. Air Force Achieve Successful First Test Flight for KC-46 Tanker Program

12/30/2014

Boeing and the U.S. Air Force successfully completed the first flight of the KC-46 tanker test program today. The plane, a Boeing 767-2C, took off from Paine Field, Wash., at 9:29 a.m. (PST) and landed three hours and 32 minutes later at Boeing Field. The aircraft will receive its military systems following certification.

Russia to Form Air Army in Arctic in 2015: Army Chief

12/30/2014

A joint air and air defense army will be formed and deployed in the Arctic in 2015, Chief of the Russian General Staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, said Monday. "The united strategic command in the Arctic is currently based on Russia's Northern Fleet, which is responsible for ensuring security in the region in all forms of armed conflict," Gerasimov said in an interview with Rossiya-24 television.

Iran's Air Force Shoots Down 3 Drones in Massive Military Drills: Reports

12/30/2014

The Iranian Air Force has shot down three drones Saturday in the third day of an ongoing massive military exercise in southern parts of the country, Press TV reported. The unmanned aerial vehicles were brought down by three domestically designed and manufactured missiles fired from an ambush missile system known as Mersad, the news agency reported.

V-22 to get a tanker option

12/29/2014

The V-22 Osprey is getting topped-off with a new capability. An aerial refuelling system is being developed for the tilt-rotor aircraft, turning the cargo and personnel carrier into a tanker that can provide fuel to other aircraft, mid-flight. "The aerial refueling capability is going to be the next thing," for the Osprey, Maj. Douglas Thumm, the plans officer for the V-22 at Headquarters Marine Corps, said.

AirAsia QZ8501: Indonesia plane 'at bottom of sea'

12/29/2014

The missing AirAsia Indonesia flight QZ8501 is likely to be at the bottom of the sea, the head of Indonesia's search-and-rescue agency has said. Bambang Soelistyo said the hypothesis was based on the co-ordinates of the plane when contact with it was lost. The search is continuing for the aircraft, a day after it disappeared with 162 people on board, but no trace has been found so far.

Cameroon air strikes on Nigerian militants

12/29/2014

Cameroon has carried out its first air strikes against militant Islamist group Boko Haram after it over-ran a military base and attacked five villages, an army spokesman has said.

AirAsia flight QZ8501 from Indonesia to Singapore missing

12/28/2014

Indonesian media say more than 160 people were on board the Airbus A320-200. The aircraft, flight number QZ8501, lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24 (00:24 GMT), AirAsia tweeted. The company said that search and rescue operations were under way for the missing plane.

Falklands defence review after military deal between Russia and Argentina

12/28/2014

The aircraft, which Moscow will swap for beef and wheat, would be able to mount air patrols over Port Stanley. Ministry of Defence officials fear Buenos Aires would take delivery of the planes well before the deployment in 2020 of the Navy’s 65,000-tonne aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth and its F-35B fighters, leaving a “real window of vulnerability”.

Iran Tests 'Suicide Drone'

12/28/2014

Today Iranian military forces tested various unmanned aircraft that some are calling "suicide drones." Because "suicide drone" sounded more intimidating than "model airplane that we could fly into things nearby." Iran has been conducting military exercises for the past week at the Strait of Hormuz near the Persian Gulf. The show of force has involved air, land, and sea maneuvers over 850,000 square miles.

Unwanted Hogs To The Rescue Again

12/28/2014

Despite renewed U.S. Air Force efforts to retire the much loved (by their pilots and the ground troops who depend on it) A-10C ground attack aircraft, at least ten of them from a reserve unit have been quietly sent to the Middle East to join in the air operations against ISIL in Iraq and Syria. Many older ISIL members (who fought in Iraq before the A-10s were withdrawn) are not happy with this news while the soldiers and militiamen fighting ISIL are encouraged.

ISIS Caught a Coalition Pilot: What Does It Mean?

12/28/2014

Earlier this Christmas Eve, the Islamic State captured an F-16 pilot from the Royal Jordanian Air Force. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Islamic State, the F-16 was shot down by anti-aircraft guns, but the Pentagon says there is no evidence of a shootdown and suggests mechanical failure was to blame.

A note on India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project

12/28/2014

The LCA program has taken the time it has to mature precisely because there was a hiatus in domestic fighter aircraft development post the HAL HF-24 Marut that was India's first homegrown jet fighter. No timely follow on programme to the Marut meant that both human and capital resources had to be built up concurrently even as the LCA program progressed contributing to delays.

Blame Game: Speculation Rife After Jordanian Jet Crash in Syria

12/26/2014

A Jordanian F-16 was downed in Syria on Wednesday, with ISIL claiming responsibility for the crash after capturing its pilot. The US, however, refutes that the terrorist group shot it down, but did not offer any other details about its version of events.

Diversifying arms

12/26/2014

Diversifying the sources of Egypt’s armaments became a priority among state strategists after the 30 June Revolution. Overreliance on one provider was now seen as shortsighted. Egypt was also keen to ensure its armaments policy responded to international political developments, including the growing influence of China and Russia.

Russian Army to Receive Corsair Surveillance Drones in Late 2016

12/26/2014

Russia's United Instrument Corporation (UIC) will start supplying the small-class Corsair surveillance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to the Russian Armed Forces in late 2016, the company's CEO Alexander Yakunin told RIA Novosti. "We are currently implementing a big project on the creation of a prospective small-class Corsair UAV and organization of its serial production. The production is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2017 and reach its planned capacity before the end of 2017.

Iranian Army Detects Foreign Spy Planes During Large-Scale Drills: Reports

12/26/2014

Iran's military have detected and issued warnings to several foreign aircraft intercepted during the first day of a large-scale military exercise, Tasnim News Agency reported on Thursday, quoting the Iranian Air Defense Force Commander, Farzad Esmaili. Farzad Esmaili told Tasnim that the mentioned aircraft were not from countries in the region. He did not specify their number.

US Federal Aviation Bans Flights Over Simferopol, Dnipropetrovsk

12/26/2014

The United States’ Federal Aviation Administration has extended its earlier flight regulations introduced previously, which forbids flights over Ukraine's city of Dnipropetrovsk and the Russian city of Simferopol in Crimea.

China will have better aircraft carriers than India, Japan: Kanwa

12/25/2014

If China can successfully carry out its Type 001A aircraft carrier program, the People's Liberation Army Navy will eventually have better carriers than its Indian and Japanese counterparts, according to Kanwa Defense Review, a Chinese-language military magazine based in Canada.

Cockpit video of Turkish 4-Star General flying F-16 solo display at the age of 62

12/25/2014

Solo Türk is the name of the solo aerobatics demo team of the F-16 combat plane whose role is to display the capabilities and skills of the Turkish Air Force pilots. Established in 2011, as part of the Turkish Air Force’s 100th anniversary, the TuAF F-16C Block 40 aircraft in a stunning bright black, silver and golden livery has become one of the highlights of airshows across Europe.

Air Force Range Infrastructure Study Underway

12/25/2014

The Air Force began a major study into the future of its test-range infrastructure, one which could decide how the service runs its live-flight testing for the next 20 years. Ed Chupein, chief for Air Force ranges, airspace and operations sustainment, told Defense News that a review is underway to provide Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh with options on how to revitalize the training infrastructure.

Sad and Hopeful Tales of Extinct Air Forces

12/25/2014

Air power is tough. All the world’s air forces work hard to maintain old warplanes and acquire expensive new ones and still fund adequate training—all in the context of national strategy and air power doctrine that can be complex, confusing, even self-defeating.So it should come as no surprise that, sometimes, countries fail to do air power right—or at all.

US think tank proposes shake-up of Taiwan defense

12/25/2014

" Fears of war between Taiwan and China have eased in recent years, but the growing gap in their military capabilities has prompted a U.S. think tank to lay out a radical new approach in how Taiwan could defend itself if China invaded, relying less on conventional forces and more on guerrilla-style tactics and cyberwarfare.

'Ukrainian military worker' claims one of his country's fighter jets shot down MH17 after confusing the passenger plane for Russian air force

12/25/2014

A Ukrainian military base employee has made the sensational claim that a one his country's own air force planes shot down Malaysian flight MH17 killing all 298 on board. The unnamed employee claimed to a Moscow newspaper that a Ukrainian air force Su-25 combat jet took off from an airbase in eastern Dnipropetrovsk carrying air-to-air missiles - and returned without them - on the day the Boeing 777 was shot out of the sky.

Russia Plans to Deliver New Aircraft to Belarus Air Base: Defense Minister

12/25/2014

Russia will increase the number of airplanes and helicopters at its base to be opened in Belarus, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday during a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart Andrei Ravkov. “I’m ready to continue our discussion of cooperation on a practical basis today. This is in regard to the S-300 [anti-aircraft missile system], as well as the creation and basing of [our] aviation in Belarus by increasing the number of airplanes and helicopters.