Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Why the F-35 is a sitting duck for the Flankers

10/12/2014

Built to be the deadliest hunter killer aircraft of all time, the F-35 has quite literally become the hunted. In every scenario that the F-35 has been wargamed against Su-30 Flankers, the Russian aircraft have emerged winners. America’s newest stealth aircraft – costing $191 million per unit – is riddled with such critical design flaws that it’s likely to get blown away in a shootout with the super-maneuverable Sukhois.

UK troops training Kurdish forces in Iraq, says MoD

10/12/2014

It said troops from the Yorkshire Regiment were training Iraqi Kurds to use UK-supplied heavy machine guns. The soldiers are expected to spend a week in Irbil, in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq. Royal Air Force Tornado jets based in Cyprus have been flying combat missions over Iraq since September.

ISIS has infiltrated suburbs just eight miles from Baghdad's international airport... and now wields shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles

10/11/2014

An outer suburb of Baghdad located only eight miles from the city's airport has now been breached by Islamic State (ISIS) forces as the jihadist group inches ominously close to Iraq's capital. The suburb of Abu Ghraib has been infiltrated by ISIS militants who are currently engaging in hit-and-run style attacks on local Iraqi security forces.

Air Force Pilots Say They're Flying Blind Against ISIS

10/11/2014

Obama’s no-boots-on-the-ground pledge is keeping America from fighting an effective air campaign in Iraq and Syria. Within the U.S. Air Force, there’s mounting frustration that the air campaign against ISIS in Syria and Iraq is moving far more slowly than expected. Instead of a fast-moving operation with hundreds of sorties flown in a single day—the kind favored by many in the air service—American warplanes are hitting small numbers of targets after a painstaking and cumbersome process.

Defense department report questions amount spent on F-22 spare parts

10/11/2014

The Air Force could not determine if it paid jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney “fair and reasonable” prices for spare parts for engines that power the stealthy F-22 Raptor, a Department of Defense Inspector General’s report has concluded. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, based at Wright-Patterson, also could not determine how much it paid for individual spare parts under a $1.6 billion sustainment contract on the F119 engine on the fifth-generation, supersonic fighter jet.

Boeing's First Test Tanker Won't Fly Before Late November

10/11/2014

Boeing said Wednesday that the first test plane for its KC-46 Air Force aerial-refueling tanker program is expected to fly in late November or early December. That's a delay of two months or more beyond the projection Boeing's leadership gave in July, when Chief Financial Officer Greg Smith predicted on an earnings call with analysts that first flight would be late in the third quarter.

Royal Australian Air Force takes fight to Islamic State jihadists in northern Iraq

10/11/2014

From high in the sky, the most notable feature of this bit of northern Iraq is Mount Sinjar, a weather-eroded ridgeline no one had heard of until Iraq's Yazidi Christian minority sought refuge from Islamic State (IS) forces. Australia has been here before, air-dropping emergency food aid in a pair of mercy flights conducted by C-130 transport aircraft in August.

Canadian fighter jets intercept Russian military plane as it flies over Baltic Sea

10/11/2014

Two Canadian CF-18 fighter jets based out of Lithuania intercepted a Russian military aircraft as it flew over the Baltic Sea on Tuesday morning. Officials say the Canadian fighters identified the aircraft as a Russian AN-26 transport plane, then shadowed it for about 10 minutes as it travelled through international airspace from one Russian port to another.

Russian Aviation Regiment Receives New Su-34 Fighter-Bombers

10/10/2014

Russia's Southern Military District (SMD) aviation regiment has received six new Su-34 fighter-bombers, renewing the regiment's fleet by 75 percent, the SMD press service said Friday. "In accordance with the plan of re-equipping the troops of the SMD, a separate bomber aviation regiment, stationed in the Rostov region [town of Morozovsk], has received another batch of new fighter bombers Su-34 in the amount of six units.

Canada brings '6-pack strategy' to air campaign against Islamic State in Iraq

10/10/2014

Canadian lawmakers have approved sending up to six CF-18 fighter aircraft to participate in airstrikes in Iraq, along with one CC-150 aerial refueling tanker, two CP-14 Aurora surveillance aircraft and one airlift aircraft, according to the Canadian prime minister’s office.

US Launches 9 Airstrikes Against IS Positions Around Syria’s Kobani: Command

10/10/2014

The United States has launched nine more airstrikes against Islamic State (IS) militants sieging the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani near the Turkish border, razing IS-held buildings and machinery, the US Central Command reported late on Thursday. "US military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria today using bomber aircraft to conduct nine airstrikes," the Command said in a news release.

Finland boosts aircraft readiness following Russian incursions

10/09/2014

In response to heightened tensions caused by the crisis in Ukraine, the Finnish Air Force has stepped up and strengthened its aerial drills on 6 October, the country's defence forces have announced. Air-to-air combat drills are to take place from Rovaniemi, Oulu, Kuopio-Rissala, and Pudasjärvi air force bases in the north, while surveillance sorties are concentrating in the south.

Norways To Invest In Six Additional F-35 Aircraft

10/09/2014

The Norwegian Government has asked for new budget authorizations for a total value of 6.9 billion kroner for the acquisition of six new F-35 fighter aircraft and additional equipment and services for 2015. Including these aircraft, the New Fighter Aircraft program will have been authorized to acquire 22 of the new aircraft, with deliveries to begin by the end of next year.

USAF F-15 jet crashes in Lincolnshire

10/09/2014

A US military aircraft has crashed in a field near houses and a school in Lincolnshire. Witnesses saw the F-15D come down in a field off Broad Gate, Weston Hills, near Spalding at about 15:30 BST. The pilot ejected from the aircraft and police said he had escaped with very minor injuries.

Unmanned-Aircraft Industry Divided Over New Name for Drones: Reports

10/09/2014

The unmanned aircraft industry rejects the term "drone" claiming it is technically inaccurate, however companies are divided on a new name for the devices, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. "We need another name for it, but I'm not sure what that new name should be," venture-capital executive Zack Porter was quoted as saying by WSJ.

Australian Air Force Launches First Airstrikes Against IS Positions in Iraq

10/09/2014

The Australian Air Force has launched its first airstrikes against Islamic State positions in Iraq, the country’s Defense Ministry said in a statement early on Thursday. “Overnight the Australian Air Task Group operating in the Middle East attacked its first target in Iraq. Two bombs were dropped from an F/A-18F Super Hornet on to an ISIL facility,” the ministry said.

RIL, Punj Lloyd bag defence deals

10/08/2014

A small change in foreign investment rules-by doing away with minimum 51% holding by a single Indian entity in a defence venture-has helped Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Aerospace and Punj Lloyd bag licences that they had been waiting for. While increasing the foreign direct investment (FDI) cap for defence to 49%, the government did away with the clause that had been in the policy for years, as part of a strategy to attract investment in local manufacturing units.

U.S. dominates military campaign against ISIS

10/08/2014

U.S. warplanes have carried out almost 90 percent of airstrikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) while Arab and European countries all together carried out the remaining 10 percent, U.S. defense officials said on Monday. A total of about 2,000 air raids have been launched against the militant group, of which the U.S. Air Force carried out 1,768 (88.4 percent), Agence France-Presse reported citing U.S. defense officials.

Kobani air strikes repel Islamic State as Canada okays Iraq mission

10/08/2014

A U.S.-led air war is turning the tide against Islamic State in the besieged Syrian border town of Kobani, Kurdish forces said Wednesday, a day after Canada’s Parliament voted to approve air strikes of its own. Kobani, under attack by the Sunni militants for three weeks, is vital to Islamic State’s efforts to cement control of Syria’s north. Their advance has driven 180,000 of the area’s mostly Kurdish inhabitants to flee into adjoining Turkey.

Airbus to Cut Dassault Stake as Jet Sales to Help Stock

10/08/2014

Airbus Group NV (AIR) is preparing to reduce its stake in Dassault Aviation SA (AM) by almost half, selling shares to institutional investors and back to Dassault in a transaction valued at about 2 billion euros ($2.52 billion). The European planemaker is exploring opportunities to sell because the U.S. economy, the largest driver of the business-jet market, is rebounding, suggesting demand for aircraft will pick up, Marwan Lahoud, the head of strategy at Airbus Group, said by phone yesterday.

Australian Pilots Pull Out of IS Airstrikes Fearing Civilian Deaths: Reports

10/08/2014

Australia's Super Hornet pilots have pulled out of their first armed airstrikes in the US-led fight against the Islamic State in Iraq, saying that the risk of killing civilians was too high, Australia's News Limited reported Wednesday. "One of our packages on the first night,had an identified target which it was tracking and that target moved into an urban area where the risks of conducting a strike on that target increased to a point where it exceeded our expectations of the collateral damage."

Canadian Parliament Authorizes Anti-IS Airstrikes in Iraq: Reports

10/08/2014

The legislative body of Canada approved the participation of the country's military in the battle against the Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq, the BBC reported Wednesday. Canadian military have been authorized to carry out airstrikes against terrorists in Iraq for six months. The deployment of ground troops has been ruled out.

German military faces a major challenge from disrepair

10/07/2014

When Germany dispatched a naval ship to the Horn of Africa last month for joint anti-piracy operations with other European powers, the vessel arrived without a vital mission component. Its Sea Lynx helicopters – meant to search for seafaring thugs – were back home in Germany, grounded due to maintenance problems.For Germany’s military, hobbled helicopters were only the beginning.

USN to base F-35C at NAS Lemoore

10/07/2014

The US Navy (USN) plans to base 100 Lockheed Martin F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter combat aircraft at Naval Air Station (NAS) Lemoore in California, the service's Fleet Forces Command (FFC) announced on 3 October. "The 100 F-35C aircraft will replace 70 ageing [Boeing] F/A-18 Hornet aircraft," the FFC said in a statement.

RAAF conducts first Iraq combat mission

10/07/2014

Two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Super Hornets have returned safely to the Australian support base in the United Arab Emirates after missions on Sunday. They joined aircraft from the US, UK, France, UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Bahrain, which have all conducted attacks against Islamic State forces inside Iraq.