Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Team Fairchild joins 65 units, U.S. allies to kick off Red Flag 14-1

02/01/2014

Team Fairchild joined 65 other units and U.S. allies to participate in Red Flag 14-1 here Jan. 27, 2014. The three-week long exercise is a realistic combat training exercise conducted by the 414th Combat Training Squadron three times a year over the Nevada Test and Training Range.

India Slows Action On Procurement Deals

02/01/2014

With general elections expected before May, corruption scandals over high-profile defense deals, and a deflated rupee, Defense Minister A.K. Antony, who has cultivated an image of integrity, has taken a go-slow approach on vitally needed equipment projects.

US hears conflicting accounts on Lockheed’s $400bn F-35 fighter

01/31/2014

It is either comfortably on track to forming the cornerstone of the western world’s militaries or a flop so unairworthy that lightning could down it. The US public has this week been presented with sharply contrasting takes on the world’s biggest-ever military procurement project.

India close to $1.65-bin military aircraft deal with Japan

01/31/2014

India is close to buying Japanese-made military aircraft in a $1.65-billion deal, becoming the first country since World War II to buy a military aircraft from Japan, helping the country wriggle out of a self-imposed ban of the sale of weapons.

Boeing, Air Force dispute report of tanker delay

01/31/2014

The Boeing Co. and the U.S. Air Force say development and delivery of a new aerial-refueling tanker is still on track, despite a Pentagon report released this week warning that the $52 billion program could be delayed six to 12 months during testing. However, the analysis in the U.S. Defense Department report was based on historical data from military development programs, whereas the KC-46A program schedule is based on Boeing Commercial Airplanes’ more aggressive approach to testing.

How A US Air Force F-15 Eagle Shot Down An Iraqi Mig-23 During Desert Storm

01/31/2014

Developed at the end of the 1960s to be the best air superiority fighter in the world, the F-15 proved to be a real MiG Killer during Operation Desert Storm scoring most of the allied aerial victories. During the Air War over Iraq the mighty Eagle proved also to be a very robust airframe, bringing back its pilots also after suffering serious damages.

Cameron, Hollande Seek Closer Military Ties Amid Strains Over EU

01/31/2014

When the British and French governments signed a military cooperation agreement in 2010, it was intended to usher in close cooperation between Europe’s leading military powers. A little more than three years later, the promise of the Lancaster House Treaty has only been half fulfilled. While cooperation on the countries’ nuclear deterrents has advanced and their armed forces increasingly exchange officers, there have yet to be any savings from jointly procuring costly weaponry, analysts said.

PENTAGON CHIEF TESTER: F-35 SOFTWARE REMAINS SERIOUSLY FLAWED

01/31/2014

The $397 billion F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program suffers from such severe software problems that aircraft could not conduct operational missions today, the Pentagon’s chief tester said in his annual report to Congress, which was released to the public yesterday.

ndia eyes stealth fighter plane

01/31/2014

India will soon join the elite league of nations to desing and produce mid-combat aircraft with stealth capability. “Defence Research and Development Organisation has already come up with light combat aircraft (LCA) and in the next phase we are working on a mid combat aircraft (MCA) with stealth capability. The structure and design has to be made in such a way that they remain invisible to the radar,” Dr A. Sivathanu Pillai, chief controller.

Militants shoot down Egyptian helicopter

01/30/2014

Islamic militants in North Sinai have released a video which appears to show them shooting down an Egyptian military Mi8/17 transport helicopter, the first time militants have successfully targeted an Egyptian military aircraft.

U.S. Air Force, Boeing confident tanker program still on schedule

01/30/2014

U.S. Air Force and Boeing Co officials on Wednesday expressed confidence that a $52 billion air refueling program would deliver its first 18 planes by August 2017 as scheduled, despite a Pentagon report warning that testing of the new aircraft could be delayed by at least six to 12 months.

UAE, Libya Request US Arms Purchases

01/30/2014

While Iraq’s request to purchase Apache attack helicopters and Hellfire missiles has garnered headlines this week, two other regional countries have received approval to buy US military equipment. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DCSA) has notified Congress that it has approved key foreign military sales to the United Arab Emirates and Libya last week, bring the total worth of approvals to $7.1 billion.

Sikorsky may be up for sale

01/30/2014

United Technologies Corp. officials weren't talking late Monday about defense industry rumors that Stratford-based Sikorsky Aircraft could be up for sale. Even U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., was in the dark after touring Sikorsky earlier in the day with U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the Senate assistant majority leader.

Britain to set up controversial drone development partnership with France

01/30/2014

Britain and France are to join forces to build a new generation of lethal drones as part of a controversial defence deal. President François Hollande is due to arrive in Britain on Friday for a summit with David Cameron at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where they are expected to agree to develop an Anglo-French Predator-type military drone.

Red Flag returns to Nevada

01/30/2014

The latest iteration of the Air Force's premier air-to-air combat training exercise kicked off Jan. 27 as allied and U.S aircraft launched to simulate battle in the sky over the Nevada Test and Training Range. Allied aircrews from Great Britain and Australia joined U.S. warfighters in the continued effort to maximize combat readiness, capability and survivability in a contested and degraded environment during Red Flag 14-1, hosted by the 414th Combat Training Squadron.

Budget battle threatens the A-10 Warthog

01/30/2014

This is not your typical military battle. No weapons will be fired, and no troops deployed. This is a budget battle. In an effort to trim spending, the Air Force is planning to retire hundreds of Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, better known as the "Warthog," a move that will save the Air Force more than $3.7 billion by 2020. It is all part of a congressional mandate which aims to cut $50 billion from the Air Force budget over the next five years.

DoD Testers: F-35 Mission Software Maturity Lagged in 2013

01/30/2014

The F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter met most of its flight test goals in fiscal 2013, but development of the fighter, especially its mission system software and weapons integration, lagged in some respects, according to an annual report issued by the Pentagon’s top weapons test director.

Virginia to Pentagon: Keep 11 aircraft carriers

01/30/2014

Last summer, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel raised the prospect of mothballing three aircraft carriers as part of a broader strategy to cut military spending. In December, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office listed 28 ways to reduce the budget deficit by cutting discretionary spending. Option number six was to stop building aircraft carriers.

HAL team’s visit to Dassault facilities in France on hold

01/30/2014

The visit by a HAL team to Dassault facilities in France has been put on hold amid efforts by the government to verify the linkages between AgustaWestland's parent firm Finmecannica and other European defence companies. The defence ministry earlier this month scrapped a deal with AgustaWestland for procuring 12 VVIP choppers after charging it with breaching contractual obligations.

Bangladesh Buys Russian Combat Training Jets Worth $800M

01/29/2014

Bangladesh ordered 24 Russian Yak-130 light fighter jets worth $800 million in the final quarter of last year, a Russian newspaper reported Tuesday. The deal was paid for with a loan extended by Moscow to the country a year ago, the director of Russian state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said in a separate interview published by Kommersant on Monday, without disclosing the deal’s price tag.

F-35 Operational Test and Evaluation Report; Marines Say No IOC Changes

01/29/2014

Here it is, for everyone to ponder, the F-35 portion of the annual report from Michael Gilmore, director of the Pentagon’s Operational Test and Evaluation office. The only sort of public annual benchmark on the success or failure of the Pentagon’s major programs, the OT&E report is often quite dated by the time it comes out. Read the material on software delays with that in mind. The Block 2B software could be delayed by 13 months, the report concludes.

Fatal helicopter crash prompts JBLM to complete radar picture with new sensors

01/29/2014

The Army is spending $4.6 million to buy a low-altitude aircraft surveillance system that would improve safety in the Joint Base Lewis-McChord training areas where four helicopter pilots were killed in a December 2011 collision. The system, to be built by Saab Defense and Security, would enable Lewis-McChord air traffic controllers to monitor helicopters that fly below 500 feet.

Unmanned U.S. aircraft plunges into Pacific

01/29/2014

U.S. Customs and Border Protection grounded its fleet of unmanned aircraft Tuesday after losing one worth $12 million in the Pacific Ocean. The unarmed aircraft had a mechanical failure while on patrol of the southern California coast. The crew determined that it wouldn't make it back to Sierra Vista, Ariz., "and put the aircraft down in the water," the agency said in a statement.

Army Looks to Build Air-Droppable Armored Vehicle

01/29/2014

The U.S. Army's Ground Combat Vehicle isn't officially dead, but maneuver officials are already searching for a new, air-droppable combat vehicle to support light infantry units. The Army's Maneuver Center of Excellence at Fort Benning, Ga., recently released a Sources Sought document to see if industry is capable of building the Ultra Light Combat Vehicle – an armored chariot that could be carried by UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, or airdropped by C-130 aircraft.

Both Sides Optimistic Ahead of French-UK Summit

01/29/2014

An upcoming Anglo-French summit could breathe fresh life into a bilateral defense relationship seen as faded, with industry waiting to hear if there is progress on an anti-ship missile and a future combat drone for the two nations. Prime Minister David Cameron and President François Hollande are due to meet Jan. 31 at Royal Air Force base Brize Norton in southern England.