Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Jordan Is First Importer Of BAE Rocket System

05/11/2014

The Kingdom of Jordan will become the first international customer of BAE Systems’ Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) laser-guided rockets. Jordan signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance for the system here at the Special Operations Forces Exhibition and Conference (SOFEX). In its third year of full-rate production, the APKWS rocket is the only guided 2.75-inch rocket fully qualified by the US Department of Defense that uses semi-active laser guidance technology.

Brazil’s Maritime Patrol Aircraft

05/11/2014

The discovery of major deepwater oil finds off of Brazil’s coast changed its military priorities. The military’s mission has always been influenced by the land’s vastness, but until recently, that meant keeping a careful watch over the Amazon basin. The Marinha do Brazil had its own role policing the wide swathes of ocean around its long coast, but the air force’s construction was oriented toward supporting the army.

Combat vets champion Warthog warplane Pentagon wants to scrap

05/11/2014

Russell Carpenter owes his life to the ugliest warplane in the Pentagon fleet. When about 3,000 U.S. soldiers traveling on a dirt road in Iraq came under fire from behind a ridge in the opening weeks of the 2003 American invasion, the retired Air Force chief master sergeant says he called for air support from the only plane that could fly low and slow enough to tell friend from foe: the A-10.

Military aircraft crashes south of Phoenix

05/10/2014

Authorities say a military jet has crashed on tribal land south of Phoenix, but the pilot was able to eject safely. Television footage shows the charred wreckage of the plane in several pieces in a remote desert area on the Gila River Indian Community.

Azerbaijani air forces stage air defense drills

05/10/2014

Azerbaijani Air Forces have conducted exercises aimed at evaluating the military personnel's ability to perform combat assignments correctly. Air defense drills were held at an 'S- 300 Favorite' anti-aircraft missile systems military unit of Azerbaijani air forces, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said on May 8.

A Flight Aboard "Fat Albert"

05/10/2014

There's nothing quite like flying aboard the U.S. Navy's C-130 Hercules. I know because I was lucky enough to have this incredible opportunity when the Blue Angels and the C-130, affectionately dubbed "Fat Albert," took to the skies for the Spirit of St. Louis Air Show on May 3 & 4. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience I will never forget. Before I even boarded "Fat Albert," I was amazed by the sheer size of the aircraft.

Apache-UAV teaming combines 'best capabilities of man, machine'

05/10/2014

Apache helicopters, teamed with Gray Eagle and Shadow unmanned aerial vehicles, are a winning combo, according to Col. Thomas von Eschenbach. Apache AH-64E models, teamed with unmanned aerial vehicles, known as UAVs, are now increasingly performing the armed aerial scout missions, once performed by Kiowa helicopters, and, Eschenbach said, they're doing a fantastic job.

Australia looks to drones for its future defence

05/10/2014

About nine o’clock on the morning of November 19, a Hellfire missile shot from a US Predator drone destroyed a Toyota Hilux on a back road of eastern Yemen. The ute was carrying local al-Qaeda leader Abu Habib al-Yemeni. Two Australian men whom security sources say were al-Qaeda foot soldiers happened to be with him.

Nigeria President Pleads for Help From 'Everybody on Earth'

05/10/2014

Nigeria's president said Friday that his government was "pleading with everybody on earth"—from regional and global governments to unspecified "civil society" groups—to help find more than 200 abducted girls and hunt down their kidnappers from the Boko Haram extremist group.

Ukraine: Putin hails Crimea's return as 'historic justice'

05/10/2014

Presiding over a triumphant spectacle of warships and fighter jets, President Vladimir Putin hailed the return of Crimea to Russia as the restoration of "historic justice" before a jubilant, welcoming crowd Friday on the holiday that Russians hold dearest to their hearts. Yet Putin's first trip to the Black Sea peninsula since its annexation in March was strongly criticized by both NATO and Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, which said it trampled on Ukraine's sovereignty and international law.

INS Vikramaditya is operationally deployed with MiG- 29K aircraft: Navy Chief

05/09/2014

India's largest warship - aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, is "operationally deployed" along with its fleet of MiG 29K combat aircraft, Navy chief Admiral Robin Dhowan said here today. "The navy has inducted aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya which is now operationally deployed with MiG 29K aircraft embarked and being flown by Indian naval pilots," he told reporters here.

Boeing touts operational QF-16 UAV

05/09/2014

Boeing is working to convert F-16 fighter aircraft into fully-fledged unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for potential use by US armed forces, IHS Jane's was told on 7 May. The company has already converted the first six of 126 Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons into optionally piloted QF-16 target drones for the US Air Force (USAF), but is looking to add improved datalinks to enable the QF-16 to fly as high and as far as conventional UAVs.

War Budget Tapped As Lawmakers Fight To Save A-10 Fighter Jet

05/09/2014

After a months-long debate over whether to keep or scrap a fleet of aging Air Force jets, the House Armed Forces Committee voted Thursday to continue funding the planes through 2015, thanks in part to a powerful lobbying group that said scrapping the planes would put the lives of U.S. soldiers at risk.

April Marks New F-35 Flying Records

05/09/2014

The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft fleet, which surpassed 16,000 cumulative program flight hours to date in April, flew a monthly record high for System Development and Demonstration (SDD) with 282 flight hours and 153 flights in April.

Russian Tu-95 Bear Bomber Launches Cruise Missiles During Drills

05/09/2014

A Russian strategic TU-95 “Bear” bomber launched six cruise missiles against ground targets during military drills Thursday overseen by President Vladimir Putin. The bomber successfully fired six cruise missiles at ground targets simulating key military assets of a hypothetical adversary.

Russian Aircraft Carrier Group Enters English Channel

05/09/2014

A group of warships from Russia’s Northern Fleet led by the aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral Kuznetsov entered the English Channel Thursday, the head of the Western Military District’s press service for the Northern Fleet told RIA Novosti.

Turkey receives first attack helicopter

05/08/2014

The Turkish Army has received the first T-129 attack helicopter co-produced by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and Italian-British AgustaWestland after several months of technical snags, Defense News reported.

Three Canadians lead observers in Ukraine

05/08/2014

After being in Odesa when more than 40 people were burned, suffocated, beaten or shot to death in fighting between pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian mobs last week, a Canadian-led team of multinational military observers returned Tuesday to southern Ukraine to resume their appraisal of the shaky security situation there.

Syrian opposition leader requests anti-aircraft weapons

05/08/2014

The President of the Syrian Opposition Coalition (SOC) Ahmad Jarba on Wednesday stressed the need for more sophisticated weaponry to combat the Syrian air force which "burns and bombards civilians on a daily basis." Speaking through a translator at the US Institute for Peace, Jarba said the only way to move forward with a political process and engage the regime of Bashar Al-Assad is by gaining leverage on the battlefield.

Vienna company to share in foreign missile sale to Brazil

05/08/2014

A small business in Vienna could share a $169 million contract with The Boeing Co. to provide missiles to Brazil. If approved by Congress, Boeing and Delex Systems Inc., the latter of which counts less than 200 employees, would be the primary contractors for a foreign military sale of 20 Harpoon missiles, associated parts and training equipment and engineering and logistics support services.

TURKEY APPROVES F-35 ACQUISITION

05/08/2014

Turkey's ultimate decision-maker on procurement, the Defense Industry Executive Committee, announced late Tuesday that Turkey has committed to buying two F-35A Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) jets as part of an order expected to be consummated in 2016. The committee chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and with the Chief of General Staff and the Minister of National Defense also announced that the country still planned to buy 100 of the advanced jets.

Air Force: U-2 did not scramble LAX computers

05/08/2014

The Air Force has confirmed that a U-2 spy plane did not cause the computers at the Los Angeles International Airport control center to crash last week, causing flights to be delayed, cancelled and diverted. The Blaze first reported on Monday that an Air Force spokeswoman had said the plane did not cause the control center's computers to fail.

Foreign Militaries Eye Sikorsky S-97 Raider

05/08/2014

It hasn’t even flown yet and the U.S. Army program it was intended for was put on hold, possibly indefinitely. But that hasn’t stopped foreign militaries from inquiring about when they might be able to buy the Sikorsky S-97 Raider, the company’s next-generation light-attack helicopter. The coaxial design features counter-rotating rotor blades and a push propeller, among other innovations, that will allow it to fly much faster and farther than today’s choppers.

First Iraqi F-16 Completes First Flight

05/08/2014

Lockheed Martin successfully completed the first flight of the inaugural F-16 Fighting Falcon for the Iraq Air Force. The jet is the first of 36 F-16 Block 52 aircraft on order through the U.S. Department of Defense for Iraq.

Selex ES to work up Falco UAS development plan with Jordan

05/08/2014

Selex ES has been highlighting its extensive work with Jordan while also promoting key technologies for surveillance and situational awareness during the SOFEX 2014 show being held in Amman. With ongoing collaboration in a number of areas and a memorandum of understanding signed in 2013the Finmeccanica subsidiary said it anticipates moving toward a more strategic relationship with King Abdullah.