Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

US Army, US Air Force intercept cruise missile for first time with JLENS-guided AMRAAM

08/08/2013

The U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force intercepted for the first time an anti-ship cruise missile surrogate using Raytheon Company's Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) cued by JLENS. An affordable, elevated, persistent over-the-horizon sensor system, JLENS uses a powerful integrated radar system to detect, track and target a variety of threats.

Red Devils prove combat readiness with rapid embarkation training

08/08/2013

More than 160 Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 232 "Red Devils" participated in rapid embarkation training aboard Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, July 22 through Aug 2. "The purpose of this training was to conduct a rapid deployment into an unknown area in which we embark the entire squadron in a short amount of time," said Gunnery Sgt. Willie Dennis, the aviation ordinance staff noncommissioned officer-in-charge with VMFA-232 and a Syracuse, N.Y., native.

Iraq May Buy $2.4 Billion Air Defense System

08/08/2013

The U.S. Defense Department has alerted Congress to a possible sale to Iraq of a $2.4 billion integrated air defense system. The Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the Iraqi government has requested the equipment, including 40 truck-mounted Avenger fire units made by Boeing Co., 681 Stinger surface-to-air missiles made by Raytheon Co. and 216 medium-range Hawk missiles also made Raytheon, among other products.

PAF must prepare for a two-front situation in war on terror: Air Chief

08/08/2013

Chief of Air Staff Air Marshall Tahir Rafiq Butt says that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) must prepare for a two-front situation in view of its combat role in the anti- terrorism campaign, which has evolved since the 9/11 attacks on the US, and in addition to its traditional adversarial role as India’s neighbour.

PAF to attain capability to keep fighting force airborne for long haul: CAS

08/08/2013

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is all set to attain the capability of keeping its indigenously developed fighter aircraft JF 17 Thunder airborne for a longer haul, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Tahir Rafiq Butt said on Wednesday. “The ground tests have been very successful and I am satisfied. The air-to-air refuelling test will be done successfully by end of this summer,” Air Chief Marshal Butt said in an interview with Defence Jane’s Weekly.

F-35s take next step

08/08/2013

The F-35s soaring through the sky are continuing to ramp up their training operations and have started to simulate some combat-type missions. For the first time last month, the Joint Strike Fighter was controlled by an air battle management squadron on the ground at Tyndall Air Force Base.

Russian, UK Inspectors to Conduct ‘Open Skies’ Mission Over Sweden

08/08/2013

Military inspectors from Russia and the United Kingdom will on Wednesday carry out an inspection flight over Swedish territory as part of the international Open Skies Treaty, a Russian nuclear security official said. The flight will be carried out by a Russian Antonov An-30B plane from Sweden’s Uppsala airport along an agreed flight route with the maximum range of 1,700 kilometers (1,000 miles), said Sergei Ryzhkov, head of the National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center.

Military Plane Makes Emergency Landing Outside Moscow

08/08/2013

An Antonov An-26 plane that made an emergency landing Wednesday outside Moscow belongs to the Russian Navy’s Northern Fleet, the Defense Ministry said. The An-26 plane made an emergency landing Wednesday morning at the Ostafyevo military airbase about 30 km (19 miles) south of the center of Moscow.

Northrop Grumman Selected for F-16 Radar Upgrade

08/07/2013

Northrop Grumman will provide the Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) for U.S. Air Force and Taiwan F-16 fighter jets, after winning a competition by Lockheed Martin looking to prolong the life of F-16 legacy aircraft with a radar upgrade program.

Shaping the UK's Helicopter Force Post-Afghanistan

08/07/2013

One of the criticisms of the early years of British military operations in Afghanistan from the summer of 2006 was that there were not enough soldiers – or helicopters – to support the challenge of the mission. Early on, accepted policy in Helmand Province dictated the support of regional seats of government, which effectively tied the British Army into “platoon houses” soon after, which significantly hampered its ability to conduct proactive, deliberate operations.

It looks like an aircraft carrier, it sounds like an aircraft carrier... but the Japanese are adamant their biggest ship since WW2 is a 'flat-topped destroyer'

08/07/2013

Japan has been accused of ignoring its policy of self-defence after launching its largest warship since the end of the Second World War as the government faces down China over a disputed chain of islands. The new ship is designed to carry up to 14 helicopters at once - but Japanese officials insist it is not an aircraft carrier and will not be used to launch military jets.

Guidance and control for bunker-busting munitions

08/07/2013

As explosive ordnance and the means to deliver it against enemy fortifications have evolved through the centuries, government and military leaders throughout history have sought increasingly strong facilities in which to establish secure command and control.

Chinese fighter-bombers practice reconnaissance in anti-terror drills in Russia

08/07/2013

Five Chinese JH-7A fighter-bombers carried out their first reconnaissance mission in China-Russia joint military drills in Chelyabinsk Tuesday. The flight lasted for more than an hour and focused on getting familiar with the environment, unaided eye reconnaissance and searching for combat targets, said Wang Xiaoliang, one of the pilots.

Yemen again at forefront of fight against terror

08/07/2013

Yemen was thrust back into the forefront of the international fight against terrorism Tuesday when the U.S. and Britain evacuated embassy staff due to a threatened attack, a suspected U.S. drone killed four alleged members of al-Qaida, and militants shot down a Yemeni army helicopter.

Highlights of the 2013 Report to the US Congress on China's Military

08/07/2013

China continues to modernize its nuclear forces by enhancing its silo-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and adding more survivable mobile delivery systems. In recent years, the road-mobile, solid-propellant CSS-10 Mod 1 and CSS-10 Mod 2 (DF-31 and DF-31A) intercontinentalrange ballistic missiles have entered service.

Ready For Sea Trials; F-35B Completes 500th Vertical Landing

08/07/2013

The Lockheed Martin F-35B short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) aircraft completed its 500th vertical landing August 3. BF-1, the aircraft which completed this achievement, also accomplished the variant’s first vertical landing in March 2010 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md.

Russian Air Force to Get First T-50 Fighter Jet This Year

08/07/2013

The Russian Air Force will take delivery of its first fifth-generation T-50 fighter jet "in the third quarter of this year" for final state test flights starting in the fourth quarter, the service's commander Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev said Tuesday. In late April, President Vladimir Putin said the T-50 would enter service with the country’s armed forces in 2016, and not 2015 as had been previously announced.

The Army Retools Its Recon Planes For The Pacific Era

08/06/2013

If you know anything at all about Army aviation, then you know that soldiers fly helicopters. When the Army and the Air Force became separate services after World War Two, the Air Force got almost all of the fixed-wing planes and the Army got almost all the rotorcraft. However, there are a handful of exceptions to this general rule — areas where the type of aircraft each service typically flies isn’t well suited to a mission it must perform.

US military helicopter crashes in Okinawa

08/06/2013

A U.S. military helicopter crashed at an American base on the southern island of Okinawa, Japanese and U.S. officials said Monday. A HH-60 rescue helicopter crashed in a training area at Camp Hansen with four crew members on board, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement. The status of the crew members is unknown, it said.

TCI Asks EADS to Sell its Stake in Dassault

08/06/2013

Activist hedge fund TCI has said the European Aeronautic Defence & Space Company (EADS) should sell its stake in Dassault Aviation as the holding was "a poor use of capital." TCI wrote to EADS's chief executive officer, Tom Enders, demanding that the aerospace company sell its holding, worth €4bn ($5.3bn, £3.5bn), and give the earnings to the shareholders.

New units to manufacture missiles, aircraft soon

08/06/2013

While missile maker Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Hyderabad, is setting up three new production units, Bangalore-based aviation major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has asked the defence estates department to locate 1,000 acres of land for setting up a new division for helicopters, Defence Minister A K Antony said in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

Why China is Building More Aircraft Carriers

08/06/2013

Grainy photos of what appears to be a slice of the PLA Navy's first indigenously built aircraft carrier have been flying around the Internet the past few days. Of their veracity I have little doubt. China's leadership has openly proclaimed its plans to put a modest fleet of flattops to sea in the coming years. Chinese shipyards have adopted the Western practice of modular construction, meaning that they build the hull in sections, including many of the systems that make an inert hulk a living, f

India Expects Tejas Induction by Late 2013, Early 2014

08/06/2013

India’s defense minister says his country’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) program should be inducted into the Indian Air Force by the end of this year or early next year. The program is 15 years behind schedule.

Lockheed Martin to Offer Universal Mission Equipment Package for U.S. Army Helicopters

08/06/2013

Lockheed Martin will offer a universal, highly adaptable and affordable mission equipment package (MEP) to meet requirements for the Joint Multi-Role/Future Vertical Lift (JMR/FVL) rotary wing program, with potential applications for other customers and platforms.

US, Norwegian Military Inspectors to Fly Over Russia

08/06/2013

Military inspectors from the United States and Norway will fly over Russia’s territory starting from Monday as part of the international Open Skies Treaty, a Russian Defense Ministry official said. “In the period between August 5 and 10, a joint mission of US and Norwegian experts will make a surveillance flight above the territory of Russia on board of US Boeing OC-135B observation aircraft,” Sergei Ryzhkov, the head of the ministry’s National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, said.