Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Technical issues delay Turkish F-35 order

01/15/2013

Turkey has decided to delay the purchase of its first two Lockheed Martin F-35s by one year, citing technical factors and a "high cost yield". The Turkish government approved an initial two-aircraft purchase on 5 January 2012, before launching talks with Lockheed to finalise a deal. However, an order for the pair has been put on hold because the technical capabilities of the aircraft are "not at the desired level yet", the nation's Undersecretary of Defence Industries procurement agency says.

Cameron boasts about offering Britain's best plane to help French

01/15/2013

David Cameron today boasted that he had offered Britain's 'most advanced' transport plane to hep France in fighting Al Qaeda-linked militants in Mali, moments before the aircraft broke down. The Prime Minister ruled out 'army boots' on the ground but insisted it was in Britain's interests to provide two RAF C-17 Globemaster cargo planes - 'our most advanced and capable transport planes' - to the French forces.

Colombia to buy more military airplanes

01/15/2013

Colombia announced Monday the purchase of another C295 airplane, intended for troop transport and humanitarian aid. Airbus Military, a Madrid-based subsidiary of Airbus, said the Colombian government had placed an order of six C295 transport planes, up from five a year ago, intended for the Colombian Air Force.

Obama says U.S. warplanes involved in Somali rescue mission

01/15/2013

U.S. military fighter jets provided backup support to a failed French hostage rescue mission in Somalia, the White House announced Sunday in a rare public acknowledgment of American combat operations in the Horn of Africa. In a letter to Congress, President Obama said U.S. combat aircraft “provided limited technical support” to French forces late Friday as they attempted to rescue a French spy who had been held captive for more than three years.

Mali conflict: militants killed as French air strikes pound rebel camps

01/15/2013

Islamist militants are fleeing major towns in northern Mali after two days of air strikes by French troops, which sources say have left scores of rebels dead. French fighter jets have pounded insurgent training camps, arms and oil depots as the French defence ministry confirmed reports of Islamist deaths, together with at least 11 civilians including three children.

Canadian military plane leaves Tuesday to help France with Mali mission

01/15/2013

A Royal Canadian Air Force heavy lift transport will depart for France Tuesday morning to assist Mali’s effort against Islamist rebels in west Africa. The C-17 plane is expected to take off from Canadian Forces Base Trenton at 8 am (ET). It will be used to assist the French in transporting equipment into Bamako, the capital of Mali. About 35 Canadian Forces personnel, such as flight crew staff, will accompany the plane.

Official Stripped of Real Estate over MiG Airframe Fraud

01/15/2013

A district court in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod Region has ordered the seizure of real estate from a former official found guilty of fraud involving fighter jets for Syria, according to the court’s website. Andrei Silyakov’s land plot and house qualified for confiscation because he had other places to live, the Vachsky court said on Friday without specifying the property’s value.

The Birth of a New UAV Mission

01/14/2013

UAVs perform the most extensive and diversified range of missions in the aerial world. The most familiar and most frequent ones are visual intelligence missions. However, UAVs also perform many other military missions, such as escorting and monitoring operations of other elements, providing auxiliary infrastructure, scanning routes, spotting IEDs and providing communication relays. US forces even use UAVs for air strike missions.

RAAF reforms 35 Squadron for new aircraft

01/14/2013

The new 35 Squadron will be equipped with the Caribou replacement, the new C-27J Spartan transport aircraft which will start entering service from 2015. RAAF chief Air Marshal Geoff Brown said the 35 Squadron had provided combat airlift for Australian personnel in several conflicts. "The C-27J is ideally suited to continue this legacy of support for personnel deployed on combat, peacekeeping or disaster relief operations," he said in a statement on Monday.

RAF plane heading to Mali to support French military operation against rebels

01/14/2013

The RAF C17 transport aircraft, which departed RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on Sunday afternoon, will be loaded with French armoured vehicles and other equipment before heading on to Mali on Monday. Earlier, prime minister David Cameron agreed on a deal to support French president Francois Hollande’s intervention in Mali after France sent in forces to support the local government.

Military presence makes Washington vulnerable to cuts

01/14/2013

Defense spending soared in Washington state last year, even as the specter of long-anticipated budget cuts drew closer. The Pentagon steered $9.2 billion worth of work on military contracts to the Evergreen State in the 2012 budget year, up from $8.1 billion in 2011, according to records at the federal spending database usaspending.gov.

UK plans defence of Falklands as planes are sent to Mali

01/14/2013

Defence chiefs have reportedly drawn up new contingency plans designed to protect the Falklands Islands from hostile action by Argentina. In March, islanders will vote on whether or not they want to remain an overseas territory of the UK. Intelligence chiefs have warned David Cameron that a resounding ‘yes’ vote could trigger an aggressive stunt from Argentina. Possibilities include planting their flag on the island or disrupting British oil and gas exploration.

French military intervention in Mali expands

01/14/2013

Mirage 2000D fighter-bombers struck Islamist targets in northern Mali on Sunday, expanding the reach of a French military intervention, and more French ground troops flew into Bamako, the capital, for what increasingly looked like the beginning of a long campaign.

Aircraft encounters raise fear of conflict

01/13/2013

Fears of armed conflict have been raised after Japanese and Chinese warplanes tailed each other above a disputed group of uninhabited islands, officials say. Two Chinese J-10 fighter planes were ordered by Chinese military authorities to perform "verification and monitoring" Friday after Japanese F-15 fighter jets tailed a Chinese transport plane, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.

Apache attack helicopters to arrive in Oct.

01/13/2013

A first batch of six U.S.-made AH-64E Apache attack helicopters will be delivered to Taiwan in October, with delivery for the entire purchase of 30 of the aircraft expected to be complete by July 2014, a report said yesterday. The US$20 billion deal for 30 Apache helicopters was announced by U.S. President George W. Bush in 2008, with aircraft manufacturer Boeing taking orders in October 2000, the Central News Agency said.

A battle to retake north Mali: Hundreds of French troops drive back al-Qaida-linked rebels Read it on Global News: Global News | A battle to retake north Mali: Hundreds of French troops drive back al-Qaida-linked rebels

01/13/2013

The battle to retake Mali's north from the al-Qaida-linked groups controlling it began in earnest Saturday, after hundreds of French forces deployed to the country and began aerial bombardments to drive back the Islamic extremists. At the same time, nations in West Africa authorized the immediate deployment of troops to Mali, fast-forwarding a military intervention that was not due to start until September.

Op-Ed: Israeli Air Force make preparations for large Combat Air Exercise

01/13/2013

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) is planning to stage Blue Plug, its largest ever multinational exercise with at least five foreign air forces from Uvda Air Base. Many pilots and combat aircraft types are expected to participate. The exercise will include air-to-air combat and “dropping ammunition” in a low-level profile. The IAF is making arrangements for the exercise at all Israeli air bases, indicating a complex force on force air attack, counter-air, and air defense profile.

Britain to send military transport planes to assist Mali operation

01/13/2013

Downing Street confirmed two RAF C-17s would be made available urgently, but added that no British personnel will be deployed in a combat role. The move followed a telephone call between David Cameron, the Prime Minister, and Francois Hollande, the French President. The two transport aircraft are expected to be deployed within 24 to 48 hours.

Russian MoD Doubles Su-30SM Order

01/12/2013

The Russian Defense Ministry has signed a follow-on contract with Irkut for 30 more Su-30SM two-seat multirole fighters, for delivery by 2016. This deal follows one concluded in March last year, for 30 such aircraft for delivery by 2015.

State of the AF is 'strong'

01/12/2013

The Air Force's top leaders said today the service has accomplished much while dealing with many challenges in the last year. Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley and Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III briefed members of the media here on the state of the service and its focus on the areas of force structure, readiness and modernization.

Dassault, India tussle over supply chains

01/12/2013

India's defense ministry reiterated that Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. will remain lead integrator for producing 108 Rafale fighters under the medium multirole combat aircraft contract. Replacing HAL as integrator would jeopardize the procurement process carried out to secure the $15 billion deal with Dassault Aviation in France that was signed in January 2012.

Army aviation's way ahead based on combat lessons learned

01/12/2013

Army aviation has been in the fight now for more than a decade, and as the drawdown in Afghanistan continues, commanders say it would be wise to remember the lessons learned during those years. That was the common theme of four Army aviation commanders who spoke at the Association of the U.S. Army's aviation symposium in a panel titled "Aviation in the Fight: At Home and Down Range."

Defense Cuts? Bring Them On

01/12/2013

Deep and long-term budget cuts could be the best thing to happen to the U.S. defense enterprise in decades. Austerity should enforce long-overdue change in the relative size and influence of air/space, land and sea forces. For the last decade of mostly land combat, the ground forces have dominated discussion of strategy, and the doctrine that no war can be won except by taking and holding ground has become a shibboleth to which all who aspire to be “joint” must pay homage.

Rebels take largest Syria military airbase

01/12/2013

Rebel fighters have overrun Taftanaz airbase, the largest in northern Syria, after several days of fierce combat but immediately came under fire from regime warplanes, a watchdog says. "The fighting at Taftanaz military airport ended at (2000 AEDT Friday) and the base is entirely in rebel hands," said Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman.

European military aircraft with weapons and soldiers on board arrives in Mali

01/12/2013

According to witnesses cited by news agencies a military aircraft carrying weapons and foreign soldiers has arrived at an army base in Sevare in central Mali, not far from the captured town of Konna. One witness at the airport reported seeing weapons and soldiers leaving a C-160 military transport aircraft.