Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Indian Acquisitions Explode On Land, In Air

03/17/2012

Filled with military deals harvested over the past few years, the Indian defense pie is getting bigger and sweeter, on land and in the air. But the country faces major hurdles in making those plans real. First, the good news: Over the next five years, India plans to renovate or replace its Soviet-era kit with $50 billion in new equipment, making Asia’s third largest economy a lucrative market for foreign companies such as Boeing and Dassault.

Turkish military helicopter crashes

03/17/2012

A Turkish military helicopter has crashed into a house near the Afghan capital, killing 12 Turkish soldiers on board and two young girls on the ground, Turkish and Afghan officials say. The helicopter, a Sikorsky, was on a mission for US-led NATO forces when it went down near Kabul on Friday, the Turkish military said in a statement. 'Twelve of our military personnel on board were martyred,' it said.

Budget 2012: Military plays catch-up but China a long march ahead

03/17/2012

Modernization of the over 13-lakh strong armed forces will continue in a steady albeit sluggish manner, with the defence outlay being hiked to Rs 1,93,408 crore (around $39 billion) to cater for some major fighter, aircraft, helicopter and howitzer deals to be inked in the coming fiscal.

Iran Produces New Military Drone

03/17/2012

Iranian experts managed to produce a new type of drone which is capable of carrying out military and border patrol missions. The new remote-controlled aircraft, called Shaparak (Butterfly), has a maximum operational radius of 50 kilometers (31 miles), and a maximum flight ceiling of 15,000 feet (4,572 meters), Reza Danandeh Hakamabad, the aeronautics engineer in charge of the project, said on Friday.

Gaddafi’s Advanced Anti-Aircraft Missiles Are Now Pointed at Israel

03/16/2012

Advanced anti-aircraft missiles which belonged to former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi have fallen into the hands of Hamas and Hezbollah, according to a new report. Both Hezbollah and Hamas are designated as terrorist organizations by the U.S. State Department. Speaking to Aviation Week, which first broke this story, about the Russian made hardware, the Israeli official said,“They are in the Gaza Strip. I don’t know in what numbers. They also are in Lebanon.”

MIT studying how to land drones on carriers

03/16/2012

MIT says it is trying to make design changes to military drones that will enable the aircraft to recognize the hand gestures of flight crew assigned to guide them on to the deck of aircraft carriers. The Navy has long-term plans to add robotic drones to carrier air wings, and Northrop Grumman's San Diego operation has has been doing work on a prototype of the plane known as the X-47B.

Crews search for missing Norwegian military plane

03/16/2012

Search crews were looking for a Norwegian military aircraft that went missing over Swedish mountains Thursday, officials said. The Hercules airplane from the Norwegian Air Force was taking part in a military exercise when it lost radio contact with authorities, said Per Froberg, a spokesman for Sweden's air navigation services. There were five people on board.

Military giving Air Guard cuts a harder look

03/16/2012

U.S. Air Force officials confirmed Wednesday they are considering a counterproposal to a plan for cutting 5,100 jobs in the Air National Guard, including 152 at the Fort Wayne base. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said he and the chiefs of the National Guard Bureau and the Air National Guard have been reviewing suggestions on base realignments offered two weeks ago by President Obama’s Council of Governors.

China’s Defence Budget 2012: Implication’s For India’s Security – Analysis

03/16/2012

China’s Defence Budget 2012 announced in the first week of March 2012 significantly draws global and regional attention in that China has shot through its defence expenditure over the $ 100 billion mark, making China’s military expenditure at the global level, second only to that of the United States, even though there exists a wide differential between the two.

Defence Budget hiked by more than 17%

03/16/2012

With several defence deals including the one to procure 126 combat aircraft for the IAF expected to be clinched this year, the Defence Budget was today substantially hiked by more than 17 per cent to Rs 1,93,407 crore from last year's Rs 1,64,415 crore. Of the total outlay, over Rs 79,500 crore would be spent on procuring modern weapons systems and military hardware.

Russian Specialists to Modernize Helicopters in Bulgaria

03/16/2012

Moscow and Sofia signed a deal to repair and modernize Soviet-era helicopters in Bulgaria, the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation said on Thursday. The agreement “to organize repairs and modernization of Mi-17 (Mi-8) and Mi-35 (Mi-24) helicopters and its modifications” was signed in Bulgaria’s defense ministry on March 9.

First Flight For Last Raptor

03/16/2012

The final Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor took to the skies for its first test flight here yesterday with company test pilot, Bret Luedke at the controls. Raptor 4195 has a May delivery date and will join other F-22s in the U.S. Air Force’s 3rd Wing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska.

Boeing Wins Contract to Paint Royal Australian Air Force Fleet

03/16/2012

Boeing subsidiary Boeing Defence Australia (BDA) has been awarded a three-year contract to perform aircraft surface finishing services for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) aircraft fleet. The contract, worth approximately AUS$20 million, involves preparing, remediating and painting AP-3C Orion, C-130H Hercules, F/A-18 Hornet, and Hawk-127 aircraft across multiple locations in Australia and New Zealand.

Boeing Delivers 1st Aircraft Under US Navy F/A-18E/F and EA-18G MYP III Contract

03/16/2012

Boeing has completed delivery of the U.S. Navy's first aircraft acquired through the F/A-18E/F and EA-18G Multi-Year Procurement (MYP) III contract, ahead of schedule. Aircraft G-57, an EA-18G Growler, was the first of 148 F/A-18E/Fs and EA-18Gs that the Navy will purchase through the contract. The aircraft was delivered to the Navy on Jan. 26 and arrived at its home base at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island on Jan. 30.

F-22 Pilot's Widow Sues Maker Over His Death

03/15/2012

The widow of an Air Force pilot who died in an F-22 Raptor crash has sued the makers of the fighter, claiming that malfunctions in the aircraft’s oxygen generation system killed her husband. Anna Haney filed suit Monday against Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell International and Pratt & Whitney in Cook County Court, Ill. Her husband, Capt. Jeff Haney, crashed his F-22 in November 2010 in Alaska, where he was stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

Canada mulls nixing F-35 purchase

03/15/2012

Canada is actively rethinking a multibillion-dollar purchase of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jet or reducing numbers to keep within its present budget, senior officials said. The F-35 has seen its development costs balloon out of control over the past decade, critics said, and the result is a price which is almost double the original figure.

Joint Fact Sheet: U.S. and UK Defense Cooperatio

03/15/2012

Today President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron reaffirmed their commitment to continue close cooperation on defense as the United States and United Kingdom build their Armed Forces for the future. The U.S. and UK share an unprecedented defense relationship that has helped secure our shared interests and values since the World Wars of the last century.

Indian MoD Comments Various Defence and Security Issues

03/15/2012

According to the Indian Press Information Bureau, the following information was given March 14, 2012, by the Indian Minister of Defence, Shri AK Antony, and Minister of State for Defence, Shri MM Pallam Raju, in written replies to members of the Parliament of India.

Show of force: Hundreds of F-16 fighters on parade as U.S. air force and South Korea put on display of military might for North and its new leader

03/15/2012

After the North Korean leader made his first visit to the tense demilitarised border and Pyongyang agreed to freeze its nuclear weapons programme, United States and South Korean aircraft joined forces in this huge display of F-16 Fighting Falcons. As these pictures from Kunsan Air Base show, hundreds of the jet fighters stretched as far as the eye could see.

Marines to cut four battalions, 12 air squadrons

03/15/2012

The Marine Corps said on Wednesday it would cut four infantry battalions and 12 flying squadrons over the next five years as it shrinks by 20,000 personnel to meet budget constraints and peacetime needs after more than a decade of war.

Spy Blimp Caught Rogue Soldier on Tape After Shooting Spree

03/15/2012

Above a small base in southern Afghanistan, a spy blimp captured video of the perpetrator of Sunday’s massacre surrendering to base forces. The question now becomes what other aspects of the killings, which left 16 Afghan civilians dead, are detailed in that video — or in any other footage that may have been shot by the U.S. military’s innumerable surveillance sensors in the region.

High-tech military gear makes its way from drawing board to battlefield

03/15/2012

Technology has become more important than ever in the defense of our country. From drone aircraft to something as small as a smartphone, new technology encompasses nearly every part of military life.

Vehicle Crashes On Runway During Panetta Visit In Afghanistan

03/15/2012

An Afghan civilian stole a military pickup truck, rammed through a fence, and crashed into a ditch by a runway around the time that a plane carrying Defense Secretary Leon Panetta landed at an airfield in southern Afghanistan Wednesday, US officials said. Panetta was unharmed and carried on with his visit as planned. Pentagon officials said they could not immediately confirm that the crash was an attempt to attack Panetta or that it was linked to his visit.

Navy looks to Boeing for repair and upgrade of Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier jump jets

03/14/2012

U.S. Navy aviation experts are asking the Boeing Co. Defense, Space & Security segment in St. Louis to repair and upgrade the U.S. Marine Corps fleet of ageing AV-8B Harrier jump jets under terms of a $30.9 million contract awarded late last week. Boeing will repair various parts supporting the AV-8 vertical-and-short-takeoff-and-landing (VSTOL) attack jets as part of the contract, which was awarded by Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSSUP) Weapon Systems Support segment in Philadelphia.

Minister: Fighter jets not a done deal

03/14/2012

The point man on the F-35 stealth fighter purchase says the Conservative government has not ruled out abandoning the troubled project. "We have not, as yet, discounted the possibility, of course, of backing out of any of the program," Julian Fantino, associate defence minister, told the House of Commons defence committee Tuesday.