Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Will Russia close the Carrier Classic Gap?

05/30/2012

Despite recent reports, the U.S. remains ahead of the Russians when it comes to the next generation of naval warfare — namely, hosting sporting events on aircraft carriers. English-language all-Russian-news site RT.com reported Monday that the Major Hockey League, which is actually a minor hockey league (those wacky Russians) to the big-time KHL, is planning to hold a game on a flattop anchored in the Gulf of Finland.

Unmanned aircraft poised to fill Asian skies

05/30/2012

THE military unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) market will mushroom over the decade through 2020, according to international consultancy Frost & Sullivan, with its value forecast to grow by 60 per cent to US$7.3 billion. The Asia-Pacific is expected to lead this surge, propelled by regional force modernisation programmes and supported by sustained economic growth.

Japanese fifth-generation fighter, Mitsubishi’s ‘Divine spirit’

05/30/2012

Japan may become the fourth country after the U.S., Russia and China to possessits own fighter of the fifth generation. The new fighter, relatively small in size and weight, will become the first battle plane, constructed without assistancein Japan over the past seven decades. In the beginning of May, Japan placed an order for the delivery of the first four F-35 fighters made in the United States.

Airbus Military growing its product line

05/30/2012

Airbus Military is growing its product line with new developments, such as gunships and airborne early warning aircraft, and is improving its existing offerings, such as the C295, as it adapts to changing market conditions. Airbus Military, at its annual Trade Media Briefing in Spain, attended by defenceWeb, said that the military market for transport, special mission and tanker aircraft is a very irregular one with plenty of ups and downs and is compounded by shrinking military budgets.

HAL to make multirole aircraft with Russian firm

05/30/2012

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) will manufacture a Multi-role Transport Aircraft (MTA) with a Russian partner primarily for the Indian and Russian air forces, the state-run defence behemoth said on Tuesday. 'The twin-engine aircraft in 15-20 tone class will be designed, co-developed and manufactured for cargo/troop transportation; para-drop/air drop of supplies, including low altitude parachute extraction system,' HAL chairman R.K. Tyagi said in a statement here.

C-130 Makes First Landing on Tinian’s Historic North Field Since 1947

05/30/2012

Guam - A C-130 military cargo aircraft landed at North Field just before noon today [Wednesday]. It was the first time since after World War II in 1947 that a U.S. military plane landed on the airfield. The landing at North Field, the Saipan Tribune reports, is considered one of the highlights in the ongoing Exercise Geiger Fury 2012 on Tinian, with 150 to 175 personnel from Marine Aircraft Group-12 out of Iwakuni, Japan participating.

CATIC targets 300 JF-17 sales in five years

05/30/2012

China hopes to sell up to 300 Chengdu/Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) JF-17 Thunder fighters in Africa and the Middle East over the next five years. This target was revealed by a spokesman from China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC), the country's military aircraft export agency, in an email to Flightglobal.

U.S. must stop using China’s fake military

05/30/2012

While addressing West Point’s newest graduates last weekend, Vice President Joseph R. Biden praised the gathered cadets as “leaders of your generation” and “the key to whatever challenges the world has in store.” For full disclosure’s sake, Mr. Biden should have added: “For the foreseeable future, however, the advanced weapons and military systems you’ll use in training and in combat will remain shot through with unreliable counterfeit electronics parts.

F-35 fighters best suit Taiwan's air defense needs: official

05/30/2012

Taipei, May 29 (CNA) F-35 stealth fighters are the new-generation combat aircraft that best serve Taiwan's air defense needs, a military official said Tuesday, the latest hint that the government may not be as keen to acquire advanced F-16 C/D fighters as once thought. The F-35s, with their short takeoff capability, would bolster the country's defense capabilities, as airports are likely to be destroyed by enemy forces in the event of war.

War Games In Jordan

05/29/2012

It's a familiar scene - military aircraft and personnel in the desert - only in this case, it's part of a war game in southern Jordan involving thousands of troops from all over the world. Forces from 18 countries including the U.S., Jordan, Lebanon and Italy are participating in the exercise. Dubbed "Eager Lion" the scenarios give troops a chance to learn how to carry out attacks on ground targets in coordination with artillery and air power.

Does anybody still need aircraft carriers?

05/29/2012

They are floating airfields that can deploy a nation's military might across the world's oceans. In May 1912, the first plane took off from a moving warship, the HMS Hibernia, temporarily adapted for the purpose. The idea of dedicated floating platforms had been mooted in 1909, but it wasn't until 1918 that the HMS Argus became the first proper carrier.

India And Israel Strategic Partnership: Challenges And Opportunities – Analysis

05/29/2012

Today’s strategic environment provides boundless space for the both the international and regional actors to understand, share and cooperate with each other in order to protect and secure their own national interest and maintain strategic stability within their own region. Every nation in the international affairs has its own strategic significance against another in terms of its strategic location for economic and military means.

Copter crash in eastern Afghanistan kills 2 NATO troops

05/29/2012

A helicopter crash killed two NATO service members in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, and a third died in an insurgent attack in the south, the U.S.-led coalition said. The deaths raised the number of NATO troops who have been killed in Afghanistan this year to 172. NATO is aiming to withdraw its combat forces by the end of 2014 and turn security responsibility over to the Afghans.

IAF conducts first ever landing of 'Super Hercules' military aircraft at Car Nicobar airbase

05/29/2012

India is slowly but surely bolstering its military presence in the crucial Andaman and Nicobar Islands in keeping with the overall policy to counter China's strategic moves in the Indian Ocean region as well as ensure security of the sea lanes converging towards the Malacca Strait.

Northrop Grumman's Joint STARS Completes Flight Testing of JT-8D Engines

05/28/2012

Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System testbed aircraft, equipped with a new JT-8D propulsion system, has successfully completed flight testing and moved one step closer to receiving its Military Airworthiness Certification.

Memorial Day Thoughts on National Defense

05/28/2012

We can best honor those who have given their lives for this nation in combat by making sure our military might is proportional to what America needs. The United States spends more on our military than do China, Russia, Britain, France, Japan, and Germany put together.

Hearing will focus on Air Force's plan to add fighter jet

05/27/2012

A public hearing has been set for June 5 on a proposal to add a new fighter jet to the Burlington Air Guard Station in Vermont, which conducts missions in western Maine airspace. The Air Force last week scheduled the hearing at University of Maine at Farmington after facing complaints from Mainers about why initial hearings on the plan were scheduled to take place only in Vermont.

US Pivots To Maritime Southeast Asia – Analysis

05/27/2012

The United States decision to deploy littoral combat ships in Singapore signals a maritime focus in its pivot to the Asia-Pacific. It reaffirms U.S. commitment to support Southeast Asian allies and partners amid China’s growing maritime assertiveness in the region.

Report claims Chinese airstrip near disputed islands near completion

05/27/2012

The China Post news staff--Attack warplanes and land-to-air missiles are being deployed to a Chinese air base with an operational radius reaching both Taipei and the disputed islands in the South China Sea as tension in the region continues to mount, a report said yesterday. The hardware being deployed includes China's Jian 10 and Sukhoi Su-30 jet fighters, unpiloted attack planes, and S-300 anti-aircraft missiles.

IAF chief flies Rafale fighter aircraft

05/26/2012

Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne has taken an hour-long sortie in a Rafale fighter aircraft which has been selected by India for its multi-billion dollar deal to procure 126 jets. On a four-day visit to France, the IAF chief flew the fighter jet at the St. Dizier Airbase and was accompanied by the Rafale squadron Commander Squadron Leader Kubiak Thierry.

South Korea to announce in October its military aircraft and helicopters contractors

05/26/2012

South Korea government, through the military acquisition programme's spokesperson, announced that the choice regarding the suppliers of fighters aircraft and the helicopters for its air force will be communicated in October. The purchase will involve on the whole 60 fighters, 35 attack helicopters and 8 helicopters for the navy.

Fighter-bomber upgrade faces $1.4bn blowout

05/26/2012

The cost of fitting out 12 of the RAAF's Super Hornet fighter-bombers with sophisticated electronic warfare equipment appears to have blown out from the original $300 million to $1.73 billion -- slightly more than the Gillard government's budget surplus for the coming year.

Think Tank Calls Budget Cuts an Opportunity to Reform Military

05/26/2012

Despite dire warnings about U.S. military funding cuts, one prominent Washington think tank says fewer dollars give the Pentagon a chance to make sweeping changes to sustain America's warring dominance. The Defense Department is implementing a $450 billion reduction to planned spending over the next decade, and could be forced to take out close to $500 billion more over the same span if Congress fails to pass a $1.2 trillion debt-paring deal this year.

ENDEARING TIES

05/26/2012

Introducing me at a meeting of Singapore’s India Club (for Indian citizens only), Prasenjit Basu, its economist president, recalled that more than 10 years ago my book on India’s relations with the United States of America was called Waiting for America. “We are still waiting for America”, he concluded. It was a perceptive comment. Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose, the more things change, the more they remain the same.

U.S. Air Dominance at Risk

05/26/2012

Air dominance is essential to virtually every operation the U.S. military conducts. It is an essential component of the U.S. military’s “DNA.” Budget cuts, shrinking force structure, poor investments in modernization, technological innovation and a growing anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) threat are combining to call into question the Department of Defense’s ability to maintain air dominance in future conflicts. Without air dominance, the U.S. military’s concepts of operations will unravel.