Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Save the Lightning

09/07/2011

Thanks to the provisions of the Budget Control Act and the subsequent directions of President Obama's budget director, Jack Lew, the Department of Defense is figuring out how to trim $1 trillion from its current and planned budgets. Perhaps the principal target in the sights is the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program (aka the Lightning II.

Medal of Honor recipient saved 36 lives during battle

09/07/2011

When Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer plunged into Afghanistan's Ganjgal Valley, he was sure he wouldn't come out alive. "I don't think there was ever a question in my mind if I was going to die," Meyer said. "It was just when." Inside the narrow valley, Taliban insurgents were dug into the high ground and hidden inside a village, pouring down deadly fire at Afghan forces and their American advisers. Armed militants swarmed the low ground to try to finish off the troops.

U.S. Army orders its first batch of suicide drones

09/07/2011

Soldiers who fly hand-launched drone scouts to spot enemies on the battlefield may soon get a deadly robotic device capable of also delivering a knockout blow. The U.S. Army has ordered its first batch of small suicide drones that are capable of launching from a small tube, loitering in the sky and then diving at a target upon command.

Boeing Receives US Air Force Contract for A-10 Avionics Modernization

09/07/2011

Boeing today announced it has been awarded a one-year, $2.9 million contract by the U.S. Air Force to develop and validate a modification of the A-10 aircraft's Digital Video Audio Data Recorder (DVADR). The modification will provide a near-term solution to supportability issues with a major subcomponent in the DVADR system.

Lockheed Martin/KAMAN K-MAX Completes U.S. Navy Unmanned Cargo Assessment

09/07/2011

The Lockheed Martin led unmanned K-MAX® team successfully completed a five-day Quick Reaction Assessment (QRA) for the U.S. Navy’s Cargo Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) program.

Flight recorder found at MiG-31 crash site

09/07/2011

Investigators have found one of the two flight recorders at a crash site of a Russian MiG-31 Foxhound fighter jet in the Urals, a source in the investigation committee said. The jet exploded in a fireball minutes after taking off from a military airfield in the Perm region in the early hours of Tuesday. Both pilots were killed in the crash. "We have found one of the flight recorders and will continue the investigation of the crash site tomorrow," the source told RIA Novosti.

Russian fighter jet crashes in Urals

09/07/2011

A Russian Mikoyan MiG-31 fighter jet crashed in the Urals on Tuesday, killing both pilots, officials say. The jet exploded in a fireball minutes after taking off from a military airport in the Perm region in the early hours of Tuesday. It was on a routine training flight, a spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry said.

Boeing Wins Helicopter Deal

09/06/2011

Boeing strategic alliance with Bell Helicopter – Textron, ‘The Bell Boeing (NYSE:BA) V-22 Program’ has received a $34 million order from the U.S. Air Force. The Bell Boeing (NYSE:BA) V-22 Program will deliver a new Wing Part Task Trainer to Kirtland. According to the contract the Bell Boeing (NYSE:BA) V-22 Program will upgrade a CV-22 Cabin Part Task Trainer (CPTT) and two fuselage aircrew/maintenance trainers at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., to create a full-fuselage Cabin Operational Flight

Algerian Pilots Perform First Solo Flights on Yak-130 Combat Trainer Jet

09/06/2011

On September 1, 2011 at the Irkutsk Aviation Plant’s airfield – a subsidiary of JSC IRKUT Corporation, pilots of Algerian Air Force performed first solo flights on the Yak-130 combat trainer jet.

Irkut set to upgrade India's Su-30s 'to fifth-generation standard'

09/06/2011

Irkut Corporation's plans to upgrade the Indian Air Force's (IAF's) Su-30MKI fleet will provide the fighter with capabilities similar to that of fifth-generation combat aircraft, Russian industry officials have said. Speaking at the Moscow Air Show on 19 August Alexei Fedorov, the head of Irkut, announced that in addition to upgraded cockpit avionics and enhancements to the aircraft's radar, the so-called 'Super Sukhoi' will also receive modifications aimed at improving stealth capabilities.

Libya mission couldn't have been done without U.S.: NATO chief

09/06/2011

European countries, who take the lead in NATO's Libya mission, could not get the job done without vital military capabilities provided by the United States, the alliance's chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Monday.

Lockheed stealth jet may beat out Boeing in Japan

09/06/2011

Lockheed Martin, the world's largest defense company, is counting on stealth technology to beat Boeing and Eurofighter in a Japanese fighter contest that may be worth more than $4 billion. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has better anti-radar capabilities than Boeing's F-18 Super Hornet and Eurofighter's Typhoon, as it was specifically designed in a shape that would be hard to detect, said Craig Caffrey, a London-based analyst at IHS Jane's DS Forecast, which advises defense suppliers.

Chinese military growth presents more risks

09/06/2011

The reach and capability of China’s navy and air force are expanding, posing a growing risk to security in Asia, military officials say. A new aircraft carrier that began sea trials this summer and the public test flight in January of an advanced fighter jet designed to rival U.S. technology are just two examples of China’s growing military might, U.S. officials say.

Bulgaria Seals Deal with Russia for MIG-29 Maintenance

09/05/2011

A frame agreement for the maintenance of Bulgarian-owned jetfighters MIG-29 was signed Saturday between the Bulgarian Defense Ministry and the Russian aircraft corporation MIG. The agreement was sealed at the Krumovo airfield where Bulgaria is marking the 100th anniversary of the country's aviation with a large-scale, two-day air show, titled "Skies for Everyone."

30 Ugandan pilots missing in Libya

09/05/2011

The whereabouts of about 30 Ugandan pilots, who were flying with the Libyan air force, are unknown, following the rebels’ capture of Tripoli, Libya’s capital. The pilots, who have been flying with the Libyan airforce since 1979, were sent to Russia for training by former President Idi Amin’s regime. A source in security circles, who was privy to the pilots’ training, said; “the majority of them were from the West Nile.”

Romanian aeronautics industry prepares for lift-off

09/05/2011

The investment should remind local authorities that just two decades ago, Romania was one of the top ten countries in the world in the field of airplane manufacturing. Prime Minister Emil Boc walks confidently towards the stand. He smiles broadly at the audience and begins his speech by congratulating the Premium Aerotec division of the EADS group for its “successful investment” in the aircraft components factory in Ghimbav.

Debt ceiling may pin Lockheed's F-35 jet

09/05/2011

A summer of discontent for the U.S. Defense Department and Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 Lightning II may be followed by an even tougher autumn as Congress' debt-ceiling "super committee" mulls big defense budget cuts that could affect the next-generation stealth jet fighter.

Give Air Force a break: F-22 situation is being handled wisely

09/05/2011

The Air Force is taking a deliberate, measured approach to an apparent technical problem that has kept its F-22 Raptors on the ground since May 3. The problem may have contributed to a crash last year that killed Capt. Jeffrey “Bong” Haney, 31, of the 525th Fighter Squadron, the “Bulldogs.”

China Sought to Sell Arms to Qaddafi, Documents Suggest

09/05/2011

In the final weeks of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s battle with Libyan rebels, Chinese state companies offered to sell his government large stockpiles of weapons and ammunition in apparent violation of United Nations sanctions, officials of Libya’s transitional government said Sunday. They cited Qaddafi government documents found by a Canadian journalist, which the officials said were authentic.

Chile Plane Crash Killed All 21 Onboard

09/04/2011

A military plane carrying businessmen, troops and journalists crashed off a Chilean island in the South Pacific Ocean, killing all 21 on board, the Andean country’s government said. All the passengers and crew died instantly, Defense Minister Andres Allamand said after touring the crash site. The twin-propeller Casa C-212 plane crashed last night off the Juan Fernandez Archipelagos, 600 kilometers (375 miles) west of Chile.

Russian Helicopters, Defense Ministry sign deal after delay

09/04/2011

Russia's Defense Ministry and the Russian Helicopters holding have reached a long delayed agreement and signed a $4 billion deal, a senior defense sector official said on Saturday. Russia's annual defense order was seriously delayed by price disputes between the ministry and defense sector companies to a point when President Dmitry Medvedev and then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin had to step in and press for contracts to be signed until the end of last month.

Libya’s Dark Lesson for NATO

09/04/2011

The war in Libya may be one of those quietly telling moments in the history of more important nations. For the first time, the United States has taken a secondary role — “leading from behind,” if “leading” is even the right word — in a war prosecuted by the NATO alliance and driven by Britain and France, the two strongest military powers in Europe.

Training of fresh pilots puts Sagar Pawan shows on hold

09/04/2011

The engaging aerobatic demonstrations of the Indian Navy’s elite Sagar Pawan team, based in Goa, have been put on hold because of heavy training pressures on aircraft. Addressing reporters at the headquarters in Vasco, 35 km from here, Commodore Ravneet Singh said the Kiran aircraft were currently engaged in training fresh pilots for MiG- 29K and Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

Able to spot enemy aircraft 300 miles away, the Sentry plane is Britain's eye in the sky

09/04/2011

With an unmistakeable 30ft radar dish bolted to the top of its fuselage, it can pick out enemy fighters 300 miles away.

9/11: A fighter pilot recounts a sobering mission

09/03/2011

As Major Dan Caine climbed into his F-16 fighter jet on September 11, he saw black smoke rising from the Pentagon in the distance and braced himself for a mission he never expected: shoot down hijacked airliners heading towards the capital.