Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

BAE Hawk 200 offered to Uruguayan Air Force to replace its A-37 Dragonfly

04/20/2023

The U.S. based Falcon Air proposed to the Uruguayan Air Force (FAU) the purchase of six BAE Hawk 200 light subsonic fighters and two BAE Hawk 100 advanced trainers for US$110 million. According to the website Defensa.com, Uruguay has received an economically very advantageous offer for the acquisition of eight aircraft of the BAE Hawk family.

Fresno chosen as one of three ‘preferred’ bases in U.S. for new Air Force fighter jets

04/20/2023

The Fresno Air National Guard Base at Fresno Yosemite International Airport has been selected as one of three sites across the U.S. deemed as “preferred locations” to receive some of the U.S. Air Force’s newest fighter jets. The selection of the Fresno base and a naval joint reserve base in Louisiana to be the “beddown” sites for the F-15EX Strike Eagle jets was reported Tuesday night by the Air Force in a statement on its news website.

Egyptian MiG-29s Destroyed In Sudan

04/18/2023

We have a direct follow-up to our recent post on a number of advanced MiG-29s belonging to the Egyptian Air Force that were captured by Sudanese militia forces at Merowe Air Base outside the country's capital of Khartoum. Satellite imagery obtained by The War Zone shows at least one of these aircraft destroyed and it is likely that others are badly damaged or destroyed, as well.

Our First Look At Ukraine’s UH-60 Black Hawk In Action

04/18/2023

Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence directorate says it is making good use of a U.S.-made UH-60A Black Hawk helicopter that it has acquired. The directorate says that the Black Hawk, the only one of its type in the country currently, offers important performance advantages over its Soviet-designed Mi-8 Hip and Mi-24 Hind series helicopters, and it is pushing to get more of them. That a UH-60A was in Ukrainian service first emerged in February.

RAF Typhoons intercept Russian spy plane and two fighter jets flying close to Nato air space

04/18/2023

THE Royal Air Force intercepted a Russian spy plane and two fighter jets flying close to Nato air space. The warplanes were sent packing by RAF and German Typhoons protecting the eastern flank of Nato’s border, near Estonia.

Marines Stand Back Up ‘Tomcats’ as a F-35C Lighting II Squadron

04/18/2023

A deactivated squadron got new life as Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 311 in a Friday ceremony attended by scores of combat veterans and an F-35C Lightning II jet sporting the “Tomcats” historic squadron logo.

Egyptian MiG-29M2 fighters captured by Sudanese paramilitary group

04/17/2023

Egyptian MiG-29M2 fighter jets and their crew, which were deployed at Merowe International Airport (Marawi) to participate in bilateral military exercises, were captured by the Sudanese paramilitary group RSF, which opposes the government of the military junta, which came to power after a coup d’état in 2019.

Putin, Chinese defense minister hail military cooperation

04/17/2023

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu in Moscow on Sunday and both men hailed military cooperation between the two nations, which have declared a "no limits" partnership. Chinese President Xi Jinping met Putin in Moscow last month. Russia and China have moved to further strengthen their economic, political and military ties since Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

168th Wing flyaway demonstrates Agile Combat Employment Readiness

04/17/2023

Air Crews, aircraft maintenance, operations, logistics, civil engineering, communications, security forces, and force support teams from the 168th Wing demonstrated the Air Force’s priority of Agile Combat Employment (ACE) during a flyaway readiness exercise April 1-7, 2023.

Cope India 23

04/17/2023

Cope India 2023 (CI23) is a bilateral aerial exercises series between the Bharatiya Vayu Sena (IAF, Indian Air Force) and the USAF. The Cope India exercises began in 2004 as a fighter training exercise held at Gwalior AFS (state of Madhya Pradesh) and have now returned since the last one that was held in 2018.

Türkiye’s uncrewed fighter jet Kizilelma conducts 4th test flight

04/17/2023

Türkiye’s unmanned fighter jet, the Bayraktar Kizilelma, completed its fourth test, the System Identification Test, a high-ranking official from the developing company said Saturday. Selçuk Bayraktar, Baykar chairperson and chief technology officer (CTO), shared the update on his Twitter account with video footage.

Russian MiG fighter jet intercepts a Norwegian aircraft for the first time over the Barents Sea

04/16/2023

P-8 Poseidon is Norway’s new patrol aircraft replacing the older propeller P-3 Orion that for decades have monitored fisheries in the Barents Sea and Russian submarines on patrol in northern waters. This is the first time a report is made public about a Russian intercepter MiG-31 being scrambled from an air base on the Kola Peninsula to meet Norway’s new maritime patrol aircraft.

Sheppard AFB ‘elephant walk’ asserts training’s role in airpower

04/16/2023

Four thousand student Airmen from the 82nd Training Wing shared the runway with 80 training aircraft from the 80th Flying Training Wing in possibly the largest and most unique “elephant walk” in Air Force history – all to shine a light on the importance of training and partnerships.

ALLIES CONDUCT FIRST ITERATION OF RAMSTEIN ALLOY 23 NEAR BALTIC SEA REGION

04/15/2023

Allied Air Forces finished the two-day exercise Ramstein Alloy 23-1 (RAAL23) over the Baltic Sea area further enhancing Alliance cohesion and interoperability on April 12- 13, 22. Exercise RALY23 had allied fighters carry out live air-to-air drills and scenarios involving communications loss of civilian aircraft and then escort back to an airfield. These pilots sharpen their skills by practicing real-world scenarios faced by Air Policing personnel deployed in the Baltic region.

Russia trains Belarusian pilots in nuclear weapons use

04/15/2023

Belarusian Air Force crews have completed their training for using tactical nuclear weapons as part of Russia’s plan to deploy the weapons to its ally amid fighting in neighboring Ukraine, the Russian Defence Ministry said Friday. The ministry released a video in which a Belarusian pilot said that the training course in Russia had given the crews of the Belarusian Air Force’s Su-25 ground attack jets the necessary skills for using the weapons.

After Years of Trying, Air Force Retires First A-10 to the Boneyard

04/15/2023

It’s finally happening—the Air Force has begun to retire its A-10 Thunderbolt IIs. An A-10 from the 74th Fighter Squadron at Moody Air Force Base, Ga., arrived at the Boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. on April 5, the service said. The aircraft is the first of 21 A-10s that will be leaving service by the end of September.

Rafales Replace Russian Sukhois As India’s Frontline Fighters; Fly To France For 1st Multi-Nation Wargames

04/15/2023

India is sending its Rafale combat jets to France for a multi-nation air exercise. This is the first time the 2020-inducted Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters have flown overseas to join a war game in a friendly foreign nation’s air base. The French-origin nuke-delivery platform has emerged as the South Asian giant’s true “frontline” fighter replacing the Russian-origin Su-30MKIs.

Ministry of Defence awards £650m to firms working on Tempest fighter jet

04/15/2023

The Ministry of Defence has awarded £650m to manufacturers working on its Tempest fighter jet, in the latest sign that the UK is pushing forward with the aim of producing the aircraft by 2035. The companies who will receive the money are led by manufacturer BAE Systems, jet engine maker Rolls-Royce, and the UK arms of Italy’s Leonardo and European missile-maker MBDA.

Germany approves Poland’s request to send MiG-29 jets to Ukraine

04/14/2023

The German government has approved Poland’s request to transfer five Soviet-designed MiG-29 fighter jets to help Ukraine defend against the Russian invasion. “I welcome the fact that we in the federal government have reached this decision together,” Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said in a statement on Thursday.

Marine Corps to Activate Second F-35C Stealth Fighter Squadron at Miramar

04/14/2023

The Marine Corps is set to activate its second squadron of F-35C Lightning II strike fighters for operation from the Navy’s fleet of aircraft carriers. The “C” version of the stealth fighter, with longer wings, stronger landing gear and greater fuel capacity, is also flown by Navy pilots.

Poland’s F-35A aircraft begin production

04/14/2023

The Polish Air Force’s F-35 Lightning II combat aircraft were officially in production at Lockheed Martin’s facilities on 12 April 2023. The original equipment manufacturer (OEM), Lockheed Martin, will now produce the standard Nato combat aircraft, the F-35A conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) aircraft, which will be delivered to Poland from 2024 through to 2030.

Boneyard-Bound: USAF Retires First of 13 AWACS

04/13/2023

The aging E-3 AWACS fleet got a little smaller last week, as the first of 13 E-3s tp be retired this year took off from Tinker Air Force Base, Okla., for the last time. E-3 Tail Number 0560 departed for the Boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., on April 6, a week after the 552nd Air Control Wing hosted a retirement celebration with retired and Active-Duty Airmen getting a chance to sign their names to the airframe, an Air Force tradition.

Myanmar Military Kills More Than 100 People In A Single Attack

04/13/2023

On April 11, 2023, the Myanmar military is said to have killed at least 100 people in one of the deadliest airstrikes in the ongoing civil war. The attack targeted a village in the north-western Sagaing region. Witnesses report that among those killed were many women and children. The numbers of those killed are yet to be confirmed as the bodies are being collected.

Saab and Embraer to collaborate on C-390 and Gripen fighter

04/13/2023

Swedish aerospace and defence company Saab and Brazilian aerospace conglomerate Embraer have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 11 April to strengthen collaboration in several domains, including engineering and business development opportunities for the C-390 transport aircraft and future Gripen fighters. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was unveiled at the LAAD defence and security exhibition held in Rio de Janeiro.

Defense Minister: Sending Finnish combat aircraft to Ukraine currently irrelevant

04/13/2023

Talks about the possible transfer of Finnish combat aircraft to another country “currently irrelevant". Finnish Defense Minister Antti Kaikonen said this in an interview with local media, Xinhua reports, according to Ukrinform "The fighter jets will be used by our defense forces for the coming years, after which their life cycle will end," Kaikonen replied to a question about Ukraine's request for the transfer of F-18 aircraft.