Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Air Force General: If US Doesn’t Hurry to Build New Fighter, China Will

02/27/2021

A top U.S. Air Force general wonders whether the U.S. has the “courage and focus” to build a next-generation warplane to counter China. Gen. Mark Kelly, who oversees his service’s fighter jets and drones as head of Air Combat Command, gave full-throated support for the highly classified Next Generation Air Dominance, or NGAD, project.

F-35 Still the ‘Cornerstone’ Fighter, Top Air Force General Says

02/27/2021

The U.S. Air Force’s top general said the service is committed to the F-35 stealth fighter following comments and headlines in the past week that suggested the demise of the aircraft may be near. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown said on Thursday the U.S. could end up buying fewer than the 1,700-plus jets it envisioned when the project began more than two decades ago, but rejected recent high-profile reporting portraying the aircraft as a failure.

KC-46 tanker to assume limited operations

02/26/2021

One of the contenders for Canada’s Strategic Tanker Transport Capability (STTC) project is now conducting limited operations for the United States Air Force (USAF). The KC-46A Pegasus is “executing four to six missions daily” to support USAF and joint training missions, Gen Jacqueline Van Ovost, commander of Air Mobility Command, said during the Air Force Association’s virtual Aerospace Warfare Symposium on Feb. 24.

Mirage F1 Aggressor Jet Crash Lands At Tyndall Air Force Base

02/26/2021

Reports are coming in of an unspecified “incident” involving a Mirage F1 fighter jet operated by the Airborne Tactical Advantage Company, or ATAC, at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida. An official statement from the base's public affairs office confirmed that an incident occurred at around 11:25 AM local time, but offered no additional details.

Syria war: Russian jets 'bomb IS positions in desert region'

02/25/2021

The jets are supporting an operation by Syrian pro-government forces to secure the road between Homs and Deir al-Zour, according to a monitoring group. IS militants have carried out a string of deadly ambushes and hit-and-run attacks in the region recently. The latest, on Wednesday, reportedly killed nine soldiers and militiamen.

Taiwan scrambles fighter jets in response to China's ongoing air incursions

02/25/2021

China's unrelenting air assault on Taiwan has claimed its first victims – that nation's defence and home affairs ministers. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) air force shows no sign of releasing the pressure on Taiwan. Instead, it has continued its recent escalation of sending bombers and long-range fighters along with surveillance aircraft over the tiny Taiwanese Pratas Atoll at the northern tip of the South China Sea.

Air Mobility Command to Start Integrating KC-46 Into Limited Operations

02/25/2021

The Air Force’s next generation tanker is starting to go operational, but in a very limited way, with the goal of freeing up older planes for combat missions. Air Mobility Command announced Feb. 24 it is phasing the KC-46 into operations, by making it available to U.S. Transportation Command for taskings that would otherwise be filled by KC-135s and KC-10s, based on what the Pegasus has been cleared to do.

Going Digital Will Take Courage; Fighter Study Looks to 2040s

02/25/2021

The transformational acquisition ideas championed by former Air Force acquisition chief Will Roper will survive his departure from the service, but it will take “courage” to implement them, USAF acquisition leaders said at AFA’s virtual Aerospace Warfare Symposium. They also said the Air Force’s new tactical aircraft study—in parallel with a Joint Staff study—will take a decades-long look at aviation requirements.

Key Senator Urges Pentagon to Finish F-35’s Combat Tests Quickly

02/25/2021

The head of the Senate panel that authorizes military programs said he’s impatient for the Pentagon to finish rigorous combat simulation testing of the F-35 and provide an assessment of the stealthy fighter jet’s effectiveness. “We’ve been building it” for years “and it’s still in operational testing and evaluation, and once that’s finished -- and we hope it’s finished promptly -- then we can make a much more thorough assessment of the system,” Senator Jack Reed, chairman of the Armed Services

How Did India Manage to Build an Advanced Fighter Jet Like the Tejas?

02/25/2021

India’s biennial military aircraft show, Aero India, went off without a hitch in early February in the southern Indian tech capital of Bengaluru. Despite the travails of pandemic-era traveling, the United States sent a deputy undersecretary, a Navy admiral, and three Air Force generals. It also sent a nuclear-capable B-1B bomber. But the real star of the show was what escorted the U.S. aircraft in the sky: an Indian-built Tejas fighter jet.

The Air Force May Soon Be Shopping for a New Fighter Jet

02/25/2021

The U.S. Air Force isn't ruling out bringing a new fighter jet into its inventory as it looks to replace older, fourth-generation F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft, according to the service's top general. As the service tries to determine the right mix of aircraft for its future inventory, it's considering the idea of a new fighter that falls somewhere between fourth- and fifth-generation airframes -- one that could easily be upgraded throughout its life, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Charles "CQ" B

Chinese anti-submarine aircraft enters Taiwan’s ADIZ

02/24/2021

A Chinese military aircraft entered Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) on Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 23), marking the 16th such intrusion this month. One People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare plane flew into the southwest corner of Taiwan’s ADIZ, according to the Ministry of National Defense (MND). In response, Taiwan immediately sent fighter jets, issued radio warnings, and deployed air defense missile systems to track the Chinese aircraft.

U.S. Air Force F-16s Integrate With Italian Air Force F-35s During Agile Combat Employment Exercise

02/24/2021

Agile Combat Employment exercise at Amendola Air Base, saw U.S. Air Force F-16s operate alongside the Italian Air Force F-35s. U.S. Air Force F-16s belonging to the 555th and 510th Fighter Squadrons of the 31st Fighter Wing, based at Aviano Air Base, Italy, took part in an Agile Combat Employment exercise at Amendola AB, Italy, on Feb. 16-17, 2021.

Canadian company proposes multi-role tactical aircraft

02/24/2021

Like all good ideas, this one began in a bar. The participants were test pilots and flight test engineers, each with a decade or more of experience launching and certifying new airframes. Some had been there at the beginning of the C Series and other Bombardier business jet and multi-mission programs; others had test-flown de Havilland aircraft and even combat platforms.

Russia’s Su-57E Stealth Fighter Has Some Serious Tire Kickers

02/24/2021

The Russian-built Sukoi Su-57 could soon be operating over foreign skies as the latest reports suggest international customers have expressed interest in the fifth-generation combat aircraft. The Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation has reportedly received a number of requests from foreign customers for the Su-57E—the export version of the multirole fighter aircraft that is currently entering service with the Russian Air Force.

India To Equip Its Tejas Mk-1A Fighter Jets With Homegrown ‘Uttam’ Radars — Reports

02/23/2021

The first batch of Tejas fighter jets will be equipped with the Uttam radars. Of the 123 Tejas fighters that the Indian Air Force will get, 40 will have Israel’s mechanical radars and 83 will have Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars.

Israel signs LOA with US for KC-46A, plans agreements for other capability enhancements

02/23/2021

Israel has signed a letter of acceptance (LOA) with the United States for the procurement of two Boeing KC-46A Pegasus tanker aircraft, and plans further similar agreements to enhance its qualitive military edge (QME) in the region.

Russia Provides A Glimpse Of Its Orion Drone Executing Combat Trials In Syria

02/23/2021

Russia has released a video showing, apparently for the first time, its Orion unmanned aerial vehicle during field trials in Syria, including dropping weapons. The footage seems to have originated from the drone’s combat evaluation that reportedly took place in 2018.

Egypt's military strength ranks 13th globally in 2021

02/22/2021

The annual review of Global Firepower ranked Egypt's military strength 13th globally for the year 2021 out of 139 "countries considered" compared to ninth out of 138 states in 2020. The rating Egypt received is 0.2216 - with 0.0000 considered 'perfect' – against 0.1872 last year. Egypt was preceded - in order - by the United States, Russia, China, India, Japan, South Korea, France, United Kingdom, Brazil, Pakistan, Turkey, and Italy.

Indonesia to arm up with Rafale, F-15 fighter jets

02/22/2021

After a series of pandemic-defying trips across the world, Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto appears to have settled on the French-made Rafale and an under-strength squadron of American F-15EX jet fighters to bolster Indonesia’s front-line air defenses, with deliveries expected over the next three years.

This Could Be Northrop Grumman’s Lethal Drone for DARPA’s LongShot Program

02/22/2021

In the first decade of February, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, better known as DARPA, announced the start of the design phase of a program it calls LongShot. Three companies were selected for this stage, namely General Atomics, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

Britain's new space force 'could deploy RAF Typhoon fighter jets to the "edge of space" to destroy Russian and Chinese military satellites'

02/22/2021

Britain's new space force could be deploying RAF Typhoon fighter jets to the 'edge of space' in a bid to destroy enemy satellites in the near future, senior military sources have revealed. Selected fighter pilots will take part in Space Command's training missions with the ultimate aim of taking down Chinese and Russian military, intelligence and communication satellites during wartime.

Two, including Japanese trainee, die in U.S. military jet crash

02/21/2021

Two pilots, including a trainee from Japan, died when a military training jet crashed near Montgomery Regional Airport in Alabama on Friday, officials said. Executive airport director Marshall J. Taggart Jr. said officials were informed about the crash in an adjacent, wooded area just after 5 p.m.

Taiwan scrambles air force in response to Chinese fighter aircrafts' drill in South China Sea

02/21/2021

After nine Chinese air force aircraft flew near the Pratas Islands on Friday, the Taiwanese Defence Ministry said it tracked 11 aircraft on Saturday - eight fighter jets, two nuclear-capable H-6 bombers and an anti-submarine aircraft, also near the islands.

IDEX: Spanish eyes Middle East defence training market

02/21/2021

The company made its debut at the February IDEX defence show in Abu Dhabi where, alongside Everis ADS it showed all the capabilities it can offer to the military sector after a particularly positive 2020 in terms of defense projects.