Military Aviation
NATO and Russian fighter jets held their first ever joint exercise Tuesday, teaming up in a bid to prevent attacks such as the September 11, 2001 strikes on the United States, a NATO official confirmed. “Today was an important step for NATO-Russia relations, and therefore in my opinion, also an important step for the world because the threat of terrorism is a common one,” Georges D’hollander, general manager of the ...
Category: Military Aviation
Global defence and security company, Saab AB will open new UK headquarters and draw on British engineering expertise in a new Saab Design Centre in London. With 200 employees already based in the UK, Saab is preparing to expand its reach into the British defence industry by opening a central London office to co-ordinate all in-country operations. The opening of the company’s new UK headquarters will be followed by the ...
Category: Military Aviation
Faced with a dual threat from China and Pakistan, which have even come together to manufacture fighter jets, India is really cranking up military aviation contracts. Even as the $4.1 billion deal for 10 C-17 strategic airlift aircraft awaits the final nod from the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), another major contract is now headed that way. Defence ministry sources on Wednesday said the long-awaited deal with France for the ...
Category: Military Aviation
The RAAF will have to wait seven years before the long-delayed Joint Strike Fighter enters service, a key national defence think tank has warned. First deliveries of the troubled US-built stealth fighter were originally promised to start next year. In its latest report on the project, the government-backed Australian Strategic Policy Institute said further delays, and not cost blowouts, pose the biggest risk to the program. Canberra has placed a ...
Category: Military Aviation
The U.S. Air Force’s fleet of radar-evading F-22 Raptor fighters has been grounded until “further notice.” It’s the latest blow to the reputation of the world’s most expensive, and allegedly most fearsome, dogfighter. “The stand-down is a prudent measure following recent reports of oxygen system malfunction,” Gen. Will Fraser said. Without oxygen, Raptor pilots can’t fly at the high altitudes where the sleek, supersonic Lockheed jet performs best. The Air ...
Category: Military Aviation
Boeing today announced it has completed delivery of six F/A-18E/F Super Hornet aircrew and maintenance trainers to the Royal Australian Air Force at RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland. “These are the first Super Hornet training devices for a Foreign Military Sale customer and are part of the acquisition and establishment of 24 Australian F/A-18F Block II aircraft, initial spares, support equipment, trainers and training,” said Mark McGraw, Training Systems & Services vice ...
Category: Military Aviation
Phantom Ray unmanned airborne system (UAS) successfully completed its first flight April 27 at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The 17-minute flight took place following a series of high-speed taxi tests in March that validated ground guidance, navigation and control and verified mission planning, pilot interface and operational procedures. Phantom Ray flew to 7,500 feet and reached a speed of 178 knots. “This day has ...
Category: Military Aviation
The J-15 Flying Shark is China’s newest attack jet, a sinuous fighter with the folding wings, shortened tail cone and bulked-up landing gear it needs to serve on China’s first aircraft carrier, which is expected to start sea trials soon. It is indisputable evidence of China’s growing mastery of military technology. Also military technology of Russia and Ukraine, albeit not entirely with their consent. Barely two weeks after splashing photographs ...
Category: Military Aviation
An F-16 fighter-bomber from the United Arab Emirates crashed on landing Wednesday at an air base in southern Italy after completing a transfer flight from another base, officials said. He said the pilot ejected safely after landing on the outbound runway at the air base at Sigonella in western Sicily at 11:35 a.m. The official, who could not be named in line with standing regulations, said the warplane had just ...
Category: Military Aviation
China may have test-flown the J-18 Red Eagle vertical short takeoff and landing (VSTOL) fighter earlier this month, if chatter on Chinese-language military blogs is accurate. China’s defense industry is largely opaque and it is difficult to substantiate Internet chatter. However, Chinese-language military blogs reported the first test flight of the stealthy J-20 Black Eagle fighter in January, much to the surprise of the Western media. Now there are reports ...
Category: Military Aviation
The Northrop Grumman Corporation built MQ-8B Fire Scout vertical takeoff and landing tactical unmanned aerial vehicle marked a new single-day flight record of 18 hours. U.S. Navy operators achieved the record using a single aircraft in a series of endurance flights Feb. 25 from the USS Halyburton (FFG 40). Fire Scout is providing intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data to support anti-piracy missions while deployed on the ship for the Navy’s ...
Category: Military Aviation
Pilots of the RAF’s top fighter jets are being grounded as a lack of spare parts means they cannot put in the flying hours to keep their skills up to date, MPs warn. Five Typhoon pilots were temporarily grounded last year because of a lack of aircraft availability, the Commons Public Accounts Committee said. The shortages are also affecting the training programme, with only eight of the Royal Air Force’s ...
Category: Military Aviation
The Marine Corps completed an aviation first, April 8, by flying MV-22B Ospreys on the aircraft’s longest movement to date. Six Ospreys with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 266 returned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit after a trek from Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, to Souda Bay, Greece, with the assistance of a pair of KC-130J Hercules from 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward) who provided transport and aerial refueling support. “As far ...
Category: Military Aviation
Iran takes a unique step forward in the world of military aviation with the announcement of the country’s first jet fighter squadron comprised of all Iranian aircraft. The HESA Saeqeh jet fighter; Iranian built and designed- now has become part of Iran’s Air Force. Saeqeh means ‘Thunderbolt’ in Iran and that name was applied to what was undoubtedly one of the best American WWII fighters, the P-47 Thunderbolt which had a ridiculous ...
Category: Military Aviation
