F-16 crash at Shaw Air Force Base in South Carolina kills pilot

A US Air Force F-16 fighter aircraft crashed during a training mission in South Carolina, killing the pilot, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The plane went down about 11:30 pm Tuesday...
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IAF to urgently procure 21 MiG 29s, 12 Su 30s

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is going ahead with plans to order 33 additional fighter jets from Russia, with the proposal expected to be taken up for clearances by the...
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Su-57 Could Soon Have a Robot in the Cockpit

Russia’s new Su-57 stealth fighter is reportedly undergoing unmanned testing. The Sukhoi Su-57, codenamed “Felon” by NATO, is a large twin-engine stealth fighter in the same rough class as the...
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IAF Mig-29 Crashes in Punjab’s Nawanshahr

Mig-29 fighter aircraft of the IAF crashed in Chuharpur village here on Friday after it developed a technical snag, officials said. The pilot ejected safely and has been rescued, they...
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F-15QA Completes Successful First Flight

Boeing successfully completed the first flight of the F-15QA fighter, the most advanced version of the jet ever manufactured. Developed for the Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF), the jet demonstrated...
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Uncorrected Design Flaws Plague the F-35 Program

The latest testing report on the F-35 shows there hasn't been appreciable improvement in the program's overall reliability since 2016 As the F-35 program limps toward the end of its...
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Lockheed Martin Delivers 500th F-35 Aircraft

Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) and the F-35 Joint Program Office delivered the 500th F-35. In February, the F-35 enterprise surpassed 250,000 flight hours. The 500th production aircraft is a U.S....
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France, Germany sign contract to develop fighter jet prototype

France and Germany signed a 150 million euro ($161.84 million) deal on Thursday to develop a prototype of the next generation fighter jet, a project seen as vital for Europe...
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F-35 begins integrated training with F-16

In October, pilots of the 56th Fighter Wing began flying integrated direct support practice sorties in the F-35A Lightning II and the F-16 Fighting Falcon for the first time as a regular component of the training curriculum at Luke Air Force Base. The integrated training comes as part of the next step in the development of F-35 training and tactics, and helps pilots become efficient in conducting futuristic mission sets ...

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Category: F-35 Lightning II

Bulgaria approves 28 mln euro spendig on MiG-29s

SOFIA (Bulgaria), November 23 (SeeNews) – Bulgaria’s government said on Wednesday it approved an additional expenditure of up to 54.6 million levs ($29.6 million/27.9 million euro) under the defence ministry budget to ensure the airworthiness of the country’s Air Force fleet of ageing Russian-made MiG-29 fighter jets. The implementation of the project will create the necessary conditions for the Bulgarian Air Force to maintain and develop capabilities for air policing, ...

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Category: MiG News

MiG-29 crashes into Mediterranean

A Russian fighter jet crashed into the sea shortly into a training flight off the coast of Syria, Russia’s Ministry of Defense has announced. “As a result of a technical malfunction during a training flight an incident occurred to a carrier-based MiG-29,” read an official statement. “The pilot catapulted was delivered to the air carrier Admiral Kuznetsov by a rescue crew. The pilot was not hurt, and is ready for ...

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Category: MiG News

F-35B makes landing on specially designed ship

Aboard the USS America – The surf was high where the amphibious assault ship America sailed off the coast of San Diego — high enough to make the flight deck pitch and roll and set the conditions for a few minutes of crisis when an unfortunate sailor fell overboard and had to be rescued by helicopter. But with sea states between three and four, indicating swells from three to eight ...

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Category: F-35 Lightning II

Russia to test 9th T-50 fighter jet prototype

The ninth prototype of the fifth-generation T-50 PAK FA (Prospective Airborne Complex of Frontline Aviation) fighter jet will start undergoing trials in the imminent future, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said. Borisov made this statement during a working trip to the Saturn Scientific and Production Association in Rybinsk in central Russia. “The ninth prototype will start undergoing trials today. We have switched to its comprehensive trials. We are testing ...

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Category: Russian Aviation

Poland to buy Black Hawks

Poland said Monday it would buy Black Hawk helicopters from US defence giant Lockheed Martin, days after it blamed French aeronautics giant Airbus for the breakdown in talks over a multi-billion euro contract for military choppers. “This week we will open talks… Before the end of the year, the first machines of this kind will be delivered to our special forces for exercises,” Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz told reporters. He ...

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Category: Military Aviation

Lockheed rolls out first F-35A for Japan

Senior Japanese and U.S. government officials joined Lockheed Martin to celebrate the roll out of the first Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) F-35A Lightning II, marking a major milestone in Japan’s enhanced national defense and strengthening the future of the U.S-Japan security alliance. The ceremony was attended by more than 400 guests from both governments, militaries and defense industries. Kenji Wakamiya, Japan’s State Minister of Defense spoke at the ...

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Category: F-35 Lightning II

Tu-160M2: “Practically a new plane under the hood”

Russian military officials have announced that the Tu-160M2, a thoroughly modernized upgrade of the well-known Tupolev Tu-160 supersonic heavy strategic bomber, will make its first flight in 2018. Commenting on the prospects for the new plane, National Interest magazine defense editor Dave Majumdar explained what it was that makes it so special. Russian Tu-160M2 Bomber May Make First Flight by End of 2018 On Thursday, Russian Aerospace Defense Forces Commander-in-Chief ...

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Category: Russian Aviation

Russia may start producing T-50 in 2017

The final primary batch of PAK-FA fighter jets is almost complete and tests will be finished in 2016, top military officials told the media. The Russian Air Force hopes to start regular production of the new 5G jets soon, with the first planes coming in 2017. The PAK-FA (Perspective Air Complex of Frontline Aviation) fighter jets are being manufactured by the KnAAPO (Komsomolsk-on-Amur Aircraft Production Association) in the Russian Far ...

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Category: Russian Aviation

Air Force grounds 15 F-35

Less than two months after declaring the controversial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter ready for combat, the Air Force on Friday announced that it was temporarily grounding 15 of the jets after it discovered that insulation was “peeling and crumbling” inside the fuel tanks. The setback is the latest for the $400 billion system, the most expensive in the history of the Pentagon. The problem comes as the program, which for years faced ...

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Category: F-35 Lightning II

Il-112V to perform first flight In 2017

The advanced Russian-made Ilyushin Il-112V military transport plane is planned to perform the first flight in the summer of 2017, the Voronezh Region administration said. The Voronezh Aircraft Plant (VASO) is the main producer of the Il-112V military transport plane, the administration added. “VASO has already started building the first prototype. The prototype is expected to perform the first flight in mid-2017,” the administration said. “As VASO CEO Dmitry Prishvin ...

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Category: Russian Aviation

China developing new strategic bomber

According to Ma, the Chinese air force’s strike capabilities have significantly increased over time. “We are currently developing a new generation of strategic bombers, soon you will be able to see it,” Ma told the Global Times (Huanqiu Shibao) newspaper. Ma gave no additional details on the new bomber. Last year, China unveiled its Xian H-6K strategic bomber, a licensed copy of the Soviet Tu-16 aircraft. The H-6K is equipped with the DH-20 cruise missile, which gives ...

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Category: Military Aviation

F-35 is ‘not on a path to success’

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has been hailed as the ‘most expensive weapon in history,’ and with a price tag of $400 billion for 2,457 planes, the fifth-generation fighter has been plagued with issues. But it appeared the tide had finally turned earlier this month when the U.S. Air Force has declared an initial squadron of Lockheed Martin Corp F-35A fighter jets ready for combat. Now, the Pentagon’s director of ...

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Category: F-35 Lightning II

Egyptian Mig-29’s to carry IRST, EW System

The Mikoyan MiG-29 (NATO reporting name: Fulcrum) fighter jets to be exported to Egypt will be fitted out with advanced infrared search-and-track (IRST) stations and electronic warfare (EW) pods, according to the Izvestia daily. According to representatives of the defense contractors taking part in executing the contract, Egypt’s MiG-29s will feature the latest OLS-UE IRST capable of not only detecting enemy aircraft by their infrared signature, but also acquiring surface ...

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Category: MiG News

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