3/24/2019 China's F-16: Meet the J-10 Fighter (Possibly Thanks to Israel)  The J-10 “Vigorous Dragon” is a mainstay of China’s effort to modernize its large fleet of single-engine jet fighters, with 350 already in service. An agile tactical fighter similar to the ubiquitous F-16 Fighting Falcon , the Vigorous Dragon was the first domestic Chinese design roughly on par with Western and Russian fourth-generation fighters . |
3/23/2019 Russian Fighter Showdown: Su-35 vs. MiG-35 (Who Wins?)  Egypt recently turned heads with its decision to purchase twenty advanced Su-35S fighter jets from Russia. This adds yet another unique airframe to Egypt’s inventory, which currently fields Rafales, two generations of F-16s, MiG-29s modernized to near MiG-35 standard, and two generations of Mirages. What could the Su-35S add onto this lineup? What could the political repercussions of the buy be? |
3/23/2019 General Atomics awarded $123m to produce four Dutch MQ-9 Reapers  General Atomics Aeronautical Systems was awarded a $123 million contract by the Pentagon to manufacture four MQ-9 Block 5 Reapers for the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The contract has been anticipated for a while, as the US State Department approved the sale in 2015 and Amsterdam officially announced the order in July 2018 at the Farnborough air show in the United Kingdom. |
3/23/2019 UK signs E-7 airborne early warning contract  The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed plans to acquire five Boeing 737-based E-7 airborne early warning and control system aircraft, with the platforms to be modified by Marshall Aerospace & Defence Group. Announced on 22 March and worth £1.5 billion ($1.98 billion), the contract will lead to the adapted narrowbody airliners being introduced to service from the early 2020s. They will replace the Royal Air Force's (RAF) current Boeing 707-based E-3D Sentry fleet. |
3/22/2019 Taipei stepping up efforts to buy new fighters  The leadership of Taiwan has recently stepped up efforts to obtain a new American fighter aircraft to urgently recapitalise its aging air force. Media reports indicate that president Tsai Ing-wen has publically confirmed that a request for new fighter aircraft has been made to Washington. |
3/22/2019 C295 purchase to bolster Kazakhstan defences  Airbus Defence & Space has been awarded a contract to produce a single C295 medium transport for Kazakhstan's border service. Announcing the commitment on 21 March, the European airframer says the asset will be employed for duties including "border control activities and homeland security operations". A delivery schedule has not been revealed. |
3/22/2019 Meteor, Spear additions to give UK F-35s added punch  Weapons integration activities on the Lockheed Martin F-35B are to be expanded for the UK, with the pending addition of MBDA's Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile and in-development Spear ground-attack system. Announced on 18 March and placed by Lockheed as "an initial funding award", the integration activity will be conducted by a team including the airframer and European guided weapons specialist, along with BAE Systems. |
3/22/2019 Boeing in $4 billion deal for F/A-18E/F Block III Super Hornets  Boeing has secured a three-year contract for 78 F/A-18E/F Block III Super Hornets, with a total contract value of approximately $4 billion. “Boeing will begin converting existing Block II Super Hornets to Block III early in the next decade,” says a company statement. “The fighter’s life also will be extended from 6,000 hours to 10,000 hours.” |
3/21/2019 Ukraine's Joint Forces show video of MiG-29 fighters, Su-25 attack aircraft in combat training flight over Sea of ??Azov  A MiG-29 fighter wing and a pair of Su-25 attack aircraft performed scheduled flights over the Sea of Azov, providing an air cover for Ukraine Navy ships sailing in the area. The corresponding video was posted by the press service of the Joint Forces Operation HQ on its Facebook page. |
3/21/2019 Pentagon orders second stealth target drone to be built  The Department of Defense ordered a second stealth aerial target demonstrator from Sierra Technical Services on 13 February. The so-called 5th Generation Aerial Target (5GAT) is a high-performance, fighter-size unmanned air vehicle that is intended to represent stealthy aircraft threats from advanced adversaries such as China or Russia. |