March 09, 2012 Military Aviation News
03/09/2012
An F-16 fighter jet assigned to Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska made an emergency landing while performing a training mission in support of Exercise Cope North 2012 in the U.S. territory of Saipan, Feb. 21. Upon landing, the aircraft slid off the end of the runway, coming to rest approximately 380 feet into the grass.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
Three months after the Air Force placed blame squarely on an F-22 fighter pilot who died when he crashed in the service's most expensive plane after his oxygen system failed in mid-air, a top Air Force official is apparently backtracking - saying that the pilot was not blamed and that he did the best he could in the situation he was in.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
Military radar experts at the Northrop Grumman Corp. Aerospace Systems segment in El Segundo, Calif., and partner Raytheon Co. Space and Airborne Systems segment in El Segundo, Calif., will develop and install an advanced air-to-air and air-to-ground radar system for the Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Global Hawk Block 40 high-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) under terms of a $24.5 million contract announced Wednesday.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
The Harper government's plan to buy new fixed-wing search and rescue planes has been delayed yet again, The Canadian Press has learned. The Defence Department is not going to issue a tender call to replace nearly 50-year-old C-115 Buffalos and C-130 Hercules transports until the spring of 2013.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
A US military attack on Iran would do more damage than a strike carried out by Israeli forces, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Thursday in an interview. The United States and Israel disagree about the imminence of the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear program, and Panetta’s comments underscored the US administration’s stance that Israel should hold off on any unilateral action.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
Airbus Military has offered Australia a sixth A330 multi-role tanker transport (MRTT) aircraft, giving Canberra until mid-2012 to make a decision. The unsolicited offer involves an aircraft, MSN 871, that was previously involved in the US Air Force's KC-X tanker competition, said Airbus in an email to Flightglobal. After years of controversy, the Boeing 767-based KC-46A emerged as the ultimate winner of the KC-X competition in 2011.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
China's first aircraft carrier is likely to be commissioned on August 1 and deployed in the disputed South China Sea, boosting its blue water aspirations. "The military authority plans to let the aircraft carrier be commissioned this year," Deputy Commander of Chinese navy Xu Hongmeng said.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is pleased to announce that the first of ten Italian Air Force’s HH-139A medium twin engine helicopters has entered operational service. A ceremony held at Cervia Air Base marked this achievement. These helicopters will supplement ageing HH-212 and HH-3F helicopters in the role of search and rescue operations across the nation.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
The Turkish and U.S. air forces continue to combine their air assets and share tactics in large-force employments during Exercise Anatolian Falcon 2012 here March 5-16. During LFE exercises, units oftentimes take advantage of the high number of aircraft participating to test mass communication efforts, but the 480th Fighter Squadron pilots from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, are sharing suppression-of-enemy-air-defenses tactics with their Turkish counterparts.
(Read More...)
03/09/2012
As the Marine Corps cuts about 10 percent of its forces in the next few years, it is adding personnel to its four drone squadrons and may create a fifth. A new occupation specialty will lead to the first dedicated Marine officer corps for unmanned systems, to work in conjunction with full-time drone operators from the enlisted ranks.
(Read More...)
All Articles