December 13, 2012 Military Aviation News
12/13/2012
Japan scrambled fighter jets over contested islands in the East China Sea after a small Chinese propeller plane entered what Tokyo considers its airspace. Coming just three days before general elections in Japan, Thursday's move sharply escalates territorial tensions that have already damaged economic relations between the two neighbors.
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12/13/2012
China has organised a 10-day air war competition in which over a hundred ace fighter pilots were pitted against each other at speeds of 1,800 km per hour and had to take the right decision in barely 10 seconds. The second People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force "Golden Helmet" award took place after the 10-day air war competition came to an end on November 29. Eleven Air Force pilots stood out from the 108 elite and won the award, reported People's Daily.
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12/13/2012
A Chinese-made J-7 fighter-interceptor jet crashed into a civilian residential area earlier this month, injuring four people on the ground. The pilot successfully bailed out seconds before impact near an air force base in Guangdong province Dec. 4. Such news is considered routine in the West. But the Chinese government usually responds by being secretive — except for this incident.
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12/13/2012
Canada's government on Wednesday widened its multi-billion-dollar search for a new fighter jet to models other than the F-35 it has spent 15 years helping the United States and other allies to develop. The largest-ever government procurement in Canadian history has come under fire from opposition parties over its spiralling costs and an apparent lack of transparency and competition in the process.
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12/13/2012
For nearly 70 years, Okinawa has gotten more than its share of America's military - more jets rattling homes, more crimes rattling nerves. It's the only Japanese island invaded by U.S. land forces during World War II. It endured 27 years under U.S. administration, and it continues to host two-thirds of Japan's U.S. bases.
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12/13/2012
Speaking at the F-16 delivery ceremony, Özcan Ertem, TAI’s Aircraft Group head, stressed the F-16's importance and speciality, and that the program was successfully completed ahead of the deadline with the delivery of the 308th F-16 jet, known also as the Fighting Falcon.
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12/13/2012
The U.S. has now formally recognized a new Syrian opposition group as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. But the U.S. has repeatedly declined to provide weapons for rebels fighting President Bashar Assad's army. However, NPR has learned that there are movements behind the scenes. In Jordan, several Syrian sources said that Jordanian authorities, along with their U.S. and British counterparts, have organized training for Syrian rebels on sophisticated anti-aircraft weapons.
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12/13/2012
Key questions remained Wednesday over the Conservative government’s promise to consider all available options to replace Canada’s aging jet fighters after an explosive new report put the full cost of buying, owning, replacing and disposing of 65 F-35 stealth aircraft at almost $46 billion. But it’s not known whether the government is really prepared to walk away from the F-35 if a better alternative is found.
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12/13/2012
Lockheed Martin delivered a C-130J Super Hercules to the Iraqi Air Force at formal ceremonies here today. This is one of the initial three aircraft of a total of six C-130Js ordered by Iraq. The other two of these initial three aircraft departed yesterday for Iraq. The remaining three C-130Js will be delivered in 2013. The Iraqi Air Force will use the airlifters for intra-theater support for its troops and to provide humanitarian relief operations in various locations.
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12/13/2012
Russia's fourth prototype Sukhoi T-50 stealth fighter jet took to the skies for the first time on Wednesday in a 40 minute flight at the Komsomolsk-on-Amur factory in Siberia, Sukhoi said. "The fourth prototype PAK-FA made its first flight today from the Gagarin factory in Komsomolsk-on-Amur," Sukhoi said, referring to the aircraft by its project name, an acronym for future fifth-generation tactical fighter.
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