December, 2015 Military Aviation News
12/31/2015
Jets from RAF Lossiemouth have played a key role in strikes over Syria and Iraq during the Christmas period, the Ministry of Defence has revealed. Six Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft deployed from the Moray base to take part in action against the Islamic State terrorist group have been integral to several fruitful missions.
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12/31/2015
The Air Force is expected to submit its fiscal 2017 budget in February, said Air Force spokeswoman Maj. Melissa Milner. Lawmakers recently reached a bipartisan agreement that set federal spending limits for fiscal 2016 and 2017, but Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James has said that the agreement provides $17 billion less than the Defense Department needs in fiscal 2017.
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12/31/2015
After steaming across the Atlantic and following a close call with an Iranian training exercise in the Straits of Hormuz, the aircraft carrier the U.S.S. Harry S. Truman arrived in the Persian Gulf earlier this week and began combat operations against the Islamic State. The carrier, along with its accompanying strike group of destroyers, frigates and submarines, fills a strategic capability gap that had been left open when the carrier the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt departed the region in October.
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12/31/2015
Pakistan is pushing hard to secure an agreement in principle with Sri Lanka to sell its multi-role combat aircraft JF-17 Thunder to the island nation, according to a UK-based defense publication. Following the first export deal for its JF-17 multirole fighter to Myanmar, Pakistan is expected to be pushing hard for a follow-up agreement with Sri Lanka that would mark an important step in further extending its defense co-operation footprint in the Indian Ocean region.
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12/31/2015
A £369 million contract to support the Royal Air Force’s (RAF) fleet of C-130 Hercules transport aircraft has been awarded to three companies by the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The deal will see Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, Lockheed Martin and Rolls-Royce, who jointly deliver the Hercules Integrated Operational Support (HIOS), provide continued support for the C-130J fleet until 2022.
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12/31/2015
The US Department of Defense announced the winner of $286 million US Navy contract for the production and delivery of an E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft to Japan.
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12/31/2015
Russia has struck a deal with Egypt to deliver 46 Kamov Ka-52K navalized attack helicopters, the director-general of the state-run Russian Helicopters aircraft maker said Wednesday.
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12/31/2015
Kuwait is ready to send an artillery battalion to protect Saudi Arabia against cross-border incursions by Houthi rebels in Yemen, the Kuwaiti daily newspaper Al-Qabas reported.
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12/31/2015
The radar will be based on Radio-Optical Phased Arrays (ROFAR), explained the adviser of the first deputy general director of concern Radio-Electronic Technology (KRET) Vladimir Mikheev.
KRET is a part of Russia’s Rostec corporation, it developed the electronic systems for the aircraft.
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12/31/2015
Russia has begun fulfilling a contract with Iran on the delivery of S-300 air defense systems that the Islamic Republic has already been paying for, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said Wednesday. In 2007, Moscow and Tehran signed an $800-million deal for the delivery of five S-300 missile systems to Iran. In 2010, Russia suspended the contract, citing a UN Security Council resolution that placed an armed embargo on Tehran until it proved a peaceful nature of its nuclear project.
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12/30/2015
Strike aircraft from nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman flew their first missions against ISIS terrorists Tuesday in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. It was the first strike by Navy jets since the San Diego-based carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt left the region in October. The Defense Department reported that U.S. an coalition aircraft conducted nine strikes against targets in Syria and 22 in Iraq.
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12/30/2015
Thirty-five years ago, fighter pilot Oscar Santa Maria Huerta had a real-life Independence Day moment when he attempted to shoot down a mysterious light-bulb shaped craft, in what to this day remains the only documented case of a military aircraft firing on a UFO.
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12/30/2015
The most significant development of 2015 was the scrapping of the $20-billion (Rs 1.45 lakh crore) Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) deal for the purchase of 126 French Dassault Rafale fighter jets. Expense could have been a major reason, IndiaSpend reported.
To boost squadron strength, the government cleared the off-the-shelf purchase of 36 Rafale aircraft in fly-away condition from Dassault’s factories in France at an estimated cost of $8-9 billion (Rs 52,800-59,400 crore).
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12/30/2015
Lockheed Martin and the Pentagon's F-35 Joint Program Office say they've finished delivering jets for 2015, increasing their yield from last year by 25 percent. Joe DellaVedova, a spokesman with the F-35 office at the Pentagon, said 45 F-35s were delivered, which met Lockheed and the program office's delivery goal for the year and exceeded last year's deliveries by nine jets.
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12/30/2015
The Russian defence industry is a critical segment of the country’s economy, employing at least 2.5 million workers, and accounting for 20 per cent of all manufacturing jobs. The arms industry suffered considerably after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s and subsequent years of neglect due to a precipitous drop in military spending.
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12/30/2015
Beijing’s stealthy Chengdu J-20 fifth-generation combat aircraft, pictured above in an artist’s rendering, may have entered low rate initial production according to state-owned Chinese media. Xinhua—Beijing’s official news agency—published photos of the newest J-20 aircraft, which is still coated in primer paint, earlier this week.
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12/30/2015
Stratfor, an American global intelligence company, stated that the crisis between Russia and the Western states was "central in shaping the global system for the past two years," adding that it was likely to remain in place next year, "though the levels of conflict and potential cooperation will wax and wane from issue to issue."
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12/29/2015
Venezuela’s National Guard helicopter has crashed in Colombia, injuring several people, local media reported Monday, citing Colombian Defense Minister Luis Carlos Villegas.
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12/29/2015
It’s an aircraft like no other, in both its design and most definitely its cost. The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is the most expensive weapons system in U.S. history, with a price tag of $400 billion for development and procurement.
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12/29/2015
The cabinet of Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe approved a record 5.05 trillion yen ($41.4 billion) defense budget for fiscal year 2016/2017 and slightly below the 5.09 trillion yen requested by Japan’s Ministry of Defense (MOD), The Japan Times reports. This marks the fourth consecutive rise in defense spending since Shinzo Abe assumed office in December 2012.
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12/29/2015
Iraqi officials said security forces recaptured a second strategic city from Islamic State militants, dealing a blow to the group's military campaign in OPEC's second-biggest oil producer. The reversal in Ramadi, 110 kilometers (68 miles) west of Baghdad, came after U.S. and coalition aircraft stepped up their bombing of Islamic State positions, including four airstrikes near the city on Saturday targeting vehicles, weaponry and tactical staging areas.
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12/29/2015
Elbit Systems Ltd. has been awarded a contract by the Directorate of Production and Procurement of the Israeli Ministry of Defense valued at approximately $70 million for the supply of Electronic Warfare (EW) systems. The systems, developed and manufactured by Elbit Systems EW and SIGINT – Elisra Ltd., are to be delivered over a 5-year period. They will be installed on board all types of Israeli Air Force fighter jets.
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12/29/2015
Pakistan Aeronau-tical Complex (PAC) on Monday achieved another milestone in the country's aviation history by indigenously manufacturing 16 fighter jets (JF-17 Thunder) during 2015. Ceremony to highlight the hallmark achievement of PAC was clubbed with the formal induction of newly manufactured 16th JF-17 Thunder in the fleet of Pakistan Air Force.
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12/29/2015
On Dec. 24, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency announced its award of a $93 million contract to Falls Church-based Northrop Grumman Corp. for the design of an unmanned aerial vehicle that can be launched from destroyers and other small surface ships. This is just days after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration handed down new rules for recreational owners of commercial drones.
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12/29/2015
Pakistan’s air chief marshal Sohail Aman on Monday said that the country was in negotiations with the US to procure the latest F-16 fighter jets and by 2020 it will phase out some of its old combat aircraft, including Mirage. “We are in talks with US defence officials to get some latest F-16s but the deal may take some time,” the Air chief told reporters after the rolling out ceremony of the 16th JF-17 Thunder aircraft at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) Kamra near Islamabad.
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12/29/2015
South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) have formally signed an agreement to develop KF-X fighter aircraft. According to the agreement signed today, DAPA will finance 60 per cent of the 8 trillion won (US$6.9 billion) costs required in the development phase, with KAI to pay 20 per cent, Yonhap news agency reported Monday.
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12/29/2015
President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani said Monday that the Afghan Air Force (AAF) will receive additional combat aircraft within the next three weeks. In his speech during the inauguration of the new compound of Ministry of Defense, President Ghani thanked India for the delivery of Mi-25 gunships, calling the close-air support for the Afghan forces a critical need durig the current situation.
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12/28/2015
Islamic State group fighters pulled out of their last stronghold in Ramadi Sunday, bringing Iraqi federal forces within sight of their biggest victory since last year’s debacle. The elite counterterrorism service was hours away from moving into the former government complex in Ramadi, which the jihadis had fiercely defended for several days, the force’s spokesman said.
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12/28/2015
The inaugural Trilateral Exercise held Dec. 2-18 at Joint Base Langley-Eustis (JBLE) in Virginia not only represented a visible component of the collaboration between Allies, it also provided the back drop for the leadership of the respective Air Forces to lay out future challenges and direction.
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12/28/2015
Next month, a new force will awaken in the desert of New Mexico, where the US Defense Department is about to start testing a weapon worthy of Star Wars — a silent, invisible laser that needs just a couple of seconds to burn a hole through targets miles away.
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12/28/2015
Germany will send Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) military aircraft to Turkey after NATO last week decided to bolster Turkey's air defense, German officials told the Bundestag in Berlin on Sunday.
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12/28/2015
The U.S. military’s increasing demand for drones has forced changes in the Air Force’s “flyboy” culture over the years, plucking pilots out of the cockpit and sending some to high-tech desert trailers to operate remotely piloted aircraft, leaving their proverbial white scarves at home.
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12/28/2015
The aerospace and defense industry is one of the few sectors to consistently throw up end-of-year surprises as companies look to meet or exceed prior commitments, and 2015 is no exception. The tussle between Airbus Group SE and Boeing Co. has a history of throwing up last-minute aircraft orders, with the European plane maker last year pulling out deals for more than 450 jets in December alone to overtake its rival, an unprecedented haul seldom seen even at air shows.
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12/28/2015
The Philippine Air Force (PAF) ended 2015 not with a bang, but with the loud full-throated roar as the first of its two Mach 1.5 capable South Korean-made FA-50PHs light-interim fighter aircraft sped through the skies last November 28. The arrival of the two jet aircraft, the first pair out of the 12-plane contract from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) worth P18.9 billion, highlights the return of supersonic capability to the PAF after an absence of 10 years.
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12/28/2015
Swedish defence major has offered to collaborate with India on production of sea version of its light combat fighter aircraft Gripen. "We have a great opportunity for technology transfer," Ulf Nilsson, head of Saab's aeronautics division said as he spoke about the naval version of the aircraft and the ongoing project of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop the naval version of the LCA Tejas.
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12/28/2015
India and France are likely to sign a deal for the sale of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft to New Delhi on January 25 during French President Francois Hollande's visit to India, media reported.
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12/28/2015
Ever since Saudi Arabia announced that it had formed a new 34-nation 'Islamic coalition against terrorism', experts have been debating whether the new alliance will entangle itself in a military operation in Iraq and Syria. Recently, analytical website Iranian Diplomacy posed that very question to regional Iraqi official Ibrahim al-Jinabi.
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12/27/2015
The United States and its allies conducted 17 air strikes on Christmas Day against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, the coalition leading the operations said in a statement on Saturday. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted five air strikes using attack and remotely piloted aircraft, targeting ISIS militants near Ar Raqqah, Manbij and Mar’a.
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12/27/2015
China has been aggressively asserting its claims to virtually all man-made islands in the South China Sea, reefs and their surrounding seas. The information office of the ministry said the Chinese military kept close surveillance on the bombers' activities and gave it warnings. CCTV's Jim Spellman has a timeline of previous incidents between the two countries in and above the waters off China.
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12/27/2015
High-definition video has emerged of China's lone aircraft carrier, CV-16 Liaoning practicing aircraft takeoffs and landings. The video was apparently shot during a visit to the carrier by the head of China's Navy during drills in the Bohai Sea.
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12/27/2015
Russia’s airbase in the Armenian capital has started implementing flight inspections of Mi-24P helicopter gunships that have been deployed to Erebuni air base in December, a spokesperson for the Southern Military District of Russia’s Armed Forces said Friday, December 25, TASS reports.
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12/27/2015
For the first time since World War II, the Air Force is set to get enlisted pilots. Air Combat Command is developing entry requirements for enlisted airmen to fly RQ-4 Global Hawks, remotely piloted aircraft that fly high-altitude reconnaissance missions.
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12/27/2015
South Block is abuzz with hectic activities ahead of the signing of the defence deal to buy Rafale fighter jets, with barely a month left for the scheduled visit of French President Francois Hollande to New Delhi. The two countries are expected to sign the deal for 36 Rafale fighter aircraft in fly-away condition during Hollande’s next month visit.
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12/27/2015
On October 7th, at an “undisclosed location” somewhere in “Southwest Asia,” men wearing different types of camouflage and dun-colored boots gathered before a black backdrop adorned with Arabic script. They were attending a ceremony that mixed solemnity with celebration, the commemoration of a year of combat that left scores of their enemies slain. One of their leaders spoke of comraderie and honor, of forging a family and continuing a legacy.
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12/27/2015
An Indo-Russian proposal to jointly produce fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) is expected to soon take off thanks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to that country. A decision on the project is expected in the next six months, chairman of Bengaluru-based Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) T Suvarna Raju said today.
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12/27/2015
The fate of Raqqa, the de-facto capital of Daesh, has come under serious threat as one of the chief supply roads across the Euphrates has now been cut off by Kurdish-led forces Saturday.
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12/26/2015
Ever wonder what presents a strong military? The answer lies within its logistical capability. Militaries that are capable of providing a good logistical answer for their troops generally have an easier time bringing the battle to the enemy more effectively. The US Military has long been known for its military might, the proof of that lays within the confines of the 305 Air Mobility Wing.
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12/26/2015
It’s likely to be a banner year for aircraft, as the service takes big steps forward for several of its newest planes: The Air Force is aiming for Aug. 1 as the date for initial operating capability for the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter. Developing the plane has long caused a headache for the Air Force, which saw the aircraft wind up more than $150 billion over budget and between three and seven years behind schedule, depending how you count.
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12/26/2015
Fighters from the Daesh and the al-Nusra Front have begun giving up heavy weapons to the Syrian army south of the Arab republic’s capital of Damascus, a military source said Friday.
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12/26/2015
Russia is preparing for short-term deliveries of its President-S onboard defense system (ODS) for civil and military aircraft to Egypt, a senior Radio-electronic Technologies Concern (KRET) executive said Friday.
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12/26/2015
Commander of the Russian Land Force’s air defense stated that Russia is developing a new 57 caliber anti-aircraft weapon system to replace two existing systems.
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12/25/2015
ISIS terrorists are using human shields and have booby-trapped entire houses in Ramadi in a bid to prevent the Iraqi army from retaking the strategically important town. An estimated 100 jihadis are surrounded by Iraqi troops who are being supported by US airstrikes, who are targeting the remaining ISIS strong points. ISIS captured the city, which is about 60 miles from Baghdad, in May. The defeat was a major propaganda victory for the terrorists.
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12/25/2015
Malaysia Defense Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein is denying media reports his country is interested in purchasing the JF-17 multi-role fighter. Hussein responded to the media as Malaysian defense officials discuss the implementation of air force modernization plans. Malaysian media reported Malaysian High Commissioner to Pakistan Dr. Hasrul Sani bin Mujtabar discussed purchasing the Joint Fighter-17, a collaboration between Pakistan and China.
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12/25/2015
On October 7th, at an “undisclosed location” somewhere in “Southwest Asia,” men wearing different types of camouflage and dun-colored boots gathered before a black backdrop adorned with Arabic script. They were attending a ceremony that mixed solemnity with celebration, the commemoration of a year of combat that left scores of their enemies slain. One of their leaders spoke of camaraderie and honor, of forging a family and continuing a legacy.
(Read More...)
12/25/2015
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday pledged closer ties between their historically allied countries as their governments signed agreements in the defense, nuclear and energy sectors.
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12/25/2015
China is getting better and better at operating fighter jets from its lone aircraft carrier, with confident pilots and an increasing number of flying operations, the military's newspaper said on Friday as China's navy chief visited the ship.
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12/25/2015
Russia has bolstered its military and asserted itself on the world stage with a forcefulness not seen since the Cold War, ratcheting up tensions with the West. Here is what Russia has been doing to reclaim its influence.
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12/25/2015
The Indian Ministry of Defense (MoD) will be showcasing its indigenous fighter jet Tejas at the Bahrain International Air Show next month. Two Tejas fighter jets will demonstrate their agility and other attributes at BIAS 2016, Sakhir Airbase, commencing on January 21, 2016 — the first by any made-in-India aircraft. In the run-up to the aerobatics display, Asian Age news daily reported Thursday.
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12/25/2015
A new electronic warfare variant of the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation J-16 twin-seat strike fighter made its first flight on December 18, IHS Jane’s reported, citing Chinese sources.
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12/23/2015
The French military has ordered seven additional Tiger combat helicopters, which will bring their fleet of the aircraft to 67. The order, which is to strengthen the capability of French forces in air-land operations, was made to Airbus Helicopters by the French Directorate General of Armaments, or DGA, through the European Union's Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation.
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12/23/2015
India has sought from the US 100 latest unmanned aerial vehicles, both armed and surveillance versions, worth USD 2 billion to bolster its arsenal amid recurring incursions by Chinese troops. Industry sources familiar with New Delhi's interest and ongoing talks between the two governments, said that India is interested in the latest Avenger drones, which is basically an unmanned combat air vehicle, and is mainly being sought with an eye on China.
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12/23/2015
Speculation is rife about the defence deals likely to be signed during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Moscow. The front runners are S-400 ‘Triumf’ air defence systems, Ka-226 ‘Kamov’ helicopters, and Grigorovich-class stealth frigates. The lease of a second nuclear-powered attack submarine is also believed to be on the cards.
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12/23/2015
Christmas is a time for reflection, celebration and… buying really expensive gadgets which might or might not be obsolete in a few years. As Robert Farley noted earlier, several states in Asia are getting in the holiday spirit with the presentation of so-called “fifth generation” combat aircraft.
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12/23/2015
US F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-18 and Sukhoi Su-27/30 family of fighter jets are ranked most popular combat aircraft in the world. According to a report published by Flight International analytical center Monday, US F-16 fighter jet makes up 16 per cent with 2264 jets ranked at number one is followed by F-18 with 1,047 aircraft making up seven per cent jets around the world.
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12/23/2015
General Atomics drones have now amassed more than 2.1 million cumulative flight hours and recorded the highest mission capable rate of any aircraft in the US Air Force's inventory, Pace added. "With the delivery of these aircraft, GA-ASI completes over two decades of delivering Predator A capabilities to the United States and allied countries," said GA-ASI Aircraft Systems President Frank Pace said on Tuesday.
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12/23/2015
Philippine President Benigno Aquino on Monday promised that an 83.9-billion-peso ($1.77 billion) allocation for military modernization projects would be spent by 2017 as the country is in the midst of a territorial dispute with China.
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12/23/2015
In late November, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said that an aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces task unit deployed to Syria had entered by mistake the Israeli-controlled airspace over Golan Heights and left it. According to Yaalon, a communication channel established between the military of the two countries was involved to settle the issue.
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12/23/2015
Afghanistan expects to receive four Russian-made combat helicopters from India within days, an acting Afghan Charge d’Affairs to Russia told Sputnik. "The agreement to deliver helicopters from India is in place, it has been signed," Ahadzada Abdul Ghayour said. "The transfer of the four helicopters from India should take place in the coming days."
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12/22/2015
For the first time since World War II, the Air Force will use enlisted airmen as pilots. Rather than climbing into cockpits, though, they'll be seated at workstations in places like Beale Air Force Base north of Sacramento, CA.
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12/22/2015
Philippine President Benigno Aquino has vowed leave behind a stronger and a more capable armed forces to face maritime challenges in the South China Sea when he leaves office next year. Aquino, ineligible to run for re-election under the constitution, promised to spend about 83.90bn pesos ($1.77bn) in a five-year period until 2017 to strengthen the military as China asserts its claims to most of the waters.
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12/22/2015
The F-35 fighter, destined to replace the Cold War tactical aircraft of three U.S. military services and ten overseas allies, is ending 2015 on a positive note. An omnibus spending bill passed by Congress last week to fund government programs for the rest of the fiscal year added $1.33 billion for eleven more of the planes.
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12/22/2015
Afghanistan’s air force will be getting its first block of fixed-wing aircraft in early 2016, expanding the force's limited close-air support capability, defense officials said. The delivery of the first four A-29 Super Tucanos, a turbo prop light attack aircraft, will arrive in Afghanistan in January, and a total of eight are due before the end of 2016. A fleet of 20 will be in place by 2018, according to a senior U.S. defense official.
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12/22/2015
U.S. Air Force crews recently ferried two additional C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from the Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) facility here. These aircraft are a C-130J-30 Super Hercules assigned to Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas, and an HC-130J Combat King II assigned to Moody Air Force Base, Georgia.
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12/22/2015
Despite a ceasefire and peace talks, attacks have continued in Yemen between rebels and a Saudi-led coalition, which on Monday said it had intercepted a missile targeting Saudi Arabia’s southern border region.
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12/22/2015
China this month tested a new rail-car-mounted long-range missile capable of hitting targets in the United States, according to American intelligence agencies monitoring the test. A canister ejection test for a DF-41 missile mounted on a rail launch platform was detected December 5 in western China, defense officials familiar with reports of the test told the Washington Free Beacon.
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12/22/2015
The Turkish defense industry has successfully conducted a test of an armed tactical drone amid the country’s plan to launch a serial production of unmanned aerial vehicles with firepower, US media reported on Friday.
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12/22/2015
Moscow denies allegations its Aerospace Forces have used cluster bombs in the fight against terrorism in Syria, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.
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12/22/2015
In late November, the Indian Foreign Ministry told Sputnik that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to visit Moscow on December 24-25. According to the Kommersant newspaper, breakthrough deals in the military-technical sphere could be expected from Modi’s visit. The total package of contracts is estimated to be worth more than $7 billion.
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12/21/2015
The UK's Press Association reported on Saturday that British Typhoon fighters have been deployed for the first time in the mission to defeat Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. The U.K. on Thursday also doubled its combat aircraft assigned to the Syria and Iraq mission, adding two Tornado jets and six Eurofighter Typhoon combat planes to the base in Cyprus, where eight Tornado planes were already located.
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12/21/2015
New Delhi has given the green light to purchase several Russian-made S-400 air defense systems, local media report. Indian military could become the second country in the world after China to procure state-of-the-art S-400s.On Friday, the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) chaired by India’s Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar cleared the purchase 5 regimental units of the S-400 from Russia, the Economic Times reports.
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12/21/2015
There might be some red tape attached to junior’s favorite Christmas gift this year. The Federal Aviation administration estimates hundreds of thousands of remote-controlled drones will be given as gifts, and starting today many of them must be registered with the agency to avoid a fine and potential jail time. The Federal Aviation Administration requires all drones weighing a half-pound or more to be registered in a federal database to combat numerous reports of close calls with aircraft.
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12/21/2015
As it tries to sort out its strategy for the war in Iraq and Syria, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government faces the same question that bedevilled Stephen Harper’s Conservatives: What exactly is combat? That question came to the fore Thursday after Canadian special forces on the ground helped repel a blistering offensive by Islamic State (ISIS) militants in northern Iraq.
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12/21/2015
France-based contractor Dassault Aviation received its down payment from the government of Qatar for the delivery of 24 Rafale multi-role fighter aircraft. The contract for the jets was signed in May 2015 by French President Francois Hollande and Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Qatari officials say the contract represents a closer defense relationship between the two countries.
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12/21/2015
There is renewed hope in the aviation industry with Swedish defence major Saab offering to manufacture its fifth generation Gripen fighter aircraft under 'Make in India' with technology transfer to India, in a renewed bid for a pie in the multi-billion dollar worth IAF modernisation plan.
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12/21/2015
In late November, the Indian Foreign Ministry told Sputnik that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to visit Moscow on December 24-25. According to the Kommersant newspaper, breakthrough deals in the military-technical sphere could be expected from Modi’s visit. The total package of contracts is estimated to be worth more than $7 billion.
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12/21/2015
Sajjan is currently on a surprise visit to the Middle Eastern country and has met his counterpart Khaled Obeidi as well as several high-ranking Kurdish officials.
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12/21/2015
A senior Hezbollah official and about ten other people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a Damascus suburb on Saturday evening, Syrian and Lebanese media reported. According to Syrian and Lebanese media reports, Israeli warplanes struck a building in Jaramana, just outside Damascus, around 10.15 p.m. on Saturday, killing Samir Quntar and several Syrian civilians.
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12/20/2015
The Defence Ministry yesterday condemned the United States for committing a “serious military provocation” by flying strategic bombers over a Chinese artificial island in the South China Sea. Foreign Minister spokesman Hong Lei urged the US to stop provocative actions following the flight of two B-52 bombers over the area near China-controlled islands in the disputed waters, saying: “China takes the incident seriously, and has lodged solemn representation with the United States.”
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12/20/2015
The Airbus Group is selling its defence electronics in Germany and said a deal can be expected before the end of December 2015 as it will be finalising the buyer in a few days. According to strategy chief of Airbus, Marwan Lahoud, half a dozen candidates have been shortlisted for the final selection. The sale is part of its divestment plan to focus more on civil and military aeronautical and space assets, as defence spending is dwindling in Europe.
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12/20/2015
American planes had been striking savage ISIS on the Turkey-Syria border, when operations were allegedly stopped by the Russian missile systems. US officials accused Russia of using the opportunity to bomb rebels that US forces had been helping to the fight against the depraved death cult. The air defences have caused issues between the US and Russia – particularly as ISIS, also known as Daesh, don’t have any air force.
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12/20/2015
The People’s Republic of China: The only nation on Earth building not one but two “carrier-killer” missiles. Yet, China is also one of just a handful of countries who wants to build more carriers. Odd? Not exactly, if you know the history and why Beijing wants carriers in the first place.
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12/20/2015
India’s Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has slammed the Indian Air Force (IAF) for underutilization of operational capabilities of Air-borne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft purchased for INR 5,042 crore (US $760 million) in 2004.
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12/20/2015
Russian long-range warplanes have carried out 145 sorties against Islamic State targets since joining the country’s anti-terror campaign in Syria in mid-November. “In total, long-range aviation aircraft in Syria have carried out around 145 mission sorties, some 1,500 bombs have been dropped and about 20 cruise missiles have been fired," Gen. Anatoly Konovalov, deputy commander of Russia’s long-range aviation force, told Ekho Moskvy radio station.
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12/20/2015
The latest milestone in aircraft engine development that Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd unveiled, counted with its other helicopter engines project, may be two new tiny steps which, however, may be no match for the giant gap that exists for indigenous aero engines, experts in the field say.
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12/20/2015
The Russian military can "train" in Syria "for a long time without any serious harm to Russia's budget," Russian President Vladimir Putin said in his annual marathon press conference Thursday morning.
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12/20/2015
Unconfirmed reports suggesting that Russia plans to expand its presence in Syria, and rumors regarding a possible airbase in Belarus, have been swirling around in the Russian and Western media in recent months. How much truth is there in these rumors, and where is Russia's military power abroad really concentrated?
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12/19/2015
Russian warplanes are using an Iranian air base to launch attacks on anit-Assad regime rebels in Syria, according to a report. “The Iranian armed forces appear to be allowing Russian aircraft to use their military airfields in support of combat operations over Syria,” said a report by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) titled “The Russo-Iranian Military Coalition In Syria May Be Deepening.”
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12/19/2015
The Iraqi military said an airstrike by the U.S.-led coalition hit its forces Friday, the first time it has reported a friendly fire incident since American jets began bombing Islamic State militants in the country last year.
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12/19/2015
Contacts between the militaries of Russia and France on operations against the Islamic State (ISIL) group (also known as Daesh) in Syria will be maintained, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
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12/19/2015
As part of Russia’s anti-terror campaign in Syria, the Kremlin has deployed sophisticated air defense systems to protect its aircraft. According to the Pentagon, those units have effectively grounded US aircraft.
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12/19/2015
The French side agreed to reinvest in the Indian economy 50 percent worth of the contract on the delivery of French-built Rafale fighters for Indian Air Force, the Indian Ministry of Defense said Friday.
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12/19/2015
An agreement on joint Russian-Indian production of Ka-226T helicopters is likely to be signed either during or after the December 23-24 visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Moscow, a source close to the Indian Defense Ministry said.
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12/18/2015
Russian defense and aerospace equipment manufacturer Russian Helicopters says that,over the next two years, it will undertake comprehensive maintenance, repair and overhaul works on 41 Mi-8 T and three Mi-17 helicopters of the Egyptian Air Force at the country's main military industrial complex outside Cairo.
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12/18/2015
The rumble started early Tuesday, as one fighter jet after another ascended from a runway here near the Atlantic Ocean and into a bright, clear sky. The mission: Prepare for war against potential adversaries like Russia, which is now patrolling the same skies as the United States over Syria and flexing its muscles in eastern Europe.
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12/18/2015
Australian combat aircraft, special forces and training troops have contributed to operations which have killed about 1000 Islamic State insurgents in bitter fighting around the Iraqi city of Ramadi.
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12/18/2015
Only about 55 percent of India's military aircraft are in operational order, with a large number grounded due to technical issues according to reports. The surprisingly dismal state of India's military aircraft fleet was reported to a parliamentary panel by Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar in a notice, according to The Economic Times. This means just over 350 of India's 700 combat aircraft are cleared to take flight.
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12/18/2015
France-based contractor Dassault Aviation received its down payment from the government of Qatar for the delivery of 24 Rafale multi-role fighter aircraft. The contract for the jets was signed in May 2015 by French President Francois Hollande and Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Qatari officials say the contract represents a closer defense relationship between the two countries.
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12/18/2015
The U.S. Army awarded Lockheed Martin a $107.8 million foreign military sale contract to provide Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensor (M-TADS/PNVS) systems to the Indian Army, making India the 15th international customer for the M-TADS/PNVS system.
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12/18/2015
Russian inspectors will conduct an observation flight over the territory of Canada, under the Treaty on Open Skies, head of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center Sergei Ryzhkov said.
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12/18/2015
Deputy Chief of the Russian General Staff Ilya Makushev and UK Vice Chief of the Defense Staff Stuart Peach have discussed establishing channels of communication.
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12/18/2015
The United States will provide equipment to the Kurds in northern Iraq in an attempt to help take back the Iraqi city of Mosul from the Islamic State (ISIL or Daesh), US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said in a release on Thursday.
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12/17/2015
In a rare, official admission of the dismal state of the combat aircraft fleet, the government has admitted that at any given point of time, just over half of the planes in the air force inventory are in a state to fly, with a large number of platforms grounded due to technical issues.
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12/17/2015
Lockheed Martin has received a $302.2 million contract from the U.S. Air Force for continued production of the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM®) and its Extended Range (ER) version. The Lot 14 contract includes 146 baseline JASSMs for U.S. and international partners, 140 JASSM-ER missiles for the U.S., as well as data, tooling and test equipment. The award brings the total number of missiles under contract to more than 2,600.
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12/17/2015
The US Department of Defense announced that Lockheed Martin won a $215 million foreign sales contract to sell night vision systems for Apache attack helicopters to India.
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12/17/2015
Norwegian pilot training at the Luke Air Force Base in Arizona became the first pilot in his country’s air force to fly a US-built F-35 Lightning II multirole fighter jet, the US Air Force News Service reported.
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12/17/2015
Nevskoye Planning and Design Bureau General Director Sergei Vlasov said that he Indians refused to install Russian air defense systems on the Vikramaditya, but there is reserved space for Russian air defense systems.
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12/17/2015
Despite pledging not to put "boots on the ground" in either Iraq or Syria, military sources have revealed that the UK is preparing to provide air support and "command and control" resources to the recently formed Muslim nations' coalition against Daesh, also known as ISIL.
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12/16/2015
An Australian military surveillance plane has flown near disputed areas of the South China Sea, it emerged Wednesday, with the crew heard warning China's navy it was on a freedom of navigation mission.
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12/16/2015
The authoritative Congressional Research Service has just published a report asking the questions in the headline. It;’s a basic problem we’ve written about before. The Air Force faces a funding crunch in the next six years as the F-35 and the tanker programs ramp up. the B-3 (Long Range Strike Bomber) program gets rolling and the service keeps buying drones and C-130s.
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12/16/2015
Canada's foreign affairs and defence ministers insist there is "no pressure" from the Americans to step up Canada's contributions to the fight against ISIS, despite a letter from U.S. Defence Secretary Ashton Carter asking for more military contributions from its allies. "This letter is just the regular course of routine," Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan told reporters Tuesday.
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12/16/2015
The F-22 Raptor is a familiar sight in the skies above Hampton Roads. For the past two weeks, however, it hasn't been the only fighter jet up there. The United Kingdom Royal Air Force and French Air Force brought more than a dozen aircraft and 250 pilots and ground personnel to Langley to train with their U.S. counterparts. The training, named Trilateral Exercise, started Dec. 2 and extends through Friday.
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12/16/2015
U.S. fighter jets and armed drones scream skyward every few minutes from this sprawling air base in southern Turkey, flying deep into neighboring Syria on bombing runs against Islamic State targets. The intensity of the U.S.-led air war has increased sharply since Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed in September to let U.S. warplanes fly combat sorties from Incirlik, drastically reducing the flight time into Syria compared with using more distant U.S. bases.
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12/16/2015
India and the US will jointly develop a jet engine for the proposed Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project and participate in development of Electromagnetic Launch Systems (EMALS) for future aircraft carriers on government-to-government basis under the Defence Trade and Technology Initiative (DTTI). Joint working groups on both projects were reviewed by defence minister Manohar Parrikar and his counterpart Ashton Carter during the former’s four-day US visit this month.
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12/16/2015
With tensions high between Washington and Beijing, American defense officials claim that a Chinese submarine recently conducted a simulated cruise missile attack on the USS Reagan.
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12/16/2015
Defense Department spokeswoman Michelle Baldanza said that the US and Russian military chiefs discussed safe interaction of the two countries’ aircraft in the Syrian airspace during a phone conversation.
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12/16/2015
The Russian military will help coordinate efforts by the Syrian army and numerous armed opposition groups in the fight against Daesh, the Russian General Staff said Tuesday.
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12/15/2015
It was the first time Typhoon jets flew missions over Syria. Four Tornado jets launched the first air strikes on Thursday, hitting the Omar oil fields in eastern Syria. MPs backed United Kingdom military action against IS in Syria, by 397 votes to 223, after a 10-hour Commons debate on Wednesday. Across the border in Iraq, an unmanned RAF Reaper drone – flying close support for Kurdish peshmerga ground forces – destroyed an IS truck bomb with a direct hit from a Hellfire missile, the MoD said.
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12/15/2015
US Air Force pilots are flying the newest fighter jets in a virtual world. The military’s fifth generation fighter jet, the F-35 Lightning II, will be flown by the Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force. They are not expected to be deployed until 2016 but that’s not stopping Air Force pilots from getting ready to fly missions.
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12/15/2015
The Russo-Iranian military coalition in Syria may be deeper than many have believed. The Iranian armed forces appear to be allowing Russian aircraft to use their military airfields in support of combat operations over Syria. This development is remarkable: Iran is one of the most virulently anti-colonial regimes in the world, and yet it is allowing a former colonial power that had partitioned Persia with Great Britain to place military forces on its territory.
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12/15/2015
Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Navy recently completed the first Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) prototype captive-carry flight tests on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The flights were conducted at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland. These initial airworthiness flight tests used a LRASM mass-simulator vehicle attached to the Navy’s F/A-18E/F to evaluate flight and handling characteristics, as well as to measure structural loads and strains on the aircraft.
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12/15/2015
Lockheed Martin delivered the 32nd modernized C-5M Super Galaxy to the U. S. Air Force on Dec. 9. This aircraft was the ninth and final C-5M scheduled for delivery in 2015. The aircraft was delivered more than a week ahead of the contract commitment delivery date.
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12/15/2015
Saudi Arabia has set up an Islamic military alliance to fight terrorism, local media reported Tuesday, citing a governmental statement. According to Arabiya TV, the coalition consists of 34 countries. The joint operations command center will be based in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, the TV channel said.
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12/15/2015
"The first two Su-25SM3 aircraft must be commissioned in December. Both aircraft will be shipped for trials. One of them will be delivered to the combat operation and pilot retraining center in Lipetsk for performance evaluation," the source said.
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12/15/2015
The Free Syrian Army is ready to provide Russia with data indicating positions of Daesh terrorists in Syria, head of FSA intelligence, Gen. Hossam Awak, told Sputnik on Monday. "We have precise intelligence, documents, maps, and we can share them with the Russians so that their strikes on Daesh are more effective," Awak said.
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12/15/2015
Russia will continue deliveries of S-300 air defense systems to Iran through 2016, Vladimir Kozhin, Russian presidential aide on military-technical cooperation said Monday. "Iran is fulfilling its obligations on advanced payments, while we are fulfilling our obligations on timely deliveries," Kozhin said. The official added that the deliveries would take time and will most likely continue through 2016.
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12/14/2015
Embraer is set to shake up the competition to provide Canada with search-and-rescue aircraft as the Brazilian firm seeks export orders for its new KC-390. The CAN $3.1 billion (US $2.3 billion) search-and-rescue aircraft procurement has long been seen as a competition between Airbus’ C-295 and Alenia’s C-27J. But Embraer officials told Defense News the company will submit its bid in January when Canada requests formal proposals from aerospace firms.
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12/14/2015
Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday brushed off what a Germany magazine said was a request from the United States to provide more military help in the fight against Islamic State. "I believe Germany is fulfilling its part and we don't need to talk about new issues related to this question at the moment," Merkel told the ZDF broadcaster when asked about the Der Spiegel magazine report of the U.S. request.
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12/14/2015
Russia has an established reputation as one of the world’s leading exporters for military aircraft. A significant portion of Moscow’s defense sales comes from Asia, where most countries still prefer trading with Russia as compared to other global military equipment suppliers. It is worth noting that while Russia’s defense-related trade in Asia has been declining gradually as most states look to increase their own R&D capabilities or pursue new bilateral trade agreements.
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12/14/2015
The Israeli and US air forces have been conducting a dialogue over the past few months on Israel's procurement of a full stealth squadron. The stealth F-35 fighter aircraft can land vertically like a helicopter and take off on a 500 foot runway, sources inform "Walla." The F-35B stealth STOVL (short take-off and vertical-landing) model, manufactured by US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, is designed to land and take off from naval aircraft carriers.
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12/14/2015
Israel is in talks with the US about a possible acquisition of a squadron of F-35B fighter jets. Discussions over a new US decade-long defense package for Israel, starting in 2016, have expanded to include the possible acquisition of F-35B Lightning II short takeoff/vertical landing jets. The story was first reported by Walla.
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12/14/2015
India is finally getting set to launch an ambitious project to develop its own stealth combat drones or UCAVs (unmanned combat aerial vehicles), which will be capable of firing missiles and precision-guided munitions at enemy targets and then returning to home bases to re-arm for further missions.
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12/14/2015
Japan’s indigenous stealth fighter project is the ATD-X (Advanced Technology Demonstrator eXperimental) ShinShin (Spirit of the Heart), which is being developed with the Technical Research and Development Institute (TRDI) of Japan’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. The ATD-X project developed out of planning in Tokyo for a future fifth-generation aircraft to serve the Japan Air-Self Defense Force (JASDF).
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12/14/2015
India intends to sign an agreement with Russia for the purchase of spare parts for Su-30MKI fighter jets for the next five years. “The visit of representatives of the Indian Ministry of Defense is expected in the second half of December and we hope to be able to come to a positive solution and conclude an agreement as soon as possible,” representative of the Sukhoi holding told the Economic Times.
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12/14/2015
The Syrian Air Force intensified its bombing campaign of Daesh positions across the provinces of Homs, Hama and Aleppo, Fars news agency reported on Sunday. “The ISIL [Daesh] positions in Maheen and Quaryatayn in the Central Homs province came under several air attacks by Syrian bombers, inflicting heavy damage on the terrorists' sites,” FARS news agency reported citing sources as saying.
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12/12/2015
The Russian Defense Ministry has got within the 2015 state defense order 243 modern aircraft and 90 air defense missile systems and complexes, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Friday. "We received within the 2015 state defense order 243 modern aircraft, 90 air defense missile systems and complexes and 208 radar systems," he said.
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12/12/2015
The first top Indian official to board a U.S. aircraft carrier checked out flight operations and aircraft engines on the Eisenhower to take back lessons learned for the carrier India is building partly to offset China's rise in the Pacific. Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar, an engineer by training.
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12/12/2015
Although NATO ground combat operations in Afghanistan were officially declared over at the end of 2014, for the U.S. Air Force’s sole remaining squadron of F-16 fighter jets in the country the fight is continuing much like before. The 421st Expeditionary Fighter Squadron has been stationed at Bagram Air Field in Parwan Province for the past six weeks providing close air-support for Afghan and NATO ground forces in Afghanistan.
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12/12/2015
Russia has provided air cover to a leading Western-backed opposition group in Syria, President Vladimir Putin said Friday, calling for closer coordination with the U.S.-allied coalition — comments that may reflect Moscow's desire to narrow its differences with the West over the Syrian crisis.
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12/12/2015
Thermal management will be a critical factor in a brewing competition to replace hundreds of Lockheed Martin F-22s and Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, says a top Northrop Grumman executive. Releasing a new artistic concept of a so-called sixth-generation fighter on 11 December, Northrop Aerospace Systems president Tom Vice singled-out the critical but often overlooked quality of managing all the heat generated by ever-more powerful weapons and sensors anticipated on future combat aircraft.
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12/12/2015
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) delivered the 2,500th C-130 Hercules from its production line here today. This landmark Hercules is an HC-130J Combat King II personnel recovery aircraft assigned to the U.S. Air Force’s 71st Rescue Squadron, which is part of the 347th Rescue Group. A U.S. Air Force crew ferried the HC-130J to its new home at Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia.
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12/12/2015
Russian military experts will fly over the territory of the United States under the Treaty on Open Skies on December 12-17, head of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center Sergei Ryzhkov has announced.
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12/12/2015
A number of Western media outlets reported last week that Russia was planning to set up additional airbase in Syria. On December 9, the Russian Defense Ministry denied the reports.
"It is not true. If there was [intention to build the base], they would have announced it. And we would have announced it at the same time," Assad said in an interview to Spanish EFE news agency.
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12/12/2015
Claims by UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon that British Royal Air Force (RAF) sorties and airstrikes against Daesh, also known as ISIL, over Syria have made "a fairly impressive start" have been called into question.
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12/11/2015
Pakistan has been invited by the organizers of the upcoming Marrakesh Air Show being held from 27 April next year to showcase the JF-17 Thunder fighter jet it has jointly developed with China. The JF -17 is a lightweight multi-role combat aircraft manufactured at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) in Kamra, Pakistan. It can be used for aerial reconnaissance, ground attack and aircraft interception.
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12/11/2015
A group of MiG-31 Foxhound supersonic interceptor aircraft from Russia's Pacific Fleet Kamchatka-based naval aviation squadron has practiced air combat maneuvering at different speeds and heights, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement Thursday.
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12/11/2015
The photographs in this post were taken recently in the skies near Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. They show a U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor, a Royal Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon and a French Air Force Dassault Rafale, flying together during the inaugural Trilateral anti-access/area denial exercise scheduled for Dec. 2 – 18.
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12/11/2015
Despite a call from the U.S. defense secretary for allies to do more in the fight against ISIS, the Canadian government is refusing to confirm whether it will keep surveillance and refuelling aircraft in Iraq and Syria after the CF-18s are pulled from the mission.
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12/11/2015
US cooperation in engine technology was a top issue for Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar when he met US Defense Secretary Ash Carter Wednesday and Thursday in Washington, said an Indian Defence Ministry source.
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12/11/2015
By September of last year, President Barack Obama had had enough of ISIS. The terror group had beheaded two American journalists and was seizing strategic cities and territory in Syria and Iraq. "We will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country, wherever they are," Obama vowed, expanding his bombing campaign from Iraq into Syria as well.
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12/11/2015
The UK Defense Ministry confirmed on Thursday the intention to respect flight safety rules over Syria signed by Russia and the United States, the press service of the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement Thursday following the talks between Russian and British defense officials.
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12/11/2015
All the helicopters supplied to Bangladesh are equipped with modern navigation systems, which enable the aircraft to be operated at any time of the day and in any weather conditions, the company said.
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12/11/2015
Many Middle Eastern countries have expressed increased interest in Russian military hardware, including armored vehicles and aircraft, at the Gulf Defence & Aerospace exhibition in Kuwait, the deputy head of Russia’s state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said Thursday.
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12/10/2015
Germany stepped up its contribution to the fight against the Islamic State group on Friday, with lawmakers overwhelmingly voting in favor of sending reconnaissance jets, a tanker plane and a frigate to provide broad noncombat support to the U.S.-led coalition flying airstrikes against the militants. The move answers a call for help from France following last month's deadly attacks in Paris. IS militants claimed responsibility for the Nov. 13 attacks that killed 130 people and wounded hundreds.
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12/10/2015
Six F-16 fighter aircraft from the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) are taking part in a Joint Military Training (JMT) with four Su-30 fighter aircraft from the Indian Air Force (IAF) from Nov 12 to Dec 17. The bilateral exercise conducted at Kalaikunda Air Force Station, India, also involves more than 100 RSAF personnel.
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12/10/2015
Russia is known for exporting combat aircraft throughout the world. From the beginning of the Cold War onward, Soviet and Russian MiGs, Sukhois and Yaks have formed the backbone of many air forces throughout the world. This was partly due to old Cold War politics, where states were basically obliged to acquire military equipment from whichever bloc they were aligned with.
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12/10/2015
British forces have successfully executed air sorties from Cyprus against ISIS targets in Iraq since September 2014 — over the subsequent fourteen months of “Operation Shader,” Britain was just above France and the Netherlands and second only to the United States in total number of airstrikes against enemy targets. British press reports indicate that if Parliament approves the expansion, the Defense Ministry will double its manned combat aircraft numbers (Tornado and Typhoon fighter jets).
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12/10/2015
Russian warplanes have made 82 sorties, including 32 under night cover, in Syria over the past 24 hours, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Major General Igor Konashenkov told journalists on Wednesday. "Over the past 24 hours, Russian warplanes have made 82 combat sorties to attack 204 terrorist targets located in the Syrian provinces of Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, Hama and Homs," the general said adding that 32 sorties had been made at night time.
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12/10/2015
First, the United States has a problem—there are no bases in Iraq which currently support the coalition’s fast-jet fighters. The existing fighter bases which served us through Operation Iraqi Freedom are generally too close to the enemy or no longer in the hands of the Iraqi government. Fighters operating over Mosul in northern Iraq have to come from Kuwait, a carrier in the Persian Gulf or airfields in the Gulf states—a one-way trip covering 500 to 1,000 nautical miles, depending on the base.
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12/10/2015
?The U.S. Navy's flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, may be getting new planes. According to Flightglobal, the Navy wants to replace the existing F/A-18 Hornet fighters with the newer F/A-18 Super Hornet. However, the Blue Angels may be less than enthusiastic about the switch.
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12/10/2015
The United States is prepared to deploy advisers and attack helicopters if requested by Iraq to help it "finish the job" of retaking the city of Ramadi from Islamic State, U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday. Carter's remarks were the latest sign of U.S. preparations to intensify its military campaign against the group, which controls wide swaths of Iraq and Syria and has orchestrated and inspired attacks abroad.
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12/10/2015
Boeing delivered the fourth and final Peace Eagle Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) aircraft to the Turkish Air Force at Konya Air Base today, completing the Turkish AEW&C fleet and enhancing Turkey’s airspace surveillance and battle management capabilities.
This final aircraft includes upgraded software for the platform and the final element of the ground support segment, the Software Support Center. Previously delivered Peace Eagles will receive the upgraded software soon.
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12/10/2015
The Russian Defense Ministry has released a video of its first-ever submarine launch of Kalibr cruise missiles. The missiles, launched by the Russian submarine Rostov-on-Don from the Mediterranean Sea, obliterated two Daesh (ISIL) command posts in Syria.
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12/09/2015
An Afghan official says the Taliban have launched an attack at the airport in the southern city of Kandahar, where clashes are still underway. Samim Khopalwaq, the spokesman for the Kandahar provincial governor, says Tuesday's attack started with the Taliban targeting the facility's main gate. The sprawling Kandahar Air Field has both a military and a civilian section.
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12/09/2015
Something unusual happened shortly before Thanksgiving in the often fractious debate of defense priorities on Capitol Hill. Sixty legislators from both parties signed a letter to Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter complaining that the Pentagon is dragging its feet on replacing a small fleet of radar planes that could prove vital to tracking and targeting terrorists.
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12/09/2015
Russia has unleashed another barrage of airstrikes on Syria, including the first combat launch of a new cruise missile from a Russian submarine in the Mediterranean Sea, the country's defense minister said Tuesday. The Kalibr cruise missiles launched by the Rostov-on-Don submarine successfully hit the designated targets in Raqqa, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to President Vladimir Putin. The submarine was in a submerged position during the launch, he added.
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12/09/2015
Russia's top aircraft manufacturer Sukhoi is exploring the possibility of investing in an Indian joint venture (JV) for the maintenance and spares production of its combat aircraft Su 30 in what could make India a hub for the fighter fleets operating in the region. Atop Sukhoi executive told ETthat the liberalised foreign direct investment (FDI) norms have opened the possibility of a JV and the Russian manufacturer is in talks with Indian private sector companies.
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12/09/2015
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. announced this week the completion of a second test flight of a jet-powered unmanned aerial combat vehicle (UCAV) on November 23, 2015. the flight that took place on the US Navy test range at China Lake, CA involved a newly developed jet-powered drone developed by Kratos, and a US Navy/Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier manned jet fighter.
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12/09/2015
The Australian Department of Defence has awarded the AIR 5428 Pilot Training System contract to Lockheed Martin-led Team 21 to train the next generation of Australian Defence Force pilots. The initial seven year program is valued at AU$1.2 billion. Performance-based options for up to 25 years will provide the opportunity to extend the length and increase the value of the total contract.
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12/09/2015
A day earlier, on Monday, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter and his Singapore counterpart Ng Eng Hen signed an enhanced defense cooperation agreement, which includes the deployment of US Navy P-8 Poseidon surveillance aircraft to Singapore.
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12/09/2015
Seven of Russia’s advanced Mi-24 Hind attack helicopters and Mi-8MT Hip transport helicopters have been deployed to a Russian air base in Armenia, the Southern Military District (SMD) said Tuesday.
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12/08/2015
The tests confirming the flight characteristics of Russia’s fifth-generation PAK FA (Prospective Airborne Complex of Frontline Aviation) fighter jet have been actually completed, Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said in an interview with Rossiya 24 TV Channel on Monday. "Several planes are now primarily testing airborne avionics. The tests proving the aircraft’s flight characteristics have practically been completed," the deputy defense minister said.
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12/08/2015
The U.S. military alleged Monday that Russian warplanes were responsible for an attack on a Syrian army position in eastern Syria, an airstrike that Syria blamed on the U.S.-led coalition battling the Islamic State militant group in the country. The Syrian government issued a statement earlier in the day accusing coalition aircraft of carrying out the overnight attack in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour. The government said three Syrian soldiers were killed and 13 injured in the strike.
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12/08/2015
Votes by the British and German parliaments last week expanded Europe's role in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria, but analysts believe that the addition of European forces is more symbolic than a game-changer — and that European boots on the ground remain unlikely.
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12/08/2015
On December 3, just a few hours after a vote from the British parliament, the Royal Air Force flew its first airstrike on Islamic State targets inside Syria. The British have been bombing IS targets in Iraq since last year, but this was the first time — amid heated protests at home — they took part in the campaign over Syria.
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12/08/2015
Despite having opted for French and Russian fighter aircraft earlier this year, Egypt has reportedly expressed an interest in the Sino-Pakistan JF-17 Thunder. This has come as a surprise to analysts who had considered the possibility of Egypt acquiring the JF-17 to be lost.
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12/08/2015
Boeing has delivered its 14th Mk6 Chinook, completing the United Kingdom’s most recent order and growing the RAF Chinook fleet to 60 aircraft. The order completion coincided with the 35th anniversary of Chinook operations for the U.K.
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12/08/2015
Despite having no territorial claims to the waterway, Washington has fiercely contested Beijing’s construction of artificial islands in the South China Sea. To monitor the progress of those islands, the Pentagon has flown P-8 Poseidon surveillance planes out of the Philippines and Japan.
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12/08/2015
Foreign states are "lining up" to purchase Su-34 and Su-35 jets, which demonstrated their outstanding capabilities during the Syrian military operation, Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov said on Monday. "Today, military forces are receiving such advanced models as the Su-34 and Su-35, with characteristics equal to those of Western models,” Borisov said.
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12/07/2015
At the beginning of the 20th Century, Italy was a pioneer in combat aviation. Although different at the beginning of the 21st century, Italy has again emerged as an important player in military aviation. They are key players in the two key 21st century multinational military aviation industrial coalitions, Eurofighter and F-35, as well as establishing a center of excellence for pilot training along with introducing one of the best 21st century trainers, the Aermacchi M-346.
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12/07/2015
Joint warfare as a national way of war has become deeply ingrained in U.S. strategic thinking since the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986. Within the command structure of the various regional U.S. Combatant Commands, the Navy, Air Force, Army and Marines have become hardwired to fight joint military operations around the world.
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12/07/2015
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina handed them over to the Air Force on Sunday at the BAF Bangabandhu Base in Dhaka. The Yakovlev Yak-130 is a subsonic two-seat advanced jet trainer and light attack aircraft or lead-in fighter trainer. The AW139 is a 15-seat medium sized twin-engine search and rescue helicopter developed by Italy’s AgustaWestland.
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12/06/2015
Britain's defense secretary says U.K. fighter jets have targeted a Syrian oilfield during a second combat operation against the Islamic State group. Michael Fallon says the four jets from the British base in Cyprus bombed wellheads at the Omar oilfield in eastern Syria. Late Friday's operation, which aimed to cut off the militants' oil revenues, followed a similar strike the day before.
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12/05/2015
The Philippine Air Force recently enjoyed an assets upgrade after the recent arrival of new aircraft units. Two FA-50 Golden Eagle fighter jets ordered from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) touched down at Clark Air Base in Pampanga last Saturday. Weeks earlier, the Air Force also acquired an Airbus C295 transport plane and six AgustaWestland 109 attack helicopters as part of the military's modernization efforts.
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12/05/2015
The defence ministry on Friday said women would be inducted into the combat stream of the Indian Air Force (IAF) to fly fighter aircraft on an ‘experimental basis’ for five years beginning June 2016. “Government has accorded the approval to entry of women into the fighter stream of IAF on an experimental basis for five years,” the Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh said.
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12/05/2015
Having secured three extra combat squadrons a little more than a week ago in a strategic defense and security review (SDSR), Britain’s Air Force chief said that he has a plan to add a fourth unit to further boost air power. “We were destined to be down to six [combat] squadrons by 2020," the Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Pulford told an audience of senior military and industry executives at an Air Power Association dinner at the House of Commons on Thursday.
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12/05/2015
The Diplomat has recently been writing a series on the prospects of combat aircraft sales in the Pacific states. I’ve earlier covered French Dassault’s Rafale, U.S. Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet, and Sweden’s Saab’s Gripen. Robert Farley and myself have also written about the development and prospects for fifth-generation stealth aircraft in the region.
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12/05/2015
American F-16 fighter pilots deployed to Afghanistan say their mission hasn’t changed in the last year, even though the international military force here has transitioned to a more advisory role. The coalition might have declared that it ended the combat mission in 2015, but the pilots from the 388th Fighter Wing’s 421st Fighter Squadron are still flying round-the-clock patrols, and they are still dropping bombs on the enemy.
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12/05/2015
France has carried out reconnaissance and intelligence flights over Libya in the areas controlled by Daesh, also known as ISIL or Islamic State terrorist group. The French military plans to continue to conduct similar missions over the North African country, a presidential press document released on Friday said.
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12/05/2015
Russia has contacted the Canadian authorities over a website that has posted details about Russian pilots involved in counter-terrorism operations in Syria to request the information be removed, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department for New Challenges and Threats said Friday.
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12/05/2015
Russian multirole MiG-35 fighter jets will receive the latest platform-less inertial navigation system, the CEO of the Moscow Institute of Electro Mechanics and Automation, Alexei Kuznetsov, said Friday.
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12/05/2015
The German parliament (Bundestag) has approved launching a military campaign against Daesh terrorist organization, also known as ISIL or Islamic State, in Syria. The move was supported by 445 German lawmakers, while 146 voted against the anti-Daesh campaign, seven lawmakers abstained.
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12/05/2015
A former captive of Daesh, also known as ISIL/The Islamic State, French journalist Nicolas Henin has spoken out on the ways in which Western policies are not only ineffectual in fighting the terrorist group, but actually fueling its growth.
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12/04/2015
The Air Force has fired more than 20,000 missiles and bombs in the air war against the Islamic State, depleting its stocks of munitions and prompting the service to scour depots around the world for more weapons and to find money to buy them, according to records obtained by USA Today. The Air Force efforts come as the Pentagon has stepped up airstrikes on Islamic State, or ISIL, targets in Iraq and Syria.
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12/04/2015
Vladimir Putin has issued a stern warning to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as the war of words between the two leaders continues to escalate. The Russian president said Turkey "will regret" the downing of one of its fighter jets near the Syrian border last week, the BBC reports. Moscow has already imposed a range of sanctions against Ankara, including banning the import of certain Turkish goods and restricting Russian travel to the country.
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12/04/2015
Some U.S. congressmen have criticized China for what they say is a lack of sincerity in its pledge of non-militarization of the disputed reefs and islands in the South China Sea.
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12/04/2015
The U.S. Air Force's 71st Rescue Squadron deployed two HC-130J Combat King II aircraft in support of Operation Inherent Resolve for the first time. The fixed-wing, personnel recovery aircraft deployed with over 60 aircrew, support, and maintenance personnel. Flight missions for the HC-130J Combat King II aim to ensure U.S. personnel can be recovered quickly and effectively, avoiding isolation in hostile environments.
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12/04/2015
While military operations against the Islamic State group intensified this last summer, the U.S. Marine Corps quietly worked to bolster a key ally in the fight. During their six-month deployment to the region, troops from 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines worked side-by-side with Jordanian troops to train the kingdom's elite 77th Marine Reconnaissance Battalion and help stand up a brand-new, quick-reaction force.
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12/04/2015
Reinforcements to the British combat jet force fighting the Islamic State group departed bases in the UK on Thursday just hours after a parliamentary vote approved a government move to extend strike operations to Syria.
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12/04/2015
Even as it welcomed Britain’s decision to expand air strikes from Iraq into Syria, the Obama administration still finds itself responsible for the vast bulk of the international air campaign against Isis. In the aftermath of the Paris terrorist attacks, the US has been able to count on important support from first France, and now the UK, where parliament voted on Wednesday night to authorise air strikes in Syria after a dramatic 10-hour debate.
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12/04/2015
The move was already backed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Cabinet on Tuesday. In addition to the mandate to dispatch German servicemen, the Bundestag is also expected to approve the sending of six Tornado reconnaissance jets, a frigate and refuelling aircraft. German involvement is expected to be limited to support and reconnaissance.
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12/04/2015
A Russian Aerospace Forces' air regiment located in the Far Eastern Primorye Territory will receive three advanced MiG-31BM (NATO reporting name Foxhound) interceptor aircraft by the end of 2015, the country's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Thursday. At the moment the Eastern Military District's acceptance commission is completing the inspection of the jets at Nizhny Novgorod-based Sokol aircraft manufacturing plant.
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12/03/2015
Lockheed Martin demonstrated its ability to integrate unmanned aircraft system (UAS) operations into the National Airspace System (NAS) using its prototype UAS Traffic Management capabilities. During the demonstration on Nov. 18, the Stalker XE UAS provided data and a precise geolocation to the unmanned K-MAX cargo helicopter, which conducted water drops to extinguish a fire, while the UTM tracked the UAS operations and communicated with Air Traffic Control in real time.
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12/03/2015
Chief of Russian General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov has discussed cooperation in the fight against Islamic State (ISIL, also known as Daesh) with his French counterpart General Pierre de Villiers, the Russian Defense Ministry informs.
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12/03/2015
Members of Parliament voted 397 to 223 in favor of launching an air campaign in Syria. Following the approval, two Tornado warplanes and six Typhoon attack jets are set to take to the skies from British bases and begin their five-hour journey to RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the Daily Mail reported.
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12/03/2015
The United States shares the information on Russian flights in Syria with members of the anti-Daesh (ISIL) coalition under the US-Russian memorandum of understanding, US Air Force Chief Deborah Lee James said at the National Press Club on Wednesday.
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12/03/2015
During the last two months the aircraft of Russian Aerospace Forces launched strikes against 32 oil complexes and 11 oil refineries controlled by Daesh (also known as ISIL), Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov told the press.
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12/02/2015
Russia is setting up a second airbase at Sharyat in Syria expanding the sphere of its military operations in the region to contain and destroy Isis. Russia is also putting efforts into creating strong military posts that have both offensive and defensive capabilities, according to intelligence reports emanating from the US.
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12/02/2015
The United States is truly involved in a Long War. While the Army and Marine Corps have enjoyed long periods between combat operations, the Air Force and naval aviation have been continuously deployed for combat since the just after the Iraqis invaded Kuwait in August of 1990. Continuous combat operations have now stretched for twenty-five years, making our commitment to the Middle East the longest war involving a major Western power since the Thirty Years’ War, which ended in 1648.
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12/02/2015
Ten newly repaired MiG-29 aircraft were delivered to the 61st fighter airbase in Baranovichi on 1 December, BelTA has learned. The number includes eight combat aircraft and two training ones. The aircraft were sent for scheduled overhaul to 558 Aircraft Repair Plant in April 2014. The aircraft were fixed, the service life period was restored, and video registration of flight parameters for more objective control was enabled.
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12/02/2015
The U.S. Air Force operates an aged fleet of 500 Cold War training aircraft that are used to instruct young pilots in how to fly fighters and bombers. The planes average 44 years of age, and should have been replaced by something more modern, not to mention safer, a long time ago. But the Air Force’s plan for developing a next-generation “T-X” trainer doesn’t envision a replacement becoming operational until 2023, and most of the needed aircraft won’t be built until years after that.
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12/02/2015
Tensions are rising high throughout the Asia-Pacific. From the Indo-Pakistani border, through Australia’s controversial border policies to China’s disputes with its neighbors in the South and East China Seas, Asian states have been increasing investments in their military capabilities. In all these cases, having forceful and credible aerial assets is a crucial part of deterrence. This is reflected in regional defense spending.
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12/02/2015
As the U.S. Air Force prepares for initial F-35 Lightning II operations, pilots at Hill AFB are rehearsing missions with new simulators delivered by Lockheed Martin. Pilots are now training with four Full Mission Simulators linked together to hone their tactical employment of the F-35 against ground and airborne threats.
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12/02/2015
The U.S. Navy and Boeing recently demonstrated new targeting technologies that greatly enhance aircrew safety and effectiveness through the rapid integration and distribution of target information across multiple aircraft.
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12/02/2015
Greece scrambled its fighter aircraft on Tuesday to intercept a group of Turkish F-16 fighter jets that violated its airspace in the eastern Aegean Sea, the General Staff of the Hellenic National Defense said in statement.
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12/02/2015
The US Air Force has awarded Lockheed Martin a $914 million contract to upgrade F-16 Fighting Falcon multirole fighter jets for the government of Singapore, the US Department of Defense said in an announcement. "Work will be performed at Fort Worth, Texas, and is expected to be complete by June 30, 2023," the announcement on stated on Tuesday.
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12/01/2015
In May 2014, many South Koreans were struck by the discovery of three crashed drones in frontline areas that had been flown in from North Korea. Albeit crude, the small devices had taken photos of major military installations on border islands, potential infiltration routes and the presidential palace in downtown Seoul, kindling concerns over a potential security breach and lax air defense.
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12/01/2015
The Defense Ministry will allow females to be Air Self-Defense Force jet fighter pilots for the first time in its history, according to sources. So far, the ministry has barred women from becoming jet fighter pilots because of the physical and mental burdens. Behind the decision is a plan to demonstrate acrobatic flying by ASDF pilots —including women — at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
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12/01/2015
The Tomahawk Land Attack Missile has long been a mainstay of the U.S. strike weapon inventory. Launching from ranges out to 1,000 miles and armed with a 1,000-pound warhead, it is the Navy’s “Kick Down the Door” weapon, attacking well-defended high-value land targets. The BLK IV missile is the latest variant in a steady progression of capability, incorporating mission planning, navigation and guidance, and command and control upgrades designed to improve responsiveness and target flexibility.
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12/01/2015
Russia’s Sukhoi Su-34 fighter-bombers (NATO reporting name: Fullback) have for the first time taken, in addition to bombs, short-and medium-range air-to-air missiles on combat mission in Syria for their protection, spokesman for the Russian Aerospace Forces Colonel Igor Klimov reported on Monday.
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12/01/2015
The U.S. should conduct far more commando raids against Islamic State, say lawmakers and former defense officials who are pushing President Barack Obama to deploy special-operations forces more aggressively against the extremists. With the attacks in Paris putting new pressure on Obama to show progress in the stalemated war against terrorists, defense analysts are calling for an intensified campaign of raids to disrupt the group’s leadership, gather intelligence and build momentum.
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12/01/2015
As the Diplomat has noted recently, the Asia-Pacific has become an important market for modern military aircraft. Companies from countries such as France, Sweden, Russia, and China have been attempting to sell their platforms to a range of states in the region (see here and here for Beijing’s Asian aircraft bids). Several states, including Indonesia, Malaysia and India, are either planning to or are in the process of acquiring modern fighter jets.
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12/01/2015
Tension in the skies over Syria intensified Monday as the Pentagon confirmed that Russia is moving advanced surface-to-air missile systems onto its military base near the Turkish border. U.S. intelligence shows that Russia is following through on plans to send S-400 missile systems into its primary airfield near Latakia, a Pentagon spokesman said. With a reported range of up to 248 miles, the missile system could put at risk most U.S. combat aircraft flying over Syria.
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12/01/2015
The Philippine Air Force (PAF) plans to set up a working group to determine the appropriate choice of a Multi-role Combat Aircraft (MRCA). The PAF is looking for a specific model of multirole fighters that would best suit its needs, PAF spokesperson Col. Enrico Canaya was quoted as saying by Philippines Star newspaper after a ceremony to welcome FA-50 jets acquired from Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI).
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12/01/2015
The Philippines on Monday received two Korean-made fighter jets as it strengthens its underfunded military in the midst of an escalating territorial dispute with China. The Philippines bought 12 FA-50s from Korea Aerospace Industries for 18.9 billion pesos ($402 million), Reuters reported. The 10 other jets will be delivered in batches through 2017. Weapons for the aircraft will be purchased later.
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12/01/2015
Russia's Tupolev Tu-160M2, a modernized variant of the legendary Tu-160 supersonic strategic bomber, is expected to become "an entirely new aircraft," with all-new components more than doubling its effectiveness. Now, developers involved in the plane's modernization have announced that they will be installing brand new weapons control systems.
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