October 31, 2019 Military Aviation News

JF-17 retains PAF’s top fighter slot at armament competition

10/31/2019

PAC JF-17 Thunder combat aircraft, developed jointly with China, reaffirmed its position as the front line fighter of the Pakistan Air Force after displaying exceptional performance at PAF’s Inter-Squadron Armament Competition on Wednesday. The most anticipated contest of the force’s operational year was held at Sonmiani firing range, said a statement issued by the PAF in Karachi.

Navy eyes converting amphibious assault ships into nimble F-35 carriers

10/31/2019

The U.S. Navy is looking to the past for a possible solution to its current aircraft carrier problems. Borrowing an idea employed in World War II, the service is seriously looking at retrofitting smaller ships normally used to transport Marines into battle. Instead of troops, the new “Mini Carriers” would have a squadron of F-35B Lightning II jet fighters.

Air Force: Northrop’s $3 billion B-2 upgrades lagging by almost three years

10/31/2019

Upgrades to help America’s aging B-2 bomber fleet detect and evade the improving air defenses of rivals China, Russia and Iran are running almost three years late and over budget. The service now estimates it will take until at least until September 2024 before eight of the U.S.’s 20 stealth bombers are upgraded to have an initial combat capability, according to an Air Force statement.

Lockheed Martin wins $25m contract for new F-35 anti-jamming GPS

10/31/2019

Lockheed Martin won a $25 million contract to start engineering and manufacturing work on a new version of its GPS Spatial Temporal Anti-Jam Receiver (GSTAR) which will be installed in the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter. The installation of the new anti-jam GPS is part of the most recent F-35 modernisation phase, called Block 4, says Lockheed Martin in a media release on 29 October.

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