Special Purpose

Military Aviation News Archive

Jordan inks deal for 12 Block 70 F-16s from Lockheed Martin

01/22/2023

The Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) Command has signed a deal to buy 12 Block 70 F-16 fighter jets from the US in a bid to help modernize its aging air force. As announced by the armed forces’ official website, the deal was signed Thursday by Royal Air Force Commander Brigadier General Pilot Muhammad Fathi Hiasat and US Deputy Chief of mission in Amman Rohit Nepal.

RAF jets arrive in Nevada for major exercise alongside US and Australia

01/20/2023

A large Royal Air Force detachment of more than 300 personnel has arrived in the US to take part in a major training exercise. Typhoon and Voyager ground crews and pilots from RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Brize Norton have deployed to Nevada, together with ground support personnel from across the Air Force. Exercise Red Flag 2023 will see RAF jets join forces with combat aircraft from the United States Air Force, US Navy, US Marine Corps and the Royal Australian Air Force.

US, China ‘Mid-Air Scare’: PLAAF Is Using Fresh, Out Of College Fighter Pilots To Challenge USAF Warplanes – State Media

01/20/2023

Chinese fighter pilots fresh out of training college have been assigned to combat-ready patrol missions around the country’s southeast coast as the air force battles an increase in close-range surveillance flights by foreign aircraft, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported citing a CCTV report.

Ukrainian Super Puma Helicopter Crash Near Kyiv Kills 18, Including Ukraine’s Ministry Of Interior

01/19/2023

A Ukrainian H-225 Super Puma helicopter has crashed at 08:20AM LT on Jan. 18, 2023, in Brovary, an eastern suburb of the capital Kyiv, Ukraine. The building of the National Emergency Service was damaged with subsequent fire, glazing in a fourteen-story residential building and three cars. At 09:06AM, the fire in the building was contained to an area of ??500 square meters, and at 09:28AM it was extinguished.

‘Modernization plans of F-16s vital for Türkiye’

01/19/2023

Türkiye has to give importance to the modernization plans to balance the air power in the Aegean in case of Greece’s new aircraft projects, retired Turkish Air Force commander General Abidin Ünal has aid, adding that Türkiye should also rely on its domestic infrastructure.

Crashes behind the front lines hint at a looming problem for isolated Russia's Air Force

01/19/2023

Militaries expect to lose aircraft in combat, and even in peacetime there will be accidents when operating fast, complex jets, but a series of crashes by Russian combat jets may indicate that Western sanctions are cutting into Moscow's ability to maintain its warplanes. "Sanctions placed on Russia by the West could well be affecting Russia's ability to manufacture and maintain parts needed to keep aircraft safe," Michael Bohnert, an engineer and analyst at the Rand Corporation wrote in a Novemb

China’s J-20 Fighter Pilot Claims Flying Over Taiwan Undetected; Did Taipei Fail To Spot The Stealthy Dragon?

01/19/2023

China’s PLA Air Force (PLAAF) has recently stepped up its incursions into the Taiwanese Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). On January 15, Taiwan’s National Ministry of Defense (MND) stated that PLAAF had sent its fighters on at least seven occasions last week.While all the PLAAF fighter jets flying close to Taiwan are regularly monitored by the island’s Air Force, there may have been an instance when the service could not intercept China’s fifth-generation stealth fighter jet flying close t

S. Korea’s homegrown KF-21 fighter jet makes first supersonic flight

01/18/2023

South Korea’s homegrown KF-21 fighter jet flew at supersonic speeds for the first time, leading the way for South Korea to become one of only a few countries that have indigenously produced and flown advanced supersonic fighter jets. A KF-21 Boramae fighter prototype took off for its first-ever supersonic test flight on Tuesday at 2:58 p.m. at the base of South Korea’s Air Force 3rd Training Wing in the city of Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Admi

Air Force Moves F-16s from Europe to Japan as Ukraine War Lingers and Pacific Tensions Simmer

01/18/2023

The Air Force is temporarily moving fighter jets from Germany to Okinawa, Japan, after the Pentagon announced it was pulling older F-15 Eagles from Kadena Air Base in an attempt to bring more modern aircraft to the Pacific. F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, arrived at Kadena on Monday, even as the installation continues to slowly return its fleet of F-15C/D fighters to the United States.

Fort Wayne Air National Guard base converts to F-16 Fighting Falcons

01/18/2023

The 122nd Fighter Wing in Fort Wayne has been officially approved for conversion to the F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft under passage of the National Defense Authorization Act. The move sets events in motion to replace the 122nd FW’s 21 A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft with the F-16, a news release said.

Ukraine Eyes 93 Tornado Fighter Jets From Germany That Bundeswehr Is Replacing With F-35 Warplanes

01/18/2023

The Deputy Foreign Minister and former ambassador of Ukraine to Germany, Andrii Melnyk, appealed to the German government on January 15 to transfer 93 Tornado fighter jets to Ukraine, which are yet to be replaced by the F-35 stealth fighters. “I have a creative proposal for our German friends. The Bundeswehr has 93 Tornado multirole combat aircraft that will be decommissioned soon and replaced by F-35.

Saab scraps agreement with Adani to build fighter aircraft in India

01/17/2023

Swedish aerospace and defence company, Saab, which had entered into a partnership with Adani Group to manufacture the Gripen E fighter in India, said on Monday that it was no longer going ahead with that agreement. “We have decided not to pursue the arrangement with the Adanis,” said Mats Palmberg, chairman and managing director of Saab India, at a media interaction in New Delhi on Monday.

Japan and India hold first joint fighter jet exercise

01/17/2023

Over the next 11 days, Japanese and Indian fighter jets are taking part in an exercise northeast of Tokyo. The drills come amid growing concerns of China's military power in the Indo-Pacific region.

Striking Images Show China’s 2nd Aircraft Carrier Shandong & J-15 Fighters Performing Drills In South China Sea

01/17/2023

The images appear to be of an exercise conducted by China in response to the US Navy’s Nimitz Carrier Strike Group (NIMCSG) operating in the South China Sea, starting from January 12 for the first time during the group’s 2022-2023 deployment. The NIMCSG conducted maritime strike training, anti-submarine operations, integrated multi-domain and joint training between surface and air elements, and flight operations with fixed and rotary wing aircraft.

Why Asia’s arms race risks spinning out of control

01/16/2023

It’s an arms race bigger than anything Asia has ever seen – three major nuclear powers and one fast-developing one, the world’s three biggest economies and decades-old alliances all vying for an edge in some of the world’s most contested land and sea areas. In one corner are the United States and its allies Japan and South Korea. In another corner, China and its partner Russia. And in a third, North Korea.

Powered By US Missiles, Ukrainian Fighter Jets Could Employ Cold War-Era Tactics To Shoot Down Russian Drones

01/16/2023

There are two ways the Ukrainian forces could employ them, one for air-to-ground attacks and another for a World War II-era (WWII-era) tactic that could be used against airborne targets. The second way could be especially relevant to the threat posed by Iranian-made Kamikaze drones that the Russians are using very effectively to wreak havoc on the Ukrainian energy grid and other critical infrastructure.

Tehran expects Russia to deliver Su-35 fighters in two months says Iranian MP

01/16/2023

Russian Su-35 fighter jets ordered from the Kremlin by Tehran should arrive in Iran at the start of the next Persian calendar year (starts March 21), Shahriyar Heydari, a lawmaker who is a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Iranian Parliament (Majlis), has informed Iranian news agency Tasnim.

Top U.S. lawmaker objects to potential F-16 sale to Turkey

01/14/2023

The Biden administration has told Congress it is preparing the potential $20 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday, sparking an immediate objection from a senior U.S. lawmaker who has long opposed the deal. The State Department sent the informal notice to Congress on Thursday, three sources said, informing committees overseeing arms sales in the Senate and House of Representatives of its intention to proceed with the proposed deal.

HH-60W Jolly Green II combat rescue helicopter Makes First Combat Saves

01/14/2023

A combined force of deployed US assets coordinated to save two lives of partner forces outside the wire in the Horn of Africa late this last December. The force consisted of HC-130J recovery aircraft and Guardian Angels from the 347th Rescue Group, as well as HH-60W Jolly Green II combat rescue helicopters in their first real-world casualty evacuation operation in the African area of responsibility (AOR).

Indispensable Asset! US Navy’s F/A-18 Super Hornets, F-35 Stealth Jets Get New Facility In Indo-Pacific To ‘Hit’ China

01/13/2023

It would serve as a new training facility for US carrier-based F/A-18 Super Hornets and F-35 fighters to simulate aircraft carrier landings close to China. The SDF will also employ the site as a logistic and maintenance depot to defend Japan’s Nansei southwest islands. The ministry also intends to construct a runway, hangars, and pier facilities for ships used by the Self-Defense Forces. Although the development is anticipated to take roughly four years.

F-15EX Fires Air-to-Air Missiles From New Weapon Stations For The First Time

01/13/2023

The U.S. Air Force recently announced that, on Nov. 29, 2022, the two F-15EX Eagle II fighter jets delivered to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, launched air-to-air missiles for the first time from their new outer wing weapon stations. According to the press release, the 96th Test Wing’s pilots fired an AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile from Station 1 and an AIM-9X from Station 9 over the Eglin Test and Training Complex’s water range.

Russia is scared to fly its best jets over Ukraine in case they're shot down and NATO gets hold of the wreckage, expert says

01/13/2023

Russia is avoiding flying its advanced combat jets over Ukraine for fear of the wreckage from a crash giving away the plane's secrets, an expert told Insider. The Sukhoi Su-57, a modern Russian aircraft prized for its stealth, has not been a regular feature of the war so far, despite Moscow's efforts to hype its capabilities.

Ongoing headaches with F-35 fighter jets are rippling through the rest of the US military's combat aircraft fleet

01/13/2023

Years of delays, cost overruns, and technical glitches with the F-35 have put the Pentagon in a dilemma. If F-35s aren't fit to fly in sufficient numbers, then older aircraft such as the F-16 must be kept in service to fill the gap. In turn, having to extend the lifespan of older planes consumes money that could be used to acquire new aircraft and results in aging warplanes that may not be capable of fulfilling their missions on the current battlefield.

Germany to head up NATO’s high readiness force

01/12/2023

France led the force in 2022, and Germany is taking over this year. In February of this year, NATO deployed elements of the VJTF to Romania for the unit’s first-ever collective-defence mission in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Indian fighter jets welcomed in Japan with water cannon salute

01/12/2023

The Indian Air Force (IAF) contingent was given a grand welcome as it landed at the Hyakuri Air Base, about 80 km northeast of Tokyo, on Tuesday, January 10, for the inaugural joint Air Exercise between India and Japan that kicks off on January 12. A traditional water cannon salute was given to the IAF's frontline Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft, four of which are participating, along with two C-17s and one IL-78, in Exercise 'Veer Guardian-2023' to be held till January 26.