Military Aviation News Archive

China sends large group of military aircraft toward Taiwan

02/12/2022

The sorties consisted of 8 Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, along with three electronic intelligence aircraft on the Y-8 platform. Taiwanese officials said that their responses to the PLA sorties included the scrambling of combat aircraft, the employment of air defense assets to further monitor the situation, and the issuing of warning messages to the Chinese aircraft via radio.

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Fighter jet flown by military contractor crashes in Arizona; pilot OK

02/12/2022

A fighter jet operated by a military contractor crashed west of Phoenix Thursday but the pilot ejected and no one on the ground was hurt, a spokesman for the contractor and Air Force officials said. The French-made Mirage F1 crashed near Buckeye, a growing community about 30 miles west of Phoenix. Officials in the area and the Federal Aviation Administration were referring all inquiries to Luke Air Force Base in nearby Glendale.

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China’s Military Challenge is Real, and Growing

02/12/2022

China’s progress toward military superpower status continues to accelerate. It already poses significant air and space power challenges to the U.S., but its expansionist strategies also affect all the adjacent countries, both in southeast Asia and farther north.

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U.S. Backs $14 Billion Sale of Boeing F-15 Jets to Indonesia

02/12/2022

The State Department approved the potential sale of as many as 36 new F-15EX fighter jets built by Boeing Co. to Indonesia, bolstering U.S. ties with a key ally and Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. The proposed sale is valued at about $9.5 billion for the aircraft and approximately $4.4 billion for related equipment, according to a statement Thursday from the State Department.

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USAF’s latest sensor pod on F-15C Eagle achieves IOC

02/11/2022

The US Air Force’s (USAF) Air Combat Command (ACC) has announced that its latest sensor pod on the F-15C Eagle has reached initial operating capability (IOC). The infrared search and track (IRST) pod, known as the Legion Pod, is a sensor system that leverages infrared spectrum to help pilots to track enemy aircraft in radar-denied environments. The Lockheed Martin-developed pod also enables the pilots to identify and monitor enemy aircraft from extended ranges.

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Turkish firm offers combat aircraft co-production in RMAF contract race

02/11/2022

THE Turkish bidders for the hotly contested Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) fighter aircraft said they are offering Malaysia co-production of a new fighter jet as part of their offerings. Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc management said it will also provide technology transfer and is willing to cut its bid price by as much as 30%, in order to secure RMAF’s open tender for military aircraft.

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American F-15 fighter jets arrive in Poland

02/11/2022

American F-15 combat aircraft flew into the 32nd Tactical Air Base in Lask, central Poland, on Thursday to take part in Nato's Air Policing mission in the airspace of the Baltic states. Nato countries are supporting Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, which lack warplanes able to patrol their airspace. The mission is currently in its 58th deployment, with Poland contributing its Orlik contingent for the tenth time.

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Bangladesh Sizes Up Typhoons for Fighter Requirement

02/11/2022

Bangladesh has a requirement for 16 new multirole combat aircraft (MRCA) to augment and eventually replace its aging Chengdu F-7s and MiG-29s, and the nation wants to turn westward after decades of purchasing its fighter aircraft from Russia and China. The impetus for the shift came in 2015, with the appointment of a new Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Abu Esrar, who wanted to phase out the Bangladesh Air Force fleet of Russian and Chinese fighters and replace them with Western aircraf

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American bombers arrive in Britain

02/11/2022

B-52 Stratofortress aircraft, support equipment, and personnel from the 5th Bomb Wing, Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, arrived at RAF Fairford, England, today to execute a long-planned Bomber Task Force mission.

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Russian, Belarusian Aircraft Perform Joint Air Patrols

02/10/2022

Russian and Belarusian warplanes conducted a new round of joint air patrols amid simmering military tensions in Eastern Europe. The press office of Belarus’ defense ministry reported this week that Su-30SM fighters belonging to Russia and Belarus conducted joint air patrols in leader-wingman pairs.

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Denmark responds to Russian aggression in Ukraine, sends fighter jets to Baltic Sea

02/10/2022

The government decided on Tuesday to increase the Armed Forces’ readiness in response to “the unacceptable Russian military pressure on Ukraine”. This follows a recommendation from the Defence Command, the defence ministry wrote in a press release.

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Red Flag 22-1

02/10/2022

Maintaining strategic deterrence through multiple avenues, including intercontinental ballistic missiles and a bomber presence that is unmatched, Air Force Global Strike Command’s mission is the cornerstone of the United States’ defense. To maintain force readiness AFGSC and several other major commands throughout the U. S. Air Force participate in a multi-national training exercise called Red Flag.

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Spain to send four fighter jets and 130 troops to Bulgaria

02/10/2022

Spain will send four combat aircraft and 130 troops to Bulgaria to carry out air patrol missions amid tensions over Ukraine, the Bulgarian Defense Ministry said, Reuters reports. The first Spanish Eurofighters are expected to land in Bulgaria by the end of the week to protect the airspace along with the Bulgarian Air Force until the end of March.

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Dassault Signs Another Deal For Rafale Fighter Jets; Bigger Order Expected From Indonesia – French Weekly

02/10/2022

It said the initial order is undoubtedly small but is significant for the jet manufacturer since it provides a foothold in a country that had never purchased combat aircraft from France. French Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly may be able to secure a larger order for 30-36 aircraft during her visit to Indonesia on February 9-10, the French newspaper speculated. Last month, she had postponed her visit.

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Okinawa gov't requests US Marine Corps to cancel training using Ospreys

02/09/2022

The U.S. Marine Corps stationed in Japan's southernmost prefecture of Okinawa announced on Feb. 7 that it will conduct training using Osprey and other military aircraft from Feb. 8-13, and the prefectural government responded on the same day by requesting that the Marines, the Okinawa Defense Bureau and other authorities cancel the unprecedented large-scale training at the Naha Port Facility located in an urban area.

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Israel strikes Syria in response to anti-aircraft fire

02/09/2022

The Israeli military said it attacked missile batteries in Syria on Wednesday after an anti-aircraft missile was fired towards Israel during what Syrian state television reported was an earlier strike around Damascus. A military spokesperson declined to comment on the Syrian report of an initial Israeli attack near the Syrian capital which reportedly killed one soldier and injured five.

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Russian MiG-31K Fighter Jet Armed With Putin’s ‘Invincible’ Kinzhal Hypersonic Missile Deployed To Baltic Region

02/09/2022

As the West and Russia confront each other over the Ukraine crisis, both sides are mobilizing cutting-edge weaponry. However, Russia appears to have heightened the tensions by deploying A video shared on social media shows the fighter jet armed with a Kinzhal missile landing at the Chkalovsk naval airbase in Kaliningrad, sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania.

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Rafale-M Accident: French Marine Jet Faces Mid-Air Snag In Malta As India Evaluates Dassault Fighters For Navy

02/09/2022

It is said that the Rafale-m or Marine, which is currently stationed on the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, was rerouted to Malta on February 6 evening after the nozzle of the refueling probe came off and the fighter jet could not acquire enough fuel to return to the ship. A spokesperson of Malta International Airport also confirmed to The Malta Independent that a French Dassault Rafale military plane landed there at 19.30 on Sunday as it did not have sufficient fuel to complete its

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Jordan approved for further F-16 purchase

02/08/2022

The United States has approved the sale of further 16 Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft to Jordan, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 3 February. The State Department approval covers 12 single-seat F-16C Block 70 and four twin-seat F-16D Block 70 aircraft, as well as related equipment, weapons, services, and training for an estimated USD4.21 billion.

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How capable are IAF's multirole Rafale fighter jets?

02/08/2022

The naval variant of the Rafale jet demonstrated its operational capabilities at the shore-based test facility at INS Hansa, the naval air station in Goa recently. This comes against the backdrop of the Navy’s plan to procure fighter jets that it will operate from Vikrant, which is likely to be commissioned in August.

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Russian bombers fly over Belarus amid Ukraine tensions

02/07/2022

Russia on Saturday sent a pair of long-range nuclear-capable bombers on patrol over its ally Belarus amid spiralling tensions over Ukraine. The Russian Defence Ministry said the two Tu-22M3 bombers practised interacting with the Belarusian air force and air defence during a four-hour mission. The flight followed several similar patrols over Belarus, which borders Ukraine to the north.

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Is India Closing in on the F/A-18 Super Hornet for Its Carrier Fighter?

02/07/2022

A deal between aerospace giant Boeing and the Indian Navy seems likely, with the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet emerging as the top contender to supply the Indian Navy with twenty-six Multirole Carrier Borne Fighter (MRCBF) aircraft.

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U.S. troops arrive in Poland to reinforce Eastern Europe allies

02/07/2022

A plane carrying U.S. troops landed in Poland on Sunday, a Reuters witness said, as Washington reinforces its NATO allies in Eastern Europe amid a Russian military build-up on Ukraine's border. U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday ordered nearly 3,000 extra troops to Poland and Romania, as Washington moves to reassure jittery NATO allies.

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Red Hawk Fighters: Why US Trainer Jet Could Be The Most Sought-After Aircraft Over Rafales, Typhoons & F-35s

02/07/2022

The fact is that while modern aircraft are very capable, they are also extremely expensive and their technological sophistication is an unnecessary luxury for most countries in the world. In the past, the United States and the Soviet Union had aircraft which they could provide for free or at subsidized rates but that happy state of affairs no longer exists and the air forces of the west have not shown an interest in having export fighters or cheap combat aircraft. Yet there is a pressing need fo

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Canada sends plane with military aid to Ukraine

02/06/2022

A plane of the Canadian Armed Forces, C-17 Globemaster, carrying non-lethal military equipment departed for Ukraine, Ukrinform reports, referring to the Department of National Defense of Canada.

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