AVIATION FANS

As the end of the F-111 era draws to a close the long-range strike aircraft are still flexing their muscle as they take part in their final Exercise Pitch Black. Four F-111s from No. 6 Squadron RAAF Amberley, Qld are taking part in the exercise which commenced on 16 July. After 37 years, the iconic...

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LONDON: Steady demand from government civilian agencies is pushing the air surveillance market in Europe, especially for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), civil helicopters, multi mission aircraft and airborne radars. New analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Civil Security Air Surveillance...

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NEWTOWN, Conn.: Serbia is hoping to wrap up a study by the end of the year concerning which combat aircraft alternative will best suit its Air Force needs. The Serbian Defense Ministry is analyzing responses from producers of the world's fourth- and fifth-generation aircraft, seeking to determine...

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Alenia Aermacchi, a Finmeccanica company, has finalized with the United Arab Emirates two important contracts to provide the UAE Air Force with ten MB-339A aircraft in aerobatic configuration. The two contracts cover the upgrading and supply of MB-339A to the National Aerobatic Team (NAT)...

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SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas: Months of coordination, several temporary deployments, and a large parking space define only a few of the factors that fell into place to bring 13 newer-model F-15 Eagles to update the F-15 aircraft maintenance course here. The course currently utilizes A and B model...

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WASHINGTON: The Air Force undersecretary testified before the House Armed Services Committee July 22 about how Air Force officials are working with their Defense Department counterparts to control spending and transform business operations and create efficiencies. Also testifying were Elizabeth...

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Farnborough, United Kingdom: Pilotless drones, remote-controlled military aircraft destined to play a vital role in combat, took a high-profile place at the Farnborough air show this week. With unmanned aircraft already being used by NATO forces in Afghanistan for intelligence-gathering but also...

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ST. LOUIS --- The Boeing Company successfully launched a missile from the F-15 Silent Eagle's newly designed Conformal Weapons Bay (CWB) on July 14. Demonstration aircraft F-15E1 departed from Point Mugu Naval Air Weapon Station, Calif., at 5:59 p.m Pacific time, launched an inert AIM-120 Advanced...

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FARNBOROUGH, England: Approximately 285,000 spectators are catching a glimpse of the C-130J Super Hercules at the Farnborough International Air Show here July 19 through 25. Many people's idea about the U.S. military is fighter pilots putting bombs on target and fast-flying jets. The C-130J Super...

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FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: Pratt & Whitney was awarded a contract from the U.S. Government valued at approximately $145 million to provide engines to power the Royal Moroccan Air Force's new fleet of F-16 aircraft. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. company. Pratt & Whitney's...

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FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp. announced today that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Interior (MOI) has become the launch customer for the new S-70i helicopter. The MOI signed a contract to acquire three of the latest model aircraft in the celebrated Black Hawk helicopter...

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BRISBANE, Queensland: Boeing Defence Australia, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company, announced today that it has completed operational testing of its Vigilare network-centric command-and-control system (NC3S) for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). RAAF operators conducted the test...

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FARNBOROUGH, UK: AAI Corporation, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. company, announced today that Italy's Ministry of Defense (MoD) - Directorate of General Aeronautical Armament has selected AAI's Shadow 200 Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (TUAS) for the Italian Army. Under...

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HALLBERGMOOS, Germany: An innovative cutting edge AESA radar system, reconfirms Eurofighter as the most advanced aircraft available on the market. Eurofighter GmbH and Euroradar, together with their industrial partners, have begun full scale development of a latest generation Active Electronically...

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FARNBOROUGH, UK: BAE Systems is developing a brand new approach to manufacturing aircraft in order to meet the unprecedented one-aircraft-per-day eventual production rate for the F-35 Lightning II. An aft fuselage and a set of empennage units (vertical and horizontal tails) currently roll off the...

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FARNBOROUGH: In an annual look at the retrofit and modernization prospects for the Lockheed Martin C-130, Forecast International finds that the aircraft will continue to receive generous funding, even though its largest program is at risk of termination. With a total estimated cost of $4.6 billion,...

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LONDON: QinetiQ today announced that Zephyr, the leading solar powered high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) Unmanned Air System (UAS) has been flying for the past week, smashing a number of long-standing world records. Currently flying high above the US Army's Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, Zephyr...

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The Canada First Defence Strategy states that the Canadian Forces will acquire a next-generation fighter capability that will help them carry out their core missions of defending the sovereignty of Canadian and North American airspace through the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD),...

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LONDON, Great Britain: At the Farnborough International Airshow that took off today near London (Great Britain) Russian Helicopters rotorcraft-manufacturing holding presents its newest projects within the UIC Oboronprom display. Farnborough Airshow is considered one of the world’s largest and...

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With the increasing attention the ‘5th Generation fighter’ issue has been getting recently, aviation writer and analyst Bill Sweetman on his Aviation Week blog, has joined the debate, following on from the recent ‘What is a 5th Generation Fighter?’ article published in the latest edition of...

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