Defense

India is seeking to build its military export trade, and its effort have caught the attention of China, its rival in such endeavors.

In brief: The cascading effects of Putin’s annexation of Crimea in the airline, aerospace and defense sectors.

It looks as if the F-35 could meet its key performance parameter requirements, but that is a narrow definition of success.

The plan to terminate the U-2 is reversed, reopening a debate at the Pentagon about high-altitude reconnaissance platforms.

The fluctuating price of oil affects every A&D sector to varying degrees, some much more than others.

The Pentagon is, once again, reversing its own position on which platform to use for its high-altitude reconnaissance mission – the venerable U-2 or Global Hawk unmanned aircraft.

Avinash Chander’s contract will be terminated on Jan. 31, 15 months ahead of schedule. A defense ministry official says Chander was removed because Prime Minister Narendra Modi is incensed by inordinate delays in various DRDO projects.

*EADS was renamed Airbus Group in January 2014 Source: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute

Military air safety officials have described as “unsustainable” a decision not to install an airborne collision avoidance system (ACAS) on the Royal Air Force’s (RAF) fleet of Eurofighter Typhoons.

The Belgian government has started a survey process to pave the way for a program to replace the country’s F-16 fighter fleet.

After canceling the Euro Hawk program in 2013 because of concerns about the UAV’s ability to fly in civil airspace, Germany may instead use a related Northrop Grumman platform, the MQ-4C Triton, as an airborne signals intelligence gatherer.

South Korea’s LCH-LAH civil-military helo program to decide between Airbus and AgustaWestland offerings.

In an effort to address potential pilot shortages in the future, NASA is conducting research on the operating concepts and ground stations that would be needed for single-pilot airliners.

Without integrity—people making and keeping promises—any initiative is bound to fail.

Aviation Week editors Graham Warwick and Guy Norris discuss with Joe Anselmo what the future looks like from the annual American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics conference.

Lockheed Martin is hoping that the maturing threat of hypersonic re-entry vehicles from ambitious adversaries will spark interest in the company’s dormant plan to design a more powerful booster for the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (Thaad) air defense system.

The U.S. Air Force has chosen RAF Lakenheath in the U.K. as its first base for the F-35A in Europe, and announced a significant upheaval in the USAF’s basing structure.

China regularly cites rising personnel and training costs as the reason for its growing defense budget; the buildup of a professional noncommissioned officer corps is a visible sign of such cost pressures. However, the country is investing in a broad program of advanced weapons development as it ratchets up military activities, in its “near abroad” and globally.

Agni V test is set to prove India can launch a ballistic missile from a canister, giving its nuclear-deterrent force a new level of road mobility.

Airbus’s advanced X4 helicopter, under consideration for the Japanese army’s UH-X program, could introduce Japan to joint development of arms exports.

SpaceX is the first company to undergo the new certification process with the goal of garnering work for its Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket.

The MRO assignments signal a path toward financial return for the partner nations investing in the F-35 program as well as progress in its maturity.

To address new and emerging threats, the Defense Department is finalizing its long-range research and development plan, focusing on technologies that are flexible and will not pose procurement and cost issues.

Boeing delivered 179 aircraft and five satellites in 2014, representing a relatively strong year despite continuing cutbacks in U.S. military and space spending.

The U.S. Air Force and SpaceX are now targeting midyear for full certification of the launch upstart’s Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket to loft the most precious Pentagon payloads into orbit.