The A400M is a four-engine, turboprop-powered military transport aircraft whose first flight occurred in December 2009. The aircraft is powered by four Europrop International TP400-D6 turboprop engines rated at 11,000 shp each, and has a maximum payload capacity of 81,600 lb. Seven European nations are participating in the A400M program: Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, Turkey and the U.K. The seven nations intend to acquire a total of 170 A400Ms. Malaysia joined its European counterparts in the development effort in 2005, and will acquire four A400Ms.
The A330 MRTT is a military tanker/transport version of the Airbus A330-200 commercial airliner. The twin-engine A330 MRTT is powered by either Rolls-Royce Trent 700 or General Electric CF6-80E1 turbofan engines. Eighteen green airframes were produced for conversion through August 2012. An additional 12 are forecast to be built in the 2013-22 period.
The piston-powered CL-215 amphibian aircraft first flew in 1967, finding primary use as a firefighting platform, though the aircraft could also be used in other applications such as transport, maritime surveillance and search-and-rescue. Production of the Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CA3-powered aircraft ended in 1989, with 125 produced. A new variant, the Bombardier 415, is currently in production and is powered by PW123AF turboprop engines. Eighty-three 415s were built through 2012. An additional 31 are forecast for production in 2013-22.
The AMX is a counter-air and close air support aircraft powered by a single 11,030-lb-thrust Rolls-Royce Spey Mk 807 non-afterburning turbofan. Alenia and Aermacchi (then independent companies) initially pursued separate designs for Italy's required attack/support aircraft, but began collaborating in 1978. Embraer joined the team in 1980. The resulting single-seat aircraft made its maiden flight in 1984, with deliveries beginning in 1989. A two-seat trainer variant, the AMX-T, flew in 1990.
The Sikorsky CH-53 and MH-53 are three-engine, heavy-lift transport and special-purpose helicopters. They were initially developed out of twin-turboshaft models. Power for the CH-53E and MH-53E models is provided by three GE T64-GE-416 or -419 turboshaft engines rated at 4,380 shp and 4,750 shp, respectively. Sikorsky produced 177 CH-53Es, 48 MH-53Es and 11 S-80s (export version) through the end of production in 1999. In January 2006, the U.S. Navy selected Sikorsky to begin preliminary design work on the CH-53K, a new model for the U.S. Marine Corps.
Finmeccanica subsidiary, Selex announced today that it has signed a contract worth more than $53 million to deliver the Falco unmanned system to an unamed Middle East Country
Engine manufacturer GE Aviation plans to buy 500,000 gal. of biofuel annually for engine testing, beginning in 2016. The company uses more than 10 million gal. of jet fuel a year at its engine test centers. GE Aviation has signed a 10-year agreement with the D’Arcinoff Group to purchase synthetic jet fuel made from a combination of cellulosic biomass and natural gas using the Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process.
ANCHORED: Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert is appealing to Congress for more than $1 billion in investment dollars for this fiscal year. A current stop-gap spending bill and sequestration-related cuts put a dent in plans to buy Virginia-class submarines, leaves the Navy’s next-generation nuclear submarine $500 million away from its request, and removes the same amount from what is needed to finish current work on Ford-class aircraft carriers, Greenert told the Senate Armed Services Committee Nov. 7.
The 3G-like capability that will eventually be available to warfighters from the U.S. Navy’s Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) is U.S.-only for now, but the spacecraft’s legacy UHF payload will remain available for allied use, according to U.S. Strategic Command. The Lockheed Martin-built MUOS satellites feature both the Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) payload and Boeing’s legacy UHF payload flying on the military’s existing Ultra High-Frequency Follow-On (UFO) satellites.
Avic Engine, well into development of a technically conservative high-bypass turbofan, is pushing to replace affiliate ACAE as the supplier of a Chinese engine for the Comac C919 airliner. In doing so, Avic Engine, the main propulsion subsidiary of state aeronautics group Avic, is offering a more dependable and realistic way for China to accumulate early experience in developing, building and commercial aircraft engines.
PARIS — Paris is investing in a major upgrade of its nuclear deterrent force through 2030, with plans to modernize strategic submarine and aircraft fleets, missiles, warheads, communications networks and production facilities. Since the end of the Cold War, France has roughly halved its nuclear arsenal and eliminated the option to conduct land-based strikes. It now has 300 warheads in its stockpile.
LONDON — France and Peru discussed Lima’s plans to buy an Earth observation satellite in the coming months during an official visit by French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian to the Andean nation Nov. 4-5.
The top acquisition policymaker in the U.S. Defense Department says new, internal research shows the Pentagon has paid higher contracting reward fees for relatively poor program performance.
LONDON — Mobile satellite fleet operator Inmarsat of London says NATO and so-called “five-eyes” countries will have access to the military Ka-band payload on its new Global Xpress commercial communications satellites.
Key documents laying out the path to integration of unmanned aircraft in national airspace have been released by the U.S. government, but achieving the goals will require “predictable and reliable” funding for the NextGen airspace modernization program, cautions FAA Administrator Michael Huerta.
The tri-national Medium-Extended Air Defense System (Meads) achieved two successful intercepts in its second and last planned flight test Nov. 6, as prime contractor Lockheed Martin readies itself to proceed with a production program despite a lack of U.S. support going forward. Meads successfully acquired, tracked and destroyed two targets — one air-breathing and another ballistic missile — fulfilling two of the test objectives, says Marty Coyne, Lockheed Martin’s lead business development official for Meads.
Europe’s Selex ES has unveiled the BriteCloud expendable active decoy, designed to counter radar-guided missiles. Saab will be first to offer the decoy, as an option for existing and new Gripen fighters. The radio-frequency (RF) decoy is the same size and shape as an infrared flare and dispensed from a standard 55 mm flare cartridge. Qualification missions and flight trials still lie ahead, Selex says, with tests on the Gripen planned for 2014.
Bechtel Marine Propulsion of San Francisco has been awarded a $7.1 billion contract modification to a previously awarded contract for naval nuclear propulsion work at the Bettis & Knolls Atomic Power Laboratories. The modification represents more than the Navy spent for nuclear reactor work over the previous decade, according to an Aviation Week Intelligence Network (AWIN) analysis of contacting data aggregated by the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting.
The first requirements for civil certification of unmanned aircraft have been published by a European-led group of national aviation authorities. The airworthiness code is for unmanned helicopters with a maximum takeoff weight of 750 kg. (1,650 lb.).
U.S. and Indian naval forces are further strengthening their ties this month with the Malabar 2013 military exercises. With budgetary and other financial constraints cutting into funding for exercises, U.S. Navy officials say they must be quite selective about which ones they participate in, and they tout Malabar’s importance because of India’s position in the Asia-Pacific region.
DEFENSE CONTRACTING: With the Pentagon’s war chest under continued pressure, efforts to buy more with each dollar are all the rage. Frank Kendall, the Pentagon’s top acquisition official, will be discussing his latest effort at reforming the weapons-buying process during an 8:15 a.m. speech Nov. 7 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. After his speech, a panel of experts will speak including Pierre Chao of Renaissance Strategic Advisors, Jon Etherton of Etherton & Associates, Maj. Gen.
While the U.S. Navy fixes or devises plans for fixing certain high-priority problems on its Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), budgetary and related issues are causing the service to delay other repairs and changes identified by a Navy advisory group a year ago.
