Turkey wants to acquire Russia's next generation S-400 Triumph surface to air missile system, NATO codename SA-21 Growler, according to Rosonboronexport senior official Anatoly Aksyonov, news agency RIA Novosti reported.
With four aircraft now flying at BAE Systems' Warton aerodrome, and with the first four Royal Saudi Air Force pilots having completed training at RAF Coningsby, the Saudi Eurofighter Typhoon programme is gathering pace. A formal handover of the first aircraft is expected in the UK during June 2009. Jon Lake reports.
AgustaWestland has unveiled a full-scale mock-up of the TUHP 149 helicopter at the IDEF show in Istanbul. The TUHP 149 is the AgustaWestland candidate for the Turkish Utility Helicopter Programme (TUHP).
Major improvements to two Gulf nations' air transport capability are on the way, with both opting for packages of Boeing C-17 Globemaster IIIs and Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules. Alan Dron reports.
DEFENCE editor Jon Lake takes a look at the UAE Air Force choice for a jet trainer as it becomes the launch international customer for the Italian aircraft
EADS's former military transport aircraft division, MTAD has been fully integrated into Airbus, it was announced today. As a new Airbus business unit, 'Airbus Military' will be accountable for all military activities within Airbus. The integration and "Day 1" of the new unit - celebrated in Seville/Spain today - follows an EADS Board decision of December 2008.
Delegates at the Hawk User Group meeting in Muscat are believed to have been shown a new upgrade package for current users of the BAE Systems jet trainer.
Iraq has signed deals with the US and Europe to purchase dozens of military helicopters that will be delivered over the next two years, a defence ministry spokesman said.
US helicopter manufacturer Sikorsky has successfully demonstrated new technology designed to enable safer helicopter landings in blinding conditions including brownouts
The UK's new Sentinel R1 battlefield surveillance aircraft had a successful first deployment over Afghanistan according to reports from the Royal Air Force this week.
The Yemen Post has reported today that a Russian helicopter fired at a Yemeni fishing boat, injuring one of the four crew members. The boat was reported to have been outside of Yemeni waters in the Arabian Sea, according to Yemeni media.
Raytheon and Lockheed Martin are taking very different design approaches as they compete to address the Missile Defense Agency’s growing concerns about tracking and destroying multiple targets, even decoys, lofted by ballistic missiles aimed at the U.S.
Europe won, Boeing lost. Of course, politicians, labor unions, defense analysts, media stars and aerospace supply-chain leaders will argue for years about the impact of the KC-45A award. Not only in the U.S. but also in Europe. Everyone seems to be disappointed except for the Northrop Grumman/EADS team’s top executives. Moreover, they all are seriously overreacting, in an indication that they still don’t understand the true meaning of one magic word, globalization.
The first stealthy, short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing version of the Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter—the F-35B—will be rolled out this week at Lockheed Martin’s Fort Worth facility. Meanwhile, the F-35A conventional-takeoff variant has completed its 20th flight. Air refueling testing starts soon. Also, BAE Systems has opened a facility in Nashua, N.H., to produce electronic warfare systems for the F-35 and F-22. The EW suites detect, analyze, evaluate and react to the electronics on enemy sensors and missiles.
Lockheed Martin has tentatively scheduled initial flight of the first production F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter for early this week, kicking off a six-year, 12,000-hr. test program involving 15 aircraft in three different configurations. "We are on track to fly and the airplane is performing very well, as expected," says Doug Pearson, vice president of the F-35 Integrated Test Force. As of late last week, technicians were completing installation of flightworthy components in the airplane, replacing units that were approved for ground tests only.
The first images from the U.S. Air Force's new spacecborne strategic missile warning system are so far making good on the military's promise that they would surpass the quality provided by the decades-old Defense Support Program constellation.
Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Navy completed the Air Systems Critical Design Review (CDR) for the F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter on June 22, paving the way for the initial production process to begin. First flight of the F-35A is tentatively scheduled for 2009.
BAE Systems' decision to divest its 20% stake in Airbus is not good news for the European aerospace industry's future and cohesion. Moreover, it raises doubts about the British group's long-term goals. Will it remain a European player, or will it evolve into a Farnborough-based U.S. company?
