Aero Defence News: February 2014

Friday, February 28, 2014

Exelis to Supply Pakistan with More Components for Electronic Warfare Systems

Exelis has received $9 million from the U.S. Air Force to supply spare components for electronic warfare (EW) technology provided to Pakistan under an existing contract. The original contract, awarded in December 2011, granted Exelis $53 million to supply Pakistan with ALQ-211 Advanced Integrated Defensive Electronic Warfare Suite (AIDEWS) systems to protect the country’s F-16 fighter aircraft from radio frequency threats.

Recently, Jane’s Defence Weekly has exposed a true photo of China’s homegrown aircraft carrier that it claims to have obtained from Google.

US experts have checked the photo and found that the carrier is installed with an electromagnetic catapult, a technology that the US has just gained mastery and only uses it on one of its carriers, the Ford.

HJT-36 Sitara

Saddled with obsolete training aircraft, the Indian air force (IAF) has decided to snub the long-delayed, indigenous HJT-36 Sitara intermediate jet trainer (IJT) and purchase new trainers from abroad.

The IAF has issued a request for information for a lightweight, single-engine, twin-seat trainer with a secondary light attack capability, an official at India’s ministry of defense says.

“We have asked the vendors to provide cost details for the direct purchase of IJTs for batch sizes of 10, 20, 30 and 50 aircraft,” he says.

Click to see Youtube

The Textron AirLand Scorpion is a proposed American light attack and Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) jet aircraft. The aircraft is being developed by Textron AirLand, LLC, a joint venture between Textron and AirLand Enterprises, LLC. More in Wikipedia

Textron eyeing LAS contract? Perhaps it is Super Tucanos killer...

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Poland signs M-346 contract

Poland’s defence ministry has signed a €280 million ($383 million) contract with Alenia Aermacchi to acquire the Italian manufacturer’s M-346 advanced/lead-in fighter trainer.

Staged on 27 February at Deblin air base – the type’s future home with the Polish air force – the signing event followed Warsaw’s formal confirmation of the M-346’s selection earlier in the month, after the successful completion of in-country verification flights.

India hopes to put 272 Russia’s Su-30MKI fighters into service by 2018

The Indian Air Force’s backlog of orders for Russia’s Su-30MKI fighters, makes up 272. The fighters are assembled by India’s Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) that has received a license from Russia’s Sukhoi aircraft maker.

The Russian Air Force will receive nearly 20 new flight simulators later this year for training fighter and ground-attack crews, a military spokesperson said Wednesday. Training simulators allow crews to practice maneuvers in conditions as close as possible to actual flight, including group formations and combat exercises.

Pakistan buys a squadron of F-16 at third hand. Sounds familiar?

Pakistan will buy a squadron of F -16 fighter jets at third hand. This news looks up to a point with what happened in Romania in the last months.

The difference is that the Pakistan Air Force are using this type of plane for years and with the 13 jets bought from Jordan will reach a total of 76. A round number.

The planes that will be sold by Jordan to Pakistanis were received from the United States and are the type A / B. Some voices say that they have passed through the MLU programme, others say, on the contrary , they haven’t been upgraded .

China's first mass production J-16 fighter — with the serial number 1602 — conducted its first test flight recently, reports the Hong Kong-based Wen Wei Po, citing a photo revealed on a Chinese military enthusiast website.

The difference between the mass production J-16 and the prototype aircraft with the serial number 1601 is that the former does not have an airspeed tube. The number 0102 indicated on the engine intake of the 1602 also shows that the number of J-16s produced may be limited, the paper said. Meanwhile, it is possible that units of PLA Air Force or Navy Air Force may already be equipped with the some of the advanced fighters, designed based on the Chinese J-11, for operational tests.

Ayotte: Decision to cut A-10 'serious mistake'

Calling the Air Force’s decision to retire the A-10 combat jet a “serious mistake,” Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., is pledging to fight the retirement in Congress.

“The Pentagon’s decision to recommend the early retirement of the A-10 before a viable replacement achieves full operational capability is a serious mistake based on poor analyses and bad assumptions,” Ayotte said in a statement. “Instead of cutting its best and least expensive close air support aircraft in an attempt to save money, the Air Force could achieve similar savings elsewhere in its budget without putting our troops at increased risk.”

Governments and industry are in discussions over the fate of the final order of Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets for the four partner nations involved in the program amid Germany’s plan to end its purchases early.

The British, German, Italian and Spanish governments are in negotiations with industry over whether to go ahead with part or all of what is known as the Typhoon Tranche 3B order, an executive familiar with the talks said.

Su-33 or Mig-29K?

Su-33 Russian on Admiral Kuznetsov

As we see CV-16 Liaoning class spend more time training in the ocean, one of the often asked question is the choice of air wing. Now, we know that China can build flankers on its own, whereas it would have to purchase Mig-29K from Russia, so it would've been very unlikely that China would go with Mig-29K.

The hypothetical question is what if China had the choice of building both Su-33 and Mig-29K, would it have taken Mig-29K over Su-33? Or more realistically, why did naval flankers get picked over naval J-10? After all, both India and Russia have now picked Mig-29K as their naval fighter.

The J-20, China's prototype first fifth-generation stealth fighter, may have better ground attack capability than its US counterpart, a report from the Beijing Sina Military Network said after a photo of the newest version of the aircraft was released on the internet.

Judging from the photo of a J-20 with the serial number 2011, Sina Military Network said the electro-optical targeting system seen below the nose indicates that the fighter is designed mainly for ground attack. This is a similar design to American stealth fighters such as the F-22 and F-35. With stealth capability, the article said that J-20 can be a perfect bomber when used against a ground target.

Another prototype fighter J-16 can be seen flying. Say "Hello!" to 1612

Russian Air Force Receives New Stealth Fighter Prototype

A new advanced fighter jet prototype has been delivered to the Russian Air Force for testing, the manufacturer said Friday. The first T-50 “stealth” fighter had been delivered to a military airfield in Russia’s southern Astrakhan region for test flights, the Sukhoi company said in a statement.

The chief air force commander, Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev, said in December that combat squadrons could expect deliveries of the production version, known by its Russian acronym PAK-FA for future tactical fighter aircraft, in 2016 at the latest.

In the 1980s, you could see U.S. F-4 Phantoms or RNlAF (Royal Netherlands Air Force) NF-5 low overhead the road just outside the airport fence at Gilze-Rijen airport.

Nowadays, if you are lucky, you can have a close encounter with a giant airlifter leased by the Dutch Government to support overseas deployments.

The first low-speed taxi test took place on January 16, 2014, high-speed taxi test on February 18, 2014. The aircraft was seen to have a nosed mounted EOTS and frame-strengthened one-piece canopy similar to those of American F-35 plus a new frameless holographic HUD.

Germany Cuts Order for Eurofighter Jets

Germany’s defense ministry is planning to reduce its order for Eurofighter jets from 180 to 143, according to media reports on Thursday. National news agency DPA quoted “government sources” as saying that the ministry’s number two, Stephane Beemelmans, had informed parliament’s defense committee about the decision late Wednesday.

Stealth jet 'set for maiden flight'

China is said to be planning the maiden flight soon of the upgraded version of the J-20 stealth fighter.

A number of photos recently taken by aviation enthusiasts at an unidentified base, and widely circulated on websites that follow the Chinese military, show a prototype of the twin-engine, fifth-generation aircraft with the serial code "2011" painted on both sides of the cockpit.

UAC takes cautious approach to China Su-35 buy

United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) feels there is scope to sell the Sukhoi Su-35 fighter to China, despite lingering concerns about Beijing’s view toward intellectual property.

“We have a good opportunity to work with China on [the Su-35] despite the success Chinese industry demonstrated [replicating earlier Russian fighters],” says Mikhael Pogosyan, chief executive of Sukhoi parent company UAC.

United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) has dismissed media reports that New Delhi is unhappy with the level of technology transfer related to the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) programme.

“I believe that the level of transparency and technology transfer Sukhoi and Russian industry have demonstrated…shows a brand new level of transfer and is especially better than that of other companies,” says UAC chief executive Mikhail Pogosyan.

India Returns To The Good Old Days

On February 7th an Indian pilot landed a MiG-29K on the new Indian aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya for the first time. A Russian pilot was in the back seat to advise but the landing went off with no problem. Indian carrier pilots had been practicing on Vikramaditya size land air strips. This was not the first time a MiG-29K landed on the Vikramaditya.

That happened in July 2013 while the Vikramaditya was still in Russia undergoing sea trials. A Russian pilot handled those landings and takeoffs using the carriers "ski jump" flight deck. During the July operations the Russians also tested their Su-35 carrier fighter landing and taking off from the Vikramaditya.

Shipment of F-4 Phantom parts which originated in Binyamina was confiscated in Greece en route to Iran, Greek daily reports.

Israeli weapons smugglers tried to send fighter jet parts to Iran in violation of an arms embargo, Greek daily Kathimerini reported on Monday, citing the findings of a probe carried out by US Homeland Security and Greece's Financial Crimes Squad.

Su-35S advanced fighters from the Russian Air Force have recently been deployed to the Russia-China border region, even while Beijing is still in negotiations with Moscow on the purchase of a batch of the same planes, reports the Voice of America.

About 12 Su-35S fighters were received by the 23rd Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Russian Air Force, stationed at Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the region of Khabarovsk Krai, on Feb. 12. The Su-35S is currently the most advanced fourth-generation fighter in Russia, sharing many of the same capabilities as the T-50 fifth-generation stealth fighter. Like the T-50, all Su-35S are produced at an aircraft plant located in Komsomolsk-on-Amur.

Cope India: How the IAF rewrote the rules of air combat

The Cope India 2004 air exercise was a landmark in combat aviation, as it highlighted the innovativeness of Indian fighter pilots, the impact of Russian jets and the potentially fatal limitations in USAF pilot training.

Exactly 10 years ago, in the space of just 13 days, the Indian Air Force dealt a massive blow to the myth of invincibility of the US Air Force. At the Cope India exercise held at the Gwalior air force range on February 15-27, 2004, Indian pilots reportedly notched up an astounding 9:1 kill ratio against the all-powerful USAF, sending shock waves through the American defence establishment.

The WS-10H Taihang engine designed by Shenyang Liming Aircraft Engine Company is likely to be equipped with China's J-11BS fighter based on the Russian-built Su-27SK according to the Moscow-based Military Parade on Feb. 13.

Major figures within the People's Liberation Army Air Force have differing opinions about whether purchasing Su-35s from Russia really serves the interests of the Chinese military aviation industry, according to the Taipei-based Central News Agency (CNA) in an interview with Andrei Chang, a Canadian military analyst.

Current Status of JF-17

As PAC starts the production of second block of JF-17, it's good to take a look at where the project is right now. I won't go over the history of the project, since that can be found online or any of the many forums. At this point, PAF remains the only operator of JF-17. They have finished the production of the first block of 50 JF-17s out of the 150 they ordered.

India’s defence ministry has announced that delays in the entry to service of the Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) Sitara intermediate jet trainer (IJT) will require the Indian air force to continue flying its ageing Kiran Mk 1 trainers until 2017-2018.

In a statement, the ministry says the decision to extend the use of the Kiran was “due to repeated revisions in the timeline set for the initial operational clearance [IOC] of IJT, and also considering the present state of the project regarding induction of the IJT in the Indian air force”. The total technical life of the existing type will be extended to reach the new retirement schedule, it adds.

Tejas project to cost Rs 55,000 crore

The Tejas light combat aircraft programme will end up costing India well over Rs 55,000 crore at the very least. The overall developmental cost of the home-grown fighter, which remains a critical operational necessity despite still being in the making after 30 years, currently stands at Rs 17,269 crore.

Then, the production cost of each Tejas will conservatively be around Rs 220 crore. If as per the existing plan, IAF goes in for 120 fighters and the Navy for 50, it adds up to Rs 37,440 crore. The defence ministry till now has approved orders for 20 Tejas jets in "initial operational clearance (IOC)" configuration for Rs 2,813 crore for IAF, and another 20 in final FOC configuration for Rs 5,989 crore.

The aircraft entered service with the 23rd Fighter Regiment (based at the Dzemgi airfield, Khabarovsk Territory) of the Third Air Force and Air Defense Command of Russia.

Today Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, Russian Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Viktor Bondarev, Khabarovsk Territory Governor Vyacheslav Shport, President of the United Aircraft Corporation Mikhail Pogosyan and top executives of the Sukhoi Company attended a solemn ceremony of aircraft transfer at the Sukhoi Company’s branch — Y.A.Gagarin Komsomolsk-on-Amur aircraft plant, where these machines are produced.

UK keen to offer Eurofighter to India

‘’India’s Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) programme is one of the major attractions to woo FDI to the country’s defence sector.’’

A UK trade body has said that it still sees the potential of supplying the Eurofighter to India, which has postponed till the next fiscal its plan to buy 126 fighter planes from France’s Dassault Aviation.

Su-27 Angola Air Force

The Angolan Air Force will receive 12 ex-Indian Su-30 fighter jets from Rosoboronexport and not 18 as was previously reported, with deliveries scheduled to take place from next year.

On Wednesday Irkut Corporation president Oleg Demchenko told Interfax that the contract for the sale of the 12 upgraded Su-30Ks for the Angolan Air Force had been signed.

Pakistan to supply Iraq with Super Mushshak basic trainers

The Pakistan Air Force (PAF)-run Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) at Kamra, just north of Islamabad, signed an agreement with the Iraqi Air Force (IQAF) on 10 February to supply an unspecified number of its Super Mushshak basic trainer aircraft to Iraq: the first ever aircraft deal between the two countries.

Developmental cost of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas is Rs.7965.56 Crore * ($1.09 Billion) including building of 15 aircraft and creation of infrastructure for production of 08 aircraft per annum.

This compares with the developmental cost of JAS 39 NG Grippen is $1.80 Billion for developing 5 Proto Vehicles.

Russia’s air force will receive 21 Sukhoi Su-30SM multirole fighter jets in 2014, the Irkut aircraft maker said Wednesday.

“We have delivered 16 Su-30SM planes so far. An additional 21 aircraft will be supplied this year,” Irkut Corporation president Oleg Demchenko said at the Singapore Air Show.

Irkut and the Defense Ministry have signed three separate contracts on the delivery of 65 Su-30SM fighters by 2016.

IAI Unveils Larger, More Powerful UAV at Singapore Airshow

A heavy fuel version of Israel Aerospace Industry’s big-selling Heron UAV literally had the wraps taken off on the opening day of the Singapore Airshow Feb. 11.

Joseph Weiss, the president and CEO of the state-owned Israeli company, ordered a huge blue shroud to be removed from the Super Heron Heavy Fuel machine parked on the apron outside the company’s chalet in a ceremony here today to formally reveal the UAV.

Schiebel is in talks with the Vietnam People's Navy (VPN) to supply its Camcopter S-100 rotary-wing unmanned aerial vehicle, company officials confirmed at the Singapore Airshow.

Andrew Byrne, regional sales director for Asia-Pacific at the Austrian firm, told IHS Jane's that the company had briefed Vietnam about the S-100 and was planning to hold a multinational demonstration of the system's capabilities in the region later in 2014.

Russia’s third aerobatics team will comprise 12 Yak-130 combat trainer jets, the Irkut aircraft maker said Tuesday. According to Irkut president Oleg Demchenko, the company in December signed a contract with the Defense Ministry on the delivery of 12 Yak-130 aircraft to form a new aerobatics team.

Pakistan offers training to Iraqi pilots

Commander Iraqi Air Force General Anwer Hammad Amen Ahmed and Commander Iraqi Air Defence General Jabbar Ubaid Kedhum called on Federal Minister for Defence Production Rana Tanveer Hussain here at his chamber at National Assembly on Friday.

The project to co-develop Fifth General Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) with Russia and the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft and Intermediate Jet Trainer programmes have been delayed, Defence Minister AK Antony told the Lok Sabha today.

Answering another query, he said due to time overruns in the Intermediate Jet Trainer programme of the HAL, the Government has decided to extend the use of the Kiran-MkI trainer aircraft till 2017-18.

The Russian military has postponed tests of a high-endurance drone until an unspecified future date, a spokesperson for the United Arab Emirates company that makes the vehicle said Monday.

“All existing agreements will remain in force, but the Russian side has requested a delay in testing from February until a later date,” Tatyana Kirova of Adcom Systems said.

Can India Afford Eternal Delays in Critical Defence Deals?

Months of uncertainty on the purchase of the much awaited 126 Medium Role Combat Aircrafts (MRCA) namely Dassualt Rafale for Indian Air Force came to a naught with the Defence Minister A K Anthony stating it clearly that the deal cannot be signed in this financial year because of paucity of funds.

His statement, "Major procurement can only be possible in the next financial year. There is no money left," did create some ripples and raised questions as to why the situation has come to such a stage.

The United States may deploy its B-52 strategic bomber to defend Japan's administration of the disputed Diaoyutai islands (Senkaku in Japan, Diaoyu in China) in the East China Sea if China were ever to invade the islands, according to China's state-run Global Times, citing Japanese media reports.

The US B-52 bomber, the same aircraft spotted over China's air defense identification zone (ADIZ) last year, could potentially be deployed to the area once again to conduct strategic bombings against the Chinese from its airbase at Guam.

Kanwa: China's J-20 can't cut it as a fifth-generation fighter

Three years after the first test flight of the Chengdu J-20, China's first stealth fighter, the Canada-based Kanwa Defense Review operated by military analyst Andrei Chang, also known as Pinkov, says aircraft designers around the world are still questioning whether the fighter is qualified to be called a fifth-generation fighter or not.

Advanced Super Hornet with Conformal fuel tanks (CFTs)

The U.S. Defense Department’s upcoming fiscal 2015 budget request and long-term spending blueprint will lay out a unique and significant allocation of funds toward weapons systems prototypes and research and development (R&D) efforts, according to an official.

BK-3 is one of three OT&E/training aircraft that the UK has received

Financial approval for the UK's main procurement of the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)/Joint Combat Aircraft (JCA) is expected in the next three years, a government minister disclosed on 5 February.

First Indian MiG-29 Fighter Jet Lands on Vikramaditya

old photo January 2014 during testing

An Indian MiG-29 naval jet landed on a refitted former Soviet aircraft carrier Friday, marking the first such operation since the ship was delivered by Russia to the south Asian nation earlier this year.

“An exciting event took place today – the first landing of an [Indian] MiG-29 piloted by an Indian pilot on the Vikramaditya,” Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation vice president Igor Ponomarev told reporters at the ongoing DEFEXPO-2014 exhibition in New Delhi.

Some of the US Air Force’s most venerable aircraft will likely head to the boneyard in fiscal year 2015, victims of projected military funding cuts, budget analysts predict.

Lockheed U-2s, Fairchild Republic A-10s, McDonnell Douglas KC-10 tankers and Beechcraft MC-12 surveillance turboprops will likely be retired next year, says Mackenzie Eaglen from public policy group American Enterprise Institute.

A trick question: What was the most decisive weapon of the Second World War? If your answer, as expected, is the atom bomb, you are wrong. It was the B-29 Superfortress bomber that delivered it. Without the plane, the A-Bomb would have been only a novelty. The flip side of this question is: What was the most egregious policy failure of Imperial Japan (besides the surprise raid on Pearl Harbour)? It was the delay in developing its Nakajima G10N Fugaku strategic bomber with the range to hit American island bases in the western Pacific and the US west coast early enough in the war to make some difference. Often, the means of delivery are as important as what’s delivered.

Pages

Friday, February 28, 2014

Thursday, February 27, 2014

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Monday, February 24, 2014

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Friday, February 21, 2014

Thursday, February 20, 2014

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Monday, February 17, 2014

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Saturday, February 15, 2014

Friday, February 14, 2014

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Monday, February 10, 2014

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Saturday, February 8, 2014

Friday, February 7, 2014

Tags