Fixed-wing – Page 1172
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UK invites private sector interest in RAF tanker replacement
RAF VC10s may be retired by 2004 if the economics are right The UK Ministry of Defence has issued a request for information to industry for a replacement tanker aircraft for the Royal Air Force. The move could lead to the private sector providing an air-to-air ...
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RAF Valley hosts private centre
THE FIRST industry-funded simulator centre to be established under the UK Ministry of Defence's Private Finance Initiative (PFI) has opened at Royal Air Force Valley in Wales. The Hawk Synthetic Training Facility has been built by British Aerospace subsidiary Reflectone UK. The centre opened for training equipped with a ...
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Lockheed Martin stays number one with Pentagon
Lockheed Martin has maintained its position as number one contractor to the US Department of Defense (DoD), newly released Pentagon figures reveal. The Maryland-based manufacturer saw the value of DoD contracts climb by $1.3 billion, to $12.3 billion, last year, with second-placed Boeing closing the gap, but still $1.4 billion ...
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Kazakh SU-27
Kazakhstan has taken delivery of four Sukhoi Su-27 fighters from Russian air force stocks and will receive 12 more later this year. In addition, S-300 ground-to-air missile systems are expected to be delivered. The weapons will defend the new capital, Akmola. Source: Flight International
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Independent risk assessment backs GPS navigation system
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC An independent risk assessment by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory has concluded that, with some improvements and augmentations, the Global Positioning System can be "...the only navigation system installed in the aircraft and the only navigation service provided by the US Federal Aviation Administration." ...
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F-16 and C-17 are big winners in Pentagon's FY2000 budget plan
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC The US Department of Defense (DoD) fiscal year 2000 budget plan contains several unexpected procurement decisions for the US forces. They include additional Lockheed MartinF-16C/Ds, Boeing C-17 transports and one Northrop Grumman Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (Joint STARS) aircraft that were not planned for ...
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Japan to develop medium transport aircraft
Andrew Mollet/TOKYO The Japan Defence Agency (JDA) is aiming to secure funding to develop a long-range, medium-sized transport aircraft to replace the Air Self Defence Force's Kawasaki C-1. It hopes to seek budgetary allocations from fiscal year 2000 for the project. The JDA declines to say how much ...
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Yak-130 trainer completes high alpha test flights
The Aermacchi Yakovlev AEM/YAK-130 jet trainer has flown at 41 degrees angle of attack, during recent test flights in Italy. The 30 flights, which ended on 31 January, expanded the aircraft's low-speed high-angle-of-attack envelope, as well as testing improvements to the aerodynamic configuration, and the high alpha safety of ...
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JSF concepts 'still relevant' says Boeing
Graham Warwick/WASHINGTON DC Boeing says its X-32 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) concept demonstrator remains relevant despite the company's decision to revise its design for the operational JSF. Programme general manager Frank Statkus says the delta-wing X-32s will still serve to reduce the risk attached to development of its JSF, ...
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Turkey orders S-70s
TURKEY has ordered 50 Sikorsky S-70 Black Hawk transport helicopters for its armed forces. The deal, worth $500 million, adds to existing orders, totalling 57 already placed. Turkey has also previously ordered eight S-70 Seahawk naval helicopters, Deliveries of the latest batch of S-70s will begin immediately and continue ...
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Turkey invites heavylift bids
Turkey is moving ahead with its longstanding requirement for new military heavylift helicopters with the issue of an open invitation to potential bidders to submit proposals. The army is initially looking for eight helicopters and has given competing companies until 10 February to respond. The Turkish Army's technical ...
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US Army revamps Apache upgrade programme
The US Army has restructured its Boeing Longbow Apache programme, cutting the number of helicopters being upgraded but doubling the radars being procured for the project. Originally, the US Army expected to remanufacture 748 AH-64As to the latest AH-64D standard while procuring only 227 Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman Longbow fire ...
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Criticism over MLU hits US fighter bid to Norway
Andrew Doyle/OSLO Lockheed Martin's campaign to sell NKr10.5 billion ($1.39 billion) worth of new fighter aircraft to Norway has suffered a setback, following the publication of a highly critical report on the mid-life upgrade (MLU) programme for the country's fleet of F-16s. The report, compiled by Norway's general audit office ...
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GE renews F110 push for F-15E
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES General Electric is stepping up its campaign to equip the Boeing F-15E with its F110-129 engine following the completion of an extensive field service evaluation (FSE) with the US Air Force. The move comes despite an initial rejection by the USAF of an unsolicited offer of an ...
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A long and difficult development
Peter La Franchi/CANBERRA After eight years of development, a 20-month long Parliamentary inquiry into delays, and at a cost of more than A$1.7 billion ($1.06 billion), Australia's Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN) is scheduled to come on line progressively over the next 30 months. A fully functioning system ...
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Deep range vision
Peter La Franchi/CANBERRA Toward the end of last year, the Royal Australian Air Force undertook a low-key but highly significant restructuring of its operational Air Command, to bring into being what is now designated the Surveillance and Control Group. Planned as the home of Australia's future airborne early warning and ...
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UK ministers to decide on ASTOR next month
The UK is on the threshold of choosing an Airborne Stand off Radar System (ASTOR), the culmination of a procurement process that began with initial studies almost 20 years ago. The five-aircraft ASTOR programme is under assessment by senior service chiefs and is scheduled to be passed to the ...
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Dutch plan air force cuts
The Netherlands armed forces face significant cuts, including the retirement of Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters, P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft and Fokker F-27 transports, but will gain new helicopters and a theatre missile defence capability. The changes stem from a memorandum published on 25 January by the Dutch Ministry of ...
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Cubic wins RAAF training range project
Cubic Defense Systems has been chosen as preferred contractor for the development of a fully instrumented air combat training and electronic warfare system evaluation range for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). However, no contract negotiations are expected before late this year due to significant cost increases associated with ...
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UK carrier concept awaits fighter decision
Howard Gethin/LONDON The UK Ministry of Defence has opened a contest for the contract worth up to £1.48 billion ($2.44 billion) to build two aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy. Invitations to tender have been issued to six potential prime contractors: British Aerospace Defence Systems, Marconi Electronic Systems, Boeing, Lockheed ...