Fixed-wing – Page 1257
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Pentagon to hold talks with Europe on UAVs
The US Department of Defense (DoD) is to hold talks in April with France, Germany and the UK over possible involvement in the next phases of the high-altitude-endurance unmanned air vehicle (HAE UAV) and other programmes now being pursued under its new advanced-concept-technology demonstration (ACTD) initiative. Paul Kaminski, ...
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Advanced Flanker future hinges on export
The future of the Sukhoi Su-27M (Su-35) advanced variant of the Su-27 Flanker has become dependent on the design bureau securing an export order for the aircraft following the effective collapse of Russian air force funding for the project. According to Moscow sources, state finance for the development ...
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RAAF seeks initial funding for 707 tanker upgrade
The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is hoping to secure initial funding in financial year 1998/9 to replace or upgrade its fleet of Boeing 707-300 tankers. According to local defence sources, Australia wants to advance its tanker replacement into the next five-year procurement cycle, because of rising concern ...
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Mergers mould shape of US industry
The frenetic pace of merger and acquisition activity has again reshaped the league of US manufacturers for 1996 and more is expected this year, as the spate of big deals causes reverberations among the second tier of aerospace and defence companies. As expected, Lockheed Martin emerges as the ...
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BAe buys balance of USA's Reflectone
BRITISH AEROSPACE IS to acquire the balance of US simulator manufacturer Reflectone. The UK firm already owns 48% of the Tampa, Florida-based company, and has agreed to pay roughly $86 million for the outstanding stock. Reflectone president Richard Snyder says that the company's management is "strongly in favour" ...
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Litton smartens UH-60
Litton's Guidance and Control Systems division is to retrofit an initial four US National Guard Sikorsky UH-60A helicopters with cockpit smart multi-function displays (SMFDs). Woodland Hills, California-based Litton says that the SMFDs could be fitted to up to 83 more aircraft, with the aircraft reconfigured as UH-60Qs for battlefield medical- ...
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Hughes wins F-22 pilot training contract
HUGHES TRAINING has been selected to supply pilot-training devices for the Lockheed Martin/Boeing F-22 fighter. Hughes was the only bidder for the contract, after potential rival Loral was acquired by Lockheed Martin. Boeing has awarded Hughes a $28 million contract to supply a suite of training devices by ...
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RAF considers longer lives for Hawk advanced trainers
Back to Warton for a refit before 2008? Douglas Barrie/LONDON Guy Norris/Los Angeles The Royal Air Force is examining a life-extension programme for its British Aerospace Hawk trainers, with BAe also looking at the possibility of addressing any emerging requirement with a re-engined aircraft fitted with a digital cockpit. The ...
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Dutch investigate infra-red signature of NH90
The Dutch National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR) has carried out windtunnel testing of a model of the NH Industries NH90 helicopter, aimed at evaluating the aircraft's infra-red signature during a range of flight conditions. The tests provided data on engine air-intake characteristics and exhaust- gas recirculation, while simulating the aircraft in ...
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Air-force fighter competition heats up as bidders jostle
International competition to win a pending Philippine air force order for 18 fighter aircraft is intensifying, with the number of potential contenders and proposals continuing to lengthen. The air force has been given a range of industry briefings and presentations on at least nine different European, Israeli, Russian ...
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Navy pushes for ASuW helicopter
The Philippines is expected to give priority to the acquisition of new naval helicopters over competing claims for funding from the air force for replacement search-and-research (SAR) and heavylift machines. Increased concern over Chinese encroachment of the South China Sea Spratly Islands and the need to enforce the ...
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Speaking the language
Sir - Invited, a few decades ago, by Sud-Aviation to visit its Suresnes factory where Alouette helicopters were manufactured for the Royal Netherlands Air Force, I went inside one for inspection. I discovered that the instrument panel (and the handbook) was in French. My hosts refused to believe ...
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Congress budget watchdog doubts whether USA can afford new fighters
THE US Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has warned that the Department of Defense cannot afford the planned number of McDonnell Douglas F-18E/Fs, Lockheed Martin/ Boeing F-22s and Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs) without doubling the proportion of its budget which is traditionally spent on new tactical aircraft. The CBO ...
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Turkey signs up for further 30 Cougars
The Turkish Government has signed a contract for the purchase of 30 Eurocopter Cougar Mk1s, coupled with an agreement on local production. The contract, worth Fr2.5 billion ($434 million), covers ten AS532-ULs for the Turkish army, complementing the 20 ordered at the end of 1993, plus 20 AS532-ALs ...
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US DoD drives to enhance JDAM accuracy
The US Department of Defense(DoD) has re-instated an effort to enhance the performance of the McDonnell Douglas (MDC) Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), despite test results showing that the weapon exceeds the required accuracy by one-third. The original JDAM product-improvement programme (PIP) to increase accuracy down to 3m ...
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Israel selects Elta
The Israeli defence forces will equip front-line units with the Elta EL/M-2129 movement-detection radar which is capable of identifying low-flying helicopters. According to Elta, the system is capable of detecting low-flying helicopters from a range of 11 km (6nm). Up to 60 targets can be tracked simultaneously. Source: ...
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Australia offers cash incentive to hang on to military aircrew
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has re-instated and boosted its pilot-retention bonus, to try to stem annual wastage of trained military pilots. Defence-industry, science and personnel minister Bronwyn Bishop says that the figure of 33 pilots who left the three services in 1991, when the previous scheme was ...
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Doubts surround Georgian Su-25 order
Reports that Georgia has ordered up to 50 Sukhoi Su-25T Frogfoot attack aircraft are being greeted with scepticism by senior Sukhoi officials, who question the country's ability to finance the aircraft which are priced at $16-17 million each. Newspaper reports quote Mikhail Tskhadaya, deputy director of the Tbilisi ...
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Omega Air to launch 707 re-engineing with JT8Ds
Omega Air has signed an agreement with Pratt & Whitney about the re-engineing of its Boeing 707-320 fleet with P&W JT8D-200 engines. The Omega leasing company is the major partner in the US-based consortium "7Q7", which plans to certificate the JT8D-powered version in 1998. Omega, based in Dublin, ...
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USAF despatches 30-strong force to Qatar
A US Air Force detachment of 12 McDonnell Douglas (MDC) F-15Es and 18 Lockheed Martin F-16s was due to be deployed to Qatar in mid-February to support Operation Southern Watch, the US-led effort to enforce the no-fly-zone over Iraq. The USAF's 4th Air Expeditionary Wing (AEW) includes Strike ...