Fixed-wing – Page 1283
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IAI Turkish F-4 upgrade will go ahead
Arie Egozi/TEL AVIV ISRAELI financial institutions have agreed on a funding package enabling Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) to proceed with the upgrade of Turkish air force McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantoms. IAI is also negotiating a deal to upgrade Turkish Northrop F-5s. The Phantom loan will ...
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Jordan signs F-16 lease with USAF
JORDAN HAS signed an agreement to lease 16 ex-US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16A/Bs from the USA, which will pay for the bulk of the $220 million deal. Most of the funds will go towards structural and engine upgrades for the aircraft, which have 25% of their 4,000h lives remaining. ...
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First production C-130J Hercules takes shape
LOCKHEED MARTIN has begun final assembly of the first production C-130J Hercules 2. The aircraft, the first of 12 stretched C-130J-30s for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), will join the certification flight-test programme, which has been boosted to eight aircraft to recover delays (Flight International, 19-25 June). ...
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Aermacchi proves Yak-130/AEM performance
Julian Moxon/PARIS WINDTUNNEL tests of the latest configuration of the Yakovlev/Aermacchi Yak-130/AEM trainer at the Italian company's Milan headquarters have revealed aerodynamic characteristics "similar to those of the latest generation of combat aircraft", says Aermacchi technical director for the programme, Pierclaudio Iaia. The Yak-130/AEM is ...
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Italian forces to get dedicated satellite
Andrea Spinelli/GENOA THE ITALIAN ARMED forces are to get their first dedicated communications satellite following the award of a contract to a consortium led by Alenia Spazio. The air force plans to have satellite communications available for at least five aircraft types, including the Eurofighter EF2000 and Panavia ...
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Elta will supply electronic-support-measures systems for RAF Nimrod
ISRAEL AIRCRAFT Industries subsidiary Elta is to supply the electronic-support-measures (ESM) systems for the Royal Air Force's new replacement maritime-patrol aircraft (RMPA). The deal to fit an upgraded version of the EL/L-8300 system in the British Aerospace Nimrod 2000 will be a consolation to Elta. It had ...
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The F-111 is dead: long live the Aardvaark
THE US AIR FORCE RETIRED the General Dynamics F-111 fighter-bomber on 27 July - but only after officially naming the aircraft the Aardvark, its long-time nickname. The Grumman-modified EF-111 electronic-warfare version of the aircraft will continue in USAF service until 1999, and Australia (the only other operator) plans to keep ...
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Pentagon reveals its advanced- technology-demonstrator list
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC ADVANCED AIRBORNE-surveillance projects are among 18 advanced-concept technology demonstrations (ACTDs) on which the US Department of Defense plans to spend $99 million in fiscal year 1997. The demonstrations were selected from 100 proposals submitted by the US military. The projects have been approved by the Joint Requirements ...
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New B-2 delivery
Northrop Grumman has delivered the first Block 20 B-2 stealth bomber to the US Air Force. The Spirit of Nebraska, a Block 10 aircraft, was upgraded to Block 20 configuration, with improved avionics, global-positioning system aided- munitions and terrain-following software. Source: Flight International
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S Korea acquires spy aircraft from Raytheon
RAYTHEON EXPECTS to earn more than $250 million from South Korea's decision to buy eight Hawker 800XP mid-size jet aircraft and four signal-intelligence (SIGINT) mission systems from subsidiary company E-Systems. The South Korean purchase of advanced airborne-reconnaissance systems also includes synthetic-aperture radars (SARs) from Lockheed Martin's Loral Tactical ...
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MDC/IAI team to sharpen Talon
Arie Egozi/TEL AVIV THE US AIR Force's Northrop T-38 Talon upgrade is to be undertaken by a McDonnell Douglas (MDC)/Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) team. The US Department of Defense favoured the Israeli company's F-5 Plus package over submissions received from six teams, including a Northrop ...
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Security alert
The TWA Flight 800 crash has caused the USA to look hard at its security measures. Some of the answers could lie in Europe. Chris Yates/MANCHESTER THE 17 JULY TRANS World Airlines (TWA) Flight 800 crash has forced the USA to review the level of security afforded ...
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Turkish air force receives locally built Block 50 F-16s
TURKISH AEROSPACE Industries (TAI) delivered the first Lockheed Martin Block 50 F-16 to the Turkish air force on 29 July under the Peace Onyx II programme. TAI has been producing F-16s at Akinci-Ankara since 1987, under an earlier agreement. To date, the company has delivered 152 aircraft locally and 46 ...
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US industry shapes up for new merger raids
Kevin O'Toole/London US INDUSTRY is shaping up for yet another round of consolidation in the wake of Boeing's announcement that it is to take over the bulk of Rockwell's aerospace interest. Speculation is mounting that McDonnell Douglas (MDC), which abandoned its own talks with Boeing ...
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Romania advances towards Cobra production
THE ROMANIAN defence ministry has signed a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with Bell Helicopter Textron, bringing licensed production of Cobra attack helicopters a step closer. The MoA, signed on 30 July, stipulates that the Romanian army favours the Cobra and supports its production in the country. ...
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Ruhe scrapes the barrel for Eurofighter funding sources
Andrzej Jeziorski/MUNICH GERMAN DEFENCE minister Volker Ruhe is hoping to find alternative ways to fund the Eurofighter EF2000 programme during 1997, to avoid further delays after Germany's latest defence cuts. Project sources say that the EF2000 is included in budget planning for 1997, although no ...
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ValuJet puts fleet on sale
VALUJET AIRLINES is trying to sell or lease the bulk of its McDonnell Douglas DC-9s and MD-80s. The low-cost carrier was operating 51 aircraft when it was grounded on 17 June, but plans to resume service by mid-August with a maximum of 15 DC-9-32s. The airline plans ...
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Military helicopters
PROSPECTS for civil sales are improving, but the military-helicopter market remains oversubscribed. India's Hindustan Aeronautics, with its Advanced Light Helicopter, and Kawasaki, with its OH-X armed scout now in development, are two of the more recent entrants. Kawasaki is also considering offering the OH-X to meet the Japan Air Self-Defence ...
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Thai massage
Thai Airways International is taking steps to smooth its wrinkled image. Paul Lewis/BANGKOK AFTER 36 YEARS of operation, Thai Airways International is facing a massive mid-life shake-up in a bid to rejuvenate an operation which has been showing its age. For many years, Thai was ...
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Saudi Arabians to buy SAR
THE ROYAL SAUDI Arabian Air Force (RSAF) is to purchase 12 Eurocopter Cougar MkII helicopters configured for combat search and rescue (SAR) in a deal worth Fr3 billion ($600 million). It is the first time that France has sold military equipment to the RSAF, and the first export ...