Fixed-wing – Page 1305
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Chromed Gripen
Saab Dynamics is investing £35,000 ($54,000) in a precision hard-chrome coating facility, for parts of the flight-control-actuator system of the JAS39 Gripen fighter aircraft. It is being provided by Southampton UK-based Poeton Coating Technology part of Poeton Group. Source: Flight International
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NH90 has first flight
THE FIRST of five Eurocopter NH90 prototypes had a successful 40min maiden flight from the company's Marignane site near Marseilles, France on 18 December. The first aircraft, PT1, was flown by test pilots Philippe Boutry and Guy Dabadie, and is the first of three NH90 prototypes to be built by ...
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UK and USA sign JAST MoU
Douglas Barrie/LONDON Graham Warwick/ATLANTA THE UK AND USA signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on 20 December committing the UK to take part in the four-year concept demonstration phase of the Joint Advanced Strike Technology (JAST) programme to develop a future strike fighter. Under the ...
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Poland resurrects support for Iryda
AFTER STOPPING Polish defence ministry plans to buy about 40 secondhand Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jets from Germany, the Warsaw Government has redirected funds for the deal to support the PZL-Mielec Iryda jet trainer programme. According to PZL-Mielec, three new Irydas in the M-93K configuration, are now expected to be ...
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BAe drops helicopter bid
Douglas Barrie/LONDON BRITISH AEROSPACE has abandoned its bid for a £300 million ($460 million) UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) contract to establish and support a tri-service helicopter training school. BAe had intended to link with McAlpine in offering the MoD a mix of up to ...
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Czechs exchange Fulcrums for Sokols
THE CZECH Air force is swapping ten "mothballed" Mikoyan MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters for 11 Polish PZL-Swidnik W-3 Sokol helicopters. The barter arrangement, was approved by the Czech Government, on 13 December and deliveries of the MiG-29s to the Polish air force, were due to be completed by ...
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RAAF lists three trainers
AUSTRALIA HAS short-listed three bidders for the air force's lead-in fighter project (Air 5367). The three are Aermacchi, British Aerospace and McDonnell Douglas (MDC). The short-listed tenderers were announced on 15 December 1995. Proposals for the request for tender (RFT) are due on 14 March. The three ...
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Japan shelves plan to acquire tankers
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE JAPAN HAS temporarily dropped plans to acquire air-to-air refueling tankers under its KC-X requirement. It has also trimmed back on its planned purchase of new Mitsubishi FS-X support fighters, as part of the Government's newly approved five-year defence programme. The Japanese cabinet has ...
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B-2 Plant reprieve
Northrop Grumman has pushed back closure of its B-2 plant at Pico Rivera, California, by two years, to 1999, preserving some 4,000 jobs, in part because the latest US defence budget includes $493 million added by Congress to begin procurement for a second batch of 20 B-2 bombers. ...
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US Air Force launches T-38 upgrade
Graham Warwick/ATLANTA NINE TEAMS are expected to respond to the US Air Force's 14 December request for proposals to upgrade the Northrop T-38 advanced trainer. The $700 million avionics upgrade programme (AUP) is intended to keep the T-38 in service until 2020. Under the AUP, ...
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Lockheed Martin boosts C-130J orderbook with Australasian deal bonanza
LOCKHEED MARTIN stands to sell over 40 C-130J Hercules II transporters to Australia and New Zealand, with the former country placing a firm order for an initial batch of 12 aircraft on 21 December. Deliveries of 12 stretched C-130J-30s, included in the A$900 million ($660 million) contract, will ...
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Germany may bid for more EF2000s
Andrzej Jeziorski/MUNICH GERMAN DEFENCE minister Volker R_he has gone public with a face-saving strategy opening the door for Germany to increase the number of Eurofighter EF2000s it buys. R_he has said that, while the air force's Eurofighter requirement up to the year 2012 - as far ahead as German budget ...
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Defence
Douglas Barrie/Defence Editor EUROPE'S CLUTCH OF NEW-generation fighter-aircraft programmes had less than a vintage year in 1995. Dassault's Rafale and the Eurofighter EF2000 have struggled with both technical and political concerns, while only the Saab Gripen, it seems, had a better year. Dassault starts 1996 ...
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General aviation
Graham Warwick/US Editor BASED ON THE YEAR JUST ended, 1996 looks promising for the general-aviation (GA) industry. US General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) figures suggest that aircraft shipments have already passed the low point and are now increasing, albeit slowly. The reasons are well documented: ...
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Thai is dealt double blow
Thai Airways International has suffered a double blow by the government's decision to end the carrier's monopoly on international services, and the breakthrough of the Abacus CRS into the domestic market that Thai wanted to monopolise through its venture with rival Amadeus. Wracked by slipping profitability and internal ...
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Price drop
Northrop Grumman has signed a $2.4 billion agreement with McDonnell Douglas, guaranteeing a 35% reduction in the cost of components produced by its Vought operation for the next 80 C-17 military air transports. The company produces the engine nacelles, tail sections and aerial-refueling panels. Source: Flight ...
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French victory
Thomson-CSF has won a Fr700 million ($140.3 million) contract to upgrade the Spanish air force's 55 Dassault Mirage F1s, to extend their service life until 2015. On 55 aircraft, is intended to extend the aircraft's service life until around 2015. Source: Flight International
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Czechs choose IAI for MiG-21
THE CZECH air force has selected Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) to upgrade 30 of its MIG-21MFs. The $100 million contract could be signed in 1996 if the Czechs decide to go ahead. The upgrade plan faces stiff opposition from various quarters - not least the Czech parliament - ...
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USAF considers radar upgrades
Guy Norris/LOS ANGELES A MAJOR UPGRADE OF front-line fighter radar with active-radar arrays is being evaluated by the US Air Force. A prototype system could be ready for tests by 1998. Initial contracts have been issued to Hughes and Westinghouse under the radar-system aperture-technology effort ...
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S Africa examines Korean trainer venture options
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE SOUTH AFRICA HAS entered discussions, with South Korea and Spain, on the possible joint development of a new advanced trainer and light-strike aircraft. The South African Air Force is looking for a replacement for its aging Atlas-built Aermacchi MB.326K/M Impala I/II. Interest until ...