All Helicopters articles – Page 473
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News
C-17 battle moves to political theatre
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC THE McDONNELL Douglas C-17 (MDC) military-transport aircraft finally won the endorsement of the US Department of Defense on 3 November, but the fate of the multi-billion dollar programme is far from assured, with political hurdles yet to be negotiated. Congressional backers of ...
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Military simulator directory
Graham Warwick/ATLANTA INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS has provided a lifeline to military-simulator manufacturers over the past 12 months as individual domestic opportunities have failed to materialise as expected. Delays in programme starts and contract awards have continued to plague the industry, making planning and forecasting difficult. Industry consolidation ...
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Phalcon may fly over China
CHINA AND ISRAEL are understood to be in the final stages of negotiating a $200 million deal covering the purchase of up to four Israel Aircraft Industries Phalcon airborne early-warning (AEW) aircraft - although China is already pursuing an AEW project with GEC-Marconi of the UK. IAI's original ...
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France may go for E-3 AWACs over Hawkeyes
FRANCE'S PURCHASE of four Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye airborne early-warning (AEW) aircraft is coming under fire from an influential parliamentary committee, which recommends buying additional Boeing Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft instead. The finance committee wants the Hawkeye purchase to be dropped and has adopted an ...
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Kuwaiti UH-60L purchase falters
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC Graham Warwick/ATLANTA SIKORSKY'S EFFORT to sell an armed version of its UH-60L Black Hawk to Kuwait is being blocked by the US Department of Defense (DoD), which is reluctant to release laser-designator systems for export to the Gulf state, say sources close ...
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DASA begins NATO E-3 work fleet upgrade
DAIMLER-BENZ Aerospace (DASA) is to begin work on the full Mod Block 1 upgrade of NATO's Boeing E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) fleet in February 1996. The company is now carrying out a kit-proof upgrade, on the number two aircraft (N-2) of the Geilenkirchen-based AWACS fleet, ...
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Thais want F-18s with AMRAAM
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE THAILAND HAS ISSUED a formal letter of request (LoR) for an initial eight McDonnell Douglas (MDC) F-18C/Ds, with the proviso that the deal includes the Hughes AIM-120 advanced medium-range air-to-air missile (AMRAAM). The US Navy's foreign-military sales (FMS) office is now understood to ...
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Alenia G222 hopes ride on C-130J deal
Andrea Spinelli/GENOA ITALIAN AIRCRAFT manufacturer Alenia is trying to launch a new variant of its G222 military transport on the back of the Italian air force's proposed purchase of the Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules II. The company wants development of the G222J, as the derivative is ...
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Turks seek regional-aircraft partners
TURKISH AEROSPACE Industries (TAI) is looking for partners to help it develop a small commuter aircraft to open up regional routes within Turkey. The company is now putting forward the 19-seat HD-19 fly-by-wire widebody commuter to meet a market demand which it believes will be created by the ...
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Boeing plans commercial Chinook revival in China
BOEING IS negotiating with Harbin Aircraft Manufacturing (HAMC) to restart production of the 234 Commercial Chinook in China. According to local sources, Boeing has proposed establishing a full 234 production line in Harbin, northern China. The deal is understood to include providing plans for HAMC to build its ...
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Birdstrike is suspected in AWACS crash
A US AIR FORCE BOARD of inquiry is trying to determine why a Boeing-built E-3B Advanced Warning and Control System (AWACS) surveillance aircraft crashed at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, on 22 September. The militarised four-engine Boeing 707 was attempting to take off for a training mission. All 24 aboard, ...
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Teams aim for the stars
AT LEAST THREE US industry teams will bid for a multi-million-dollar contract to modernise the US Federal Aviation Administration's terminal radar-approach-control (TRACON) system, which handles aircraft within 80km (45nm ) of US airports. The aviation agency's upcoming standard terminal-automation-replacement system (STARS) competition involves the upgrade of more ...
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Portugal considers F-16 options
PORTUGAL IS considering procuring an additional 20-40 Lockheed Martin F-16s, along with taking on board the mid-life-upgrade (MLU) put together for other European F-16 operators. A team from the company is due to visit Portugal on 28/29 September, to discuss the upgrade. The aircraft on offer are secondhand ...
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USA orders Ultra Electronics equipment for Harriers
ULTRA ELECTRONICS has received its first major order from the US Government, covering the supply of HiPPAG 320 systems and support equipment for US Marine Corps AV-8B Harriers. The contract is valued at $5.7 million. The HiPPAG 320 is an electronically controlled air-compressor and purification unit which ...
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NASA tests hypersonic design
Andrew Doyle/LONDON A HYPERSONIC-aircraft concept, known as the "wave-rider", which would be capable of speeds ranging from Mach 4 to M6, is undergoing wind-tunnel tests at NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia. The wave-rider series, powered by air-breathing hypersonic engines, would be particularly suitable as ...
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Chirac lobbies for Eurocopter in Spain
FRENCH PRESIDENT Jacques Chirac has intervened in the competition between Eurocopter and Sikorsky to meet a Spanish army transport-helicopter requirement by writing to his Spanish counterpart, prime minister Felipe Gonzalez, urging him to opt for the Eurocopter AS.532 UL Cougar, rather than the rival Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk. ...
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Westinghouse attacks IAI 'unfair competition'
Graham Warwick/ATLANTA WESTINGHOUSE Norden Systems has accused Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) of unfair competition, after the Israeli company switched radar suppliers for the Turkish McDonnell Douglas F-4 upgrade programme, from Norden to its own subsidiary, Elta. Westinghouse alleges that IAI misled the Turkish air force as ...
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Five C-130Hs bound for Malaysia
THE MALAYSIAN air force has purchased five of Lockheed Martin's nine remaining unsold C-130H Hercules transport aircraft, say local sources. Lockheed Martin reveals that it has only four military transports, together with two civil L-100s, left to place, after recently selling five stretched C-130-30Hs. The aircraft are the ...
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Royal Navy opts for Racal GPS units
THE ROYAL NAVY IS to fit all of its front-line helicopters with Racal Avionics' secure global-positioning-system (GPS) equipment. The £25 million ($39 million) upgrade programme, due for completion in 1999, will cover over 150 aircraft. An integrated logistic-support package, which lasts until 2003, is also included. Racal, as ...
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Sea Launch project gains a boost
THE INTERNATIONAL Sea Launch project for commercial geostationary-orbiting satellite-launcher services from an equatorial mobile offshore platform has moved on with the award of $171 million contracts to two Norwegian firms. Sea Launch, a partnership between Boeing (USA); NPO Energia (Russia); NPO Yuzhnoye (Ukraine); and Kvaerner (Norway); has given ...