Latest Defence Helicopters news – Page 119
-
News
Philippine navy orders two AW159 Wildcats
Finmeccanica has announced the Philippine navy will acquire two AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare rotorcraft under a contract valued at €100 million ($114 million).
-
News
Lockheed venture lifts off with LOI for 12 hybrid airships
Lockheed Martin has bested its British rival, the Hybrid Air Vehicles Airlander 10, by signing a launch customer for its LMH-1 airship: Straightline Aviation (SLA).
-
News
Pentagon touts "Loyal Wingman" for combat jets
US Air Force plans to insert a “brain” into current-generation fighter jets to create autonomous flying wingmen paired with the Lockheed Martin F-35 were given a bump today, with the Pentagon’s second-in-charge saying he expects to see “unmanned wingman in the air” before convoys of driverless Humvees.
-
News
Slimmed-down F-35 Gen III helmet to be introduced sooner
The Pentagon is bullish about resolving issues with the F-35 Lightning II’s escape system that has restricted lightweight pilots of from flying the fifth-generation combat jet, with the joint programme office (JPO) now expecting delivery of a slimmed-down “Gen III” helmet from Rockwell Collins by November for rollout in 2017.
-
News
Lockheed advancing Dual Mode Plus and Scalpel bombs
The performance and accuracy of Lockheed Martin’s proposed alternative to the Boeing laser-guided joint direct attack munition are being validated on a US Navy F/A-18 at the China Lake complex in California's Mojave Desert and the weapons maker is also pushing for trials with an Air Force F-16.
-
News
US Navy extends Orbital ATK AGM-88E production
The US Navy has extended production of AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile (AARGM) multi-mode seekers, built by Orbital ATK, by three years to fiscal year 2023 with an added requirement for 556 more missiles.
-
News
UK's Boeing P-8 purchase gets US tick of approval
The UK has moved a step closer to filling a maritime patrol void left by the retirement of the Nimrod MR2 in 2010 after being approved by the US State Department to acquire nine torpedo-carrying Boeing P-8A Poseidons for the Royal Air Force.
-
News
Raytheon and Northrop contracted for JSTARS radar battle
The US Air Force has locked in Raytheon and Northrop Grumman as its two competing radar vendors for the new-generation Joint Surveillance and Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS) programme. Each has been awarded “no-to-exceed” contracts with ceiling values of $60 million and $70 million, respectively, according to a contract announcement ...
-
News
Lockheed F-35 service life extended to 2070
The projected life of the F-35 Lightning II has been extended by six years to 2070 after the US military services tweaked the number of flight hours their fleets should log before retirement.
-
News
Pentagon lowers F-35 acquisition cost estimate
The estimated cost of acquiring 2,457 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning IIs has dropped by $12.1 billion, or 3%, compared to Pentagon estimates one year ago.
-
News
F-35 goes on global publicity tour in battle for hearts and minds
The F-35 Lightning II might be the most sophisticated combat jet on the market today, but US programme officials and lawmakers worry that the fifth-generation stealth aircraft is losing the battle for hearts and minds.
-
News
Raytheon's Ktech nabs contract for counter-electronics missile
Raytheon’s acquisition of directed energy firm Ktech in 2011 is paying dividends following the US Defense Department’s award of a $4.8 million contract to repackage two air-launched cruise missiles as high-power microwave weapons.
-
News
Israeli "Fire Birds" to be declared fully operational
The Israeli air force’s elite aerial firefighting squadron, that operates 14 quick-reaction AT-802F Air Tractors, could be declared fully operational within weeks, according to the group's commander.
-
News
US Army weighs first rotorcraft variant for Future Vertical Lift
The US Army’s requirement for a next-generation armed scout platform to replace the acclaimed Bell OH-58 Kiowa has been around since the Light Helicopter Experimental (LHX) programme of the 1980s.
-
News
Israeli know-how keeps aged CH-53s ready for duty
The Israeli air force has in recent months re-emphasised its urgent need to acquire a replacement for an ageing fleet of Sikorsky CH-53 "Yasur" helicopters. The service has expressed its operational need to introduce the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey, but budget restrictions have delayed a contract, and sources note the ...
-
News
Lockheed readies communications upgrade for U-2S fleet
In the tit-for-tat battle between US Air Force high-altitude surveillance platforms, Lockheed Martin plans to upgrade the U-2S a new capability that will not be easily matched by its designated unmanned successor.
-
News
Lebanon and Kenya to receive Bell Huey IIs
Lebanon and Kenya will become the latest nations to procure zero-timed Bell UH-1H-based Huey II helicopters through the US Army.
-
News
US Navy purchases CAEW-based Gulfstream 550 for range support
The US Navy has ordered a single Gulfstream G550 business jet based on the special-mission Israeli airborne early warning type for adaptation into a long-range, high-speed test range support aircraft.
-
News
FIDAE: KC-390 regains flight-test momentum
Four months after the Embraer KC-390’s first flight in February 2015, Embraer finally acknowledged the aircraft had still not attempted a second flight. It seemed a worrying development, not unlike the nine-month pause that followed shortly after first flight of the Bombardier CRJ-1000 regional jet in 2009, as Embraer’s rival ...
-
News
Skunk Works pushes investment in F-22 and F-35 over new aircraft
Lockheed Martin has warned against rushing into a sixth-generation fighter programme without first boosting F-35 Lightning II numbers and implementing a “robust” modernisation programme to keep fifth-generation F-22s and F-35s capable against new counter-air threats.