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Holloman AFB to get F16s
By Erik,
Holloman Air Force Base near Alamogordo will become the training base for the F-16 and will acquire 48 F-16 fighter jets by 2013
Gov. Bill Richardson said the U.S. Air Force will remove two squadrons of F-22 aircraft from Holloman. But he added that state officials expect that the new mission will have a bigger economic impact than the other two squadrons.
The Air Force has “robust plans” to use F-16 fighter jets and their training mission through 2030, Richardson said. The decision to locate the F-16s at the base is evidence that the Department of Defense sees Holloman as a strong base that can support diverse military missions, the governor added.
New Mexico Business Weekly
India contracts for US Planes
By Erik,
New Delhi: The Indian Air Force has contracted six aircraft for the special forces for $1 billion without military-grade secure equipment because Washington denied the technology after New Delhi refused to sign a communications secrecy pact.
The air force is now in the process of contracting another 10 very heavy strategic airlifters under the same technology-denial regime for an estimated $3 billion.
India contracted six C-130J Super Hercules in 2007 and the first of these aircraft is likely to be delivered by January 2010 ahead of schedule by its maker, Lockheed Martin, under a government-to-government foreign military sales programme.
One of the scenarios in which the Hercules (“Hercs” for short) is to be used involves inserting special airborne troops (paratroopers) by flying into hostile territory where an adversary can try to intercept and/or jam electronic communication.
“We are aware that some of the equipment we desire may not be available. But it is up to us to use the platform the way we want to with modifications once we have it,” a senior air force officer told The Telegraph.
A US defence official told this newspaper “anything that requires encryption, which includes military-grade global positioning systems (GPS)” will not be mounted on the C-130J or the C-17 Globemaster III (made by Boeing) because India has not yet signed the Communications Inter-Operability and Security Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA).
The CISMOA was proposed by the Pentagon to the Indian defence ministry in 2006. A standard text for another crucial agreement, the End-User Monitoring Arrangement, was agreed last year after more than three years of negotiations.
A secure GPS is indispensable for mobile military platforms that are designed to track targets in all-weather and all-time circumstances.
“The military GPS system is encrypted and thus not available without a communications agreement,” the US defence official said. He claimed that “US military equipment is designed utilising the best systems available, such as military-grade GPS, which is more accurate and less likely to be spoofed (intercepted) than civilian GPS”.
Asked if there was any way India could access the equipment without signing the CISMOA, he replied “there is no way around this”. He said the CISMOA would apply to the proposed sale of the C-17 also. Trials for the aircraft were completed last month and the Indian Air Force has decided to buy it.
The four-engine turbo-prop Hercs — a workhorse for the US military — is a “tactical airlifter” with a payload capacity of 20 tonnes or about 120 fully-equipped airborne troops capable of landing on dirt strips and with short take-off and landing capability.
The giant C-17 jet is also rugged but capable of flying much longer distances with much heavier payloads. The Indian Air Force has projected a dire need for these two different classes of aircraft because its Russian/Soviet-origin aircraft are outdated.
The air force is set to order six more Hercs in addition to the six already contracted. The Coast Guard and the Border Security Force are also in line to acquire two Hercs each.
The Hercs are to be based at Hindon, just east of Delhi, where the Indian Air Force base is being refurbished. The Hercs for India have been modified for special missions and are equipped with an infrared detection set for low-level flying in adverse conditions.
Although the communications systems would not have the desired level of security for the Indian Air Force, an official said that India was getting the Hercs with the configuration it wants. They will have self-protection and mid-air refuelling ability. The Hercs is in service in 10 countries.
Telegraph India
Tiger earns its stripes in Afghanistan
By Erik,
The EC665 Tiger HAP (combat support) helicopter operated by the French Army's 5th Combat Helicopter Regiment, has now logged more than 1,000 flight hours in Afghanistan in less than a year.
With an availability rate of 90% in extremely harsh operating conditions, the Tiger has once again demonstrated excellent performance and operability levels for both reconnaissance missions and combat support operations for joint tactical groups (GTIA), which have been unanimous in their praise.
A key to this success has been the excellent cooperation between the French Army, the French Armament Procurement Agency (DGA), the OCCAR (Organisation for Joint Armaments Co-operation) and Eurocopter, which has deployed a dedicated work structure since the beginning of the operations.
In this framework, Eurocopter has been providing the French Army with nonstop support to meet the specific operational needs of the Afghan theater and guarantee the required availability levels. A team of Eurocopter technicians is on assignment in Afghanistan to assist the mechanics of the French Army Air Corps (ALAT). In addition, a customized logistics support service has been set up to respond at any time to any request and to quickly supply any necessary spare parts.
Arabian Aerospace
Boeing P-8A Poseidon
By Erik,
Boeing P-8A Poseidon Aircraft T3 Enters Flight Test
SEATTLE, Aug. 2, 2010 -- Boeing [NYSE: BA] P-8A Poseidon aircraft T3 successfully completed its first flight test in Seattle on July 29. T3 is the P-8A program's mission-system and weapon-certification aircraft.
During the two-hour and 48-minute flight from Boeing Field, Boeing and U.S. Navy test pilots performed airborne systems checks including engine accelerations and decelerations, autopilot flight modes, and auxiliary power unit and engine shutdowns and starts.
In the coming weeks, T3 will join the two P-8A test aircraft currently at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., and complete additional ground and flight tests.
"At Pax River, the Boeing and Navy team will use some of the ground test data we've gathered in Seattle for in-flight separation and delivery accuracy tests that will occur later this year," said Chris Ahsmann, P-8A chief engineer for Boeing.
T3 is one of six flight-test aircraft that are being assembled and tested as part of the U.S. Navy System Development and Demonstration contract Boeing received in 2004. Airworthiness-test aircraft T1 entered flight test in October 2009 and arrived at the Navy's Patuxent River facility in April of this year. T2, the primary mission-system test aircraft, arrived at Pax River in June.
The Navy plans to purchase 117 P-8A anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft to replace its P-3 fleet. Initial operational capability is planned for 2013.
A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $34 billion business with 68,000 employees worldwide.
Boeing
Canada Intercepts Bears
By Erik,
Canadian aircraft intercept Russian bombers
Canadian fighter jets have scrambled to repel Russian bombers that intruded into Canadian airspace.
The Russian Tupolev-95 is a long-range bomber capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
Canadian defence minister Peter MacKay says CF-18s were sent to intercept two of the bombers that made several attempts to enter Canadian airspace.
Military officials say there was no advance warning and Mr MacKay says all such incursions will be met with a swift response.
Intelligence analysts say the frequency of these attempts has been increasing, especially as Canada and Russia are in a race to lay claim to huge sections of the Arctic seabed believed to hold vast reserves of oil and gas.
The incursions also come during the debate over whether Canada needs a new generation of high-tech military fighter jets.
ABC News
C17 Crash in Alaska
By Erik,
Four killed in Air Force plane crash in Alaska
ANCHORAGE Alaska (Reuters) - All four crew members were killed in a U.S. Air Force cargo plane that crashed in flames while practicing for an aviation show at Elmendorf Air Force Base, the Air Force said Thursday.
The C-17 Globemaster went down Wednesday evening in a wooded area near an airfield in Anchorage shortly after taking off, the military said.
The accident is believed to be the first crash of a C-17, manufactured by Boeing, since the massive jet joined the Air Force fleet in 1995 as its newest cargo plane.
"We are confirming four dead," said Lieutenant-Colonel Karen Platt, an Air Force spokeswoman.
A fireball and plume of smoke over the area were visible to nearby residents shortly after the crash. Some eyewitnesses said the plane appeared to be making a strange turn while flying low over the area just before it crashed.
Three of the dead were members of the Alaska Air National Guard, and the fourth was on active duty at Elmendorf, the base said in a statement.
The plane was assigned to the 3rd Wing at Elmendorf, a unit consisting of 6,000 Air Force personnel who fly fighter jets and other military aircraft.
The base said a board of officers would investigate the crash. The names of the dead were being withheld pending notification of next of kin, base spokesman Bob Hall said.
Lieutenant General Dana Atkins told a new conference on Wednesday the plane was "doing a practice demonstration profile" it was to perform at the annual Arctic Thunder air show this weekend when it crashed.
In light of the accident, Atkins said, the military was considering whether to go on with the aviation show, which also features precision flying demonstrations by the Navy's Blue Angels and the Canadian Forces Snowbirds.
The crash occurred during damp, cloudy weather.
Elmendorf's worst air crash was in September 1995 when several geese were sucked into the engine of an AWACS plane just after takeoff. That plane was on a training mission as well. All 24 crew members were killed.
The first C-17 squadron went into operation in 1995. The aircraft is 174 feet long, has a wingspan of nearly 170 feet and can carry up to 170,900 pounds (77,500 kg), according to the Air Force.
Aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group said Boeing has built about 200 of the planes, most of which went to the Air Force.
He said the Elmendorf accident was the only crash he knew of involving the plane since it went into service. "It's got a very good reputation," Aboulafia said.
July 30, 2010
Reuters
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