The airline, which will operate ex-SIA Boeing 777-200s, is
in final stages to prepare for its inaugural flight on 4 June to
Scoot will also operate services to
Images courtesy of Scoot Pte Ltd
]]>Singapore-based military aircraft photographer @alert5 just shared this cool clip
from Chinese TV of a Kamov Ka-28 barely escaping disaster as it attempts to
land on a Peoples' Liberation Army Navy Type 054A frigate. Thankfully the pilot managed to do a go
around and land safely. On the second landing attempted I was impressed by the 16 guys
(looked like four per wheel) racing out to secure the helicopter to deck.
Brilliant stuff!
The airline, which will operate ex-SIA Boeing 777-200s, is
in final stages to prepare for its inaugural flight on 4 June to
Scoot will also operate services to
Images courtesy of Scoot Pte Ltd
]]>A Boeing 777-200, registered JA772J, will feature the
official slogan of the Japanese Olympic Committee - "Gambare!
Credit goes to Japan Airlines.
]]>
The greatest single question facing the Lockheed Martin F-35 programme is how many will end up actually being bought? Barely a week goes buy without one of the future operators such as Canada, Japan, or Norway expressing concern about the aircraft's cost.
Australia is in the same boat. It originally talked about buying 100, and has far as I know has never officially moved away from this figure. In early May Canberra said it would delay the acquisition of 12 aircraft by two years, although it will still receive two aircraft in 2014. This pair will remain in the USA and be used for training pilots and ground crew.
The 12 remaining aircraft to be purchased under Project Air 6000 Phase 2A are to be followed by a whopping (and yet to be confirmed) order for 58 under AIR Phase 2B. This would bring Canberra total F-35 fleet to 72, well short of the magic 100 number.
In any event, it was with some interest that I read a research note about Australia composites maker Quickstep, a subcontractor for the F-35 programme. The note was published by analyst Alan Hill of Australia's State One stock broking firm after he talked with RAAF personnel at the recent Perth air show.
Most of the note highlighted the F-35's capabilities, but one passage caught my eye:
"The information was timely after PM Gillard had recently announced that the F-35 programme was a core element of Australia's defence strategy going forward, despite Australia's initial deliveries of the F-35 having now been pushed back, in line with recent deferments in the US. Australia, it appears, remains intent on purchasing 3 squadrons of the aircraft, i.e. a total of 72 aircraft. The first 2 aircraft are due in 2014, with the full complement due by about 2020."
It is impossible to say whether 72 will be Australia's final number, of course, based on what were probably informal discussions on the sidelines of a minor air show.
Australian defence expert Andrew McLaughlin tells me that the F-35 is 'pencilled in' for the third tranche of 28 aircraft (Phase 2C), which would take Australia to 100 F-35s. This could see the aircraft replacing Australia's 24 F/A-18F Super Hornets. That said, by the time a Phase 2C decision is made, Canberra could end up opting to buy an unmanned combat aerial vehicle, or even the F/A-XX that could replace the US navy's Super Hornet in the 2030s.
Just imagine the beer guzzling guy sitting beside you at the bar later in the cockpit of the aircraft you're on.
This may sound bizarre and unlikely, but judging from figures released by India's civil aviation minister recently, some pilots are definitely boozing it up before their flights.
From January to March this year, 14 pilots and 31 cabin crew members in India failed the pre-flight breath analyzer test.
Last year, 17 pilots were "found drunk" before a flight. The number was 23 in 2010.
Under Indian regulations, pilots who fail the breath analyzer test for the first time will be suspended for three months. If he fails a second time, he will then be suspended for five years.
These numbers may not seem huge given the number of pilots in the country. But still, shouldn't all pilots have the professionalism to take their job seriously, and the decency to turn up for work sober, considering how hundreds of passengers' lives are in their hands on each flight?
]]>
It was inevitable that Airbus Military would issue a statement protesting the decision - although for some reason they failed to post it on their web site. In any case, I thought it would be of interest to our readers to post their comments on the C-27J selection in full - see below.
Apart from Airbus Military, there are others who question the buy. One Australian industry source I spoke to called the C-27J "a shiny toy picked by the fighter pilots" who he believes hold sway in the air force. He said Australia would have been better off forgoing the C-130J and following New Zealand's example by upgrading its C-130Hs with new glass cockpits and avionics.
Anyway, opinions about aircraft and their merits are never in short supply in the defence aerospace sector.
Below is Airbus Military's position in full:
AIRBUS MILITARY EXPRESSES SURPRISE AT CARIBOU REPLACEMENT DECISION
Defence Minister Stephen Smith yesterday announced that the C-27J from Alenia will be Australia's new Battlefield Airlifter via a $1.4 billion AUD sole source acquisition of 10 aircraft through a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process.
Follow me on Twitter: @asiajetwatch
]]>
Last August I wrote in this blog that
That said, is it really in the interests of
the
Exchanges between
Over drinks in
Though the
No matter what happens, this is all great stuff for us journos.
The Aviationist blog has posted a video about an intriguing UAV with a submachine gun, apparently posted in Russia.
While the clip is certainly entertaining - "I don't think I recognise any of those guys, let's take them out" and "That was awesome! Look at the guy's head rolling down the hill" - I can't vouch for the authenticity of the of the UAV itself.
I cannot discern empty cartridges falling out of the UAV, and why do the mannequins explode? I also can't make out exactly how the ammo in the 100 round clip gets into the gun. The operator also seems fairly casual on the safety front. Say the thing flies out of control, gun blazing away at full automatic? And when he is casually shooting up that gasoline, he doesn't seem to worry that it will set off the explosive charges this thing allegedly carries - which are later demonstrated when he uses the UAV to blow up a car.
On the other hand, there does appear to be a distinct recoil when the gun is firing.
Anyway, the clip reminded me of a conversation I had with a colleague at Flight a few years back about the possibility of mounting guns on UAVs. I have seen videos of shotguns and grenade launchers on smaller systems, such as the one depicted in this video, but as far as I'm aware there are no plans extant to mount a gun on a bigger system, such as a Scan Eagle or a Predator .
A gun-armed UAV would have some big advantages. The system would have more flexibility, capable of hitting a point target, such as a single person or the engine block of a vehicle, without expending large, expensive guided munitions. A sort of sniper in the sky.
The main challenge would probably be mounting it. The best option would to have a side firing system similar to the AC-130, operating on the principle that it is easier for an aircraft to blast a target while circling it rather than flying straight at it. Apparently the AC-130's software consistently achieves first round accuracy, something which could be scaled down for a UAV-mounted gun system.
While the Charlene UAV depicted in the video may not be the real deal, the 'guns on UAV' space is definitely one ripe for fascinating development.
I was intrigued to learn that UK farmer David Cundall may have located 20 or more Spitfires in Myanmar, buried in their original shipping crates. If the discovery turns out to be the real deal, it makes a fine counterpoint to Australia's decision last year to bury 23 F-111s beneath a landfill - apparently there is a very real concern with asbestos and other hazardous materials used in these old airframes.
Media reports suggest Cundall's plans are well advanced, with the aircraft having been located, and a camera shoved down a borehole to examine them. Cundall learned of the aircraft speaking to British vets of the Burmese front. They claimed to have buried the aircraft in 1945 following the end of WWII.
Though the aircraft are reportedly well packaged in wax paper and so forth, one wonders how well preserved they could be. Sixty years underground in the soggy climate of Burma is a very long time. There are very good reasons why the USA stores old aircraft in the arid climes of Arizona and California as opposed to the swamps of Florida or Louisiana. All it would take is a few broken seals to corrode these Burmese Spitfires.
In any event, the west is having a love-in with the Burmese regime, which these days shows signs of becoming more democratic. A more open regime could well see Cundall's dream come true. Perhaps the old aircraft will be excavated and shipped home - just the thought of the paperwork and expense involved gives one pause - with a few examples becoming airworthy again someday.
In 2072 will Asian Skies write about a plan to dig up 23 former RAAF F-111s?
