Anyways, good defense stuff is in short supply this year here at Paris, but if its worth reporting the FG defense team will find it.

Check out this video of the Russian Sukhoi PAK-FA fifth-generation stealth fighter. There is some good footage of the jet undergoing flight tests--my comprehension of the Russian language is virtually non-existent, but I think the reporter is giving an overview of the jet's capabilities.

 If I understood correctly--the PAK-FA has a lot of the same features that you'd find on the F-22 or F-35 like embedded antennas and sensor fusion. But the Russian aircraft seems to have automation to the point where it can land itself if the pilot is incapacitated, but that could be my misunderstanding.

 If anyone speaks/understands Russian, I'm sure you'll get much more out of this than me--but cool footage nonetheless. Incidentally, some of the footage looks like spin testing, but unlike similar US testing you might see at Edwards AFB or Pax River, the Russians don't seem to use a spin-chute. 

"At this point I can say that I'm cautiously optimistic that we will be able to raise production as planned," says Frank Kendall, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics. "The development programme is executing close to plan, a couple of areas are slipping a little bit in schedule, but the slips are not dramatic."

As such, Kendall says unless some sort of serious new problem emerges, the Pentagon will be able to order a ramp-up in production of the tri-service stealth fighter later this "fall". The decision would be reflected in the President's 2015 budget proposal, he says, and will follow the existing five-year spending plan.

That means the Pentagon will buy 42 planes in fiscal year 2015, 62 in 2016, 76 in 2017 and 100 in 2018. Production is currently running at 29 aircraft per year plus a few more for international customers.

Kendall says the while sequestration cuts are a problem, the Pentagon will do everything it can to increase the F-35's production rates. "The F-35 is our highest priority conventional warfare weapons system," he says. "Because of that, we'll do everything we can to protect it."

Meanwhile is also good news on the sustainment costs, which are projected to come down "significantly", Kendall says. The Pentagon is working hard to reduce those lifecycle costs--which could involve adding competition to sustaining the jet. "I think we will make a substantial dent in the current projections," he says.

Kendall adds that the F-35's cost per flying hour should decline significantly after a review he expects to conduct in the fall. The current cost figures are based on older estimates by the Pentagon's Cost Assessments and Program Evaluation office, he says, but those need to be updated. "I can tell you that the number is coming down," Kendall says.

Kendall cautions, however, that the F-35 programme still has a long way to go. The jet is only 40% of its way through its flight-test programme, and there are still many aerodynamic and structural tests that have still to be completed.  Additionally, software needs to be developed and weapons integration needs to be tested. There are also fixes to problems that were discovered earlier that need to be verified.

As always, software development could still be an issue. For example a critical design review for the next software block has slipped by 45 days. But there has been "nothing dramatic" that might derail the programme.

"It's too early to declare victory," Kendall says, but the programme is on a much more sound footing than it was two years ago. "There is plenty of risk left in the programme."

During the first half of 2013 a couple of new Chinese military aviation projects have come to light. One recent development was the sighting of China's Sharp Sword unmanned combat air vehicle, which was revealed in May. More recently, images have emerged of a structural model of what appears to be a new Chinese stealth bomber.

While many are tempted to dismiss the Chinese developments as mere knock-offs based on stolen Western technologies, there are those who believe that we, particularly those of us here in the United States, are underestimating China's capabilities.

Having examined the Chinese designs, a number of highly experienced US aerospace engineers--all of whom have extensive experience designing low observable aircraft--are convinced that not only are the new designs original, but that they are viable stealth airframes (even if they are not all-aspect stealth machines in some cases). "There is an aerospace renaissance underway in China," one engineer says.  "It was just a matter of time."

The Sharp Sword not only looks viable as a low observable aircraft from many angles--save for the distinctly non-stealthy exhaust, it looks like it is an original design, one engineer says.  Asked about the structural model for the Chinese stealth bomber, the engineer says that his unfortunate conclusion is that the aircraft is in fact a viable design.

While China is not yet an adversary of the Unites States, there is potential that as the country continues to reemerge as a great economic and military power that it could become one. In that case it would be foolish to underestimate the capabilities of Chinese engineers. "They have talented designers," one engineer says.

If it does come down to some sort of new Cold War, this time around the United States would be facing-off against an enemy with a vibrant economy, as a learned friend notes--a marked contrast to the Soviet Union, which was always hamstrung by its command economy. 

Bell-Boeing is being awarded a $4.89 billion contract modification to "definitize" a multi-year production contract for the V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor, the Pentagon announced 12 June.

The contract covers the manufacture and delivery of 92 MV-22 Ospreys for the US Marine Corps and seven CV-22 special operations aircraft for the US Air Force. But, moreover, it "definitizes" a previously "undefinitized" contact to build Lot 17 production aircraft and solidifies plans for the advance acquisitions of long lead items for the eighteenth production lot of Ospreys. According to the Pentagon release, the work will be completed in September 2019.

Boeing had said earlier that it was expecting to sign the multi-year contract for the V-22 on 13 June, which had been delayed to due budgetary squabbles within the US government. Company officials could not immediately comment on the contract award, but say they will make a statement on 13 June.

The Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter made its first Raytheon AIM-120C5 AMRAAM launch earlier this week at Edwards AFB, California.  The instrumented missile was launched from aircraft AF-1, which was flown by US Air Force Lt Col George Schwartz, over the Point Mugu Sea Test Range off the California coast.

"The AIM-120 launch is one small, but critical increment toward proving combat capability," says F-35 weapons director Charlie Wagner. "We've spent years working on the design of the aircraft, and many months ensuring that weapons could be contained within the aircraft and dropped as designed."

The significance of the AMRAAM launch is that it demonstrates a successful launch-to-eject communications sequence and firing of the weapon's rocket motor after its release.  The test will help pave the way for targeted launches later this year in support of Block 2B configuration, which will the first software load with actual combat capability. "We're rolling into a lot of additional weapons work in the coming months to put that expanded capability on the aircraft," Schwartz says.

Both the USAF and US Marine Corps will declare the F-35 operational with versions of the Block 2B (rehosted as Block 3i for the USAF)  software in 2016 and 2015 respectively.

Meanwhile, Kongsberg and Lockheed have completed a fit check of the Norwegian Joint Strike Missile (JSM) inside the internal weapons bay of the F-35. The weapon has already been fit checked on external pylons--those tests took place about four weeks ago.

AVX, which was formed by Bell Helicopter veterans in 2005, says it is in negotiations with the service for a JMR-TD contract, which is expected to be awarded in mid-September. The company joins Bell and a joint Sikorsky/Boeing team in being selected for the program, which is expected to lead into the army's nascent Future Vertical Lift effort to replace the Sikorsky UH-60 and potentially the Boeing AH-64 Apache in the 2030s.

"The AVX proposal offers the capabilities the Army wants for the future fleet of utility and attack aircraft at a very attractive price," the company says. Like the Sikorsky/Boeing design, AVX's proposed design is a coaxial-rotor compound machine.

AVX says it has teamed with "a number of experienced aerospace companies for development of the AVX JMR design", which the company claims will mean a lower price tag than the competing designs.

Meanwhile, Piasecki, another smaller firm competing for the army's business, did the not make the grade. "Unfortunately Piasecki was NOT selected for the JMR-TD," the company says. Additionally, EADS North America dropped out of the program--it is not known if their design was found to be acceptable by the army or not.

Let's see, our Army has something like 670 or there abouts, the Brits have 67 or so, Israel has 45, Japan has 10, the UAE has 30, Egypt has 35, Greece has 29, Kuwait has 16, the Saudis have a dozen, Singapore 19, the Dutch have 29 and if I recall, Taiwan has 30 or so on order. And India is allegedly buying 22 AH-64s... It's hard to say what's happening there with any degree of certainty. .

The US Air Force, the largest US Department of Defense (DOD) customer for the tri-service jet, will declare its F-35A variant operational in 2016. "If the F-35 Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) Version 7 executes according to plan, Air Force F-35A IOC criteria could be met between August 2016 (Objective) and December 2016 (Threshold)," the report says.

The USAF IOC date is a departure from the service's earlier insistence that it would require the full capabilities of the jet's final Block 3F configuration to declare IOC, which is expected to complete development in the later part of 2017 according to the Pentagon's 2012 F-35 selected acquisition report. That means that the USAF plans to declare IOC with either the earlier Block 2B software load or with Block 3i, which is the same configuration rehosted on newer avionics hardware. However, the report does not explicitly state which configuration the USAF will use upon declaring IOC.

The USAF criteria for IOC consists of standing up the first operational F-35A squadron equipped with between 12 and 24 aircraft and with enough train personnel "to conduct basic close air support (CAS), interdiction, and limited suppression and destruction of enemy air defense (SEAD/DEAD) operations in a contested environment."

However, the USAF does note it needs the full Block 3F capability later. "The criteria stated above will provide sufficient initial combat capability for the threat postulated in 2016," the report reads. "However, in order to meet the full spectrum of Joint warfighter requirements in future years, the Air Force will require the enhanced lethality and survivability inherent in Blocks 3F and beyond."

The US Marine Corps, meanwhile, is sticking to its plan to declare IOC with the Block 2B configuration in 2015. "If the F-35 IMS Version 7 executes according to plan, Marine Corps F-35B IOC criteria could be met between July 2015 (Objective) and December 2015 (Threshold)," the report states.

The Marines will declare IOC when the first squadron of between 10 and 16 aircraft is trained and ready "to conduct CAS, offensive and defensive counter air, air Interdiction, assault support escort, and armed reconnaissance in concert with Marine Air Ground Task Force resources and capabilities". The USMC also requires the jet's Autonomic Logistic Information System V2 software to declare IOC. Like the USAF, the Marines require Block 3F for their future needs, the report says.

The US Navy however is holding firm on requiring the full Block 3F configuration for its F-35C IOC date. "If the F-35 IMS Version 7 executes according to plan, Navy F-35C IOC criteria could be met between August 2018 (Objective) and February 2019 (Threshold)," the report reads.

USN F-35C IOC is expected to be declared when the first operational squadron of 10 aircraft is manned, trained, and equipped to conduct its assigned missions. "The aircraft will be in a Block 3F configuration with the requisite SDD [system development and demonstration] performance envelope and weapon clearances," the report reads. The USN says that it must have the Block 3F configuration to deal with threats in the post-2018 environment.

F-35_IOC_Joint_Report_FINAL[1].pdf