All Fixed-Wing news – Page 1349
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Helicopters
Winner: Eurocopter Location: Paris, France Achievement: Application of advanced noise-reduction technologies throughout the design of the low-noise EC 135 helicopter THE AWARDS JUDGES decided that two entries in this year's Helicopters category stood out "head and shoulders" above the others. Those were from Eurocopter for ...
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Military aviation
Winner: McDonnell Douglas Location: Long Beach, California, USA. Achievement: Successful entry into service of the C-17 transport and an outstanding first year of operations. At the start of 1995, the McDonnell Douglas C-17 Globemaster III entered full operational service with the US Air Force. In the first ...
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Russia's air-traffic volume continues to fall
TRAFFIC VOLUMES in Russia have fallen for the fifth successive year, according to the Russian Transport Department's 1995 annual report, due to be published on 16 February. The latest decline leaves passenger numbers at barely one-third of 1990's peak, when 90.7 million boardings were recorded in Russia, then part of ...
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Raytheon confirmed to start JPATS production
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC WORK ON THE $7 billion US Air Force/Navy Joint Primary Aircraft Training System (JPATS) is now under way after the US General Accounting Office (GAO) rejected the final protest over selection of Raytheon's Beech MkII in June 1995. The GAO (the investigative arm ...
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Lockheed/Alenia sign for Spartan development
LOCKHEED MARTIN AND Alenia have signed a preliminary agreement to develop jointly the C-27J Spartan derivative of the Italian company's G.222 medium-lift military transport. The deal is closely related to Lockheed Martin's attempt to sell the C-130J Hercules 2 to the Italian air force, to meet its interim ...
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PZL Turbo Orlik prototype lost in accident
TWO TEST PILOTS died when a prototype PZL-Okecie PZL-130 TC Turbo Orlik trainer crashed in Poland on 25 January. The accident took place near Warsaw, and early reports suggest that the aircraft may have suffered an engine failure. The PZL-130TC is an export variant of the Orlik, with ...
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Fatal tomcat crash
On 29 January, a US Navy Northrop Grumman F-14A fighter crashed into a suburb in Nashville, Tennessee, killing the two-man crew and three others on the ground. Source: Flight International
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A different guard
Tony Newton/LONDON THE SCENE, IS THE flight deck of a scheduled flight into Jersey, in the UK's Channel Islands. The main wheels touch down, but the nose-wheel stays high and finally hits the tarmac with the sort of thud, which passengers feel and engineers worry about. As the ...
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Spain picks Cougar for army requirement
THE SPANISH defence ministry has selected the Eurocopter Cougar for its army transport-helicopter requirement. The order, for 15 machines, has yet to be approved by the Government, however. Spain's air force, already operates 15 Super Pumas, (from which the Cougar is derived) but the army deal was, nevertheless, ...
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Hunting Aviation
HUNTING AVIATION was inadvertently omitted from Part I of the Flight International Third party Maintenance Directory (24-30 January). UK Hunting Aviation - Aircraft Engineering Division, East Midlands Airport, Castle Donnington, Derby DE74 2SL, UK. Tel: +44 (1332) 813 167 or +44 (1332) 810 910; fax: +44 ...
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Solar power
THE US ARMED FORCES ARE proposing a new generation of ultra-high-technology weapons, which would make today's best armaments, look prehistoric by comparison. The weapons they foresee, such as hypersonic aircraft and lasers, should prove to be more than a match for any foreseeable threat apart from one: the lack of ...
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USAF will extend the life of Singapore air force F-16s
THE REPUBLIC OF Singapore Air Force (RSAF) has reached an agreement with the US Air Force to carry out a structural life-extension on its Lockheed Martin F-16A/Bs. USAF civilian contractors will perform the depot-level work locally at Singapore's Tengah AB. The structural strengthening "Falcon Up" and modification programme ...
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F124 powers Australian T-45 bid
Graham Warwick/ATLANTA McDONNELL DOUGLAS (MDC) has selected the International Turbine Engines (ITEC) F124 as the primary engine in its bid to sell the T-45 Goshawk trainer to Australia. The T-45's existing Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour 871 turbofan will be offered as an option in MDC's proposal to meet ...
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USN/MDC team fix F-18 video problem
PROBLEMS WITH the cockpit video-recorder system in the McDonnell Douglas F-18C/D have been resolved, according to US Navy F-18 programme director Capt Joe Dyer. High failure rates with the Precision Echo (PE) WR-818 8mm video-cassette recorder had forced the Navy to suspend deliveries (Flight International, 20 December-2 January, P15). ...
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USAF looks into the future
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC HYPERSONIC FIGHTERS and high-power lasers are among the futuristic next-generation weapons envisioned for use by the US armed forces in a report released by the US Air Force Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). The 2,000-page study, New World Vistas, foresees the use of ...
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Switzerland favours more F-18s
SWITZERLAND IS looking towards its next fighter-aircraft purchase, following the roll out on 25 January of the first of 34 McDonnell Douglas (MDC) F-18C/Ds for its air force. If funding becomes available, before the end of the decade, the Swiss air force will probably seek a second ...
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Eurocopter and Snecma cut costs
Gilbert Sedbon/PARIS EUROCOPTER IS launching a fresh drive to improve productivity and cut costs as the Franco-German helicopter group prepares for the effects of pending French defence cuts and the continuing weak dollar. French engine manufacturer Snecma has already declared plans to accelerate rationalisation in the face ...
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Lockheed Martin delivers profits
Kevin O'Toole/LONDON LOCKHEED MARTIN has ended its first year with profits of more than $1 billion, confirming Wall Street optimism that consolidation within the defence giant is already producing the promised post-merger benefits. "We are meeting, and in some cases exceeding, the consolidation schedule we ...
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Pentagon blow to Sikorsky
Ramon Lopez/WASHINGTON DC SIKORSKY'S AMBITIONS of selling UH-60 Black Hawks to the US Marine Corps, in a deal worth as much as $1.5 billion, have been dealt a serious blow by a recommendation from a senior Department of Defense official that the USMC modernise its existing helicopter ...
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Kfirs bound for Sri Lanka as IAI seals Ecuadorian sale
ISRAEL AIRCRAFT Industries (IAI) has completed delivery of eight IAI Kfir fighter aircraft to Sri Lanka, with a further four Kfirs soon to be delivered to Ecuador. The Ecuadorian sale is proceeding despite the objections of Peru, which had complained to the US Government. US approval is needed ...