All Fixed-Wing news – Page 1350
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US DoD on brink of killing Hunter
US DEPARTMENT of Defense acquisition chief Paul Kaminski is on the brink of signing an acquisition decision memorandum halting production of the TRW/Israel Aircraft Industries Hunter short-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Only seven systems are in service. TRW/IAI was originally awarded a $169 million low-rate initial production contract ...
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Australian firefighters want to test-fly Canadair CL-415s
SOME OF Australia's major fire fighting authorities are to recommend that their state governments approve and fund a three-month operational evaluation of Canadair's CL-415 fire bomber during the country's next fire season, which usually starts in December and extends to March. The decision follows a series of ...
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Boon to aerospace
A background in shipbuilding has helped the head of Singapore Technologies Aerospace keep the company afloat. Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE BOON SWAN FOO'S first year at the helm of Singapore Technologies Aerospace (STAe) has proved to be tough. The former Singapore Shipbuilding and Engineering president has had to contend ...
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NH-90 and Tiger will survive French cuts
FRANCE'S CONTINUING defence review will result in lower production rates and delayed deliveries for the Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopter, the NH Industries NH-90 military utility helicopter and the air force's Dassault Rafale combat aircraft, say senior industry officials. Although any delay is unwelcome, such an outcome would ...
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Russia faces procurement crisis as air force budget is slashed
Douglas Barrie/LONDONAlexander Velovich/MOSCOW THE RUSSIAN air force is to receive only 13% of its budget request for 1996, a decision, which is threatening to cripple short-term equipment upgrades and long term acquisition plans. Nikolay Anisimov, assistant for finances to the air force's commander in chief, ...
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ACTIVE F-15 ready for first flight
NASA's thrust-vectoring-equipped McDonnell Douglas (MDC) F-15 is expected to have its first flight at Edwards AFB, California, around 1 February, following the successful completion of "hot-load" tests on the engines and vectoring nozzles. The modified F-15 will be used to evaluate the performance benefits of thrust-vectoring under phase one ...
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Reasons for being
NATO has been reshaping itself and reviewing the role of its air power. Tim Ripley/LONDON IF THERE WAS ONE reassuring aspect of existing in a bipolar world packed with nuclear weapons, it was that at least you knew which side you were on. The US-led NATO alliance faced ...
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Moulded for success
Dow-UT has demonstrated that complex structural parts can be moulded successfully in composites.Graham Warwick/ATLANTA A FAN-EXIT CASE produced by using resin transfer moulding (RTM) is "...one of the largest and most critical jet-engine parts ever made from composites", says its manufacturer, Dow-United Technologies (Dow-UT). The component, which is an estimated ...
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Eurocopter picks Turkey for cost trimming
Andrzej Jeziorski/MUNICH EUROCOPTER HAS awarded a structures-manufacturing contract to Turkey's Tusas Aerospace Industries (TAI) in a new move to shift elements of its production to low cost suppliers. Ankara-based TAI, which also produces components for Airtech CN-235s and assembles Turkish air force Lockheed Martin F-16s, is ...
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USAF begins JDAM drop tests
THE US AIR FORCE has begun separation tests of the tri-service Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) from a Rockwell B-1B bomber at Edwards AFB, California. The first three McDonnell-Douglas (MDC)-built JDAMs, modified Mk84 1,000kg blast-fragmentation bombs fitted with global-positioning-system (GPS) receivers, inertial-navigation systems and guidance fins, were dropped ...
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Taiwan looks for foreign training
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE TAIWAN IS seeking access to foreign military bases and training ranges for its air force, to overcome the problem of increasingly restricted airspace. According to local reports, Taiwan has approached several countries, including Australia, the Philippines and the USA. The move will almost certainly meet with opposition from ...
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Laser pod paves way for AMX/Tornado LGB role
THE ITALIAN AIR force has deployed for the first time Panavia Tornados modified to carry Thomson-CSF CLDP laser designators and Texas Instruments Paveway II laser-guided bombs (LGBs). The air force is also carrying the Paveway IIs on its AMX attack aircraft. Six Tornado interdictor-strike aircraft were modified initially ...
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Sukhoi details Su-25TM Frogfoot upgrade project
Alexander Velovich/MOSCOW SUKHOI PLANS to complete development tests in 1997 of the Su-25TM all-weather version of its Frogfoot attack aircraft, says Vladimir Babak, chief designer for the programme. A new designation, Su-39, has been adopted for the modernised aircraft by the design bureau, although it is not yet ...
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Australian Army narrows combat helicopter choice
Paul Lewis/SINGAPORE THE AUSTRALIAN Army appears to be narrowing down its requirement for a future reconnaissance and fire-support helicopter to a tandem-seat attack-type design. A major capabilities study, defining the Army's Air 87 requirements, is scheduled to be submitted in June to the Australian defence department's Force Structure and ...
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NVG modifications begin on F-16s
LOCKHEED MARTIN is modifying US Air Force Block 40 night-attack F-16s with interior and exterior lighting compatible with night-vision goggles (NVGs). The USAF plans to equip 250 aircraft with NVG-compatible lighting to enhance the F-16's close-air-support capability. Four aircraft have been modified for use in an NVG tactics-development ...
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MDC revises Grand SLAM RAF missile proposal
McDONNELL DOUGLAS (MDC) has modified its stand-off-missile proposal to the Royal Air Force to provide a weapon offering fire-and-forget and man-in-the loop guidance modes. The US defence contractor is now offering an advanced imaging infra-red seeker from GEC-Marconi Radar and Defence Systems and Loral, alongside an automatic target-recognition ...
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UK offers Tornado GR4 to UAE
Douglas Barrie/LONDON THE UK IS TO OFFER the United Arab Emirates (UAE) new-build Panavia Tornado GR4s to meet its strike-aircraft requirement, with British Aerospace now completing a bid worth more than £1.5 billion ($2.27 billion). The Gulf state is to be offered 24 Tornado GR4s, along ...
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Mikoyan considers 1.42 replacement
MIKOYAN IS considering developing a new, more-affordable, fighter to replace the Article 1.42, using technology from its stalled fifth-generation fighter programme. A senior official from the design bureau has admitted that the 1.42 is virtually unaffordable for the Russian air force. Anatoliy Belosvet, deputy general director ...
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Northrop Grumman replaces USAF wings
NORTHROP GRUMMAN IS MANUFACTURING a batch of 27 ship-sets of replacement wings for F-5E/F fighters operated by some 25 nations. The work is part of a block order announced in August 1995 under the USAF RF/F-5 structural-upgrade programme. Northrop Grumman was selected to manufacture 14 major structural components and replacement ...
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IPTN examines AEW option for N-250
INDUSTRI PESAWAT Terbang Nusantara (IPTN) has expanded its study of a possible future airborne early-warning (AEW) role for the new N-250 turboprop. The Indonesian manufacturer has formed a study team to look at AEW applications for the N-250. The study centres on around two AEW configurations proposed by ...