TURKEY NARROWS
Turkey has eliminated Eurocopter’s Tiger and Kamov’s Ka-50-2 from its $1.5 billion attack helicopter competition, and is to continue negotiations with AgustaWestland and Denel from September over the potential acquisition of their respective A129 Mangusta and Rooivalk helicopters. Discussions are expected to cover the potential delivery of up to 50 aircraft across two production batches.
HYPERSONIC TRIAL
A joint Boeing/US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and Office for Naval Research project to demonstrate a next-generation hypersonic cruise missile with dual-mode ramjet will result in a main engine flight test during the first quarter of 2007, according to the US manufacturer. Intended for use against time-critical targets, the current HyFly demonstrator has a launch weight of around 1,130kg (2,500lb).
SU-25 PILOT WAS ILL
An initial Russian air force investigation into the fatal crash of a Sukhoi Su-25 ground-attack aircraft on 28 June has concluded that its pilot was debilitated by a medical complaint before the accident. Russian media reports state that the pilot had reported feeling unwell before losing radio contact with the ground, and that a subsequent autopsy examination revealed that he had suffered a stroke during the flight.
Source: Flight International
