January 2016 Air Force Military Aviation Defence Industry News
 

General Atomics funded to produce France's second MQ-9 Reaper RPA System

General Atomics funded to produce France's second MQ-9 Reaper RPA System
 
General Atomics funded to produce France s second MQ 9 Predator RPA System 640 001
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems has been awarded a $43,740,596 contract for France's MQ-9 second system. Work will be performed at Poway, California, and is expected to be complete by Oct. 31, 2017. This contract is 100 percent foreign military sales to France, the US Department of Defense announced on Tuesday, Jan. 19. 2016.
 

SEMMB reaches milestone with production of 250th MKF16F Rafale ejection seat

SEMMB reaches milestone with production of 250th MKF16F Rafale ejection seat
 
SEMMB reaches milestone with production of 250th MKF16F Rafale ejection seat 640 001
SEMMB (Société d'Exploitation des Matériels Martin Baker), a 50/50 joint company of Safran (France) and Martin-Baker Aircraft (UK), has produced its 250th MKF16F ejection seat for the Rafale multirole fighter. With about 50 employees, SEMMB designs, develops, produces and supports ejection seats for all French-designed combat aircraft, deployed by over 30 air forces worldwide.
 

California law enforcement agencies take delivery of six Airbus H125 AStar light helicopters

California law enforcement agencies take delivery of six Airbus H125 AStar light helicopters
 
California law enforcement agencies take delivery of six Airbus H125 AStar light helicopters 640 001
Four California law enforcement agencies have bolstered their crime fighting and public service capabilities by taking delivery of new Airbus Helicopters H125 AStars light utility helicopters. Airbus Helicopters Inc. recently delivered six H125s, including two each to the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, and one each to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and Ontario Police Department.
 

Lockheed Martin wins a $14.2 mn contract for Pakistani AH-1Z helicopters Target Sight Systems

Lockheed Martin wins a $14.2 mn contract for Pakistani AH-1Z helicopters Target Sight Systems
 
Bell wins 581 mn contract for delivering UH 1Y and AH 1Z helicopters to USMC and Pakistan 640 001
Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $14.2 million contract for the procurement of non-recurring engineering requirements on the Target Sight System (TSS), including software development and testing, system modification, testing, and installation requirements necessary to configure the TSS to the requirements of the government of Pakistan. Work is expected to be complete by December 2017, the US Department of Defense announced on Jan. 14, 2016.
 

Russian Helicopters' flying laboratory about to start flight tests campaign

Russian Helicopters' flying laboratory about to start flight tests campaign
 
Russian Helicopters Laboratory about to start flight tests campaign 640 001
An experimental flying laboratory of an advanced high-speed helicopter will undergo flight trials at the flight test center of the Mil Helicopter-Producing Enterprise in Moscow, the press office of Russian Helicopters rotorcraft manufacturer said on Tuesday.
 

Aviastar-SP to upgrade three An-124 Ruslan transport aircraft

Aviastar-SP to upgrade three An-124 Ruslan transport aircraft
 
Aviastar SP to upgrade three An 124 Ruslan transport aircraft 640 001
Russian aircraft manufacturer Aviastar-SP, based in Ulyanovsk, will upgrade three Antonov An-124 Ruslan (NATO reporting name: Condor) heavy transport planes, the manufacturer’s press office told TASS on Tuesday in a message.
 

First RAAF pilots start training on Pilatus PC-21 trainer aircraft

First RAAF pilots start training on  Pilatus  PC-21 trainer aircraft
 
First RAAF pilots starts training on PC 21 Pilatus trainer aircraft 640 001
The first Australian pilots to undertake conversion training on the Pilatus PC-21 recently arrived in Switzerland, the Royal Australian Air Force announces today on its website. These pilots will form the transition team responsible for development of the new training curriculum and PC-21 simulators being acquired under Project AIR 5428 Pilot Training System.
 

Pratt & Whitney and US DoD reach agreement on production of 167 F135 engines

Pratt & Whitney and US DoD reach agreement on production of 167 F135 engines
 
Pratt Whitney and US DoD reach agreement on production of 167 F135 engines 640 001
The U.S. Department of Defense and Pratt & Whitney have reached an agreement in principle on production contracts for the ninth and tenth lots of F135 propulsion systems to power all three variants of the F-35 Lightning II aircraft, the US-based engines manufacturer announced on Jan. 15, 2016.
 

Rockwell Collins wins a $30 mn contract to sustain Pakistan's C-130 Hercules fleet

Rockwell Collins wins a $30 mn contract to sustain Pakistan's C-130 Hercules fleet
 
Rockwell Collins wins a 30 mn contract to sustain Pakistan s C 130 Hercules fleet 640 001
Rockwell Collins has been awarded a $30,727,886 contract for the Pakistani Air Force (PAF) C-130 fleet. The US-based company will design, manufacture, integrate, train, provide technical support during installation, and deliver 11 C-130E model kits and five C-130B integrated avionics suites and kits.
 

Italy deploys AMX fighter aircraft and Predator RPA in Trapani amid security concerns with Libya

Italy deploys AMX fighter aircraft and Predator RPA in Trapani amid security concerns with Libya
 
Italy deploys AMX fighter aircraft and Predator RPA in Trapani amid security concerns with Libya 640 001
Italy’s Defense Ministry has ordered the deployment of four AMX fighter aircraft and one Predator drone to its Birgi base near Trapani, Sicily, amid concerns over the situation in Libya, the General Staff said. According to the statement, "the decision was taken following the recent developments in the area of the countries of North Africa and the consequent deterioration of the security conditions."
 

Afghan Air Force received its four first A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft

Afghan Air Force received its four first A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft
 
Afghan Air Force received its four first A 29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft 640 01
Afghanistan received four A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft from the United States, the country’s Defense Ministry spokesman said Friday. "The turboprop aircraft can fire guided rockets," Dawlat Waziri told the Pajhwok Afghan News agency. "The jets would help bolster the Afghan Air Force," he added.
 

Lithuania's Airbus AS365 N3+ SAR helicopters enter service

Lithuania's Airbus AS365 N3+ SAR helicopters enter service
 
Lithuania Airbus AS365 N3 SAR helicopters enter service 640 001
The Lithuanian Ministry of Defence and the Lithuanian Armed Forces celebrated yesterday the entry into service of their next generation of helicopters for countrywide search and rescue missions with around-the-clock availability. The Lithuanian Ministry of Defence and the Lithuanian Armed Forces assigned their three new AS365 N3+ helicopters to the 24/7 SAR mission service, Airbus Helicopters announced Friday, Jan. 15, 2016.
 

Russia will deploy Ka-52 combat helicopters in Syria to protect Khmeimim air base

Russia will deploy Ka-52 combat helicopters in Syria to protect Khmeimim air base
 
Russia will deploy Ka 52 combat helicopters in Syria to protect Khmeimim airbase 640 001
Russian Kamov Ka-52 (NATO reporting name: Hokum-B) attack/scout helicopters carrying the Vitebsk electronic warfare system will deploy to Syria to provide security for the Russian task force at Khmeimim air base in Latakia, a defense industry source told TASS on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016.
 

Irkut reportedly received an order from Myanmar for Yak-130 combat trainer aircraft

Irkut reportedly received an order from Myanmar for Yak-130 combat trainer aircraft
 
Irkut reportedly received an order from Myanmar for Yak 130 combat trainer aircraft 001
Irkut, a subsidiary of United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) from Russia, will deliver a batch of Yakovlev Yak-130 (Mitten) combat trainer aircraft, according to the manufacturer’s 2016 acquisition plan (#2150140358), unveiled TASS today, Jan. 15, 2016.
 

Bulgaria plans to purchase new multirole fighter aircraft by 2020

Bulgaria plans to purchase new multirole fighter aircraft by 2020
 
Bulgaria considers purchase of US second hand jet fighter to replace country s Soviet built aircraft 640 001
The Bulgarian Air Force could have its ageing Soviet-made combat aircraft replaced by new multirole warplanes in the next three to three-and-a half years, the country's Defence Minister Nikolay Nenchev said on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016.
 

Raytheon wins a $85mn contract from USAF for Griffin Block II/III missiles

Raytheon wins a $85mn contract from USAF for Griffin Block II/III missiles
 
Raytheon wins a 85mn contract from USAF for Griffin Block II III missiles 640 001
Raytheon's Missile Systems division has been awarded an $85,500,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for AGM-176 Griffin guided missiles and support, the US Department of Defense announced Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016.
 

Russian Southern Military District's air regiment about to receive 10 new Su-30SM fighter jets

Russian Southern Military District's air regiment about to receive 10 new Su-30SM fighter jets
 
Russian Southern Military Disctrict s air regiment about to receive 10 new Su 30SM fighter jets 640 001
Ten Sukhoi Su-30SM (NATO reporting name: Flanker-C) fighter jets will arrive to the Russian Southern Military District’s air regiment based in the Rostov Region in south Russia before the end of January 2016, the district’s press office told TASS on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016.
 

Boeing completes upgrade of six B-52 strategic bombers' weapons bay

Boeing completes upgrade of six B-52 strategic bombers' weapons bay
 
Boeing completes upgrade of six B 52 strategic bombers weapons bay 640 001
Six of the U.S. Air Force’s B-52 bombers can now take flight with a greater variety of weapons, thanks to enhanced internal weapons bay launchers delivered by Boeing. The upgraded launchers allow the B-52 to carry GPS-guided or “smart” weapons in the weapons bay for the first time and are ready for use, the US-based defense giant Boeing announced on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016.
 

Italy officially puts 31 of its military aircraft under EATC's operational control

Italy officially puts 31 of its military aircraft under EATC's operational control
 
Italy officially 31 of its military aircraft under EATC s operational control 640 001
On 12 January 2016, Italy transferred the authority of the majority of the Italian air transport, air-to-air refuelling and aeromedical evacuation assets to the European Air Transport Command (EATC), the organization announced in an official release.
 

Russia announces a $800mn order for 50 additional Su-35S fighter jets

Russia announces a $800mn order for 50 additional Su-35S fighter jets
 
Russia Eastern Military District takes delivery of two new Su 35S multirole fighter aircraft 640 001
The Russian Aerospace Force ordered 50 Sukhoi Su-35S (NATO reporting name: Flanker-E+) multirole fighters from Sukhoi (a United Aircraft Corporation subsidiary) in late December 2015, with its 2009 order for 48 Su-35s’s fulfilled, a UAC source told journalists on Wednesday. According to the source, the new order is valued at more than $788 million, but $1 billion seems to be more realistic, given a unit price of $20 million for the Russian Defense Ministry.
 

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