Saturday 31 October 2020

U.S. Moves Forward With Sale of 50 F-35 Jets to UAE: Sources

Bernie C


U.S. Moves Forward With Sale of 50 F-35 Jets to UAE: Sources | World News | US News

Reuters

FILE PHOTO: Airshow in Singapore February 9, 2020. REUTERS/Edgar Su REUTERS

BY MIKE STONE AND Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department notified Congress it approved the sale of 50 Lockheed Martin Co F-35 jets to the United Arab Emirates in a deal that could be worth $10 billion, sources said on Thursday, potentially setting up a showdown with lawmakers over the deal.

The United States and the UAE aim to have a letter of agreement for the F-35 jets in time for UAE National Day celebrated on Dec. 2, Reuters reported in September.

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees, whose members have criticized the UAE's role in civilian deaths in Yemen, have the right to review, and block, weapons sales under an informal review process.

Israel initially balked at the prospective sale but last week dropped its opposition after what it described as U.S. guarantees that Israeli military superiority would be preserved.

Any deal must satisfy a longstanding agreement with Israel that any U.S. weapons sold in the region must not impair Israel's "qualitative military edge," guaranteeing U.S. weapons furnished to Israel are "superior in capability" to those sold to its neighbors.

"We all face a common threat," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an apparent allusion to Iran, told reporters on Thursday when asked about reports of the impending UAE jet sale.

"But with that said, it was important that the (Israeli) defense establishment received this clear American undertaking to preserve our qualitative military edge," added Netanyahu, who earlier on Thursday hosted visiting Pentagon chief Mark Esper.

Representative Eliot Engel, chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, confirmed that an informal notification was sent to Congress on Thursday. "As Congress reviews this sale, it must be clear that changes to the status quo will not put Israel's military advantage at risk," he said.

The sources said the Trump administration aims to send formal notifications for the deal in the coming days. Once formally notified, Congress can choose to pass legislation to block the sale.

Typically the informal notification process for complex deals like the F-35 sale is 40 days, but the Trump administration is cutting it to just a few days to meet the goal of a UAE National Day signing ceremony, the sources said.

"Rushing these sales is not in anyone's interest," Engel warned in his statement.

Senator Bob Menendez, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, made clear he would not automatically support the deal in a statement adding that "recklessly accelerating the timeline around a reportedly artificial deadline precludes sufficient consideration."

The UAE, one of Washington's closest Middle East allies, has long expressed interest in acquiring the stealthy F-35 jets and was promised a chance to buy them in a side deal when it agreed to normalize relations with Israel.

Because of the qualitative military edge restriction, in the past the F-35 has been denied to Arab states, while Israel has about 24 of the jets. Israel is currently slated to purchase 50 of the fighters.

(Reporting by Mike Stone and Patricia Zengerle in Washington and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Editing by David Gregorio, Tom Brown and Toby Chopra)

Copyright 2020 Thomson Reuters.


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Japan Picks Mitsubishi Heavy to Develop Own Stealth Fighter

Kevin Martin


Japan Picks Mitsubishi Heavy to Develop Own Stealth Fighter | Military.com


In this Sept. 25, 2000, file photo, a Japan Air Self-Defense Forces F-2 jet fighter is seen in Toyoyamacho, Aichi Prefecture (state), central Japan. (Kyodo News via AP, File)
30 Oct 2020

The Associated Press | By Mari Yamaguchi

TOKYO — Japan has picked Mitsubishi Heavy Industries as a main contractor to develop the country's own next generation stealth fighter for launch in the 2030s, the defense minister said Friday.

Separately, Mitsubishi announced that it was suspending its civilian aircraft project given uncertainties for the travel industry due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The next generation fighters, currently known as F-X, are part of Japan's upgrading of its aging fighter jet fleet as the country builds up its military capability to counter growing threats from China and North Korea.

The next generation stealth jet will replace F-2s that Japan co-developed with the U.S. They are due to be retired around 2035. The Defense Ministry is seeking 58.7 billion yen ($556 million) in the 2021 budget for research into developing the aircraft.

“We will steadily push forward the development of our next generation fighter jets,” Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters in making the announcement.

Mitsubishi will decide on other participants in the project, including avionics, engine and other parts makers. Japan also is considering co-developing some parts with foreign contractors including those in the U.S. and Britain.

Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force has a fleet of about 290 fighter jets and is also replacing its F-4 fighters with dozens of F-35s to strengthen its missile deterrence out of concern over North Korea's missiles and nuclear program.

Japan’s purchases of American weapons have helped reduce its trade surplus with the U.S. while also responding to demands from President Donald Trump to do more to pay for its defense. But the purchases have raised concerns about weakening efforts to build up Japan's fledgling defense industry.

Kishi said Mitsubishi's decision about its commercial aircraft program had no bearing on the fighter jet development plan.

The company said it has decided to cut costs and focus on potential growth sectors such as cleaner energy projects and cybersecurity, to boost its profitability.

Work on the aircraft, called SpaceJet and formerly known as the MRJ, will be put on hold, it said. Test flights began in 2015, and deliveries had been planned for Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways.

Given the blow to travel from the pandemic, demand for passenger aircraft is not expected to recover until 2024, Mitsubishi said.

Mitsubishi Heavy, a supplier for U.S. aircraft maker Boeing, racked up a 57 billion yen ($548 million) loss for the first half of fiscal year through September, a reversal from a 29 billion yen profit the year before.

___

AP Business Writer Yuri Kageyama contributed.

This article was written by MARI YAMAGUCHI from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.


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Save the "Admiral": carriers of hypersonic weapons will be protected from submarines

ptisidiastima.com


Save the "Admiral": carriers of hypersonic weapons will be protected from submarines | Articles | News: 

Translated by google

The first anti-submarine missiles will enter service with the newest frigates of project 22350
 
30 October 2020
 Alexey Ramm / Roman Krezul

Photo: TASS / EPA / ERNESTO MASTRASCUSA


The Zircon hypersonic missiles will receive impenetrable protection from submarines. The newest frigates of the "Admiral's series" - Project 22350 of the "Admiral Gorshkov" type - will be equipped with unique weapons to combat submarines. These ships will be the first in the Russian Navy to carry such powerful torpedo missiles. Unlike other means of fighting "steel sharks", these ammunition can hit targets within a radius of tens of kilometers, experts said.

Frigates against boats
The command of the Navy decided on which ships to equip with the latest development to combat submarines - anti-submarine guided missiles (PLUR). The first to take them aboard are Project 22350 frigates of the Admiral Gorshkov class, Izvestia sources in the military department said. It is possible that the new product will replenish the arsenals of ships of the "Admiral's series" next year.

PLUR is the most dangerous weapon for submarines. Depth charges have low accuracy, and torpedoes have a relatively short range. The rocket can be launched for tens of kilometers. When it hits a given area, a small torpedo is separated from it, which independently searches for an underwater object and hits it.

In August last year, Izvestia reported that the development was in a high degree of readiness. Later, the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Alexei Krivoruchko said that the promising complex was launched into pilot production, and its tests are planned to be completed in 2020. On October 18 this year, the press service of the Northern Fleet reported on the successful test launch of an anti-submarine missile from the frigate "Admiral Kasatonov" in the Barents Sea. The shooting was carried out as part of the qualification tests and was recognized as successful.

Mikhail Kofman, a leading expert of the Center for Naval Analysis, told Izvestia that for a modern warship there is nothing more deadly than a submarine. And there is no quicker way to lose a ship than to let the submarine come within torpedo range.

- No matter how large, sophisticated and technologically advanced surface ships are, submarines remain the main predators of the ocean, - the expert noted. “After all, submarines carry cruise missiles on board.

According to Mikhail Kofman, such a weapon is most effective when the ship works in conjunction with anti-submarine aircraft. Aviation scatters hydroacoustic buoys over the area, which "listen" to the underwater situation. When one of them detects the noise of a submarine, the ship fires a torpedo along these coordinates.

The Soviet fleet still had such a weapon, but then there was no such perfect detection means as it is today, noted the former chief of the main headquarters of the Navy, Admiral Valentin Selivanov. The ships, he said, took coordinates from planes or from another ship.

“Project 22350 frigates have a large detection range, which allows them to effectively use torpedo missiles,” the expert told Izvestia. - When you find a boat at a distance of 100 km, you must use this advantage. For a torpedo attack, she needs to approach a distance of 20 km, and you anticipate the actions of the submarine's crew. If on frigates of the "Admiral Gorshkov" series the hydroacoustics will conscientiously serve, and the missilemen use their weapons correctly, then such a ship will always defeat the submarine.

Torpedo missiles will be installed on various ships of the near and far sea zones, and in the future a modification will be created for placement on anti-submarine aircraft, believes the chairman of the St. Petersburg club of submariners, captain 1st rank Igor Kurdin. If necessary, such a product can be used not only against a submarine, but also against a torpedo fired into the ship, the expert noted.

“Entering the far zone of anti-submarine defense, the submarine commander believes that the surface ships are still far enough away,” Igor Kurdin explained to Izvestia. - He still does not have such a keen sense of danger as at the distance of a torpedo attack. And when you still do not even hear the noise of anti-submarine ships, and suddenly a torpedo is moving at you, then in such a situation there is not even time to dodge.

In the air and in the sea
PLUR is placed in a universal transport and launch container. It houses two modules - launch and combat control, as well as a power supply and a number of auxiliary systems.

The container layout makes it possible to equip coastlines, naval bases, warships and ships of various classes, railway and automobile platforms with such missiles. Preparing a transport and launch container for a shot takes very little time, since contact with a submarine often lasts minutes, and the system itself is quite simple to use.

The guided missile can be integrated into the automated control systems of combat ships and even mixed air-ship formations. This makes it possible to use planes and helicopters as scouts that find submarines and give target designation to the ships that carry the new complex.

Project 22350 frigates are currently under construction. The lead ship of the series "Admiral Gorshkov" has already entered the Navy. The second - "Admiral Kasatonov", from the board of which the PLUR took off, is completing state tests. The third and fourth - "Admiral Golovko" and "Admiral Isakov" - should be commissioned in the next two years. "Admiral Yumashev" and "Admiral Spiridonov" are planned to be handed over to the Navy in 2025-2026.

Representatives of the "admiral's series" are among the most powerful in the Russian fleet. The new universal shipborne firing complex (UKSK) 3S-14 allows them to use the Kalibr cruise missiles and the Onyx anti-ship missiles. And besides, these frigates will become carriers of unparalleled Zircon hypersonic missiles.



Admiral Gorshkov Class Frigate: Details
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Media: the Su-57 copied the important technology of the American F-22

Vyacheslav Grushnikov


В Су-57 скопировали важную технологию американского F-22: но вопросы к ней остались :: Армия

Translated by google


Photo: Aleksey Ivanov / TV Zvezda / www.globallookpress.com

However, so far in Russia they do not show it in action.

The Russian Su-57 fighter copied the technology of the American F-22, which allows the missile to be pushed out of the inner compartment.

According to the EurAsian Times, Russia has tried to make a system similar to the one on the Raptor and pushing the AIM-9 out of the compartment under the wing.

All in all, the Su-57 has four internal compartments - two small ones in the wings and two larger ones in the fuselage. In March of this year, the Ministry of Defense published a video in which the Su-57 launches an air-to-air missile right on takeoff. However, it shows that the rocket hangs under the wing before launch, and then the pilot launches. At the same time, before this, the rocket is not visible, most likely, it left the compartment in advance using the above mechanism, and only then the pilot pressed the trigger.

According to The Aviationist, Russia is developing new missiles for the internal compartments of the Su-57, which are currently being tested. According to Western experts, it could be a modernized P-77 "Viper" or a short-range P-73 with an infrared homing system, also significantly modified.

Western publications have noticed that the video and air shows never show how the Su-57 opens its internal compartments, while the F-22 does it regularly. There is a version that there were some problems with this mechanism and had to be improved.


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Friday 30 October 2020

Algeria receives 1st batch of MiG-29 fighter aircraft from Russia, reports say

MiG-29M2 - Yuri Stepanov


Algeria receives 1st batch of MiG-29 fighter aircraft from Russia, reports say - Military & Defense - TASS

The fighters were delivered disassembled and are now being prepared for their first flights at the Oran airbase
 
MiG-29 fighter jets
© Sergei Bobylev/TASS

MOSCOW, October 26. /TASS/. The Algerian Air Force has received the first batch of MiG-29M/MiG-29M2 fighter aircraft from Russia, the country’s specialized web portal menadefense.net reported on Monday.

The fighters were delivered disassembled and are now being prepared for their first flights at the Oran airbase, the web portal said.

The MiG-29M/MiG-29M2 fighters will replace MiG-29S aircraft operational in the Algerian Air Force’s 193rd fighter squadron. These aircraft are identical to their Egyptian version, the web portal said.

Russia’s state arms seller Rosoboronexport (part of the state hi-tech corporation Rostec) signed two contracts with Algeria on the delivery of a squadron of MiG-29M/MiG-29M2 fighters and a squadron of Su-30MKA aircraft at the MAKS-2019 international air show near Moscow last year.

Rosoboronexport declined to comment on this information.



MiG-35: Details
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US Offers F-18 Fighters To Indian Navy

RedRipper24


US Offers F-18 Fighters To Indian Navy - Pratidin Time

By Pratidin Bureau Last updated Oct 28, 2020


The United States of America (USA) on Wednesday has offered its F-18 naval fighter jets to the Indian Navy in a bid to fulfill India’s requirements of combat jets for its aircraft carriers.

Few years ago, the Indian Navy had expressed interest in the acquisition of 57 naval fighter jets for its operation from the Navy’s aircraft carriers including the present INS Vikramaditya and the under-construction Indigenous Aircraft Carrier.

“The American Government has offered to provide their naval fighter aircraft F-18 for the Indian Navy under a government proposal at the meeting between defence delegations of both countries during the 2+2 meetings,” government sources told ANI.

As per reports, the Indian Navy was offered to buy their F-18 fighters along with the unmanned aircraft Sea Guardian as well as a number of other systems.

At the moment, the Indian Navy has been assessing the F-18 and the Rafale naval fighters for its present and futuristic requirements as its present fighter is likely to be phased out by the end of this decade or the beginning of next.

The aircraft offered by the American government is said to be the advanced version of the plane which was on offer to the Indian Air Force for its requirement of 126 Multirole Medium Combat Aircraft in which only Rafale and European Eurofighter had been able to meet the qualitative requirements and finally the French plane had been selected.

Both Rafale and F-18 have been showcasing the simulated capability of their respective fighter aircraft to take off and land at the INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier to the Indian Navy.

Furthermore, the Americans have also shared a lot of information regarding the deployment and activities of the Chinese military in the military standoff.


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Bulgaria to receive surplus F-16s from US ahead of Block 70 delivery

Norman Graf


Bulgaria to receive surplus F-16s from US ahead of Block 70 delivery

by Gareth Jennings

Bulgaria is to be gifted surplus Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft to help prepare the country for the arrival of its first F-16V Block 70s.

A surplus US Air Force F-16 at the boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Base, Arizona. Bulgaria is to be gifted two such aircraft to help prepare the country’s air force for the latest F-16V Block 70 from 2023. (309th Aerospace Maintenance And Regeneration Group)


A surplus US Air Force F-16 at the boneyard at Davis-Monthan Air Base, Arizona. Bulgaria is to be gifted two such aircraft to help prepare the country’s air force for the latest F-16V Block 70 from 2023. (309th Aerospace Maintenance And Regeneration Group)

The donation, announced by the US embassy in Sofia on 20 October, comprises a pair of decommissioned US Air Force (USAF) F-16s that will be used to train pilots and maintainers on the type ahead of the Bulgarian Air Force (BuAF) receiving the first of its eight F-16Vs.

“In conjunction with [US State Department Assistant Secretary for Political and Military Affairs] R Clarke Cooper’s visit [to a number of Bulgarian air bases and facilities], the United States Embassy in Bulgaria is pleased to announce that the United States Air Force intends to provide two decommissioned F-16 aircraft to the Bulgarian Air force, subject to the approval of the United States Congress,” the embassy said. “At the request of Bulgaria’s government, these two airframes will be transferred through the US Department of Defense’s Excess Defense Articles (EDA) programme for use as training aids and general familiarisation tools for Bulgarian Air Force personnel.”

The announcement was made during a visit by Cooper to the USAF’s F-16 equipped 31st Fighter Wing, which is on temporary NATO enhanced air-policing duties at Graf Ignatievo and Bezmer air bases. The embassy did not specify the variant or the block of the surplus F-16s to be donated, nor did it specify if these ‘decommissioned’ jets will be flight-worthy or used only for ground-based training.


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US Navy Awards Sikorsky Contract to Build 6 More CH-53K Heavy Lift Helicopters

US Navy


US Navy Awards Sikorsky Contract to Build 6 More CH-53K Heavy Lift Helicopters

The CH-53K has flown more than 2,000 flight hours validating the aircraft's performance , including testing on a ship and in both hot and cold environments. This year, the helicopter completed air-to-air refueling with a 27,000-lb. external load demonstrating its ability to enable heavy-lift transport from sea to shore.


Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company (NYSE: LMT) will build six additional production CH-53K King Stallion helicopters under a new contract for the U.S. Navy. The aircraft will further support the U.S. Marine Corps in its mission to conduct expeditionary heavy-lift assault transport of armored vehicles, equipment and personnel to support distributed operations deep inland from a sea-based center of operations.

The six helicopters are part of 200 aircraft Program of Record for the U.S. Marine Corps, and their addition makes a total of 24 CH-53K production aircraft now under contract. Under the terms of this most recent contract – known as Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Lot 4 – Sikorsky will begin deliveries of the six aircraft in January 2024.

"This contract award is a testament to the government's confidence in the CH-53K platform. This award shows that we are working hard to make the aircraft more affordable," said Major General Greg Masiello, program executive office, air ASW, assault and special mission programs. "The capability and affordability of the CH-53K is important to ensure that we provide a valuable addition to the United States Marine Corps and our friends and allies."

King Stallion Production Marches Ahead
The CH-53K program has five aircraft on the line at Sikorsky facilities in Connecticut and over  two dozen in various stages of production. The program will deliver the first low rate initial production aircraft in September 2021.

Sikorsky and its suppliers have made significant investments in facilities, machinery, tooling, and workforce training to ramp up production required for the CH-53K program. For example, for the first time, newly installed 10-ton cranes lifted a 12,000 lb. gearbox into a CH-53K production aircraft.

"The production of this CH-53K helicopter represents a new era in capabilities, technologies, safety and mission flexibility for the U.S. Marine Corps. Sikorsky is committed to supporting the Marine Corps to maximize the benefits of this all new helicopter," said Bill Falk, Sikorsky CH-53K program director.

"Pilots are already training on state-of-the art flight training devices to prepare in a safe, cost-effective manner for operational deployment," Falk said.

CH-53K Proving Capabilities
The CH-53K is also nearing the conclusion of the developmental flight test events in preparation for Initial Operational Test & Evaluation (IOT&E), having flown more than 2,000 flight hours validating the aircraft's performance on a ship and in both hot and cold environments. This year, the aircraft completed:

Air-to-air refueling with an external load
Initial sea trials
Flight tests in extremely hot and dusty conditions at U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona
Other accomplishments include:

Maximum weight single-point cargo hook sling load of 36,000 pounds (16,329 kilograms)
Forward flight speed of over 150 knots
60-degree angle-of-bank turns
Altitude of 18,500 feet mean sea level (MSL)
12-degree slope landings and takeoffs
External load auto-jettison
Gunfire testing
Source: Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT)
Date: Oct 28, 2020


Sirkorsky awarded $17.9M modification for work on the H-53K
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Thursday 29 October 2020

F-5E fighter crashes off eastern Taiwan, killing pilot

志翔科技有限公司


F-5E fighter crashes off eastern Taiwan, killing pilot - Focus Taiwan

The jet crashing into the sea. Photo courtesy of a member of the public, Oct. 29, 2020


Taipei, Oct. 29 (CNA) An F-5E fighter jet crashed during a training mission off the coast of Taitung County in eastern Taiwan Thursday morning, killing the pilot.

The aircraft crashed into the sea north of Chihhang Air Base less than two minutes after taking off, the military said.

The pilot, Chu Kuan-meng (朱冠甍), managed to bail out but was found without vital signs, according to the military.

He was rushed to Taitung Mackay Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 9:27 a.m., the hospital said.

(By Tyson Lu, Chang Chi and Y.F. Low)

Enditem/J

Chu Kuan-meng (Image taken from photo M YouTube)

A F-5E fighter jet (CNA file photo)

CNA photo Oct 29, 2020

Enditem


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Wednesday 28 October 2020

Ecuador receives first two H145 helicopters

LaKi-photography


Ecuador receives first two H145 helicopters

by Gareth Jennings

Ecuador has received the first two of six Airbus Helicopter H145 rotorcraft to be fielded by the South American nation in place of the already-retired HAL Dhruv and alongside recently procured Leonardo AW119Ke helicopters.

One of the first two H145 helicopters handed over to the Ecuadorian Air Force. The service is to receive six such platforms in all. (Airbus Helicopters)


The H145 helicopters were officially handed over to the Ecuadorian Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana: FAE) during a ceremony at Airbus Helicopters’ Donauwörth facility in southern Germany on 27 October.

“Airbus Helicopters has delivered two H145s to the Ecuadorian Air Force: the first military customer in South America for this multi-purpose twin-engine helicopter. A total of six H145s will be delivered over the next year. The H145 helicopters, known as ‘Cobra’ in the Ecuadorian Air Force, will be assigned to the 22nd Combat Wing in Guayaquil. The contract includes training for 12 pilots and 15 technicians as part of an in-country operational training programme,” the manufacturer said.

Set to replace seven Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Dhruv helicopters that were purchased by the FAE in 2009, which retired just five years later, and to complement four AW119Ke helicopters purchased in 2019, the six H145s will be used in roles such as border surveillance, counter narcotics, high-altitude search-and-rescue (SAR), medical evacuation, and disaster relief, both day and night.


H145M: Details
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Italy to develop G550-based C4ISTAR aircraft

Israeli Air Force photo


Italy to develop G550-based C4ISTAR aircraft

by Gareth Jennings & Alessandra Giovanzanti

Italy is to acquire a Gulfstream G550-based special mission aircraft under plans revealed in the country’s latest multiyear planning document (Documento Programmatico Pluriennale: DPP) for 2022–22.

The Italian Air Force already fields the G550 CAEW, which it acquired from IAI in Israel. The service has now revealed plans to develop and field a C4ISTAR platform that is also based on the G550 airframe. (IAI)


The DPP released on 23 October disclosed that the C4ISTAR aircraft will be developed over a series of tranches from 2021 through to 2032.

“The programme relates to a multimission system, based on Gulfstream G550 aerial platform equipped with modern sensors for strategic information collection and electronic superiority, suitable for integration into a net-centric architecture of C4ISTAR for real-time sharing of information, able to operate both in an autonomous context [and as part] of a complex inter-force structure,” the DPP noted.

In terms of the programme structure, the new C4ISTAR platform is to be allocated a total of EUR1.223 billion (USD1.45 billion) in funding out to 2032, to include operational support and related infrastructure. Further funding will be allocated after this date for upgrades to keep the aircraft current with the latest technologies.

According to the DPP, international co-operation agreements for the platform’s development are already in place and in progress, though no further details were disclosed. A ministerial decree pertaining to the programme is currently being approved ahead of its publication.


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