Category: Military & Defense

Airbus has signed a follow-on Contractor Logistics Support (CLS) contract with the U.S. Army to provide spare parts, material and engineering support for the Army’s entire UH-72A and UH-72B Lakota fleet of 482 utility and training helicopters. The contract includes a six-month base and 4.5 option years, with a potential total value of more than US$1.5 billion. Airbus will provide support across 67 Lakota sites in the U.S. and overseas. This includes National Guard bases in 43 states and Fort Rucker in Alabama, where the UH-72A performs the Army’s Initial Entry Rotary Wing mission (IERW). The CLS contract with the Read more

The U.S. Air Force and Lockheed Martin have successfully conducted a hypersonic-boosted flight test of the AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) from the service’s B-52H Stratofortress. The successful flight demonstrates the weapon’s ability to reach and withstand operational hypersonic speeds, collect crucial data for use in further flight tests and validate safe separation from the aircraft to deliver the glide body and warhead to designated targets from significant standoff distances. Additional booster and all-up-round test flights will continue throughout 2022, before reaching Early Operational Capability (EOC) in 2023. Hypersonic weapons provide a rapid response, time-critical capability to overcome distance Read more

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and 2Excel Aviation have successfully completed a demonstration of IAI’s Maritime Heron UAS in a series of live, Beyond Visual Line of Sight maritime search and ISR scenarios. The demonstration was based out of West Wales Airport in Aberporth, Wales. Attending the demonstration were in-person and virtual observers from the UK Ministry of Defence, Government and the Civil sector. The Heron UAS was ready to fly within 36 hours of arriving at West Wales and maintained full serviceability throughout the period of the deployment. The Heron UAS achieved 100% of its planned scenarios, despite the challenging Read more

Boeing has unveiled the first T-7A Red Hawk advanced trainer jet to be delivered to the U.S. Air Force. The jet, one of 351 the U.S. Air Force plans to order, was unveiled prior to official delivery. The fully digitally designed aircraft was built and tested using advanced manufacturing, agile software development and digital engineering technology, significantly reducing the time from design to first flight. The aircraft also features open architecture software, providing growth and flexibility to meet future mission needs. “We’re excited and honored to deliver this digitally advanced, next-generation trainer to the U.S. Air Force,” said Ted Colbert, Read more

Embraer has delivered the last modernised AF-1 fighter jet (AF-1B) to the Brazilian Navy. Under the AF-1 programme (the Navy designation for the McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawk), seven subsonic fighter jets were modernised – five single-seater AF-1Bs and two two-seater AF-1Cs. The AF-1 is an intercept and attack aircraft operated from airfields or aircraft carriers as a vector for the fleet’s air defence. The Brazilian Navy’s modernised aircraft received new navigation, weapons, power generation, computers, tactical communication and sensor systems, including a state-of-the-art multi-mode radar and a new operating system. In addition to the modernisation, the revitalisation of the cell Read more

Elbit Systems UK and KBR Inc’s joint venture, Affinity Flying Training Services (Affinity), has embarked on a series of battery-powered flight tests for the UK Ministry of Defence to assess the feasibility of environmentally friendly alternatives to current military aircraft. The concept of trialling zero-emissions aircraft and the subsequent pathfinder, was brought to the Ministry of Defence by Elbit Systems UK through its joint venture with KBR Inc, Affinity. The introduction of this pathfinder demonstrates the company’s commitment to providing innovative solutions for the UK Armed Forces and addressing the needs of the future. In line with the Ministry of Read more

The first two NH90 helicopters, dedicated to naval missions, of the Qatar Emiri Air Force have been delivered from Leonardo’s Venice Tessera final assembly line (Italy). The Qatar Emiri Air Force is one of the NH90 end users to operate both the TTH and NFH versions of the NH90 for a number of land operations and naval missions. As well as acting as prime contractor for the overall programme, Leonardo is responsible for the final assembly and delivery of the 12 NH90 NFH helicopters from its Venice Tessera facility. The company is also providing a support and training services package Read more

During the 2022 edition of FIDAE (Feria Internacional del Aire y del Espacio) in Chile, Embraer announced that the worldwide fleet of the A-29 Super Tucano aircraft has reached 500,000 flight hours. With more than 260 units delivered, the aircraft has already been selected by more than 15 air forces worldwide, including the United States Air Force (USAF), as well as several countries in Latin America, including Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, and Brazil. Developed in response to the demanding requirements of the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), the A-29 Super Tucano can perform a broad range of missions that Read more