Crashes, engine failures ground IAF HPT-32 trainer aircraft

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has grounded its entire fleet of HPT-32 initial trainer aircraft owing to a series of crashes and engine failures. This comes at a time when the force is facing an acute shortage of efficient pilots. Authoritative sources in the IAF said recurrent engine failure of the Hindustan Piston Trainer (HPT)-32 aircraft — stationed at the Air Force Academy (AFA) in Hyderabad — is the reason behind the grounding since last month.“The entire fleet of the HPT-32 has not been flying," a senior IAF official said, requesting anonymity....

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Two Chinese helicopters violates the Indian air space

Two Chinese helicopters have reportedly violated the Indian air space in recent months in the Leh area of north Jammu and Kashmir during which they air-dropped some canned food in barren land at Chumar, northeast of this Himalayan town, along the border. The MI series helicopters were reported to the nearby defence post by residents of this high altitude area living along the Pangong lake, located in the lap of majestic hills, prompting the Army Aviation Corps to rush its Cheetah and Chetak helicopters. However, they could only find tell-tale signs...

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China to launch Indonesia's communications satellite

China will soon send an Indonesian communications satellite into space on the back of Chinese-made Long March 3B rocket, a spokesperson for the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province said Saturday. All preparatory work is well underway and both the satellite and the rocket were in good condition, the spokesperson said. The Palapa D satellite, owned by Indosat, an Indonesian satellite communications company, will provide satellite links and broadcasting services for Indonesia and other southeastern Asian nations. Indosat...

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Chinese air force Female jet fighter pilots in new flight suits

Photo 1 & 2 taken on Aug. 30, 2009 shows female jet fighter pilots dressed in the new flight suits at an airport in north China, Aug. 30, 2009. The Chinese air force held Sunday a ceremony here for the first batch of female jet fighter pilots to be equipped with new flight suits especially designed for the female. (Xinhua/Zha Chunming)Photo 2: A female jet fighter pilot dressed in the new flight suit prepares to board the plane at an airport in north China, Aug. 30, 2009. The Chinese air force...

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Taiwan will go ahead with its purchase of 60 Black Hawks

The Ministry of Defense (MOD) said despite statements from the president suggesting a redeployment of funds, Taiwan will go ahead with its purchase of 60 Black Hawk helicopters from the United States.President Ma said on the 18th that Taiwan could cut its purchase of Black Hawk helicopters by 15 in order to free up funds to buy rescue helicopters and other emergency supplies. But in a statement issued Sunday, the MOD said the plan is to purchase the 60 Black Hawk helicopters, and earmark 15 of the helicopters for rescue missions. This way, said...

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Israel Air Force testing Black Hawks with attack capability

In an effort to upgrade its attack helicopter fleet, the Israel Air Force is conducting flight tests with a new version of the Black Hawk utility helicopter that has been equipped with offensive air-to-surface missile launchers. Israel has several dozen Black Hawk helicopters - called Yanshuf - which it began receiving in the 1990s. Made by Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, the helicopter was designed in the 1970s as a utility tactical transport aircraft for the United States Air Force. The helicopter can carry a squad of a dozen troops with equipment...

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335th FS deploys personnel to Afghanistan

A North Carolina-based fighter squadron is sending personnel to Afghanistan. The 335th Fighter Squadron, based at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, deployed approximately 300 personnel on Sunday. Base spokesman Lt. Matt Schroff said no aircraft would be sent to Afghanistan.The squadron flies F-15E Strike Eagles, which can provide air cover for ground troops. The 335th deployed to Iraq in 2003 and flew more than 1,500 missio...

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British Chinook helicopter deliberately destroyed in Afghanistan

A British Chinook helicopter was deliberately destroyed by ISAF Forces at 1605 local time having sustained damage on landing approximately 10km East of Sangin at 0530 this morning, Sunday 30 August 2009. In addition to four crew members, the helicopter was carrying 15 soldiers from 2 RIFLES Battlegroup who were being inserted into the area as part of an ongoing security operation.The crew and passengers were unharmed. The aircraft is believed to have suffered a 'hard landing' and sustained damage...

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Iraq tobring back 19 MiG fighter planes from Serbia

An Iraqi military delegation has gone to Serbia to bring back 19 MiG fighter planes that Saddam Hussein's regime sent for servicing 20 years ago, the defence ministry said. "General Othman al-Fredji, a defence ministry adviser, and Anwar Mohammed Amin, head of the air force, are in Serbia negotiating the return (of the planes) at the earliest possible date," spokesman General Mohammed al-Askari said.The Soviet-built MiG-21 and 23 aircraft, whose existence has just been discovered, "were sent by...

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India loses contact with first moon craft : ISRO

India has lost contact with its first mooncraft, an unmanned satellite launched amid much fanfare last October, the national space agency said. "The radio contact was lost at 1:30am IST (2000 GMT Friday) by the Deep Space Network (DSN)," the state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said in a statement here.Scientists at the organisation are reviewing data to analyse the health of the spacecraft's systems, ISRO said. The Chandrayaan-1 satellite was launched on October 22, 2008 and then launched a TV-set-sized probe painted in the green-white-and-orange...

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Pakistan rejects US allegations of modifying US-made missiles

The NationThe Obama administration has accused Pakistan of illegally modifying U.S.-made missiles to expand its ability to hit land-based targets, a charge promptly rejected by Pakistani Ambassador in Washington. Citing senior administration and Congressional officials, The New York Times made the accusation in a dispatch that also said the altered missiles posed a potential threat to India. The Times said the charge came in late June through an unpublicized diplomatic protest to Prime Minister...

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20,000 more troops needed to fight terror in Afghanistan

M A KaiserimamThe commander of Nato forces in Afghanistan will ask for 20,000 more international troops as part of his new strategic plan for the alliance’s war against a resurgent Taliban. The demand from General Stanley McChrystal will almost certainly lead to more British soldiers being sent to the increasingly treacherous battlegrounds of Helmand, the Taliban heartland, despite growing opposition to the war.General McChrystal, tasked with turning the tide in the battle against the insurgency on the ground, has given a presentation of his draft...

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F-16E/Fs to arrive in India for evaluation on Monday

By Fakir Balaji Bangalore: Three F-16 advanced fighters of US aerospace major Lockheed Martin will soar into the skies Monday for the flight evaluation trials (FET) of the medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) the Indian Air Force (IAF) is seeking to replace its ageing Soviet-era MiG-21 fleet."We are flying in three F-16s from Dubai to Bangalore Aug 31 for the month-long field trials. The fourth-generation advanced fighters are currently with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force. They will...

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JSTARS needs upgrades for its mission in Afghanistan

By David A. Fulghum and Amy ButlerThe return of the U.S. Congress next month will reignite smoldering defense budget battles, and one new target of the budgeter’s ax could be upgrade packages for the E-8C Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System (JSTARS)The ground surveillance aircraft is slated to start flying out of Afghanistan next summer in response to an urgent need request for a dynamically-tasked, real-time airborne surveillance system that can track people in rough terrain.But JSTARS needs airframe, engine and sensor upgrades to make...

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U.S. accuses Pakistan of modifying Harpoon for land-attack

The United States has accused Pakistan of illegally modifying American-made missiles to expand its capability to strike land targets, a potential threat to India, according to senior administration and Congressional officials.The charge, which set off a new outbreak of tensions between the United States and Pakistan, was made in an unpublicized diplomatic protest in late June to Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and other top Pakistani officials.The accusation comes at a particularly delicate time, when the administration is asking Congress to approve...

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No deal for French submarines under way

The Ministry of Defense Production said on Saturday it was not purchasing French submarines in place of those manufactured by Germany.Briefing Senate’s Standing Committee on Defence and Defence Production, Defence Production Secretary Israr Ghumman said an evaluation committee formed by the Naval Headquarters had recommended purchase of German submarines.He told the meeting, presided over by Chairman Lt-Gen (retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi, that the government had not signed any agreement with French authorities as reported in the media. Senator Raja Zafarul...

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Why K Santhanam said Pokharan II was not a success

It was a major embarrassment for the country when a senior scientist of the Defence Research and Development Organisation, K Santhanam, made the revelation that Pokhran II, India's nuclear tests in 1998, was not entirely successful.His statement that comes almost a decade after the test has landed the scientist in hot water. However, Santhanam says he stands by what he has said and has no intention of changing his stance.In a telephonic interview with Vicky Nanjappa, Santhanam explains why there was a necessity to make this revelation 11 years...

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Russia and Saudi ArabiaTo Finalize $2B Deal Soon?

Saudi Arabia is close to signing a $2 billion (1.4-billion-euro) deal to buy Russian arms, a Russian defense industry source was quoted as saying August 29."Work is nearly complete on a set of contracts on the delivery of Russian arms and military technology to Saudi Arabia, with a total value of around $2 billion," the source told Interfax news agency."For many of these contracts, all the technical and financial details have practically been agreed, for others work is still ongoing," he added.Riyadh may purchase up to 150 helicopters - 30 Mi-35...

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India's light combat aircraft to phase out Russian jets

India will begin deploying its first locally made supersonic combat aircraft next year and gradually phase out its ageing fleet of Russian fighters, defence officials said on Friday.Five Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) costing about $31 million each have already been manufactured by state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and undergoing trials, while eight more will be ready by mid-2010, defence officials said."We can say 2012 is the key for our air force when we will not only have many LCAs, but by then we should also be able to induct more...

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Scorpene project will cost additional Rs 2,000 Crore

India will have to soon shell out well over Rs 2,000 Crore (US $ 409.25 Million)* more to French armament companies if it does not want its ongoing mammoth Rs 18,798 Crore (US $ 3.85 Billion)* project to construct 6 Scorpene submarines at Mazagon Docks Ltd (MDL) in Mumbai to come to a grinding halt.The Scorpene project, under which the first submarine was to roll out by December 2012, with the others following one per year thereafter, is already running two years behind schedule, as was first reported by ToI."Our submarine force-levels need to...

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Pakistan Says West Must Cut Source of Taliban’s Funding, Arms

By Ed JohnsonPakistan defended its fight against Islamic extremism and called on Western governments to choke off funding and arms supplies to Taliban insurgents. Sardar Tariq Azizuddin, the country’s ambassador to Turkey, said people should question how the Taliban grew strong enough to take on NATO and U.S. forces. “What is the source of Taliban funding and what is the source of their weapons supply?” Azizuddin said in an interview with Turkish media, the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan reported yesterday. “Nobody either talks about it...

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Talks over Gorshkov's price likely to conclude: India

Navy Chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta today said negotiations between India and Russia over price of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov could be concluded within next two days."Price negotiations are on with the Russian team which is in India. The negotiations committee is discussing it with them. The time frame (for price fixation) is very short, hopefully day after," Mehta told reporters.The ongoing negotiations are considered to be the last leg of the talks between the two countries on the cost of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier - repair, refit...

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China urges U.S. to reduce surveillance operations

(Xinhua) -- China has called on the United States to reduce, and gradually put an end to air and sea military surveillance and survey operations to avoid naval confrontations.The request was made during a special session on maritime safety between the two countries' militaries on Wednesday and Thursday, said China's Defense Ministry."China believes the constant U.S. military air and sea surveillance and survey operations in China's exclusive economic zone had led to military confrontations between the two sides," the Ministry said. "The way to...

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Counter-RAM Systems Target Rockets

David Eshel/Tel AvivWith the threat from short-range, high-trajectory weapons such as rockets, artillery and mortars (RAM) becoming more lethal in cross-border attacks, the development of counter-RAM technologies has ­accelerated.The Extended Area Protection and Survivability (EAPS) program is part of an advanced technology objective pursued by the U.S. Army's Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center, to protect U.S. forces against RAM attacks. The program anticipates the use of guided-munition technologies to intercept...

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India scrambles fighter to intercept Air France plane

India on Thursday scrambled a fighter jet to intercept a Bangkok-bound Air France passenger plane after the airliner failed to identify itself correctly, the air force said. A Russian-built MiG-29 took off to intercept Air France flight 164 from Paris after it transmitted incorrect identification codes upon entering Indian airspace, air force spokeswoman Flight Lieutenant Priya Joshi said.Joshi said the pilot of the Airbus did not identify the airliner as a “friendly” aircraft, which prompted a military airbase in northern India to scramble the...

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Russia’s newest Dozor-600 UAV at MAKS-2009

At the MAKS-2009, Russia has displayed the full-sized mock-up of a new UAV “Dozor-3 “(now renamed “Dozor-600“, in accordance with a maximum takeoff weight). According to the information, Dozor-3 is a medium-altitude UAV long endurance UAV. Information about Dozor-600 / Dozor-3 UAV was first presented in 2008 and UAV is schedule to fly in 2010 for the first time.Multi-Purpose Unmanned aerial vehicle is designed to search, locate and identify targets, located at a considerable distance from the launch...

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Pokhran II not fully successful: Senior DRDO Scientist K Santhanam

The Times of IndiaThe 1998 Pokhran II nuclear tests might have been far from the success they have been claimed to be. The yield of the thermonuclear explosions was actually much below expectations and the tests were perhaps more a fizzle rather than a big bang. ( Watch Video )The controversy over the yield of the tests, previously questioned by foreign agencies, has been given a fresh lease of life with K Santhanam, senior scientist and DRDO representative at Pokhran II, admitting for the first time that the only thermonuclear device tested was...

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Russia plans to buy 100 Yak-130 jet trainer

While the Russian air force may only have 12 Yakovlev Yak-130s on order, the goal is to acquire 100, says Maj. Gen Oleg Barmin, the head of air force procurement. The aircraft has completed state testing for the trainer role, and should complete the combat trainer requirement in October. The first series production aircraft was on display during MAKS 2009, and the second is expected to be flown this month. The air force is due to take delivery of four aircraft by October, with the first nine of...

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Ministry of Transport signs for 2 additional EC225 helicopters in China

Eurocopter is pleased to announce the contract signature of another 2 EC225 helicopters with the Ministry of Transport (MOT) / China Rescue and Salvage Bureau (CRS) today.A mere 2 years after the delivery of its first 2 EC225 helicopters in December 2007, this signature took place in the presence of MOT Vice Minister Mr. WENG Mengyong, Captain SONG Jiahui, Director General of the CRS, Mr. FU Shula, President of AVIC International Holding Corporation and Mr. Norbert DUCROT, Senior Vice-President Asia Pacific Sales for Eurocopter.“This purchase underlines...

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First Chinese jumbo jet engine to debut in 2016

China's first home-made jet engine will make a debut in 2016, a significant step of the large-jet program, an official said . "China is expected to complete the research of its first jumbo jet engine in 2016 and begin to apply for aviation certificate from the state aviation authority," said Zhang Jian, general manager of the Shanghai-based AVIC Commercial Aircraft Engine Co. Ltd."We hope the home-made engine will fly together with the home-made large aircraft," he said. The engine company was established...

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Fighter Order Rekindles Russian Air Force

By Douglas Barrie and Alexey KomarovRussian air force ambitions stretch far beyond the $2.65-billion Sukhoi fighter order at the MAKS 2009 show. Aspirations include fielding an unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV) alongside its fifth-generation fighter and developing a next-generation strategic bomber.The fighter deal is a fillip to the air force and Sukhoi. The military will acquire 48 Su-35S fighter aircraft from 2010-15, along with 12 Su-27SMs and four Su-30M2s. Delivery of the last two versions of the Flanker should be completed by 2011.Securing...

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No plans for replacing Bulava with Sineva: Russia

Russia has no plans to replace the Bulava submarine-launched ballistic missile with the Sineva missile, said Nikolai Makarov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces. “This is an absolutely different complex. Submarines are made for Bulava launches. In fact, we have to rebuild a submarine to equip it with the Sineva missile. This is a very expensive project,” he told reporters on Wednesday.“We believe that Bulava will be launched,” he said. Makarov underlined that the submarines will be commissioned in time irrespective of the...

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Russia plans to purchase French-made Mistral helicopter carrier

Russia plans to purchase a French naval helicopter transport ship this year and is interested in jointly producing more of the vessels, the head of Russia's armed forces said. Mistral Class ship has the payload capacity to carry up to 16 heavy helicopters and one-third of a mechanised regiment, plus two LCAC hovercraft or up to four landing craft.Mistral Class ships can carry sufficient stores for the crew and 450 troops for 45 days between replenishments."We are working on agreements that would...

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