ROKAF Receives Additional C-130J Super Hercules Aircraft

Two additional C-130J Super Hercules aircraft operated by the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) ferried from the Lockheed Martin facility here today.

These C-130Js will join the ROKAF’s other two Super Hercules aircraft, which were delivered in March. ROKAF aircrews also currently operate a fleet of C-130H legacy aircraft.

The ROKAF’s new Super Hercules is the longer fuselage or “stretched” combat delivery variant. Lockheed Martin is also contracted to provide a two-year support program, including C-130J aircrew and maintenance training.

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Italian Navy tests Camcopter S-100 unmanned aerial vehicle

The Italian Navy is conducting a series of technical and tactical evaluations on the Camcopter S-100 remotely-piloted aircraft by Scheibel of Austria.

The testing comes on the heels of the rotorcraft drone completing tests in the North Sea by the Netherlands.

The Camcopter S-100 has a top speed of 138 mph, a range of 112 miles and is designed for military intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions and for civilian tasks such as search and rescue and disaster relief.

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Unmanned aerial vehicle shot down by Ukrainian special operation units is Russian

An unmanned aerial vehicle shot down by Ukrainian army on May 28, according to preliminary report, is a type of "Orlan-10" UAV produced by Russia, the Security Service of Ukraine's spokesman said.

"According to the preliminary analysis of the specialists, the vehicle is one of the serial modifications of the "Orlan-10" UAV made by Russia, with a parachute landing system. The "Orlan-10" is a component of the air reconnaissance, observation and monitoring complex.

It is used by the Russia state structures, in particular, Russian Defense Ministry as a reconnaissance aircraft, which capable to create base maps in 3D and to operate process of fighting. Depending on modification and set module, the UAV "Orlan-10" could carry on board thermovision camera, photo camera, video camera, radio transmitter, and re-transmitter," the ministry reported on Friday.

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Cole secures funding to save AWACS

Rep. Tom Cole has taken another step to protect Air Force command-and-control planes called AWACS at Tinker Air Force Base from proposed cuts by the Obama administration.

Cole, R-Moore, whose district includes Tinker, said Friday that a defense spending bill cleared a subcommittee with enough money to spare all seven planes proposed for retirement. There are 27 AWACS planes at Tinker.

Along with retiring planes, the Air Force had also proposed that a reserve unit at Tinker no longer fly AWACS and that the remaining ones be flown only by an active duty unit.

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Funding for desi aircraft carrier tops CCS agenda

India's mission to build its own aircraft carrier has virtually come to a grinding halt, with the defence establishment awaiting allocation of fresh funds to finish the 40,000-tonne warship's construction at Cochin Shipyard.

The approval for the around Rs 19,000 crore Phase-II and III construction of the long-delayed indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC), to be christened INS Vikrant, figures among the top agenda items for the new Modi government's Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), say sources.

The UPA regime's CCS, in fact, was to take up the case earlier this year, after clearance from the defence and finance ministries, but the final nod failed to materialize. "So, fresh approvals from MoD and MoF are being obtained to take it to the CCS again," said a source.

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Aircraft carrier Vikramaditya fully operational: Navy Chief

Signalling that INS Vikramaditya is battle ready months after its arrival from Russia, Navy Chief Admiral Robin Dhowan has said that the aircraft carrier is fully operational with an adequate number of pilots now qualified to operate from the floating airfield.

Speaking with The Indian Express, Dhowan shared that the Indian crew has now been fully trained and the carrier is ready to conduct operations.

“The ship is now operationally deployed and our pilots have been conducting regular flying operations. An adequate number of pilots have been trained,” he said, adding that the training was initially carried out by qualified flight instructors from Russia.

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Future Frigates today’s challenge

The notoriously long gestation period of a major military capability means considerable effort has already been directed at the so-called Future Frigate that will replace the RAN’s eight Anzac-class workhorses sometime in the next decade.

Although the Sea 5000 program has yet to complete the ­requirements definition phase, there has been no shortage of ­debate on capability and construction issues within both Defence and industry — until recently.

One-on-one discussions in Sydney last year between ­Defence’s Capability Development Group and major industry players were to have been followed by a strong Defence team visiting ship designers in Europe and possibly the US.

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New-class Black Sea submarine leaves for sea trials

A new generation diesel-electric submarine Friday left St. Petersburg's Admiralty shipyard for Baltic Sea trials.

The near-complete diesel-electric Novorossiysk will be at sea for less than a month and will return to base for final fitting ahead of joining the Black Sea naval fleet, a defence industry source told Itar-Tass on Friday. Three-month mooring trials have already been completed.

Novorossiysk is the first in a series of 636.6 Varshavyanka Project vessels, Black Sea Fleet Commander Admiral Viktor Chirkov told ITAR-TASS.

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Iran's first Caspian sub will be active in 2015

A submarine Iran is building at Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea will be operational in 2015, according to military sources cited by the Azerbaijan Press Agency (APA).

In November 2013, IHS Jane's published satellite imagery that revealed the submarine was being constructed at Bandar Anzali and that a second, similarly sized boat had already been launched at the Bostanu shipyard on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian officials have said a new class of 500-tonne submarines called the Fateh is under construction.

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Navy to extend service life of Groton-based USS Dallas

The U.S. Navy announced on Friday that it would retire the USS Norfolk (SSN 714) sooner than anticipated and extend the service life of the USS Dallas (SSN 700) in order to save approximately $10 million, spread maintenance work across shipyards and meet the Navy’s operational needs.

The two submarines are part of the Los Angeles-class attack submarines and were each scheduled to be retired from active service.

The 32-year-old USS Dallas, currently in Groton, was initially scheduled to be inactivated in fiscal year 2015 but will remain active until fiscal year 2017.

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PLA to up number of Type 041 submarines to at least 60 in 10yrs

Experts have predicted that China is likely to increase the number of its type 041 conventional submarines to 60 or 70 over the next decade. The Japanese navy also plans to increase the number of its Soryu-class diesel-electric powered submarines from 16 to 22 in response to a perceived threat from China, reports our Chinese-language sister newspaper Want Daily.

Soryu-class diesel-electric powered submarines are the latest model of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force. The vessel has a displacement of 2,000 tonnes and is equipped with an air-independent propulsion system. Japan will purchase another five of the submarine and will get delivery of one per year, increasing the total number of its Soryu-class submarines to ten.

China is preparing to test its latest type-041 diesel-electric submarine in the water recently. The vessel is similar to Germany's new submarine and equipped with an extra sonar system. Its displacement is likely to reach 3,500 tonnes.

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Nuclear-powered submarine Alexander Nevsky to arrive in Kamchatka before end of 2014

The strategic nuclear-powered submarine of Project 955 (Borey class) will arrive in Kamchatka before the end of the current year, Commander of the Eastern Military District of Russia Colonel General Sergei Surovikin said on Friday at a visiting session of the military council.

“In accordance with the Russian Defense Ministry’s instructions, the construction of the facilities of the first priority stationing site should be completed by October 2014, and the Alexander Nevsky submarine will start the combat training program before the end of the year,” he said.

“The Vladimir Monomakh submarine will also arrived in Kamchatka after factory trials,” Surovikin added.

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Last warship built in Portsmouth is handed over to Royal Navy of Oman

A ceremony has been held to mark the handing over of a warship to the Royal Navy of Oman.

Al Rasikh is the third and final Khareef class corvette built by BAE Systems in Portsmouth.

She is the last warship to be constructed in Portsmouth after the company’s announcement that shipbuilding will end in the city.

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F-35 Achieves Three Major Flight Test Milestones On Same Day

In three separate flight tests on May 27, Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft demonstrated air-to-air combat capability, completed the first flight test with the next level software load and accomplished a landing at the maximum test speed and drop rate.

In the Point Mugu Sea Test Range airspace off the Central California coast, an F-35B demonstrated the jet’s air-to-air combat capability when it sequentially engaged two aerial targets with two AIM-120 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) during a Weapon Delivery Accuracy mission.

Test pilot Lt. Col. Andrew ‘Growler’ Allen tracked two maneuvering drone targets, making the very first dual AMRAAM shot from any F-35 variant, and the first live AMRAAM shot from the F-35B Short Take Off and Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant.

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Russia to Launch Fleet of Mini Satellites in June

Russia will launch a cluster of about three dozen mini-satellites aboard a converted Soviet ICBM in late June as part of a Russian-Ukrainian joint project, contrary to reports that the crisis in Ukraine had jeopardized the program, a top space official said.

The satellites will be launched from a RS-20 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, or ICBM, that has been converted into a Dnepr rocket. The Moscow-based Kosmotras International Space Company sells these rockets for commercial launches under a 1997 project by the Russian and Ukrainian governments to convert Soviet-era missiles for commercial and scientific purposes.

Earlier Russian media reports said that Ukrainian enterprises — such as Yuzhmash, which converts the missiles — could stop working with their Russian counterparts due to the ongoing crisis in east of the country.

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New deal to protect UK helicopters

BAE Systems has been awarded a £16.7 million ($27.9 million) contract to produce its third-generation common missile warning system (CMWS) equipment for a range of UK military helicopters.

Intended to replace current equipment and also to be installed on new-build helicopters, the system integrates “hostile fire indication, missile warning and data recording capabilities into a single unit”, BAE says.

This will provide UK pilots with “enhanced detection [and evasion] of small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades, improving their safety and mission effectiveness”, says Bill Staib, the company’s director of threat management solutions.

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US spy drones flies in UK airspace for the first time

A US spy drone has flown through UK airspace for the first time, the Ministry of Defence has said.

The unarmed and unmanned Global Hawk reconnaissance aircraft was taking part in a Nato exercise and flew in segregated airspace.

The drone entered UK airspace on three occasions in the last month.

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Airbus Teams with Provincial Aerospace for Fixed-Wing SAR project

Airbus Defence and Space and Provincial Aerospace (PAL) announced today they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to bid for Canada’s fixed-wing search and rescue (FWSAR) project.

Provincial Aerospace is a fully integrated international aerospace and defence company headquartered in St. John’s, NL, Canada. Under the MOU, Provincial Aerospace will provide in-service support (ISS) and other expertise for the fleet of C295 aircraft being offered by Airbus Defence and Space to replace Canada’s aging CC-115 Buffalo and CC-130 aircraft currently being used for search and rescue duties.

Antonio R. Barberán, Head of Commercial for Military Aircraft, Airbus Defence and Space, said: “Provincial Aerospace’s proven in-service support capabilities and world-class expertise as an integrator of advanced technology systems make it a very strong addition to our C295 team.

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House panel snubs Pentagon on defense spending

The Pentagon faces election-year roadblocks in persuading Congress to back cost-saving defense cuts as the military moves away from robust wartime budgets.

The House panel that decides defense spending came out with a $570 billion blueprint Thursday that spares the USS George Washington aircraft carrier, gives military personnel a 1.8 percent pay raise and rebuffs Pentagon efforts to make troops and their families pay slightly more for housing and groceries at on-base commissaries.

The spending bill echoes the broad defense policy bill that the House overwhelmingly passed last week that saves ships and aircraft despite pleas from senior military officers for the reductions.

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New Chinese 052D Destroyers, 3 In A Row At A Shipyard

Three Type 052D Luyang III guided missile destroyer (DDG), seen here in various stages of construction, are lined together at the Jiangnan Changxingdao Shipyard.

The first Type 052D DDG, the Kunming, has already entered into PLAN service in March 2014.

The second 052D, on the left, may enter service in the second half of 2014, while the two less completed destroyers to its right, will be commissioned in 2015.

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Michelle Obama to help lay keel for new submarine

First lady Michelle Obama on Monday will help lay the keel for a new submarine under construction in Rhode Island.

She is scheduled to speak at a ceremony at Electric Boat's manufacturing plant in North Kingstown for the future USS Illinois, her office said Wednesday. The 13th Virginia-class submarine is named after her home state.

The first lady is the ship's sponsor. In a Navy tradition, she is expected to write her initials on a metal plate then a welder will inscribe them. The plate will later be mounted on the submarine.

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Fourth Yasen nuclear submarine to join ranks of Russian Navy

The fourth multirole nuclear submarine of the upgraded Project 885M (code name: Yasen) will be laid down at the Sevmash shipyard (Severodvinsk) on July 19, a source in the shipbuilding industry told Interfax-AVN on Thursday.

"This will already be the fourth consecutive nuclear submarine codenamed Yasen and the third consecutive upgraded ship of Project 885M to be laid down at Sevmash. It will be laid down along with the fifth Borei, Knyaz Oleg," the source said.

He recalled that the Project 885 Yasen head multirole fourth-generation nuclear submarine named Severodvinsk designed by the St. Petersburg-based Malakhit Design Bureau was floated on June 15, 2010.

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Portugal to induct Harpoon Block II for submarines in 2014

The Portuguese Navy (Marinha Portuguesa) is planning to introduce the UGM-84 Sub-Harpoon Block II missile later this year to equip its two Type 214 (locally known as Type 209PN) Tridente-class attack submarines NRP Tridente (S 160) and NRP Arpão (S 161).

Eight Portuguese Navy RGM-84 Block I surface-launched anti-ship missiles are being adapted into Block II weapons in Den Helder, the Netherlands, with the installation of upgrade kits supplied by Boeing, the missile's original equipment manufacturer.

Upgrade of the first missile was completed on schedule at the end of 2013; the navy plans to formally induct the updated UGM-84 missile into service in the fourth quarter of 2014.

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Fifth Borei-class nuclear submarine to be constructed for Russian Navy

The nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine Knyaz Oleg, the fifth to be built under Project 955A Borei, designed by Rubin Central Design Bureau, will be laid down at the Sevmash Shipyard on July 19, a source in the shipbuilding industry told Interfax-AVN on Thursday. "The fifth Borei will be called Knyaz Oleg."

"It will be laid down at the Sevmash on July 19," the source said.

He also said that the Knyaz Oleg will become the second nuclear submarine to be built under the improved project 955-A.

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Brazil to add third converted 767 tanker

Brazil is to sign a revised contract soon to add a third converted Boeing 767-300 tanker to its air force inventory, according to Israeli defence sources.

In March 2013, the Brazilian air force command selected Israel Aerospace Industries for the conversion of two commercial Boeing 767-300ERs, with options for an additional two.

These will replace the service’s four retired KC-137s (militarised Boeing 707s), which had been in use since 1986.

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Unmanned Aircraft Series Sets Record for Mission Hours Flown in One Week

Northrop Grumman Corporation's High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) series, which includes the U.S. Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk, set a new record for mission hours flown in one week, logging 665 hours flying operational and exercise missions during the week ending Feb. 23.

In 2013, Global Hawk flew an average of 433.8 hours a week. The weekly record of 665 hours set in February 2014 is 53 percent above last year's average. That is the equivalent of almost four Global Hawks in the air around the clock for an entire week.

The HALE UAS series have exceeded 110,000 total flight hours supporting diverse global missions. More than 87 percent of those missions were for the Air Force, others were for the U.S. Navy, NASA and other customers.

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DRDO successfully test-fires Akash air defence missiles

DRDO on Wednesday successfully test-fired the Akash air defence missiles off the coast of Balasore in Odisha.

“Three Akash missiles were launched from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Balasore, on tow body target of Lakshya pilotless target aircraft moving at low altitude far boundary, and ripple mode missions. The missiles intercepted the fast moving and maneuvering small RCS targets within small interval of five seconds in ripple mode,” a DRDO release said.

The tests were conducted by the Indian Air Force, which will be the first service to induct the Akash missiles in its inventory.

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Russian Naval Aviation Monitoring NATO Warships in Black Sea – Source

Naval wings of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet have resumed training flights over neutral waters of the sea to monitor the activity of NATO warships, a source in the Russian navy's headquarters said Wednesday.

“During the flights, combat training is carried out to provide surface image coverage in the neutral waters of the Black Sea,” the source said.

These flights, performed mainly by Su-24 attack aircraft, allow monitoring of NATO warship maneuvers, which have increased in activity in recent months.

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Peru to Get 8 Russian Military Helicopters in November

Peru's Air Force will receive a delivery of eight new Russian-made helicopters in November, with an additional 16 to come in 2015, Peruvian Defense Minister Pedro Cateriano said.

The Mi-171Sh multi-purpose helicopters were sold to Peru in a $406 million deal in December, and are likely to replace the eight Mi-17 transport helicopters that were sold to Peru in 1984, the Jane's Defence military news website reported Tuesday.

The Peruvian government has set aside $11 million to repair and refit the three Mi-171s it bought in 2010, and an additional $2.8 million to overhaul the presidential transport Mi-17-1B.

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Chinese force launches daylong attacks on Vietnamese vessels

Since China’s illegal oil rig Haiyang Shiyou 981 was relocated to a new area in Vietnamese waters on May 27, its guarding vessels, with the support of military planes, have launched more attacks on Vietnamese ships, the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) said on Wednesday.

Dang Le Son, captain of Vietnam Coast Guard ship 2015, said, “During the past two days, Chinese vessels have launched more attacks and prolonged the time of each assault on Vietnamese ships.”

Yesterday, May 28, was the first day that the Chinese force launched daylong attacks on Vietnamese vessels when they were requested by the Vietnamese side to leave the Vietnamese waters in the East Sea.

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Navy base RNAS Culdrose set for biggest Merlin helicopter exercise since Cold War

Sailors at RNAS Culdrose have been busy training and getting everything ready for one of their biggest operations since the Cold War.

Next Monday, nine of the latest Merlin helicopters carrying more than 250 personnel will fly off from the base near Helston.

Their home for four weeks will be the Atlantic Ocean on broad the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious. They will take part in continuous operations to hunt for French and British submarines shadowing the carrier in an exercise code named Deep Blue.

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Rapid growth in defence budget risks 'wasteful shopping expedition': think tank

The Abbott government's plan to pump billions of dollars into defence risks encouraging the military to go on "a shopping expedition" for equipment and personnel that aren't really needed, a top think-tank warns.

In its annual defence budget report, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute embraces the government's goal to spend 2 per cent of gross domestic product on defence as a credible one.

But it makes a series of warnings about the scale of the Coalition's ambition, noting that the target means military spending would reach $52 billion in 2023-24, up from $29.3 billion in the coming financial year.

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Russia needs naval bases both in the Caucasus and Crimea

The analysis of military operations during the second defense of Sevastopol makes it possible to draw two vital conclusions concerning fleet deployments and the role of naval aviation, the Black Sea fleet commander, Alexander Vitko, told a historical conference devoted to the 70th anniversary of Crimea’s liberation from fascist occupiers.

“First, it is vitally important (for Russia) to have two huge naval bases: one in the Caucasus and the other in Sevastopol,” Vitko said.

“Second, the success of any military operation depends on air support. That is why aviation is a vital component of any naval assault force,” the commander went on to say.

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U.S. Navy secretary defends new warship program

U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus defended the embattled $34 billion Littoral Combat Ship program on Wednesday and said the ability to reconfigure the ships to carry out different missions would help the Navy keep pace with rapidly changing technologies.

A Navy task force is reassessing the program after Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel expressed significant concerns about the survivability and firepower of the LCS ships, and ordered a pause in orders after 32 ships.

The Navy has so far ordered 24 of the 52 ships planned for the program from the two companies that build them, Lockheed Martin Corp and Australia's Austal.

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Russia Lays Down 6th Kilo-Class Sub for Vietnam

The final Kilo-class Project 636 diesel-electric submarine for the Vietnamese navy under a 2009 contract was laid down Wednesday in St. Petersburg, a defense industry source told RIA Novosti.

"Today, we had the ceremony of laying down the sixth submarine for Vietnam. This is the latest submarine in this series," the source said.

Under the $2 billion contract, two submarines have already been delivered to Vietnam, the third is undergoing sea trials, a fourth was floated out in late March, and the fifth and sixth are now under construction.

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Japan & Australia consider submarine deal that could rattle China

Japan will get the chance to pursue an unprecedented military export deal when its defense and foreign ministers meet their Australian counterparts in Tokyo next month.

Japan is considering selling submarine technology to Australia – perhaps even a fleet of fully engineered, stealthy vessels, according to Japanese officials. Sources on both sides say the discussions so far have encouraged a willingness to speed up talks.

Any agreement would take months to negotiate and remains far from certain, but even a deal for Japan to supply technology would likely run to billions of dollars and represent a major portion of Australia's overall $37 billion submarine program.

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Japan Needs Time to Provide Ships to Vietnam

Japan said on Wednesday it was unable to immediately provide decomissioned patrol ships to Vietnam amid heightened tensions in the South China Sea as its own coastguard was stretched by surveillance activities.

As tensions mount between China and other claimants to the South China Sea, countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines are rushing to bolster their maritime patrols.

Japan, itself locked in a bitter territorial spat with China, in March agreed to dispatch a research team to Vietnam as a step toward providing it with patrol ships.

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Australian Navy to Follow US Biofuel Move

The Royal Australian Navy will be converting its ships to be biofuel ready within six years in response to the US Navy’s move to biofuel use.

The Australian newspaper reports that this will ensure the Australian navy can continue to cooperate with the US, which is expected to have its fleet converted by 2020.

A common approach is seen as critical for joint operations involving Australian and US warships and aircraft, as fuel is exchanged if required.

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Oto Melara 76/62 Super Rapid guns selected for Iraqi Navy Corvettes

OTO Melara goes aboard the Musa Bin Nasir and Tariq Bin Ziyad corvettes, as part of an agreement being finalized between Fincantieri and the Iraqi government.

The vessels will be equipped with 76/62 guns, one of the most successful solutions of the company.

The 76/62 Super Rapid (SR) Gun Mount is a light weight, rapid-fire naval gun providing unrivalled performance and flexibility in any air defence and anti-surface role, particularly in anti-missile role.

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Deliveries of Russian MiG Fighters to Syria Maintain Arms Balance in Region – Internal Opposition

A contract for the supply of Russian MiG fighters to Syria serves to strike a balance of arms and maintain peace in the region, a top leader of Syria’s Popular Front for Change and Liberation told RIA Novosti.

"The Soviet Union has always supplied weapons to Syria. Thus, some balance in the region was maintained to help us keep the peace, so I think that the contract is part of this historical strategy," one of the Popular Front’s leaders Qadri Jamil explained.

If someone tries to disrupt the contract under the pretext of the ongoing conflict in the country, "it will be unclear, illogical and unpersuasive because the transaction is not related to the internal events," according to Jamil.

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JASSM achieves Final Operational Capability

Minister for Defence, Senator David Johnston, today announced Final Operational Capability (FOC) had been achieved for Project AIR 5418, the AGM-158A Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-Off Missile (JASSM).

“The Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-Off Missile is now fully in service and is an extremely capable, long range missile that meets the future requirements of Air Force,” Senator Johnston said.

“Successful JASSM integration forms a key piece of the strike capability and ensures that Air Force can meet future operational demands.”

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Israel Agrees to Spend Half of Iron Dome Funds in U.S.

The Israeli government has agreed to spend more than half the funds the Pentagon provides for its Iron Dome system in the U.S., bolstering the political appeal of the missile-defense system in America.

Funds going to U.S. contractors for components of the Israeli-built, Pentagon-funded system will jump to 30 percent this year and 55 percent next year from 3 percent previously, according to a U.S. Missile Defense Agency report to Congress obtained by Bloomberg News.

That amounts to at least $97 million of $176 million requested by the Defense Department for the coming fiscal year.

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Diehl signed a cooperation agreement with Elbit Systems on A400M protection system

Diehl Defence signed an exclusive cooperation agreement with Elbit Systems, to equip the Bundeswehr´s Airbus A400M transport aircraft with its self-protection system.

The agreement was signed at the International Aviation and Space Exhibition (ILA) in Berlin on May 20.

Diehl combines three of Elbit System´s J-MUSIC™ (Multi-Spectral Infrared Countermeasure) systems into a multi-turret DIRCM (Directed Infrared Counter Measure) system ensuring complete 360° protection of the aircraft.

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IAF Makes 'Extreme' Decision To Cancel Training Flights

IAF fighter jet commanders were informed on Tuesday evening that due to IDF budget cuts it was decided that starting next Sunday, no more training flights will be conducted.

According to the decision, flights would only be carried out as part of actual operations, in instances requiring on-call alertness and at flight school. All training would be halted.

The commanders were told to let pilots in the reserves know that the cutting of training includes them as well, according to Walla!. The decision was made with the support of Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz.

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Pilot Killed as MiG-21 Fighter Crashes in Jammu and Kashmir

A MiG-21 fighter jet belonging to the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed in South Kashmir district of Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, killing the pilot on the spot.

“One MiG-21 of the IAF crashed some 10 km short of Awantipore airbase in South Kashmir atabout 10:48am,” Defence Spokesman Lt Col N N Josh said.

The jet crashed in an open field in Mudhama village on the outskirts of Bijbehara town, causing a deep crater on the ground.

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First flight for RAF Waddington’s new Rivet Joint spy plane

The Rivet Joint surveillance aircraft based at RAF Waddington has been flown in UK airspace for the first time.

The UK Rivet Joint RC-135W signals intelligence aircraft at RAF Waddington is the first of three that the MOD have bought from the US as part of the Airseeker programme.

The aircraft will replace the retired Nimrod fleet, and will provide the UK with a world class real-time signals intelligence and surveillance capability for forces in the air and on the ground.

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Royal Navy takes over Culdrose air base Hawk jets

Fast jets operating out of the Royal Naval Air Station at Culdrose in Cornwall have been returned to full military control.

The 14 Hawk T1 jets now make up 736 Naval Air Squadron and are flown by military and civilian pilots.

Until recently the aircraft were operated by private contractor SERCO.

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RNZN's maritime helicopter flies with Penguin missiles in test flight

A Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) Kaman SH-2G(I) Super Seasprite maritime helicopter fitted with Penguin anti-ship missiles underwent a successful test flight on 22 May at Kaman Aerospace's facilities in Connecticut, USA, said the RNZN.

The Penguin Mk 2 Mod 7 missiles are supplied by Norwegian company Kongsberg Defence Systems under a contract announced in November 2013 to replace the RNZN's AGM-65D Maverick air-to-surface missiles.

The 385 kg Penguin can deliver a 120 kg semi-armour piercing warhead over a range of 34 km, combining inertial midcourse guidance with an infrared homing seeker.

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Northrop Grumman Selected to Provide Turbine Generator Units For US Navy's Ohio Replacement Submarine Program

Northrop Grumman Corporation has been awarded a contract by shipbuilder General Dynamics Electric Boat to complete detailed design and subsequent manufacturing, assembly, qualification and delivery of the first turbine generator units for the Ohio Replacement Program (ORP), the U.S. Navy's next-generation ballistic nuclear submarine.

The turbine generators provide all of the submarine's propulsion and other electrical power requirements. The ORP represents the first Navy nuclear-powered submarine to incorporate electric drive since 1974.

This award follows separate ORP contract awards from General Dynamics to Northrop Grumman's Marine Systems business unit for other ORP components.

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Russia’s Navy: More rust than ready

On May 8, the British Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon sailed from the naval base at Portsmouth on an urgent mission — to find and follow the Russian aircraft carrier Kuznetsov and six accompanying vessels steaming through the English Channel.

“A Russian task group of this size has not passed by our shores in some time,” said Rex Cox, Dragon’s captain.

True, the Russian navy has been more active in recent months. Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula with its strategic ports and asserted itself with troop, ship and warplane deployments along the frontier between Russia and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

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Senate Bill Would Create Separate Fund for New Trident Submarine

A Senate defense panel wants to create a separate fund to underwrite the nation's new nuclear-armed submarine fleet, a step the House also supports.

The Senate Armed Services Committee's mark-up of its annual defense authorization legislation calls for the establishment of a "National Sea-based Deterrence Fund" to finance the construction of new submarines to replace today's Ohio-class ballistic missile vessels, according to a detailed panel summary of the bill released on Friday.

The Democratic-controlled committee approved the legislation on Thursday by a near-unanimous vote. On the same day, the Republican-controlled House passed its own version of the fiscal 2015 policy-setting bill that also included language ordering the creation of a special fund to pay for the new "SSBN(X)" fleet.

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How an Order for 10 Submarines Led to Misleading News on the Economy

Good news: Orders for durable goods — motor vehicles, machinery, computers and other long-lasting items — rose in April, according to data released Tuesday by the Department of Commerce. Most economists expected a decline.

But if we dig into the manufacturing sector data, we see that the U.S. government ordered 10 submarines from General Dynamics in April; that deal was worth nearly $18 billion.

Although the whole order doesn’t count in April’s data, enough of it was allotted to skew the month’s headline number.

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New Zealand Contract Signed for MBDA’s Sea Ceptor

The New Zealand Ministry of Defence signed a contract on 21st May with MBDA for the provision of Sea Ceptor for the Local Area Air Defence element of the Royal New Zealand Navy’s ANZAC Frigate Systems Upgrade (FSU) project.

This contract confirms the selection of the system by the RNZN for its ANZAC frigates that was announced in October 2013.

Steve Wadey, MBDA UK Managing Director and Group Executive Director Technical, said: “I am delighted that New Zealand has confirmed its selection of Sea Ceptor for the ANZAC FSU project.

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Thales provides avionics equipment to Brazilian Army’s modernised helicopters

Thales will provide its Integrated Electronic Stand-by Instrument (IESI) to modernise the Esquilo/Fennec helicopter fleet of the Brazilian Army. A total of 36 helicopters will be retrofitted with the Thales system with completion expected in 2018.

The first batch will be completed by 2014, whereby Thales’s IESI will be integrated into six initial helicopters by Helibras, the Brazilian subsidiary of Airbus Helicopter.

The Thales IESI performs three essential back-up functions: artificial horizon, altimeter and airspeed indicator, all in a single Line Replaceable Unit (LRU).

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Poland finalizing GROM missile defense offer to Lithuania

Poland has simplified conditions for Lithuania’s use of its air defense missile system known as GROM, Defense Minister Juozas Olekas said.

“I am happy that last week we received an answer from the Polish defense minister, offering to purchase the system under simpler conditions so that it could reach Lithuania earlier. Details of the agreement are being finalized,” Olekas’ spokesperson said.

“The system is vital for satisfying the immediate needs of the operations carried by Lithuania’s Armed Forces. The main advantage of the system is that it can be used in small tactical units, which operate separately and away from larger units. In the Lithuanian case, it would be a good instrument for Special Operations and Land Forces units,” said Olekas.

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