Defence Aviation News

In a tragic accident that underlines the risks pilots are taking to evacuate those stranded after the Uttarakhand flash floods, a Mi 17 V5 helicopter ferrying rescue personnel from the temple town of Kedarnath to a base camp crashed on Tuesday afternoon. All 20 people who were reportedly on board are feared dead. The Mi 17 V5 chopper, the very latest in the inventory of the Indian Air Force, went down while it was heading towards the temporary air base at Gaucher, and crashed in difficult terrain north of Gaurikund, the base camp for the 14 km trek up to Kedarnath. However, the IAF continued flying operations in the region after the chopper was first reported missing just after midday. While there are conflicting reports of casualties, sources said the toll could be as high as 20, as the helicopter was transporting back a delegation of ITBP and NDRF personnel who had been camping in Kedarnath, coordinating rescue operations for the past week. All five crew members on board ...

 India's first IAC, being built at the Cochin Shipyard, will finally "be launched into water" next month. But don't be in a hurry to pop the bubbly. The already long-delayed 40,000-tonne warship will not become operational anytime before 2018. The IAC — to be christened INS Vikrant after the country's first carrier acquired from the UK in 1961 and later retired in 1997 — will be "launched with a weight of 20,000-tonne" at a ceremony to be chaired by defence minister A K Antony in Kochi on August 12. "The launch signifies the underwater work and fitting of machinery in the warship is over. Now, the superstructure, the upper decks and the out-fittings will be done,'' said an official. "We hope the IAC will be ready for trials from 2016 onwards. The trials will take well over one year since this is the first time the country is building an aircraft carrier,'' he added. The 260-metre-long IAC, with a crew of 160 officers ...

The MiG-35 (single seat) and MiG-35D (double seat) are the “4.5+” generation multi-role fighters, exhibiting the further development of the MiG-29K/KUB and MiG-29M/M2 fighters in the field of the combat efficiency enhancement, universality and operational characteristics improvement. The MiG-35/MiG-35D main features are the following: – the fifth generation information-sighting systems integration into aircraft airborne avionics; – possibility of advanced Russian and foreign origin weapons application; – increased combat survivability due to integration of airborne integrated defense system. State-of-the art avionics in combination with advanced weapons allow the MiG-35/MiG-35D fighters fulfill a great number of missions: – air superiority gaining against four amp; fifth generation fighters; – interception of existing and being developed air attack means; – ground/surface targets destruction with high precision weapons without entering the air defense zone day and night in ...

The air force commanders of both Russia and India have this month discussed the progress and future schedule of the fifth-generation Sukhoi fighter project. They are keen to have their own pilots evaluate the design so that they can take a decision on further funding for the project. Russian air force commander Gen. Victor Bondarev said that he expects all four flyable prototypes of the so-called PAK FA  (Future Aviation Complex of Frontal Aviation) to gather at the defense ministry’s test base and firing range near Akhtubinsk in Southern Russia, for customer assessment and weapons release trials. By the year-end their number shall increase to eight. If tests are a success, the  PAKFA  will go into series production in late 2015 or early 2016. In his turn, Indian air force chief of staff told journalists at the recent Aero India show that he expects arrival of three  PAKFA  development prototypes in India, the first in 2015, the second in 201...

The Sukhoi T-50 PAK-FA fifth-generation stealth fighter will start operational testing in 2014 "In 2013 we are expected to wrap up its preliminary tests and start operational testing. In 2014, we are planning to start official state tests," says United Aircraft Corporation president Mikhail Pogosyan. The first stage of those state trials should be completed by 2015. The PAK-FA developmental flight test phase includes six airframes, but one is a ground test vehicle. "Flight testing this year will go ahead with five aircraft," Pogosyan says.

Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the US Air Force B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. The B-2 is a low-observable, strategic, long-range, heavy bomber capable of penetrating sophisticated and dense air-defence shields. It is capable of all-altitude attack missions up to 50,000ft, with a range of more than 6,000nm unrefuelled and over 10,000nm with one refuelling, giving it the ability to fly to any point in the world within hours. Its distinctive profile comes from the unique 'flying wing' construction. The leading edges of the wings are angled at 33° and the trailing edge has a double-W shape. It is manufactured at the Northrop Grumman facilities in Pico Rivera and Palmdale in California. The B-2, after ten years of service, finally achieved full operational capability in December 2003. In the first three years of service, the operational B-2s achieved a sortie reliability rate of 90%. An assessment published by the USAF showed that two B-2s armed with precision ...

Introduction The Lakshya 2 is a high speed Pilotless Target Aircraft (PTA) being developed by the Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) of DRDO for use by the Indian Air Force, Indian Army and Indian Navy for air-to-air and surface-to-air targeting by aircraft, ships and missiles. Lakshya 2 is an improved version of the Lakshya with digital flight controls and state-of-the-art navigation systems that is currently under testing.  Lakshya 2 is capable of programmed low altitude flight with Autonomous Way Point Navigation using Global Position Satellite updates.  It is launched from land or sea from a zero length launcher using a JATO rocket motor and recovered  by a dual stage parachute system. The aircraft can carry two targets on a 1.5 km-cable.  In case of emergency it can recover automatically.  The 705 kg drone has an endurance of 50 mins and a maximum life of 10 recoveries. It is powered by a single...