Defence Aviation News

The F-35 Lightning II Helmet Mounted Display System (HMDS) will make its CANSEC debut this year in the Rockwell Collins exhibit (Booth 1103). The HMDS, manufactured by Rockwell Collins ESA Vision Systems, provides F-35 pilots with unprecedented situational awareness for piloting the most advanced aircraft in the world. The virtual head up display provides pilots with day and night operation capability and a binocular wide field of view. Rockwell Collins specializes in leveraging commercial avionics for military applications while also providing its customers with high performance communications in any environment. Journalists and show attendees are invited to the company’s exhibit at CANSEC 2014 to learn more about Rockwell Collins avionics and communications products, solutions and systems integration capabilities, including: Advanced, proven airborne products, systems and solutions ARC-210 – Airborne programmable software defined radio...

Russia fulfils all of its obligations under the FGFA programme with India, Russian Ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin said at the Defexpo-2014 security systems exhibition in New Delhi. “We pay no attention to negative publications that appear from time to time and claim that Russia does not fulfil its obligations under the fifth generation fighter aircraft programme. Russian-Indian military-technical cooperation under this programme develops as scheduled, and we have not received any official complaints from the Indian side,” he said. Vyacheslav Dzirkaln, Deputy Director of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, told Itar-Tass at the exhibition that all such publications had been written to order. “We have no official complaints from India with regard to the fifth generation fighter aircraft. All negotiations take place under the agreements reached earlier,” Dzirkaln said.Commenting on one such article in the Business Standard, Dzi...

SRINAGAR: A MIG-21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed on Tuesday in Bijbehara area of Anantnag district in Kashmir, killing the pilot.  The MIG-21, which was on a routine exercise, crashed in the fields at Mirhama in Bijbehara area, 45 kms from here, defence sources said.  Pilot Raghu Bansi was killed in the crash, they said. The MIG-21 had taken off from technical airport here this morning, the sources said.  The cause of the crash was not immediately known. A team of IAF officials have rushed to the spot.                                                             Source : TOI

In development since 2007, Sikorsky recently acknowledge the existence of an unmanned version of UH-60 Black Hawk. According to Sikorsky the helicopter will be able to carry autonomous missions without having a pilot on board. The helicopter could be deployed as early as 2015. “The ability for the pilot to leave the cockpit for potentially dull and dangerous missions significantly reduces crew limitations and increases Black Hawk flight operations.” said Chris Van Buiten, vice president of Technology and Innovation at Sikorsky. The new variant of the UH-60 Black Hawk could be flown manned as well as unmanned depending on the requirement of the mission. The technology would allow full pilot control of the helicopter for complex missions. The helicopter will have technologies used on MQ-1 Predator. The need for an unmanned Black Hawk came into light after two Black Hawks were shot down in Mogadishu, Somalia back in 1993. With over four decades of service, there are many var...