Royal Thai Army becomes first customer for AW149

EXCLUSIVE – Royal Thai Army buys AW149 and six AW139s

9 Dec, 16,

HeliHub.com can exclusively announce that Leonardo appear to have made their first AW149 sale, with an aircraft for the Royal Thai Army now being test flown.  Seen in Marco Bianchi’s photo here, which he has given us permission to use, the Thai military flash is seen on the tail of this otherwise anonymous aircraft.  A large square sticker has been placed over the national roundel of Thailand.  There is no information currently available on how many have been ordered.

In recent weeks, the Royal Thai Army has also taken delivery of six AW139s, with serial numbers 41520 through 41525 from the US AW139 production line.  The first three of these were delivered in September, with the second batch of three following in October

Jeremy Parkin – HeliHub.com

Image: helihub.comImage: helihub.com

Original post helihub.com

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AW149 Multirole Helicopter

A squadron of the latest Su-35S fighters arrive at Karelia base

Russia’s cutting-edge Su-35 fighters arrive at Karelia base (VIDEO)

Published time: 9 Dec, 2016 05:05Edited time: 9 Dec, 2016 05:29

Russia’s Air Base in Karelia has received a squadron of the latest Sukhoi Su-35S fighters. The state of the art planes will be deployed less than 200km away from the Finnish border to protect Russia’s northwestern frontier.

Four jets and their crews traveled over 8,000 km from the Far East, refueling three times at airfields in the Central and Eastern military districts, the Russian Defense Ministry announced.

At the base in Karelia, the planes received a traditional bread and salt greeting.

The planes are now getting ready for deployment. The Su-35 is a multidimensional high-maneuverable fighter of 4++ generation with thrust-vectoring modules.

The Sukhoi Su-35 remains the top Russian air fighter in service today. Its technical characteristics allow the plane to evade missiles or dogfight at close ranges. The latest versions of the plane are equipped with advanced active jamming stations making it difficult for the enemy to detect it.

Su-35s offer a 360-degree field of view with coverage ranging up to 400 kilometers. The multirole fighter jet is capable of providing air cover for strike aircraft, as well as strike surface and subsurface targets. It remains the backbone of Russian airpower until a fifth-generation PAK-FA stealth fighter enters service.

Original post rt.com

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Su-35

US Navy to order 20 more E-2D AEW&C

US Navy to contract further E-2D production lots

Gareth Jennings, London – IHS Jane’s Navy International

08 December 2016

The US Navy (USN) is to contract Northrop Grumman for the full-rate production of Lots 7-11 of the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft.

The proposed fixed-price contract, which was posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website on 6 December, will cover an anticipated 20 aircraft but may rise to 40.

The USN has a programme-of-record for 75 E-2Ds, with Japan under contract for two also. US deliveries are set to be complete by 2025, with the E-2C being phased out of service from 2017. The Japanese order should be complete by the end of 2018.

Original post janes.com

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E-2D Advanced Hawkeye

The E-2D Advanced Hawkeye was developed by Northrop Grumman. It is the newest variant of the E-2. It made its first flight in 2007. Initial production aircraft were delivered to the US Navy in 2010 for trials and evaluation. In 2013 the aircraft was approved for full-rate production. In 2014 US Navy ordered 25 E-2D aircraft. All of these aircraft are planned to be delivered between 2014 and 2018. The aircraft should meet initial operational capability in 2015. US Navy plans to obtain 72 E-2D aircraft until 2022. The Advanced Hawkeye will continue its role as the Navy’s primary airborne early warning aircraft for the years to come. Also is the only production carrier-borne AEW aircraft in the world.

   The Advanced Hawkeye is assigned aboard aircraft carriers and provides airborne early warning and command and control to carrier air wing. The E-2D can act as a sensor to guide the fleet’s weapons onto targets that other aircraft and ships can not locate. Also it warns of incoming anti-ship missile attacks. This aircraft can also coordinate missions such as air warfare, strike warfare, surface warfare and search and rescue operations. It distributes tactical information from onboard sensors to command centers and other assets. The Advanced Hawkeye can operate in all weather conditions.

   The latest E-2D is fitted with state-of-the-art radar and upgraded systems, new mission computer, entirely new avionics suite and new engines. This aircraft also can be fitted with probe for air-to-air refueling.

   The APY-9 radar features an active electronically scanned array. Advanced electronic scanning with enormous digital computing power is added to the mechanical rotation of the radar it its radome. Some sources report that it increased the area an aircraft can monitor by 300%. It is also reported that this radar is capable of detecting stealth aircraft. This could give the US Navy the ability to detect foreign fifth-generation fighters such as the Russian Sukhoi PAK FA and Chinese  Chengdu J-20 and Shenyang J-31, as well as stealthy bombers, that are currently being developed.

Entered service	2014
Crew	5 men
Dimensions and weight
Length	17.6 m
Wing span	~ 24.5 m
Height	~ 5.8 m
Weight (empty)	18.3 t
Weight (maximum take off)	~ 24.5 t
Engines and performance
Engines	2 x Rolls-Royce T56-A-427A turboprops
Traction (dry / with afterburning)	2 x 5 100 hp
Maximum speed	over 555 km/h
Service ceiling	11.2 km
Flying range	?
Combat radius	?
Ferry range	?
Endurance	over 6 hours

Source military-today.com

U.S. advises Congress of possible military sales to UAE, Saudi, Qatar

Thu Dec 8, 2016 | 6:08pm EST

The U.S. State Department notified Congress on Thursday of possible military sales to Saudi Arabia worth $3.51 billion, to the United Arab Emirates worth $3.5 billion and to Qatar for $781 million, the Pentagon said in a statement.

The possible sale to the UAE involves Apache AH-64E helicopters and services; the Saudi Arabia sale is for CH-47F Chinook cargo helicopters and related equipment; and the possible sale to Qatar is for logistics support and spare engines and equipment for C-17 aircraft, the statement said.

The approval coincides with Saudi Arabia leading a military coalition in support of Yemeni forces loyal to the exiled government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi who are trying to oust Iran-allied Houthi forces from the capital, Sanaa.

In October, the United States said it would start an “immediate review” of its assistance to the Saudi-led campaign, which has drawn condemnation from human rights advocates for killing civilians.

Human Rights Watch said in a statement on Thursday that the Saudi-led coalition had killed several dozen civilians in three air strikes in September and October.

“The coalition’s use of United States-supplied weapons in two of the strikes, including a bomb delivered to Saudi Arabia well into the conflict, puts the U.S. at risk of complicity in unlawful attacks,” the statement said.

Previously this year, the United States approved the sale to Saudi Arabia of about $1.15 billion in military equipment.

(Reporting by Eric Beech and Yeganeh Torbati; Editing by David Alexander and Leslie Adler)

Original post reuters.com

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Ah-64 Apache

C-17 Globemaster III

US Congress pass bill for MANPADs to Syrian rebels

US Congress opens way for missiles to Syrian rebels

Bill requires Defense, State departments’ request as a condition for anti-aircraft missiles to Syrian opposition

08.12.2016

By Kasim Ileri

WASHINGTON

The Senate on Thursday passed a defense policy bill that allows for the supply of portable surface to air missiles to Syrian rebels upon approval by the heads of the Defense and State departments.

The National Defense Authorization Act, which authorizes $618.7 billion in the military spending for the 2017 fiscal year, passed at the chamber in a 92-7 vote, an overwhelming majority that overrides President Barack Obama’s veto power.

The bill includes $67.8 billion in an overseas contingency operations account to fund operations abroad.

The original text sponsored by Republican John McCain prohibited the supply of Man Portable Air Defense Systems, or MANPADs, to the Syrian opposition.

But the Conference Committee that prepares the final version of bills amended the provision.

“If a determination is made during fiscal year 2017 to use funds available to the Department of Defense for that fiscal year to provide man-portable air defense systems (MANPADs) to the vetted Syrian opposition … such funds may not be used for that purpose until (1) the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State jointly submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the determination,” the final version of the bill reads.

That final version also passed the House of Representatives last week by a 375-34 vote.

Following the Senate vote, the legislation was sent to Obama to be signed into law.

Original post aa.com.tr

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Seems the US just can’t stop!  They have out did themselves they are losing influence all over the world in the Philippines, Malaysia, Syria and the failed China containment policy. If they are not careful they might start WWIII.

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