Military Aviation

Bell Textron introduced several new aircraft design concepts on Monday that will use the company’s high-speed vertical takeoff and landing (HSVTOL) technology. The concepts include features such as low downwash hover capability, cruise speeds over 400 knots and runway independence. The technology is being developed primarily for military applications. “Bell’s HSVTOL technology is a step […]

Congress has ordered the Department of Defense to fix an issue with the F-35 breathing system that has pilots alternately gasping for air or awash in pure oxygen. As part of the 2022 appropriations for the military, the House Armed Services Committee has told the military to take action on a NASA study that found […]

Most highway landings are unplanned but there’s a lot of preparation going on for a military exercise in Michigan next month. The military is planning to set four A-10s and two C-146 (military Dornier 328s) down on a stretch of State Highway M-32 near the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center in northern Michigan on Aug. […]

Russia is reportedly working on a new airborne command and control aircraft that would be used in case of nuclear war or some other catastrophe. The so-called “Doomsday” plane will be based on an Il-96-400M airliner and will replace the current fleet of Il-80 aircraft modified for that purpose. The new aircraft will have a […]

A planespotter is being credited with potentially preventing the loss of an Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle and its pilot when he reported a malfunction with the aircraft as it left a base in the U.K. Ian Simpson was indulging his passion at the business end of the Royal Air Force base at Lakenheath in […]

Bell Textron has announced plans to open a new systems integration lab (SIL) at the Bell Flight Research Center in Arlington, Texas. The facility is intended to support Bell’s participation in the U.S Army’s Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) and Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) programs. According to the company, the SIL will be used […]

The Israeli air force has successfully tested an airborne laser system that quickly dispatched drones in flight. The system, built by the air force with Elbit Systems, is mounted on a Cessna Caravan and easily blasted all the drones it encountered on the test. Israel tweeted it is “among the first countries in the world […]

At least 50 people, including 42 combat soldiers, were killed in the crash of a Philippine Air Force C-130 in the southern part of the country on Sunday. Three of the dead were civilians on the ground. Initial reports suggest the aircraft, an ex-USAF Herc that was recently transferred to the Philippine military, overran the […]

The U.S. Air Force is moving forward with a program to create a full-scale 3D model of the F-16 Fighting Falcon. Once completed, the F-16 “digital twin” is expected to serve as a virtual test bed for “future modifications and other sustainment actions prior to physical implementation.” The project is being conducted via a new […]

The Swiss Federal Council announced on Wednesday that it has selected the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II to replace its aging F-5 Tiger and F/A-18 Hornet fleets. Other aircraft models considered for the role were the Airbus Eurofighter, Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet and Dassault Rafale. According to the Council, the F-35 was the least expensive […]