Nearly four years after its maiden flight, the first Airbus Military A400M airlifter has been retired and is to be placed on public display. Development aircraft MSN1 – known as Grizzly 1 – made its final flight from Toulouse on November 4, having accumulated 1,448hr 25min in 475 flights. The last flight was manned by the
Construction of new hangar and support facilities for the Navy’s forthcoming MH-60R ‘Romeo’ Seahawk helicopters at HMAS Albatross, Nowra has commenced with a ceremonial sod turning by Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence Darren Chester, Chief of Navy Vice Admiral Ray Griggs and Colonel Noel Beutel, acting Director General Capital Facility and Infrastructure, earlier this week. Defence
Alenia Aermacchi has completed assembly of the RAAF’s first C-27J. With the aircraft structurally complete, the aircraft is currently undergoing equipment installation and functional tests. Alenia said roll-out and test flights will occur during December with customer acceptance tests planned to follow soon thereafter. The first aircraft is expected to be delivered to in the first
The South Korean government has all but selected the F-35 as its “high capability stealth fighter”, of which it is expected to buy up to 60, with an initial tranche of 40 in the conventional takeoff and landing configuration for delivery between 2018 and 2024. Although not having yet confirmed the acquisition of the F-35
The RAAF has commissioned a C-17 cargo compartment trainer – or CCT – a training device that replicates the cargo hold of its C-17 airlifters, at the aircraft’s Amberley home base. The trainer features a 6.82m long by 5.49m wide cargo bay, a functioning loading ramp, loadmaster’s station and other cargo systems as found on
A military exercise between the RAAF and Indonesian air force has been suspended as differences wage between the Australian and Indonesian governments over intelligence gathering. Exercise Elang AusIndo, which got underway on November 19, has been put on hold following the Indonesian president’s decision to suspend cooperation with Australia on illegal immigration. The exercise involved eight
