Boeing Defence Australia has signed a $13.3 million change proposal with the Commonwealth to bring Kiowa helicopter maintenance at Holsworthy near Sydney into its Australian Army Aviation Training and Training Support (AATTS) contract. The deal will see Boeing take on maintenance of the eight Bell Kiowas based at Holsworthy’s 173SQN until the end of 2012,
Continuing the somewhat farcical nature of the US’s ongoing attempts to replace its fleet of 45+ year old KC-135 tankers, the USAF has excluded the bid by US Aerospace for the KC-X tanker replacement program due to it being submitted to project officials five minutes after the 2.00pm, July 9 deadline. US Aerospace says the
Commanding Officer of the RAAF’s 3SQN, WGCDR Terry van Haren, has become only the second RAAF pilot to achieve the milestone of 3000 flight hours in the F/A-18 Hornet. The milestone was achieved during a flight at the recent Pitch Black 10 exercise, with ‘TVH’ being welcomed back from the sortie and presented with his
Lockheed Martin and the USAF will preserve F-22 tooling following the planned completion of production in 2012. The retention of the tolling will allow future major modifications to be made to the aircraft, and for the production to be re-opened if required. A 2010 Rand study showed the F-22’s supply chain could be reactivated after
The US Navy has taken delivery of its first of 75 Northrop Grumman E-2D Hawkeye AEW&C aircraft at a ceremony at NAS Oceania near Norfolk, Virginia. The E-2D is an improved version of the venerable E-2C, and features a new AN/APY-9 radar in a redesigned 7.3m diameter radome with an electronically scanned array, and enhanced
The RAF may be forced to scrap its fleet of 120 Tornado GR4s and possibly its Harrier GR9 fleet as well as part of the UK’s overreaching Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR). The SDSR has stated aims to make savings of between 10 and 20 per cent across the UK’s defence forces, and the
