October 30, 2024 | International, Aerospace
July 10, 2018 | International, Aerospace
Another win for Boeing: New Zealand commits to the P-8 with $1.6 billion deal
New Zealand has become the fifth export customer (after Australia, India, Norway and the U.K.) for Boeing's P-8 Poseidon, with a $1.6 billion order for four aircraft.
Announced July 9 by Minister of Defence Ron Mark, the order includes the cost of infrastructure and training equipment.
The aircraft are expected to enter Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) from 2023 and will replace six Lockheed P-3K2 Orions that have served the RNZAF for more than 50 years.
New Zealand purchased five P-3B Orions in 1966 and acquired a sixth aircraft in 1985.
New avionics led to new designation of P-3K in the late 1980s; they were then given new wings as part of a life extension program in 2000. New radar and digital avionics from 2011 led to the designation P-3K2.
A new title for the Orion fleet was introduced too, the Airborne Surveillance and Response Force.
Always operated by 5 Squadron RNZAF from Whenuapai air base, Auckland, the squadron will operate its P-8As from Ohakea.
Mark says options for a complementary maritime surveillance capability will be included in the forthcoming Defence Capability Plan review, due to be completed by the end of the year.
Smaller manned aircraft, as well as remotely piloted aircraft and satellite surveillance will be considered to complement the P-8s.
The Annual Report of the New Zealand Defence Force shows that last year the existing P-3K2 Orions flew around 120 hours on search and rescue missions and more than 500 hours conducting humanitarian aid and disaster relief work.
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January 7, 2020 | International, Aerospace
Lockheed Awarded $1.9B For One-Year F-35 Sustainment
Steve Trimble The F-35 Joint Program Office awarded Lockheed Martin a $1.9 billion contract on Jan. 6 to maintain the global Lightning II fleet, support training and expand capacity for producing spares and repairing components. The annual award to the F-35's prime contractor follows a $1.4 billion contract in 2018 and $1.15 billion contract in 2019 for global sustainment services. The amount fluctuates along with investments in repair depots and fleet growth. “In 2020, we will continue to optimize and advance the sustainment system. We are confident F-35 sustainment costs will be equal to or less than legacy jets,” says Greg Ulmer, Lockheed's vice president and general manager for the F-35 program. Lockheed has committed to lowering the cost per flight hour of the F-35A to $25,000 by 2025. The U.S. Air Force paid about $44,000 per flight hour to operate the aircraft in 2018. Some defense officials, including the Pentagon's former head of cost evaluation, have said Lockheed's cost target is unrealistic. But others, including the commander of the Air Force's Life Cycle Management Center, do not rule out the possibility. Lockheed's announcement calls the award an “annualized” contract. The company had proposed converting the sustainment program into a five-year, fixed-price contract, but it appears the government rejected the proposal. Lockheed has delivered 490 F-35s since 2009, including 134 in 2019, with the fleet surpassing more than 240,000 cumulative flight hours. https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/lockheed-awarded-19b-one-year-f-35-sustainment
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May 3, 2021 | International, Aerospace
Turkey converts Simsek training system into a kamikaze drone
The program for the high-speed target-drone system began in 2009 to meet the Turkish military’s need for training against aerial targets, simulating enemy aircraft or missiles.