US Army spent billions on a new helicopter that now will never fly

On the same subject

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  April 8, 2024 | International, Naval

  Ursa Major to build rocket motor prototype for US Navy

  Under the deal, the Denver, Colorado-based firm will develop and prototype a new design for the Navy’s Mk 104 rocket motor using additive manufacturing.

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  December 14, 2018 | International, Aerospace

  Japan Calls For STOVL Fighters, Plan For 42 F-35Bs Reported

  Bradley Perrett | Aerospace Daily & Defense Report BEIJING—A national security meeting of Japan's ruling party has called for the acquisition of shipboard fighters capable of short takeoff and vertical landing (STOVL), as a newspaper reports that substantial orders are planned for the version of the Lockheed Martin F-35Lightning that has that ability. Japan needs STOVL aircraft operated from currently available ships to guard against threats from its Pacific Ocean side of the country, according to a summary of results of the meeting published by the office of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, days before the expected release of a five-year defense acquisition program. Buying 100 F-35s, including some of the F-35B STOVL version, has been expected in the five-year plan, which will start on April 1, 2019; they would be in addition to a current program for 42 F-35As. In fact, there will be 42 F-35Bs, the Mainichi newspaper said. They will operate from the helicopter carrier Izumo, which will reportedly be modified for that purpose. Modification of Izumo's sibling, Kaga, is not mentioned but would surely also occur, to ensure that one ship with F-35Bs was always available. Full article: http://aviationweek.com/defense/japan-calls-stovl-fighters-plan-42-f-35bs-reported

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  January 14, 2019 | International, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR

  France, Germany aim to unify their clashing weapons-export rules

  By: Sebastian Sprenger COLOGNE, Germany — The German Cabinet has approved a new, high-level pact with France that calls for a common approach to weapons exports in all joint programs. The objective is included in the so-called Aachener Vertrag, slated to be signed by French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the German city of Aachen on Jan. 22. The document is meant to be a milestone agreement complementary of the Élysée Treaty, signed 56 years ago, further cementing ties on all levels between the former World War II foes. Berlin and France previously clashed over the question of export limitations for the Future Combat Air System, a sixth-generation warplane envisioned to take flight sometime around 2040, Germany's Der Spiegel reported last fall. France generally is open to exporting arms to many governments willing to pay for them. German leaders profess to take a more cautious approach when human rights concerns crop up, though the government has a history of making arms deals through the back door anyway. The different philosophies came to a head following the death of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Oct. 2, which some have alleged was orchestrated by Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi ruling family has denied the allegations, buoyed by the Trump administration's decision to play down the matter. The allegations led Merkel to publicly call for halting weapons exports to Saudi Arabia, a move that drew a sharp rebuke from Paris, where officials fumed about what they perceived as German sanctimoniousness. France and Germany's diverging export policies are based on their respective “strategic cultures,” said Wolfgang Rudischhauser, vice president of the Federal Academy for Security Policy in Berlin. Germany considers itself a “peace power,” whereas France models its policies on the premise of an “intervention army,” he said. Asked whether the section on harmonizing export policies in the Aachener Vertrag was aimed at least in part at the future combat aircraft program, a spokesman for the German foreign ministry pointed out that no projects were explicitly mentioned in the draft treaty text. That program, together with a future main battle tank and a future combat drone, forms the backbone of Franco-German defense ambitions, with tens of billions of dollars at stake. With a concrete objective toward harmonizing arms-export rules now on the books between Paris and Berlin, Rudischhauser argued that a European Union-wide regime would be needed in the end. “That would require ceding certain authorities to the EU, for which neither Germany nor France have shown an appetite,” he told Defense News. To oversee the the new treaty's defense provisions, the pact establishes a bilateral defense and security council, which would “convene regularly at the highest level.” https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2019/01/11/france-germany-aim-to-unify-their-clashing-weapons-export-rules