31 mai 2023 | International, Autre défense
New US aid package for Ukraine will total about $300 million
U.S. officials say a military aid package for Ukraine that is expected to be announced this week will include additional munitions for drones.
6 mai 2022 | International, Aérospatial
Le Royaume-Uni se positionne pour 26 F-35B supplémentaires
Le ministre d'Etat pour les acquisitions de Défense britannique, Jeremy Quin, avait annoncé, en décembre 2021, la volonté du gouvernement d'augmenter sa flotte d'avions de combat F-35. Le Maréchal de l'Air, Richard Knighton, a répondu dans une question écrite au parlement que 26 F-35B, dans la version STOVL (décollage court et atterrissage vertical), allaient être ajoutés, menant la flotte totale de F-35B anglais à 74 avions. La commande initiale britannique portait sur 48 exemplaires (ils ne seront plus que 47 après l'accident d'un exemplaire au décollage depuis le porte-aéronefs HMS Queen Elizabeth en janvier dernier) et le Royaume-Uni en aligne aujourd'hui 23. Des discussions seraient en cours avec Lockheed Martin pour le financement, alors que des fonds ont été débloqués pour ce futur achat mais aussi pour les infrastructures, l'entretien et les personnels associés. Sur les 74 appareils, une partie sera utilisée dans des unités de conversion opérationnelle afin d'entrainer les futurs pilotes anglais et une autre partie sera aussi immobilisée pour des entretiens. En ce qui concerne les 64 autres avions pour atteindre la flotte de 138 F-35B, « prévue » en 2006, ils sont toujours envisageables d'après le Maréchal de l'Air, mais il insiste sur le fait qu'une décision définitive sera prise au milieu de la décennie. Le délai s'explique par la volonté anglaise d'avancer sur le Futur Combat Air System et de choisir ensuite le nombre définitif de F-35B au sein de la Royal Air Force et de la Fleet Air Arm.
Air & Cosmos et Le Journal de l'Aviation du 4 mai
Sur le même sujet
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20 septembre 2019 | International, Aérospatial
First European-Built F-35 For The Netherlands Presented
Being Built For Lockheed Martin By Leonardo Company The first F-35 (009), which will be based in the Netherlands from this fall, was officially presented recently in Cameri, Italy. There, the Italian company Leonardo is building the new fighter plane for manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The Italian aircraft manufacturer has a production line for wings and a final assembly line on which it assembles complete aircraft. State Secretary Barbara Visser and her colleague Mona Keijzer from Economic Affairs and Climate were present at the ceremony. "With the F-35 and later also the MQ-9 Reaper, the Air Force will get the nicest things that others are looking forward to. And it will be a wonderful year for Leeuwarden," Visser said. "In just 49 days, on 31 October, the Air Force will receive this aircraft there. It is fantastic that we work together in Europe to build the aircraft, but also to later maintain it." "A perfect example of how national security and economic affairs go together", Keijzer said. "The F-35 brings prosperity to the Netherlands in defense, economic growth and business innovation." Aircraft "009" will remain in Italy for a few more weeks, including for some test flights. "We accept the aircraft, and will then transfer it to the Air Force as quickly as possible. The less it remains with us, the sooner the user can get started with it," said Director Defense Equipment Organization, Vice Admiral Arie Jan de Waard. In Cameri, Leonardo is building the F-35A for both its own air force and 29 units for the Netherlands. With the distribution of the largest contracts some 10 years ago, it was agreed that Italy would be assembling the aircraft while The Netherlands does the engine maintenance of at least the Italian and Dutch F-35s. That happens at the Woensdrecht Logistics Center, where the European storage location for parts of the F-35 is also located. In Cameri the four main components of an F-35 are assembled. Leonardo itself builds one of those components, the wing section. Part of these is used for the on-sire final assembly process, but the vast majority goes to the Lockheed Martin factory in the United States. There, they are used to assemble aircraft for America, Australia, Denmark, Norway and South Korea, to name a few. For the Netherlands, other F-35s are currently on the production line in Italy at various stages. The next one, the F-010, is expected to also come to the Netherlands this year. The delivery of the final aircraft is now scheduled for mid-2023; The Netherlands will then have 37 aircraft. http://www.aero-news.net/getmorefromann.cfm?do=main.textpost&id=f92e55c3-7e8e-4b56-9a0d-64e829ad8c50
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28 décembre 2023 | International, Sécurité
Raytheon prototyping directed-energy zappers for US Air Force, Navy
“Non-kinetic defense systems are a key part of America’s national defense strategy,” said Colin Whelan, the president of advanced technology at Raytheon.