Announcing a first big defence deal since Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged a 100-billion-euro upgrade to the military in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Germany said on Mar. 14, 2022 that will buy 35 US F-35 fighter jets to replace its ageing Tornado fleet. According to Reuters, the move appeared to be part of a tectonic shift in German security policy, including a pledge to reach...
The story of the Israeli F-4 crew that attacked an Egyptian warship with an AIM-7 Sparrow air-to-air missil… – The Aviation Geek Club
In the years that preceded the October 1973 Yom Kippur War, Israel invested heavily in the creation of a heavy attack force of four F-4 Phantom/Kurnass squadrons. They would fly 3.000+ sorties, claim 80+ kills, and suffer 30+ losses during the nineteen days of one of the most intensive, savage wars in modern military history. During the Yom Kippur War, protection from the air of the sector from...
The US Navy recovered the F-35C Lightning II that Crashed in January in the South China Sea – The Aviation Geek Club
As the photo in this post shows the US Navy recovered the F-35C Lightning II that suffered a ramp strike on the deck of USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) and crashed into the South China Sea on Jan. 24, 2022. As reported by USNI News, the F-35C, of the “Argonauts” of Strike Fighter Squadron 147 (VFA-147), was plucked from the floor of the South China Sea with Navy personnel aboard the offshore vessel DSCV...
USAF wants to retire 250 Old Aircraft including 33 F-22 Raptor Stealth Fighters, to purchase 82 New Airplan… – The Aviation Geek Club
According to Air Force Magazine, the US Air Force (USAF) asked Congress to retire 150 airplanes in its fiscal 2023 budget, including 33 of its advanced F-22 Raptor fighters, but it would also hand off 100 MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft to another government agency and buy more than 82 other new airplanes, including an accelerated buy of F-15EX Eagle IIs. Its planned buy of the F-35 fighter...
Here’s why in many ways Elon Musk’s Starship is a 21st Century version of the Classic Douglas DC-3 – The Aviation Geek Club
What Starship Really Is. As Elon Musk tweets challenges to Vladimir Putin, launches astronauts to the International Space Station, builds electric vehicles, attempts to solve traffic issues with his Boring Company, and warns humanity about the dangers of AI, his greatest creation is being developed and test flown over Boca Chica, Texas. SpaceX has already given the US a viable replacement for the...
The MiG-29s and Su-25s that EU could donate to Ukraine and Why the Russians have not achieved ‘Total Aeri… – The Aviation Geek Club
The EU – repeat for emphasis: the EU – is intending to donate old MiG-29s and Su-25s of different NATO-air forces to Ukraine. Sounds logical: Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria etc. are still flying MiG-29s, for example. Ukrainians can fly such jets, even if their communications and IFF have been significantly modified over the time. Still, I consider this for useless political decision in style of, ‘we...
Super Herculean Milestone: Lockheed Martin delivers 500th C-130J Super Hercules Airlifter – The Aviation Geek Club
Hercules history is made once again, with the announcement that Lockheed Martin recently delivered its 500th C-130J Super Hercules airlifter. This Super Hercules (Lockheed Martin aircraft #5934 featured in the photo of this post) is a C-130J-30 aircraft assigned to the 130th Airlift Wing located at McLaughlin Air National Guard Base in Charleston, West Virginia. The 130th Airlift Wing is a...
The US Navy Wants to Cut Five EA-18G Electronic Attack Squadrons sending a third of its Growler electronic … – The Aviation Geek Club
The US Navy has disclosed its plan to deactivate five expeditionary electronic attack squadrons and send 25 Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft (roughly a third of the Defense Department’s tactical jet electronic attack force) to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis-Montham Air Force Base half in fiscal 2024 and half in fiscal 2025, Alert 5 says...
USMC KC-130J Pilot who Landed his Plane Safely in a Farmer’s Field in California after a Mid-Air Collisio… – The Aviation Geek Club
The US Marine Corps (USMC) pilot who safely landed a KC-130J Super Hercules tanker in a California field after a mid-air collision with an F-35B in 2020 received the highest military aviation award on May 25, 2020 in San Diego, the service said in a news release. During a ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, the USMC said that Marine Capt. Michael Wolff, a KC-130J pilot, was awarded the...
Canada will buy 88 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to replace the Royal Canadian Air Force’s fleet of CF-188 H… – The Aviation Geek Club
The F-35 has been chosen by the Canadian government as its preferred replacement for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s four-decade-old CF-188 Hornet fighters and will open negotiations with the stealth jet’s manufacturer, Lockheed Martin. Public Services and Procurement Minister Filomena Tassi and Defence Minister Anita Anand made the announcement on Mar. 28, 2022, CBC News reported. The...
