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Defense giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin have won contracts to develop a new, large submersible capable of tackling a wide number of underwater missions. The goal is to develop a technical data package that will result in one company producing the Orca Extra-Large Unmanned Underwater vehicle (XLUUV). The XLUUV program is designed to create a long haul, long distance unmanned submarine with the capability to take on a variety of payloads, from sensors to weapons. In January 2017, DefenseNews reported that XLUUV would have a payload bay of at least 325 cubic feet. Unlike most current UUVs, which have to...

BERLIN • Germany has asked the U.S. military for classified data on two Boeing fighter jets as it looks to replace its aging Tornado warplanes, giving a potential boost to the U.S. company locked in a trade dispute with Canada and Britain. A letter sent by the German defense ministry's planning division, reviewed by Reuters, said it had identified Boeing's F-15 and F/A-18E/F fighters as potential candidates to replace the Tornado jets, which entered service in 1981. Both fighters are made in St. Louis. A classified briefing is expected to take place in mid-November, following a similar briefing provided by...

At AFA, Boeing displayed this full-scale model of its T-X contender as backdrop to an announcement by Saab that its part of the jet would be built in the U.S. (Photo: Chris Pocock) With the U.S. Air Force nearing a selection decision for its 350-airplane T-X advanced jet trainer requirement, partners Boeing and Saab used this week’s AFA Air Space and Cyber Conference to boost the American credentials of its contender. Boeing displayed a full-scale model on its stand and a large banner in the foyer that proclaimed “American Jets for American Pilots.” Saab announced that it would invest in...

Trump's Air Force One looks similar to the one that Obama flew. But plans for a bigger one are now under way. The US president walked down the stairs of Air Force One at an airport in Morristown, New Jersey. He gave a thumbs-up to journalists standing on the tarmac and as he walked past the cameras, he straightened the lapel of his jacket. An image-conscious businessman, he brags about the size of his hands and his ability to make a deal. For the new presidential aircraft, he wants both - a big machine that'll save the taxpayer money. Trump...

U.S. Airlines are vying for attention as the Boeing 747 leaves their fleets, just as they did when it entered their fleets in 1970. And the world’s aviation geeks are watching closely. United announced Monday that its final Boeing 747 flight will take place Nov. 7 with a celebratory recreation of its first United flight from San Francisco to Honolulu. Twenty-eight minutes later, at 3:47 p.m. Monday, Delta announced that it recently operated its final Boeing 747 Tokyo Narita-Honolulu flight (on Sept. 5), and that it had operated what were thought to be the final domestic 747 flights from Honolulu...

A KC-46 tanker refuels a C-17 transport in mid-air. Sometimes the refueling boom impacts the receiving aircraft, damaging it. AFA: The four-star chief of Air Mobility Command wants his new KC-46 Pegasus tankers “yesterday,” but the tanker’s boom has a nasty tendency to scrape up planes it’s trying to refuel, as well as two other category one deficiencies, and contractor Boeing has to fix those. The paint scraping problem — formally known as “undetected contact” — by itself could “possibly” delay the new planes’ arrival at AMC, Gen. Carlton Everhart said. That date was already pushed back to “late spring”...

US defence firms offering to set up production lines in India to win deals worth billions of dollars want stronger assurances they won't have to part with proprietary technology, according to a business lobby group's letter to India's Defence Minister. These companies are also saying they shouldn't be held liable for defects in products manufactured in collaboration with local partners under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Make-in-India's drive to build a military industrial base. Lockheed Martin and Boeing are both bidding to supply combat jets to India's military, which is running short of hundreds of aircraft as it retires Soviet-era MiG...

PARIS --- The US government has offered Canada a batch of Super Hornet fighters at a price that is six times higher than the US Navy is paying for the same aircraft, analysis of official US documents reveals. It is generally understood that the cost of combat aircraft varies according to the amount of options, ancillary equipment, spares and weapons included in the package. However, as in all commercial transactions, prices depend on the buyer. Prices are also sometimes manipulated to influence prospective buyers to take a given course of action. This appears to be the case with the US...

Boeing Co. and Airbus SE voiced concerns about a proposed tie-up of two leading suppliers Tuesday, potentially upsetting United Technologies Corp.’s $23 billion acquisition of Rockwell Collins Inc. The world’s largest planemakers added to the chorus of skeptics of a deal that would create an aerospace behemoth with a range of products to outfit jetliners and warplanes. Investors sent United Technologies shares plunging by the most in two years, while credit ratings companies said the manufacturer risks downgrades. Boeing, which has been squeezing suppliers for discounts, warned it would take action to protect itself if it saw the merger as...

Global defence equipment major Boeing on Monday said that its F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft is compatible with India's current naval carrier platforms and that they can be produced in the country under the government's "Make in India" initiative. "Analytical and (computer) simulations have shown that the F/A-18 is compatible with the current carrier fleet of the Indian Navy. The results of the test have been submitted in response to a global RFI issued by the Navy," said Pratyush Kumar, President, Boeing India. Presently, the Indian Navy's aircraft carriers' utilise "ski-jump ramps" for fighter aircraft to take-off. Kumar spoke to...

HUNTSVILLE, ALA.: If you fly Russian MiG fighters, Sukhoi attack jets, or Hind helicopters, your life just got a little harder — and in the event of war, potentially much shorter. At the Space & Missile Defense conference here, General Dynamics rolled out the latest variant of their eight-wheel-drive Stryker armored vehicle, with the troop compartment that’s normally in the back replaced with a Boeing-built anti-aircraft turret. Scroll down for our photos of the vehicle, dubbed the Maneuver SHORAD (Short-Range Air Defense) Launcher, or MSL Stryker. Evolved from the Cold War era Avenger, which mounted Stinger missiles on Humvee, the...

On Wednesday afternoon, a Boeing 787-800 Dreamliner took off from Seattle on a test flight. Flight tracking apps show the Dreamliner followed a flight path over the United States that draws an outline of the Dreamliner. It set the internet abuzz, likely one of the goals. But the Dreamliner was actually conducting a flight test of its new Rolls Royce engine "to prove to regulators that the airplane can safely operate on one engine for an extended period of time," according to Flightradar24, a flight-tracking app.

Boeing Co. is offering voluntary buyouts to some workers on the flight line at its 787 Dreamliner campus in North Charleston, but the aerospace giant says it's too early to say whether more layoffs are in the offing. Those affected by this latest round of cost-cutting include flight readiness technicians and flight readiness inspectors. The buyout offers represent the first time workers who were eligible to vote for union representation have been asked if they'd like to voluntarily leave the company. Those workers have until Aug. 4 to decide whether to take the buyout offers. "There is still time remaining...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force, which has been looking for ways to lower the cost of new planes for Air Force One, is talking to Boeing about buying two jumbo jets that were ordered but never delivered to a now-defunct Russian airline. The Air Force and Boeing confirmed Tuesday that they are working on a deal involving Boeing 747s but declined to disclose further details.

Donald Trump loves a good deal. And the United States Air Force just found one for the president, sitting in a Mojave Desert boneyard: two brand new Boeing 747-8's, the very same planes that the military plans to convert into the next Air Force One aircraft. These two have an interesting origin story, too. The two 747-8’s were originally ordered by Transaero, a Russian airline that went bankrupt and couldn’t pay for them. Aeroflot, the company that acquired Transaero and Russia’s largest airline, absorbed much of the bankrupt company’s fleet but never took ownership of the 747-8’s, which carry a...

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said a recent order for 100 new aircraft placed by an Indian airline will create thousands of American jobs, referring to SpiceJet’s decision to buy planes from Boeing. SpiceJet had announced an order worth $22 billion with the US aircraft maker in January. The order is expected to create 1.32 lakh high-skilled jobs in America. “I was pleased to learn about an Indian airlines’ recent order of 100 new American planes, one of the largest orders of its kind, which will support thousands and thousands of American jobs,” Mr. Trump said alongside Prime Minister...

Qatar has finally moved forward with a long-standing plan to buy advanced fighter jets from the United States. This comes amid a massive spat between the small country and Saudi Arabia that has spiraled into a huge political crisis throughout the Middle East and beyond. On June 14, 2017, Bloomberg News reported that the Qataris would sign a $12 billion deal to buy up to 36 F-15QA fighter jets from Boeing. The country’s Ministry of Defense later announced it had reached an agreement, which followed a meeting between Minister of State for Defense Affairs Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed Al Attiyah...

The Export-Import Bank charter will expire in a few days, on June 30, unless Congress acts to reauthorize it. The Export-Import Bank was created more than 80 years ago by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to help foreign customers buy goods from the United States. Some companies benefit from the Export-Import Bank and they are the first ones to defend its reauthorization. But let’s be clear: Companies benefit from Export-Import Bank loans at the expense of taxpayers and other businesses. Taxpayers—not the companies themselves—assume the risk of a foreign loan, made through a private bank (like Goldman Sachs), to purchase a...

American aerospace giant Boeing and France's Dassault Aviation are among the four entities that have responded to he Indian Navy’s 'Request for Interest (RFI)' to provide 57 multi-role carrier borne fighters, industry sources said. The other two are Sweden's SAAB and Rosoboronexport of Russia. While Boeing has pitched its F/A-18 Super Hornet, Dassault has briefed the navy on its Rafale. SAAB has offered the maritime variant of its Gripen single-engine fighter jet. Naval Chief Sunil Lanba confirmed the development. "We will examine the RFI and take it forward," he told this newspaper. The deal is valued over Rs 50,000 crore....

It was a treble celebration in Riyadh at the King Faisal Air Academy (KFAA) as the college celebrated its 50th anniversary, marked the graduation of its 91st course of students, and welcomed the first of the Boeing F-15SA tactical fighters developed for the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF). King Salman attended the celebrations with his son, Defence Minister and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Omar Al-Bashir, president of Sudan. The day’s ceremonial included a parade and a flypast, which featured one of the first four F-15SAs delivered, while two more aircraft were displayed on the ground. The king...