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A British news report on Friday claimed the Royal Navy was considering basing future warships in India. Forces Network reported that the head of the Royal Navy, First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Philip Jones, talked about the issue as he hosted his Indian counterpart, Admiral Sunil Lanba, on board the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth in Portsmouth on Thursday. The UK is developing a new class of frigates called the Type 31, five of which have been ordered at a cost of euro 1.25 billion. The new warships will begin to enter service by 2023. Referring to the Type 31...

YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA PREF. - Journalists on Wednesday were given a guided tour of the Izumo — Japan’s largest flat-topped helicopter carrier — for the first time since the Defense Ministry revealed a controversial plan late last year to convert it so that it could handle fixed-wing aircraft — which critics and some opposition lawmakers say could make it capable of offensive operations. The pacifist postwar Constitution bans the possession of “attack aircraft carriers,” and calls for an exclusively defense-oriented posture. However, under a five-year defense build-up plan adopted in December, the 248-meter, 195,000-ton vessel will be undergoing a major remodeling...

I have never seen such a large and diverse mess of misinformation spouted and parroted with wild abandon about a military skirmish than what has come out of the short spate of Pakistani-Indian air battles that occurred in late February. But one aspect of those operations, in particular, has been so ridiculously mischaracterized by the media, so-called analysts, and the public in general, that the majority of narratives surrounding it have to be called out for what they are—total bullshit. During a Pakistani Air Force counterstrike operation on February 27th, one that came in response to India's air raid into...

The US Air Force (USAF) is requesting funds from Congress for eight Boeing F-15EX fighters instead of more of its favoured aircraft, the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II stealth fighter, in a move aimed at cutting costs. Over the past year and a half, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff have come up with the idea as a means to quickly and cheaply replace the USAF’s ageing F-15C fleet, which will be ready for retirement in the 2020s, says a source familiar with discussions around the Pentagon's force planning. Boeing The new-build F-15...

Media outlets across Pakistan on Tuesday reported the country's air force had successfully test-fired an indigenously-built 'smart weapon' from a JF-17 fighter. Some Pakistani media outlets referred to the system as a 'missile' and others as a “extended-range smart weapon”. Several outlets also carried footage of the test of the 'smart weapon'. Interestingly, the video of the test, from the Pakistan Air Force, shows only hazy imagery of the weapon and effectively obscures it with a 'black box' before it impacts the ground. The perceived secrecy surrounding the 'smart weapon' has aroused debate about its origins and whether the test...

The army’s air mobility has been enhanced by the air force’s acquisition of 10 C-27J Spartan airlifters. These aircraft give the Australian Defence Force much greater flexibility in moving personnel and cargo to remote locations, whether across northern Australia, or into the Pacific and PNG. But the C-27J platform can do much more than haul cargo. One of the most impressive military capabilities is the role of an airborne gunship. With a heritage dating to converted C-47s, nicknamed ‘‘Puff the Magic Dragon’’, that supported US forces in Vietnam, modern gunships such as the AC-130J version of the Hercules have been...

ELTA Systems was awarded a contract to supply the Israel Navy with four of the world’s most advanced radar systems for the new Sa’ar-6 warships, the company announced on Tuesday. The ELM-2248 MF-STARs multi-function digital radar systems produced by the subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, are based on the latest Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) technology, which allows for faster threat-alert response time, as well as better accuracy and the ability to simultaneously track multiple targets and different types of targets, providing a full situational awareness picture to the ship. “The MF-STAR was designed from the ground up with innovative...

Turkish Aerospace's new attack helicopter exhibits the same configuration as the company's T129 Atak, but is considerably larger and more powerful. (photo: Turkish Aerospace) Turkey’s Undersecretariat for Defence Industries (SSB) signed a contract with Turkish Aerospace Industries on February 22 as part of the country’s effort to indigenously develop a new 10-tonne heavy attack helicopter, which is likely to compete in the future with the Boeing AH-64 Apache. The contract for the Heavy Class Attack Helicopter project has an undisclosed value, and how much this initial contract covers in terms of program deliverables has also not been released. Details so...

Computer-generated image of the SPICE munitions | Screengrab from Rafael video As news of the Indian Air Force strike on terror targets in Pakistan dominated headlines across the world, speculation has begun on the kind of weapons the Mirage 2000 jets carried. The speculation has increased as the Indian Air Force hit a target in 'Pakistan proper' at Balakot, far from the Line of Control. While initial reports said the Indian Air Force used laser-guided bombs, some media agencies claim the Mirage 2000 fighters hit the targets from 'standoff' ranges, which meant they needn't have strayed significantly beyond the Line...

News agency ANI quoting Indian Air Force sources claimed Mirage 2000 fighters of the Indian Air Force struck and destroyed a “major terrorist camp” across the Line of Control early on Tuesday. The report comes hours after Pakistan claimed Indian Air Force jets had crossed the Line of Control, following which Pakistani fighters were scrambled. The air strike mark a major escalation in tension with Pakistan, which has been high since the suicide bomb attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama on February 14 left over 40 jawans dead. ANI, quoting IAF sources, said the attack occurred around 03.30am on...

The 70-metre long vessel, christened the Invincible, will soon be in operation in Singapore waters. (Photo: Jeremy Koh) SINGAPORE: With the launch of RSS Invincible in Kiel, Singapore is the latest Asia-Pacific country to introduce new-generation submarines, riding on a persistent trend observed amongst regional navies in acquiring undersea capabilities. Notably, just last year alone South Korea launched its first 3,000-ton KSS-III submarine that has enhanced long-range missile strike capabilities. Japan too has introduced the world’s first submarine equipped with lithium-ion batteries for enhanced underwater performance. Further south, Australia just last week inked a strategic partnering agreement with France, committing...

Could this be a forerunner of Zircon? This model of an experimental hypersonic missile was displayed in 2016 by TsIAM. (Photo: Vladimir Karnozov) While addressing the Russian Federal Assembly on February 20, Russian President Vladimir Putin touched on the Zircon, describing it as “a hypersonic missile able to accelerate to about Mach 9.” The Russian president said this is “yet another innovation, work on which proceeds successfully and shall be completed on schedule.” It has a firing range of “over one thousand kilometers” (540 nm) and “is able to destroy both sea-going and land targets,” he added. Notably, Putin’s figures...

The United Arab Emirates Joint Aviation Command showed off its new Lockheed Martin/Sikorsky UH-60M Armed Black Hawks (ABH) for the first time in public during the International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) held in Abu Dhabi, February 17-21. The UAE was the launch customer for this integrated weaponization kit, announcing an order for 24 UH-60Ms plus the weapons kit at the 2011 edition of IDEX. Installation of the kits is performed by AMMROC (Advanced Military Maintenance Repair Overhaul Center), an Abu Dhabi-based joint venture between the Emirates Defense Industries Company (EDIC), Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin that supports many of the UAE Armed...

Lockheed Martin has rebranded its latest advanced F-16 offering for India as the F-21 and has shown the jet would have new features, including a revised glass cockpit and other advanced features. But the pitch appears to be much more about opportunities industrial cooperation in India, a major factor in the latest iteration of India's fighter jet tender, than technological enhancements. It might even pave the way for the country to join the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program – a claim the company scrubbed from its official F-21 webpage shortly after it went live. The Maryland-headquartered defense contractor revealed models...

USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) has been undergoing trials and combat systems outfitting in and around her home port of San Diego. The ship's metamorphosis into an operational combat ship is something we have been following closely. Recently, we reported on additions to her stealthy frame that would only hurt the size of radar signature. These included an exposed mast and a number of communications aerials bolted directly onto her deckhouse instead of being integrated into it seamlessly. Now, a new photo shows her fitted with twin 30mm Bushmaster cannons for the very first time. The Zumwalt class, as we know it...

India’s Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) has detailed a number of improvements for the planned Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) Tejas Mk2 fighter. The Mk2 benefits from Indian Air Force experience with the Mk1, says an ADA official. A prototype of the new aircraft, which features the addition of canards behind the cockpit, will likely fly in late 2023. Key changes the Air Force asked for were additional range and the ability to carry advanced standoff weapons, he adds. The maximum all-up weight will grow to 17,500kg, up from 13,500kg for the baseline Tejas, and the aircraft is 1.35m longer. The longer fuselage...

On Wednesday, US aerospace major Lockheed Martin revealed what appears to be a new variant of its venerable F-16 fighter, termed the F-21, for the Indian Air Force. A model of the F-21 was unveiled at the Aero India air show at Bengaluru, which commenced on Wednesday. Lockheed Martin had pitched its F-16 for a contract to supply 114 fighters to the Indian Air Force in 2018. More than 4,500 F-16s have been built since the aircraft first took to the air in 1974. Previous variants of the F-16 had retained the type's name, suffixed with 'block numbers' to denote...

The Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project of India has gone deep into the detail design phase now. Along with the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), hundreds of scientists spread across at least 20 labs of Defence Research and Development Organisation are now engrossed in critical work to find solutions to a number of next-generation technologies that need to be proven. With the project definition phase (PDP) getting over in 2017, Onmanorama can confirm that scientists have already walked some distance designing the AMCA, India’s stealth fighter. ADA, the designer of Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas, is spearheading the AMCA mission....

Facing a steady decline in available fighter jets, the Indian Air Force is now reportedly in talks to buy 21 unfinished Soviet-era MiG-29 Fulcrums from Russia and have them completed in a modernized configuration. The proposed deal comes as India continues to struggle with a host of other fighter jet procurement efforts, most notably a more than decade long effort to purchase of more than a hundred new fighter jets, which is now effectively in its third incarnation. The Times of India was first to report on the possible acquisition of the MiG-29 hulks, which date to the late 1980s...

The commander of Sweden's air force, Mats Helgesson, recently made the bold statement that his country's Saab Gripen E fighter could beat Russia's formidable fleet of Sukhoi jets with none of the expensive stealth technology the US relies on. "Gripen, especially the E-model, is designed to kill Sukhois. There we have a black belt," Helgesson told Yle.fi at a presentation in Finland, where Sweden is trying to export the jets. Russia's Sukhoi fighters have achieved a kind of legendary status for their ability to out-maneuver US fighter jets in dogfights and pull off dangerous and aggressive stunts in the air,...