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With a range of 11,830 km and the capacity to carry 207,000 pounds of fuel, the KC-46 can refuel over 64 different types of aircraft and allow dozens of jets to remain airborne for up to 12 hours Israel’s Defense Ministry has signed an agreement with the US government to acquire 12 Lockheed Martin CH-53K helicopters and two additional Boeing KC-46 refueling aircraft. The US Defense Department’s Procurement Delegation signed the letters of acceptance (LOAs) with Israel on Thursday evening to replace the Israel Air Force’s CH-53 Yasur heavy-lift helicopters and Ra’am (Boeing 707) tanker aircraft that are required for...

The massive Sikorsky CH-53 turns 53 today. It's pretty amazing to think that the "Stallion" took its first flight on October 14th, 1964 and the type is now entering its third major iteration in the form of the immensely powerful CH-53K King Stallion. As they say, the only thing that can replace a CH-53 is a better CH-53! This is something Israel seems to have recently learned in a very hands-on fashion. SIKORSKY ARCHIVES First flight of the YCH-53A on October 14th, 1964. Our friends at Flightglobal.com report that the Israeli Air Force has halted its evaluation of the MV-22...

U.S. Marine Corps 22 mins *The Marine Corps can confirm there is an active search and rescue operation ongoing for two CH-53 helicopters of the coast of Oahu. The U.S. Coast Guard is currently conducting search and rescue operations. The aircraft are from the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing from Marine Corps Base Hawaii. We will provide more details as they become available.* — Major Christian Devine, USMC

Marine aviator of the year recalls historic mission in Libya 4/24/2012 By Cpl. Brian Adam Jones, Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point MARINE CORPS AIR STATION CHERRY POINT, N.C. — The magnitude of the moment came to him over the radio, in a hoarse whisper. Maj. J. Eric Grunke sat in the cockpit of an AV-8B Harrier at just past midnight March 22, 2011, thousands of feet above the Mediterranean Sea, and speeding toward the Libyan coastline. Grunke was serving as a Harrier pilot assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit on the third day of Operation Odyssey Dawn, an...

A NATO helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing six members of the international military force, the U.S.-led coalition said.

Spirit AeroSystems has rolled out the Sikorsky CH-53K helicopter fuselage being delivered to support assembly of the first developmental test vehicle. The fuselage assembly, which includes composite cockpit and cabin sections designed and built by Spirit, was joined to a supplier-provided aft transition empennage section earlier in the month, the company said. "Rolling out this joined fuselage signifies a vital milestone on this program," said Kelley Gross, Spirit program director. "This event (Thursday) demonstrates Spirit's already established expertise as a composite assembly manufacturer as well as our far-reaching capabilities in the defense market."

‘Flying Tigers’ show true meaning of ‘horsepower’ with Super Stallion 12/10/2010 By Sgt. Derek B. Carlson, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (FWD) FORWARD OPERATING BASE JALALABAD, Afghanistan — A small group of Marines with the Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361 (Reduced) (Reinforced) “Flying Tigers” arrived here from Camp Bastion to recover a nearby disabled aircraft Dec. 10. The aircraft, an H-47 Chinook, was forced to land in the nearby mountains during standard operations, and was unable to take flight after the landing. The cause of the Chinook’s forced landing is still under investigation; however, the coalition service members aboard the aircraft...

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The U.S. Navy selected Northrop Grumman to supply infrared missile warning systems for fleet of heavy lift helicopters. The contact is worth $80 million, the company said Thursday. Under terms of the agreement Northrop Grumman more than 450 IRMWS and 90 processors to Naval Air Systems Command beginning in May 2011 and concluding in the second quarter of 2013. The hardware, in conjunction with Northrop Grumman's Guardian laser transmitter assemblies and control indicator units delivered under the same U.S. Air Force indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract, will complete the initial Department of Navy Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures installation requirements on 156 aircraft...

Germany, Israel and Taiwan top the list of countries interested in Sikorsky’s new CH-53K, now scheduled for first flight in 2013. The heavy lifter, which is headed for service with the U.S. Marine Corps, has suffered from delays, including a slip in initial operational capability of three years, to 2018. The delays seem not to faze the Marines and the CH-53K program office at Naval Air Systems Command (Navair). The extra time “buys [foreign countries] time to make an informed decision,” says Capt. Rick Muldoon, program manager. Germany operates about 80 CH-53D model aircraft, designated the CH-53G, 40 of which...

Two men were recently arrested on charges of conspiring to export military aircraft parts to Iran. The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency states Hassan Saied Keshari and Traian Bujduveanu are charged in a federal Criminal Complaint with conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, the United States Iran Embargo, and the Arms Export Control Act for their participation in a conspiracy to export US-made military aircraft parts to Iran. According to the affidavit filed in support of the Criminal Complaint, Keshari owns and operates Kesh Air International, a business located in Novato, CA. Bujduveanu owns and operates...