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Since it was introduced in 1976, well over a thousand of BAE Systems' Hawk trainer jets have entered service in 18 countries around the world. Now the latest variant, the Advanced Hawk, has taken to the air for the first time in the skies over Warton, Lancashire, UK in demonstrator form. Boasting a new wing design and a revamped cockpit, the Anglo-Indian two-seater is intended to train pilots to handle fifth-generation combat aircraft. The Advanced Hawk is designed to bridge the gap between basic training and hands-on supersonic fighter training(Credit: BAE Systems) With the introduction of aircraft such as the...

The L-15B variant of the L-15 Falcon advanced jet trainer has a passive electronically scanned radar. (Photo: Chinese Internet) China's Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation on May 1 unveiled a new attack variant of the L-15 Falcon advanced jet trainer, known as the L-15B. Hongdu Aviation is part of the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The L-15B is an enhanced version of the L-15 LIFT (Lead In Fighter Trainer) variant used by both the People’s Liberation Army Air Force and People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force. Both use the Ukrainian Ivchenko-Progress afterburning AI-222K-25F turbofan, giving the L-15B supersonic speed...

China's JL-9 trainer aircraft Sudan has ordered Six FTC-2000 jet trainers, which are the export version of China's JL-9 aircraft, from Guizhou Aircraft Industries Corporation (GAIC). The deal was disclosed by Guizhou Aircraft Industries Corporation (GAIC) director Wang Wenfei, during an interview with China Aviation News on 3 November. Though Sudan is the only known export customer for the FTC-2000, “other African countries, including Nigeria, were also considering acquiring the type," Wafei was quoted as saying by DefenceWeb Friday. Aviation Industries Corporation of China (AVIC) officials had told IHS Jane’s during 2015 Paris Airshow that an African country had ordered...

The Hongdu Aviation Industries Group celebrated its 65th anniversary by unveiling an advanced L-15 Falcon trainer jet equipped with bombs and radar, thought to be a passive electronically scanned array (PSEA), that will help accuracy in airborne combat. The Falcon has not been known to carry weapons, until the Hongdu video was released and made the rounds on Chinese websites earlier this month. In the video, the jet can be seen with a centered-fuselage pod carrying a 23 mm cannon, PL-5II air-to-air missiles, and underwing fuel tanks. Hongdu, a subsidiary of the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), had originally...

BEIJING: Modernising its airforce at a rapid pace, China has introduced a third-generation supersonic trainer aircraft to its military flight schools to shorten pilots' training time and prepare them for advanced fighter jets. People's Liberation Army Air Force Aviation University deployed an undisclosed number of JL-9 Mountain Eagle two-seater trainer jets this month and has started to use them to train students, PLA Air Force's Daily, the official organ of the Chinese military, reported. The aircraft has been developed and manufactured by Guizhou Aviation Industry Group, a subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corp of China. It has a maximum speed of...

Qinetiq has marked the 40th anniversary of the Hawker Siddeley (now BAE Systems) Hawk jet trainer's first flight by commissioning in-flight pictures of pre-production aircraft XX154 – which remains in use with the Empire Test Pilots’ School. Jamie Hunter/Qinetiq First flight of the T1-standard aircraft was conducted from Dunsfold, Surrey on 21 August 1974, with the trainer flown by test pilot Duncan Simpson OBE. Having subsequently served with experimental and research units, XX154 is now owned by Qinetiq and operated from the UK Ministry of Defence's Boscombe Down site in Wiltshire. It continues to be flown as a test pilot...

MOSCOW --- Bangladesh ordered 24 Russian Yak-130 light fighter jets worth $800 million in the final quarter of last year, a Russian newspaper reported Tuesday. The deal was paid for with a loan extended by Moscow to the country a year ago, the director of Russian state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said in a separate interview published by Kommersant on Monday, without disclosing the deal’s price tag. The newspaper said Tuesday that the sale was worth $800 million, citing unnamed sources in the defense industry. The planes are to be fitted with English-language cockpits and delivery is scheduled to begin next...

Ukraine conveys first engines for L-15 trainer airplane to China Yesterday at 20:30 | Interfax-Ukraine Ukraine is delivering the first batch of AI-222-25F engines for new Chinese L-15 trainer airplanes. A source well informed on the details of the Ukrainian-Chinese cooperation under the L-15 program told Interfax-Ukraine that the Chinese side is to certify the first batch of engines assembled in Ukraine by the end of week. "Chinese specialists have arrived to Ukraine to certify the first batch of engines, this work is to be done by the end of week," the agency's interlocutor added. The source did not disclose...

Israel to buy Italy's M-346 jet trainer for $1b S. Korea threatens to cancel deals because Israel did not choose its T-50 Golden Eagle. The Ministry of Defense has decided to buy the Alenia Aermacchi M-346 jet trainer for the Israel Air Force, rather than South Korea's T-50 Golden Eagle, jointly developed by Korean Aerospace Industries Ltd. (KAI) and Lockheed Martin Company (NYSE: LMT). The ministry notified the companies of its decision, after the Air Force decided that it preferred the M-346 on the grounds that its performance was better than the T-50. The deal is worth around $1 billion....

Ukraine Wins Engine Contract for Chinese L-15 Jet Trainer Production AIN Defense Perspective » November 4, 2011 by Vladimir Karnozov November 4, 2011, 4:50 AM China has ordered 250 AI-222-25F turbofans from the Ukraine to power production versions of the Hongdu L-15 advanced jet trainer. The –25F is an afterburning version of the AI-222 that was first flown on the Lead-In Fighter Trainer (LIFT) version of the L-15 in October 2010. The original AI-222 was developed by the Ivchenko Progress design bureau at Zaporozhye for the Russian Yak-130 jet trainer, and was then fitted to three of the four L-15...

T-38 Trainer Becoming Too Costly and Dangerous to Keep Flying (Source: Lexington Institute; issued August 31, 2011) (© Lexington Institute; reproduced by permission) The U.S. Air Force's pilot training program relies upon an obsolete Eisenhower-era jet that may soon be too unsafe to fly. The T-38 Talon was the world's first supersonic training aircraft when it debuted in 1959, but half a century later the average plane has logged 15,000 flight hours -- over twice the planned design life -- and age-related problems have begun to appear. Investigations following a fatal 2008 crash caused by metal fatigue found 156 "single-point...

Iran to build jet trainer aircraft The Air Force of Islamic Republic of Iran (IRIAF) has announced a plan to manufacture jet trainer aircraft in line with the military's scientific breakthroughs. Iran is continuing to “manufacture advanced models of fighter jets, including Saeqeh (thunderbolt) and Azarakhsh (lightning),” IRNA quoted IRIAF Commander Brigadier General Hassan Shah-Safi as saying on Wednesday. He referred to the advances made by the Iranian Air Force to keep abreast with modern technologies and sciences. “The Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force is the most powerful air force in the region,” he further added. IRIAF has recently...

USAF set to take next step on T-38 replacement © BAE Systems Three off-the-shelf trainers made abroad are being considered, including the Hawk Next month, the US Air Force is scheduled to validate a strategy that - if funded - could lead to the rapid development and fielding of hundreds of jets, replacing the aging supersonic Northrop T-38C Talon with a new advanced "T-X" trainer optimised to support fifth-generation fighters. The scheduled meeting of the air force requirements oversight council in March is coincidentally timed near the 50th anniversary of the T-38's entry into service. The T-38 was introduced at...

dogfight over Israel By Arie Egozi on January 27, 2011 10:29 PM Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi and Barack Obama may soon be engaged in a "dog fight" over Israel. The competition aimed at selecting a new advanced trainer for the Israeli air force (IAF) already has inputs that are not directly connected to the quality and capabilities of the two potential aircraft. The request for information (RFI) for an advanced trainer for the IAF has been issued to KAI from South Korea and to Alenia Aermacchi from Italy. One is making the T-50 the other one the M-346 . It...

IAF looks to Korea, Italy for training aircraft By YAAKOV KATZ 12/30/2010 02:10 Pilot school cadets would use trainers before advancing to combat jets. The Israel Air Force has issued an official request for information from Korean and Italian aerospace companies for new training aircraft that pilot school cadets would use before advancing to combat jets. The request was issued several weeks ago after it was delayed due to the Antitrust Authority’s concerns that a proposal for leading industries to buy the aircraft and lease them to the air force was illegal. The two leading candidates to replace the Skyhawk...

PICTURE: Zhuhai10 - AVIC launches L-15 version with afterburner By Greg Waldron China's AVIC Defence has developed a version of its L-15 advanced jet trainer with an afterburner, upgraded cockpit and radar. The company announced the upgraded aircraft, the L-15 Lift, at the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition. The new version had its first flight on 20 October. "The L-15 Lift is a new generation supersonic advanced trainer developed by AVIC Hongdu to meet lead-in fighter training requirements, on the basis of the L-15 trainer," the company says. The L-15 Lift uses a Ukrainian-made afterburning turbofan with full authority...

Seoul seeking to export 500 trainer jets to U.S. November 03, 2010 Korea is seeking to export as many as 500 supersonic trainer jets to the United States, whose Air Force is considering replacing its aging fleet of trainer aircraft, a government official said yesterday. The U.S. Air Force is reviewing options on whether to upgrade the aging T-38 trainer jets or replace them with new ones, with a decision expected by 2012, the official said. The official added that a team of U.S. inspectors visited Seoul this year to check the performance of the Korean-built T-50 trainer jets. “If...

BAE pushes Hawk jet trainers for Iraq Published: Sept. 24, 2010 BAGHDAD, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Iraq is moving forward with plans to buy 24 Hawk jet training aircraft from BAE Systems of Britain, a deal worth up to $1.6 billion, as it gradually rebuilds its air force amid the U.S. military withdrawal. Defense sources said an Iraqi air force team test-flew and evaluated the single-engine jet, which is used to train pilots for supersonic combat, in Britain in May and June. But it isn't clear when a deal for the Advanced Jet Trainer might be concluded. "BAE Systems will...

India to sign £500m deal to buy Hawk jets David Cameron hopes high-powered trade mission will seal more lucrative deals A £500m deal for BAE Systems to supply Hawk jets is expected to be one of a string of high-profile contracts signed during the prime minister's trip to India this week. There is also likely to be a major cultural agreement involving museums. David Cameron is taking seven cabinet ministers and a huge trade delegation with him, including representatives from BAE, Britain's biggest defence contractor, as well as from Rolls-Royce, Standard Chartered bank, construction group Balfour Beatty and the British...

BAE in talks to supply Hawk jets to India By Sylvia Pfeifer in London Published: April 19 2010 01:41 | BAE Systems is in talks with the Indian government to supply up to 60 more Hawk trainer jets to the country’s military in a deal that could be worth up to £500m ($768m). A deal would probably see Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), the state-run defence company, place an order for the aircraft with the UK-based defence group. This could happen in the next few months, according to industry sources. India ordered 66 Hawk jets from BAE in 2004 at a cost...