Russia will actively seek new deals on the Latin American arms market, which it expects to reach a value of $50 billion in the next ten years, the head of a Russian Technologies (Rostec) high-tech state corporation delegation said on Saturday.
“According to our expert estimates, the volume of the Latin American arms market will reach about $50 billion in the next ten years. If we focus our efforts on this, corresponding contracts could be signed,” said Sergei Goreslavsky, head of the delegation of Rostec, which comprises state arms exporter Rosoboronexport, at the SITDEF Peru 2013 defense technology exhibition.
Goreslavsky said Venezuela, Peru, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico were all interested in buying helicopters and air defense systems.
Syria has put its most advanced missiles on standby with orders to hit Tel Aviv if Israel launches another strike on its territory, The Sunday Times reported overnight Sunday.
According to the British newspaper, reconnaissance satellites have been monitoring preparations by the Syrian army to deploy surface-to-surface Tishreen missiles.
An Israeli official told The New York Times that Israel, which has launched three recent attacks on Syria, was considering further strikes and warned President Bashar Assad that his government would face "crippling consequences" if he hit back at Israel.
What are the implications of Moscow delivering S-300 air-defense systems to Syria, could one weapon system decide the outcome of the Syrian power struggle, is the Russian missile system as invincible as it is described?
Alexey Eremenko from the Russian news agency Novosti provides some answers. Defense-Update reports.
“The missile batteries would give Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime a powerful weapon against foreign air strikes” Eremenko comments, “one of the options being bounced around as a form of international intervention – and could fracture the fragile accord on Syria reached last week between Moscow and Washington, which hope to get the warring sides to negotiate.”
The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) recently obtained information from the U.S. Navy suggesting that, though Russia is undergoing a much-publicized push to modernize its ballistic missile submarine force, the actual patrol rate amongst vessels in service remains extremely low.
Figures suggest that the entire fleet of nine operational nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBN) made just five deterrent patrols in all of 2012, according to the organization.
FAS analysts noted that this was likely not sufficient to sustain a constant deterrent presence, and the overall tempo of patrols has continued to decline since the end of the Cold War, when the SSBN fleet reached a record of 102 patrols in 1984.
It was the first time the new F-35A was refueled with a nontest pilot in the cockpit, and for all the excitement, it was a “nonevent,” the pilots and boom operators said.
On May 13, test pilots stepped aside to allow instructor pilots at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., fly the first F-35A formation to be refueled.
The mid-May flights were also the first since the fleet was cleared to fly after the Defense Department restricted in-flight refueling in the Air Force fleet.
The Navy's X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstrator (UCAS-D) has begun touch and go landing operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) May 17.
For UCAS-D, this represents the most significant technology maturation of the program. Ship relative navigation and precision touchdown of the X-47B are critical technology elements for all future Unmanned Carrier Aviation (UCA) aircraft.
Don Blottenberger, UCAS-D Deputy Program manager, commented, "This landing, rubber hitting deck, is extremely fulfilling for the team and is the culmination of years of relative navigation development. Now, we are set to demonstrate the final pieces of the demonstration."
Sukhoi fighter jet manufacturer Komsomolsk-na Amure Aircraft Production Association (KnAAPO) delivered on Thursday evening two additional Su-30 MK2 fighter jets to the Sultan Hasanuddin Air Force Base in South Sulawesi.
The shipment was part of six fighter jets ordered by Indonesia, base chief spokesman Maj. Mulyadi said.
"We have so far received four of the six fighter jets on order. The final two will be delivered in June," he said.
The French army hopes to receive its first Airbus A400M military transport aircraft in time for the country's annual Bastille Day celebrations on July 14, a Defence Ministry spokesman said on Thursday.
The aircraft, which is about five years behind the original schedule, is also expected to win certification for military use in time for the biennial Paris Air Show starting on June 17, Pierre Bayle said.
The head of EADS unit Airbus Military, Domingo Urena-Raso, confirmed that this timetable was "absolutely reasonable," adding that he expected a total of four deliveries this year, 10 next year and 21 the following year.
China’s first jet-powered stealth unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), the Lijian or “Sharp Sword,” was recently spotted undergoing taxiing tests in that country.
Analysts interpreted the sighting as indicating that the Lijian’s maiden flight is imminent.
The Lijian prototype rolled off the assembly line late last year after three years’ joint development by Hongdu Aviation Industry and Shenyang Aircraft , subsidiaries of the state-owned China Aviation Industry (Avic).
Aéroport d'Alma
The Honourable Denis Lebel, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities, Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, today announced that Aéroport d'Alma has been granted financial assistance to build the infrastructure needed to group all of the activities of the Unmanned Aerial System Center of Excellence under one roof.
"By supporting local stakeholders in the development of the Unmanned Aerial System Center of Excellence at Alma airport, the Government of Canada is showing proof of its determination to stimulate sectors of the economy that can generate major spinoffs for the region," said Minister Lebel.
The project involves, among other things, building a facility to house offices and a hangar on the Alma airport site. This large-scale initiative will ensure the availability of adequate space for organizations and enterprises working on the development and testing of equipment and applications for drones (unmanned aerial vehicles).
The international defense industry fair (IDEF 13) held in Istanbul, Turkey, from May 7 to 10 saw the Turkish industry announce a number of developments.
The most notable was the revelation of three potential concepts for the TF-X national combat aircraft program, a stealthy aircraft that is ultimately expected to replace the F-16.
Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) was awarded a contract last year to begin conceptual design of the TF-X, and earlier this year it was reported that the company had signed a technical assistance contract with Saab.
Officials at the U.S. Coast Guard Aviation Logistics Center plans to transform a prototype CN235 aircraft into an HC-144A maintenance training unit, based on the Airbus Military CN235 tactical airlifter.
Engineers will transform the CN235, configuring it with systems from the HC-144. The systems will have built-in faults to provide maintenance personnel with the opportunity to learn troubleshooting on actual HC-144 aircraft.
"It is very satisfying to see this airframe being used as an integral part of the HC-144A program," says Sean O'Keefe, EADS North America chairman and CEO.
North Korea on Saturday launched three short-range missiles into the Sea of Japan, apparently as part of a military drill, South Korea's defence ministry said.
"North Korea launched two guided missiles in the morning and another one in the afternoon," a defence ministry spokesman told AFP.
"The missiles landed in the East Sea (Sea of Japan)," he said.
The Australian Department of Defense released a request for tender to CEA Technologies for the development of a High Power Phased Array Radar concept demonstrator.
CEA Technologies Pty Ltd is a Canberra-based company whose CEAFAR radar is being fitted to the ANZAC Class Frigates of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) as part of the ANZAC Class Anti-Ship Missile Defense Upgrade project.
“This tender is for the development of radar systems based on the CEAFAR radar which could support future naval acquisitions such as the Royal Australian Navy’s Future Frigates through Project SEA 5000,” Minister for Defense Materiel Dr. Mike Kelly AM MP said.
Russia sold advanced Yakhont antiship cruise missiles to Syrian President Bashar Assad, outfitted with an advanced guidance system that makes them more effective than the older version of the missile Russia sold to Syria, The New York Times cited two American officials as saying on Thursday.
These missiles will allow Syria to thwart any attempt by international forces to reinforce Syrian rebels by imposing a naval embargo or no fly zone, Nick Brown the editor in chief of IHS Jane's International Defense Review told The New York Times.
“It enables the regime to deter foreign forces looking to supply the opposition from the sea, or from undertaking a more active role if a no-fly zone or shipping embargo were to be declared at some point,” Brown said, “It’s a real ship killer,” he added.
North Korea may have up to 200 mobile missile launchers, or twice the number previously estimated by South Korea’s authorities, South Korean media reported Friday.
South Korea’s state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA) said that in line with a report submitted to the US Congress by the Pentagon, North Korea has probably accumulated up to 200 so-called transporter erector launchers (TEL), including up to 100 for short-range Scud missiles, 50 for medium-range Nodong missiles and 50 for long-range Musudan missiles, the Yonhap news agency reported.
Previously Seoul estimated that the reclusive communist state, known officially as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), appeared to possess no more than 94 mobile launchers.
A Raytheon Company Standard Missile-3 Block IB fired from the USS Lake Erie destroyed a complex, separating short-range ballistic missile target with a sophisticated separating mock warhead.
Despite stressing conditions designed to challenge the missile's discrimination capabilities, the SM-3 successfully engaged the target using the sheer kinetic force of a massive collision in space.
"Combatant commanders around the globe echo the desire for more SM-3s in the fleet, because their confidence in the defensive capabilities of the missile is extraordinarily high," said Dr. Taylor Lawrence, Raytheon Missile Systems president.
Russia will deliver 12 Mil Mi-17V5 military transport helicopters to the Afghanistan Armed Forces by the end of 2013, state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said on Thursday.
The helicopters were options in a $367.5 million deal Rosoboronexport signed with the Pentagon in May 2011 for delivery of 21 Mi-17V5s.
According to US officials, the deal could be worth up to $900 million including spares and servicing.
Dutch shipbuilder Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, working in partnership with Indonesia's PT PAL, has confirmed the programme and build strategy for the construction of the first two SIGMA 10514 Perusak Kawal Rudal (PKR) guided missile frigates for the Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL).
Damen Schelde and the Indonesian Ministry of Defence signed a contract for the engineering, construction, and delivery of a single PKR in June 2012, with the contract coming into force at the end of 2013.
An option for a second ship has subsequently been exercised, with this contract coming into effect in the next few weeks, Damen Schelde confirmed at IMDEX Asia 2013 in Singapore.
The latest in a series of Lockheed Martin F-35A high angle of attack (AOA) testing was recently completed.
The testing accomplished high AOA beyond both the positive and negative maximum command limits, including intentionally putting the aircraft out of control in several configurations.
This included initially flying in the stealth clean wing configuration.
Aerojet, a GenCorp company, announced today that its propulsion systems successfully contributed to the third consecutive intercept test of Raytheon's Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IB.
The SM-3 Block IB missile is part of the Missile Defense Agency's (MDA) Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system.
During Flight Test Mission-19, the sea-based missile intercepted and destroyed a separating ballistic missile target, further validating the system's capability.
The Czech Republic is hoping to sell its L-159 Alca fighter aircraft to Poland, just months after an expected deal with Iraq apparently fell through.
Prime Minister Petr Nečas announced May 13 the Czech Republic was taking part in a tender that could result in the sale of the aircraft to Poland.
While in Warsaw to meet his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, Nečas said a string of Czech government ministries had teamed up to make what reports described as "a comprehensive offer" to sell the L-159 Advanced Light Combat Aircraft (Alca) model.
The Royal Thai Navy will ask the cabinet to approve a budget of 13 billion baht for a new frigate to be built by a South Korean shipyard.
Navy chief Adm Surasak Rounroengrom said the Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters is scrutinising the budget proposal and later will forward it to the Ministry of Defence. Once approved, it will be submitted to the cabinet for consideration, he said.
A navy source said the navy had set up several sub-committees to coordinate with the Korea-based shipbuilding and offshore contractor.
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Russia will actively seek new deals on the Latin American arms market, which it expects to reach a value of $50 billion in the next ten years, the head of a Russian Technologies (Rostec) high-tech state corporation delegation said on Saturday.
