Jane's Defense News

Senior Japanese and US officials on 23 September celebrated the rollout of the first Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II combat aircraft at the company's Forth Worth, Texas, production facility. The ceremony was attended by more than 400 government, military, and

The US Army's Joint Multirole-Technology Demonstrator (JMR-TD)/Future Vertical Lift (FVL) effort is moving towards first flights in 2017, but meanwhile is focused on crucial system architecture demonstrations. Dan Bailey, the army's programme director for JMR/FVL, said the effort is demonstrating

The commander of US Marine Corps (USMC) forces in the Pacific ordered a squadron of McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II combat aircraft to stop operations temporarily after one of the jump jets crashed off Okinawa on 22 September. The pilot ejected safely and was rescued by the US Air Force's 33rd

The Pentagon has approved the Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for low-rate initial production (LRIP), the US Navy (USN) announced on 22 September. The Milestone C decision, signed by Pentagon acquisition executive Frank Kendall, "brings us

A two-week-old Syrian ceasefire deal appeared to collapse on 22 September with the launching of a major offensive by Syrian government troops around the city of Aleppo. The offensive, across several districts of the northern Syrian city, was backed by Russian and Syrian fixed-wing strike aircraft,

Armenia paraded newly-acquired weapon systems, including 9K720 Iskander (SS-26 'Stone') short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs), during its Independence Day parade on 21 September. The revelation marks Armenia as the first export customer for the Russian system. Two Iskander launchers and two

BAE Systems has been awarded a long-delayed USD54 million contract to provide 32 upgraded 155 mm M109A5+ BR self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) to the Brazilian Army, the company announced on 19 September. "Production is anticipated to begin in October with vehicle deliveries beginning in

India signed an inter-governmental agreement (IGA) with France on 23 September in New Delhi for the purchase of 36 Dassault Rafale fighters in flyaway condition for EUR7.9 billion (USD8.82 billion). Indian defence minister Manohar Parrikar and his visiting French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian,

Key Points Although military co-operation in Syria has strengthened relations between Russia and Iran, the two countries differ in their long-term goals in the conflict and in their methods for achieving these goals. Russia treats Iran as a strategic asset rather than an ally, an approach that is

Bell Helicopter on 22 September revealed a new unmanned tiltrotor aircraft in anticipation of a US Marine Corps (USMC) requirement for a ship-based armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Vince Tobin, Bell vice-president for advanced tiltrotor systems, unveiled a model of the V-247 Vigilant at the

Restrictions in the Brazilian defence budget have led to the introduction of a plan to cut air force officer numbers by 25% over 20 years, the commander of the service Lieutenant Brigadier Nivaldo Luiz Rossato revealed on 22 September. The proposal comes as part of a major programme of

Key Points SkyTracker picks up the RF signal between the SUAS controller and platform A system consists of four passive sensors that can cover tens of square kilometres Concerns about the global threat from small unmanned aircraft systems (SUAS), particularly in the United States as the air space

The Sikorsky S-70i Black Hawk helicopters recently selected by the Chilean Air Force (Fuerza Aérea de Chile: FACh) are to be used mainly for combat search-and-rescue (CSAR) and Special Operations roles, but will also be available for community support and disaster relief, sources in Santiago

Jorge Domecq, chief executive of the European Defence Agency (EDA), told a gathering of industry stakeholders in Brussels on 22 September that a "window of opportunity" exists to revitalise European defence policy. First among Mr Domecq's concerns is that the European defence industrial

South Korean industrial and defence system provider Hanwha Techwin announced on 23 September that it is to acquire a 30% stake in Pratt & Whitney's (P&W's) Singaporean subsidiary, Pratt & Whitney NGPF Manufacturing Company Singapore Pte Ltd (PWMS). PWMS, which has been operational only

Indian defence company Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has signed a contract with the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) to supply high-speed patrol vessels to the Vietnam People's Army's paramilitary Border Guard Force. L&T said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange on 22 September that the

The Indonesian Air Force (Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Udara, or TNI-AU) has taken delivery of a further five F-16C/D fighter aircraft from the United States. The airframes, which are part of a deal to refurbish and transfer 24 secondhand F-16 platforms signed between Washington and

Israeli unmanned systems manufacturer Aeronautics announced on 20 September that it will display its Orbiter 4 small tactical unmanned air system (STUAS) for the first time at the Azerbaijan International Defence Industry Exhibition (ADEX), which is scheduled to begin on 27 September in Baku,

Japanese defence minister Tomomi Inada and her Myanmar counterpart, Lieutenant General Sein Win, agreed on 21 September to strengthen security co-operation between their countries, a Japanese official told Kyodo news agency. The pact will see Tokyo helping increase the southeast Asian nation's

Korean Air and Boeing have signed an agreement to co-develop the MD 500 Little Bird light attack helicopter into an unmanned combat platform, South Korea's national airline announced on 22 September. The memorandum of agreement was signed in Seoul by Korean Air chairman and chief executive Yang Ho