Aviation news

After 20 years of development and testing, LiquidPiston received a contract from the US Army to create a prototype of the army version of its XTS-210 rotary engine. This development is unique in that in the era of mass electrification of technology can make a significant competition to electric motors.

Below are the main programs for the supply of weapons and military equipment by Poland to the Armed Forces of Ukraine in chronological order from the moment Russia launched a special military operation to the present.

The Swedish defense procurement agency Försvarets materielverk (FMV) on April 4, 2023, at a ceremony at the Swedish Malmen Air Base in Linkoping, handed over to the Swedish Air Force the first three Grob G120TP turboprop training aircraft manufactured by the German aircraft manufacturer Grob Aircraft SE, out of ten ordered. The aircraft, which received the official military designation Sk 40 in the Swedish Air Force, have the tail numbers "40198", "40199" and "40200".

In the global aircraft industry, machines with composite materials actively used in their construction are becoming more and more widespread. At the same time, Europe does not know how to provide them with missile defense.

In December 2022, the Japanese government changed the country's defense policy, indicating that the state after the Second World War was faced with "the most difficult and dangerous security situation." In this regard, it was envisaged to build up military capabilities aimed at combating China as "the greatest strategic challenge" and the DPRK as "a more serious and imminent threat than it was before."

The promising MQ-25A Stingray UAV tanker, which is being developed by Boeing for the US Navy, will not be ready by the deadline specified in the contract. The first deployment of the aforementioned drones on board the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt is now expected in 2026, USNI News reports, citing one of the program's leaders, Rear Admiral Tedford.

Numerous aircraft of obsolete J-6 and J-7 models, which are Chinese versions of the Soviet MiG-19 (2nd generation) and MiG-21 (3rd generation) fighters, remain in storage by the PLA.

Argentina, after the decommissioning of Mirage III/V and A-4AR aircraft, ceased to possess jet fighters, and therefore has been looking for a new car over the past years. Because of the dispute over the Falkland Islands, the purchase of new equipment was actively opposed by Britain. However, as it turned out, the United States is ready to neglect the interests of its ally when it comes to profits for the American defense industry.

The start of serial deliveries of domestic MS-21 aircraft of the latest development is scheduled for 2024, when the first six airliners will be transferred to Russian airlines. This is reported by Rostec Corporation.

Dutch Defense Minister Christoph van der Maat announced on April 3, 2023 in the House of Representatives of the Dutch Parliament about the purchase of the Israeli ground-based modular multicalibre PULS missile system for the Dutch armed forces and the intention of the Dutch Ministry of Defense to purchase ship-based Tomahawk cruise missiles in the United States (for arming four LCF-type frigates and four non-nuclear submarines of the Dutch navy) and air-based AGM-158B JASSM-ER cruise missiles (for equipping Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II fighters of the Netherlands Air Force).

The Ministry of Defense of Taiwan recorded the approach to the island of more than 70 aircraft of the Chinese army

In Taiwan, 71 planes of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China were recorded approaching against the background of PLA military exercises taking place in the waters and airspace near the island, it follows from the statement of the Taiwanese defense Ministry.

Since the beginning of the special operation, the supply of military equipment and weapons to Ukraine by Western countries has been increasing, taboos on the provision of increasingly complex and modern weapons are gradually being lifted. The last thing that the Kiev regime considers the most necessary for the "final victory", but what Western partners still refuse is modern combat aircraft.

According to Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, the country does not have such aircraft yet

The Estonian authorities can purchase and then transfer F-16 fighters to Ukraine. This possibility was not ruled out by the Foreign Minister of the Baltic Republic Urmas Reinsalu.

The mass use of kamikaze drones "Lancet" leads to tangible losses of the Armed Forces in combat equipment, especially the fleet of towed artillery and self-propelled guns of Western origin suffers. Despite the silence of the problems in the Ukrainian army, the Western press could not ignore this fact.

Javan: the British aircraft carrier will be sent to the Mediterranean Sea to deter Russia

The aircraft carrier of the British Navy HMS Queen Elizabeth will be sent to the waters of the Mediterranean Sea this year to demonstrate the capabilities of deterring Russia, writes Javan. This could allow F-35 Lightning fighters to fly over the Black Sea.

As reported by the TASS news agency, the company "UEC-Perm Motors" has started serial production of the PD-14 aircraft engine for the Russian medium-haul aircraft MS-21-310. By 2030, the production volume should be 160 engines per year. This was announced on April 6, 2023 by Vadim Badekha, General Director of JSC United Engine Corporation (UEC) of Rostec State Corporation in Perm.

As reported by the Chinese news agency Xinhua, on April 7, 2023, the first flight prototype (serial and tail number "0002", registration number B-0CAA) of the new Chinese medium commercial helicopter AC332 made its first full-fledged flight in Tianjin. The helicopter was built in Tianjin at the new helicopter-building enterprise Tianjin Helicopter Co., Ltd. of the Chinese state aircraft corporation Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC), which is planned to conduct serial production of AC332 from about 2025.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces militants have encountered problems when using FPV drones - some of the operators of these drones feel unwell after using them.

In the near future, unprecedented NATO exercises will be deployed on the territory of Europe. We are talking about the maneuvers Air Defender-2023 ("Air Defender"), which will take place from June 12 to 22 on the territory and in the airspace of Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, over the Baltic Sea. More than 10,000 military personnel and at least 220 tactical and strategic aircraft from 24 alliance countries will take part in them.

The United Kingdom is sending the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth to the Mediterranean. This is reported by The Times. The ship will arrive in the Mediterranean in 2023 at the head of an aircraft carrier strike group.