Aviation news

A representative of the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on the air of the so-called all-Ukrainian telethon made a statement about the state of the type of troops in Ukraine.

American military-industrial companies Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin Skunk Works and Raytheon Intelligence and Space will unite to jointly develop a new E-XX command and control aircraft for the US Navy, which can be used in the event of a nuclear war. The consolidation of the three largest concerns of the American military-industrial complex to create a new "Doomsday aircraft" is reported by the military-analytical publication Defense News.

On April 4, a thematic conference call with the leadership of the Armed Forces was held at the National Defense Management Center of the Russian Federation under the leadership of the head of the military department, Army General Sergei Shoigu.

As reported by the web resource ATO.ru in the article "The project of the American commercial ekranoplan attracted interest and funds from the defense industry. Lockheed Martin invests in the surface glider-ekranoplane with electric motor program," the American developer of ekranoplanes Regent continues to attract investors and customers and enters new market sectors. Lockheed Martin, one of the largest companies in the US defense and aerospace complex, is investing in the development of next-generation ekranoplane technologies. The company's venture fund, Lockheed Martin Ventures (LMV), has announced a strategic investment in Regent, a startup developing a vehicle it calls a "marine glider."

The Russian Defense Minister said that NATO is strengthening the anti-Russian course, which leads to an escalation of the conflict

NATO is strengthening its anti-Russian course, which leads to an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, but this will not affect the outcome of a special military operation, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.

The Pentagon is going to thoroughly increase the arsenal of weapons of destruction for its combat aircraft. According to Lockheed Martin Corporation, the country's military department has ordered the supply of large batches of JAGM and HELLFIRE air-to-surface missiles, the total cost of which can be up to $4.5 billion, including subsequent possible options.

Julia van der Colff's interesting material "Building A New American Arsenal" ("Creating a New American Arsenal") has been published in the American online publication "Wars on the Rocks" with a discussion of the current problems of the US military-industrial complex in the light of the fighting in Ukraine.

The Russian armed forces have changed the tactics of striking positions and objects on the territory of Ukraine and are actively using guided (planning) aerial bombs. This was announced by the official representative of the Air Forces of Ukraine, Colonel Yuriy Ignat.

The new package, in particular, will include ammunition for missile defense and MLRS systems

The United States is allocating a new package of military assistance to Ukraine in the amount of $2.6 billion, including ammunition for missile defense and MLRS systems. This was announced on Tuesday by the Pentagon press service.

Ukraine announced the creation of five aviation brigades, which are replenished with supplies of fighters from NATO countries. They are supposed to be used as part of a possible counteroffensive. At the same time, the AFU does not report anything about the supply of assault aircraft, which is necessary for offensive actions. In this case, how can the aerial part of the battle for the Azov Sea look like?

The Atlantic: Russia and China have deprived the United States of naval dominance

China and Russia have deprived the United States of its former naval dominance, writes The Atlantic. Without its revival, America cannot expect to regain its dominant role in the world. On the way to this is the industrial decline and the miscalculations of its strategists, who squandered resources on foreign adventures.

Foreign Affairs: the conflict in Ukraine has shown how the US is not ready for war with China

The US military-industrial complex is collapsing due to the Ukrainian conflict, which revealed the systemic shortcomings of the American military industry, writes Foreign Affairs. Drastic changes are needed in this area, otherwise America will lose the war with China in the first few weeks, the author of the article believes.

The production of civilian drones has started in the Rudnevo Industrial Park. This was announced on Friday, March 31, by Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin.

Even before joining NATO, Sweden and Finland acquired high military potential

During the Cold War, the neutrality of the two Scandinavian countries looked different. Finland, in fact, was in the Soviet sphere of influence, although it was not going to build socialism. Sweden took a much more pro-Western position, while it managed to become one of only five countries in the world that produced almost all military equipment for themselves. Except that Sweden has not created nuclear weapons, although such attempts have been made.

Russia responded to the supply of British "challengers" to the APU with atomic warheads in Belarus

It is unlikely that the Deputy Minister of Defense of Great Britain Annabel Goldie expected to receive such a strong response to her statement of March 21 that the equipment of the Challenger-2 main battle tanks supplied to Ukraine includes armor-piercing shells with a depleted uranium head.

Ballistic missile strikes may be more dangerous

The strong explosion that thundered on the afternoon of March 26 in Kireevsk, fortunately, was not accompanied by the destruction of residential buildings, but only left behind a deep crater. In it, experts found the wreckage of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the Tu-141 "Strizh" type, converted from a high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft into a low-flying aerial bomb carrier.

For the first time, Israel has sent its F-35I Adir fighters to conduct joint exercises with the US Air Force "Red Flag" on the territory of the United States. The maneuvers took place at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada in the period from March 12 to 24.

They were once among the strongest in the world

From the Air Force and Air Defense Forces of the USSR, the Armed Forces of Ukraine received gigantic air power: 4 air armies, 10 air divisions, 49 air regiments, 2.8 thousand planes and helicopters, 8 anti-aircraft missile brigades, 10 anti-aircraft missile regiments. Moreover, in these units, formations and associations, the share of the most modern aviation equipment at that time was very high.

According to the company's CEO Dan Hart, it was decided to lay off about 90% of the staff of all departments, except for 100 employees

The company Virgin Orbit, founded by British billionaire Richard Branson and engaged in launching satellites, will cease its activities "in the foreseeable future" due to lack of funding. This was reported by CNBC with reference to an audio recording of CEO Dan Hart's speech on Thursday at a company meeting.

The material is the final part of the article "Lessons learned from the conflict in Ukraine – UAV operations, options and trends". The author is David Saw– an analyst at European Security & Defense.