US, UK surge surveillance flights over Ukraine and Black Sea
12 April 2021
by Tim Ripley
US and UK surveillance aircraft have surged their operations in response to Russia’s military build-up along Ukraine’s eastern border and in Crimea since the end of March.
USAF E-8C JSTARS aircraft like the one pictured have been tracked flying along Belarus’s western border four times since 1 April. (USAF)
Open source tracking detected the increase in allied airborne surveillance flights following the reported increase in US European Command’s (USEUCOM’s) watch condition (WATCHCON) from “possible crisis to potential imminent crisis” after Russian troop movements started to be detected during the last week of March.
According to ADS-B transponder data, since the end of March, the United States and the United Kingdom have been flying daily surveillance missions over eastern Ukraine where government troops are facing off against Russian-backed separatists in the Donbass region and around the coast of Russian-controlled Crimea. Prior to the current crisis, allied surveillance missions were only flown two or three times a week.
Iraq to equip F-16s with AIDEWS EW suite
23 April 2024
by Gareth Jennings
The IqAF is to equip all 34 of its F-16 combat aircraft with the AIDEWS electronic warfare suite. (Lockheed Martin)
Iraq is to equip its Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon combat aircraft with the L3Harris AN/ALQ-211 Advanced Integrated Defensive Electronic Warfare Suite (AIDEWS) electronic warfare (EW) system, the US Department of Defense (DoD) disclosed on 22 April.
The DoD requires the retrofit of the AIDEWS system into 34 Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) F-16C/D Block 52M aircraft located at Martyr Brigadier General Ali Flaih Air Base (Ali Flaih AB [AFAB], previously known as Balad Air Base), a solicitation posted on the SAM.gov US government procurement website said.
The DoD solicitation provided no contract value or timeline details.
The AIDEWS comes in both an AN/ALQ-211(V)4 integrated and an AN/ALQ-211(V)9 podded configuration, with the newer Block 52 and above aircraft of operators such as the IqAF having the internal space needed for integration, while older block aircraft do not and therefore, require the podded system.
The IqAF fields 24 single-seat F-16C and 10 twin-seat F-16D aircraft, deliveries of which commenced in 2014.
For more information on the IqAF, please seeIraq – Air Force .
Chadian Air Force unveils Aksungur UAV
23 April 2024
by Jeremy Binnie
Chad's new Aksungur is seen warming up for take-off in a still from a video released by the AAT. (Armée de l'Air Tchadienne)
The Chadian Air Force (AAT) has revealed it has received at least one Turkish Aerospace (TUSAŞ) Aksungur unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
It released a video on 21 April that included footage of an Aksungur with AAT markings and the Turkish-format serial 23013 taking off from Adji Kosseï Air Base at N'Djamena International Airport armed with eight MAM-L small laser-guided bombs. The video also featured AAT personnel being trained by TUSAŞ in Türkiye.
The AAT operates at least two TUSAŞ Anka UAVs and three TUSAŞ Hürkuş-C turboprop light-attack aircraft, which were unveiled when President General Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno visited Adji Kosseï Air Base in July 2023.
Philippines, US kick off Exercise ‘Balikatan' with debut of coastguard, French Navy ships
23 April 2024
by Ridzwan Rahmat
Pilots from the French Navy surveillance frigate Vendémiaire (F734) practice landing aboard the amphibious command ship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) during an interoperability exercise. Blue Ridge is the flagship for Commander, US 7th Fleet. (US Navy)
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the US military have begun the most complex iteration of Exercise ‘Balikatan', which is seeing the first-time participation of a French Navy warship and vessels from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
A ceremony to mark the start of the exercise was held on 22 April at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City, Philippines. Drills under the annual bilateral exercise will be held at various locations across the Philippines till 10 May.
“With over 16,000 service members participating across Luzon from today until 10 May, ‘Balikatan' 2024 is designed to address the ever-evolving security landscape in the region and is poised to be the most complex and comprehensive iteration to date,” reads a statement issued by the AFP on 22 April.
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