16 February 2024
by Zach Rosenberg
The new KC-46's communications capabilities far exceed those of the KC-135s, and Block 1 upgrades are set to connect the tanker to yet more networks. Eventually the tankers may double as battle management nodes. (Senior Airman Kimberly Barrera)
General Mike Minihan, commander of the US Air Force's Air Mobility Command (AMC), intends to rapidly move the unit beyond traditional airlift and air-to-air tanking missions, he told reporters on 14 February at an Air Force Association conference.
Gen Minihan told reporters that turning airlifters and tankers into communications nodes is his highest priority, with the goal of adding communications and command-and-control equipment on 25% of the AMC fleet by 2025, an initiative he calls “25 by 25”.
“What we discovered … is that when we have the connectivity, we are a game changer for the entire joint force,” Gen Minihan said, discussing AMC's performance in the recent ‘Bamboo Eagle' and ‘Mobility Guardian 2023' large-scale exercises. “It's not just about situational awareness for my crews … it has a high correlation to [an airlift crew's] survivability, but it also has an enormous correlation to the success of the joint force.”
17 May 2024
by Gareth Jennings
Poland now has all 24 of the TB2 UAVs it ordered from Türkiye, operating them across four systems based at the 12th Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Base at Mirosławiec. (Polish MND)
Poland has received the last of 24 Baykar Bayraktar TB2 armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from Türkiye.
The Polish Armaments Agency (AA) announced the milestone on 16 May, saying that the last four unmanned aircraft systems (UASs), each comprising six UAVs, had been received into the 12th Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Base at Mirosławiec on the same day.
“The Secretary of State in the Ministry of National Defense, Paweł Bejda, together with representatives of the Polish Armed Forces, took part in the ceremony of completing the delivery of the last, fourth set of the Bayraktar TB2 unmanned reconnaissance and strike system,” the AA said.
17 May 2024
by Jeremy Binnie
The Hunter 5 prototype before its first test flight at the X Range. (Edge Group)
The United Arab Emirates' (UAE's) Edge Group has updated the product page for its Hunter 5 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a video showing its first test flight.
The video said the flight took place in November 2023 at the company's X Range testing facility on Abu al Abyad island. It showed a prototype fitted with fixed undercarriage and non-folding wings, having its two-cylinder petrol engine manually started before it took off and flew around the range's runway.
The promotional image of the Hunter 5 on the Edge website shows it with folding wings, no undercarriage, and a probable rocket booster for launching it from a rail or canister.
16 May 2024
by Gareth Jennings
The GHTP lifts off from Jagel for its maiden flight in German airspace. (IAI)
The Luftwaffe has flown the first of its leased Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Heron TP unmanned aircraft systems (UASs) on its maiden flight in German airspace on 15 May.
Announced by the Bundeswehr, Airbus Defence and Space as the lead contractor for the programme, and IAI, the milestone saw the medium-altitude long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operating out of its future home station of Jagel (also known as Schleswig Air Base) in the far north of Germany.
Known as the German Heron TP (GHTP), the UAS was awarded a type certificate by the German Military Aviation Authority in late 2022, at which time it was operated out of an undisclosed location in Israel.
The GHTP is intended to bridge the gap between the retirement of the earlier Heron 1 UAS and the introduction of the new European MALE UAS known as Eurodrone, with Airbus Defence and Space operating five air vehicles out to 2027.
General Mike Minihan, commander of the US Air Force's Air Mobility Command (AMC), intends to rapidly...
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