12 March 2024
by Zach Rosenberg
The F-15C fleet is to be phased out in favour of the F-15EX. (US Air Force)
The US Air Force (USAF) is requesting to retire 250 aircraft in fiscal year (FY) 2025 as the service attempts to shed older aircraft to gear up for future purchases.
The largest intended divestment is of 65 Boeing F-15C/Ds, which have reached the end of their service lives. The USAF is in the process of replacing the 1980s-vintage F-15C/Ds with brand-new F-15EXs, which can fly farther, carry more, and come equipped with the latest electronics.
The service also hopes to retire 26 F-15Es. While the ground-attack version is newer than the air-superior F-15s, the USAF intends to retire the Eagle subfleet powered by Pratt & Whitney F110-PW-220s while maintaining the F110-PW-229-powered aircraft. The 220-powered aircraft are older and less capable than the 229-powered aircraft, a USAF spokesperson told reporters on 10 March.
06 May 2024
by Zach Rosenberg
The BT-67 is no stranger to Antarctica's harsh climate. This picture displays a Basler BT-67 (re-engined DC-3) in polar configuration equipped with snow skids. (Basler)
The US Department of State has approved Argentina's request to purchase Basler BT-67s, support equipment, and training for up to USD143 million, the department announced on 18 April.
“The proposed sale will … [provide] additional capacity for airdrop and airlift operations to service Antarctica during the winter season,” the announcement read. “This will reduce the burden on other airlift assets in Argentina.”
Up to five aircraft are to be purchased in the deal, according to the Department of State, which includes spare engines, ground handling equipment, transport, and personnel training. Basler and the Argentine Ministry of Defense had not responded to Janes questions at the time of publication.
Argentina maintains nearly a dozen research bases on Antarctica, according to the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship. Argentina's air force operates several aircraft types capable of operating in Antarctica, including four Lockheed Martin C-130Hs and seven de Havilland DHC-6s.
06 May 2024
by Zach Rosenberg
The MV-22 (pictured) is to soon receive new engine nacelles to be followed by a refreshed cockpit. Longer-term modifications may include a new drivetrain and perhaps even new wings. (US Navy)
The V-22 is likely to fly through 2050, and upgrades are in the planning process to allow it to reach that age, US Marine Corps (USMC) Colonel Brian Taylor, V-22 programme manager at Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), said at the Modern Day Marine 2024 conference in Washington, DC on 30 April.
In the near term, NAVAIR is working to centralise the V-22 fleet in a common configuration and improve maintainability.
“When you purchase aircraft over about a 30-year span, you end up with some configuration challenges, and that's what we're still working through,” Col Taylor said. “You're going to see things like block modifications: how do we get the aircraft to be closer to one another across this wide expanse of airframes that we bought and the different blocks they were in?”
06 May 2024
by Jeremiah Cushman
Leonardo has teamed with Textron Aviation Defense to offer the M-346 jet trainer for a US Navy requirement. (Aermacchi Spa)
Leonardo has teamed with Textron Aviation Defense to offer its M-346 jet trainer for the US Navy's (USN's) Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS) programme. The service's current jet trainer, the T-45 Goshawk, entered service in 1991 and has experienced numerous technical issues in recent years. In September 2023 the USN released a request for information for the UJTS.
Textron Aviation Defense will serve as the prime contractor for the project, Tommaso Pani, senior vice-president for marketing and strategic campaigns – Leonardo Aircraft Division, told Janes during the Navy League Sea-Air-Space 2024 global maritime exposition in National Harbor, Maryland, in April.
The US Air Force (USAF) is requesting to retire 250 aircraft in fiscal year (FY) 2025 as the service...
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