Thursday, September 22, 2016

Fighter Jet Times - September 22, 2016

September 22, 2016


The U.S. Air Force grounded 13 F-35A fighters after discovering peeling and crumbling insulation in avionics cooling lines inside the fuel tanks.  The defective insulation was tied to a supplier quality issue that effects a total of 57 aircraft.  The head of the F-35 Joint Program Office, Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan has indicated that a repair is being assessed and that the aircraft will likely be flight worthy by year-end.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-lockheed-f35-grounded-idUSKCN11M26K
http://www.defensenews.com/articles/bogdan-f-35-coolant-line-fix-coming-in-weeks


Russia has released footage of its PAK-FA stealth fighter testing its 30 mm cannon.
https://sputniknews.com/russia/20160918/1045429863/russia-gun-test.html


China expects to receive its first 4 out of 24 Su-35 fighters from Russia by the end of 2016.  The Su-35 is the latest derivative of the Su-27 Flanker, featuring new avionics, updated engines, and thrust vectoring nozzles.
http://thediplomat.com/2016/09/china-to-receive-4-su-35-fighter-jets-from-russia-in-2016/


A USMC pilot safely ejected from his AV-8B Harrier, which crashed off the coast of Okinawa this past week.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/09/22/asia/us-military-aircraft-crashes-off-japanese-island-of-okinawa/index.html


U.S. B-1 strategic bombers flew low in a show of force over South Korea for the second time since North Korea's fifth nuclear test took place earlier this month.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/?icid=hjx004


India's cabinet formally gave its approval this week to the long-delayed deal for the purchase of 36 Rafale fighters from France.  Signing of a final contract could take place as soon as next week.
http://www.defensenews.com/articles/india-approves-rafale-fighter-jet-deal-says-defense-source


Israeli fighter jets shot down a UAV flown by Hamas near the Gaza Strip coast this past week, before it could enter Israeli air space.  The intercept comes during the same week that Israel took delivery of ten second-hand F-15C/D fighters from the United States, which are expected to be either be refurbished to make up for attrition losses, or to be cannibalized for spare parts to keep existing aircraft flying.
http://www.breakingisraelnews.com/75987/iaf-fighter-jet-shoots-hamas-drone-gaza/#BDyFHYsZ5LPKKJUq.97


A new USAF study released by the National Air and Space Intelligence Center projects that both Russia and China will field their own long-range stealth bombers by 2025.
https://insidedefense.com/share/181204


The U.S. Air Force has formally named its new B-21 bomber the "Raider".  The announcement came shortly after a revised official cost estimate projected the unit cost of each aircraft at $511 million per copy, $39 million less than the previous official estimate.
http://breakingdefense.com/2016/09/b-21-bomber-estimate-by-cape-511m-a-copy/

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