Azerbaijan Seeks Chinese Long-Range Missiles

Azerbaijan is in talks with two Chinese companies on the purchase of long-range missiles, Defense Industry Minister Yaver Jamalov has told the Baku-based ANS TV channel.

“Preliminary talks have already been held on delivering such missiles. The negotiations will be completed soon. I am hopeful that the missiles will be brought to Azerbaijan in the shortest time possible,” said Jamalov, who is attending a major international defense industry exhibition in Istanbul.

The minister said the IDEF-2011 exhibition was a major success for Azerbaijan, as the country signed a number of agreements with Turkey and Ukraine.

U.S. Cancels Alternative F136 Engine For The F-35

According to a U.S. Defense Department news release, the companies, along with Congress, were notified of the decision April 25.

Pentagon procurement czar Ashton Carter issued a stop-work order March 24 to the companies to halt their work on the alternative engine, which the Defense Department had determined is “unneeded and wasteful.”

That action, which saved the Defense Department $1 million per day, was put in place prior to a final resolution of the F136′s disposition in the FY2011 budget.

Taiwan To Build Stealth Warships

Taiwan plans to build a new ‘stealth’ warship armed with guided-missiles next year in response to China’s naval build-up, a top military officer and a lawmaker said Monday.

 

Construction of the prototype of the 500-ton corvette is due to start in 2012 for completion in 2014, deputy defense minister Lin Yu-pao said in answer to a question by Kuomintang party legislator Lin Yu-fang at parliament.

The warship, which the navy says is harder to detect on radar, is expected to emerge after China puts into service its first battle carrier group, the legislator said.

The twin-hulled boat will be armed with up to eight home-grown Hsiung-feng II ship-to-ship missiles and eight other more lethal Hsiung-feng III anti-ship supersonic missiles.

The remarks came as China has been restoring The Varyag, an old Soviet aircraft carrier bought in 1998.

The aircraft carrier will be used for training and as a model for a future indigenously-built ship, according to Andrei Chang, head of the Kanwa Information Centre, which monitors China’s military.

Chinese V750 Unmanned Helicopter UAV

China successfully tested its largest unmanned helicopter in eastern province of Shandong on Saturday.

The medium-sized V750, with a maximum takeoff weight of 750 kg, has a load capacity of 80 kg.

It can be controlled within a distance of more than 150 km or fly automatically following input by its programs.

Russian Army To Get New Generation Armada Tank By 2015

The Russian army is to be equipped with a new generation tank by 2015, and according to the Russian press, work on the new armoured  tank code named “Armada” is well in progress.

The new tank is to have new electronic equipment and the crew will be protected by internal turret.  The Armada will be different from the present T-90  in use by the Russian army, says Victor Litovkin, of the “Independent Military Review” paper. He gave an interview to VOR:

"There is a need to fit the tank with a new engine to make it more powerful and faster and easier to operate. It should be able to carry more arms and will also be protected against all kinds of explosives and ammunition. Second, it should be armed with more powerful guns and of course, it should have the necessary electronic gadgets and onboard information control complex."

Russian Aerobatics The Swifts And Knights Turns 20

The Russian aerobatics groups known as ‘The Swifts’ and ‘The Russian Knights’ have marked 20 years since the establishment of the ‘Swifts’ team by performing a series of spectacular stunts above the heads of international spectators at a military airfield near Kubinka west of Moscow.

‘The Swifts’ fly MiG-29, and ‘The Russian Knights’, Sukhoi-27 jets. ‘The Swifts’ are the world’s only aerobatics group flying fully armed combat aircraft.

Boeing’s Phantom Ray UCAV Makes Its First Flight

Boeing’s Phantom Ray UCAV technology demonstrator has now made its first flight, potentially paving the way for the next generation of unmanned aircraft designs to be developed.

The Phantom Ray’s maiden flight occurred on 27 April and saw it launch from Edwards Air Force Base in California: the USAF’s main technology testing site.

The stealthy Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle spent a total of 17 minutes in the air and reached an altitude of 7,500 feet and a top speed of 178 knots, while the flight followed a recent collection of taxi trials carried out earlier in the year. These ground runs served to test a number of Phantom Ray capabilities, including its mission planning and navigational features.