2015 Lima Airshow Malaysia
China's first female J-10 pilots make overseas debut

http://english.cntv.cn/2015/03/12/VIDE1426...aGp1Dyw.twitter

This post has been edited by xtemujin: Mar 13 2015, 12:22 PM

Only have four photos to share of the 2015 LIMA as I'm not able to post process my photos with my laptop brought down to Langkawi.


https://xtemujin.wordpress.com/2015/03/17/2...gkawi-malaysia/

The Tentera Darat Nuri in digital desert is at the 2015 Lima.

Talked with the MD Helicopter ground crew today.

They will be heading to KL after the 2015 LIMA to showcase the MD 530G to the Malaysian Ministry of Defence.

Looking at the photos, I believe that it's a yellow colour primer and ready for the green paint when handover to the Malaysian Army Aviation.

Akan datang.

Did the PLAAF August 1st fly at the LIMA Public day two?

RSAF Apache and Superpuma do patrol Singapore coastline and they can be seen clearly from Johor.

Those in JB who makan near Kampung Senibong can see the almost daily patrol.

This post has been edited by xtemujin: Mar 23 2015, 04:57 PM

Thanks for the heads up.

I was on my way back to Singapore on Saturday morning.

Cheers.

Thanks for the video.

Cheers.

UAE, Sikorsky Work to Weaponize Black Hawks
By Awad Mustafa 7:50 a.m. EDT March 9, 2015



ABU DHABI — Sikorsky is close to beginning upgrades to the UAE's helicopters that would give them the "most advanced armed Black Hawks ever produced," a company vice president told Defense News.

Robert Kokorda, vice president of sales, said the UAE-funded development program of the kits to weaponize UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters is in its final development stages.

The certification of the UAE-mandated weapons kit will be completed in the near future, he added, once the test-firing program is finalized.

Kokorda was not able able to provide more details on the completion dates of the test-firing program.

The UAE is estimated to have almost 70 Black Hawks with Sikorsky investing in the Advanced Military Maintenence Repair and Overhaul Company (AMMROC) joint venture with Lockheed Martin and UAE state-owned Emirates Defence Industries Co. (EDIC).

In February 2011, the UAE announced a $270.5 million upgrade order from Sikorsky for 23 UH-60Ms with Battlehawk kits.

The UAE was the launch customer for the Battlehawk kits, which include guided weapons, optical and laser-guided anti-armor missiles, Hellfire and emerging laser-guided rockets.

Abu Dhabi has already upgraded some of its Black Hawks for the "close-air support role with gun turrets and missile mounts as well, said Douglas Barrie, senior fellow for military aerospace at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

"Some of those, the [UH-60]M model were upgraded and modified for the close-air support role with gun turrets and missile mounts as well," Barrie said.

"This is somehow a continuation of the path the UAE was going down in this area of interest."

The requirements for the weapons systems kit over the years, however, has changed, Kokorda told Defense News.

"The changing requirements over the years and the evolving security needs has led us to adapt this project that we envisioned together years ago to meet all the current needs of the UAE," Kokorda said.

"We have been underway now for a couple of years and it's going along well where we are working to finalize the different configurations that the UAE want on the aircraft and are in the testing phase," Kokorda added..

The Battlehawk would provide the UAE forces with a combat support capability as well as a personnel lift capability, much like the Russian Mi-24 Hinds, Barrie said.

"[The kit] would make it a weaponized utility helicopter, which goes some of the way of being an attack helicopter, but not all the way," he said.

"The closest in original content to it would be the Mi-24 Hind helicopter because that was combat support helicopter and that could carry troops and pack a fair punch as well."

The development program has been completely funded by the UAE, but is being marketed to other customers.

"Right now [this product] is for them and until we have finished creating the product for them, we are actively marketing it, telling everybody that we are going to have this weapons kit available, but we are not necessarily developing other things beyond what the UAE is looking to put in," Kokorda said.

Sikorsky will also supply some to the development information to the UAE for its use, he added.

"We understand that before we embark on a project like that together, what the ITAR [International Traffic in Arms Regulations] framework allows us to do and so both sides have to agree that that's acceptable," he said. "We are now in a mode where we are developing products together and bringing that to the larger market."

He stated that the joint development of this program, which will bring the most advanced weaponized Black Hawk to the market, is an important aspect for Sikorsky.

"One way to make sure that both sides get something out of this within the framework of the ITAR is that there is investment coming from the UAE to the United States."

"So it's not just Sikorsky investing in AMMROC, this is the UAE investing in development in the United States and that weapons kit intact is fueling engineers in the United States to do work."

Email: amustafa@defensenews.com

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/a...-hawk/24086857/

http://www.sikorsky.com/Pages/Products/Mil.../ArmedKits.aspx

This post has been edited by xtemujin: Mar 26 2015, 05:22 PM

I did talked with the MD ground crew and they were heading to KL after the 2015 LIMA for a demonstration to the Malaysian Mindef.

But Boeing is also offering the AH-6i to Malaysia.

South Korea opts for KAI-Lockheed in $7.8 bln fighter deal

Seoul (AFP) - South Korea on Monday selected Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and partner Lockheed Martin for a multi-billion-dollar contract to develop 120 "indigenous" fighter jets to replace Seoul's ageing fleet.

The bid from KAI and the US aerospace giant, which is subject to a screening process before being officially approved, was always seen as the favourite for the 8.6 trillion won ($7.8 billion) deal over a rival bid by civilian carrier Korean Air (KAL) teamed with Airbus.

The Defence Ministry also approved a separate $1.28 billion deal to buy Patriot PAC-3 missiles and upgrade its air defence system aimed at intercepting North Korean ballistic missiles.

The KF-X fighter project is designed to develop and produce 120 fighter jets of a new, indigenous type to replace South Korea's ageing fleet of F-4s and F-5s.

"We have chosen KAI as the preferred bidder based on our review of... cost, development plans and development capabilities of the two bidders," the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a statement.

"We are planning to sign the (final) contract during the first half of this year after negotiating with the preferred bidder over technology... and the price," it said.

The South Korean government is to provide 60 percent of the development costs, with the rest to be shared by the winning consortium and Indonesia, whose involvement is the result of a bilateral defence treaty.

The KAI-Lockheed alliance always had the upper hand, as the same partnership developed the T-50 trainer, which is South Korea's first homegrown supersonic aircraft.

Lockheed, which won a contract in 2013 to sell 40 F-35A joint strike fighters to South Korea, has promised to transfer key technologies for the KF-X project to Seoul.

South Korea's military procurement needs, especially where the air force is concerned, have overwhelmingly been met by US suppliers in the past -- a reflection of their close military alliance.

KAL had talked up its bid by highlighting the technical support available from Airbus, which is part of the European consortium that developed the Eurofighter.

Airbus has made a number of bids for the South's military contracts, including a $1.38 billion deal to provide air refuelling tankers.

The defence ministry's request for the KF-X project required a new design, although experts say a heavily modified version of an existing fighter model would also be acceptable.

DAPA officials said South Korea would also buy an unspecified number of "hit-and-kill" PAC-3 missiles from Lockheed Martin by 2020 to improve its anti-ballistic missile capabilities.

US defence contractor Raytheon has been selected to upgrade South Korea's PAC-2 fire control system to launch both PAC-2 and PAC-3 missile, DAPA spokesman Kim Si-Cheol told reporters.

http://news.yahoo.com/south-korea-opts-kai...tory&soc_trk=tw

I think that some of the western weapons will need to be removed if there is a refurbishment by China company.

First time seeing soldiers in gunny sack.

Boeing, Kuwait Said Near Deal for Up To 40 Super Hornets
By Christopher P. Cavas 7 p.m. EDT May 6, 2015

WASHINGTON — Boeing could be the latest international aircraft-maker to garner a deal for more fighter aircraft, with word that the US government is nearing agreement to sell up to 40 F/A-18 E and F Super Hornet strike fighters to Kuwait.

The deal, first reported Wednesday by Reuters, has yet to be officially announced by either the US or Kuwait, but officials in Washington have confirmed an agreement is close.

Any deal will would require approval from the US Congress, but it's unlikely a proposed sale to Kuwait, a staunch US ally in the Persian Gulf, would meet serious opposition.

A major Super Hornet sale would breathe new life into the Boeing production line, which is working on new aircraft for the US Navy and Australia, but which will deliver the last of those aircraft by the end of 2017. Boeing officials have said production of two aircraft per month, or 24 per year, is necessary to keep the St. Louis, Missouri production line at the break-even point, although a slightly slower rate can be managed. Continued procurement of the aircraft by either the Navy or a foreign customer would keep the line economically viable and aide further international sales.

The Navy has not officially requested any Super Hornet variants since the 2014 budget. But Congress added fifteen EA-18G Growler electronic attack variants into the 2015 defense acts, and the service listed 12 Super Hornets in its 2016 unfunded requirements list. In its markup last week of the 2016 defense authorization act, the House Armed Services committee added $1.2 billion to buy the 12 aircraft – a first step in getting Super Hornets into the full defense bills.

"A near-term international sale would be great news for Boeing and the Navy," said Caroline Hutcheson, a Boeing spokesperson in Washington. "It's important to note that the combination of a major sale along with funding for the 12 Super Hornets in the Navy's unfunded requirements list would allow us to continue producing jets without a break in the line."

Hutcheson referred specific comment on foreign military sales to the US government. Neither Navy or State Department officials would comment on the record.

Boeing has lost out in recent competitions to non-US manufacturers, notably in Brazil to the Swedish Saab Gripen, and in India to the French Dassault Rafale. The company is pinning hopes on selling Super Hornets to Denmark and possibly Canada, but those countries are still partners in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.

In Kuwait, Boeing had been up against the Eurofighter Typhoon. Kuwait tentatively agreed in early 2014 to go with the Typhoon, but subsequently backed off.

It is not yet clear how many single-seat F/A-18Es and two-seat F/A-18Fs are involved in the Kuwait deal. Some media accounts reported a deal for 28 of the Boeing aircraft, while US sources indicate as many as 40 F/A-18s could be sold. It's estimated the value of the deal would be greater than $3 billion.

E-mail ccavas@defensenews.com

http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/2...state/70906542/

Airbus A400M destined for Turkish Air Force crashed during test flight near Seville Airport.

Britain's RAF suspends A400M flights after Spain crash
PARIS | Sat May 9, 2015 1:00pm EDT

PARIS (Reuters) - Britain's Royal Air Force has suspended operations of its Airbus (AIR.PA) A400M Atlas troop and cargo planes as it waits for more information on the cause of a crash involving a similar aircraft during testing in Spain on Saturday, the Ministry of Defense said.

The RAF has taken delivery of two of the 22 planes it has ordered.

The crashed aircraft was not earmarked for the RAF, but operations have been halted as a precaution, a spokeswoman said.

(Reporting by Tim Hepher)

http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN0...150509?irpc=932

This post has been edited by xtemujin: May 10 2015, 06:27 AM

Singapore Develop 8×8 Advanced Mobile Gun System
3 May 2015 Sunday



ST Kinetics of Singapore is offering a truck-mounted self-propelled artillery system called the AMGS (Advanced Mobile Gun System). The system feature a modular turret armed with a 155mm/52 caliber gun, laying system, automated modular charge loading system and projectile loading system. The turret is installed on an 8×8 high-mobility truck with armoured cabin and storage space for 22 rounds.

The cabin allows the installation of a smoke grenade dischargers and a remote-controlled weapon station armed with small caliber machine gun and automatic grenade launcher.

The gun is capable of simultaneous impact of a volley of rounds fired from a single barrel.

The AMGS artillery system offers a gross vehicle weight of 28t, length of 12.3m, width of 3m, height of 3.8m and maximum cross-country speed of 30km/h. the gun has maximum rate of fire of 6 rounds per minute, elevation of -3º to + 70º, and range of 40km with ERBB ammunition. The gun system can be remotely operated from the armored cabin. To increase accuracy, the weapon system is proposed with fire control system with integrated navigation unit.

http://defence-blog.com/?p=5201

Some of China PLA hardware shown in this movie.