Two F-16s from the 301st Fighter Wing collided after landing at Nellis Air Force Base on Aug. 15 at approximately 11:20 a.m. local time.

The unit, from Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas, is currently in Nellis to participate in RED FLAG 15-4 which starts today.

The two pilots are currently undergoing medical evaluation. A safety board will convene to investigate the incident.

PH Air Force gets 10 brand new choppers

Eight Canadian Bell-412eP combat utility and 2 Italian AW-109E attack choppers are formally turned over after undergoing inspections and test flights

Carmela Fonbuena

Published 11:46 AM, August 17, 2015
Updated 11:46 AM, Aug 17, 2015

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippine Air Force (PAF) formally received 10 brand new combat utility and attack helicopters for internal security operations on Monday, August 17.

A turn-over and blessing ceremony for the 8 Canadian Bell-412eP combat utility and 2 Italian AW-109E attack choppers was held at the Villamor Air Base.

The Canadian choppers are the counterparts of the Hueys that Filipino pilots are accustomed to. Five of the 8 will be assigned to the 205th Tactical Helicopter Wing, the same unit that maintains the Hueys, to perform helicopter lift operation in combat and humanitarian assistance operations.

The other 3 choppers were configured for VIP use during the APEC Summit in November. They will be temporarily maintained by the 250th Presidential Airlift Wing.

The two Italian AW109E, on the other hand, are the first of 8 attack choppers acquired by the Philippine Air Force. They armed with 50 caliber machine gun and 2.75 inch rockets, similar to the naval choppers by the same manufacturer that were christened last week.

They will complement the MG520 attack choppers and will be assigned to the 15th Strike Wing to perform close air support and air reconnaissance.

The brand new choppers arrived in batches starting May and have since undergone inspections and test flights.

The new assets are a part of the Philippine Air Force modernization under the Aquino administration that is meant to address both internal and external security operations. (READ: The shopping list: Status of PH military's modernization)

PAF received in March the first of 3 C-295 transport planes, a medium lift, fixed wing aircraft that is the equivalent of the F-27 Fokker transport aircraft in the existing inventory of the PAF.

Unlike the Fokker, the C295 has an open ramp at the rear to allow for easier loading and unloading of passengers and cargo. It's like a C-130 with lesser payload.

More air assets are arriving within the year including the first 2 of 12 FA-50 fighter jets from South Korea, the two other C-295s, and the rest of the AW-109 attack choppers. – Rappler.com

Indonesian Navy corvette test fires Chinese 30 mm CIWS

Ridzwan Rahmat, Singapore - IHS Jane's Navy International
16 August 2015

Key Points

* The Indonesian Navy has completed a live-fire test of the Type 730 CIWS
* The corvette Sultan Thaha Syaifuddin is the first TNI-AL vessel to be equipped with the Chinese-made system

The Indonesian Navy (Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Laut, or TNI-AL) has conducted test firings of a Chinese-developed Type 730 close-in weapon system (CIWS) from its Kapitan Pattimura (Parchim I)-class corvette KRI Sultan Thaha Syaifuddin (376).


The Indonesian Navy's Kapitan Pattimura (Parchim I)-class corvette KRI Sultan Thaha Syaifuddin firing the Type 730 CIWS. (TNI-AL/KOARMABAR)

The testing, which took place in the second week of August, was conducted in waters around Bawean Island about 160 km north of Surabaya, according to a statement released by the TNI-AL's Western Fleet Command (KOARMABAR) on 14 August.

Khartoum (AFP) - At least eight people were seriously injured Sunday when a helicopter from the UN-AN peacekeeping mission in Darfur made an emergency landing in the western Sudanese region, the mission said.

"A UNAMID helicopter, an Mi-8, carrying 18 passengers and three crew on board made an emergency landing approximately 100 metres" (yards) from the helipad at a base belonging to the mission at Saraf Omra in North Darfur, spokesman Ashraf Eissa told AFP.

All on board suffered "varying degrees of injuries as a result of the incident. Eight of them were reported to be seriously injured. No deaths were reported," Eissa said.

The passengers were receiving medical care at the Saraf Omra base, and the most seriously hurt were preparing to be evacuated, he said.

Passengers on board the helicopter included both Sudanese and foreign nationals travelling from the North Darfur state capital El Fasher, although no further details were given.

UNAMID said the cause of the accident at 12:30 pm (0930 GMT), was unknown and that it was investigating.

Published: Monday, 17 August 2015 07:30

Elbit Systems to provide Asian country with ATMOS 155mm self-propelled howitzers

The Israeli company Elbit Systems Ltd. announced on August 16, 2015, that it was awarded an approximately $27 million contract for the supply of command and control systems and ATMOS long-range artillery systems to an Asia-Pacific country. This contract is a follow-on contract for this customer and will be performed over a three-year period.

   
Elbit Systems-SOLTAM ATMOS 155mm self-propelled howitzer
   
The contract calls for the supply of a complete solution for an artillery unit, including self- propelled artillery, command stations, forward observation stations and target acquisition systems, as well as command and control systems, in an integrative solution to connect all systems. The solution, mounted on various wheeled - platforms, enhances mission flexibility, reaction speed and survivability of both the crew and the system.

Yehuda (Udi) Vered, General Manager of Elbit Systems Land and C4I Division, commented: "The customer's decision to order additional quantities under this follow-on contract further enhances Elbit Systems' position as a world leading artillery supplier, with a variety of systems that meet the global demand for light, maneuverable and rapid response platforms."

This follow-on contract could have been signed with Thailand, which has reportedly ordered in 2012 six ATMOS-2000 155mm self-propelled guns to be delivered between 2014 and 2015. According to reports on various sites, the Royal Thai Army purchased about 18 guns, with the possibility of joint production on the land of Thailand. According to pictures released on local websites, the first Elbit Systems' SOLTAM ATMOS guns have been delivered to the Thai army in March.

The ATMOS-2000 (Autonomous Truck Mounted howitzer System) is a 155 mm/52 calibre self-propelled (SP) artillery system manufactured by Soltam Systems, now part of Elbit Systems. The ATMOS is fitted with a 155 mm/52 calibre ordnance which conforms to NATO Joint Ballistic Memorandum of Understanding (JBMoU), and is mounted on a 6 × 6 cross-country truck chassis. With a 155 mm/52 barrel, a 41 km maximum range can be achieved, using Extended Range Full-Bore - Base Bleed (ERFB-BB) projectile, 30 km firing the NATO L15 High Explosive (HE) projectile and 24.5 km firing the older M107 HE projectile. The ATMOS 2000 carries a total of 27 155 mm projectiles and associated charges[1] and can be operated by a 4 man crew, consisting of two loaders positioned one either side at the rear. The system provides a rate of fire of between 4 and 9 rds/min.

US, Malaysia Launch Naval Exercise

CARAT Malaysia 2015 kicks off.

By Prashanth Parameswaran
August 18, 2015

On August 17, the United States and Malaysia kicked off a bilateral naval exercise in Sandakan in eastern Malaysia.

The 21st annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Malaysia exercise is designed to address shared maritime security concerns, build relationships and enhance interoperability between U.S. and Malaysian Armed Forces. It is part of a series of bilateral naval exercises conducted by the U.S. Navy with partners and now involves nine countries in South and Southeast Asia – Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste (See: “US Eyes Expanded Military Exercises with ASEAN Navies”).

CARAT Malaysia 2015 will involve more than 1,000 U.S. military members alongside counterparts from the Malaysian Armed Services. It consists of five days of shore-based and at sea training events through August 21. According to a statement by the U.S. Navy seen by The Diplomat, the exercise will feature simultaneous amphibious landings, surface warfare drills, visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) demonstrations, explosive ordnance disposal training, maritime patrol and reconnaissance operations, a gunnery exercise, coastal riverine drills, and civil engineering projects between U.S. Navy Seabees and Malaysian partners. Personnel from both nations will also exchange best practices on naval tactics during a series of military seminars on shore.

U.S. units participating in the exercise include the littoral combat ship USS Fort Worth, the dock landing ship USS Germantown, a P-3C Orion, a Naval Mobile Construction Battalion , a Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit, a Coastal Riverine Group, and U.S. Marines assigned to the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade.

According to the U.S. Navy, after more than two decades of annual CARAT training engagements between the U.S. and Malaysian Armed Forces, the exercise remains “a model for cooperation that has evolved in complexity and enables both nations to refine maritime operations and tactics.”

“CARAT is a practical way for our two navies to address shared maritime security priorities in a realistic training environment,” said Capt. H.B. Le, Commodore, Destroyer Squadron 7. “The Malaysian Armed Forces have been a part of CARAT since its inception, and our partnership’s spanning more than two decades demonstrates a firm mutual commitment to stability and security throughout the region.”

The IDF has already prepared plans to attack Syria in light of a recent military assessment that Iran has opened a new front against Israel on the Golan Heights.

Military exercises in the area over the last two weeks have focused primarily on a scenario of offensive operations inside Syrian territory in response to possible action from the Syrian border such as the infiltration of dozens of terrorists armed with anti-tank weapons, machine guns, grenades and light weapons into one of the communities along the border.

The exercises included possible IDF responses to such infiltrations with troops firing at fixed points on the Syrian side of the border. Simultaneously, officials expect a barrage of mortar bombs to be fired at communities in the Golan Heights during such a scenario.

Commanders in the field put theoretical defensive plans into action using aircraft and combat helicopters alongside tank-fire, artillery guns and even hundreds of reserve fighters who participated in the exercise.

The People's Liberation Army Navy recently released a new recruitment video that is unlikely to assuage growing fears in the region over an increasingly nationalistic and expansionist China.

The slick nearly four-and-a-half-minute video opens with the header "Our Dream." Accompanied by a surprisingly restrained soundtrack, this section appeals to China's youth. We see young Chinese graduating from university and engaging in various sports, including snowboarding. This is interspersed with images of Hong Kong's retrocession, all meant to cultivate pride in a "new" China. "We were born in the 1990s," the accompanying text says, in Chinese. "By then, China had already risen. . . with bright dreams, we want to shine like the new century. . . we want to become very strong."

It doesn't take long, however, for the video to shift to bombastic music and visuals of a very different nature. The appeal to nationalism -- and to China's territorial claims -- is hard to miss, what with footage of the Diaoyutai/Senkaku islets in the East China Sea, which are also claimed by Japan and Taiwan, as well as various features in the South China Sea, a source of rising tension in recent years.

Russia is planning to set up a radar installation in Azerbaijan in 2017, a television station operated by the Russian Ministry of Defense has reported. It would be Russia's first military installation in Azerbaijan after Baku refused to renew the lease for a previous radar system, at Gabala, in 2012.

The report, on TV Zvezda, details Russia's air defense posture and future plans. Among the future plans are to deploy a Voronezh-DM early-warning radar in Azerbaijan: "Erection of Voronezh stations is continuing, and not only in Russia. There are plans to start construction in Azerbaijan in 2017, in place of the out-of-service "Daryal" radar in Gabala. The new station will be under exclusively Russian control," the report says.

The planned system in Azerbaijan would supplement the existing Voronezh system in Armavir, in Russia's North Caucasus. That radar covers Russia's air borders from "southern Europe to Northern Africa," and the Azerbaijani radar would "cover those regions which the Armavir station can't reach," Zvezda reports.

RABAT: A Moroccan air force Mirage F1 crashed in the northeast of the country Monday after hitting a flock of birds but the pilot managed to eject safely, a report citing the armed forces said.

The plane, which was on a training mission, came down near the Sidi Slimane air base and the pilot “is safe and sound”, the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces said in a statement quoted by the MAP news agency.

A “collision with a flock of large birds” as it was preparing to land caused the plane’s engine to die, the statement added.

There were no casualties from the crash which occurred in an uninhabited area.

The Mirage F1 is manufactured by French firm Dassault.

The strategic bomber could carry "12 tons of weapons, including up to six YJ-12 supersonic anti-ship missiles or CJ-20 subsonic land-attack cruise missiles, capable of striking targets 250 and 1,500 miles away, respectively," the defense analyst noted. The aircraft's combat radius is reported to be nearly 2,200 miles and could be significantly extended with mid-air refueling.

The plane is estimated to be capable of hitting targets in Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Guam, Hawaii and Alaska without leaving the air defense zone, the Military Today website reported.

Lockheed Martin upgrades Apache laser targeting

August 18, 2015
By John Keller
Editor



ORLANDO, Fla., 18 Aug. 2015. Electro-optics experts at Lockheed Martin Corp. are upgrading the laser targeting system of the U.S. Army AH-64E Apache attack helicopter under terms of a $21.7 million contract.

Officials of the Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control segment in Orlando, Fla., announced the $21.7 million U.S. Army Lot 4 follow-on contract last week.

The contract calls for Lockheed Martin to build Modernized Laser Rangefinder Designator (M-LRFD) kits, which will improve the principal targeting aid for the Apache that enables pilots to designate targets and establish target range for accurate weapon engagement, company officials say.

The contract is part of a project to upgrade the Modernized Day Sensor Assembly (M-DSA) for the Apache helicopter. M-DSA is an upgrade to the helicopter's targeting and pilotage system, or Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensor (M-TADS/PNVS), Lockheed Martin officials say.

Lockheed Martin is on contract to produce and deliver 786 M-LRFD kits for the Army and international customers. "We are on track to equip approximately seven Apache battalions a year,” says Matt Hoffman, the M-TADS/PNVS director at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control.

New Zealand military chooses U.S. firm for new rifle


WELLINGTON, New Zealand, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- An American gun manufacturer has been named the preferred tenderer to supply the New Zealand Defense Force with a new combat rifle.

The selection of Illinois-based Lewis Machine & Tool as the preferred tenderer was announced by the New Zealand Ministry of Defense last week following a trials program phase of the contract evaluation process.

The New Zealand Defense Force currently uses Steyr AUG rifles, a 5.56×45mm assault rifle designed in the 1960s. The replacement of about 8,800 rifles is part of a larger firearms replacement program.

In competition against Lewis Machine & Tool were: Beretta New Zealand Limited, Ceska zbrojovka a.s., Colt Canada Corporation, FN Herstal, Steyr Mannlicher GmbH, XTEK Limited and Heckler & Kock GmbH.

Additional details were not disclosed by the Ministry of Defense.

http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-.../4741439836463/

Wow, they mentioned malaysia!

I tot we are not very hostile with them in term of spartly ?