DefenceTalkThe decision by the upper chamber of the Swiss parliament not to release funds for the purchase of new JAS Gripen fighter jets from Sweden has renewed doubt about the deal. On Tuesday, the upper house the Council of States approved the defence ministry purchase by 22 votes to 20, but blocked the necessary funds. […]https://www.defencetalk.com/sweden-sanguine-at-swiss-gripen-jet-purchase-delay-47068/

DefenceTalkThe U.S. Army’s Gray Eagle unmanned aircraft system recently completed a successful initial operational testing and evaluation at the Army’s National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. During the initial operational testing and evaluation, or IOT&E, the Gray Eagle platform was operated from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., and employed in an operational and realistic […]https://www.defencetalk.com/gray-eagle-completes-initial-operational-testing-evaluation-47057/

DefenceTalkA huge helium-filled airship with military and commercial uses has been unveiled near Los Angeles. It is still experimental, but a full-sized working model should be finished in a few years. The prototype unveiled in this immense World War II hangar near Los Angeles is just half the size of the final working model. But […]https://www.defencetalk.com/giant-airship-could-move-huge-amounts-of-cargo-47052/

DefenceTalkThree Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft are presently operational in the Indian Air Force (IAF). AWACS are meant as force multipliers for specific area cover and not for surveillance of the entire space of our country. All three AWACS are part of Network Centric Operations and are able to provide adequate coverage of […]https://www.defencetalk.com/india-to-develop-own-awacs-aircraft-47048/

DefenceTalkA high-tech Mars Rover vehicle is operated by processors from the last century. In this respect, games consoles are head and shoulders above them. It was with this metaphor that EADS’s CEO, Tom Enders, confronted the participants at the opening ceremony of this year’s CeBIT trade show. Enders presented ‘Bridget’, the futuristic Mars Rover on […]https://www.defencetalk.com/eads-we-need-to-close-the-innovation-gap-between-aerospace-and-it-47059/

DefenceTalkF-35 Lightning IIs were cleared for flight Feb. 28 following a temporary suspension after a cracked engine blade was found in a test aircraft earlier in the month. A .06-inch crack was discovered in a third-stage turbine blade in a test aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., Feb. 19. Third-stage blades are located deep […]https://www.defencetalk.com/f-35s-cleared-to-resume-flight-47043/

DefenceTalkAirbus Military and Thales UK have signed an 18-year contract with the UK Ministry of Defence to supply training services for the A400M Atlas , the Royal Air Force’s next-generation military transport aircraft. The multi-million pound training services programme will be operated by A400M Training Services Ltd, a joint venture between Airbus Military and Thales […]https://www.defencetalk.com/uk-mod-awards-a400m-training-contract-47036/

DefenceTalkCassidian handed over the 100th Eurofighter to the German Air Force today, at the Military Air Systems Centre in Manching. The anniversary aircraft with the identifier 31×00 took off in the afternoon on its delivery flight to Boelke Fighter Bomber Wing 31 in Noervenich. Speaking to invited delegates who included politicians, representatives of the public […]https://www.defencetalk.com/cassidian-delivers-100th-eurofighter-to-the-german-air-force-47011/

DefenceTalkSikorsky Aircraft Corp. and Boeing will submit a joint proposal to build a demonstrator aircraft — based on Sikorsky’s X2 Technology rotorcraft design — for the U.S. Army’s Joint Multi-Role (JMR) Technology Demonstrator (TD) Phase 1 program. The JMR TD program supports the Army’s Future Vertical Lift initiative to deliver the next generation of vertical […]https://www.defencetalk.com/sikorsky-boeing-propose-x2-technology-helicopter-design-for-us-army-46999/

DefenceTalkThe Defense Department lifted its grounding of the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter after analysis concluded that a cracked turbine blade in an engine on a single plane resulted from overuse in test operations, according to an official with the F-35 Joint Program Office. In an email statement, the official, Kyra Hawn, said engineers […]https://www.defencetalk.com/pentagon-lifts-f-35-grounding-following-inspections-47018/