The Aviationist Blog

The 100th Anniversary of the Italian Air Force provided an opportunity for an update on the Italian participation in the F-35 program. The F-35 is no longer a taboo in Italy. After years of ostracism, [...]

The post Future Base, Expected FOC And More About The Italian F-35 Fleet appeared first on The Aviationist.

Multiple initiatives celebrated the anniversary throughout the country, including a flypast in Rome. On March 28, 2023, the Aeronautica Militare (Italian Air Force) celebrated the 100th anniversary of its foundation as autonomous and independent armed [...]

The post The Italian Air Force Celebrates Its 100th Anniversary With Impressive Flypast Over Rome appeared first on The Aviationist.

A 1960 Strategic Air Command training video familiarized B-52 crews with the devastating effects of nuclear weapons and how to navigate through a nuclear battlefield. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) recently declassified [...]

The post Declassified Video Shows How B-52 Crews Would Conduct Nuclear Strikes During Cold War appeared first on The Aviationist.

Two “green” Gulfstreams will be equipped with the Compass Call mission system as part of the Joint Airborne Multi-Mission Multi-Sensor System program. Italy is about to request to the United States government the acquisition of [...]

The post Italy One Step Closer To Convert Two ‘Green’ G-550s to EC-37B Compass Call Configuration appeared first on The Aviationist.

The four MiG-29 Fulcrum jets have been handed over to the Ukrainian Air Force. First four of 13 MiG-29 fighters retired from active service by the Slovak Air Force have be transferred to Ukraine on [...]

The post First Four Slovak MiG-29 Jets Have Been Transferred To Ukraine appeared first on The Aviationist.

Operating from the Finnish airspace, the U.S. ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) aircraft can spy on the Russian forces near the border with Finland. Flying as JAKE 11, the Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint #62-4131 aircraft is [...]

The post U.S. RC-135 Intelligence Gathering Jet Flying Unprecedented Mission Inside Finland’s Airspace appeared first on The Aviationist.

Another AW249 NEES has flown. This one sports the standard olive drab paint scheme used by the Italian Army helicopters. A new Leonardo AW249 NEES (Nuovo Elicottero da Esplorazione e Scorta / New Exploration and Escort [...]

The post Prototype Of AW249 Attack Helicopter In Combat Livery Flies For The First time appeared first on The Aviationist.

The F-16 with the new special-colored tail has flown for the first time from Aviano Air Base. The 510th Fighter Squadron of the 31st Fighter Wing, based at Aviano AB, Italy, has a new flagship [...]

The post F-16 With Special Tail Celebrates 80th Anniversary Of The “Buzzards” appeared first on The Aviationist.

Experts have recently warned that the PLAAF 5th gen fighter, thanks to the espionage efforts, is more advanced than it otherwise would be. But the real question is: has China been able to catch up? [...]

The post Let’s Talk About Reports That China Used Stolen U.S. Military Technology For The J-20 appeared first on The Aviationist.

The ex-Slovak Air Force MiG-29s should be delivered in the next few weeks. Slovak Prime Minister Eduard Heger announced on Mar. 17, 2023, that the Government of Slovakia has approved the transfer of 13 MiG-29 [...]

The post Slovakia Has Approved The Transfer of 13 MiG-29s to Ukraine appeared first on The Aviationist.

The aircraft will receive an extensive upgrade to the avionic suite, onboard systems and self-protection suite. Leonardo and Armaereo, the Italian Defence Ministry’s Air Force Armament and Airworthiness Directorate, have signed a contract to begin [...]

The post Italy To Upgrade Its C-27J Spartan Tactical Airlifters appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Pentagon released the MQ-9 video showing the Su-27 Flanker making one pass dumping fuel and another pass leading to the collision. As already reported on Mar. 14, 2023, a Russian Su-27 Flanker fighter jet and [...]

The post Here’s The MQ-9 Video Of The Russian Su-27 Intercept Over The Black Sea appeared first on The Aviationist.

The scheduled flyover sent the social media on a frenzy. On Feb. 24, 2023, two B-52 Stratofortress bombers assigned to 5th Bomb Wing from Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota, carried out a low approach [...]

The post Two B-52s Fly Over Tallinn For Estonia Independence Day appeared first on The Aviationist.

The investigation found that the pilot did not activate two landing assist tools that automatically adjust throttle and maintain the angle of attack, leading to low power approach. A year after a F-35C Lightning II [...]

The post F-35C Mishap On USS Carl Vinson Caused By Pilot Error After ‘Sierra Hotel Break’ appeared first on The Aviationist.

South Korea’s domestically developed KF-21 Boramae has achieved a new milestone. On Feb. 20, 2023, the fourth prototype of the KF-21 Boramae (Korean for “Hawk”), successfully flew from the first time from Sacheon airport, headquarters [...]

The post Successful First Flight For The Two-Seat KF-21 Boramae appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Directorate of Intelligence published the photos online showing the unannounced delivery of the US-made helicopter. After receiving the former British Sea King helicopters, it appears that Ukraine has now fielded another western helicopter: the [...]

The post First UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter For Ukraine’s Intelligence Service Breaks Cover appeared first on The Aviationist.

Another white balloon allegedly flying in an area between Hawaii and California. The “balloon” saga continues: on Feb. 19, 2023, a large white balloon was reported over the Pacific ocean, roughly 600 miles to the [...]

The post ‘Large White Balloon’ Reported East of Hawaii appeared first on The Aviationist.

ALEs will also be a big part of the Gray Eagle 25M upgrade optimized for Multi Domain Operations. General Atomics tested a new survivable Air-Launched Effect (ALE) during a flight demonstration based out of the [...]

The post General Atomics Tests New Eaglet Air Launched Effect appeared first on The Aviationist.

The special color was the highlight of the celebrations at Istrana Air Base. On Feb. 15, 2023, the 51° Stormo (Wing) of the Aeronautica Militare (Italian Air Force), celebrated the 80th anniversary of the 103° [...]

The post The Italian Air Force Celebrates 80th Anniversary of 103rd Gruppo With Special Colored AMX appeared first on The Aviationist.

The new X-plane will be a large flying boat similar in size and capacity to the C-17. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is working on a new X-plane under the Liberty Lifter Seaplane Wing-in-Ground [...]

The post DARPA Developing Wing-In-Ground Effect Cargo Seaplane appeared first on The Aviationist.