The Aviationist Blog

Draken International is about to expand its fleet of fighter jets already used for Combat Air Force/Contracted Air Support (CAF/CAS) program in the U.S with ex-RNlAF F-16s. The Dutch Parliament was informed on June the 29th [...]

The post Dutch Government Agrees To Sell 12 F-16s To Draken International For Use In Adversary Role In The U.S. appeared first on The Aviationist.

The special colored HH-139A celebrates the 90th anniversary of the 15° Stormo. On Jun. 29, 2021, the Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare) unveiled a special colored Leonardo HH-139A multipurpose combat helicopter during the celebrations of [...]

The post The Italian Air Force Unveils First HH-139A Helicopter In Special Color Scheme appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Dutch MOD said the Russian jets carried out mock attacks on HNLMS Evertsen frigate in the Black Sea last week. Photos show at least one of the Su-30SM aircraft carried Kh-31 missiles. Russian aircraft [...]

The post Russian Su-30SM With Kh-31 Supersonic Missiles “Harassed” Dutch Frigate In Black Sea appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Israeli airborne laser prototype achieved a 100% success rate against target drones over the sea at different altitudes and ranges above one kilometer. The Israeli Ministry of Defense announced on June 21, 2021 that [...]

The post Israel Tested An Airborne Laser To Shoot Down Drones appeared first on The Aviationist.

The tension is high in the Black Sea area, where Russia says it fired warning shots at British warship that had allegedly entered Russian territorial waters near Crimea. But the British MOD says no shots [...]

The post Russia Claims It Fired Warning Shots, Dropped Bombs At British Warship In Black Sea. UK MOD Denies. appeared first on The Aviationist.

According to a Swiss public television report the Lockheed Martin F-35 is well ahead of its competitors in the race for the next Swiss Air Force fighter. On Monday Jun. 21, 2021, the Swiss public [...]

The post Citing “Insiders” Swiss Public Television Says The F-35 Has Won The Swiss Air Force Fighter Jet Evaluation appeared first on The Aviationist.

Here are the most interesting aircraft taking part in Lajes Spotters Day, in the Azores. On Jun. 12, 2021, Portuguese Air Force Base Aérea N º4 at Lajes, Azores, hosted the Lajes Spotters Day 2021 [...]

The post Portuguese F-16AM Fighting Falcons, C-295 VIMAR Among The Highlights Of Lajes Spotters Day 2021 appeared first on The Aviationist.

UK Carrier Strike Group launching F-35B missions in support of Operation Shader from the eastern Mediterranean Sea. On her maiden operational deployment, HMS Queen Elizabeth, with F-35B jets belonging to both the Royal Air Force [...]

The post F-35B Jets From HMS Queen Elizabeth Have Joined The Fight Against Daesh appeared first on The Aviationist.

One F/A-18E Super Hornet of VFC-12 now sports a paint scheme inspired by the Russian Su-57 Felon. A U.S. Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet “Red 12”, belonging to Fighter Squadron Composite Twelve (VFC-12), the “Fighting Omars”, [...]

The post U.S. Navy’s Adversary F/A-18E Super Hornet Has Been Given A Su-57 Felon Color Scheme appeared first on The Aviationist.

BL-4 is the fourth Italian F-35B, the third STOVL aircraft destined to the Italian Navy. On Jun. 14, 2021, the F-35B BL-4, the fourth STOVL (Short Take Off Vertical Landing) aircraft assembled in Italy, at [...]

The post Third F-35B For The Italian Navy Makes First Flight appeared first on The Aviationist.

Two Russian Tu-160s, two Su-27s and two Su-35s were escorted at various stages by NATO and Swedish fighters in the Baltic region. Two Russian Tu-160 (NATO reporting name “Blackjack”) bombers carried out an 8-hour mission [...]

The post Two Russian Tu-160s And Four Flankers Intercepted By Italian F-35s, Danish F-16s and Swedish Gripens Over The Baltic appeared first on The Aviationist.

From the First Walk on the Moon to the Auction Block. In a little over a month, humanity will mark the 52nd anniversary of man’s, Neil Armstrong’s, first steps on the moon. On Jul. 20, [...]

The post One Giant Sale for Mankind: Armstrong’s Moon Mission Companions Auctioned appeared first on The Aviationist.

The World War II Weekend is one of the best air shows on the American East Coast. Organized by the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, the 30th annual World War II Weekend air show was a stunning [...]

The post The World War II Weekend Air Show Is BACK! And Here’s Our Report. appeared first on The Aviationist.

The upgrade is part of the new Digital Interoperability suite that will be later extended also to the UH-1Y Venom. An AH-1Z Viper of the Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (HX) 21 demonstrated for the [...]

The post The AH-1Z Viper Performed The First Link 16 Test Flight As The H-1 Mixed Fleet Surpassed 400,000 Flight Hours appeared first on The Aviationist.

BattleField 2042 debuts with wild trailer showing pilot ejecting from F-35 to shoot down a Su-57 Felon with a shoulder-fired anti-tank weapon. And gaming fans are loving it! Well, if you still have your doubts [...]

The post Who Says the F-35 Can’t Dogfight? You Just Gotta Jump Out of It for the Best Shot! appeared first on The Aviationist.

The new helicopter will replace the TH-57 Sea Ranger, allowing the introduction of a modernized training curriculum for the highest quality of training. The U.S. Navy took delivery of the first new TH-73A training helicopter [...]

The post First Leonardo TH-73A Training Helicopter Delivered To The U.S. Navy appeared first on The Aviationist.

Both the Air Force One and its back up made a stopover in the UK on their way to the G7 summit in Cornwall. U.S. President Joe Biden is currently in the UK to attend [...]

The post Check Out These Shots Of Air Force One and SAM46 At RAF Mildenhall For Biden’s Trip To G7 Summit appeared first on The Aviationist.

Images of Eurofighter Typhoons popping flares are pretty rare. Here are some cool ones taken during joint training between Italian Air Force and U.S. Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps personnel in Kuwait. Four [...]

The post Rare Photos Show Italian Eurofighters Dropping Flares During Live-Fire CAS Training With U.S. JTACs In Kuwait appeared first on The Aviationist.

Poland announced the procurement of the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 medium altitude long endurance (MALE) unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV). Polish Minister of Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak, announced that Poland will acquire the Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones [...]

The post Poland Procures Turkish Bayraktar TB2 Drones Almost Out of the Blue appeared first on The Aviationist.

We visited NOAA Air Operations Center in Lakeland, Florida to discuss the impending Atlantic Hurricane season. On May 1, 2017, the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) moved its Aircraft Operations Center (AOC) [...]

The post NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters Ready to Face the 2021 Hurricane Season appeared first on The Aviationist.