The Aviationist Blog

The Air Force will select its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter in 2024. In a news release published on May 18, 2023, the Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs has announced the Department [...]

The post U.S. Air Force To Award Contract For Its Sixth Generation Fighter Next Year appeared first on The Aviationist.

The aircraft was recovering to Kingsley Field following an in-flight emergency during a routine training mission. A U.S. Air Force F-15D Eagle ended up stuck in the water yesterday at Kingsley Field Air National Guard [...]

The post F-15D Departs Runway During Landing And Ends Up In The Water appeared first on The Aviationist.

Several “exotic” participants have taken part in this year’s Iniochos exercise in Greece. “Iniochos” is an annual medium scale exercise based on the facilities of the Air Tactics Center at Andravida Air Base, located in [...]

The post Indian Su-30MKIs, Saudi F-15SAs And Jordanian F-16s Among The Highlights Of Iniochos 2023 appeared first on The Aviationist.

Debris of MALD was found in the Luhansk region, near the targets of recent missile strikes where Storm Shadow debris have also been found. It appears that the Ukrainian military has received a previously unannounced [...]

The post Debris Of MALD Decoys Found In Ukraine After First Storm Shadow Strikes appeared first on The Aviationist.

We have recently talked to the Chiefs of Staff of the ITAF, RAF, JASDF and RCAF and here’s why the Italian training system, based on the M-346 and already chosen by nine air forces for [...]

The post Deep Dive Into The International Flight Training School, ‘World’s Leading 5th Gen. Training System’ appeared first on The Aviationist.

Military and law enforcement were mobilized to create a safety net during the visit, with a no fly zone around the city, fighters, helicopter, ISR and cUAS assets. On May 13, 2023, Ukrainian President Zelensky [...]

The post Here Are The Forces Deployed To Protect President Zelensky During His Visit To Rome appeared first on The Aviationist.

The MiG-21 LanceR was the longest serving fighter jet in Romanian Air Force. After 61 years of career, the iconic MiG-21 LanceR, the longest-lived fighter aircraft in the history of the Romanian Air Force, successfully [...]

The post Romanian Air Force Retires Its MiG-21 LanceR Jets appeared first on The Aviationist.

The Republic of Singapore Air Force Peace Carvin II detachment turned 30 this year. On Apr. 25, 2023, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF)’s Peace Carvin II (PC II) detachment celebrated 30th years of [...]

The post New Tail Flashes Celebrate 30 Years Of Republic Of Singapore Air Force F-16 Training At Luke AFB appeared first on The Aviationist.

The new standard brings major capability upgrades which pave the way for collaborative air combat. The French Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) announced that the new Rafale F4.1 standard has been qualified and is now [...]

The post Rafale F4.1 Standard Qualified For Fielding appeared first on The Aviationist.

While the latest AH-64E variant will be produced until at least 2028, Boeing is working on a new modernized variant that will complement the new aircraft of the Future Vertical Lift program. Boeing was recently [...]

The post Boeing Contracted To Keep Building More AH-64 Apache Helicopters appeared first on The Aviationist.

F-35I Adir aircraft of the Israeli Air Force have taken part in exercise Red Flag 23-2. Seven F-35I Adir aircraft, belonging to the 140th Golden Eagles (901, 911, 913, 926 and 927) and from the [...]

The post The Israeli F-35I Adir Has Just Completed Its First Red Flag Exercise appeared first on The Aviationist.

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.