Special Mission

Boeing and the U.S. Navy successfully completed the first test flight of the MQ-25 Stingray unmanned aerial refueler. The MQ-25 will provide the Navy with a much-needed carrier-based unmanned aerial refueling capability. It will allow for better use of the combat strike fighters currently performing the tanking role and will extend the range of the carrier air wing.

Models of India's future hope for indigenous airpower: Ghatak stealth combat UAV and Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) on display at DEFEXPO 2018. Other models included Airborne Early Warning (AEW) platforms and the Advanced Air Defence missile, part of India's strategic missile defense network, can be seen in the background.

Israel’s Air Force (IAF) today officially inaugurated the special operations wing, a combat formation that groups the air-force operated elite units under one wing. Based in Palmachim Air Force Base south of Tel Aviv, the 7th Special Operations Wing includes the 669 combat rescue squadron, Shaldag Special Tactics Squadron, and the Tactical Air Operations Unit. The new wing will soon establish a new intelligence to provide intelligence support for the special operations. A training center scheduled to open will complete the wing’s structure in 2022.

The U.S. Navy is testing an upgraded weapon kit for the KC-130J Harvest HAWK to provide close support for Marine and special operations forces. The HH+ is an upgrade to the original Harvest HAWK roll-on, roll-off precision strike package weapons system. The team also develops an engineering change proposal (ECP) to improve the Hellfire weapons capacity on the aircraft and ensure the KJ platform is sensor-shooter, electronic warfare and digitally interoperable capable.

New helmet sights to be introduced on U.S. Air Force AC-130W Stinger II gunships in the next two years will improve situational awareness and responsiveness, and enable their pilots to better support ground forces and employ precision weapons from a safe distance. The upgrade is part of a system integration that also includes the re-installation of 105mm gun and...

ATK and the King Abdullah II Design and Development Bureau (KADDB) have delivered the first modified CN-235 light gunship aircraft to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The completed aircraft re-designated AC-235 will be unveiled at the 10th Special Operations Conference and Exhibition (SOFEX) exhibition taking place in in Amman, Jordan next week. ATK has equipped the aircraft with an electro-optical targeting systems, a...

The MUSIC family of Directed Infrared Countermeasure (DIRCM) systems was demonstrated recently at the annual, multinational EMBOW exercise. Elbit Systems is currently under contract to supply more than 110 DIRCM systems to over ten customers, for installation on 20 different fixed and rotary-wing platform types.

The Indian Air Force has floated a brand new requirement to support the acquisition of nine special mission aircraft for airborne Signals Intelligence (SIGINT), Communications Jamming (COMJAM), ground survey and target towing.

The UK considers replacing the seven Boeing E-3D Sentry AEW.Mk 1 airborne warning and control (AWACS) aircraft currently in service. The E-7 aircraft, based on the Boeing 737 platform, is the forerunner for this replacement. Although the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) called for Sentry to remain in service until 2035, London plans to accelerate their replacement...

Airbus Defence and Space and Airbus Helicopters have recently demonstrated a refueling of H225M Caracal helicopter from C295W. The new capability will be applicable to existing and prospective C295 operators requiring support for special operations and extending the range of search and rescue missions.

The U.S. Navy has entered the final phase of development of the Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) pod that will replace the ALQ-99 that has been in use since the Vietnam War. The new electronic attack pod matches advanced electronic-attack technology that combines high-powered, agile, beam-jamming techniques with cutting-edge, solid-state electronics.

LAAD 2015 Report: Israel offers C4I solutions to Brazil

The UK Ministry of Defence has chosen Leonardo/Thales protection system to protect the RAF Shadow ISTAR fleet. This single-source selection by the MOD follows the recent SALT III international trials hosted by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration in Sweden. There, the integrated Miysis/Elix-IR system, using a jamming waveform developed by the UK MOD’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, proved its ability to defeat Infra-Red missiles in live-fire exercises.

Two industry groups are proposing business aircraft platforms as an alternative for the US Air Force JSTARS replacement. The Air Force is planning to retire the existing Boeing 707-based E-8Cs from 2025-2026 and is expecting to have at least four of the new planes in production by 2023.