Scheinbar steht die Finanzierung des A400M endlich:
http://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2010-02...-a400m-einigung

Details gibt es die nächsten Tage. Die 5,2 Mrd Euro Mehrkosten schlüsseln sich dem Vernehmen nach aber so auf:
2 Mrd Zusatzfinanzierung durch Bestellernationen
1,5 Mrd Kredite durch Bestellernationen
800 Mio Übernahme durch EADS
500 Mio Eskalationsklauseln (Kompensation gestiegener Rohstoffpreise durch Bestellernationen)
400 Mio zuletzt noch fraglich

Edit:
Und wohl doch nicht
http://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/997/504212/text/

Pentagon Reports Document Continuing Lockheed-Martin Failures (excerpt)

(Source: Center for Defense Information; issued Feb. 24, 2010)

The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is facing even more delays and problems than have been made public, according to reports by the Defense Contract Management Agency. (Lockheed Marttin photo)
Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the CDI Straus Military Reform Project has obtained almost two years of monthly reports from the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) on Lockheed Martin’s production of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. ...

Lebanon Receiving Mi-24s from Russia


(Source: Forecast International; issued March 1, 2010)

NEWTOWN, Conn. --- Lebanon has reached an agreement with Russia for the supply of Russian-made Mi-24 attack helicopters rather than the MiG-29 fighters Moscow originally offered to donate to Beirut. Lebanon will receive 10 Mi-24 helicopters under an agreement reached between Lebanese President Michel Suleiman and his counterpart, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev on February 25. ...

Die Vertragsnationen haben sich heute in Berlin mit der Industrie über die Grundsätze der Finanzierung des A400M und damit über die Fortsetzung des Programms geeinigt. EADS hat das bestehende Angebot der Kundennationen, das noch unter Vorbehalt der jeweiligen nationalen Billigung steht, angenommen. Dies beinhaltet im Wesentlichen eine Preiserhöhung von insgesamt 2 Mrd. € und Exportkredite in Höhe von 1,5 Mrd. €.
Bezüglich des Zeitplans für die Auslieferung und der technischen Leistungsparameter des A400M konnte man sich ebenfalls einigen. Die Auslieferung der ersten Maschine für Deutschland ist für 2014 vorgesehen. Im Bereich der Zuladung des A400M ist sichergestellt, dass die vorgesehen Systeme wie beispielsweise der Schützenpanzer PUMA transportiert werden können.
Die detaillierte Anpassung des Vertrags wird in den kommenden Wochen erfolgen.

New S-61T Helos for the US State Department
03-Mar-2010 16:16 EST


In February 2010, Sikorsky announced an indefinite delivery/ indefinite quantity agreement with the US Department of State to purchase up to 110 modernized S-61T Sea King helicopters, for “passenger and cargo transport missions in support of its worldwide operations.” The State Department regularly leases helicopters for this purpose; as one example, the helicopter that spirited Rep. Alan Grayson [D-FL] out of Niger during the 2010 coup was flown by Blackwater/Xe’s Presidential Airways.

Because of the current state of helicopter support in Afghanistan, the role of private contractors to fill the gaps has been growing. The initial S-61T delivery order was 4 helicopters, for use in Afghanistan… and Sikorsky is pointedly touting the S-61Ts as an alternative to leased machines.

New Clothes for an Old King: The S-61T

The S-61 is the civilian designation for the popular SH-3 Sea King line of helicopters. Many SH-3s remain in service with military operators around the world, despite their age and wear. The helicopters handle extremely well, offer good cargo capacity, and are considered to be a safe design under a wide variety of conditions, including the ability to land on water. On the civilian side, Sikorsky estimates that over 650 S-61 variants remain in service worldwide, performing both general and specialty missions.

The S-61T is a joint development with S-61 operator Carson Helicopters, Inc. It includes a fully modernized “glass cockpit” from Sagem with digital screens and avionics; a modular wiring harness; engine and transmission improvements; and composite main rotor blades, in order to add extra speed and another 1,200 pounds of lift capacity.

Conversion to S-61T status takes about 6 months, and S-61T Program Manager Anthony Serksnas says that it has 10 S-61 helicopters in inventory to meet initial conversion requirements. Another 65 government surplus helicopters are reportedly available, and the US State Department would provide more from the private market as government-furnished equipment, if that became necessary.

Sikorsky and its partner Carson have been working on several additional improvements to the platform, which may become the subject of future block upgrades or enhancements under the contract. The 2 biggest are a composite tail rotor that would complement the main rotor, and a potential switch to GE’s T-58-16 engine variant.

Contracts & Key Events

Feb 22/10: Sikorsky announces an indefinite delivery/ indefinite quantity agreement with the US Department of State to purchase up to 110 modernized S-61T Sea King helicopters, for “passenger and cargo transport missions in support of its worldwide operations.

Delivery of the first 4 modernized S-61Ts will support missions for the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan – where operators like Evergreen and Hummingbird are already using the basic type to provide services. Sikorsky’s release pointedly adds that:

“Providing an alternative to the Pentagon’s current purchase and use of Russian helicopters, Sikorsky’s American-made modernized S-61 aircraft is mission-ready now for deployment to Afghanistan and the surrounding regions.”

Das finale RFP für KC-X wird heute ausgegeben - und Northrop (Airbus) wird sich wohl zu "96-98%" nicht nochmal beteiligen.

Edit:
Wer sich für das RFP-Dokument im Volltext interessiert, findet es hier.

Und schließlich gab es auf der Heli Expo von EC auch noch einen AW159 in SAR-Konfiguration zu sehen:

Was zur A400M... habe da ein paar Insider-Infos... die Kiste ist zum Jungfernflug mit allerlei Beschränkungen geflogen, Hauptsache in die Luft.
Aber alle haben in der Kirche eine Kerze angezündet das es gutgeht.

CH-53 G werden überholt... Frage mich wann überhaupt einer das Thema Schwerlasthubschrauben neu auflegt...
EADS wollte doch zur Heli-Expo zwei neue projekte ankündigen.
Weiß einer was dazu???

würden die Maschinen sogar in den USA gebaut werden...

Der Prototyp des türkischen Kampfhubschraubers T129 ist am 19. März abgestürzt, Besatzung überlebt.

Ich habe noch nichts genaueres dazu, aber angeblich soll die Maschine auf 15000ft den Heckrotor verloren haben.

Der chinesische AC313 hat seien Erstflug absolviert.
Die Maschine basiert auf der Aerospatiale Super Frelon.

March 23/10: At a Supreme Council of National Defense meeting, Minister of National Defense Gabriel Oprea presents a report, saying that Romania does not have the financial resources necessary for the acquisition of multirole aircraft. As such, the ministry proposes to buy 24 used F-16s, in order to replace Romania’s upgraded MiG-21 Lancers and their rising operations and maintenance costs.

Lockheed Martin personnel in Romania have reportedly confirmed that the aircraft with be F-16 C/D fighters, without mentioning the production year or their number of flight hours. The US DSCA request noted AN/APG-69v1 radars and PW F100-220 IPE engines as expected equipment, however. This strongly suggests F-16 C/D Block 25 aircraft, delivered between 1984-1986, and currently operational with American Air National Guard units.

Romanian sources say that the planes will be free, but there will still be costs of about $400 million for personnel training in the USA, $500 million for refurbishment and infrastructure improvements, and money to equip the planes with weapons.

...

Press Release

(Source: Romanian Ministry of Defence; issued March 24, 2010)


(Issued in Romanian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

Romania has finally opted for a mix of used and new F-16s to replace its MiG-21 Lancer fighters, and hopes to eventually move up to the F-35 JSF. (Romanian MoD photo)
National Defense Minister Gabriel Oprea presented, during the meeting of the Supreme Council of National Defense (CSAT) held on March 23, 2010, a statement on the Multirole Aircraft Program of the Romanian Air Force.
...
- An initial stage involving the acquisition of 24 used F-16 Block 25 aircraft;
- An intermediate stage involving the acquisition of an additional 24, new-build F-16 aircraft of the Block 50-52 version;
--A final phase involving the service introduction of 24 F-35 JSF aircraft, which will replace the first batch of F-16 aircraft originally purchased.
...

Socom Refines AC-130J Gunship Plans

Mar 25, 2010

By Amy Butler
Tampa, Fla.

U.S. Special Operations Command (Socom) is planning to base its future AC-130J gunship on the modular “Precision Strike Package” that it is quietly and quickly fielding on the MC-130W.

This is a major departure from today’s AC-130H/U configuration, which wields the characteristic side-mounted 105-mm. howitzer and a 40-mm. gun. The decision also reflects a shift in the command’s approach to purchasing new weapons, indicating a bent toward a rapidly achievable, low-cost program using a joint task force for purchasing.

At one point, Air Force Special Operations Command officials were hoping for a stealthy gunship capable of deploying high-energy weapons. And last year, they were eyeing a C-27J-based gunship, which would have been a smaller cousin to the large C-130 based designs, but that effort was dashed by Congress.

The Quadrennial Defense Review released in February, however, mandates the replacement of eight legacy AC-130H Spectre gunships with eight new AC‑130Js. Another eight will be purchased to grow the fleet, bringing the total new buy to 16. The Air Force will retain the 17 AC-130Us now in operation, so the future gunship fleet will number 33.

Gunships are in very high demand to support ground troops with day/night precision fires in Iraq, Afghanistan and other operations abroad; the increased pace of operations has resulted in high wear and tear on the fleet, prompting the need for additional airframes.

Socom’s new approach to a gunship design is part of its attempt to standardize platforms in order to ease procurement, cost of maintenance and logistics, and operations. Today’s fleet consists of few numbers of varied platforms.

Officials also hope a modular design will allow for fast addition of new capabilities for precise close air support and upgrades in the future, Socom Deputy Acquisition Director James Geurts tells Aviation Week. “Instead of having a family of airplanes now, think of it as having a family of precision strike capabilities that we can port onto different [Special Operations Forces] platforms,” he says. “I can just pick it up and put it on an [MC-130W], and we are going to put it on the [AC-130]J. So that is a mind-set change from a couple of years ago.”

Socom is in the midst of preparing what it calls the Precision Strike Package, a rapidly reconfigurable collection of sensors, communications and weapons, for fielding soon, Geurts says. A specific date was not provided due to mission security. The package includes electro-optical and infrared targeting systems, the 35-50-lb. Special Oper­ations Precision Guided Munitions (Sopgms) and a side-mounted 30-mm. gun. The Sopgms—Northrop Grumman’s Viper Strike and Raytheon’s Griffin weapons—will be launched through tubes mounted on the MC-130W’s ramp. The gun will be bolted to the floor and hang through the side of the fuselage; it will be removable depending on mission requirements.

This configuration differs from the U.S. Marine Corps’ palletized, roll-on/roll-off weaponization kit for its KC‑130J refuelers. Testing of this so-called Harvest Hawk system will wrap up this month, and it will deploy to Afghanistan shortly thereafter, according to Maj. J.P. Pellegrino, KC-130 requirements officer for the Marine Corps. The second and third kits are slated for operations in the fall, and nine will be purchased by the service. This kit was developed to provide suppressive fire, while Socom’s work is aimed at precision.

Socom’s Dragon Spear, the marriage of the MC-130W and the Precision Strike Package, grew out of an urgent requirement passed down by Defense Secretary Robert Gates for the rapid deployment of more armed overwatch assets. The MC-130W Combat Spear is designed to provide covert infiltration and exfiltration of elite forces, and it was selected as the first platform to carry this new precision strike capability.

“It was an existing [Special Operations Forces (SOF)]-modified airplane. We already had crews for it and it had a number of the capabilities needed—air-to-air refueling and some of the SOF communications—so it was then just a matter of taking the pieces of this Precision Strike Package and rehosting it on the MC-130W,” Geurts says.

To field the system quickly, Socom quietly established in June its first Joint Acquisition Task Force, a small group of specialized designers and acquisition experts. The group will continue its work until the Dragon Spear is “deployed and stabilized,” Geurts says. Command officials are considering the use of this approach in the future for fast development and fielding of technologies.

Socom hopes to avoid a lengthy and expensive integration project for the forthcoming AC-130J gunships. The Dragon Spear configuration will be the departure point for the new gunship design.

“We expect a large portion of it will port over, and then we just integrate it to the specifics of the [AC-130]J that are different from the MC-130W,” Geurts says. “We can take that same package and pick it up and adapt it and put it onto the C-130J so that way we get speed to battle. We get reduced technical risk, reduced operational risk and reduced planning.”

The Precision Strike Package software was developed and is owned by the government, reducing the need to procure expensive data rights from a major contractor. This is also attractive for the AC-130J, Geurts says, to keep the door open for a different suite of weapons. However, he says the Sopgm is likely to be included, though existing H and U models do not employ it.

“The software is modular in the sense that it is not limited to one gun,” says Col. Duke Richardson, Socom program executive officer for fixed-wing aircraft. “It is written in such a way that we can add a second gun pretty easily.” Geurts says the Precision Strike Package was designed to be scalable and could be added to other platforms, including rotary wing aircraft, in the future.

Building from this software will limit the opportunities for industry to compete and design programs for the gunship.

Specific requirements for the AC‑130J are not yet firm. Advanced procurement funding of $9.9 million is included in the Fiscal 2011 spending request for the first airframe. Geurts says the first significant funding will come in Fiscal 2012.

Lockheed Martin is continuing work on the first of 37 MC-130Js in Marietta, Ga., that are needed to replace MC-130E/P aircraft from the Vietnam War era.

While the C-27J gunship proposal has been shuttered for now, it could eventually re-emerge. “The U models are 20-some-odd years old themselves and at some point we will look to recap them as well,” Richardson says. “I wouldn’t say it is dead necessarily, but for now the decision has been made to go with the 130.”

The smaller twin-engine transport made by Italian manufacturer Alenia Aeronautica was seen as attractive because it could get in and out of smaller airfields, and it was viewed as a lower-profile offensive weapon.

Krieg gegen das Eis

Russland bedient sich einer ungewöhnlichen Methode, um sich von den Eismassen des Winters zu befreien: Statt Eisbrechern kommen Kampfjets zum Einsatz. [...]

Es ist ein Krieg gegen Eisschollen, den Russland da führt: Nach Moskauer Militärangaben fliegen 15 russische Kampfjets Angriffe gegen verkantetes Eis auf großen Flüssen, um Staus aufzulösen und Hochwasser zu verhindern. Für die ungewöhnlichen Einsätze in Sibirien und im äußersten Osten Russlands würden nur die besten Kampfpiloten zugelassen, sagte der Sprecher des Verteidigungsministeriums, Wladimir Drik.

Ziele der Flugzeuge vom Typ Suchoi Su-24 und Su-25 sowie des Kampfhubschraubers Mi-8 seien etwa die Flüsse Ob, Jenissej, Lena und Amur. Nach der Eis-Sprengung soll das Wasser schneller abfließen. [...]

Statement by the Head of UAC – Civil Aircraft


(Source: United Aircraft Corp.; issued March 29, 2010)
In addition to the Clarification on Media Reports About KC-X tanker, issued on 22 March 2010, the United Aircraft Corporation has to make the following statement:

Electronic mails sent by John Kirkland, a partner of Luce Forward (Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps LLP) to news agencies, other media, various governmental and industrial organizations contain copies of forgery documents, made on a mockery of UAC blanks, and falsified letter exchange.
...
“A UAC’s branch, the Control Company “UAC – Civil Aircraft” headed by me, does not hold negotiations on delivery of the Ilyushin Il-96-400T aircraft to the United States of America. Persons who try to picture themselves as representatives of prominent US-based companies, had, on several occasions, tried to establish business contacts with officials of UAC and UAC - Civil Aircraft, but their attempts met no support from our side. I consider these attempts as a provocation”.

Eingebaut wurde ebenfalls ein Sauerstoffsystem, das auch die Nutzung von Flugstrecken mit besonderen Anforderungen erlaubt, wie z.B. die Himalaja Route.

Lockheed Martin Successfully Tests Joint Air-To-Ground Missile (JAGM) Tri-Mode Seeker

ORLANDO, FL, March 31st, 2010 -- Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has successfully completed a wide-ranging series of tests on the multi-mode seeker for its Joint Air-to-Ground Missile (JAGM) system. JAGM will provide a precision, adverse weather, low-collateral-damage weapon to rotary- and fixed-wing pilots, as well as the unmanned aerial system community.

Currently in the technology development phase, JAGM’s tri-mode seeker includes imaging infrared, semi-active laser and millimeter wave radar sensors for precision-strike targeting.

“We’ve successfully demonstrated all of the sensor modes simultaneously and are very pleased with what we’re seeing,” said Rick Edwards, vice president for Tactical Missiles and Combat Maneuver Systems at Lockheed Martin. “Having fully functional seeker hardware this early in the program allows us to validate our software integration and test procedures. We are moving forward to deliver an unrivaled capability that will meet our Warfighters’ needs.”

Lockheed Martin has built several tri-mode seekers for tower, captive flight and missile flight testing. Upcoming captive-carry testing will verify performance in a flight environment. Additional testing in thermal and vibration performance, and electromagnetic interference effects will also take place this year.

Program officials also recently held Kaizen events, or Structured Improvement Activity (SIA), at Lockheed Martin’s seeker and electronics production facilities in Ocala, FL, and Troy, AL.

“The SIA’s were very successful and we have made significant progress in maturing our JAGM production manufacturing process. The recent tests and Kaizen events demonstrate the maturity of the tri-mode seeker, which is the heart of the JAGM weapon system,” Edwards said. “Seeker maturity is the key to controlling program risk and ensuring an affordable, producible and supportable product.”