Archive: News & Articles

Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines has successfully returned to service one of its An-124-100 Ruslan airlifters, which had been left stranded in in Kyiv in a state of disassembly as a result of Russia’s invasion of the country. The An-124, registered as UR-82073, took off from its home airfield in Kyiv on 11 July 2025 and landed […]

BAE Systems has launched a precision munition from a multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for the first time, successfully destroying both air and ground targets during trials in the United States, the company announced on 17 July 2025. During the trials, which took place at US Army Dugway Proving Ground in Utah, a TRV-150 multi-rotor […]

The XQ-67A autonomous collaborative platform (ACP) has successfully demonstrated integration of government reference autonomy during a recent flight test over the California High Desert, manufacturer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) announced on 16 July 2025. The flight showcased the integration of US government-owned autonomy on the XQ-67A, paired with active tactical datalink communications, to enable […]

At the end of June 2025 images appeared on social media showing a mysterious Chinese wing-in-ground-effect (WIGE) vehicle, dubbed the ‘Bohai Monster’ by observers. As reported by the South China Morning Post, one of the images shows a full view of the aircraft above the water surface, while another shows it lying on a pier […]

UK firm MGI Engineering, which has an original background working in the motorsport industry and on Formula 1 racing technology, has officially unveiled SkyShark: a UK-sovereign one-way effector (OWE) platform that the company says places it “at the vanguard of tactical unmanned systems innovation”. At a live showcase event hosted at Enstone Airfield in Oxfordshire on […]

Royal Air Force (RAF) Air Marshal Harv Smyth, a former combat pilot on multiple aircraft types who has also led UK space commands, is to be appointed as Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) and Aide-de-Camp to His Majesty in the rank of air chief marshal, the RAF announced on 16 July 2025. AM Smyth […]

The 6th Wing of the Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare – AM) has marked the transition of the 154th ‘Red Devils’ Squadron from the Panavia Tornado Interdiction/Strike (IDS) variant to the Lockheed Martin F-35A Joint Strike Fighter. A series of ceremonial events were held over 2-3 July 2025 at Ghedi Air Base in northern Italy to mark the […]

The US State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Norway of up to nine Sikorsky HH-60W combat rescue helicopters and related equipment, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 11 July 2025. The proposed FMS, which is estimated to be worth USD 2.6 billion (EUR 2.23 billion), has been […]

While the UK’s F-35B Lightning Joint Strike Fighters are “significantly superior to any previous UK aircraft”, the UK government’s National Audit Office (NAO) has taken the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to task over a number of shortfalls in the F-35 programme in relation to capability, delivery, availability and costs. Publishing a report on the […]

Caerphilly-based Drone Evolution is looking to address both the battlefield needs of Ukraine and the recently published UK Strategic Defence Review’s focus on ‘consumable’ effectors to provide user-focused first-person-view (FPV) drones that are made in the UK, tested in theatre and work straight out of the box. After initially making tethered systems for unmanned aerial […]

The US Air Force Test Pilot School has commenced training operations with three A-29C Super Tucano turboprops at Edwards Air Force base (AFB) in California, the air force announced on 10 July 2025. The three aircraft, provided by Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) in conjunction with Super Tucano manufacturer Embraer, were initially acquired by Air Force […]

The Belgian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed that it will deactivate the Belgian Air Component’s four NHIndustries NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopters (TTHs) later this year. Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken stated on his X social media account on 10 July 2025, “The four NH90 TTH helicopters will be taken out of service starting in September. […]

UK company Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV), manufacturer of the Airlander 10 hybrid airship, announced on 10 July 2025, that it is entering the US market with the establishment of Hybrid Air Vehicles USA (HAV USA). The company noted in a press release that the establishment of a US subsidiary “supports growing interest from the US […]

The US Air Force (USAF) announced on 8 July 2025 that it has recently demonstrated a major leap in human-machine teaming by flying autonomous collaborative platforms (ACPs) alongside crewed fighter aircraft during a training event at Eglin Air Force Base (AFB) in Florida. Pilots operating an F-16C Fighting Falcon and an F-15E Strike Eagle each controlled […]

The UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) has opened the flight and training centre at RAF Waddington for its Protector RG Mk1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operators, the service announced on 7 July 2025. The centre, known as the Oxspring Building, was officially opened in a ceremony hosted by Air Officer Commanding 1 Group Air Vice-Marshal […]

Russia launched its largest yet aerial bombardment of Ukraine on the night of 3-4 July 2025, primarily targeting Kyiv, just hours after US President Donald Trump had called Russian President Vladimir Putin and reported that he had made “no progress” towards a ceasefire in the Ukraine war. According to a statement released by the Ukrainian […]

The US State Department has approved a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Israel of roughly half a billion dollars-worth of Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) guidance kits as the country looks to replenish its munitions stock in light of Israeli Air Force combat operations over both Gaza and Iran. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) […]

Norway is to deploy some of its F-35 Lightning Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs) to Poland later this year, the Norwegian Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced on the X media channel on 30 June 2025. The aircraft will be deployed to Rzeszów Airport, which is just over 70 km from Poland’s border with Ukraine, “this autumn”, […]

Brazil’s Embraer delivered four A-29 Super Tucano aircraft to the Paraguayan Air Force (FAP) on 30 June 2025. A handover ceremony, held at Silvio Pettirossi Air Force Base near the capital, Asunción, was attended by a number of Paraguayan civil and military leaders, including President Santiago Peña, Vice President Pedro Alliana, Minister of National Defence […]

Airbus Defence and Space has successfully carried out initial flight trials of its Combat Cloud Digital Infrastructure, codenamed ‘Goose’, the company announced on 30 June 2025. The main objective of the test flights, which took place in Andoya, Norway, between 10-13 June 2025, was to evaluate the functionality of the Combat Cloud Digital Infrastructure in […]

Boeing and the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) have deployed and operated the MQ-28 Ghost Bat collaborative combat aircraft (CCA) out of an operational air base for the first time, Boeing reported on 25 June 2025. The deployment, which occurred under Exercise ‘Carlsbad’ at RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory, was a proof point […]