Saturday, November 06, 2004
ADF downplays talk of US bomb tests(Registration Required)The Australian Defence Force is playing down
speculation that new smart bombs could be dropped over northern Australia in exercises with the United States.
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Retired B-1 bombers return to serviceThe U.S. Air Force is bringing back seven B–1s that were retired three years ago. Six of the seven jets are already in service as back–ups while the rest of the fleet gets new equipment and repairs.
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New chiefs of navy, air force appointedMajor-General Carlo Gagiano will replace retiring air force chief lieutenant-general Roelf Beukes of the South African Air Force.
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Orion replacement talks start with USAustralia is talking to the United States about a replacement for the RAAF's ageing Lockheed AP-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft, the defence minister says.
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Thales-led consortium wins British defence maritime drone contractThales said it had won a contract from the British defence ministry for the maritime unmanned air vehicle (UAV), or drone, portion of the ministry's joint UAV experimentation programme. ScanEagle will be offered.
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T700-GE-701D Engine Awarded US Army QualificationGE's T700-GE-701D turboshaft engine, the latest generation of T700s powering U.S. Army Black Hawk and Apache helicopters, was recently awarded U.S. Army qualification and is now in production.
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Senator Seeks Halt of N.J. Guard FlightsU.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg called on the Air National Guard to halt all training flights over New Jersey until an investigation is complete over the accidental strafing of a school.
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Stratotanker crew comes to aid of F-16 pilotA KC-135 Stratotanker came to the aid of an F-16 who had fuel problems.
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Friday, November 05, 2004
CVW-14 Fly-byAircraft assigned to Carrier Air Wing Fourteen (CVW-14) fly in formation above the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74).
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PACAF mulls boosting theater assetsU.S. Pacific Air Forces could boost significantly the speed and accuracy of its response to regional “hot spots” by permanently basing intelligence, surveillance-reconnaissance, strike and refueling assets in the Pacific as part of an “ISR strike task force.”
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Pentagon Clears Lockheed F-35's 'Path ForwardMichael Wynne, the acting undersecretary of defense for acquisition has cleared Lockheed Martin Corp.'s continued development of its F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the Defense Department said on Thursday.
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Balad F-16s to get new JDAMsTesters are making the final checks to certify the 500-pound GBU-38 JDAM for use on the Block 40 F-16s based at Balad Air Base, Iraq.
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Merlin Mk3 Helicopter Completes First Transcontinental Self-DeploymentBritain's Royal Air Force has successfully self-deployed an EH101 Merlin Mk3 helicopter across the southern tier of the United States -- from San Diego, CA, to Jacksonville, FL, demonstrating the helicopter's superior capabilities and reliability. This event marks the first time an EH101 helicopter has visited the West coast, and the first time an EH101 helicopter has flown across America.
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Boeing selects Stork Aerospace for the wiring systems of the 737 AEW&C programmeStork Aerospace has reached agreement with The Boeing Company about the supply of design assistance and wiring systems for the Boeing 737 Airborne Early Warning & Control (AEW&C) programme.
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EADS won 130 mln eur Algeria deal for 6 C295 military transport craft in Q3European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co said it won an order worth 130 mln eur from the Algerian government during the third quarter for six C295 military transport craft.
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Indian Navy to be a leaner force: Chief of Naval StaffIndian Navy Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Prakash said work on refurbishing the Admiral Gorshkov, the 44,500-tonne Kiev-class Russian aircraft carrier India acquired, at Russia's Sevmash shipyard was "encouraging". Admiral Prakash said the Indian Navy also planned to buy between 15 and 20 MIG-29Ks for the 35,000-37,000 tonne Air Defence Ship being built locally.
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DHS To Use Hunter UAV For Border Control FlightsThe Department of Homeland Security (DHS) plans to fly Northrop Grumman's Hunter unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to perform surveillance over Arizona's border with Mexico, following a successful series of flights using the Israeli-built Hermes UAV that took place over the summer.
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US, UK Events Dent EADS Efforts Toward US Tanker Toehold New developments on both sides of the Atlantic show new obstacles to the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co.'s bid to dominate the global air tanker market, although the company remains optimistic about its Airbus-based product.
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BOEING CO.: 767 production tied to tanker contract (Registration Required)The head of Boeing Co.'s defense business indicated to analysts Wednesday that the company can wait only about seven months to land a new contract supplying the Air Force with air refueling tankers based on the 767, before deciding whether to end production of the slow-selling commercial jet.
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Lockheed eager for US-101 deal (Registration Required)With a Dec. 17 decision date approaching on the next U.S. presidential helicopter, Lockheed Martin Chief Executive Robert Stevens downplayed concerns that safety and reliability issues could affect the decision.
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IAF jet drops live bombAn IAF training aircraft accidentally dropped a live bomb on a field near a village in Jamnagar Nov 4. No casualties were reported.
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US to test bombs in AustraliaThe United States is preparing to test new-generation weapons, including smart bombs, on Australian territory under an agreement currently under negotiation.
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Officials investigate training incidentA U.S Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon expended an undetermined number of 20 mm ammunition rounds during a nighttime training mission in the Warren Grove Range airspace in New Jersey on Nov. 3.
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Military spending could slow, Boeing's defense chief warnsJim Albaugh, chief executive of Boeing's Integrated Defense Systems cautioned Wednesday that military spending could slow as the ballooning federal deficit and the war in Iraq compete with billions of dollars of funding to develop a futuristic network to link all weapons systems.
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Nuclear bomber for sale on eBayAn Ex-RAF Vulcan bomber is available for sale on
eBay.
"VULCAN BOMBER XL391 (Complete with Engines) AS IS, Where IS ! Buyer Collects!!! Sold Subject to Removal within Two Months."
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Thursday, November 04, 2004
Typhoon PatrolTyphoons from Nos 17 and 29 (Reserve) Squadrons over Northern England. Images courtesy of Geoffrey H Lee, Eurofighter.
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Scottish squadron axed in cutbacksRAF Kinloss in Moray will lose one of its three Nimrod squadrons in April next year.
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FCS UAV Technology Will Be Ready When Funding Is, Official SaysBoeing will have the technology read by 2014 for the U.S. Army's Future Combat Systems (FCS) program for various classes of UAV.
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Naval version of BrahMos test-firedBrahMos, the supersonic cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia, was test-fired from the Indian navy's destroyer 'INS Rajput' at around 1118 IST on Wednesday off the Orissa coast, defence sources said.
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Pentagon Shelves Status Review For F/A-22 Raptor ProgramThe U.S. Department of Defense has opted to shelve a status review for its $72 billion F/A-22 Raptor fighter program that had been scheduled for Nov. 1.
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BAE investigated over Saudi fraud allegations, two arrestedBritain's largest defence contractor, BAE Systems, is being investigated over allegations of false accounting in relation to defence contracts held with Saudi Arabia's government, prosecutors said.
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China’s advanced missiles take center stage at air showChinese military missiles took center stage at the Zhuhai air show Tuesday with the debut showing of some 100 weapons and aerospace products, showcasing the country’s economic and military might.
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The 5th China AirshowPhotographs from the Zhuhai airshow in China.
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F16 issue is alive: NancyOutgoing US Ambassador to Pakistan Nancy Powell on Tuesday said the F-16 fighter aircraft issue with Pakistan was still alive and a matter for debate in the US administration.
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Major progress on EADS-British air tanker deal: sourcesDiscussions on Britain's 13-billion-pound air tanker deal with a consortium led by the European Aeronautic Defence and Space company (EADS) has seen "substantial elements" agreed since September, a source familiar with the matter said.
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Lockheed Would Study Teaming with EADSLockheed Martin Corp. would consider teaming up with Europe's Airbus to supply refueling aircraft if the U.S. Air Force called for new bids to replace a Boeing Co. plan that was scrapped last month, Lockheed chief executive Robert Stevens said Wednesday.
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Boeing Tapped To Develop Massive Penetrator BombThe U.S. Defense Department announced late Nov. 1 that the Air Force Research Laboratory has awarded a $20 million, multi-year contract to Boeing to design and test the Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP), a large bomb designed to penetrate and destroy hardened and deeply buried targets.
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MIT team guides airplane remotely using spoken EnglishAeronautics researchers at MIT have developed a manned-to-unmanned aircraft guidance system that allows a pilot in one plane to guide another unmanned airplane by speaking commands in English.
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LOCKHEED MARTIN FLIGHT TESTS SNIPER XR DOWNLINK CAPABILITYLockheed Martin’s Sniper® XR™/PANTERA™ advanced targeting pod (ATP) data downlink capability was successfully flight tested on a Norwegian mid-life upgrade F-16 aircraft at Bodo Air Force Base in Bodo, Norway. This event marked the first flight for the Sniper XR-based downlink capability.
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LOCKHEED MARTIN UK EQUIPS MERLIN HELICOPTERS WITH SOPHISTICATED SENSOR TECHNOLOGYAs prime contractor and systems integrator for the RN’s EH101 Merlin Mk1 helicopter fleet, Lockheed Martin UK is providing a sophisticated Electro-Optics and InfraRed (EO/IR) surveillance sensor to give accurate, real-time information and positive identification against small, difficult to detect targets.
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LOCKHEED MARTIN DELIVERS AIRBORNE LASER FLIGHT TURRET ASSEMBLYLockheed Martin today announced it has delivered the Airborne Laser (ABL) Flight Turret Assembly (FTA) to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. for integration into the aircraft. This event follows Lockheed Martin’s delivery of its ABL Beam Transfer Assembly and Multi-Beam Illuminator earlier in the year.
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Agusta And Jiangxi Changhe Aviation Industries Sign A Joint Venture AgreementAgusta, an AgustaWestland company, and Jiangxi Changhe Aviation Industies Company, an AviChina company, have signed a joint venture agreement for sale, production, marketing and local support of the A109 Power helicopter.
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Wednesday, November 03, 2004
Tomcats End WestPac EraFighter Squadron (VF) 31 returned home to Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana on Halloween from a five-month Western Pacific deployment with the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). As part of Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 14, the squadron became the last to fly F-14 Tomcats over the skies of the Pacific Fleet. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Mark J. Rebilas
I'm doing a project on the F-14 retirement in 2006. Anybody with information or knows anyone who is in the Tomcat community. Please drop me an email. Thanks.
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U.K. military tanker deal reportedly under threatBritain may scrap a planned 13 billion pound military air tanker deal with a consortium led by Airbus parent company EADS, the Financial Times reports.
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IAF copter lands a world recordA Cheetal helicopter of the IAF made the world's highest landing at a density altitude of 25,150 feet on the Sasserkangri Massif, in Eastern Ladakh, on Tuesday morning.
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ATK Receives $8.8 Million Contract to Supply MK44 Automatic Cannons to USAF Special Operations CommandATK has received an $8.8 million contract for Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation (RDT&E) of a modified MK44 30mm Automatic Cannon for use by the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command on its AC-130U gunships. The AC-130U incorporates side-firing cannons to provide surgical firepower or area saturation against hard targets such as armored vehicles.
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Northrop Grumman Uses Test Flights to Demonstrate Key Technologies for U.S. Army Unmanned Armed Rotorcraft ProgramNorthrop Grumman Corporation recently used two company-funded test flights of an unmanned helicopter surrogate to demonstrate key technologies for its proposed concept for a new U.S. Army unmanned armed rotorcraft program.
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F/A-22 lauded in test phase(Registration Required)Lockheed Martin's F/A-22 fighter jet has shown "dramatic" improvement in combat testing, bringing it closer to approval for full production, according to the Pentagon's top testing official
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IAF gets new flight safety chiefCall it a coincidence, the IAF got a new flight safety chief hours after a MiG-21 crashed.
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Danish Multi-Role EH101 Named ‘ Merlin Joint Supporter’The Danish Multi-Role AgustaWestland EH101 helicopter was officially named ‘Merlin Joint Supporter’ by Major General Klaus Axelsen of Air Materiel Command, Denmark, at a ceremony held last week at AgustaWestland’s Yeovil factory.
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IAI to sell UAVs to India in new $230m dealIsrael Aircraft Industries (IAI) is expected to sign a major unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) contract with the Indian Army in a few days. IAI sources confirmed the deal, following reports in the Indian press. IAI will sell Heron UAVs to the Indian Army for an estimated $210-230 million.
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Lockheed Martin Delivers First Super Hercules Built Under Multi-Year Acquisition ContractLockheed Martin has delivered the first KC-130J Super Hercules aircraft ordered under a joint United States Air Force/U.S. Marine Corps multi-year acquisition program. The KC-130J for the Marine Corps was formally accepted by Lt. Gen. Michael A. Hough, Deputy Commandant for Aviation, Headquarters Marine Corps. The aircraft will be delivered to Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 252 (VMGR-252) at the Cherry Point, North Carolina, Marine Corps Air Station.
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Rosoboroneksport ready to cooperate with foreign companiesRussia’s company Rosoboroneksport has announced readiness to increase the number of its partners in the development of new aircraft, in particular fighter jets, military transport, short and medium-haul planes.
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First International Display of Su-27SKMThe first demonstration flights of the upgraded Russian fighter aircraft, Su-27SKM, have been staged at an air show in China. Deputy director-general of the Sukhoi company Vadim Razumovskiy, has told Mayak that it was the first international display of Russia's best fighter.
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Pilot trainer jet sales to take offMountain Eagle, China's most advanced fighter-pilot trainer, is set to fly Chinese and foreign skies in 2006, its manufacturer Guizhou Aviation Industry Group announced Tuesday.
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China Stops Production of Fighter Jets Under Russian LicenseChina has suspended the production of Su-27SK fighter jets under their Russian license, Russia’s Vremya Novostej newspaper reported on Tuesday, Nov. 2. According to Chinese military officials, these planes no longer satisfy the requirements of the Chinese Air Force.
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MiG 21 crashes near BikanerA MiG 21 fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force crashed near Nal airbase in Bikaner on Monday night but the pilot ejected safely, official sources said.
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Tuesday, November 02, 2004
SpaceShipOne Lessons Feeding Into RASCAL AircraftLessons and technology from Scaled Composites' SpaceShipOne are being applied to the supersonic manned aircraft the company is developing for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) RASCAL program.
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North Korea says US conducted 190 spy flights in OctoberNorth Korea accused the United States of conducting 190 spy flights against the communist country in October, according to North Korea's Radio Pyongyang.
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U.S. prepares to activate missile defense systemThe Pentagon is set to declare operational soon a multibillion dollar system intended to defend America from attack by ballistic missiles.
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Air force records showing who made Sea King tuning error are missing: reportMilitary investigators confirmed Monday that a tuning error probably caused a Canadian Sea King helicopter to crash on the deck of a Canadian destroyer last year, but the records that show who worked on the aircraft are missing.
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Report: Army resumes unarmed military vehicle flights near Korea DMZThe U.S. military in South Korea has resumed flying unmanned aerial vehicles near the Demilitarized Zone, a U.S. Forces Korea newspaper reported Friday.
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Top Russian Air Force General Gunned Down on HighwayMajor-General Konstantin Dementyev,deputy commander of Russia’s strategic long-range air forces, was shot dead in his car Sunday near the west Russian city of Smolensk.
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THE GREEK MINISTER OF DEFENSE MET WITH HIS GERMAN COUNTERPART IN BERLINGreek Minister of Defense, Spilios Spiliotopoulos, flew a Eurofighter simulator while in Berlin.
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Long-Range Strike in a HurryThe U.S. Air Force has decided to speed up its bomber replacement with a “system of systems” approach.
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F-16 pilot makes emergency landing at SyracuseAn Air National Guard F-16 made an emergency landing at Syracuse Hancock International Airport Monday, aviation officials said. No one was hurt.
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Using Vietnam-era tactics, Army maxing helicopters in counterinsurgency warThe U.S. military is increasingly turning to attack helicopters to battle guerrillas in Iraq, using tactics closer to those from Vietnam or Israel than the Gulf war formations that blasted Iraqi tanks.
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Monday, November 01, 2004
Tornado-Damaged Aircraft InspectedExpert military and civilian contractor teams have inspected the seven C-130 aircraft that were at the New Castle County Airport when a tornado hit there on September 28th. They have determined that three of the four damaged aircraft used by the Delaware Air National Guard can be repaired.
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Air Marshal Tyagi to be IAF chiefAir Marshal S.P. Tyagi, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Air Command, will be the next chief of the Indian Air Force.
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Sunday, October 31, 2004
Vector Site:Dumb Bombs & Smart MunitionsGreg has updated another excellent article on his website. This article covers from dumb bombs to guided air-to-surface missiles and even targeting pods.
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Warplanes spark Malaysian reactionMalaysia has called on Australia to respect its sovereignty after it was reported that Australia's newest warplane will have longer-range missile strike capability.
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Australia to get longer range missilesAustralian Defence Minister Robert Hill had revealed he planned to arm the JSF fleet with the new
long-range cruise missiles previously slated for shorter-range F/A-18 fighters.
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No decision yet on F-16s, US tells IndiaThe United States has assured India that it has not yet taken any decision about selling F-16 aircraft to Pakistan.
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Bodies of army officers killed in chopper crash foundThe bodies of three senior Indian Army officers, including a major general, who were killed when their helicopter crashed near the border with China were found Saturday, officials here said.
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Whidbey squadron coming homeThe "Cougars" of Electronic Attack Squadron 139 (VAQ-139) will wrap up an almost six-month deployment in the western Pacific Ocean and return to Whidbey Island Naval Air Station.
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Apache pilot recommended for medal after rescuing downed fliersA U.S Army Apache pilot is being recommended for a bravery medal for the rescue of a pair of wounded American fliers whose helicopter crashed in hostile territory south of Baghdad this month.
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5th China air show to open next weekThe Fifth China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition will open on Nov. 1 in Zhuhai, a city in south China's Guangdong Province. Five teams from Britain, France, Russia and China will take part in the flying display.
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