Raptor F-22 Jet Fighters To Deploy To Kadena Japan

Langley Air Force Base, Virginia-  There are plans now to send twelve of the F-22 Raptor Jet fighters stationed in Virginia to be deployed in Japan, for the second overseas deployment of the Aircraft. Six Members of the 27th Fighter Squadron left on Wednesday, January 7, 2009 with the other six set to leave the next day. They will stop at Hickam Air Base in Hawaii for fuel, and then will proceed to their new deployment home in Kadena, Japan. Nearly 275 airmen and support units will be accompanying the twelve jets to their new three moth deployment. “This is a U.S. Pacific Command Theater support security deployment to help bolster security in the Western Pacific,” said Major Sam Highley. “These are the way we show our commitment and that of the United States to keep the Pacific Theater safe and fulfill our security responsibilities.”  Said Major Highley. The last deployment of these Raptors in February 2007 there was some issues with the jets GPS systems, and they had to return to Hickam Air Base in Hawaii and were faced with about a five day delay. That problem has since been rectified and will not be an issue this time.

Source: http://www.usmilitary.com/

Three Dead In Weekend Air Show Accidents

It was a tragic weekend for air shows as three fatal accidents occurred, killing a wingwalker and solo aerobatics performer in the U.S. and a member of the Royal Air Force's Red Arrows at a show in England. On Sunday, wingwalker Todd Green was trying to perform his signature transfer from a wing to the skid of a helicopter when he fell about 200 feet to his death at the Selfridge Air Show near Detroit. Green was a close friend of Kyle Franklin. whose wingwalking wife Amanda died earlier this year from burns suffered in a crash in March."It's really tragic," Franklin told reporters. "We are not thrill seekers trying to cheat death. We love what we do. We all know the risks involved." On Saturday, Red Arrows pilot Flt. Lt. Jon Egging died after a low-level ejection in his Hawk aircraft at the Bournemouth Air Show and Bryan Jensen was killed when his highly modified Pitts Special, called The Beast, crashed on the field at the Kansas City Aviation Expo Air Show.

Egging was in formation with the Red Arrows when he split from the others and called a Mayday. Witnesses said he maneuvered the small jet trainer away from populated areas. His body was found face down in a river, not far from the wreckage of his aircraft. His wife and other members of his family attended the air show. Egging is being hailed as a hero. Jensen, a Delta Airlines 747 pilot, had been performing in air shows for 15 years. The aircraft, which had a modified Russian radial engine boosted to 412 horsepower, impacted vertically and caught fire.

Source: www.avweb.com

Norway Withdraws F-16s from Libya Ops

HELSINKI - Norway has withdrawn its F-16 fighter squadron from NATO's Operation Unified Protector (OUP). The return of the F-16s ends Norway's direct involvement in the operation and the enforcement of NATO's no-fly zone over Libya. 

The Norwegian Air Force's squadron, comprising six F-16s, flew 596 missions, almost 10 percent of the total by NATO-aligned aircraft, since March. The aircraft dropped 542 bombs and logged about 2,000 hours of flight time over the four-month period, according to Norwegian Ministry of Defense figures. 

The number of missions flown by the aircraft declined in June when two F-16s were recalled to Norway from Souda Airbase in Crete. Britain compensated for the partial withdrawal, sending an extra four Panavia Tornado GR.4 ground-attack jets to replace the F-16s.

By contrast, Denmark's F-16 fighter squadron, which joined the operation in early April, dropped some 705 bombs, including seven precision bombs, on Libya, according to the latest data from the Danish Ministry of Defense. 

In recent weeks, six Danish Air Force F-16s have been engaged in bombing missions on targets located between Zlitan and the Libyan capital Tripoli. Targets have included military depots and support facilities. 

The Libyan mission cost the Danes up to $16 million a month, a figure that excludes capital outlay to replace precision missiles, bombs and other munitions. The Danes' core arsenal includes GBU-49 type 500-pound bombs and 1-ton bunker killer BLU-109 warheads.

The Zlitan area, which lies 160 kilometers east of Tripoli, has seen increased fighting between rebel groups and forces loyal to the Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi, in recent weeks.

 Source: defensenews.com

Dassault pitches Rafale to Malaysia for fighter contest

Dassault Aviation plans to open an office in Kuala Lumpur, in an apparent bid to promote interest in the Rafale fighter for the Royal Malaysian AF's Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MRCA) requirement. Sources in Malaysia have identified the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, Eurofighter Typhoon and Saab Gripen as the other front-runners in the competition. The RMAF is looking to replace its MiG-29 fleet, with 12-18 aircraft required by 2015, and a tender is likely to b issued in December.

Source: Combat Aircraft Magazine

Iran Posturing Again as They Move the World Closer to War

It seems that the IAEA has given a report showing that Iran continues to enrich uranium to make nuclear weapons, and in that report it shows a tremendous amount of deception, hidden programs, and failure to outline the realities. Meanwhile, Iran is interfering in Iraq, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Afghanistan, Lebanon, and several other nations which it simultaneously calls friend or foe depending on the time of day.

This type of international behavior is not helping anyone, especially Iran. Indeed, when Iran's public leader Ahmadinejad stands up in front of the UN and gives a one-hour speech of hatred and excuses towards Israel and the United States for his behavior, it does in fact send a stark message to the world that Iran has no intention of preventing war, or maintaining peace. Each time there is a problem in Iran, regardless of the reason, they blame it on the West.

There was an interesting article on this topic recently on in SpaceWar Online News titled "Iran to Stage Missile Wargames Immediately" by Staff Writers in Tehran and published on June 26, 2011.

"Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards are to launch military exercises on Monday with the firing of different range ballistic missiles, the state news agency IRNA reported. The exercises, codenamed Great Prophet-6, are to start on Monday, said a Guards commander, General Ami Ali Hadjizadeh, quoted by IRNA, without specifying how long the manoeuvres will last - "short-, medium- and long-range missiles will be fired, especially the Khalij-Fars, Sejil, Fateh, Ghiam, and Shahab-1 and -2 missiles," he said."

Now then, is this move from Iran in response to the USA putting a Patriot Missile Battery Anti-Missile Shield in the UAE? Raytheon has just completed those tests. We've seen Iranian warships sail into the Mediterranean as NATO was setting up the no-fly zone for Libya. We've seen Iran attempt to break Israeli maritime blockades, and threatened to blow Israel off the map. It seems that every time we turn around Iran is posturing again as it moves the world closer to war.

As if this was not enough Iran and North Korea are sharing nuclear and missile technologies, and Iran is also sharing various military technologies of an unknown kind with Venezuela. If Iran is bringing weaponry into Iraq to destabilize the country, and kill US troops, as well as bringing weapons into Afghanistan to help the Taliban against NATO and US forces, then in fact Iran is already at war with the West, and many nations.

At some point this behavior has to stop, otherwise there will be no choice. It appears to me that we are at that point now. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6385328

Gripen passes 160 000 flight hours during mission over Libya

Saab Gripen Multi Role fighters are now flying with great success in five different air forces around the world. Integration of new weapons and capabilities are ongoing and the demonstrator for the future Gripen NG has been flying with new avionics and displays since May 19.

Gripen is also now operational in Thailand following delivery to the Royal Thai Air Force in February of the first six aircraft, out of a total requirement of twelve. Thailand now formally joins Sweden, South Africa, Hungary, the Czech Republic and the UK based Empire Test Pilot School as a Gripen user.

Another first is the Swedish participation in the NATO led operation ‘Unified Protector’ over Libya. Since April 2 eight Gripen fighters, based at the Sigonella air base in Sicily, are flying daily reconnaissance and air supremacy missions. So far more than 300 recce missions have produced over 80 000 photos.

Among the upgrades of the existing Gripen C/D fleet, two new weapons are being integrated. In May Denel Dynamics, South Africa, completed the integration of the A-Darter fifth generation air-to-air missile on Gripen. While at the Vidsel test range in Sweden Saab is integrating Small Diameter Bombs on the Swedish Air Force Gripen.

On May 19 the Gripen NG demonstrator aircraft flew with new avionics for the first time. At this stage of flight testing, after almost 200 flights, an open system architecture avionics system that separate flight critical from mission critical functionality is integrated in the aircraft. Also integrated are new Tactical Mission Computers, Ethernet networks and new Rockwell Collins displays.

Source Gripen International

Arizona wildfire: 2nd largest in history

A huge wildfire in eastern Arizona grew Wednesday, prompting the Apache County Sheriff's office to order the full evacuations of two towns, home to about 8,000 people.

Residents of Eagar and Springerville received the order late Wednesday afternoon, officials said. Other communities were warned they could be next.

"We had a lot of spot fires today," said Jim Whittington, public information officer for the Southwest National Incident Management Team.

Hot and dry conditions, with winds out of the southwest, continued to make firefighting efforts difficult, Whittington told CNN.

While firefighters battled the fast-moving blaze, residents in its path faced serious choices: whether to stay -- and what to take with them if they leave.

"We're going to get out of here because they want us out of here. That's the main reason," said Eagar resident Bob Meador. "We don't want to go."

Authorities have evacuated thousands of people since the wildfire, known as the Wallow Fire, began sweeping through the Apache National Forest late last month. It had burned about 389,000 acres by Wednesday.

Officials Wednesday said they feared flying embers could cause the fire to spread, and expanded evacuations. The fire was moving around the city Greer, subject of a Monday evacuation.

It also was threatening New Mexico, where residents have felt the effects of smoke and ash. A firefighting team will operate out of Reserve, New Mexico, about 20 miles east of the border, Whittington said. On Wednesday, the front of the fire was just three miles away from the Meador family's Eagar Street home.

Bob Meador and his son, Rodney, loaded what they could into a pair of pickup trucks.
"We packed up a bunch, we're just hoping it ain't going to burn, hoping and praying," Rodney Meador said.         

But not everything fit, forcing them to make tough decisions. The Xbox made the cut, but family photos stayed behind.

Their 18-year-old dog, Tigger, got a seat in the cab of the truck, but the family cat remained at home.

Firefighters are focusing on saving homes in Eagar and nearby Springerville. But Bob Meador said he wasn't ready to take any chances.

As smoke filled their neighborhood, the Meadors hit the road, hoping they would have a home to return to once the fire passes.

"I've seen them wildfires in California just rip through places, so that's what I worry about," Bob Meador said.

Next-door neighbor Dave Hunt, speaking before the evacuation order, said he was determined to stay, and was putting his faith in the roughly 2,500 firefighters who are battling the blaze.

"We have so many firefighters here that are so into their jobs and the have protected other small communities that I know they are going to do a good job protecting Eagar," he said.

The driveway of Hunt's home is lined with white stones, each a souvenir of a trip his father and stepmother took to the nearby White Mountains over 17 years. Fire has already engulfed most of the mountains where they vacationed, but the stones are reminders of good times, he said.
"My dad built this place, and he's gone now, and I love this area so much. I've lived all over the country, and this is it. This is where I'm at," he said.

Even so, he said he'll join the steady stream of residents heading for safer ground if conditions get worse.

"I'm not a dummy. When the wind shifts when the ash starts to get heavy, when the smoke changes, it's time to go," he said.

Source http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/06/08/arizona.wildfires/index.html