Page 2 - Aerotech News and Review March 3 2017

Briefs
Iran begins navy drill off Strait of Hor- muz as U.S. newly wary
Iran’s navy began an annual drill Feb. 26 near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, its first major ex- ercise since the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, state television reported.
The TV report quoted navy chief Adm. Habi- bollah Sayyari as saying the two-day maneuver will cover an area of 2 million square kilometers (772,000 square miles) in the Sea of Oman and the Indian Ocean near the strait. It showed Ira- nian warships and helicopters taking part in the exercise.
Nearly a third of all oil traded by sea passes through the strait and it has been the scene of pre- vious confrontations between the U.S. and Iran.
But the drill does not involve Iran’s elite Rev- olutionary Guard, a paramilitary force the U.S. Navy often criticizes for harassing its vessels.
The U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, based in Bahrain, declined to comment on the exercise or discuss if it had any plans to monitor the drill.
Iran’s navy routinely holds war games it says are aimed at improving its readiness against threats. It also sends its warships to international waters off the Gulf of Aden to fight piracy. AP
Pentagon seeks to expand fight against extremists in Somalia
U.S. officials say the Pentagon wants to ex- pand the military’s ability to battle al Qaeda- linked militants in Somalia.
That would potentially put U.S. forces closer to the fight against a stubborn extremist group that has plotted attacks against America.
The officials say recommendations sent to the White House would allow U.S special operations forces to increase assistance to the Somali National Army in the struggle against al-Shabab militants.
Bolstering the military effort in Somalia fits with President Donald Trump’s broader request for a Pentagon plan to accelerate the U.S.-led battle against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, and defeat other extremist groups, includ- ing al Qaeda and its affiliates.
The officials aren’t authorized to publicly dis- cuss the confidential review and spoke on condi- tion of anonymity. AP
Website: A Jordanian F-16 jet crashed in Saudi Arabia
A news portal linked to the Jordanian military says an F-16 fighter jet has crashed in Saudi Ara- bia, and the pilot has survived.
The Hala Akhbar website quotes an uniden- tified military official on Friday as saying that the jet was taking part in the Saudi-led coali- tion’s campaign against Yemen’s Houthi reb- els.
The website didn’t provide details on the site of the crash but said that pilot Adnan Nabas has safely landed with a parachute. He will be head- ing to Jordan Feb. 24.
The U.S.-backed coalition of mostly Arab Gulf countries, which includes Egypt, Jordan and Su- dan, was formed to restore the internationally recognized Yemeni government after Houthis forced President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi to flee the country.
The coalition has carried out hundreds of air- strikes targeting Houthi sites across Yemen. AP
Planes, tanks, ships: Russian military gets massive upgrade
The Russian military received a sweeping array of new weapons last year, including 41 intercontinental ballistic missiles, and the wide- ranging military modernization will continue this year, the defense minister said Feb. 22.
Minister Sergei Shoigu told lawmakers the air force will receive 170 new aircraft, the army will receive 905 tanks and other armored vehi- cles while the navy will receive 17 new ships this year.
2
Amid tensions with the West, the Kremlin has continued to spend big on new weapons despite Russia’s economic downturn.
Also this year, three regiments of Russia’s strategic nuclear forces will receive new inter- continental ballistic missiles, Shoigu said. Each regiment has up to 10 launchers.
The rising number of new weapons has raised demands for new personnel. Shoigu said the mili- tary currently needs 1,300 more pilots and will recruit them by 2018.
A severe money crunch after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union left the military in tatters, with most of its planes grounded and ships left rusting at harbor for lack of funds. As part of President Vladimir Putin’s military reforms, the armed forces have received new weapons and now engage in regular large-scale drills.
Russia has used its revived military capability in Syria, where it has launched an air campaign in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad and used the conflict to test its new weapons for the first time in combat.
The weapons modernization effort has seen the 1-million Russian military narrow the tech- nological gap in some areas where Russia had fallen behind the West, such as long-range con- ventional weapons, communications and drone technologies.
Shoigu said the military now has 2,000 drones compared to just 180 in 2011. He also noted that Russia has now deployed new long-range early warning radars to survey the airspace along the entire length of its borders.
The minister said the military will complete the formation of three new divisions in the na- tion’s west and southwest, and also deploy a new division on the Pacific Islands, which have been claimed by Japan.
The dispute over the Kuril Islands just north of Japan, which the former Soviet Union seized in the closing days of World War II, has prevented the two countries from signing a peace treaty.
Russia previously has deployed new long- range anti-ship missiles on the Kurils to protect the coast. The deployment of a full-fledged Rus- sian army division there appears intended to stake Moscow’s claim to the islands, which have stra- tegic importance and are surrounded by fertile fishing grounds. AP
Airbus profit dives on problems with A400M military jet
Surprise new costs for the long-troubled Air- bus A400M military jet sent the European plane maker’s profits plunging last year and will weigh on the company’s financial prospects through next year, even as it forecast a rise in aircraft deliveries and demand.
Airbus CEO Tom Enders acknowledged that “the jury is still out on the long-term success” of the A400M, but insisted “it’s absolutely neces- sary” to maintain it as long as European militaries depend on it.
Airbus on Feb. 22 reported that its profits fell 63 percent in 2016 to 995 million euros ($1.04 billion), from 2.7 billion euros the year before. The company reported 2.2 billion in charges on the A400M in 2016, including a new 1.2 billion- euro hit in the fourth quarter as it reassessed the overall cost of the program.
With governments delaying payments because of A400M delays, Airbus warned that cash prob- lems “will continue to weigh significantly in 2017 and 2018 in particular.”
Airbus’ commercial plane forecast was more upbeat, after a year that saw a rise in deliveries but a drop in orders. It foresees a rise in deliver- ies in 2017 to more than 700 planes, up from 688 last year.
Shares in Airbus sank on the earnings report then rallied, trading at 66.81 euros in early after- noon, barely down from Tuesday’s close.
Airbus management is holding discussions
with governments about reducing further finan- cial blows related to the A400M. Enders blamed the plane’s problems on misguided decisions made at the birth of the program in the early 2000s and exacerbated by problems with engine suppliers and delivery delays that led to big fi- nancial penalties.
Airbus still forecasts high demand for its pop- ular single-aisle A320 range jets, but are scal- ing back production of superjumbo A380s amid lower demand than initially expected.
Enders said it is still too early for Airbus to rethink its operations in Britain as it leaves the European Union.
“How can we review it when it’s absolutely unclear what will happen?” he asked. Airbus has 15,000 employees in Britain, making airplane wings and space equipment for planes made across Europe.
“We are watching this space, like other indus- tries, and we obviously hope that no additional barriers will be directed or will interfere with the competitiveness of Airbus,” he said.
He also played down concerns about pos- sible U.S. protectionism under President Donald Trump. Noting that Airbus has an assembly plant in Alabama, other plants opening soon and sup- pliers across the U.S., he said, “I feel pretty good about ... our contribution to the U.S. economy.”
Airbus’ chief rival, Boeing, beat expectations for fourth-quarter profit despite a slump in revenue from its defense business, and it also forecast a rise in deliveries of commercial jets in 2017. AP
NATO commander assures of continu- ous presence in Kosovo
A senior NATO commander has assured Koso- vo that the military alliance will maintain troops there “for as long as it’s necessary.”
NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, met with local senior officials and also western ambassadors during a visit to Kosovo Feb. 21.
Some 4,500 troops from 31 countries have been deployed in Kosovo since June 1999, after NATO’s 78-day air campaign to stop a bloody Serbian crackdown against ethnic Albanian sepa- ratists.
Tensions between Kosovo and Serbia have been building again in the last two months after a series of frictions and incidents.
Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008, but Serbia has not recognized it as a country. AP
Russia to rely increasingly on non-nu- clear deterrent
Russia’s defense minister says the develop- ment of the nation’s nuclear forces will remain a top priority, but the military will rely increasingly on conventional weapons to deter any aggression.
Sergei Shoigu said that weapons, such as the long-range Kalibr cruise missiles carried by navy ships, long-range cruise missiles carried by Rus- sian strategic bombers and the land-based short- range Iskander missiles will play an increasingly important role as a non-nuclear deterrent. They can carry nuclear or conventional warheads.
In remarks carried by Russian news agencies, Shoigu pointed to the new missiles’ debut in the Syrian conflict, saying they have proven them- selves well.
The post-Soviet economic meltdown left the Russian armed forces in disarray, but the Kremlin has beefed up the military’s conventional forces in recent years amid tensions with the West. AP
How to contact Aerotech News and Review
• Mail: 456 E. Ave. K-4,
Suite 8, Lancaster CA 93535
• E-Mail: editor@aerotechnews.com • Phone: (661) 945-5634
• Fax: (661) 723-7757
Advertising
Corporate Headquarters: (877) 247-9288
Subscriber Services
Subscriptions to Aerotech News and Review are $59 for six months or $89 for one year. For more in- formation, contact the subscription department at:
456 E. Ave. K-4, #8, Lancaster CA 93535
Story ideas, letters, editorials
Please address all letters and edi- torials to Stuart A. Ibberson, editor, 456 E. Ave. K-4, Suite 8, Lancaster CA 93535
Web Site
Access the Aerotech News web site at www.aerotechnews.com
Submissions for upcoming events, air shows and museums should be ad- dressed to Web Updates, 456 E. Ave. K-4, Suite 8, Lancaster CA 93535
For questions concerning the web site, contact the webmaster at webmaster@ aerotechnews.com.
Where you can get Aerotech News and Review
For information on Aerotech distribution, call (661) 945-5634 or e-mail delivery@aerotechnews.com.
Aerotech News and Review is published every Friday serving the aerospace and defense industry of Southern Califor- nia, Nevada and Arizona. News and ad copy deadline is noon on the Tuesday prior to publication. The publisher as- sumes no responsibility for error in ads other than space used.
Your comments are welcomed and encouraged. Write to the address below.
• Publisher .........................Paul Kinison
• Business Manager.............Lisa Kinison
• Editor..............................StuartIbberson
• National Advertising
Manager ..........................Paul Kinison
Aerotech News and Review
456 E. Ave. K-4, Suite 8 Lancaster, CA 93535
e-mail: editor@aerotechnews.com Visit our web site at www.aerotechnews.com
Aerotech News and Review www.aerotechnews.com ........ facebook.com/aerotechnewsandreview
March 3, 2017