Simon Lee
US Navy helicopters strike Houthi rebels in the Red Sea
US Navy helicopters have killed ten Houthi fighters after attempted attacks on US Navy forces and a merchant ship in the Red Sea, US Central Command said in a statement on December 31
Canada finalises deal to buy up to 16 P-8A Poseidons
Canada has confirmed that it will buy up to 16 P-8A Poseidon multi-mission maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF)
USAF AC-130J strikes Iranian-backed militants in Iraq
A USAF-operated AC-130J Ghostrider fixed-wing gunship was called in to hit an Iranian-backed militant group after they fired a ballistic missile at American forces at Al-Asad Air Base, Iraq, the Pentagon has said
Second US Navy carrier arrives in Middle East as Israel-Hamas conflict intensifies
The US Navy’s USS Dwight D Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group (IKECSG) has arrived in the Middle East as part of a show of force in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel
US aircraft carriers deploy as deterrent against escalating Israel-Hamas conflict
The US Navy’s Carrier Strike Group 12 arrived in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on October 10 to act as a deterrent to any actor seeking to escalate the situation or widen the war with Israel
Armed RAF Typhoons fly in to Poland
Fully armed RAF Typhoon jets have landed in Poland to conduct multiple training exercises with Poland and other NATO allies.
Almost half of US F-35s not airworthy
A highly critical US government report has revealed that almost half of the nation’s fifth-generation Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II stealth jets are unworthy at any one time.
Typhoon jets use road as a runway in RAF first
Two of the RAF’s frontline jets tested and proved the capability in Finland as part of Exercise Baana. The Finnish Air Force’s annual training exercise took place on a public road in Tervo, which is usually used for normal traffic but specially designed as an emergency landing.
UK MOD told to consider advantages of operating mixed F-35A/B fleet
The UK parliament’s Defence Select Committee was told that the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review set out plans for the UK to buy 138 F-35B Lightning IIs. As of May 1, 2023, the UK had taken delivered of 31 F-35Bs, with a total of 48 due to be delivered by the end of 2025 as part of an initial Tranche 1 order
RAF fast-jet training problems branded ‘farcical’ by new report
An engine fault on the RAF’s Hawk T2 advanced jet trainers has caused substantial delays in fast-jet pilot training and has cost the UK MOD more than £50m, a report by an influential group of British MPs has found