Air Data News
• Ricardo Meier
An Italian Army CH-47 Chinook supporting the EUFOR Althea mission crashed near Brčko in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina on Thursday. Early reports differ on the toll, citing three or four fatalities and 11 or 12 injured; the cause remains under investigation.
Europe
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An Italian Army CH-47 Chinook supporting the EUFOR Althea mission crashed near Brčko in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina on Thursday. Early reports differ on the toll, citing three or four fatalities and 11 or 12 injured; the cause remains under investigation.
Poland is reportedly preparing to send MiG-29 fighters and F-16 cannon ammunition to Ukraine, signaling an improvement in relations after a spring rift. Warsaw called off a MiG-29 deal in June as tensions between the two countries worsened.
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Archer Aviation and ITA Airways, a Lufthansa Group member, will work together to develop eVTOL air taxi services across Italy. The agreement positions ITA as Archer’s first European airline partner, but the announcement describes a development partnership rather than a launched network; further steps will be needed before services can begin.
European aerospace technology company Moving Terrain is seeking manufacturing partners for a new approach to very light jet design. The company believes its concept could deliver a step-change in VLJ performance, though the available report does not detail the design or quantify the expected gains.
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Delayed pathfinder satellites have shifted the planned start of global service on Telesat’s Lightspeed broadband constellation to around the end of the second quarter of 2028. The Canadian operator cited a tight launch market for getting its first two satellites to orbit; its third-quarter report showed revenue of $81 million, down 20% year over year.
Sweden’s government has rejected Syrianair’s application to operate scheduled flights between Damascus and Stockholm Arlanda, citing aviation safety and security risks in Syrian airspace. The decision, first reported by Swedish Arabic-language news site Alkompis, blocks the proposed route on safety grounds.
Switzerland will continue evaluating Israel’s Barak MX and Europe’s SAMP/T NG as candidates for a second ground-based air-defense system, while keeping its existing order for five Patriot fire units. The review comes amid delays affecting the Patriot acquisition; the articles provide no revised timetable or decision date.
Switzerland has narrowed its search for an additional long-range air defense system to Israel Aerospace Industries’ Barak MX and the French-Italian SAMP/T NG. The move adds a European-Israeli competition to its existing U.S. Patriot procurement, which remains delayed.
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