FlightGlobal
• Brooke Ingemi
The U.S. State Department approved a potential sale of 11 UH-60M Black Hawks to Mexico, with engines, weapons, mission equipment and support, for an estimated $1.075 billion. Separately, Argentina signed an agreement to acquire four UH-60L helicopters for $28 million and outlined a plan to grow its fleet to as many as 10 by 2028.
Military Aircraft Procurement
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The U.S. Air Force did not originally plan for the air-to-air combat-focused F-15EX to carry conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), but operational aircraft have now begun flying with them. The change reflects evolving mission demands, though the reports provide no further detail on the tanks’ operational role or fleetwide plans.
The companies are partnering on the U.S. Air Force’s KC-135 Center Console Refresh effort, which aims to address obsolescence in the aging tanker’s avionics and fuel systems. The work targets a strategically important aircraft that remains part of the Air Force’s tanker fleet.
The U.S. State Department approved a potential sale of 11 UH-60M Black Hawks to Mexico, with engines, weapons, mission equipment and support, for an estimated $1.075 billion. Separately, Argentina signed an agreement to acquire four UH-60L helicopters for $28 million and outlined a plan to grow its fleet to as many as 10 by 2028.
High activity
Four Nyan one-way effector drones launched from the carrier during the Neptune Reach B exercise, marking the Royal Navy’s first strike-drone launches from an aircraft carrier. Callen-Lenz said the drones reached their assigned strike points; one report puts their range at more than 250 kilometers.
Europe’s future airpower mix is taking shape differently from the plans that first defined it: the FCAS program is faltering, the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP) is advancing, and collaborative combat aircraft are changing the discussion around future fighter fleets.
Iran is reportedly set to receive 90 launchers designed for Mi-28 helicopters and precision missiles, amid expanding military cooperation with Moscow. Separate footage shows Russian Mi-28s firing cruise missiles, underscoring the helicopter’s use as a platform for standoff weapons in Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Israel is seeking additional Apache helicopters, F-15 and F-35 fighters, and munitions. Analysts say reductions in US aid would affect the timing of those acquisitions and Israel’s spending, putting the funding relationship directly in play as the country pursues more aircraft and weapons.
With competition for the Navy’s trainer effectively reduced to a single bidder, the service faces a choice between reverting to familiar acquisition practices and demonstrating that Pentagon reforms can withstand pressure. The outcome will offer a practical test of how those reforms work when competition is limited.
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