Free Republic

The United States has chosen to ground all V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft until the underlying causes of a recent crash, which took place off the coast of Japan on November 29, are fully understood. This isn't the first time issues have surfaced with the aircraft, an inventive blend of a plane and a helicopter. Despite ongoing development for over 30 years, the design continues to pose serious complications. The Pentagon announced the suspension of all operational activities involving the various Osprey variants following the tragic accident of a CV-22 off the Japanese coast on November 29. That crash resulted in...

Flights across the United States were affected Wednesday morning after the Federal Aviation Administration said it experienced a computer outage. All flights in the U.S. were grounded following the incident, a source with knowledge of the situation told NBC News.

A day after publicly disclosing a safety stand-down for its entire fleet of B-2 Spirit bombers, the Air Force clarified that the nuclear-capable B-2 can still fly—if absolutely necessary. Meanwhile, the Department of Defense is investigating the Dec. 10 incident at Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo., involving a B-2 that sparked the safety stand-down in the first place. In a statement released Dec. 20, the 509th Bomb Wing, which operates the Air Force’s fleet of 20 B-2s, said the stealth strategic bombers ”can be flown if directed by the commander in chief to fulfill mission requirements.” Short of that, all...

Vladimir Putin has unleashed his 'angels of deaths' - newly graduated women military pilots now in the Russian air force. The pilots were seen at a weekend passing out parade in Krasnodar after they had qualified from Serov Higher Military Aviation School. The newly mobilised women are trained in using strategic nuclear bomber and transport planes.

The Air Force is unable to fly 116 of its 128 C-130H cargo planes due to issues with how the propellers on the craft were assembled, Air Mobility Command confirmed Friday. The 116 affected planes, which consist of the C-130H model and variants, were initially grounded Tuesday. Inspections continue to figure out which of those aircraft have defective propeller barrels. “[The] propeller barrels in question had been installed in 100 C-130Hs, as well as the entire inventories of eight MC-130H Combat Talons, seven EC-130H Compass Calls, and one TC-130H,” according to Defense News. Air Mobility Command told Defense News that...

The U.S. Army has grounded its entire fleet of CH-47 Chinook helicopters because of a risk of engine fires, U.S. officials said. Army officials are aware of a small number of engine fires with the helicopters, and the incidents didn’t result in any injuries or deaths, the U.S. officials said. One of the officials said the fires occurred in recent days. The U.S. Army Materiel Command grounded the fleet of hundreds of helicopters “out of an abundance of caution,” but officials were looking at more than 70 aircraft that contained a part that is suspected to be connected to the...

SEOUL: South Korea has grounded its entire fleet of advanced F-35 fighter jets, officials said Wednesday (Jan 5), pending a probe into a dramatic emergency landing. After the landing gear on a South Korean F-35A stopped working during a major systems malfunction, the pilot chose not to eject and instead landed the jet on its belly, walking away without any injuries. The heart-stopping incident on Tuesday, at an air force base in the west of the country, has prompted a probe during which South Korean F-35s will be grounded. "With the investigation under way, the entire (F-35) fleet is suspended...

Southwest Airlines grounded flights across the country Tuesday for the second time in less than 24 hours, amid reports of nationwide computer issues.

The White House on Friday banned the use of all government aircraft for congressional delegations without approval from the White House chief of staff during the partial government shutdown. In a letter to the heads of all federal agencies and departments, acting Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought told officials that Trump asked him to explain these temporary policies regarding “legislative branch travel.” “Under no circumstances during a government shutdown will any government owned, rented, leased or chartered aircraft support any congressional delegation, without the express written approval of the White House chief of staff,” Vought wrote. “Nor...

I can’t believe we had to wait almost 24 hours for her to reply to yesterday’s White House letter. We live in the Netflix era. We should be able to binge-watch every episode of this pitiful melodrama in a day. “After President Trump revoked the use of military aircraft to travel to Afghanistan, the delegation was prepared to fly commercially to proceed with this vital trip to meet with our commanders and troops on the front lines,” [Pelosi spokesman Drew] Hammill said.Overnight, he added, a new State Department threat assessment indicated “that the President announcing this sensitive travel had...

A report in British media is claiming that the Royal Air Force, which saved the country from Nazi invasion in 1940, is not ready for full-on combat should another war break out in Europe. The Daily Mirror reports that one-third of British RAF planes were either in storage or in maintenance as the air service celebrated its 100th year in existence. Quoting the Defense Ministry, the news site said that aircraft have been mothballed and taken out of front-line service for periods of time because they need repairs and upgrades.

Delta Air Lines Inc. has grounded all flights worldwide as a computer glitch is leaving passengers unable to check in. The second-biggest U.S. airline DAL, -1.78% said via Twitter that “all flights are grounded due to a system outage,” prompting long delays at airports around the world.

Passengers on an American Airlines flight from San Diego to Chicago were ordered off a plane on Tuesday night after complaints about a group of six Arabic-speaking Iraqi men. Consumerist Details of what happened before American Flight 590′s scheduled departure late on Tuesday are sketchy. According to the Associated Press, an American Airlines flight was grounded after passengers complained about 6 men who were speaking Arabic. American Airlines spokesperson Tim Wagner said that local law enforcement was called in to question the men but the TSA did not get involved. He also said that passenger traveling with two small children...

According to internal documents obtained by Air Force Times, beginning on Apr. 9, 2013, the U.S. Air Force will begin grounding front line combat units as a consequence of sequestration and the need to deal with budget cuts. Seventeen squadrons belonging to the various U.S. Air Force commands are going to be affected by the stand down order. The grounding is aimed to save the 44,000 flying hours (worth 591 million USD) through September. The funded 241,496 flying hours will be distributed to those squadrons that will remain combat ready or are expected to keep a reduced readiness level called...

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration says it is requiring airlines to temporarily stop flying Boeing's 787 Dreamliner. The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday ordered U.S. airlines to temporarily stop flying Boeing's 787 Dreamliner following a series of mishaps. The agency said the decision to ground Boeing 787s was prompted by a second incident involving lithium ion battery failure. Earlier Wednesday, Japan's two leading airlines grounded their fleets of Boeing 787s after one of the Dreamliner passenger jets made an emergency landing.

The IAF has grounded its entire MiG-27 aircraft fleet for checks following last week's air crash near Hashimara in which an ace fighter pilot was killed. It also ordered examination of the aircraft following preliminary report of the court of inquiry suggesting that the mishap could have taken place due to failure of "low pressure turbine blades", a problem tackled only at the overhaul or fourth line servicing stage. "The MiG-27 aircraft are not flying till the checks ordered on the fleet are completed," a senior IAF officer said here on Monday. The IAF flies around 160 MiG-27 swing wing...

Mumbai: An Emirates airline plane enroute to Dubai aborted take-off at the Mumbai airport on Sunday after an anonymous caller rang up to say that there was a terrorist onboard. The Emirates Mumbai-Dubai flight EK-502, carrying about 356 passengers, was already on runway and scheduled to take off at 9.58 am when the anonymous call came at 9.30 am, an airport official said. Following the call, the flight was called back from the runway and all passengers deplaned. "Checking is on now," an airport official said, adding two passengers were being questioned. Sources said the anonymous caller gave specific information...

Oil price 'grounds' N Korea fleet The Antonov An-2 transport first flew in 1947 North Korea has been forced to ground a fleet of Soviet-era military planes because of the high oil price, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported. Fuel is being diverted for other training flights, Yonhap quoted a military source as saying. The Antonov An-2 biplanes - of which North Korea's air force is thought to have about 300 - are able to drop special forces behind enemy lines. The planes, which can cruise below radar, carry some 12 soldiers. North Korea's impoverished economy has suffered from energy...

SAN DIEGO: A 19-foot pleasure boat suspected of smuggling was found yesterday on U.S. Navy property just north of Point Loma. Officials believe the boat had been there at least a day. No one was on board when lifeguards searched it. City lifeguards received the report of a grounded vessel in the Sunset Cliffs area shortly after 12:30 p.m., said San Diego Lifeguard Service Lt. Andy Lerum. Lifeguards checked on it and ruled out the possibility that a person was in distress. Lerum said the vessel is registered to a Tijuana resident. He said that based on an initial investigation,...

A North Attleboro man faces financial ruin because he built a new home so close to dangerous high-voltage transmission lines that fluorescent bulbs inside the house light up without even being plugged in. The electric currents running through the two-story home are considered so potentially harmful that the town’s fire department has strung “caution” tape around the house while an electrical inspector has refused to issue a final permit out of fear someone might get electrocuted. The home’s metallic door knobs and exterior shingles give off mild electric jolts when touched, while flowing currents are strong enough to light up...