Leonardo and Baykar join forces to develop uncrewed aerial systems
Baykar’s AKINCI drone will be the first focus platform for the joint venture, with the first prototype targeted for development in 12 to 18 months.
The US Air Force’s B-52s have been powered by TF33 engines. (Photo: Boeing)
Pratt & Whitney will support US Air Force (USAF) TF33 engines to the end of the decade under a US$870 million deal which could be extended for further four years.
The TF33 engine has powered the some of the force’s largest aircraft including Boeing's B-52 Stratofortress and E-3 Sentry. The deal has marked a continuation of Pratt & Whitney’s arrangements with the Defense Logistics Agency's decades-long partnership with the 448th Supply Chain Management Wing, Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma.
Pratt & Whitney will provide engine sustainment services for a fleet of nearly 1,000 engines including maintenance, spare parts, programme management, field service, repairs and engineering support.
Sustainment work will run through April 2034 and also occur at Tinker AFB, as well as additional USAF locations and Pratt & Whitney's Southern Logistics Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
The aircraft engine manufacturer described the deal as a ‘first-of-its-kind approach will reduce obsolescence, supporting the USAF’s wartime readiness today and into the foreseeable future’.
‘The TF33 enterprise is maturing beyond the conventional approach to a more complete, advanced sustainment process that will maximize the TF33's support to many missions across the globe through 2050,’ the company noted.
Baykar’s AKINCI drone will be the first focus platform for the joint venture, with the first prototype targeted for development in 12 to 18 months.
Europe’s capacity to fill the capability gaps created by the US pause on military aid to Ukraine is uncertain, according to analysts, but European defence industry leaders have stressed their readiness to meet demand.
The US Air Force has been showing an increasing interest in adding trusted uncrewed capabilities to its aircraft inventory.
The helicopters have been remanufactured using common parts from the British Army AH-64 MkI fleet with the 17 not being converted going for a range of uses such as engineering, ground handling and other training.
The AGM-158C Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) is a precision-guided, anti-ship standoff missile based on the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range (JASSM-ER). It is being developed to meet US requirements and in 2020 the sale was approved to Australia of up to 200 LRASM for an estimated cost of US$990 million.
The test is a first for the kit, developed via a partnership between Aselsan and Tübitak SAGE, to hit a high-speed moving target.