Central/South American Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

Jeff Head said:

The San Juan, as I understand it, was put in service in November 1985.

Then, she had this major overhaul started in 2004 or so, right, after 19 years of service.

Now, ten years later she is back in service. Didn't it only take the Santa Cruz two years to go through that mid-life overhaaul from 1999 to 2001? The San Jaun took ten years and is now almost 30 years old. She is still a fairly antiquated design...did they do a lot more to her than to the San Jaun, or was it basically the same overhaul? I thought it was basically the same. ?

How many years do they think they will get out of her now? Another 20 years? If they do, she will then be a fifty year old diesel/electric submarine.

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(Defensa.com) An EC-725, along with a dedicated team led by engineer Peter Helibras Paim, made several test flights in France, alongside Airbus technicians Helicopters, to assess the behavior of the aircraft in some phases critical flight with two 700 kg, AM39 Block 2 Mode 2 missiles, installed on each side.

Also been registered and is being used performance, quality of flight, vibration parameters, and the corresponding verification against structural and aerodynamic loads.

The helicopter flew acceleration sensors and instrumentation, in functions to capture and record the results of these checks, which will guide the units Helibrás Engineering and Projects, by integrating electronic systems in this navalized version.

While the EC-725 series carry the Exocet, the Sikorsky Sea Hawk will also be equipped with the Kongsberg Norwegian Penguin

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Miragedriver said:

Testing the Exocet on the new Brazilian EC-725

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(Defensa.com) Aviation Brigade of the Army, under the Modernization Program of the Armed Forces, would be on track to award the company AerCaribe (Colombia) a contract for $ 3.2 million for the expansion calendaria two Antonov An-32B Cline. These works - to be used to recover the operational capabilities of the Aviation Brigade - are considered of vital importance given the role that the An-32B military transport operations and civic action and counterinsurgency operations in the Valley of the Apurimac River, Ene and Mantaro (VRAEM).

Work will include, among others, a series of inspections in the main structure (to detect the presence of cracks, corrosion or defects), engines and auxiliary power plant, flight controls and landing gear, as well as electrical, fire, fuel and pneumo hydraulic systems.

In addition, we will proceed to a review of avionics and radio communications. Delivery of the An-32B, EP 831 and EP enrollment 833, is scheduled for completion within 150 days. However, the award of this contract AerCaribe is not without controversy. In April the Attorney General opened a formal investigation after finding serious evidence implicating several officials in the Navy "ghost flights" called. These flights, initially investigated by the Comptroller General of Colombia, were invoiced and paid in practice but never realized.

In Peru, AerCaribe in December was reported by local media to be favored in a contract - worth $ 565,000 - to provide the "Structural Repair and Service Expansion Calendaria" an An-32B (Registration EP 835). According to unofficial information, currently the Comptroller General of Peru would be in the Army Aviation Brigade reviewing the relevant documentation having transcended - among others - the aircraft was delivered after the deadline (despite being a factor of rating) losing 40% of its length and flown within 50 hours.

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(Defensa.com) The Austrian company Schiebel has proven unmanned vehicle (UAV) vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) Campcoter S-100 shipboard on the Brazilian Navy vessel Apa, which is an Amazon class. Tests have taken place between the 2 and 5 of June near San Pedro, 160 km. east of Rio de Janerio, aboard the Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) Apa in which representatives of the Brazilian Navy and the Ministry of Defence were.

Maritime capabilities Camcopter S-100 were tested for four days in which various scenarios designed by the Brazilian Navy developed. During these tests the UAV used several of their payloads or payloads, such as electro-optical system L-3 Wescam MS-10, the system of electronic support measures (ESM) and electronic warfare (EW) SAGE ESM from Selex ES, the Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) also PicoSar Selex and Automatic Identification System (AIS).

The flights took place day and night at distances of 44 miles, in which the target detection capability was tested up to 90 nautical miles, providing information to real-time control of ships.

The Camcopter S-100, being a helicopter needs no prepared surfaces or devices launch and recovery as it can operate from the flight deck of a ship even small implying minimal logistical burden for the vessel which operates.

It has a range up to 200 km. both on land and on the sea surface, and can go a predefined route automatically or receive specific instructions below. Its maximum altitude is 18,000 feet service and can carry a payload of 75 kg. for 10 hours even if the mission profile usually six hours of continuous surveillance over an area of interest.

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