NATO sover ikke - Flightradar24

 

KLM tilbake på Torp - Aviation24.be

 

KLM returns to Torp/Sandefjord, Norway, twice daily

By

 André Orban

28 April 2023

 

KLM Embraer E175+ PH-EXZ © Roel Ovinge

On April 28th, 2023, KLM celebrated its return with two daily departures from Torp/Sandefjord to Amsterdam. KLM has operated the route from Torp to Amsterdam for over 20 years, but in March 2020, Norway’s borders were closed, and the route was put on hold.

KLM restarted in the summer of 2020 but had to shut down again before coming back with one daily departure to Amsterdam in the spring of 2022. For the region’s business, this was not enough, and there has been a great deal of pressure and desire to get the morning flight, which has an overnight stop at Torp, back.

KLM has connections to Europe and the rest of the world, making it possible to fly to important business destinations for day meetings and continue with long-haul routes to Asia, Africa, and the USA. The joy was therefore great when KLM finally announced that they will fly two times daily from the region’s favourite airport.

The route to Amsterdam is serviced twice daily, departing from Torp at 06:20 and 16:30, while landing at Torp at 16:00 and 23:00. With these departure times, travellers can connect very well to further connections to Europe, the USA, and Africa. Most travellers continue from Amsterdam with KLM and partners on European and overseas routes. The route is also the most important connection for international business travellers and tourists going to the Vestfold and Telemark regions.

KLM’s network from Amsterdam offers one-stop connections to destinations worldwide. Some of the most important intercontinental destinations are several US cities, including Minneapolis-Saint-Paul, Los Angeles, and Seattle, as well as Nairobi in Africa. There are also several central European cities that Torp does not have direct flights to, and these are serviced quickly and efficiently via Amsterdam with KLM. Destinations such as Paris, Geneva, and Rome can be mentioned here.

The entire business community in the region applauds KLM and is very pleased that they are back with two daily departures from Torp. Morten Fon, President & CEO of Jotun A/S, says, “Torp Sandefjord Airport is important for our region’s success. Therefore, it is crucial that KLM is back with two daily departures to Amsterdam. It provides quick and easy access to the rest of the world via Amsterdam, and similarly, the rest of the world can reach us and our business in an efficient and effective way.”

Source: torp.no

Note: Torp-Sandefjord airport is located some 120 kilometres south of Oslo and is sometimes referred to as Oslo Sandefjorf. KLM operates the flights to Amsterdam with Embraer E175 and E190 aircraft.

Mystisk polakk utenfor Romanias østkyst kl 22 i går - Flightradar24

 

Helikopterulykkene i US Army - Grounding av hele flåten ble beordret - Stars & Stripes

Army orders aviation stand down in wake of latest deadly helicopter crash

By 

WYATT OLSON

STARS AND STRIPES • April 28, 2023

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U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopters assigned to the 1st Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment fly over an Alaskan mountain range near Fort Wainwright, June 3, 2019. (Cameron Roxberry/U.S. Army)

The Army’s highest-ranking officer on Friday ordered a service-wide aviation stand down following a pair of helicopter crashes over the past month that took the lives of 12 soldiers.

The order by Army Chief of Staff James McConville grounds all Army aviators until they complete required training, the service said in a news release Friday.

Aviators participating in “critical missions,” however, will continue flying during the stand down, the Army said.

Active-duty units are required to complete the 24-hour stand down between Monday and Friday, according to the release.

Army National Guard and Reserve will have until May 31 to coincide with their training schedules, the Army said.

The stand down was ordered in the aftermath of a crash Thursday near the town of Healy, Alaska. Three soldiers were killed and another injured when two AH-64 Apache helicopters collided in midair and crashed while returning from a training mission.

The victims of the crash were Chief Warrant Officer 3 Christopher Robert Eramo, 39, of Oneonta, N.Y.; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Kyle McKenna, 28, of Colorado Springs, Colo.; and Warrant Officer 1 Stewart Duane Wayment, 32, of North Logan, Utah. The crash’s cause is being investigated. 

On March 29, two Army Black Hawk helicopters crashed during a training flight near Fort Campbell, Ky., that took the lives of nine soldiers.

The 101st Airborne Division aircraft collided in midair during a nighttime flight and went down in a field in Kentucky, Army investigators said in a preliminary report.

“The safety of our aviators is our top priority, and this stand down is an important step to make certain we are doing everything possible to prevent accidents and protect our personnel,” McConville said in the news release.

McConville is a senior Army aviator and is qualified to pilot numerous aircraft.

“During this stand down, we will focus on safety and training protocols to ensure our pilots and crews have the knowledge, training and awareness to safely complete their assigned mission,” he said.

The Army will review its risk approval and risk management processes as part of the stand down. It will also reevaluate the Army’s aviation maintenance training program, aircrew training standards and management and supervisory responsibilities, the Army said.

“Army aviation units will resume normal operations following the stand down, after any corrective actions are taken on issues identified in safety or training,” the release said.

Sammy er død

 

Sammy, TACCO Crew 8 1974 - Foto: Per Gram

Vår venn og kollega Hans-Petter "Sammy" Samuelsen døde natt til den 28. etter lengre tids sykdom. Sammy var Nav. og TACCO på Crew 8 ved 333 skv. i 1973 til 1975 og enda lengre etter at jeg sluttet ved avdelingen. Sammy var liaison officer for fly- og nav-elever i USA noen år og begynte i SAS som nav/ruteplanlegger i mange år til han gikk av med pensjon. Han og hans kone Anne-Jorunn bodde på Jessheim og var med i gjengen som møtes en gang i året på Vesle Skaugum. Sammy, med sin humor og underfundige virkelighetstilnærming, var et naturlig midtpunkt, der og i mange andre sammenhenger.

Åshild og jeg er glade for å ha kjent Sammy.

Kina ypper seg stadig oftere rundt Taiwan - The War Zone

 

Chinese TB-001 Scorpion Drone ‘Encircled’ Taiwan

In an apparent new development, the long-endurance drone, which can carry weapons, flew a mission taking it up the east coast of Taiwan.

BYTHOMAS NEWDICK|PUBLISHED APR 28, 2023 12:31 PM EDT

THE WAR ZONE

Airshow close call i Polen - AirLive

 

Two aerobatic planes made mid-air contact during opening ceremony airshow

Apr282023

Emergency

A mid air contact incident occurred during the opening ceremony of Radom Airport.

Two PZL 130 Orlik turboprop propeller planes made contact mid-air during the airshow of opening ceremony of the airport in Radom.

Warsaw-Radom Airport, located some 110 km south of Warsaw, has opened for business again after a PLN 800 million (EUR 174.4 million) revamp, had been under construction since May 2019.

Estimated to serve around 1 million passengers, the airport will serve as a supplementary facility to Chopin, Warsaw’s primary airport.

Incident happened near the Radom Airport in Poland involving two PZL-130 Orlik’s of the Polish Air Force Aerobatic Team Orlik.

Both pilots have managed to land their planes safely and are uninjured.

God natt

 

NATO i dag - Flightradar24

 

Kullkamerat fra Luftforsvarets Flygeskole, Bjørn Adolfsen, ble bisatt i dag

 

Ukraina - Oppdatering

 

Det kan være at du ikke kan lese alle artiklene fordi du må ha spesiell tilgang. (Red.)

Ukraine

 

NATO: Ukraine allies sent 1,550 combat vehicles, ‘vast’ ammo

(The Associated Press) NATO allies and partner countries have delivered more than 98% of the combat vehicles promised to Ukraine during Russia’s invasion and war, the military alliance’s chief said Thursday, giving Kyiv a bigger punch as contemplates launching a counteroffensive. Read More

 

Russia hits Ukraine with deadly missile salvo, killing at least 12

(CBS News) Russia fired a barrage of more than 20 cruise missiles and two explosive drones at Ukraine early Friday, killing at least 12 people according to Ukrainian officials. The deadliest strike was at least one missile that tore into an apartment building in the central city of Uman, bringing death and destruction hundreds of miles from any active front line. Read More

 

Why China is trying to mediate in Russia’s war with Ukraine

(The Associated Press) Chinese leader Xi Jinping says Beijing will send an envoy to Ukraine to discuss a possible “political settlement” to Russia’s war with the country. Read More

 

Ukrainian troops repel Russian attacks, and hope Western arms turn the tide

(New York Times) Fierce fighting has yielded heavy casualties but little movement. Ukrainian forces need heavy weapons to change that, but they say it is no guarantee. Read More

 

Pace of US tank delivery to Ukraine draws fire in Senate

(Washington Post) Sen. Tom Cotton took aim at President Biden, while Sen. Angus King bemoaned what he called "the longest windup for a punch in the history of the world." Read More

 

The Iranian drones deployed by Russia in Ukraine are powered by stolen Western technology, research reveals

(CNN) New research has revealed the extent to which Iran has built a powerful weapons industry based on Western technology, and how that technology is being used by Russia against Ukrainian cities. Read More

 

Russia needs more troops but is wary of public anger, leaked documents say

(Washington Post) As the war in Ukraine drags on, Putin’s military commanders urgently need more troops but Russian officials are wary of public anger, according to leaked documents. Read More

Helikopterulykken nevnt i morges - Oppdatering - Army Times

Three dead after two Apache helicopters collide in Alaska

By Jessica Edwards and Davis Winkie

Apr 28, 02:33

AH-64 Apache helicopters with 1st Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment at Fort Wainwright. (Eve Baker/Army)

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 6:20 a.m. EDT on April 28 with new information about the crash.

Three soldiers died and another was injured when a pair of AH-64 Apache helicopters based at Fort Wainwright crashed Thursday near Healy, Alaska, according to the 11th Airborne Division.

The two helicopters from the 1st Attack Battalion, 25th Aviation Regiment collided while returning from a training flight.

Two troops died on scene, a division press release said, and a third died on the way to Fairbanks Memorial Hospital. The injured soldier is being treated there, though their condition is unclear.

“This is an incredible loss for these soldiers’ families, their fellow soldiers, and for the division,” said Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, commanding general of the 11th Airborne Division. “Our hearts and prayers go out to their families, friends and loved ones, and we are making the full resources of the Army available to support them.”

The crash is the second serious Apache crash in Alaska this year. In February, two soldiers were injured when a military helicopter was involved in a rollover accident in Talkeetna. The crash occurred when the helicopter was taking off. Those soldiers were treated and released from the hospital.

The division said it will publicly identify the soldiers 24 hours after their families were notified.

It is the second fatal helicopter collision in two months involving Army aircraft. Nine soldiers were killed when two Black Hawks crashed near Fort Campbell, Kentucky, in March. According to a preliminary report released earlier this month, the two helicopters collided mid-air before going down. Investigators are still continuing their inquiry into that crash.

Impacted soldiers can find assistance at Fort Wainwright’s Emergence Assistance Center and from Army Community Service, the release added.

Investigators from the Army Combat Readiness Center, the service‘s safety authority at Fort Novosel, Alabama, will probe the crash.

Marineøvelse utenfor Andøya - High North News

 

Amerikanskledet maritim skarpskytingsøvelse på trappene utenfor Andøya

Den norske fregatten KNM Fridtjof Nansen skyter opp et luftvernmissil av typen Evolved Sea Sparrow (ESSM) under Formidable Shield 2021. (Foto: Thomas Stangnes/Sjøforsvaret)

Publisert: tor 27.04.2023 15:14 / Oppdatert: tor 27.04.2023 15:23

I mai skal marinefartøyer fra Norge og en rekke Nato-allierte øve på missilforsvar i farvannet utenfor Andøya i Nord-Norge. Øvelsen, kalt Formidable Shield, vil ledes av USAs sjette flåte.

 

TEKST ASTRI EDVARDSEN

8. til 12. mai skal den allierte marineøvelsen Formidable Shield finne sted i farvannet utenfor Andøya, nord i Nordland. Det skriver Forsvaret i en pressemelding.

Formidable Shield arrangeres annethvert år, og ledes av USAs sjette flåte i samarbeid med kommando- og kontrollstrukturer i Nato.

Hensikten med øvelsen er å styrke alliert evne til samvirke innenfor et integrert luft- og missilforsvarskonsept. Enkelt sagt handler den om å beskytte alliansen mot en rekke ulike missiler.

Norge var vertsland for øvelsen for første gang i 2021. Som den gang vil årets øving være todelt – med én fase i skytefeltet utenfor Andøya og én fase i et skytefelt ved Hebridene, utenfor vestkysten av Skottland.

KNM Roald Amundsen og en korvett i Skjold-klassen vil delta fra norsk side. På deltakerlisten er også Natos stående maritime gruppe, som nå er med på øvelsen Dynamic Mongoose i nordområdene. Gruppen består av seks fregatter fra Tyskland, Frankrike, Nederland, Polen, Spania og Portugal. I tillegg vil ni andre allierte fartøy, blant annet fra USA og Storbritannia, seile under Formidable Shield.

I mai i fjor ble den allierte maritime skarpskytingsøvelsen Mjølner avholdt utenfor Andøya. 

Forrige utgave

Formidable Shield 2021 involverte rundt 15 marinefartøy, 30 fly og 3300 soldater fra 10 Nato-land: Norge, USA, Storbritannia, Tyskland, Frankrike, Nederland, Belgia, Nederland, Spania og Italia.

– I konflikter rundt om i verden er kryssermissiler og ballistiske missiler ofte foretrukne våpen, både for statlige og ikke-statlige aktører. I en tid der vi ser at missilarsenaler vokser og blir mer komplekse, er det viktig at allierte fortsetter å tilpasse seg og øver våre forsvar, kommenterte Piers Cazalet, talsperson i Nato.

Deler av øvingen gikk da ut på at skip skulle oppdage og spore et missil som fløy raskere enn 20.000 km i timen. Skipene trente også på å forsvare seg mot forskjellige antiskipsmissiler og andre undervanns- og supersoniske missiler.

Deltakerne gjennomførte felles oppdragsplanlegging, delte taktiske bilder og koordinerte nedskyting av innkommende missiler. Skarpskytingstreningen ble observert av maritime overvåkningsfly.

In Pictures: Top Aerospace & Defense Stories, April 27 2023 - AW&ST

 

Sjekk bilder med kommentarer her: https://tinyurl.com/4sbp8ukp

Air France / Airbus frikjennelsen ankes - AW&ST

 

French Public Prosecutor Appeals Air France 447 Crash Verdict

Helen Massy-Beresford April 27, 2023

Credit: Alamy Stock Photo

PARIS—France’s public prosecutor has launched an appeal 10 days after a Paris court verdict cleared Air France and Airbus of involuntary-manslaughter charges over the 2009 crash of Air France Flight 447. 

Flight AF447, an Airbus A330-200, was en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris on June 1, 2009, when around 4 hr. after takeoff and amid stormy weather, it crashed into the Atlantic killing all 228 passengers and crew on board.   

Lawyers representing the families of some of the 228 victims had been calling for a trial for many years. The court process that finished April 17 had begun in late 2022. The court found that while errors had been made by both Airbus and Air France, “no certain link of causality” could be established.   

The questions surrounding responsibility for the crash center on the pilots’ actions in the minutes before the accident and on their reactions to the faulty readings that were displayed as a result of problems with the aircraft’s pitot tubes. 

In July 2012, following a two-year search for the aircraft’s flight data recorders, an investigation by France’s Bureau d’Enquetes et d’Analyses (BEA) concluded the flight crew had become disorientated and reacted incorrectly to faulty readings from the pitot tubes, which had become blocked by ice. 

French pilots’ union SNPL France ALPA said it was “profoundly relieved” at the announcement of an appeal.  

“The public prosecutor’s appeal will allow the Court of Appeal to examine once again the responsibilities of Airbus and Air France in this tragedy, guaranteeing the victims’ loved ones access to a second hearing, which is a fundamental right,” the union says. 

Air France declined to comment on the news that there would be a new appeal. Airbus says it “takes note” of the decision but has no further comment at this stage.

Ubåt - Amerikansk ubåt hadde crew change i islandsk farvann onsdag - Stars & Stripes

 

US nuclear-powered submarine stops in Iceland for first time

By 

ALISON BATH

STARS AND STRIPES • April 27, 2023

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The Los Angeles-class submarine USS San Juan stops for supplies and personnel April 26, 2023, off the coast of Iceland accompanied by an Icelandic coast guard ship. (U.S. Embassy Reykjavik)

A nuclear-powered U.S. Navy submarine briefly visited Iceland this week, after the NATO ally approved such visits for the first time amid increased Russian underwater activity in the North Atlantic.

The Los Angeles-class submarine USS San Juan stopped for supplies and personnel in waters off Iceland’s west coast on Wednesday, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet said in a statement the same day.

The submarine visit came as the top U.S. military officer in Europe told Congress on Wednesday that much of Russia’s military, notably its undersea force, had not been degraded as a result of the war in Ukraine.

“Their (submarine) patrols into the Atlantic and throughout the Atlantic are at a high level most of the time … at a higher level than we’ve seen in years,” Army Gen. Christopher Cavoli told the House Armed Services Committee.

Last week, Iceland announced that it will allow U.S. submarines to occasionally visit, with the assurance that the country and its territorial waters will remain free of nuclear weapons.

The visits would help strengthen surveillance and response capabilities by allied countries, “which ensures better situational awareness and increases the safety of underwater infrastructure such as submarine cables in the waters around Iceland,” the Icelandic Foreign Ministry said in an April 18 statement.

San Juan does not carry nuclear weapons. It’s armed with Tomahawk missiles and MK-48 torpedoes, according to Navy.mil. It has a crew of about 143 and is homeported in Groton, Conn.

The frequency of U.S. submarine visits will vary depending on need. Iceland has supported U.S. anti-submarine warfare aircraft and other allied efforts at Keflavik Air Base, the foreign ministry statement said.

Meanwhile, NATO allies also have been monitoring recent Russian activity in the air that military officials have deemed unsafe.

German and British jets intercepted three Russian warplanes flying over the Baltic Sea on Wednesday with their transponder identification signals off, the German air force said.

That followed an incident near Estonia in March, when a Russian refueling plane failed to communicate with Estonian air traffic control, The Associated Press reported.