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| RAAF KC-30A (MRTT) Tanker Aircraft (File Photo) |
By NIGEL PITTAWAY
AVALON, Australia — Although no major orders for military equipment were announced at the Australian International Airshow at Avalon last week, officials revealed that two Australian defense aerospace projects have achieved important milestones, and they also detailed progress on other programs.
Despite unseasonably wet weather, the three trade days of the show were reasonably well patronized, yet the effects of shrinking defense budgets were apparent with the absence of primes such as Boeing and Raytheon from the expo halls.
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| Vigilare Command & Control System (File Photo) |
The U.S. Air Force was a major participant, flying the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor — one of only a handful of displays set to be performed by the Raptor this year if sequestration takes effect.
Defence Minister Stephen Smith opened the show by announcing that the Royal Australian Air Force’s Airbus KC-30A tanker had achieved initial operating capability (IOC) and its Boeing Vigilare network-centric command-and-control system had been granted final operating capability status.
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