DefenceTalkThe Royal Marines’ ‘flying eyes’ on the battlefield have come through their ‘baptism of ice’ in the Arctic wilds of northern Norway. For the first time, the new Wildcats of the Commando Helicopter Force have tested their ability to fly – and fight – in the harshest climatic conditions on the planet. Four Wildcats from […]https://www.defencetalk.com/royal-marines-new-helicopter-tested-in-norway-67012/

DefenceTalkNAS PATUXENT RIVER: The Navy began initial integration testing of its Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) onto the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet Aug. 12 at Patuxent River’s Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 facility. The program’s flight test team conducted missile load and fit checks using a mass simulator vehicle, designed to emulate LRASM, in […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-navy-begins-lrasm-fa-18-integration-testing-65093/

DefenceTalkMarines and sailors have worked together since May 18 to conduct Operational Testing 1, the assessment of the integration of the F-35B Lightning II, at sea, aboard USS Wasp (LHD-1). Throughout OT-1, the aircraft and personnel involved have been challenged with a wide variety of flight and deck operations, allowing the gathering of data which […]https://www.defencetalk.com/marines-make-progress-with-f-35b-during-ot-1-64354/

DefenceTalkThe purpose of operational testing is to assure the Military Services field weapons that work in combat. This purpose has been codified in both USC Title 10 and in the Department of Defense’s (DOD) 5000-series regulations for many years without substantive alteration. Operational testing is intended to occur under “realistic combat conditions” that include operational […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-dod-operational-test-and-evaluation-annual-report-fy-2014-62057/

DefenceTalkTen US media organizations including the New York Times and Washington Post announced a coalition Thursday to test drones for news gathering in collaboration with Virginia Tech University. The initiative is “designed to conduct controlled safety testing of a series of real-life scenarios where the news media could use small UAS (unmanned aircraft systems) technology […]https://www.defencetalk.com/10-news-organizations-join-drone-test-program-61990/