Wisconsin residents worried about F-35 noise
Dane County residents in Wisconsin say basing F-35 fighter jets in Madison would be too noisy.
The Wisconsin State Journal reported Dec. 26 that people around Truax Field are already fed up with the noise from F-16s. Sara Petzold said the windows of her home on Madison’s north side rattle when military jets from Truax fly over. Melanie Foxcroft, who lives on Madison’s east side, says F-16 noise is “ear-shattering.”
The U.S. Air Force is looking for two bases to houses F-35 Lightning IIs. Truax is one of five finalists.
Air Force officials say the F-35s usually produce noise equivalent to F-16s but could be quieter on takeoff because they don’t use afterburners as frequently.
Noise studies taking into account conditions at Truax will be completed next year. AP
Japan, U.S. set to sign pact to limit U.S. base worker immunity
Japan and the U.S. have agreed in principle on guidelines for limiting immunity from Japanese prosecution for civilian workers at American military bases, following a murder case this year on a southern Japanese island involving a Marine-turned-contractor, officials said Monday.
Since July, the governments have been negotiating several points concerning U.S. civilian contractors at American bases who are subject to protection under the countries’ Status of Forces Agreement.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida told a regular news conference that the two sides have agreed on how to define what constitutes a “civilian contractor” at an American base and hope to sign the agreement “during President Barack Obama’s term.” He did not give further details.
The May arrest of the base contractor, accused of raping and murdering a 20-year-old woman, renewed outrage on Okinawa, where resentment has been simmering over the island’s heavy U.S. troop presence.
That prompted Tokyo and Washington to try to establish a clearer definition of “civilian base workers.” In July, the two sides said base contractors, now described vaguely as having a “civilian component,” will be classified in more specific terms, to exclude from preferential treatment those without skills and those who are residents of Japan, like the suspect in the April murder case.
Kishida said a clear definition of civilian contractors and adequate control of their data would help prevent criminal cases in the future.
About 50,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Japan under a bilateral security agreement, more than half of them based on Okinawa. In addition, 7,000 Americans employed as civilian contractors were at U.S. military bases in Japan as of March.
The Status of Forces Agreement, originally signed in 1960, gives U.S. military personnel and civilians employed at American bases in Japan immunity from Japanese criminal procedures in accidents or crimes while on duty or on base.
It also allows the U.S. military to hold suspects on base until formal indictment by Japan. Okinawan authorities say the rule denies them proper access to investigate crimes under Japanese law. AP
Russia says focus not on terrorism in plane crash probe
A pilot error or a technical fault is likely to be the cause of the Dec. 25 plane crash over the Black Sea, the Russian transport minister said Dec. 26.
All 84 passengers and eight crew members on the Russian military’s Tu-154 plane are believed to have died when it crashed two minutes after taking off from Russia’s Sochi. The passengers included dozens of singers in Russia’s world-famous military choir.
More than 3,000 rescue workers on 32 ships — including more than 100 divers flown in from across Russia — were searching the crash site at sea and along the shore, the Defense Ministry said.
Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov said in televised remarks Dec. 26 that terrorism was not among the main theories, and that authorities are looking into a possible technical fault or a pilot error.
Several experts noted factors that could suggest a terror attack, such as the crew’s failure to report any malfunction and the fact that plane debris was scattered over a wide area.
The plane, which originated from Moscow’s military airport Chkalovsky and stopped in Sochi for refueling, was taking the Defense Ministry’s choir, the Alexandrov Ensemble, to perform at a New Year’s concert at the Russian air base in Syria’s coastal province of Latakia.
Those on board also included nine Russian journalists and a Russian doctor famous for her work in war zones and helping homeless people.
Sokolov said the government sees no need to heighten security measures at Russian airports.
Emergency crews found fragments of the plane about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) from shore, and by Monday morning, rescue teams had recovered 11 bodies. A plane with bodies from the crash has landed in Moscow where the remains will be identified, Sokolov said.
Dec. 26 was declared a nationwide day of mourning in Russia.
The Tu-154 is a Soviet-built three-engine airliner designed in the late 1960s. More than 1,000 have been built, and they have been used extensively in Russia and worldwide. The plane that crashed Dec. 25 was built in 1983, and underwent factory check-ups and maintenance in 2014, the Defense Ministry said. AP
China’s 1st aircraft carrier heads for Western Pacific
China’s Defense Ministry says the country’s first aircraft carrier has set off for the Western Pacific for an open-sea training exercise.
State media say it is the first time that the Liaoning, which was commissioned by the Chinese navy in 2012, has headed to “distant sea waters.” The Western Pacific stretches from China to New Zealand and encompasses countries in the Pacific, Oceania and parts of Asia.
The statement said a navy formation including the Liaoning set off Saturday for training “in distant sea waters” as part of an annual training plan.
The Liaoning carried out training in the East China Sea on Saturday, according to footage shown on state broadcaster China Central Television.
The carrier recently carried out its first live-fire exercise. AP
Iran says will only pay half price for new Boeing planes
Iran’s official IRNA news agency is reporting the deputy transport minister as saying that his county will only pay half of the announced price for 80 new Boeing planes, given the reductions in its purchasing options.
According to the Dec. 25 report, Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan says that despite an initial $16.8 billion deal with Boeing to purchase 80 passenger planes, “Regarding the style of our order and its options, the purchase contract for 80 Boeing aircraft is worth about 50 percent of the amount.” He did not elaborate.
Boeing has made no immediate comment.
Iran announced earlier this month that it had finalized the deal, which was made possible by last year’s landmark nuclear agreement. It is the largest single contract with an U.S. company since the 1979 revolution and takeover of the U.S. Embassy. AP
Airbus secures Iran Air deal with list price of $18 billion
Airbus and Iran Air finalized Dec. 22 a deal for 100 planes worth more than $18 billion dollars at list prices — a contract that’s potentially a big boost for Iran’s post-sanctions economy.
Under the terms of the deal, which was initially announced in January, Airbus said deliveries are expected to begin early next year.
The contract includes single-aisle A320 and A330 jets and wide-body A350 XWB planes.
As well as further modernizing Iran’s aviation fleet, which has been hobbled by years of sanctions, the deal is a boon to Airbus too as Iran’s flag carrier had finalized a deal for 80 jetliners from U.S. plane maker Boeing — Airbus’ key rival — earlier this month. In addition to providing the planes, Airbus is to help Iran Air with pilot training, assist with airport operations and air traffic management.
The Boeing agreement was the biggest Iran has struck with an American company since the 1979 revolution and U.S. Embassy takeover. The Boeing planes are scheduled to start arriving in 2018.
The deals were made possible after the U.S. and other world powers agreed last year to lift the sanctions on Iran in exchange for curbs on its nuclear activities.
“We hope this success signals to the world that the commercial goals of Iran and its counterparts are better achieved with international cooperation and collaboration,” Iran Air Chairman and CEO Farhad Parvaresh was quoted as saying of the Airbus deal.
President-elect Donald Trump and several Republican lawmakers have criticized the nuclear deal, but it’s unclear whether they would scrap it.
Most of Iran’s aging fleet of 250 commercial planes was purchased before 1979, and as of June only 162 were operational, with the rest grounded because of a lack of spare parts. Iran has said it is looking to buy 400 passenger planes over the next decade. AP