Il tiro della corda .....

[Vultur]

Il Bear e l'emisfero australe. Per la prima volta, Tu-95MS hanno compiuto un pattugliamento a lungo raggio sopra il Pacifico meridionale, addestrandosi, tra le altre cose, anche a un clima del tutto inusuale: quello della base indonesiana di Biak, un'isola della provincia di Papua - Nuova Guinea, che se ho capito bene si trova un grado sotto l'equatore. Gli equipaggi, almeno dalle foto tra i palmeti, pare abbiano dovuto mantenere la tuta artica da sopravvivenza marittima: probabilmente ci saranno stati quaranta gradi all'ombra con un'umidità del 99%, ma dato che la tuta serve per sopravvivere in acqua ... O forse è un tipo di tuta tropicale. Gli aerei provenivano dalla base siberiana di Ukrainka-Seryshevo, vicino al fiume Amur e hanno compiuto un volo di più di dieci ore.

https://tvzvezda.ru/news/forces/content ... 2-vpk9.htm

https://www.rt.com/news/412367-russian- ... indonesia/

[richelieu]

Hawaii ..... suona l' allarme .....

An early-morning emergency alert mistakenly warning of an incoming ballistic missile attack was dispatched to cellphones across Hawaii on Saturday, setting off widespread panic in a state that was already on emotional edge because of escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea.
Officials cancelled the alert (*), sent out by Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, nearly 40 minutes after it was issued in a scramble of confusion over why it was released — and why it took so long to rescind.
Outrage was immediately expressed by state officials and among people who live in what is normally a famously tranquil part of the Pacific, as well as tourists swept up in the panic.

Fonte ..... https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/13/us/h ... ssile.html .....

(*) ..... .....
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[richelieu]

Presenti nell' area ..... a scanso di sorprese .....

B-2s Deploy to Pacific for Bomber Deterrence Mission .....

Three B-2 stealth bombers and about 200 airmen deployed to Guam this week to continue the Air Force’s continuous bomber presence mission in the region.
The aircraft from Whiteman AFB, Mo., will fly training and deterrence missions out of Andersen Air Force Base during a time of heightened tensions over North Korea’s nuclear program.
While the bombers deployed to Pacific Air Forces have repeatedly flown training missions with South Korean and Japanese aircraft, the Pentagon and South Korean officials announced last week that the countries are delaying joint military exercises during the upcoming Winter Olympics in South Korea.
Six B-1Bs from Ellsworth AFB, S.D., have been deployed at the base since July.

Brian Everstine

Fonte: il Daily Report dell' AFA del 12-01-2018 .....
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[richelieu]

B61-12 ..... i collaudi procedono .....

On 9 December 2017, the US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration, which is tasked with ensuring the effectiveness, safety and security of the US nuclear weapons stockpile, announced that it had successfully completed two qualification flight tests for the US’ new B61-12 freefall nuclear weapon.
The tests were reported as having taken place at the Tonopah Test Range in Nevada, and were completed in early November 2017 (*).
During the tests, inert versions of the weapons were released by two US Air Force (USAF) Boeing F-15E Strike EAGLE fighters.

Fonte: monch.com ..... "B61-12 Flight Testing Moves Forward" .....

(*) ... nnsa.energy.gov ... "NNSA, Air Force complete two additional B61-12 Life Extension Program qualification flight tests at Tonopah Test Range" ...
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[richelieu]

L' orologio dell' Apocalisse .....

..... washingtonpost.com ..... "The Doomsday Clock just moved: It’s now 2 minutes to ‘midnight,’ the symbolic hour of the apocalypse" .....

[richelieu]

Hawaii ..... suona l' allarme .....

An early-morning emergency alert mistakenly warning of an incoming ballistic missile attack was dispatched to cellphones across Hawaii on Saturday, setting off widespread panic in a state that was already on emotional edge because of escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea.
Officials cancelled the alert (*), sent out by Hawaii Emergency Management Agency, nearly 40 minutes after it was issued in a scramble of confusion over why it was released — and why it took so long to rescind.
Outrage was immediately expressed by state officials and among people who live in what is normally a famously tranquil part of the Pacific, as well as tourists swept up in the panic.

Fonte ..... https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/13/us/h ... ssile.html .....

(*) ..... .....
.

Dallo Washington Post ..... "Hawaii’s false missile alert sent by worker who thought attack on U.S. was imminent, FCC says" .....
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[richelieu]

Dal solitamente ben informato sito 'Russian strategic nuclear forces' .....

Dopo l'annuncio di Putin sulla messa a punto di nuovi armamenti strategici .....

..... "Document details Soviet response to the Star Wars missile defense program" ..... Soviet ????? .....

..... ecco elencate alcune recenti attività russe nel settore missilistico/spaziale .....

..... "Yars missiles continue to replace Topol" .....

..... "Launch of an experimental imaging satellite, Cosmos-2525" .....

..... "Second ejection test of Sarmat" .....

..... "Another test of the new interceptor of the Moscow missile defense system" .....

..... "By cancelling RS-26 Russia keeps its options open" .....

..... "Successful Nudol ASAT test reported" .....
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[richelieu]

Dove si parla di ..... divergenza di opinioni .....

..... russianforces.org ..... "New START controversies" .....

[richelieu]

Spettacolare lancio quadruplo di missili balistici 'Bulava' dal sottomarino a propulsione nucleare russo 'Yuri Dolgorukiy' .....

A Russian nuclear-powered submarine successfully test-fired four intercontinental ballistic missiles on Tuesday, the Navy said.
The Navy said the submarine, named Yuri Dolgoruky after the medieval prince who founded Moscow, launched the Bulava missiles in a single salvo from a submerged position in the White Sea.
The service said the mock warheads the missiles carried reached their practice targets on the opposite side of Russia — the Kura shooting range on the far eastern Kamchatka Peninsula.

Fonte: defensenews.com ..... "See a Russian sub test-fire 4 ICBMs" .....

Anche qui: russianforces.org ..... "Four-missile salvo launch of Bulava from Yuri Dolgorukiy" .....
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[richelieu]

Meeting Kim-Trump ..... c'era una volta .....

..... https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics ... 1b99b5f557 .....

[richelieu]

S-400 ..... ovvero ..... il pomo della discordia .....

Talks for Saudi Arabia to acquire the Russian S-400 SAM system are continuing, even as the Kingdom threatens military action against Qatar if that country should also acquire the weapon.
Turkey, India, and Iraq have also bought the weapon or expressed a desire to buy it.
Meanwhile, a senior U.S. commander has decried the potential acquisitions, and sanctions could follow from Washington.
Having become operational 11 years ago, the S-400 remains Russia’s most advanced anti-aircraft weapon in service.
It was designed to detect and shoot aerodynamic and ballistic targets.
The S-400 employs the 48N6 family of missiles with a launch weight of about two tons (4,400 pounds) and a range of up to 240 km (130 nm).
The latest 40N6 missiles extend that range up to 400 km (215 nm).
For engaging targets at shorter ranges, the system may use the smaller 9M96 and 9M100 families, weighing from 240 kg (530 pounds) upwards.

Fonte: ainonline.com ..... "Russian S-400 SAM System Causes Middle East Upsets" .....
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[richelieu]

Sempre a proposito del 'pomo della discordia' .....

India is moving forward with a procurement of the Russian S-400 Triumf air and missile defense system, despite possible U.S. sanctions against Moscow, India’s defense minister announced at a news conference.
Nirmala Sitharaman said June 5 that India has explained to the U.S. “how India and Russia’s defense cooperation has been going on for a long time and that it is a time-tested relationship.”
India has “got quite a lot of Russian defense assets ― assets, spares and servicing,” she added.
Despite the threat of U.S. sanctions “we have mentioned that CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act) cannot impact the India-Russia defense cooperation,” she noted.

Fonte: defensenews.com ..... "India to US: Sanctions won’t stop Russian air-defense system purchase" .....

Sono curioso di vedere che faccia farà la signora Ministro della Difesa quando un qualche diplomatico americano le comunicherà che ...... "Il Presidente ha deciso la sospensione della fornitura di pezzi di ricambio e di qualsiasi forma di assistenza tecnica per i vostri C-130, C-17 e P-8" .....
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[richelieu]

[richelieu]

Dopo il riuscito lancio, avvenuto nel Maggio scorso, di una salva di quattro missili ..... fonti russe affermano che il 'Bulava' è finalmente entrato in servizio .....

Russian press quotes a source in the industry as saying that the Bulava SLBM has been finally accepted for service.
That was a long wait.
The work on the Bulava program started almost exactly 20 years ago.

Fonte: russianforces.org ..... "Bulava is finally accepted for service" .....
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[richelieu]

Un Minuteman III ..... fa i capricci .....

Minuteman III Destroyed Mid-Flight During Test Launch ...

The Air Force destroyed an unarmed Minuteman III following a test launch early Tuesday at Vandenberg AFB, Calif., when it developed an “anomaly” during flight, the head of US Strategic Command said Wednesday.
An Air Force crew launched the missile for a routine test Tuesday, and at first it “was perfect,” US Strategic Command boss Gen. John Hyten said Wednesday at the STRATCOM Deterrence Symposium in Omaha, Neb.
“It came out of the hole just fine, but somewhere in flight we saw an anomaly,” Hyten said.
That anomaly created an “unsafe flight condition” so the crew decided to destroy the rocket before it reached its destination, Hyten said.
Failures such as this are rare, with the last one occurring in July 2011, and “this is the reason that we test,” he said.
Now “we have to go figure out what happened” and learn more about the Minuteman III fleet to make it safer and more effective in the future.
“We test because we’ve got to make sure things work … and make sure missiles are safe, secure, and reliable,” Hyten said.

- Brian Everstine

Fonte ..... airforcemag.com .....
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[richelieu]

I timori della Svezia .....

On Friday August 10 the Swedish government signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance to formalize an agreement to buy the Raytheon Patriot missile system via a U.S. Army-contracted Foreign Military Sales program.
Sweden announced the selection of the Patriot over the Eurosam SAMP/T last November as the nation seeks to enhance its defenses in the face of growing tension in Europe over Russia’s posture.
Deliveries are due to begin in 2021, according to Sweden’s defense minister, Peter Hultqvist, bringing a missile-defense capability to the Swedish forces they have hitherto lacked.
Under the deal, Sweden will acquire four Patriot Configuration 3+ fire units, each with AN/MPQ-65 radar and control station, and 12 M903 launchers.
Although the number of interceptors has not been announced for the initial $1.2 billion deal, U.S. Congressional approval has been granted for the sale of up to 100 MIM-104E GEM-T (guidance enhanced missile-tactical ballistic missiles) and 200 PAC-3 MSE (Patriot advanced capability-3, missile segment enhancement) interceptors.
This could bring the total bill to more than $3 billion.

Fonte: ainonline.com ..... "Sweden Joins the Patriot Club" .....

Altre fonti .....

defensenews.com ..... https://www.defensenews.com/digital-sho ... se-system/ .....

lockheedmartin.com ..... https://news.lockheedmartin.com/2018-08 ... E-Missiles .....

raytheon.com ..... https://www.raytheon.com/news/feature/s ... nt-patriot .....
.

[richelieu]

Cina ..... il Pentagono mette in evidenza la minaccia dei bombardieri .....

A new Pentagon report highlights the strides Beijing is making with its bomber capabilities, as well as other airpower trends.
In its annual report to congress about military developments in China, the US Department of Defense highlights the capabilities of the Xian H-6K bomber.
It dedicates a whole chapter to Beijing’s ratcheting up of long-range bomber patrols.
“Over the last three years, the PLA [People’s Liberation Army] has rapidly expanded its overwater bomber operating areas, gaining experience in critical maritime regions and likely training for strikes against U.S. and allied targets,” says the report (*).

Fonte: flightglobal.com ..... "Pentagon report highlights Beijing’s bomber capabilities" .....

(*) ..... media.defense.gov ..... "2018 China Military Power Report" .....
.

[Vultur]

Almeno un esemplare di Tu-22M3M è stato rimorchiato fuori dagli hangar a Kazan. L'aereo dovrebbe avere tra le altre cose anche una stiva più grande, probabilmente capace di ricevere anche missili come il Kinzhal. Non ha la torretta di coda, ma ha una gobba sul muso che potrebbe essere la predisposizione per la sonda di rifornimento in volo. L'aereo a quanto si dice servirebbe anche come banco prova volante per la tecnologia dei Tu-160 nuovi.

https://rg.ru/2018/08/20/novyj-rossijsk ... -ssha.html

[richelieu]

Altre informazioni in merito .....

..... ainonline.com ..... https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news ... -out-kazan .....

phpBB [video]

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[richelieu]

Una versione 'XR' per il 'JASSM' .....

Dalla pagina 'Contratti' del DoD del 10 Settembre 2018 .....

Lockheed Martin Corp., Orlando, Florida, has been awarded a $51,078,802, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extreme Range (JASSM-XR).
This contract effort includes all all-up round level systems engineering and programmatic activities to align and phase the work necessary to design, develop, integrate, test, and verify component and subsystem design changes to the JASSM-XR baseline electronics, hardware, firmware, and operational flight software.
JASSM-XR will also include preparation for final all-up round integration, system-level ground and flight testing, qualification, and incorporation into a future production baseline engineering change proposal.
This effort will concurrently mature a new missile control unit and necessary hardware and infrastructure to support future JASSM-XR production cut in.
Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 31, 2023.
This award is the result of sole-source acquisition.
Fiscal 2017 and 2018 research and development funds in the amount of $4,898,622 are being obligated at the time of award.
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, is the contracting activity (FA8682-18-C-0009).

Inoltre .....

airforcemag.com ..... "Lockheed Martin Developing "Extreme-Range" JASSM Variant" .....

flightglobal.com ..... "US Air Force looks for new maker of Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missiles" .....
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[richelieu]

Armi ipersoniche USA ... la prima versione in servizio già dal 2020 ...

Air Force acquisition chief Will Roper told reporters he thinks the Hypersonic Conventional Strike Weapon (HCSW) could go operational in the 2020 timeframe, but that it will be a basic system the service will buy in only limited quantities.
USAF will likely buy a full inventory later, after “spiral” improvements have added desirable additional features.
Speaking with reporters at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference, Roper said that of all the services that are pursuing hypersonic weapons, USAF “has the easiest path to fielding.” The initial version of the weapon will likely be carried by a B-52, which he said is “very forgiving” in terms of the size of munitions. The system won’t have to be miniaturized, he said, or shrunk to fit a small volume.

Fonte: airforcemag.com ... "Roper Sees Hypersonic Weapon Operational Circa 2020, But Only First Version" ...
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[richelieu]

Dopo due fallimenti consecutivi ...

The Pentagon intercepted a test ballistic missile with the Standard Missile-3 Block IIA system, the second time that weapon has been successfully tested - a relief for the department following two consecutive test failures.
The SM-3 Block IIA is a co-development between the U.S. and Japan, and is expected to be equipped on both the U.S. Aegis Ashore stations in Romania and Poland and the future Aegis Ashore stations in Japan - making it a keystone to America’s short- and intermediate-range missile defense strategies.

Fonte: defensenews.com ... "After consecutive failures, watch US Navy intercept test missile with SM-3 weapon" ...
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[richelieu]

L' Agenzia governativa DARPA punta sullo sviluppo del sistema 'Glide Breaker' per contrastare le nuove armi ipersoniche attualmente in fase di realizzazione in Russia e Cina .....

..... .....

As the threat of hypersonic weapons continues to grow, one of the Pentagon’s top research and development arm is moving ahead with a new project to explore ways to guard against them.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s Glide Breaker project will look into various “component technologies” needed for one or more defense systems, but will focus heavily on a hard-kill interceptor to knock the fast-flying weapons out of the sky.
DARPA showed off concept art of the interceptor portion of Glide Breaker for the first time at its D60 Symposium, which honors the organization’s 60th anniversary, in September 2018.
The agency’s Tactical Technology Office had previously hosted a gathering to explain the project and its requirements to interested parties in July 2011

Fonte: thedrive.com ..... "DARPA Starts Work On "Glide Breaker" Hypersonic Weapons Defense Project" .....
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[richelieu]

'Glide Breaker' ..... il commento di FlightGlobal .....

..... "DARPA asks for counter-hypersonic weapons proposals" .....

[richelieu]

Armi ipersoniche ... gli USA si trovano di fronte ad una necessità stringente .....

..... news.usni.org ..... "DoD Official: U.S. Needs to Develop New Counters to Future Hypersonic Missiles" .....

[richelieu]

Il Giappone intende potenziare le proprie difese antimissile .....

..... RID ..... "Il Giappone rafforza la difesa antimissile" .....

..... dsca.mil ..... "Japan – Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Missiles" .....

E non solo quelle .....

..... dsca.mil ..... "Japan – AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM)" .....
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[richelieu]

La Russia prevede di costruire due nuovi sottomarini lancia-missili balistici .....

..... russianforces.org/blog ..... http://russianforces.org/blog/2018/12/t ... s_to.shtml .....

..... tass.com/defense ..... http://tass.com/defense/1033658 .....
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[richelieu]

Bombardieri strategici russi volano in Venezuela .....

..... theaviationist.com ..... "Russian Air Force Tu-160 Bombers Deploy To Venezuela" .....

Una visita in stile 'Guerra Fredda' che appare come un supporto ad un regime ormai inviso alla maggior parte della popolazione .....
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[richelieu]

Dal 'Daily Report' dell' AFA del 12-12-2018 .....

Nuclear Gravity Bomb Tail Kit Assembly Enters Production Phase .....

The B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb’s new guided tail kit assembly, or TKA, has entered the production phase after successfully completing a 27-month test program, USAF announced.
The B61 is the primary strategic nuclear weapon for the B-2 bomber and can equip both the F-16 and F-15E, providing forward-deployed deterrence in support of US allies.
The B61-12 will extend the service life of the B61 weapon, which first achieved operational capability in 1968.
It will operate in two modes: analog/ballistic mode and digital/guided mode.
The TKA “is the enabler for realizing” the digital/guided mode, according to a Pentagon selected acquisition report.
The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center at Kirtland AFB, N.M., in partnership with the Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration, completed the testing in less than 11 months, achieving a 100 percent success rate for all 31 bomb drops, according to a USAF release (*).
“The flight tests demonstrated the system works very well in its intended environment,” said Col. Paul Rounsavall, AFNWC senior materiel leader for the B61-12 TKA.
“This development effort brought the first-ever digital interface to the B61 family of weapons and demonstrated the B61-12 TKA’s compatibility with the Air Force’s B-2 and F-15 aircraft.
In addition, the TKA achieved greater than five times its required performance during developmental testing and is ready to start initial operational test and evaluation.”

- Amy McCullough

(*) ..... af.mil/News ..... "Nuclear bomb tail kit reaches major milestone for production phase" .....
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[richelieu]

La Orchila ..... una piccola isola caraibica situata di fronte alle coste del Venezuela ..... destinata, forse, a diventare una futura, importante base dell' aviazione strategica russa .....

..... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Orchila .....

Как сообщают военно-дипломатические источники, руководство РФ приняло решение (а Мадуро не возражал) разместить российскую стратегическую авиацию на одном из венесуэльских островов в Карибском море, где имеются военно-морская база и военный аэродром.
Речь идет о расположенном в 200 км к северо-востоку от Каракаса небольшом острове Орчила, на котором 10 лет назад уже побывали российские специалисты и командование Вооруженных сил РФ.

Fonte: ng.ru/politics ..... "Россия разместит в Карибском море военную базу" .....
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[richelieu]

Armi ipersoniche ..... gli Stati Uniti sperano di avere una possibilità di difesa entro pochi anni .....

The USA could have a counter hypersonic weapon developed by the mid-2020s.
However, creating a workable defense against hypersonic vehicles and missiles would require developing longer range radars and new space-based sensors to track and target an adversary’s weapons soon after they are launched, said Michael Griffin, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering, at a National Defense Industrial Association event on 13 December, according to a transcript (*) and press release (**) from the Pentagon.
The Department of Defense believes that the stage to knock out hypersonic weapons is during their relatively long cruise phase, in which they don’t change course abruptly.
Hypersonic missiles during that stage are not particularly hard to intercept, but it would require an advanced warning, says Griffin.
Unfortunately, current US radars can’t see far enough.
“They need to see thousands of kilometers out, not hundreds,” he says.

Fonte: flightglobal.com ..... "Counter hypersonic weapon possible by mid-2020s: DoD" .....

(*) ..... dod.defense.gov ..... "Media Availability With Deputy Secretary Shanahan and Under Secretary of Defense Griffin at NDIA Hypersonics Senior Executive Series" .....

(**) ..... dod.defense.gov ..... "DOD Scaling Up Effort to Develop Hypersonics" .....
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[richelieu]

I tempi sono ormai cambiati e vi è pertanto la stringente necessità che il cielo venga attentamente scrutato in ogni direzione .....

In a world where unmanned aerial vehicles are plentiful, cruise missiles are becoming more abundant, and hypersonic boost glide vehicles are just over the horizon, air and missile threats are coming from all directions.
To address the realities of this environment, effective defenses require an air and missile defense sensor architecture that looks in all directions as well.
To a great extent, however, the Pentagon is persisting in old habits of buying narrowly sectored radars - those that look in only one direction.
Sectored ground-based radars are not only a mainstay of regional defenses like Patriot and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), but also comprise the majority of the sensors supporting the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) program for long-range missile defense (see Table 1).
This approach was good enough for the simple ballistic missile threats of the past, but not for the complex, multi-domain threats of the future.

Fonte: defense360.csis.org ..... "Bad Idea: Sectored Air and Missile Defense Radars" .....

[richelieu]

Un interessante e dettagliato commento di fonte (non propagandistica) russa sul recente test del veicolo ipersonico Avangard .....

..... http://russianforces.org/blog/2018/12/a ... said.shtml .....

[richelieu]

Altre informazioni in merito .....

..... ainonline.com ..... https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news ... -out-kazan .....

phpBB [video]

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E, dopo il roll-out, è arrivato il momento del primo volo .....

..... https://www.flightglobal.com/news/artic ... ut-454771/ .....
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[richelieu]

Una domanda molto scottante .....

..... japantoday.com ..... "Will China go to war over Taiwan?" .....