http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/090302/1/1fba5.html

2 March 2009:
A shipment of ROCAF Mirage 2000-5 spare parts, originally scheduled to export from France in February, is being delayed, as leverage by France in the court case WRT the bribery involved in the purchase of ROCN Lafayette Class warships.

ROCAF claims effect on Mirage 2000-5 flights is limited.

http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/airforce-hawk168/article?mid=3185&prev=-1&next=3175&page=1&sc=1#yartcmt

Chinese CJ-6A basic trainer #06 with US military insignia?
Probably taken at a civilian air show somewhere, IMO.

] Do you know a good site on the JASDF?

Try Wikipedia Japan or Yahoo! Japan?

] Nice.

Agreed. Fans’ photos of Jap air shows frequently have photos of jet fighters with cute girls, albeit we only see, say, part of an intake, or the folding ladder under the cockpit, of said jet fighters in said photos; yet no one complains.

] ttp://http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/zoom/20090226-OYT9I01112.htm

BTW, in this news photo, woman in orange coat is his wife, Narumi.

] There have been 17 other crashes of Luke-based F-16s since 1998, and only one of those resulted in a fatality, May said. That crash happened in May 2004, when a pilot with the Singapore air force died after his jet went down during a training mission at an Air Force bombing range in southwest Arizona.

http://www.mindef.gov.sg/imindef/news_and_events/nr/2004/may/21may04_nr.html

By RSAF abbreviations, is “LTA” a Second Lieutenant (O-1) or First Lieutenant (O-2)?

After all, “Lieutenant” is a Navy rank (O-3).

http://www5a.biglobe.ne.jp/~bluesky/air.htm

1986 to 2008:
Photos of air shows at JASDF air bases.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/e-japan/fukuoka/news/20090226-OYT8T01113.htm
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/zoom/20090226-OYT9I01112.htm

2009.02.26:
F-15J.
304th Hikoutai, JASDF, based at Tsuiki AB, Fukuoka Prefecture.
Major Kuratani Ryouji (41).
4,000 hours in F-15. Second in JASDF, after another pilot at Nyuutabaru AB, Miyazaki Prefecture, in 2008 April.
Grew up in Kagoshima City. 1986, joined JASDF. From 1991 January, flew F-15 at Nyuutabaru AB and Tsuiki AB.

After 1.5 hours training flight above Japan Sea, has 4,001 hours 18 minutes.

http://www.myaviation.net/search/search.php?view=&regnr=F-ZAGR

“France – Air Force
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21US

F-ZAGR Used by the french EPNER (Fighter and Test Pilot Training School), now preserved. Static display during a meeting. The only Mig21 registered in France. First time on a.net. Now returned to the Czech Air Force.”

http://www.f20a.com/f20foto.htm

Luftwaffe F-20 N4416T.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2009-02/13/content_10811436.htm

February 2009:
PLAAF transport plane female pilots, of Guang Zhou Air Force air lift unit, tasked with rain-making sorties.

(Ugly shoulder patches, IMO.)

http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2009-02/28/content_10915060.htm
to
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2009-02/28/content_10915060_4.htm

IDEX 2009 at Abu Dhabi.
Chinese AR-1A 300 mm MLRS, based on Russian BM-30 MLRS.

(At least they don’t paint those kinky white circles on the tires any more, IMO.)

http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/090226/5/1f53s.html

26 February 2009:
Kao Hsiung prosecution office formally sues four employees of AIDC for faking documents: during maintenance of ROCAF officers academy AT-3s and T-34s, from 24 December 2005 to 21 July 2006, AIDC didn’t use X-ray to check parts of the planes that must be checked by X-ray, as per the terms of the five-years contract, and used eddy current method instead.
AIDC didn’t have the X-ray equipment, and the officers academy stopped using its X-ray equipment in early November 2005. AIDC applied to use the officers academy X-ray equipment; the ROC Executive Yuan, Atomic Energy Committee approved the application, and AIDC resumed using the officers academy X-ray equipment from 25 July 2006.

Just rambling.

First, I of course use on-line translation sites, such as Alta Vista-Babel Fish, Google, and Yahoo!. For example, when local radio news say a ROKAF jet fighter has crashed, I yomp over to Yahoo! South Korea News, and look for maps and photos.
As I don’t understand Korean text (OK, I’m not perfect), I use on-line translation sites, plus Yahoo! Hong Kong/Japan/Taiwan News, for the relevant pilots’ names, place names, and units; as the on-line translation sites tend to translate the Korean text as literally and verbatim.
Sometimes, South Korean and Taiwanese news sites in English might have a concise article or two about a military aircraft crash, on the day after it happens, and that’s it, with minimal details, esp no aircraft serial number.
(Guess how AFM and Scramble mags get all the serial numbers of accident aircraft?)

Second, the Xin Hua news site frequently translates, then cross-posts articles from foreign (incl Hong Kong) mags and news sites, such as Jane’s and Kanwa, esp WRT projects that the Chicom government and PLA don’t admit nor deny; such as the PLA WZ-10 programme, PLAAF J-10 programme, and PLAN aircraft carrier programme; or even the occasional rumoured PLAAF Su-27/Su-30/YF-23 crash here or there.
Thus, when reading a Xin Hua article, beware in the first or second paragraph, whether it says “a named foreign mag says”.