Probably that demonstrating that they could operate inside a complex radiation environment was simply the goal?

The [F-35 users] conference [in Israel] may have ended, but the participants left wanting more. As more countries are due to join the work group over the coming years and the IAF continues to grow, it is certain that the fourth work group is just around the corner.

“Most of our discourse is pilot-to-pilot. The more tricks I have in my tool bag, as well as experiences – whether my own or someone else’s – these will help me analyze the situation and make choices that I haven’t thought of before”, concluded Col. Howke. “We realize that this aircraft is capable of more than any other aircraft before – it’s truly a game changer. The capabilities are unprecedented. It starts from the intel, goes through command & control and the mission command, and to the execution of any type of attack you might have to go.

“This is where the conference’s importance lies – it allows fifth-generation pilots to take off on the mission with a better understanding of their situation”.

Like the Phantom before, the synergies to be expected with a multi-service/plural air forces could well be the true jewel of this airframe.

Source:
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/art…onference.html

Also: the beast got now a name 😉

Terminology clarified

The two governments have also agreed on new terminology for the program. The new fighter is now designated New-Generation Fighter, as Dassault showed on a model at the Euronaval show in October, and together with its accompanying combat drones will form the New-Generation Weapon System (NGWS). This, in turn, will be integrated into the Future Combat Air Systems (SCAF in French) that will include ground radars, AWACS, tankers, drones and other support components.

Source (from Tango III in the news section):
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/art…n-january.html

Did Li Battery fire theory gain [at last] a high profile advocate in the media?

Retired United Airlines pilot Captain Ross Aimer told Daily Star Online his “gut feeling” was that the 221kg of lithium-ion batteries in the airliner’s hold of erupted in flames shortly after take-off.

He said the plane could then have continued its flight even after everyone on board was killed.

Capt Aimer said: “The fire may have started during or shortly after take off, since things started to happen as soon as they levelled off.

“It is possible the fire killed everyone onboard then continued burning the aircraft until it crashed. Since the flaperon was discovered in the ocean, it most probably crashed into the ocean.”

He is talking about the manifest (cargo bay) discussed already here in 2014:

Source:
Express.co.uk from Daily Star online (and from your favorite Web forum times times ago)

Don’t forget the Israeli and their G550 CAEW:

G550 CAEW had already been delivered to the Israeli Air Force and another leading Air Force. The latest delivery was to the Italian Air Force, which included a fully NATO interoperable communications suite, IFF system and a newly designed AESA Radar based on Gallium Nitride (GaN) technologies.

Source:
AviationWeek

« Le 17 novembre, vers 1 heure du matin, heure de Paris, le contact a été perdu entre la base aérienne de Niamey et un drone Reaper de la force Barkhane qui rentrait de mission. Le drone s’est écrasé dans une zone désertique à quelques kilomètres de la piste, sans faire aucune victime » indique le communiqué.
————————-

“On November 17, around 1 am, Paris time, contact was lost between Niamey air base and a Reaper drone from the force Barkhane who was returning from a mission. The drone crashed in a desert area a few kilometers from its base, without causing any casualties, “the statement said.

Source:
http://www.bruxelles2.eu/2018/11/18/…ane-se-crashe/

Airbus, Dassault finalizing [unsolicited] bid for early work on new fighter jet

One source familiar with the matter said the two companies could submit their proposal by the end of the year or early next year, paving the way for the first contract awards next year.

One French military official told the International Fighter conference in Berlin this week that the two governments hoped to conclude an initial contract in January.

Peter Harster, senior executive with MTU Aero Engines (MTXGn.DE), said the study contract was needed, along with a medium-term budget plan, to help set a realistic timetable and key requirements to ensure the new jet would be ready by 2040.

Harster also called for a separate contract for work on an engine for the new jet to enable optimal flexibility and give the customers direct control over the propulsion system.

Source:
Reuters.com

Not to be pedantic but you generally don’t restrain your cables to avoid extra tension in the line. That way you can prevent any risk of an impromptu disconnection and get smoother value during your test (no parasitic perturbations).

my 2 cents