Latest news with #Parakilas
Newsweek
21-07-2025
- General
- Newsweek
Bangladesh Plane Crash: What We Know About F-7 BGI Training Jets
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft crashed into a school in the country's capital city of Dhaka on Monday, killing at least 20 people. More than 170 people were injured as the F-7 BGI training jet crashed into the Milestone School and College, in the city's northern Uttara neighborhood. The pilot, named as Flight Lieutenant Md. Toukir Islam, was among those killed as the plane hit a two-storey building, said the country's military in a statement. The jet had taken off from Dhaka's AK Khandker Air Force Base for a training flight shortly after 1 p.m. local time, but crashed minutes later due to a mechanical fault, said the statement from the Inter-Services Public Relations Directorate (ISPR). The pilot had attempted to steer the aircraft away from densely populated areas, it added. Members of the Bangladesh Army and the fire service start rescue operations after a Bangladesh Air Force F7 aircraft crashed into a building of Milestone College in Dhaka's Uttara around 1:30 pm on July... Members of the Bangladesh Army and the fire service start rescue operations after a Bangladesh Air Force F7 aircraft crashed into a building of Milestone College in Dhaka's Uttara around 1:30 pm on July 21, 2025 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. More Abdul Goni/Drik/Getty Images Muhammad Yunus, the leader of the country's interim government, offered his "deep condolences" over the "tragic accident", adding in a social media post that the cause of the crash would be investigated. The F-7 BGI is an upgraded version of the F-7, an iteration of the Chinese-designed J-7 itself modeled on the aged, Soviet-era MiG-21. "It's a relatively new version of a very old plane," said Jacob Parakilas, research leader for Defense Strategy, Policy and Capabilities at the European branch of the RAND think tank. The last F-7 BGI came off the line in 2013, Parakilas told Newsweek. The F-7 was designed as an interceptor aircraft, "which in general means that it's optimized for high speed flight," Parakilas said. But take-off and landing can be "less forgiving" than for aircraft with larger wings, he added. "The fact that the base model is old doesn't inherently make it unsafe," Parakilas added. As of early 2025, Bangladesh had 87 combat-capable aircraft, including several variants of the F-7 fighters, according to the U.K.-based defense think tank, the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). The country's air force had 12 F-7 BGI jets, as well as 11 F-7 BGs and 7 F-7 MB aircraft, according to the IISS. Bangladesh also operates a handful of Soviet-era MiG-29 aircraft. Dhaka's military has close ties with China, and has carried out joint exercises with Beijing. The IISS, in the 2025 edition of its annual review of the world's armed forces, said Bangladesh had plans to boost its combat aircraft fleet, and had invested in its fixed-wing training aircraft. Dhaka's "limited military capability is focused on border and domestic security," the think tank said. The government has declared a national day of mourning for Tuesday, domestic media reported. What People Are Saying Muhammad Yunus, the country's chief advisor currently leading the interim government in Dhaka, said in a statement: "The damage to the Air Force and Milestone School and College students, parents and teachers including others is irreparable in this accident. This is a moment of deep pain for the nation." Bangladeshi government advisor, Asif Nazrul, said: "Such a massive, catastrophic accident has never occurred in our national history." The European Union's delegation in Bangladesh said it was "deeply saddened" by the crash, adding: "Our hearts are with the victims, their families, and all those affected."
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Korea's new warship may have been aided by Russian tech, and it's a worrying development
North Korea unveiled a sophisticated new naval vessel, the Choe Hyon, on Friday. Military analysts told Business Insider its weapons might have been developed with Russian aid. The closer relationship between Russia and North Korea is a worrying sign for the West. In a ceremony in the North Korean port of Nampo on Friday, Kim Jong Un unveiled the Choe Hyon, a 5,000-ton frigate that appears to be outfitted with an array of powerful weapons systems, such as missile vertical launchers. Perhaps equally worrying for those in the West, military analysts said that some of the vessel's capabilities point to Russian involvement, or at least Russian inspiration, as the Kim regime builds modern warships. "The timing of the ship's construction and the question marks around the exact nature of Russian support for the DPRK suggest that it might well be more than a simple copy," Jacob Parakilas, a research leader for Defence Strategy, Policy and Capabilities at RAND Europe, told Business Insider. (Parakilas referred to North Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.) The warship could point to further evidence of a deepening military relationship, and comes at a time when both countries said officially for the first time that North Korean troops are fighting alongside Russia against Ukraine. The Choe Hyon is bristling with weapons systems, with images indicating vertical launch systems that could be used to fire cruise or ballistic missiles, a deck gun, close-in air defense weapons, and a radar to detect threats and targets. Images show the Choe Hyon fitted with a missile defense system that closely resembles Russia's Pantsir S-1, which fires medium-range guided missiles at aerial threats. Parakilas referenced the air defense system as the clearest evidence of Russian involvement. Meanwhile, Kim Duk-ki, a retired South Korean admiral, told CNN earlier this month that Russia may have provided technology for its missile systems. He also said that "if North Korea equips the new frigate with the hypersonic ballistic missile it claimed to have successfully tested in January, that will cause a game changing impact in the regional security." Evidence is emerging that Russia could be helping North Korea evade international sanctions by providing it with technology to strengthen and modernise its military. In March, James Patton Rogers, executive director of the Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute, told the BBC that Russia likely helped North Korea design a new AI-enabled drone. Parakilas said the sheer number of weapons on board the Choe Hyon points to possible Russian influence, with Russia also favoring smaller, heavily armed vessels. "It also reflects a philosophy that the purpose of a warship is to wage total war, rather than to be capable of a range of operations up to and including war," he said. But Joseph Bermudez Jr., Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, cautioned that no evidence existed of "direct Russian assistance" in its construction. He said that "North Korean naval personnel designers have seen more and more Russian vessels" and may be imitating their design. Even so, he said that the vessel's weapon systems have "an awful lot of capability." According to a January report by the International Institute of Strategic Studies think tank, the frigate appears to be around 120 meters long, making it the "largest North Korea has constructed by some margin." North Korea has around 374 smaller patrol and coastal vessels, the IISS said, as well as two older frigates. At the launch event, Kim said that North Korea would be ready to fully deploy the ship in about a year, while touting it as a defense against what he portrayed as US regional aggression. Parakilas said the new warship offers North Korea increased options for a potential ballistic missile "first strike," with the capacity to travel to regions where there may be fewer air defense systems. However, he said that "the fact that it is a surface ship and not a submarine means that it can be tracked and attacked relatively easily." In its report, the IISS said that it's only when the vessel enters service that its real capabilities will be observable. "While activity around the new vessel at Nampo will be closely monitored," it said, "it may be some time after launch until its intended use becomes clearer." Bermudez Jr. echoed this, saying that "once it goes out on patrol and we see the seaworthiness of it, that'll make a tremendous difference." Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Business Insider
North Korea's new warship may have been aided by Russian tech, and it's a worrying development
In a ceremony in the North Korean port of Nampo on Friday, Kim Jong Un unveiled the Choe Hyon, a 5,000-ton frigate that appears to be outfitted with an array of powerful weapons systems, such as missile vertical launchers. Perhaps equally worrying for those in the West, military analysts said that some of the vessel's capabilities point to Russian involvement, or at least Russian inspiration, as the Kim regime builds modern warships. "The timing of the ship's construction and the question marks around the exact nature of Russian support for the DPRK suggest that it might well be more than a simple copy," Jacob Parakilas, a research leader for Defence Strategy, Policy and Capabilities at RAND Europe, told Business Insider. (Parakilas referred to North Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.) The warship could point to further evidence of a deepening military relationship, and comes at a time when both countries said officially for the first time that North Korean troops are fighting alongside Russia against Ukraine. Missile systems The Choe Hyon is bristling with weapons systems, with images indicating vertical launch systems that could be used to fire cruise or ballistic missiles, a deck gun, close-in air defense weapons, and a radar to detect threats and targets. Images show the Choe Hyon fitted with a missile defense system that closely resembles Russia's Pantsir S-1, which fires medium-range guided missiles at aerial threats. Parakilas referenced the air defense system as the clearest evidence of Russian involvement. Meanwhile, Kim Duk-ki, a retired South Korean admiral, told CNN earlier this month that Russia may have provided technology for its missile systems. He also said that "if North Korea equips the new frigate with the hypersonic ballistic missile it claimed to have successfully tested in January, that will cause a game changing impact in the regional security." A ship for total war Evidence is emerging that Russia could be helping North Korea evade international sanctions by providing it with technology to strengthen and modernise its military. In March, James Patton Rogers, executive director of the Cornell Brooks Tech Policy Institute, told the BBC that Russia likely helped North Korea design a new AI-enabled drone. Parakilas said the sheer number of weapons on board the Choe Hyon points to possible Russian influence, with Russia also favoring smaller, heavily armed vessels. "It also reflects a philosophy that the purpose of a warship is to wage total war, rather than to be capable of a range of operations up to and including war," he said. But Joseph Bermudez Jr., Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC, cautioned that no evidence existed of "direct Russian assistance" in its construction. He said that "North Korean naval personnel designers have seen more and more Russian vessels" and may be imitating their design. Even so, he said that the vessel's weapon systems have "an awful lot of capability." A 'first strike' option According to a January report by the International Institute of Strategic Studies think tank, the frigate appears to be around 120 meters long, making it the "largest North Korea has constructed by some margin." North Korea has around 374 smaller patrol and coastal vessels, the IISS said, as well as two older frigates. At the launch event, Kim said that North Korea would be ready to fully deploy the ship in about a year, while touting it as a defense against what he portrayed as US regional aggression. Parakilas said the new warship offers North Korea increased options for a potential ballistic missile "first strike," with the capacity to travel to regions where there may be fewer air defense systems. However, he said that "the fact that it is a surface ship and not a submarine means that it can be tracked and attacked relatively easily." In its report, the IISS said that it's only when the vessel enters service that its real capabilities will be observable. "While activity around the new vessel at Nampo will be closely monitored," it said, "it may be some time after launch until its intended use becomes clearer." Bermudez Jr. echoed this, saying that "once it goes out on patrol and we see the seaworthiness of it, that'll make a tremendous difference."
