The new version of the 747 ‘Jumbo jet’, the 747-8 Freighter is set to make first flight on Monday February 8th. The 747-8 Freighter could take off from Everett’s Paine Field, Washington, USA at 10 a.m., if the preflight tests go well. It is also subject to weather condition and final Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) clearance.

Boeing’s updated jumbo jet features a new wing design and improved engines. The company says its 747-8 will be about 16 percent more fuel efficient than the 747-400s currently in service.

The company will introduce the cargo version of its 747-8 before the passenger plane debuts. Boeing has won 76 orders for its 747-8 Freighter and orders for 32 of the 747-8 passenger plane, dubbed the Intercontinental. The passenger plane can be configured for up to 467 passengers, 51 more than the 747-400.

Boeing will Web cast live the first flight of its 747-8 on its Web site: www.747-8firstflight.com.

The Sukhoi PAK FA is a fifth generation fighter aircraft being developed by Sukhoi OKB for the Russian Air Force.

The current prototype is Sukhoi’s T-50. The PAK FA when fully developed is intended to replace the MiG-29 Fulcrum and Su-27 Flanker in the Russian inventory and serve as the basis of the Sukhoi/HAL FGFA project being developed with India. A fifth generation jet fighter, it is designed to directly compete with the American F-22 Raptor and American/British F-35 Lightning II. The T-50 performed its first flight January 29, 2010.

Iran has developed a new weapon to shoot down U.S. Apache attack helicopters, the Iranian Fars news agency has reported.

“Our enemies should not imagine that if their Apache choppers have shown a mighty and desirable performance in Iraq and Afghanistan, they can show the same might and power in any possible aggression against Iran. We will certainly put an end to the power of their Apaches through our measures,” Fars quoted Col. Nasser Arab-Beigi of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps.

The official did not specify the type of the weapon Iran is manufacturing to shoot down Apache helicopters.

Iran frequently holds military drills and shows off modern weaponry in an effort to demonstrate its readiness to thwart any attack on its territory.

Russia on Friday unveiled a new fighter aircraft touted as a rival of the US F-22 stealth jet and developed amid the highest secrecy as part of a plan to modernize the armed forces.

The fifth generation fighter, manufactured by the Sukhoi company and known as the PAK FA, made a maiden flight of just over 45 minutes at the firm’s home base of Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Far East region.

“The flight lasted 47 minutes during which all the aircraft’s systems were tested. It was successful,” Sukhoi spokeswoman Olga Kayukova told AFP. “This is the first time it has been unveiled.”

“The aircraft performed well in all stages of the flight programme. It is easy and comfortable to pilot,” said Sergei Bogdan, the pilot for the flight, in comments published on the Sukhoi website.

The first flight of the PAK FA (Prospective Aviation System of Frontline Aviation) is being seen in Russia as a major boost for the military after the project was hit by repeated delays over the last years.

“There is no doubt that the plane is needed,” the ex-commander of the Russian air force, Anatoly Kornukov, told the Interfax news agency.

“Our Su-27 and MiG-29 planes are good but have aged. They are 20 or more years old and it’s time to have something as a replacement,” he said.