Air Forces Monthly UK 2015-02

28 PAGES OF WORLDWIDE MILITARY NEWS

Frogfoots in action

FEBRUARY 2015 ISSUE #323

Attack ISIL

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USMC F-5S FIGHT ON

UNITED NATIONS IN HAITI FLYING FOR PEACE

Force Report

GERMAN NAVY AVIATION

OLD PLATFORMS WITH NEW ROLES UK £4.70

HERRICK TORNADOS Five Years on the Front Line

PUMA SURVIVORS 50 YEARS ON And Still Sharpening Its Claws

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2015

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Produced by Key Publishing with exclusive access to the Royal Air Force, and featuring articles written with and by RAF personnel, The Official RAF Annual Review 2015 is a 132-page special magazine that provides behind the scenes insight into the aircraft, equipment and people of one of the world’s premier air forces. HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE: TYPHOON FORCE: READY FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW Typhoon Force Commander Air Commodore Philip Beach provides an update on RAF Typhoon capability and details his vision for the aircraft’s future

MARHAM MATTERS: TORNADO AT THE HEART OF OPERATIONS Group Captain Harvey Smyth, RAF Marham Station Commander looks back on a busy year of operations over Afghanistan, Africa and Iraq, with exclusive 40th anniversary Tornado air-to-air photography

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CONTENTS February Issue 323 Operation Herrick Tornados 50

News All the world’s military aviation news, by region. 4-5 Headlines 6-7 United Kingdom 8-12 Europe 14-17 North America 18-19 Latin America 22 Russia & CIS 23-25 Africa 26-28 Middle East 29-33 Asia Pacific 34 Australasia 35 AFM’s Dave Allport reports on the latest contracts & deployments

36 Desert Duellers

Joe Copalman visits MCAS Yuma to gain an insight into the operations of the US Marine Corps’ only aggressor squadron.

44 FORCE REPORT German Marineflieger

The German Marineflieger has faced years of severe cost-cutting measures, Dirk Jan de Ridder and

Menso van Westrhenen reveal how it continues to operate old aircraft adapted to face new challenges.

70 Guardians of BuMusa

Tim Ripley looks back at five years of RAF Tornado GR4 operations over Afghanistan.

Iran’s small fleet of ten Su-25s, the backbone of its air assault force, have been involved in wars against terrorist militias in southeast Iran and PKK insurgents in the northwest. Babak Taghvaee sheds light on the Frogfoot in IRGCAF’s service.

58 EXERCISE REPORT Noble Arrow 2014

76 Thailand’s Viking Thunder

50 Operation Herrick Tornados

Joris van Boven and Jan Kraak report on Exercise Noble Arrow 2014, which formed part of the qualifications for the air component that will lead the NATO Response Force during 2015.

60 Snapshots from Taura Bob Sutherland visits Taura Air Base, home of the Ecuadorian Air Force fast cats.

62 AIRCRAFT PROFILE IAR/SA330 Puma

Ian Frain of aviation consultancy company Helian provides a profile of the Puma helicopter, which is celebrating 50 years since its maiden flight.

Nigel Pittaway reports on the first operational deployment of Royal Thai Air Force Gripens, to Darwin, Australia.

82 United States Coast Guard - HC-27J Tom Kaminski reviews the US Coast Guard’s acquisition of 14 former US Air Force C-27J Spartans for maritime patrol operations.

peace in Haiti, one of the world’s most violent trouble spots

92 Attrition

AFM’s Dave Allport reports on the world’s latest military accidents.

96 Fixing Mali’s Mess

AFM reviews the little-known European Union Training Mission (EUTM) in Mali which has three civilian-registered helicopters at its disposal.

98 Nice Picture

A Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18 Hornet is refuelled in late 2014 over Iraq by a USAF KC-135 assigned to the 340th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron.

86 UN Air Support over Haiti

Erwan de Cherisey examines the role of United Nations’ helicopters in the struggle to maintain

Aircraft Profile SA330 Puma 62

Glenn Sands AFM Brand Editor

FREE DVD! Claim your FREE Rafale Cockpit DVD worth £12.49, when you subscribe to AirForces Monthly. See pages 20 and 21 for full details.

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NEWS

HEADLINES

RAF MILDENHALL TO CLOSE AND LIGHTNINGS TO LAKENHEATH

Above: US Air Force CV-22B Osprey 09-0046 from the 7th Special Operations Squadron at RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk approaches the refuelling drogue of an MC-130P Combat Shadow from the 67th Special Operations Squadron, also based at Mildenhall, on January 24 last year. Both units will move to Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, following the decision to close Mildenhall. US Air Force/Senior Airman Kate Maurer

R

OYAL AIR Force Mildenhall, Suffolk, is to close with all its resident USAF units moving primarily to Germany. The surprise announcement was made by the Pentagon on January 8. A precise closure date has not been decided, but departures are expected to begin by around 2019, subject to infrastructure at the units’ new bases being completed. Ten CV-22B Ospreys and ten MC-130J Commando IIs of US Air Force Special Operations Command’s 352nd Special Operations Group will relocate to Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany. To free up space and infrastructure for the move to the German base, the 606th Air Control Squadron will transfer from Spangdahlem to Aviano Air Base, Italy. The KC-135R Stratotankers of the 100th Air Refuelling Wing at Mildenhall will go to Ramstein Air Base, Germany. The Suffolk base is also home to the 95th Reconnaissance Squadron, which does not have its own aircraft assigned, but hosts the regular detachments of USAF RC-135 Rivet Joint intelligence-gathering aircraft. US officials have confirmed the RC-135 detachments will remain UK-based, but have not specified a base for the operations. However, personnel at Mildenhall have suggested ‘off the record’ that they are likely to fly from RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire. This would be a logical choice, given

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that this is the base for the RAF’s 51 Squadron RC-135W Rivet Joints, which already undertake joint missions with the USAF. At the same time, the Pentagon also announced that nearby RAF Lakenheath is to be the first European base to house US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIs. Two squadrons, each with 24 of the type, will be permanently deployed at the UK base. They will be delivered in phases from 2020. Basing the USAF’s first two European F-35A units near the new RAF F-35B base at RAF Marham, Norfolk, will also enhance interoperability and joint training opportunities.

Currently Lakenheath houses two squadrons of F-15E Strike Eagles and one squadron of F-15C/D Eagles as part of the 48th Fighter Wing, along with a squadron of HH-60G Pave Hawks. A final departure date for the F-15s has yet to be determined following: The US military will also shut down operations at two other UK facilities, RAF Alconbury and RAF Molesworth, both in Cambridgeshire. The former Alconbury airfield closed a decade ago and only a small enclave has remained to provide support services, while the rest of the base was sold for commercial development. Molesworth has been primarily involved in

intelligence activity along with RAF Croughton, Northamptonshire. The closure of the support and intelligence-gathering facilities at Alconbury and Molesworth will be completed in 2022 after their functions are consolidated into the expanded communications base at Croughton. The moves are part of the European Infrastructure Consolidation review, to realign several missions in US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa over seven years. These changes will also affect Lajes in the Azores where the unit will be adjusted in size to reflect the reduced level of support required, while still maintaining forces at the installation.

RAF’s 12 (B) Sqn Re-formed with Tornado GR4s ...Again

Above: RAF Tornado GR4 ZA612 ‘074’ wearing a special scheme to mark re-formation of 12 (B) Squadron. It is framed by the nose of II (AC) Squadron Typhoon FGR4 ZK344 ‘II’ during a ceremony at RAF Marham, Norfolk, on January 9, which also saw II (AC) re-roled from the Tornado to Typhoon. No 12 Squadron had previously flown the GR4, but was disbanded at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, on March 31, 2014. See also New RAF Typhoon and Tornado Squadrons, p4. MOD Crown Copyright

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RAF Typhoons Deploy for Red Flag

Above: Royal Air Force/1 (F) Squadron Typhoon FGR4s ZK340 ‘FI’ and ZK341 ‘FJ’ fly over the Grand Canyon on January 8 while en route to Exercise Red Flag 15-1 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. MOD Crown Copyright/Cpl Neil Bryden

ROYAL AIR Force Typhoon FGR4s from 1 (Fighter) Squadron, based at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray have arrived at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada to participate in Exercise Red Flag 15-1, which runs from

January 26 to February 13. Their arrival at the US base was announced by the RAF on January 15, after the 6,000 mile (9,655km) trail from Scotland, supported by a Voyager air refuelling tanker from 10/101 Squadrons at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. The tanker not only provided fuel en route, but also transported ground crew and essential equipment. The UK flight took the southern route, the norm during winter months, staging through the Azores, Bermuda and the east coast of the USA. In the two weeks at Nellis before the exercise, RAF pilots began detailed preparations, which included familiarisation with local air traffic control procedures and flying with USAF units over the Nellis training range.

Anti-ISIL Operations Gaining Momentum SIX ROYAL Moroccan Air Force F-16C/Ds have joined the forces against ISIL for missions in Iraq and Syria. The F-16s deployed to the United Arab Emirates by early December and by early January had undertaken around 20 missions. US Central Command has released details of the targets hit in the operations against ISIL up to January 7. These comprise 3,222 targets broken down into: tanks – 58; HMMWVs – 184; APCs/MRAPs – 26; technical vehicles – 303; other vehicles – 394; Artillery/AAA/mortar – 79; staging areas – 41; IED positions – 11; command posts/ C2 buildings – 16; checkpoints – 92; guard shacks – 19; Other buildings/barracks – 980; fighting positions – 673; bunkers – 52; Boats – 14; Stockpiles/caches – 23; oil infrastructure – 259. Other non-US nations involved are detailed opposite.

Coalition Forces Fighting ISIL Australia

6 x F/A-18F, 1 x E-7A Wedgetail (ISR) and 1 x KC-30A (AAR) based in the UAE.

Bahrain

4 x F-16 operating from Bahrain.

Belgium

6 x F-16 operating from Jordan.

Canada

6 x CF-18, 1 x CC-150T Polaris (AAR) and 2 x CP-140 Aurora operating from Kuwait.

Denmark

7 x F-16AM operating from Kuwait.

France

9 x Rafale, 1 x Atlantique 2 (ISR), 1 x C-135FR (AAR), operating from UAE; 1 x E-3F (ISR) based in Qatar; 1 C160 (AAR), 6 x Mirage 2000D based in Jordan.

Italy

2 x MQ-1 Predator, 1 x KC-767 (AAR), 4 x Tornado and 1 x Gulfstream III all based in Kuwait.

Jordan

4 x F-16, 1 x C-130H based in Jordan.

Morocco

6 x F-16C/D operating from UAE.

Netherlands 8 x F-16 based in Jordan. Qatar

2 x Mirage 2000 and 1 x C-130.

Saudi Arabia

4 x F-15S, 1 x E-3 (ISR), 1 x KE-3 (AAR for national use only), 4 x Tornado, 1 x Beech 200 (ISR), 4 x Typhoon all based in Saudi Arabia.

UAE

6 x F-16, 6 x Mirage 2000 operating from UAE.

UK

8 x Tornado GR4, 1 x C-130J, 1 x Voyager (AAR), 1 x RC-135W (ISR, returned home December 29) all based at RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus; plus 6 x MQ-9A (ISR) operating from Kuwait.

Chinese Naval Helicopters in Rare UK Visit

Three Chinese Navy ships arrived in Portsmouth Dockyard, Hampshire, on January 12 carrying Chinese People’s Liberation Army Naval Air Force helicopters. PLANAF Z-9 8317 (c/n Z9-0280) is pictured on board the frigate Yun Cheng as it arrived at the dockyard. It was accompanied by the assault ship Chang Bai Shan, with Z-8s 9517 and 9557 on board, plus the replenishment ship Chaohu. MOD Crown Copyright/LA(Phot) Gary Weatherston

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Brand Editor: Glenn Sands World Air Forces Correspondent: Alan Warnes Editorial contact: [email protected] Military News Editor: Dave Allport Chief Designer: Steve Donovan Assistant Chief Designer: Lee Howson Production Editor: Sue Blunt Deputy Production Editor: Carol Randall Sub Editor: Norman Wells Advertising Manager: Ian Maxwell Production Manager: Janet Watkins Group Marketing Manager: Martin Steele Mail Order Subscription Manager: Liz Ward Commercial Director: Ann Saundry Executive Chairman: Richard Cox Managing Director & Publisher: Adrian Cox Copies of AirForces Monthly can be obtained each month by placing a standing order with your newsagent. In case of difficulty, contact our Circulation Manager. Readers in USA may place subscriptions by telephone toll-free 800-676-4049 or by writing to AirForces Monthly, 3330 Pacific Ave, Ste 500, Virginia Beach, VA234519828. We are unable to guarantee the bonafides of any of our advertisers. Readers are strongly recommended to take their own precautions before parting with any information or item of value, including, but not limited to, money, manuscripts, photographs or personal information in response to any advertisements within this publication. Postmaster: Send address corrections to AirForces Monthly, Key Publishing Ltd, c/o Mail Right International Inc. 1637 Stelton Road B4, Piscataway NJ 08854. Printed in England by Warners (Midlands) plc, Bourne, Lincolnshire. AirForces Monthly (ISSN 0955 7091) is published monthly by Key Publishing Ltd and distributed in the USA by Mail Right Int., 1637 Stelton Road B4, Piscataway, NJ 08854. The entire contents of AirForces Monthly is a copyright of Key Publishing Ltd and cannot be reproduced in any form without permission. The Editor is happy to receive contributions to AirForces Monthly. Please note that all material sent to the Editor is forwarded at the contributor’s own risk. While every care is taken with material, the publishers cannot be held responsible for any loss or damage incurred. All material rates available on request. Submitted material (especially illustrations) should have the contributor’s name and address clearly marked and a stamped addressed envelope should be enclosed if it is required to be returned. All items submitted for publication are subject to our terms and conditions, which are regularly updated without prior notice and are freely available from Key Publishing Ltd or downloadable from www. keypublishing.com. All digital imagery should be at least 300dpi and 10 x 8 inches (25.4cm x 20.3cm) in size and submitted on a CD/DVD with thumbnail prints to the Editor at Key Publishing Ltd, PO Box 100, Stamford, Lincs., PE9 1XQ, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1780 755131 Fax: +44 (0)1780 757261 Subscription: [email protected] Website: www.keypublishing.com Distributed by Seymour Distribution Ltd, 2 Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PP. Tel: +44 (0)20 7429 4000 Fax: +44 (0)20 7429 4001

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UNITED KINGDOM

New RAF Typhoon and Tornado Squadrons

Final RAF Puma HC2 Upgrade EUROCOPTER ROMANIA has upgraded the last of 20 Royal Air Force Puma HC1s that it has brought up to HC2 standard. A ceremony at its facilityin Ghimbav, Brasov, on December 9 marked the end of the 22 million euro life extension programme. The final HC2, XW220, was on display wearing its construction number, 1148, taped to the rear fuselage in large white numerals. Twenty-four AF Pumas have been upgraded under a contract signed with Eurocopter (now Airbus Helicopters) on September 18, 2009, but the first four were worked on at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Marignane, France. The remaining 20 were completed in Romania over 23 months. Initial operational capability should be achieved in February this year and the type is expected to remain in service until around 2025. Enhancements incorporated into the Puma HC2 include major performance and safety improvements, including new Makila 1A1 turboshaft engines; integrating a full glass cockpit incorporating modern avionics and a flight management system; implementing a digital automatic flight control system as well as incorporating a secure communications suite, new defensive aids and ballistic protection for crew and passengers. Additionally, greater fuel capacity and lower fuel consumption will increase the operating range.

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Above: RAF/II (AC) Squadron Typhoon FGR4 ZK344 ‘II’ departs from RAF Lossiemouth on January 8 for the unit’s first sortie, a flight to RAF Marham for the re-roling event the following day. Martyn Wraight

A FIFTH Royal Air Force Typhoon squadron has been formed by re-roling an existing Tornado unit, which has now been re-badged. During an official ceremony held on January 9 at RAF Marham, Norfolk, No II (AC) Squadron, which previously operated the Tornado GR4,

formally became a Typhoon unit and will move from Marham to RAF Lossiemouth, Moray. In its place at Marham, No 12 (B) Squadron was formally re-formed on the same day to maintain a third frontline Tornado squadron. Tornado GR4 ZA612 in special 12 Sqn

New Wing Tanks and Block 7.0 Software for RAF C-130Js MANY OF THE Royal Air Force’s Hercules C4/C5 aircraft are being rotated through Marshall Aerospace in Cambridge to have new underwing fuel tanks fitted. Although a standard fit on the old RAF C-130K model, the tanks were deemed unnecessary for the C-130J due to its better fuel efficiency. However, tanks are being installed on underwing pylons between the inboard and outboard engines to give the aircraft greater range. In a separate development,

RAF Hercules C4 ZH866, which had been undergoing upgrade with the manufacturer at Marietta, Georgia, for more than two years, arrived back at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on December 4. It departed on December 9 on delivery to QinetiQ at Boscombe Down, Wiltshire. The aircraft will be used for testing of the new Block 7.0 software installed during its stay in the USA. It is reported that the modernised aircraft is designated a Hercules C6. 

Above: Royal Air Force Hercules C4 ZH872 at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on December 5 with newly installed underwing long range tanks. The aircraft was one of the last to return from Operation Herrick duties in Afghanistan, arriving back at Brize Norton on November 9. MOD Crown Copyright

markings was shown alongside 2 Squadron Typhoon FGR4, ZK344 ‘II’ at the event. The Reviewing Officer for the parade was Air Marshal Dick Garwood, who previously commanded II(AC) Squadron and had been station commander of RAF Marham.

RAF Chinooks Stay in Afghanistan, Pumas Due Soon THREE ROYAL Air Force Chinook helicopters have been retained in Afghanistan, becoming the only UK air assets confirmed to be in the country. Previously operating in Helmand Province with 1310 Flight, and based at Camp Bastion, they have been relocated to Kabul. The move follows the final withdrawal of UK troops on October 27 last year. Confirming the move in a written answer in Parliament on December 9, Mark Francois, Minister of State for the Armed Forces, said: “There are three Chinook helicopters and 51 associated personnel within the aviation detachment deployed in Kabul in support of the UK’s contribution to the NATO Resolute Support mission.” He also added that: “In 2015 these will be replaced by three Puma HC2 helicopters, which will remain until the mission concludes.” They will support NATO personnel who have remained in the country for the train, advise and assist mission.

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Flybe Finalises RAF Rivet Joint Returns from Maiden Deployment MRO Contract for RAF A400M Fleet UK-BASED commercial airline Flybe has finalised an agreement to provide airframe-related maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for the Royal Air Force’s new A400M Atlas airlifter fleet at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. The company announced the deal with Airbus Defence and Space on December 22, saying that the contract with its MRO subsidiary Flybe Aviation Services will extend over a period of eight and a half years. The company announced on July 16 last year that it was selected as preferred bidder by Airbus to provide MRO services for the RAF A400Ms, following a competitive tender process (see Flybe to Maintain RAF A400Ms, September 2014, p8). Flybe will primarily undertake base maintenance in support of Airbus’s own line and fleet management, and material support activities, contributing to the delivery of a fully integrated support service at the A400M’s main operating base at Brize Norton. The RAF has ordered 22 A400Ms with an operating life expectancy with the RAF of around 35 years.

Above: RAF/51 Squadron RC-135W Rivet Joint ZZ664 arrives at RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk, after its six-month, maiden overseas deployment. David Macks

ROYAL AIR Force Boeing RC-135W Rivet Joint ZZ664 has returned home after its first operational deployment. The aircraft flew back to RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk, landing on December 29 around 0930hrs, using callsign ‘Ascot 7210’. Operated by 51 Squadron and normally based at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire,

it will remain temporarily based at Mildenhall when not deployed, due to the closure of Waddington for runway work. The aircraft had departed from Waddington on July 14 for its first overseas deployment, believed to have been to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar. It has been on surveillance missions over Iraq in conjunction

with the US Air Force’s 763rd Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron, which maintains a detachment of around five Rivet Joints at Al Udeid as part of the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing. The aircraft routed home from its six-month maiden deployment via RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, arriving on December 28 for a night-stop before continuing on to Mildenhall.

Two More MC-130Js Delivered to Mildenhall TWO LOCKHEED Martin MC-130J Commando IIs have arrived in the UK at RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk, to join the USAF's 352nd Special Operations Group/67th Special Operations Squadron ‘Night Owls’. They departed from Marietta, Georgia, to begin the delivery flights, on December 5. First to arrive at Mildenhall

was 12-5760 (c/n 5760), callsign ‘Singe 42’, which flew in on December 7 from St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It was followed by 12-5759 (c/n 5759), callsign ‘Singe 41’, which had arrived on December 10 at St John’s before continuing to Mildenhall the next day.

Seven MC-130Js are now operated by the 67th SOS, comprising 10-5714, 11-5731, 11-5733, 11-5737, 12-5757, 12-5759 and 12-5760. The unit will eventually have 12 of the type, but will move to Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, due to the planned closure of Mildenhall (see headline story).

Third Royal Air Force A400M Atlas Flown

Above: The third Royal Air Force A400M Atlas, ZM402/A4M017 (c/n 017), turns on the runway at Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain, on December 23, before its maiden flight. Antonio Muñiz Zaragüeta

AIRBUS DEFENCE and Space has undertaken the maiden flight of the third A400M Atlas for the Royal Air Force. The aircraft, ZM402/A4M017 (c/n

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017), was airborne for the first time on December 23 at Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain. The second RAF A400M, ZM401 (c/n 0016) made its

maiden flight from Seville on October 23 last year. To date only the first RAF aircraft, ZM400 (c/n 0015), has been delivered, arriving at RAF

Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on November 17. As AFM closed for press, the second aircraft had still not arrived at Brize Norton, but was expected shortly.

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HEADLINES CONTINENTAL EUROPE Netherlands, Norway and Poland Plan Joint A330 MRTT Fleet THREE EUROPEAN nations, the Netherlands, Norway and Poland, plan to acquire a pooled fleet of A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT) aircraft. Announcing the decision on December 19, the European Defence Agency (EDA) said the countries would begin negotiations with Airbus Defence and Space, through the OCCAR acqusition agency, regarding a possible purchase. A day earlier, Dutch Defence Minister Jeanine HennisPlasschaert, confirmed in a letter to the House of Representatives that the plan involved acquisition of a fleet of four aircraft. She said the three nations hoped to sign a contract for them in 2016. EDA said an initial operating capability is expected in 2019. Hennis-Plasschaert said it was hoped to have the aircraft fully operational by 2020, when the two Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) KDC-10 tankers were scheduled for retirement. Eindhoven Air Base in the Netherlands, where the current RNLAF KDC-10s are based, is expected to be home for the new aircraft, although no final decision has been made. The three countries would welcome other nations who may wish to join the initiative, either before procurement or afterwards. After research, it was determined the A330 MRTT was the only off-the-shelf solution, which met their key requirements. EDA stated the “engagement in further negotiations does not constitute a commitment by EDA, NSPA, OCCAR, or the participating nations, to place an order; either as a result of this dialogue or at a subsequent stage”. A single configuration has been selected. All will have a rigid boom as well as underwing pods, allowing a wide variety of receivers to be refuelled. The aircraft will also meet the users’ requirements in terms of passenger transport, strategic airlift and medical evacuation. By developing synergies with similar fleets, the nations will further contribute to a reduced fragmentation and increased interoperability of air-to-air refuelling aircraft in Europe, the EDA said.

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Baltic Air Policing Mission Change-Overs

Above: A Belgian Defence-Air Component F-16AM arrives at Malbork Air Base, Poland, on January 7 to join the Baltic Air Policing mission. Belgian Defence

A CHANGE-OVER of fighters in the expanded Baltic Air Policing mission took place over the new year. Four Aeronautica Militare Italiana (AMI – Italian Air Force) Eurofighter Typhoons landed at Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania, on December 28. The aircraft, from 4° Stormo at Grosseto, officially began the mission on January 1, marking the first involvement of AMI aircraft. An AMI Boeing KC-767 supported the deployment. The Italian Typhoons will be on patrol for four months. They replace four Força Aérea Portuguesa (FAP - Portuguese Air Force) F-16s, which left on January 1, having undertaken more than 70 intercept missions during their four-month detachment. Arriving at Ämari Air Base, Estonia, on December 29 were four Ejército del Aire (EdA – Spanish Air Force) Eurofighter

Typhoons from Ala 11 at Moron de la Frontera. On December 28 an EdA C-130H Hercules from Ala 31 at Zaragoza flew maintenance personnel and equipment to Amari and EdA Boeing 707-368C T.17-3 ’47-03’, from Grupo 47/471 Escuadrón at Torrejón, came with the Eurofighters the next day. They replace four Luftwaffe (German Air Force) Eurofighters from Taktischen Luftwaffengeschwader 74 (Tactical Air Force Squadron 74) at Neuburg, which went to Ämari on August 28 last year, before formally taking over the mission on September 1. These aircraft have now returned to Germany. Spain last provided aircraft for the Baltic Air Policing mission in 2006 when EdA Mirage F1Ms from Ala 14 at Albacete were deployed to Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania. On January 7, a detachment

of six Belgian Defence-Air Component F-16AMs arrived at 22 Bazy Lotnictwa Taktycznego (Tactical Air Base) Malbork, Poland. They will strengthen the Baltic Air Policing contingent and carry out joint training with Polish military units. The mission at Siauliai had also been supported by four Royal Canadian Air Force CF-18 Hornets which were replaced on January 8 when four Polish Air Force MiG-29s arrived from Minsk-Mazowiecki Air Base. They will also be undertaking a four-month stint on the mission. NATO strengthened the air policing mission earlier last year in response to worsening relations with Russia after the annexation of the Crimea and in order to reinforce security in former Warsaw Pact countries bordering the Baltic region.

Spanish Typhoon Testing Taurus KEPD 350

Ejército del Aire (Spanish Air Force) development Typhoon C.16-20 ’11-91’ (IPA4) landing at Getafe Air Base, Spain, on January 9 carrying a dummy Taurus KEPD 350 cruise missile. The Spanish Government announced the purchase of 46 of these air-to-surface weapons on June 24, 2005. The first two were delivered in October 2007 but had not previously been seen fitted to Spanish Typhoons. At present the missile is only in the inventory of the EF-18 Hornets of Ala 12 and Ala 15. Roberto Yáñez

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Greek Army to Acquire Ten CH-47D Chinooks US STATE Department approval has been granted for a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Greek Army of ten surplus US Army CH-47D Chinooks at a total cost of $150 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the approval on December 11 when notifying Congress of the possible sale. The DSCA said the deal would also include three spare T55-GA-714A engines, 12 AN/AAR-57 common missile warning systems (ten installed and two spares), 12 AN/ ARC-220 HF radios, 12 AN/ ARC-186 VHF)AM/FM radios, 12 AN/ARC-164 UHF-AM, 12 AN/ARN 123 VOR ILS marker beacons, 12 AN/ARN-89 or AN/ARN-149 direction finder sets, 12 AN/ASN-128 Doppler/ GPS navigation sets, 12 AN/ ARC-201D or AN/ARC-201E VHF FM homing radios, 12 AN/APX-118 transponders, 3 AN/APX-118A transponders and 12 AN/APR-39A(V)1 radar signal detecting sets. The Hellenic Army already operates the Chinook, having taken delivery of ten CH-47Cs from 1980. One was lost in a crash on May 25, 1984. Between 1989 and 1991 the nine survivors were upgraded to CH-47Ds. All remain in service and were joined from 2001 by seven CH-47DGs. One of the latter was lost on September 11, 2004 in a crash killing 17 on board.

Luftwaffe’s First A400M Delivered DELIVERY OF the first Luftwaffe A400M Atlas, 54+01 (c/n 0018), to its new home base at Wunstorf has been completed. The aircraft arrived on the afternoon of December 19 from the factory at Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain, after officially being handed over the previous day in Seville. It was flown to Wunstorf by Lt Col Christian Schott and Captain Mirco Friese, who had already trained on the type at Seville. The aircraft

joins Lufttransportgeschwader 62 (LTG62 – Air Transport Wing 62) and begins the replacement of the unit’s Transall C160Ds. The Transall fleet is operated by three Wings, comprising LTG61 at Landsberg, LTG62 at Wunstorf and LTG63 at Hohn. LTG61 and LTG63 will not re-equip with the new type. Their Transalls will retire and the Wings disband. LTG62 at Wunstorf will operate the

The first Luftwaffe A400M Atlas, 54+01 (c/n 0018), lands at its new home base at Wunstorf after being ferried from the factory at Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain. Bundeswehr

Saab Awarded Czech Gripen Lease Extension Contract SAAB HAS received an order from the Swedish Försvarets Materielverk (FMV – Defence Materiel Administration) for the extended lease of Gripens from Sweden to the Czech Republic. It provides for continuing support and upgrade of the aircraft for a further 12 years. The order, announced on December 11, is valued at about SEK 576 million ($76.76 million). The Gripen has been leased to the Czechs since 2005 and on May 16, 2014 a new agreement with Sweden extended the partnership for a further 12

years. The Czech Air Force will continue to operate 14 Gripen C/ Ds until at least 2027. Under the terms of the agreement, Saab acts as a supplier to FMV, which in turn provides the aircraft. The new agreement includes hardware modification and systems upgrades increasing the aircraft’s capabilities. Also included are several years of support by FMV. Work to develop and adapt new mission software to meet Czech requirements will begin immediately and aircraft modifications will be implemented in about one year’s time.

Second Armed Forces of Malta AW139 Delivered A SECOND AgustaWestland AW139 has been delivered to the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) Air Wing. The new production helicopter, AS1429/I-EASI (c/n 31595), was flown to the AFM Air Wing’s base at Luqa-Malta International Airport on December 18. It was escorted by the first AFM AW139, AS1428 (c/n 31560, ex I-EASZ). The new helicopter will be used for maritime patrol, border control and search and rescue missions. Its equipment includes a highdefinition FLIR system, search/ weather radar, naval transponder, searchlight, cabin mission console, satellite communications system, four-axis autopilot with SAR mode, external rescue hoist

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entire fleet of 40 A400Ms flown by the Luftwaffe. Officially, 53 aircraft are still on order, but the German government indicated several years ago it only plans to operate 40 and will attempt to find buyers for the other 13 aircraft.

and four-bag flotation system. An order for the AFM’s first AW139, which also included options on two more, was announced on July 19, 2013. The first helicopter was delivered

to Malta on June 14, 2014 and formally inaugurated into service on August 6. AgustaWestland confirmed on April 10, 2014 the first of the two options had been converted into a firm order.

The second Armed Forces of Malta Air Wing AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter, AS1429/I-EASI (c/n 31595), arriving over Malta on December 18 after its delivery flight from the factory in Italy. AFM/Justin Gatt

Norway Retires Last Two Lynx THE ROYAL Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) has retired its last two operational Westland Lynx Mk 86s after more than three decades of operation. The final operational mission took place on December 7 when Lynx 207 landed on the Norwegian Kystvakt (Coast Guard) icebreaker and offshore patrol vessel KV Svalbard (W303) outside Sortland. Of the final two in service, 207 had accumulated 9,200 flying hours, making it the Lynx with the longest overall flight time worldwide. It had been the first of the six Lynx originally built for Norway. They were operated by the RNoAF’s 337 Skvadron at Bardufoss Flystasjon (Flying Station) on behalf of the Coast Guard. On December 9, 207 flew out of Bardufoss for the final time, departing to Bodø Main Air Station, where it will be placed on display in the Norsk Luftfartsmuseum. The other active Lynx, 228, departed from Bardufoss on December 8 to join the Luftforsvarets Skolesenter (Armed Forces Aviation School) at Kjevik as a ground instructional airframe. Six Lynx Mk 86s were delivered to the RNoAF from October 1981 onwards. In recent years they were progressively withdrawn from service as they came up for major overhaul.

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CONTINENTAL EUROPE Bids in for Polish 70 Helicopter Requirement POLAND’S MINISTRY of National Defence has received three bids for its tender to acquire 70 new medium helicopters for its armed forces. According to a ministry announcement on December 30 the bidders are the EC725 Caracal Polska consortium (comprising Airbus Helicopters and Heli Invest Sp); a consortium of Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, Sikorsky International Operations and PZL; and AgustaWestland subsidiary PZL Swidnik SA. Airbus Helicopters is offering the EC725 Caracal, Sikorsky the S-70i Black Hawk and PZL ´ Swidnik the AgustaWestland AW149. The tenders will now be examined in detail and selection of a winner will be based on the bids submitted, offsets proposed and flight testing of each candidate helicopter. A contract to supply the helicopters will be concluded later this year. The requirement is for various versions of a common platform, with the helicopters to be split between 48 tactical transports for the army and ten SAR helicopters for the air force plus six ASW and six maritime SAR models for the navy. Poland is seeking delivery of all 70 by 2022, enabling the phase-out of elderly Soviet-era types.

First Italian Air Force ATR72-600MP Flying

Above: The first of four ATR72MPs for the Italian Air Force, C.S.X62279, test flying on December 23 from Turin-Caselle Airport, Italy. Aerials and sensor housings on the aircraft are clearly apparent. Marco Rossi

ALENIA AERMACCHI has begun flight testing the first of four ATR72MP maritime patrol aircraft (MPAs) on order for launch customer the Aeronautica Militare Italiana (AMI, Italian Air Force). The aircraft, C.S.X62279, was first noted test flying on December 23 from Turin-Caselle Airport, Italy. Originally flown as a green ATR72-600, F-WWLN (c/n 940), on July 18, 2011, at Toulouse, France, it was later delivered to Alenia Aermacchi for MPA conversion. A contract for four was announced on December 22, 2008, with plans to base them on the ATR72-500. But following development of the ATR72-600, it was decided to base the MPA on the new variant. The aircraft will replace Italy’s Breguet Atlantic aircraft. Initially they will be equipped with basic MPA capabilities until funding is available to upgrade them to a full multi-mission aircraft. The first version will be equipped primarily for maritime patrol (search and identification of vessels), search and rescue,

environmental monitoring and territorial waters security. The basic aircraft, however, already includes an array of sensors and equipment, including a self-protection suite similar to that on the C-27J Spartan (incorporating chaff and flare dispensers), radar/missile and laser warning and the Selex ES Airborne Tactical Observation and Surveillance (ATOS) mission system. The latter is based on three main sensors (Star Sapphire HD electro-optical turret, Selex ES Seaspray 7000E electronically-scanned array radar and Elettronica electronic support measures), fully integrated within the mission system and with the flight avionics. The configuration also includes an automatic identification system (AIS), secure communication systems (Link 11/16) and broadband satellite systems to share information in real time with other platforms (in the air and on the surface) or with command and control centres. Marco Rossi

Second Turkish Air Force A400M Delivered

The Turkish Air Force’s second A400M, 13-0013/A4M013 (c/n 013), parks alongside the first after its delivery flight to Kayseri on December 23. THK

AIRBUS DEFENCE and Space has delivered a second A400M airlifter to the Türk Hava Kuvvetleri (THK, Turkish Air Force). The aircraft, 13-0013 (c/n 013, ex A4M013), was handed over at Seville-

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San Pablo Airport, Spain, on December 22 before being flown to Kayseri-Erkilet the next day. It has joined 221 Filo ‘Esen’ at 12nci Hava Ulastirma Ana Us Komutanligi (Air Transport Air

Base Command) base Kayseri. The unit already operates the first Turkish A400M, 13-0009 (c/n 009), which was accepted on April 4 last year and delivered to Kayseri on April 16.

RNLAF AB412SPs Retired ALL THREE of the Royal Netherlands Air Force’s (RNLAF’s) Agusta-Bell 412SPs were officially withdrawn from service on January 1. The helicopters had been operated by 303 Squadron at Leeuwarden on search and rescue duties, a role due to be taken over by new NH90s coming into service. The AB412SPs had been in RNLAF service since December 1993 and involved in almost 5,500 life-saving and emergency flights. Last year alone they carried out more than 230 patient transport flights, searches for missing persons and SAR tasks. They had routinely been used for patient transfer missions when not involved in SAR missions. But the replacement NH90s are fully committed and do not have this spare capacity. In the interim, two Cougar transport helicopters from 300 Squadron at Leeuwarden will be available for the role until a permanent solution is in place. Since the beginning of this year, helicopters from Belgian commercial operator Noordzee Helikopters Vlaanderen (NHV) have taken over the AB412s’ SAR duties due to delays in introducing the NH90. NHV had already been undertaking night SAR operations on behalf of the Dutch defence ministry since July 2011 because of the lack of the required night-vision equipment on the AB412s. Disposal of the AB412SPs – R-01, R-02 and R-03 – is already being negotiated. They are to be sold to Peru’s Aviación Naval, along with a large spares holding and training package.

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Turkey Approves More F-35As and CH-47Fs TURKEY approved the purchase of an additional four Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters and five more Boeing CH-47F Chinook helicopters at a committee meeting of the Savunma Sanayii Müste˛sarlı gˇ ı (SSM – Undersecretariat for Defence Industries) on January 7. The four F-35As supplement two already ordered. It was also confirmed that the planned total procurement for the Turkish Air Force remains at 100 aircraft. The five Chinooks will add to six already ordered for the Turkish Army.

Two US Army C-23 Sherpas for Estonia

TWO retired US Army Shorts C-23 Sherpas are to be transferred to the Estonian Air Force to replace two An-2 biplanes in the light transport role. The aircraft will be donated free of charge as Excess Defence Articles, according to US Army Security Assistance Command spokeswoman Kim Gillespie, talking to Inside the Army on December 15. Seven pilots currently assigned to the An-2s will shortly begin conversion training and delivery of the Sherpas is expected later this year, once aircrew and maintenance personnel have been trained.

Second German Tranche 3A Typhoon Flown

Above: Germany’s second Tranche 3A Typhoon, 31+32 (GS092), lands at Manching after its first flight on December 15. Dietmar Fenners

A SECOND German Air Force Tranche 3A Eurofighter Typhoon, 31+32 (GS092), has begun flight testing. The aircraft made its first flight from Manching, Germany, on December 15. Germany’s first Tranche 3A model, 31+29 (GS089), had

made its maiden flight on November 19, also at Manching. The first Tranche 3 Eurofighter – single-seat Royal Air Force Typhoon FGR4 ZK355 (BS116, c/n 417) – flew for the first time on December 2, 2013 at BAE Systems’ facility in Warton,

Italian Air Force Orders Three More T-346A Masters A FURTHER three AleniaAermacchi M-346 advanced trainer aircraft have been ordered for the Aeronautica Militare Italiana (AMI, Italian Air Force), which designates the type the T-346A. A contract for them was signed between Alenia Aermacchi and Armaero, Italy’s National Armaments Directorate, in Rome on December 22. Including a ground-based

training system and logistic support, the contract – valued at 120 million euros – is part of a wider agreement signed in 2009 for the eventual supply of 15 M-346s to the AMI. The contract signed at that time was for a first tranche of six aircraft and related flight simulators. The T-346As are flown by 61° Stormo at Lecce, where the AMI flight training school is based.

RAF A400M’s First Visit to Gibraltar

Above: Royal Air Force A400M Atlas ZM400, callsign ‘RRR4015’, departing RAF Gibraltar early on December 31 after arriving the previous day, using callsign ‘RRR4014’ – the first visit to the base by an RAF A400M. The aircraft also visited RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus, on December 15-16 as part of a series of sorties to ensure RAF bases are capable of handling the new type. Moses Anahory

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Lancashire (see Maiden Flight of First Tranche 3 Typhoon, January 2014, p6). It was followed by the first Italian example, C.S.X7338 (IS064), on July 11, 2014 at Turin-Caselle, Italy (see First Italian Tranche 3 Typhoon Flown, September 2014, p12).

More Reapers for France This Year FRANCE is to buy three more General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper unmanned air vehicles during 2015, according to French defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. He revealed the acquisition on January 2 during a visit to the Armée de l’Air’s (French Air Force’s) Base Aérienne 101 Niamey, Niger. He said the purchase will comprise one system, made up of three air vehicles and one ground control station. Currently the Armée de l’Air has two Reapers, both based at Niamey with the Escadron de Drones 1/33 (ED.1/33) ‘Belfort’ detachment as part of Operation Barkhane, the mission against Islamist factions in Africa’s Sahel region. The third is to be operational at Naimey by the end of March 2015, said the minister. As part of French military plans until 2019, the Reaper fleet was expected to grow to 12 – but it had not been planned to order any more until 2017. During December, however, Armée de l’Air Chief of Staff Denis Mercier requested faster deliveries to meet increased requirements in Africa.

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CONTINENTAL EUROPE ALAT’s First Two Tiger HAD Block 2s Delivered Netherlands to AIRBUS HELICOPTERS has initially be operated by Groupe to 1 Regiment d’Hélicoptères Order First Eight delivered the first two Tigre Aéromobilité de la Section de Combat (1 RHC – 1st Army Hélicoptère d’Appui-Destruction Technique de l’Armée de Terre Combat Helicopter Regiment) at Operational F-35As (HAD – Attack and Support (GAMSTAT – Aeromobility Group Phalsbourg in France’s Moselle AN INITIAL batch of eight operational Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIs is to be ordered for the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF), with deliveries starting from 2019. Dutch Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert and Minister of Economic Affairs Henk Kamp said in a written statement to the Dutch Lower House on December 15 the acquisition would fit within the previously established financial framework for the RNLAF F-35 programme. It was confirmed the total acquisition would still be 37 aircraft. Five would remain in the USA for training and testing (two of these have been delivered), with the others based at either Leeuwarden or Volkel air bases. In the second half of 2019, the first two F-35As will be delivered to Leeuwarden, while the first for Volkel will arrive in 2021. The full fleet is expected to be available for operations by 2024, which will enable four aircraft to be simultaneously and continuously deployed with nine pilots for overseas missions. This will be in addition to the standing commitment to monitor national and allied airspace. Between 2019 and 2022, it is planned to deliver eight F-35As per year to the RNLAF, while the final three will follow in 2023. As more F-35As are delivered, the RNLAF F-16 fleet will be progressively wound down. The current 61 aircraft will be reduced to 45 by 2021 and then 24 in 2023, followed by retirement of the final F-16s in 2024.

News Brief ROMANIA HAS taken delivery of its seventh and final C-27J Spartan. The aircraft, 2707 (c/n 4175, ex C.S X62289), was delivered to Otopeni Air Base, Bucharest, on January 12. The seven C-27Js for the Romanian Air Force were ordered under a contract announced on December 7, 2007. The first two were delivered on April 12, 2010. Prior to the arrival of the final aircraft, the most recent delivery, of the sixth aircraft, had been on October 9, 2013.

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Helicopter) Block 2 variants. Hand over to the French Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre (ALAT – Army Aviation Corps) took place on December 11. This latest version received qualification from the Direction Générale de l’Armement (DGA – General Directorate of Armaments) on November 21. They join earlier variants already in ALAT service. Block 2 Tigres are enhanced to offer the full capacity of the HAD version, including improved targeting accuracy for rockets, the addition of combat external fuel tanks, an extension of the flight domain in which Spike and Hellfire anti-tank missiles can be fired, and the integration of digital communications. The HAD Block 2 helicopters are also navalised, allowing their use from ships and in sea environments. Airbus Helicopters has delivered more than 110 Tiger helicopters to France, Germany, Spain and Australia, a total which includes six HAD Block 1 attack helicopters for the ALAT, along with 40 in the HAP support and escort configuration. The HAD Block 2 aircraft will

of the Technical Section of the French Army), then assigned

region. This unit already operates HAD Block 1 helicopters.

Above: One of the first two Tigre Hélicoptère d’Appui-Destruction (HAD – Attack and Support Helicopter) Block 2 variants delivered to the Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre (ALAT – Army Aviation Corps) on December 11. Airbus Helicopters/Jerome Deulin

Agreement on Resumption of Dutch NH90 Deliveries DELIVERY OF the last seven NH90 NFHs to the Netherlands is to be resumed - it was postponed last year due to corrosion and wear on in-service helicopters being much greater than expected (see Corrosion Issues Delay Last Seven Dutch NH90 Deliveries, August 2014, p8). The decision to accept the remaining NH90s was announced in a letter to parliament from Dutch Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-

Plasschaert on December 15. She had announced suspension of deliveries on June 27, but new agreements with NHIndustries have made her confident the programme can continue. The Netherlands received 13 NH90s of the 20 on order before deliveries were halted. NHI and the Dutch MOD carried out extensive analysis of the problems and established a ‘roadmap’ to resolve them.

It has been agreed the manufacturer will accept responsibility for the faults and cover all costs incurred in the development of modifications, repair of corrosion damage and design of preventative measures. There have been 100 points identified causing excessive corrosion to the NH90 when at sea. Solutions have been identified for 75 of them and the rest should be resolved shortly.

Anonymous UAE C-17A Visits Cologne

United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence C-17A Globemaster III 1226 landing on Janaury 7 at Cologne, Germany. The aircraft had all its nationality markings taped out, for reasons unknown. Two days earlier, the aircraft had visited Milan-Malpensa, Italy, also with its marks obscured, to pick up two new AW139 helicopters. Oliver Jonischkeit

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NORTH AMERICA Ten More C-130Js Due in Service LOCKHEED MARTIN has gained a US Air Force contract for the purchase of two MC-130J Commando IIs, two HC-130J Combat King IIs, three KC-130J Super Hercules (for the US Marine Corps) and one C-130J, plus two US Coast Guard HC-130Js. The $662 million deal, which was awarded on December 31 by the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is a modification to the $8.53 billion C-130 Five-Year Option Contract IV that was awarded to the manufacturer on March 16, 2011. This covered a planned acquisition of an estimated 150 C-130Js of various variants between February 1, 2011 and January 31, 2016. The new award also includes 20 quick engine change assemblies. Expected completion date for the contract is January 31, 2018. Financing for the deal comes from Fiscal Year 2013 US Air Force and US Navy, plus Fiscal Year 2013 and 2014 US Coast Guard procurement funds. Also included are Foreign Military Sales to India, Norway and Saudi Arabia.

USAF KC-46A Pegasus Maiden Flight

Above: THe first of four US Air Force Boeing KC-46A Pegasus development aircraft, 767-2C N461FT (c/n 41273), during its maiden flight on December 28 from Paine Field, Everett, Washington. Boeing

MAIDEN FLIGHT of the first of four US Air Force Boeing KC-46A Pegasus development aircraft, N461FT (c/n 41273), has finally taken place. The aircraft took to the air at 0929hrs PST on December 28 from Paine Field, Everett, Washington, for a 3hrs 32mins flight which ended at Boeing Field. The flight had been scheduled for June last year but was delayed after problems emerged with the KC-46A’s wiring bundles. It was determined they did not comply with USAF requirements on separation distance and shielding, which required double

or triple-redundant systems for some mission systems. This first prototype is a basic Boeing 767-2C commercial freighter, with the fuselage of the 767-200ER, wings of the 767-300, stabilisers and flight deck of 767-400ER and cockpit displays of the 787 Dreamliner. Addition of a fly-by-wire refuelling boom, military avionics and self-protection systems, plus a remote aerial refuelling operator station, will later bring the aircraft up to full KC-46A configuration. The second airframe will be to full KC-46A tanker standard and is scheduled to fly in April. The third

Luke’s F-16Ds Back in the Air US AIR Force aircraft maintainers are slowly returning two-seat F-16D Fighting Falcons to the air as they complete repairs to canopysill longeron cracks between the front and rear seats of the aircraft. The USAF grounded more than half of its 157 F-16Ds in service following discovery of the cracks

in July last year during routine post-mission flight inspections by the 56th Maintenance Group at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona. An inspection of the entire fleet found cracks in 82 aircraft, resulting in them being grounded for repairs. Seventy-five F-16Ds remained on flight status after

being found to be safe. The longeron is a major structural component carrying significant loads during dynamic flight operations of the F-16. Of the 82 aircraft in which problems were found, 32 belonged to the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke AFB.

Above: US Air Force F-16D Fighting Falcon 89-2157 ‘LF’ from the 54th Fighter Group/311th Fighter Squadron ‘Sidewinders’ undergoes repairs to cracked cockpit longerons on December 11 last year. This is one of the last aircraft to be repaired at Luke AFB. US Air Force/Staff Sgt Luther Mitchell Jr

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airframe is another basic 767-2C, while the fourth will be the second KC-46A. Once Federal Aviation Authority Supplemental Type Certification has been achieved for the 767-2C variant, the two basic aircraft will also be modified to KC-46A standard to join the USAF flight test programme. Following the four development airframes, the USAF plans to purchase a further 175 KC-46As, all to be delivered by 2028. First production delivery to the USAF is planned for early 2016, with the contract specifying 18 combat-ready aircraft are to be in service by the end of August 2017. 

Two USAF C-17A Squadrons to be Inactivated US AIR Force Air Mobility Command (AMC) is to inactivate two C-17A Globemaster III squadrons over the next two years. Confirming the decision on December 20, AMC said the cuts were necessary, based on the FY2015 defence budget . The two units to be inactivated are the 437th Airlift Wing’s 17th Airlift Squadron at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, and 62nd AW’s 10th AS at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington. The FY15 budget converts 16 AMC C-17s (eight from each base) from primary mission aircraft inventory to back-up aircraft inventory (BAI). As a result, AMC will inactivate the 17th AS in FY 15, followed by the 10th AS in FY 16. No manpower or flying hours are assigned to BAI aircraft but they continue to receive support funding.

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First USMC F-35C Variant Handed Over

Above: The 36th F-35 Lightning II delivered last year was 169031 ‘NJ-114’ (CF-19), the US Marine Corps’ first F-35C carrier variant. The jet will be assigned to the US Navy’s Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA-101) ‘Grim Reapers’ at the 33rd Fighter Wing, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. Lockheed Martin

LOCKHEED MARTIN has delivered the US Marine Corps’ first F-35C Lightning II carrier variant. The aircraft, 169031 ‘NJ-114’ (CF-19), was officially handed over on December 22 before being flown to Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, to join the US Navy’s Strike Fighter Squadron 101 (VFA-101) ‘Grim Reapers’. Until now, all previous USMC The 36 F-35 deliveries during 2014 comprised: 23 F-35A – US Air Force 2 F-35A – Royal Australian Air Force (first two) 4 F-35B – US Marine Corps 7 F-35C – US Navy and US Marine Corps (first carrier variant) These aircraft are assigned as follows: 19 – Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.

deliveries had been of the STOVL F-35B variant. The USMC eventually plans to acquire a total of 80 F-35Cs. The aircraft was the final F-35 to be accepted by the US Department of Defense last year, meeting the programme production goal for 2014 of 36 aircraft. Deliveries had been accelerated in recent months to

catch up after delays caused by the grounding of the type earlier in the year following the previously reported engine fire on the ground involving a US Air Force aircraft on June 23 at Eglin AFB, Florida, (see Headlines, August 2014, p5). Overall deliveries of operational F-35s to US and partner nations now total 109 aircraft since the programme’s inception.

14 – Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. 2 – Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, South Carolina. 1 – Marine Corps Air Station, Yuma, Arizona. USAF F-35As at Luke: The total number of F-35As at Luke has now reached 19, comprising two RAAF examples, A35-001 and A34-002, plus 17 with the US Air Force’s 61st

Fighter Squadron ‘Top Dogs’ and comprising: 11-5030 ‘LF’/‘61 FS’, 11-5031 ‘LF’/‘56 OG’, 11-5035 ‘LF’, 11-5036 ‘LF’, 11-5037 ‘LF’, 11-5038 ‘LF’, 11-5039 ‘LF’, 11-5040 ‘LF’, 11-5041 ‘LF’, 12-5042 ‘LF’, 12-5043 ‘LF’, 12-5044 ‘LF’, 12-5045 ‘LF’, 12-5046 ‘LF’, 12-5047 ‘LF’, 12-5048 ‘LF’ and 12-5050 ‘LF’/‘61 FS’.

First F-15E Now in Storage at AMARG

Above: The first production F-15E Strike Eagle, 86-0183, arriving for storage with the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, on December 18. The aircraft, which is the first F-15E to arrive at AMARG, had been retained by Boeing as a trials aircraft at St Louis, Missouri, ever since its maiden flight on December 11, 1986. USAF/309th AMARG

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Canada to Buy Additional C-17A CANADA HAS confirmed that it is to purchase a fifth CC-177 (C-17A) Globemaster III. Minister for Defence Rob Nicholson announced the decision on December 19, during a visit to Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ontario, the home of the current CC-177 fleet, which is operated by 429 Transport Squadron as part of 8 Wing. He said that the additional CC-177 will improve the Canadian Armed Forces’ response capability to both domestic and international emergencies and provide support to a variety of missions, including humanitarian assistance, peacekeeping support and combat. The additional Globemaster will ease the burden on the current Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) fleet and extend the life expectancy of the entire fleet by about seven and a half years, said Nicholson. With the purchase of an additional aircraft, the RCAF is projected to have at least three CC-177s available more than 90% of the time to respond to concurrent international or domestic crises. This represents an increase of approximately 25%. The current fleet of CC-177s have been playing an integral role in ferrying supplies and troops to Kuwait to establish and resupply the Canadian camp through Operation Impact. It has also delivered essential armaments and materiel to CF-18s deployed in Lithuania in support of NATO as part of Operation Reassurance and the international response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The CC-177s have also been used domestically to provide support to Operation Nanook where they transported both equipment and personnel in Canada’s largest arctic sovereignty operation, and on Operation Boxtop, where they provide a critical lifeline and resupplies on a semi-annual basis Canadian Forces Station Alert. Using existing defence budgets, the acquisition project cost is estimated at CDN$415 million (US$357.6 million), in addition to 12 years of integrated in-service support valued at CDN$30 million (US$25.85 million).

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NORTH AMERICA Draken International Acquires BAE Systems Skyhawks FLORIDA-BASED Draken International has expanded its fleet of A-4 Skyhawks with six A-4N models from BAE Systems. They had previously been based at Wittmund Air Base, Germany, supporting German armed forces requirements, but became surplus when Discovery Air Defence Services took over the contract. The A-4Ns were flown from Germany to the US via Glasgow/ Prestwick Airport, Scotland, in December (see Skyhawk Junction, January, p12-13) and will join eight A-4K Skyhawks previously purchased from New Zealand – bringing Draken International’s fleet to a total of 14 of the type. The aircraft are: N262WL (c/n 14465, ex 444/ Israeli DFAF, 159545/USN) N268WL (c/n 14450, ex ?/ IDFAF, 159530/US Navy) N431FS (c/n 15405, ex 305/IDFAF, 159805/USN) N432FS (c/n 14462, ex 432/IDFAF, 159542/USN), N434FS (c/n 14514, ex 373/ IDFAF, 159815/USN) N437FS (c/n 14384, ex 335/IDFAF, 159078/USN). Draken International maintains the largest privately owned fleet of tactical jet aircraft in the world with more than 80 aircraft – including A-4 Skyhawks, MB-339s, MiG-21s, L-39s and L-159E ALCAs. The fleet is based at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Florida.

Second US Coast Guard C-27J Delivered

Above: Former USAF C-27J Spartan 2707 (c/n 4154, ex-USAF/09-27016) departing Davis-Monthan Air Force Base on December 18 for delivery to the US Coast Guard. It was flown to the USCG Aviation Logistics Center at Elizabeth City, North Carolina. USAF/309th AMARG

A SECOND former US Air Force C-27J Spartan has been delivered to the US Coast Guard (USCG). The aircraft – USCG serial 2707 (c/n 4154, ex-USAF/09-27016) – left Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, on December 18 for the USCG Aviation Logistics Center at Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

It had been in storage with the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis-Monthan AFB since August 20, 2013. AMARG personnel began preparing the C-27J for its ferry flight on October 6. The first of the 14 aircraft destined for Coast Guard service under the designation

Seventeenth F-35A Delivered to Luke Air Force Base DELIVERIES OF US Air Force Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIs to Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, have reached a total of 17 aircraft following the latest arrival (see First USMC F-35C Variant Handed-Over, p15 for serial list). The newest aircraft, 12-5045 ‘LF’ (c/n AF-56), flew to the base on December 18 from the factory in Fort Worth, Texas. It will join the other 16 aircraft operating with the 56th Fighter Wing’s 61st Fighter

Squadron ‘Top Dogs’ at Luke. The first of the F-35As for the 61st FS was delivered to Luke on March 10 last year and the type’s first training sortie at the base followed on May 5. In addition, there are also two Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F-35As, A35-001 and A34-002, now based at Luke for training RAAF pilots, these having arrived in December (see RAAF F-35A Lightning IIs Delivered to Luke AFB, p34).

RCAF CP-140M Fitted with IBLOS Satcom IMP AEROSPACE has delivered the first of three Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Lockheed CP-140M Auroras fitted with an advanced beyondline-of-sight (BLOS)

satellite communications system. Announcing completion of the aircraft on December 16, IMP said it had been returned to the RCAF on schedule and under budget.

The company said the prototype CP-140M Aurora aircraft will provide an improved intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capability in support of Canada’s military requirements

HC-27J, 10-27023 (c/n 4172, to become USCG/2714), left AMARG on November 13. The USCG airframes had been in storage with AMARG except for 2710 (c/n 4164, USAF/09-27019) which is still with L-3 Communications at Waco, Texas, and has yet to be handed over. See also Spartan Goes to Sea, p82-84.

RQ-21A Order for USMC

US NAVAL Air Systems Command has given Insitu Inc a contract for three low-rate initial production RQ-21A Blackjack unmanned aircraft systems for the USMC. The $41m firm-fixed-price deal, awarded on December 18, covers procurement of the air vehicles, ground control stations, launch and recovery equipment and initial spares plus system engineering and programme management. Work is expected to be completed in January 2016.

internationally, adding: “The system enables secure high-speed data streaming from the aircraft via satellite in areas which are remote from familiar ground stations.”

Below: RCAF CP-140M Aurora 140115, the first to be fitted with an advanced BLOS satcom system, at the IMP Aerospace facility in Halifax, Nova Scotia, on December 15. CNW Group/IMP Group Ltd

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JASSM-ER FullRate Production LOCKHEED MARTIN’S Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range (JASSM-ER) has been approved for full-rate production by the US Air Force, the company said on December 15. The weapon successfully completed USAF initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) flight testing in 2013 – the company saying the programme had a 95% success rate, scoring 20 successes in 21 flights. Lots 11 and 12 of the JASSM contract awarded in December 2013 included 100 ER variants of the missile. The stealthy JASSM-ER is integrated on the USAF’s B-1B, while the JASSM is integrated on the B-2, B-52, F-16, F-15E and on the Royal Australian Air Force’s F/A-18A/B. Produced at the company’s manufacturing facility in Troy, Alabama, more than 1,500 JASSM cruise missiles have been assembled for testing and operational use towards a total USAF objective of 4,900.

MV-22B Shows Off Forward-Firing Capability Bell Boeing MV-22B Osprey development aircraft N204TR (c/n D043, ex 165942) during forwardfiring trials at the US Army Proving Ground in Yuma last November. Bell Helicopter

BELL HELICOPTER has successfully demonstrated the forward-firing capability of the Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey. Announcing the achievement on December 8, the company said the exercise had taken place the previous month at the US Army Proving Ground in Yuma, Arizona. “The forward-firing demonstration was a great success,” said Vince Tobin, vice president and programme manager for the tiltrotor

aircraft. “We’ve shown the V-22 can be armed with a variety of forward-facing munitions [that] can hit their targets with a high degree of reliability. “Integrating a forward firing capability to the Osprey will increase its mission set. These weapons, once installed, will provide added firepower and reduce reliance on forward arming and refuelling points (FARPs) which are sometimes necessary to supply short-range

Boeing Delivers 21 st US Navy P-8A Poseidon BOEING HAS now completed delivery of 21 production P-8A Poseidons to the US Navy. The 21st aircraft, 168761 ‘761’ (c/n 42257, ex N771DS), which was the final delivery of 2014, was handed over in late December. However, due to the holiday period it did not depart from Boeing Field, Seattle, until January 8, when it was flown to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida. It is the eighth of eleven P-8As in Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP) Lot III. The remaining three from this batch are all now being flight

tested. The next, 168762 ‘762’/ N780DS (c/n 42258) first flew on September 10, 2014. It was followed into the air by 168763 ‘763’/N781DS (c/n 42259) on October 8, 2014, while the final LRIP III aircraft, 168764 ‘764’/ N783DS (c/n 42260), first flew on November 20, 2014. In addition to these aircraft, Boeing will also begin deliveries later this year of the first of 13 Poseidons in LRIP IV. Rear Admiral Matt Carter, Commander Patrol and Reconnaissance Group, said that the transition from P-3C Orion

to P-8A Poseidon is progressing as planned and the following east coast squadrons, all based at Jacksonville,  have completed, or soon will complete their transition to the P-8A: Patrol Squadron 16 (VP-16) ‘War Eagles’, VP-5 ‘Mad Foxes’, VP-45 ‘Pelicans’ and VP-8 ‘Tigers’. He also said that VP-10 ‘Red Lancers’ will begin its transition in February, followed by VP-26 ‘Tridents’ in September. All east coast squadrons are planned to complete transition to the P-8A by February 2016.

Above: The 20th P-8A Poseidon for the US Navy, 168760 ‘760’ (c/n 42256, ex N768DS), departs from Boeing Field, Seattle, Washington, on December 9 on delivery to Naval Air Station Jacksonville, Florida. It was followed on January 8, 2015, by 168761 ‘761’ (c/n 42257, ex N771DS), which was the last to be handed-over in 2014. Boeing

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attack rotorcraft in support of V-22 operations. Without the need for FARPs, V-22s can be launched more frequently and on shorter notice.” By the end of the third quarter of 2014, Bell Boeing had delivered 242 MV-22Bs for the US Marine Corps and 44 CV-22Bs for Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). Bell Helicopter began initial design work on forward fire capability in mid-2013.

First EMD APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar Delivered NORTHROP GRUMMAN delivered its first engineering, manufacturing and development (EMD) APG83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) to Lockheed Martin on December 12. The system was selected by Lockheed Martin for the F-16 radar modernisation programme to support US and Republic of China Air Force F-16 upgrades. Northrop Grumman said it successfully completed all design reviews and delivered the first EMD radar – which is identical to the production configuration – to Lockheed Martin within 16 months of contract award. SABR was developed as an affordable multifunction, active electronically-scanned array (AESA) fire control radar for the F-16. Other Northrop Grumman AESA fire control radars are currently flying on the F-16 Block 60, F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.

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NEWS

LATIN AMERICA Uruguay Buys Two CASA 212s from Portugal AN AGREEMENT has been finalised for the Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya (FAU – Uruguayan Air Force) to acquire two CASA C-212-300MP aircraft from surplus Força Aérea Portuguesa (FAP – Portuguese Air Force) stocks. A formal contract valued at 1.53 million euros was signed in Lisbon on December 18 by Portugal’s Secretary of State for National Defence, Berta Cabral, and her Uruguayan counterpart, Jorge Ménendez. A Letter of Intent had been signed in Lisbon on July 25, 2014 (see Uruguayan Air Force Acquires Two C212s from Portugal, September 2014, p20). Both aircraft, 17201 (c/n 459) and 17202 (c/n 460), were previously operated in the maritime surveillance role by the FAP’s Grupo Operacional No 6/Esquadra de Reconhecimento 401 ‘Cientistas’ but were withdrawn from use in December 2011 and are currently stored at Base Aérea 6 Montijo. They will now be prepared for their ferry flight to Uruguay, planned for this summer.

New Mexican Navy King Air 350ER ISR Conversion

Above: Mexican Naval Air Arm Beechcraft King Air 350ER ANX-1190 seen on November 5 following an ISR conversion by Integrated Surveillance and Defense (ISD) in Oregon. ISD

A NEWLY-acquired Armada de Mexico Fuerza Aeronaval (Mexican Naval Air Arm) Beechcraft King Air 350ER has re-entered service with a new intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) equipment package installed by US company Integrated

Surveillance and Defense (ISD). The Oregon-based company was awarded the contract in February 2014 and the aircraft, ANX-1190 (c/n FL-956, ex AMP-190, N956MN), made its first flight after ISR conversion in October. It was then accepted back by

Carabineros de Chile Orders An AW139 AN AGUSTAWESTLAND AW139 helicopter has been ordered by the Carabineros de Chile. Announcing the deal on December 23, the manufacturer said the helicopter will be delivered in the first quarter of 2015. It will be used to support a wide range of missions including public

order and safety, crime control, counter terrorism, drug control and border security, search and rescue, and transport. The order expands the Carabineros de Chile’s AgustaWestland helicopter fleet, which already includes five AW109 Power light twin helicopters that entered service in 2008.

Argentine Grob G120TP-A Completed DELIVERY OF ten Grob G120TP-A trainers to the Fuerza Aérea Argentina (FAA – Argentine Air Force) has now been completed. A ceremony at the Escuela de Aviación Militar (EAM – Military Aviation School), Córdoba, on December 19 marked arrival

Fuerza Aérea Argentina (FAA – Argentine Air Force) Grob G120TP-A E-510 displaying at the Escuela de Aviación Militar (EAM – Military Aviation School) at Córdoba on December 19 to mark completion of the fleet. Juan Carlos Cicalesi

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of the final two. The aircraft were purchased by the Fabrica Argentina de Aviones (FADeA), which is leasing them to the FAA. The first four had entered service in August 2013, but further deliveries were delayed by a payment dispute. Four

more arrived in the country on December 4, 2014, followed soon afterwards by the last pair. They will be operated by the EAM’s newly-formed Escuadrón Grob and are replacing two types with the EAM’s Grupo Aéreo Escuela, the elderly Beech B-45 Mentor and the Embraer EMB-312 Tucano. Of the ten aircraft, E-501 to E-510, one example, E-501, is still out of action following an accident on September 6, 2013. It is with Grob in Germany for repair and should return to service this spring. Another, E-503, is also temporarily out of action after an engine failure caused by metallic particles. As it is still under warranty, the engine has been sent to Standard Aero in the US for repair. Although the current order is now complete, in order to accomplish the 8,000 flying hours of instruction required annually at the EAM, at least five more aircraft are urgently required. Ideally, the FAA says it would like ten more. Juan Carlos Cicalesi

the Mexican Navy in November and all training was completed in early December. The equipment fit included the Star Safire 380HD and Ku Band satellite communications, IMT line-of-sight downlink and mission management/map integration.

Elbit Awarded Brazilian Navy KC-2 Contract ANOTHER CONTRACT has been awarded for the newly resurrected Marinha do Brazil (Brazilian Navy) programme to refurbish and convert four ex-US Navy C-1A Traders into KC-2 Turbo Traders (see Brazilian KC-2 Turbo Trader Contract Restarted, January, p24). Israel’s Elbit Systems Ltd announced on December 23 that its whollyowned US subsidiary, Elbit Systems of America, has received a direct subcontract from the Marinha to upgrade the four C-1As, for which Marsh Aviation of Mesa, Arizona, is the prime contractor. The subcontract, valued at $106 million will be completed by Elbit Systems of America over a five-year period. The upgrade will be undertaken in San Antonio, Texas, by M7 Aerospace, an Elbit Systems of America subsidiary. It will be supervised by Marinha officers. When modernised, the C-1A aircraft will be designated as KC-2 COD/AAR (CarrierOn-Board/Air-to-Air Refueling) aircraft for operation from the Marinha’s aircraft carrier, the NAe São Paulo (A 12). The work will include returning the aircraft to service, engine replacement, installation and integration of new glass cockpit avionics, new communication equipment and environmental control systems, plus air-to-air refuelling capabilities.

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Costa Rica’s Air Surveillance Service Changes

A BEECHCRAFT F90 King Air has recently been acquired by Costa Rica’s Ministerio de Seguridad Pública/Dirección del Servicio de Vigilancia Aérea (Ministry of Public Security/Air Surveillance Service). The 1981-built aircraft, MSP020 (c/n LA-54, ex TG-HOS), had been impounded on December 17, 2013, by the Costa Rican authorities after being involved in drug-smuggling. It was first noted in service last March and the MSP says it has been a powerful tool in supporting its operations. Another aircraft that appears to be a recent addition to the MSP fleet is Cessna U206G MSP021, which was first noted in service at the beginning of November. Its origin is as yet unconfirmed, although it is most likely another former drug-runner. In contrast to the gains, the MSP inventory recently retired de Havilland Canada C-7A (DHC-4A) Caribou MSP002 (c/n 149, ex US Army/63-9718), the world’s last military-operated example of the type. It was still fully operational until at least September 2014, but had been

Above: The world’s last military-operated de Havilland Canada C-7A (DHC-4A) Caribou, MSP002 (c/n 149, ex US Army/63-9718), which was operated by Costa Rica’s MSP has now been retired. The immaculate aircraft is seen here when still fully operational on August 2, 2010. Josué Saavedra Below: Costa Rican MSP Beechcraft F90 King Air MSP020 (c/n LA-54, ex TG-HOS) prepares for a mission on October 28, 2014, at the MSP’s main base at San José International Airport. The aircraft entered service last year after being impounded on December 17, 2013. MSP

flown to Liberia-Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport, Costa Rica, by early November and withdrawn from use. Originally accepted by the US Army from the manufacturer in December 1963, the aircraft was transferred to the USAF on January 1, 1967, then returned to the US Army in July 1983 before

being acquired by Costa Rica’s MSP in 1997. After several years of inactivity, it was restored to airworthiness between 2007 and 2010 and put it back into service. An earlier MSP C-7A, MSP001, was retired many years ago and eventually preserved at the MSP’s main base at San José-Juan Santa Maria International Airport.

Four Upgraded Esquilos Delivered to Brazilian Army EUROCOPTER’S BRAZILIAN subsidiary, Helibrás, has delivered the first four refurbished AS550A2 Fennec and AS350L1 Esquilo helicopters back to the Exército Brasileiro (Brazilian Army). They are the first of 36 covered by the contract. Helibrás announced the hand-over on December 19. Of these, three had previously been involved in accidents and have undergone major rebuilds in addition to the upgrade. The remaining 33 have only been

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modernised. The modernisation package has now received Military Certification from the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology and the Institute of Industrial Coordination and Development (DCTA/IFI). The work provides new avionics, including a new glass cockpit with three large liquid crystal display screens, NVG-compatible lightning, two-axis autopilot, new radios and mission equipment, including improved

energy-absorbing aircrew seats, ballistic protection and new weapons and weapons pylons. The first upgraded helicopter, AS550A2 Fennec EB-1019 (c/n 2676), had been reflown at Itajubá on December 19, 2013. This had been in storage for many years following an accident on July 6, 1995, but has been rebuilt as part of the modernisation contract. It was delivered to Itajubá in 2012 for rebuild and upgrade.

More Mexican Navy UH-60Ms SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT has been awarded a contract to supply five UH-60M Black Hawks to Mexico’s Fuerza Aeronaval (Naval Air Force) under a $56 million Foreign Military Sales (FMS) deal. The award was made on December 15 by US Army Contracting Command. The deal exercises options under the $2.8 billion contract awarded on July 11, 2012, covering multi-year procurement of up to 916 UH/MH-60s for US and FMS customers. Estimated completion date for the new contract is May 30, 2016. The US Defense Security Co-operation Agency (DSCA) had announced on June 24 last year that US State Department approval for this purchase had been granted, although it was not then known which branch of the Mexican Armed Forces would take delivery. The DSCA stated that the five UH-60Ms will be in standard US government configuration, with designated unique equipment and government furnished equipment (GFE). Also included will be three spare T700-GE-701D engines, 12 embedded global positioning systems/ inertial navigation systems (ten installed and two spares), ten M134 7.62mm machine guns, five Star Safire III forward looking infra-red (FLIR) radar systems, one aviation mission planning system and one aviation ground power unit. Delivery of these helicopters will bring the total number of UH-60Ms in the Mexican Navy to eight. They will join an initial three examples that were handed over on August 24, 2011.

Second Bolivian AF AS332 C1e AIRBUS HELICOPTERS has delivered the second AS332 C1e Super Puma to the Fuerza Aérea Boliviana (FAB – Bolivian Air Force). The hand-over, announced on December 12, was held at Brigada Aérea II’s Base Aérea Jorge Wilsterman, Cochabamba. The FAB has ordered six to fight drug trafficking and perform civil security and public service missions. The first was delivered on August 1, 2014.

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NEWS

RUSSIA & CIS Russian AF Il-96-400TZ Tanker Order RUSSIA’S MINISTRY of Defence has signed a contract with JSC United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) to purchase two Ilyushin Il-96-400TZ air refuelling tankers. The deal was announced by the Russian MOD on January 7. The Russian Air Force will use the aircraft to support worldwide operations of LongRange Aviation Command’s Tu-95MS Bear and Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers. The tankers will have the capability to transfer more than 65 tonnes of fuel at a range of up to 1,855nm (3,500km) from base. They will be fitted with underwing UPAZ-1 aerial refuelling pods, which have already been proven in service on existing Il-78/78M tankers. The new aircraft will be military variants of the commercial Il-96-400T long-range freighter, which is powered by four PS-90A1 turbofans and has a reinforced floor to carry cargo. It also has a longer fuselage, extended by 31ft 6in (9.6m), when compared to the baseline passenger-variant, the Il-96-300.

News Brief News brief SUKHOI HAS delivered a further two Su-34 bombers to the Russian Air Force. They departed from the V P Chkalov Novosibirsk Aviation Plant on delivery on December 22 to an unspecified air base in southern Russia. The manufacturer said that this exceeded the initial yearly delivery plan for the 2014 State Defence Order for the type.

Second Russian Air Force Il-76MD-90A Flown

Above: Russian Air Force Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A c/n 0104 taking off for its maiden flight on December 30 at Ulyanovsk. Ilyushin

ANOTHER ILYUSHIN Il-76MD-90A has begun flight testing. The aircraft, construction number 0104, manufactured by Aviastar SP, made its maiden flight on December 30, taking off at 1237hrs from Ulyanovsk for a sortie lasting over two hours. After completing factory tests, the aircraft – the second production

example – will be transferred to the Russian Air Force (with which it is designated the Il-476). The first, 78651 (c/n 0103), was delivered to Beriev at Taganrog on November 21 to be converted into the prototype A-100 airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft (see First Il-76MD-90A Delivered to Beriev for

AWACS Conversion, January, p25). Russia’s defence ministry has ordered 39 Il-476s under a $4.5 billion contract announced on October 4, 2012. In addition, Russian Air Force Commander Lt Gen Viktor Bondarev announced at MAKS 2013 on August 30, 2013, that it is also planned to buy 40 Il-478 tanker variants.

Three Refurbished MiG-31s Returned to Kazakh AF

Above: Refurbished Kazakhstan Air Force MiG-31s ‘05 Red’, ‘07 Red’ and ‘10 Red’ arriving back at Karaganda after their delivery flight from Rzhev, Russia. Kazakh MOD

A FURTHER three overhauled and upgraded MiG-31 Foxhounds have been delivered back to the Kazakhstan Air Force. The Kazakh Ministry of Defence announced their arrival on December 29. The Foxhounds, ’05 Red’, ’07 Red’ and ’10 Red’, were flown back to the 610th Air Base at

Karaganda from the 514th Aircraft Repair Plant at Rzhev, Russia. The delivery flights, covering almost 1,865 miles (3,000km) in adverse weather conditions, were carried out by crews from Military Unit 50185, which operates the type at Karaganda. A contract worth more than $60 million to refurbish

and upgrade ten Kazakh MiG-31s was signed in August 2007 at the MAKS 2007 air show. One of them was subsequently lost in a crash on April 23, 2013, that killed one of the two crew members. It is unclear whether the three new deliveries are from the 2007 order or are additional aircraft.

Fourth Kazakhstan Air Force C295M Delivered AIRBUS DEFENCE and Space has completed delivery of four C295M transport aircraft to the Kazakhstan Air Force. In an announcement on December 18, the Kazakhstan defence ministry confirmed that the fourth aircraft, ‘04 Red’ (c/n S-126), had arrived in Kazakhstan the previous weekend (December 13-14) at Almaty-Burunday Air Base. The delivery flight from Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain, was undertaken in three stages, with intermediate stops

in Greece and Azerbaijan. On March 1, 2012, Kazakhstan ordered two C295Ms, which were delivered in December 2012. On October 24, 2013, Airbus Defence announced it had signed a contract to supply two additional C295Ms, representing conversion of two of six options that formed part of the original contract. Delivery of the first, ‘03 Red’ (c/n 119), was announced on September 15, 2014, by the Kazakh defence ministry.

Left: The fourth Kazakhstan Air Force C295M, ‘04 Red’ (c/n S-126), shortly after its arrival at Almaty-Burunday Air Base. Kazakh MOD

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Nigerian Air Force King Air 350i Visits Zurich Two ex-US Army C-23 Sherpas for Djibouti

Above: Nigerian Air Force King Air 350i NAF203 departing from Zurich Airport, Switzerland, after completion of maintenance work on December 19.

AN UNUSUAL visitor to Zurich Airport, Switzerland, recently has been a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Beechcraft King Air 350i, one of three delivered last July (see New Nigerian Air Force Acquisitions, October, p27). The aircraft, NAF203 (c/n FL-891, ex N891BK), arrived at Zurich on October 27 for maintenance and additional completion work. After performing a post-

maintenance check flight on December 17, it left Zurich on December 19, initially for Constantine, Algeria, en route back to its base at Abuja, Nigeria, where it re-joined the 209th Executive Airlift Group. The other two NAF King Air 350i aircraft, NAF202 and NAF204, are now known to be N890EC (c/n FL-890) and N5102X (c/n FL-902), although

the tie-ups with their Nigerian serials are still unconfirmed. The US registrations of all three of these aircraft were cancelled on July 28, 2014, on transfer to Nigeria. As previously reported, they were delivered via St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada; and Santa Maria in the Azores to Las Palmas-Gran Canaria, on July 30, 2014, before continuing to Nigeria.

TWO OF the recently retired US Army Shorts C-23B Sherpa transport aircraft have been earmarked for delivery to Djibouti. On December 15 US Army Security Assistance Command spokeswoman Kim Gillespie told the US Army news service Inside the Army that they will be donated free of charge to the Force Aérienne Djiboutienne (Djibouti Air Force) as Excess Defense Articles. Four others have been earmarked for the Philippines (two for the army and two for the coast guard) and two for the Estonian Air Force. The aircraft were placed in storage at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, after being retired in 2013, although some have more recently been moved to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group facility at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona.

Rwanda Acquires Mi-17s for UNMISS Operations RWANDA HAS deployed two additional Mi-17V helicopters to support the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The helicopters, RAF-0607/ UNO 564P and RAF-0609/ UNO 565P, are brand new. They were officially unveiled to the media at the Rwandan Air Force’s Kanombe Air Force Base at Kigali International Airport on November 7 by base commander Lt Col Emmanuel Rugazora.

At 0700hrs on November 26, the two helicopters departed from Kanombe AFB for Juba Airport, South Sudan, via a stopover at Entebbe Airport, Uganda. They were seen off by Rwandan Air Force Chief of Staff Brig Gen Joseph Demali. During the media event to mark their departure, Rwandan Defence Force spokesperson Brig Gen Joseph Nzabamwita said that two Mi-24 Hind attack

helicopters would also soon join them on UNMISS operations. The arrival of the two new Mi-17s in South Sudan brings the total number of Rwandan Mi-17 helicopters being used in support of UNMISS to eight, along with 225 pilots, aircrew and maintenance personnel. Rwanda had deployed its first three Mi-17s with UNMISS on December 27, 2012, while another three of the type followed at a later date.

Prior to their UNMISS deployment, the six Mi-17s had been upgraded by Lithuanian company ASU Baltija, based at Kaunas International Airport. This work included external armour plating around the cockpit for crew protection, Helimun Mk 6 night vision goggles, NVG-compatible cockpit lighting and various items of new Western avionics and other equipment.

Above: New Rwandan Air Force Mi-17s RAF-0607/UNO 564P and RAF-0609/UNO 565P depart from Kanombe Air Force Base on November 26 for Juba, South Sudan, to begin UNMISS operations. Rwandan MOD

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AFRICA Algerian Navy AW139s Now Flight-Testing

Above: One of the first two Algerian Naval Forces AgustaWestland AW139, AS-16 (c/n 31654), during a pre-delivery test flight from Venegono in Italy in December 2014. Fabrizio Capenti

AGUSTAWESTLAND has begun flight testing of two AW139s for the Algerian Naval Forces. The first helicopter, carrying Italian test serial C.S.X81850 (c/n 31563), was first seen flying in November.

The second, AS-16 (c/n 31654), began testing during December. Flight tests are being undertaken from the factory in Venegono, Italy. Details of Algeria's helicopter contracts with AgustaWestland

have never been made public. It is therefore uncertain whether any further AW139s have been ordered for the Algerian Navy, which plans to use the type in the search and rescue role.

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FRANCE HAS established a new Base Avancée Temporaire (BAT - Temporary Forward Operating Base) at Madama, Niger. The unpaved dirt runway at the new BAT was formally opened on December 4, when an Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) CN235 landed on the strip. Work on its construction by personnel from the 25e Régiment du Génie de l'Air (Air Engineers Regiment) had begun only four weeks earlier, on November 4. The runway is now in regular use by transport aircraft supporting the 3,000 troops deployed with the Operation Barkhane Force which is fighting armed terrorist groups in the Sahel-Saharan Africa region in partnership with the five countries which make up the Sahel Group.

Namibian AF HAL 316B Chetak

NASA WB-57F Ends Djibouti Deployment A NASA WB-57F high-altitude research aircraft has returned from a four-month deployment to Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti, the military enclave at Djibouti International Airport. The aircraft, NASA926/N926NA, had been operating "diverse missions" in support of US and Allied military operations in the region, according to US Africa Command. The aircraft had left its base at Houston-Ellington Field, Texas, on July 9 last year for an unspecified location. After satellite imagery dated September 21 clearly revealed the distinctive aircraft on the ramp at Djibouti, NASA officials confirmed it had been based there since July. After competing its missions, the aircraft returned to its Texas base on November 12. The three NASA aircraft have routinely been used previously for deployments in support of the US military. In the last few years it has been deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan, with the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) sensor system.

French Forward Operating Base Opens in Niger

Namibian Air Force/151 Squadron HAL 316B Chetak H-707 (c/n AH349) at Khorixas on November 14 after arriving from its base at Windhoek/ Eros Airport for a passenger pickup. The helicopter, one of two that entered service on April 27, 2014, joined a single survivor of two others delivered in November 1994. Peter Heeneman

Algerian Air Force’s First Mi-26T2 Flown

Above: The first Algerian Air Force Mil Mi-26T2 during its maiden flight at Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on December 25.

THE FIRST Mil Mi-26T2 Halo heavy-lift helicopter for the Algerian Air Force is being flight tested. The helicopter, wearing a two-tone sand camouflage colour scheme with blue undersides but

without any nationality markings or serial, made its maiden flight from the factory at Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on December 25. It is believed to be the first of an initial batch of three of the type

for Algeria, which plans to acquire six in total. The order, reportedly signed on June 26, 2013, is part of a much larger arms deal, valued at $2.7 billion, that was revealed on February 28, 2014.

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New Algerian ATR72-600

Right: Algerian Government ATR72600 (7T-VPE)/F-WWER (c/n 1200) making a pre-delivery test flight on December 5 from Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, France. The aircraft, the order for which had not previously been announced, left on delivery on December 12. It is expected to be operated by the Groupement de Liaisons Aériennes Ministérielles (GLAM) as a VIP ministerial transport. T Laurant

Ghana Air Force C295M On MINUSMA Operations Bangladesh AF Mi-17s To

Deploy to Mali

Above: Ghana Air Force C295M UNO-064P/GHF550 climbs out of Bamako-Senou Airport in December on a UNMISS mission. Jan Hendrikzijnzoom

A GHANA Air Force (GAF) C295M is continuing to support the Mission Multidimensionnelle Intégrée des Nations Unies pour la Stabilisation au Mali (MINUSMA) mission in Mali. The GAF was one of the first countries to support MINUSMA with a military transport aircraft when the C295M, GHF550, was

deployed at the end of September 2014. Since then, the aircraft, from 2 Squadron ‘Elephants’, has been stationed at the Malian capital’s Bamako-Senou airfield and flies mainly personnel and small cargo within the boundaries of Mali. Initially the aircraft, which wore UN titles and the Ghana flag

Tunisian Air Force’s Second C-130J-30 Delivered

The second C-130J-30 Super Hercules for the Tunisian Air Force, Z21122/TS-MTL, which was handed over on December 11 in Marietta, Georgia. Lockheed Martin/ John Rossino

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on the tail, was only identified by its call sign, UNO-064P. However, since the beginning of last December it has also had full Ghana Air Force serial and colours applied. It is understood the GAF has an indefinite commitment to MINUSMA. Jan Hendrikzijnzoom

THREE BANGLADESH Air Force (BAF) Mi-17s are being deployed to Mali to support the Mission Multidmensionnelle Intégrée des Nations Unies pour la Stabilisation au Mali (MINUSMA) mission. An initial group of 107 BAF personnel departed from Dhaka for Mali on December 15 on board a UN-chartered aircraft. They were preceded by a 16-member advanced party which left on September 9. The helicopters, operated by Bangladesh Utility Aviation Unit 1, will follow at a later date. The BAF will deploy a total of 240 personnel to Mali, where the Bangladesh Army has been supporting MINUSMA since April 2014. LOCKHEED MARTIN has delivered the second C-130J-30 Super Hercules to the Tunisian Air Force. The aircraft, serial number Z21122/TS-MTL, was handed over in a ceremony on December 11 at the factory in Marietta, Georgia. It will join 21 Squadron, based at Bizerte-Sidi Ahmed Air Base. Tunisia received its first C-130J-30, Z 21121/TS-MTK (c/n 5718, USAF/11-5718), on April 4, 2013, marking the first delivery of a J-model to an African nation. A contract for Tunisia's two aircraft , which was announced on March 2, 2010, also includes provision of training and an initial three years of logistics support. Tunisia’s new C-130Js will support operations across the whole mission spectrum, including relief efforts around the world, firefighting and airlift sorties.

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MIDDLE EAST UAE Seeking to Royal Jordanian Air Force Acquires M28 Skytruck Buy 24 Super Tucanos THE UNITED Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence (UAEAF&AD) is looking to buy 24 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano aircraft from Brazil. News of the planned acquisition was given by Tenente General Juniti Saito, commander of the Força Aérea Brasileira (FAB – Brazilian Air Force), in a newspaper interview on January 2. The talks are still at the early stages. If a deal is finalised, the UAE has requested accelerated delivery of the first six aircraft. They would be taken from existing FAB stocks and leased to the UAE to enable them to quickly enter UAEAF&AD service. The talks are between the Brazilian Ministry of Defence, Embraer, Brazil’s Ministry of External Relations and the UAE Government. The FAB will also be involved, as the provider of the initial aircraft. A UAE technical delegation was scheduled to arrive in Brazil in mid-January to further assess aircraft availability. If concluded, this will be the second recent order for turboprop light attack aircraft from the UAE. Although not officially made public, a contract was signed at the end of September 2014 for the purchase of 24 IOMAX Archangel Border Patrol Aircraft (BPA) for the UAEAF&AD. They are intended to replace 24 Air Tractor AT-802U BPAs, which comprised six Block 1 and 18 Block 2 variants. The six Block 1 aircraft were later transferred to Jordan. After initially developing its BPA based on the AT-802U, IOMAX developed the Archangel based on a similar crop-sprayer, the Thrush Model 710 (S2R-600), which will now be delivered to the UAE. An advertisement for armament instructors to work on the type in the UAE has provided some information on the likely weapons fit for the Archangels. It specifies training experience with Raytheon GBU-58/12 Paveway II laserguided bombs, AGM-114K Hellfire air-to-surface missiles and GAU-19 gun systems.

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Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) PZL M28-05 Skytruck 355/SP-DGY (c/n AJE003-39) undertaking a pre-delivery test flight at Mielec on November 15. Epmlspotters.pl

A NEW PZL M28-05 Skytruck has been delivered to the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) for operation by 3 Squadron, based at AmmanMarka. The aircraft, 355 (c/n AJE003-39, ex SP-DGY),

departed on delivery from the Mielec factory in Poland on December 18 wearing full RJAF markings, but with test registration SP-DGY also taped on to the fuselage. It routed via Larnaca,

Cyprus, and Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, where it was seen on December 20. This is the first of the type for the RJAF, although it is understood that options are held for the purchase of three more.

US Air Force Lt Col Julian Pacheco and Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) Captain Hama land IqAF F-16D Fighting Falcon 1602 at Tucson International Airport, Arizona, on December 16. US Air Force/Senior Airman Jordan Castelan

Iraqi Air Force F-16Ds Delivered to Tucson AN INITIAL two Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) Lockheed Martin F-16D Block 52 Fighting Falcons have arrived at Tucson International Airport, Arizona, enabling Iraqi pilots to train on their own aircraft. The jets, 1601 (RB-1, USAF/12-0016) and 1602 (RB-2, USAF/12-0017), flew in from the factory at Fort Worth, Texas, on December 16. The first IqAF F-16 was handed

over at Fort Worth on June 5 last year but the continuing unstable security situation in Iraq has prevented delivery to the country (see First Iraqi AF F-16 Handed Over, August, p23). They had been scheduled to be flown to Balad Air Base, Iraq, last September. The decision to use Tucson for initial training was announced at a Pentagon press briefing on November 10. IqAF pilots

had been training at Tucson for some time, using US Air Force aircraft from the Arizona Air National Guard’s 162nd Fighter Wing/152nd Fighter Squadron ‘Tigers’. They are now using the IqAF’s own aircraft, which may remain at the Arizona base until 2016. A total of eight are due to arrive at Tucson, with the remaining six due over the next five months.

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Jordanian MD500 Fleet Offered for Sale ALL SIX of the Royal Jordanian Air Force’s (RJAF’s) remaining operational MD Helicopters MD500Ds are being offered for sale. This follows the announcement on October 15 that the RJAF has purchased eight Robinson R44 Raven IIs to take over the primary rotary-wing training role at the King Hussein Air College at Al Mafraq (see Royal Jordanian AF Orders Eight Robinson R44s, December, p25). The MD500Ds were flown by RJAF Training Command’s 5

Squadron at Al Mafraq as part of the college fleet. Eight of these helicopters, all built in 1980, entered RJAF service the following year. One had been withdrawn from use by 1995 and another has not been reported since 1996 and is assumed to have been lost in an accident. The first four replacement R44s were due for delivery by the end of December, with the remaining four scheduled to arrive this year. RJAF pilots and mechanics have already been training on the type in readiness for their arrival.

The six serviceable MD500Ds being offered for sale by the RJAF are: Serial

Construction No

500

80-0766D

8,713.5

501

80-0767D

9,511.7

503

10-0786D

6,787.1

504

90-0787D

8,008.3

505

11-0882D

7,427.4

In addition, also originally delivered to the RJAF were 502 (c/n 100-0768D) and 506 (c/n 11.0878D). No 502 has not been reported since April 1996 and

Flight Hours

Above: One of the first four Royal Jordanian Air Force Robinson R44 Raven IIs, test registration N4057D, taking off from the factory in Torrence, California, while training RJAF pilots. These helicopters will replace the MD500Ds now being offered for sale. Robinson Helicopters

is assumed to have been lost in an accident, while 506 had been withdrawn from use by June 1995 at Al Mafraq and was still stored there until at least April 2000.

Right: Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF) MD500D 500 (c/n 11-0766D) at Al Mafraq awaiting disposal. The helicopter is one of six of the type now being offered for sale by the RJAF, which is replacing them with Robinson R44s. RJAF

Saudi Air Force F-5 Fleet For Sale SAUDI ARABIA is offering for sale 79 of its retired Northrop F-5 Tiger IIs, comprising the majority of survivors of the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) fleet. An invitation to tender was posted on the AvBuyer website on December 18 seeking offers for these aircraft. Bids are to be opened on February 20. The RSAF began taking delivery of 70 F-5E Tiger IIs in 1974, followed by 22 F-5Fs from 1975. In addition, ten RF-5E Tigereyes were delivered from 1985 and two of the RSAF’s existing F-5Es were also later converted to this version. At least 16 F-5Es and one F-5F were lost in accidents. By 2003 the majority of the surviving F-5E/F-5F/RF-5E fleet had been withdrawn from service and placed in storage at Taif. An attempt was made to sell 55 of the RSAF F-5s in 2009. Although there was some interest from several countries, no sale was ever confirmed.

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Israel Orders Six AT-802F Firefighting Aircraft ELBIT SYSTEMS is to acquire six new Air Tractor firefighting aircraft on behalf of the Israeli Ministry of Defence (IMOD) and will also operate the Israeli Air Force (IAF) firefighting squadron. Elbit announced on January 5 it had been awarded a contract valued at approximately $100 million by the IMOD to purchase the six new Air Tractor AT-802Fs. The IAF’s 249 Aerial Firefighting Unit, known as the Elad Squadron, based at Sde Dov, will have 14 aircraft when all the new aircraft are delivered. Eight have already been procured by Elbit for the IAF. The contract, to be performed over an eight-year period, also covers flight hours, infrastructure upgrade, maintenance, airstrip operation, handling of fire retardants and other aspects of operations. The Air Tractors are capable of carrying approximately 660 Imp gal (3,000 litres)

of water and flying for three hours without refuelling. The Elad firefighting squadron was founded four years ago following the Mount Carmel forest fire and is named after Elad Riben, the fire scout who was killed in this blaze. Since then, Elbit Systems has been co-operating with the IAF, firefighting units, the Jewish National Fund and the Israel Nature and Parks Authority to develop the squadron’s operational procedures and qualifying designated airstrips. The aircraft will be flown by pilots from CHIM-NIR, the project’s subcontractor. Since its formal inauguration in May 2011, the Elad firefighting squadron has performed more than 4,600 missions, accumulated in excess of 2,500 flight hours and has helped extinguish more than 500 potentially destructive fires across the country.

Three More French Mirage 2000Ds Deploy to Jordan AN ADDITIONAL three Armée de l’Air (French Air Force) Dassault Mirage 2000Ds have arrived in Jordan to complete the air detachment engaged in Operation Chammal missions against ISIL in Iraq. The aircraft, from Escadre de Chasse 3 at Base Aérienne 133 NancyOchey, flew in to Al Azraq Air Base, Jordan, on December 17 after a five hour ferry flight. Their arrival brings the total number of French Mirage 2000Ds in Jordan for Chammal operations to six. The first three arrived on November 28 (see French Mirage 2000Ds Deploy for Anti-ISIL Ops, January, p27). They began armed reconnaissance missions over Iraq from December 6. France also has nine Rafales deployed to BA104 Al Dhafra, in the UAE, along with an Atlantique 2 and C-135FR.

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MIDDLE EAST Delivery of Omani F-16 Block 50s Completed A FINAL batch of four Lockheed Martin F-16C Block 50s has been delivered to the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO). This completes deliveries of the 12 additional aircraft (ten F-16Cs and two F-16Ds) that were on order. Comprising F-16Cs 836 (TR-7, USAF/11-0007), 837 (TR-8, USAF/11-0008), 838 (TR-9, USAF/11-0009) and 839 (TR-10, USAF/11-0010), callsign ‘Retro 51 Flight’, they left the factory in Fort Worth, Texas, to arrive at Lajes in the Azores on December 10. They departed on December 12 to continue on to Oman. Support was provided by US Air Force KC-10A 84-0188, callsign ‘Gold 01’. The first four aircraft had left Fort Worth on July 22 last year (see First Four Additional Omani F-16s Delivered, September 2014, p23). Using callsign ‘Retro 56 Flight’, they comprised F-16D 822 (TS-2, USAF/11-0012), plus F-16Cs 830 (TR-1, USAF/11-0001), 832 (TR-3, USAF/11-0003) and 833 (TR-4, USAF/11-0004). They also routed via Lajes, leaving on July 24. Support was provided by US Air Force KC-10A 87-0119, callsign ‘Gold 06’. A further four flew from Fort Worth to Lajes on October 30, departing on November 1. Callsign ‘Retro 56 Flight’, they comprised F-16D 821 (TS-1, USAF/11-0011), plus F-16Cs 831 (TR-2, USAF/11-0002), 834 (TR5, USAF/11-0005) and 835 (TR6, USAF/11-0006). Support was provided by US Air Force KC-10A 84-0188, callsign ‘Gold 06’.

Saab 2000 Erieyes Join Royal Saudi Air Force

Above: One of the two Saab 2000 Erieye airborne early warning and control aircraft delivered to the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) during its first public unveiling on December 16 at the Air Force Academy at Riyadh-King Khaled Air Base.

DELIVERY OF two Saab 2000 Erieye airborne early warning and control aircraft to the Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) has been completed. One of the aircraft, serial 6002, was first shown in public during a graduation ceremony on December 16 at the Air Force Academy at Riyadh-King Khaled Air Base. They are second-hand aircraft, formerly operated as commercial airliners by Romania’s Carpatair. 

After being returned to Saab, they were converted to AEW&C configuration for the RSAF.   They comprise SE-050 (c/n 050, ex YR-SBH) and SE-052 (c/n 052, ex YR-SBI) and were formally transferred to RSAF ownership when their Swedish test registrations were cancelled on June 5 last year. It is unclear when they actually arrived in Saudi Arabia, as they may have initially been retained in Sweden

for crew training. Their RSAF serials are 6001 and 6002. Details of the RSAF order for the type have never been made public, but on October 4, 2010 Saab announced that it had sold an airborne surveillance system, including two Erieye-equipped Saab 2000s, to an unspecified customer. Although still unconfirmed, it is strongly suspected this was the order for Saudi Arabia.

Elbit Gains Israeli F-16 Avionics Support Contract ELBIT SYSTEMS has been awarded a contract valued at approximately $90 million by the Israeli Ministry of Defence (IMOD) for the maintenance of the Israeli Air Force's (IAF's) F-16 avionics systems.

Announcing the contract on January 4, the Israeli company said that the project will extend over a period of eleven years. It will include the establishment of a new cutting edge national maintenance centre.

Elbit noted that it already has extensive operational experience in performing outsourcing of logistics support services for customers both in Irael and overseas and maintenace in Israel, Brazil and the US.

Additional Royal Saudi Air Force Typhoon Deliveries A FURTHER three Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) Eurofighter Typhoons have been delivered. The first two, comprising singleseater 1023/ZK394 (c/n 435, CS029) and twin-seat aircraft 1021/ZK399 (c/n 410, CT018), left the factory at Warton, Lancashire, on December 8. Initial routing was to Malta. Both made their maiden flights at Warton on the same day, September 26, 2014. They were followed by the final twin-seat aircraft of the current order, 1020/ZK398 (c/n 424, CT017), which left Warton on December 21, also initially routing to Malta, where it stopped overnight before

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continuing to Saudi Arabia. This aircraft made its maiden flight on July 28 last year. Prior to this, the most recent deliveries had been single-seater 1019/ZK392 (c/n 425, CS027) and twin-seater 1017/ZK397 (c/n 418, CT016), which had departed on September 5 from Warton. The latest aircraft bring total deliveries from this second batch of 48 aircraft for the RSAF to 21 (12 two-seat and nine single-seat aircraft), following 24 (18 single-seat and six-twin seat) delivered in the first batch. Two additional RSAF Typhoon aircraft are also now flying at Warton, but have yet to be

Royal Saudi Air Force Typhoon 1023/ZK394 (c/n 435, CS029) at Malta International Airport while passing through on its delivery flight on December 8. Karl Nixon

delivered. These comprise single-seaters 1013/ZK386 (c/n 387, CS023, first flown on

October 10, 2014) and 1022/ ZK393 (c/n 419, CS028, first flown on November 21, 2014).

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ASIA PACIFIC Thai Air Force Orders VIP Sukhoi Superjets THREE SUKHOI Superjet 100 medium-haul airliners have been ordered for operation by the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) in VIP configuration. The contracts have already been signed, but were not made public until December 9, when the Russian trade commissioner to Thailand, Oleg Maslennikov, confirmed the details to Russian news agency TASS. Maslennikov said an initial deal had been signed in 2013 covering the first two aircraft. This was followed by a second contract in August 2014 for the third example. No details of the planned delivery schedule were revealed. Sukhoi announced on December 8 that the VIP configured SSJ100, developed from the baseline SSJ100-95B (RRJ-95B, has achieved Russian certification. The Russian Government is the launch customer for this variant.

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Kadena Receives its First MC-130J

Above: US Air Force MC-130J Commando II 12-5761 (c/n 5761) landing at Kadena Air Base, Japan, on December 21 after its transpacific delivery flight. USAF/Tech Sgt Alexy Saltekoff

ANOTHER US Air Force unit is re-equipping with the Lockheed Martin MC-130J Commando II. The 353rd Special Operations Group’s 17th Special Operations Squadron received its first MC-130J, 12-5761 (c/n 5761), on December 21 when it landed at Kadena Air Base, Japan, after a transpacific delivery flight. The new variant is replacing the MC-130P Combat Shadow with the Kadena-based unit. The 17th SOS began retiring its

MC-130Ps last year when the first aircraft, 69-5825, departed from Kadena on July 18, subsequently arriving at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, on July 22 for storage with the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group. The unit flew a final four-ship MC-130P formation from Kadena on October 16 and is now winding down operations, although its final MC-130P is not due for retirement until this April.

JASDF F-15 Special Colour Scheme

Above: Japanese Air Self-Defense Force F-15J 02-8920 from the 204th Hikotai (Squadron) seen at Naha Air Base on December 14 wearing special markings for the unit’s 50th anniversary. Junji Sato

Another Afghan Air Force PC-12 Delivery

Above: Afghan Air Force Pilatus PC-12/47E (YA-1444RS )/N444NG (c/n 1444) at Prague-Ruzyne Airport, Czech Republic on November 17 during its delivery flight. The aircraft, which had arrived the previous day and left on November 18, is one of 18 on order and is believed to be the 12th delivered. Another, N445NX (c/n 1445), callsign ‘Dragon 1’ has since followed, passing through St John’s, Canada, on December 5-6. Václav Kudela

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Philippine Air Force Acquires Two ex-USMC C-130Ts TWO EX-US Marine Corps C-130T Hercules are being acquired by the Philippine Air Force (PAF) to add to just three Hercules currently in service. The US Embassy in the Philippines confirmed that a Letter of Offer and Acceptance for the aircraft was signed on January 8. The aircraft are at Joint Reserve Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Texas, and delivery is expected in the first quarter of 2016. One is KC-130T 163022 ‘QH-022’ (c/n 5040) from VMGR-234 at Fort Worth. Although currently equipped as tankers, they will be de-modified for use as standard transport C-130Ts by the PAF. The procurement is valued at about $55 million. The US is providing $20 million in US Foreign Military Financing (FMF) towards this purchase.

TNI-AU Forms New F-16 Sqn

A NEW Indonesian Air Force unit, Skadron Udara 16 (16 Squadron), was formed on December 3 at Rusmin Nurjadin Air Base, Pekanbaru, eastern Sumatra. The unit will be equipped with 16 ex-US Air Force F-16C/D Block 52ID Fighting Falcons, of which five have been delivered to date. Its commander is Lt Col Firman 'Foxhound' Dwi Cahyono, formerly CO of Sku 3. The base is strategicallylocated, being near the Malaccan Straits and South China Sea. Alex Sidharta

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NEWS

ASIA PACIFIC

Bangladesh Beaus Vincent Martins spent mid-December in Bangladesh, where he saw a varied assortment of military aircraft sporting some great colour schemes.

Above: One of the two MiG-29 Fulcrum Bs flown by 8 Squadron prepares to land at the Bangladesh Air Force’s main fighter base at Kurmitola. The BAF has been operating its eight MiG-29s since 1999. All photos, author Right: This tired-looking C-130B 610962/S3-AGC once flew with the UN, as can be seen from the titles scrubbed out in front of the propellers. It is one of the oldest Hercules flying and is seen preparing to land at BAF Base Tejgaon, where it serves with the 101 Special Flying Unit. Below: The colours of 35 Sqn ‘Thundercats’ FT-7MB look stunning as it approaches PAFB Kurmitola. The F-7MBs are the oldest Chengdu fighters serving the BAF, having been in service since 1989.

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Above: BANAIR (Bangladesh Air) deployments to the United Nations first started in 1995 and have totalled around 20 missions since then. Its most recent, supporting the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali, was announced in mid-December and will involve three Mi-17s as well as 240 personnel. This Mi-17, 245/’UN-874’ of 31 Squadron is seen departing BAF Base Tejgaon on December 16. Below: The Bangladesh Navy took delivery of two Do 228s, in June and July 2013. Their mission fit includes a 360° Telephonics RDR 1700B maritime radar integrated with a moving map display and air-deployable dinghies/life rafts. The aircraft were involved in the search for missing Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 ‘MH370’ during March/April last year.

Above: This Cessna 152 is one of four known to have been operated by the Bangladesh Army at Tejgaon. Above right: Nine Hongdu K-8W Karakoram jet trainers were ordered in late 2013 and the first four delivered in September 2014 to 15 Squadron at the BAF Academy, Matiur Rahman, Jessore where they are used for flying training. Right: This seldom photographed Cessna 208 Caravan is operated by the Bangladesh Army at Tejgaon, where it is seen landing.

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NEWS

HEADLINES ASIA PACIFIC Freedom’s Sentinel Gets Under Way WITH THE formal end of US combat ops in Afghanistan, Operation Enduring Freedom has now ended and been replaced by Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. A transition ceremony was held on December 28 at the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan, to mark the end of the combat mission, which then was officially concluded on December 31. The follow-on mission then began on January 1, 2015. Two missions will be pursued as part of Freedom’s Sentinel, with the support of the Afghan Government and people. Firstly, the US will work with its allies and partners as part of NATO’s Resolute Support mission to continue training, advising and assisting Afghan security forces. Secondly, the US will continue its counterterrorism efforts against the remnants of Al-Qaeda. At the beginning of 2015, Afghanistan assumed responsibility for its own security. However, more than 12,500 foreign troops will remain in the country for the Resolute Support mission, which is focused on building up the capabilities of the Afghan National Security Force. A total of 28 NATO allies and 14 partner nations will contribute to this effort.

Indian Navy LCA Ski Jump Test INDIA’S NAVAL Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) prototype, KHN-T 3001 (NP1) has begun trials from the ski-jump facility at the Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) at INS Hansa, Goa-Dabolim. The aircraft made its first take-off using the ski-jump on December 20. It was flown by Commodore Jaideep Maolankar, the Chief Test Pilot of the National Flight Test Centre. Officials said the aircraft had a perfect flight, with results exactly matching those predicted. The LCA Navy programme

team from the Aeronautical Development Agency welcomed this milestone, which is the culmination of several years of design, flight test, simulation and management effort with significant contributions from a number of DRDO laboratories. The LCA Navy variant is designed with a stronger undercarriage to absorb forces exerted by the ski jump ramp during take-off, enabling it to be airborne within 650ft (200m) as against 3,280ft (1,000m) required for normal runways.

Right: The HAL LCA Navy prototype, KHN-T 3001 (NP1) making its first take-off on December 20 from the ski-jump facility at the Shore Based Test Facility at INS Hansa, GoaDabolim. ADA

Indian AF Mi-26 Lands at New High-Altitude Helipad AN INDIAN Air Force (IAF) Mil Mi-26 Halo heavy-lift helicopter has landed for the first time at a newly completed helicopter pad at an altitude of 11,660ft (3,554m) at Kedarnath Dham. The Mi-26, Z3075 ‘C’, touched down there at 0945hrs on January 6.

The holy town, which is located in the mountains of Uttarakhand province, northern India, was devastated by flash floods in mid2013. An air bridge will now be established using the IAF Mi-26s to help reconstruct the town. About 133 tonnes of heavy machinery, including earth

movers, tipper trucks, a crane and snow-clearing machines will be transported by the Mi-26s from Guacher. The 500ft x 165ft (150m x 50m) helicopter landing site was constructed jointly by members of the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering and state police.

Above: Indian Air Force Mi-26 Halo Z3075 ‘C’ landing on January 6 at the newly-completed landing pad at Kedarnath Dham. Nehru Institute of Mountaineering

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The two-seat LCA Navy prototype, NP1, had made its maiden flight on April 27, 2012, at Bangalore (see Naval Variant of India’s Tejas Undertakes First Flight, July 2012, p31), more than 21 months after leaving the factory. After only three more flights, it was grounded in July 2012 to rectify several problems, including major re-engineering of the undercarriage. It was airbourne again by late March 2014, when it made its first supersonic flight, achieving Mach 1.1.

New Vietnamese Su-30MK2V Start to Arrive DELIVERIES OF a new batch of 12 Sukhoi Su-30MK2V Flanker-F multi-role fighters to the Vietnam People’s Air Force (VPAF) are under way. A Volga-Dnepr Airlines Antonov An-124 landed at Da Nang Air Base, Vietnam, on December 6 bringing in the first two of these aircraft, serials 8583 and 8584. They were flown in from the KNAAPO factory at Komsomolsk-on-Amur, where the type is manufactured. A further two were expected to follow within a few weeks. The contract for these aircraft was signed in August 2013 (see Vietnam Orders 12 More Su-30MKV2 Flankers, October 2013, p27). The deal was said to be valued at more than $600 million.

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12/01/2015 14:58

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Another Two Chengdu J-20 Prototypes Flown

Korea Orders Global Hawks FOUR NORTHROP GRUMMAN RQ-4B Block 30 Global Hawk unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) have been ordered for the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF). A $657.4 million Foreign Military Sales contract for the UAVs was awarded on December 16 by the US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. Each air vehicle will be equipped with an Enhanced Integrated Sensor Suite (EISS), which includes electro-optical/ infra-red systems, synthetic aperture radar imagery and ground moving target indicator, plus a signals intelligence package. The deal also includes two spare engines and the relevant ground control elements. The contract is expected to be completed by June 28, 2019. The order had been expected for some time, the US Defense Security Co-operation Agency having notified Congress of the planned FMS deal on December 21, 2012 (see News Briefs, February 2013, p29). The DSCA put the total cost of the acquisition at $1.2 billion, also saying that the ROK needs this intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capability to take over primary responsibility for intelligence gathering from the US-led Combined Forces Command in 2015. However, the Republic of Korea’s Defence Acquisition Programme Administration (DAPA) stated on March 24, 2014, that the first RQ-4 delivery is not anticipated until 2018, meaning there will be a three-year capability gap in ISR coverage.

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RAPID PROGRESS is being made with the production of development prototypes for the Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter. In the space of just three weeks, two more aircraft made their maiden flights. The fifth to fly, 2013, undertook its maiden flight at Chengdu on November 29, followed by the sixth, 2015, on December 19. The first prototype of the J-20, 2001 had made its maiden flight on January 11, 2011 (see China’s Stealth Fighter Stuns the West, March 2011, p4); followed by 2002 (since re-serialled 2004) on May 6, 2012; 2011 on March 1, 2014; and 2012 on July 26, 2014.

Above: The sixth Chengdu J-20 to fly, 2015, during its maiden flight on December 19. via Chinese internet Below: Also flown recently was the fifth J-20, 2013, seen here during its maiden flight on November 29. via Chinese internet

Third ex-RAAF C-130H Delivered to Indonesia A THIRD former Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C-130H Hercules has been delivered to the Tentara Nasional Indonesia – Angkatan Udara (TNI-AU – Indonesian Air Force) at Air Force Base Abdul Rachman Saleh, Malang, Java. The aircraft, A-1332 (c/n 4783, ex RAAF/A97-003), arrived at the base on December 15. The aircraft will join Skadron Udara 32 (SkU 32), which also operates the previous two ex-RAAF C-130Hs delivered. The first of these was A-1330 (c/n 4786, ex RAAF/A97-006), which arrived at Jakarta-Halim Air Base on November 28, 2013,

before continuing to Abdul Rachman Saleh. The second, A-1331 (c/n 4787, ex-RAAF/ A97-009), arrived at Halim on June 4, 2014 (see Second ex-RAAF C-130H Now in Indonesian Service, August 2014, p26). Under an agreement signed on July 2, 2012, four retired RAAF C-130Hs are being donated free-of-charge to the TNI-AU. Additionally, a Memorandum of Sale between Australia and Indonesia for five more ex-RAAF C-130Hs, plus associated equipment, including a simulator and spare parts, was signed on July 26, 2013. 

Final Indian Air Force C-17A Globemaster III Delivered BOEING HAS delivered the tenth and final Indian Air Force (IAF) C-17A Globemaster III. On DEcember 12, the aircraft CB-8007 (c/n 50266/F265, USAF/11-0107) arrived at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, using callsign ‘IFC5814’. It departed on December 14, to continue

its flight to Hindon Air Force Station, Ghaziabad, India. It has joined eight others already in service with 81 ‘Skylord’ Squadron at Hindon. The most recent delivery, the ninth aircraft, had also passed through Brize Norton, arriving on November 21 and departing two days later.

Taiwan Orders 144 AESA Radars for F-16A/B Fleet LOCKHEED MARTIN is to provide Taiwan with 144 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars for installation in the Republic of China Air Force (ROCAF) F-16A/B fleet. The $308 million Foreign Military Sale contract, awarded on December 16 by the USAF, modifies the original $1.85 billion deal with Lockheed Martin on September 28, 2012, for the ROCAF F-16 modernisation programme (see ROCAF F-16A/B Upgrade Contract Awarded, December 2012, p29). Under the new contract, Lockheed Martin will install the AESA radars on the F-16s and provide one year of supplier support in Taiwan. Work is expected to be completed by November 30, 2021. All 142 survivors of the 150 F-16s (120 F-16As and 30 F-16Bs) originally delivered to the ROCAF are being upgraded. Five F-16As and three F-16Bs have been lost since the type entered service in 1996, leaving 115 F-16As and 27 F-16Bs.

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NEWS

AUSTRALASIA RNZAF A109s and NH90s Move from HTU to 3 Squadron INTEGRATION OF the new AW109LUH(NZ) and NH90 TNZA helicopters into Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) service is now almost complete. The Helicopter Transition Unit (HTU), established to introduce the two new types into service, has now been absorbed into 3 Squadron. A ceremony was held on December 18 at RNZAF Base Ohakea to mark the change. The squadron’s current equipment, the UH-1H Iroquois, is being replaced by the NH90, which will take over as the primary aircraft for search and rescue and national security requirements. The new helicopter will also undertake casualty evacuation, transport for the NZ Police as well as other government and military personnel. During 2014, the A109 carried out initial helicopter pilot and helicopter crewman training for the first time. Chief of the RNZAF, Air Vice-Marshal Mike Yardley, who presided over the December 18 ceremonies, said: “While we still have some way to go, the NH90 and A109 capabilities are developing well, and are on track to be capable of undertaking all tasks currently performed by the Iroquois by the middle of next year [2015].”

Eighth and Final RNZAF NH90 Delivered to Ohakea The eighth and final NH90 helicopter for the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) was delivered to RNZAF Base Ohakea on October 31. The helicopter was airfreighted on board an Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft. Although this is the eighth operational RNZAF NH90, it is the ninth overall, as one helicopter has been acquired for ground training purposes and to act as a spares source. This was the first to arrive in New Zealand, in October 2011.

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RAAF F-35A Lightning IIs Delivered to Luke AFB

Above: The second RAAF F-35A Lightning II to be delivered to Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, A35-001 (AU-1), arriving there on December 22. USAF

BOTH OF the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF’s) Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters have now arrived at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, to begin training RAAF pilots. First to arrive was A35-002 (AU-2), which flew in from Fort Worth, Texas, on December 18. It was followed by A35-001 (AU-1) on December 22.

These are the first international partner F-35s to arrive at Luke for training. Nine other nations will be training alongside the United States on the new airframe. Other partner-nations that will be joining F-35A training programme at Luke will be Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Turkey, in addition to Foreign Military Sales countries

Israel, Japan and Korea. Australia’s training will be conducted in conjunction with the USAF’s 61st Fighter Squadron. In addition, the 62nd Fighter Squadron is expected to stand-up in June, to train partner-nations Italy and Norway. Flight operations for the 62nd are scheduled to begin in September of 2015.

RAAF Crew Training with C-27J Spartans Begins ROYAL AUSTRALIAN Air Force (RAAF) personnel have begun training on the C-27J Spartan battlefield airlifter in the United States. This follows official transfer of the first two aircraft, A34-001 and A34-002, to Australian military markings. The beginning of the training programme was announced on December 22 by the Australian

Department of Defence. The first Spartans are expected in Australia by mid-2015 and a total of ten will be delivered over the next two years to join No 35 Squadron, initially operating from RAAF Base Richmond. On December 8, 2014, the first four technicians from No 35 Squadron at RAAF Base Richmond started training at Waco, Texas. The

RNZAF Retires CT-4E Airtrainer AFTER 16 years of service, the Pacific Aerospace Corporation (PAC) CT-4E Airtrainer has been retired from Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) service. Based at RNZAF Base Ohakea, five of the type made a final farewell Five RNZAF CT-4E Airtrainers perform a final formation flypast on December 4 prior to withdrawal of the type. RNZAF

flypast over Manawatu and Whanganui on December 4. The CT-4E was introduced at RNZAF Base Ohakea in August 1998, when 12 aircraft were delivered, followed by a 13th in June 1999. One CT-4E was lost in

first 12 aircrew, comprising pilots and loadmasters from No 35 Squadron, will begin their training in January 2015. On December 15, 2014, Spartan A34-001 conducted a training flight for the first time under the Australian Flag in Waco, Texas. This training flight carried instructors from L-3 Communications.

a fatal crash on January 13, 2010, while another was damaged when it flipped over during a forced landing on January 27, 2012. They were supplied under a lease agreement with manufacturer PAC and operated by its subsidiary Pacific Aeromotive Ltd. They will now be returned to PAC at Hamilton. More than 190 students have successfully completed the Airtrainer phase of the Wings course after learning to fly in one of these aircraft. The CT-4E has also been used by the RNZAF formation aerobatics team, the Red Checkers. In future, RNZAF Wings courses will be carried out on the Beechcraft T-6C Texan II with seven of eleven new aircraft having now been delivered. The Red Checkers will also fly the T-6C and a public competition has been launched to rename the team to suit its new aircraft.

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12/01/2015 16:22

CONTRACTS & DEPLOYMENTS

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French ALAT Tigres Deployed to Central African Republiç

Polish MiG-29s Deploy Again for Baltic Air Policing

Above: Two French ALAT Tiger attack helicopters that are now deployed to the Central African Republic to support Operation Sangaris depart from M’Poko on December 7 to carry out a patrol in the Bambari area. The helicopters had arrived at M’Poko on November 24 and flew their first operational mission two days later. French Army Left: Polish Air Force MiG-29 Fulcrum 115 at Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania, shortly after arriving on January 8. The aircraft was one of four that will take up the Baltic Air Policing mission for a fourmonth period. Lithuanian MOD

New Contract Award Summary

Military Aircraft Deployments Date

AF/Unit

Type

Location and Notes

Air Force

Company

No and Type

Nov 17

USAF/163rd EFS

? x A-10C

Deployed to Ahmed Al Jaber, Kuwait, for anti-ISIL ops

Order Date

Delivery Date & Notes

Carabineros de Chile

AgustaWestland

1 x AW139

Dec 23

First quarter of 2015

Nov 22

Italian AF/6° Stormo

4 x Tornado

Deployed to Ahmed Al Jaber, Kuwait, for anti-ISIL ops

Israeli AF

Elbit Systems

6 x Air Tractor AT-802F

Jan 5

Not announced

Italian AF

2 x Tigre

Deployed to Bangui, Central African Republic

3 x T-346A Masters

Not announced

ALAT/1er RHC

Alenia Aermacchi

Dec 22

Nov 24

AgustaWestland

1 x AW139

Dec 10

During 2016

Nov 28

French AF

3 x Mirage 2000D

Deployed to Al Azraq, Jordan, for anti-ISIL ops

Japan Iwate Prefecture

AgustaWestland

1 x AW139

Early 2016

Dec 17

French AF

3 x Mirage 2000D

Deployed to Al Azraq, Jordan, for anti-ISIL ops

Tokyo Metropolitan Police

4 x Typhoon

Arrived at Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania, for Baltic Air Policing

Northrop Grumman

4 x RQ-4 Global Hawk

By Jun 28, 2019

Italian AF/4° Stormo

Republic of Korea AF

Dec 16

Dec 28

HAL

1 x Dornier 228

Nov 27

Not announced

Dec 29

Spanish AF/Ala 11

4 x Typhoon

To Amari, Estonia, for Baltic Air Policing

Mauritius Coast Guard Mexican Navy

Sikorsky

5 x UH-60M

Dec 15

By May 30, 2016

Jan 1

German AF/ Taktischen Luftwaffengeschwader 74

4 x Typhoon

Returned home from Amari, Estonia, after Baltic Air Policing

Royal Thai AF

Sukhoi

3 x Superjet 100

Dec 9

Not announced

USAF

Lockheed Martin

2 x HC-130J

Dec 31

By Jan 31, 2018

USAF

Lockheed Martin

2 x MC-130J

Dec 31

By Jan 31, 2018

Royal Canadian AF

4 x CF-188

USAF

Lockheed Martin

1 x C-130J

Dec 31

By Jan 31, 2018

USCG

Lockheed Martin

2 x HC-130J

Dec 31

By Jan 31, 2018

USMC

Insitu

3 x RQ-21A Blackjack

Dec 18

By Jan 2016

USMC

Lockheed Martin

3 x KC-130J

Dec 31

By Jan 31, 2018

Jan 8

Jan 8

Polish AF

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35 Contracts Feb.DJ.indd 35

4 x MiG-29

Due to leave Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania, after Baltic Air Policing Arrived at Siauliai Air Base, Lithuania, for Baltic Air Policing

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DESERT DUELLERS

Duellers Desert

Joe Copalman visits MCAS Yuma to gain an insight into the operations of the US Marine Corps’ only aggressor squadron.

A

s America’s ‘force in readiness’, the United States Marine Corps (USMC) needs to be prepared to meet any threat it might face – including those posed by enemy aircraft to its personnel on the ground or aboard amphibious assault ships; and to its own aircraft in the skies. To be ready to meet and defeat the threats, the marines rely primarily on a single adversary squadron – Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 (VMFT-401) – to replicate the types of air threats and tactics potential enemies might employ against them. Known as the ‘Snipers’, the F-5-equipped VMFT-401 supports numerous training throughout the year, both at its home base of Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Yuma, Arizona, and during ‘road dets’ to other bases to train with locally based units.

Becoming a Sniper

Becoming an adversary pilot with VMFT-401 could occur in a number of ways, the two most common being pilots applying for it or being recruited from the USMC F/A-18 community. VMFT-401 also maintains an exchange pilot

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programme with the US Air Force, which sends an F-15 pilot to 401 for a period of two years, while 401 sends an F-5 pilot to fly F-15s. Regardless of how they come to the squadron, the unit’s pilots share similar backgrounds. As former executive officer Lt Col Donald ‘Chucky’ Nolan explains: “The pilots here are fairly experienced. Most of the guys are from the F/A-18 community, with at least one, if not two, F/A-18 tours. The average flight time per pilot in the squadron is well over 2,000 hours of tactical missions prior to even applying to come to here, so they are very experienced pilots that come through, with a lot of qualifications in the F/A-18 community.” New Sniper pilots work though a training and readiness syllabus that takes them from familiarisation flights in the squadron’s two-seater F-5 through a basic wingman qualification and up through section lead, where they can lead another aircraft or flight lead (where they can lead up to three other aircraft), and finally to red air mission commander, leading an unlimited number of aircraft in adversary missions. Though many of 401’s pilots are ‘patch-

Snipers on the prowl. Although the lead aircraft in this formation is a navy aircraft from VFC-13, it is flown by a VMFT-401 pilot. The Snipers typically receive one loaned aircraft and a pilot from the navy VFC community during the WTI course to ensure they can fulfil the sortie rates demanded by the high operational tempo

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12/01/2015 10:08

DESERT DUELLERS All of VMFT-401’s F-5Ns are former Swiss Air Force F-5Es modified specifically for the adversary mission. The US Navy upgraded them with AN/APG-69 radars, leading edge root extensions and threat warning receivers. Inset: VMFT-401’s squadron emblem pays homage to the unit’s origins as a Cold War adversary unit simulating Soviet Bloc tactics; and as an operator of the IAI F-21 Kfir.

wearers’ – graduates of the marines’ Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course or the navy’s Strike Fighter Tactics course – it is not a requirement to join the squadron. VMFT-401 also maintains an adversary support programme with Marine Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 (MAWTS-1) which, among other duties, administers the biannual WTI course. Captain Thomas ‘Puppy’ Frey is an instructor with MAWTS-1’s F/A-18 division and one of three MAWTS-1 pilots serving as ‘adversary augments’ with the Snipers. Explaining the programme, he tells AFM: “We have pretty close ties with 401 from MAWTS-1. There’s traditionally one pilot from the F-18 shop, the AV-8B shop and now also the F-35 shop.” The primary role of MAWTS-1’s adversary role is to help VMFT-401 meet the demands placed on it by WTI. For his part, Captain Frey embraces the job as another form of instructorship, explaining: “As an adversary pilot you’re effectively instructing some of the blue guys by giving them good presentation and providing good training.”

Method Acting at 500 Knots While certain notorious movies have given the impression the role of adversary units is simply to sort ‘the best of the best’ from the rest of naval aviation, the reality is very different. VMFT-401’s job is to present highfidelity threat simulations to US Marine Corps aviators to prepare them to meet potential enemy air threats under any circumstances. To ensure they are offering the best possible presentations, Sniper pilots must stay current on the hardware, doctrine and

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tactics of nations around the world that are on less than friendly terms with the United States. Lt Col Nolan told AFM: “We do a lot of reading from the Top Gun manuals on threat nation tactics and simulation. We get a lot of briefings from various intel folks, both at the classified and unclassified levels, and we also integrate with the air force assets up at Nellis Air Force Base, the 64th Aggressor Squadron and the now-disestablished 65th Aggressor Squadron – and we all come up with viable tactics to support the leadership.” While all -401’s pilots are up to speed on a broad range of threat nations’ tactics, some Sniper pilots are designated as subject matter experts (SMEs) on the doctrine and tactics of individual countries’ air forces, serving as consultants within the squadron on the finer points of how certain threats should be simulated. Threat simulation requests from -401’s customers vary considerably, depending on the units and types of aircraft being supported and any specific threats they may be training against during WTI or a pre-deployment work-up. Captain Frey explains: “Generally, if you’re supporting your fighter customers, F/A-18s or AV-8s or something along those lines, we’ll be asked to simulate Flankers or Fulcrums, whereas with any sort of helicopter attacks it’s generally an IR-only threat and you have to shoot them in visual range.” It is important to note precisely what adversary pilots do. Though they are trained to fly the F-5, they are more often than not flying it as another aircraft – having to be mindful of what the manuals say they can and can’t do performance-wise (or

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09/01/2015 10:23

DESERT DUELLERS Paul Carmack, an armament mechanic with Sikorsky Support Services salutes, USAF Major ‘Vandal’ Garrison, an F-15 pilot on an inter-service exchange, as he departs for the first mission of the morning in VMFT-401’s sole F-5F ‘Franken-Tiger’. Garrison’s wingman on this flight was a navy flyer from VFC-111 ‘Sundowners’.

with their on-board systems) to simulate accurately the aircraft a customer asks for. On top of flying the F-5 as if it were another aircraft, the Snipers are frequently called on to fly masquerading as pilots from threat nations and employing their tactics. For example, several nations fly the MiG-29, but they don’t all operate them the same way – it’s up to -401’s pilots to know how any of those countries that might be hostile towards the US actually employ the aircraft.

Air Combat Chameleon – The F-5N Tiger II

Making its first flight in August 1972, the F-5E Tiger II (from which the F-5N is derived) has seen frontline service and continues to fly with air forces worldwide, but it has never been a primary fighter or attack type with any US air arm. Rather, it has long served in the aggressor/adversary role with the US Air Force, USMC and US Navy.

The F-5 is well-suited for this role in a number of ways. First, and of paramount importance in an era of shrinking budgets, is it is relatively cheap to operate, a major selling point in marketing the type to nations with limited defence budgets. Even as the F-5 has aged, it has sustained lower maintenance and fuel costs than the two types most commonly discussed as its replacement in the USMC adversary role, the F-16 and F/A-18. Second, it’s a reliable platform that’s easy to maintain and capable of high sortie rates. Lt Col Nolan explains: “On average, we can provide to the customer during WTI courses an 8-turn-8-turn-8, so approximately 24 sorties per day. And that’s a minimum number: we can upgrade that as needed.” Third, while the F-5 does not have the reputation for manoeuvrability its former adversary stablemate, the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, enjoyed, it is still a nimble fighter with adequate

turn performance for the mission. Last, according to Captain Frey, the greatest strength of the F-5 as an adversary platform is its size: “It’s a small airplane. If you lose sight of it you’re probably going to lose the fight, and I learned that a lot in my F/A-18 days. I still do. The Hornet is a larger airplane. If you take your eyes off it – this is obviously all taking place within a visual-range fight – you can project where it’s going and then rapidly reacquire it, whereas you pretty much have to padlock an F-5.” Explaining how -401’s adversary pilots exploit the F-5’s advantages, Captain Frey says: “As an aggressor you’re utilising the small visual signature in conjunction with the sun, in conjunction with your camouflage paint scheme of a blue aircraft going nose-high (or brown aircraft going nose-low); those are the major advantages we love to capitalise on.” For all of the F-5N’s strengths as an

The Snipers fly F-5s in various camouflage paint schemes to make it harder for pilots to track them against the sky or the ground below. For example, a haze-grey camouflage can be effective against a hazy blue Arizona sky.

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12/01/2015 10:08

DESERT DUELLERS

With 12 F-5s on strength, VMFT-401 has ten aircraft mission-ready at all times, with one aircraft undergoing annual phase inspection in the hangar, as shown, and another at St Augustine, Florida, for depot-level maintenance.

'Snipers' History

Above: ‘Fly! Strike! Win!’ VMFT-401’s hangar is full of Soviet-era imagery, complete with Russian slogans and portraits of Vladimir Lenin, leaving little doubt as to how seriously the squadron’s pilots take their job of threat replication.

VMFT-401 was established in March 1986 to meet increasing demand for adversary support from US Navy and Marine Corps aviation units the navy’s adversary squadrons could not keep up with. Initially equipped with a dozen Israeli Aircraft Industries F-21A Kfirs (modified Kfir C.1s) leased from Israel, the squadron adopted the Northrop F-5E Tiger II as its permanent mount when the Kfir lease expired in 1989. Since then, the Snipers have traded up to the F-5N, an adversary-specific modification of the F-5E with an improved radar, threat warning receivers and airframe modifications to enhance manoeuvrability. NAVAIR’s three F-5 adversary squadrons – VFC-12, VFC-111 and VMFT-401 – each augment their complement of

adversary type, it is still a third-generation fighter designed and built more than four decades ago. Asked how mindful VMFT-401’s pilots need to be in replicating the limitations of the aircraft they’re simulating with the F-5, Captain Frey says: “Usually, with the aircraft itself being very rudimentary and basic, you don’t necessarily have to handcuff yourself. The airplane does that for you.” The F-5N lacks digital multi function displays like the Hornet’s and Harrier’s, which present most of the essential information a pilot needs in an easily digestible format. Rather, as Captain Frey explains: “It doesn’t have quite as much information being presented to you, but it’s difficult to interpret it all because it’s all analogue steam gauges and the radar is not nearly as user-friendly as a fourth-generation Western fighter. It’s a very small dish and a very small display that the information is being presented on.” Despite the intensity of its pilot workload, the F-5N remains a formidable platform for simulating enemy aircraft and tactics

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single-seat F-5Ns with a two-seat F-5F ‘Franken-Tiger’, created by mating ex-Swiss Air Force F-5E rear fuselages and wings with the front fuselage and nose of ex-US Navy F-5Fs. Each squadron mainly uses its assigned F-5F to train new adversary pilots as they work through the syllabus. The Snipers currently have 11 F-5Ns and an F-5F on strength, with ten aircraft mission-ready at all times, one in the hangar undergoing annual phase inspection and another in St Augustine, Florida, for depot-level maintenance. Although the personnel make-up can vary, the squadron is typically manned by about 18 pilots, a third of whom are usually active-duty marines and the rest reservists.

at an affordable cost. The USMC is clearly satisfied with the type, as it is attempting to procure more airframes to keep the type in service until 2028.

Customer Service – WTI and Fleet Support

Although the squadron is based at MCAS Yuma, VMFT-401 reports to Marine Aircraft Group-41 at Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth in Texas. Basing 401 at Yuma makes a great deal of sense given its close proximity to the portions of the Barry M Goldwater Range, specifically dedicated to air combat manoeuvre training, and the fact that Yuma hosts the WTI course every spring and autumn. These are the busiest times of the year for VMFT-401, the squadron routinely flying up to 24 sorties a day. WTI is a train-the-trainers course which takes aviators, aircrew and command and control personnel – already highly experienced and holding many instructor qualifications in their respective communities – and teaches

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DESERT DUELLERS The last thing a USMC aviator wants to see in his rear-view mirror – a Snipers’ F-5N in firing position. Appropriately camouflaged, a VMFT401 F-5N manoeuvres above Range 2301W, specifically instrumented to track air combat manoeuvre training.

The lead F-5 in a flight of four keeps it low on departure from MCAS Yuma on the first sortie of the day for the Snipers. While long in the tooth, the F-5 still fits the mission quite well and is currently expected to stay in service until 2030.

Bubble Boy – Sgt Manuel Ramirez, a KC-130 crewmaster and Prospective Weapons and Tactics Instructor, scans for bogies in the ‘bubble’, a dome-shaped window in the top of the Herk’s crew cabin. During DEFTAC sorties, this is the most critical crew position as it affords a 360-degree field of view.

FIGHT’S ON – Going Defensive Against The Snipers AFM experienced firsthand what it’s like to be engaged by VMFT-401 on a Defensive Tactics (DEFTAC) evolution with MAWTS-1’s KC-130 department during WTI 1-15. No USMC KC-130 has ever been engaged by enemy aircraft in combat, but the broad charter given to marine ‘Herc’ crews means that such encounters, while unlikely, are still possible. During WTI, Prospective KC-130 Weapons and Tactics Instructors (PWTIs) include both pilots and enlisted crewmasters. The level of co-ordination between both groups is high on the Hercules, and is perhaps at its apex during DEFTAC training. AFM flew with a blended crew consisting of a MAWTS-1 KC-130 instructor pilot, a pilot PWTI, a crewmaster PWTI and two augmentee crewmasters on loan from their home squadrons to support the KC-130 during WTI. Using the callsign ‘DRAFT81’ (all MAWTS-1 KC-130 flights use the ‘Draft’ callsign with an ‘8X’ mission code), the flight departed MCAS Yuma and in a matter of minutes was over the Goldwater Range – where the PWTI pilot established an orbit and waited for the first attack. The crewmasters assumed their positions, the augmentees manning the side windows toward the rear

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of the cargo hold, and the crewmaster PWTI took position in the ‘bubble’, a blister-shaped Plexiglas dome window on the roof of the crew cabin which affords a 360-degree view unavailable to the pilots and the other crewmasters. Fifteen minutes into the flight, the instructor pilot, sitting in the co-pilot’s seat, pointed out an inbound bogey: DRAFT81 was at the merge with a single F-5N, which appeared as a small cruciform object trailing faint gray smoke and closing fast off the starboard side of the nose. The pilot began a series of tight alternating turns, pushing up to bank angles of 60 degrees or more and sustaining between 1.5 and 2.3g while little more than 1,000ft (300m) above the desert floor. The radio chatter among the crew was loud and frequent, yet efficient, all five crewmembers giving constant updates on the position of the bogey when they had it in sight. After several sets of turns lasting between five and ten minutes, the KC-130 and F-5 would reset, typically because the Sniper had scored a ‘kill’, after which it would merge again and DRAFT81’s crew would go through another series of defensive manoeuvres. Once the first, lone Sniper went bingo and returned to

Yuma, DRAFT81 was again flung around at low altitude, the crew trying to shake not one but now two Sniper F-5s off the tail. This pair of F-5s comprised a desert-camouflaged VMFT-401 aircraft and a blue camouflaged F-5 on loan from navy adversary squadron VFC-13 from NAS Fallon. In accordance with the Snipers’ SOP, the brown jet went nose-low to make it harder to detect against the desert floor while the blue Tiger II went nose-high to make effective use of its blue camouflage against the clear sky. With two aircraft fighting for a firing position on DRAFT81, the ‘kills’ were more frequent than during the one-on-one encounter, and the crew reset several times before the F-5s ran short on fuel and returned to base. What was clear during the DEFTAC flight was the level of intensity among the crew and the seriousness with which they took the threat presentations. Despite the fact that the adversary pilots were marines like them, the crew of DRAFT81 treated the Snipers as if they were a living, breathing enemy and reacted accordingly, just as if they were in actual combat, leaving no doubt as to how effective -401’s pilots are at providing realistic threat profiles.

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DESERT DUELLERS them to be certified as weapons and tactics instructors. They then go back to their operational units to instruct their squadronmates on the latest tactics for their platform. The seven-week course starts with a three-and-a-half-week academics syllabus which progresses from ‘generics’ (concepts common to all USMC aviation communities) through a ‘common’ phase (concepts common to specific communities like TACAIR or Assault Support) to a ‘specifics’ phase focusing on concepts and tactics peculiar to each type/model/series (T/M/S) of aircraft. Next, a three-and-a-half-week flight phase works in the opposite direction, with flying starting out type-specific before moving to a common phase and ultimately a generics phase, which includes large integrated evolutions and the Final Exercise (FINEX). Throughout the flight phase, VMFT-401 supports WTI, offering adversary support to all T/M/Ss participating in the course as well as certain ground units, such as Command and Control Marines, who learn to give tactical responses to enemy air threats; and ground-based air defence (GBAD) marines, who rely on the Snipers, and some external support, to simulate ground attack aircraft to defend against.

Given that most USMC aircraft will operate as part of an Aviation Combat Element of a largely autonomous Marine Expeditionary Unit, aircrews need to know how to deal with air threats they may encounter without having fighter support immediately available. Aircraft without an offensive air-to-air capability – such as the UH-1, CH-53, MV-22, EA-6 and KC-130 – train in defensive tactics to escape or evade attacking aircraft. Types that can engage enemy aircraft – the F/A-18, AV-8 and AH-1 – train in air combat manoeuvring to gain an advantage on attackers and destroy them. Though the instructor certifications for defensive tactics or air combat manoeuvring go by different names in the different communities, MAWTS-1 is their certifying authority and the Snipers are traditionally the unit they train with to earn them. With WTI being busy and limitations on the types of threats the Snipers can replicate, VMFT-401 typically relies on external adversary support to meet the demands of training new weapons and tactics instructors. The most obvious external support comes from 401’s colleagues in the navy F-5 community, with either VFC-13 at Fallon, Nevada, or VFC-111 at Key West, Florida, providing an F-5N and

a pilot to ensure the Snipers can satisfy MAWTS-1’s adversary support needs. MAWTS-1 also has its three adversary augment pilots to help 401 out as well. Air force, navy and contractor support also reinforces VMFT-401’s efforts to provide highfidelity adversary services, with one particular WTI evolution showcasing this co-operation very well. As MAWTS-1’s external air support co-ordinator, Captain Frey is responsible for organising the red team that supports one of WTI’s largest scenarios, a defensive counter air (DCA) warfare evolution. “We have a four-day evolution – it’s a plan day, two execution days and a debrief day,” he says. “The two execution days are a three-hour and a five-hour vulnerability period, and the F/A-18 division, the F-35s, GBAD and a lot of other parts of C3 [command, control, and communication] all mission-plan to defend Yuma from threats originating from Tucson. So GBAD gets together with the fighters, and we create what’s known as a JEZ or a Joint Engagement Zone.” The Snipers’ primary function is simulated ground attack against targets in the JEZ, a pilot from 401 also serving as the red air mission commander for an ad hoc adversary force comprising 30 to 40 aircraft. Captain Frey elaborates on its composition: “We’re

Captain Thomas ‘Puppy’ Frey – taxiing out on a morning 4v4 sortie against a flight of WTI candidates in AV-8B Harriers – pulls double duty as an F-18 instructor with MAWTS-1 and an adversary augment pilot with VMFT-401. All VMFT-401 aircraft carry an inert AIM9 training round on one wingtip launch rail and a Cubic Defense Applications P5 Air Combat Training pod on the other. The P5 interacts with instruments on the Barry M Goldwater Range to record data that’s critical for effectively debriefing each adversary support sortie with the Snipers’ ‘customers’.

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DESERT DUELLERS

Above: VMFT-401 operates a single F-5F ‘Franken-Tiger’ for type conversion for pilots new to the squadron. This aircraft, currently marked to commemorate the squadron’s 25th anniversary, is also operated in the adversary role along with the Snipers’ singleseat F-5Ns.

Left: A sign on a door in VMFT-401’s hangar shows just how strongly the Cold War adversary legacy is embraced and celebrated by the squadron’s pilots.

going to have on station at any given time about eight F-5s total, four F-16s from the 64th Aggressor Squadron, a B-1B coming out of Dyess Air Force Base, two B-52s coming out of North Dakota, and ATAC [Airborne Tactical Advantage Company] support in the form of Hawker Hunters, plus there’s a company named Flight International: they’ll do some good electronic attack for us, some good jamming. “There’s an An-2 Colt and an Mi-24 Hind provided from the Vertol Company, a couple of F/A-18s and a couple of AV-8s.” Though the red air team for this scenario is a hodgepodge of seemingly random aircraft, Frey says each one corresponds to a real-life threat aircraft. The blue air team consists of 12 F/A-18s and two F-35s, so there are typically 50 or more aircraft participating at any given time, Frey observing: “Yeah. It’s a very large evolution.” Each adversary mission for VMFT-401’s pilots begins with a red air co-ordination brief, which Frey describes as one in which the red air flight lead or mission commander will “meet up with the blue air players and basically find out what their mission is, what the requests are as far as: ‘These are our

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training objectives, please facilitate those by doing blank, blank, and blank, and this is your simulation, you’re not simulating an F-5, you’re simulating a MiG-21,’ or whatever.” With this information, the red air flight lead returns to 401 to brief the other Sniper pilots on that mission. Although the Barry M Goldwater Range is very close to MCAS Yuma, the F-5N’s short legs typically restrict flight time to about 45 minutes. Once the mission is over, the red air flight lead from 401 will typically meet with the ‘customer’ to debrief the mission. Each community in marine aviation debriefs in its own way. Being an F/A-18 pilot by trade, Frey speaks authoritatively about how Hornet pilots debrief: “When we support F/A-18 guys, there’s a very specific manner in which they debrief, where we go over to the TCTS facility [Tactical Combat Training System, which uses instruments on the range to record the movement of aircraft overhead]. All the aircraft were being tracked and we sit in an auditorium and watch the fight as it occurred in real time – and there are certain questions the blue flight lead is asking directly to the red lead: ‘Did you have

radar situational awareness, were you aware of us, did you have a shot available based on your simulation, did you take a shot, how were our manoeuvres to defeat you and your systems, how do you assess those?’ “It’s a direct conversation generally between the blue flight lead and the red flight lead. And then the instructor, assuming it’s a work-up sortie, will sit there and back up the flight lead on any questions he missed.” As another example of the close ties between VMFT-401 and MAWTS-1, the input of Sniper pilots during debriefs is factored into the evaluation of Prospective Weapons and Tactics Instructors (PWTIs) during the WTI course. VMFT-401 also assists MAWTS-1 with the Marine Division Tactics Course twice a year at MCAS Miramar and MCAS Beaufort. During MDTC, F/A-18 flight leads learn how to employ four-ship formations in air combat manoeuvring against varying numbers of adversaries, the Snipers typically playing the role of the ‘bad guys’ during the course. MAWTS-1 also conducts fleet support detachments throughout the year when instructors will visit bases to work with aircrew seeking instructor certifications,

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DESERT DUELLERS

VMFT-401 supports these detachments when defensive tactics or air combat tactics certs are being sought. Although infrequent, VMFT-401 supports large force exercises such as the USAF’s Red Flag at Nellis Air Force Base. Red Flag 13-3 in February 2013 was the last the Snipers participated in.

Secure Future

With a handful of nimble, reliable jets flown by some of the most experienced tactical aviators in the US Marine Corps, VMFT-401 has provided the lion’s share of adversary support for the service over the past 28 years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. The USMC’s 2015 Aviation Plan, released in November 2014, includes proposals to establish a detachment of VMFT-401 on the east coast; procure more F-5s to sustain the fleet until 2030 and upgrade the fleet to enable better support for fourth and fifth-generation aircraft; and expand the Snipers’ mission to include close air support training for Joint Terminal Attack Controllers. The F-5 may be fading into obsolescence in air forces around the world, but for the US afm Marines it has never been more relevant.

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Paul Carmack, a maintainer with Sikorsky Support Services Inc (SSSI), recovers VMFT-401’s colourbird after an early morning sortie. Asked what the most challenging part of maintaining the F-5 is, he replied: “Ageing knees and a low platform.”

Sniper Maintenance

VMFT-401’s consistently high sortie rate is attributable to two factors – the simplicity of the F-5’s design and the work of the Snipers’ maintainers from Sikorsky Support Services Incorporated (SSSI). Given -401 is the only squadron using the F-5 in Marine Corps service, there is little economic sense in maintaining an organic maintenance capability for the type. Instead, the Snipers have relied on civilian contract maintenance provided by SSSI since transitioning to the F-5 in 1989. AFM spoke to Paul Carmack, a mechanic with SSSI who spent six years on active duty in the Marine Corps working on A-4s and F/A-18s in the 1980s and has been at Yuma working the F-5 contract for almost 20 years. Though designated an armament mechanic and assigned to work primarily with the squadron’s TICTS pods and inert AIM-9 training rounds, he tells AFM: “I also launch and recover aircraft and can be called in to help out with powerplants or airframes. We all pretty much help each other out.” Carmack’s background is typical of many SSSI’s

maintainers at Yuma – most are either retired or ex-military. Asked why VMFT-401 has a reputation for reliability and high sortie rates, Carmack said: “It’s a very basic aircraft as far as systems go. So that makes it really reliable. We also have quite a bit more experience in the airframe than you would normally see in a navy or marines’ squadron. Your average time of rotation is two years – I have almost 20 years here and I’m a youngster. So that plays a part. And we take our maintenance role very seriously.” Questioned about the more challenging aspects of keeping the F-5 mission-ready, Carmack laughed and said: “Ageing knees and a low platform,” adding that, with the knowledge base and experience SSSI’s F-5 maintainers have, there’s very little that stumps them. He sums up his attitude toward working for VMFT-401 with a sentiment undoubtedly shared by his colleagues: “We’re really proud to be supporting the marines and the warfighter out there, and we really appreciate what they do for us.”

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FORCE REPORT German Marineflieger

The German Marineflieger has faced years of severe costcutting measures, Dirk Jan de Ridder and Menso van Westrhenen reveal how it continues to operate old aircraft adapted to face new challenges.

T

HERE HAVE been a great many changes to Germany’s Marineflieger (naval air arm) over the past decade or so. Budget cuts coupled with the retirement of old obsolete aircraft have reduced the size of the air arm. Nineteen maritime patrol Breguet Atlantics were replaced by eight Lockheed P-3 Orions, only two of its previous four Dornier Do 228 pollution control aircraft remain active and poor serviceability of the old Sea King and Sea Lynx helicopters is having a negative impact on the pilots’ flying time. Until 2005 the German Navy even operated Tornado fighter jets, but they were withdrawn and the role passed on to the air force. More recently, at the end of 2012, the Sea Kings based at

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Old-timers with

new skill Kiel-Holtenau moved to Nordholz, leaving the Marineflieger with a single air base and just two Marinefliegergeschwaders (MFG - Naval Air Wings). MFG3 operates the fixed-wing Do 228 and P-3C Orion, while MFG5 is equipped with Westland Sea King Mk41 and Westland Sea Lynx Mk88A helicopters. Nordholz has become the only air base in Germany to house two air wings, making it the biggest, both in terms of the number of aircraft and personnel.

Fixed-wing

Eight P-3C Orions were acquired from the Netherlands in 2006. They took over the role of 15 Atlantics to fulfil anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare

‘They took over the role of 15 Atlantics to fulfil anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface warfare tasking.’ tasking. Their secondary roles include patrol and reconnaissance, both over water and land, and occasional support during search and rescue (SAR) operations. There were plans to replace the other five signals intelligence (SIGINT) configured Atlantics with the Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Eurohawk unmanned aerial vehicle. When the project was cancelled in 2013, three years after the last SIGINT Atlantic was retired in 2010, it left a capability gap that does not look likely to

be filled in the near future. For its primary roles the Orion is equipped with torpedoes, bombs and mines. The aircraft’s crew size and composition depends on the mission. The minimum is four: an aircraft commander, pilot, engineer and observer. Tactical missions are flown with a minimum crew of 11, operating the radio, radar, sonar, optical and other equipment. The most senior officer on board is the mission commander, regardless of his role in the aircraft. MFG3’s

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Branch: Marineflieger Role: Aerial Surveillance, Anti-Submarine and Anti-Surface Warfare

ills Left: Eight P-3C Orions have been in service with the Marineflieger since 2006, when they replaced 14 Atlantics. They were acquired from the Royal Netherlands Air Force after the Dutch Government ended its requirement for a maritime patrol aircraft. Below: The Sea King has been serving the Marineflieger for over 30 years and is now starting to show its age. It will be replaced by the NH 90 from 2017. All photos, Dirk Jan de Ridder unless stated

Orions are currently involved in the anti-piracy Operation Atalanta (see later), as well as national missions (usually one or two every month) and providing readiness for the NATO Response Force (with different crews alternating every 12 months). After delivery from the Netherlands, the Orions needed a lot of attention as overhauls and mid-life upgrades had stopped when the Dutch MOD decided to end the anti-submarine warfare/anti surface warfare role. The aircraft underwent lengthy overhauls and test flights before being certified at Manching - it took about a year before the Marineflieger had any Orions at its disposal from their new Nordholz home.

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At present, aircraft availability is good and even though the Marineflieger only operates eight Orions, missions are rarely cancelled due to a lack of aircraft. During the authors’ visit, an Orion broke down during start-up for a training flight, but another aircraft was substituted causing only an hour’s delay. The next day four different airframes were flying, something that doesn’t happen very often. Although the airframes are 30 years old, the Orions should be able to fly until at least 2025. Whereas MFG3’s 1.Staffel (squadron) just operates the P-3C, the 2.Staffel is equipped with both the Do 228 and the P-3C, with crew members dedicated to just one aircraft type. The Do 228s are flown in cooperation

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FORCE REPORT German Marineflieger

Above: Sea King 89+55 received a brilliant colour scheme in 2013 to celebrate 100th anniversary of German naval aviation. Below: The Sea Lynx Mk88 has been in service for nearly 35 years, but the Marineflieger is not yet looking for a replacement. Note the ‘Yoda’ nose art.

with the German Department of Transport, which sets the operational guidelines and pays for the aircraft, infrastructure and personnel. In return the Marineflieger schedules the flights, operates the aircraft and provides aircrew as well as maintenance personnel. Approximately 30% of the missions are so-called ‘satellite flights’. Thirty minutes after a satellite passes over, imagery of any potential pollution at sea is released to the air wing. Another half an hour later a Do 228 takes off to investigate the reported pollution. Other flights are also planned around the satellite schedule. These missions take place on a daily basis, making it harder for potential polluters to avoid detection. Do 228 pilots are among the busiest in the German military, with each amassing up to 400 annual flying hours. They are available 365 days a year, both day and night, to patrol for oil pollution and other offences. This has had a remarkable impact in deterring would-be offenders. While more hours are flown every year, the

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Branch: Marineflieger Role: Aerial Surveillance, Anti-Sub and Anti Surface Warfare

Left: Two Do 228NGs are flown by the Marineflieger on behalf of the German Department of Transport which pays for their use to detect oil spills and track offenders.

co-pilot and systems operator, to detect pollution at a range of 20 miles (32km). Once a suspected violation is identified, the area is inspected with short-range sensors including infra-red and ultraviolet scanners, a microwave radiometer or a laser fluorosensor. The final procedure is to gather photographic evidence enabling law enforcement agencies to take action against the offender. Should the crew receive an emergency call for search and rescue, which is a secondary mission, it will always take priority over pollution control taskings.

Helicopters

Marineflieger Order of Battle Nordholz Air Base MFG3

1.Staffel

P-3C

2.Staffel

Do228/P-3C

MFG5

1.Staffel

Sea King Mk 41

3.Staffel

Sea Lynx Mk 88A

number of detections has steadily decreased. In 2013 the Dorniers reached 35,000 pollution control flight hours, during which 4,500 cases of pollution were detected and 610 polluters tracked down. In 2012 one of the old Do 228s, which had accumulated over 19,500 flying hours since 1991, was replaced by a Do 228NG featuring a glass cockpit with electronic instrument displays and five-bladed propellers. The one Do 228LM that remained was subsequently upgraded by Sweden’s SSC with a glass cockpit and new propellers, easily recognizable by the five blades. Mission equipment remains the same in the modified aircraft. Special emphasis is laid on shipping lanes, oil and gas platforms, fishing areas and the Wadden Sea (a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands off the northwest coast of the Netherlands and the Frisian Isles), which is on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. Modern equipment enables the crew, which comprises a commander,

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Student naval helicopter pilots start their training with the Heeresfliegerwaffenschule (School of Army Aviation) at Buckeburg flying the EC135, plus ten hours on the Bo-105 for autorotation training which the EC135 cannot perform. After receiving their wings they transfer to their future squadron for conversion training on the Sea King or Sea Lynx. Currently there are not enough flying hours available for them to join their squadron immediately. For this reason a civilian EC135 has been leased and based at Nordholz where students can fly enough hours to maintain their skills and their pilot licences. It may take between a year and 18 months for them to join an operational squadron. A shortage of flying hours is having an effect on the flying status of pilots. Sea King pilots, who are fully combat-ready must fly 180 hours to keep their currency, while those with a limited combat-readiness, flying around 120 or 140 hours, tend to stay at that level. As a result though, very few pilots now get the chance to become fully combat-ready. Out of the 22 Sea King Mk41s delivered from 1972, 21 are still flying today. The helicopter’s main roles include search and rescue (SAR) over the North and Baltic Seas, as well as special operations with KSK (Kommando Spezialkräfte – Special Forces Command) soldiers. For selfprotection the Sea King Mk 41 is equipped with chaff and flare as well as an M3M machine gun. The staffel has a permanent SAR readiness state, covering the North Sea from Helgoland (an island 37 miles [60km] off the

Atalanta Operation Atalanta, the first maritime operation initiated by the European Union, began in December 2008. It is currently the Marineflieger’s main tasking involving three of its four different types of aircraft regularly committed to it. Sea King, Sea Lynx and Orion crews often deploy to the Horn of Africa to combat piracy. While the helicopters fly off ships, the Orions operate from a French military base in Djibouti. Their mission is to detect pirates preferably before a ship is attacked. An Orion pilot, who preferred to remain anonymous for security reasons told the authors: “The most efficient way to perform our job was to work with French AWACS. They pinpoint targets of interest and tell us where they are located. We head inbound with our own radar and use a camera and optical means, down to a handheld camera, if necessary. The altitudes we fly depend on the weather and visibility. During ‘our’ [European] wintertime, you have great visibility so we fly high altitude, but in summertime, especially during Djibouti’s monsoon season, we have visibility down to zero and we are not even able to find them optically.” A P-3 sortie often lasts between eight and ten hours, with an early start because of the temperature and humidity in Djibouti. There is a 15-hour working day from the first briefing to the end of the debriefing. One pilot logged 270 flying hours while being deployed to Djibouti for two months, which is an average of nine hours every two days. At least one P-3 is continuously deployed, with crews alternating every two or three months. During 2013 they had a six-month break to maintain the aircraft and train new crews, the latter hadn’t happened in four to five years. In accordance with the UN mandate, missions are flown along the Internationally Recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC) between Somalia and Yemen, as well as over Somalian territorial waters and the Indian Ocean. German parliament also approved missions over the coastline up to 6,561ft (2,000m) into the Somali mainland. Lynxes tend to deploy in

pairs on board Bremen-class frigates, taking along around 17 technicians and six crew members (two complete flight crews). Two pilots are assisted by a single HOM (Helikopter-Ortungsmeister) in the back, who operates the machine gun and the camera during reconnaissance flights. The majority of Lynx missions comprise patrol and reconnaissance, but another important tasking is protecting World Food Program ships from pirates, on their way to East Africa. These are being protected from the air as they enter Mogadishu Harbour. The results of the whole operation are clear. Over the past three years, the number of successful hijackings has decreased from 47 in 2010 to 25 in 2011, five in 2012 and zero in 2013. Sadly 2014 started off badly with a successful hijack in January. Operation Atalanta was supposed to end in 2012, but has now been extended to the end of 2016. The following example of a mission from January 2013 illustrates the level of co-operation between different nations and air/sea assets. Pirates had attacked a cargo vessel with a whaler (mother ship) and a skiff (speedboat). Security personnel managed to fend off the attacks and reported the incident. A Spanish P-3 was airborne, but it was low on fuel and had to return to Djibouti. The decision was taken to launch a German Orion the next day but just three hours later the aircraft arrived at the spot in complete darkness. Despite bad weather and poor visibility it managed to trace the two pirate boats and forward their location to the Atalanta task force. An American and a French frigate pursued the pirates and captured them at dawn. Weapons and evidence were secured and the skiff was sunk. Below: These mission markings were applied while P-3C 60+04 was based in Djibouti for Operation Atalanta. Menso van Westrhenen

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FORCE REPORT German Marineflieger

Above: On board a P-3C during a local training flight. Menso van Westrhenen Below: The Sea King Mk41 and the Sea Lynx Mk88A are operated by MFG5.

mainland) and the Baltic Sea from Warnemünde (near Rostock). Captain Lieutenant Jahr, a Sea King pilot explains: “We have one helicopter and one crew at each location. They stay there for a week from Monday morning to Monday morning, after which we fly a new aircraft there or arrange a shuttle aircraft. There are more tourists, surfers, sailors, swimmers and divers at Warnemünde during the summer, which increases the likelihood of people getting into trouble. In the North Sea we have more islands without any easy access to the mainland, which means that in autumn and winter, when the weather

is worse and the civilian rescue helicopters can’t fly there because of visibility, we get a call. Civilian rescue helicopters need 3 miles [5km] flight visibility and we only need 2,624ft [800m] or 2 miles [3km] at night. In general, we have three to four missions per week, but you can have weeks when we come back with 30 hours of flying and then there are weeks when nothing happens.” The Sea King also still performs ship-based operations. While the armed Lynx helicopters tend to get more media coverage when they deploy on ops abroad, the Sea King still ventures overseas as it did in June 2014 for four

months. The old helicopter can land on several German Navy ships and foreign frigates, but they can only be parked inside a Berlinclass Einsatzgruppenversorger (replenishment ship) of which there are three in service, so whenever they deploy it will be on this type of ship. Service life for the versatile Sea King has now been extended to 2021. The NH90 ‘Sea Lion’, as the German Navy has named the helicopter, is now expected to enter service at the end of 2017, with 18 examples being transferred from an air force order to the navy. Similar to the NH90 NFH version operated by other countries, it will feature some German mission-specific equipment, such as communications systems. Sea Lynxes have served the navy since 1981, but in 1996, seven brand new Sea Lynx Mk88As were ordered and the 15 remaining Mk88 models were upgraded to Mk88A standard. The Mk88A’s new Selex Seaspray 3000 radar offers an extra 100 miles (180km) of range and 360-degree visibility due to its position under the nose. When MFG5’s Sea Kings moved from Kiel to Nordholz, the Lynxes became part of the third staffel of MFG5 (the second staffel doesn’t exist). In recent years anti-submarine warfare, once the Sea Lynx squadron’s primary role, has

become less important and when deployed more emphasis is now given to anti-surface warfare, reconnaissance and maritime patrol. An undisclosed number of Titan 385ES-HD electro-optical/ infrared sensors has been ordered by the German Navy for its Sea Lynx helicopters. The Titan turret installed on the helicopter’s nose will provide pilots with a forwardlooking infra-red capability, considerably improving visibility at night and in poor weather. Like the Sea King, the Lynx is equipped with an M3M 12.7mm door gun, but it can also fire the Sea Skua missile at surface targets up to 9 miles (15km) away. Up to three deployments can be manned simultaneously by 3.Staffel. Recent operations have included Active Endeavour and Enduring Freedom (focusing on anti-terrorism), UNIFIL (protecting the maritime borders of Lebanon from illegal weapons transports) and Atalanta. Although two-third of the Lynxes have been in service for 30 years, there are no plans to replace them in the near future as the NH90 will only replace the Sea King. Although the air assets of the Marineflieger are getting older and its current missions are slightly moving away from high threat level operations, it is still a very potent air arm with a wide range of capabilities. afm

‘For self-protection the Sea King Mk 41 is equipped with chaff and flare as well as an M3M machine gun.’

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS

Herrick Torn OPERATION

Tim Ripley looks back at five years of RAF Tornado GR4 operations over Afghanistan.

T

he RAF Tornado GR4 Force concluded operations over Afghanistan last November and returned home. In five-and-a-half years of continuous operations, every Tornado squadron served multiple tours, flying from the vast NATO air base at Kandahar in southern Afghanistan. Operation Herrick, as the UK mission to Afghanistan was codenamed, saw many firsts for the veteran aircraft. They included the first combat use of the MBDA dual mode Brimstone (DMB) missile and Paveway IV guided bomb, the introduction of new communications and defensive suites, as well as extensive use of airborne surveillance systems to support counter-insurgency operations by NATO ground troops. The mission was undertaken at a time when the Tornado GR4 force was shrinking as a result of government-mandated cutbacks in aircraft strength and reductions in the number

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‘A couple of times a week, the Tornados would be tasked to provide wide-area reconnaissance with the RAPTOR pod’ of frontline squadrons. At the same time, the Tornados were mobilised in large numbers for the Libya campaign in 2011 and more recently detachments have been sent to operate over Nigeria and Iraq. The British taxpayer has been getting superb value out of investment in the Tornado GR4 over the past decade.

Telic to Herrick

Britain’s military involvement in Afghanistan steadily escalated after the first detachments of special forces troops deployed to the central Asia country in November 2001 in response to

the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers in New York. The first RAF fast jets, BAE Systems Harrier GR7As, arrived in Afghanistan in 2004 (see Herrick Harriers supplement, Feb 2010) to provide close air support to coalition troops hunting down small contingents of Taliban insurgents. At this time, the Tornado GR4 force was committed to providing continuous detachments of aircraft at Al Udeid Airbase in Qatar to support the efforts in Iraq, or Operation Telic as it was codenamed by the UK. Up to 2008, the RAF found itself running two parallel squadron-sized deployments in both Iraq and

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS

rnados Afghanistan, each usually of around eight jets. These were hot wars in every sense of the word. The conditions on the deployed operating bases for air and ground crew were punishing, with heat and dust draining both men and machines. By early 2008, the RAF leadership began looking at new ways of sustaining the presence in both Iraq and Afghanistan indefinitely. The three Joint Force Harrier squadrons were each serving four months at a time at Kandahar and the five Tornado squadrons were rotating through two-month tours at Al Udeid. Options of deploying the new Eurofighter Typhoon to Afghanistan were considered but rejected as too expensive and risky. The preferred option was to pull out the Harrier force to be rested and regenerate its carrier capability, while the Tornado GR4s would move to providing three-month long detachments for both Operations Telic and Herrick through to 2012.

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Top: Two Tornado GR4s taxi out at Kandahar armed with DMBs, Paveway IV and Litening pods. Frédéric Lert Above: Laden down with a Goodrich RAPTOR reconnaissance pod, drop tanks, a Paveway IV bomb and a Terma pod, GR4, ZA469, demonstrates how flexible an air asset the Tornado became during the final years of Operation Herrick. Global Aviation Review Press

Above & right: While the Tornados had very little artwork applied to them, apart from the occasional mission tally, buildings at Kandahar housing the RAF detachment were liberally decorated - featured here is Penelope Paveway and Betty Brimstone. Neil Dundridge

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS Everyone in the Tornado GR4 force was going to have to work harder and spend longer away from home, until the Typhoon was ready or the Harriers were able to re-enter the fray. Government ministers signed-off on the new plan in June 2008 and work began to prepare for the deployment. The eight aircraft going to Kandahar were upgraded at an eventual cost of £42 million to integrate the Paveway IV laser/GPS guided bomb, install advanced secure communications equipment for the Afghan theatre and fit a new defensive aid pod from the Danish company Terma. The DMB had been fitted to Tornados serving in Operation Telic in early 2009 and the capability was incorporated in the Afghan bound jets. Facilities at Kandahar were upgraded for the arrival of the twin-engined Tornados, including the laying of a new ramp and other infrastructure. The bill for this work ran to £40 million. It was estimated the Tornado deployment would cost £31 million a month. RAF Lossiemouth’s 12 (B) Squadron was selected to be the lead unit into Kandahar with a tentative initial operating capability set for April 1, 2009. At the same time, RAF Marham units would continue with Operation Telic. The uncertainty associated with operational activity now intervened. The good news was that Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced

Above: The GCAS alert aircraft were housed close to the end of Kandahar’s main runway allowing for a rapid launch for when the call was received at any time of the day or night. Frédéric Lert

in December 2008 that Operation Telic would end in five months time, freeing RAF Marham from this commitment. The bad news was that work on the upgrade and full clearances was taking longer than expected and bad weather in Afghanistan meant the concrete for the new ramp was not setting. The deployment date was put back to June 1, and the Harrier Force filled the gap.

Above: Tornado crews had to exercise their own judgement to determine which weapon would minimise the danger of collateral damage; first the 27mm Mauser cannon, then the dual mode Brimstone and lastly the Paveway IV. Frédéric Lert Below: Ground Close Air Support (GCAS) became the ‘bread-and-butter’ of Tornado operations flown from Kandahar. If friendly troops were coming under heavy fire an immediate request was made for the allocated GCAS to be launched. This could be routinely accomplished in under 15 minutes. Neil Dundridge

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Herrick Begins

The 24 aircrew and 122 ground crew of 12 (B) Squadron started deploying to Kandahar in May 2009 to prepare for the handover from 1 (F) Squadron. For the new team, the pressure was to hit the ground running. The British Army’s 19 Light Brigade was about to launch Operation Panther’s Claw aimed at driving the Taliban out of a strategic area in the centre of Helmand province. Some 6,000 UK, Afghan and allied troops would be involved in the battle and it was vital to have air support on call if heavy resistance was encountered from dug-in and well prepared Taliban fighters in the so-called ‘Green Zone’. Panther’s Claw kicked off on June 19, with a huge air assault by helicopter-borne British troops on to landing zones in the heart of the Green Zone. No 12 (B) Squadron was on the front line of the operation from the day it arrived at Kandahar, carrying out a cannon strafing run on June 20. Its aircraft flew missions to photograph the landing zones with Goodrich RAPTOR pods to provide assault troops with detailed and up-to-date target packs for planning their dangerous missions. As the assault helicopters were in-bound, Tornados were in the air providing over-

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS watch of the landing zones. The crews used Rafael Litening III targeting pods to look for Taliban activity and warn ground commanders of enemy movements. For more than a month, troops of 19 Light Brigade battled to clear the Taliban from the Green Zone. The intensity of the fighting can be gauged by fact that British forces lost more than ten soldiers killed in action and more than 100 wounded. Throughout the operation, 12 (B) Squadron’s Tornados were overhead, on call, to provide close air support or to investigate suspicious activity with their surveillance systems. At the height of this effort, 12 (B) Squadron lost two aircraft in the space of two days; one (ZA559) from an on-board fire during landing and another (ZA596) during take-off. The crews escaped but replacement aircraft had to be sent from the UK. By October 2009, RAF Marham’s 31 Squadron was ready to take over the reins of the Operation Herrick detachment. This was when the Tornado GR4 deployment to Afghanistan started to get into its stride. Each squadron of the seven GR4 units was now scheduled to deploy for three months until the commitment of UK forces ended, whenever that might be. The Operation Herrick tour routine was now established. During pre-deployment training aircrew had to gain currency in all the weapons, systems and tactics they would use in Afghanistan. They then carried out training missions with the army’s forward air controllers they would work with in Helmand province. Squadron operations and intelligence staff established working relationships with the army brigade headquarters they would support during their time in Afghanistan, practising distributing reconnaissance imagery and receiving air support requests, (see, Mission Rehearsal Exercise, October, p36). For the squadron ground crews, deploying to Kandahar was very different to Al Udeid, which was far from Iraq in the peaceful Gulf state of Qatar. The NATO air base was in the heart of a war zone and was regularly attacked by the Taliban. The ground crews undertook extensive combat first aid and battle training before deployment. Once at Kandahar, the Tornado detachment

In action almost from day one, 12 (B) Squadron’s Tornados supported Operation Panther’s Claw in 2009, providing reconnaissance and close-air support to the ground troops. Neil Dundridge

had its own routine which was governed by the operational tempo, set by NATO air and ground commanders. During ‘routine’ flying periods, the Tornado detachment would normally launch two or three pairs of jets a day. The air tasking order usually gave the aircrews 48 hours’ notice of the timing of its go times, giving ground crews the time to prepare and arm their jets for action.

Kinetic Effects

Each pair of jets normally carried a combination of weapons and sensors so the aircraft could be re-tasked in the air depending on the tactical situation. Every jet had at least a couple of Brimstones and one Paveway IV, as well as Litening III pod. The crews would usually be briefed to fly over several ‘named areas of interest’ to take a look for ground activity with the Litening pod or provide an ‘air presence’ to deter the Taliban by generating ‘jet noise’ in specific locations at specific times. A couple of times a week, the Tornados would be tasked to provide wide-area reconnaissance with the RAPTOR pod. This high-definition, electro-optical camera system was popular with troop commanders who wanted to create ‘target packs’ for their troops to use when planning ground missions into enemy territory. Again a pair of aircraft would be involved; one with a mix of Brimstone/Paveway IV missiles

and the other sporting the RAPTOR pod. Any of these missions could quickly result in jets being re-tasked to provide what became known throughout the Afghan theatre as ‘kinetic effects’. This is military jargon for dropping bombs, firing missiles or shooting-up targets with cannons with the intention of killing the enemy. Ground-based forward air controllers or Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTACs) and the Tornado crews had to go through rigorous rules of engagement (ROE) procedures before live weapons could be employed. The ROE were part of an escalator menu of responses available to JTACs. First, they usually had to use the jets to make low and fast passes to scare off any Taliban fighters and prompt them to retreat. If that did not work, then live weapons could be used. Aircrew had to use the lowest collateral damage weapons first to avoid politically sensitive deaths to civilians and their property. Tornado GR4 crews had first to use their 27mm Mauser cannon. The next step up the escalatory ladder was the DMB and as a last resort the RAF crews could use the Paveway IV. In some cases, such as against moving targets, they were allowed to opt for the DMB as first resort because of its effectiveness against moving vehicles. As the campaign progressed and the political sensitivity of collateral damage increased,

Setting off for an early morning mission from Kandahar, this Tornado’s patchwork of replacement panels is evidence of a ‘hard’ deployment against the Taliban. This is further borne out by the tally of four Paveways and one Brimstone applied to the nose. MOD Crown Copyright

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Army Brigade Operation Herrick 10 19 Light Brigade

Operation Herrick 11 11 Light Brigade

Operation Herrick 12 4 Mech Brigade

Operation Herrick 13 16 Air Assault Brigade

Operation Operation Herrick 13 Herrick 14 16 Air Assault 3 Cdo Brigade Brigade

Operation Herrick 15 20 Armoured Brigade

Operation Herrick 16 12 Mech Brigade

Operation Herrick 17 4 Mech Brigade

Operation Herrick 18 1 Mech Brigade

Operation Herrick 19 7 Armoured Brigade

Operation Herrick 20 20 Armd Brigade

GR4 Squadron Det 12 Sqn 31 Sqn

9 (B) Sqn

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11 (AC) 13 Sqn Sqn

14 Sqn 12 (B) Sqn

617 Sqn

31 Sqn

12 (B) Sqn

617 Sqn

11 (AC) 9 (B) Sqn Sqn

31 Sqn

12 (B) Sqn

617 Sqn

11 (AC) 9 (B) Sqn Sqn

31 Sqn

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS the Afghan government and senior NATO commanders demanded allied troops and airmen to be even more careful before employing kinetic effects. This led to the coining of the phrase ‘courageous restraint’, which involved NATO ground forces holding back calling for heavy artillery and air support unless there was serious loss of life among allied troops. For those on the ground this meant, they had to run the risk of taking casualties. Tornado crews did not face the same risks but had to spend long periods talking to JTACS over the radio to confirm the location of targets and discuss weapon employment profiles that would cause the least collateral damage. This whole process became time consuming and frustrating for the RAF aircrew, circling high over Afghan battlefields when they knew allied troops were under attack. During the five-year long deployment of the RAF Tornado detachment in Afghanistan, there was not one accusation that they caused civilian casualties during any air strikes. One thing that was often misunderstood by outside observers and some army troops was that the Tornado detachment at Kandahar was a NATO or International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) asset rather than under purely British command. The daily flight schedule or air tasking order, which told the RAF Tornado crews when and where they would be flying, was generated by the US-led combined air operations centre at Al Udeid in Qatar, in consultations with the ISAF Headquarters in Kabul. This meant the Tornado GR4 crews could find themselves operating across the length and breadth of Afghanistan in support of troops from every nation in the ISAF coalition. Being based at Kandahar, the Tornados were usually tasked for missions in the south of the country but there was always a tanker in the air over Afghanistan to provide fuel, if there was a need for jets from the south to be sent elsewhere in the country in tactical emergencies. Up until the retirement of the RAF’s Lockheed Tristars in the spring of 2014, one of these heavy tankers was also in the air over Afghanistan on a daily basis. The most likely Tornado crews to be called upon to drop weapons in support of British troops in Helmand were the pair of jets held on Ground Close Air Support (GCAS) alert at Kandahar. They were only scrambled into action if British or US troops in southern Afghanistan were in imminent danger of taking casualties. The alert crews prided

themselves on being able to be airborne in less than 15 minutes if troops were in danger. During the summer of 2009, 12 (B) Squadron was scrambled 40 times, reflecting the intensity of the fighting in Helmand at time.

NATO on the offensive

The spring of 2010 saw the first US and British reinforcements arrive in southern Afghanistan as part of the famous ‘surge’. These troops were soon used in a series of offensives into Taliban-controlled areas. Once the US and British troops had reached their objectives, Afghan army and police units, as well as civil reconstruction personnel, would arrive and secure the areas to prevent the return of the Taliban and begin the process of winning over the population to the cause of the Kabul government. The need to win hearts and minds meant that kinetic effects were only to be used as a very last resort. This posed major challenges for RAF Tornado crews. The first of these offensives, dubbed Operation Mushustak, began in March 2010. It saw a large force of British and US troops move to seize the Marja district in Helmand province. No IX (B) Squadron was on duty in Kandahar at this time and flew daily missions over the operational area. This assault was more than twice the size of Operation Panther’s Claw and the opening moves saw several score of British and US helicopters in the air to move the first wave of assault troops to surround

the main towns in the district. Tornados were in the air throughout the operation monitoring the progress of the helicopter landings with their Litening III pods but the plan did not call from bombs to be dropped on known Taliban positions ahead of the landings. The idea was to make the enemy flee once they knew they were outnumbered and surrounded. This way the ground troops could seize control of their objectives without a major fight and avoid bloody battles in which civilians might be killed and injured. The operation was a major success for NATO. British and US troops had secured within a few weeks all the major populated areas of Helmand province. This dramatically changed the nature of the war in Afghanistan. It became a village or ‘back-alley’ war. Set-piece offensives were now rare. There was also a dramatic drop in the number of bombs being dropped by NATO and RAF fast jets alike. This did not mean a slacking off in the requirement for air support; it just meant kinetic effects were less likely to be employed. NATO air commanders, however, demanded that aircraft always be in the area, ready to answer the call from ground troops.

Drawdown

From 2011 NATO was in the process of progressively handing over control of security to Afghan forces towards the alliance combat

Above: Imagery taken by a Tornado’s RAPTOR reconnaissance pod during operations over Afghanistan shows coalition vehicles manoeuvring around a compound under investigation. MOD Crown Copyright

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OPERATION HERRICK TORNADOS Below: Two RAF Tornados await the next call from ‘troops in contact’. A pair of jets was always launched in response, with each carrying a combination of weapons and sensors so they either GR4 could be re-tasked depending on the developing tactical situation. Neil Dundridge Left: An RAF 617 Squadron armourer carefully removes a RAPTOR reconnaissance pod from a Tornado at Kandahar Air Base following a mission. The size of the pod is well illustrated in this view. MOD Crown Copyright

operation being wound up in December 2014. The UK’s 2010 defence review would also have a major impact on the Tornado detachment at Kandahar. It disbanded the RAF and RN Harrier Force with immediate effect and accelerated the rundown of the Tornado GR4 fleet. Two of the seven Tornado squadrons were to be disbanded on June 1, 2011. This meant the remaining five squadrons would have to sustain Operation Herrick until the end of the mission in 2014. Tour lengths would be extended from three to four months from the summer of 2011. The plan was put under severe strain in the spring and summer of 2011 when the British Government committed the RAF to support NATO intervention in the Libyan conflict. Crews from the home-based Tornado squadrons were fully engaged supporting the new detachment at Gioia del Colle in Italy. Fortunately for the long-term sustainability of the Tornado force, Operation Ellamy ended in November 2010 with the death of the Libyan dictator Muammar Gadaffi. During 2012 and 2013, the remaining Tornado squadrons continued with the rotations to Kandahar to provide air support for the UK and NATO ground troops, who were now moving to pull back from their forward positions and hand over responsibility for security to the Afghan military. There were occasional surges in activity, such as in the summer of 2013 when a Taliban offensive

threatened to overrun the northern Helmand town of Sangin. British troops and forward air controllers were sent to assist and the Tornado Detachment provided air support for the battle. The early months of 2014, saw the introduction into Afghanistan of the most advanced variant of the GR4, which incorporated the Capability Upgrade Strategy – Pilot (CUSP) upgrades. The heart of this project was the introduction of Link 16 Joint Tactical Information Distribution Systems (JTIDS) data link to give the Tornado crews a god’s eye view of the air space over Afghanistan and a secure text messaging-type capability. Some of the CUSP capabilities, such as the Paveway IV integration, had already been fielded on Operation Herrick UOR Tornados but the CUSP upgrade incorporated them fleet-wide. The Kandahar Tornados had existed as a ‘fleet within a fleet’ since 2009 so this was a major advance for the whole force. The first CUSP aircraft were rotated out to Kandahar in the spring of 2014. During 2014, the British forces in Afghanistan were progressively moving back to their main bases at Camp Bastion and Kandahar Airfield. The Tornado detachment remained in place providing air cover during these critical final phases of the withdrawal, when British troops could be vulnerable to ambush. This culminated in the airborne extraction of the last forces from Camp Bastion, the RAF

Regiment’s 7 Force Protection Wing and units of the US Marines. A joint UK-US helicopter and C-130 force flew into Camp Bastion during the last days of October 2014 to lift out the rearguard. Overhead, Tornado GR4s of 31 ‘Goldstars’ Squadron provided top cover. With the last British forces safely at Kandahar, under the protection of US Army troops it was now the turn of 31 Squadron to wind up the Tornado detachment. By the end of the November all RAF personnel were out of Kandahar, effectively ending Operation Herrick. The statistics for the commitment of the Tornado GR4 Force to Operation Herrick speak for themselves – 5,500 pairs sorties, 33,500 flight hours, 600 shows of force, 140 Brimstone and Paveway IV weapons dropped and 3,000 rounds of 27mm cannon fired. They had sustained the Afghan commitment for five and half years, including during the Libya and new Iraq campaigns. Critics who had claimed the GR4 could not cut it as a close air support platform had been proved wrong. The end of Operation Herrick, however, is not the end of the war service of the Tornado GR4. Even as 31 Squadron was arriving back at RAF Marham, its sister unit II (Army Co-operation) Squadron was in action again over Iraq, (see, Striking Back at ISIL, November, p46). The Tornado GR4 looks destined to see out its remaining years in RAF service afm in combat in the skies over Iraq.

Below: The first RAF Tornado GR4s deployed to Kandahar in May 2009, began to replace the RAF/Royal Navy Harrier squadrons. At the time, critics of the Tornado voiced concern that the aircraft would not be able to provide the same level of close-air support as the Harriers. After five and a half years of continuous operations, these fears proved to be unfounded. Global Aviation Review Press

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Reconnaissance Aircraft DVD

The Hawker Siddeley Nimrod was direct development from the De Havilland Comet. Mainly designed for maritime operations, the Nimrod was the successor to the Avro Shackleton and took over the maritime role in the early 1970s. Region-free DVD. Running time 68 mins.

Military Aircraft Of The 20th Century is a series of programmes featuring the aircraft that had the most significant impact on the numerous military conflicts during the last century. Reconnaissance aircraft play a significant role in both war and peace time. Region-free DVD. Running time: 61 mins.

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EXERCISE REPORT Noble Arrow 2014

Prepping for NRF Joris van Boven and Jan Kraak report on Exercise Noble Arrow 2014, which formed part of the qualifications for the air component which will lead the NATO Response Force during 2015.

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XERCISE NOBLE Arrow 2014 was held in France from October 13-29 of last year, with no fewer than 14 nations taking part. This complex air exercise included approximately 40 French and 20 allied air assets and was co-ordinated by the Joint Force Air Component Commander (JFACC) at the Mont-Verdun Air Base near Lyon. Noble Arrow 2014 was among qualifications the French Air Force had to achieve to lead

the aerial component of the NATO Response Force (NRF) in 2015. AFM was able to visit Base Aérienne 116 Luxeuil during the last week of the large-scale exercise.

NRF

The NATO Response Force (NRF) is a highly prepared and technologically advanced multinational force made up of land, air, maritime and special operations forces components that the NATO alliance can deploy quickly to any location where needed. In addition to its operational role, the NRF provides a means to demonstrate operational readiness and acts as a test-bed for alliance transformation. It can be used to implement NATO’s Connected Forces Initiative (CFI) as a vehicle for greater co-operation in education and training, increased utility of exercises

and better use of technology. During the Wales Summit in September, NATO members agreed to create a spearhead of military personnel within the NRF – a Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF), able to deploy at very short notice, particularly at the periphery of NATO’s territory. The VJTF should consist of a land component with appropriate air, maritime and special operations forces available. Allies also agreed to hold a high-visibility exercise, Trident Juncture 2015, with 25,000 personnel, including the NRF, hosted by Italy, Portugal and Spain. In addition, a broader and more demanding programme will be instituted from next year onwards, with the NRF as a key element in the exercises.   The response force currently comprises three parts: firstly, a command and control element from the NATO Command

Above: One of the local resident French Air Force Mirage 2000-5Fs, 78 ‘116-EC’ from Groupe de Chasse 1/2 ‘Cigogne’ lands at Luxeuil during Noble Arrow, just moments before the sun disappeared behind the horizon.

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Location: Airbase and country Participants: List of participants involved

Above: Turkish Air Force F-16D Block 40 89-0042 from 162 Filo ‘Zipkin’ (Harpoon) at 6 AJÜ Bandirma lines up for take-off at Base Aérienne 133 Nancy-Ochey as three F-16Cs from the unit prepare to follow it into the air for a Noble Arrow mission. SIRPA AIR/ Joël Weyer

NRF 2015 NATO Response Force 2015 (NRF 2015) is the standing NATO Quick Reaction Force that can deploy worldwide within several days after the command for deployment is given. The NRF forces are supplied by NATO countries and non-NATO countries are invited to take part. An NRF remains active for one year, until another NRF takes over the following year. In previous years, the NRF was a more ‘prepare-and-wait’ force, but now the current political and military environment in Europe and the Middle-East has changed its remit. The resultant NRF 2015 will contain a Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF), able to deploy at very short notice. 

Structure; secondly, the Immediate Response Force (IRF), a joint force of around 13,000 highreadiness troops; and the third arm is the Response Forces Pool (RFP), which can supplement the IRF when necessary. The NRF was established in 2002/03 and has been deployed six times, for the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens; the Iraqi elections; Libyan civil war (2011) and humanitarian relief in Afghanistan, as well as in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina (2005) and the Pakistan earthquake (2013). With ongoing political and military changes in Europe, NRF 2015 will focus on a large-scale intervention in the periphery of NATO countries.

Noble Arrow 2014

In addition to the host nation (France), approximately 1,000 troops from NATO members (Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States) and non-NATO nations (Sweden, Switzerland) were involved. It was linked with France’s Armée de l’Air (AdlA – air force) in Exercise Volfa, its army with Exercise Toll and the navy for Exercise Catamaran, which gave a unique opportunity to train cross-component interaction. Around 130 of the troops were assigned to the command centre at Mont-Verdun. Although the exercise started on October 13, the first missions were not flown until the 17th. The main

operating areas during the nine flying days were in the centre and the South-East of France. An average of 100 sorties were flown daily during daylight hours with additional night-time sorties on October 22, 23 and 28. The AdlA took part with Dassault Rafales from Saint-Dizier and Mont-de-Marsan, Mirage 2000s from Nancy and Luxeuil, and Alpha jets from Cazaux. The French air force’s transport fleet was also involved using Lockheed C-130s, Transall C160s and CASA CN235s. As well as the fixed-wing elements, there were EC725 Caracals, SA330 Pumas and AS555 Fennecs participating at various locations. A French E-3F flew missions from its home base, Avord to provide the JFACC in Lyon with the necessary information and a number of the nation’s C-135Fs from Istres air base were on call in the assigned refuelling tracks to supply all of the air assets. Also in the refuelling role were US Air Force KC-135s and a German A310MRTT flying from their home bases of RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk and Koln-Bonn in Germany, respectively. French naval aircraft operated from their bases at Lann-Bihoué and Landivisiau, augmented with the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle flying the Atlantic II, Rafale M and Super Etendard. Besides the US and German tankers other foreign attendees were German Transall C160s, USAFE F-16s and Swiss F/A-18 Hornets who flew missions from

their home bases. The Hellenic Air Force deployed four Mirage 2000EGs from 331 Mira to Luxeuil, and the Turkish Air Force sent five F-16s to Nancy-Ochey. The Royal Danish Air Force operated an undisclosed number of F-16s from Avord. Along with NATO forces, this Noble Arrow was open to membership countries of the Partnership-for-Peace programme, which allowed Swiss F/A-18s to join in from their home base in Switzerland. Every part of the exercise is under the command of a NATO member and the French Air Force will command the aerial component in 2015. The other elements of the NRF have separate qualifying exercises, for example the Spanish Navy will command the naval component of this year’s NRF Exercise Noble Justification 2014 was held between October 13 and 26 to qualify for the seagoing command. It involved 23 surface warships, six submarines, 30 aircraft and 5,000 personnel from 16 nations massing off the Spanish coast in the Mediterranean Sea and Atlantic Ocean. Noble Ledger 2014 presented opportunity for the land component of the exercise. It was commanded by the German-Dutch battalion and held in Norway in September 2014, with the focus on a large anti-invasion operation. There was no information released on an exercise that was held for special forces but that specialist element is to be commanded afm by the Polish Army.

Above: All four of the Hellenic Air Force Greek Mirage 2000EGs deployed for Noble Arrow line up on the runway at Base Aérienne 1116 Luxeuil prior to a sortie. Right to left, they comprise serials 547, 548, 553 and 551, all from 331 Mira. Left: A Hellenic Air Force Mirage 2000EG from 331 Mira ‘Aegeas’ at Tanagra taxies out of the shelter area towards the runway at Base Aérienne 1116 Luxeuil during Exercise Noble Arrow 2014. All photos Jan Kraak, unless otherwise stated

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SNAPSHOT

Venezuela donated six Mirage 50EV/DV to Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana (Ecuadorian Air Force) during a time of tension on its border with Peru. This Mirage 50EV, 1054, is former FAV 2353, and is now stored close to the runway, opposite the Cheetah operations area.

Located in the same area as the Mirage 50EV is Mirage 50DV 1051, formerly FAV 7512.

Snapshots from Taura Bob Sutherland visits Taura Air Base, home of the Ecuadorian Air Force fast cats.

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ocated across the River Salado from Ecuador’s largest city, Guayaquil (the commercial capital of Ecuador), is Taura the only surviving fighter base of the Fuerza Aérea Ecuatoriana (Ecuadorian Air Force). Its resident air wing is the Ala de Combate 21 which these days, has only one operational flying unit, Escuadrón de Combate 2112 flying the former South African Air Force Atlas Cheetah C and D aircraft. These were obtained from April 2011 onwards when South Africa replaced the type with the Gripen. Of the ten Cheetah Cs delivered,

two are grounded due to incidents. The two Cheetah Ds are operational and are expected to be joined by two more examples in early 2015. The Escuadrón flies from a hardened shelter area and has its own maintenance facilities. The other two units which are no longer operational were Esc 2111 and 2113 are no longer operational and their aircraft, Jaguar S and B, Kfir C2 and TC2s along with Mirage 50EV/DVs are grounded. Most are still parked in and around their maintenance facilities, but some of the Jaguars and all of

the Mirage 50EVs have moved across the runway and appear to be serving as decoys. The small number of Mirage 50EV/DVs were donated by the Venezuelan Government in 2009, however they were only used for a few months before being grounded. Some of the crews told the author that the Cheetahs have only limited flying hours available and will probably need to be replaced in the near future. The new Brazilian-built Gripen would be a firm favourite with pilots but financial afm limitations will probably prevent this.

Returning to its hardened shelter area is Cheetah C 1359 of Escuadrón de combate 2112. These aircraft were supplied from South African Air Force stocks between late 2011 and early 2012. This unit formerly operated Mirage 50EV and DV variants. All photos, author

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TAURA

Former Escuadrón de combate 2111 Sepecat Jaguar S 309 is stored close to the retired Mirage 50V fleet. Four Jaguar S variants and two dual-seat Jaguar Bs are grounded around the base.

Ecuador’s Fast Cats at Taura (unless stated) – as seen in October 2014 Atlas Cheetah C:  1347, 1352 (stored, damaged), 1354, 1359, 1362, 1365, 1366, 1368 (stored damaged, Manta), 1371, 1377 Atlas Cheetah D: 1860, 1862 Jaguar S: 302 (181/ES2) preserved Salinas, 309 (188/ES3), 318 (191/ES4), 327 (197/E55) Quito Museum, 329 (199/ES6), 339 (206/ES7), 340 (207/ES8), 348 (214/ES9) Jaguar B: 283 (168/EB1), 305 (183/EB2) Kfir C2: 901 (153), 902 (155), 905 (154), 906 (157), 907 (158), 908 (159), 909 (150), 912 (168 ex IDF 965) preserved Salinas, 914 (148 ex IDF 948), 915 (144 ex IDF 926) Kfir TC2: 930 (803), 931 (804) Mirage 50DV 1050 (ex FAV 4212), 1051 (ex FAV 7512), 1052 (ex FAV 5706) stored Manta, Mirage 50EV 1053 (ex FAV 1297), 1054 (ex FAV 2353), 1055 (?)

Stored in the former Escuadrón de combat 2113 maintenance hangar is Kfir C2 906.

Kfir C2 908 in special marks for Escuadrón de combat 2113 is preserved along with other retired aircraft close to the tower. It wears a ‘30 years of Kfir in service’ inscription on the tail. Ex South African Air Force Cheetah C 1347 is one of ten delivered since 2011.

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AIRCRAFT PROFILE IAR/SA330 Puma

Romanian Ministry of Interior (MoI) troops prepare to jump out of a Puma during a demonstration in 2006. The MoI uses two IAR330L Pumas for special missions that include anti-terrorism, civil disturbances or hostage situations. All photos, Alan Warnes unless stated

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Claws still sharp Ian Frain of aviation consultancy company Helian provides a profile of the Puma helicopter, which is celebrating 50 years since its maiden flight.

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T HAS been nearly half a century since the then Aerospatiale SA330 Puma made its maiden flight on April 15, 1965. The helicopter continues to serve in the battlefield role today, evolving over time but with almost the same look now as when the first airframes were rolled off the production line in the late 1960s and early 1970s. At that time, its first major customers were the UK and France. The SA330 continues to dominate operations in the battlefield front line with many countries around the globe. Despite the emergence of the AS532UL Cougar/ AS332M Super Puma and EC725 Caracal, the

50 years on

robustness and versatility of the original SA330 makes the aircraft suited to conditions in the Arctic and the Antarctic, the jungles of Africa, the deserts of the Middle East, and throughout Central and South America and the Far East.

French Air Force and Army Service

The French were, and still are, the major users of the SA330 with the Aviation Légère de l’Armée de Terre (ALAT – French Army Aviation Corps) and the Armée de l’Air (French Air Force). The ALAT operates the helicopter in support of the regular troops in action, while in the Armée de l’Air it is used in the combat search and rescue/ personnel recovery vehicle (CSAR/ PRV) role. For the ALAT, the Turmo IIIC4-powered SA330, working

at 1,300hp (970kW) per engine, serves in a number of units: 1er régiment d’hélicoptères de combat (RHC – Combat Helicopter Regiment) based at Phalsbourg. In this particular case, the SA330 is in three composite squadrons which are also equipped with the AS532 Cougar. 3rd RHC based at d’Etain, which included among its units are two squadrons of SA330s. 4th RHC at Pau-Uzein, which is dedicated to special operations, has all manner of aircraft assigned to it, including the venerable SA330. 5th RHC based at de Pau has two squadrons of Pumas serving alongside attack and observation helicopters, such as the EC665 Tigre and SA341/2 Gazelle, as well as the AS532 Cougar. The ALAT also has a number of

‘It been nearly half a century since the then Aerospatiale SA330 Puma made its maiden flight on April 15, 1965.’

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detachments outside of France, predominantly in former colonies on the sub-Saharan continent, where there are SA330s. These include Djibouti, Cameroon and Senegal. Since the Aeronavale (French Naval Aviation) retired the Aerospatiale Super Frelon in April 2010, there has been nothing to replace it in providing vertical replenishment (VERTREP) for the fleet. As a solution, the Marine Nationale (French Navy) has utilized the ALAT SA330 Puma in this role, including embarking it on the nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, for example. The Armée de l’Air operates the SA330 Puma with Escuadron d’hélicoptères 1.67 ‘Pyrenees’ and with a detachment in French Guiana. The latter unit’s mission differs from the CSAR role as it is responsible for providing security and safety to the European Space Agency (ESA) where the Airbus Defence and Space Ariane rockets are based and launched from the Spaceport – Guiana Space Centre. Armée de l’Air SA330 detachments can also be found on the island of New Caledonia. The French Test Pilots School at Istres, EPNER (École du Personnel Navigant d’Essais et de Reception), uses an SA330 Puma in support of the rotary-wing syllabus of the course and also for flight test. The last NATO country after France and the United Kingdom operating the SA330 is Spain. The Ejército del Aire (Spanish Air Force) use the craft in the SAR role in the Balearic Islands, based on Majorca. The SA330 initially entered service with Spain in 1974.

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AIRCRAFT PROFILE IAR/SA330 Puma General Specifications Sud Aviation/Aerospatiale SA330 Puma Medium Transport/Assault Helicopter

Romanian SOCAT Puma

In September 2014, Airbus Helicopters and the Romanian Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to build on 40 years of co-operation and take it into the future. Romania has been licensed to build the SA330 Puma since 1974, when the country obtained permission from the then Aerospatiale (which became Eurocopter and is now Airbus Helicopters) for its assembly by

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Industria Aeronautic ˘a Român ˘a (IAR) – now IAR SA Brasov. The locally-built variant, which was known as the IAR-330H, made its first flight in October 1975. The majority of helicopters coming off the production line there went into service with the For tele Aeriene Române (Romanian Air Force), with a number exported to air arms in Ecuador, the Ivory Coast, Pakistan, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates. In the late 1990s, the Romanian Air Force wanted to enhance its combat capabilities and

Focus Model:

Sud Aviation/Aerospatiale SA 330H Puma

Country of origin:

France

Manufacturer:

Aerospatiale – France/Westland – UK

Initial year of service:

1969

Production:

697

Accommodation:

3 crew + 16 passengers

Length:

59ft 6 ½in (18.15m)

Width:

49ft 2½in (15.00m)

Height:

16ft 10¼in (5.14m)

Weight (empty):

7,796lb (3,536kg)

Weight (MTOW):

15,432lb (7,000kg)

Powerplant:

2 x Turbomeca Turmo IVC turboshaft engines each generating 1,575shp (1,175kW) driving main and tail rotors.

Maximum speed:

147kts (273km/h)

Maximum range:

360 miles (580km)

Service ceiling:

15,748ft (4,800m)

Rate-of-climb:

1,400ft/min (7.12m/sec)

VNE:

144kts (266km/h)

Range:

360 miles (580km)

Hardpoints:

0

Armament suite:

Mission-specific depending on role and operator. May include machine guns/cannon, guided munitions.

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09/01/2015 15:46

Above: A RAF Puma HC1 flies over Norway during an exercise. Today none of the HC1s fly, after the survivors were upgraded to the more powerful HC2 version. MOD Left: A civilian registered SA330J Puma from the Military Sealift Command dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Matthew Perry (T-AKE 9) lands on the flight deck of the USS George Washington (CVN 73) on July 28, 2014. USN Below: A VVIP IAR330L of the Pakistan Army’s 13 Squadron comes into land at Qasim in May 2013. It has been modified with two air-conditioning units positioned just behind the cockpit.

make the Puma into a true multi-role anti-armour and support helicopter. It was already talking to the Israeli company Elbit Systems about upgrading other combat aircraft in its inventory, with the result that Elbit modified and upgraded the Pumas into the multi-role attack helicopter known as the SOCAT Puma. The acronym stands for Sistem Optronic de Cercetare si Anti-Tanc (Anti-tank Optronic Search and Combat Systems). New features include a glass cockpit, an improved navigation

system with an integrated Inertial Navigation System (INS), Global Positioning System (GPS) and moving map display (MMD). There is also a cockpit interface unit for editing navigational data in flight. An electro-optical pod provides targeting and imagery data from its Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR), plus TV and laser rangefinder, which are slaved to and integrated with the aircraft’s weapon systems. Additionally there are modular integrated display and sight helmets (MIDASH) for the aircraft

commander and co-pilot. The weapons systems include NT-D anti-armour missiles, a nose-mounted turret gun and gun pods. There are options for air-to-air missiles to be fitted as well. In terms of self-protection, the SOCAT system includes an electronic warfare suite with radar warning receiver and laser warning radar (RWR/LWR), along with chaff/radar dispensers. The Romanian Navy also operates three SOCAT IAR330Ls from two former Royal Navy Type 22 frigates and one Marasti class frigate. The initial development of the naval variant began in 2005 and the first helicopter was unveiled in January 2007. The Romanian Navy had received all three helicopters by March 2009. In terms of performance, the Turbomeca IV-CA engines develop an output of 1,555hp (1,160kW), while it has a certified service ceiling of 19,685ft (6,000m). The helicopter can climb at a rate of 2,200ft/min (11.2m/s). It has a maximum speed of 146kts (276km/h), a range of 313nm (592km) and can fly non-stop for 3.52 hours.

Above: The French Army Aviation (ALAT) continues to operate the SA330Ba. Several are based at overseas location, including this example seen at Djibouti serving the BATALAT (Battalion ALAT). Below: Morocco’s Gendarmerie operates five SA330L Pumas in the medevac/casevac role, primarily airlifting the injured from road accidents in remote locations.

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AIRCRAFT PROFILE IAR/SA330 Puma HC2 on December 9, 2014. The Puma HC2 has a maximum ceiling of 19,700ft (6,000m) and maximum speed of 167kt (310km/h). In the current climate of expeditionary warfare, the Puma can be prepared and loaded onto a Boeing C-17 Globemaster within four hours and re-assembled at the destination and be mission ready immediately.

South African Air Force Pumas

RAF Pumas

The UK has operated a sizeable number of Puma helicopters since the 1970s, from the extreme environments of the Arctic Circle to the sandy deserts of the Middle East, and across the swamps of North Carolina to the jungles of Belize. Currently both 33 and 230 Squadrons fly the Puma helicopter at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire as part of Joint Helicopter Command. The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) awarded Eurocopter (now known as Airbus Helicopters) a contract in 2003 to upgrade 28 RAF Puma HC1s to HC2 standard, although the number was reduced to 24 in 2010. Under the £78 million deal, the majority of the upgrade work was to be carried out by the then Eurocopter facilities in Brasov in Romania and Marignane in the south of France. The work included making improvements to performance and safety. This involved installing new Makila 1A1 turboshaft engines (operating at 1,800shp [1,343kW]) and providing improved fuel capacity. The more powerful engines lower fuel consumption, which increases the aircraft’s range. In terms of safety, the new airframe also provides better ballistic protection for crew and passengers. On the avionics side, the programme involved a glass cockpit incorporating a modern avionics and flight management system (FMS) and implementing a digital automatic flight control system (AFCS). The first modified aircraft was handed over to the Ministry of Defence in September 2012 at Eurocopter UK’s facility at London-Oxford Airport/ Kidlington, Oxfordshire, and thereafter was flown to QinetiQ at Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, for trials. The programme is now nearing completion, with Eurocopter Romania having rolled out the final upgraded

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Above: The Royal Moroccan Air Force remains one of the biggest users of the Puma, operating two squadrons of SA330Ls at Rabat and Kénitra. With the CH-47C Chinooks grounded and the CH-47Ds yet to be delivered, the Pumas are kept busy.

A Puma HC2 is seen carrying an underslung load at RAF Benson, Oxfordshire last September. Such skills will be needed when three newly upgraded helicopters are deployed back to Afghanistan later this year after the type has reached initial operational clearance in February. They will replace three Chinooks working as part of Operation Toral.

The South African Air Force (SAAF) operates the largest number of Pumas outside of France with Denel Aviation, formerly known as Atlas Armscor, producing a variant called the Oryx. In addition to the original, there are also Oryx M, ’M1 and ’M2 versions. The latter is used predominantly in cold regions, such as some of the Marion and Gough islands as well as down in Antarctica. The M1 variant is used for shipborne operations, for which the SAAF has allocated a number to the South African Navy. They can be embarked aboard the combat support vessels SAS Drakensberg and SAS Outeniqua, as well as the polar research ship SAS Algulhas. The Oryx was initially launched in 1991 as a transport helicopter for the SAAF. It can accommodate a crew of three, 20 fully equipped troops or six wounded personnel on stretchers with four attendants. It can carry around 13,225kg (6,000kg) of cargo externally on an underslung load, while internally has capacity for 7,935lb

Above: An IAR 330L from Timi˛soara in Romania touches down at Tuzla, close to the Black Sea, while a similarly configured Puma sits in the background. Romania licence built around 100 Pumas, designated the IAR 330 at its IAR Brasov facility throughout the 1970s and ’80s with most delivered to the Romanian Air Force.

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09/01/2015 15:47

The RAF Puma Force spent six years, from 2003 to 2009, in Iraq as part of the UK’s Operation Telic. They supported the Iraqi Air Force operating the Baghdad Air Bridge. An air lift from Baghdad International Airport provided safe passage into the ‘Green Zone’ in Baghdad, instead of travelling by road in an area that was prone to ambush and attack. The Puma Force also undertook numerous discreet operations. RAF Benson

Above: In 2006/07 IAR Bra˛sov upgraded three IAR330Ls to a maritime configuration and they are operated by the Romanian Navy in the Black Sea. USN Below: This IAR 330SM was acquired by the Pakistan Army from the United Arab Emirates Air Force in 2009 and is operated on the front line by the ‘Dragons’ Squadron.

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(3,600kg) of freight. It is slightly longer than the original Puma, due to a 19½in (50cm) tail boom extension, though shorter than a Super Puma. In terms of avionics, it has a GPS/INS navigation system and weather radar with mapping facility. It is also equipped with state-of-the-art instrumentation in a semi-glass cockpit and is night vision goggle (NVG)-compatible. Oryx is also equipped with locally manufactured radios for ground communications. During May 2007, Denel Aviation received Eurocopter accreditation which allowed the company’s maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) facility to provide dynamic components for the Oryx aircraft in South Africa as well as throughout the African continent. The accreditation also provides complete access and exposure

to international best practices. The aircraft performs more effectively in higher temperatures and altitude and has a climb rate of 3,000ft/min (15.25m/s). The maximum take-off weight is 18,520lb (8,400kg), maximum speed 170kt (320km/h) and service ceiling 23,500ft (7,162m). It has a combat range of 303nm (500km) and a ferry range of 1,080nm (2,000km). The SAAF had also launched the Drummer II project in 2008, which entailed upgrading the on-board communication and navigation systems of Oryx. The project was worth 460m Rand ($39.8 million) for the mid-life upgrade programme to extend the service life of 38 Oryx helicopters in the SAAF’s inventory. The completion date was expected to be in June 2012, however, delays in the engineering and flight testing pushed back completion to October 2014.

Commercial Pumas Support US DOD

Since 2000, a number of commercially-owned SA330J Puma helicopters have been supporting the Department of Defense in global operations. One key example is in providing the United States Navy fleet with offshore vertical replenishment (VERTREP) under a contract with Military Sealift Command. Initially the contract was for three years, signed in 1999 and awarded to Geoseis Helicopters of Fort Collins in Colorado. Geoseis

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AIRCRAFT PROFILE IAR/SA330 Puma

Above: Elbit upgraded 25 Romanian Air Force IAR 330Ls to the SOCAT gunship variant in the late-90s. Today they are all based at Bucharest-Otopeni where they are operated by 904 and 905 Escadrila.

is owned by the Roberts Aircraft company, which specializes in maintaining and leasing legacy Aerospatiale and Eurocopter types, the latter being the largest owner of SA330 Puma airframes. By 2004, Evergreen Helicopters (now Erickson Aviation) had been awarded a $6.7 million commercial contract to support the Military Sealift Command’s Naval Fleet Auxiliary Force ships. The duration of the contract initially ran for five years (split down into one-year options) for one detachment of two helicopters, with another option to add a second detachment. Erickson flies under Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 135, US Flag Carrier, rules and is thereby certified with Commercial Airlift Review Board (CARB) approval to operate aircraft for the US Department of Defense. Since 2007, the SA330J Puma, then operating under Blackwater Aviation – which was first renamed XE, then Presidential Airways, before being taken over by the AAR Group – has been supporting and serving the 5th and 7th Fleet battle groups. During October 2014, Military Sealift Command awarded a one-year $15 million renewal option for AAR Airlift division to perform VERTREP services for US Naval vessels both in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. This was carried over from a previous contract in 2011. The AAR Airlift Group has also used the SA330 inside Afghanistan. However, with the recent introduction of an upgraded AS332C1e Super Puma by Airbus Helicopters, AAR now has the option to replace its existing Pumas with the C1e.

example the Tentara Nasional Indonesia Angkatan Udara (TNI-AU – Indonesian Air Force) operates the helicopter, built under licence by Industri Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (IPTN) and designated the NAS330J by the TNI-AU. Also in the Far East, the Royal Nepalese Army Air Wing and Pakistan Army Aviation continue to use the SA330 Puma. Both countries have had their share of internal conflict, as Nepal has had problems with Maoist rebels while Pakistan faces Al-Qaeda and Taliban threats on a daily basis. As a result, the aircraft have supported counter insurgency operations by internal security forces and all branches of the military. In Latin America, SA330 Puma is flown in the VIP role, under control of the office of the President of Mexico. He and his predecessors have their own personal air wing which is not affiliated to the Fuerza Aérea Mexicana (Mexican Air Force). The air wing also has a fleet of AS332L Super Pumas. The Prefectura Naval de Argentina (Argentinian Coast Guard) operates the SA330C in the SAR role, as well as to assist with

enforcement in territorial waters. Chilean Army Aviation has modernized its fleet over the years, however it still retains some SA330 Pumas. Around ten years ago a handful were retired and subsequently sold off. Four ended up in the UK at Kemble- Cotswold Airport, Gloucestershire, for resale and one was leased on a contract to Sierra Leone. Several post-French colonization nations also fly the Puma, including a few Romanian-built IAR-330Ls. The Royal Moroccan Air Force and Escadron Aérien Gendarmerie Royal (Royal Police Squadron) of the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie together operate around 25 examples of the SA330C variant. The air force helicopters are based at Rabat/Sale Air Base. Over the years, Airbus Helicopters, formerly Eurocopter, has upgraded the Pumas in the fleet. In Nigeria, there had been talks with the French Government to purchase an additional five SA330SMs during August 2010, at a cost of €68,675,000 under a government-to-government scheme. However, by the time all contracts and agreements were

ready to be signed, the helicopters had been sold off. Consequently the Nigerian Government bought four AS332 Super Pumas instead. Another civilian operator of the SA330 was South Africa’s Thunder City classic warbird organisation. The company was famous for owning the world’s only airworthy Blackburn Buccaneer and English Electric Lightning classic British fast jets, as well as the Hawker Hunter, which were available for passenger flights. Before its closure, the firm had a single SA330 Puma that was marketed in conjunction with the UK’s Cobham Group. It had an all glass cockpit, with digitized avionics that could also be suitable for the military marketplace. When Thunder City folded in 2010 this helicopter was put up for sale. Previously, the Puma had also served in the parapublic role in Germany. The Bundespolizei (state police) had amalgamated with the Bundesgrenzschutz (Federal Border Guard) and taken over its helicopters. In 2005, the SA330 Pumas which made up the backbone of this police force were sold to the Swiss Helicopter Group, then owned by Helog. Soon afterwards, the company converted and updated the polizei SA330s to support UN operations in Africa. Since the Puma was introduced into service around the globe it has seen action in numerous wars and mini conflicts, including Desert Storm in 1991 when the RAF and French ALAT used their SA330s for various types of support mission. Prior to that, in the 1980s there were regular detachments of ALAT Pumas to Africa, in particular in Chad, to counter rebel factions. Despite its age, upgrades and modifications over the years are sharpening the Puma’s claws ensuring that it has a valued afm part to play for many years.

A NSA330J of SKu8 at its Bogor-Atang Senjaya base winches up a ‘pilot’ during a demonstration. The Indonesian Air Force has around seven IPTN (now PTDI) assembled NSA330J/L Pumas on strength and three SA330SMs, but just one or two are thought to be serviceable.

Other Operators

The SA330, because of its robust airframe and endurance in adverse conditions, is also in service in tropical climes. For

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The table below provides an overview on the current status of military IAR/SA330 Pumas or those being used for military operations worldwide. If you have any updates, AFM would like to hear from you.

Accident Reports CURRENT IAR/SA330 PUMA OPERATORS

Source: AirForces Intelligence

Air Arm

Delivered

Current

Mexican Federal Police

Cameroon Air Force

3

3

One SA330J second-hand Puma was acquired from local sources by March 2001. The helicopter sustained damage on February 4, 2011, but is believed to have been repaired and returned to service.

Of three thought to be current, an SA330F Puma is known to be on strength as well as a SA330J acquired from the South African Air Force in the late 2000s. A previously unidentified Puma (exact variant unknown) was confirmed in service during 2009. Chilean Army

8

3

Eight SA330Ls were delivered from 1980 onwards, but only three survive today. They were due to be retired from service upon delivery of AS532AL Cougars. However, in December 2010 it was announced by the Chilean MOD that the remaining three SA330Ls would all be overhauled by Eurocopter Romania and remain in service. All three were re-delivered to the army from Romania by late 2012.

Royal Moroccan Air Force

1

34

1

22?

The first of 24 civilian export SA-330Fs were delivered in the mid-1970s, although the survivors have been upgraded with composite blades to SA330Js in recent years. The Pumas are thought to have filled the void left by the grounded CH-47C Chinooks. Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie

7

5

An unspecified number are used for medevac purposes. Royal Nepal Army

2

1

One helicopter was lost in August 1995; the other is believed to be operational. Pakistan Army Aviation

42/4/14

20/3/13

Still operates 20 of the 42 original SA330Ls delivered in the 1980s, and three IAR 330Ls built in Romania for VVIP/VIP use. In 2009 took delivery of 14 upgraded IAR330SMs from United Arab Emirates Air Force (UAEAF). Romanian Ministry of Interior

2

2

70+?/25

20?/22

Flown for special duties Romanian Air Force Above: The Chilean Army continues to operate three SA330Ls, which have been used for UN ops in Haiti (see pages 86-91). Santiago Rivas European Union

1

1

Training Mission (EUTM)

Deliveries to the Romanian Air Force of IAR330Ls (by what is now known as IAR Brasov) commenced in the late ‘70s, with 25 converted to the armed SOCAT variant in the 90s. Royal Air Force

53/24

0/24

At least one of the SA330Cs in service since 1991 is thought to be in service.

Of 53 Puma HC1s delivered, 48 were new-build helicopters, one a former Argentine SA330E and four former SA330L models. In early August 2009, the MOD approved a £300 million programme to upgrade 28 of the Pumas, later reduced to 24 to an improved HC2 standard. The work has included a service life extension programme with new engines and avionics to keep them in service until 2022. The £220 million contract with Eurocopter was signed on September 18, 2009 with completion scheduled for December 2014. The last example was handed over to the RAF at Eurocopter in Romania on December 9 of last year. Most have now been redelivered back to the 33/230 Squadron at RAF Benson.

French Air Force

Royal Air Force of Oman

Starlite Aviation Group is providing one SA330J for use by EUTM in Mali. EP Aviation LLC

9

9

All nine SA330Js are used for US security contracts. Congolese Air Force (DRC) 11

1+

34

30

4

2

51

47

Now known as the SA330Ba following modernisation, at least one has been modified for combat search and rescue use.

Operational since 1986, but current status unclear.

French Army Air Corps

South Africa’s sanctions era led to Atlas (now Denel) producing its own complete Puma helicopter known as the Oryx. It offers a performance improvement over the original SA330C/H/J/L Pumas operated by the SAAF from 1969 until 1997. Assistance for the project came from France and Israel and was kept secret until 1991. The most obvious external difference is the new modified tail boom, which is 20in (50cm) longer than the Puma. Today, the Oryx is still a politically sensitive subject and precise details about its development are still unknown. A mid-life upgrade programme for 35 Oryx helicopters was initiated in 2006, extending their service lifetime into 2015-2020.

154

95

Around 100 upgraded SA330Ba Pumas remain in service since initial deliveries in 1969. Gabonese Army

6

2

Two of six SA330s delivered are still believed to be operational. Indonesian Air Force

11

1

There are several serviceability issues with the SA330Js, which has meant most have been grounded over the past couple of years. Kenya Air Force

4

South African Air Force

3

The current operational status of the French-built SA330H Puma fleet is not clear, although at least one example was confirmed as airworthy in 2009. Kuwait Air Force

12

7

At least one of the SA330H Pumas has been transferred to the Ministry of Interior Police Lebanon Air Force

7

7

Seven upgraded SA330SM Pumas were donated by the United Arab Emirates Air Force in 2009. Malawi Army Air Wing

3

2

Three SA330Hs delivered, but one was written off in April 1980. Mexican Air Force

10

8

The majority of the SA330J Pumas are configured for VIP transportation tasks.

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Above: South Africa’s Oryx play a big part in the air force’s tactical airlift needs and are based all over the country. Developed in secrecy, the helicopter made its international public debut at the Dubai Airshow in 1995. Denel Spanish Air Force

5

4

Three SA330Js and two SA330L Pumas are operated by 801 Escuadrón at Son San Juan, Mallorca.

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA

Guardians

BuMusa of

Iran’s small fleet of ten Su-25s, the backbone of its air assault force, have played important roles in wars against terrorist militias in southeast Iran and PKK insurgents in the northwest. Babak Taghvaee sheds light on the Frogfoot in IRGCAF’s service.

Su-25K 15-2454 is one of seven acquired from Iraq after they were flown to Iran at the start of the first Gulf War. It is seen at the Holy Defence Exhibition 2003 just a couple of months after restoration by Pars Aviation Aircraft MRO Centre. Unconfirmed reports suggest the aircraft had crashed by the mid 2000s. Farzad Bishop

T

he Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Air and Space Force (IRGCASF) is one of the least-known military branches of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Operating only 49 fixed-wing aircraft and 56 helicopters from airfields in Tehran, Karaj and Shiraz, and an air station near Orumiyeh, its capabilities might not appear especially strong. Nevertheless, this is a combatproven service, hardened during fighting against insurgent groups inside and outside Iran. Plans to establish a fighter squadron were first considered by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Air Force (IRGCAF) commander in 1985, and the service sent ten of its pilots for training at a North Korean fighter pilot school where they were trained to become Shenyang F-6 pilots. Six second-hand F-6s and FT-6s were procured from the North Korean inventory, two of which were shipped to Iran and assembled at Badr air base in Isfahan. The rest were later cancelled and the two delivered F-6s sold back to North Korea when the IRGCAF found more capable fighters. In 1989, just a few months before German reunification, the IRGCAF obtained 12 surplus MiG-21PFMs and four two-seat MiG-21U-600s from the East German Air Force. Two of the U-models were delivered, but the others were impounded at a repair plant in Dresden and never delivered. In 1989 a third attempt was made to obtain fighters, this time via the Iranian defence ministry. Two contracts were finalised, first with

Two Su-25UBKMs still in IRGCASF service during a routine maritime patrol sortie which started at BuMusa Island. Alireza Khodakarami/Aviashots.com

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA Su-25UBKM 15-2457 is one of two currently in the IRGCASF and is regularly used for daily maritime patrol flights over the Persian Gulf. It is pictured over Kish Island, during the airshow there in 2014, while on a navigational sortie from Shiraz to BuMusa Island. Alireza Khodakarami/Aviashots.com

China’s Chengdu for 14 F-7Ns and four two-seat FT-7Bs and then with Mikoyan for 11 MiG-29As. Before that, several more F-7s and MiG-29s had been ordered for the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) with deliveries scheduled for 1991 and 1992. As part of the MiG-29 order, 12 fighter pilots who had completed the training course in North Korea were sent to the USSR but, once there, only three completed the MiG-29 type transition training course. Delivery of the MiG-29s began in 1991, before the scheduled delivery of F-7s, but only four were received – the others were seized in 1992 after the US put pressure on Russia to prevent their supply. The third attempt failed too, and the IRIAF’s 11th Tactical Fighter Squadron (TFS) at Mehrabad International Airport absorbed all four Russian-supplied MiG-29s and their three pilots. Delivery of the F-7s and FT-7s to the IRGCAF was also cancelled and they were instead handed over to the IRIAF.

Saddam’s gift

In January 1991 Operation Desert Storm was under way with Coalition forces targeting the Iraqi Air Force’s (IrAF’s) air power infrastructure. Nearly 70% of IrAF facilities were hit in the first stage of the operation, including Tammuz air base, which housed several Su-25s. At the time, the IrAF had a fleet of 58 Su-25Ks and four two-seat Su-25UBKs in service with three squadrons – 114, 115 and 116 – around a third

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of which had been forward-deployed to southern air bases during Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait. After Coalition air strikes, 144 IrAF and Iraqi Airways aircraft were relocated to Iran from January 23 to 28 under direct orders from Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Eight Su-25Ks (serials 25585, 25590, 25603, 25604, 25606, 25611, 25613 and 25615) were prepared for ferry flights to Iran on January 26. Seven departed Iraq and landed at the 3rd Tactical Fighter Base (TFB) at Nojeh (Shahrokhi) near Hamedan, together with several Su-22s, Mirage F1s, Su-24s and MiG-29s. In July 1993, after permission had been received from the government, the IRIAF commander permitted technical units to operate some of the Iraqi aircraft, introducing them to air force service after their restoration. But there were only seven Su-25Ks and restoring them was not judged to be cost-effective. In 1995 the first efforts were made to transfer the seven Su-25s to the IRGCAF instead. Since the Su-25s had not been flown for more than five years, a group of Georgian technicians came to TFB.3 and began restoring them for the IRGCAF. Several IRGCAF pilots were meanwhile sent to Belarus for training on the Su-25UB. Soon after restoration the first two Su-25s were forward-deployed to TFB.14 Imam Reza (later Habibi) at Mashhad, where in 1997 they

took part in exercise Ashoora-3 in response to the threat of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The Iranian defence ministry began negotiations with the Georgian Government in 1995 to buy 16 Su-25s (some sources claim 24), including several ’UB versions. However, the US again applied pressure and nothing was signed. In 2000, two Russian companies, Avia-export and Tupolev, built an aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) centre for the IRGCAF known as Pars Aviation Service. Between 2000 and 2003, all seven Su-25s underwent standardised overhaul by Pars Aviation and were given a three-tone camouflage colour scheme. Meanwhile, with no two-seat Su-25s, the IRGCAF’s Su-25 pilots had to fly at least three hours on Belarussian Su-25UBs every three months. In some cases, Su-25 pilots who hadn’t flown their fighters for more than three months requalified after several fast taxi runs at Mehrabad!

Battle for Shiraz

Seven Su-25Ks were not enough for the IRGCAF to establish its first fighter squadron – and being based at Mehrabad, Iran’s busiest airport with its heavy military and civil traffic, their pilots found few opportunities to fly. After Iran’s Supreme Leader gave the green light, the IRGCAF was finally permitted to establish its first fighter squadron – not in Tehran, but in Shiraz, home to the IRIAF’s

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA

Su-25UBKM 15-2457 prepares for a fast taxi after its overhaul and modernisation by Pars Aviation in Mehrabad Intl airport on May 30, 2011.

Su-25KM 15-2456, now in IqAF service with the Iq2516 serial number, during a combat maritime patrol sortie near BuMusa Island in the Persian Gulf in last December. The aircraft wears an Asian Minor II paint scheme after its modernisation by Pars Aviation. All photos author unless stated

second-largest tactical fighter base. But the IRIAF refused the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) access to TFB.7 for the construction of its new air base. Finally, the IRGC attacked TFB.7 and captured its southern areas on February 23, 2000. The base commander ordered his airmen to resist and one of them was killed and 11 others wounded by IRGC forces. He was arrested and sentenced to life imprisonment by the Justice Department of the Iranian Armed Forces. Two years later the first apron of the new air base was completed and all seven Su-25Ks were stationed there together with three Harbin Y-12II transports. In 2003, the defence ministry placed orders for three Su-25UBKs and three Su-25TMs to increase the squadron’s capabilities. In a period of ten months, the Ulan-Ude production plant in Russia prepared three Su-25UBKs for the IRGCAF. They carried serials 15-2457 to 15-2459; the seven ex-Iraqi Su-25Ks were 15-2450 to 15-2456. Before the deal with Ulan-Ude in 2003, the IRGCAF’s Su-25s had lacked many items of ground equipment and test equipment and Pars Aviation began to manufacture or procure them on its behalf. In addition, the Iranian Defence Industries Organisation began reverse-engineering 250kg (551lb) FAB-250 general-purpose bombs for the IRGCAF, manufacturing 100 between 2000 and 2002. Farasakht Industries of IAMI (Iranian Aircraft Manufacturing Company) meanwhile reverseengineered the Su-25’s PTB-800 external fuel tanks and made seven pairs for the IRGCAF. Previously, required armaments such as B-8M1 rocket launchers, 23mm gun pods and FAB-250 bombs had been received from the IRIAF inventory, beginning in 1997, but there were not enough. With delivery of the three Ulan-Ude Su-25UBKs in 2004, the IRGCAF received the requisite equipment, including six PTB-1150 drop tanks

An Su-25KM of the IRGCASF serialled 15-2451 over the Persian Gulf during temporary forward deployment to BuMusa Island in Autumn 2014.

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA and 40 R-60MK (AA-8 Aphid) infrared-guided air-to-air missiles. All ten Su-25s then took part in an IRGCAF exercise at Nasr air base in 2004, together with a Dassault Falcon 20E, two Antonov An-74TKs, two Embraer EMB-312 Tucanos, two Mi-171s and two AH-1Js. Between March 2005 and April 2006, all the Su-25s were fitted with a new secure U/VHF radio and ILS/SHORAN systems at the Pars Aviation MRO centre. In April 2006, the IRGC’s headquarters held a maritime exercise in the Persian Gulf region called Payambar Azam-2 (Honourable Prophet-2). The IRGCAF participated with two AH-1J Tiztaks (upgraded by IAMI), five Mi-171s, two Y-12s, one Ilyushin Il-76TD and two Su-25UBKs. For the first time, two Su-25UBKs (15-2458 and 15-2459) armed with B-8M1 rocket launchers attacked maritime targets, including two wrecked ships. In November the IRGC HQ conducted Payamba Azam-3, in which several ballistic missiles were launched from Qom toward Bandar Abbas to simulate an attack on a neighbouring country. Three Su-25s took part, attacking ground targets on the IRGC’s gunnery range at Kashan. IRGCAF Su-25s were involved in two exercises in 2007, their pilots performing more than 50 cross-country flights and flying more than 720 hours – including some 500 navigation, gunnery training and maritime patrol sorties over Shiraz and the Persian Gulf. Two Su-25Ks were lost in accidents. The first was in 2004 near Kashan. The second, in Shiraz in 2005, involved a careless pilot making a hard landing and then losing control of his aircraft after the left tyre on the main landing gear burst. The jet came off the runway and the then commander of the IRIAF’s TFB.7 quickly arrived to assist the pilot. By 2006 the IRGCAF had just eight Su-25s: the Su-25TMs on order were held back by Ulan-Ude under US pressure.

Frogfoot against terrorism

In 2008 the Saudi-supported Jondollah (Soldiers of Allah) terrorist group made dozens of attacks against civilians in Zahedan, Zabol on the Bam-Kerman road. At least 40 civilians in Sistan and Baluchestan Province and 34 members of the Iranian security forces were killed during the ambushes. Abdolmalek Rigi, the leader of the group, had close connections with the Taliban. His cousin, who led one of the most dangerous drug cartels in the region, was infamous for mass killings on abandoned Iranian roads and kidnapping foreign tourists for ransom money. After a surge in the Jondollah attacks and suicide bombings in Sistan and Baluchestan Province, the Iranian military deployed forces to provide security in the region. In mid-2008, two Tucanos and two Su-25UBKs (one of them serial 15-2457) together with two AH-1Js and two Mi-171s, all armed with rocket launchers, attacked Jondollah hideouts in the mountains on the border of Iran and Pakistan. Su-25UBKs fired rockets at Jondollah positions in co-operation with the IRGC’s Direct Air Support Centre in the region. In this period, Su-25UBKs also operated alongside Iranian Army AH-1Js against convoys operated by heavily armed drug cartels. At the same time, the IRGCAF established a new forward air base at Orumiyeh International Airport to provide security for Iran’s northwest borders. The new base initially housed two AH-1Js, two Mi-171s and a Bell 214A from Fat’h air base together with two Tucanos from Seyyed al-Shohada. Su-25s were also forward-deployed to Oroumiyeh to attack Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorist group positions in the northwest mountains. They worked alongside Turkish Air Force F-16Cs in these missions in June 2008. In October 2009 the IRGCAF was renamed the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Air and Space Force (IRGCASF).

Domestic overhaul and modernisation

Some of the IRGCASF’s Su-25s reached their lifetime limit in 2010 and were due for programmed depot maintenance. The first to be sent to Pars Aviation for overhaul were 15-2457 (Su-25UBK) and 15-2451 (Su-25K). Work began at Pars Aviation’s Abdus hangar in September 2010 and the first two aircraft were completed in May 2011. Aircraft 15-2454 and 15-2458 were overhauled that summer. In July 2012 the IRGC HQ conducted exercise Payambare Azam-8 at Kerman. Ballistic missiles, including the Shahab 1, 2 and 3, were launched and three Su-25s (15-2450, 15-2451 and 15-2457) conducted live rocket and bombing missions together with three EMB-312s on July 3.

Guardians of Bumusa

Five overhauled and moderately upgraded Su-25KMs and two Su-25UBKMs gave new life to the Su-25 squadron. Routine flights were doubled in number and the IRGCASF resumed forward-deployment of its Su-25s to Orumiyeh in August 2012 and then to the island of BuMusa (also known as Abumusa) in the Persian Gulf in October 2012. Since the Achaemenid and Sassanid dynasties, 2,500 and 1,500 years ago respectively, the three islands of BuMusa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb have held strategic value for Iran. In 1908 the Britain’s Royal Navy occupied the islands and UK forces only withdrew from the islands in 1971 after which they were returned to Iran. After the United Arab Emirates became independent on December 2, 1971, Saddam Hussein and the UAE authorities claimed the islands could be added to the Emirates’ territory. The islands’ security was entrusted to TFB.9 at Bandar Abbas and the Iranian Navy. For many years, F-4E Phantom IIs of the 91st TFS helped secure the region. The situation changed in

Another Su-25K, 15-2456 (c/n 10309), just a few months after restoration and complete with its new colour scheme by the Pars Aviation MRO centre at the Holy Defence exhibition in 2003. The aircraft found its way back into Iraqi Air Force service and was used in the war against Islamic terrorists in Iraq during the summer of 2014. Farzad Bishop

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA Su-25KM 15-2457 in its former colour scheme just seconds before touching down on runway 29L at Tehran-Mehrabad International Airport on December 4, 2010. It was being delivered to the Pars Aviation Aircraft MRO Centre for overhaul and modernization.

2012 when the IRGC Navy’s role in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz was scaled up and the IRGC HQ permitted the IRGCASF to forward-deploy six Su-25s to BuMusa Island. In April 2012, Iranian authorities ordered the IRGCASF to conduct daily maritime and combat air patrols over Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf to secure territorial integrity, especially after the UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs protested against then Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to BuMusa on April 12. Two Su-25UBKs and four Su-25Ks accompanied by an An-74TK and a maritime patrol Y-12II were forward-deployed to BuMusa Airport in October 2012. The Su-25s’ main role was combat maritime patrol to prevent US Navy and UAE violation of Iranian waters. According to local witnesses, including one Iranian Su-24 pilot, a Su-25UBKM (probably serial 15-2459) crashed during a night flight at Siri Island in the Persian Gulf, killing its crew, in October 2012. News of the crash was suppressed by the Iranian regime. On November 1, 2012, the student pilots of two Su-25UBKMs (15-2457 and 15-2458) spotted a US Air Force MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle while on patrol. The instructor pilots requested their students cancel their flight training plan and try to shoot down the US drone as part of their training mission using their AO-17A twin-barrel 30mm guns. More than 200 rounds were fired at the UAV, but it was too small a target and the Su-25s’ head-up displays were not able to track aerial targets. The Predator survived and the Su-25UBKs returned to BuMusa. The pilots were punished for disobedience because the responsibility to shoot down the UAV was held by IRIAF F-4Es. But once US news agencies published accounts of the incident, the IRGCASF actively encouraged its coverage

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in the media. IRGCASF commander Brig Gen Hossein Salami later told the press the Predator was flying in Iranian airspace – but US officials claimed the drone was in international airspace, 12 miles off the coasts of the Iranian islands. After the incident, IRGCASF presence on BuMusa was increased. In December 2012, Su-25 pilots flew an aerobatic demonstration during the Kish airshow on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf. In the spring of 2013, the Su-25 squadron’s mission on BuMusa ended and the aircraft returned to Shiraz, not long before their seasonal forward-deployment to Orumiyeh – where three Su-25s, including a single Su-25UBK, spent July and August. In March 2013, an additional Su-25UBK, 15-2459, procured for the IRGCASF replaced the crashed aircraft with the same identity. Before delivery, Pars Aviation upgraded the new jet between March and September. In December 2013 the seasonal mission for the squadron at BuMusa began again, four Su-25s deploying. On the 20th they took part in the IRIAF’s Fadaeian-e-Harime Velayat-4 (Devotees of Velayat’s Territory) exercise at Bandar Abbas. Two Su-25UBKs (15-2457 and 15-2458) used FAB-250s to bomb dummy targets on the IRIAF’s Gachin gunnery range near TFB.9 at Bandar Abbas. Pars Aviation completed overhaul and modernisation of a seventh Su-25 for the IRGCASF in January 2014. Given the serial 15-2455, it had arrived at the MRO on March 22, 2012. It made its first post-overhaul functional check flight on January 18, 2014 and joined the Su-25 squadron three days later.

Bina laser-guided missiles

The IRGCAF had attempted to procure laser-guided air-to-ground missiles, including the Kh-29L (AS-14 Kedge) and Kh-25ML

(AS-10 Karen), from Russia, but deliveries was prevented under US arms sanctions. Instead, the IRGCASF finalised an agreement for the research and development of an indigenous laser-guided missile for its Su-25 fleet. Babaiee Industries part of IDIO (Iranian Defence Industries Organisation) developed a laser-guided missile based on the AGM-65 Maverick and equipped with a GBU-series control unit. The missile was successfully tested on aircraft 15-2450 and 15-2457 in December 2013. A first batch of ten of these Bina missiles was delivered to IRGCASF on February 10, 2014. On October 21, 2013 the commander of the Russian Air Force, Gen Viktor Bondarev, met IRGCASF commander Brig Gen Amir-Ali Hajizadeh for negotiations about the future of the Iranian force. During the talks, the Russians promised that delivery of the embargoed Su-39 (Su-25TM) aircraft could begin in 2014. There are have since been rumours suggesting restoration for the IRGCASF of three stored Su-25TMs at Lipetsk and construction of three more Su-25TMs by Ulan-Ude.

In action against ISIL

The Su-25s were called back from BuMusa in June 2014 when the latest crisis began in Iraq. Following concerted attacks by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), on the 6th, the Iraqi Government began negotiations with various countries to acquire air assets to confront the terrorists. The best available attack aircraft were surplus Su-25s, Iraq acquiring five from Russia and seven from Iran. After Iran and Iraq signed a deal for the seven Su-25s on June 21, a number of former Iraqi Su-25 pilots arrived in Iran for a flight training course on Su-25UBKs at Shiraz. They logged just 30 hours of familiarisation training from June 22 to 30.

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GUARDIANS OF BUMUSA The youngest Su-25UBKM, and reportedly delivered in December 2012, wears the serial 15-2459. It was originally worn by another two seat Frogfoot, which crashed at Siri Island the same year. It is one of two Su-25UBKMs of IRGCASF being used for combat maritime patrols over the Persian Gulf as well as to train the new generations of IRGCASF’s Su-25 pilots that are expected to become air force Su-39 pilots.

A second group of Iraqi pilots went to Russia for training and, on June 28, the first two ex-Russian Air Force Su-25SMs arrived in Iraq from Russia. Two days later the first Iranian Su-25s were transferred to Iraq via Ilam in Iran. They were stationed at New Al-Muthanna Air Base in Baghdad. From June 30 onwards, four Su-25KMs (15-2451, 15-2454, 15-2455 and 15-2456) and three Su-25UBKMs (15-2457, 15-2458 and 15-2459) were transferred to Iraq. Because of Iraqi technicians’ and pilots’ lack of experience, IRGCASF crews and mechanics flew and maintained the aircraft during their first combat missions.

Squadron reactivation

The seven operational IRGCASF Su-25s transferred to the Iraqi Air Force were used in interdiction and close air support missions against ISIL, especially in Salah al-Din province. Within a month of their delivery, IRGC commanders began negotiations with Belarus and Russia to acquire new Su-25s, half of which will undergo an avionics upgrade for the IRGCASF while the other half will go to the Iraqi Air Force. In September 2014 aircraft 15-2450’s overhaul and modernisation was completed and two Su-25UBKs (15-2457 and 15-2459)

returned from Iraq to Iran. Prior to that, an Su-25UBK (15-2458) was lost while landing at New Al-Muthanna Air Base due to pilot error. One of its crew, a former MiG-23BN pilot, was killed and the other injured. And an Su-25K was withdrawn from service when it was badly damaged by a man-portable air defence system (MANPADS) over Kirkuk, forcing its pilot to make an emergency landing. Since October, the IRGCASF has resumed combat maritime patrols with two Su-25UBKs over the Persian Gulf and, in particular, the ‘three islands’. Five Su-25s are now in IRGCASF service and more afm are scheduled for delivery in 2015.

The only Su-25K still flying with the IRGCASF is 15-2450. The aircraft is still in the colours applied in 2001 during its restoration by Pars Aviation. In June 2014, when seven Su-25s were specified to be sent Iraq, the jet was under a period depot maintenance check at Pars Aviation.

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER

Right: The final Gripen in the first batch for Thailand, JAS 39C 70106, received special markings to commemorate 100 years of Thai military aviation in 2012. The markings were applied in Sweden, prior to its arrival at Surat Thani but have since been removed. The aircraft is seen here during a pre-delivery test flight in Sweden in company with 70105, the latter identified by the ‘last three’ of its FMV serial on the nosewheel door. Saab Insert: To commemorate the first overseas deployment to an exercise, 701 Squadron personnel designed a special shoulder patch, showing a Gripen over Australia, complete with the colours of Thailand’s national flag. Nigel Pittaway

V

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER

Thailand’s Viking Thunder Nigel Pittaway reports on the first operational deployment of Royal Thai Air Force Gripens, to Darwin, Australia.

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HE ROYAL Thai Air Force (RTAF) achieved a major milestone in August with the first ever operational exercise deployment of its Saab JAS-39C/D Gripen fighters. Six Gripens, comprising four single-seat JAS-39Cs and a pair of two-seat JAS-39Ds from 701 Squadron, deployed from their home base at Surat Thani in southern Thailand to Darwin in Northern Australia for Exercise Pitch Black, a major multi-lateral air defence exercise. During Pitch Black the Thais fought with and against RAAF F/A-18A Hornets and F/A-18F Super Hornets, Singapore F-15SGs and F-16C/Ds, USAF F-16Cs and UAEAF Mirage 2000-9s in large force ops. The

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deployment demonstrated that the Gripen is now fully operational with the RTAF. AFM spoke with 701 Squadron’s Commanding Officer Wg Cdr Chareon ‘Tonic’ Watanasrimongkol in Darwin to find out more about the type’s participation in the exercise, as well as how it compares with Thailand’s other major combat jet, the Lockheed Martin F-16A Fighting Falcon. The commander has flown both the F-16 and Gripen and was one of the first four Thai pilots to undergo training at the ‘Gripencentrum’ at F7 Såtenäs and with F17 at Ronneby in Sweden.

Gripen vs F-16

As a former F-16 pilot, Wg Cdr Watanasrimongkol is well qualified to judge the merits of the two

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER aircraft, particularly in the context of Pitch Black or any other major multi-lateral exercise. “In Thailand we have Block 15 F-16s, but now we are upgrading them. Performance-wise, the two aircraft are very similar, but avionics-wise, it’s a different world. This is a different generation aircraft. Gripen is much better in terms of human/machine interface; it has a colour screen, glass cockpit and automatic functions in the aircraft that help the pilot a lot. With a data link system it increases situational awareness (SA) for Gripen pilots. In the F-16 almost everything is manual, so it’s harder to achieve the mission – you have to perform very well. “One of the Gripen’s strengths is its ECM [electronic counter measures], but in this exercise it depends on the mission commander. If he allows you to use it, you can only use it to a certain level. Here you can use ECM in the 9.5 to 10 GHz range, which is, of course, normally the airborne radar frequency range, but new fighter aircraft have the radar agility to avoid that most of the time. So the ECM here is to practise the loop, but I don’t think they would like to do it to the extent that it could become dangerous. “Gripen with ECM is the platform that has really opened our eyes in the electronic warfare world. We know about electronic warfare; we have flown the F-16 for more than 25 years. Now with Gripen we are allowed to do things ourselves, so the database is ours, everything else about electronic warfare is ours. “We built our own database because in the electronic warfare world you cannot trust anyone. If you buy a database, how do you know that it is real? So we had that in our mind at the strategy level.”

Above: Only months after their delivery to Surat Thani, two 701 Squadron Gripens ventured across the Andaman Sea to Pulau Langkawi to appear in the static display at the 2011 Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (LIMA) exhibition. The aircraft, JAS 39D 70103 and single-seat JAS 39C 70105 are pictured here shortly after their arrival, in company with the supporting C-130H-30 Hercules. Peter Liander

Pitch Black

Wg Cdr Watanasrimongkol, callsign ‘Tonic’ (his drink of choice), is the Commanding Officer of Above: A close-up of JAS 39C 70105, LIMA 2011. The show marked the first overseas deployment for Thailand’s Gripens, but a further pair returned for LIMA 2013 and one participated in the flying display. Nigel Pittaway Below: The first Gripen, JAS 39D 70101, and the first of two Saab 340AEW platforms (70201) for Thailand are pictured in formation during pre-delivery testing in Sweden. The Royal Thai Air Force has bought a total of 12 Gripens and they are operational with 701 Squadron at Surat Thani in the south of Thailand. Saab

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER

RTAF Gripens Serial

Model

Delivered

Fmv Serial

70101

JAS 39D

Feb 2011

39860

70102

JAS 39D

Feb 2011

39861

70103

JAS 39D

Feb 2011

39862

70104

JAS 39D

Feb 2011

39863

70105

JAS 39C

Feb 2011

39401

70106

JAS 39C

Feb 2011

39402

70107

JAS 39C

Apr 2013

39403

70108

JAS 39C

Apr 2013

39404

70109

JAS 39C

Apr 2013

39405

70110

JAS 39C

Sep 2013

39406

70111

JAS 39C

Sep 2013

39407

70112

JAS 39C

Sep 2013

39408

“Gripen with ECM is the platform that has really opened our eyes in the electronic warfare; we have flown the F-16 for more than 25 years.”

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Gripen For Thailand

Thailand first announced plans to buy 12 JAS39C/Ds to replace the country’s ageing Northrop F-5E Tiger IIs in October 2007, with the deliveries of the first six aircraft (four JAS-39Ds and two JAS39Cs), scheduled for between 2008 and 2012. The Gripen beat the F-16C/D Fighting Falcon and Sukhoi Su-30 for the RTAF order. The deal also included two Saab 340 aircraft equipped with the Erieye AEW radar system, as well as a third for transport duties, together with the development of a national datalink, known as ‘Link T’. Reportedly valued at 34.4 billion Thai Baht (€773 million), the contract was divided into equal tranches in consecutive five-year budget cycles in 2008-2012 and 2013-2017. Phase 1 included the first six jets, one Saab 340 Erieye, and an initial two-year support and training package, with deliveries to start in 2011. This phase was signed off in Stockholm on February 11, 2008. The first aircraft, a JAS-39D, made its maiden flight from Linköping on September 16, 2009. The initial range of weapons included the AIM-9M Sidewinder and AIM-120C-5 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles (AAM) and the AGM-65 Maverick air-tosurface weapon. Since then this arsenal has been expanded to include the MBDA IRIS-T infra-red AAM and the Saab Rb 15F anti-shipping missile. Phase 2 of the project (six JAS-39Cs, a single Saab 340AEW and the Rb 15F missile) was eventually approved by Thailand’s House of Representatives in August 2010, after initial concerns that the deal would have to be deferred due to domestic budget constraints. The first six aircraft were delivered to 7 Wing RTAF (701 Squadron) at Surat Thani on February 22, 2011 and began flying on March 15. Two aircraft made the Thai Gripen’s international debut in December that year when they attended the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace (LIMA) exhibition. The RTAF returned to LIMA with Gripens in March 2013 and were sufficiently confident in their new fighter to fly a solo handling display each day. The first three aircraft of the second batch arrived in Thailand after their delivery flight from Sweden on April 5, 2013, followed by the final three on September 11 of that year. The last batch had been delayed by 24 hours after one of the aircraft was struck by lightning over India on their way to Thailand. The acceptance ceremony was held at Surat Thani on October 2, 2013 and soon after the aircraft deployed to the Brunei Darussalam International Defence Exhibition in December.

701 Squadron and also the chief planner for RTAF participation in Pitch Black. “When we go abroad we have dedicated personnel; we have an exercise director and I’m under him as a staff officer for mission planning,” he explained. “This is Thailand’s sixth Pitch Black and the first overseas exercise deployment for the Gripen aircraft, but we have been overseas for other purposes as well in the past. We went to the LIMA Air Show in Malaysia twice, in 2011 and 2013. Also in 2013 we participated in BRIDEX in Brunei.” The Gripens did not use air-to-air refuelling either to deploy to Australia from Surat Thani, or during the exercise itself. Instead they used three external tanks, which gave them more than adequate endurance, said the commander, who considers the aircraft to be one of the most efficient he has ever flown. “We took two stops in order to reach Darwin. The first was in Singapore, with the help from friends in the Singapore air force. We stopped overnight at Paya Lebar Air Base. Early the next morning we took off and made an operational stop in Bali, and then continued on and reached Darwin the same afternoon. “Of course it’s a new jet, it can do multi-role missions. Initially, I think we will take it easy by doing only air-to-air missions. Here we are assigned to do mainly sweeper row, front row and ‘clear the sky’ offensive counter air (OCA).” During Pitch Black, Watanasrimongkol and his pilots flew both for Blue Air (OCA) and Red Air (Defensive Counter Air) as the mission scenario dictated. As he explained between missions: “Mainly we flew as part of Blue Air for Pitch Black, but it depended on the mission. Sometimes we are assigned to do screening as well, so becoming the second row of the sweep. And also we do some Red Air as well. “We are based here in Darwin, so when we are flying Red Air we take off a bit early, go down south and come back, get ‘killed’ and then we take a round-route back to Darwin. For example, we could go via Tindal or even on the west side of the exercise area, to avoid Blue Air coming in.” He explained that he was one of 15 Thai pilots attending the exercise, but only five of them had previously participated with the F-16. He was making his third visit, but most of the contingent were new pilots, the youngest having only graduated from combat readiness training in May, with less than 100 flight hours. “One of the main objectives is to give them a big learning experience from the exercise in terms of fighting Gripen with international forces in multi-link network scenarios as well. We have our own data link in Thailand. We don’t have Link 16 but we have to work with platforms which are equipped with it.” He noted that, in addition, the UAE has a different datalink, while Singapore has yet another. From the squadron perspective, therefore, a major objective was working with the different systems. The lack of Link 16 capability is a disadvantage for Gripen in multi-lateral exercises as the Thai aircraft are designed to operate within their own national system (Link T), similar to the concept initially adopted by the Swedish Air Force. “We communicate with the other exercise participants by voice only at this stage. Of course we could implement the datalink on another platform. We could include it in our network, but when it comes to another

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER

A dramatic view of JAS 39C 70106 over the Swedish coast prior to delivery in April 2011. Thai Gripens were initially delivered with AIM-9M Sidewinder, AIM-120C-5 and AGM-65 weapons, but the country has since acquired IRIS-T and Rb 15F missiles to enhance capability. Saab

“We always joke within the squadron that Thailand is probably the worst place for airplanes because it is hot – everyone knows that – and it is wet. So those two things, the warm weather and humidity are bad for aircraft.”

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THAILAND'S VIKING THUNDER country, there’s a security policy and I don’t think it is possible to do inter-operative linking with each national link. So in that case we would have to go for Link 16 in order to be able to be included in the network if it became necessary,” Watanasrimongkol said. “We communicate by voice with everyone, but with the Link 16-equipped guys, they will probably be able to see us, making voice communication less necessary. “We thought about bringing our Saab 340AEW, but Erieye is not close to AWACS standard yet. It has the airborne early warning capability but not the control element, so the type is actually just used as a sensor to monitor some blind spots which cannot be seen from the ground sensor. “No, we don’t have a C2 [command and control] capability for now. Erieye cannot be linked to another sensor, it can only work with the Gripen, so we think there just wouldn’t be any training value bringing them to the exercise.” Pitch Black was also a major test for the Gripen sustainment system, which is heavily reliant on the supply of parts from Sweden. “In terms of logistics, this is the first major deployment with Gripen. We have a pooling system, so we don’t keep all the parts ourselves. Mainly all the parts are in Sweden and so they send us the parts we need and we return parts to them,” said the wing commander. “For Pitch Black we have deployed to another country – this is a third-party country – so how do we deal with it? We are learning to plan this sort of deployment and how we interact with the supply system from Australia. Another objective was to try out our logistics system when we are on overseas deployment.” For the most part, the Gripens had demonstrated excellent serviceability during the Darwin deployment, which was well into its second week at the time of AFM’s visit. “We always joke within the squadron that Thailand is probably the worst place for airplanes because it is hot – everyone knows that – and it is wet. So those two things, the warm weather and humidity are bad for aircraft. Here in Darwin it’s not as cold as in Sweden for example, but at least the humidity is not a problem. The aircraft is actually performing very well,” Watanasrimongkol reported. Ten days with no problem at all; 100% serviceability. It was only last night that we had a problem with two aircraft,” he said. During Pitch Black, 701 Squadron was simulating AIM-9M and AMRAAM capability, although the Gripen is now equipped with the IRIS-T missile. “We have IRIS-T, but we didn’t

Above: Four JAS 39Cs and two dual-seat JAS 39Ds deployed to Darwin for Exercise Pitch Black, Australia’s largest air defence exercise. Here 70102 leads a second aircraft to the runway in Darwin for a morning Offensive Counter Air (OCA) sortie in support of blue forces. Thai Gripens flew both OCA and Defensive Counter Air (DCA) missions during the exercise, held in August 2014. Nigel Pittaway Below: JAS 39D 70101 arrives back in Darwin after a daytime mission over Australia’s Northern Territory during Exercise Pitch Black last year. The Gripen did not use air-to-air refuelling during the exercise, with adequate endurance provided by three external tanks. The RTAF used Pitch Black to provide training for its younger pilots in large coalition mission packages. Nigel Pittaway

bring it or the [Cobra] helmet on our first deployment with Gripen because we didn’t want to complicate things by bringing too many accessories,” explained the commander. “We are doing BVR, so that’s why we don’t think IRIS-T is the most important thing for us for now. And logistics-wise you want to keep things small and simple for the first time. Maybe next time.” As far as changes go, Tonic has seen the RTAF develop capability through the Pitch Black exercises over a decade. “Well it changes a lot. I was actually in the first Pitch Black that Thailand ever participated in, which was in 2004. I was the planner for

Pictured departing from Darwin for another sortie during Exercise Pitch Black, JAS 39C 70110 is one of the final batch of aircraft delivered in September 2013. Held over Northern Australia last August, Pitch Black was the first international exercise for Thailand’s Gripens and 701 Squadron deployed six aircraft to Darwin from Surat Thani for the occasion. Nigel Pittaway

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2006, and in 2014 I am a CO. So it’s been a development for me too,” he noted.

Looking to the Future

The next major exercise for the Gripen force will be Cope Tiger, held at Khorat in Thailand in March 2015 and will involve major US military participation. As far as the next Pitch Black is concerned, Watanasrimongkol says the upgraded F-16s will represent the RTAF if they are operational by that time. “I think the policy is to rotate, so if the F-16 MLU is ready, maybe they will come next time,” he predicted. Further into the future, the RTAF would like another six Gripen C/Ds, but is awaiting available funding and government approval – however it is unclear whether either of these requirements will materialise. The Gripen is regarded by Thailand as a bridging capability, taking the RTAF from what has been essentially a 1970s capability with the upgraded F-16A to a modern fighter. A fifth-generation aircraft may be acquired in the future. “The aircraft will definitely stay in the air force for more than 30 years,” Wg Cdr Watanasrimongkol concluded. “It’s a 4.5 generation aircraft. I don’t know if we are going for unmanned aircraft in the future, but the next fighter is definitely going to be a better aircraft than the Gripen – maybe even the newer version of Gripen, in order afm to keep a common fleet and platform.”

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USCG HC-27J

An impression of an HC-27J in US Coast Guard colours. Alenia Aermacchi

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he first of 13 C-27Js to be regenerated from storage with the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, arrived at Coast Guard Base Elizabeth City, North Carolina, on November 13. Now assigned to the C-27J Asset Project Office (APO), Coast Guard tail number 2714 was previously operated by the US Air Force and assigned serial number 10-27023. The regeneration process began in September 2014 when the aircraft was removed from storage at Davis-Monthan. In preparation for its arrival in Elizabeth City, the APO’s Executive and Operations Officers completed C-27J conversion training in Italy with Alenia Aermacchi.

Training Personnel

Commissioned at Elizabeth City in June 2014, the C-27J APO will initially use the aircraft to train and qualify coast guard aircrew and maintenance personnel and to develop flight and maintenance procedures for service-specific mission profiles. It will also develop a logistics programme for the Spartan that will include acquiring spare parts and formulating plans for training devices and, as the project transitions to the missionization stage, it will develop and execute test and evaluation plans. Since delivery the Spartan has supported intial training flights, proficiency and pilot standardisation flights. Additionally it recently carried out a cross-county flight to Air Station Sacramento, California, that validated engine fuel burn rates and range. As originally delivered, the C-27Js were equipped with weather radar and

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communications equipment designed for transport missions, but they will be fitted with everything they need to perform the full spectrum of coast guard missions. The aircraft will likely gain a surface search radar and electro-optical/infrared sensors as well as coast guard-specific communications systems. Although the coast guard has not yet determined what modifications will be required or the equipment fit, the service plans to make the HC-27J systems architecture as similar as possible to its HC-144A Medium Range Surveillance (MRS) aircraft. The initial C-27J was joined by a second Spartan in December, 2014 and additional aircraft will be regenerated from storage at a rate of around one every three months. Another C-27J that is located at the L-3 Communications facility in Waco, Texas, has yet to be accepted under the original US Air Force contract. Upon acceptance from the contractor, it will also be transferred to the coast guard.

Ex-US Air Force C-27J Spartan 10-27023 on the 309th AMARG ramp at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona following its removal from storage. The aircraft, which had been placed in Type 1000 storage at the Tucson base on September 24, 2013, is the first of nine Spartans that will be regenerated for the US Coast Guard. It will wear the coast guard tail number 2714. USAF/309th AMARG

First to Field

Although a full fielding plan for the C-27J has not been completed, under current plans Air Station Sacramento, California, will be the first to transition to the Spartan and it should begin limited operations in Fiscal 2016. The service hopes to place the first missionized HC-27Js in service by 2017 and plans to add three to four aircraft to the fleet annually. However, that timeline is dependent on funding being provided for the effort. Regeneration of C-27J serial 09-27016 began at Davis-Monthan on October 6, 2014 and the Spartan arrived at Elizabeth

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USCG HC-27J City as tail number 2707 on December 18, 2014. According to the 309th AMARG, the regeneration process takes around six weeks and requires an average of 820 man-hours depending on the amount of maintenance that is required. The group expects to begin regenerating a third Spartan in February. Between Fiscal 2007 and 2010, the Department of Defense (DoD) purchased 21 Spartans as part of the Joint Cargo Aircraft (JCA) programme. The first delivery occurred in September 2008 and 17 Spartans were in service when the USAF began retiring the aircraft in July 2013. Plans originally called for the delivery of 78 JCAs to the US Army and USAF, however, in April 2009 the responsibility for the C-27J and the army’s direct support mission was transferred to the air force. The USAF subsequently reduced

procurement plans to include just 38 aircraft through 2012, but ended purchases in 2010.

Transfer to US Army

Upon retirement, 13 C-27Js were placed in near-flyable ‘Type 1000’ storage with 309th AMARG. On October 28, 2013, the Department of Defense authorised the transfer of seven C-27Js to the US Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) as replacements for the CASA C-41As that were operated by the USASOC Flight Company. Three of the C-27Js were flown to Fort Bragg’s Pope Army Airfield in North Carolina, shortly after they were transferred to USASOC and four more were delivered after integration work was completed by L-3 Communications in Waco. The first aircraft was formally accepted on March 18, 2014 at Fort Bragg and the first

group of four pilots and four loadmasters was qualified to operate the aircraft in April. In USASOC service the Spartans primarily support the US Army John F Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg and its Military Free Fall School at the US Army Yuma Proving Grounds in Arizona. The 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) required that, once declared to be excess materiel by the USAF, the remaining 14 aircraft would be made available for transfer to other government agencies. Both the Forest Service and US Coast Guard subsequently indicated their interest in acquiring the aircraft to the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD). The coast guard had, in fact, been interested in acquiring all 21 of the Spartans but according to the then Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Robert Papp, acquisition of the

The first C-27J for the US Coast Guard, 10-27023, taxies to the Coast Guard Aviation Logistics Center ramp following its arrival at Coast Guard Base Elizabeth City, North Carolina, on November 13. The aircraft, which had been stored at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, since September 24, 2013, is the first of 13 Spartans that will be regenerated for the coast guard. US Coast Guard

Spartan Goes to Sea Tom Kaminski reviews the US Coast Guard’s Acquisition of 14 former US Air Force C-27J Spartans for Maritime Patrol Operations.

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USCG HC-27J Ex-USAF C-27J Disposition USCG Serial

USAF Serial

ID

C/n

AMARG arrival

2701

07-27010

JCA1

4129

October 22, 2013

2702

07-27011

JCA2

4138

August 1, 2013

2703

07-27012

JCA3

4148

August 6, 2013

2704

08-27013

JCA4

4149

August 7, 2013

2705

08-27014

JCA5

4151

August 12, 2013

2706

08-27015

JCA6

4153

August 14, 2013

2707

09-27016

JCA7

4154

August 20, 2013

2708

09-27017

JCA8

4157

August 27, 2013

2709

09-27018

JCA9

4163

October 1, 2013

2710

09-27019

JCA10

4164

2711

09-27020

JCA11

4166

July 30, 2013

2712

09-27021

JCA12

4168

July 23, 2013

2713

09-27022

JCA13

4169

July 24, 2013

2714

10-27023

JCA14

4172

September 24, 2013

10-27024

JCA15

4173

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27025

JCA16

4160

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27026

JCA17

4174

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27027

JCA18

4177

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27028

JCA19

4170

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27029

JCA20

4176

To USASOC Flight Company

10-27030

JCA21

4178

To USASOC Flight Company

14 C-27Js would allow the service to fully outfit up to three air stations and save the service approximately $500 million in Acquisition, Construction and Improvement (AC&I) costs by ending procurement of the Airbus/EADS HC-144A Ocean Sentry. The Coast Guard subsequently acquired the aircraft in accordance with provisions of the 2014 NDAA. Although the service has not determined how much it will cost to

Notes

Regeneration began October 6, 2014

Still at L-3 Waco, not yet delivered to US Government

configure the C-27Js for operations, the cost to complete acquisition of the remaining 18 HC-144As has been quoted to be $1.3 billion. According to Papp, the transfer of the C-27Js will allow the USCG to fill its operational need eight years faster than previously planned. Additionally, he said the acquisition “would allow the Coast Guard to return [maritime patrol aircraft/medium-range surveillance] capability to the West Coast,” and the C-27J can provide “approximately three-quarters of the capability at half the operating cost” of the HC-130H. The provision of the NDAA

Delivered to C-27J APO November 13, 2014

that authorized the transfer of the C-27Js to the Coast Guard required that the service transfer seven HC-130Hs to the USAF, which will spend $130 million to overhaul the aircraft for use in the firefighting mission. Prior to transferring those aircraft to the Forest Service, they will be equipped with a fire retardant dispersal system and other upgrades. The USAF originally planned to acquire 38 C-27Js and had purchased 21 aircraft at a cost of $1.6 billion. Before deliveries were complete, however, it made the decision to afm retire the Spartans in a cost-cutting move.

The US Army Special Operations Command Fight Company (UFC) has also taken delivery of a number of the surplus US Air Force C-27J Spartans. One of these, 10-27025, conducts paratroop training near Fort Bragg, North Carolina, on May 6, 2014. USASOC

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI

Flying for Peace UN Air Support over Haiti Erwan de Cherisey examines the role of United Nations’ helicopters in the struggle to maintain peace in Haiti, one of the world’s most violent trouble spots.

Below: A Chilean Aviation Unit (CHIAVN) UH-1H departs Port-au-Prince airfield, while an Argentinian (ARGVN) Bell 212 is prepped for departure. The Chilean NVG-equipped Hueys are the only MINUSTAH aircraft capable of flying at night, while ARGAVN’s Bell 212s are the sole helicopters cleared for over water SAR sorties. All photos, Erwan de Cherisey unless stated

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P

ort-au-Prince, Haiti. A single Fuerza Aérea de Chile (FACH – Chilean Air Force) Bell UH-1H Huey, pristine in its all-white United Nations (UN) livery, sits on the apron outside a row of helicopter hangars. The four-man crew performs pre-flight checks before boarding the veteran machine. A handful of Brazilian soldiers are already seated aboard, waiting for the mission to begin. Minutes later, the pilots finally climb into the cockpit and start the engine. The flight technicians take their seats in the cabin alongside the troops. Rotors are soon turning as the helicopter comes to life; the pilots running through checklists before finally taking off. The Huey

first hovers over the apron before slowly making its way towards the airstrip. It finally accelerates into full flight, heading for downtown Port-au-Prince on a reconnaissance sortie.

Demanding operational environment

Although the devastating January 2010 earthquake briefly brought Haiti, a small Caribbean nation, into the international spotlight, few in Europe are aware that for the past ten years it has been home to a major UN peacekeeping operation, MINUSTAH (Mission des Nations Unies pour la stabilization en Haïti – United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti). This operation began after the UN Security Council voted Resolution 1542 on April 30, 2004, to restore stability and security in

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI Haiti in the wake of the bloody coup d’état which ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide from power. MINUSTAH has many components, including an organic air support capability provided by a mixed fleet of military and civilian chartered helicopters. These machines are essential when it comes to providing rapid transportation, medical or casualty evacuation (MEDEVAC/CASEVAC), search and rescue (SAR) or reconnaissance support for ground forces in a country where road traffic and infrastructure are still in a poor state following the earthquake. The road network is so bad that a land journey from Port-au-Prince to Cap Haïtien can take up to six hours, despite the two cities being only 155 miles (250km) apart. Helicopters are an essential asset and, although their numbers have been in steady decline over the ten years of the international mission, eight remain available to the UN. Haiti is a demanding operating environment for helicopters with ‘hot and high’ conditions prevailing throughout most of the island, thus limiting the useful load that can be carried. Helicopters are sometimes forced to fly at the very edge of their capabilities. Another limitation facing crews is the absence of working radio beacons throughout the country, severely hampering navigation.

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Below: CHIAVN fields four Bell UH-1H helicopters. The aircraft are used mainly for troop transport, reconnaissance, command and control, but undertake MEDEVAC and SAR duties as well.

Haiti is a demanding operating environment for helicopters with ‘hot and high’ conditions prevailing throughout most of the island.

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI Chilean Aviation Unit

The FACH detachment in Haiti, known as CHIAVN, has been in-country since MINUSTAH began in 2004. It was originally part of a larger combined Army/Air Force unit that also comprised a Brigada de Aviación del Ejército de Chile (Army Aviation) helicopter platoon equipped with three SA330L Pumas. The latter left in 2007. Since then CHIAVN has been a strictly air force affair. The unit has taken part in a number of difficult operations during its decade of service, including rescue sorties in the city of Gonaives in the aftermath of Hurricane Jeanne in September 2004. Major flooding and mudslides devastated the city. Chilean helicopters were tasked with flying in rescue personnel, medical equipment and relief supplies, as well as evacuating injured civilians to Port-au-Prince for medical attention. Between 2005 and 2007, CHIAVN supported pacification operations in the Cité Soleil neighbourhood of Port-au-Prince, where gang violence was widespread due to dire socio-economic conditions. Crews primarily performed aerial reconnaissance and command and control flights for UN forces trying to restore law and order. In January 2010, following the earthquake that hit Port-au-Prince, the Chilean Hueys were soon in the air. They flew dozens of MEDEVAC sorties, not only for UN personnel, but also in support of the local population. The helicopters brought in food, medical supplies, rescue personnel, and evacuated the injured. CHIAVN currently has 54 personnel. Nine are pilots, including the unit’s commanding officer. They spend six months in Haiti supporting UN operations before returning to Chile. CHIAVN’s primary mission, as officially stated by MINUSTAH, is to perform aerial combat support operations for the benefit of the rest of the UN force. At the moment there is little fighting in Haiti which means crews fly far

Above: Three Chilean Hueys in their hangar at Port-au-Prince. CHIAVN was originally a combined air force/army unit which also flew three SA-330 Pumas, but they were withdrawn in 2007. Left: Three elite Chilean Air Force special forces commandos provide security for certain helicopter sorties as well as being available to support SAR operations if needed. Below left: The upgrades made to the Chilean Army Huey are evident in this shot of the cockpit. The most notable is the addition of the Aspen Avionics EFIS new multi-purpose displays. Below: A close-up view of the side-mounted Ultra 8500 FLIR turret on a Chilean UH-1H.

CHIAVN helicopters in 2014 Type

C/N

US Army Serial

FACH serial

UN serial

Bell UH-1H

8914

66-16720 H-75

UN-129

Bell UH-1H

8654

66-16460 H-78

UN-130

Bell UH-1H

5664

66-1181

H-82

UN-133

Bell UH-1H

5253

66-0770

H-94

UN-134

FACH Commandos Like many other air arms the world over, the FACH has its own Special Forces component whose members, known as Comandos de Aviación (Aviation Commandos), are spread between the Regimiento de Artillería Antiaérea’s (Anti-Aircraft Artillery Regiment) Grupo de Fuerzas Especiales (Special Forces Group) of Quintero and each Air Brigade’s own Unidad Táctica de Fuerzas Especiales (UTAFE: Special Forces Tactical Unit). CHIAVN has a detachment of three commandos on strength. In Haiti, their job is to provide security during VIP flights. They are also involved in operations (command and control in support of ground forces during disturbances, for example) flown in potentially dangerous areas. Whenever a MEDEVAC sortie is conducted, the commandos are mobilised to provide security by flying aboard the evacuation helicopter or in an accompanying escort machine. Due to their limited numbers, commandos are supplemented by security personnel handpicked from the remainder of CHIAVN’s personnel.

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI

ARGAVN HELICOPTERS IN 2014

Above: Brazil is the largest military contributor to the MINUSTAH with over 1,200 army and marines personnel. Soldiers of the Brazilian Army battalion patrol the notorious Cité Soleil slum of Port au Prince. Below: Seen mounted inside one of the UH-1Hs, prior to a reconnaissance sortie, is the control system and display for the FLIR camera feed.

Argentina is an important provider of troops to MINUSTAH, having an infantry battalion deployed in Gonaives and personnel manning the Role 2 UN hospital in Port-au-Prince. It too provides a helicopter unit, ARGAVN, which flies two twin-engine Bell 212s detached from the Fuerza Aérea Argentina’s I Escuadrón de Búsqueda y Salvamento, part of VIIa Brigada Aérea’s Grupo Aéreo 7 based in Buenos Aires. ARGAVN is staffed by 47 men and women, six of them pilots. Most of the unit’s personnel have extensive previous experience of UN operations – in Haiti or Cyprus – with many of them having completed at least two tours of duties in these countries. Teniente Coronel Baiocco, ARGAVN’s commander at the time of the author’s visit, explained, the unit’s official mission statement is “to provide support to MINUSTAH with an autonomous air unit”. The Argentinian’s main duties include inserting and extracting troops as part of tactical operations, transporting cargo and/or UN personnel to various locations in Haiti through scheduled or special flights and conducting reconnaissance sorties and SAR mission over land and water. Its aircraft took part in the search for MINUSTAH-assigned Fuerza Aérea Uruguaya CASA C212-200 which crashed in mountainous terrain in October 2009 with the loss of 11 lives. ARGAVN is the only MINUSTAH air unit capable of operations over water due to its helicopters being twin-engine. Finally, like CHIAVN, the Argentines perform MEDEVAC/CASEVAC operations for the benefit of UN forces in Haiti. The agreement with MINUSTAH states that the maximum number of flight hours to be provided by the Argentine air contingent aircraft is 100 per month. Each Bell 212 has a maximum lift capability of seven passengers, with a crew of two pilots, a flight mechanic and a technician. The unit is presently equipped with two Bell 212s, having replaced its helicopters three times since it deployed to Haiti in 2004. Its current machines were built in 1978 (serialled H-86) and 1981 (H-88). Both are equipped with a belly hook allowing for the lifting of external under-slung loads. The helicopters can also be fitted with a rescue hoist inside the cabin, flotation kits and a FLIR. A removable Kevlar armoured floor allows pilots to fly down to 1,000ft (305m) AGL over dangerous areas, despite the threat of gunfire. If needed, both aircraft can be armed with side-mounted 7.62mm re-chambered Browning M1919 machine guns (originally built in 0.30-calibre). Unlike CHIAVN, ARGAVN has no mandatory requirement from the UN to conduct night operations. It does not have any NVGs, and its helicopters only undertake night flying when there is sufficient visibility for pilots to distinguish the horizon. As with CHIAVN’s Hueys, the Argentine Bell 212s have been modernized in Puerto Rico by ECOLIFT with the fitting of a Garmin GNS suite and digital screens. Argentine personnel serving in Haiti spend six months in-country. All have volunteered for the deployment. They complete only a brief training course prior to their arrival in Port-au-Prince primarily because crews typically have plenty of previous experience in peacekeeping operations.

ARGAVN Fleet

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Type

C/N

FAA serial

UN serial

Bell 212

32138

H-88

UNO-136

Bell 212

30838

H-86

UNO-137

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI more general air support sorties than combat missions. Chile has deployed four UH-1Hs, all of which were built in 1966 as UH-1Ds and later converted into H-models. Despite being almost 50 years old, these machines remain as effective as when they first entered service with the US Army over four decades ago. The helicopters hail from the FACH’s Grupo de Aviacion No 9 (Aviation Group No 9) of the IIa Brigada Aérea (2nd Air Brigade), based at Santiago de Chile. Each UH-1H is compatible with ANVIS 9 night vision goggles (NVGs) and can recieve a Spectrolab Nightsun projector externally. Since 2010, each of the Haitianbased Hueys has been modernised by Puerto Rican company Ecolift through the installation of a Garmin GNS suite. This consists of GNS430W and GNC250XL equipment combining Global Positioning System navigation, very high frequency omnidirectional radio range and communications, instrument landing system and a digital moving map all in one. The helicopters have also been fitted with a Garmin GTX transponder and three Aspen Avionics Evolution 1000H electronic flight instrument system displays in place of the previous analogue avionics. The UH-1Hs

Below: Taken only moments before take-off from the Pakistani UN base at Port-de-Paix, this photo illustrates the rather cramped interior of an MI-8 as it transports military and civilian UN personnel of various nationalities on board.

FAA Commandos - Falklands and Beyond Formally established in March 1980, the FAA’s Grupo de Operaciones Especiales (GOE – Special Operations Group) had its first taste of action on April 2, 1982 when commandos were flown to Port Stanley (by then Puerto Argentino), in the Falklands Islands, to establish security at the airport following its seizure by Argentine forces. Despite airport security being their primary duty (including preventing potential British SF infiltration), GOE troops also participated in a number of reconnaissance operations following the British amphibious landings to retake the islands. Although the Falklands War provided the group with its first real operational experience, this was by no means the last time it was in action, as GOE personnel have been in Haiti for more

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than a decade. Assigned to the VIIa Brigada Aérea, the GOE has an overall strength of 100 men who are trained in different specialities such as freefall parachuting (HALO/HAHO), combat diving, anti-terrorism and reconnaissance. The GOE’s primary mission is to provide the FAA with a combat search and rescue capability. It is also in charge of supplying specialists for deployment abroad in support of the FAA’s detachments in Cyprus and Haiti. In Port-au-Prince, four GOE commandos are attached to ARGAVN. They are tasked with providing security for flights operating in potentially hostile areas and supporting SAR sorties, especially at sea – two commandos will always be aboard a Bell 212 when it is operating over water, acting as rescue swimmers.

are equipped with an external pylon that can carry an Ultra 8500 Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) turret. CHIAVN has two such devices which are extremely useful in reconnaissance flights, particularly at night. The Hueys can also mount a rescue hoist on the right-hand, upper side of the fuselage – an essential tool when conducting SAR operations, especially in the mountainous areas that abound in Haiti. The winch is the key tool when it comes to inserting and extracting rescue personnel in rugged terrain where landing sites are hard to find. All helicopters can be armed with a pair of side-mounted FN MAG 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Guns, which are intended for self-defence and air support. The improving security situation in Haiti means that the weapons are rarely used, unlike the early days of the MINUSTAH. When flying over

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UN AIR SUPPORT OVER HAITI

Vostok Aviation In addition to the Chilean and Argentine Bell helicopters in Haiti, MINUSTAH has chartered a pair of Mi-8MTV-1 Hips for passenger transportation on scheduled shuttle flights from Port-au-Prince to such destinations as Gonaives or Cap Haïtien for a number of years. Both aircraft are owned by Russian company, Vostok Aviation, which also provides flight crews. Until 2011, the UN also sourced two Mi-8MTV-1s from Ukrainian Helicopters under a chartering contract. In previous years the number of Hips in MINUSTAH service was even higher (up to as many as eight helicopters). The need for cargo helicopters has reduced dramatically as Haiti has become more stable, the road network improved and a reduction of UN personnel in the country.

The Peruvian infantry outfit is tasked primarily with security duties in and around Port-au-Prince as well as in the easterly town of Malpasse. It has a current strength of 366 men and women hailing from the air force, navy and army.

Vostok Helicopters’ Mi-8s in 2014 Type

C/N

Russian serial

UN serial

Mi-8MTV-1

96577

RA-22418

UNO-125

Mi-8MTV-1

95634

RA-25489

UNO-126

urban or potentially dangerous rural areas, the helicopters are fitted with Kevlar floor panels to supplement the pilots’ armoured seats. The panels offer protection from small arms fire, thus allowing the Huey to be flown within the firing envelope of small arms (typically around 1,000ft (309m) to 1,200ft (366m) above ground level (AGL)). CHIAVN is required to have three of its helicopters available at any given time for MINUSTAH operations. At the moment the most common missions are scheduled personnel transportation (carrying up to seven passengers), cargo flights, SAR sorties and MEDEVAC/CASEVAC operations. The Chilean detachment has its own medical personnel – two doctors and three nurses – who can be supplemented by the unit’s three commandos who have field medical training. The MEDEVAC alert is shared between CHIAVN and the

co-located Argentine Aviation Unit (ARGAVN), switching on a weekly basis. During night hours, the Chilean flyers maintain a permanent state of readiness should a MEDEVAC request come in. The UH-1H can carry up to three casualties in stretchers or a greater number of seated wounded. All CHIAVN personnel volunteer for deployment to Haiti. Once selected, their preparation comprises a twoweek training course at the Centro Conjunto de Operaciones de Paz de Chile (Chile’s Combined Center for Peace Operations), where they are briefed on the country, its culture, the security situation and the UN mission’s responsibilities. As far as pilots are concerned the syllabus also includes six training sorties focusing on the type of duties they are expected to carry out when flying in Haiti. By mid-2014, CHIAVN had afm flown a total of 14,200 hours since 2004.

Day-to-Day Tasking

The authority in command of MINUSTAH’s helicopter operations is the Aviation Section, which is subordinated to the Integrated Support Service within the Office of Mission Support. When it comes to the day-to-day tasking of the UN mission’s helicopters, the Aviation Section relies on the Mission Air Operation Centre (MAOC). It is responsible for planning and scheduling all air tasks in support of MINUSTAH’s

mandate. The centre holds daily meetings with MINUSTAH’s aircraft operators and issues Air Task Orders (ATO) and corresponding Daily Flight Schedules (DFS) for the following day’s air activities. MINUSTAH’s monthly flying hours requirements stand at 160 hours. With no completion date yet in sight for the MINUSTAH mandate, the white Bell and Mil are likely to still be flying around Haiti for some time.

Above right: The 82-strong Paraguayan engineers company has been working in Haiti building schools, clinics and improving government facilities. It has been very highly praised by the MINUSTAH leadership. Left: This Argentine Bell 212 is on an SAR exercise over the sea off the Haitian coast. Argentine Special Forces divers have been dropped in the water as part of the training flight. E Molina Right: This Mi-8 is one of two examples chartered by the MINUSTAH to a Russian civilian aviation company, Vostok Aviation. Both are mostly used on scheduled passenger flights to throughout Haiti.

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DECEMBER 3 - DECEMBER 31 2014

ATTRITION REPORT Accident Reports D: Jun 25 N: US Air Force/432nd Wing T: MQ-1B Predator

An Air Combat Command accident investigation board report release on January 8, 2015, revealed details of this previously unreported loss. The UAV and munitions aboard were destroyed when it crashed high in the mountains north of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, after turbcharger failure. D: Dec 3 N: US Army/Det 2, F/1-171st GSAB T: UH-60A Black Hawk S: 85-24447

This Black Hawk was involved in an emergency landing near Colombia, South Carolina, following the serious failure of a main rotor blade. The helicopter was from Detachment 2, Company F, 1-171st General Support Aviation Battalion (GSAB) of the South Carolina Army National Guard (SCANG). The crew had been flying on instruments at about 6,000ft (1,830m) when they heard a bang and felt moderate vibration. This quickly became more severe and led the crew to descend for an emergency landing. After landing and shutting down, it was realised that almost half the width of one main rotor, from the hub to the tip, had torn away. Following on-site investigation, the helicopter was released by the Accident Review Board for recovery and prepared for transport as a sling load under a CH-47 Chinook. On December 7, a CH-47D from Detachment 1, B Company, 2-238th GSAB, SCANG, carried the stricken UH-60A to McEntire Joint National Guard Base, South Carolina, for further investigation. The cause of the malfunction remains under investigation.

Above: US Army/South Carolina Army National Guard UH-60A 85-24447 being prepared for recovery on December 7 after its emergency landing four days earlier near Colombia, South Carolina. The extensive damage to one of the main rotors is clearly apparent, although the cause has yet to be determined. South Carolina Army National Guard D: Dec 11 N: US Air Force T: MQ-9A Reaper

While on a routine training mission this UAV crashed at 0845hrs in an unpopulated area, about 1 mile (1.5km) east of Creech Air Force Base, Nevada. No one was injured . D: Dec 12 N: Iraqi Army Aviation Corps T: EC635T2+

While flying over Mutassem, near the Shiite holy city of Samarra, about 60 miles (95km) north of Baghdad, this helicopter was shot down by ISIL terrorists, killing both crew members. A senior defence ministry official said the Sunni militants had used a shoulder-launched rocket.

D: Dec 12 N: Sri Lankan AF/2 Squadron T: An-32B S: SCM-864

This aircraft crashed near Colombo, killing four crew members and severely injuring a fifth. It had taken off from Colombo-Katunayake Air Base/Bandaranayake International Airport and was headed back to its base at Ratmalana. There was thick fog at the time and the crew reported having difficulty seeing the runway at Ratmalana just before the crash – it is not known if this was a contributing factor. The aircraft clipped a house as it came down at 0620hrs, tearing off part of the roof before falling into a rubber plantation in the suburb of Hokandara, Athurugiriya.

D: Dec 10 N: French Air Force/EAC.314 T: Alphajet S: E155 ‘705-NP’

During a night-time training mission from Base Aérienne 705 Tours-St Symphorien a technical failure forced the crew to abandon the aircraft – both ejected safely. It crashed into a home for the disabled in the town of Vouvray, Bellangerie, at 1734hrs, killing one of the residents and injuring at least six others. The aircraft was operated by Ecole de l’Aviation de Chasse 314.

Above: Wreckage of the tail of Sri Lankan Air Force An-32B SCM-864 following its crash near Colombo on December 12, 2014. Four crew members were killed and a fifth seriously injured.

D: Dec 12 N: US Air Force/71st SOS T: CV-22B Osprey

While conducting its third take-off and landing at Double Eagle Airport near Albuquerque, New Mexico, at approximately 1130hrs, the Osprey had a nose undercarriage malfunction on touchdown. The tilt-rotor aircraft was on a routine training mission and sustained moderate damage to the nose. There were no reported injuries. D: Dec 15 N: Romanian SMURD T: EC135T2+ S: 348

This helicopter crashed into Siutghiol Lake, near the Black Sea coast, killing all four on board, comprising the pilot, co-pilot, a doctor and a nurse. The helicopter was operated by the Constanta county detachment of Romania’s national emergency rescue service, the Serviciul Mobil de Urgen˛ta ˇ, Reanimare s˛ i Descarcerare (SMURD – the Mobile Emergency Service for Resuscitation and Extrication), and was flying back to base after taking a patient to Constanta County Hospital. This brand-new, float-equipped EC135 had only recently been delivered and had entered service on November 25. Following the crash, all SMURD EC135s were grounded.

Abbreviations: D: Date N/U: Nationality/Units T: Type S: Serials

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D: Dec 17 N: Egyptian Air Force T: Unidentified Aircraft

Four military personnel died in the crash of this unspecified military aircraft in Egypt. The fatalities comprised two Egyptian military officers and two from the United Arab Emirates. They were participating in a joint training exercise at the time. An Egyptian military spokesman said the crash occurred at 1900hrs local time following a technical failure. D: Dec 19 N: RAF/10 and 101 Squadrons T: Voyager KC2 S: ZZ331

One of the aircraft’s wings was damaged in collision with a hangar while taxiing to park at St John’s International Airport, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The Voyager, callsign ‘RR2740’, had landed normally at the airport after a flight from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire. At 1520hrs, after entering the ramp and no longer being in touch with the tower, the aircraft was in contact with a marshaller and handling agent for parking. The aircraft was turning on the ramp when the leading edge of the starboard wing struck the corner of Hangar 2, about 15ft (4.5m) inboard from the wingtip. This resulted in a large gash in the wing, about 8in (20cm) wide and 6 to 8in (15-20cm) deep. Initial assessment deemed the aircraft to be unairworthy. After being repaired, the aircraft returned to RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on January 3, 2015, landing at 0655hrs, using callsign ‘RRR2741’.

Above: Royal Air Force Voyager KC2 ZZ331, which was damaged in a taxiing accident at St John’s International Airport, Canada, on December 19. It returned home to RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on January 3. AirTanker

including the two pilots. The pilots were said to have suffered chest injuries, while the two passengers were only slightly injured. All were taken to Yala Provincial Hospital. The helicopter had taken off at 1300hrs from Sirinthon Camp in the Yarang district and crashed 30 minutes later after being caught by strong gusting winds, according to the pilot.

D: Dec 21 N: US Navy/HSC-26 Det 1 T: MH-60S

During an overland training flight at Camp Buehring, Kuwait, the helicopter was destroyed when it crashed and rolled over at 1810hrs local time. All six personnel on board survived and were transported to nearby medical facilities for evaluation. Three of the six

crewmembers sustained minor injuries and received treatment. All were released soon afterwards. The Navy stated that the crash was not a result of hostile activity. The MH-60S was from Detachment 1 ‘Desert Hawks’ of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 26 (HSC-26) ‘Chargers’. The unit is headquartered at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia, but Det 1 operates from Bahrain.

Above: Wreckage of the Royal Thai Army JetRanger following its crash in a rubber plantation on December 21, which injured all four on board. Below: The wrecked tail of the Chinese PLAAF Xian JH-7 following its crash on December 22 near Weinan in Shaanxi province, in which both crew members were killed. via Chinese internet

D: Dec 21 N: Israeli Defence Forces T: Elbit Skylark I UAV

Shot down by Syrian Defence Forces over Hadar, Quneitra province, Syria. Further details unknown. D: Dec 21 N: Royal Thai Army T: Bell 206B3 JetRanger S: 4446

While returning to base after a mission to survey local flooding, this helicopter crashed at Kampung Poyak, Ban Poye, Lammai tambon, in the Muang district of Yala province. The JetRanger came down in heavy rain at around 1330hrs in a rubber plantation, injuring four personnel on board,

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DECEMBER 3 - DECEMBER 31 2014

ATTRITION REPORT Accident Reports D: Dec 22 N: Chinese PLAAF T: Xian JH-7

D: Dec 31 N: Royal Malaysian Police T: AS355F2 Ecureuil 2 S: 9M-PHD

Both crew members were killed when this JH-7 crashed in the northwest of the country at around 1500hrs. The aircraft came down near the city of Weinan in Shaanxi province.

While delivering food packages to flood victims, the helicopter crashed in northeastern Malaysia, injuring the four on board. The accident occurred while it was circling at low level over Kampung Rambai, Kelantan state. Local witnesses said they heard a sudden loud bang, after which the AS355 fell to the ground. Three of the four on board suffered serious head injuries while the fourth sustained minor injuries.

D: Dec 24 N: Royal Jordanian Air Force T: F-16AM S: 149

This fighter crashed near the ISIL-held city of Raqqa, northern Syria. The cause of the crash is unconfirmed, but ISIL claimed to have shot it down and has captured the pilot, First Lt Muath al-Kassasbeh.

D: Jan 9 N: Indian Air Force T: IAI Heron

The UAV crashed in the Chohtan area after a technical malfunction following take-off from Barmer Air Force Station.

D: Dec 25 N: Sudanese Air Force T: Antonov An-??

According to Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) rebels, this aircraft was shot down in the Al-Shai’r area, north of Kadougli, South Kordufan State. The SPLM-N said it was carrying many soldiers who had been injured while fighting the rebels over the previous two weeks and that six Sudanese officers were among the victims. There has been no independent confirmation of the claim.

Above: The canopy of Royal Jordanian Air Force F-16AM 149 on show in Raqqa after the aircraft crashed near the town on December 24. ISIL rebels captured the pilot, Flt Lt Muath al-Kassaabeh. Below: The wreckage of Polis Diraja Malaysia (Royal Malaysian Police) AS355F2 Ecureuil 2 9M-PHD after its crash on December 31at Kampung Rambai in Tanah Merah, Kelantan state, northeastern Malaysia, which injured all four on board, three of them seriously.

D: Jan 11 N: Libyan National Army Militia T: MiG-21

This aircraft was said to have crashed after reportedly being hit by antiaircraft fire over Qurdhayba Air Base. D: Jan12 N: Syrian Air Force T: MiG-23 Flogger

A video posted on the internet showed Harakt Hazzm rebels using a BGM-71 TOW anti-tank guided missile to destroy this aircraft on the ground at Aleppo-Nejrab Air Base. The aircraft had its markings scrubbed out and was probably awaiting overhaul, rather than being an operational example.

D: Dec 30 N: Fajir Libya militia T: Unidentified helicopter

A military spokesman said that the Libyan Air Force had shot down this rebel helicopter as it prepared to land at a military base near Sirte Airport, after taking part in air strikes on the Es Sider oil terminal.

Additional material from: Donny Chan, Juan Carlos Cicalesi, Scramble/Dutch Aviation Society and René L Uijthoven.

D: Dec 30 N: Fajir Libya militia T: Unidentified fighter

A Libyan Air Force MiG-23 is reported to have shot down this aircraft after a raid on the oil port of Al-Sedra. . D: Dec 31 N: Colombian Air Force/Esc 111 T: Kfir C10 S: FAC-3041

After a routine training flight, the aircraft had a technical failure and crashed on approach to Base Aérea Militar 2 Palanquero, Puerto Salgar Cundinamarca, at 0935hrs. The pilot ejected and was recovered safely, without injury. This was the fifth Kfir to have been lost by the FAC in the last five years.

Above: Fuerza Aérea Colombiana (FAC – Colombian Air Force)/Escuadron de Combate 111 IAI Kfir C10 FAC-3041,which was lost in a crash on approach to Palanquero on December 31. The pilot ejected safely. This aircraft wore a special paint scheme, which included a black lion silhouette on the nose and external underwing fuel tanks. SR via Juan Carlos Cicalesi

Abbreviations: D: Date N/U: Nationality/Units T: Type S: Serials

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Visit www.airforcesdaily.com for daily news stories. E-mail the news team at [email protected]

Accident Updates January 23, 2012: USAF/437th Airlift Wing C-17A 07-7189, which was badly damaged at Forward Operating Base Shank, Afghanistan, has finally completed rebuild and returned to service. In order to recover the aircraft, Boeing employees were sent to Afghanistan to assist in repair efforts which required more than 27,000 man hours and 127 major repair jobs utilizing more than 1,200 parts. The aircraft was then flown to the US for continued repairs, arriving at the factory in Long Beach, California, on October 12, 2012. Since the aircraft could not be pressurized, Boeing personnel flew it at a maximum altitude of 10,000ft (3,050m) on a trip requiring five stops over the course of six days. Once back in the United States at the Long Beach Depot Center, an additional 23,000 parts and more than 1,200 repair dispositions were required during a two-year span to complete the repairs. After an extensive, two-year rebuild the aircraft arrived back at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, from Long Beach, California, on October 15, 2014. The

Above: US Air Force Boeing C-17A Globemaster III 07-7189 (c/n P-189) arrives back at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina, on October 15, 2014, from Long Beach, California, after a two-year rebuild following an accident at FOB Shank in Afghanistan on January 13, 2012. USAF Below: Close-up of the damage to the rear fuselage of German Air Force/ TLG-31 Typhoon 30+91 after its collision with Learjet 35A D-CGFI.

Above: US Air Force F-35A 10-5015 ‘EG’ (AF-27) takes off on April 22, 2013, for its maiden flight at NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas. Subsequently delivered to the 33rd Fighter Wing’s 58th Fighter Squadron ‘Mighty Gorillas’ at Eglin Air Force, Base, Florida, on June 5, 2013, this was the aircraft involved in the engine fire at Eglin on June 23, 2014, which resulted in the fleet-wide grounding of the type. Lockheed Martin/Carl Richards Below: US Air Force A-10C Thunderbolt II 78-0694 ‘DM’ from the 355th Fighter Wing’s 357th Fighter Squadron ‘Dragons’ takes to the air again for the first time on December 5, 2014, at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona, after completion of repairs following a belly landing there on September 29, 2014. US Air Force/Staff Sgt Courtney Richardson

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accident was caused by pilot error, the aircrew having failed to identify that the landing distance required to safely stop the aircraft exceeded the runway length. (July/August 2012) May 19, 2014: The Zambian Air Force/Flying Training School MFI-15 Safari that crashed was AF-516. (July 2014) June 23, 2014: The German Air Force/TLG-31 Typhoon that collided with civilian Learjet 35A D-CGFI was 30+91. (August 2014) June 23, 2014: The US Air Force/58th FW/33rd FS F-35A Lightning II involved in the well-publicised fire at Eglin AFB, Florida, which grounded the F-35 fleet for some time was 10-5015 ‘EG’. (August 2014) July 23, 2014: One of the two Ukrainian Air Force Su-25s shot down was Su-25M1 ‘04 Blue’. (September 2014) September 29, 2014: US Air Force/355th Fighter Wing/357th Fighter Squadron A-10C 78-0694 ‘DM’ has been repaired following its belly-landing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. After repair and inspection, on December 5 the aircraft was re-flown there. Airmen from the 357th Aircraft Maintenance Unit spent about two months working to put the A-10C back into the air. The most time-consuming job was removing all the bolts from the wings so that they could be sent for non-destructive inspections (NDI) to ensure there were no stress fractures in either the bolts or the wings. The NDI is used to detect cracks or damage that is unseen by the human eye using any combination of five methods: fluorescent penetrate, magnetic particle, ultrasound, electrical current and X-ray. Once all repairs and inspections were complete, the aircraft undertook a functional check flight and was then returned to service. (November 2014) November 29, 2014: The French Army/4 RHFS EC725 AP Caracal that crashed in Burkina Faso was 2555 ‘SF’. (January 2015)

#323 FEBRUARY 2015 95

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EUTM IN MALI

Fixing Mali’s Mess

AFM reviews the little-known European Union Training Mission (EUTM) in Mali which has three civilian-registered helicopters at its disposal.

F

rance’s military intervention in Mali during December 2012, to oust Islamic militants in the north of the country, led to the European Union launching its own training mission (EUTM) there during February 2013. Its remit is not to fight the jihadists but to support the training and reorganisation of the Malian Armed Forces. It wants to help improve, under civilian authority, their military capacity to restore the country’s territorial integrity. The mission has 23 member states (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the

Above: The faster BK117 is another Starlite helicopter currently used by the EUTM in Mali. Insert: The European Training Mission in Mali insignia. Jan Hendrikzijnzoom

Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom) who contribute military personnel. Spanish Army Brigadier General Alfonso García-Vaquero Pradal was appointed Mission Commander for EUTM Mali on October 9, last year, taking up his duties two weeks later. The mission has around 560 staff split between the headquarters in Bamako with a training camp in Koulikoro (40nm northeast of Bamako). The mandate currently runs until May 18, 2016. The EU has allocated over €1.535 billion (£1.2 billion) to Mali, Mauritania and Niger under the 10th European Development Fund (2007-2013). The EU has mobilised additional financial resources for development and security projects, with a budget of €167 million (£131 million), in its strategy for the Sahel region found between the Sahara Desert in north and Sudan savannah in the south.

The international community made commitments worth €3.2 billion (including another €523 million (£410 million) from the European Commission) at a donor conference in Brussels on May 15, 2013. The EU is determined to maintain a commitment to Mali by helping the Malian authorities consolidate peace and security. More generally, it is aiming to find lasting solutions to the Sahel crisis in close coordination with other regional and international stakeholders. Three helicopters supplied by Durban based Starlite Aviation Group are assisting with the movement of EUTM Mali personnel and equipment. Based at Bamakou-Sénou Airport, the AS332C.1 (ZS-RTP c/n 2864), BK117 (ZS-SFW c/n 7532) and SA330J Puma ZS-RNK (c/n 1227) are all painted white and used primarily for medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) operations and training with EUTM and the afm military armed forces of Mali.

South African registered AS332C1 Super Puma ZS-RTP sits on the Starlite Aviation Group ramp at Bamakou-Sénou in late December. Jan Hendrikzijnzoom

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