Air International 2014-05

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INTERNATIONAL MAY 2014 Vol.86 No.5

INTERNATIONAL

For the best in modern military and commercial aviation

Spain’s Sea Searcher Indra’s P2006T MRI in detail

The In-Flight Revolution Wi-Fi, Mobile Devices and Apps US Air Power in Korea

RAF TriStars Retire from Service

London City’s Airport Future Plans

Southwest’s Big Year

India’s AWACS The EMB-145i

HH-101

Caesar’s Maiden Flight

News

04 

BREAKING NEWS

Oman receives its first new F-16C Fighting Falcon, Learjet 85 flies, Solar Impulse 2 is unveiled, C-130J Shimson arrives in Israel, China’s Il-78 revealed and BBJ MAX is launched.

06 

GENERAL NEWS

‘Dambusters’ disband, Qatar buys big, NATO Baltic mission grows, Reaper launches Brimstone, Air New Zealand 787-9 revealed and the hunt for Flight MH370 continues.

FRONT COVER: This issue’s biggest feature is on the Indra P2006T MRI. Roberto Yáñez TOP LEFT INSET: Jim Haseltine TOP RIGHT INSET: AgustaWestland LEFT INSET: Ian Harding MIDDLE INSET: Darryl Morrell/AirTeamImages RIGHT INSET: Piotr Butowski

LEADING NEWS STORIES 06 SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL

of RAF TriStar ops.

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AIR International reports on a serious air incident involving the 16 AN ODD TIME RAF’s new Voyager aircraft.

Claim yo THAI A ur FREE Mira ir ways ge F1 when yo Airbus A380 or DVD us AIR Inte ubscribe to See pa rnational. ges 38 for deta and 39 ils.

08 FAGIN COMBINE

FOR THE US AIR FORCE

Ian Harding and Tom Allett flew on one of the final sorties flown by No.216 Squadron marking the end of a 30-year career

Robert F Dorr outlines radical proposals for cutting aircraft from the US Air Force inventory that might include the KC-10A.

70 Features

66 TWIN PEAKS

48 US AIR POWER IN KOREA

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Roberto Yáñez and Alex Rodriguez review the Indra P2006T MRI. Robert F Dorr provides an overview of American air power in the Republic of Korea.

Editor Mark Ayton [email protected] Sub Editors Sue Blunt, Carol Randall Production Manager Janet Watkins Production Controller Sam Jarman Subscriptions/ Mail Order Manager Roz Condé

• ISSN 0306-5634 • is published monthly by:

Commercial Director Ann Saundry Managing Director & Publisher Adrian Cox Executive Chairman Richard Cox

Bruce Hales-Dutton discovers how London City Airport is set to evolve.

Andreas Spaeth reports from Dallas at a significant time for Southwest Airlines.

News Editor David Willis [email protected]

Marketing Assistant Shaun Binnington

CITY LOOKS TO THE FUTURE 88 LONDON

Barry Smith finds out how CH-46 Sea Knights are used to combat fires.

Marketing Manager Martin Steele

Designer Dave Robinson

Jon Lake outlines India’s EMB 145i airborne early warning aircraft.

FIRE-FIGHTING PHROGS

58 THE IN-FLIGHT REVOLUTION 76 SOUTHWEST’S BIG YEAR Mark Broadbent explains how a passenger’s in-flight experience is evolving.

84 INDIA’S AWACS

Airbus is working on new variants of its popular A330, as Mark Broadbent details.

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92 PEARL OF THE MED

Kyriakos Paloulian looks at the important strategic role of Souda Bay in Greece.

Editor’s Secretary Julie Lawson [email protected] part of it may be reproduced in any form or stored on any form of retrieval system without the prior permission of the publisher. 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 Distribution by Seymour Distribution Ltd • T. +44 (0)020 7429 4000 • Printed in England

LCpl Ryan Carpenter/US Marine Corps

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3

Breaking News

Learjet 85 Takes to the Skies

The prototype Learjet 85 takes off from Wichita, Kansas, for the first time on April 9. Bombardier Aerospace

Chief test pilot Captain Ed Grabman completed the maiden flight of Learjet 85 (LJ-200-1A10) Flight Test Vehicle One (FTV1, N851LJ, c/n 3001) on April 9. The new midsize business jet was flown from WichitaMid Continent International Airport in Kansas, and was airborne for approximately two hours and 15 minutes. It reached an altitude of

30,000ft (9,144m) and an air speed of 250kts (463 km/h). Also onboard was co-pilot Jim Dwyer and flight test engineer Nick Weyers. The Learjet 85 was launched as an all-new composite aircraft, the first in the family to use the material for major structures. FTV1 was rolled out on September 7, 2013 and was due to fly on March 19, but

the maiden flight was delayed by bad weather and software issues. Certification and initial deliveries were planned for last year, but delays building the prototype pushed the estimated dates back to this year, a target the company has said may be unachievable. Bombardier plans to announce a revised schedule shortly.

Samson Arrives in Israel

Israel inducted its first Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Shimson (Samson) 661 (c/n 5723) into service at Nevatim AB on April 9. The transport will enter service with 103 ‘Elephants’ Squadron, which was re-formed in December 2013. Crews have trained in the United States and Italy. The first C-130J-30 for Israel was ordered on April 30, 2010, and first flew on April 18, 2013, before being handed over on July 26. The transport departed Marietta, Georgia, on April 4. Contracts for up to five others have been placed and additional deliveries are due in July and during 2015. Lockheed Martin

Rooivalks Fighting in the DRC

South Africa’s Denel AH-2A Rooivalk Mk 1F combat helicopters have seen more action with the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). On March 8-9 the Rooivalks operated in support of a South African infantry battalion during an attack on a stronghold of the Alliance of Patriots for a Free and Sovereign Congo (APCLS). While the rebels were armed with 12.7mm and 14.5mm heavy machine guns, the South Africans forced them to retreat without suffering losses. On March 1, two Rooivalks fired on the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebel base at Saha Sitisa in the Mbau area of North Kivu, using both 20mm cannons and 70mm unguided rockets. It is understood the helicopters attacked rebel forces on at least one other instance in early March. “The high accuracy [of the Rooivalk] enables us to achieve our clear objective: to end the recurring attacks by the ADF against the civilian population,” said Martin Kobler, the head of MONUSCO. The three 16 Squadron Rooivalks were flown to the Congo at the end of October 2013 and are used to support the Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) comprising South Africa, Tanzania and Malawi troops, tasked with rooting out the various rebels in the DRC. The Rooivalk has been used in combat several – possibly more than a dozen – times since arriving in the DRC (adding to Rooivalks Make Combat Debut, January, p6). Guy Martin and David C Isby

Dawn Breaks for Solar Impulse 2 On April 9 the Solar Impulse 2 (HB-SIB) was unveiled during a ceremony at Payne in Switzerland in front of invited dignitaries. The aircraft was designed to complete a round-the-world flight powered entirely by sunlight. Solar Impulse 2 builds on experience gained with the first aircraft (HB-SIA, see From Switzerland to Morocco (and Back) by Sunlight, August 2012, p18) and has a wingspan of 72m (236ft) covered by 17,248 solar cells that power four electric motors. The aircraft weighs just 2,300kg (5,000lb). Solar Impulse 2 is due to fly in May, after which training flights will be conducted over Switzerland. The round-the-world trip is expected to begin in March 2015 and take three months, during which the aircraft will fly for a total of 20 days. The

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route is over the Arabian Sea, India, Burma, China, the Pacific Ocean, the United States, the Atlantic Ocean and Southern Europe or North Africa, before returning to the departure point. Landings will be made every two days where possible to change the pilots, Solar Impulse project founders Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg. The longest sectors, over the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, require them to fly the aircraft for up to five days consecutively, close to its maximum speed of 87mph (140km/h). The cockpit has a volume of 3.8m3 (134cu ft) and is unpressurised and unheated. During its flight Solar Impulse 2 will gain altitude during the day as its solar cells generate power, but slowly descend by 5,000ft (1,524m) in the dark as its relies on its batteries to turn the propellers.

Solar Impulse 2 HB-SIB prior to being revealed to the world on April 9. The aircraft features several improvements over the prototype to reduce weight and enhance efficiency. Solar Impulse

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5

NEWS BY NUMBERS

ADDITIONAL FIRE SCOUTS ORDERED Northrop Grumman announced on April 7 that it had received a contract from the US Navy to produce five MQ-8C Fire Scout vertical take-off and landing unmanned air vehicles. The latest order raises the number of MQ-8Cs on contract to 19.

Breaking News

New Fighting Falcons Delivered to Oman

12

FA-50S ORDERED BY THE PHILIPPINES A government-to-government sale for 12 Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50s for the Philippines was concluded on March 28. The deal is worth $420 million and will see the aircraft delivered within 38 months (further to Two FA-50s for the Philippines, October 2013, p20). KAI is currently offering members of the T-50 family to fulfil requirements in Botswana, Peru, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and the United States.

Lockheed Martin F-16C Block 50 Fighting Falcon 830 was the first of ten new singe-seaters ordered for the Royal Air Force of Oman. Elizabeth L Kaszynski/Lockheed Martin

Oman accepted the first of its second batch of Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 50 Fighting Falcons on April 3. A ceremony was held at the manufacturer’s facility at Fort Worth, Texas, to mark the occasion. It ordered ten F-16Cs and two

F-16Ds via a Foreign Military Sales contract on December 14, 2011. The initial aircraft of the second order (serial number 830) completed its maiden flight on January 14 (see New Omani Fighting Falcon Airborne, March, p9). The initial

Chinese Il-78 Test Flown

aircraft are due to be ferried to Oman later this year and the last will be handed over by November 2016. They will be used to equip a second squadron with the type. The country received its first batch of 12 F-16C/Ds from 2005.

GOT A NEWS STORY, PHOTO OR FEATURE ? AIR International is keen to hear from readers who have news stories, photos or features of modern civil and military aviation for inclusion in the magazine. Please contact AIR International at the following address [email protected]

This Ilyushin Il-78 Midas is the first example for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force. Andrey Rakul via Andreas Rupprecht

Typhoon-F-35 Interoperability

An unmarked Ilyushin Il-78 Midas tanker in the distinctive blue-grey upper and light-grey underside scheme of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) was noted making test flights over Ukraine during March. Chinese interest in the Il-78 was first confirmed in 2005, when it signed a $1.5 billion contract with Russia for the delivery of 34 new Ilyushin Il-76MD transports and four Il-78 tankers. However, this contract was not fulfilled by the manufacturer, Tashkent Aviation Production Association in Uzbekistan, where the jets were

The RAF’s No.41 Test and Evaluation Squadron was due to undertake the first series of interoperability trials with the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II at Edwards AFB in California in early April. It was the first time the two had flown together: previous interoperability tests were simulated. The RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshirebased squadron is currently deployed to NAWS China Lake, California, on a regular High Rider exercise. This year’s trials are expected to include operational test of the latest P1E software and the Paveway IV precision-guided bomb.

due to be built. Consequently the PLAAF’s Sukhoi Su-30MKK fleet had to operate without inflight refuelling support, as the aircraft is not compatible with the Xian HU-6. It also forced China to seek Il-76s on the open market to bolster its transports; 14 were purchased in the early 1990s, four of which were converted as KJ2000 airborne early warning and control aircraft. This is understood to have resulted in a further ten former Russian and Belarusian Il-76MD/TDs being acquired and overhauled in Russia. In April 2013 it was reported that additional

aircraft would be acquired and overhauled in Ukraine, including some tankers. It is thought this contract includes three Il-78s and five Il-76MDs. The first of the tankers refurbished by the Nikolaev Aircraft Repair Plant flew in March. Although unconfirmed, the aircraft is probably a former Ukrainian Air Force Il-78. In contrast to the HU-6 tankers, which can carry 34 tons of fuel (and only 10 tons at a 2,200km/1,367 mile radius) the Il-78 carries around 60 tons 7,300km (4,536 miles) and dispense it via three UPAZ-1A refuelling pods. Andreas Rupprecht

Boeing Takes the VIP 737 Experience to the MAX Boeing has formally launched a Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) version of its 737 MAX family upon receipt of an order from an undisclosed customer for a BBJ MAX 8. With new CFM International LEAP-1B engines and

other aerodynamic improvements, including Advanced Technology winglets, the BBJ MAX 8 will have a range of 6,325nm (11,713km) – an increase of more than 800nm (1,482km) over the current BBJ2. The

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new BBJ family also will include the BBJ MAX 9, based on the 737 MAX 9, which is expected to have a range of 6,255nm (11,584km). Plans for a BBJ MAX 7 are still being studied. Development of the 737 MAX is

on schedule for first flight in 2016, with deliveries to airline customers beginning in the following year. The newly-ordered BBJ MAX will be sent to a completions centre in 2018 for the VIP interior to be installed. Mike Jerram

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5

NEWS REPORT

T

Ian Harding reports on a serious air incident involving the RAF’s new Voyager aircraft Flight History he RAF’s fleet of minor injuries”. Voyager tankertransport aircraft was grounded for 12 days from February 9, 2014 following a serious incident during a flight bound for Afghanistan. The aircraft diverted to Incirlik Air Base in Turkey according to a report by the Director General Military Aviation Authority (MAA) released on March 17, 2014. While the investigation into the incident continues, the service inquiry panel is confident that the cause of the incident, which saw the aircraft lose altitude, was the result of “human factors” and was “not related to an aircraft technical issue”. The human factors were reported as being the pilot’s improperly stowed camera which had become jammed between the arm rest and one of the aircraft’s side-stick controls on the flight deck.

On February 9, 2014, Voyager KC3 ZZ333 departed RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire at 12.00 hours destined for Camp Bastion, Afghanistan on a non-stop flight with nine crew and 189 passengers aboard. Almost four hours into the flight, which had “progressed without incident”, the aircraft suddenly “pitched nose down” while cruising at Flight Level (FL) 330 (33,000ft/10,058m) in Turkish airspace, losing 4,440ft (1,353m) in altitude within 27 seconds before the aircraft’s self-protection system initiated a recovery back towards controlled flight. With control regained, the aircraft diverted to Incirlik Air Base without further incident. The aircraft’s maximum recorded rate of descent during those 27 seconds was approximately 15,000ft/min (4,572m/min). According to the report, the resulting negative g forces “were sufficient for almost all of the unrestrained passengers [those without their seatbelts fastened] and crew to be thrown towards the ceiling, resulting in a number of

At the time of the incident, the auto-pilot 1 was engaged and the co-pilot had left his seat and was in the forward galley near the forward left passenger door. The report states that: “The captain [occupying the left-hand flight deck seat] reported that he suddenly felt a sensation of weightlessness and being restrained by his harness, accompanied by a rapid pitching down of the aircraft. He attempted to take control by pulling back on his side-stick controller and pressing the autopilot disconnect button but these actions were ineffective.” Prior to the pitch-down, the co-pilot reported feeling a sensation similar to turbulence, whilst other cabin crew reported feeling a sudden ‘jolt’. “The co-pilot then experienced weightlessness and struck the cabin roof but was able to re-enter the flight-deck through the open door,” the inquiry reported. As the aircraft’s self-protection systems initiated its recovery, the flight crew regained control. The co-pilot “aware of excessive

Shake, Rat 6

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NEWS REPORT speed building called for the thrust levers to idle, which decreased the speed rapidly,” while the captain “took control, setting take-off and go-around power, and subsequently reestablished a power attitude combination for straight and level flight at FL310.” Based on flight information recorded by the aircraft flight data recorder, the inquiry reported finding “no indication of system failures which could have led the aircraft to pitch-down,” adding it had found “no evidence of unresolved comparable incidents across any A330 aircraft variants.” Instead, the inquiry found evidence of human factors being the source of the incident, linking “the movement of the captain’s seat to the movement of the side-stick” due to a “digital SLR camera obstruction positioned in-front of the captain’s left arm rest and behind the base of the captain’s side-stick at the time of the event.” Analysis of the camera damage indicated it “experienced a significant compression against the base of the side-stick, consistent with having been jammed between the arm rest and the side-stick unit.”

Concluding at this stage, the inquiry “has confidence that the pitch-down command was the result of an inadvertent physical input to the captain’s side-stick by means of a physical obstruction [the camera] between the arm-rest and the side-stick unit,” adding that “simulations have been carried out which have re-created the scenario which have shown that it is possible for objects to become inadvertently lodged in the space between the arm rest and the side-stick, generating an identical pitch-down command to that seen during the incident.” Safety advice has subsequently been issued to the RAF and to Airbus to highlight this possibility.

Voyager Takes Responsibility The MAA and Ministry of Defence (MoD) moved quickly to report their findings which will have done much to allay concerns regarding the aircraft’s safety. This was important ahead of the RAF’s TriStar aircraft retirement (see Fagin Combine, p8-11) and Voyager being tasked with the bulk of the RAF’s passenger transport duties and all airto-air refuelling (AAR) responsibilities.

Some 48 days after the incident, the RAF and AirTanker had received more positive news: the MoD’s Release to Service for the forward refuelling unit (FRU) system on March 29. On March 31, 2014 a Voyager completed the first sortie as a three-point tanker, using its FRU to complete air-to-air refuelling with a C-130J Hercules. Seven Voyager aircraft have now been delivered to RAF Brize Norton – six of them are on the military aircraft register: two two-point tankers (Voyager KC2s) and four three-point tankers (Voyager KC3s). An eighth aircraft is scheduled to arrive during May 2014. AirTanker told AIR International that the Voyager programme is on schedule to meet its AARISD (air-to-air in-service date) during the summer of 2014 as planned. This declaration will be inclusive of the ninth aircraft that is scheduled for delivery in June 2014 with its enhanced defensive aids suite already installed one month ahead of schedule.

RAF Voyager KC3 ZZ333 at RAF Brize Norton in August 2013. This aircraft was involved in an air incident while flying in Turkish airspace on February 9, 2014, in which it dropped 4,440 feet (1,353m) in 27 seconds uncommanded by the pilot. Ian Harding

attle & Roll Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

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7

NEWS REPORT

Ian Harding and Tom Allett flew on one of the final sorties by No.216 Squadron marking the end of a 30-year career of RAF TriStar operations

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Fagin

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NEWS REPORT

n Combine

N

o.216 Squadron, the RAF’s only TriStar, unit disbanded at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, on March 20, 2014. Retirement of its final four aircraft followed soon after. To mark the occasion two of the TriStars – KC1s ZD948 (call sign FAGIN 11) and ZD950 (FAGIN 12) – flew a final air-to-air refuelling (AAR) mission over the North Sea on March 24. No.216 Squadron and the RAF Brize Norton media team afforded invited enthusiasts and media the opportunity to experience the final mission first-hand. Five aircraft air-refuelled from FAGIN 11: a Tornado GR4A flown by No.15(R) Squadron based at RAF Lossiemouth, Morayshire, and four Typhoons from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. During the transit flight back to Brize Norton, FAGIN 11 flew over Cambridge Airport (home to Marshall Aerospace,

Main: Three Typhoon FGR4s from No.3(F) Squadron were ‘trade’ for the final TriStar AAR mission flown from Brize Norton on March 24. All images Ian Harding Left: Flight crew of TriStar KC1 ZD950 FAGIN 12 following the final AAR mission on March 24, 2014. From left to right: Sgt David O’Boyle (weapon systems operator/WSOp); Flt Sgt Neil Gibson (216 Squadron STANEVAL/WSOp); Master Air Crew Ian Marshall (WSOp); Flt Lt Paul Firth (pilot); Wg Cdr Peter Morgan (OC 216 Squadron/pilot); Flt Lt Dave Sell (pilot); Flt Sgt Jerry Peach (Air Engineer); Senior Aircraftman Leah Thorpe (cabin crew); Sgt Jane McIntosh (WSOp). RAF Brize Norton

responsible for the TriStar Integrated Operational Support programme) and Bournemouth Airport (home to Cobham plc, manufacturer of the TriStar air-refuelling system).

1,642 times to Afghanistan, carrying a quarter of a million passengers each way and travelling a total distance equivalent to flying around the world 640 times or to the moon and back 30 times.”

30 Years of Service

Squadron Personnel

Known fondly by its crews as ‘Timmy’, the TriStar (along with the last Vickers VC-10s which retired in September 2013) formed the backbone of the UK’s long-range air transport and AAR capability and had participated in nearly every conflict following its service entry 30 years ago. During the early 1980s, a fleet of nine TriStar 500s were acquired from Pan Am (3) and British Airways (6) to provide support to forces deployed to the South Atlantic and to bolster the AAR fleet as a direct result of the Falklands conflict. Ever present, the RAF TriStar fleet provided AAR to UK and NATO fast jets during both Gulf Wars and more recently over Afghanistan and Libya. No.216 Squadron also contributed to the vital airbridge, transporting troops and cargo to Afghanistan and Iraq. Aside from the squadron’s regular operational duties, which included fast-jet trail support, its aircraft also supported the UK’s Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) tasking (their final sortie was flown on March 11, 2014) and in the Falkland Islands – the last TriStar detached to Mount Pleasant airfield returning to the UK on March 8, 2014. Ahead of the final mission, Officer Commanding No.216 Squadron, Wg Cdr Peter Morgan, told AIR International: “During an eight-year period, 216 Squadron flew

No.216 Squadron was the RAF’s largest squadron in personnel terms, employing 500 people. Wg Cdr Morgan confirmed around a third of them will transfer to the Voyager, of which the loadmasters and ground engineers will move to C-17A Globemaster IIIs and C-130J Hercules based at Brize Norton and flight engineers will mainly fill other roles, because the only RAF type remaining in service that requires the function is the E-3D Sentry AEW1. There was a tangible sense of occasion among flight crew ahead of the final AAR mission. The captain, Flt Lt Will Stock, said: “TriStar is an important aircraft as the last commercial type built by Lockheed and it helped define Rolls-Royce as an engine manufacturer”. The TriStar was Stock’s first operational type seven years ago. Sqn Ldr Al Meadows’ military flight career as a loadmaster spans 24 years, with 20 years on C-130s before completing his latest tour on TriStars. He told AIR International: “To come to something as unique as this aircraft has been quite spectacular. It’s such a capable, versatile aircraft; we’ve done so many things with it. It enables us to ship 266 passengers around the world or give away 90 tonnes of fuel. Considering what we’ve done with the aircraft – throwing them into Afghanistan, other operations around the world – like a very good car, they just kept

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NEWS REPORT

TRISTAR FLEET No.216 Squadron fleet comprised three versions: TriStar KC1s, K1s and C2s. The six acquired from British Airways were converted by Marshall of Cambridge into tankers and fitted with a twin centre hose-and-drogue unit, four as multi-purpose AAR, freight and passenger TriStar KC1s and two as AAR and passenger TriStar K1s. The three aircraft acquired from Pan Am were configured solely for air transport duties as TriStar C2/C2As. Serial

Designation

Delivery date

Date wfu

Location

ZD948

TriStar KC1

March 29, 1983

March 25, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZD949

TriStar K1

November 2, 1982

November 5, 2011

Cambridge

ZD950

TriStar KC1

February 17, 1983

March 25, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZD951

TriStar K1

March 27, 1983

March 5, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZD952

TriStar KC1

March 28, 1983

February 3, 2014

Cotswold Airport

ZD953

TriStar KC1

February 15, 1983

March 19, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZE704

TriStar C2

November 13, 1984

March 25, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZE705

TriStar C2

December 7, 1984

March 12, 2014

Bruntingthorpe Airfield

ZE706

TriStar C2A

March 27, 1985

August 7, 2013

Cambridge

ZD949 was withdrawn from use (wfu) at Marshall of Cambridge having received internal modifications including a glass cockpit. At the time of writing, AIR International understands that all remaining aircraft will be scrapped by GJD Services based at Bruntingthorpe Airfield, Leicestershire. However, hope remains that one aircraft might be acquired and retained for taxiing display by Cold War Jets based at the airfield. Wg Cdr Peter Morgan confirmed the two aircraft with the highest flight hours were C2s ZE704 and ZE705, with around 58,000 and 55,000 hours respectively.

Below & Top: Two views of TriStar KC1 ZD952 at RAF Brize Norton. This aircraft was withdrawn from use on February 3, 2014 to Cotswold Airport, Wiltshire. All images Ian Harding

coming back for more. “We’ve had some issues – we expected them for an aircraft of its age – but serviceability really has been superb. I have huge respect for this aircraft and my last three years have been such good fun largely because of its versatility. Tomorrow represents the end of a long, distinguished career during which the aircraft has been the face of the RAF for many.” The squadron boss, Wg Cdr Peter Morgan, added: “We’ve been very proud

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NEWS REPORT

NO.216 SQUADRON HISTORY

TriStar KC1 ZD948 with an RAF Typhoon T3 plugged into the basket and a Tornado GR4 in formation.

of the TriStar over the past 30 years, when it’s been involved in nearly every operation performing the air transport and air-to-air refuelling roles. “Pretty much everyone in the military has been in a TriStar and after 30 years all the aircraft were still in service. It has an impeccable safety record and worked to the very end of its career.”

The Future With the retirement of the fleet and No.216 Squadron’s disbandment, the UK’s tanker-

transport responsibilities now rest solely with the Airbus A330-200 Voyager aircraft operated by No.10 and No.101 Squadrons at RAF Brize Norton. To date, seven of 14 Voyager aircraft have been delivered to AirTanker, a consortium that operates the fleet on behalf of the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The core military Voyager fleet will comprise nine aircraft with the other five leased to third parties when not required for operations. Responsibility for the tankertransport roles formally passed to the Voyagers on March 31, 2014.

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No.216 Squadron’s disbandment on March 31, 2014 ended a 96-year history which officially commenced when a detachment of 7 (Naval) Squadron was formed in August 1917. That detachment was subsequently re-designated as A Flight, 16 Squadron RNAS (Royal Naval Air Service). When the Royal Air Force was formed on April 1, 1918, all numbered naval squadrons had 200 added to them, 16 Squadron becoming No.216 Squadron RAF. Having provided transportation during campaigns for almost 40 years, in June 1956 the squadron re-equipped with the de Havilland Comet, which remained its mount until June 27, 1975 when the unit was disbanded for the first time. It re-emerged in July 1979 at RAF Honington, Suffolk, with the Blackburn Buccaneer S2B in a maritime/strike role, but disbanded again in August the following year, its Buccaneers passing to No.12(B) Squadron. Following the 1982 Falklands conflict, the MoD acquired nine Lockheed L-1011 TriStar aircraft from British Airways and Pan American Airways. The unit was re-formed at RAF Brize Norton in November 1984 and served continuously until its disbandment and ceremonial parade on March 20, 2014, during which its standard was formally laid to rest.

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UK

Memorable 2014 Display Tucano

Shorts Tucano T1 ZF244 of No.72 (Reserve) Squadron is the RAF’s 2014 display aircraft, commemorating the centenary of the start of World War One in July 1914. The aircraft is based at RAF Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire, and painted with poppies on its nose, a red spinner and the words ‘Lest We Forget’ along the fuselage and under the wings. Tucano display pilot for the 2014 season is Flt Lt Dave Kirby, a Qualified Flying Instructor on the aircraft since 2009. Derek Bower

Disbandments Highlight Shrinking RAF Fast Jet Force A disbandment parade was held at RAF Lossiemouth, Morayshire, on March 28 for No.12 (Bomber) and No.617 ‘The Dambusters’ Squadrons. The ceremony marked the end of active service by the two units before they were officially disbanded on April 1. This leaves No.XV (Reserve) Squadron, the Panavia Tornado GR4 operational conversion unit, and D Flight No.202 Squadron, with Westland Sea King HAR3s, as the last flying units at the base. While the RAF plans to retire its Sea Kings in 2017, No.XV (Reserve) Squadron will remain active at the airfield into the following year. Later this year the two Eurofighter Typhoon squadrons currently based at RAF Leuchars, Fife, will relocate to

RAF Lossiemouth. No.1 (Fighter) and No.6 Squadrons are due to move in June and September respectively, before RAF Leuchars is handed to the army. RAF Lossiemouth will then take over the northern Quick Reaction Alert. Many personnel previously assigned to No.12 (Bomber) Squadron will remain at RAF Lossiemouth to support the Typhoons. A third Typhoon unit, No.II (Army Co-operation) Squadron currently flying Tornados at RAF Marham, Norfolk, will stand up at the base in April 2015. The completion of the relocations will coincide with the Scottish independence referendum, due on September 18. As of early 2014 the Ministry of Defence (MoD) had

made no provisions for a ‘yes’ vote to Scottish independence, although that possibility would have a major impact on British military bases in the country and RAF Lossiemouth in particular, as it will be the last north of the border. In its White Paper, Scotland’s Future: Your Guide to an Independent Scotland released on November 26, 2013, the Scottish National Party (SNP) envisaged operating at least 12 and possibly up to 16 Typhoons from RAF Lossiemouth for the air policing role (see SNP Outlines Defence for An Independent Scotland, January, p4). According to the SNP, the fighters would come from RAF stocks as part of military resources to be negotiated from the United Kingdom. The recent disbandments leave

Show Time for Typhoon Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 ZK343/‘BX’ of No.29 (Reserve) Squadron based at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, is the RAF’s 2014 display aircraft, which will be flown by Flt Lt Noel Rees. The aircraft made its first flight on March 31 after Serco applied the special tail and canard markings designed by Adam Johnson Concepts, which incorporate the squadron’s emblem, the buzzard and XXX. The Typhoon previously served with No.6 Squadron as ‘EA’, but was recently transferred to No.29 (Reserve) Squadron. MoD/Crown Copyright

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the RAF with seven frontline fast jet squadrons; No.3 (Fighter) and No.XI on the Typhoon at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire; the two Typhoon units at RAF Leuchars, and No.II (Army Co-operation), No.IX (Bomber) and No.31 with Tornado GR4s at RAF Marham. In addition, operational conversion to the Typhoon is conducted by No.29 (Reserve) Squadron at RAF Coningsby, while a similar service for the Tornado is provided by No.XV (Reserve) at RAF Lossiemouth. In early 2014 the RAF had 117 Typhoons and 102 Tornados in service, with availability running at 73 and 70% respectively, according to the MoD. No.617 Squadron is due to re-form in 2018 as the RAF’s first operational Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II unit. The UK has ordered four F-35Bs for development and operational evaluation. Current plans call for at least 48 to be acquired in the first ten years of the procurement programme. In late 2012 the MoD’s Permanent Secretary, Jon Thompson, informed the House of Commons Defence Select Committee that 14 would be ordered the following year for approximately £2.5 billion. However, it is understood that a firm contract has yet to be signed, which may delay deliveries to the frontline squadrons. In addition to replacing the already retired BAE Systems Harrier GR9 fleet and the Tornado GR4 (due to be withdrawn in March 2019), the F-35Bs will also form the core of the air wing of the Royal Navy’s Queen Elizabethclass aircraft carriers. The bulk of these requirements are expected to be fulfilled by the initial 48 F-35Bs, enough for three to four squadrons shared between the RAF and Fleet Air Arm. The total number to be acquired will be announced during the Strategic Defence and Security Review in 2015; additional procurement in the later 2020s will also need to replace the Typhoon fleet.

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Europe

Marine Nationale Hawkeye 2000 at TLP 2014-2

The second flying course of the Tactical Leadership Programme (TLP) at Albacete AB, Spain, featured a large French presence, including Aéronautique Navale (French Fleet Air Arm) Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye 2000 No.2 (ex BuNo 165456) of BAN Lorient-based Flottille 4F. Also involved were: Dassault Rafale Ms and Super Etendard Modernisés from BAN Landivisiau; as well as Armée de l’Air (French Air Force) Mirage 2000C, ’D and ’Ns from Istres, Orange and Dijon; Rafales from Saint-Dizier and Mont-de-Marsan; Alpha Jet Es from Dijon, and Airbus Helicopter EC725 Caracals from Cazaux. Other participants included Spanish EF-18M Hornets and Hellenic F-16C/D Fighting Falcons. TLP 2014-2 started on March 6 and finished on April 4. Roberto Yañez

ILANA to Raise Swiss Air Force Readiness Switzerland has reacted to criticism about its levels of combat readiness by launching Project ILANA. While maintaining 24-hour radar coverage, the Swiss Air Force does not usually have quick reaction alert aircraft available to conduct interceptions outside of normal business hours. This was amply demonstrated on February 17, when the service failed to respond to hijacked Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 767-3BG(ER) ET-AMF (c/n 30563, ex B-2561) which went on to land at Geneva early in the morning, before air force operations started at 0800hrs (see Ethiopian Hijacking Outside Swiss Air Force’s ‘Office Hours’, April, p20). Swiss alert aircraft also only ever

carry armament on rare occasions, such as when providing airspace security for the Davos World Economic Forum or the Syrian peace talks on Lake Leman, greatly limiting their options when confronted with potentially hostile intruders. Project ILANA (Interventionsfähigkeit des Luftpolizeidienstes ausserhalb der normalen Arbeitszeit – intervention ability of the air force outside normal working hours) is intended to provide Switzerland with a round-the-clock operational capability, 365 days a year, by 2020. Approximately 100 new personnel, including pilots, controllers and technicians, will be hired to support this. David C Isby

Czech Air Force Yak-40K

Saab to Promote PC-21 to Sweden A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Saab and Pilatus on March 28 to jointly develop a new training package that could be offered to the Flygvapnet (Swedish Air Force). The MoU covers work to define a new training system based around the Swiss company’s PC-21 trainer that would be offered to the Swedish Air Force should it decide to replace its existing Saab SK 60s. Saab currently provides full spectrum support to the SK 60 fleet under a ‘turnkey’ contract with the Försvarets Materielverk (Swedish Defence Materiel Administration). The agreement is linked to Switzerland’s selection of the Saab JAS 39E Gripen to fulfil its Partial (Northrop) Tiger (II) Replacement requirement. The ‘Gripen Fund Law’ was

approved in both chambers of the Swiss parliament in August and September 2013, and will be subject to a public referendum on May 18. Any potential Swedish purchase of PC-21s would be part of the CHF2.5 billion ($2.82 billion) offset programme linked to the Gripen sale, of which CHF300 million ($338 million) is due to be in place before a contract is signed and the rest within ten years of a deal being concluded. Sweden is considering several options to replace the SK 60 in the training role, including acquiring 20 new aircraft or sharing assets with other countries. A broad range of aircraft is under consideration, among them the jet-powered Alenia Aermacchi M-346 Master and BAE Systems Hawk, as well as turboprop types such as the PC-21.

Turkey Receives its First A400M Yakovlev Yak-40K 1257 (c/n 9821257, ex OK-BYJ) of the Letecká Složka Spolec˘ných Síly Armády C˘ eské Republiky (Air Component of the Czech Republic’s Joint Forces) at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport in Hungary. The aircraft is one of two operated by 24.Základna Dpravního Letectva at Praha-Kbely with 241 Dopravní Letka (Transport Squadron), the other being Yak-40 0260 (c/n 9940260). Both aircraft carry ‘Czech Air Force’ titles in English, rather than the service’s more formal name. Tamás Martényi

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Airbus Defence and Space delivered the first A400M to the Türk Hava Kuvvetleri (THK, Turkish Air Force) on April 4. A ceremony was held at the final assembly line at Seville-San Pablo Airport, Spain, during which 13-0009 (msn 009, ex A4M009) was officially handed over. After formal transfer of the aircraft, it was due to be flown to the 12nci

Hava Ulas¸tırma Ana Üs Komutanlıg˘ı (12th Air Transport Main Base Command) at Kayseri-Erkilet to allow THK pilots to train on the type. The transport completed its maiden flight on August 27, 2013, but Turkey refused to accept it in September, however, for reasons that have not been made public. It has ten A400Ms on order.

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Europe

Croatian MiG-21 Upgrade Delayed

Croatian Air Force (HRZ) Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21bis 132 being overhauled in Odessa, Ukraine. The fighter has a new NATO-style overall grey air superiority camouflage and revised low-viz HRZ insignia. MORH via Igor Salinger

The Croatian Ministry of Defence (MORH) has stated that “technical problems” and issues integrating Czech navigation and communication equipment have delayed the overhaul of its Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21bisD and -21UMDs in Odessa, Ukraine. It also said the Russian intervention in Ukraine had not affected the

Spain Retires Final SAR Aviocar A ceremony was held at Base Aérea de Son San Juan on Mallorca on April 2 to mark the retirement of the last Ejército del Aire (Spanish Air Force) CASA 212 Aviocars configured for the search and rescue (SAR) role. Three aircraft, a single Srs 100 designated a D.3A by the air force, and two Srs 200s (D.3Bs), were withdrawn by 801 Escadrón of Ala 49. Spain operated two D.3As from mid-1977 and seven D.3Bs from May 1983. The aircraft have been replaced by CASA CN235M-100 VIGMAs (Vigilancia Marítima, maritime surveillance), eight of which have been produced by converting Spanish Air Force transports. The new type entered service in 2008.

programme, which was “about five months” behind schedule, according to MORH. A EUR13.9 million contract arranged through Ukrspecexport was announced on June 10, 2013 (see Croatia Signs MiG-21 Upgrade Deal, September 2013, p13) covering the overhaul of seven existing Hrvatsko Ratno

Zrakoplovstvo i Protuzrac˘ na Obrana (HRZ, Croatian Air Force and Air Defence) MiG-21bisD and two-seat -21UMD fighters. It also included the provision of five additional single-seaters, refurbished and equipped to HRZ specifications. Ukrspecexport’s proposal was chosen in preference to one from Aerostar of Romania,

which was nearly EUR5 million more expensive. According to HRZ Colonel Željko Simi, the head of the overhaul team, the problems emerged with the integration of navigational devices provided by the Czech contractor C˘eská letecká servisní. Assistant defence minister and former HRZ commander-in-chief, Viktor Koprivnjak, says that five single-seaters are “finished, except the problematic navcom device”, while two UMD conversion trainers are “about 95% complete and due to be completed within weeks”. Meanwhile, the HRZ took delivery of its first two overhauled Mil -Mi-8MTV helicopters on February 21. The work was carried out by repair facilities in Sevastopol, Motor Sich Zaporozhye and the Croatian Zrakoplovno-tehnic˘ ki centar (aeronautical technical centre) in Velika Gorica. Four more are ready for reassembly in Croatia and return to service. Igor Salinger

Bulgarian Falcon at Brussels

Dassault Falcon 2000 LZ-001 (c/n 123, ex F-WWVS) of the Bulgarian Government’s Pravitelstven Aviootryad 28 (Aviation Unit 28) based at Sofia-Vrazhdebna Airport on approach to Brussels Airport in Belgium on April 1. The aircraft was taking delegates to the 4th EU-Africa Summit. Marcus Steidele

NATO to Bolster Lithuanian Fighter Deployment Denmark, France and the UK will send fighters to augment the scheduled deployment of Polish Mikoyan MiG-29A Fulcrums to Šiauliai AB in Lithuania. The Polish rotation for the Baltic Air Policing mission is scheduled to begin on May 1, replacing Boeing F-15C Eagles of the 493rd Fighter Squadron, 48th Fighter Wing. The initial four Eagles, which assumed the quick reaction alert role at the Lithuanian base on January 3, were supplemented by a further six aircraft also from the

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RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk based unit after the Russian occupation of Crimea (see Six Additional Eagles Deployed to Lithuania, April, p9). On March 17 Philip Hammond, the British Secretary of State for Defence said that six RAF Eurofighter Typhoons had been offered to support the NATO deployment. The aircraft will arrive in the Baltics in late April. The French Government announced on March 22 that it would deploy Dassault Mirage 2000 fighters

and Boeing E-3F Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft alongside the Fulcrums. Denmark stated on March 27 it would contribute six F-16AM Fighting Falcons. In addition, the Czech Government has said it is willing to use its Saab JAS 39C Gripens to protect the airspace of countries bordering Ukraine, and was holding talks with Romania. Meanwhile, on March 10 NATO announced that its Airborne Early Warning Force’s E-3A AWACSs

based at Geilenkirchen in Germany and RAF No.8 Squadron’s E-3D Sentry AEW1s based at RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire, would fly missions over Poland and Romania to monitor the situation in Ukraine. Sweden revealed on March 4 that, as a result of Russian exercises in the Baltic Sea near Kaliningrad and moves against Crimea, it had deployed Gripens to the island of Gotland and increased radar coverage of the area. David C Isby

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Russia & CIS

Ladoga 2014 The Western Military District’s Ladoga 2014 exercise was held between March 14 and 31. It included over 50 crews flying Sukhoi Su-24M and Su-34 bombers, Su-27 and Mikoyan MiG-29SMT fighters and MiG-31BM interceptors, supported by Antonov An-12 and An-26 transports. The exercise included interceptions of MiG-31s, simulating high-altitude, high-speed penetrating threats, and operations with electronic jamming. The live fire portion took place on ranges in Tver and Leningrad oblasts.

Little Bird for Russia

David C Isby

Russia Increases Belarus Presence

Hongdu L7 prototype 01 displayed at Airshow China in Zhuhai in November 2010. The latest Yak-152 variant due to be produced as the Russian Air Force’s next initial trainer is based on the L7. Piotr Butowski

The Voyenno-Vozdushnye Sily (VVS, Russian Air Force) will increase its current deployment of four Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker fighters at Baranovichi in Belarus to a full regiment of 24 by the end of 2014. The VVS Commanderin-Chief, Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev, confirmed the increase in the deployment on March 17 (further to Four Russian Su-27M3s Deploy to Belarus, March, p17). A Beriev A-50 Mainstay radar aircraft deployed to the 61st Air Base at Baranovichi two days earlier to train with the fighters. Russian began joint exercises with Belarus on March 18. Belarus Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot attack aircraft and Mil Mi-24 Hind combat helicopters carried out simulated missions over the Pruzhany training area, while Belarus Su27s from Baranovichi undertook interception missions. David C Isby

The Yakovlev Yak-152 seems set to become the next initial training aircraft of the VoyennoVozdushnye Sily (VVS, Russian Air Force). The aircraft was the only submission to a tender released by Rosoboronpostavka, the Russian Federal Agency for Weaponry, Military and Special Equipment and Material Facilities Procurement, for the design, construction and testing of a new initial trainer for the VVS. The announcement of the Ptichka (little bird) programme to find an Uchebno-Trenirovochnyi Kompleks Pervonachalnoi Podgotovki (UTK PNP, Initial Training Complex) was made on March 17. According to the release, the UTK PNP will have a cockpit similar to that of modern tactical aircraft and must “provide continuity of skills for further mastering of [the Yakovlev] Yak-130 combat trainer”. Pilot and student will be

provided with a SKS-94 ejection system. The design will have a service life of 10,000 flight hours and 30,000 landings, or 30 years. Serial manufacturing and deliveries are to start in November 2016. Production will be preceded by two flight test prototypes and a pair of non-airworthy aircraft for ground and fatigue tests. The contract price is RUB300 million ($8.4 million). The Yak-152 has been around in one form or another for over 20 years as a replacement for the Yak-52, of which more than 1,800 were built by Aerostar in Baca˘u, Romania. The VVS announced a tender for a successor in June 2001, resulting in the Yak-152 and Sukhoi Su-49. Although the latter design was chosen, work never progressed. Approximately ten years later the Yak-152 was offered as a basis of an aircraft to fulfil a Chinese requirement. An

agreement reached in June 2006 saw Yakovlev design the L7 (CJ-7) Kadet/Sokolik (cadet/little falcon) for Hongdu and Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The L7 prototype was displayed at Airshow China in Zhuhai in November 2010, but only flew once before being used for static tests. Yakovlev is now converting the Chinese version for VVS use. Serial production for the VVS will occur at Arsenyev, Primorsky Krai, in Russia’s Far East. No specific engine to be used was mentioned in the tender. Earlier Yak-152 designs, as well as the Chinese L7, use the Russian M-14X piston-engine, rated at 360hp (268kW). This is likely to be replaced, possibly with the German RED (Raikhlin Aircraft Engine Development) 300hp (224kW) A05 Diesel six-cylinder, already selected for the Sokol Altius-M unmanned air vehicle. Piotr Butowski

Airpower Leads Crimean Annexation Russian airpower played a major role throughout the military operations that led to the de facto annexation of the region. Helicopters were concentrated in Krasnodar Krai earlier in March to take part in the scheduled Aviadarts-2014 weapons competition, including Kamov Ka-52 Hokum, Mil Mi-24 Hind and Mi-28N Havoc attack helicopters, as well as Sukhoi Su25M3 Frogfoot ground attack aircraft. Klimovo airfield in Bryansk Oblast, abandoned in 2010, was made operational again within ten days. Ukrainian news reports said over 250 aircraft took part in the operation. Osa-M (SA-8 Goa) self-propelled (SP) surface-to-air missiles (SAMs)

where relocated within range of Balbek in the Crimea, to prevent the few operational Ukrainian Mikoyan MiG-29 Fulcrums of the 204th Tactical Aviation Brigade from taking off from their base there. Two batteries of Russian Pantsir-S (SA-22 Greyhound) SP SAMs arrived by ship from across the Kerch Strait by March 18. Ukrainian SAM sites were put out of action by ground forces, although Ukrainian radar coverage was still operational as of March 13. Over 50 different Russian military transport aircraft supported the invasion. This included Ilyushin Il-76 Candids, Antonov An-72 Coalers, An-26 Cokes, and even Tver-based

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An-22 Anteis. Making several sorties in and out of Rostov was Ilyushin Il-18 RA-75518, assigned to the 8th Special Purpose Air Division. Built in 1963, it is Russia’s oldest operational military aircraft. The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry deployed its first Mil Mi-8 mobile communications post helicopter from Rostov-on-Don to Simferopol in Crimea on March 24. It was due to be joined by a medical evacuation helicopter. Ukraine ordered its military forces to withdraw from the Crimea on March 24. Most of the 50 plus aircraft based there, unable to fly, will be moved out by road and rail. Many have had

their engines removed and are only of use to provide spare parts. As of March 27, Ukraine had ordered a large-scale exercise to be conducted with its remaining aircraft and aircrew. Ukrainian pilots only averaged 42 flight hours in 2012. The joint Russian-Ukraine Fairway of Peace air-sea exercise was cancelled on March 6. From 2016, a regiment of Russian Naval Aviation Tupolev Tu-22M Backfire-Cs, armed with anti-shipping missiles, is due to be based at Gvardeiskiy in the Crimea. Other Soviet-era naval aviation bases in the region, at Vesely and Oktyabrsky, will not under current plans be reactivated. David C Isby

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NEWS COLUMN

An Odd Time for t by Robert F Dorr Chief of staff Gen Mark Welsh, who became the service’s top general in August 2012, was expected to be a visionary who would transform the air force. Some in the Pentagon are saying that, despite being liked and respected, Welsh has turned out to be an unremarkable leader.

Air force Secretary Deborah Lee James, only took office in December 2013 and seemed certain to be a figurehead, but instead has emerged as a decisive boss who didn’t hesitate to fire nine commanders after a cheating scandal in the missile force. James has made a surprisingly strong impression defending programmes on Capitol Hill. The relationship between the chief and the secretary — even the question of who is in charge — depends entirely on personality. Contrary to the usual practice, Welsh and James rarely make appearances together. It was an unusual sight when they testified jointly before Congress in March on the Obama administration’s fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget proposal.

Radical Retirements The most controversial part of the proposal is the planned retirement of 380 A-10C Thunderbolt IIs and 33 U-2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft, deleting both fleets entirely from inventory. The plan will also retire the C-38 Courier fleet. The proposal is not a “done deal”, however, because Congress, not the administration, decides what the budget will contain. There will be vigorous debate during the coming summer while lawmakers pick apart the administration’s plan and create their own. In FY2015, the air force wants to buy 26 F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (included among 34 for all service branches), its

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first seven KC-46A Pegasus tankers, 12 MQ-9A Reapers, seven C-130J Super Hercules airlifters, and (as rebuilds) four HC-130Ks and two MC130Js. It is unclear how much funding will go to the Long Range Strike-Bomber (LRS-B), a programme that is being conducted very quietly if not in the highly classified “black” world. Also in the FY2015 budget request is an acknowledgement that the force must shrink to accommodate fiscal restraints: the air force wants to cut personnel from 503,400 to 483,000. A press release about retiring the C-38A Courier, a military version of the Israel Aircraft Industries Galaxy Aerospace Astra SPX, retrospectively known also as the Gulfstream G100, failed to tell readers the size of the fleet. It consists of just two aircraft (serial numbers 94-1569/1570). No clear reason was ever given for the 1994 purchase of the C-38As, which were used for aeromedical evacuation duty by the 201st Airlift Squadron, District of Columbia Air National Guard. The air force argues that retiring entire fleets can save billions of dollars, because it saves the costs associated with infrastructure, logistics, personnel and base operating support, but it is hard to see the impact of deleting a pair of C-38As from inventory. The service will also put 16 airlifters, 12 C-17A Globemaster IIIs and four C-5M Super Galaxys, into backup aircraft inventory where they will remain on charge but will fly infrequently.

Tanker and airlift issues will become the purview of Lt Gen Darren McDew who was nominated in April for four-star rank to replace retiring Gen Paul Salva as commander of Air Mobility Command (AMC). While the airlift fleet is relatively young compared to the aging warplanes operated by Air Combat Command, AMC’s KC-135 Stratotanker and KC-10 Extender tankers are geriatric and have been stretched thin and pushed hard in recent years. McDew is a strong proponent of the KC-46A, based on the Boeing 767-200, and had a role in determining the bases identified in April as potential KC-46A locations: Altus Air Force Base in Oklahoma, Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington; Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota

and McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas. The FY2015 proposal also calls to reduce the number of F-15C/F-15D Eagle and F-16C/F-16D Fighting Falcon fighters, and MQ-1 Predator drones. The proposal would retire seven E-3B/E-3C Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System aircraft at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. Altogether, over the next five years, the air force will have to remove 500 aircraft from inventory if the anticipated $12.5 billion in budget cuts take place. Welsh and James maintain the service’s top priorities are the F-35A, the KC-46A, and the LRS-B. They continue to reject purchase of any “new build” versions of the F-15 or F-16 — even though the Boeing fighter production line in St Louis, Missouri may be forced to shut down without

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NEWS COLUMN

r the US Air Force

The 18th C-5M Super Galaxy was delivered to Dover Air Force Base, Delaware on April 2, 2014. The aircraft completes the fleet of C-5M Super Galaxies at Dover. The air force plans to put four C-5M Super Galaxies, into backup aircraft inventory where they will remain on charge but will fly infrequently. Airman 1st Class William Johnson/US Air Force

F-15 orders. The FY2015 budget proposal recognises that Congress is forcing the RQ4B Block 30 Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance aircraft on an air force that does not want it. Welsh and ACC boss Gen Mike Hostage have said repeatedly that they would prefer to keep the U-2. An upgrade to the Global Hawk aimed at giving it better cameras and sensors will cost almost all of the monies to be saved by retiring the U-2 and will leave the air force with a platform Welsh and Hostage say is inferior.

Further Reductions Exactly how Capitol Hill will react to the FY2015 budget

proposal remains to be seen, but it is only the first alarm bell to be sounded so far. Welsh and James caution that major additional platform reductions will be necessary if further budget cuts imposed by the process of sequestration remain in effect in FY2016. Among the likely changes that would come are: • Reducing the pace to procure the three top priorities, the F-35A, KC46A and LRS-B. • Retiring up to 80 more aircraft beyond the nearly 500 scheduled for the chopping block, including all 59 KC-10As. • Postponing the very upgrades to the Block 30 Global Hawk that

justify using it as a U-2 replacement, coupled with retirement of the Block 40 Global Hawk. • A 20% reduction in combat air patrol numbers by Predator and Reaper drones. • Postponing or cancelling combat Rescue Helicopter, the E-8C Joint STARS replacement and the T-X replacement for the T-38C Talon. “We simply have got to get some relief from sequestration,” an air force officer told AIR International. A different officer, Vice Chief of Staff Gen Larry Spencer, told the Senate on April 1 that sequestration has: “Cut the air force budget by billions of dollars. Our only

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option is to reduce our force structure. We cannot retain more force structure than we can afford to keep ready.” Welsh, whom critics say has not spoken out as forcefully as he should, said in a talk in Washington that, “sequester funding means ... that every decision hurts.” Welsh said the air force is: “Way past easy choices ... everything in our budget this year will result in a combatant commander having less capability, less capacity, less ability to respond [and] less flexibility.” What everyone wonders, is how far this process will go and whether the air force will ever be able to pull out of its budget-driven nose dive.

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North America

US Navy Wants Unfunded Growlers The US Navy wants to add 22 Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic combat aircraft, at a cost of $2.14 billion, to its fiscal year (FY) 2015 unfunded requirements that Congress has requested from each service. No Growlers (or F/A-18 Super Hornets) were included in the FY2015 budget request sent to Congress and – in the absence of additional US or export orders – the production

line in St Louis, Missouri, will be redundant in FY2016. The US Navy’s would like to expand the number of Growlers assigned to each unit from five to seven initially, eventually rising to eight, as well as having a 12-aircraft fleet requirement squadron. This would require a total of 48 Growlers to be procured, above the current 135 in the service’s programme of record. David C Isby

Future Aircraft Funding Requests New aircraft programmes included in the fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget request include the US Air Force’s proposed sixth generation fighter, which would receive $15.7 million. It is planned as a replacement for the Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor and – possibly – the US Navy’s Boeing F/A-18E/F Hornet, in the 2030s. An aircraft is expected to be

downselected for the T-X trainer programme in FY2017. According to the FY2015 budget request $600 million will be spent on the project over the next five years under the provisions of the Future Years Defense Plan (FYDP). The new Long-Range Strategic Bomber has a funding level of $914 million in FY 2015, $11.8 billion over the course of the FYDP. David C Isby

Dragons in Transit

Lockheed Martin U-2S Dragon Lady 80-1083/‘BB’ of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing based at Beale AFB, California, was one of two (the other being 80-1066) that arrived at RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire, on March 18. Gary J Morris

NuclearCapable Lightning Sought NATO nations are pressing the US Air Force to include a nuclear weapons delivery capability on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II in order to maintain the viability of the forward-based nuclear capability. Details of the request were presented by the Chief of Staff, General Mark Welsh, to the House Armed Services Committee on March 14. The US Air Force wants $15.6 million in the fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget for F-35 dual-use capability development. Under current planning, the air force will incorporate it in the block 4B software scheduled to enter service from FY2024. The F-35 is designed to carry two B61 nuclear bombs internally. David C Isby

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F-35A UPGRADED BY THE OGDEN ALC The first Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II to be upgraded at the Ogden Air Logistics Center (ALC) at Hill AFB, Utah, left on March 25. The upgrade included structural modifications to extend the aircraft’s service life. It is the first of six F-35s to be modified by the Odgen ALC this year and a further eight are to come in fiscal year 2015. David C Isby

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C-145A GUNSHIP TESTED It has recently been revealed that US Air Force Special Operations Command tested a PZL Mielec C-145A Combat Coyote as a gunship during 2013. Few details have been released, although it is known the aircraft was armed with a pair of 0.50-calibre machine-guns.

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COMBAT KINGS DEPLOY FOR FINAL TIME Two Lockheed HC-130P Combat Kings departed Moody AFB, Georgia, on March 21 for what is expected

NEWS BY NUMBERS

to be the type’s final operational deployment with the active duty US Air Force. HC-130Ps 64-14860/‘FT’ (c/n 3824084) and 65-0982/‘FT’ (c/n 382-4135) of the 71st Rescue Squadron (RQS), 347th Rescue Group, part of the 23rd Wing, were assigned to US Air Forces Africa for the duration of the deployment. A total of 33 airmen from the 23rd Wing accompanied the aircraft. The HC-130P is being replaced by the HC-130J Combat King II, nine of which will be assigned to the 71st RQS.

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P-8AS SEARCHING FOR FLIGHT MH370 A second US Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon from Patrol Squadron Sixteen (VP-16) ‘War Eagle’ arrived at Perth in Western Australia on March 28 to help search for wreckage from missing Malaysian Airways Flight MH370 (further to 16 Poseidons Ordered, April, p16). The Boeing 777-2H6ER (9M-MRO, c/n 28420) disappeared on March 8, and 16 days later the Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib Razak, announced that it was assumed “beyond reasonable doubt”

that the aircraft was lost and all 239 onboard had perished (adding to Mystery Surrounds Disappearance of flight MH370, April, p4). The patrol squadron is based at NAS Jacksonville, Florida, but deployed to Kadena AB in Okinawa, Japan, on December 1, 2013. The second Poseidon replaces a Lockheed P-3C Orion that was used to search the northern Indian Ocean, the hunt having been refocused to the south in an area to the west of Australia. By March 27 the US Navy had flown 16 sorties for 150 flight hours during the search. David C Isby

and David Willis

7

SPARTANS FOR US ARMY At the end of April the US Army Special Operations Aviation Command at Pope Army Airfield, Fort Bragg in North Carolina, will have received seven Alenia C-27J Spartan transports transferred from the US Air Force. The type was formally introduced into service on March 18 and will be used to replace CASA C-40As (212s) with the US Army Special Operations Command Flight Company. David C Isby

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North America

F-16 Training Moving to Holloman AFB

Lockheed Martin F-16CM Block 42 Fighting Falcon 89-2103 has been painted with ‘54 FG’ titles on the tail, while 89-0548 has ‘311 FS’. The fighters are the first to arrive at Holloman AFB, New Mexico, for the 311th Fighter Squadron of the 54th Fighter Group, a subordinate part of Luke AFB’s 56th Fighter Wing. Jim Haseltine

The US Air Force activated the 54th Fighter Group and its component 311th Fighter Squadron at Holloman AFB, New Mexico, on March 14. The Fighter Group is part of the 56th Fighter Wing based at Luke AFB, Arizona, and is due to operate two squadrons flying the Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon in the operational training role. At

Holloman AFB the F-16s replace Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptors of the 7th Fighter Squadron, 49th Fighter Wing, which have moved to Tyndall AFB, Florida. Luke AFB currently trains some 285 F-16 pilots and 350 crew chiefs annually. It is in the process of becoming the training base for the Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning

II. The first Joint Strike Fighter (115030/‘LF’ b/n AF-41) arrived there on March 10 (see ‘Thunderbolt’s and Lightning, April, p8). Eventually, 144 F-35s from the US and eight partner nations will be based there. Meanwhile, on March 24 the first night training sortie was completed by a US Air Force F-35A at Eglin AFB, Florida. Until then night

flights by air force pilots in the aircraft were prohibited because the symbology on the cockpit’s multi-functional displays was unfamiliar, having been developed to navy standards. The Navy and Marine Corps began night sorties in December 2013, but air force pilots required additional simulator training beforehand. David C Isby

New Sentry Testbed Penultimate Ocean Sentry Delivered at Boeing Field

Boeing E-3C Sentry 81-0005/‘OK’ (c/n 22833) is the new Airborne Early Warning and Control System testbed used by the manufacturer to test and demonstrate upgrades for the aircraft. It replaces JE-3C 73-1674 (c/n 21046), which entered storage with the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, on April 23, 2012, after corrosion was discovered in the airframe (adding to Stripped Sentry Looses it Top, September 2011, p15). The new testbed is based at King County International Airport/Boeing Field, Washington, where it is seen on March 18, and uses the callsign ALLEN 003 HEAVY. Joe G Walker

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Airbus Defence and Space handed over the 17th HC-144A Ocean Sentry to the US Coast Guard at its facility at San Pablo in Seville, Spain, on March 20. Upon arrival in the United States the maritime surveillance aircraft (2317, c/n S-210) will be inducted into the Aviation Configuration Management System at the Coast Guard Aviation Logistics Center at Elizabeth City, North Carolina, to be prepared for service. The 18th and last will be delivered before the end of the year and the final three HC-144As are all due to operate from Coast Guard Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas. Originally 36 HC-144As were due to be acquired by the Coast Guard, but the total was halved after it was decided to transfer 14 surplus US Air Force Alenia C-27J Spartans to the service. Antonio Muñiz Zaragüeta

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NEWS COLUMN

Department of the N Sharp Drop in Aircra by Rick Burgess The fiscal 2015 budget proposal for the Department of the Navy procurement includes 103 aircraft for the navy and marine corps. The total is 59 fewer than the 162 authorised for 2014 and reflects the possible end of production runs for several types, including the EA-18G Growler, MH-60R/MH-60S helicopters, and the MQ-8 Fire Scout Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle system. Unless further budget relief is granted, continuing sequestration would result in decommissioning the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), and the loss of a carrier air wing. Whether to refuel and overhaul George Washington or inactivate the ship will be decided on in the FY2016 budget. Todd Harrison, a defence analyst in the Center for Strategy and Budgetary Assessments, a think tank in Washington, DC, noted that no funds to refuel and overhaul the George Washington were included in the five-year outlook in the Future Years Defense Plan. “It begs the question, if they’re [the administration is] saying that they’re going to do this in the future, but they’re not actually doing it in the budget, so what are they going to cut to make up the difference [if George Washington is retained]?” Harrison said. “It’s about $6 billion. Where are they going to get the money? That’s more than two Virginiaclass subs, [or] maybe three destroyers”. If the George Washington is inactivated, one of the navy’s ten carrier air wings would be cut. In fact, the navy is short of five strike fighter squadrons, so such a move would prompt an air wing staff, a carrier airborne early warning squadron, an

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electronic attack squadron, and one or two helicopter squadrons to shutdown. The five-year plan includes funds for the second Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) – with delivery delayed by a year to 2023 – and one America-class amphibious assault ship (LHA 8). The navy plans to decommission the last Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship, USS Peleliu (LHA 3) in 2015, replaced by the USS America (LHA 6), which will be commissioned this year. The $13.1 billion for navy and marine corps aircraft includes — for the navy — two Lockheed Martin F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters, four Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft, eight Boeing P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, and 29 Lockheed Martin/Sikorsky MH-60R and eight MH-60S Seahawk helicopters. Under a separate administrative governmentwide effort called the Opportunity Growth and Security Initiative (OSGI), the administration will request $9 billion for some unfunded items, including eight additional P-8As, three Boeing C-40A Clipper transports and one E-2D, plus additional spare parts, other logistic items, and facilities. Orders for Boeing F/A-

18E/F Super Hornet strike fighter, Boeing EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft and Beechcraft T-6B Texan II training aircraft ended with the 2014 budget. Unless more orders materialise, the last Super Hornets and Growlers will roll off Boeing’s St Louis production line in December 2016. Some congressmen are concerned about the loss of the tactical jet industrial base if the F/A-18 line shuts down, leaving Lockheed Martin as the only tactical jet manufacturer in the United States. Discussion is under way to procure an additional 22 EA-18Gs to meet future electronic warfare requirements. Unless modified by Congress, FY2015 will mark the end of acquisition of the MH-60R and MH-60S Seahawks and Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout unmanned helicopter. Production would end earlier than planned, with the 29 MH-60Rs and 17 MQ-8Cs planned for 2016 being deleted. The navy said ending MH-60R procurement a year early is due to the changing surface warship plan. The plan to build 52 littoral combat ships (LCSs) has been reduced to 32 ships and to build a new type of frigate, possibly modified from an LCS design. The navy also proposes to lay up 11

Ticonderoga-class cruisers and slowly modernise them, replacing 11 in-service cruisers over time on a onefor-one basis. Once the ship plans are finalised, the navy has the option of adding MH60Rs to embark on the new fleet of ships. As for the MQ-8C version of the Fire Scout, which is based on the Bell 407 airframe that made its first flight last fall, Rear Adm William Lescher, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for budget, told reporters at a March 4 briefing at the Pentagon that “due to affordability, the

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NEWS COLUMN

e Navy Faces craft Acquistion

A boatswain’s mate signals an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter to land on the flight deck of the guided-missile destroyer USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51) under way in the Mediterranean Sea. Unless modified by Congress, FY2015 will mark the end of procuring the MH-60R. Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Carlos Vazquez II/US Navy

[navy] department made a decision to phase MQ-8’s procurements to the LCS. There was, in prior years, a specific notion of procuring MQ-8s specifically dedicated to SOF [special operations forces]. Now the department will handle through the global force management allocation process, which is to say, we have an MQ-8 on an LCS when a combatant commander needs support for a specific SOF operation”. Procuring the MQ-4C Triton maritime patrol unmanned

aerial vehicle has been delayed a year to 2016, but $498 million is provided for research and development of the system. The navy is continuing to fund the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstrator and develop the operational Unmanned Carrier-Launched Strike and Surveillance unmanned aerial system. Procuring the AGM-154C1 Joint Standoff Weapon will end with the 2016 budget, and acquisition of AGM65 Maverick and AGM-114

Hellfire missiles for the navy and marine corps will end with the FY2014 budget. Full-rate production of the Block II version of the AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missile begins in 2015. Further lots of AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles will be gapped in 2015 for a year to correct for testing and production delays. The Joint Air-toGround Missile programme is scheduled to deliver missiles for the navy and marine corps in 2019 to replace

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Hellfire, Maverick and the Tactical Optically Wire-guided missiles currently in the inventory. Development of high-altitude launch capability for the Mk54 lightweight torpedo will continue in 2015. The US Marine Corps’ plan to obtain six F-35B Lightning IIs is fully funded in the budget proposal, with procurement to ramp up to 20 per year by 2019. The budget plan would also fund the final lots of Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor transports, with 19, 19, 17, 17 and two in fiscal years 2015 through 2019, respectively. The marine corps will also receive 11 Bell Textron AH-1Z Viper and 15 UH-1Y Venom helicopters in 2015, with a combined total of 133 of both types through the five-year plan. The initial procurement of the first two of the new CH-53K heavy-lift helicopters is being delayed a year to fiscal year 2017. One Lockheed Martin KC130J Super Hercules aerial refueller/transport is planned for 2015 and the corps’ first C-40A would be sought in 2016 to replace one of its two C-9B Skytrain IIs. The budget also proposes to resume procuring the Boeing Insitu RQ-21A Blackjack small tactical UAV, which was gapped in 2014, with one to be purchased in 2017 and seven more during 2016-2017. The US Coast Guard plans no new aircraft purchases in 2015, having received a batch of 14 former US Air Force Alenia Aermacchi C-27J Spartan transports, which it will modify and use as maritime patrol aircraft and in lieu of further purchases of 18 Airbus Military HC-144A Ocean Sentry aircraft. The service will retire its last HU-25 Guardian jets this year and will continue to modernise its MH-65 Dolphin helicopter fleet.

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Asia & Australasia

2

South Korea Receives C-130Js

PAKISTANI GOVERNMENT HAWKER 4000S SOLD

The first two Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Hercules for the Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF) were handed over during a ceremony at Marietta, Georgia, on March 27, departing for South Korea on April 1. C-130J-30 45-744 (c/n 5744, wearing temporary registration N5103D) takes part in a test flight prior to handover; the other is 35-730 (c/n 5730). South Korea ordered four C-130J-30s in December 2010, the first of which (35-730) was rolled out on June 11, 2013 (see Korean C-130J Hercules Rolled Out, August 2013, p5) and completed its maiden sortie on August 14. The other pair is due to be delivered in mid-June. Daimen A Guarnieri/Lockheed Martin

Indian Global 5000 Intelligence Aircraft Emerge A Bombardier Global 5000, the first of two being converted to a multispectral intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft for India by Elta Systems of Israel, carried out crosswind landing tests at Keflavik in Iceland and Prestwick in Scotland during the first week of March. Global 5000 4X-COF (c/n 9424, c/n C-GHVB) has a large canoe-like housing under the

forward fuselage and a radome (probably containing a satellite communication antenna) above. Two large ventral fins have been added under the rear fuselage. The $300 million contract was approved by the Indian Cabinet Committee on Security in June 2011, the first aircraft arriving in Israel around a year later (see Indian Air Force Global 5000, August 2012,

p4). It was soon joined in Tel Aviv by a second (4X-COH, c/n 9431, ex C-GHYK). Test flights have been under way in Israel since December 2013. The first aircraft is scheduled to be delivered to the Aviation Research Centre of the Research and Analysis Wing, responsible for airborne intelligence gathering outside India’s borders, later this year. David C Isby and David Willis

Korea to Lease Falcons Before Flying Lightnings? The Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF) is considering leasing between 20 and 60 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Fighting Falcons from the US Air Force. The aircraft would act as interim replacements for McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantom IIs and Northrop F-5E/F Tiger IIs as they leave service over the next five years. In the longer term, the F-16C/

Ds would be replaced by Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning IIs, which are due to be deployed between 2023 and 2025. The RoKAF previously leased Northrop T-38A Talons from the US Air Force. Lockheed Martin has confirmed the F-35A’s selection as the RoKAF’s next fighter on March 24 (adding to FX-III and KF-X Edge Forward, April,

p15). Forty will be acquired as part of the FX-III fighter programme in a deal reported to be worth KRW7.4 trillion ($6.8 billion). Lockheed Martin executive vice president Orlando Carvalho said: “We look forward to supporting the discussions between [our] governments in support of a final agreement this year.” Nigel Pittaway and David C Isby

Korean ‘Air Force One’ in Germany

Boeing 747-4B5 10001 (c/n 26412, ex HL7465) of the Government of the Republic of the Korea arrived at Dresden Airport in Germany on March 27. It was carrying the Korean President, Park Geun-hye, during her seven-day visit to the Netherlands and Germany, which ended on March 29. The aircraft is operated by 296 Squadron of the 35th Combined Group based at Seoul AB and adopted its military serial in March 2012 in place of its civil registration. Timm Ziegenthaler

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NEWS BY NUMBERS

Two Hawker 4000 business jets procured by Pakistan’s government in 2013 – reportedly for its Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence – have been sold on the civil market. The first (EYE77, c/n RC-32, ex N984JC) was delivered from Dubai to Pakistan in early February 2013, but may not have become operational. The second (N23EA, c/n RC-21) may not have been officially accepted. N23EA’s registration was cancelled on February 14 as sold in the United Arab Emirates, while EYE77 became N786ZS on February 25. David C Isby

35

MODERNISED AN-32S REDELIVERED TO INDIA A seventh batch of five Indian Air Force Antonov An-32 Sutlejs upgraded in Ukraine as An-32REs departed Kiev on March 29 for Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The aircraft, K2675, K2693, K2736, K2757 and K2762, were modified by Aviation Repair Plant 410 in Kiev. India’s Ministry of Defence signed an order with Spectechnoexport for the modernisation of 105 An-32s in July 2009. Forty will be upgraded with new avionics and improvements to their ZMKB Progress AI-20DM turboprops in Ukraine and the others by No.1 Base Repair Depot at Air Force Station Kanpur-Chakeri in India. Aviation Repair Plant 410 has returned ten modernised aircraft a year since 2011 and will hand back the last five this summer (adding to 25 Upgraded An-32RE Sutlejs Delivered to India, April 2013, p14).

Air Wing for Sri Lanka Coast Guard The Sri Lanka Coast Guard (SLCG) is to form an air wing, according to its Director General, Rear Admiral Ravindra C Wijegunaratne. The Dept of Coast Guard Act, which prevents the service from being trained, organised or functioning as a military establishment, will be rescinded and a new one enacted to allow for the temporary attachment of armed forces personnel to the SLCG – including pilots and other personnel from the Sri Lanka Air Force. The SLCG was transferred to Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence and Urban Development in 2009 from the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Its priorities are fishery protection and law enforcement. David C Isby

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Asia & Australasia

India Opts for PC-7 Instead of HTT-40 Interested parties had until April 21 to respond to an Indian Air Force request for information released on March 24 for 106 Pilatus PC-7 Mk II basic trainers. It asks local privatesector firms to supply 106 PC-7 Mk II basic trainers via a joint venture with their Swiss manufacturer under ‘Buy and Make (Indian)’ procurement rules. Around ten aircraft would be supplied by the

joint venture in a ‘flyaway’ condition with the rest licence-built in India. Three full mission simulators, two cockpit procedure and three avionics part task trainers will also be purchased. Deliveries are required by 2015-2016 and need to be completed by 2020-2021. From 2009 the plan had been to follow an initial batch of 75 PC-7s built by Pilatus at Stans in

Former Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne said the HTT-40 would be more expensive for the Indian Air Force than imported PC-7s. The type is due to fly in 2015, so would not be available within the timescale required. Meanwhile the air force has also questioned the wisdom of operating two basic trainer types. David C Isby and David Willis

Aircraft Gather at Perth in Hunt for MH370

Ilyushin Il-76MD Candid 20541 after arriving at RAAF Base Pearce on March 22. LAC Oliver Carter/Commonwealth of Australia

The hunt for the Boeing 777-300ER of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, which went missing on March 8, has seen airborne assets being concentrated in Perth in Western Australia. The Rescue Co-ordination Centre of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority has been orchestrating the search in the southern Indian Ocean, where the airliner is believed to have come down. Four Royal Australian Air Force Lockheed AP-3C Orions operating from RAAF Base Pearce outside Perth were joined on April 1 by a Boeing E-7A Wedgetail to help coordinate surveillance and provide flight safety over the ocean. A force of foreign maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft is operating from RAAF Base Pearce, including a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3K2 Orion; two US Navy Boeing P-8A

Switzerland with 106 additional trainers produced in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). HAL wanted the air force to procure it own design, the HTT-40, but this has been resisted by the service, which in the past has publicly expressed its dissatisfaction with the company’s quality control and ability to deliver other projects on schedule.

Poseidons from Patrol Squadron 16 ‘War Eagles’; two Kawasaki P-3C Orions of the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force and a Gulfstream GV of the Japan Coast Guard; two Royal Malaysian Air Force Lockheed C-130H-30 Hercules; a Republic of Korea Air Force C-130H and a P-3C from the navy; and two Ilyushin IL-76MD Candids of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force’s 13th Transport Division. The Candids (20541, c/n 0083486570, ex 27601; and 21045, c/n 1033416524, ex B-4034) arrived from Malaysia on March 22 at Perth International Airport. After clearing customs, the pair flew to nearby RAAF Base Pearce the same day. Both completed their first sorties on March 24, landing back at Perth International, where they have since been based.

Kawasaki P-3C Orions 5060 and 5056 of the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force share the ramp at RAAF Base Pearce with Japan Coast Guard Gulfstream GV JA500A (c/n 683). Department of Defence/Commonwealth of Australia

Pakistan Signs Foreign Military Sales Deal to Upgrade Hercules The Pakistan Fiza’ya (air force) is to refurbish its fleet of Lockheed C-130B/E Hercules in a $100 million deal with the US Government.

Five C-130Bs and 11 C-130Es will have avionics, engine management and mechanical upgrades while outer wings will be replaced on six.

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Spares, training and contractorprovided technical and logistics support are also included in the deal. According to the US Defense

Security Co-operation Agency the upgrade will give the Pakistani fleet an additional ten to 15 years of operational life. Nigel Pittaway

AI.05.14

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Rest of the World

Lavi Rolled Out

Alenia Aermacchi M-346 Lavi 102 (c/n 0019, b/n D0001) at the roll-out ceremony at Venegono Superiore in Italy on March 20. Alenia Aermacchi

Israel’s first Alenia Aermacchi M-346 advanced trainer was rolled

2

Y-12ES DELIVERED TO COLOMBIA

out by the manufacturer on March 20 in front of invited guests at

Tucano trainers. The deal was confirmed by Brazil’s defence minister Celso Amorim in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, on March 19 (further to Mozambique Rebuilding its Air Force, December 2013, p26). However, the transfer will have to be approved by the Brazilian congress before it can go ahead. Since 2011 it has expressed interest in procuring Embraer EMB-314 Super Tucano light attack aircraft. David C Isby

NEWS BY NUMBERS

On April 7 two Harbin Y-12Es were officially inducted into service with SATENA, the military airline operated by the Fuerza Aérea Colombiana (Colombian Air Force). A small ceremony was held at Medellin-Enrique Olaya Herrera Airport, where they will be based, flying services to small airports in the region. Both aircraft arrived in Colombia four days earlier after being handed over at the Harbin factory on December 24, 2013. Three Y-12s were due to be donated to Colombia by China, but there has been no recent confirmation if or when a third will be delivered.

2

T-6C+S ORDERED BY THE MEXICAN NAVY The Mexican Navy Secretaría de Marina has placed an initial order for two Beechcraft T-6C+ Texan II military trainers. They will be delivered this summer. The order follows the recent purchase of 12 T-6C+s by the Fuerza Aérea Mexicana (Mexican Air Force), and is the first step in modernising the Mexican Navy’s fixed-wing aviation fleet. Beechcraft has delivered around 825 T-6 pilot, navigator and weapons systems trainers to operators in more than 20 countries. The worldwide fleet has logged more than 2.2 million flight hours. Mike Jerram

3

TUCANOS FOR MOZAMBIQUE Brazil will provide Mozambique with three former Força Aérea Brasileira (Brazilian Air Force) Embraer T-27

12

L-159AS FOR IRAQ? A preliminary agreement for the sale of 12 former Czech Air Force Aero Vodochody L-159A Advanced Light Combat Aircraft to Iraq was announced by the manufacturer on April 7. As AIR International went to press the defence ministries of both the Czech Republic and Iraq were still to approve the deal. The Czech Air Force had 40 single-seat L-159As in storage, but the sale of 28 to the US military services contractor Draken International was announced in November 2013 (see 28 L-159s for Draken, February, p14). This leaves 12 L-159As potentially available for Iraq, although earlier negotiations had involved the supply of two-seaters. The previous Iraqi deal covered 28 two-seat L-159T1s – it was announced in October 2012 (see L-159s for Iraq, November 2012, p5) and included four aircraft originally delivered to the Czech Air Force and 24 newly built examples. Negotiations on that deal had ended by late 2013 without a final agreement and appear to have been replaced by one involving just 12 aircraft. It is unconfirmed if they will be modified as two-seaters.

Venegono Superiore in Italy. The aircraft had completed its maiden

Thrushes Operated by Puntland

The semi-autonomous Somali enclave of Puntland is using three second-hand Ayres S2R Thrush aircraft for maritime and security patrols. The three aircraft, as well as an Aérospatiale Alouette III and a Douglas DC-3 (probably transient), were captured on satellite imagery on February 24 at the Puntland Maritime Police Force (PMPF) base in Bosaso. The PMPF was created in 2011 to counter piracy and illegal fishing. It is understood that all three Thrushes were formerly operated by the US State Department. The department acquired 19 S2R-T65 NEDSs (Narcotics Eradication Delivery Systems) from the late 1980s to spray drug plantations in South America with defoliant. They were fitted with armoured cockpits to protect their pilots from small arms fire during operations. The aircraft in Puntland are believed to be flown by foreign contractors. The Alouette III was acquired from a South African commercial firm, but is not operational because of a shortage of spares. The PMPF also has an Antonov An-26 flown by Russian contractors. Other aircraft that have been sighted in Bosaso include two Mil Mi-17s, which are thought to be flown by American aircrew and used for special operations in the area. Guy Martin and David C Isby

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flight five days before the event. The M-346 was selected by Israel to replace the McDonnell Douglas TA-4 Ayit in the advanced and lead-in fighter training roles at Hatzerim AB on February 16, 2012. Thirty M-346s were ordered on July 19, 2012, for operation by the TOR Advanced Flight Training consortium. A joint venture by Israel Aerospace Industries and Elbit Systems, TOR will also manage and support the aircraft while they are operated by the air force. The M-346 was christened Lavi (Young Lion) by the Israeli military in July 2013, a name previously used by an indigenous fighter programme cancelled in the late 1980s (see Master to Roar in Israeli Service, August 2013, p22). Initial deliveries are due to take place this summer and operational training on the aircraft should commence in 2015.

Syrian MiG-23 Downed by Turkey Turkey has shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force aircraft that it claims entered its airspace. At 1301hrs on March 23 the Türk Hava Kuvvetleri (THK, Turkish Air Force) Unified Control and Early Warning Centre (BIKIM) at Diyarbakır began tracking what was identified as two Syrian Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23 Floggers approaching the border. According to the Turkish General Staff, after coming within 10 miles (16km) of Turkish airspace, the aircraft were warned four times over voice radio and one turned back. The other continued and allegedly entered Turkish airspace at Yayladag˘ı, east of the Kasab border crossing, at 1314hrs. It was engaged by two THK Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons flying combat air patrol and was hit by an air-to-air missile while, it has been claimed, 1,500m (4,921ft) inside Turkey. The MiG-23 reportedly impacted 1,200m (3,937ft) inside Syria after the pilot ejected. Syria disputes some aspects of the shoot-down. It has described the act as “blatant aggression”, stating that the aircraft was in Syrian territory when it was engaged. Following the incident the Turkish military announced that Syrian air defence radars locked onto F-16s during routine patrols between March 26 (11 times over a period of 310 seconds) and March 28. David C Isby

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Rest of the World

Work Continues on Pampa III

FAdeA IA-63 Pampa II E-820 is the only example of the trainer currently painted in the Cruz del Sur’s colours. Piotr Butowski

Fábrica Argentina de Aviones ‘Brigadier San Martin’ (FAdeA) continues to work towards bringing the IA-63 Pampa jet trainer back into production. During the FIDAE 2014 airshow held at Santiago in Chile between March 25 and 30, the company displayed a mockup of the cockpit of the proposed Pampa III. It was equipped with three Elbit Systems multifunctional displays in place of the one standard in earlier versions of the trainer. Plans to integrate the Israeli company’s TARGO helmetmounted avionics in the Pampa III

have been abandoned, while the Martin-Baker Mk 10 ejection-seat is now due to be used instead of the Russian Zvezda design initially considered. Two prototype and 22 production Pampas (E-801 to E-822) were originally produced, of which five (including a prototype) have been destroyed in accidents. The final six were built as Pampa IIs when Lockheed Martin owned FAdeA, the first flying on October 17, 2007. Construction of a further six was started but abandoned when the company was nationalised in 2009.

Classic Republic of Niger Boeing 737

One of several interesting African head of state aircraft arriving at Brussels Airport in Belgium on April 1 was Boeing 737-2N9C(Adv) 5U-BAG (c/n 21499), named Monts Baghzane, of the Republic of Niger. (Monts Baghzane is the highest mountain in the country.) The aircraft was transporting officials to the 4th EU-Africa summit in the European capital. It has been in service with the Niger Government since it was delivered new on April 8, 1978. A large freight door has been installed on the port forward fuselage and the aircraft is equipped with a debris deflector on the nose wheel. March Steidele

UPDF-AW Moving From Entebbe The Uganda People’s Defence Force Air Wing (UPDF-AW) has begun moving its combat aircraft out of Entebbe to Nakasongola AB in central Uganda. The decision to relocate was made because Entebbe International Airport, previously the Air Wing’s main base, was becoming increasingly busy. Aircraft making the move include Sukhoi Su-30MK2 fighters, Lockheed L100-30 Hercules

and Harbin Y-12 IV Turbo Panda transports as well as AgustaBell AB206B JetRanger II/III, Mil Mi-8/17/172 and Mi-24P helicopters. Trainers will continue to operate from Gulu Airport. In February President Yoweri Museveni confirmed the move, saying it “is only proper” that the aircraft are transferred. The base has a 3km (1.9 mile) long runway. Guy Martin

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These partially finished airframes are currently being completed as Pampa IIIs. The Fuerza Aérea Argentina’s (Argentine Air Force) Pampas are assigned to IV Brigada Aérea at Mendoza. It is intended that the type will also be flown by the Cruz del Sur (Southern Cross) aerobatic team (see Pampa IIs for Cruz del Sur, February 2013, p19), but by April only one has received its scheme. Piotr Butowski Right: The three-screen

cockpit proposed for the Pampa III. Piotr Butowski

Major Arms Package for Qatar

Qatar revealed plans to spend QAR87 billion ($2 billion) on new military equipment on March 27. The announcement came on the last day of the Doha International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX) held in the Qatari capital. Airborne early warning aircraft, tanker transports and battlefield and naval helicopters are included in the programme. Three Boeing 737 Airborne Early Warning and Control aircraft are required, along with two Airbus Defence and Space A330 MultiRole Tanker Transports. A Foreign Military Sales contract for 24 Boeing AH-64E Apache Guardian attack helicopters will be concluded with the US Government. Twelve NHIndustries NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopters will provide battlefield mobility, while ten Naval Frigate Helicopter versions will also be supplied for maritime operations. Few details have been released about the status of the purchases, but it is understood they are all at early stages of the process. In addition to manned aircraft, Qatar

also announced plans for Thales to help its armed forces develop a fixed-wing optionally piloted vehicle. Selection of the airframe will be made by Qatar, while Thales will provide and install mission systems and training. The country also has an outstanding requirement for between 64 and 72 new fighters, with the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet, Dassault Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon and Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon having been offered. The recently announced procurement programmes highlight the rapid growth planned for the Qatar Emiri Air Force, which currently operates one squadron of Dassault Mirage 2000-5DDA/ EDAs fighters and another of Alpha Jet Es for close air support. From late 2009 it established a transport capability with the delivery of four C-130J Hercules and four C-17A Globemaster IIIs, while an air academy is being established that will train pilots on 24 Pilatus PC-21 trainers (see Flight Tests of Qatari PC-21s Begin, April, p13).

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Unmanned Aerial Systems

Reaper Launches Dual Mode Brimstone

An MQ-9 Reaper carrying six Dual Mode Brimstone test rounds during the recent trials at NAWS China Lake, California. MBDA

MBDA has confirmed that live-firing tests of the Dual Mode Brimstone air-to-surface missile have been undertaken from the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9 Reaper. The missile is equipped with a semi-active laser and has an active MMW (millimeter wave) radar seeker to improve accuracy over the original version of the weapon. The Reaper is able to carry three under each pylon. The trials were undertaken on

behalf of the Ministry of Defence by the RAF’s Air Warfare Centre Unmanned Air Systems Test and Evaluation Squadron, Defence Equipment and Support Weapons Operating Centre, US Air Force’s Big Safari project office and the missile and UAV’s manufacturers. Test flights and live launches of the weapon from the Reaper were completed in December 2013 and January over the ranges of the Naval Air Weapons Station

(NAWS) China Lake, California. Initial captive carry trials of avionics and environmental datagathering missiles were followed by live operation and telemetry missile firings. Launches were undertaken with the Reaper flying at 20,000ft (6,096m) between 4.33 and 7.5 miles (7 and 12km) with the pilot using beyond lineof-sight control, with manual and auto tracking and designation of targets. Nine targets, including

fast-moving and manoeuvring vehicles, were hit during the tests, which also confirmed integration of the weapon and platform, safe carriage and release, and system targeting capabilities. The RAF is investigating the possibility of arming its Reapers with the weapon in place of the AGM-114 Hellfire currently used. MBDA is also promoting Brimstone versions for other UAV operators, including the US Air Force.

DARPA Begins VTOL X-Plane Competition

Three of the four designs funded for Phase I of DARPA’s VTOL X-Plane project: from left to right, the Boeing Phantom Works PhantomSwift, Karem Aircraft VTOL design and Sikorsky’s tail-sitter. Boeing, Karem Aircraft and Sikorsky

The Defense Aviation Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded contracts to four companies to produce designs for an unmanned Vertical Take-off and Landing Experimental Plane (VTOL X-Plane). Contracts have been awarded to Aurora Flight Sciences, Boeing, Karem Aircraft and Sikorsky Aircraft. Development of the VTOL X-Plane is intended to look for ways of overcoming some of the limitations of VTOL aircraft, including the need to sacrifice speed for range, efficiency or performance. DARPA

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“seeks to overcome these challenges through innovative cross-pollination between the fixed-wing and rotarywing worlds, to enable radical improvements in vertical and cruise flight capabilities.” The agency said the programme intends to develop a technology demonstrator that can achieve a maximum sustained flight of 300 to 400kts (556 to 741km/h); raise aircraft hover efficiency from 60% to at least 75%; improve the cruise liftto-drag ratio to ten from the current five to six, and carry a useful load of

at least 40% of the vehicle’s projected gross weight of 10,000 to 12,000lb (4,535 to 5,443kg). Little has been revealed of Aurora’s submission except its name – LightningStrike. Boeing has put forward the PhantomSwift developed by its Phantom Works. The design uses two large lift fans located inside its fuselage to rise vertically. Once the craft transitions to cruising flight they are covered and smaller ducted fans on its wingtips provide both forward thrust and additional lift and control in the hover.

Karem Aircraft’s design is a tiltrotor, possibly with optimum speed rotors. A tail-sitting twin rotor design has been put forward by Sikorsky Innovations and its partner, Lockheed Martin Advanced Development Programs (‘Skunk Works’). All four are required to submit preliminary designs by the end of 2015. DARPA will select one to be built as a technology demonstrator, with a first flight scheduled for 2017 or 2018. Mark Broadbent, Mike Jerram and David Willis

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

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NEWS BY NUMBERS

Business Aviation

Adding to the CJ Family

PHENOM 100S DELIVERED Embraer Executive Jets announced on April 1 it had delivered the 300th Phenom 100 light business jet. The aircraft (PR-RLM, c/n 5000336) was handed over to Laticínios Bela Vista, an agribusiness and dairy products company based in Bela Vista de Goiás, Brazil – its second Phenom 100. The first customer took delivery in December 2008 and the type is now operating in more than 25 countries. The 2014 model, which introduced new interior designs and multifunctional spoilers, has been christened the Phenom 100E to distinguish it from earlier aircraft. Mike Jerram

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GULFSTREAM 450S HANDED OVER The 300th production Gulfstream G450 was delivered on March 24, nine years after the first entered service. Initially registered N400GA (c/n 4300) it was exported by Gulfstream Aerospace to a Chinese operator. Among the 300 are 11 shorter-range G350 models. The G450 is certified in 53 countries and the fleet has logged more than 545,000 flight hours and 261,000 landings, the lead aircraft accounting for some 6,300 hours and 3,900 landings. Mike Jerram

The recently revealed Cessna 525B Citation CJ3+ features internal upgrades, notably superseding the CJ3’s Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 avionics with the Garmin G3000 suite. Cessna

Cessna has introduced new ‘+’ editions of its Citation CJ2 and CJ3 business jets. The Alpine Edition CJ2+ package includes Garmin G3000 avionics, making it compliant with the Federal Aviation Administration’s Next Generation (NextGen) air traffic system requirements, new pressurisation, diagnostics and environmental

Production Prototype Vision SF50 Flies

systems and a redesigned flight deck. The company says the Alpine Edition also features improved access to the cockpit thanks to a redesigned central pedestal console, a better turbulence detection weather radar, Traffic Collision Avoidance System II, advanced terrain awareness warning systems, a wireless media server, Garmin integrated cockpit and cabin Iridium phone, high-speed internet from Aircell and exclusive exterior paint schemes and interior packages as optional upgrades. “The engineering flight test programme is under way with certification expected this

summer and deliveries to start soon after,” says programme manager Matt Wild. The new CJ3+ also includes the fully integrated Garmin G3000 avionics suite and other avionics features of the CJ2+ Alpine Edition. With a claimed maximum range of 1,875nm (3,472km), the CJ3+ can fly non-stop between such city pairs as Washington, DC, to Mexico City; San Diego in California to Juneau, Alaska; or Lima, Peru, to São Paulo, Brazil. Federal Aviation Administration certification and initial customer deliveries are expected in the second half of this year. Mike Jerram

New Falcons in the Eyrie? The production-conforming prototype of the Cirrus Vision SF50, during its maiden flight on March 24. Cirrus Aircraft

Cirrus Aircraft flew the ‘C-Zero’ (C0) prototype of the Vision SF50 personal jet from its Duluth International Airport headquarters in Minnesota on March 24. The aircraft (N250CV, c/n 0002) is the first of three planned productionconforming flight test aircraft for the Federal Aviation Administration certification programme. The hourlong first flight included checks of controllability, manoeuvrability and flight envelope testing as well as speed performance at an intermediate altitude. “The Vision Jet handled and performed very well and all systems functioned properly, just what

you want in a first flight,” reported director of engineering flight test and chief test pilot Mike Stevens. Company co-founder and chief executive officer Dale Klapmeier added: “In the last 12 months we have made great progress in all areas of the programme and we anticipate fulfilling the first of our 500-plus customer reservations late next year.” The all-carbon fibre Vision SF50 is powered by a single 1,800lb st (8.00kN) Williams FJ33 turbofan, seats from five to seven and will have a maximum cruising speed of 300kts (556km/h). Current list price is $1.96 million. Mike Jerram

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Dassault Falcon Jet is expected to announce its new Falcon 8X at the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, between May 20 and 22. Previously known by the internal project name M1000, it is a stretched version of the 7X, with a 1m (3ft 3in) extension to the main fuselage section and some redesign of the rear section. The wings also incorporate changes to

accommodate additional fuel that will increase the tri-jet 8X’s range by at least 500nm (926km) over the 7X’s. Next development of the Falcon line is understood to be the 9X, a stretched version of the twin-jet Falcon 5X launched at the National Business Aviation Association Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, in October 2013 (see Falcon 5X Breaks Cover, December 2013, p7). Mike Jerram

Textron Completes Beechcraft Acquisition Textron completed its acquisition of Beech Holdings, the parent company of Beechcraft Corporation, in March, uniting it with its Cessna business under a new division called Textron Aviation. Beechcraft, Cessna and Hawker will remain as separate brands

“to preserve their rich histories and respective strengths in the marketplace”, according to Cessna president and chief executive officer (CEO) Scott Ernest, who becomes CEO of the new parent company (further to Textron Buys Beechcraft, February, p12). Mike Jerram

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Commercial

Asiana A380 Out of the Paint Shop

Airbus A380-841 F-WWAP (msn 152, to become HL7625), the first for Asiana Airlines of South Korea, was rolled out of the paint shop in Hamburg, Germany, on March 27. It will have its cabin interior completed and undergo a final round of ground testing at Hamburg before being flown back to Toulouse, France, for handover to the airline in the second quarter of this year. The airliner first flew on December 13, 2013. Asiana has six A380s on order (see Six A380s for Asiana, February 2011, p19) and will initially fly them from Seoul on regional services within Asia before commencing long-haul flights to the US. Airbus

SA Express Cancels Narrowbody Tender South African Express has withdrawn a request for proposals (RfP) for 30 new narrowbody airliners. No reason for the withdrawal has been given by the airline, but the RfP would have required approximately

Long-Haul Renewal Planned by Delta Delta Air Lines is planning a major overhaul of its long-haul fleet. The carrier will shortly issue requests for proposals to Airbus and Boeing for up to 50 new widebodies to replace its 16 Boeing 747-400s, inherited when it absorbed Northwest Airlines on January 31, 2010, and 58 Boeing 767300ERs. Delta wants to begin replacing these aircraft by the end of the decade. Options available to it are the Airbus A350-900 and -1000, all three models of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the current versions of the Airbus A330. Richard Anderson, Delta’s CEO, said the airline was not interested in the Boeing 777X and that its long-range economics were not suited to its core trunk routes from the east coast of the US to Europe. He has also pressed Airbus to launch a re-engined A330 and wants Boeing to produce a replacement for the Boeing 757, of which Delta operates 166. The airline is expected to make a decision on new aircraft by the end of the year. Mark Broadbent

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ZAR8 billion ($757.6 million) and the carrier has had to ask the government for loan guarantees. Chief executive officer Inati Ntshanga has said the acquisition process would resume once internal processes had been

finalised. Sister carrier South African Airways (SAA) recently withdrew a ZAR60 billion ($5.68 billion) RfP for 23 new long-haul aircraft (adding to 23 Widebodies Sought by SAA, September 2013, p32). Guy Martin

First Higher Production Rate Boeing 737 Flown

Major Fleet Replacement for ANA All Nippon Airways (ANA) of Japan announced a $16.6 billion aircraft acquisition programme for 70 new widebody and narrowbody airliners on March 27. It has signed purchase agreements with Boeing for 20 777-9Xs, six 777-300ERs and 14 787-9s, and with Airbus for 23 A321neos and seven A320neos. The aircraft will be delivered from 2016 through to 2027, replacing older stock and adding additional capacity in time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, when demand for travel to Japan is expected to increase. ANA is the fifth airline to sign for the 777X. Retaining ANA as a 777 customer (it already operates 54) was important to Boeing, given the airline’s long association with the manufacturer, while its main competitor, Japan Airlines, ‘defected’ to Airbus in 2013 when it ordered 31 A350s for its future long-haul fleet. The extra 787-9s will increase ANA’s Dreamliner fleet to 80, the largest yet envisaged by any carrier, and will be used to replace 777-200s and -200ERs on domestic and international routes. The Airbus neos will replace A320ceos and Boeing 737-500s serving on the short-to-mediumhaul network. Meanwhile, ANA retired the last passenger Boeing 747 operating in Japan on March 31. Captains Takeshi Kanda and Hiroshi Fujimura (who is chief of 747 operations for the airline) and 15 other crew members flew 569 passengers on a domestic service from Naha in Okinawa to Haneda in Tokyo in 747-481D JA9861 (c/n 25644). Mark Broadbent

A320neo Assembly Begins

Boeing 737-8K2(WL) N1786B (c/n 37791) is the first of the company’s Next-Generation aircraft to be produced after an increase in production to 42 aircraft a month. It is seen at King County International/Boeing Field, Washington, following its first flight on March 25. The airliner will be delivered to Transavia France as F-GZHL. Joe G Walker

Assembly of the first Airbus A320neo began on the Toulouse Final Assembly Line in southern France during March. The development was announced after the joining of the aircraft’s forward and aft fuselage sections, recently delivered from their production sites at St Nazaire in France and Hamburg, Germany, respectively. The airliner is due to be completed within a month. Airbus says the first test flight will be in the fourth quarter of this year with initial deliveries around a year later after testing and certification. More than 2,600 A320neo family jets have been ordered by 50 customers. Mark Broadbent

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Commercial

Black (and White) Air New Zealand 787-9

Boeing and Air New Zealand released this black and white image on April 5 showing the airline’s first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The aircraft (ZK-NZE, c/n 34334) was rolled out that day in the airline’s new livery, with the ‘New Zealand Way Fern’ in white on a black background along the rear fuselage, mirroring the scheme applied to the rest of the carrier’s domestic fleet in recent months. Internal fittings and flight testing need to be completed before the Dreamliner can be delivered in July, becoming the first Dash 9 to enter service. Air New Zealand initially expected to receive its first 787-9 in late 2010. The other nine ordered will have a white fuselage and black fern. Boeing

Small Planet A320s Operated for Afriqiyah

Small Planet Airlines Airbus A320-233 SP-HAC at Düsseldorf, Germany, in March while flying for Afriqiyah Airways. Marcus Steidele

Leisure carrier Small Planet Airlines has agreed to use two of its Airbus A320-233/232s (SP-HAC, msn 739, ex N413AC and SP-HAD, msn 2016, ex P4SAS) on behalf of Libya’s Afriqiyah Airways. The Polish carrier is flying daily services from Tripoli to Germany, France and the UK for two months.

Afriqiyah earlier signed an agreement to use three of Air Contractors’ A320-200s for European flights and has wet leased an A320-233 (ER-AXP msn 741, ex N452TA) from Air Moldova for the same purpose. Libyan civil aircraft have been banned from entering European airspace since the 2011 civil war. Guy Martin

Stobart Takes to the Air Aer Arann has rebranded as Stobart Air as part of growth plans by its majority owner, the Stobart Group. The Cumbria-headquartered logistics company, which bought into Aer Arann in November 2010, intends to make the airline a specialist in contract flying for major European carriers, double its passenger numbers within five years and develop partnerships with the group’s other aviation assets, which include London Southend

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Airport in Essex. To that end Stobart Air has signed a five-year franchise deal to operate flights for flybe from Southend. From June 5, two Stobart Air ATR 72s will be used on six routes to northern Europe and the Benelux countries. Stobart Air will continue operating services in Ireland under the Aer Lingus Regional brand, for which it has flown on regional routes since January 2010. Mark Broadbent

First Wingleted 767-300 for Air Canada Rouge

The third Boeing 767-300ER delivered to Air Canada rouge is the first for the carrier equipped with Aviation Partners/Boeing Blended Winglets. The jet, 767-333ER(WL) C-FMWU (c/n 25585), arriving at Toronto Lester B Pearson International Airport, Ontario, on March 21 – five days after being handed over – on its first revenue flight to Orlando, Florida. It received its winglets in Singapore just before joining Air Canada rouge. The aircraft also carries larger titles (centred over the windows rather than below) than the airline’s other two 767s. Andrew H Cline

World Ends... but North American Lives On After nearly 66 years of operations, World Airways ceased operations on March 27. Headquartered at Peachtree City, Georgia, it flew charter passenger and cargo services using three McDonnell Douglas MD-11s, including two freighters, and a Boeing 747-412BDSF. Global Aviation Holdings, which owns the airline, put World and its other subsidiaries, including North American Airways, into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection restructuring in November 2013, but it was unable to secure new financing. World’s aircraft, finished with a distinctive globe logo, were mainly used for wet leases (aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance)

by airlines and the US military, which hired aircraft to transport US troops during the Vietnam and first Gulf Wars. World started flying on March 29, 1948. As well as charter operations, during the 1980s it operated its own scheduled domestic and international passenger services between Newark, New Jersey; Los Angeles and San Francisco, California; Orlando, Florida; Washington DC; Frankfurt in Germany and London Gatwick. Global Aviation Holdings said North American Airways would emerge from Chapter 11 “in the near future”. It operates passenger charter services using Boeing 767-300ERs. Mark Broadbent

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Commercial

Gulf Air A321s at Manchester

Air Livery at Manchester Airport recently repainted two Gulf Air Airbus A321-231s, which have since rejoined the airline after a period in storage. Both A9CCE (msn 5321, front) and -CF (msn 5336, rear) were originally delivered to the carrier on December 27, 2012 but returned to Airbus on February 13, 2013 as F-WXAF and F-WXAG respectively for temporary storage at Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrenees Airport in France. The pair was rolled out of the paint shop on April 1 and departed Manchester the following day. Nik French

Phase II for Chinese A320 Final Assembly Line Airbus has concluded a second ten-year contract for its A320 family Final Assembly Line in China (FALC) joint venture at Tianjin in the People’s Republic of China. The ‘phase II’ deal between the manufacturer and the Tianjin Free Trade Zone and

the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) runs from 2016 to 2025, taking over from where the initial ten-year agreement ends. It covers final assembly of A320neos at Tianjin from 2017 and the expansion of deliveries across Asia of aircraft produced at the facility –

currently most of its output goes to Chinese airlines. Additional major component suppliers will also be invited to participate in industrial projects in the Tianjin Free Trade Zone to support development of the FALC and its supply chain. Mark Broadbent

COMMERCIAL ORDERS Airbus Customer All Nippon Airways American Airlines China Aviation Supplies Holding Company easyJet Tibet Airlines Tigerair Boeing Customer Air Canada

All Nippon Airways

Comair Japan Transocean Air Nok Air Unidentified Unidentified Unidentified (Business Jet) Bombardier Customer Adria Airways China Express Airlines Hawaii Island Air Nok Air Unidentified (Latin America) WestJet Encore Viking Air Customer CAVU Aviation Finance (Loch Ard Otters)

Aircraft A320neo A321neo A321 A320 family

Number 7, purchase agreement 23, purchase agreement 7 43, purchase agreement

Date March 27 March 27 January 6 March 26

A330 A320ceo A320neo A319 A320neo

27, purchase agreement 35 100 1 37, plus 13 options, MoU

March 26 March 19 (confirms June 2013 order) March 19 (confirms June 2013 order) January 21 March 24

Aircraft 737 MAX 8 737 MAX 9

Date April 1 April 1

777-300ER 777-9X 787-9 737 MAX 8

Number 33 28, plus 18 options and 30 purchase rights for MAX variants 6, purchase agreement 20, purchase agreement 14, purchase agreement 8, plus 8 options

737-800 737-800 737 MAX 8 737-800 737 737BBJ

12, option to convert to MAX 8, purchase agreement 7, purchase agreement 8 71 1

Aircraft CRJ900 NextGen CRJ900 NextGen Q400 NextGen Q400 NextGen

Number 2 3 (firms Dec 2, 2013 purchase agreement) 2, plus 4 options 2 (firms purchase agreement of Nov 19, 2013) 1

Date March 27 March 31 March 31 March 31

5 (conversion of options placed Aug 1, 2012)

March 27

Number 2

Date February 13

CRJ700 NextGen (special mission) Q400 NextGen Aircraft Twin Otter 400

March 27 March 27 March 27 March 19 (Unidentified order Dec 3, 2013) March 27 February 12 February 12 February 28 March 18 March 25

March 27

Alitalia Holding Under Consideration by Etihad Etihad Airways is considering purchasing a 40% stake in Alitalia. The Gulf carrier and the Italian airline held preliminary talks during March, after which Alitalia’s chief executive officer, Gabriele Del Torchio, said on April 3: “The due diligence is practically done. Now we’re waiting to meet to be able to go into the details and enter the negotiation phase.” No deal had been announced by early April. Alitalia, which has debts of €800 million, has been trying to secure new investment for months (see Alitalia Seeking Help, November 2013, p16). The Air France-KLM Group, which owns 25% of the Italian airline, said late last year it was not prepared to provide any financial assistance. Etihad chief executive James Hogan recently commented that any investment by the airline would depend on Alitalia agreeing to a restructuring plan involving management and network changes and costcutting. Sources close to Etihad suggest up to 3,000 jobs could be lost if the deal goes ahead. Industry and bankers say Etihad could merge Alitalia with airberlin, in which it currently has a 30% stake, to reduce costs for both airlines. Airberlin has revealed it was in talks to strengthen its finances after twice delaying publication of its full-year results during March. Etihad has not made any comment about its investment in airberlin or its intentions towards Alitalia. Mark Broadbent

All orders are firm unless indicated. Key: Lol - Letter of Intent MoU – Memorandum of Understanding, Compiled by Mark Broadbent

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

AI.05.14

31

Commercial

GoAir Trials eTaxi

EGTS International, a joint venture between Honeywell and Safran, has signed a memorandum of understanding for the Indian lowcost carrier GoAir to support the development of an autonomous electric green taxiing system (EGTS) for the Airbus A320ceo. Dubbed eTaxi by Airbus, the EGTS will use the airliner’s auxiliary power unit to drive electric motors fitted to the main landing gear wheels, enabling the aircraft to push-back from the gate without a tug and taxi to and from the runway without using its engines. EGTS International and Airbus agreed in December 2013 to advance development of the EGTS. The GoAir trial is intended to advance the system, the airline helping to establish its standard operating procedures and defining precise fuel and operational savings for operators. Airbus claims initial projections show eTaxi could reduce an A320ceo’s fuel burn by 4% per trip and carbon and nitrous oxide emissions by more than half during taxiing. EGTS first flew on an A320 test aircraft in April 2013, since when it has undergone rolling tests using various load configurations and runway conditions as well as manoeuvres such as push-back, tight turns and U-turns. Mark Broadbent

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ADDITIONAL 737-800S LEASED BY KOREAN Korean Air Lines is to lease six Boeing 737-800s from Air Lease Corporation (ALC). The aircraft, which will come from ALC orders placed with the manufacturer, will be delivered in 2015 and 2016. They will join the 20 737-800s already in service with the Korean flag carrier. Mark Broadbent

CityJet’s British Aerospace RJ85 EI-RJX (c/n E2372, ex N536XJ) completed a soccer game charter to Manchester Airport on March 26. It has carried ‘Leinster Rugby’ titles since May 2012. Nik French

Germany’s Intro Aviation has finalised its purchase of Irish regional airline CityJet from the Air FranceKLM Group for an undisclosed sum. Intro, which owns Austrian regional carrier InterSky, provisionally agreed to buy CityJet in December 2013. It will retain its brand, aircraft,

CRJ200ER FOR AIR TANZANIA Air Tanzania took delivery of a Bombardier CRJ200ER (5Y-WWA, c/n 7350, ex EC-HHV) on March 8, which is being leased from Kenyan company DAC East Africa. Acting CEO Captain Milton Lazaro said the aircraft was joining a Bombardier Dash 8-311Q (5H-MWF, c/n 474, ex G-BRYW) and a Boeing 737-236Adv (ZS-SVV, c/n 22030, ex CC-CZO) leased from Star

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route network and codesharing arrangements with Air France and KLM. Speculation in German media that CityJet could be merged with InterSky has been denied by Intro’s founder, Hans Rudolf Wöhrl, who said it “does not make any sense due

to differing ownership structures”. Intro will instead seek synergies between the two carriers in areas such as IT and procurement. CityJet meanwhile will revert to its original WX flight code, which was replaced by AF when the Franco-Dutch group bought the airline. Mark Broadbent

World Cup Trophy Tour Airliner

Danish Air Transport McDonnell Douglas MD-83 OY-RUE (c/n 49936, ex YR-HBZ) has worn FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association) World Cup Trophy Tour colours since August 2013. FIFA contracted the carrier to promote the tournament due to take place later this year in Brazil along with Coca-Cola, one of the event’s major sponsors. The airliner is seen at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the Netherlands on March 20. Marcus Steidele

NEWS BY NUMBERS

Air in South Africa. The regional jet is configured with 50 economy seats. Air Tanzania is also due to receive two 78-seat CRJ700s in April and May this year to replace the Dash 8 and 737, and plans to use the new aircraft to launch additional domestic routes. Guy Martin

2

FIRE-FIGHTERS ORDERED BY NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR

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Intro Buys CityJet

Two Bombardier 415 waterbombers have been ordered by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. The deal was announced on March 26 and deliveries will be made during the second quarter of this year and in 2015. “Bombardier has enjoyed an excellent working relationship with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, beginning in 1995 with the purchase

of the province’s first CL-215 aircraft and in 2010 with the purchase of its first Bombardier 415 aircraft,” said Michel Bourgeois, Bombardier Aerospace’s president, specialized and amphibious aircraft and military aviation training. Canada is home to some 60 of the worldwide fleet of 165 Canadair/Bombardier CL-215/215Ts and 415s. Mike Jerram

1

A320 DELIVERED TO AIRASIA INDIA AirAsia India took delivery of its first Airbus A320 in March. The aircraft, fitted with fuel-saving wing Sharklets, was delivered to the airline’s home base in Chennai from Toulouse, southern France. It is the first of ten A320s to be operated by this, the latest, offshoot of AirAsia, the Malaysia-based low-cost airline.

AirAsia India is a joint venture between AirAsia, Indian conglomerate Tata Sons and Telstra Tradeplace of India. The aircraft, which are configured with 180 seats in an all-economy layout, are being drawn from AirAsia’s existing 475-strong fleet of A320s operated in Southeast Asia. Mark Broadbent

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SAAB 2000S FOR EASTERN Eastern Airways has recently received its ninth Saab 2000 turboprop (G-CIEC, c/n 037, ex HB-IZU). Based at Norwich in Norfolk, the regional airline operates scheduled flights across the UK and Europe as well as charter services. It will use the additional aircraft on contracts to support the oil and gas industry, including a recently awarded deal with BP, for which it will operate flights between Aberdeen in northeast Scotland and Sumburgh in the Shetland Isles. Mark Broadbent

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Rotary Wing

Partners to Produce 1,000 EC175/AC352s Airbus Helicopters and Avicopter of China have signed a joint agreement to produce 1,000 EC175/AC352s over the next two decades. The agreement was signed on March 26 in Paris in the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping and his French counterpart, François Hollande. “Today’s agreement results from several years of close collaboration between our teams. It sets the stage for an unprecedented fullscale production framework by both partners and adds a new dimension to the relationship with Avicopter,” said Airbus Helicopters chief executive officer Guillaume Faury. Development work has been shared equally between the two companies and different models of the same basic helicopter will be manufactured: the AC352, assembled by Avicopter mainly for the Chinese, and the EC175 by Airbus Helicopters at its Marignane facility in France for the worldwide market. The EC175 was certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency on January 30 and deliveries of the first three customer helicopters are planned for later this year (adding to Records Claimed as EC175 Moves Towards Certification, January, p21). Mike Jerram

2

ADDITIONAL SEAHAWKS FOR SINGAPORE Singapore’s Defence Minister, Dr Ng Eng Hen, told Singapore’s Committee of Supply on March 6 that two more Sikorsky S-70B Seahawks will be acquired for the Republic of Singapore Navy. The two helicopters will be delivered in 2016 to join six others operated by 123 Squadron of the Republic of Singapore Air Force on behalf of the navy. Nigel Pittaway

2

ADDITIONAL EC145S FOR BOLIVIA During the FIDAE International Air and Space Fair held at Santiago, Chile in late March, Airbus Helicopters announced that the Fuerza Aérea

Ospreys in Morocco for Exercise African Lion

Two Bell-Boeing MV-22B Ospreys, led by BuNo 168230/‘YS-01’ (see ‘Golden Eagles’ Flagship in Spain, October 2013, p34), about to land at the Tifnit military installation in Morocco on April 4 during Exercise African Lion 2014. The tiltrotors from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 162 (VMM-162) ‘Golden Eagles’ based at MCAS New River, North Carolina, are deployed to the Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force (SP-MAGTF) Crisis Response at Morón AB in Spain and Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti. African Lion 2014, which ran from March 26, includes command-post exercises with humanitarian aid and disaster relief themes; stability operations, and an intelligence capability-building workshop. SP-MAGTF Crisis Response participated to demonstrate its ability to deploy in Africa as a rapid intervention force. MSgt Chad McMeem/US Marine Corps

NEWS BY NUMBERS

Boliviana (Bolivian Air Force) had ordered an additional pair of EC145s. In addition to the aircraft pilot training, technical assistance and a logistical package are included in the deal. The two EC145s will join the initial pair accepted into service on August 6 and December 20, 2012 (see Initial EC145 Enters Bolivian Service, September 2012, p40). One of the new helicopters will be handed over before the end of this year and the second in 2015.

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Z-9S DELIVERED IN 2013 Harbin Aviation delivered a total of 25 Z-9 helicopters during 2013, according to China’s People’s Daily

Online. On March 17, the organisation quoted the deputy-general manager of AVIC China Helicopter Research and Development Institute, Yu Fen, as saying the total was a record high. Yu Fen stated that more than 50 Z-9s had been sold to date and a further 13 will be delivered by the end of November.

Nigel Pittaway

808

RUSSIAN HELICOPTERS ON ORDER At the end of 2013 the Russian Helicopters holding company had a total order book of 808 helicopters, valued at RUB401.2 billion ($11.4 billion). The company delivered 275 helicopters last year and 290 in 2012. Russian Helicopters recently reported

earnings of RUB138.3 billion ($3.9 billion) in 2013. David C Isby

2

ANTI-SUBMARINE HELICOPTERS FOR THE PHILIPPINES A PHP5.4 billion ($120 million) project to acquire a pair of antisubmarine warfare helicopters was announced by Fernando Manalo, the undersecretary for finance, modernization, installations and munitions of the Philippines, on March 17. The acquisition process is expected to be completed by the end of this year. The Philippines Navy previously announced it was looking at the AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat to fulfil the requirement, but other platforms are understood to be under consideration. The helicopters will operate from the navy’s two frigates.

CH-147F Deliveries Proceeding The Royal Canadian Air Force’s tenth Boeing CH-147F Chinook (147310, c/n M3060) was delivered on March 13. The callsign CANFORCE 147 was used during the ferry flight. It flew from the factory at Boeing Helicopters Center 3 South Heliport in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, to Toronto Lester B Pearson International Airport in Ontario, where it cleared customs and took on additional fuel. The helicopter then proceeded to its base at Garrison Petawawa, Ontario. The Canadian Government ordered 15 CH-147Fs in a CDN5 billion deal in 2009. The first was officially delivered in June 2013 and on average one aircraft has been handed over per month since. All of the CH-147Fs will be assigned to 450 Tactical Helicopter Squadron at Garrison Petawawa. Andrew H Cline

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

AI.05.14

33

NEWS REPORT

T

First flight of HH-101A, registered with UK military serial number ZR352/’15-01’, on its March 19 maiden flight from Yeovil, Somerset, in a blackbased colour scheme. Ian Harding

Caesar’s Maiden Flight Ian Harding reports from Yeovil on the maiden flight of the latest version of the AW101

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he first of 15 Italian Air Force HH-101A CAESAR (AW101 Mk611) helicopters completed its maiden flight at AgustaWestland’s manufacturing facility in Yeovil, Somerset, on March 19. Registered with UK military serial number ZR352/’15-01’, the first aircraft was presented in full Italian Air Force markings, which included Aeronautica Militare titles and the badge of 15° Stormo ‘Stafano Cagna’ (Cervia-San Giorgio air base) on the tail. The first two HH-101A aircraft produced (c/n CSAR01 and CSAR02) are scheduled for delivery during the final quarter of 2014, configured for personnel recovery and special forces missions. This latest variant of the multi-mission AW101 extends the type’s operational capability. With a proven track record and offering long-range, large capacity and advanced technology, more than 220 AW101 helicopters have been ordered for a variety of roles which include personnel recovery, special forces operations, SAR, combat SAR, utility, troop transport, anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, airborne early warning, mine sweeping and VVIP transport. Personal recovery and combat search and rescue mission-specific systems include three M134 7.62mm Gatling guns are pintle-mounted on the sides of the rear ramp; armoured cockpit seats and ballistic protection for machine gun operators and critical systems; an integrated electronic warfare system offering self-protection against radar, laser and infrared threats (note the nose-mounted electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) turret); and an air-refuelling kit for extended range operations. The HH-101A is designed to carry a combination of up to five crew members and 20 fully equipped troops or six crew members and eight special operations troops. Commenting on the HH-101A CAESAR, Chief Executive Officer of AgustaWestland, Daniele Romiti said: ”The Italian Air Force will introduce into service the most advanced and capable aircraft available for this [personnel recovery and special forces operations] demanding operational requirement, developed and tailored to meet specific customer requirements ensuring a quantum leap forward in capability”. Italian Air Force Chief of Staff Gen Pasquale Preziosa said: “The HH-101A will respond to the Italian Air Force’s needs for personnel recovery and special forces operations. It will also support SAR, MEDEVAC and slow mover intercept operations, which are extremely important to provide effective support to the Italian community”. The HH-101 helicopters will replace Italy’s ageing fleet of Agusta HH-3F Pelican helicopters. In a subsequent statement, AgustaWestland announced that the Italian Air Force had signed a letter of intent to setup a joint training solution for the conversion of HH-139A and HH-101A crews. This will be developed by leveraging synergies between the AgustaWestland Training facility at its Frosinone plant and the Italian Air Force 72° Stormo based there.

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Rotary Wing

Macedonian Pilot Training Centre Up and Running The joint Macedonian-Israeli Pilot Training Centre (PTC) at Petrovec air force base near the Macedonian capital Skopje recently graduated its first helicopter pilots. Established under the terms of a $43 million agreement between the Macedonian defence ministry and Elbit Systems of Israel in May 2011, the PTC complex occupies 13,000m2 (139,930sq ft) and consists of four modules for the theoretical and practical education of cadets, simulatorbased and actual flight training, accommodation and aircraft maintenance. The complex has new heliport platforms and hangars, and houses Mil Mi-8/Mi-17/Mi-171 and Mi-24 full mission simulators produced by Simultec of Romania. The PTC exists to train helicopter pilots for the Macedonian Air Force and Police Aviation, although it is also open to third party customers. Its capabilities have been presented to the NATO Air and Missile Defence Committee and to a number of NATO/Partnership for Peace member countries. The centre operates five former Macedonian Air Force Zlin 242L light aircraft (102 to 104, c/ns

Lt Iva Matic, the first female helicopter pilot trained in Macedonia, in front of Bell 206B-3 JetRanger III 401 of the Pilot Training Centre at Petrovec air force base. Borjan Mihajlovski via Igor Bozinovski

0701 to 0703; 105, c/n 0767 and 106, c/n 0776) and four Bell 206B-3 JetRanger III singleengine helicopters (401 c/n 4513; 402 c/n 4331; 403 c/n 4090 and 404 c/n 3859) procured by Elbit in 2013 (see JetRanger Adopts Macedonian Markings, July 2013, p34). Candidates for helicopter training are selected after flying up to ten hours in the Zlin 242L, with those

successful becoming PTC cadets starting an 18-month course. In addition to theoretical tuition, 168 hours of flight training is undertaken during a three-stage syllabus, comprising 38 hours basic on the Zlin 242L, 55 hours basic rotarywing on the JetRanger and 75 hours advanced helicopter training on the same type. Graduates go on to fly Mi-8MT/Mi-17s and Mi24Vs with the Macedonian Air

Force or Agusta-Bell AB206Bs, Bell 212/412EPs or Mi-17V-5/171s and Mi-171 of police aviation units. Pilots from both services also make use of the Mi-8/Mi-17/Mi-171 and Mi-24 full flight simulators for refresher training. The original agreement between Macedonia and Elbit runs until 2019, after which the PTC complex (including aircraft and simulators) will be transferred to the Macedonian Air Force. Until then the PTC will produce 52 new helicopter pilots for the local defence and security forces, in addition to providing simulatorbased training. The first batch of PTC cadets completed their training on February 18, and on March 6 they were promoted as lieutenants in the air force. Among the four graduates was Lt Iva Matic, Macedonia’s and the air force’s first female helicopter pilot. While training of the second and the third batches of PTC cadets is already well advanced, the centre is also busy selecting 12 candidates (from a pool of 462, of whom 59 are women) for groups four and five, which are scheduled to join Macedonian Police Aviation units in 2016. Igor Bozinovski

Indonesia Identifies EC725 CSAR Squadron The Tentara Nasional Indonesia – Angkatan Udara (Indonesian National Defence – Air Force) is planning to form Skadron Udara 9 at Suryadarma AB in Kalijati, Subang

in West Java. The squadron will be trained for combat search and rescue (CSAR) missions and fly 16 Airbus Helicopters EC725 helicopters.

Five Hundredth R66 Delivered

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CSARs for Indonesia, May 2012, p40). They will be delivered this year and a contract for an additional ten will be placed next year. David C Isby

Third Spanish Tigre Emerges

Airbus Helicopters EC665 Tigre HAD-E (HA28-08)/10009/(‘ET-708’) undergoing engine tests at Albacete on March 18. The helicopter wears the incorrect registration HA28-07 (of 10008) on a placard attached to the cockpit transparency. Roberto Yáñez

Robinson R66 Turbine N9081D is the 500th example of the light helicopter to be produced. Robinson Helicopters

The 500th Robinson R66 Turbine (N9081D) rolled off the production line on March 14, three and half years after the Rolls-Royce RR300-powered helicopter was certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration. It was delivered to Aviamarket, one of three R66 dealers in Russia,

Six were ordered in March 2012 that will be assembled with components produced by stateowned aircraft manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia (see EC725

and was due to be displayed at the Heli-Russia Exhibition in Moscow in late May. Robinson recently introduced Garmin allglass cockpits and touch-screen avionics as options on the R66, and is currently in the final stages of testing cargo hook and float installations. Mike Jerram

The third of 18 Airbus Helicopters EC665 Tigre HAD-Es for the Fuerzas Aeromóviles del Ejército de Tierra (FAMET, Spanish Army Aviation) completed its first engine test run on March 18 at the manufacturer’s factory in Albacete, Spain. The helicopter (HA28-08/10009/‘ET-708’) is the second HAD-E (Helicóptero de Apoyo y Destrucción – Español; Support and Destruction Helicopter – Spain) to be assembled at the facility.

Both it and HA28-10008/‘ET-707’ were due to be delivered in the summer. However, on March 1 the Chief of Staff of FAMET, General Francisco Javier Sancho, revealed that hand-over of the helicopters has been postponed until October 2015. The French-built prototype (c/n 5001) is also resident at Albacete. It will be retained by Airbus Helicopters for trials and certification. Roberto Yáñez

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Rotary Wing

Mass Launch Marks HMM-364’s Goodbye to the Sea Knight

Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 364 (HMM-364) ‘Purple Foxes’, based at MCAS Camp Pendleton, California, conducted a mass formation flight on March 31 before withdrawing the Boeing CH-46E Sea Knight. Known as ‘Flying the Barn’, the squadron attempted to put all 12 of its helicopters into the air for a flight around San Diego, California. Unfortunately a technical issue prevented one of the Sea Knights from participating. The unit will transition to the Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey, a process that is due to be completed by October, with its pilots and crew chiefs spending the intervening time at MCAS New River, North Carolina, learning to fly and maintain the tiltrotor. The squadron operated Sea Knights for 47 years. Sgt Keonaona Paulo/US Marine Corps

Mi-28s and Mi-26s for Algeria Algeria has ordered 42 Mil Mi-28N Night Hunter attack helicopters and six Mil Mi-26T2 Halo cargo helicopters from Russia. The deal is worth approximately $2.7 billion, according to Russian sources reporting the contract, and also covers the modernisation of 39 of the Algerian Air Force’s Mil Mi-171SH (Mi-8AMTSh) helicopters, which will be upgraded at the UlanUde Aviation Plant in the Russian

2

BELL 412EPS FOR PAS Egyptian oil industry support company Petroleum Air Services (PAS) has received two Bell 412EP rotorcraft for oil and gas duties. PAS received its first Bell helicopters, two 206s, in 1982 and has subsequently acquired eight Bell 206s, ten Bell 212s and 15 Bell 412s. “We value the customer support and services we’ve received from Bell Helicopter over these 32 years and wanted to make sure we continued to invest in Bell products,” said PAS chairman and managing director General Yehia Hussein. Guy Martin

3

NEW EC225S LEASED BY SONAIR Angolan company SonAir has leased three new Airbus Helicopters EC225 from the Milestone Aviation Group and will take delivery of them in the first half of this year. Milestone recently ordered 30 EC225s from Airbus Helicopters. “As the largest African oil and gas helicopter operator, we rely on the EC225, with its range,

Republic of Buryatia. Algeria had expressed interest in acquiring 42 Mi-28s in mid-2010 and Rostvertol was negotiating with the country in 2011 (see Algeria Revealed as Mi-28NE Customer, July 2011, p4), with the deal recently coming to fruition. Russian Helicopters recently flew a Mi26T to Algeria for demonstration flights and it is understood production of the type for the order has already started.

First AS532ALe Handed Over Airbus Helicopters delivered the first AS532ALe Cougar Mk 1 on March 25 during the FIDAE International Air and Space Fair held at Santiago in Chile. The helicopter (H288, c/n 2753, ex F-ZWCG) was handed over to the Ejército de Chile (Chilean Army), the ninth Cougar for the service, although its other examples are earlier AS532ALs.

The latest variant features the fouraxis autopilot and ‘glass cockpit’ installed in the EC225. It is also equipped with enlarged fuel tanks housed in the wheel sponsons. Although the contract for the AS532ALe has not been publicly identified, it is understood to be one of three additional Cougars ordered in late 2012.

Guy Martin

NEWS BY NUMBERS

capacity and overall performance, to perform challenging missions in tropical environments,” said SonAir chief executive officer Joao Andrade. “This transaction for near-term EC225 deliveries allows us to maintain our leadership position in the offshore oil and gas market,” he added. SonAir is a subsidiary of the national oil company Sonangol and provides airlift in support of the country’s oil and gas sector. Its 25-strong fleet includes the EC225, Airbus Helicopters AS332L2 and AS365N3. A total of 11 EC225s are located at its Luanda operating base. They were grounded last year when problems with the gearbox became apparent, but were the first to resume passenger flights following a fix (see EC225s Return to Offshore Operations, September 2013, p41). Guy Martin

6

LAKOTAS FOR THAILAND A Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contract modification for six

Please send all news correspondence [email protected]

Airbus Helicopters UH-72A Lakotas for the Royal Thai Army was announced by the US Department of Defense on March 28. The helicopters will be equipped with an environmental control unit, a mission equipment package and AN/ARC-231 radios. The FMS was originally revealed on June 7, 2013 (see Six UH-72As for Thailand, August 2013, p36) and the Thai cabinet granted approval for the purchase on October 8, 2013. Deliveries are expected to be completed by next April.

8

BELL 412EPS FOR THE PHILIPPINES Five Bell 412EPs equipped for combat utility operations and a further three with VIP interiors have been ordered by the Philippines Department of National Defense. The contract was facilitated by the Canadian Commercial Corporation, which helps overseas governments place orders with Canadian companies.

Details of the sale were released by Bell Helicopter on April 2, while a memorandum of understanding for the deal was announced by the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in November 2012. The Philippine Air Force originally acquired five Bell 412EPs in late 1996, but only two are understood to remain in service. The first three new aircraft are due to be in service in time for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit taking place in the country from November 2015.

26

LOT 12 H-1S FOR US MARINE CORPS A $59.87 million modification to a previously awarded advanced acquisition contract was announced by the US Department of Defense on March 28. The funds cover procurement of long-lead items, manufacture and delivery of 15 Bell UH-1Y Venoms and 11 Bell AH-1Z Vipers for the US Marine Corps. The new-build helicopters are being acquired under Lot 12 of the programme and work is due to be completed by September 2015.

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Spain’s

Sea Searcher Indra hopes its P2006T MRI will prove a cost-effective option in the maritime patrol market. Roberto Yáñez and Alex Rodriguez report

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he twin-engine Tecnam P2006T MRI (Multisensor Reconnaissance and Identification) aircraft, developed by Spanish company Indra, has introduced to the market a new maritime patrol aircraft. Its makers claim the aircraft’s low

acquisition and operating costs, efficiency and reliability will enable customers to perform maritime surveillance more costeffectively than by using helicopters and medium-sized aircraft. The P2006T MRI’s origins go back to 2009, when Indra took part in Operation Minerva, a trial by the Guardia Civil (Spanish Civil Guard) of an IAI Heron unmanned aircraft. That was part of the on-going SIVE

(Sistema Integrado de Vigilancia Exterior, or integrated exterior surveillance system) programme in the Canary Islands, which aims to improve coastal defence of Spain’s southern borders. The trial assessed the viability of unmanned vehicles for maritime patrol around the coast. Indra installed a radar and electrooptical system in the Heron to ensure interoperability with the Guardia Civil’s

INDRA P2006T MRI MILITARY

The MRI is equipped with two reliable and economic-to-maintain Rotax engines, so that it could offer lower operating costs than other medium-sized helicopters and aircraft. All images Roberto Yáñez

Canary Island Regional Control Centre, as well as the real-time distribution of images from the aircraft’s electro-optical sensor to the Guardia Civil Headquarters in Madrid. The results of the trial were promising, but the Heron’s high acquisition cost and the restrictions on operating unmanned aircraft inside civilian airspace meant a different solution was required. The technicians at Indra subsequently

saw an opportunity to develop a new product: a maritime patrol aircraft based on an existing light aircraft, equipped with the latest-generation mission systems. This could provide a more immediate maritime patrol capability, while offering the opportunity to be converted into an unmanned aircraft in the future should the regulations eventually change.

Choosing a Platform After evaluating various light aircraft, Indra chose the Italian twin-engine Tecnam P2006T. The type was picked because it has a high-wing configuration (which allows good visibility, vital in the maritime role), a reliable engine, cheap maintenance costs, sufficient payload, six-hour flight endurance and the latest-generation avionics. Other factors in

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41

MILITARY INDRA P2006T MRI

1 One of the MRI’s principal selling points is that it’s not subject to export restrictions because its sensors and equipment are built in Europe. 2&4 Three-dimensional diagrams showing the three crew positions and the major mission systems installed in the forward fuselage of the P2006T MRI. 3 The systems operator has a rear station equipped with a touchscreen display from which they can rapidly manage the data received by the aircraft’s sensors. 5 The P2006T is one of the lightest twin-engined aircraft in the world. 6&7 The ground support station is able to remotely control the sensors on the MRI. To do this it is equipped with a line of sight two-way communications link, although there is also an option to install a satellite communications system. 8 The flightdeck of the P2006T MRI is equipped with the digital Garmin 950 advanced avionics system, which only requires one pilot 1 with a PPL/ME rating.

its favour were the relatively quiet engines, small infrared signature, the fact that it can use either Avgas or automotive fuel and its ability to operate from short paved and unpaved runways.

International Effort Indra began converting a P2006T in mid-July 2011. It was a true international collaboration that also involved the P2006T’s manufacturer, Tecnam Costruzioni Aeronautiche Srl of Italy; Airborne Technologies GmbH of Austria; FLIR Systems PolyTech AB and CNS Systems AB of Sweden, and from the UK Enterprise Control Systems Ltd and SELEX Sensors and Airborne Systems. The latter provided its Seaspray 5000E multi-mode radar. Airborne Technologies was charged with developing and undertaking the engineering modifications needed to install the different sensors and obtaining the corresponding Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs) to ensure compatibility with Federal Aviation Administration FAR-23 and European Aviation Safety Agency CS-23 regulations, which govern light utility aircraft

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of the P2006T’s class. Some of the modifications included adapting the electrical distribution system, removing the fourth seat to enable carriage of the radar antenna, installing a

tests were undertaken to verify the compatibility of the Seaspray radar in July and August 2012 at Cumbernauld Airport in Lanarkshire, north of Glasgow, close to Selex’s factory. Then came the first phase of test flights in an operational environment in Spain, which included using the systems in heavy sea states.

Seaspray Radar

2

radome beneath the fuselage, adding the electro-optical system and satellite communications antenna, converting the baggage compartment into an avionics bay and fitting control consoles for the operator and pilot. Once the first airframe was modified,

3 4

The Seaspray active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar is at the heart of the P2006 MRI’s capability. It is characterised by a compact size (the processor’s dimensions are 500 x 260 x 210mm [19 x 10 x 8in]), relatively light weight (48kg [105lb]) and an ability to detect small objects at long range. The P2006T MRI’s electro-optical package also features an UltraForce 275 high-definition forward-looking infrared (FLIR) system, with a built-in four-axis image stabilisation system that helps to make it possible to capture quality HD images. It’s also got an Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponder that transmits and receives information from ships equipped with this

INDRA P2006T MRI MILITARY type of transmitter and a high bandwidth two-way communication link, enabling realtime transmission of images and data with vessels and land-based command centres.

Capabilities The P2006T MRI is designed for maritime patrol surveillance, with its primary objective to find, track and identify every ship of interest sailing inside its patrol zone. It’s optimized to conduct missions between the shore and 241km (150 miles) out to sea covering an area of between 7,770km2 (3,000 square miles) and 12,950km2 (5,000 square miles). The Seaspray radar uses both SAR (synthetic aperture radar) and ISAR (inverse synthetic aperture radar) images to identify objects and for example, make it possible to determine the approximate length of the ship, and establish the location of the bridge and masts. SAR/ISAR makes it possible to obtain radar images from targets 185km (100nm) away from the aircraft’s position. 5

Transponder The aircraft’s AIS transponder then comes into play. Ships with a displacement greater than 300 gross tons, conducting international trade, passenger craft of any size and fishing vessels with a length greater than 18m (59ft) to 24m (78ft) are required to have AIS transponders, which show a vessel’s course, port of origin, destination, speed and location at all times. By having such a transponder fitted, the P2006T MRI is able to compare the information presented by the transponder with the radar information. If there are discrepancies between them a visual

6

7 8

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MILITARY INDRA P2006T MRI

The P2006T MRI can operate day and night with a time on station of between five and six hours.

confirmation can be made through the FLIR and the HD camera from a safe distance. The camera presents 1,920x1080 pixel HD images, offers 20x optical zoom and low light functionality. The P2006T MRI is intended to fulfil a number of applications in the maritime and coastal border protection environment such as tracking vessels suspected of drug trafficking, combating illegal immigration, search and rescue, fisheries patrol, environmental protection (detection of oil

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slicks) and tracking icebergs. However, the avionics fitted to the aircraft are also suitable for overland missions such as border patrol or cartography.

Ground Support Station Not only can the sensors be activated in flight by the pilot but they can also be operated remotely from a Ground Support Station (Estación de Seguimiento en Tierra, or EST). This terminal communicates with the aircraft through the Indra ISIS

mission control system, which is capable of receiving and transmitting simultaneously and in real-time all the information acquired by the sensors and supporting tactical data. There’s also a VHF radio for voice communication with the crew. Both the ground station and the aircraft systems present information in a similar way, so personnel can operate either depending on the specific needs of the mission. The EST stores all the information transmitted from the aircraft, allowing for a detailed post-flight analysis of the mission. The internet protocol external interface makes it possible to integrate information received from other platforms, such as VoIP, email, file transfer protocols and databases. The mission support centre also has the capability of controlling simultaneously the mission of several aircraft in the same zone.

Promising Future During 2012 and 2103 the P2006T MRI was presented at various aerospace trade shows and conferences, including the Aero Friedrichshafen in Germany; the Defence Services Asia exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Farnborough International; FIDAE in Chile; the Marrakech Air Show

INDRA P2006T MRI MILITARY in Morocco, and the IQPC Maritime Surveillance Summit in Rome. Given the number of countries that need to protect their maritime interests there is great potential for international sales. The aircraft is primarily targeted at costal countries in South East Asia, Africa and South America that are looking for affordable maritime patrol aircraft. Indra says it is 40% cheaper to acquire and costs 50% less to operate than other maritime surveillance platforms.

Operation Indalo The Guardia Civil asked Indra to deploy a P2006T MRI during the 2013 edition of Operation Indalo, the initiative by Frontex, the European Border Control Agency, to combat illegal immigration from North Africa. Between May and October eleven European Union member countries provided air and sea patrol assets: Luxemburg sent its Fairchild SW3A Merlin 3, Finland a Bombardier Dash 8, Slovakia a Cessna 182T, Italy an ATR-42MPA, Portugal a C295 Persuader and Iceland a Dornier 228. The operation was managed from the Guardia Civil’s International Coordination Center in Almería, with the support of local control centres linked via the integrated exterior surveillance system (SIVE).

The deployment of the P2006T MRI in Operation Indalo – which has been taking place annually since 2011 – enabled the aircraft to demonstrate its capabilities alongside similar platforms. Over the first two months it operated over the Alboran Sea off the southern coast of Spain with a team of five personnel. It undertook 56 missions, with another five cancelled due to adverse weather conditions and detected two craft with 38 illegal immigrants on board. The MRI was present in the area of operations for more than 230 hours. Operation Indalo 2013 resulted in the interception of 3,300 immigrants, 148 vessels, carried out 318 rescue missions and facilitated the arrest of eight human traffickers. The operation also contributed to the fight against drug and tobacco trafficking, resulting in seizures of 25,000kg (55,115lb) of hashish and 50,000 packets of tobacco – a total of 71 arrests were made.

PERSEUS The P2006T MRI’s effectiveness in Operation Indalo was such that in September 2013 the Guardia Civil requested the aircraft’s participation in the PERSEUS programme. PERSEUS, which stands for Protection of European Borders and Seas

P2006T MRI FACTS & FIGURES Maximum speed at sea level: 140kts (259km/h) Cruising speed at 7,000ft (2,113m): 131kts (242km/h) Cruising speed at 9,000ft (2,743m): 122kts (225km/h) Rate of climb: 1,190ft/min (362.7m/min) Range: 500nm (926km) Maximum altitude on two engines: 14,000ft (4,267m) Maximum altitude on one engine: 6,000ft (1,828m) Take-off run: 235m (771ft) Landing run: 190m (623ft) Wingspan: 11.4m (37ft 4in) Length: 8.7m (28ft 6in) Height: 2.85m (9ft 3in) Maximum take-off weight: 1,230kg (2,711lb) Payload: 380kg (837lb) Engines: Rotax 912S3 Propellers: MT Propeller MTV-21

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through the Intelligent Use of Surveillance, is focused on developing innovative technologies to improve the real-time sharing of maritime surveillance between southern European countries. The demonstration involving the P2006T MRI again took place over the Alboran Sea.

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It consisted of a vessel being detected by a Guardia Civil CN235 VIGMA (Vigilancia Marítima, Maritime Surveillance), which then handed over tracking of the vessel to the MRI, culminating with an interception of the boat near the coast by a Guardia Civil cutter. All the data received by the Guardia

Civil National Coordination Center was passed in real time to the other components of the PERSEUS system located in France, Italy and Portugal – thus giving all the participating countries a complete picture of all the routes and activities of the illegal boat traffic.

INDRA P2006T MRI MILITARY 1 The Ultra Force 275 HD camera is one of the most compact of its kind on the market. The housing of the Seaspray 5000E radar is furthest to the camera. 2&4 Indra chose the Technam partly because it has retractable landing gear, a high wing configuration and can operate from semi-prepared runways. 3 By 2014 Indra hopes to have the necessary software to operate the MRI as a true optionally piloted vehicle. 5 The Chilean Navy is considering purchasing several P2006T MRI aircraft to replace its ageing Cessna O-2 Skymaster aircraft. It wants up to eight, but initial procurement may only be for three or four examples. 6 Although its use is primarily focused on maritime operations, the MRI can also undertake missions over land. 7 Indra believes the P2006T MRI would complement larger maritime patrol platforms, such as the P-3 Orion or C295 Persuader.

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Optional Piloting

Alongside the on-going operational tests, work is under way with the prototype P2006T MRI to develop an optional pilot mode for the MRI, which will allow the aircraft to be flown either manually or as an unmanned system. The problem

with unmanned aircraft in Europe is that current legislation doesn’t allowed manned and unmanned aircraft to fly in the same civilian airspace. An optionally piloted vehicle (OPV) version of the P2006T therefore provides a stepping-stone to a fully-unmanned variant of the aircraft

if the legislation changes. Now under development is a system to operate the aircraft via remote control, with a goal of achieving this by mid-2014. Once this goal is reached, the MRI will become the first OPV of its size class on the market.

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US Air P

Power

US AIR POWER IN KOREA MILITARY

in Korea Robert F Dorr provides an overview of American air operations of the 7th Air Force based in the Republic of Korea. Photography by Jim Haseltine

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pilot with the unlikely call sign ‘Armchair’ prepares for a combat take-off in an A-10C Thunderbolt II, or Warthog attack aircraft at Osan Air Base, South Korea. Armchair is just one cog in the mighty machine that is US air power on the Korean Peninsula. His outfit, the 25th Fighter Squadron or ‘Assam Dragons’, has the only A-10s within range of North Korean armoured columns massed astride the Korea demarcation line. “Feet on brakes”, Armchair says. “Flaps are down. Military power. You get clearance to go. You release the brakes and you move like a bat out of hell.” The idea behind a combat take-off – an unofficial term – is an attempt to counter the threat from hostile partisans lurking just outside the wire with MANPADs (man-portable air defence systems, ie shoulder-mounted missiles). Today, no war drums are being pounded and no North Korean special operations paratroopers are hiding in the entertainment district of Songtan-ni outside the main gate, but the ‘Dragons’ practise as if they’re in the crosshairs.

Take-off Time

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All images Jim Haseltine

First in a two-ship element, Armchair’s gull-grey A-10C leaps off the brakes and hurtles down Osan’s 9,004ft (2,744m) runway – in the near future, to become twin parallel runways – and lifts abruptly into the air. The Republic of Korea and US flags fly in front Flaps and gear come up with haste. Instead of the 8th Fighter Wing of an easy, gradual ascent, the A-10C vaults into Headquarters. a sharp climb-out, as if aiming for the top of the sky directly from runway’s end. To the naked eye, the A-10C appears to be climbing straight up at 90°. It isn’t capable of that; the angle isn’t really quite that sharp but Armchair is getting his Warthog to altitude in the near-vertical as fast as he can. If this were a real-world conflict situation, anyone with a shoulder-mounted missile in the neighbourhood around Osan would be hard-pressed to nail Armchair before he pulls out of range. But then, if this were the real thing, Armchair would be heading north hauling 30mm armour-piercing rounds and AGM-65 Maverick air-to-surface missiles to kill North Korean tanks. When AIR International went to press with this story, the Korean peninsula was about as calm as it ever gets, the guns were silent, and no missiles were stalking A-10Cs. But the US airmen and aircraft that practise the profession of aerial arms in Korea know everything can change within minutes. Moreover, calm is not the same as peaceful. The Korean War began in 1950 but never ended. The July 27, 1953 armistice was signed by the commanders of the three armies in the field – the United Nations

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MILITARY US AIR POWER IN KOREA Command (UNC); the Korean People’s Army (KPA) and the Chinese People’s Volunteers – but never by any government. Although the Chinese dropped out of the truce process, armistice negotiations between the UNC and the KPA continue unabated at the joint security area at Panmunjom. “These talks have never accomplished much,” retired US Air Force Major General Felix Rogers told the Associated Press in 1975. Rogers is a World War Two P-51 Mustang fighter ace and was the UNC armistice negotiator from 1970 to 1971. “At the same time, it has been effective in the sense that we have talked. We rave at Panmunjom to let off steam.” During one meeting in his era, Rogers confronted a North Korean negotiator who pounded his fists on the table. In a recent conversation with the author, Rogers said the truce negotiations need to continue but are unlikely to lead to a peace treaty officially ending the Korean War. “If they ever ask me to go back to Korea, I’ll ask them for the cockpit of an F-16 rather 1 than the fountain pen I used at Panmunjom.” Several times in recent years, North 1Two South Korean soldiers stand guard at the entrance to Kunsan Air Base. 2 Maintenance techniKorea has called the armistice “invalid” cians move an ALQ-184 pod onto a stand to prepare it for inspection. 3 Weapons technicians move an and threatened to open up a new round of AIM-9X Sidewinder missile into a hardened aircraft shelter to load onto an F-16C at Kunsan. fighting. 4 Munitions troops prepare AIM-120 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles for loading onto F-16Cs at Kunsan. 5 Munitions troops upload a 1,000lb GBU-31 JDAM on to an F-16C assigned to the 80th Fighter If they do, they’ll find US air power at Squadron 6 An F-16 pilot assigned to the 35th Fighter Squadron checks an ALQ-184 pod during a high state of readiness. “I will continue a pre-flight inspection. 7 A pilot performs pre-flight checks on a 2,000lb GBU-24 before a mission ensuring we are ready to fight tonight,” US from Kunsan. and joint-forces air commander Lieutenant 2 General Jean-Marc Jouas told reporters during a press conference, alluding to the strong US preference to do battle during the nocturnal hours. Jouas said US airmen “represent our nation proudly and reinforce the tremendous alliance we have with the Republic of Korea [ROK]” – the official term for South Korea. At a different press conference, Jouas said, “We mean it when we say we have to be ready to fight tonight because North Korean airspace is just five minutes away.” Jouas is a respected pilot and leader, with the F-4G Advanced Wild Weasel, F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon in his logbook. He’s both UNC Korea deputy commander and the boss at Seventh Air Force. He reports to the four-star US Army general who heads the UNC and US forces in Korea, currently Gen Curtis Scaparrotti who arrived in Korea last October. Scaparrotti is a paratrooper and former commander of the 82nd Airborne Division with broad experience in the international arena. Jouas’s deputy is Brigadier General Russell Mack, an experienced F-15E Strike Eagle and A-10 pilot.

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The US Air Force maintains four fighter squadrons permanently on the Korean peninsula – one with F-16s and one with A-10C Thunderbolt IIs at Osan and, two with F-16s at Kunsan Air Base. The fighters are Block 40 F-16C/F-16D models that have been modernised under the Common Configuration Implementation Program (CCIP). They are compatible with nightvision equipment, advanced targeting pods and satellite-guided munitions. The CCIP upgrade includes compatibility with the AN/ ASQ-213 HARM Targeting System (HTS), which enables Block 40 Fighting Falcons to use the AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile (HARM) to home in on enemy radar emissions. The few HTS kits in the air force inventory are apparently all stockpiled at Kunsan. In addition to the four fighter squadrons, Jouas relies heavily on plans to rapidly reinforce air strength in Korea at half a dozen locations where bed-down space is kept ready. The presence of a deployed Theatre Security Package (TSP) at Kunsan – an additional F-16 squadron deployed from the United States – is a constant. Most of the

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time, Kunsan, in effect, has an extra F-16 squadron based there, thanks to ongoing TSP deployments. South Korea’s air arm, the Republic of Korea Air Force (RoKAF), which would come under the command of Lieutenant General Jean-Marc Jouas in wartime, operates a mix of 118 F-16C and 51 F-16D Block 30 and Block 52 variants. The Block 30s, locally assembled in the 1990s and often called KF-16s, have been updated with Link 16 data link, GPS-guided munitions capability, and AIM-120C AMRAAM missiles – all of which were built into the Block 52s from the start. All F-16s in Korea, USAF and RoKAF, can carry ordnance that was designed long after the aircraft were, such as the 1,000lb (454kg) GBU-31 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM). The RoKAF’s primary frontline fighter force comprises 61 F-15K Slam Eagles delivered in two batches between 2005 and 2012. Two-seat and dual-role, with air-to-air and air-to-ground capabilities, the F-15K is billed as more survivable, lethal and maintainable than the F-15E Strike Eagle operated by the US Air Force. In a conflict with North Korea the F-15Ks

are expected to handle a significant part of the air-to-air battle and, subsequently, to use their long-range, all-weather strike capability. The Slam Eagle is very well regarded and yet officials in Seoul have made it clear they see the F-15 as being more about their past than the key to their future. That responsibility is given to the F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter. Boeing, maker of the F-15, was overjoyed when its F-15SE Silent Eagle, an advanced derivative of the F-15E/F-15K, survived as the sole competitor in South Korea’s nextgeneration fighter competition, known as F-X III, last year. Boeing said the F-15SE would feature radar-evading stealth capability (a core requirement in the competition), be painted with radar-absorbent coatings and equipped with conformal weapons bays. When South Korea decided not to buy the F-15SE after all, officials in Seoul announced that they’d made a mistake when they dropped the F-35A from F-X III and nominated the latter as the leading candidate for their next fighter. This was bad news for the Boeing (previously McDonnell Douglas) production line in

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St Louis, Missouri that has assembled American fighters since the 1950s. While formalities have not yet been worked out, South Korea is now expected to purchase 60 F-35As. Critics accuse Korean air staff officers of “drinking KoolAid” – slang for buying the official line – about stealth and its importance in modern war. However, their new position puts them in line with the Pentagon, which sees the F-35A as a universal remedy. Gen Herbert Carlisle, the Hawaii-based commander of Pacific Air Forces told me that Pacific Air Forces will receive “the first OCONUS F-35As as soon as they’re ready”, OCONUS meaning outside the continental United States. Basing decisions for US Air Force F-35As in the Pacific have not yet been made, let alone announced.

North Korean Threat So what are Jouas and other commanders looking at when they prepare for the war they

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attack would necessitate a US response in kind. Still, thinking about the unthinkable can be disturbing. South Korea has a booming economy and a high standard of living, with literacy rates, educational standards and internet connectivity exceeding those of the United States and Western Europe. But all of South Korea’s wealth and a third of its population is in Seoul, just three dozen miles south of the demarcation line. A single nuclear event would inflict more deaths and damage than anything that happened at Hiroshima or Nagasaki. The real threat, the real problem, is the danger of a conventional war launched by Pyongyang. In a landmark intelligence study that occupied hundreds of people for more than a year, in 1976 the US 1 Army’s Intelligence and Security Command concluded that a North Korean armoured hope will never come? assault would be able to seize Seoul in North Korea announced the detonation of 72 hours and all of Korea in seven days. its third nuclear device on February 12, 2013. No study of this magnitude has been A month later, Pyongyang proclaimed that conducted since but intelligence sources the 1953 armistice is now “invalid”. Worse, told this magazine that the conclusions North Korea’s military stated that it was reached almost four decades ago are still authorised to attack the United States – not widely accepted. Some, however, say just South Korea – using “smaller, lighter and this is a “worst case” conclusion and that diversified” nuclear weapons. “The Korean it underestimates the potential for rushing People’s Army top command declares that reinforcements to the defence of the south. all artillery troops, including strategic rocket The North Korean air force (officially, the air units and long-range artillery units, are to be arm of the Korean People’s Army, or Pukhan placed under class-A combat readiness,” Inmin Gun) has about 1,100 aircraft including Pyongyang’s Korean Central News Agency about 500 ageing but frontline MiG-17, MiGsaid on April 9, 2013. The sabre rattling 19, MiG-21 and MiG-23 fighters in Sovietwith its unprecedented threat against US and Chinese-built versions. Even North soil included a threat to transform Seoul Korea’s 40 MiG-29Bs are far from new – and into a “sea of fire”. However, the bombast they’re armed as interceptors, for the defence died down last summer and has not been of Pyongyang – but although the aircraft repeated recently. are old they are well maintained and pose a No one thinks North Korea is anywhere formidable threat. near developing a delivery system for an The North Korean bomber force includes atomic bomb – or is unaware that a nuclear about 40 Ilyushin Il-28 Beagle twin-engine

US AIR POWER IN KOREA MILITARY light bombers. Experts disagree as to whether these are the Soviet- or Chinese-built versions. The Il-28s remain fully operational as bombers with sufficient range to reach any UNC installation on the peninsula. North Korean President Kim Jong-un, who is also supreme commander of the KPA visited a MiG-29B Fulcrum regiment in January 2013 and posed with pilots in front of a MiG-29 whose colour scheme seems to have been inspired by Kermit the Frog. Jouas and others believe existing defences can cope with Pyongyang’s frontline fighters. Col John Pearse, a recent commander at Kunsan, pointed out that the bulk of them are “teenage MiGs”, meaning MiG-17s and MiG-19s. The RoKAF’s F-15K Slam Eagles, again, have primary responsibility for the air-to-air role but would be augmented at very short notice by F-15C Eagles or F-22 Raptors brought in from outside. “We’ll have a lot of aces in the first few hours of a new war,” said retired Lt Gen Charles Heflebower, one of Jouas’s predecessors. Heflebower cited three threats widely considered more difficult to defend against – Scud-type ballistic missiles, chemical weapons, and North Korean special operations forces. In the first hours of a war, Osan and Kunsan would come under attack by short-range ballistic missiles with chemical warheads and by thousands of special operations combatants. Special-ops paratroopers would reach Osan via airdrop from an aircraft that has proven almost impossible to detect on radar, the Antonov An-2 Colt. Other North Korean specialops troops would attack the more distant Kunsan from the sea. It is almost impossible to exaggerate how much the prospect of a nocturnal incursion by hundreds of the geriatric, linen-covered biplanes worries Jouas and the UNC staff. In the 1970s,

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the author participated in tests, as the likeliest defence against the An-2, of a radar-equipped YOV-10D Bronco Night Observation Gunship System (NOGS) with a belly-mounted M197 20mm cannon and a forward-looking infrared turret in the nose. Today, the only defence against the Antonov is a fighter or a Patriot missile. Patriots guard Osan, Kunsan and other key installations.

Osan Air Base Osan, known in earlier years as K-55, is the biggest air base in Korea. It was constructed during the Korean War. In September 2013, a contractor began laying the first sections of a much-needed, second parallel runway but after completing about 300ft paving work was suspended during the winter. Modern billets have replaced the Quonset huts and Butler Buildings in which the author resided while stationed at Osan from 1958 to 1960. In the very centre of the base is Hill 180, named for its height in metres, site of

the last bayonet charge in modern history led by Medal of Honor recipient Capt Lewis Lee Millett on February 7, 1951. Osan is overcrowded, housing is at a premium, and there is tension between airmen serving a ‘remote’ one-year tour of duty and those pulling a three-year, accompanied tour. There is also tension between the base and nightclub owners in Songtan-ni, just outside the main gate. Over the years authorities have conducted periodic crackdowns on alcohol, drugs and prostitution in Songtan-ni. Boozing and carousing in Songtan-ni has been tamed down not so much because of the authorities but because culture has changed in today’s all-volunteer US Air Force, which has more married members than singles. Just as it did decades ago, the leadership at Osan periodically publishes a roster of establishments in Songtan-ni that are “off limits” to US military personnel. 1 Two Osan F-16s break away from each other on a training mission. 2 A-10C Thunderbolt IIs in the Hog Pen at Osan. 3 A pilot climbs aboard a Block 40 F-16C parked in a hardened aircraft shelter at Kunsan. 2

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In addition to being headquarters for the Seventh Air Force, Osan is home to the 51st Fighter Wing, commanded by Col Brook Leonard, which has the 25th Fighter Squadron ‘Assam Dragons’ flying the A-10C Thunderbolt IIs and the 36th Fighter Squadron ‘Flying Fiends’ equipped with Block 40 F-16C Fighting Falcons. In recent years the wing, and by association everyone on the base, has become known as the ‘Mustangs’. The emblem of a running horse appears on the headquarters building. The choice of name is odd, because the 51st was historically called the ‘Checkertails’ and some of its A-10Cs still wear black and white squares on the fin. Airmen on the base call Leonard, or whoever occupies the wing commander’s slot, ‘Mustang One’. Also stationed at Osan but not part of the parent wing is the 5th Reconnaissance Squadron ‘Black Cats’, which operates the U-2S reconnaissance aircraft. Pentagon plans to replace the U-2S with the RQ-4B

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Block 30 Global Hawk remotely piloted aircraft have been on hold for the last two years. A variety of US warplanes pull temporary duty at Osan, ranging in size and shape from the F-22 Raptor to the HH-60G Pave Hawk. At both Osan and Kunsan, everything is indoors: it is not unusual to see an F-16 or a U-2 practising a ‘combat take-off’ – that sudden, sharp climb out to evade shouldermounted missiles in the hands of anyone beyond the airfield perimeter – but when not flying, aircraft are kept inside hardened aircraft shelters, known as ‘hazzes’. Also at Osan is the 607th Air and Operations Group, which manages the combined air operations centre or CAOC – Jouas’s command post.

Kunsan Air Base The US base at Kunsan, called K-8 in times past, sits on coastal flats in the Korean southwest with a single plateau rising above the flatland near one end of its concrete Runway 18R/36L. Kunsan is home to

the F-16-equipped 8th Fighter Wing ‘Wolf Pack’, which has two squadrons of Block 40 F-16C/D the 35th Fighter Squadron ‘Pantons’ and the 80th Fighter Squadron ‘Juvats’. The wing shares ramp space with the RoKAF’s F-16-equipped 38th Fighter Group. The wing commander is Col William Uhle Jr. Airmen on the base call Uhle, or whoever occupies the commander’s slot, ‘the Wolf’. The F-16 assigned to Uhle is the only one with a wolf’s head silhouette on the fin, the word ‘Wolf’ beneath it, and a fin flash combining the blue and gold colours of the wing’s two squadrons. Unlike Osan, Kunsan has no spouses or children to be concerned about; for decades, it has been the only air force base outside a war zone where everyone pulls an unaccompanied tour. The arrangement exists because Kunsan was built in a location where expansion isn’t possible and everybody is cramped. New construction of billets for airmen has helped make life more

1 An F-16C from the 35th Fighter Squadron prepares to shut down after the ‘Elephant Walk’ staged at Kunsan on March 2, 2012. 2 A RoKAF F-16 taxies from a hardened aircraft shelter for another training mission at Kunsan. 3 A Block 40 F-16C from the 35th Fighter Squadron releases two 2,000lb GBU-24 laser-guided bombs during a training mission. 4 A Block 40 F-16C from the Kunsan Air Base releases two 1,000lb GBU-12s. 5 A Block 50 RoKAF F-16D from the 38th Fighter Group taxies at Kunsan Air Base. 6 F-16s from four US Air Force and one RoKAF squadrons perform an ‘Elephant Walk’ during a large force exercise at Kunsan on March 2, 2012. 7 A crew chief signals the pilot to stop. 8 A 25th Fighter Squadron A-10C taxies around the Hog Pen at Osan. 6

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comfortable at Kunsan but opinions differ as to whether the remote tour enhances camaraderie or erodes morale. Like Osan but for a different reason, namely its isolation and insularity, Kunsan is overcrowded in terms of operational needs and also in terms of living space. One recent deployment of a Theatre Security Package – the term for bringing in an extra fighter squadron from outside – faced “issues with facilities, housing, communication, and aircraft parking that was less than ideal,” according to a press release. Recent construction has given Kunsan additional hardened aircraft shelters, but there now appears to be no spot on the base where more can be built. The base dates to 1938 when Japanese forces occupying Korea used it for a single, squadron-sized unit of fighters. The base has grown since a combat group of F-84G Thunderjets took up residence in 1951. The Wolf Pack took up residence in 1974. The entertainment district in the adjacent town of Gunsan – the same word in the Korean language, but spelled Kunsan by US officials – is smaller than the one at Osan but offers its own versions of food, alcohol and companionship. Last October, the base felt compelled to put out a commentary by 7 First Lieutenant Rachel Crawford lamenting human trafficking and the off-base sex trade. At Seventh Air Force headquarters, Jouas issued an order banning airmen from paying for sexual favours. A senior pilot who uses the call sign Viper told AIR International that there is never enough ramp space at Kunsan or enough air space for training on the Korean peninsula. The narrow, crowded peninsula simply has no place for a large bombing and gunnery range. Unlike Osan which is getting a new, second runway, Kunsan has been repairing and repaving its runway in increments in response to normal operational wear and tear. In spite of all these pressures, airmen at Kunsan have found an impressive way to show off US and South Korean air power and, indirectly at least, to send a message to 8 the North. It’s called the ‘Elephant Walk’. Intended to demonstrate how effectively airmen can maintain and arm F-16s in a stressful and time-sensitive environment, combat-ready Fighting Falcons are occasionally arrayed and taxied along the runway, laden with ordnance and fuel and ready to fly in what’s known as an ‘Elephant Walk’. On March 2, 2012, Kunsan’s 8th Fighter Wing joined forces with the resident RoKAF 38th Fighter Group in a combined combat generation exercise and put no fewer

than 56 F-16s in an ‘Elephant Walk’. Also participating were deployed F-16s from the 421st Fighter Squadron, 388th Fighter Wing from Hill Air Force Base, Utah and the 55th Fighter Squadron from Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. On short notice airmen, armed, fuelled, started up and taxied out F-16s. A press release described the event: “The aircraft swept out of the hangars, one by one, joining together as an imperial march down the flight line.” The aircraft were positioned on concrete “exactly as we would do in wartime,” said Viper. “This shows the resolve that we have as a team, the United States and the Republic of Korea forces, to defend the Republic of Korea at any time.” In the finale of the event, all 56 Fighting Falcons, engines turning, moved down the runway in an impressive four-abreast procession. This assemblage of F-16s in one spot, ready for combat, drew a verbal protest from North Korea’s government-run media.

Briefly Home Seemingly exiled for decades, none of the

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four US combat squadrons in Korea has been stationed on US soil since World War Two but opportunities to train and fly outside Korean airspace arise from time to time. The squadrons make periodic deployments to participate in exercise Red Flag Alaska (RFA), held four times a year (although not last year because of budget issues). The 80th Fighter Squadron ‘Juvats’ from Kunsan deployed 150 airmen and eight F-16s for RFA and a concurrent exercise, Distant Frontier, from July to September 2012. Participants included eight Eurofighter Typhoons of the German Air Force’s Jagdgeschwader 74 (JG 74 or Fighter Wing 74). Also present as part of the friendly Blue Force were US F-22 Raptors, Japanese F-15J Eagles and Polish F-16C/D Block 52 Fighting Falcons. The exercise was centred at Eielson Air Force Base where the aggressor, or Red Force, was equipped with F-16C Block 30s. The F-16s replicated North Korean MiG-29Bs and Chinese Chengdu J-10 fighters and simulated hostile electronic attacks using jamming pods. In what may be particularly important in the context of air power on the Korean peninsula, the F-16s from Kunsan went to

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MILITARY US AIR POWER IN KOREA Alaska with HARM targeting pods for the concurrent Distant Frontier exercise. The aircraft undertook what used to be called the ‘wild weasel’ mission and is today known as suppression of enemy air defences where the HTS is pitted against realistic ground radars operated by an adversary. Other exercises outside Korea include a recent deployment to Singapore. While at home, US airmen work closely with their RoKAF colleagues. In the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) at Osan, American and South Korean officers sit side-by-side and use the same intelligence information. From time to time, American and RoKAF fighter pilots and maintainers hold joint exercises and even get experience maintaining and flying each other’s aircraft. An exercise called Buddy Wing 14-1, held January 14 to 17, made it possible for American and South Korean F-16s to work together in preparation for participation in exercise Red Flag at Nellis Air Force Base, 1 Nevada this summer. “The main difference between Red Flag January, A-10C Warthog pilots and and other training scenarios is the large ground crew of the Osan-based ‘Assam number of aircraft in each fight,” said Lt Dragons’ were among many at the base Col Luther Cross, the Wolf Pack’s chief of who conducted Exercise Beverly Midnight safety. “Our normal fights here [in Korea] 14-01 (BM 14-01) practising to live, fly and are usually four versus two aircraft, but fight while wearing chemical, biological, Red Flag could possibly have 50 versus 12 radiological and nuclear (CBRN) threat aircraft.” Cross said RoKAF pilots benefit protection attire. As noted earlier, air from the smaller, local exercise by “getting commanders see chemical warheads used to having US controllers and Red delivered by North Korean ballistic missiles Flag-style briefings and debriefings.” as a greater threat than any MiG-17. OsanAlso in based medics participated in BM 14-01, practising triage in the handling of casualties. Asked whether he is comfortable in the relatively spacious cockpit of his A-10C wearing CBRN gear, the pilot who uses the call sign Armchair said that he can handle it “but there’s no denying it’s inconvenient”. In addition to rehearsing for chemical war, airmen at Osan and Kunsan undergo constant training in survival, evasion, resistance and escape (SERE). Following a practice begun during

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the Vietnam War, each pilot in Korea prepares an isolated personnel report (ISOPREP), which is maintained electronically for use by combat rescue forces. The form includes a personal photo, a self-generated, four-digit authentication number, and an authentication statement. The statement is typically something like: “While living in Norman, Oklahoma in 1998 I had a yellow Labrador retriever named Autumn.” Each statement must contain enough facts to enable pararescuemen aboard a combat rescue helicopter to ask a downed crewmember up to four questions, such as, “What was your dog’s name in 1998.” Anyone who has ever struggled with passwords on a computer will recognise that this system for identifying downed airmen is imperfect. But if an F-16 jock really does find himself on the ground in North Korea some day, he’ll have a bigger problem than remembering his dog. In recent years, combat search and rescue

US AIR POWER IN KOREA MILITARY (CSAR) – an air force mission – has been given short shrift in favour of a more complex concept called personnel recovery. There are fewer CSAR assets today but more bureaucrats, some of them – in the author’s opinion – in an unnecessary Joint Personnel Recovery Agency that keeps a lot of records (including worldwide ISOPREPs) but never rescues anybody. To the shame of US leaders, the US Air Force has no combat rescue assets on the Korean peninsula. A squadron of MH-53M Enhanced Pave Low IV helicopters was stationed at Osan until 2001, during a period when Air Force Special Operations Command 3 owned the CSAR mission, which has since reverted to tactical forces. But the ugly, noisy and beloved Pave Low was retired in 2008 and the nearest HH-60G is on Okinawa. Jouas and other commanders say they can make up for the CSAR shortfall by using rescue assets belonging to the RoKAF and other US military service branches – in fact, they have a robust plan for doing so – but the situation illustrates the low priority CSAR has enjoyed in recent years. At the Pentagon, officials have tried for several years to get funding for the air force’s future combat rescue helicopter (CRH) programme, but to no avail.

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Taking Back the Sky So how, then, will US air power take back the initiative in a new war? At the CAOC, the vault contains several contingency plans identical to those at UNC boss Scaparrotti’s headquarters in Seoul. The plans are classified, but the steps to be taken are obvious. They are stated in a motto members of the ‘Wolf Pack’ at Kunsan are required to memorise. Their job, the motto says – and it appears in large letters on the base control tower – is to “defend the base, accept follow-on forces, and take the fight north.” Defending bases in Korea is partly the job of security forces, who will find themselves

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up to their ears in North Korean paratroopers on day one. But it’s also a counter-air mission. Defeating Pyongyang’s air force will have first priority. Accepting follow-on forces means repairing damaged runways and buildings, and opening up new airfields that are kept at near-ready status, to bring in aircraft from outside the peninsula. Taking the war north is finally, of course, what it’s all about. If the need arises, Kim Jong-un and others above the 38th Parallel can count on it happening.

1 A crew chief finishes his pre-flight inspection prior to a training mission from Kunsan. 2 A RoKAF F-16C taxies past F-16Cs from the 388th Fighter Wing from Hill Air Force Base, Utah during TDY at Kunsan. 3 A life support technician helps a 35th Fighter Squadron pilot adjust his night vision goggles. 4 Security force troops patrol the perimeter fence at Osan Air Base accompanied by military working dogs. 5 Life support technicians from the 35th Fighter Squadron work on survival radios which are carried in the pilot’s survival harness. 6 Pilots assigned to the 35th Fighter Squadron about to leave the Panton’s ops desk for another training mission.

US AIR FORCE UNITS IN KOREA Osan Air Base 51st Fighter Wing ‘Mustangs’ (OS tail code) 36th Fighter Squadron ‘Flying Fiends’ F-16C/D Block 40 (red fin flash) 25th Fighter Squadron ‘Assam Dragons’ A-10C (green fin flash) Detachment 2, 5th Reconnaissance Squadron, 9th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing ‘Blackcats’ U-2S Kunsan Air Base 8th Fighter Wing ‘Wolf Pack’ (WP tail code) 35th Fighter Squadron ‘Pantons’ F-16C/D Block 40 (blue fin flash) 80th Fighter Squadron ‘Juvats’ F-16C/D Block 40 (gold fin flash)

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Wi-Fi connectivity, mobile devices and apps – the in-flight experience is evolving, as Mark Broadbent reports

obile devices and Wi-Fi have conditioned us to being connected, whether we want to answer e-mails, browse the web or use social networks. Today’s techsavvy travellers expect to continue using the services they enjoy on the ground during a flight. Air transport IT specialists SITA said in a 2011 report that passengers “want ubiquitous connectivity throughout the journey” and a 2013 survey by Honeywell showed some consider connectivity so important that they’d be prepared to forego other services, such as food and drink, in exchange for it (see The Demand for Wi-Fi).

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Technological Advances

Connectivity

This desire to be connected is leading to a revolution in the passenger experience as airlines worldwide revamp their in-flight entertainment (IFE) offerings. Two technological advances have led to this. Aircraft have become Wi-Fi-enabled: improvements in fibre-optic technology mean high-speed data pipes are now put in new aircraft in the factory (in so-called line-fit installs) or retrofitted into in-service airliners, enabling a local wireless network to be created aboard an aircraft. The second innovation is an improvement in satellite communications (satcom) technology. Some satellites now transmit across the high-frequency K-bands of the electromagnetic spectrum which, along with improvements in satcom antennas fitted to commercial aircraft, means airliners can now handle high-bandwidth data.

The step change brought about by the combination of K-band satcom and onboard Wi-Fi is connectivity. Rather than having IFE content such as videos and music stored on a server aboard, aircraft can now receive content via satellite. And because the hardware has been built for high-bandwidth data, airlines can now offer far more comprehensive IFE. Carriers have invested in new hardware like Panasonic Avionics’ eX and Thales TopSeries AVA, which put a wealth of multimedia content into each seat. These systems provide dozens of movies and TV programmes as well as music, radio stations, podcasts and online games. There’s access to e-magazines and social networks like Facebook and Twitter plus the capability to e-mail. It’s all a long way from the early years of IFE with limited selections of movies and music on a loop.

But Wi-Fi doesn’t simply mean more. An example of how it’s opening creative possibilities is geotainment – multimedia content presented to passengers about the locations they’re flying above. This differs from 2D moving maps – which simply indicate the aircraft’s current position – by presenting images and information about what’s on the ground below, updated in real time as the journey progresses. A geotainment feature that caught the headlines in 2013 is FlightPath3D, introduced by Norwegian Air Shuttle on the Boeing 787-8s it uses on flights from Europe to the United States and the Far East. Passengers can zoom in to focus on areas of interest in a similar way to using Google Earth. Boris Veksler, president of Bertia International, which makes FlightPath3D, explained to AIR International: “Most of these

moving map systems haven’t kept up with expectations. Even the best ones still lack excitement and the information needed to enrich the passenger’s travel experience. Our map helps the passenger to see the aircraft and the surrounding world in photorealistic, full 3D satellite imagery. We also give the passenger destination points of interests and detailed street maps of those destinations with relevant information.” Veksler said FlightPath3D will be added to the IFE offerings on “at least three more major carriers” during 2014, adding: “The map is a launch point – that’s why many airlines find more passengers use the new moving map than any other application in the IFE system.”

to let them access on-board IFE via their own devices. That’s led some airlines to install portals like GoGo Vision, Panasonic Avionics’ eXW, Lufthansa Systems’ BoardConnect and Thales’ TopSeries AVA. These relay IFE content to Wi-Fi hotspots around the aircraft. By logging onto the local network, just like they’d access a wireless network in a café, a passenger can receive content on their own device. Key to this trend is the improvement in smartphone and tablet apps which, together with the emergence of ever-more capable devices, mean they can be used for far more than simply providing flight and booking information.

Personal Devices

Glass Bottom Jet

Wi-Fi is revolutionising IFE in other ways. With many passengers having personal WiFi-enabled smartphones or tablets, or both, airlines realised there was an opportunity

Delta Air Lines’ on-board iPad app on flights in North America, for example, has a geotainment feature called Glass Bottom Jet. And apps offered by Air France, Lufthansa,

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Bailey/AirTeamImages

Geotainment

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“If you’re going to offer something, make sure the offer is of a quality that’s in line with the brand experience.” Adrian Pring, Brand Union Strategy Consultant

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3 GoGo Vision is one of a number of portals enabling passengers to access IFE via their devices. Delta Air Lines 4 iPads have replaced seatback systems in the new interiors of Qantas Boeing 767s. Tina Poole/AirTeamImages 5 FlightPath3D offers passengers more information about landmarks below. FlightPath3D 6 The FlightPath3D moving map is a geotainment feature in Norwegian Air Shuttle’s 787s. FlightPath3D

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IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY 1

1 GoGo Vision is one of a number of portals enabling passengers to access IFE via their devices. Delta Air Lines 2 Cathay Pacific was the first Asian airline to introduce ARINC’s eEnabled system. BaoLuo/AirTeamImages

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Japanese low-cost carrier Peach and Virgin Australia enable passengers to download newspapers, magazines, e-books and videos on their device. American Airlines provides a selection of movies and TV shows through its own app. Any content passengers download will remain available on their phone or tablet for viewing again for up to 72 hours after they’ve landed. The carrier’s then-vice president of marketing, Rob Friedman, said at the time the app was introduced: “Letting customers own the technology while we give them content to download at their own discretion is a terrific option.”

Customisation Neil James, executive director of corporate sales and product management at Panasonic Avionics, predicts this type of customisation will become a focus of the industry. “The integration of the personal device into the overall experience will become more important. The vision is to personalise apps with the capabilities offered by the IFE in the seat,” he said during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January. Meanwhile some carriers – mainly network

airlines, but increasingly low-fare brands like Flybe, JetBlue and Air Alaska – offer apps that let passengers check in for their flights. British Airways, Lufthansa and Qantas have also run trials where passengers check in their bags using the airline’s app on their smartphone to scan the tags to be attached to their hold luggage. The surge in the use of mobile devices means airline seats are now designed with gadgets in mind. They feature power points and USB ports – and, acknowledging people want somewhere to stow their devices while they relax or eat, seat designers have also have put in slots where passengers can securely storing smartphones, tablets or e-readers. The seats recently introduced in the new cabins of Japan Airlines Boeing 777-300ERs and Qantas Boeing 767-300ERs, for example, have dedicated slots for this purpose.

Live TV The IFE industry is constantly evolving and the latest innovations are live TV and broadband internet. Panasonic Avionics’ eXTV is currently the only IFE service that provides live global TV streaming and highspeed broadband. It uses Panasonic’s

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Nathan Zalcman/AirTeamImages

Global Communications Suite (GCS), which relays uninterrupted live TV to any aircraft anywhere in the world via high-bandwidth Ku-band satellite beams. The eXTV product’s eight channels include BBC World, Euronews, NHK World and Sport24 (which features live Premier League and Bundesliga football), Formula One races and Grand Slam tennis. Adding connectivity to airliners, either as a line-fit to new aircraft on the assembly line or via a retrofit to in-service machines, has to be approved by an aircraft’s manufacturer. Airbus gave the go-ahead for the GCS to be installed in the A380 in autumn 2013. Lufthansa will be the first A380 operator to offer eXTV in its aircraft later in 2014, although no specific date has been announced. Meanwhile Emirates will install eXTV in its A380s and 777s. The Middle Eastern airline ran a trial in a 777-200ER early last year after Boeing gave its approval.

In-Flight Calls Back in March 2008, Emirates was the first airline to let flyers make mobile phone calls and send texts in flight when it introduced a GSM service provided by UK-based AeroMobile into its A380s and Boeing 777-300ERs – following approval from Airbus and Boeing. AeroMobile has yet to be introduced by any other A380 operator, but it is available in selected aircraft in Air France and Singapore Airlines’ 777-300ER fleets. The manufacturers have also cleared its use in the A330-200, A330-300, A340-500, A340-600, Boeing 737800, 747-400 and 747-8 Intercontinental. The approvals have led to many airlines introducing AeroMobile into their aircraft: Aer Lingus A330s, Virgin Atlantic A330-300s and 747-400s and Transaero 747-400s all now use it. Lufthansa became its latest operator in February 2014 when it took delivery of

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around South-East Asia and Australia while

1 Qantas’ low-cost subsidiary Jetstar and

1 Airliners are being modified with antennas to provide wireless IFE and satcom connectivity. GoGo 2 IFE provided through iPads was part of the Qantas Boeing 767 refit last year. Qantas 3 Many airlines now enable their passengers to use their own mobile devices to access on-board IFE. Thales

its latest 747-8I, which had been line-fitted with the system during assembly at Everett, Washington. The German flag carrier intends to retrofit its entire long-haul fleet with AeroMobile during the course of this year. Garuda Indonesia, Thai Airways International and Turkish Airlines are also set to introduce AeroMobile in the next few months.

Ancillary Revenues Another focus of IFE is to create opportunities to boost ancillary revenues, which airlines earn from the extras customers purchase on board and the mobile and Wi-Fi revolution presents opportunities for carriers to boost such income in a challenging financial climate. Some airlines have elected to charge for access to tablet devices. AirAsia X rents out Samsung Galaxy tablets on its flights

Canadian budget airline WestJet rent out iPads and Android devices respectively. Other carriers charge for Wi-Fi access. For example, JetBlue’s Fly-Fi Plus data plan charges passengers $9 an hour to access high-bandwidth services like watching video, although basic web browsing is free. Certain airlines have given their cabin crews Wi-Fi-enabled smartphones and tablets equipped with point-of-sale apps which take customer orders for food and drink. Flight attendants at Allegiant and Arkefly use iPads and Samsung tablets respectively for this purpose while Delta cabin crew began using Nokia Lumia phones in 2013 equipped with Microsoft Dynamics software. And, with passengers accessing IFE via personal devices, some carriers have integrated retail offerings into their apps. The eXW and BoardConnect portals and VIP On-The-Go, launched in October 2013 by developers Airmarket and North Star, enable passengers to buy food, drink and duty-free through their smartphone or tablet. VIP Onthe-Go will also let passengers view offers at shops or restaurants at their destination and pay for their purchases using a credit card, Google Wallet, PayPal or frequent flyer miles.

Weight Saving Wi-Fi and mobile devices offer benefits beyond more entertainment and generating income. Providing IFE via satcom means aircraft don’t need to carry servers or extensive cabling to store and distribute content, reducing weight and fuel burn. Uploading IFE content wirelessly also saves cash because aircraft no longer have to remain on the ground to have it uploaded. The savings have led to some airlines opting to do away with seatback IFE

IN-FLIGHT ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGY systems. In 2013, when Qantas introduced new cabins into the 16 767-300ERs it uses on services linking major Australian cities, it replaced the seatback system with complimentary use of iPads in each of the 254 seats. IFE is now provided wirelessly by the airline’s Q Streaming service.

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Electronic Flight Bags Airlines have also begun to recognise they can use Wi-Fi and mobile devices for operational purposes. Some have regulatory approval for their pilots to use tablets as electronic flight bags (EFBs) and, in June 2013, American became the first airline to introduce them (in the form of iPads) in all cockpits of its fleet. Its pilots now use the devices, which each have the Jeppesen Mobile Terminal Chart app installed, for all phases of a flight. With the exception of a few select documents, the iPad has replaced more than 35lb (15.8kg) of paper-based reference material and manuals – equating to 3,000 pieces of paper – previously carried around

CASE STUDY: AER LINGUS WI-FI Michael Kelly

Aer Lingus has rolled out Wi-Fi connectivity on its fleet of seven Airbus A330s, used for longhaul services, becoming only the third carrier to offer the service on transatlantic flights. The new service is provided by Panasonic Avionics Corporation, AeroMobile and Deutsche Telekom and works with WiFi-enabled devices, including laptops, tablets and smartphones. The crew activate the system when the aircraft is above 10,000ft (3,048m) and deactivate it in the descent. For Business-class passengers, using Wi-Fi is free. Other passengers are able to buy an Aer Lingus Wi-Fi pass, either for an hour (at €10.95/$14.95) or for 24 hours (€19.95/$24.95). To connect, passengers simply enable Wi-Fi on their device, launch the browser and purchase a voucher using their credit card through the Aer Lingus Wi-Fi page which appears when the browser is launched. Upload speed is around 5 Mbps and download speed 1 Mbps, both perfectly adequate for surfing the net and sending e-mails. Passengers who have two devices such as a laptop and a smartphone can use the one access code for both. Content on the Aer Lingus website can be accessed free of charge. This includes partner sites, the Sky Shopping catalogue and the ability to manage bookings. I recently used the product on a Boston to Dublin flight, and to say I was impressed would be an understatement. The system was easy to activate and speeds were really good bearing in mind I was travelling at 558mph at a height of 39,000ft (11,887m). To check out the Wi-Fi experience, I decided to look at popular websites. The first port of call was Facebook. The system loaded the site’s content, including images and links, very quickly. There was no delay in uploading a photograph to my own Facebook page taken on my smartphone of the in-flight map on the back of the seat in front, showing my precise location, height, speed and distance to destination. The next stop was Twitter, where viewing and posting was equally problem-free. The photohosting site Flickr is more demanding from a Wi-Fi point of view because of the amount of images. But, once again, the product achieved a satisfactory result, albeit more slowly than the others. With 1,000 miles to go before arrival in Dublin, I powered up my laptop and used the same username and password to access the net as used on my smartphone. Once again connectivity was effortless and produced a very good connection. Browsing and reading my favourite newspapers on line was effortless. Flickr once again produced a smooth experience. The availability of Wi-Fi is a great addition to the in-flight experience. Aer Lingus has teamed with leaders in the field in providing connectivity and as a result offers an excellent product available to those wishing to use it – but, recognising the wishes of most passengers for a call-free cabin, the Irish carrier has decided services that offer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) like Skype and Viber will not be accessible on board. Making mobile phone calls is not enabled either, but passengers can send and receive text or picture messages, with usage charged by their mobile operator (which will text them with pricing information). Michael Kelly

by each pilot. American said the changeover will save it “a minimum of 400,000 gallons and $1.2 million of fuel annually”. Later in 2013, Delta announced it would give its 11,000 pilots Microsoft Surface 2 tablets, saying they will provide “electronic dispatch and flight release information, access to real-time weather forecasts, up-to-the-minute operational information and dynamic communication with aircraft technicians on the ground”. Qantas pilots use iPads that feature the Boeing-developed Onboard Performance Tool. This app gives pilots optimum speeds and engine settings for the weather they’re encountering, helping them fly more efficiently to cut fuel burn and optimise payload.

Using Data The latest airliners create a lot of information – for example, every Boeing 787 in service generates more than 500Gb of data every flight. It’s become apparent that airlines can use this volume of information to unlock greater detail about the performance of their fleets. New products are being created for this purpose. ARINC, acquired in December 2013 by Rockwell Collins, has developed the eEnabled information communications system to collect all the data generated during a flight, such as an aircraft’s performance, communications, cabin services and maintenance. When the aircraft lands, the eEnabled system uses the on-board Wi-Fi to connect with the network at the airport. It 3

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1 Norwegian Air Shuttle’s 787s feature a geotainment feature as part of the seatback IFE. Steve Morris/AirTeamImages 2 American Airlines is one of several carriers providing tablets to pilots as electronic flight bags. American Airlines

THE DEMAND FOR WI-FI

Michael Kelly

transmits the data gathered during the flight to a unit on the ground, which uploads it to the airline’s IT system for operations and engineering teams to access immediately. The idea is to make the process of managing information more efficient by using the instant connectivity provided by Wi-Fi. ARINC says: “Performance calculations, charts and manuals, aircraft repair reports, on-board sales reports and electronic tech logs no longer require tedious manual uploading and updating processes.” Cathay Pacific was the first airline to order the system for its entire fleet, including the aircraft of its subsidiary Dragonair.

A 2013 survey of regular air passengers from the US, UK and Singapore by Honeywell revealed some intriguing results regarding their expectations about Wi-Fi connectivity and what they’re prepared to forego in exchange for access to it. For example, 86% of American passengers said every flight should give them the opportunity to send an e-mail and check social networks. More interestingly – and a statistic that caught the headlines worldwide – is that nine out of ten respondents said they’d be willing to give up something on the flight in exchange for reliable WiFi. This broke down as follows: Passengers willing to sacrifice their favourite seat: 38% US, 46% UK, 41% Singapore • reclining seats: 32% US, 29% UK, 29% Singapore • six inches of legroom: 24% US, 26% UK, 27% Singapore • in-flight snacks: 42% US, 34% UK, 41% Singapore • beverage service: 22% US, 24% UK, 26% Singapore • access to the bathroom: 22% US, 24% UK, 26% Singapore It’s only a matter of time before Wi-Fi connectivity becomes an industry standard. The next game-changer will be the speeds offered. Michael Kelly

Real-time The next step is to use the K-band satcom to transmit this type of data to the ground from the aircraft in real time. The aim is for any issues that may emerge during a flight to be automatically relayed to the ground, enabling engineering teams to prepare fixes. “This is a big area where airlines would love to get more real-time data so they don’t have to deal with the [logistical] challenges of sending a mechanic out,” suggested Doug Murri, director of airline solutions at IFE content and satellite coverage provider Row 44, to the Airline Passenger Experience Association’s APEX magazine in a 2013 interview. As with the roll-out of IFE services, supplementary type certificates will be required for airlines to use K-band satellite services for operational purposes. “Airlines are actively pursuing this. It will go at the speed with which airlines want to push it through,” Murri added.

Expectations As mobile devices and multimedia content

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“Traditionally, once implemented, IFE systems functioned for years with very little changes,” noted Boris Veksler, president of Bertia International. But, as the recent Honeywell survey suggests, many passengers now expect more. Adrian Pring, strategy consultant at the Brand Union, an agency that’s worked with consumer, retail and travel brands including South African Airways, told AIR International the challenge for airlines is to balance keeping in step with customer demands while offering services that boost revenue and yield operational benefits. “It’s no exaggeration to say that our expectations are sky high,” Pring said. “Airlines need to be able to meet these expectations. If you’re going to offer something, make sure the offer is of a quality that’s in line with the brand experience. Airlines and service providers will need to muddle through the current ‘beta’ phase to find the right levels of service and the best possible business models to make it worth their while.”

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COMMERCIAL AIRBUS A330

Twin Peaks S Airbus is working on new variants of its popular A330, as Mark Broadbent explains

ince the first Airbus A330 was handed over to the now-defunct French airline Air Inter in January 1994, around 1,060 have been delivered to more than 100 customers worldwide. The type is the European manufacturer’s most successful long-haul product. The 1,315 orders for the jet since its launch (up to the time of writing in March) far exceed those for the company’s other widebodies, the A300/A310 and A340, which respectively sold 816 and 377 units. Although the A330 is a mature product, and the new A350 and Boeing 787 have entered the widebody market, Airbus is far from putting the 20-year-old twin out to grass. It’s developing two new variants and considering whether to re-engine it.

Orders Upswing Commercially the A330 has seen an upturn in fortunes in recent years. From the start of 2007 to the end of 2013, Airbus sold 605 – nearly double the 316 sold from the start of 2000 to the end of 2006. The orders boost led Airbus to increase the aircraft’s production rate to ten per month. And the commitments keep coming: at the time of writing, the company had a backlog of 250. Aviation consultancy Air Insight says the increased demand is largely because continued investment in the A330 – some €150 million is spent on the family each

year – has lowered the cost of buying it. In a blog post, it added: “The 787 [has] a 6.3% operating cost advantage [over the A330] based on operational results reported by US carriers. Given that Airbus is way down the development curve, it is able to price the A330 to readily compete with the 787, making up the operating cost disadvantage through lower capital costs.” Airbus claims 99% dispatch reliability for the A330, which Air Insight believes is another important factor in its ongoing appeal: “The A330 is a highly predictable [aircraft] that provides airlines with levels of operational certainty that, at present, the 787 cannot. Given that airlines are risk-averse, many continue to buy the A330. Airbus can readily discount ownership costs to cover a 787 operational advantage.”

Higher MTOW Now Airbus is developing two new variants of the jet. The first, announced in November 2012, is a higher maximum take-off weight (MTOW) variant of the A330-300 and the second, the A330 Regional, is optimised for short/medium-range routes. The former will increase the A330’s MTOW to 242 tonnes and its range by 500nm (926km) to 6,100nm (11,300km). The enhanced MTOW is up from the standard A330’s 212 tonnes and is a further increase on the 240-tonne MTOW in the A330HGW (Higher-Gross-Weight) variant introduced in 2012. The range increase will enable the aircraft to fly non-stop city pairs the type hasn’t served before, such as London-Tokyo, Frankfurt-Cape Town,

Beijing-Melbourne and San Francisco, Kuala Lumpur-Paris and Los Angeles-Dublin.

Capital Costs

To achieve the extra performance, Airbus engineers will activate the unused centre section fuel tank. This will result in 250kg (551lb) more weight, but the firm says this penalty will be compensated by the greater range and lower capital costs. At a press conference in January, Airbus’ Chief Operating Officer Customers, John Leahy, presented a chart showing the 242-tonne aircraft’s range capability. From Beijing it will be able to fly eastwards to the eastern coast of the US, south to the southern tip of Australia and west to cover the whole of Europe and the Middle East and half of Africa. “Boeing will say the 787 burns less fuel,” Leahy said. “It does, but we have a lower engine maintenance cost. If you put in our lower capital cost, the seat-mile cost actually favours the A330.” Airbus claims the heavier A330-300 will have a 6% lower direct operating cost than the 787, based on a 2,000nm (3,700km) sector with 300 passengers aboard.

A330 Regional As its name implies, the A330 Regional is designed for use on fairly short (around two to four hours’ flying time) trunk routes. The venue of the variant’s formal launch in September 2013, Aviation Expo China in Beijing, was entirely appropriate: it’s designed to meet the needs of airlines in Asia that want larger aircraft to serve the region’s high-density routes. Airbus believes the long-term rise in 1 passenger numbers in Asia (it predicts it will account for 52% of global domestic air travel by 2032) and the fact that many airports there are slot-constrained, means the region’s airlines will need larger aircraft. Airbus Chief Executive Fabrice Brégier said: “We came to the conclusion that to deliver the growth in certain markets, we need to find competitive solutions to avoid congestion.” The A330 Regional will seat between 356 and 400 passengers (depending on customers’ specification) in a two-class layout, up from the 335 in a standard A330-300. The extra capacity is being created by internal cabin changes, including the introduction of slim-line seats and an increase to nine-abreast from the eightabreast layout in other A330 variants.

Trent Regional Rolls-Royce is developing the Trent 700 Regional to power the variant. This will

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s be de-rated from the standard Trent 700’s 71,100lbf (316kN). “The engine features reduced thrust tailored to regional operations, providing lower maintenance costs and longer time on wing,” said the company. “By providing the right amount of thrust at the right time, engine part life is extended and maintenance costs significantly reduced.” Airbus and Rolls-Royce haven’t disclosed by how much the Trent 700’s power will be reduced for the A330 Regional. But they have said it will incorporate Rolls-Royce’s latest performance upgrade, EP2, which cuts fuel burn by 1% on a standard Trent 700. According to the engine manufacturer, this will save A330 Regional operators “over 60,000 US gallons of fuel per aircraft per year”.

Down to 199 Tonnes The A330 Regional’s MTOW will be decreased from the standard 212 tonnes to 199 tonnes – an important part of the jet’s business case, as Leahy explained: “Why 199 tonnes? You have lower [airport] entry charges and landing fees if you’re under 200 tonnes.” Brégier added: “With the lower weight you reduce the maintenance costs and you are as competitive as the A321, but you carry twice as many passengers so you optimise the use of your slots.” Airbus says the combination of reduced maintenance expenditure and de-rated engines will mean the A330 Regional’s seatmile operating costs will be 25% less than on the A330-300s used for long-range flights. According to the company, the Regional will have the same cash operating costs and be 12% cheaper to operate per seat than the 787-9 on a 2,000nm (3,700km) sector while having the same unit price as an A321ceo. Both the 242-tonne and Regional A330s will also feature a number of flightdeck and cabin innovations from the A380 and the A350XWB family. The cockpits will include a dual head-up display and new navigation systems. In addition to slim-line seats, the cabins will have broadband Wi-Fi connectivity throughout, a new in-flight entertainment system with provision for HDTV and full-colour LED mood lighting.

Market Interest Delta Air Lines will be the first customer to operate the 242-tonne A330. It ordered ten in November 2013, the first of which is due to be delivered in May 2015. Its aircraft will seat 293 passengers in a two-class layout. Airbus says the A330 Regional “has been greeted with enthusiasm by customers since its launch”, but has yet to announce any orders. Its priority with the Regional

2 1 Airbus’s decision about whether to re-engine the A330 family is keenly awaited. Rui Alves/AirTeamImages 2 A dramtic motion-blur photograph showing how sleek an A330 can look. Timo Breidenstein/AirTeamImages

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COMMERCIAL AIRBUS A330 Rui Alves/AirTeamImages

1 The Regional variant is primarily targeted at Asian carriers, such as Skymark, which in February 2014 became the first Japanese A330 operator. Airbus 2 Delta will be the first to receive the 242-tonne A330-300, in 2015. Airbus 3 AirAsia X is among A330 operators pushing for an A330neo.

it’s not obvious that we should propose a re-engine.” However, Airbus hasn’t ruled it out. And industry sources say the idea is gaining traction. In a January 2014 blog post, Lehman Co said: “Our market intelligence tells us Airbus is considering a decision [to launch an A330neo] next year, with a target entry-into-service date of 2018.” Lehman also stated that both Rolls-Royce and General Electric are said to be interested in offering versions of their latest Trent and GEnx engines for a prospective A330 re-engine. Reports say Rolls-Royce is discussing an engine based on the Trent 1000 TEN (Thrust, Efficiency and New technology) variant it’s developing for the 787-10 while GE is discussing a version of the performance improvement package of the GEnx-2B. Both the Trent 1000 and the GEnx-2B would require modifications because they were developed for the 787, which uses electrical power rather than the traditional bleed air and pneumatic power systems used by the A330.

A330neo? The 242-tonne and Regional variants might not be the only new developments in the A330 family. There has been debate among analysts for a couple of years about the merits of re-engining the type. Both Reuters and Bloomberg reported at the end of 2013 and into early 2014 that Airbus is seriously considering an A330neo (new engine option) and undertaking a technical study into the project. Publicly, Airbus executives have been lukewarm about an A330neo. For example, John Leahy told Aviation Week: “The current A330 is selling very well. The market understands that we are investing in this product family by both extending the range [and] developing a regional version. Its economics are unbeatable today, so

Business Case Despite such engineering demands, there are advantages for Airbus in developing an A330neo. It would be

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this year, it adds, is to prepare the aircraft for certification to enable deliveries from early 2015. The manufacturer believes there’s a big market for the Regional. “An awful lot of flights over the next 20 years will be 2,0002,225 nautical miles,” said Leahy. The company predicts a 6.1% annual growth in intra-Asia flights to 2032, with the domestic Chinese market expected to grow by 7% per year in the same timeframe.

low-risk compared to a clean-sheet design. The development and regulatory path would be eased by the fact that any engines would be versions of certified powerplants. And, above all, sales of the A320neo and, to a lesser extent, other re-engined products like the 737, 777 and Embraer E-Jet families, show there’s market demand for proven designs featuring the cost savings of new engines. Some two to three years of development work would be required for an A330neo, less than will have been spent on the A320neo by the time of its service entry in 2015. However, Tom Williams, Airbus 2

AIRBUS A330 COMMERCIAL

Executive Vice-President Programmes, observed during a media briefing that “the business case is more difficult than the A320neo” because the expected number of sales is smaller than the narrowbody market. He noted the aircraft “would also be launching into a crowded space” against the 787 and A350. But there appears to be demand, at least from some customers. AirAsia Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said publicly more than a year ago that he wanted Airbus to re-engine the A330. In February 2014, Delta CEO Richard Anderson said: “I hope [Airbus] do offer an A330neo. There’s a huge need

for a small widebody. We really need Airbus to step up and re-engine.”

A350-800 Future Analysts say there’d be a question mark over the A350-800’s future if Airbus elected to re-engine the A330. The company remains committed to producing the smallest version of the A350 but many customers, most recently lessor ILFC, Libyan Airlines and US Airways, have switched their orders to the larger A350-900. The -800’s order backlog has now shrunk to just 46 aircraft. Some pundits argue that, if launched, an A330neo might cannibalise the A350-800

because it would offer comparable economics for a smaller capital outlay. “An A330neo would render the A350-800 superfluous,” said Lehman. “Dropping the A350-800 means Airbus won’t have a competitor to the 787-9. This suggests the A330-200 should get its neo treatment… a neo could add perhaps 400nm as well as improving fuel economy, making the airplane more competitive with the 787-9. We believe an A330neo is likely. Otherwise Airbus will have a major gap in its product line.” So far Airbus has been tight-lipped about its intentions towards the A330neo and what impact any decision will have on the A350800. The industry keenly awaits its decision.

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CH-46 SEA KNIGHT MILITARY

Phrogs Fire-Fighting

Barry D Smith finds out about how the US Marine Corps’ veteran CH-46 Sea Knights are used to combat fires

consists of several large basins surrounded by mountains up to 3,000m (9,842ft) high. The vegetation is mostly brush, which burns very quickly. A hot, dry wind called the Santa Ana that rolls off the desert can push a small fire into one that covers thousands of acres and destroys hundreds of homes in just a few hours. Devastating blazes can happen at any time of the year.

Mega-Fire In October 2003, the largest fire in California’s history occurred in the San Diego area. It was the first so-called ‘mega-fire’ in the state and was a major disaster, burning 280,278 acres

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Sgt Keonaona C Paulo/US Marines Corps

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he US Marine Corps (USMC) has been operating the Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight, colloquially known as the ‘Phrog’ (because it was said to resemble a frog from the front) for almost 50 years. One of the lesser-known roles it fulfils is tackling brush and forest fires. A unique programme in southern California sees Sea Knights working alongside civilian fire-fighting aircraft to combat deadly blazes that can affect the state. California, home to 20 million people,

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On Alert “Each month during the fire season, which is May to October, one USMC helicopter squadron is designated as the fire-fighting unit that would respond if requested by Cal Fire,” explained Capt Andrew Schilling, a CH-46 instructor pilot and the Pilot Training Officer for HMMT-164. “This allows each squadron to make sure they have enough pilots and crews current on fire training,” he said. “We train using the Bambi Bucket, a collapsible bucket that can pick up water and drop it on a fire. We also bring in personnel from Cal Fire to do refresher training. We do training on airspace traffic control above a fire, communications, fire behaviour and tactics. When each squadron takes on the fire response role, everyone is up to speed. All they are waiting on is a phone call and they can then launch.”

Fire Training A major three-day exercise is held every year in May before the fire season starts. There is a telecom exercise between the Cal Fire dispatch centre and the senior watch officers of the US Navy and US Marine Corps commands in southern California. This results in the leadership of all agencies working together as if it were a real scenario, so that when the call does come, everyone is well-practised in what to do. There’s also a live exercise at Camp Pendleton involving aircraft from Cal Fire, the US Navy and US Marine Corps. Several helicopters work together to pick up and drop water on a mock fire. This enables military crews to build on communication and co-ordination skills with Cal Fire helicopters.

Response The initial response to a call is typically two helicopters, but the squadron could send as many as four. During one fire in 2012, after the first day HMMT-164 was sending three or four helicopters a day. The unit has four Bambi Buckets – generally, two are sent with each aircraft in case one malfunctions. There are more buckets with the CH-53 squadrons at Miramar.

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the US Navy based on the one already in place with the California National Guard, whose helicopters had been working with Cal Fire for decades. The USMC joined the agreement in 2007. It contributes the CH46s of HMMT-164, the Sea Knight training squadron based at Camp Pendleton near San Diego, as well as all the CH-53 squadrons based along the coast at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.

Barry D Smith

(1,134.2km2), destroying more than 2,800 buildings (including 2,232 homes) and killing 15 people. The following year Cal Fire, the California state government’s fire-fighting agency, and military officials met to discuss how US Navy and US Marine Corps helicopters could be integrated into the civilian fire-fighting plan. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was agreed with

CH-46 SEA KNIGHT MILITARY

2 1 A CH-46 from HMMT-164 testing its Bambi Bucket over a pond at Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base. Barry D Smith 2 The crew chief opens the bucket to drop water because they have a better view of the fire from the helicopter than the pilot does. Barry D Smith

“We can be out in a couple of hours from the time we are requested,” said Capt Schilling. “Cal Fire will often alert us before we are officially requested because there are major fires burning and they might need us. This allows us to designate specific crews and helicopters and keep them close to the base if we are activated by Cal Fire.

External Loads Capt Schilling explained, “fire-fighting is not dramatically different from other missions we perform.” He added: “We train with external loads as part of our primary mission. Fire bucket work is actually a little easier because it is an external load that unloads itself. Although not required for fire work, I like to send pilots who are qualified for external loads during terrain-following flight below 150 feet. “All of our squadron pilots train with the fire bucket. Let’s say our squadron is going to be first up [on alert] for fires during June. In May, as the training officer, I will make sure we get the buckets out and that they are in good working order. I then create a training schedule to make sure every pilot gets refresher training using the bucket. We actually log this as external load training. So, the fire mission doesn’t really add any hours to our unit.”

Water Drops Once at the scene of the fire, the helicopters are commanded by the military helicopter

co-ordinator, or MILCO, an experienced Cal Fire aerial fire-fighting supervisor who’s in another helicopter. It’s their job to direct where to drop the water and the routes to and from the water collection sites. The equivalent in a combat scenario would be an airborne forward air controller. The military helicopters tend to work together rather than be spread out, which makes their operations easier to control. The military pilots check in on the radio with the MILCO when they arrive at the fire area. The MILCO will then describe where to drop, where the water dip site is and provide recommendations on ingress and egress routes. They will often lead the military helicopters in on the first drop or two. The pilots will also fly a dry run without water to make sure they are comfortable with the conditions. After the military crews are familiar with the drop area, the MILCO will orbit above them and direct the drops. “We don’t need to do a lot to prepare for the mission once we are activated,” explained Capt Schilling. “We make sure the cargo hooks are working properly and load the water buckets into the helicopter. We also paint specific areas of the aircraft with high visibility water-soluble pink paint to make our helicopters more visible over the fire. We also put one fire shelter [personal protective equipment made from aluminum foil, woven silica and fibreglass] for each crew member on the aircraft in case the aircraft has to make an emergency

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Barry D Smith

MILITARY CH-46 SEA KNIGHT

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landing and might get overrun by the fire. “The bambi water bucket used by the CH-46 carries about 550 US gallons. We usually carry about an hour’s worth of fuel when we are dropping water. This allows us to carry a maximum load of water in the higher density altitudes found around fires. The base used by all the helicopters at a fire is usually close, so we can refuel and be back dropping water pretty quickly. We can use either civilian fuel or military fuel trucks.”

the fire we look at how long we expect them to be gone and if Cal Fire might need more aircraft,” explained Capt Schilling. “We will send additional helicopters with maintenance personnel and equipment if we think they might be away from the base for several days. We normally send detachments to other bases for training and know what they might need in the way of spare parts and what maintenance issues tend to develop on the road.”

Operations

Teamwork

Typically, the ‘Phrogs’ of HMMT-164 fight fires in southern California near to their home base, although if Cal Fire requested them to do so, they could be deployed further north. They only fight fires during daylight hours and if they are working close to their base, they will return home each night. If they are operated further away, for example north of Los Angeles, they would leave the aircraft and crew at a forward operating base over night. “Once we get the first aircraft sent to

A lot of teamwork is involved in operating the ‘Phrog’ for fire-fighting missions. “The pilots become very reliant on the crew in the back, [because pilots] can’t see the water bucket under the helicopter,” noted Capt Schilling. “We have two crew chiefs or a crew chief and an aerial observer in the back. One is always looking at the bucket during filling operations and talking all the time, telling [the pilot] which way to move, up or down, forward or backward, left or right. He also tells the pilot about the status

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of the bucket – if it’s in the water, filling, full, coming up, no leaks, no tangled cables.” He continued: “The ideal dip site is a deep pond about five minutes flying time from the fire, but that doesn’t happen very often. Sometimes the civilian firefighters set up a portable, soft-walled water tank we call a pumpkin. It is bright orange and has an opening in the top we can lower our bucket into. However, the opening isn’t much larger than the bucket and the rotor downwash can make it tricky to get the bucket into the tank. “We are used to operating over water, but it can be tricky hovering over a large lake. The pilots can get vertigo because of the way the spray circles around in the rotor wash. The down wash also blows the water away from the helicopter which makes it seem like the helicopter is moving backwards.”

Technique Capt Schilling described the technique required to carry out the water drops. “When we are on the drop run, we try to

CH-46 SEA KNIGHT MILITARY

fly at 114-131ft above the ground at about 50kts airspeed,” he said. “We have to be careful not to fly too slow because it can cause the rotor wash to fan the fire and make it worse. The crew chief in the back actually drops the water. They have a much better view of the bucket. There is a constant dialogue between the pilot and the crew chief about where the drop point is located right up to the release of the water. “The non-flying pilot is watching the altitude and airspeed and relaying that to the flying pilot. The pilot flying keeps looking outside the cockpit at all times. During the first 30 minutes it can be challenging to find the right time and place to drop water based on the winds and terrain and finding your way around the fire and the water dip sites. The rest of the day is pretty routine once you establish a pattern.”

Dropping into Wind The “nightmare situation” for a crew, according to Capt Schilling, is “to have a

bucket malfunction – not be able to drop the water and be entering smoke with rising terrain ahead of the aircraft”. He noted that the planning for each mission is focused on avoiding all these potential situations. Crews always drop into wind because that “gives us better performance from the helicopter; we will be hitting the smoke first and then the fire. We don’t want to enter the smoke after the fire. We also prefer to drop flying down slope so we can fly away from an emergency more easily.” Conditions around a fire can affect aircraft performance. During the summer, temperatures can easily be above 35°C (95°F). Fires can also produce their own winds from the rising hot air. The crews redo their power and load calculations to take account of the prevailing conditions. They will always carry the maximum amount of water, which means that on hotter days they’ll have less fuel in the tank and so will refuel more often. Crews also pay close attention to how much ash from the fire

is ingested by the engines. Maintenance people inspect the turbine blades every five to six hours to make sure they don’t have any engine problems. “We have an advantage with the CH-46 having a tandem rotor system for this kind of flying,” said Capt Schilling. “A pilot flying a helicopter with a tail rotor always has to be worried about loss of tail rotor effectiveness due to the load or winds. We don’t have to worry about that for the CH-46 so the turbulence around a fire doesn’t concern us as much. “Our crews love doing this mission, especially the young crewmen in the back, because they are the ones making the decisions on when to drop the water. They also know they are helping out a community that is in trouble. They lap it up. The pilots like the mission as well. Since we are a training squadron, it is great to do a real mission that helps save homes and possibly even lives. These aircraft belong to these people and it is an honour to use it.”

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COMMERCIAL SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

SOUTHWEST’S

Big Year

It’s a significant time for Southwest Airlines as it launches new international routes. Andreas Spaeth reports

D Steven Marquez/AirTeamImages

allas Love Field, Texas, the main base for Southwest Airlines, presents plenty of punning opportunities for advertising copywriters. Back in the 1970s the low cost carrier (LCC) named its in-flight snacks ‘Love Bites’, employees issued tickets through ‘Love Machines’ and when the airline listed on the New York Stock Exchange it adopted ‘LUV’ as its

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COMMERCIAL SOUTHWEST AIRLINES 1 Several Southwest 737s are ‘logojets’ carrying adverts. HAMFive/AirTeamImages 2 A 737-500 taking off from Las Vegas, with the Luxor Hotel and casino behind. Simon Gregory/AirTeamImages

Simon Gregory/AirTeamImages

ticker symbol. And today, Southwest billboards around the airport proclaim ‘Nonstop Love’ and ‘Lovelier Field’ to promote the carrier’s latest services. It was from Dallas Love Field that Southwest launched its first flights to San Antonio and Houston, on June 18, 1971. Since then it has achieved legendary status. It’s been the inspiration for most LCCs worldwide and became the fourth-largest airline in the world. It’s the biggest in the US, having carried 133 million passengers during 2013, and is the biggest single operator of the Boeing 737, flying nearly 600 examples. It’s flown profitably for 41 years and has paid dividends in 150 successive financial quarters.

The walls of Southwest’s headquarters, located across the runway from the Love Field terminal, are adorned with framed company memorabilia of every kind. The airline’s founder, Herb Kelleher, now 83, still comes into his office several times each week.

airline to flying to destinations in Texas and neighbouring states. Additional states were later added to the permissible area, which enabled Southwest to introduce flights to 25 destinations outside the Wright zone, although these are required to make an intermediate stop. But in 2006 the restrictions were repealed and, from October 13 this year, Southwest will be able to serve cities across America non-stop from Love Field – hence the ad campaign around the airport. “The chances from [the traffic rights change] are going to be huge for us,” enthused Bob Jordan, Executive VicePresident and Chief Commercial Officer of Southwest Airlines, in an interview with AIR

Traffic Rights A new age is dawning at Southwest because of revised traffic rights from Love Field. When Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport opened in 1974, most airlines operating from the city moved operations there from Love Field. But Southwest remained because of the restrictions of the Wright Amendment, a federal law governing traffic from the airport, which initially limited the

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SOUTHWEST AIRLINES COMMERCIAL International at the airline’s headquarters. “We still can’t serve any international destinations [non-stop], but we can fly non-stop to all domestic cities. We will for example serve three airports in the New York City region and go to Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago-Midway and Orlando. Within a short time we’ll reach 160 to 180 flights at Love Field, up from 127 so far.” In February, Southwest announced more details about the new flights from Love Field. On October 13 the airline will launch non-stop services to Baltimore-Washington, Denver, Las Vegas, Orlando and ChicagoMidway, followed on November 2 by flights to Atlanta, Nashville, Washington, DC (Reagan National), Fort LauderdaleHollywood International, Los Angeles, New York LaGuardia, Phoenix, San Diego, Orange County/Santa Ana and Tampa.

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Network Despite it being Southwest’s home, Love Field only ranks eighth by number of flights served from bases in the airline’s network. Top is Chicago-Midway with 244 daily departures followed by Las Vegas (219) and Baltimore-Washington (210). Southwest doesn’t call its bases ‘hubs’ because it’s never been a network carrier and just flies point-to-point connections. But that hasn’t stopped it becoming the dominant US domestic carrier. Currently in the timetable are 96 destinations in 41 US states, the District of Columbia in Washington, Puerto Rico and five other countries including Mexico and the Dominican Republic. In total, Southwest offers non-stop connections in 575 markets, constituting a whopping 3,750 city pairs.

until 2006: then we became the largest airline for local customers within only seven years,” noted Jordan.

International Routes Another reason for the acquisition was that it gave Southwest access to AirTran’s routes to Cabo San Lucas and Mexico City. “Internationally we are flying highly profitable [routes], and the markets are growing – our international strategy therefore is perfectly complementing our domestic strategy,” said Jordan.

This is an important year for Southwest in another way as it will complete the integration of AirTran, which it acquired in September 2010 and which is still flying as a separate company under its own brand. “But at the end of 2014, AirTran will be gone and fully integrated into Southwest,” said Bob Jordan. Some 7,000 of the former 8,000-strong AirTran workforce are now part of Southwest. Jordan said the integration is progressing very smoothly. “We’re on course to reach the synergy targets of over $400 million this year.” Southwest’s aim behind the $3.4 billion takeover was to gain access to AirTran’s principal hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, the world’s busiest airport by passenger numbers, with 79 million people passing through in 2013. “Before AirTran[’s acquisition], Atlanta was the biggest missing destination for us,” said Jordan. “That was by far the most important effect [of the purchase], even though AirTran added a lot of domestic destinations for us. “We’ll evolve the network in Atlanta and will move to the model of Chicago-Midway, which has very good connections. Since the end of 2013 there [have been] much smarter [flight] options throughout the day, better timed for the local Atlanta market, where we currently have about 20% market share.” Becoming a big player from nothing is something Southwest previously achieved in Denver. “We weren’t present there at all

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AirTran Integration

Mexico will remain an important focus. “We want to grow the existing market, which has high fares so far, and come up with the same kind of push we created domestically before.” In March, Southwest unveiled a number of new routes to Mexico. From August it will start flying to Cancun from Atlanta, Baltimore-Washington and Milwaukee and to San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos from Santa Ana/Orange County. These services will be joined from October by a new daily DenverCancun flight and a weekly Denver-San

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COMMERCIAL SOUTHWEST AIRLINES Angelo Bufalino/AirTeamImages

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES FACTS AND FIGURES IATA code: WN

ICAO code: SWA Callsign: Southwest

Ownership: publicly held (100%) Shareholdings: AirTran (100%) Operations started: June 18, 1971 Employees: c 45,000 (including AirTran) Passengers carried: 2012 – 134m, 2011 – 127.6m (inc AirTran), 2010 – 106.2m (without AirTran) Fleet: 125 Boeing 737-300s, 15 Boeing 737-500s, 393 Boeing 737-700s, 52 Boeing 737-800s Aircraft orders: 52 Boeing 737-700s, 65 Boeing 737-800s, 30 Boeing MAX 7s, 170 Boeing MAX 8s Bases: Atlanta, Baltimore-Washington, Chicago-Midway, Denver, Las Vegas Route network: 96 destinations in 41 US states plus District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and five Caribbean countries Profits: 2013 $764m, 2012 $421m, 2011 $178m, 2010 $459m

Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos connection. They will join existing routes to Mexico from San Antonio, Chicago-Midway, Fort Lauderdale and Atlanta.

Houston Terminal Southwest is also planning to launch flights to Mexico from Houston’s William P Hobby Airport, which currently ranks seventh in the airline’s top ten operating bases, with 157 daily departures. Southwest won approval in 2012 from Houston City Council for a major expansion of its services from Hobby, where the airline is investing about US$150 million in building its own international terminal. “We’re looking forward to bringing lower prices and more international connections to a city set to gain from increased competition,” said Southwest’s Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, Gary Kelly, at the terminal’s groundbreaking ceremony in February 2014. Due to open in the fourth quarter of 2015, the terminal will have five gates and handle 20-25 daily departures to destinations in Central and South America. Kelly told analysts and media in January that Southwest plans to add more flights and new destinations from Houston once the terminal is operational. Jordan meanwhile revealed to AIR International that Lima, Peru and Bogotá in Colombia are under consideration.

Business Travellers An important prerequisite for Southwest’s expansion into new markets was the integration of its services into global computer reservation systems. “We’ve been listed in Amadeus [one of the main customer reservation systems] since early 2014. Without it the international expansion would

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have been unthinkable,” said Jordan. Amadeus also opens opportunities in the domestic arena, such as codesharing and interlining. These are elements of the business that LCCs have historically shied away from, but Jordan says listing on Amadeus will enable Southwest to reach out more towards business travellers, who currently only represent 40% of its passengers. “We can’t ignore markets like New York-LaGuardia, Newark, Minneapolis or Boston,” he said. In line with this strategy, Southwest has secured 12 slot pairs at LaGuardia that American Airlines and US Airways had to divest as a condition for their merger being

approved by the US Department of Justice. This is an increase of six flight pairs for Southwest, which also secured 27 slot pairs at Washington, DC’s Reagan National Airport. The airline is to trim its network in other areas. In June it will end its services from Key West, Florida, and Branson and Jackson-Evers in Missouri after concluding that low demand made the routes unprofitable. The Key West and Branson routes were taken over from AirTran.

Wi-Fi Other ways Southwest is trying to attract business travellers include introducing priority boarding, a loyalty programme called 1

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES COMMERCIAL Angelo Bufalino/AirTeamImages

Rapid Rewards and Wi-Fi on aircraft (already installed in two-thirds of the airline’s fleet). A change of cabin configuration is also under discussion, which would be a significant move given Southwest has always had a one-class service. “In general, the trend [is a change] from mostly short-haul services to longer routes,: we have to adapt the product accordingly,” explained Jordan. In 2000 almost a third of Southwest’s routes were 298 miles (480km) or shorter in distance, but by 2010 the proportion had shrunk to less than 20%. The average Southwest flight today is an hour and 56 minutes long, covering a distance of 707 miles (1,139km). The shortest route in the network is the 147 miles (238km) between Houston-Hobby and Austin in Texas and the longest is the transcontinental flight from Baltimore-Washington to Seattle at 2,334 miles (3,757km). “The domestic market hasn’t reached its limit yet – there are still lots of opportunities out there. We’re nowhere near the end of the growth of our network,” said Jordan.

Costs

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In 2013, according to the airline’s own figures, costs per available seat mile (CASM) 2 were 12.60 US cents. This was slightly down 1 Boeing 737-700 N714CB at Los Angeles International Airport – one of three ‘retrojets’ that wear on the 2012 figure of 12.85, but still only Southwest’s former ‘desert gold’ livery. Simon Willson/AirTeamImages 2 AirTran’s integration will be a few cents below the 13-15 cents CASM completed this year. Its Boeing 717s are being leased to Delta. Steven Marquez/AirTeamImages reported by most US network carriers. However, Bob Jordan told this magazine be completed soon. Scimitar adds new strengthened spars, that Southwest is still producing 27% The Texan carrier was the launch customer aerodynamic scimitar-shaped tips and a cheaper per seat costs than United, Delta or for three successive iterations of the 737 large ventral strake to the Blended Winglet. American. (the -300, -500 and -700) and maintained APB says the Split Scimitar will improve An important factor in keeping costs low the tradition on December 13, 2011 when each 737-800’s fuel efficiency by a further is a streamlined fleet. Since its foundation it became the launch customer for the 737 2%. The retrofits to Southwest’s aircraft will Southwest has, largely speaking, never MAX. It ordered 170 737 MAX 8s, with be carried out at Aviation Technical Services’ deviated from its policy of using one aircraft deliveries starting in 2017, and followed up Everett, Washington, plant, with all aircraft type. The exceptions were short-term leases that commitment on May 15, 2013 when it set to be modified by early 2015. of Boeing 727-200s in the 1980s and the 88 purchased 30 737 MAX 7s, which will join the In the past ten years, Bob Jordan noted, Boeing 717s it inherited when it took over fleet from 2019. “The 737 MAX is 12% more Southwest has undergone changes. And AirTran. fuel-efficient. It’s incredible – maybe it will his colleague Gary Kelly observed, when Initially CEO Gary Kelly wanted to use at even reach 13% or 15%,” said Bob Jordan. talking to analysts and reporters: “This is least some of the 717s, the idea being to Southwest’s choice of the MAX to an historic year for Southwest Airlines. It is deploy these 122-seaters on new domestic bring efficiencies to the airline will be tremendously exciting.” destinations for which Southwest’s 143-seat complemented by its decision to buy APB But, said Jordan, “the core is still the same: 737-300s and -700s would be too large. Split Scimitar Winglets as a retrofit for the have fun, work hard, be productive and treat But in 2012 it decided to sub-lease the 737-800s. Certified by the US Federal customers and employees right – that 717s to Delta Air Lines instead to avoid the Aviation Administration in January, the Split hasn’t changed and won’t change”. maintenance and training costs of integrating them into its own fleet. Six or seven 717s are currently transferred to Delta every month. Southwest is however integrating AirTran’s 52 737-700s into its fleet. The process began in April 2012 and involves giving the aircraft a new cabin, called Evolve, which includes slimline seats made of a lightweight and environmentally-friendly material which the airline says saves 635lbs (288kg) per aircraft, or $10 million in costs.

Fuel Saving Blended Winglets, manufactured by Aviation Partners Boeing (APB), play an important role in minimising costs on 737s by saving fuel. They started to be retrofitted to Southwest’s 122-strong 737-300 fleet in 2007, saving the airline more than 20 million litres (5.28 million US gallons) of fuel annually. The device has also been installed in 389 of Southwest’s 393 737-700s and 50 of its 53 737-800s, which supposedly saves the airline a further 200 million litres (52.83 million US gallons) a year. Retrofitting for the other -700s/800s is due to

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he Turkish Aerospace Industries’ (TAI) T129 is the country’s first homegrown attack helicopter. An advanced derivative of the AgustaWestland A129 Mangusta, it was developed to meet the Turkish Armed Forces’ Taarruz Taktik Kes¸if Helikopteri (ATAK, Tactical Reconnaissance and Attack Helicopter) requirement, which calls for indigenously designed and integrated avionics, including the mission computer, weapons systems and selfprotection suite. TAI has full marketing and intellectual property rights for the design, enabling it to export it to any country excluding Italy and the United Kingdom. Now that initial development of the T129 is largely complete, TAI is aggressively marketing the type to potential customers and is attracting a great deal of interest. At one time, smaller and cheaper armed helicopters were perceived as ‘second best’ to such aircraft as the AH-64D Longbow Apache, but today many operators see the value of compact, agile and rapidly-responding helicopters, especially for use in urban environments. And the T129 (known to AgustaWestland as the AW729) is much more than just a licence-built Mangusta. “The T129 programme goes well beyond licence production of another manufacturer’s helicopter, as it has involved the design, development and manufacture of an advanced new helicopter variant,” an AgustaWestland spokesman said. They described the T129 as “a strongly tailored and customised version of the AW129” that had been comprehensively upgraded to

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meet Turkish operational requirements and to allow a 500kg (1,102lb) increase in maximum take-off weight. The helicopter is powered by more powerful LHTEC CTS800-4N turboshaft engines, originally developed for the ill-fated RAH-66 Comanche programme, and the same powerplant in the new AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat, instead of the T800s used by the A129 International or the Rolls-Royce Gem 2 engines used by the production A129.

Bahraini Interest The type was keenly examined by Royal Bahraini Air Force pilots when it made its international debut at the Bahrain International Air Show in January 2014, as a potential replacement for the RBAF’s ageing Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters. Major Rakan Ateytalla, an instructor pilot on the RBAF Cobra, compared the T129 favourably with the US Marine Corps Bell AH-1Z Super Cobra that he had also been shown. He praised the T129’s speed and manoeuvrability and highlighted its ability to be started and scrambled very quickly. “You can start the T129 in three minutes and with three buttons, whereas it would take half an hour in the Apache,” Maj Ateytalla said. “A rapid response capability like that would be particularly useful in a Bahraini context, but it is invaluable whenever troops on the ground need close air support ‘right now’.”

Pakistan Pakistan has had a long-standing interest in the T129, to replace its AH-1F Cobras, and negotiations are understood to have taken place during Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Turkey in September 2013. Turkey reportedly offered to gift three T129

helicopters to Pakistan, and speculation emerged that preparations were already under way at the Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) at Kamra to build a new facility for local production or assembly of the Turkish helicopter. It is believed that the PAC has already signed a work-share agreement with TAI in the event of any Pakistani purchase of the T129. Interest has also been shown by Libya, whose Prime Minister Ali Zeidan toured the TAI production facilities on January 3, 2014 and announced that the country’s government might soon acquire both the T129 and TAI’s Hürkus¸ turboprop trainer currently in development. Other potential customers include Azerbaijan, Jordan, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Because the T129 is powered by LHTEC CTS800-4Ns (albeit that these are being manufactured under licence in Turkey by Tusas¸ Engine Industries), TAI will require US government permission to export the aircraft. Sources have told this author that they fear the US will not make the export approval process easy, with some speculating that delaying tactics may be used in order to give American helicopters a competitive advantage.

Domestic Market But unlike other European manufacturers, TAI is not reliant on exports to make the T129 programme viable to compensate for a weak domestic market in the face of shrinking defence budgets. Unlike the rest of Europe, Turkish defence expenditure is rising steadily. The 2013 budget projections showed it growing from 18.2 billion lira in 2012 to 20.4 billion lira in 2013, 22.3 billion lira in 2014 and 24

TURKISH AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES T129 ATAK MILITARY

ATAK

Jon Lake describes Turkey’s efforts to promote the T129 ATAK to overseas customers

Turkish Contract The Turkish Government has ordered 91 aircraft in total, comprising 51 under the original $1.2 billion contract (signed on September 7, 2007) plus 40 options. This excludes the prototypes built so far (P1, P2 and P3) or under order (P7, a replacement for P1) at AgustaWestland’s facilities in Vergiate, Italy. P1 (CSX81723) made its

maiden flight from here on September 28, 2009, but was lost in an accident on March 20, 2010, hence the subsequent order for P7. The original 51-aircraft order included a single Turkish-built prototype (P4, later re-designated as P6), which first flew from TAI’s Akıncı facility on August 17, 2011 and which will be retained by the Turkish defence ministry for test and development. The balance of the order consists of 50 T129Bs for the Kara Kuvvetleri Komutanlıg˘ ı (Land Forces Command).

TUC-1 The first 30 will be built as T129B1s to what is known as Turkish Unique Configuration 1 (TUC-1), with an indigenous ASELSAN mission computer, ASELFLIR-300T forward looking infrared, and digital moving map. These aircraft will have a Thales Top Owl helmet-mounted cueing system and be armed with AGM-114 Hellfire II and Spike-ER air-to-surface missiles, as well as CIRIT laserguided rockets. The remaining 20 helicopters are to be built to T129B2 (Turkish Unique Configuration 2, TUC-2). This will feature increased Turkish content, including an ASELSAN AVCI (Hunter) helmet-mounted cueing system based on the Thales Top Owl. However, this will incorporate a locallydeveloped optical head tracking system and LCD displays instead of the CRT ones. The T129B2 will also have an ASELSAN self-protection suite comprising a radar warning receiver, radio frequency jammer and laser warning system. The aircraft will be equipped with the Roketsan-developed UMTAS long-range guided anti-tank missile, a Turkish indigenously developed weapon

similar to the Hellfire II. The 30 T129B1s will eventually be retrofitted to T129B2 standard. Nine of the 40 options have already been exercised to meet a KKK Urgent Operational Requirement under the Erken Duhul Helikopteri (EDH, Early Delivery Helicopters) programme. A $450 million contract for these aircraft was signed in November 2010. They represent an interim standard, having CTS800-4A (rather than -4N) engines, with the new transmission and tail rotor, an ASELFLIR-300T and Top Owl helmet-mounted cueing system, and are armed with a 20mm gun turret and 70mm unguided rockets, while Stinger air-air missiles and gun pods could also be carried on the stub wing pylons. The first of these EDH helicopters, serial EDH-1, is also designated as prototype P4, while the second (EDH-2) is P5. Turkish Army acceptance tests of these helicopters began in July 2012.

Turkish Aerospace Industries

billion lira in 2015. That represents a rise of nearly one third in five years, and these figures do not include the additional funds that are allocated to the Savunma Sanayii Müstes¸arlıg˘ ı (SSM, Undersecretariat for Defence Industries) Defence Industry Support Fund for the development and acquisition of military equipment. Neither do the figures include export earnings, which would normally be ‘ploughed back’ into Turkish defence expenditure. The significant domestic market for the T129 means the programme is built on firm foundations. SSM is managing the Turkish project, with TAI acting as the prime contractor, responsible for producing the helicopters and installing avionics and weapons systems. Aselsan will provide the mission computer and integrate the avionics and weapons systems, with AgustaWestland (the main sub-contractor to TAI) supplying an airworthy helicopter that meets the performance requirements. TAI announced the co-operation and co-development project with AgustaWestland on March 30, 2007, with the two parties formally entering into an agreement on June 22, 2008.

Deliveries The first series production T129s are now flying and an initial cadre of 14 pilots, three instructor pilots and 45 technicians have been trained on the new helicopter. The first deliveries to the Turkish Land Forces are expected later this year. Further development of the T129 beyond the TUC-2 standard is likely and plans are already in place for a mast-mounted targeting radar. On July 16, 2007 the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), Meteksan Savunma Sanayii AS¸ and Bilkent University formed a consortium for the development of an advanced millimetre wave radar, similar in concept to the AH-64 Apache’s Longbow system. This might eventually be used on the T129.

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MILITARY DRDO AEW&CS

The EMB 145i is adding to India’s airborne early warning capabilities, as Jon Lake describes...

T

he Embraer EMB 145i Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&CS) made its public debut at January’s Bahrain International Air Show, being displayed in the aircraft static park and in the daily flying display. Though it looks outwardly similar to the EMB 145 Erieye AEW&CS aircraft used by Brazil, Greece and Mexico, the EMB 145i differs from these aircraft because it lacks the Saab Electronic Defence Systems (formerly Ericsson Microwave Systems) Erieye multi-mode pulse Doppler active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. Instead it uses an indigenous Indian radar in a similar dorsal ‘canoe’ radome.

From 748 to Il-76 India began developing its own airborne early warning (AEW) capability under the Airavat Airborne Surveillance Platform AEW programme using an Avro 748 airframe with a dorsal rotodome. This project was abandoned in December 1999 after the sole test-bed crashed. India then decided to buy a new AEW aircraft from overseas and selected the Ilyushin Il-76 (already in IAF service in the transport role). But instead of simply purchasing the Beriev A-50 Mainstay (the

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AEW version of the Il-76) India signed a contract with the Ilyushin Corporation in 2004 for the supply of three Il-76s and a separate US$1.1 billion deal covering three Israel Aerospace Industries and Elta Electronics Industries EL/W-2090 Phalcon AEW&C radar systems, to turn the Il-76s into A-50EIs. The first conversion landed in Jamnagar AFS in Gujarat on May 25, 2009. Although these aircraft are fitted with a disc-like antenna above the fuselage, this is fixed and is not a rotodome, which rotates. It accommodates an active phased array radar with an electronically steered beam. There were press reports that India planned to procure three more Mainstays, but in the event just two extra have been ordered, with the big A-50EIs being augmented by aerostats – balloons with electronic surveillance radars – and by the new EMB 145i.

EMB 145i What would become the EMB 145i programme was launched in 2003 when the Indian Air Force (IAF) and India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) began a joint study of the systemlevel requirements and feasibility of producing a home-grown AEW&CS. When the Indian government subsequently approved development of a new AEW&CS platform and system to meet an IAF

requirement, the DRDO’s Bangalore-based Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) was given primary responsibility including project management, design, integration and testing of the data handling system, displays and mission computers.

Team Effort Other DRDO laboratories or work centres took responsibility for other elements of the AEW&CS. The Electronics and Radar Development Establishment at Bangalore and the Defence Electronics Application Laboratory (DEAL), based in Dehradun, were responsible for the primary radar and identification friend or foe (IFF) systems. DEAL also provided the communications systems and datalink. Meanwhile, the Defence Avionics Research Establishment worked on the self-protection suite and electronic warfare systems and communications support measures, while the Defence Electronics Research Laboratory provided the countermeasures elements of the self-protection suite. Outside the DRDO, the Indian National Aerospace Laboratories contributed to the aerodynamic studies of the antenna array, and modelling of the AEW&CS platform.

Building on Erieye The Indian AEW&CS aircraft quite deliberately builds on the ERJ 145-based R-99/EMB 145H

India’s

AWACS Three-Aircraft Fleet The government decided to order three of the new radar-equipped surveillance aircraft for the IAF. This is sufficient to sustain two airborne patrols around the clock for a limited period, or to allow one airborne patrol with another aircraft on continuous ground alert, for more than 30 days. There is an option for the IAF to procure up to 20 additional aircraft, if the project is successful. They will provide a low-cost complement to the A-50EIs and enable India to develop the ability to indigenously design and deploy operational airborne surveillance platforms. The three EMB 145s ordered from

Embraer cost US$300 million, including contracted modifications to the airframes (though Embraer was only ever going to supply the platform, with India providing and integrating the AAAU and the other mission systems). The project was intended to result in the operational deployment of these three aircraft by 2013.

Handover In the event, the first modified fuselage platform was not handed over to the DRDO by Embraer until February 2011, and the first round of modifications to prepare for integration of the Indian-designed antenna were not made until March 2011. The first fully-modified EMB 145i (with the antenna and its electronic payload fitted), KW3555 (ex PT-ZNB), made its maiden flight at Embraer’s São José dos Campos facility in Brazil on December 6, 2011. The second (KW3556, ex PT-ZNA) first flew on April 4, 2012. Neither was fully equipped, with some of the advanced mission systems replaced with ballast of equivalent size and weight for the initial platform certification effort in Brazil. This phase of testing was completed with the handover of the first aircraft to the Indian government by Embraer Defense and Security on August 16, 2012, at São José dos Campos. The aircraft then flew on to CABS at Bangalore, arriving on August 22, 2012. The second aircraft stopped off at the

2014 Bahrain International Air Show en route from Brazil to India, where the DRDO will install the equipment and systems into the aircraft, following the successful completion of platform certification.

Piotr Butowski

Erieye versions supplied to Brazil, Greece and Mexico. It features a similar over-fuselage canoe-shaped fairing and mounting for the antenna array. This makes testing, clearance and certification easier than would have been the case for an all-new design. The primary radar is, like the Erieye’s, an AESA with two radiating planar arrays assembled back-to-back to form the Active Array Antenna Unit (AAAU) with an additional dedicated IFF array. This provides 240° coverage and features a fast-beam agile system that can operate in several modes concurrently. The EMB 145i will carry two flight crew, five mission systems specialists and up to three reserve crew members to spread the workload during long missions.

Differences The presence of the second aircraft in the static park at the Bahrain show afforded a close-up view of the type. There are some notable differences compared with the four EMB 145H Erieye aircraft delivered to Greece from December 2003. The Indian aircraft have fewer windows (indicating a more densely-packed interior), more cooling air scoops on the rear fuselage and what appears to be a more comprehensive defensive aids suite. They also have a fixed in-flight refuelling probe – the first time an EMB 145-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platform has been fitted with this capability. There is scope for further orders for military EMB 145 variants in India to meet the IAF’s long-standing requirement for nine special mission aircraft for aerial survey, target towing and communications jamming duties. The requirement specifies that two of the nine aircraft should be certified to perform signals intelligence missions, for which the EMB 145 could be fitted with Elta’s EL/I-3001 Airborne Integrated Signal Intelligence System.

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London Ci t y Looks to the Future COMMERCIAL LONDON CITY AIRPORT

Bruce Hales-Dutton discovers how the success story that is London City Airport is set to evolve

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the airport that’s seven miles from the City of London and nine from the West End has unveiled development plans that could double traffic within ten years.

Early Days It was in June 1982 that a special test flight proved the feasibility of a Docklands airport and paved the way for the creation of London City. It was a leap of faith for an area dominated by the virtually disused docks that had once formed part of one of world’s premier ports. Almost exactly a year later a planning inquiry opened and permission was

eventually granted to enable commercial services to start in October 1987. Even then there were many who believed an airport serving the City of London would be an irrelevance. It certainly wasn’t plain sailing and ownership of the airport has changed hands twice. But the naysayers have been proved wrong.

Busy Times In 2013 London City handled 3,380,753 passengers and more than 74,000 aircraft movements, making it Britain’s 15th-busiest airport. The passenger numbers were 12% up on 2012. The previous peak was

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Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages

yI

t’s the only airport in London itself, it offers services aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at a growing number of business travellers flying to more than 40 destinations, it has a regular luxury service to New York, it boasts a bar that’s regarded as one of the world’s top five and it’s London’s premier retailer of management books. With a sustainable movement rate of 36 aircraft per hour – 38 is feasible – and the UK’s best punctuality record, London City Airport (LCY) has long since moved from quaint curiosity to serious transport interchange. And in a year of record passenger numbers,

LONDON CITY AIRPORT COMMERCIAL

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COMMERCIAL LONDON CITY AIRPORT

New York Service

CSeries

Then there are those using British Airways’ service to New York on what airport chief

Now, a new type is on the way. Swiss International Airlines is planning to introduce

London City Airport

addition of eight new routes in 2012 to Aberdeen, Angers, Basel, Mahon, Menorca, Munster-Osnabruck, Quimper and Venice. The majority of the airport’s passengers are still what the airport’s corporate communications director, Jeremy Probert, calls “suits” – business travellers – but a significant number, 40%, are leisure passengers, among whom are holidaymakers flying off to the ski resorts of France, Italy and Switzerland. Communications manager Charlotte Beeching explains how City types determined to live by the work-hard, play-hard dictum can enjoy a skiing break via Geneva. “You can leave your desk at 4pm on Friday, be on a ’plane by 5.30pm, in the resort in time for a late dinner and drinks, have two days skiing, fly back first thing Monday morning and go straight back to the office.”

commercial officer Matthew Hall calls the “banker’s favourite route”. Introduced in September 2009, there are two daily flights using specially-configured Airbus A318s which can carry 32 passengers cosseted in seats that let them lie fully flat. The A318 is the smallest aircraft to operate London-New York services since BA’s predecessor, BOAC, operated the first transatlantic jet operations in October 1958 with the de Havilland Comet 4. The fact that the A318 services carry the flight numbers previously allocated to Concorde – BA0001 and BA0003 for the westbound services and BA0002 and BA 0004 for the eastbound ones – shows the significance BA attaches to them. The westbound flights make a stop at Shannon to refuel and to enable passengers to pre-clear US immigration and customs checks. BA declines to reveal passenger numbers for individual routes but Civil Aviation Authority statistics show that in 2012 the LCY-JFK operation represented London City’s 29th-busiest route with 22,165 passengers carried. That represented an increase of 3% over 2011, which was in turn 12% better than the 2010 figure. There was a further modest rise in 2013 (see table). The CAA stats also show that British airlines carried more than 39% of LCY’s passengers in 2012, with EU carriers accounting for 42% and non-EU – likely to be Swiss – just over 18%. Zurich, Amsterdam and Edinburgh were the busiest individual routes. The Embraer E190 was the aircraft type with the highest number of movements at the airport in 2012, followed by the veteran Fokker 50 turboprop.

in pre-recessionary 2008 when there were 3.3 million passengers and 96,000 aircraft movements. With 315,514 passengers handled, May 2013 was the airport’s busiest month ever and almost 20% above the number recorded in the same month in 2012. The figure was also comfortably ahead of the 230,000 total recorded during the whole of 1990. Friday May 24 was the single busiest day, with 15,697 passengers. The new monthly record wasn’t to stand for long – just two months later a new mark was set when 328,115 passengers used London City, 25% up on the figure for July 2012.

Growing Network The airport itself commented that the recordbreaking figures, combined with consistently higher load factors, “demonstrate real success in the development of the route network”. Five new routes were added in 2013: Dresden, Kristiansand, Nuremberg, Paderborn and Rome. That followed the 1

1 LCY’s location gives it a unique advantage among London’s airports. London City Airport 2 Cessna Citations are among the business aircraft certified to use the airport. London City Airport 3 Embraer E190s replaced Avro RJs on British Airways CityFlyer routes from London City in 2009. Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages

LONDON CITY’S TOP FIVE ROUTES (PASSENGERS) 2013

2012

Zurich

449,384

393,091

Amsterdam

407,611

387,609

Edinburgh

333,859

322,729

Frankfurt

210,934

191,811

Geneva

188,776

95,200

LCY-New York JFK (passengers) 2013

22,175

2012

22,165

2011

21,622

Source: Civil Aviation Authority

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LONDON CITY AIRPORT COMMERCIAL

2 3

Andy Martin/AirTeamImages

the Bombardier CSeries CS100 on routes to LCY by summer 2016, assuming the Canadian newcomer’s testing programme goes according to schedule and the aircraft is approved for operations at the airport. Compared with the BAe146s/Avro RJs currently used by Swiss to serve London City, the CS100 is 20% longer and has a 32% bigger wingspan. Its maximum take-off weight is 40% higher and it will carry 108 to 125 passengers compared with 82 to 112 on the RJ, nicknamed the ‘Jumbolina’ by Swiss. Accommodating the new aircraft now represents the airport’s key development priority.

Swiss International Airlines is now offering convenient connections for LCY passengers to its services from Zurich to Singapore. It adds up to more than 40 destinations (see panel), another indication of how far LCY has progressed from its early days. With its initial 7.5° glideslope, the airport’s use was restricted to a handful of turboprop types like the Dornier Do228 and the de Havilland Dash 7. The latter were used by LCY pioneers Brymon Airways and the shortlived London City Airways, a subsidiary of British Midland.

More Frequencies

In its early years the airport struggled not only with a runway just 3,543ft (1,080m) long but also with air traffic control restrictions. Fitting LCY operations within the congested airspace of the London Terminal Manoeuvring Area posed a particular challenge to ATC provider NATS. The solution was the provision of Thames Radar to provide a service to aircraft using the airport and ensure arrivals and departures were safely separated. In its first full year of operation 133,000 passengers passed through London City but permission was later granted to extend the runway to 4,900ft (1,500m). The glideslope was reduced to 5.5 degrees, still steep and flown only by appropriately certificated

Meanwhile 2014 promises to be a further year of growth. British Airways, which is already its biggest operator, is serving 26 domestic and international destinations from London City. In addition to launching operations to Rotterdam and Florence, the airline has increased frequencies to Amsterdam, Edinburgh, Zurich and the Isle of Man. It has also added an E190 to its fleet to replace a Saab turboprop on its service to Dusseldorf. CityJet has increased frequencies on its flights to Dublin, Florence, Paris, Rotterdam and Toulon while Luxair has done the same with its services to Luxembourg.

Thames Radar

crews, but when the extended runway opened in 1992 the airport became available to a wider range of aircraft including the BAe 146 and its Avro RJ derivatives.

Growth By 1995 annual passenger numbers had reached 500,000 but the owners and developers of the airport, construction company Mowlem, sold out to Irish businessman Dermot Desmond. A decade later there was a major boost for London City when the Docklands Light Railway provided fast public transport links to nearby Canary Wharf and the City of London. By 2006 passenger numbers had risen to 2.3 million but that year the airport changed hands again when it was sold to a consortium comprising the insurer AIG and Global Infrastructure Partners. Two years later GIP increased its investment to 75% with the remaining 25% now in the hands of Highstar Capital. Meanwhile, an extended apron with four additional aircraft parking stands and four new gates, built on piles above King George V Dock, became operational in 2008. The year 2012 was another important one for LCY. Apart from celebrating its silver anniversary with a visit from the Queen, who officially opened the airport in 1987, it welcomed its one millionth flight (CityJet’s

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COMMERCIAL LONDON CITY AIRPORT people than ever before are choosing to fly with us.”

Master Plan

Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages

AF5118 from Dublin) and its 36 millionth passenger. It was also the airport of choice for many of the athletes arriving to compete in the 2012 Olympics at the stadium in Stratford, just three miles away.

20/10 According to Charlotte Beeching, London City “stands out from other airports because it caters for those who are time-poor”. That thought is encapsulated in what the airport calls its 20/10 proposition. Matthew Hall explains: “20/10 refers to a 20-minute checkin time, from terminal door to boarding gate,

and a ten-minute arrival time, from wheelsdown to train.” He says this is achieved “by almost obsessive attention to detail in everything from self-bag-tagging and measured queue times to aircraft turnaround targets and the relationship with the border authorities.” Nothing, he insists, “is left to chance”. LCY has been officially recognised as the UK’s most punctual airport and has remained so for six consecutive quarters from April 2012. Not surprisingly, chief operating officer Darren Grover comments: “It’s easy to see why more

Back in April 2006, six months before acquisition by its present owners and two years before the financial crisis started to bite, the airport published a master plan. It predicted that 3.5 million passengers would be using London City by 2015 and 8 million by 2030. Despite the air travel downturn since then, growth remains on the agenda with plans being developed to double passenger numbers by 2023. A recent development was the creation of a new security search area with six extra lanes, built over the landside terminal to create an additional 2,690 sq ft (250m2) of space. This became operational in the spring of 2011 and cost more than £10 million. There are now plans to develop a triangular area of unused land to the east of the terminal to create more retail space.

New Stands One of the biggest constraints to operations at LCY is that aircraft have to backtrack down a large portion of the runway after landing or before take-off. But with the bigger CS100s a definite prospect, Probert tells AIR International that “we need to be ready with new stands, new taxiway and associated access”. The introduction of the CS100 is seen as a key development for the airport for 1

LONDON CITY TRAFFIC

1 The Docklands Light Railway provides a fast public transport link from the airport to nearby Canary Wharf. Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages 2 Swiss plans to replace the Avro RJs on its London City services with the Bombardier CSeries from summer 2016. Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages

FACTS & FIGURES LONDON CITY AIRPORT

Passengers

Aircraft movements

2013

3,380, 753

74,000

2012

3,016,664

71,000

IATA code: LCY ICAO code: EGLC

2011

2,992,847

69,000

2010

2,780,582

69,000

2009

2,796,890

77,000

Ownership: Global Infrastructure Partners (75%) and Highstar Capital (25%) Operator: London City Airport Ltd Location: London Borough of Newham, London E16; 51°30’N, 0°03’E Elevation AMSL: 19ft (6m) Runway: 09/27, length 4,948 ft (1,508m), grooved concrete Airlines: Air France (CityJet), Alitalia, Blue Islands, British Airways, British Airways CityFlyer, Lufthansa Regional, Luxair, SkyWork Airlines, Swiss International Airlines Destinations: Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Angers, Antwerp, Avignon, Basel, Bern, Billund, Brest, Brive, Chambery, Deauville, Dresden, Dublin, Düsseldorf, Edinburgh, Faro, Florence, Frankfurt, Geneva, Glasgow, Granada, Ibiza, Isle of Man, Jersey, Luxembourg, Madrid, Mahon, Malaga, Milan, Nantes, New York, Nice, Palma Mallorca, Paris, Quimper, Rome, Rotterdam, Stockholm, Toulon, Venice, Zurich.

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other reasons. “It’ll mean a doubling in range to 2,000 miles,” Probert adds. “It will undoubtedly bring a fillip to our business. There are three main drivers at London City: peaks, ’planes and people.” The airport’s management accepts that traffic is subject to peaks and troughs and that this is unlikely to change fundamentally, although it may be possible to even them out a little within the constraints imposed by the runway. As a result, in September 2013 the airport submitted a planning application to Newham Borough Council, whose offices overlook the airport from the opposite side of the Royal Albert Dock. If the £200 million development plan is approved the airport hopes to have the new development in operation by mid2016. Probert stresses that the airport is planning to improve its infrastructure, not boost its capacity. “The planning application,” he emphasises, “is simply about making better use of what we’ve got. Our proximity to Canary Wharf and the City makes us the obvious choice for people wanting to fly direct into the heart of London and we have to make sure that we can continue to meet increasing demand for flights at peak times.”

London City Airport

LONDON CITY AIRPORT COMMERCIAL

Noise Management Whatever happens, Probert insists, the airport will continue to operate within the parameters set by the council, “including the areas of noise management and hours of operation”. The airport is restricted to operations between 6:30am and 10:00pm Mondays to Fridays and 6:30am to 12:30pm on Saturdays. It’s closed on Sundays. But he also points out: “At the moment the airport is operating under capacity.” It has the permission, gained in 2010 after a protracted three-year battle, to handle up to 120,000 movements a year – but is currently running at considerably below that. “Improving the facilities will enable LCY to realise its potential, create 1,000 new jobs in the process and help to attract further investment into Newham and the surrounding areas.”

2

Regeneration If the development plan is approved London City expects to handle around six million passengers a year by 2023. The two millionth flight, Matthew Hall predicts, “will arrive in around half the time that it took for the first”. He adds: “London City Airport is set to become a driver for growth, in the local community and across the south-east, playing its part in the regeneration of east London into a city within a city.” Chief operating officer Declan Collier says the airport’s expansion is vital, not just to satisfy the growing demand for business travel but also for the ongoing development

The proposed development comprises three key features. A parallel taxiway would enable aircraft to get on and off the runway more quickly, freeing it up to accommodate a greater volume of hourly movements. It would boost capacity at peak times and enable controllers to handle 45 to 50 movements per hour. Seven new aircraft parking stands would create the space needed for the bigger aircraft expected from 2016 while a new eastern pier and separate arrivals terminal would, the airport argues, enable it to maintain a high level of service as passenger numbers climb. Meanwhile, London City remains the private jet centre nearest to central London. So, alongside the airliners, corporate aircraft like Beechcraft Super King Airs, Cessna Citations, Hawker 400s and 800s, Piaggio Avantis and Dassault Falcons are becoming increasingly common. But you won’t see helicopters or single-engine aircraft operating at London City as they’re banned.

Jason J Rainsford/AirTeamImages

New Development

of the Royal Docks and the east of London. “The connectivity to business centres across Europe, eastern Europe and the Middle East the airport provides, or will provide in the future, is central to this continuing,” he says. With more passengers than ever before using the airport it’s hardly surprising that LCY’s management has the confidence to pursue its ambitions for the future. These are heady days for London City and there’s little doubt the next stage in its progress, the arrival of the CS100, could represent a watershed in the airport’s evolution every bit as significant as the first jets more than two decades ago.

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Pearl OF THE MED

Kyriakos Paloulian looks at the important strategic role of Souda Bay in Greece

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NSA SOUDA BAY MILITARY

Operations Souda Bay plays a vital role in supporting naval and aircraft operations in Europe, the Middle East and beyond, in much the same way as RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus provides crucial strategic support for UK forces in the region.

It is also home to two Hellenic Air Force (HAF) F-16C/D Block-52+ units, 340 ‘Fox’ Mira (squadron), which conducts night-attack operations using the LANTIRN targeting pod; and 343 ‘Star’ Mira, which has a suppression of enemy air defence (SEAD) and day/night air defence role using AGM-88B HARM, IRIS-T and AIM-120C-5 advanced medium range air-to-air missiles. Also stationed at the base are Super Pumas of the HAF’s 384 Mira, which provide round-the-clock search and rescue cover. The unit has a target response time of 15 minutes in emergencies. Co-located at Souda alongside the military facilities is a civilian airport which hosts charter flights taking tourists to the popular nearby holiday destination of Chania.

Natural Harbour Souda Bay’s geopolitically significant location isn’t the only factor that makes it ‘a pearl in the Med’. The bay itself is a natural harbour, providing perfect shelter for high-value naval

assets. Together with the base’s generous 3,307m (10,850ft) runway (11L/29R) and the K-14 port facility in Marathi just ten kilometres (five miles) to the south, which provides easy access from the air base to vessels moored at the dock, this means Souda Bay is unique in Europe in being able to support both aerial and naval assets in one location. It’s not surprising that operations from the base are routine to the assets, including aircraft carriers, of the US Navy Sixth Fleet – the United States Naval Forces Europe. Neither was it surprising that when operations began over Libya in 2011, the US and its allies immediately asked the Greek Government for permission to base aircraft at Souda Bay to support Operation Odyssey Dawn (the US-led attacks on the country) and the subsequent NATO Operation Unified Protector, which established no-fly zones over Libyan airspace.

MCS 2nd Class John Beeman/US Navy

N

aval Support Activity Souda Bay, on the north-western tip of Crete in the eastern Mediterranean, has great strategic value. Its close proximity to the Middle East and the Gulf of Sirte means it sits at the crossroads of three US Combatant Commands’ theatres of operation: EUCOM, CENTCOM and AFRICOM. This location, combined with the bilateral agreement between the US and Greece which allows the use of the base by both countries, makes Souda Bay an important location for air and maritime operations in the region.

Cooperation Cooperation between the US and Greece at

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1 Groundcrew assigned to Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 40 (VRC-40) ‘Rawhides’ move a C-2A Greyhound into the hangar to shelter it from the snow – a rare event in Crete. Paul Farley/US Navy 2 Fast rope training under way at Souda Bay as part of the annual exercise Phoenix Express, which aims to improve co-operation on maritime security. MCS 1st Class James Davis/US Navy 3 A P-3C Orion assigned to Patrol Squadron 8 (VP-8) ‘Fighting Tigers’ being marshalled at Souda Bay in 2003, when the unit was deployed there to support operations over Iraq. Paul Farley/US Navy 4 US Air Force E-3s have regularly visited Souda Bay during operations over neighbouring regions in the last decade. Paul Farley/US Navy 1 2 3

Paul Farley/US Navy

to supplement Naples and its naval air facility at Sigonella in Sicily. Souda Bay, which already had an active RHAF base and a natural port, presented the ideal location.

NAVDET Souda Souda Bay goes back to the Greek civil war of 1946 to 1949 and began with US Navy aircraft carriers, starting with the USS Roosevelt in November 1948, operating in the region visiting port of Pireas near Athens. The US subsequently set up an American Military Aid to Greece (AMAG) mission to assist the Greek Government in managing the civil war. The officer in charge was wartime US Army Air Force ace Col Sel Edner, who provided the necessary bureaucratic connections for the then Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF) to receive 40 former US Navy SB2C-5 Helldiver aircraft and training for its pilots. The first aircraft were delivered in June 1949. Joint RHAF-US Navy exercises followed. In June 1951, 16 RHAF Spitfires of 337 Mira and a dozen 336 Mira Helldivers undertook a simulated attack on the US Navy carrier USS Coral Sea at Limnos island. Among dignitaries aboard the carrier watching the exercise was the King of Greece. During the exercise US Navy F4U-5 Corsairs and F2H Banshees successfully intercepted the Greek ‘attackers’. Greek cruises by the US Navy Sixth Fleet 4

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became increasingly common. In March 1952 the USS Midway visited the country with F2H-2 Banshees – followed later by the return of the Coral Sea with VA-15 AD-4 Skyraiders practising vertical bomb toss techniques at the firing range at Souda Bay; and then the USS Forrestal with its Skyraiders.

Soviet Threat During the 1950s there was more air traffic to Greece from the US Navy’s other bases in the region such as Naples, Italy (the headquarters of the Sixth Fleet), with R4D-6 Skytrains and C-1 Traders regularly visiting Hellenikon airbase near Athens. More significantly, later in the decade there was increased activity by Soviet vessels in the eastern Mediterranean. This led to intensive electronic intelligence (ELINT) operations by US assets in the region, with Greece’s territorial waters assuming ever greater significance, and the US realised it needed a strategic outpost in the eastern Mediterranean

Agreement was reached between the US and the Greek Governments (the latter led by a military junta from April 21, 1967) for a US Navy detachment

SOUDA BAY BADGE The NSA Souda Bay emblem, in keeping with the tradition for military unit insignia, uses colours and characters that provide a symbolic representation of key aspects of the unit’s mission, location and unique features. The sword at the centre of the emblem represents the military nature of the organisation and those embodied traditions and missions. The two Doric columns on either side of the sword symbolise the support mission of the unit. These columns, created in ancient Greece, are renowned the world over for their enduring strength and simplicity of style in supporting the magnificent structures of that time. Below the two columns, the ancient Greek key symbol for the sea represents the unit’s support mission to the US Sixth Fleet whose ships and sailors now visit Souda Bay more regularly than at any period in history. Above the columns flies a mythological bird, representing the unit’s support for the now daily airborne operations of both the US Sixth Fleet and the US Air Force. Atop the two columns are the flags of the US and Greece, joined with angular symmetry and bordered in gold, representing the cooperation at Souda Bay. The gold border symbolises the value and importance of that relationship.

NSA SOUDA BAY MILITARY 5

Paul Farley/US Navy

Paul Farley/US Navy

Personnel numbers increased to 93 enlisted and three officers by August 1, 1972, their mission being to provide basing support for US Naval forces operating in the Mediterranean – including transient, temporary and permanently-based ships, aircraft, units, detachments and personnel during normal and contingency operations. Aircraft such as the C-1A Trader, C-131 Cosmopolitan and Skyraider provided

5 An EA-6B Prowler of Electronic Attack Squadron 209 (VAQ-209) ‘Star Warriors’ taxiing at Souda. MCS Seaman Chelsy Alamina/US Navy 6 Souda is a transit stop for US military assets heading home from deployment, for example this Electronic Attack Squadron 138 (VAQ138) ‘Yellow Jackets’ EA-18G Growler. Paul Farley/US Navy 7 The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, deployed as part of the US Sixth Fleet, training in Souda Bay in 2012. MCS 2nd Class Zane Ecklund/US Navy

transport from Souda Bay to other US Navy facilities. In 1973, a building programme began for accommodation blocks, a workshop, a sickbay and supporting utilities.

Nickel Grass Operation Nickel Grass in 1973, the first major mission Souda Bay supported, involved the US supplying military equipment to Israel during the Yom Kippur War, including aircraft, tanks, artillery and ammunition. Souda Bay 6 was a staging post in the transportation of 36 former US Pacific Air Force F-4E Phantoms to the Israelis Nickel Grass underlined Souda Bay’s strategic importance – in recognition of which, on October 1, 1980, the base was disestablished and redesignated as US Naval Support Activity (NSA) Souda Bay. Its importance increased by providing communications for the Sixth Fleet and relaying transmissions between Task Group ships and US Navy aircraft. During the mid-1980s, with increasing attention on Libya from the US amid 7

Paul Farley/US Navy

Paul Farley/US Navy

Paul Farley/US Navy

to be established at the base. US Naval Detachment (NAVDET) Souda Bay was subsequently commissioned on May 28, 1969, comprising a 16-person complement under the command of a first class petty officer. Officially, NAVDET Souda Bay was a detachment of Naval Air Facility Sigonella and was under the operational and administrative control of Commander Fleet Air, Mediterranean, based in Naples.

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allegations that the country was funding terrorist group activities, Souda Bay was home to operations by Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron 2 (VQ-2) P-3B/P-3C Orions and EP-3E Aries. Personnel from the base inspected two Libyan Air Force MiG-23 Floggers which landed at Maleme, an auxiliary airfield in Crete, in 1982 and 1989 after their pilots defected.

Expansion Souda Bay expanded further in the 1990s with the running down of operations at other US bases in Greece, beginning in 1990 with the transfer of the 922nd Reconnaissance Squadron and its RC-135V Rivet Joints from Hellenikon AFB. The later closure – under the Clinton administration’s Base Relocation and Alignment Closure (BRAC) act – of the 7266 ABG Irakleion Air Station and the 7061 MUNSS (Munition Storage Site) at Araxos also saw the transfer of their facilities to Souda. NSA Souda Bay became one of only two locations in the Mediterranean (along with Sigonella) able to provide port facilities to both US Navy fleet assets and US Air Force air mobility aircraft. It played a vital role in joint US Navy/US Air Force reconnaissance and air refuelling missions carried out for Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm over Iraq in 1990-1991 and later supported Operation Enduring Freedom over Afghanistan from late 2001 and Operation Iraqi Freedom from early 2003. US Navy aircraft such as VQ-2 P-3Cs and EP-3Es and US Air Force RC-135Vs and Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers constantly rotated through the base during these operations. NSA Souda Bay never missed a beat while providing this support. Chief and first class petty officers filled the responsibilities held by commissioned officers at other bases, and junior officers routinely performed the duties normally undertaken by more senior ranks. It takes dedicated and professional people to provide the wide range of support that its role requires.

Crete was provided by the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal (CV 59) and its embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW-6), which at the time was transiting through the Aegean Sea on its summer cruise. Just a few minutes after Air Force One’s departure from Souda Bay on July 19 at the end of the president’s visit, an A-6E Intruder of Attack Squadron 176 (VA-176) ‘The Thunderbolts’ crashed into the Aegean 64km (40 miles) north of Crete while en route to the Augo Nisi range in Sicily. Two F-14A Tomcats from VF-31 ‘The Tomcatters’ embarked on CVW-6 – which were flying in formation with Air Force One as it headed westbound over the Mediterranean – overheard an ejection seat beacon signal on a secure frequency. One of the F–14As joined the rescue effort but an SH-3H Sea King only managed to locate and pick up the navigator/bombardier from the sea. The pilot was never found.

Today Naval Support Activity Souda Bay currently comprises 13 officers and around 1,050 personnel – one-third active duty US Navy, one-third US Geological Survey and contract civilians and one-third local nationals. The base’s command consists of the following departments: Executive; Administration; Chaplain; Comptroller; Legal; Morale, Welfare and Recreation; Navy Exchange, Operations; Public Affairs; Public Works; Safety; Security; Supply; Information Systems; and Fire. A Naval Support Activity base provides

Highs and Lows Then-US President George Bush paid a visit to Crete in July 1991. He was hosted on the island by the then Greek Prime Minister, Konstantinos Mitsotakis. A native of Chania, Mitsotakis wanted to personally thank President Bush for the handover to Greece of 28 upgraded ex-US Air Force Air National Guard McDonnell Douglas F-4E Phantoms and an additional batch of 66 former US Navy active duty and reserve A-7E/TA-7C Corsair IIs. The eyes of the world were on Souda Bay as Air Force One brought President Bush into the base. Airborne early warning and fighter cover for the aircraft on its journey into

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Ioannis Lekkas

MILITARY NSA SOUDA BAY

the combined capabilities of a Naval Operating Base, Naval Air Station, Naval Weapons Station and Naval Fuelling Station. NSA Souda Bay is dedicated to taking care of the fleet and airborne operations in this strategically critical area of the world and building cooperation with Greece. Local traffic consists mainly of US Navy Liaison Flight C-26s shuttling to and from Naples and Sigonella, C-12s on embassy flights across Europe, US Air Force C-21As flying cargo and passengers to US bases in

Europe and P-3C Orions and EP3Es on temporary deployment. Carrier deployments are supported by C-2A Greyhounds Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 40 (VRC-40) ‘Rawhides’ which are based at Sigonella but detach to Souda Bay as required. US Air Force traffic consists of C-17A Globemasters and all variants of C-130s, landing for refuelling as they transit to the Middle East. Unusual visitors in recent years include US Marine Corps MV1 22B Ospreys, which first visited in December 2007, and an EA-6B Prowler which visited in 2010.

Odyssey Dawn As Operation Odyssey Dawn over Libya began in mid-March 2011, Souda Bay immediately came into focus. As on earlier operations over Libya in the 1980s and over Iraq, the base’s location meant it could provide valuable support to ships and aircraft. Two US Air Force KC-135R tankers from the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall

1 A 1960 photo showing the Royal Hellenic Air Force base commander greeting a US Navy admiral and adjutant as they step off a C-131 that’s just arrived from NAF Naples. Hellenic Air Force 2 A US Air Force RC-135V taxiing at Souda in 2011 between missions over Libya during Operation Unified Protector. Kirk Paloulian 3 US Navy Liaison Flight C-26 Metros shuttle from Souda to Naples and Sigonella. Ioannis Lekkas

Kirk Paloulian

Paul Farley/US Navy

2

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MILITARY NSA SOUDA BAY in Suffolk were deployed to Souda Bay at the start of Odyssey Dawn. Other arrivals were US Air Force C-17As and solitary examples of an E-3 AWACS, RC-135V and E-8C Joint Stars. The E-3 AWACS provided the combined air operations centre in Izmir, Turkey, with aerial coverage of traffic in Libyan airspace, flying in racetrack patterns from south Crete to the west 1 of Benghazi. In addition, the USS Kearsarge transited through Souda Bay at the start of the completed 100 combat sorties flying the hostilities en route to the Gulf of Sirte. E-2C Hawkeye on operational deployments When Odyssey Dawn became the NATOincluding the USS Theodore Roosevelt led Operation Unified Protector at the end (CVN 71) for Desert Storm over Iraq and the of March 2011, the US asked the Greek USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) for Enduring Government for permission for Souda Bay Freedom over Afghanistan. He’s also to be used for the basing of NATO and completed staff tours as Deputy of the Joint Coalition fast jets conducting operations over Operations Center within the J3 Operations Libya. Consequently, six Royal Norwegian Section at NATO Joint Command South Air Force F-16MLUs and six Qatar Emiri Air Center, Larissa, Greece, and a naval attaché Force Mirage 2000-5EBAs deployed there, to Greece and Israel supported respectively by their air forces’ Cdr Grimes summed up the importance C-130 and C-17 aircraft. The HAF’s own of the base: “NSA Souda Bay has a proud Embraer EMB-145 airborne early warning history and reputation of supporting forces platform from 380 Mira was also forwardoperating forward and serves as a model deployed to Souda from its Elefsis base (see Strategic Forward Operating Site (FOS) for Skywatcher, June 2013). the US Navy,” he told AIR International. “In The current Executive Officer of NSA the past year, NSA Souda Bay’s Souda Bay is Cdr Demetries Grimes. He’s port operations supported more 2 amassed over 2,000 flying hours and than 16,500 personnel, 134 ships 1 P-3C Orions are regularly deployed to NSA Souda Bay. Paul Farley/US Navy 2 A rare picture of the transient parking area of Souda taken in 1958 with a West German HU-16B and a US Navy Skyraider parked together. via Kirk Paloulian 3 The USS Harry S Truman carrier deck while it was moored at Souda Bay during a port visit in December 2010. Kirk Paloulian 3

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and 210 combined NATO and US missions; furthermore they processed over 525 tons of cargo and 40 million dollars’ worth of critical repair parts. Also in the past year, NSA Souda Bay’s air operations processed over 2,500 tons of cargo and 5.5 million gallons of fuel and supported over 17,000 passengers and 3,800 aircraft operations including air-to-air refuelling, full-time support to US squadrons and over 100 NATO missions “Our ability to provide full-spectrum support to Department of Defense, NATO and Coalition assets with minimal manning and footprint make NSA Souda Bay the ideal forward operating site structure supporting strategic missions around the globe.”

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