Siva Govindasamy: March 2009 Archives

If there really was any surprise, it was the fact that India took so long to cancel its request for proposals (RFP) for 22 attack helicopters to replace its Mil Mi-25s.

New Delhi issued a RFP for 2.5 tonne twin-engined helicopter with all-weather and terrain ability in May 2008. In October, Flight International broke the news that the Bell AH-1Z Cobra and Boeing AH-64D Apache (left) helicopters had been withdrawn, leaving the Eurocopter Tiger, AgustaWestland Mangusta and Mil Mi-28 in the contest.

Bell withdrew as the AH-1Z is available only through the US government's country-to-country Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism, while India wanted to deal directly with the company. Boeing pulled out saying that it had not had enough time to submit a proposal, even though India gave an eight-week extension that was sufficient for the other contenders.

Almost immediately, there was speculation that the competition could fall apart. Indian army officials were unhappy that they may not get the chance to assess two well-renowned attack helicopters, and Boeing and Bell put pressure on the defence ministry to modify its stance on procurements and allow them to return to the tender.

The speculation intensified at Aero India 2009 in Bangalore in February, with Eurocopter officials privately expressing their concerns about the tender's future, and those worries came true two weeks ago when the defence ministry cancelled the RFP. A MoD spokesman says that the three remaining contenders did not meet the requirements and that a fresh tender will be called shortly.

So we go back to square one, and a situation that is unfortunately all too familiar. India needs new aircraft to modernise its army's ageing aviation wing, but the cancellation of this RFP and a light utility helicopter tender in late 2007 means that the service has to keep making do with old equipment  while the bureaucrats get their act together.

New Delhi has to make its mind up and stick to it. If this tender was really cancelled due to "qualitative deficiencies", as the defence ministry put it, fine. But the perception remains that it caved in to internal and external pressure to include the US helicopters.

Consistently cancelling RFPs and calling for fresh tenders only makes life more difficult for its long-suffering servicemen, and burnishes India's image as a place with an extremely difficult business environment for foreign military contractors.

The team at Malaysian budget-carrier AirAsia have come up with a pretty good, and sometimes funny, video (see below) about their online competition to select a pilot.



They have also spelt out the criteria for potential applicants in a post on their corporate blog. It appears as though only Malaysian citizens will be able to apply. Nonetheless, this is still a unique method for attracting pilots to the airline, and there appears to be a bit of leeway in the way they will assess the applicants.

"There is a bit of leniency here where those with close to our requirements will also be seriously considered if they can prove that they want the job badly enough instead of getting cut from the get go. We're open to more cases and they get a shot at their dream which is unique where airline companies typically raise their judgements purely based on academic cut offs due to the immense response from their intakes," says Derek Tan, the airline's corporate blogger.

"We're trying to open doors to the hopefuls and get people excited that their dreams not done yet. That is the key message that everyone can fly. What we are looking for is definitely creatively in expressing how much you want to be a pilot as per our demo video, which we have uploaded. Through this, we're trying to get that message out that AirAsia's fun and friendly credo is extended also to pilots and we know why we want to be one."

Next week's Australian International Air Show 2009 will be the last chance for aviation enthusiasts to see the Royal Australian Air Force's General Dynamics F-111s and Caribous before they are retired.

In particular, F-111s are likely to perform the famous "dump and burn" routine. This involves the F-111 pilot dumping fuel while engaging the afterburner, resulting in a fiery tail (see video below of the performance at the 2000 Sydney Olympics). According to internet reports (which means that it has to be true!), this was probably first done due to pilot error. When the aircraft did not explode, and after reports from observers, the RAAF worked this into its air displays.



Also at the show for the last time will be the RAAF's de Havilland DHC-4 Caribou tactical light transport aircraft (see video below). These will be retired this year instead of by 2013 due to serviceability issues involving corrosion, fatigue, obsolescence and asbestos components. The Caribou has been in RAAF service since 1964. Five Beechcraft King Air 300s will be leased to replace the aircraft as they are progressively retired.



The Australian Defence Force's air power will be on full display next week, with over 50 aircraft from all three services present at the show. "The ADF's flying and ground displays at Avalon will aim to inspire the next generation of air crew and ground support teams.  Defence Force Recruiting will have a significant presence," says Australia's Chief of Air Force Air Marshal Mark Binskin.

Always wanted to be a pilot? Then start banging away on the keyboard, and your dream job may be waiting at AirAsia.

The Malaysian low-cost carrier is having an online "pilot idol", inviting aspiring pilots to post on its AirAsia corporate blog on why they should be invited to join the airline. Further details will be available on the blog later this week.

For now, we know that the candidates must include videos, photos, essays or a combination of those on their post. AirAsia will then pick 10 winners for the first round of its pilot intake in August, and subject them to further tests to see if they are eligible to continue with the course.

The airline's chief executive Tony Fernandes, writing on his personal blog, says that he has been inundated with questions on how to become a pilot and this is an opportunity for those who are keen to join the carrier.

Now, I wonder if AirAsia might have a similar contest to find flight stewardesses? That would be immensely popular on the internet. So Tony, if you ever decide to do that, can I be one of the judges please?

Who is waiting for the Australian defence white paper? Not Canberra itself, it seems.

The defence establishment down under is moving ahead of the release in April by making some key decisions. These include wiring half of the 24 Boeing F/A-18Fs Australia has ordered so that they can be converted into E/A-18G growlers in the future, and shelving further collaboration on the US Navy's Northrop Grumman RQ-4N Global Hawk-based (above) Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) programme.

All of this goes to show that things are still fluid in the Australian defence procurement plans. What else is left then?

We should hear more in the coming weeks about Australia's commitment to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter - with some speculating that Canberra could go for fewer fighters than originally planned - and Boeing P-8 Poseidon. The naval air wing's helicopter fleet should also come under closer scrutiny.

Watch this space as Avalon 2009, the Australian International Airshow, begins next week.