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Aviation History
1960
1960 - 0438.PDF
438 FLIGHT, 1 April I "The then CAS, Sir John McAuley, liked the F-104 . . ." THE SERVICE KNOWS WHAT IT WANTS, BUT POLITICS STILL OBSCURE THE ISSUE By Stanley Brogden What Will the RAAF Buy? Melbourne, March 18ARECURRENT subject for Australian newspaper editorials and questions in Parliament is what type of fighter the• RAAF will select as a replacement for the Avon-Sabre. This is rapidly developing into a political issue, for while thedecision has been postponed again and again for the past six years, the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation is almost literally starvingto death for an order. In 1955 the RAAF Mission, led by AVM A. M. Murdoch (nowAustralian Defence Representative in Lopdon), had four recom- mendations to make on its return from the USA and England:The F-104 was the fighter which most fitted RAAF specifications; the Vampire Trainer was the most suitable advanced trainingaircraft; the Viscount was the best VIP transport; and the C-130 Hercules was the right heavy transport. Sadly, the Viscount was not at that time readily available, andwhen the then USAF Chief of Staff personally offered Sir Donald Hardman ("on loan" from the RAF as RAAF Chief of Staff) twoConvair 440s right off the line out of the USAF order, they had to be accepted. The RAAF has always regretted this, for it con-sidered Viscounts the best and would still like them. However, the Prime Minister, Governor-General and Royalty fly aroundAustralia in an American piston-engined aircraft; and if Britain did not consider this important enough to give the RAAF priority,as the USAF did, the Australians can hardly be blamed. The C-130 had no rival and 12 are in service, with another sixto be ordered—if and when money becomes available. The Vampire Trainer was quickly put into production and 62 are wellon their way from de Havilland at Bankstown, near Sydney. The fighter issue has still to be settled. There was no Britishfighter design the RAAF liked. The then CAS, Sir John McAuley, liked the F-104, and but for his retirement an order might wellhave been forced through. Air Marshal Sir Frederick Scherger has never been an F-104 man, and he was proved right by theindifferent record of the first marks, which lacked the flexibility the RAAF required. However, the much improved F-104G, whichhas captured most of Western Europe, has impressed the RAAF. A mission headed by the Director of Operations, Gp Capt W. E.Townsend, looked over the British and American industries early last year, but no definite results followed. The mission had in factto report on a missile (Bloodhound was quickly ordered), a fighter, a light transport, and a primary jet trainer, as well as a long-rangeASW type. Regarding the last-named, the report merely con- firmed what the RAAF staff already believed: that the NeptuneP2V-7 was still good enough to buy, and a squadron (No 10) is being re-equipped with it, replacing the long-nose Lincolns. The light-transport specification is pretty well identical withthat of the Herald, the advantage of the Handley Page aircraft over the Friendship being its ability to fly Darwin - Butterworth non- The Mirage NIC—"between the F-104G and the Mirage IIIC the RAAF feels there is little to choose ..." stop with full load. The RAAF needs 14 of them; but if theHerald is not soon available the Friendship must be ordered. The primary trainer question is still open. The RAAF has beenevaluating the Jet Provost for some months at Point Cook, with excellent results; but militating against this aeroplane, it is felt, areits appearance and its rather limited role. The RAAF has had some very close looks at the Macchi 326, which is attractive to theeye and is capable of taking the student right to the point at which he can climb into the two-seat version of the operational fighter.It is also very easy to make, and Commonwealth Aircraft Corpora- tion could meet the production order for 100 easily. The thirdcandidate is the Canadair CL-41, which has the advantages of the Macchi but is relatively expensive and more difficult to "Further attractions for the RAAF are that it is cheap, easy to construct and can be used in several roles"—the N-I56F produce. Its advantages include the fact that it would be a very good ground-attack aircraft in bush warfare. Canadair have a representative in Australia (J. H. O'Hara), whois pushing the trainer with the idea of buying out CAC as a subsidiary of Canadair (and hence of General Dynamics); it isknown that this US giant wants a leg in the South Pacific - South East Asian area. Canadair have had several high-level discussionswith CAC about purchase of the firm as a going concern. Such a deal would raise deep political issues. The new leaderof the Opposition (Arthur Calwell) is making a sustained attack on the Government. Defence is a key issue; so is the increasedparticipation of powerful overseas concerns in the Australian economy. The sale of a non-profit-making concern like CAC toAmerica would have considerable repercussions. Nevertheless, CAC is coming to the end of the Avon-Sabre order with nothingin sight to replace it. Skilled personnel have been leaving the firm for several years. The situation is bad and it has been the subjectof many attacks on the Government. Another stage has now been reached, In June another mission,led by the officer who will almost certainly succeed Sir Frederick Scherger as CAS next year, AVM V. E. Hancock, will go toAmerica and Europe. The Defence Minister, Athol Townley, has announced that this mission will test-fly and otherwise evaluatethree fighter types—the F-104G, Northrop N-156F and Mirage IIIC. The flying will probably be done largely by the finesttechnical test pilot the RAAF has, Gp Capt D. R. Cuming. But the issue will not be decided on pure operational merits.Other questions will be asked: What will be the comparative (Concluded on page 440)
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