FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1969
1969 - 2503.PDF
FLIGHT International, 24 July 1969 ARMY AVIATION'S NEW ROLE u.t. pilots are on each course, and till now a new course has been coming in every five weeks: this frequency will decrease to eight weeks with the new type course starting next month. At any one time, there are six courses going on at the centre. Initial flying training is handled by 11 Chipmunk instructors and 11 basic rotary-wing instructors, all of whom are ex-Central Flying School. One reason why the Army is to continue with Chipmunks for ab initio training at Middle Wallop is economic: fixed-wing flying instruction is cheaper than rotary-wing. But the number of hours done on Chipmunks is being cut by a third under the new syllabus, going down from 60hr to 40hr. The Army is likely to keep these trainers in service for another ten years. By the time a new pilot leaves the Army Aviation Centre (where failure rate on the course is said to be 30 per cent) he will have done between 240hr and 280hr flying. He is then posted to a flight and flies Sioux or Scout helicopters on operations for three years. After this flying tour, he returns to regimental duty. Such a return to soldiering again emphasises that, in the Army's view, an Army pilot is a soldier rather than an airman; his flying is a part of his military role whether he is an infantryman, artilleryman, sapper, engineer or RASC. Over the past six or seven years, the Army has changed its mind over the allocation of its aircraft. In the 1962-63 period the idea was to attach helicopters to individual units. This was at the time when, side by side with this idea, the Army was making a choice of type. Choice lay between two two-seaters, the Brantly and the Hughes, and two three-seaters, the Hiller 12E and Bell 47G-3B1. In the event, the last-named was chosen. Disposi tion of these aircraft was known as the integration scheme, and it inaugurated an era in which the light helicopter became normal Army unit equipment. This philosophy followed the realisation that it was impossible to expand the Army Air Corps itself. However, it has been felt subsequently that this scheme of one aircraft per unit lacked flexibility and it is now being replaced by another idea, the establishment of larger units at corps, divisional and brigade level, with flights made up of six Sioux and four Scouts. The roles of these aircraft at present are versatile: for 147 example, they include observation and reconnaissance, fire support, the direction of ground attack aircraft, commando and tactical control and transport of supplies. The new role envisaged for the armed Scouts in Germany is in addition to the roles they already undertake. There will be about 30 of these armed Scouts in BAOR, carrying SS.ll anti-tank missiles, and known as ATTGW (anti-tank guided weapon) helicopters. If not armed with missiles, these will carry some offensive armament, as already mentioned, like cannons or rockets and can be used for attacks on tanks or transport vehicles. Because of the amount of dispersal inevitable in the event of nuclear warfare, forces in Germany have to be widely dispersed and the guided missile is the key to operations in response to an enemy thrust. Writing on NATO strategy in the article already mentioned, Maj-Gen King says that with the wide frontages and amount of movement involved, the NATO concept (of a weak mobile screen to impose maximum delay on enemy forces crossing the border) must accept numerous penetrations by day and by night. It was therefore self-evident that such penetrations would be a rule rather than an exception and it followed that a vital aim of battle tactics must be to deal quickly with groups of enemy APC (armed personnel carriers) and tanks. Thus the British Army's air arm has been written into NATO strategy through the change of emphasis in British defence policy from the Far and Middle Uast to Europe. The implications of this, equipment of Army aviation with armed helicopters, means that Army aviation has come a long way since the day in 1957 when the Army Air Corps was formed to operate unarmed aircraft in specific support of its own operations. At Middle Wallop, where next Saturday's Army Air Day is taking place and where all training and tactical development is carried out, the new role of Army aviation is being worked out in practical terms. A pre-Air Day description defines this role as: "to help ground units and formations to carry out their normal tactical roles more effectively. The primary light aircraft tasks are local reconnaissances of all types, directing artillery fire, assisting command and control in battle by air movement of commanders and staff, lifting small specialist parties, and minor forms of logistic support including casualty evacuation." This definition is a modest one. In their NATO environment, Army aircraft are likely to play a more important part than they have ever played before. Engine servicing on Beaver XV272 whilst IjCpl B. L. Munor checks the tail rotor drive assembly of Scout XP890: a typical REME servicing scene at Middle Wallop iiiiJiinV
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
