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Aviation History
1973
1973 - 0098.PDF
Australia would not have to buy the aircraft. The Air Force believes that it would eventually be forced to make a political choice and acquire the F.l while it would clearly prefer more freedom to examine other contenders in the market. • Mr Barnard has indicated that the Government still has its options open on the F-lll, deliveries of which are due to start in June. He said at a press conference: "During the campaign I said it appeared ... we will have to accept it. But it would not be possible for me before the second ministry was sworn in to devote my attention to this particular matter." Crotale inquiry? A Lebanese parliamentary com mittee has asked the Government to open an inquiry into the Crotale mis sile deal between the Lebanon and Thomson-CSF/Matra of France, and has charged former officials connected with the deal of irregularities. The sale was worth about £5-5 million and was concluded in 1968, but was later cancelled after complaints that the French company was not meeting its commitments. A friendly settlement was reached last year under which the Lebanon was to pay nearly £800,000 in cancellation charges. The committee's report says that the contract was concluded while Gen Emile Bustani was Lebanese Com mander-in-Chief and had not been referred to the offices concerned at the Defence Ministry. Under the con tract the Lebanon was to pay £900,000 for each missile battery with Gen Bustani's approval, although a com- Unusual sight—12 Etendards and four Cru saders of the French Navy fly over the French aircraft carrier "Foch" at the end of man oeuvres last month in the Mediterranean FLIGHT International, 11 January 1973 pany representative is reported later to have told a Lebanese officer that a battery in fact only cost £500,000. The report says that the Govern ment should start an investigation under the law on the illegal origin of wealth. The committee asks whether the Crotale deal was concluded to supply the army with weapons or for material benefit. Gen Bustani concluded the deal, alleges the report, although there was no allocation for it, and burdened the Treasury with payment of the full price although the law provided for only a quarter of the price to be paid. The committee also criticises last year's settlement and says that the Government should have taken legal action in view of the company's failure to meet its commitments. • The Lebanese Government has re leased a complete list of its new arms purchases, partly as a reply to criti cism. In 1971 a five-year defence plan was announced with a budget of £30 million, since when more than half of that amount has been spent on Soviet- made artillery, American-made rifles, Agusta-built helicopters and Alouettes, and French AMX-13 tanks. Critics have said that the weapons are outdated and some of them defec tive, but the Ministry of Defence has denied this, saying that Lebanon's policy was one of defence, not offence, and that the weapons had been chosen accordingly. Syria loses another MiG-21 A battle developed on January 2 between Israeli aircraft on patrol and Syrian intercepters, and one of the Syrian MiG-21s was seen to crash into a mountainside near the winter ski resort of Faraya, inside Lebanese territory. A Lebanese Defence Ministry communique confirmed this loss and reported that a second, unidentified, aircraft crashed into the sea off the north Lebanese coast. Helicopters of the Lebanese Air Force picked up two pilots who had bailed out over the mountains, which prompted speculation that two MiGs . •>*- '..... • ':..Z~*.r* • Two CFSs from 434 Tactical Sqn, Canadian Armed Forces, Cold Lake, Alberta, refuel from one of two tanker-converted Boeing 707s of 437 Transport Sqn, Trenton, Ontario. This is the first time that the CAF have had an aerial refuelling capability had been destroyed, but there was little evidence to support this. An Israeli spokesman said no losses had been suffered in the engagement, but Syria, while admitting one loss, claimed one in return, and there were reports that the aircraft which crashed in the sea was Israeli. • Seventy per cent of Syrian Govern ment income in 1973 is to be spent on defence, it has been announced. The allocation of £S800 million represents just less than a third of the total budget. Northrop to build more targets The Ventura division of Northrop has received a $5-5 million contract from the United States Naval Air Systems Command for a first produc tion run of 208 MQM-74C target drones. The MQM-74C is a new high- performance drone designed to simu late the attack run and evasive manoeuvres normally employed by fighter-bombers. It has a speed range of from 150kt to 500kt with a service ceiling in excess of 40,000ft. The new target differs from the earlier MQM- 74A in that it has a larger turbojet engine (Williams Research Corp WR-24), a new flight control system, larger wing, longer fuselage, increased fuel and payload capacity. Senior RAF appointments Air Chief Marshal Sir Lewis Hodges, Air Member for Personnel, is to be Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Allied Forces Central Europe, from May in succession to ACM Sir Frederick Rosier, who is retiring. Air Marshal Sir Harold Martin will become Air Member for Personnel, with Air
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