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Aviation History
1991
1991 - 0467.PDF
TECHNICAL: DEFENCE P-3 to replaced by P-3 if Lockheed talks succeed with US Navy the conclusions of the Govern ment's "Options For Change" defence study have forced reductions of over a third in the projected fleet. The RAF has already flown in the ATL.2, although the issue of two versus four engines, re mains a considerable discussion point. A study is now being undertaken For the MoD to ex amine whether a twin-engined aircraft is acceptable. The MoD also has two clear options for the aircraft's mission systems suite. It could either decide on an off-the-shelf buy of Boeing's Update IV system, now in development, or purchase a UK-sourced system. The Boeing development has suffered from technical prob lems which have considerably delayed the programme. A UK- developed system, from GEC, is likely to be based on an archi tecture akin to its bid for Spain's P-3 upgrade programme, although the outcome of this is not yet known. • Merlin sonar bids: MoD selects two The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD)has ruled out three of the five competitors for the dipping sonar to be used by the Royal Navy's Agusta/Westland EH101 Merlin. A final decision is expected by June. Officials close to the Merlin programme say that the two remaining contenders are Ples- sey with an upgraded version of its Cormorant system, and the Ferranti/Thomson-Sintra joint venture offering Flash. The three other teams origi nally competing for the dipping sonar contract were GEC Avion ics and Sanders; British Aero space and Bendix; and Dowty and Martin Marietta. The two teams bidding for the prime contractorship for Merlin, IBM with Westland and GEC and British Aerospace will submit proposals to the MoD on 26 February. A decision on the prime con tractor for Merlin is due by July. Any slippage beyond this date could delay Merlin's entry into service. • RAF ICCS handover in 1992 The development of the UK's air-defence system will reach a key milestone early next year with the technical transfer of the long delayed improved UK air-defence ground environ ment/integrated command and control system (IUKADGE/ ICCS). There is growing confidence at the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) that five years of prob lems with the stability and data integrity of the computer-driven system have been resolved. The ICCS consists of a num ber of networked sites which should be capable of data- sharing. In the past attempts to link sector operating centres to parts of the network have failed. Tests have already been car ried out successfully, integrat ing multiple sites, with the operating centres linked to command reporting posts. A full system test, linking all four centres and the rest of the network, will be attempted later this year. The IUKADGE/ICCS will pro vide the Royal Air Force with an integrated network of transport able radars and fixed command and control centres. Previously officials close to the programme had expressed doubt as to whether the devel opment, being undertaken by UKSL (a consortium of Hughes, Marconi and Plessey), would fully meet the original staff re quirement, SR(Air)888. The MoD now believes that the system will meet the re quirement in full. RAF Strike Command is putting together a transition and work-up plan, although reaching full opera tional capability will take a con siderable time. Even if technical transfer of the system does take place early in 1992, however, one key com munications area has yet to be resolved. The ICCS will initially "use the Link 1, Link 11 and IJMS messaging standards. It is? also to be equipped with the joint tactical information distribution system (JTIDS), but how this will be achieved is still to be determined. • Boeing E-3 gets Have Quick The US Air Force has carried out successful production testing of the Have Quick A-Nets secure communications system for its Boeing E-3 Sentry aircraft. The ultra-high frequency jam- resistant system programme, launched in 1984, is intended to provide the E-3 with a system compatible with other Have Quick-equipped aircraft. The E-3's requirement for multiple communications net works, and its own communica tions configuration, along with the cluttered frequency emana tions from the aircraft's sub systems, meant a specific devel opment of the Have Quick sys tem was necessary. • NEWS IN BRIEF STEALTH SOFTWARE UK company Dowty has signed a service agreement with Lockheed, giving Dowty access to the US company's ECHO and related radar cross-section (RCS) analytical software programmes. These calculate the RCS of weapon platforms and fixed installa tions and are used in devel oping low observable, or stealth, technologies. CASS AWARD Martin Marietta has been awarded a $43.8 million con tract to begin production of the Consolidated Automated Support System (CASS) avi onics test equipment for the US Navy. The contract was awarded by CASS prime con tractor General Electric. ROCKWELL WINS US ARMY CONTRACT Rockwell has been awarded a contract by the US Army Missile Command to study millimetre-wave radar for command guidance on the Advanced Kinetic Energy Missile (ADKEM). The six- month, $102,000 programme will develop a system ap proach to meet operational requirements of the ADKEM system. FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 27 February - 5 March, 1991 17
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