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Aviation History
1993
1993 - 1479.PDF
DEFENCE Tornado package includes TIALD BY DOUGLAS BARRIE The Royal Air Force will include the GEC Marconi Avionics (GMAv) thermal- imaging airborne laser-designa tor (TIALD) pods as part of its Tornado GR.l to GR.4 mid-life update (MLU). Over 100 TIALD pods, worth some £150 million, will be bought as part of the MLU, if it goes ahead. The package is one of several now under re view by the Ministry of De fence. A decision on the MLU is expected by July. The first of three MLU Panavia Tornado development aircraft started test flights on 29 May from British Aero space's Warton site in north west England. Wiring for the TIALD was included in the original MLU specification, although not the actual pod. Experience during the Gulf War led to the deci sion to include the system in the MLU. The MLU programme is at least 18 months behind sched ule — a GR.4 development The first Tornado GR.4 de\elopment aircraft gets airborne aircraft was intended to fly in late 1991. The delay is due to technical problems and doubts over the programme's future. According to sources close to the programme, Panavia is now working on a revised MLU package, with a target budget of around £700 million. The original MLU package was costed at well over £1 billion. Aircraft and equipment are being cut from the programme, to reduce costs. One source suggests that a 114-aircraft package is being examined, but without the terrain-referenced Further F-18s for Kuwait likely McDonnell Douglas (MDC) expects Kuwait to buy another 40 F-18C/D, in blocks of ten or 20, according to George Hibbard, McDonnell Douglas Aerospace director of international marketing. The sale could start in 1994. Kuwait is scheduled to re ceive the last of its initial batch of 40 F-18C/Ds in Sep tember. The company has al ready provided pricing data for a second purchase. MDC is also looking to Is rael to provide another market in the region for the F-18. Israel has a requirement for 40-50 night-attack aircraft and plans to select either the Lock heed F-16 or the two-seat F-18D in October. Hibbard acknowledges the F-18's disadvantage against the F-16, which Israel already op erates, but says that the Israeli air force is impressed by the D-model's integrated night- attack capability. The company has also sub mitted a bid to Malaysia to supply 18 F-18Ds. Hibbard says that a decision could come this month. MDC has promised early delivery. MDC is under contract to supply 64 F-18C/Ds to Fin land. It also expects Swit zerland's planned purchase of 34 F-18C/Ds to move ahead swiftly, now a national referendum has supported the Government's plan to moder nise its fighter fleet. Hibbard says that produc tion of F-18s for the US Navy is planned to shift from the C/D model to the extended- range E/F in 1997-8, but the C/D will continue to be availa ble. The E/F design is driven by carrier-range requirements and all F-18 export customers are air forces. • navigation (TRN) system. The GMAv TRN was in tended to provide the GR.4 with covert low-level ingress and egress, removing depend ence on the Texas Instruments terrain-following radar. While officials close to the project say that the TRN is almost certain to be removed from the package, the associ ated covert radar altimeter will still be included. Despite its likely removal from the final TRN package, the system is still scheduled to be tested on the GR.4 develop ment aircraft. The MLU has come under close scrutiny from the UK Treasury, which is trying to reduce defence expenditure. • French tanker work Boeing has started work at its Wichita site on the first KC-135FR wing-mounted hose-and-drogue refuelling-pod modification, worth $41 mil lion, for the French air force. The work is expected to be completed in September, with ground tests following immedi ately. Flight testing is due to be finished by January 1994, with delivery in February. Installa tions on the remaining ten KC-135FRs will be handled by Air France. The modification will enable the air force to refuel two probe-equipped fighters at the same time, while maintaining the ability to refuel airborne warning-and-control aircrafts via the tanker's centreline boom, on the same mission. • Hughes FAADS radar delivered to US Army Hughes Aircraft has deliv ered the first production- configured AN/MPQ-64 ground based sensor radar to the US Army at Fort Bliss, Texas. It will form part of the army's Forward Area Air Defense Sys tem (FAADS). The radar, previously known as the TPQ-36A, will be used for training. It will allow for an early start of the Army's test programme, leading to low- rate and full-scale production. Around 154 radars, worth up to $460 million to Hughes, could eventually be produced. The radars will alert and cue the Avenger, Bradley Stinger Fighting vehicle or Man Porta ble Air Defense System to hos tile and unknown aircraft. It will also be used for other air-surveillance duties. • NEWS IN BRIEF AUSTRALIAN DEAL Boeing Helicopter has won a $67 million contract from the Australian defence min istry to modify an additional 11 CH-47C Chinooks to the standard US Army CH-47D configuration. Contract value does not include Gov ernment-furnished equip ment, such as engines and avionics. The rebuild will begin early in 1994, with deliveries to be completed in November 1995. MILSTAR CONTRACT Rockwell International has been awarded a $111 million contract to produce 24 com mand-post terminals and 65% of the spares for the US Air Force's Milstar commu nications-satellite pro gramme. This award brings the total value of Rockwell's Milstar extremely-high-fre quency work to over $500 million. In November 1992, the company won a US Army contract to develop Milstar medium data-rate tactical terminals. 32 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 16 - 22 June, 1993
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