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Aviation History
1996
1996 - 2600.PDF
&BEFENl4S?B Hammer blows lAI's upgrade of the F-4 is satisfying its initial customer. ARIE EGOZI/TEL AVIV THE UNOFFICIAL DEBATE in the Israeli air force is whether the upgraded McDonnell Douglas F-4 2000 will still be in service in 2005 or in 2020. This debate stops at the gate of the Israeli F-4 2 000 squadron in central Israel. Squadron commander Lt Col "Y" can not hide his affection for the old fight er. "This aircraft has a soul," he says, and every one in the squadron who has anything to do with the "Kurnas", or sledgehammer, as the F-4 is called in Israeli service, agrees that, even inamodernair force, it can be used to deal some painful blows to the enemy. The F-4 2000 upgrade programme in Israeli service began in 1980 with a three-year defini tion phase. The planners had two main goals — to prolong and improve the operational capa bility of the fighter, and to simplify its mainte nance. "Over the years, many minor modi fications were performed, creating a maze of wiring that required acrobatic skills when a technician had to access certain parts," says Lt Col "D", head of the Israeli air force's aircraft- structure department. NEW HARNESSES When the first F-4 arrived at the special- upgrade hangar at the Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) main factory, the work order included the replacement of 300 wiring harnesses, the re placement of most of the hydraulic pipes, some structural improvements, mainly in the wings and landing gear, a re-arrangement of the cock pit and the installation of advanced avionics. The old harnesses were replaced with im proved wires and coated with Kepton fireproof insulation. Kepton is less flexible tlian standard wire insulation, and is unsuitable for the wiring in the landing-gear area. Standard wires have been used there. The new harnesses have been fitted with improved connectors which are less affected by electromagnetic interference. "When the first prototype was ready, we tested the new harnesses to try to locate any cross- interference between all the aircraft's electric switches and antennas. When some interfer ences were located, we changed die location of some antennas and improved their insulation," says Lt Col "D". Israeli air force F-4 2000: will it still be in service in 2020? The cockpit applications were the task of a special team of engineers and pilots. The work includes a wide-angle head-up display (HUD) in the front cockpit and multi-functional dis plays (MFDs) in the rear cockpit, to allow almost full hands-on-dirotde-and stick capabil ity. While die upgrade of die prototype contin ued, US avionics company Norden developed an advanced syndietic-aperture radar to replace die original APQ-120. Although Israel will not disclose any of the specific capabilities of the new APG-76 radar, Lt Col" Y" is ready to say that the Israeli air force is constandy updating the inertial system, so that "...when we have to release weapons, everything is more calibrated and zeroed. This radar has put us far beyond what we could do with any other system in the past." The radar is "combat-proven" and, during the recent "Grapes of Wrath" operation by the Israeli defence forces against Iranian-controlled guerillas in southern Lebanon, its capability was proved. "Every bomb was released in the heart One of the F-4 2000 prototypes was equipped with PW1120 engines, but budget problems killed the retrofit programme of the aircraft's envelope," claims Lt Col "Y". The radar display can be switched to the MFDs and the pilot can also switch the HUD image to one of the MFDs in the navigator's cockpit. "The radar and HUD give the aircraft an air-to- air capability similar to that of a Lockheed Martin F-16," says the squadron commander. SURGICAL STRIKES The laser-guided bombs are efficient in Lebanon, where "precision" raids are called for, in an effort to avoid civilians. The bombs, the laser designator and AIM-9L air-to-air missile constitute negligible cargo for the F-4. When the upgrade was planned, IAI offered to re-engine the F-4 by replacing the Pratt & WhitneyJ79 engine with the P&W 1120, then developed for the now-defunct Israeli Lavi fighter. One of the F-4 2000 prototypes was equipped first with one PW1120, and then with two, but budget problems killed the re-engine- ing idea. The pilots do not seem to regret this decision, despite the better thrust of the PW1120. "The J79 is a reliable engine and does the job," says technical officer, Major "M". The upgrade includes the installation of a video-tape recorder in the cockpit, connected to the HUDa and MFD, and recording them constandy. "This system improved my capabil ity as an F-4 pilot by no less than 15%. It is a good debriefing tool and it proves itself after every mission," says the squadron commander. Half of Israel's 90 original F-4Es have been replaced or modified. The added value, say the planners and operators, is far beyond originally envisioned and this, they believe, means that die F-4 2000 will be flying for years to come. • 52 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 25 September -1 October 1996
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