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Aviation History
1997
1997 - 2770.PDF
DEFENCE Turkey eyes Phalcon for AEW requirement THETU RKISH AIR force has evaluated the Elta Phalcon airborne-early-warning (AEW) aircraft, and has asked for detailed proposals for die purchase of up to four aircraft. The service has been briefed on the Phalcon and, according to some Israeli sources, it had a chance to evaluate its capabilities when Turkish specialists flew on the Chilean air force's Phalcon, which is based on a Boeing 707 air frame, equipped with the Elta radar and electronic-intelligence equipment. The Turkish ministry of defence has allocated $850 million for the purchase of four AEW aircraft. Boeing and Lockheed Martin are also competing for the Turkish AEW acquisition. The possible purchase of the Elta Phalcon system was discussed during talks between Lt Gen Amnon Lipkin Shachak, the Israeli Chief of Staff, and his Turkish counterpart during a visit to Turkey last week. J UK contracts out helicopter training IX WHAT IS THE FIRST major contract awarded under the UK Ministry of Defence's Private Finance Initiative, the Royal Air Force is to farm out air crew training for its fleet of medi um-support helicopters to CVS Aircrew Training, which is a con sortium of CAE Electronics of Canada and UK companies Vega and Serco. The contract is worth around £275 million ($458 million) over 20 years to CVS, representing a saving of 15% over what it could achieve, says die MoD. The RAF is aiming to cut costs by making more use of simulators for low-level and night-flying training. CVS will set up the training operation at RAF Benson in Oxfordshire and is scheduled to start training pilots for the RAF's Boeing Chinook, Eurocopter Puma and EH Industries EH 101 Merlin support-helicopter fleets in mid-1999. • Dutch begin IRIS-T F-16 trials ANDRZEJ JEZIORSKI/MUNICH THE ROYAL Netherlands Air Force has begun evaluation flight-testing an IRIS-T short- range high-agility air-to-air missile (AAM) seeker coupled with a hel met-mounted sight. The tests are part of an air force evaluation programme intended to lead to the procurement of a replacement for its AIM-9 Side winder dogfight AAMs as well as the purchase of a helmet-mounted sighting system for its Lockheed Martin F-16s. Bodenseewerk Geratetechnik (BGT) has lent the Dutch air force an infra-red-imaging seeker from the multi-national IRIS-T missile project, which it leads, to use in hel met-mounted sight tests for its updated F-16A/Bs. The Dutch air force has been earning out evaluations of various helmet-mounted sights for possi ble future procurement, at the same time as it is looking for a Sidewinder replacement. As well as the IRIS-T, the Hughes AIM-9X and the Matra BAe Dynamics Advanced Short- Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM) are also expected to be considered as candidate weapons for the upgrade. The Dutch air force had also asked Matra BAe if it could borrow an ASRAAM seeker, but none was available. Lockheed Martin has adapted the software aboard the F-16 to integrate the IRIS seeker, which BGT says demonstrates the planned international IRIS-T infra-red-homing missile's suit ability for this aircraft type. IRIS-T programme leader BGT says it has had "more than one signal" that the Netherlands may be interested in buying the IRIS-T, for which the seeker has been developed. It built three IRIS-T guidance sections during the now-complete missile definition phase. One of these has now been sent to the Netherlands. BGT says that it is expecting a German parliamentary go-ahead in November for the missile definition phase, after which the development memorandum of understanding should be signed by the end of the month. The com pany says that the other nine part ner countries should also give die parliamentary green light to devel opment at about the same time as Germanvdoes. • Congress bolsters US Army Chinook upgrade THE US CONGRESS has provided a fillip to the US Army's a ambitions to upgrade at least 300 ageing Boeing CH-47D Chinook transport helicopters, by providing additional funding for the project in its proposals for the 1998 budget. A planned $29 million request from the army for the Boeing CH-47 Improved Cargo Helicop ter (ICH) project in the fiscal year 1998 budget was reduced to $3 mil lion by the Department of Def ense, but Congress instead boosted the spending figure to $23 million. A fu rther $26 million isexpected to be requested for the project in FY99, and spending appears assured thereafter. An estimated $3 billion is needed to complete the upgrade. The US Army is expected to approve the engineering and manufacturing development (EMD) phase of the ICH pro gramme in November. Boeing anticipates having a contract for the EMD phase by March 1998. This stage continues to March 2003, when Boeing will deliver the first of the upgraded Chinooks. The procurement plan is to modify 26 helicopters a year until 2012. The CH-47ICH will be pow ered by AlliedSignal Engines T5 5- GA-714-714A engines, which offer 22% more power than the current-712s. Two CH-47Ds will be remanu- factured into the ICH configura tion during the EMD. The ICH is planned to stav in service until at least 2032. • K-8 goes on tour CHINA HAS BEEN promot ing its Nanchang K-8 Karak- orum jet trainer in Africa, with countries such as Eritrea and Zambia believed to be inter ested in the aircraft. A K-8 painted in China National Aero-Technology Import and Export Corporation colours, probably aircraft number 206, was seen at Nairobi airport in Kenya in early October. The K-8 is being developed in col laboration with Pakistan for both countries' air forces. 30 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 22 - 28 October 1997
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