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Aviation History
2003
2003 - 0452.PDF
f!n\/pr <;tor\/ in development, such as the Aermacchi M346, EADS Mako and Korea Aerospace Industries/Lockheed Martin T-50 Golden Eagle. These aircraft have capabilities that the Hawk lacks, such as fly-by-wire, a super sonic top speed and low-observable charac teristics. Getting the new Hawk right for the export market is important and Hawk user group meetings have driven BAE's thinking, says Rowlands. The aircraft has been a significant earner for BAE over the past three decades and is the only aircraft in the company's portfolio that has export potential without the encumbrance of overseas partners. BAE predicts it can sell 400-500 new Hawks over the next 15 years (see panel, right). Training needs are changing, says Hawk test pilot Pete Wilson. Skills acquired during advanced training have shifted from flying ability to developing situational awareness - the skill to manage not only the cockpit, but to develop an understanding of what is happening in the rest of a formation and being able to manage a mission. New developments The Hawk 128 proposed to the RAF will be based on Australia's LIFT aircraft, combined with the Adour 951 selected for South Africa's Hawks. The new engine is digitally controlled, has a mean time between over hauls doubled to 4,000h and is rated at 6,5001b thrust. Since August last year, BAE has been flying the Hawk New Devel opment Aircraft (HNDA) from its Warton site in north-west England. Rowlands describes HNDA as the "34th LIFT" - the last aircraft in the batch built for Australia. This aircraft will shortly go to South Africa for a nine-month trial programme. Like the aircraft, the Adour is signifi cantly different from the engines delivered to the RAF in the 1970s. The Adour 951 is built in modules and incorporates single- crystal turbine blades and other refine ments. Thrust could be further increased, although this would require changes to the Hawk's wing, intakes and structure. Additional thrust would improve accelera tion and time to height, says Wilson. It has been decided that the next-gener ation Hawk will have an open-architecture avionics system, says Rowlands. Open architecture makes it easier to introduce new avionics and sensors, and simpler to upgrade existing equipment. The system becomes "plug and play", says Rowlands. The company has selected an architecture stores management computer from BAE Avionics at Brough in eastern England and has tested it against a rival system. BAE is also considering radar and weapons simulation systems, including carriage of a RAIDS pod, which allows the flight data, and performance against other SALES PROSPECTS What's the market? Advanced trainer manufacturers have divergent views of the market over the next 20-30 years. Those with new air craft in development tend to predict a need for between 2,000 and 3,200. BAE is less optimistic, restricting its outlook to 15 years and predicting a market of 1,500 aircraft, and suggest ing it can claim 400-500 sales. The latest customer is Bahrain, which signed a deal this month. BAE declines to reveal aircraft numbers, but the order is probably for six aircraft, although this could be doubled in the medium term. India is a near-term potential customer. Defence minister Georges Fernandes said in 2000 that the Hawk had been selected for a 66- aircraft deal, but negotiations have been slow. If the Hawk is successful, Hindustan Aeronautics will set up a production line to build 42 aircraft. Another 80 Hawks may be needed to fulfil the air force's needs. NATO Flying Training in Canada (NFTC) is a Hawk operator and addi tional NFTC customers could lead to orders. Canada may also replace the Snowbirds aerobatic team's Canadair CT-114 Tutors with up to 12 Hawks. Europe provides a range of poten tial customers, including Finland, the original export customer, which could require 24 aircraft from 2008. Although Finland's present aircraft have significant remaining airframe hours, a pending mid-life update of the air force's Boeing F/A-18 Hornets and other factors present BAE with an opportunity, says Rowlands. Also in Europe, Slovakia has a requirement for 10 advanced trainer/light strike aircraft. Any compe tition could hinge on the result of talks The UAE with the Czech Republic linked to joint could be air defence of the two countries. The a target Czech-built Aero VodochodyL-159 is for more likely to be the Hawk's principal com- Hawk petitor in Slovakia. sales Greece, Poland and Romania also have long-term trainer requirements. Any contest to replace Greece's Rockwell T-2 Buckeye trainers is likely to be delayed until after the 2004 Olympic Games and conclusion of a fighter deal, predicted as a 90-aircraft order for Eurofighter Typhoons. Greece's need is for 34 trainers. Poland has a long-running require ment for 20 aircraft. Its recent selection of the Lockheed Martin F-16C/D and tentative proposals to turn the Deblin aviation academy into an Eastern European equivalent of the NFTC mean its trainer require ment is pressing. Romania may acquire 12 trainers, and has been briefed on the Hawk, says Rowlands. Romania also harbours ambitions to operate an east European NFTC. In the Middle East, the United Arab Emirates continues to be a potential customer, while Egypt and Israel have long-running, but apparently stalled, trainer requirements. Abu Dhabi and Dubai separately ordered Hawk 60s in the 1980s while the former also has Hawk 100s. The pending arrival of F-16C/D Block 60s and the UAE's fail ure to continue with the EADS Mako programme augur well for BAE, but observers believe the UAE is likely to take some or all of Switzerland's 19 Hawk 60s, which are for sale. In Asia-Pacific, existing customer Malaysia needs an attrition purchase of perhaps 15 aircraft, while Thailand initiated a programme last year to replace three existing types with a sin gle aircraft, which would be used for light strike as well as advanced train ing. Other opportunities in the region are Brunei - which selected the Hawk, but never concluded a deal for eight to 12 aircraft - and the Philippines, which needs 16 aircraft. Elsewhere, Colombia seeks 12 advanced trainer/light attack aircraft, while Botswana requires 12 light attack aircraft. www.flightinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 25 FEBRUARY - 3 MARCH 2003 33
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