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Aviation History
2004
2004-09 - 0022.PDF
IN BRIEF WATCHKEEPER BIDS Northrop Grumman and Thales will deliver final bids for the UK's £800 million ($1.5 billion) Watchkeeper unmanned air vehicle requirement on 18 March. The winner will deliver services from 2006, following a selection later this year. VIP REQUIREMENT South Korea is expected to issue a delayed request for proposals for three new VH-X presidential and VIP transport helicopters in late March or early April. Seoul has allocated $9 million in its 2004 budget to launch the esti mated $100 million project, and should announce a supplier before year-end. Deliveries of the AgustaWestland EM 01, Kazan Mi-17 or Sikorsky S-92 will begin in late 2006. TRANSPORT GAP Australia will be unable to acquire a heavy airlift capability for some years, says defence minister Robert Hill. The require ment is unlikely to be funded before 2015 under the Australian Defence Force's revised long- term capability plan. In the meantime, Hill says Australia will use leased Antonovs or US Air Force transports if its M1A1 main battle tanks need to be deployed by air. LAST HAWKEYE The French navy has deployed its third and last Northrop Grumman E-2C Hawkeye airborne early- warning and control system aboard the aircraft carrier Charles cite Gaulle for the French- UK naval Exercise "Agapanthe '04". The navy will upgrade its first two E-2Cs to the same Hawkeye 2000 configuration by 2006, but says a fourth aircraft "is no longer on the cards". NACELLE DEAL GKN Aerospace of the UK has been selected to supply the inte grated propulsion system for Lockheed Martin's P-3 Orion- based submission for the US Navy's Multi-mission Maritime Aircraft requirement. The agree ment covers the manufacture, certification and supply of nacelle systems, plus engine integration and associated services. DEFENCE ACQUISITION CRAIG HOYLE / LONDON & BRENDAN SOBIE / SINGAPORE Singapore to open delayed contest for new basic trainer Formal request for proposals to be released later this year but selection may take years Singapore is considering opening a competition later this year for a new basic trainer, but a selection may not occur for several years because of budget constraints and the need to also select a new advanced jet trainer (AJT). Several manufacturers, including Korea Aerospace Industries, Pilatus and Raytheon responded to a request for information for the basic trainer requirement in 2002. Singapore air force officials told the manufacturers at last month's Asian Aerospace 2004 air show that the programme has been delayed, but would not say for how long. However, the service indicated at a recent military training confer ence that it aims to release a formal request for proposals this year and is considering several acquisition options, including lease and pri vate finance initiative agreements. These would allow Singapore to get around a budget crunch which is believed to be blocking a straight purchase in the near term. Industry sources say a selection could be made as early as next year, but that Singapore can afford to delay the programme by another year or two, given that the Aermacchi S211s scheduled "for replacement are undergoing a ser vice life-extension programme. Air force chief Lim Kim Choon says the upgrade programme will extend operations of the aircraft until the second half of this decade and "allow the S211s to continue meeting our needs while we review and study training requirements". The air force operates its fleet of almost 30 S211 jets from Pearce AFB in Australia under a contrac tor-run service managed by BAE Systems Australia. Singapore is understood to favour a high-end turboprop for the replacement. It also has a future requirement to acquire a new AJT to replace its fleet of almost 20 McDonnell Douglas TA-4SU Skyhawks, which operate from Cazaux air force base in France. "The A-4 is good as an AJT, but it is old and expensive to operate," says Maj Kum Wah Leong from the air force's flying training branch. "We are looking for an AJT with an advanced cockpit, modern avion ics, reasonable performance and low operating costs," he told IQPC's Military Flight Training conference in London late last month. He says, however: "We don't need 9g and supersonic performance." Manufacturers believe Singapore will start evaluating AJT designs after concluding its next-genera tion fighter competition next year. The new fighter will replace its fleet of A-4 strike aircraft. Singapore also has a requirement for a new light helicopter type to replace its Eurocopter AS550 Fennec trainers. MUNITIONS STEPHEN TRIMBLE / WASHINGTON DC Viper set to strike with US Army's Hunter UAVs Northrop Grumman's Viper Strike munition is close to making its operational debut in Iraq with the US Army's newly weaponised RQ-5 Hunter unmanned air vehicle. The precision-guided weapon has also gained a foothold in the US Special Operations Command, as a poten tial new system for the Lockheed Martin AC-130 Hercules gunship. Army deputy chief of staff Lt Gen Richard Cody is expected to approve an order authorising the deployment of 33 Viper Strike munitions to equip two Hunter UAVs, says Northrop Grumman Viper Strike director John Miller. The pending deployment comes about one year after Northrop Grumman first began testing its derivative of the company's Brilliant Anti-Tank submunition. The com pany replaced the weapon's acoustic and infrared sensors with a laser seeker. The 1.8kg (41b) warhead is Two US Army RQ-5 Hunters are expected to be equipped with Viper Strikes intended to be lethal against soft targets, such as trucks and individ ual rooms in buildings, but reduce the risk of collateral damage. Special Operations has named Viper Strike as its top candidate for an advanced concept technology demonstration, and hopes that the weapon will allow the AC-130 to destroy small targets from altitude. The gunships are now required to drop below 10,000ft (3,050m) to attack targets. Northrop Grumman is, mean while, adding a global positioning system receiver and reducing the Viper Strike's size from 20kg to about 11.3kg for integration with smaller UAVs such as AAI's RQ-7 Shadow, says Miller. 20 16-22 MARCH 2004 FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL www.fliqhtinternational.com
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