Army Aviation

[buglerbilly]

Air force struggling to get chopper squad off the ground

By David Pugliese, Postmedia News August 6, 2011


A military search and rescue helicopter from CFB Greenwood in Nova Scotia prepares for takeoff from the J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport in Sydney, N.S., Friday August 6, 2010, to assist in the search for a twin-engine airplane which disappeared from radar over Lingan Bay about 15 kilometres northeast of Sydney at about 11:30 p.m., Thursday. Officials from the search and rescue centre in Halifax said no signs of the plane or two men onboard were found Friday.
Photograph by: Sharon Montgomery-Dupe, Cape Breton Post

The air force is scrambling to find the personnel to staff a new helicopter squadron of more than 480 people at Canadian Forces Base Petawawa.

The military hopes to come up with a plan by the fall that would “identify necessary divestment to source the required positions” needed for the squadron, according to November 2010 briefing documents obtained by the Ottawa Citizen under the Access to Information law.

The documents note that 482 personnel are needed for the squadron that will operate new Chinook helicopters. That capability is supposed to be up and running by 2014, so the first personnel should start being assigned to the Petawawa, Ont., squadron starting some time next year, according to the briefing.

But those records also chronicle the ongoing problems the air force is having in finding enough personnel. At one point, military planners suggested boosting the overall size of the air force to take into account the need to create the squadron.

However, air force senior staff later point out that the decision has been made that no new regular force personnel would be added for the new squadron. The needed people, described in public service parlance as PYs, or person years, would have to come from other organizations or units throughout the air force that could be scaled back or shut down.

“All PY sourced from offsets,” one document noted.

It is unclear exactly how the air force will staff the new squadron as it did not provide comment to the Citizen on the issue.

But the documents noted that one recommendation was that personnel who had been earmarked to be involved with a new unit to operate unmanned aerial vehicles be used for the helicopter squadron.

In 2007, the air force also looked at shutting down several squadrons operating Griffon helicopters and using those personnel for the new Chinook squadron.

In a January 2010 briefing, military planners also recommended that the initial cadre for the Petawawa squadron be made up of Griffon aircrews that have experience on Chinooks.

According to planning documents, the size of the Chinook squadron will be slowly ramped up with 118 personnel assigned in 2012, 185 coming in 2013 and 65 arriving in Petawawa in 2014. By 2016, the unit will have its full complement of 482, according to the documents.

Petawawa Mayor Bob Sweet said the creation of the squadron is big boost for the town. “It’s a small industry that is coming to town if you think about it,” he said.

Sweet said two new schools are being built in the area, one costing $30 million, and the other, $10 million. That is being driven by the need to serve military families, he added.

The building of facilities for the new helicopter squadron is also playing a key role in the ongoing expansion at CFB Petawawa.

In December, politicians and senior military personnel attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the new hangar at the base, which will house the CH-147 Chinook helicopters. Fifteen Chinooks will be located at the installation.

EllisDon Corporation of Ottawa was awarded the contract for the hangar, valued at a little more than $134 million.

The 50,000-square-metre hangar will consist of five main areas, including maintenance bays and training schools for crews, as well as a warehouse and command suite.

Construction is expected to be completed by the summer of 2013, according to the Defence Department.

To prepare for the arrival of the helicopters, the base also will need a new ramp, a refuelling facility, and a fenced-in parking area.

The first Chinook is expected to arrive in the summer of 2013.

Originally, CFB Edmonton, CFB Bagotville, and CFB Petawawa were in the running as the operating location for the new helicopters.

But Chief of the Defence Staff Walter Natynczyk pointed out that Petawawa was chosen because it provides the best support to army and special operations forces, many of which are co-located there, while minimizing the associated infrastructure costs for the new fleet. The Chinooks will maintain a high-readiness posture for rapid deployment, military officers have said.

Ottawa Citizen

© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

Read more: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/force+struggling+chopper+squad+ground/5217437/story.html#ixzz1UP5Ngqb1

[buglerbilly]

AUGUST 8, 2011.

Military Aims to Reduce Helicopter Vulnerability to Low-Tech Weapons

By NATHAN HODGE

The downing of a U.S. military helicopter by Afghan insurgents underscores an urgent problem for the U.S. military: Finding ways to make low-flying helicopters less vulnerable to attack.

The U.S. military hasn't confirmed the exact cause of the crash of an Army Chinook helicopter on Saturday that claimed the lives of 38 coalition troops, including at least 20 members of the Navy SEALs. But Afghan officials said the aircraft was brought down by a lone militant firing a rocket-propelled grenade.

U.S. military aircraft are equipped with defenses that can fool guidance systems of sophisticated missiles, such as the Stingers left over from the campaign to force the Soviets out of Afghanistan in the 1980s. The Army has equipped some Chinooks with a high-tech jammer that uses a laser to confuse a missile. U.S. military helicopters also carry defensive systems that can launch flares to confuse heat-seeking missiles.

But military pilots and defense experts say one of the bigger threats to helicopters in Afghanistan isn't such high-tech, surface-to-air weapons. It is a more basic threat: concentrated small-arms fire or unguided, rocket-propelled grenades. While heat-seeking missiles can be fooled by sophisticated countermeasures, there is little a pilot can do to counter a bullet except avoid it.

Rex Rivolo, a former Pentagon defense analyst and aviator, said helicopters are "inherently very vulnerable"—especially in takeoff and landing.

"The only thing a pilot has is the ability to aggressively maneuver the aircraft once the fire is detected," he said.

With that in mind, the military is focusing some of its research dollars on gunfire detection.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency launched a pilot effort to help reduce the vulnerability of helicopters in Afghanistan to small-arms fire. Last year, the agency installed an experimental system on a Black Hawk helicopter, called HALTT, for Helicopter Alert and Threat Termination. By detecting the distinct "crack" of a bullet as it passes through the air, the system warns the pilot of the direction and origin of the attack—and gives a fix on the shooter's position.

In testimony earlier this year, Regina Dugan, the head of the agency, said four HALTT systems had been sent to Afghanistan, with additional systems to be deployed next year. Eric Mazzacone, a spokesman for the agency, provided no additional comment, saying the evaluation of the system's effectiveness was "ongoing."

The Army is also investing in ways to sense and avoid gunfire. Last year, the service said it was in the market for a "hostile fire detection system" that would give air crews a better chance at spotting enemy gunfire. According to a 2010 Army news item, the system, which hasn't been fielded, might combine information from ultraviolet and acoustic sensors to spot gunfire.

In parallel, the Army is investing in a new laser jammer that is lighter and more effective than current models and that can be installed on a wide range of aircraft.

Darrell Quarles, an Army product manager, said the service planned to award two development contracts in January for something called the Common Infrared Countermeasure, or CIRCM, an improved, lighter-weight version of a defensive system that has already been fielded.

The first Army units would be equipped with CIRCM in fiscal 2018. Mr. Quarles said the Army plans to buy more than 1,000 of the systems, plus spares.

While Pentagon budgets are broadly under stress, those most under threat are big weapons systems. Spending on smaller systems, especially given the emotional hit taken by special forces in the most recent downing, are unlikely to be affected.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:09/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

PICTURES: Thai army recieves first three Enstrom 480B helicopters

By Greg Waldron

The Royal Thai Army has accepted its first batch of three Enstrom 480B light turbine helicopters, to be used for training. The aircraft are the first instalment from a 2010 deal for 16 480Bs, said US-based Enstrom.

Another three will arrive in Thailand this month, and be re-assembled for acceptance in early September. All 16 helicopters will be delivered by the end of the second quarter of 2012.





Both images © Royal Thai Army

Enstrom has also provided training for 21 Thai army pilots and 28 mechanics.

The company also delivered one 480B to the Japan Ground Self-Defence Force, with a second to follow in October.

Enstrom is in negotiations with the service to provide an additional 28 480Bs, with the full programme providing funds for 30 training helicopters.

Enstrom cited several attributes of the type that make it a useful training platform, such as its high mast rotor head, robust blades, good stability, comfortable seating, good visibility and strong landing gear.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:09/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

Sikorsky delivers first three Polish-built S-70i helicopters

By Stephen Trimble

Sikorsky has delivered the first three S-70i Black Hawk helicopters made by Poland-based subsidiary PZL Mielec.

All three were loaded into an Antonov An-124 cargo aircraft after clearing final acceptance tests, and will be delivered to an undisclosed customer.

Another three S-70is also have been assembled at the PZL plant in Mielec, Poland, Sikorsky said.


© Billypix

Annual production is expected to grow to 10 helicopters next year, then 22 in 2013.

Sikorsky has invested $100 million and increased employment by 30% at the Polish factory over the last four years.

[buglerbilly]

Turkey Signs Deal To Buy Six CH-47 Copters

By UMIT ENGINSOY and BURAK EGE BEKDIL

Published: 15 Aug 2011 13:40

ANKARA - Turkey has signed a government-to-government deal with the United States to buy six CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift transport helicopters, worth up to $400 million, a senior procurement official said.

The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the Pentagon body that coordinates weapon sales, notified Congress of a potential sale of 14 CH-47F heavy-lift helicopters for $1.2 billion in December 2009, and Congress gave permission later that month.

But because of financial constraints, the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM), Turkey's arms procurement agency, later decided to buy only six CH-47Fs, five for the Army and one for the Special Forces Command, postponing a decision on the remaining eight aircraft. Contract negotiations among the SSM, the U.S. government and Chinook maker Boeing were launched last year.

"The contract was signed in late July," the procurement official said. "It was worth around $400 million. After the helicopters begin to arrive, we plan to make some modifications on them according to our needs."

The six CH-47F Chinooks will be the first heavy-lift helicopters in the Turkish Army's inventory. Their deliveries are expected to begin in 2013 and end in 2014.

"These helicopters have incredible capabilities. Three or four of them can transport a company-sized unit and its equipment to long distances only in a few hours," the procurement official said. The maximum speed of the CH-47F is about 312 kilometers an hour.

Developed in the 1960s, the Chinooks have been exported to many countries, including Australia, Britain, Canada, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Japan, Morocco, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

The Chinook has been successfully operated in combat in several wars and armed conflicts.

The Chinook is a twin-engine, twin-rotor helicopter. The counter-rotating rotors eliminate the need for an anti-torque vertical rotor, allowing all power to be used for lift and thrust.

The CH-47F is the upgraded version of the CH-47D, and is the latest model in this helicopter family. It can carry up to 60 troops and personnel.

A CH-47 Chinook was shot down by Taliban forces southwest of Kabul in Afghanistan in earlier this month, killing 30 U.S. troops, including 23 Navy SEALs, and eight Afghans.

"These are not unsafe devices. On the contrary, these helicopters had mission flights of thousands of hours in Afghanistan only this year, and this was the first such incident," the procurement official said.

Turkey usually manufactures its own defense equipment, or jointly produces it with foreign partners. But since the number of heavy-lift helicopters being ordered is rather small, SSM decided on direct procurement from a single source, i.e. Boeing. The heavy-lift helicopter program is expected to be among Turkey's last direct foreign procurement projects.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:16/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

US Army reveals details of Joint Multi-Role fleet vision

By Stephen Trimble

When the US Army aviation community looks into the future, it sees a radically different helicopter fleet that could turn the domestic helicopter industry upside down.

Instead of more than 20 helicopter types spread across the services, there are only three basic models, plus a new "ultra" category extending vertical take-off and landing aircraft into the domain of medium-sized fixed-wing transports.

In the army's vision, no aircraft will be slower than today's fastest conventional helicopter, which is limited to 170kt (314.5km/h). In all three basic categories - light, medium and heavy - the future aircraft are not merely larger than the conventional helicopters they are replacing; the next generation could be powerful enough to carry their predecessors as external payload.


© USAF
With the exception of the V-22, the helicopter industry has been building improved models of exisiting aircraft for more than three decades

And it could all become reality relatively quickly for a military rotorcraft programme. With the notable exception of the Bell Boeing V-22, the industry has been building improved models of existing aircraft for more than three decades. The army's vision would swiftly break with that tradition. Four new aircraft types superior in every way to the existing fleet would enter service during a 10-year period, beginning in 2025.

A total of 25 existing aircraft types, including conventional aircraft and tilt rotors, would be phased out as the more advanced replacements arrive.

The transition would begin in the ultra-sized category, under a plan that envisions building a vertical lift aircraft with performance somewhere between a Lockheed Martin C-130J and Airbus A400M. It is the most extreme of the four new airlifters but, perhaps counter-intuitively, it is to enter service first, around 2025.

The next step would introduce the so-called JMR-Medium, a fast-moving utility-and-attack aircraft that could insert a platoon-sized unit up to 424km (263 miles) from a base, or launch a deep-strike assault on a column of enemy tanks well behind the front lines. According to a May presentation by Colonel Doug Rombough that was posted on the internet, it could enter service by 2027 or 2028.

The next generation of scout helicopters would arrive a few years later, around 2030. It is called JMR-Light, but it would be able to carry the full weight of the 5,500lb (2,500kg)-class Bell Helicopter OH-58 Kiowa Warrior as either internal or external stores. Finally, the schedule for JMR-Heavy anticipates fielding a replacement for the Boeing CH-47 Chinook, which achieved first flight in 1961, by 2035.

The vision has been known for several months, but details of the performance attributes and timing called for by the army's so-called joint multi-role (JMR) study have only recently appeared. Industry officials interested in competing for the JMR projects were briefed by the army in December. However, the information still was not disclosed or leaked until late July or early August, when Col Rombough's presentation surfaced online.

How real the army's commitment to realising the vision of a four-tiered fleet of rotorcraft will be discovered within a few years.

The task is not simple in a new era of inevitable budget cuts, given that the programme seeks to introduce advanced technology, exotic rotorcraft configurations and all-new supply chains. At the same time, it supports the army's "mounted vertical manoeuvre" strategy, which calls for the rapid deployment of small groups of forces over widely dispersed areas.

However, the thing propelling the army aviation community forward is the fear of the alternative - another cycle of performance upgrades of existing helicopters.

"I don't want my grandchildren flying the [AH-64] Longbow Block 80," Major General Anthony Crutchfield told the Army Aviation Association of America conference last April.

However, it is not yet clear which direction the army will proceed. Like gamblers hedging bets, both the army and the rotorcraft industry are supporting parallel tracks to support the JMR vision as well as the path that lead's towards Crutchfield's worst-case scenario - the AH-64 Block 80.

This is true even for the underlying technologies at the heart of any new rotorcraft modernisation programme. Two companies - GE Aviation and the Advanced Turbine Engine Company (ATEC), a joint venture between Honeywell and Pratt & Whitney - are competing to develop a 50% more powerful successor to the 2,000shp-class T700 turboshaft. The new engine - called the advanced affordable turbine engine (AATE) - could be applied in different ways.

The new powerplant could simply be inserted into the next generation of remanufactured or newly-built versions of the Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk or Boeing AH-64 Apache. But industry officials have also confirmed the engine is being designed with oil-sump pumps that can articulate vertically or horizontally. This often-overlooked feature is not found on the T700, and means the next generation of rotorcraft designs could support advanced, high-speed configurations, such as tilt rotors.

Meanwhile, fly-by-wire technology developed for the cancelled RAH-66 Comanche has now been demonstrated on the high-speed Sikorsky X2. It, too, is necessary to support a leap to a new generation of high-speed rotorcraft with much higher vibration levels. Or, the army could choose to apply it to bolster the handling and agility of its existing fleet of conventional helicopters in the next upgrade cycle or even sooner.

For industry, the implications of making the transition to JMR are stark. The military services currently support three large rotorcraft companies based in the USA, as well as two relatively recent entrants from Europe with the army's EADS North America UH-72A Lakota and the US Coast Guard's AgustaWestland MH-68. At least 25 basic helicopter and tiltrotor models are in service across the fleet, which include trainers, cargo, utility, scout and attack systems.

Under the army's JMR vision, the rotorcraft inventory would be consolidated into four basic types. At least the three smallest and perhaps all four types could be based on a single design by one of the five helicopter suppliers. By the mid-2040s, the last of the conventional helicopters would be retired from service, leaving an industrial base for rotorcraft not unlike the tactical aircraft industry, with one dominant supplier and one or two suppliers struggling to hang on.

The JMR vision also asks the industrial base to break the mould of two decades of remanufacturing programmes and compete with all-new designs and advanced performance.

Some industry officials, led especially by Bell, Boeing and EADS, pushed the army to consider alternative approaches to the acquisition plan. The normal path starts when the army establishes a requirement for a new weapon system. Bids are accepted to compete for a technology maturation phase, with two or three winners selected to compete for a winner-takes-all development contract leading to production.

Instead, these companies formed the vertical lift consortium (VLC). This sought to have the army incentivise investments by the prime helicopter suppliers in potential breakthrough technologies by smaller, more entrepreneurial companies.

The goal was to produce a wider range of experimentation for the same amount of funding, with the potential for finding the kind of "disruptive" technology changes difficult for a mature industry to bring forward on its own.

However, the army chose to bypass the VLC earlier this year, preferring the conventional path. At least $300 million has been budgeted for a technology demonstration phase in three years, with two or more competitors for the JMR-medium class of rotorcraft. Meanwhile, VLC members intend to continue a parallel demonstration programme, although it is not clear if the army's budget can support both tracks simultaneously.

Nothing, however, is certain in a budget environment expected to only decline during the next decade. Even the army's fall-back strategy to modernise its existing helicopters with new engines and fly-by-wire controls could be in doubt in that scenario.

But industry officials still see opportunities even beyond the JMR technology demonstration.

Sikorsky intends to develop and fly two S-97 Raider prototypes by 2014, leveraging the coaxial-rotor and pusher-propeller combination of the recently retired X2 demonstrator. The S-97 is designed to be a 10,000lb-class vehicle that could lift its own weight in payload. This falls somewhere between the performance of the army's JMR-light and JMR-medium classes.

Sikorsky is likely to offer the S-97 instead for a separate requirement now emerging for the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM). The roughly 50 Boeing/MD Helicopters MH-6 Little Birds flown by the 160th special operations aviation regiment were intended to be replaced by the Bell ARH-70 Arapaho, but the army terminated the contract.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:17/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

PICTURE: First flight for TAI-built T129 attack helicopter

By Tolga Ozbek

The first T129B attack helicopter to be manufactured by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) made its flight debut from the company's Akinci-Ankara site on 17 August.

Prototype aircraft P6 took off at 05:30 local time and touched down again at 07:00, TAI said.

Company test pilots Adnan Meral and Gokhan Korkmazturk described the sortie as successful, and said all main systems had been assessed.

P6 made its debut carrying a nose-mounted Aselsan AselFLIR-300T targeting system and a mock-up of a 20mm cannon.


© Turkish Aerospace Industries
The T129B prototype aircraft P6 took off at 05:30 local time and touched down again at 07:00

Ankara launched its €1.2 billion ($1.7 billion) T129 programme in June 2008, with an order for 50 aircraft to be developed from AgustaWestland's AW129 design.

TAI, which had previously planned to conduct the first flight event in May, will deliver its first production-standard T129B in July 2013, following the completion of development tests involving six aircraft in Italy and Turkey.

The company will also deliver an early batch of nine T129As in mid-2012, to replace some of the army's Bell Helicopter AH-1 Cobras. These should later be upgraded to T129B standard.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:19/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

Engine swap transforms UK Lynx operations in Afghanistan

By Craig Hoyle

One of the UK's major successes of the past year has been the performance of its upgraded AgustaWestland Lynx AH9A utility helicopters in Afghanistan.

"Hot and high" environmental conditions in the country had meant the Lynx was not operationally effective during the summer months. However, a modernisation programme has equipped the Army Air Corps' former 22 Lynx AH9s with more powerful LHTEC T800 engines and new avionics, and transformed the type into a valuable, year-round asset. Since April 2010, enhanced AH9As have been able to perform all three mission tasks required in Afghanistan - lift, find and strike.


© Crown Copyright/Cpl Barry Lloyd

The aircraft can carry between two and four passengers, depending on the time of year, and be equipped with an L-3 Wescam MX-15 electro-optical/infrared sensor and a 12.7mm door gun. But the imminent use of the smaller and lighter-weight MX-10 payload will enable the type to instead carry an M3M 0.50cal machine gun. This will enable the Lynx to perform more strike duties and free-up capacity on the army's deployed Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopters.




WESCAM™ MX-10



■ High Stabilization with 4 active axis: Complete with internal vibration isolation
■ Light weight and compact: 37 pounds, less than 14 inches tall –a lower-clearance product offering
■ Six sensor payload: Infra-red, color &electron-multiplied CCD imaging sensors can be combined with a laser rangefinder, pointer and illuminator
■ MX-Series Compatible: Compatible with all existing MX-Series command and control, moving map, SLASS and radar interfaces.

Other uses for the Lynx AH9A in the past 16 months have included its employment as an airborne command and control post, and as an armed escort for Afghan air force Mil Mi-17 transport helicopters flying resupply missions.


A Lynx helicopter M3M installation. The 600-round floor-mounted ammunition box is on the left, and a night vision sight is fitted to the gun (Peter Humphris)

[buglerbilly]

DATE:22/08/11

SOURCE:Flight International

UK's Joint Helicopter Command keeps focus on Afghanistan

By Craig Hoyle

I know that strictly speaking not all of these helo's are Army but they are primarily tasked for Land services hence published here.......

Despite this being a time of intense budget pressure, one of the UK armed forces' main equipment areas has escaped with next to no spending cuts, due to the vital role that military rotorcraft play in current operations.

While swingeing reductions have eliminated seemingly essential assets, like the BAE Systems Harrier GR9 ground-attack aircraft and Nimrod MRA4 maritime patrol aircraft, plans to buy additional Boeing CH-47 Chinooks and upgrade Eurocopter Puma transport helicopters both survived the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR). Long-standing commitments in Afghanistan - and also more recently over Libya - have resulted in the SDSR leaving the rotorcraft communities of the Army Air Corps (AAC), Royal Air Force and Royal Navy largely unscathed.

This has been welcome news for the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command (JHC) organisation, which is tasked with overseeing the operational activities of their multiple aircraft types.


© Crown Copyright
The UK sustains a detachment of 30-35 helicopters in Afghanistan, including RAF Merlin transports

The UK's main focus for several years has been on Afghanistan, where it now has between 30 and 35 helicopters deployed in support of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.

Assigned to the UK's Joint Helicopter Force Afghanistan, or JHF(A), these span at least five types: the AgustaWestland AW101 Merlin HC3 and upgraded Lynx AH9A, Chinook HC2, Westland Sea King and Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopter.

Their number also includes several aircraft being flown in support of UK special forces personnel, although the JHC declines to provide further public details of this capability.

The UK's helicopter operations are fully coordinated with the US Marine Corps' 2 Marine Aircraft Wing, at the combined Camp Bastion/Camp Leatherneck site in Helmand province, with their activities managed using the latter's air combat element structure.

The partners' contributions total around 3,900 and 580 personnel, respectively.

While the USMC also has a much larger air component of roughly 110 aircraft, ranging from the Bell AH-1W Cobra attack helicopter to the Bell Boeing MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor, Boeing AV-8B Harrier II and unmanned air vehicles, JHC officials say the UK offers key capabilities to the combined Task Force Jaguar. "When we go out on operations in central Helmand, it is frequently with [RAF] Chinooks being escorted by Cobras, and with our Apaches escorting [Sikorsky CH-53] Sea Stallions, and with any combination that you need to make a right fit for that particular mission," says British Army Col Neil Sexton, assistant director operations at the JHC. "We are fighting a joint fight. We are fully entwined, and it's a great way of doing business."

Sexton notes that despite the UK's smaller numerical contribution, "pro rata-wise, we fly a significantly greater number of hours per aircraft than they do. We don't have as many assets, but we work them harder."

Around one-third of the aircraft currently available to JHF(A) are Chinooks, with 11 providing the backbone of the UK's support helicopter presence. These are joined by RAF Merlin HC3s, Sea King HC4s from the navy's Commando Helicopter Force and recently upgraded army Lynx AH9As in delivering "lift" services. All the types are equipped with defensive aids system equipment and crew-served machine guns, in order for them to meet the UK's theatre-entry standard for use in the country.


© Crown Copyright
Ship-based Apaches are also currently involved in NATO's campaign over Libya

Since arriving in Afghanistan after their withdrawal from Iraq, Merlins from the RAF's 28 and 78 squadrons transported over 750 tonnes of freight in their first year in Afghanistan, according to the JHC.

Their long-term use is yet to be fully determined, although current plans call for the service's HC3/3As to be transferred to the navy, to replace its Commando Helicopter Force's Sea King HC4s and support future amphibious and deployed operations.

Now equipped with LHTEC T800 engines - which will also power the UK's next-generation Lynx Wildcat aircraft - and flown in Afghanistan since early 2010, the AH9As also employ their L-3 Wescam MX-15 electro-optical/infrared sensors to support surveillance, or "find" requirements.

Apaches also use their targeting sensors and mast-mounted Hellfire fire control radar for this purpose, while the arrival of the navy's Sea King 7 airborne surveillance and control (ASaC) aircraft in May 2009 added a valuable and expanded capability.

Nicknamed "Baggers", the Searchwater radar-equipped Sea Kings had, by late July, completed 1,000 operational missions in Afghanistan, gathering "pattern of life" information with their synthetic aperture radar/ground moving target indication sensor.

They also are used to provide a near real-time wide-area surveillance capability in *support of land forces, for example by tracking suspect vehicle movements, and have been instrumental in the recovery of more than 6,000kg (13,200lb) of explosives within the last few months, according to the Ministry of Defence.

The RN's 854 and 857 naval air squadrons have each supported one-year detachments in Afghanistan, with at least three of the helicopters currently in use.

In the "strike" category, the Lynx AH9A has been employed in some instances against ground threats, enabling Apache AH1s to be used elsewhere.

Involved in Afghanistan since 2007, the latter provide JHF(A) with its most potent offensive capability, carrying a 30mm cannon, unguided rockets and Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles.

"The Hellfire missile has shown itself to be the weapon of choice for Apache attack helicopter operations, proving to be an accurate and reliable weapon system and providing airborne fire support to ground forces," says Peter Luff, UK minister for defence equipment, support and technology.

UK Apaches fired more than 550 Hellfires in combat and training exercises between January 2008 and May 2011, he revealed in response to a recent parliamentary question.

British Apaches are also currently involved in NATO's operation Unified Protector campaign, to protect Libyan civilians from attack by forces loyal to Col Muammar Gaddafi. The Hellfire has again proved a popular option since strikes commenced on 3 June. In one mission, conducted in early August, attack helicopters operating from the deck of HMS Ocean damaged or destroyed multiple regime targets around 64km (35nm) inland from Zuwarah.

"Hellfire missiles and cannon fire accounted for one headquarters and 12 military vehicles, including at least one armed with surface-to-air missiles, with another four vehicles left seriously damaged," the MoD said in a post-mission briefing.


© Crown Copyright
Radar-equipped Sea Kings have impressed in current operations

Apache missions in Libya are conducted using intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance data collated by other assets, including Sea King ASaC aircraft also deployed aboard HMS Ocean, and RAF Raytheon Systems Sentinel R1 airborne standoff radar aircraft flown from Akrotiri, Cyprus.

Since the start of multinational operations against pro-Gaddafi forces on 19 March, UK assets have damaged or destroyed more than 850 regime targets.

Although decisions on the UK's continued equipment contribution to the Libyan *operation - including whether to extend the availability of HMS Ocean and its deployed aircraft - are yet to be taken, meeting the demands of the Afghanistan mission remains JHC's top priority.

Reflecting this, roughly 440 of the command's personnel took part in a major pre-deployment exercise on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, in support of the British Army's 20 Armoured Brigade.

Split into three nine-day phases run from Netheravon airfield, the four-week exercise concluded on 21 August.

About 16 aircraft were flown each day, including the Apache, Chinook, Lynx, Merlin, Eurocopter Puma and Sea King.

AAC BN-2 Islander intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft and Lockheed Desert Hawk III unmanned air vehicles also took part. JHC assets had logged roughly 1,500 flight hours in support of the activity by mid-August.

Based in Germany, 20 Armoured Brigade began training for its Afghan deployment around nine months ago.

"We put JHC officers into the brigade headquarters to train them up in the use of helicopters," says Sexton. "Not just getting into and out of the back, not just controlling Apache fires, but the intellectual process that goes to using aviation in a sensible way in Afghanistan."

Each exercise phase trained two battle groups of around 700 to 1,000 personnel, for example by inserting and extracting brigade reconnaissance teams using Chinooks.

Roughly 300 JHC staff who will also go to Afghanistan in the coming months also received training, while the readiness of its headquarters and joint operations centre personnel was validated.

As with a previous exercise conducted in January, the JHC's activities also included so-called "judgemental training", where the actions of air crew can be measured against recent real-life scenarios involving Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.

"We give the crews an opportunity to relive the sort of scenarios that they'll face when they get deployed on operations. So if they are going to make a mistake they'll make it here," says exercise coordinator Lt Col Phil Cooke.

Although not part of the exercise scenario, 1 Regt AAC commanding officer Lt Col James Anderson, who will assume command of JHF(A) in late September, says growing emphasis is being placed on operating in conjunction with the Afghan military. This relationship will strengthen as the UK moves towards a planned withdrawal of its combat forces from the country in 2015, with control of its districts and provinces to progressively be transferred to local authorities. "We will be working more closely with the Afghan air force's [Mil] Mi-17s," Anderson says.

With the planned transfer of its Merlins to the Commando Helicopter Force, the RAF's support helicopter capability will eventually settle with its soon to-be expanded fleet of Chinooks and the upgraded Puma HC2.

The Chinook force will eventually total 46 glass cockpit-equipped HC4s and 14 new-build examples, with the type expected to remain in use until at least 2040.

At least 28 Pumas should be brought up to the improved HC2 standard, with Eurocopter having flown the first of these in late June. With more powerful Turbomeca Makila 1A1 engines, a digital flight control system and enhanced navigation and communications equipment, the type should reach full operating capability in 2014, and fly on until 2025.

"In the Strategic Defence and Security Review we set out our plans to deliver the helicopter capability to support 'Future Force 2020' through a mix of Apache, Chinook, Merlin, Lynx Wildcat and Puma helicopters," under-secretary of state for defence Lord Astor said, in response to a recent parliamentary question about potential UK military interest in Eurocopter's X3 high-speed demonstrator.

[buglerbilly]

EADS North America Passes the Halfway Mark in Deliveries of the U.S. Army UH-72A Lakota Helicopter

(Source: EADS; issued August 24, 2011)


EADS North America has delivered 180 UH-72A helicopters, derived from Eurocopter’s EC145, to the US Army, which plans to buy 345 by 2015. (EADS photo)

EADS North America has achieved another milestone on the UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) program as the company has delivered more than half of the planned 345 Lakotas to the U.S. Army.

The UH-72A Lakota, built by the company’s American Eurocopter business unit, is one of the U.S. Army’s most successful acquisition programs and is repeatedly noted by DoD officials for its on-time and on-budget deliveries.

“Reaching the midway point in deliveries to the Army with an unblemished record of on-time deliveries is an excellent example of our strong performance on the Lakota program,” said EADS North American CEO Sean O’Keefe. “This program clearly demonstrates the company’s ability to successfully execute large programs, in-source manufacturing to the U.S. and create high-value American jobs, while simultaneously delivering on our on-time and on-cost commitment to our Army and Navy customers.”

The UH-72A is based on the best-selling EC145 multi-role helicopter and was developed by EADS’ Eurocopter division. As part of EADS North America’s commitment to the U.S. Army, the company’s American Eurocopter business unit created a dedicated assembly line for UH-72As in Mississippi, and successfully completed the on-time in-sourcing of its full production activity from Germany in 2010 – with sustained output reaching 53 rotary-wing aircraft annually at the state-of-the-art facility.

Overall there have been 180 aircraft delivered to the DoD. The steady production and delivery represents the rapid success in establishing a world-class production facility, recruiting and training the technical professionals who build the aircraft and the suppliers in the U.S. and overseas.

UH-72A Lakota helicopters are operating from 31 basing locations in the continental U.S., Puerto Rico, Germany and the Pacific Ocean’s Kwajalein Atoll following the establishment of 10 new fielding sites in 2010. The U.S. Army has ordered 219 UH-72As to date, with the total acquisition of 345 helicopters sustaining production through 2015. Five LUH aircraft are used by the Navy Test Pilot School for their rotary wing test pilot training.

The U.S. Army is using its Lakotas in multiple configurations for medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) missions, search and rescue operations, border patrols along the U.S./Mexico border, VIP transport, general aviation support and in combat flight training at the service’s Joint Multinational Readiness Center (JMRC) in Hohenfels, Germany, the Joint Readiness Training Center (JRTC) at Ft. Polk, La., and soon at the National Training Center, Ft. Irwin, Calif.

EADS North America and American Eurocopter engineers continue to integrate additional mission equipment packages (MEPs) on the UH-72A, achieving FAA certification for the Combat Training Center (CTC) MEP in 2010. Efforts continue on additional MEP integration, for a comprehensive package for the Army National Guard’s Security and Support (S&S) Battalion missions.

The training and logistics for the LUH program is also on track. Pilots and maintenance professionals of U.S. Army have completed more than 575 pilot and 375 maintenance personnel completing their classes at American Eurocopter’s headquarters facility in Grand Prairie, Texas. The LUH fleet has accumulated more than 67,500 hours to date.

EADS North America provides the Lakota aircraft as part of the overall program to the DoD. The entire scope of the program includes the flight and maintainer training, full and hybrid contractor logistics support to the Army and Army National Guard, modifications and retrofit of mission equipment packages onto existing aircraft. The helicopter, associated modifications, training, and logistics support comply with FAA requirements and guidelines.

The UH-72A is a Defense Acquisition Category (ACAT) I major defense acquisition program for the U.S. Defense Department. Deliveries of the aircraft to National Guard units allow aging OH-58 and UH-1 rotary-wing aircraft to be retired, while UH-72As assigned to the active component of the U.S. Army free up UH-60 Black Hawks for assignment to combat missions.

American Eurocopter is a helicopter manufacturer that produces, markets, sells and supports the broadest range of civil and para-public helicopters offered by any manufacturer in the United States. The company is a subsidiary of EADS North America Holdings, the North American operations of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services, and is an affiliate of Eurocopter, the largest helicopter manufacturer in the world. Company headquarters and main facilities are located in Grand Prairie, Texas, with a large manufacturing and production facility in Columbus, Miss., that produces the UH-72A for the U.S. Army’s Light Utility Helicopter program.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Indonesia Army receives MI-17 choppers

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 08/26/2011 4:43 PM

The Defense Ministry received six MI-17 choppers from Russian state company JSC Rosoboronexport in a handover ceremony on Friday morning.

The ceremony, held at Pondok Cabe Airport, Tangerang, West Java, was attended by Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Indonesian Army chief Gen. Pramono Edhie Wibowo, Indonesian Military chief Adm. Agus Suhartono and Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Alexander Ivanov.

Purnomo said the MI-17 choppers were multi-purpose. “The choppers can carry up to 3 tons in weight or 36 people. The choppers are fit to be used both for military operations and humanity charity in disaster areas,” he said.

He said he expected the choppers would be well maintained. “US$ 56 million of the state budget was used to buy the choppers,” he said.

Pramono added that the choppers would support the Army in protecting border areas.

Ivanov said the Russian government was cooperating with Indonesia to strengthen its defense industry.

Last year Indonesia bought six MI-17 choppers.

[buglerbilly]

Crash grounds Army air fleet

By DON LAVERY

Sunday August 28 2011

THE key aircraft fleet used by Ireland's elite anti-terrorist force for security operations, the Army Ranger Wing, has been grounded after a fatal crash abroad.

The AW139 helicopter, which can carry eight rangers and two gunners for operating side-mounted machine guns, is extensively used for training and operations by the rangers.

A quick-reaction force of up to 20 heavily armed rangers in two AW139s and a smaller EC-135 helicopter was on standby during the visits by Queen Elizabeth and US President Barack Obama earlier this year.

But now helicopter operators in Brazil and Australia have joined the Irish Air Corps in grounding the best-selling helicopter -- which has left 75 per cent of the Air Corp's chopper fleet unable to fly.

It may be some time before Anglo-Italian manufacturer AgustaWestland gives the all-clear for operators to again fly their twin-engined AW139 helicopters after the crash of a similar aircraft in Brazil more than a week ago.

A Senior Taxi Aereo AW139 was flying from an oil rig 100km off the Brazilian coast when the crew declared an emergency indicating a hydraulic systems failure.

They tried to return to the oil rig but crashed into the sea, killing all four people on board. The aircraft was recovered and is being examined by Brazilian technical experts, AgustaWestland and the engine supplier Pratt and Whitney of Canada.

As a result of the crash, the company issued a technical bulletin in relation to the tail rotor of the helicopter and the Air Corps has temporarily grounded its €72m fleet of six helicopters.

The Defence Forces said the suspension of operations would be lifted when all aspects of the technical bulletin were resolved to the satisfaction of the Air Corps Military Aviation Authority.

The AW139 helicopters are used for a variety of tasks including training with Special Forces, limited troop transport and the air ambulance role in an agreement with the HSE. Smaller EC-135 helicopters are to be used in the air ambulance role.

Meanwhile, the Air Corps Learjet carried out an air ambulance mission to London yesterday. It collected a medical team from Cork Airport and flew to London Heathrow, where a patient was collected.

The Air Corps transferred the patient and medical team back to Cork Airport, for onward transfer to Cork University Hospital.

- DON LAVERY

[buglerbilly]

DATE:01/09/11

SOURCE:Flight International

Indonesian army receives six Mi-17s

By Greg Waldron

Indonesia's army has taken delivery of six more Mil Mi-17 V5 transport helicopters, bringing the army's total of the type to 18.

Indonesia obtained the six Mi-17 helicopters for $56 million, with the purchase financed by a state loan from Russia, said the Indonesian army.

"These helicopters will increase the fighting capabilities of the army," said defence minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro. "New helicopters are sorely needed."

The new helicopters were handed over in a 26 August ceremony attended by Indonesian defence officials and representatives of Russian state arms export firm Rosoboronexport.

They will be used for general transport duties, as well as humanitarian and disaster relief operations.

The Indonesian army now has 18 Mi-17 V5s and six Mi-35 attack helicopters. The army is also a major user of the Bell 412.

[buglerbilly]

At least we now know what's happening to the Canadian Chinooks.....................

Who Wants To Buy Four Heavily Used Canadian Forces Chinooks?

August 31, 2011. 11:16 pm

By David Pugliese

Defence Watch

The four Chinook helicopters flown by the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan are being sent to the U.S. Air Force’s boneyard in Arizona.

It’s not a surprising move. Officials with Dan Ross’s ADM Materiel office had been claiming the helicopters would be sold but now they are admitting they don’t have any buyers. Some industry representatives told Defence Watch that the helicopters, purchased used from the U.S., have been through the wringer in combat in Afghanistan, so buyers might not be lining up for such a purchase.

DND is also not releasing the cost of storing the aircraft in the U.S.

I remember interviewing staff at Vector Aerospace who have been doing overhauls on U.S. Chinooks coming out of Afghanistan. They say that the aircraft had so much sand in them they had to use shovels to get rid of it (it seems like an overstatement but that’s what they said). The point being made is that the desert environment is extremely hard on such aircraft.



Keith Gerein of the Edmonton Journal had more details on the Chinooks in this article from Aug. 26

Unable to sell the aging aircraft, the federal government has decided to ship the Chinooks to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, a U.S. air force installation known as “The Boneyard.”

The helicopters will be stored at the open-air facility outside Tucson until the government can find a buyer, said Tracy Poirier, a spokeswoman for the Defence Department.

The department, however, declined to provide a cost estimate for the storage, saying it is prohibited from revealing the details of contracts made with a foreign governments.

“This was the most economical option available to us,” Poirier said. “This facility is the biggest of its kind in North America and very specialized at storing and reinstating old aircraft.”

First deployed in Afghanistan in early 2009, the Chinooks have been used extensively by the Canadian Forces to keep troops and equipment off dangerous roads laden with improvised explosive devices. But as Canada’s combat mission in Kandahar province began to wind down this year, the federal government unsuccessfully tried to sell the transport choppers to a NATO ally.

The Chinooks were purchased specifically for use in Afghanistan, and there were no plans to bring them home since the federal government has already ordered new Chinooks equipped with more modern technology.

The older aircraft are currently being dismantled and packed up at Kandahar Airfield. Once they arrive in Arizona, staff at the maintenance centre will put them back together.

Poirier said it’s unclear how long the helicopters could be left at the facility, or what it might take to find a buyer. She said department policy is to sell them at “fair market value,” though she declined to provide an estimated price.

The department’s preference is to sell to an allied government. Poirier said the government would consider selling to a private buyer, but in that case, the helicopters would be stripped of all “warlike” components.

“The Boneyard” is a 1,040-hectare facility home to about 4,000 old aircraft, many from the 1950s and 60s. The location is considered ideal for storage because the dry climate reduces corrosion damage and the hard-packed subsoil allows the aircraft to be towed easily.

The centre is staffed mainly by civilians, though many were formerly U.S. air force personnel.

[buglerbilly]

Making Do For Special Ops

Sep 2, 2011

By Paul McLeary
Washington



A significant aspect of the Aug. 6 shoot-down of a U.S. Army Boeing CH-47 Chinook helicopter by a militant’s rocket-propelled grenade in Wardak, Afghanistan, which killed all 38 Afghan and American forces onboard—25 of whom were members of U.S. special operations—is that while the bird was on a special forces mission, it wasn’t a special operations aircraft.

While such tragedies are a cost of war, and neither the helicopter nor the regular Army crew piloting it has been blamed for the incident, the shoot-down underscores two serious and long-standing concerns: inadequate protection for low-flying rotorcraft against gunfire and rudimentary rockets, and the lack of sufficient dedicated rotary-wing assets for special forces.

At a special forces technology conference in Tampa, Fla., this summer, commanders from U.S. Special Operations Command (SOC) said they were looking for more money from the services to invest in new rotary-wing aircraft. “We’re going to hopefully guide the services into giving us something that is useful for us,” said Army Col. Doug Rombough, program executive officer for rotary-wing aircraft at SOC. “We certainly don’t have the budget or funding to guide a whole new generation of aircraft.”

Special operators are putting more focus than ever on rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft needs, standing up the U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command (SOAC) at Ft. Bragg, N.C., in March, with the goal of allowing the commander of the Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regt. (SOAR) to focus on operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, while the SOAC commander focuses on the funding and equipping goals of special operations aviation. While the Boeing MH-47G Chinooks that are the workhorses of the spec op fleet are upwards of half a century old, there are much newer aircraft that spec op forces have been flying.

Beginning in 2009, the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) started receiving the first of 50 planned Bell-Boeing CV-22 tiltrotor aircraft, delivery of which is scheduled to be complete by 2015. The 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review also laid out goals for spec op rotary-wing assets, including “165 tiltrotor/fixed-wing mobility and fire-support primary mission aircraft,” stipulating that the Army and SOC “will add a company of upgraded cargo helicopters (MH-47G) to the Army’s Special Operations Aviation Regt., and the Navy will dedicate two helicopter squadrons for direct support to naval special warfare units.”

All this is happening as the incoming head of the command—Vice Adm. William McRaven—wrote in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee in June that SOC’s “current operations will pressure development and limit required modernization and recapitalization efforts” of its rotary fleets. This in turn is resulting in a “lack of vertical lift capability to train [spec op] ground forces and aircrew proficiency” and is hurting the overall health and readiness of the force.

The high-hot conditions and high operational tempo at maximum weights that the helicopters are working under in Afghanistan, Rombough said, have taken a toll on the fleet. “They’re making only 15 years because of heavy use,” he said, which falls far short of the usual 20-year lifespan. When it comes to new platforms, he added, “we need game-changers . . . we are behind the power curve already if all of our aircraft hit at that same timeline.” While the Pentagon is looking for a rotorcraft capable of 170 kt., Rombough said special operators need “a minimum 200-kt. capability.”

Life cycle is one thing. Survivability in a combat zone is another. Last year, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) launched an experimental program that borrowed a land vehicle-based gunshot detection system—Boomerang—and installed a version on a Black Hawk helicopter. Named the Helicopter Alert and Threat Termination-Acoustic (Haltt-A) program, the system’s microphones “hear” a round leave a weapon and are capable of fixing the location of the shooter. Four Hallt-A systems are deployed to Afghanistan, according to reports. But if special forces operators are to take advantage of such efforts, it’s going to be in a budgetary environment that is skeptical of new funding. SOC’s fiscal 2012 budget request is $10.5 billion—with $7.2 billion coming in the baseline and $3.3 billion in the Overseas Contingency Operations budget. If enacted, this would be an increase of 7% over the fiscal 2011 budget request of $9.8 billion.

Even if spec ops doesn’t have enough rotary-wing assets to fully train with, as McRaven says, those it does have are getting old. And while SOC has installed upgrades on its aging Chinook helicopters, the high operational tempo of a decade of nonstop combat has taken its toll on the fleet.

Updates have been coming, however. In March, Boeing delivered the 61st refitted MH-47G Chinook to SOAR, as part of a multiyear service life extension program that updated the aircraft from the D and E models. SOAR should also receive eight more G models by fiscal 2015. Boeing says the upgrades will increase the platform’s life through the 2030s—when the aircraft will be almost 70 years old.

The MH-47G upgrades are significant. They give the helicopter higher-efficiency engines, improved avionics, an upgraded airframe, a suite of radio-frequency countermeasures and a refueling probe. Also included is a fully integrated digital Common Avionics Architecture System (CAAS), which allows special forces operators to take advantage of better communications, navigational technologies and situational awareness capabilities, including forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and multimode radar for nap-of-earth and low-level flight.

Overall, the 160th has 184 rotorcraft in its inventory: 51 MH/AH-6M Little Birds, 61 MH-47G Chinooks and 72 MH-60M Black Hawks. The most recent Black Hawk modernization program took Sikorsky’s UH-60M aircraft from Army stocks and added CAAS, wide-chord rotor blades, an improved electro-optical sensor system and 2,500‑hp. General Electric YT706-GE-700 engines. The AH-6M Little Bird, a light utility helicopter, has been upgraded with FLIR surveillance systems and dual-flight controls.

When it comes to unmanned rotorcraft, Rombough said that while the special operations force is interested in unmanned vertical-takeoff assets—and is watching the U.S. Marine Corps program to develop an unmanned cargo helicopter—it is handing its A160 Hummingbirds to the Army’s unmanned aircraft systems office. “We’re done with our effort,” he said.

In January, SOC put out a notice advising industry that it was planning a “full and open competition” for a new mid-endurance unmanned aircraft systems platform to add to its arsenal of secret drones and surveillance equipment.

Draft versions of the request for proposals (RFP) came out in late March and early April, with a formal RFP released on April 28. Since almost everything about the program is classified—other than the fact that it exists—all that is left are hints dropped in the announcement.

Currently, the mid-endurance unmanned aircraft needs of special forces, as far as is known, are being met in part by the Boeing ScanEagle, which is referenced at the top of the solicitation. In 2009, Boeing and its subsidiary Insitu Inc. signed a deal worth $250 million to operate ScanEagle systems for special operations forces “for the next five years”—so it doesn’t look like the Scan- Eagle is going anywhere.

But what kind of upgraded capability is SOC looking to get with this new program? The public solicitation says that SOC wants to award a single, three-year, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract with a projected award this summer. And it needs the winning bidder to be capable of providing the “near-real-time feed of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance product availability from 300-900 hr. per site monthly” using “non-developmental contractor-owned and contractor-operated unmanned aircraft systems.”

The ScanEagle, for its part, has proven itself remarkably effective across a range of missions, from the deserts and mountains of Iraq and Afghanistan to hunting pirates at sea—even flying from the USS Bainbridge while assisting in the rescue of the merchant ship Maersk-Alabama’s captain, Richard Phillips, who had been taken hostage by Somali pirates in 2009 (a siege that ended with three Seal Team 6 snipers killing three pirates with simultaneous shots from the Bainbridge).

All of this operational experience adds up. In March 2010, it was estimated that ScanEagle was flying 22% of the 550,000 hr. logged by the U.S. military’s unmanned aircraft annually. A few years ago, a Scan- Eagle was even launched off a special warfare boat by Navy special forces.

In the decade since 9/11, the manpower of U.S. special operations has nearly doubled, its budget nearly tripled and overseas deployments are up four-fold. While all this has happened, the force’s rotary-wing assets have grown incrementally and upgrades have not kept pace with demand. With the end strength of the Army and Marines set to decline in coming years, and budgets expected to tighten while the operational tempo for SOC stays high, equipment will be further stressed, something that makes leadership nervous.

A Special Operations Command MH-47 helicopter practices roof drops at Ft. Bragg, N.C. The spec ops rotorcraft fleet is stressed by the high tempo of operations in Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Photo: Boeing

[buglerbilly]

DATE:08/09/11

SOURCE:Flight International

South Korean attack helicopter programme gains traction

By Greg Waldron

South Korea is likely to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for its 36-aircraft attack helicopter (AHX) requirement in early 2012, with reduced numbers of US Army Boeing AH-64 Apaches on the peninsula adding impetus to the long-awaited acquisition.

The RFP is likely to be issued by Seoul's Defense Acquisition Program Administration in January, with responses required by April 2012, Boeing said.

A downselect decision is likely next July, with this to be followed by a contract award in October 2012.

Boeing is pitching its AH-64D Apache Block III (below) in the competition, with likely rivals to include the Bell AH-1Z Cobra, Eurocopter Tiger and the Turkish Aerospace Industries T129B.

Seoul has long been interested in the Apache, which the US Army has operated in South Korea for decades.


© Boeing

In recent years the US has reduced the number of Apaches in-country, owing to the demand for attack helicopters in Afghanistan and Iraq.

In the event that hostilities were to break out with North Korea, Boeing foresees several missions for the eventual winner of AHX.

These include countering North Korean infiltration along South Korea's coastline and counter-penetration along the demilitarised zone that separates the two countries.

The aircraft could also be called on to fly combat missions behind enemy lines.

In addition, Seoul is interested in developing a light "Korea attack helicopter" (KAH), to replace its Hughes MD500s and generate overseas sales for its national aerospace sector.

Exact specifications are yet to emerge, but it is believed the nation wants an attack helicopter that can also carry 6-8 passengers, similar to the Mil Mi-35.

Offsets related to the AHX deal will likely be applicable to the indigenous KAH.

Boeing said it would be interested in offering its AH-6 light attack helicopter for the KAH offset.

While the AH-6 can only carry 2-3 passengers, in addition to a two-man flight crew, Boeing said the helicopter is optimised for operating in conjunction with the Apache.

The fuselage of the Apache is produced by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI).

The company also has experience working with Eurocopter, with which it developed the Korea utility helicopter, also known as the Surion.

KAI and Eurocopter have set up a joint venture to market the Surion overseas.

[buglerbilly]

DATE:15/09/11

SOURCE:Flight International

Sikorsky reveals plan to offer CH-53Ks to USAF, US Army

By Stephen Trimble

Sikorsky has revealed long-term plans to offer the CH-53K heavy lift helicopter to other US military services, including the Air Force.

The CH-53K is currently in development to replace the US Marine Corps' CH-53D/E fleet with an even larger helicopter, powered by three 7,500shp (5,516kW) General Electric GE38 engines.

The aircraft has long been considered an alternative to a possible future growth version of the US Army's Boeing CH-47F/G Chinook.

Sikorsky also envisions a long-term requirement for the CH-53K by the Air Force Special Operations Command.

Discussions have not yet taken place formally, but the topic has at least been broached, Tim Healy, Sikorsky's director of Air Force programmes said. "I'm sure it's been talked about at bars," he added.

Healy identified airlift and special operations roles as possible missions for an air force variant of the CH-53K.

Sikorsky is designing the helicopter to carry up to 15,900kg (35,000lb). That figure compares well to the maximum normal payload of a Lockheed Martin C-130J, according to a USAF fact sheet.

"The air force has an airlift and [special operations] mission that we don't know where they will be 20 years from now," Healy added. "If the air force is interested in lift more than speed, this would be attractive."

The CH-53K could also be offered to meet the army's requirement for a joint multi-role heavy helicopter, which is intended to start replacing the CH-47 early in the next decade, Healy said.

[buglerbilly]

Swedish NH90s Will Not Be Deployable until 2016

(Source: Forecast International; issued September 16, 2011)

HELSINKI --- Production delays and delivery problems on the part of supplier NH Industries have impeded Sweden's plans for deploying its NH90 utility helicopters abroad in international missions.

The 18 NH90s ordered by Sweden in 2001 as part of the joint Nordic Standard Helicopter Program with Finland and Norway will not all be deployable until 2020.

Currently there are only three NH90s - designated the HKP-14 in Swedish service - in the Swedish Army. These were delivered to the Army's Helicopter Wing in April. A fourth is expected by the end of the year. The three HKP-14s are not expected to be ready for international deployment until 2016 - eight years later than originally planned.

Due to the delays with the NH90 program and concerns about capability gaps, the Swedish government opted for a purchase of 15 Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawks using funds from a special projects budget.

The first batch of Black Hawks is due to arrive in four to eight months, with all 15 expected to become fully operational by 2017.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Ares

A Defense Technology Blog

Helicopter Reorganization Could Ground German Special Forces

Posted by Nicholas Fiorenza at 9/21/2011 10:55 AM CDT

I don't understand this for a number of reasons: -

1) They have the option of using a range of new helo's to replace the Bo-105's not least EADS EC 635's ehich have long been mooted for Army/specFor service
2) Use the bloody NH90's, that's what they are there for..............the CSAR version is not proceeding for the moment but they can still use the technology

The German defense ministry posted the current status of the reorganization of the Bundeswehr, the country's armed forces, on its website today. As has been known for some time, part of the plan is for the Luftwaffe to operate the Bundeswehr's CH-53s, currently flown by army aviation, and for the army to fly the new NH90, instead of sharing this role with the Luftwaffe.


Bo 105 (photo: Redaktion Heer)

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) newspaper, in an article published yesterday, pointed out that this would leave German special forces without their own dedicated helicopters or pilots. In addition, the Bo 105, which is used to insert special forces by rope, is being retired because it is too expensive to maintain. The FAZ reports concerns that losing their helicopters would not only reduce the readiness of special forces, but also deprive them of the skills of the highly trained pilots required for special operations.

A possible solution mentioned by the FAZ is for German special forces to lease helicopters.

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army to Industry: 'Show Me' Better Helos

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN

Published: 21 Sep 2011 17:27

RIDLEY PARK, Pa. - A top U.S. Army aviation leader challenged the defense industry to put up or shut up after Congress ripped his service for requesting funding for costly upgrades to the Kiowa helicopter.

Committee members yanked $17 million the Army requested to fund additional upgrades to the ones engineers are already making to the OH-58 Kiowas.

The committee's report questioned why taxpayers should pay for upgrades - the Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program, and multiple engineering change proposals - when they cost nearly as much as new aircraft.

Maj. Gen. William Crosby, head of the Army's aviation program executive office, said at a Boeing Chinook factory here the congressional committee is ignoring outside costs, such as establishing a training base and sustainment of a new aircraft.

The two-star general said he is tired of hearing how defense industry teams can deliver helicopters equal to these upgrades.

"I'd like to call them to the table and say 'show me.' I have a little Missouri in me," Crosby said. "Right now, we're doing everything on PowerPoint and RFIs from industry.

"I want to have a demonstration. I want to see what we can do and determine if that is affordable. It's not just the cost to buy it, because that's what they all say."

[buglerbilly]

Army Aircraft Poised to Do 'Pretty Well' In Budget

By Carlo Munoz

Published: September 21, 2011



PHILADELPHIA: As the budget outlook for the services seems to get bleaker with each passing day, one Army general says he expects to do pretty well come February.

Maj. Gen Tim Crosby, head of the Army's program executive office for aviation, said his office's funding request for the upcoming Fiscal Year 2013 budget should remain pretty much intact once the service unveils its final spending proposal early next year.

Speaking to reporters after today's event to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Boeing-built CH-47 Chinook helicopter at the company's factory here, Crosby said the service's air portfolio "actually has done pretty well" during the ongoing budget debates inside the Pentagon.

Given the tremendous financial strain the Army and the rest of DoD is under, the two-star general was under no illusions that his office would come out of the budget fray unscathed.

The Army, along with the rest of DoD are "struggling for dollars" as Capitol Hill and the White House is looking more and more to the Pentagon to pay a part of the national deficit.

To pay that bill, service and DoD budget shops are being forces to "take an appetite suppressant" to balance the books for FY-13 and beyond, Crosby said.

That said, the two-star Army air chief made clear which priorities in the Army air portfolio he could not live without heading into the new fiscal year.

Securing new multiyear deals for the service's Blackhawks, Chinooks and Apaches, as well as getting the Armed Aerial Scout program finally up and running, headed up Crosby's to-do list for FY-13 budget plan, or program objective memorandum in Pentagon parlance.

By doing multiyears for those helicopters, Army air officials plan to save between 10 to 15 percent per aircraft, compared to the price the service would have paid by buying each one individually.

But convincing the Army to lock in service dollars for those multiyear buys, especially at a time when spending flexibility is at a premium, will be a tough case to make, Crosby admitted.

"It makes sense, but can we [afford] to do it," the two-star Army air chief said, adding that multiyears mean the Army will not be able to move those dollars to other, more pressing, service priorities if needed.

While noting the multiyear deals are key to keeping the Army's air portfolio afloat, in the end Crosby's office "may have to accept what [the Army] tells me."

(Full disclosure: Boeing paid for Carlo's train ride to and from Philadelphia.)

[buglerbilly]

DATE:22/09/11

SOURCE:Flight International

US Army moves to set up possible growth variant of CH-47 Chinook

By Stephen Trimble

On the eve of celebrating the 50th anniversary of first flight, the US Army took the first step towards launching the fourth major growth version of the Boeing CH-47 Chinook heavylift helicopter.

A modernisation programme office was opened in early September at the acquisition headquarters for the army aviation community at Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, CH-47 product manager Col Bob Marion said on 21 September.

The army is already considering options for introducing a new CH-47H variant in the 2020 timeframe, succeeding the CH-47F and MH-47G models launched about a decade ago, said Maj Gen William Crosby, programme executive officer for army aviation.


© USAF

With the CH-47F/G models, the army introduced the Rockwell Collins common avionics architecture system (CAAS) cockpit and the BAE Systems digital advanced flight control system (DAFCS).

Asked to describe options for configuration upgrades under review for a CH-47H, Marion declined. The army is still developing requirements for the fourth-generation of the Chinook family, he said.

Boeing, however, has previously listed several options for a "growth Chinook". A minimum effort would increase the helicopter's lift by 1t by optimising the existing rotor hub and transmission. A re-engining would require a larger investment, but replacing the 4,870shp Honeywell T55 with a 7,500shp engine could improve overall lift capacity to almost 29,500kg (65,000lb).

The most ambitious possibility would involve widening the fuselage to allow the aircraft to lift as much as 34,000kg, including the airframe. But this design approach would require the army to waive a standing requirement for any army aircraft to be transported by a Boeing C-17A strategic transport.

Any CH-47H modernisation programme would be launched after the F/G-model production line expires in 2019. Boeing and the army are currently in the early stages of discussing options for a second multi-year deal that would be awarded in fiscal year 2013, with current plans to buy 155 aircraft over a five-year period.

Funding for a second multi-year deal, however, is not assured. The army's decision will be based on the result of a new wave of budget reductions now under review, Crosby said.

[buglerbilly]

Dutch Cougars and NAS De Kooy get a reprieve

September 22, 2011



The Dutch MoD has given in to parliamentary demands and decided to retain a reduced fleet of eight Cougars until 2017, it has emerged.

It has also decided that NAS De Kooy near naval base Den Helder will stay open following an MoD agreement with the civilian co-users and local authorities on how to share the financial burden of running the airfield.

In April, Dutch defence minister Hans Hillen announced a series of defence budget cuts, which included a withdrawal of the Eurocopter AS532 Cougar fleet.

While three of the AS532s were to be retained at Gilze-Rijen for SAR backup until the end of 2012 – supplementing three Agusta-Bell AB412SPs in use by the Royal Netherlands Air Force for daytime SAR – 14 Cougars from 300 Squadron were withdrawn in May so they could be transferred to the DMO for onward sale.

However, members of the Dutch parliament demanded that Hillen reconsider his plans for the Cougar withdrawal, arguing that maintaining a fleet of eight Cougars would better suit national and European helicopter needs.

They argued, for instance, that because of planned cuts there will be a misbalance between the needs of the 11th Air Manoeuvre Brigade ground component and the number of helicopters available.

National counterterrorist operations supported by the Cougar would also be hit while there was a concurrent increased need for helicopters to support European battlegroup operations.

Meanwhile, Dutch naval Westland Lynx SH14Ds relinquished their SAR duties in July. Until sufficient fully operational NH90s become available, Noordzee Helicopters Vlaanderen (NHV) has been contracted by the Dutch government to provide interim night time SAR coverage with a SA365N Dauphin II stationed at the Europoort heliport near Rotterdam.

Pieter Bastiaans, Breda

[buglerbilly]

Turkey Asked to Compete in Saudi Helicopter Bid, Sabah Says

By Benjamin Harvey - Sep 21, 2011 8:22 PM GMT+0800 .

Saudi Arabia’s military asked Turkey to enter a tender to produce attack helicopters for the Saudi air force, Sabah newspaper reported.

Turkish officials are in negotiations with Saudi counterparts regarding the Turkish-made Atak T-129 helicopters, which made their first test flights last month and are expected to go into mass production in the middle of next year, the Istanbul-based newspaper said. Sabah didn’t say how it got the information.

The helicopters are produced with parts and input from Turkish companies including Aselsan Elektronik Sanayi & Ticaret AS and are generating interest from Malaysia, Jordan and Pakistan, Sabah said.

South Korea officially invited Turkey to join a tender in April next year for 36 military helicopters, the newspaper said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Benjamin Harvey in Istanbul at bharvey11@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Gavin Serkin at gserkin@bloomberg.net

[buglerbilly]

New Lakota variant packs punch for Guard

September 29, 2011

By Sofia Bledsoe, PEO Aviation





HUNTSVILLE, Ala., Sept. 29, 2011 -- Army National Guard pilots from four states are now training on the new Security and Support variant of the Lakota helicopter.

The UH-72A S&S Mission Equipment Package, or MEP, is the newest helicopter to enter service with the Army.

The S&S MEP includes a turreted electro-optical/infrared sensor and laser pointer; EuroAvionics, EuroNav moving map system and two SkyQuest touch-screen displays; a video management system, SkyQuest digital video recorder plus additional avionics and Sierra Nevada Tactilink Eagle data downlink system.

The helicopter is also equipped with a 30-million-candlepower searchlight that is mounted on the aft starboard step and slaved to the MX-15, and the sames rescue hoist that is included in the Lakota's medevac MEP.

"I'm excited about the enhanced capabilities that it offers," said Lt. Col. Dallas Jones, a pilot with the Louisiana National Guard who is participating in a two-week course now at Madison County Executive Airport near Huntsville, Ala.

Four states including Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Florida are participating in this two-week training, which consists of academic and day and night flight training. The aircraft provides long-range electro-optical sensors and the ability to record and downlink data, which will aid the Army National Guard in its homeland security, counter drug, and border patrol missions.

"This is a success story of the joint efforts between the National Guard and the LUH Product Office in reviewing the lessons learned from the field, building the National Guard's requirements, and designing a state-of-the-art mission equipment package that meets all those requirements," said Lt. Col. Dave Bristol, product manager for Light Utility Helicopters on Redstone Arsenal. "It is a success story of team work."

Jones said using the improved camera versus what he was flying with before puts him and his crew a good five miles away from a target instead of a mile away. "They can't hear me or see me."

"It allows them to really conduct drug missions in a different manner," said Maj. Jay Maher, Assistant Product Manager for the LUH Product Office. "They can go operate at higher altitudes. Utilize maximum stand-off ranges while slewing the search light and sight system together, effectively maximing the system when acquiring objects of interest. It's a very powerful sighting system, with both thermal and day time capability."

There are many "firsts" with the UH-72A S&S MEP including touch screens and soft keyboards. Jack Johnston, Director of Flight Operations for the NET with the LUH Product Office said that the S&S MEP is "the only Army aircraft with these capabilities. It's completely unique."

"Everything in this aircraft feeds through the video management system and in any one of the video displays," said Johnston. "So the guy in the back could be looking at one of the sensors while these guys up front could be looking at the map while the other guy could be looking at the other sensor on the ball. It gives you complete independence throughout."

Another great capability of the aircraft is being able to conduct database searches with the moving map.

"We have all the city street maps, aeronautical charts for the entire US, nautical charts for all the coastal areas and IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) charts for all of the US," said Johnston. "We can also host topographical maps for the U.S."

Conducting all of the training in Huntsville allowed the team to consolidate and maximize all of their resources with instructors and aircraft operating from one place. "It allows us to put more crew members back at home station qualified on the aircraft faster," said Maher.

Madison County Executive Airport was chosen since it had all the facilities and the right amount of airspace available to conduct training in the area. Maher added that the team adheres to the Fly Friendly policy and will stay away from populated areas, so residents will not notice or hear the aircraft flying at night.

Four aircraft will be used during the two-week training. Forty-nine National Guard pilots from seven states are scheduled to train by December. Alabama, Texas and Arkansas will be the next three states trained in November/December timeframe. All LUH S&S training will occur at the Madison County Executive Airport.

In addition to the class, the Light Utility Helicopter Product Office showed off its new S&S variant of the Lakota to the news media at the airport Sept. 28.

One hundred UH-72A S&S MEP are currently on contract for production. The first 16 were retrofitted with the MEP, and the next 84 will roll off the production line at the EADS facility in Columbus, Miss.

The rapid acquisition, production and fielding of the UH-72A Lakota aircraft over the last three and a half years has allowed the Army to transfer 23 UH-60 Black Hawk aircraft to other missions that support overseas contingency operations. It also allowed the Army to retire the aging UH-1 and divest the OH-58A/C by replacing them with modern, capable aircraft, officials said.

They said the Army plans to acquire 345 Lakotas through 2015, and the service has ordered 232 of the helicopters so far, along with five UH-72A versions for the U.S. Navy. Since 2007, 178 UH-72 helicopters have flown over 76,000 hours across the United States, Puerto Rico, Kwajalein Atoll, and Germany at operational readiness rate of more than 90 percent.

[Milne Bay]

Chinook choppers grounded after computer problem

Posted October 05, 2011 16:21:22
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-10-05/chinook-helicopters-grounded/3299976

The Australian Army has grounded its CH-47D Chinook helicopters after finding possible problems with the aircraft's flight control systems.

The Defence Department says the suspension of flying operations is a precaution to ensure safety and is consistent with procedures.

The Chinooks will remain grounded while a technical analysis by Defence and Boeing is carried out.

Brigadier Neil Turton, director-general of aviation, says issues have been identified in the CH-47D's advanced flight control system (AFCS).

"The precautionary suspension will remain in place pending technical analysis of flight data by Defence and Boeing," he said in a statement.

Of the Army's five Chinook helicopters, two are in Afghanistan's Kandahar region as part of the US 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, but Defence says the suspension is not expected to have an impact on operations.

The Australian Army has operated Chinooks since 1973, but the CH-47Ds are a relatively recent acquisition with the first delivered in 1995.

One was lost in Afghanistan in May in a crash which killed an Australian soldier.

[buglerbilly]

Strange, we have identified a problem and the US Forces have not....? :dunno

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army aviation bosses want to see Armed Aerial Scout prototypes

Posted by Chris Kelly | October 10th, 2011 | AUSA 2011

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN and MARCUS WEISGERBER — U.S. Army aviation’s top officers again told defense industry to take their helicopter proposals for the Armed Aerial Scout off PowerPoint slides and get them into the air.

Maj. Gen. William Crosby, head of the Army’s aviation program executive office, issued the same challenge in September. Sitting alongside the rest of the Army’s aviation leadership on Monday at the Association of the U.S. Army conference, he said the service plans to fly an Armed Aerial Scout demonstration in April.


An OH-58 Kiowa flies during a mission near Kirkuk, Iraq, in 2007. Army aviation officials weren’t happy when a congressional committee yanked $17 million the service asked for additional upgrades to the ones engineers are already making to the Kiowas. (Army)

“It’s time to put up or shut up,” said Maj. Gen. Anthony Crutchfield, head of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence.

A congressional committee yanked $17 million the Army requested to fund additional upgrades to the ones engineers are already making to the OH-58 Kiowas.

The committee’s report questioned why taxpayers should pay for upgrades — the Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program, and multiple engineering change proposals — when they cost nearly as much as new aircraft.

Crosby wants to see the accuracy of those proclamations in a demonstration. He made sure to clarify this is not a “fly off.”

“I don’t think it would be responsible of me to make a decision like this just based off a PowerPoint slide,” he said.

Both Boeing and EADS North America touted their Armed Aerial Scout candidates. The other contenders include Sikorsky, Bell Helicopter and AVX Aircraft.

Boeing is pitching an upgraded version of its AH-6 Little Bird and EADS is pitching a souped-up UH-72 Lakota.

Boeing plans to base its Armed Aerial Scout proposal on its international AH-6i variant, which incorporates about 80 percent of its software from the AH-64 Block-3 Apache helicopter.

“We’re very pleased with the capability we continue to develop in the AH-6i, leveraging all of the technology, maturation, software and experience of our rotocraft team in Mesa [Ariz.] from the Apache Block-3 into the AH-6i,” David Koopersmith, vice president of the AH-6i and AH-64 programs, said in a briefing.

EADS showed off an Armed Aerial Scout demonstrator at the conference and touted a number of risk reductions activities conducted over the past several months.

“Through very specific and very significant company investments from EADS, we are ready to demonstrate our solution … to meet the inventory requirements that exist now,” Sean O’Keefe, EADS’ CEO, said at a briefing.

[buglerbilly]

An ‘appetite suppressant’ for Army aviation

By Philip Ewing Monday, October 10th, 2011 6:40 pm



The top leaders of Army Aviation, known inside the family as “the Four Horsemen,” said Monday they’re bearing the brunt of the Army’s grueling deployment schedule. Helicopter units go in on the first day of the war and they must stay until the last, the leaders said, making for a disproportionate amount of wear on soldiers and aircraft.

There’s a light at the distant end of the tunnel — Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, head of the Army’s Program Executive Office for Aviation, says the service is aiming at a new joint, multi-role helicopter by 2030, one that will be able to handle both attack and utility missions. The ins and outs of that goal are a whole other story, and in the meantime, the Army must do something to bridge the gap.

That means the aviation branch needs to take “an appetite suppressant,” said Maj. Gen. Tony Cruchfield, who commands the Army Aviation Center of Excellence. In this situation, it means the Army has to “accept risk, sustain older systems, be really smart, do budget analysis and figure out the biggest bang,” Crosby said.

For example, when it comes to one of the biggest near-term priorities — doing something about its battered old scout helicopter fleet — that will mean one of two choices. Either the Army does a service life extension for its OH-58 Kiowa Warriors, or it buys what Crosby called a “COTS system,” i.e. a consumer, off-the-shelf helicopter as a stopgap solution. The Army wants to begin to look at possible competitors soon, with a goal of having demonstrations around April. It won’t be a fly-off and it won’t be an operational test, Crosby stressed — it’ll just help officials learn more about what’s out there.

In the long term, the Army hopes discipline today will pay off with new helicopters in the long term, which will be essential because the current fleet cannot keep flying forever.

“I don’t want my grandson flying the [AH-64 Apache] Longbow Block 80. I don’t want my grandson flying the CH-47 Zulu,” Crutchfield said. “Taking an appetite suppressant to fill the armed aerial scout capability is what we need to get us to a point where we can fly something that is new, that does lift more, that has a reduced logistical footprint. It won’t be the airframes we have now, no matter how much money we put in them.”

Read more: http://www.dodbuzz.com/2011/10/10/an-appetite-suppressant-for-army-aviation/#ixzz1aQs6edbY
DoDBuzz.com

[buglerbilly]

Army Makes MUSIC With Unmanned Aircraft At Dugway

By Richard Whittle

Published: October 10, 2011



Washington: Necessity is truly the mother of invention, and nothing begets necessity like war. Which explains why some of the most impressive innovations in the ever-evolving field of unmanned aircraft – the unclassified innovations, at least -- are emanating from, of all places, the armed service built to fight primarily on land.

The Air Force was the first branch of the military to arm a remotely piloted aircraft used in combat -- the Hellfire missile-carrying MQ-1 Predator -- and the first to field devices that let manned aircraft crews and ground troops see unmanned aircraft video in real time.

As the Army recently demonstrated at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah, though, the nation's land force is aggressively coming up with shrewd ways to expand and exploit the utility and potential of what it prefers to call Unmanned Aircraft Systems, or UAS. Tim Owings, deputy project manager, Unmanned Aircraft Systems for the Army says the reason is war. "This is a very, very real mission area for us every day on the battlefield, so we are trying to innovate and also create ways to become more efficient," Owings told AOL Defense.

At Dugway, three Army aviation project offices – Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Apache Attack Helicopter and Armed Scout Helicopter – collaborated in the first of what's projected to be a series of biennial exercises called Manned-Unmanned Systems Integration Capability, or MUSIC. The event showed off some wow-worthy new technologies and tactics aimed at getting more bang for the bandwidth out of the Army's fast-growing fleet of unmanned aircraft, which now number five and will soon include six types, ranging in size from the hand-thrown and back-packable RQ-11B Raven to the 3,200-lb. (fully loaded) Predator-derivative, Hellfire-carrying MQ-1C Gray Eagle.

The 2011 MUSIC exercise used a complicated mock mission to demonstrate:

A new Universal Ground Control Station, or UGCS, made by made by AAI Textron Systems of Hunt Valley, MD., that will let Army UAS operators fly any of the service's three largest remote control aircraft from the same trailer-housed console.

An equally new, laptop-sized Mini Universal Ground Control Station, or MUGCS, made by AeroVironment of Monrovia, Calif., that can operate any of three small UAS the same company makes for the Army -- the 4.2-lb. Raven, the 13-lb. Puma and the yet-unfielded Wasp micro-drone, which weighs less than a pound.

New software developed by the Phoenix company Kutta Tech that, along with a new bidirectional antenna, transforms AAI's formerly receive-only One System Remote Video Terminal, into a device that allows ground troops to not only see video from a UAS or manned aircraft but also take control of a UAS and send it to areas they want to see with a few mouse clicks on a digital map.

A new "Triclops" version of the Gray Eagle that carries two extra sensor balls, one under each wing, each of which can be controlled by ground troops or manned aircraft crews equipped with the right gear to communicate with the UAS.

Newly developed tactics in which ground troops and helicopter crews can take control of UAS sensors, hand them off among each other, and share or relay UAS images, the better to coordinate operations and dispense with trying to tell each other where targets are by radio.

"We demonstrated flawless exchange of video products between the complete unmanned aircraft systems fleet, including all the small unmanned aircraft and the larger systems, such as Shadow, Hunter and Gray Eagle," Owings said. "We also demonstrated flawless and seamless integration between the unmanned fleet and the manned fleet." The 2011 MUSIC exercise was also the first time the UGCS and MUGCS had been used in such a demonstration, he added.

AAI's new UGCS will be sent to Afghanistan next year as the control station for the company's rail-launched RQ-7B Shadow UAS, Owings said. The Army plans to deploy two Shadow platoons, consisting of four aircraft and one UGCS each, as part of a new Full Spectrum Combat Aviation Brigade it's creating. The UGCS will later become the standard control station for the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. Gray Eagle and Northrop Grumman Corp.'s MQ-5B Hunter. The bidirectional OSRVT also is to be deployed next year, Owings said.

The MUSIC exercise was scripted to show all of the above and the flexibility they will give Army forces in a mini-drama seen by reporters and VIPs seated in a hangar before an array of big screens. The screens showed UAS and helicopter video while speakers piped in radio conversations among the participants in the exercise and narration by a master of ceremonies.

The players used encrypted data links to share and swap surveillance video shot by UAS and helicopters as the friendly force "captured" and "killed" role-player insurgents.

First, a Raven began following a red pickup truck driven by a "suspected insurgent courier" near a fictional fo rward operating base, sharing its video with a role-player soldier on the ground equipped with a bidirectional One System Remote Video Terminal. As the truck drove away from the base and the Raven neared its range limit, a Shadow controlled from a Universal Ground Control Station was sent to take up tracking the truck.

The role-player soldier with the OSRVT first switched to watching the Shadow's video, then took control of the UAS's camera himself to "get a closer look" when the truck's driver parked near a building and got out. Before the OSRVT user could zoom in with the Shadow's camera, though, the suspect walked under a canopy next to the building, making it impossible to see him from the overhead view provided by the UAS. In response, the task force commander sent a Boeing Co. AH-64D Apache Block II attack helicopter to hover at low altitude and point the camera in its targeting sensor at the building from an angle offering a view of the suspect. When the Apache arrived, the soldier using the OSRVT relinquished control of the Shadow's sensor ball and switched from watching the Shadow's video to receiving the Apache's. As the Apache crew and OSRVT user watched the suspected courier, a blue pickup truck showed up from another direction and parked. Its driver got out, greeted the suspected courier, took a bag from him, then got back in his truck and drove away. The task force commander ordered the Apache to break off and follow the blue truck while the Shadow circling the building stayed with the red one. The Apache followed the blue truck until it stopped down the road. At the same time, the task force commander received an order to send his Shadow UAS back to its brigade, where it was needed for a different mission, so the commander requested and received the use of a three-sensor ball Triclops Gray Eagle to take over watching the red truck.

Shortly after the Gray Eagle arrived, the task force commander's Apache was ordered to break off watching the blue pickup truck and go to another area where a friendly convoy had been attacked. To fill that gap, the task force commander radioed a soldier carrying a Mini Universal Ground Control Station to take control of one of the Gray Eagle's three sensor balls and use it to monitor the blue truck and its driver.

As the scenario continued, another soldier with a Mini UGCS and a third using the OSRVT took control of the Gray Eagle's other two sensor balls to watch both the suspect with the red truck ashe drove away and the building he'd just left. At that point, the narrator noted, three soldiers at separate locations on the ground were using one air vehicle to monitor three targets in separate locations. The exercise continued at some length, with the narrator explaining that a Quick Reaction Force had killed the blue truck's driver as the Gray Eagle left the scene and a handheld Puma UAS took over surveillance of the red pickup truck driver. Now the red truck driver entered a "city," where he was "captured and interrogated by a host nation security patrol" and revealed that his insurgent group was able to make improvised explosive devices using shells from a disabled U.S. tank.

The show ended with an MQ-5B Hunter flown from the Universal Ground Control Station – the same UGCS used to fly the Shadow and Gray Eagle earlier – directing an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopter, made by Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., as it destroyed the tank with rockets. The only thing MUSIC's planners wanted to do but couldn't, Owings said, was show how the crew of the Army's newest Apache, the Block III, could take over not just the sensor payload of a UAS but its flight controls as well. The Block III, however, was unavailable because that it was still being tested in preparation for an expected Nov. 2 rollout in Mesa.

These new technologies and tactics -- which were demonstrated mainly by contractors for the companies that make the new gear but which Owings said are generally "amazingly simple" to use -- would have been hard to imagine only a few years ago. Preparing for an exercise like MUSIC, he added, helped concentrate the minds of those developing the technology and tactics.
"It acts as a forcing function to get all of our programs aligned, and it forces that development at a rate that probably wouldn't happen without something like this," Owings said. Being at war, though, "accelerated us probably at least eight to tenfold."

[buglerbilly]

AAS-72X Program Update: EADS North America Readies Its Armed Aerial Scout 72X Helicopter for Competitive Fly-Off Demonstration

(Source: EADS North America; issued October 10, 2011)


EADS North America has derived three AAS-72X armed variants of the UH-72A Lakota, with which it will compete for the US Army’s Armed Aerial Scout requirement. (EADS photo)

In anticipation of a competitive flight demonstration, EADS North America’s Armed Aerial Scout 72X (AAS-72X) is on display at the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) convention this week in Washington, DC.

The AAS-72X, an armed derivative of the Army’s UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter manufactured by the company’s American Eurocopter business unit, has completed the majority of its militarization requirements in a company-funded development effort that began in 2009.

EADS North America also announced at AUSA that Rockwell Collins has joined the AAS-72X team and will be responsible for the design, engineering and production of simulation and training devices in support of U.S. Army operator and maintainer requirements.

“We’re pleased to welcome Rockwell Collins to the EADS North America Armed Scout team, the team that is offering the most capable of any armed scout helicopter solution,” said Sean O’Keefe, CEO of EADS North America. “We’re ready to prove that fact through a competitive flight demonstration to validate that we can meet the Army’s demanding armed scout mission.”

A highly capable helicopter for the Armed Aerial Scout mission, the AAS-72X combines the safety of a twin-engine aircraft and the high/hot operating performance necessary to meet the Army’s demanding Armed Scout mission. Derived from the same family of aircraft as the UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter, the AAS-72X is a low-risk evolution of the U.S. Army’s newest rotary-wing aircraft, which is widely considered one of the most successful acquisition programs in the service’s history.

The EADS North America-led industry team of American Eurocopter and Lockheed Martin has made a significant investment in the development of three AAS-72X Technical Demonstrator Aircraft (TDA), which have been used to conduct parallel development and risk reduction activities and to demonstrate the armed scout’s level of capability and technical maturity. The first TDA aircraft made its maiden flight in December 2010.

Prior to the start of the TDA program, the company conducted high/hot hover-out-of-ground-effect, endurance and payload testing in 2009 at Alamosa, Colo. utilizing a helicopter derived from the UH-72A Lakota/EC145 platform family. In that test the helicopter successfully operated at 6,000 feet and 95-degree density altitude. The team also conducted a key transportability test when five aircraft were successfully loaded in a C-17 transport aircraft. Additionally, EADS North America and Lockheed Martin established a System Integration Laboratory (SIL) and hangar in April 2010 at Lockheed Martin’s Orlando, Fla. facility.

The AAS-72X demonstration aircraft is equipped with a Mission Equipment Package (MEP) that includes a chin-mounted turret with integrated targeting sensor, manned-unmanned teaming capability, communications suite and weapons. All MEP items already are in the Army inventory.

Production of the AAS-72X will take place at American Eurocopter’s Columbus, Miss. helicopter center of excellence where the UH-72A Lakota is currently manufactured for the U.S. Army. EADS North America has delivered more than 190 UH-72A Lakotas to the Army, all on time and within budget, along with five H-72A versions to the U.S. Navy for test pilot training.

EADS North America is the North American operation of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services. As a leader in all sectors of defense and homeland security, EADS North America and its parent company, EADS, contribute over $11 billion to the U.S. economy annually and support more than 200,000 American jobs through its network of suppliers and services. Operating in 17 states, EADS North America offers a broad array of advanced solutions to its customers in the commercial, homeland security, aerospace and defense markets.

EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services. In 2010, the Group - comprising Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian and Eurocopter – generated revenues of EUR 45.8 billion and employed a workforce of nearly 122,000.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

EADS North America Begins Deliveries of Lakota Helicopters with An Advanced Mission Equipment Package

(Source: EADS; issued October 10, 2011)

EADS North America has achieved another significant milestone on the UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) program with the delivery of Lakotas to the National Guard outfitted with the Security and Support (S&S) Battalion Mission Equipment Package (MEP).

The UH-72A Lakota, built in Mississippi by the company’s American Eurocopter business unit, is one of the U.S. Army’s most successful acquisition programs and is repeatedly noted by DoD officials for its on-time and on-budget deliveries.

“This highly capable configuration is the latest and most significant evolution of the Lakota and the missions it is asked to perform,” said Sean O’Keefe, CEO of EADS North America. “These S&S Battalion Lakotas provide our Army National Guard units with the ability to effectively respond at a moment’s notice to a wide range of operational assignments including natural disasters, search and rescue operations, border protection missions and law enforcement support.”

Lakotas equipped with the S&S Battalion MEP will be operated by Army National Guard units across the country. The S&S Battalion MEP will greatly expand the capabilities of the Army’s UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopters and further demonstrates the platform’s flexibility for growth and mission-specific configurations.

Currently 68 of the 99 anticipated S&S Battalion MEP installations are on contract. Of the 68 on contract, 52 Lakotas will be built with the S&S Battalion MEP integrated during production, and 16 Lakotas already in service with the Army National Guard will be retrofitted at the company’s American Eurocopter facility in Columbus, Miss.

The S&S Mission Equipment Package contains a centerline electro-optical infrared (EO/IR) sensor, a 30 million candle power search light, analog/digital video downlink, rear observers’ console with a 15-inch display, an enhanced tactical communications suite, an onboard digital video recorder, 10.4-inch auxiliary displays for the pilot and co-pilot, and a video management system.

The Lakota is based on the commercially successful EC145 multi-role helicopter and was developed by EADS’ Eurocopter division. As part of EADS North America’s commitment to the U.S. Army, the company’s American Eurocopter business unit created a dedicated UH-72A manufacturing facility in Mississippi capable of sustained annual output of 55 Lakotas.

UH-72A Lakotas are operating from 33 locations in the continental U.S., Puerto Rico, Germany and the Kwajalein Atoll. The U.S. Army has ordered 237 UH-72As to date out of a total program of 345 helicopters through 2015. To date 190 aircraft have been delivered to the Department of Defense, including five for the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School.

The U.S. Army is using Lakotas in multiple configurations to fulfill a range of missions, including medical evacuation, search and rescue operations, homeland security, VIP transport, disaster response and relief, general aviation support, combat flight training and pilot sustainment training.

EADS North America also provides the Army with FAA-certified flight and maintainer training. More than 600 pilot and nearly 400 maintenance personnel have completed classes at American Eurocopter’s headquarters facility in Grand Prairie, Texas. The Lakota program also includes full and hybrid contractor logistics support to the Army and Army National Guard, and modifications and retrofit of mission equipment packages onto existing aircraft.

The UH-72A is a Defense Acquisition Category (ACAT) I major defense acquisition program. Deliveries of the aircraft to the Army and Army National Guard allow aging OH-58 and UH-1 rotary-wing aircraft to be retired, while freeing up UH-60 Black Hawks for assignment to combat missions.

EADS North America is the North American operation of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services. As a leader in all sectors of defense and homeland security, EADS North America and its parent company, EADS, contribute over $11 billion to the U.S. economy annually and support more than 200,000 American jobs through its network of suppliers and services. Operating in 17 states, EADS North America offers a broad array of advanced solutions to its customers in the commercial, homeland security, aerospace and defense markets.

EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services. In 2010, the Group - comprising Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian and Eurocopter – generated revenues of EUR 45.8 billion and employed a workforce of nearly 122,000.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

AUSA 2011: Flight demonstration plan bad news for Sikorsky

October 11, 2011

The US Army plans to hold flight demonstrations of the aircraft bidding for its Armed Aerial Scout programme in 2012, in a decision that is likely to exclude at least one of the companies currently chasing the project.

Speaking to reporters at the AUSA exhibition in Washington DC on 10 October, Maj Gen Tim Crosby, PEO Aviation, said budget constraints had forced the service to ‘take an appetite suppressant’ in seeking a replacement for the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior.

While noting that the plan still needed approval at the higher level, Crosby said his intention was to carry out the demonstration at the beginning of April.

‘This is not a fly-off, it’s a demonstration,’ Crosby said ‘I have to have approval from the under secretary of defence to allow me to spend those additional dollars. We estimate that this is going to be about $8.7 million to execute this demo – that has a lot of assumptions in it – but it would be no more than that amount.‘

The requirement to have a flying prototype ready for flight tests in as little as six months’ time could well spell the end of Sikorsky’s ambitions to meet the AAS requirements with its S97 Raider coaxial compound helicopter.

While Sikorsky has gone a long way in validating the configuration through its X2 Technology Demonstrator, which flew 23 test flights and achieved a maximum cruise speed of 253 knots in level flight, the test aircraft has now been retired.

The first flight of the company-funded Raider is not expected until 2014.

When asked about the fate of companies who did not currently have a flying prototype, Crosby made it clear that this was a ‘deal breaker’ in terms of their involvement in the project.

‘I am a pretty simple guy – if you don’t have an airplane you don’t play. This is not Powerpoint, this is not bringing a picture – if it doesn’t fly, don’t bother showing up. We believe that there are COTS systems that meet, not all the requirements, but a substantial part of it.

‘What we need to do is validate that and determine what the cost would be and if it was worth the investment, that’s the bottom line. We don’t have time, we don’t want to jeopardise our JMR vision, so what do we need to do to extend that scout and keep that manned reconnaissance role valid as quickly as possible.’

Sikorsky had earlier in the day suggested that if the army was to undertake a series of flying demonstrations before 2014, there remained the possibility of assessing the capabilities of its aircraft through simulation.

When asked about the harder stance the army now appears to be taking, the company was both diplomatic and optimistic in its response.

‘Sikorsky is looking forward to the US Army releasing its Armed Aerial Scout RFI. In times of declining defence budgets, we hope the army plans to invest in capabilities for this important mission that will realise benefits well into the future,’ stated Steve Engebretson, Sikorsky director of AAS.

Also in danger of being caught short by the need to carry out a flight demonstration in the first half of 2012 was AVX Aircraft, which is offering a coaxial rotor/ducted fan conversion for current OH-58D platforms to meet the AAS requirement.

Tony Skinner, Washington DC

[buglerbilly]

Army’s future helo may break the mold

Posted by Chris Kelly | October 12th, 2011 | AUSA 2011

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN — Army aviation wants to find the next Stanley Hiller Jr. to revolutionize its helicopter fleet.

In 1944, Hiller added all-metal rotors, allowing early helicopters to fly faster. The aviation community wants to make a similar technological leap when its all-new fleet of vertical-flight aircraft starts arriving in 2025.

Little is certain in this austere budget environment. The Army awarded the fourth and final study contract in late September to research revolutionary aircraft designs to replace some of the Army’s iconic helicopters: the UH-60 Black Hawk, CH-47 Chinook and AH-65 Apache.

Army pilots involved in the program quickly correct anyone who calls the Joint Multi-Role program a “helicopter” program. They’re open to any sort of vertical-lift aircraft that can meet the performance specifications.

Early specifications show the challenge: a vertical-lift aircraft that can fly more than 300 knots — 130 knots faster than the Army’s speediest rotorcraft. After all, JMR will not replace just one helicopter, it will replace the entire fleet.

JMR is split into three categories — light, medium and heavy — with considerations for a fourth “ultra” category, each with a combat radius of 424 kilometers (263 miles), considerably further than today’s copters.

Differences with each category are more prominent in the missions they will be expected to fly and the passengers and payload they will haul, according to special operations forces briefing slides written by Col. Doug Rombough, the Program Executive Officer Rotary Wing.

Some say launching a new aircraft program that won’t fly for another 15 years makes for an easy target for Congress and Pentagon budget cutters. Others note the Army’s long record of failed programs, including the $7 billion RAH-66 Comanche.

The Army’s top aviation officer weighed in this spring in Nashville, Tenn., saying he doesn’t want his grandchildren to fly the Longbow Block 80. It’s time the aviation community pushes the edge of technology and starts with a clean slate, said Maj. Gen. Anthony Crutchfield, head of the Army Aviation Center of Excellence.

“Boy, it’s been a while since we built a brand new one and not just upgrading old ones although those certainly have served us well especially over the past few years,” said Ned Chase, the program manager of JMR at the Army’s Aviation Applied Technology Directorate.

Rombough wrote into his briefing, which has made its way around the aviation community, that only new technologies can make “significant increases in range, speed, payload, survivability, reliability, and reduced logistical footprint.”

Bell, Boeing and Sikorsky have all received study contracts to research those technologies, as did AVX, a 2-year-old company based in Texas started by former Bell Helicopter engineers.

During the next two years, the four companies will submit reports on costs and designs they foresee for the JMR. In 2014, the Army will choose two companies to build prototypes.

The first aircraft the Army expects to field in 2025 is the biggest of the four categories, which service officials expect to deliver C-130-size payloads, including up to 120 passengers.

Next, the Army plans to field a replacement for the Black Hawk with JMR-Medium in 2027 or 2028, according to aviation officials.

This aircraft would fly reconnaissance, medevac, combat search and rescue, transport and security missions and could carry up to 24 passengers.

The final two — the JMR-Light and JMR-Heavy — would be fielded in 2030 and 2035, respectively.

Army officials don’t plan on replacing the Chinook, which first flew in 1961 and was built in a factory designed for rail cars, for another 24 years.

“It’s important to have the support now and do it the right way,” Chase said

[buglerbilly]

AUSA 2011: Older Kiowas returned to the fight

October 12, 2011



A US Army initiative to replace OH-58D Kiowa Warriors that have been destroyed or deemed uneconomical to repair is starting to gain momentum.

Under the Wartime Replacement Aircraft (WRA) programme the army is taking existing A model cabins and upgrading them to the D model standard to bring the fleet back up to the approved level of 368 aircraft.

Speaking to reporters at the AUSA exhibition in Washington DC on 12 October, Col Robert Grigsby, project manager for armed scout helicopters, said 18 WRA aircraft are currently under contract and the service had a goal of putting 42 aircraft through the process.

‘The benefit is the OH-58D is a very mature aircraft, there is a lot of surplus parts in the inventory so it is easy for us to procure parts and ship them to Corpus Christi Army Depot [CCAD] and in two months, roughly, they put them together,' Grigsby said.

‘We are getting it to five weeks to build up an aircraft, which is huge given the amount that goes on this airplane.'

Under the process, the cabin are shipped to CCAD, stripped to the bare metal, put through structural repair and painted. The bare cabin is then converted to the D configuration at the Bell Helicopter facility in Amarillo, Texas, before returning to CCAD for final assembly.

The second cabin under the programme is contracted for delivery in January 2012 and follow-on cabin deliveries will then take place each month from March. The initiative runs alongside the Crash Battle Damage (CBD) programme that rebuilds battle-damaged OH-58Ds.

Grigsby said that in addition to replenishing the fleet, the WRA project is resulting in aircraft being handed back to the units were often significantly lighter than the older airframes.

‘Over time we have added capability to it and it has got heavier and heavier. The weight gain has got more than we ever expected it to - on average it is about 30 pounds. That is sand, water, oil or it was a modification it was done for battle damage repair in the 1960s or 1970s that added weight to the airframe. So we are giving a much lighter aircraft back to the unit.

‘Also, from a maintainer's standpoint it is going to be a very tight, very true airframe that doesn't have 30 years of wear and tear. I have a 69 Mustang at home and I can tell you it's pretty worn out and that's what we are talking about.'

With the highest operational tempo of any army aircraft, flying an average of 80 hours per month, around six Kiowa Warriors are lost every year.

Tony Skinner, Washington DC

[buglerbilly]

Boeing Deal Offers 155 CH-47Fs to U.S. Army

By MARCUS WEISGERBER

Published: 12 Oct 2011 17:45

Boeing is preparing to deliver a proposal to the U.S. Army to build 155 CH-47F Chinook helicopters as part of a multiyear procurement deal.


The Chinooks purchased under the pact will include some newer features not installed in the current CH-47F fleet. (U.S. Army)

The helicopters purchased under the pact will include some newer features not installed in the current CH-47F fleet.

"Those aircraft will include a series of small design changes primarily driven by fielding requests," Patrick Donnelly, Boeing's director of domestic Chinook programs, said during an Oct. 12 interview at the annual Association of the U.S. Army convention in Washington.

One modification is a new floor that includes embedded rollers - similar to the ones used in U.S. Air Force's C-17 cargo planes – that make loading pallets easier. Today, some Chinooks use an optional pallet-roller system that is not integrated.

The proposal is due by Nov. 1, however contract award is not expected until January 2013, Donnelly said.

The multiyear order "will essentially complete" the current CH-47F program of record, Donnelly said. Army production is expected to wrap up at the end of the decade.

The Army awarded Boeing a $4.3 billion multiyear pact for more than 180 CH-47F aircraft in August 2008.

The Chinook replacement, the Joint Multi-Role Heavy, is not expected until the 2030s. Boeing is looking to keep the existing Chinook fleet flying for decades to come.

"I think right now our goal would be to do another [service-life extension] where we will increase performance, as the primary focus [and] increase lift," he said.

Boeing is developing a new rotor blade that will give the helicopter about 2,000 more pounds of lift, without degrading forward flight performance, Donnelly said. The system is not scheduled to deliver with the first aircraft in the multiyear procurement deal.

"We have a critical design review coming up in January and we've already started to build flight ballistic test specimens and other things to qualify it," he said.

Still in the Hunt

Boeing is still closely watching the Air Force's HH-60 recapitalization program and has responded to requests for information and has provided the service cost and production data, according to Donnelly.

"We are still very much engaged," he said.

The company does not plan to bid on the Air Force's UH-1N replacement program, dubbed the Common Vertical Lift Support Platform. That program is in limbo as the Pentagon prepares to cut $450 billion in planned spending over the next decade.

[buglerbilly]

Kiowa Replacement Plan Surprises Industry

Oct 13, 2011

By Graham Warwick



Industry says it is ready to respond if the U.S. Army proceeds with plans for flight evaluations, as early as April next year, of potential off-the-shelf replacements for its Bell OH-58 Kiowa Warrior armed scout helicopter.

Announcement of plans for a flight demonstration came as a surprise to manufacturers, who were waiting for the Army to release the results of a two-phase analysis of alternatives (AoA) for its Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) requirement.

AgustaWestland, Bell, Boeing and EADS North America say they will field aircraft if the Army proceeds with the demonstration, but contenders Sikorsky and AVX Aircraft will not be in a position to participate as their aircraft are still on the drawing board.

The recently competed AoA, the results of which have not been released, determined a new-start program was required. But in the face of deficit-driven budget pressures, the Army “has taken an appetite suppressant. We cannot afford a new start,” says Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, Army program executive officer for aviation.

Instead, the Army will look at what is available between an OH-58D service life extension program (SLEP) as the “minimum acceptable” baseline and the full AAS requirement. “What can we do with the scout we have today, or can we field a COTS [commercial off-the-shelf] solution that gets close [to the AAS requirements]?” Crosby asks.

Crosby is seeking $8.7 million in funding from the Army to conduct the demonstration. “That assumes five vendors,” he says. Bell says it will be ready with its Block 2 upgrade of the OH-58D, Boeing will field the AH-6i, EADS North America the AAS-72X, and AgustaWestland says it will participate with either the AW119 or AW109. But AVX and Sikorsky confirm they will not be able to field aircraft.

The planned demonstration will not be a fly-off or a source selection, Crosby cautions. Instead, the results will be used to refine the guidance already provided by the AoA. The goal of the flight demonstration is “to make an informed decision, and not make it solely on PowerPoint presentations,” he says.

“We believe a COTS system can meet a substantial portion of the requirement,” Crosby says. But the question intended to be answered by the demonstration is whether any capability offered above the baseline OH-58D SLEP “is worth the investment when we will have to decrement something else to afford it,” he says.

Crosby describes the demonstration as “come as you are. If you don’t have an aircraft, you don’t get to play.” But industry does not yet know what the Army wants to evaluate. A request for information is expected to be released within a couple of weeks, providing more detail.

None of the available aircraft exactly meets the Army’s requirements, and Sikorsky is hoping it will be given a chance to present flight-test data from the X2 technology demonstrator and simulations of the S-97 Raider, which is scheduled to fly in 2014.

AVX says it is continuing design work on its coaxial-rotor and ducted-fan modification of the OH-58D in the belief that the Army will follow the demonstration with an open competition to replace the Kiowa Warrior.

Whether or not there is a follow-on competition will depend on how the results of the demonstration refine the AoA guidance, Crosby indicates. “If the analysis proves out, we will go immediately into a competitive environment. If not, then we are budgeted to do the [OH-58D] SLEP as planned.”

Photo: US Army

[buglerbilly]

Saudis, UAE enter market for CH-47Fs

By: Stephen Trimble Washington DC

5 hours ago

Source:

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have joined a growing pool of countries interested in buying the Boeing CH-47F Chinook, US Army and Boeing officials have said.

The UAE has signed a letter of request for pricing and technical information on a possible buy of 16 of the heavy-lift helicopters, the army said. The letter is the first step in the foreign military sales (FMS) process.

Saudi Arabia has also expressed interest in buying a similar number of aircraft, officials said, but the Saudis have yet to sign a letter of request to formally open an FMS case with the US government.

The UAE special forces operate 12 CH-47C/Ds acquired from Libya in 2003. The Libyans purchased the Chinooks in the early 1970s from Italian manufacturer Elicotteri Meridionali, now part of AgustaWestland. At that time, Italy built CH-47s for domestic and foreign markets under licence.

The Saudis represent a new market for the Chinook, if the deal is approved.

Boeing's CH-47F also is competing with the Mil Mi-26 for an order of 15 aircraft from India. The contract award could be announced early next year, but delays are possible.

Separately, the US Army has determined that the flight control system problem that grounded Australia's CH-47D fleet in early October was an isolated event. Australia resumed flying the CH-47D on 10 October.

A week earlier, a CH-47D was damaged after "porpoising" during landing manoeuvres.

[buglerbilly]

IN FOCUS: British Army fights to influence helicopter training choices

By: Craig Hoyle London

2 hours ago

Source:

Today, the task of preparing a new pilot for operational duty on the UK's Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopters takes more than three-and-a-half years to complete. But by using a series of technological advances - and the *future introduction of a new training aircraft - the Army Air Corps is looking to boost both the effectiveness of its instruction and *accelerate this schedule.

Flight International was given exclusive *access to the Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop in Hampshire, to hear from the *officials in charge about their ambitions for the next three decades of rotary-wing activity.

This will be heavily influenced by the outcome of a contest to modernise the UK's current tri-service mechanism, via the Military Flying Training System (MFTS) programme. The Army Air Corps (AAC) has a current *operational fleet of about 160 helicopters, *according to Flightglobal's HeliCAS database. These range in size from the Eurocopter Gazelle and Westland Lynx to the Bell 212 and Apache. It also has a fleet of fixed-wing surveillance aircraft, comprising Britten-Norman BN-2 Islanders and Defender 4000s.


© Sgt Alison Baskerville/Crown Copyright
Apache operations in Afghanistan are the main focus for training activities

The army's helicopter inventory outnumbers that of its fellow UK services, the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy. Its demand for new helicopter pilots is also currently the largest, accounting for roughly 65 students from a typical total of 140, who receive instruction at the FB Heliservices-run Defence Helicopter Flying School (DHFS) at RAF Shawbury in Shropshire each year.

While the long-term effects of the UK's Strategic Defence and Security Review of late 2010 are yet to be fully felt in terms of training demand, Army Aviation Centre commandant Col Murray Whiteside expects the current trend to persist. "The army is still going to be the biggest rotary pilot customer in the training environment right out to 2020," he says.

The process for becoming an army pilot is complex, with candidates first graded at *Middle Wallop using the Grob G115 Tutor, *before gaining more fixed-wing experience at RAF Barkston Heath in Lincolnshire.

After completing the DHFS course at Shawbury using the Eurocopter Squirrel HT1, they return to Middle Wallop for an operational training phase with 670 Sqn, which uses nine enhanced Squirrel HT2s. After earning their wings, pilots undergo conversion to type and conversion to role training at the site before joining their frontline units.

"The [training] pipeline has been looked at endlessly," says Whiteside. "We all know it is not as efficient as it should be, and the MFTS era must fix this."

Students arrive at 670 Sqn with about 120h of flying experience, and will log around 92h more over a 22-week course.

Each intake is of roughly 10 students, with annual throughput typically being about 40-50 per year.

"They arrive here and we try to unmould their tri-service learning," says Royal Navy Lt Andy Higgins, the squadron's second in command. Early emphasis is given to map reading as an army aviator, for example.

Sorties flown from Middle Wallop are busy, due to the congested local airspace. The Ministry of Defence's Boscombe Down test centre in Wiltshire is nearby, as is the UK's military low-flying area 1 and danger areas on the Salisbury Plain Training Area. "Straight away the cockpit workload is huge," says Higgins.

"We benefit hugely by the proximity of Middle Wallop to the Salisbury Plain Training Area, and are also slap-bang in the middle of the rotary region of all Joint Helicopter *Command [JHC] main operating bases," says Whiteside. "It's a step-change from the 'sticks and poles' at Shawbury."

The safety of rotary-wing operations has *recently been enhanced through the introduction of a deconfliction tool, which was funded by the JHC.

Using a PC-based centralised aviation data service (CADS) developed by UK company BAE Systems, crews from all three services are able to plot their planned sorties and *receive alerts about potential conflicts with other aircraft. The technology has been introduced to reduce the risk of incidents at night, initially over Wiltshire and Hampshire.


© Peter Davies/Crown Copyright
The Squirrel HT2 is flown under testing conditions before pilots get their wings

"Night flying is our tactical advantage over the enemy," says Nick Wharmby, one of five civilian instructors with the AAC's Apache-equipped 673 training squadron. "Planning was insufficient and out of date. Now it is as good as we can be, morally, professionally and legally." CADS also gives crews the *ability to annotate dangers, such as wires, masts and pylons, for all to see. Future *additions could include the ability to also *introduce meteorological data and notice to airmen, Wharmby says.

The army is currently resisting pressure to concentrate more of its training activities at Shawbury, and Whiteside is adamant that the service needs to retain a "battlefield helicopter centre of excellence, somewhere in the rotary-wing region. This is not about Middle *Wallop, this is about maintaining an output standard," he says.

The AAC is proud of its 54-year heritage, with key differences required of its pilots including their ability to command and direct weapons activity, or "fires", and also perform command and control and intelligence, *surveillance and reconnaissance tasks.

For the first time as aviators, 670 Sqn *students are required to plan sorties, testing their capability to act as aircraft commanders. "We are about turning out a pilot capable of operating the aircraft, and not just flying it," says Lt Col Jules Facer, commanding officer of the AAC's 7 Regt training organisation. "We are asking the students to step up a lot earlier," adds Higgins. "But doing more on the Squirrel saves money on the Lynx and Apache."

Advances have already been introduced to "download" training, with several new *capabilities integrated with the Squirrel HT2.

These include a moving map, a dummy *defensive aids system panel to teach frontline procedures and the installation of night vision goggle-compatible anti-collision lighting, to support formation flying at night.

Reflecting the operational demands of the Apache, great emphasis is placed on flying during the hours of darkness, with 670's *aircraft typically being flown four nights a week for 50 weeks of the year.

Mid-way through the course, the unit's *students and aircraft are deployed to participate in a mountain flying phase, conducted from RAF Valley on Anglesey in north Wales.

Beyond this point, the unit's activities are concentrated on meeting the needs of operating in Afghanistan, such as tactical low-level and formation flying and directing joint fires, plus basic instruction in electronic warfare - all before securing their wings.

"It is all as a result of Operation 'Entirety'," says Higgins, referring to the army's current focus of attention in Afghanistan.

"Situational awareness is very important, as they can be flying down to 10ft [3m] and can only see three fields ahead," he says.

After a test in the aviation command and tactics trainer, the entire course participates in a "Cobra Strike" exercise in Wales or Yorkshire, flying high-readiness sorties alongside Apaches and Lynx. On passing, a pilot becomes a non-combat ready aircraft commander with exposure to tactical operations. But Higgins notes that in equipment terms, "the training gap is huge" to the Apache and AgustaWestland Lynx Wildcat, deliveries of which will start next year to the army at RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset.

"We need the right aeroplane onto which we can download further training in the MFTS era," says Whiteside. Apart from its Gazelles - the last of which are due to leave use in 2018 - all of the army's helicopters are currently twin-engine designs, and its Bell 212s and Lynx also have rear crew.

The introduction of a suitable training *aircraft with these characteristics - and the growth potential to support future avionics advances - would provide a welcome increase in capability. Other "wish list" items include emulating the use of advanced *sensors and electronic warfare and secure communications equipment.

Now with their wings, pilots advance to either 673 Sqn to convert to the Apache, or to 671 Sqn for the Bell 212, Gazelle or Lynx. The latter delivers conversion to type and conversion to role courses lasting 12 weeks each.


© Crown Copyright
Training with the Bell 212 is conducted from Middle Wallop by 673 Sqn

The UK's Apache force is structured to have 60 frontline air crews, with 50 of these flying. As the army's only Apache training squadron, 673 has 13 aircraft at Middle Wallop and 18 instructors, including civilians. Conversion lasts eight months, during which time pilots will learn to operate the Apache's *systems, sensors and weapons before moving on to Wattisham airfield in Suffolk.

Each course can have up to 14 students, with the army's input balanced against its frontline needs and requirements to crew its other platforms. As well as 670 Sqn graduates, the unit instructs pilots returning to the Apache after non-flying tours, and also some RAF and Royal Navy personnel.

673's operations are supported by AgustaWestland/Boeing training joint venture ATIL, and by the former's Apache contract maintenance service.

The demands of Afghanistan have seen the type of pilot converting to the Apache change markedly since its introduction.

"The first conversion to type course in 2004 was 5,000h Lynx pilots with Northern Ireland experience. Now we have a 250h Lieutenant," says 673 Sqn commanding officer Maj Rich Youngs. "It's difficult to expect them to get everything right first time." In most cases *officers are trained in the front seat to operate the sights and sensors and be the mission commander. The handling pilot will usually fly the aircraft from the back seat.


© Sgt Alison Baskerville/Crown Copyright

Salisbury Plain is the location for much of 673's live flying training, around half of which is performed at night. In total, about 50% of its total course time is using simulators.

If, as expected, *activities in Afghanistan reduce post-2015, increased training emphasis will be given to ensuring a broad skill set, such as in performing embarked operations from naval vessels, says Youngs.

"We are really leaning on innovative technology and looking aggressively at the live/synthetic balance," says Whiteside. "Helicopters are expensive to operate, and we are seeking at every turn to utilise the technology that's out there in terms of simulation, to reduce cost and improve output. But there is an irreducible minimum of live flying hours *beyond which we must not go."

Pointing to the advances made by the AAC through initiatives like modifying its Squirrel HT2s and introducing the aviation command and tactics trainer, Whiteside is vociferous in his belief that the army should have a say in decisions about future aviation equipment choices for the UK armed services.

"We are the biggest stakeholder, so we must be heard and listened to with respect to our requirements in the MFTS era," he says

TECHNOLOGY

FROM iPADS TO VIRTUAL REALITY, EQUIPMENT INVESTMENT PAYS DIVIDENDS

The UK Military Flying Training System programme should field a new generation of rotary-wing *training equipment from around mid-decade, but the Army Air Corps (AAC) is already introducing its own technologies.

In a bid to narrow the gap between its legacy training aircraft and the cockpit environment *experienced with the Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopter, the Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop in Hampshire is now using several new systems.

A first course of students has been issued with a potentially transformational, but surprisingly mainstream piece of equipment in a trial intended to support their completion of the operational training phase on 670 Sqn. Staff at the centre began to investigate options for an innovative training advance in June 2010, after *funding was made available. Inspired by the use of electronic flight bags in the commercial aviation sector, they looked at means of replacing the roughly 7.5kg (16.5lb) of paper manuals that students receive on joining the unit before flying its Eurocopter Squirrel HT2s.


© Army Air Corps
iPads allow students on 670 Sqn to swiftly access more than 100 key documents

Issued at a cost of almost £700 ($1,080) per person, some of the technical documents last for the entire eight-month course, but others are "throw-away" items that must be replaced around every 10 weeks to maintain currency.

"We soon came to the conclusion that a tablet-based device was the answer," says Maj Al Rickers, training officer for 670 Sqn. The plan was endorsed in January, and the unit took delivery of 32 iPad 1s in May.

The new equipment is primarily being used during the self-study and pre-planning phases, with *students able to immediately *access more than 100 unclassified documents saved in pdf format and catalogued using the iBooks library.

Supporting videos and streaming graphics can be embedded within the documents.

"With the old way, there would be one book or disc on the squadron, or else you had to use the internet or intranet," says Rickers. "Students were restricted every way they turned." Data contained on the tablets is updated via a secure server in the squadron building, or can be modified *remotely. This enables trainees to be easily issued with the latest, up-to-date manuals.

Feedback and suggestions for additional uses are being sought from the students, with Rickers seeking to produce "a true and honest report". Its findings could lead to the technology being embraced elsewhere in the helicopter training system, he believes.

Instructors are the only personnel allowed to take their iPads into the aircraft for a training sortie, where they can call up data about unfamiliar landing sites, calculate changes to the Squirrel's centre of gravity, or check on the planned activities for a sortie. The device has also been trialled on the ground as a moving map. According to Rickers, perceived equipment shortcomings with the iPad are being disproven by its use. Concerns over battery life are negated by a combined 20h capacity if the same equipment was carried by both members of a two-person crew. Standards and procedures would also be in place in the unlikely event of a double failure. The use of iTunes to load data means all documents must be unclassified, but by potentially using the UK's secure Defence Information Infrastructure this could be overcome.

Should a device be misplaced, lost or stolen, a course co-ordinator can use a 'Find My iPhone' app to locate and call it, or permanently wipe all of its data while retaining the ability to track it. Once recovered, it can be reconfigured within around 5min.

Early feedback from the students has been overwhelmingly positive. "We are struggling now to find things that it can't do," says Rickers. The cost advantage is also clear, he adds: "The iPad costs £400, so from the second year we would be looking at a 100% saving."


© Army Air Corps
Students have traditionally been issued with a mountain of paperwork

The centre also now boasts an aviation command and tactics trainer (ACTT), in which students and frontline crew can plan and fly simulated sorties, ranging from local training flights to combat missions. With 12 work stations and visual databases of southern England, Wales and Afghanistan, the ACTT is used to instruct pilots from the three training squadrons at Middle Wallop. It also supports the mission commander course for the Apache, allowing pilots to direct other aircraft and liaise with *forward air controllers.

The Rockwell Collins equipment also facilitates squadron-level practice missions and pre-deployment training for Afghanistan by replicating the crew stations of up to six Apaches. It can also be reconfigured to represent the Westland Lynx and other Joint Helicopter Command aircraft.


© Army Air Corps
The ACTT equipment can simulate a mission with six Apaches

A virtual reality rear crew trainer for AAC utility helicopters is being leased from Australian company Virtual Simulation Systems.

"For a student's purposes, it's like being in an aircraft," says Corporal instructor Gaz Bottomley. "This is bringing through a lot of the procedures, so you can just get in the real aircraft and get the job done."

OPERATIONS

LIBYAN DUTY HIGHLIGHTS APACHE'S ROLE BEYOND AFGHANISTAN

Since entering service in 2001, the British Army's Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopters have accumulated more than 100,000 flying hours. Over one-third of this total has been clocked up by aircraft deployed to Afghanistan, as part of the UK's Operation Herrick contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.

The Army Air Corps has *sustained a continuous Apache presence in Afghanistan since 2006, with the aircraft's crew members now spending up to 8h each day in the cockpit. Five of its aircraft also recently completed a first combat deployment at sea, having been flown from the Royal Navy helicopter carrier HMS Ocean as part of a multinational campaign to protect Libyan civilians.

A combination of advanced *targeting sensors, communications equipment and an arsenal *comprising a 30mm cannon, Bristol Aerospace CRV-7 unguided rockets and Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles has seen the Apache become the UK's most formidable battlefield asset.


© Crown Copyright
Five attack helicopters were deployed aboard HMS Ocean

The UK acquired 67 of the *aircraft, each equipped with a Lockheed/Northrop Grumman Longbow mast-mounted fire control radar and Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca RTM322 engines. Deliveries were made between 2000 and 2004.

"The army is extremely proud of the fact that we have fielded this vital capability for defence," says Col Murray Whiteside, commandant of the Army Aviation Centre at Middle Wallop, Hampshire.

In addition to its continued key role in Afghanistan, Whiteside believes the Apache's recent success over Libya provides a pointer to potential future maritime use of the type. "In terms of global projection, we have a capability now that we can deploy and operate in the *congested littoral environment anywhere in the world," he says. "It should help bridge any gap in carrier strike certainly out for the next 10 years, and probably longer."

[buglerbilly]

Eurocopter Stands Ready to Provide the Appropriate Platforms for Future Defense Needs of the Republic of Korea

(Source: Eurocopter; issued October 19, 2011)

SEOUL --- In a strong signal of its capacity and capability to provide for South Korea’s defense needs, Eurocopter indicates its interest in participating in the two Request for Proposals (RFPs) likely to be issued in 2012, proposing the Panther platform for the Light Attack Helicopter (LAH) program and the Tiger for the Heavy Attack Helicopter (AH-X) program.

“These programs represent a key part of our long-term strategy in South Korea,” said Eurocopter President & CEO Lutz Bertling. “For the LAH program, we will once again support Korea Aerospace Industries in the competition, ensuring the continued development of the country’s aerospace industry and defense capability.

“As for the AH-X program, the Tiger's modern state-of-the-art technology is undisputed, and it has certainly proven its operational capability and reliability in Afghanistan and Lybia, making it the best helicopter to meet the RoK’s requirements,” added Bertling.

-- Panther platform for Light Attack Helicopter program

In supporting KAI in the light attack helicopters (LAH) program, Eurocopter is proposing the Panther, the military variant of Eurocopter’s renowned Dauphin, as the ideal baseline platform for LAH development. The LAH program calls for a light aircraft in the 4.5 metric ton class with a seating capacity of 6-8.

With a background of over 1,000 Dauphin/Panther produced and the vast experience this type has of effective operations in the most demanding conditions, it offers a de-risked platform which, in its latest evolution, has the most modern avionics, engines and systems to give outstanding battle-winning performance. It is a high speed, maneuverable, discreet and powerful asset.

Developed to RoK military requirements by KAI, the Panther will give world-beating performance in a proven airframe with worldwide support.

-- Tiger for the AH-X

In the expected request for proposals (RFP) for 36 heavy attack helicopters (AH-X), Eurocopter is preparing to present its state-of-the-art support and attack helicopter – Tiger.

Tiger is the ideal aircraft for the RoK’s heavy attack helicopter requirement. It is a true multi-role combat helicopter and an essential asset in any operational theatre. With a record of outstanding operations in Close Combat Attack missions and as escort for Utility and Assault Helicopters, Tiger is a modern, combat proven system offering unmatched performance, effectiveness, availability and support. Tiger has now set the standards against which all other heavy attack helicopters are measured.

With a total of 75 helicopters delivered so far (as at 31 August 2011), the Tiger fleet has clocked around 30,000 flight hours.

Three Tigers have been continuously deployed by the French Army in Afghanistan since July 2009, and users’ feedback has been excellent, both regarding performance and maintainability. The Tiger showed a very high level of availability (more than 90%) and has logged approximately 2,100 flight hours, out of which 25% were performed at night.

Established in 1992, the Franco-German-Spanish Eurocopter Group is a division of EADS, a world leader in aerospace, defense and related services. The Eurocopter Group employs approximately 17,500 people. In 2010, Eurocopter confirmed its position as the world’s number one helicopter manufacturer in the civil and parapublic market with a turnover of 4.8 billion Euros, orders for 346 new helicopters and a 49 percent market share in the civil and parapublic sectors. Overall

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[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army Grounds Rucker's OH-58 Delta Kiowa Fleet

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN

Published: 19 Oct 2011 05:36

U.S. Army aviation leaders grounded its fleet of OH-58 Delta Kiowa Warrior helicopters at Fort Rucker, Ala., on Oct. 18 because of "specific system concerns," according to an Army release.

Fort Rucker officials have not determined how long the grounding will last and specified the grounding decision did not occur because of an accident, "but rather a pro-active decision," according to the statement sent out by the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence.

The release did not say if this grounding would extend outside Fort Rucker and include Kiowas flying combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. The Army armed reconnaissance aircraft has flown more than 750,000 combat hours.

Army helicopter pilots learn to fly the Kiowa at Fort Rucker. What is expected to be a "minimal" length of ground time is "not expected to heavily impact the training of those students going into the Kiowa Warrior course," according to the Army release.

The Kiowa, built by Bell Helicopter, first entered service in 1969, although, the delta model didn't reach the fleet until 1991. Service aviation officials are working to replace the Kiowa.

Maj. Gen. William Crosby, Army aviation's program executive officer, announced in September the Army will fly a Kiowa replacement demonstration. Crosby said he wanted to see the defense industry's offerings in the air instead of examining the competition on Power Point slides.

Crosby's challenge came after the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended $17 million be withheld from the Army's budget request for the Kiowa Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program. Committee said the upgrades cost nearly as much as a new aircraft.

[buglerbilly]

Heli-Power 2011: Delays for Danish ambitions in Afghanistan

October 19, 2011

Danish plans to deploy two AgustaWestland EH101 Merlins to Afghanistan are being delayed by issues over spare parts, according to a senior official.

Shortages of key components and difficulties in purchasing spare engines for the aircraft have limited crew training and delayed preparations by the Danish Air Force's Helicopter Wing Karup to send a pair of aircraft to Helmand towards the end of 2012.

Lt Col Steen Ulrich, chief of operations at the helicopter wing, told delegates at the Heli-Power 2011 exhibition in Farnborough that the wing would probably not be able to sustain the operations of two Merlins in Helmand until late 2013.

Danish ground troops work closely with British troops in Helmand and the Danish plan would be to base the Merlins alongside the British Joint Helicopter Force (Afghanistan) (JHF(A)) where they would provide an extra tasking line alongside RAF-operated examples.

'We are getting the upgraded tail rotor which I am sure will improve the situation, but even this programme is behind schedule,' Lt Col Ulrich said.

'It's a very capable aircraft, but I want it to fly more for less money,' he added.

Ulrich said that the average availability of the Merlin fleet was currently sitting at around 60%. The Merlins are operated by the Karup-based 722 Squadron. The unit has 14 EH101s, eight SAR-equipped aircraft and six TTT-variants used for tactical troop transport.

Previously, the unit operated Sea Kings on SAR duties, but the introduction of the EH101 has led to an expansion of the unit's role, including the support of special operations personnel, and it is this training which has suffered as a result of spares shortages.

The wing is still planning to take part in the mission rehearsal exercises run by the British Army on the Salisbury Plain with two Merlins at the beginning of 2012.

In the meantime, the Danish government is shortly expected to downselect two of the three aircraft vying for its naval helicopter programme, which is being contested by the Eurocopter Panther, the AW159 Wildcat and the Sikorsky MH-60R. The chosen aircraft would replace the Westland Lynx and enter service in 2015. A final decision on the type is expected in mid-2012.

Tony Osborne, Farnborough

[buglerbilly]

Apache Block III with UAS Control Link Ready for Service

Posted on October 20, 2011 by The Editor



Boeing plans a November 2 rollout ceremony in Mesa, Arizona, for the first upgraded AH-64D Apache Block III destined for the US Army. Ten of the latest Apaches are advancing through production, David Koopersmith, Boeing Vice President of Attack Helicopter Programmes, said October 10 during a briefing at the Association of the US Army annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

The Block III upgrade introduces Level 3 and 4 control of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), including the RQ-7 Shadow and their sensor payloads. Level 3 is control of the UAS sensor payload; Level 4 enables an Apache crewman to direct the UAS to desired locations by entering waypoints to its flight plan. The copilot-gunner seated in the front seat will perform these functions with the same handgrips used for other sensors, monitoring the UAS location and own-ship position on a tactical situation display.

The data link electronics and antenna for UAS control, known as the UAS tactical common datalink assembly (UTA), is contained in the doughnut-shaped, mast-mounted radome that houses the Apache Longbow fire-control radar (FCS). Colonel Shane Openshaw, Apache programme manager, said 24-aircraft brigades will have nine helicopters equipped with the FCS, nine with UTA and six “vanilla” aircraft.

The upgrade also features improved GE Aviation T700-GE-701D engines with enhanced digital electronic engine control units, improved drive system and transmission, composite rotor blades and extended-range fire-control radar and missiles.

The first Block III unit equipped will be at Fort Riley, Kan., in June 2012. The aircraft will enter service in 2013.

Boeing was awarded a $247 million contract last October to begin low-rate initial production (LRIP) of the Apache Block III. The LRIP phase covers 51 aircraft. The Army plans to acquire a total of 690 Apache Block IIIs through 2027, most of them remanufactured Block Is and IIs, but with 56 newly built aircraft to replace training and combat losses. The older Apaches are disassembled by Science Engineering Services near Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., and then shipped to the Boeing Global Strike facility in Mesa.

While the Apache Block III is driving the interoperability standard for Level 3 and 4 UAS control, it did not participate in the Manned Unmanned Systems Integration Concept exercise at Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, in mid-September. “It was my decision, from the perspective of mitigating risk, not to peel off a test asset to support that exercise,” Openshaw said.

Source: AIN Online

[JKM Mk2]

Mean looking mother... isn't it!!

JKM

[buglerbilly]

Final Assembly Begins on First CH-147F Chinook Helicopter

(Source: Canadian Department of National Defence; issued Oct. 21, 2011

OTTAWA --- The Honourable Julian Fantino, Associate Minister of National Defence, today hailed the launch of the final assembly of the first CH-147F Canadian Chinook Helicopter, a key milestone in Canada’s Medium-to-Heavy Lift Helicopter Project. The CH-147F project is moving ahead as scheduled and is within budget.

“Our government is fully committed to providing our brave men and women of the Canadian Forces the new tools they need to defend Canada’s interests at home and abroad,” said Minister Fantino. “The acquisition of these important capabilities demonstrate our ongoing efforts to help the Canadian Forces help Canadians.”

The Government of Canada will acquire 15 CH-147F Chinooks, manufactured by Boeing at their plant in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. This helicopter will feature long-range fuel tanks; a self-protection system to protect its occupants against threats such as missiles; an infra-red and electro-optical camera which will increase the safety and capabilities of the helicopter; as well as improved electrical systems.

“These helicopters will strengthen the Canadian Forces’ ability to operate safely in remote and isolated areas,” said Minister Fantino. “This is also a shining example of how our government strives to improve its procurement process for the benefit of the men and women of the Canadian Forces.”

The first CH-147F is set to come off the assembly line for tests and evaluation flights in June 2012. In June 2013, a new squadron at CFB Petawawa is scheduled to receive the first deliveries.

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[buglerbilly]

Apache Block III Remains the Finalist in India’s Attack Helicopter Selection


The U.S. Boeing AH-64D Apache Block III remains the finalist in the Indian Army evaluation of attack helicopters. The planned procurement of 22 attack helicopter is expected to commence soon. Photo: Boeing

Russian news agency Novosti reported today the Russian candidate for the Indian Army procurement of 22 attack helicopter, has not met Indian requirements and has dropped from the competition, leaving the Boeing AH-64D Apache Block III the only competitor. According to the agency’s Russian sources the Russian Mi-28N ‘Night Hunter’ failed in meeting 20 criteria, mostly on technical ground and maturity issues involving its sensors and combat systems integration. Russia was ready to offer the 22 helicopters at a flyaway cost of $600 million, less than half the value the Pentagon mentioned in the notification to Congress in 2010.

While this may pave the way for New Delhi to select the Apache, being left as a sole bidder could actually delay the process of ordering the U.S. helicopter since sole bidder programs are extensively regulated under new anti-corruption policies. Selecting the AH-64D will also pave the way for India to receive the AGM-114L-3 Hellfire Longbow anti-tank guided missile for the first time. The failure of the Russian helicopter also means a setback for the two companies counting on providing the weapons for the helicopter – European MBDA Missile Systems and Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. Both competed on supplying the missiles for the Mi-28N or Ka-52 helicopters, hoping to win a ‘short cut’ into future Indian Army and Air Force programs.

India plans to field one of these missiles another anti-tank guided missile with a weaponized version of the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH). This ‘Weapon Systems Integrated’ Dhruv Mk.3 (‘Rudra’) is currently being completed at HAL and will be made available for the testing soon. Field evaluation trials (FET) of the MBDA Missile System’s Pars 3 LR and Rafael Advanced Defence System’s Spike-ER, both ‘fire-and-forget’ anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) are expected to commence as soon as HAL delivers the Rudra for testing.

India is expected to field another ‘third generation’ missile with its Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) fleet, slated to replace the Mi-25/35 currently in service with the Air Force and Army. The Indian MOD determined that as a fully indigenous program, the missile to be used with the LCH will be the NAG, developed by India’s Defense research & Development Organization (DRDO).


India plans to field over 179 Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), configured to carry the NAG anti-tank guided missile. The Indian Army plans to buy 114 such helicopters with the Air Force fielding 65. Photo: Defense-Update

[buglerbilly]

The first pic should make JKM's morning!

[buglerbilly]

UK eyes Apache modifications after Libyan experience

By: Craig Hoyle Farnborough

1 hours ago

Source:

The British Army has identified a need to incorporate several enhancements to its Westland/Boeing Apache AH1 attack helicopters, if the type is to be used again in the maritime role debuted during NATO's Unified Protector campaign over Libya.

Flown operationally from the Royal Navy helicopter carrier HMS Ocean between 29 May and 24 August, Army Air Corps (AAC) Apaches completed about 25 strike missions against regime targets in Libyan cities including Brega and Tripoli. They completed their last attacks on 6 August, and in total struck more than 100 targets, including ground vehicles, buildings and air defence system equipment.

Roughly 40 missions had been planned for the Apaches during their first maritime commitment, but several of these were not flown due to insufficient intelligence information and the threat posed by anti-aircraft systems, said Lt Col Paul Tennant, commanding officer of the AAC's 3 Regt.

Swiftly introduced as an operational capability following trials performed in early May, the Apache's sorties from HMS Ocean enabled the army to hone its procedures for storing weapons and re-arming the aircraft on deck, Tennant told Shephard's HeliPower conference in Farnborough, Hampshire, UK, on 20 October.


© Crown Copyright

It also exposed several shortcomings of the Apache for embarked operations, such as its current main rotor brake design, which was not strong enough under high wind conditions.

Crews also expressed concerns about the likely outcome of any ditching event, should they be unable to make it back to the ship.

"We need some sort of a flotation device, as the aircraft would sink like a stone," Tennant said. A new canopy jettison system would also be required, he said, as the current design could have fatal consequences if used once the aircraft is in the water.

The addition of an I-band transponder would aid crews' ability to navigate back to a ship, while an improvement is also needed in battery life to increase flight time from just 6min in the event of a total electrical system failure, he added.

With the British Army currently concentrating its efforts on supporting the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan, Tennant said the AAC will not be in a position to sustain an enduring Apache presence onboard ship until 2015, but that it could repeat a short-duration action such as that required over Libya.

The UK has maintained a continuous detachment of Apaches in Afghanistan since 2006. Its only accident involving the type during this time involved an aircraft which crashed in severe brownout conditions due to pilot error in 2008. Both crew members escaped injury.

[buglerbilly]

French DGA orders the modernisation of seven Cougars

31 October 2011 - 10:46 by Tony Osborne



The French defence procurement agency, the DGA (Direction Générale de l'Armement), has announced it has ordered seven AS532 Cougar helicopters to be modernised by Eurocopter.

The DGA took the decision on 11 October but did not announce the move until 28 October. The agency revealed plans to modernise the Cougar fleet in January 2008 under a €220 million contract awarded to Eurocopter. The contract will ultimately modernise 26 aircraft - of the first seven, six are operated by the army and one by the air force.

The DGA said the aim of the programme is to maintain operational readiness of the Cougar fleet. The modernisation involves an avionics upgrade to bring the aircraft in with changes in air traffic regulations, as well as updates to the self-protection system and the integration of the army's SIT ALAT information system.

The DGA said that the modernisation of the Cougar will mean the aircraft will maintain its role as an 'essential tactical transport' for ground forces even once the NH90 has been introduced.

[JKM Mk2]

Thanks Bug

I've always had the hots for the Apache. Very disappointed when Oz decided to go with the Tiger.

But as they say in Japan -Shoganai!

[buglerbilly]

Turkey Requests Sale of Three AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters


Turkish Army AH-1W Super Cobra. (Photo: Turkish Army)

Attrition replacements..........???

15:07 GMT, October 31, 2011 WASHINGTON | The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) notified U.S. Congress today of a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to the Government of Turkey for three AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $111 million.

The Government of Turkey has requested a possible sale of three AH-1W SUPER COBRA Attack Helicopters, seven T700-GE-401 engines (six installed and one spare), inspections and modifications, spare and repair parts, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics personnel support services, and other related elements of logistics support. The estimated cost is $111 million.

Turkey is a partner of the United States in ensuring peace and stability in the region. It is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist our North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability that will contribute to an acceptable military balance in the area. This proposed sale is consistent with those objectives.

The proposed sale will improve Turkey's capability for self defense, modernization, regional security, and interoperability with U.S. and other NATO members. AH-1W helicopters are already in the Turkish Land Forces Command inventory and will further enhance Turkey’s ground defense capabilities. Turkey will have no difficulty absorbing these helicopters into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of these helicopters will not alter the basic military balance in the region or U.S. efforts to encourage a negotiated settlement in Cyprus.

There will be no prime contractor associated with this proposed sale. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of approximately five contractor representatives to Turkey for a period of up to 90 days for differences training between U.S. and Turkish AH-1Ws helicopters.

These aircraft will be sold from the United States Marine Corps’ (USMC) inventory. The effect on USMC readiness will be mitigated by the submission of a reprogramming action to return the sales proceeds from the U.S. Treasury’s general receipts account to the USMC’s H-1 upgrades program.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

[buglerbilly]

Pentagon agrees to sell three attack helicopters to Turkey

By Craig Whitlock, Wednesday, November 2, 7:08 AM

The Pentagon has agreed to sell three attack helicopters to Turkey and is trying to persuade Congress to sell highly coveted Predator or Reaper drones to its increasingly influential ally in the Middle East, defense officials said Tuesday.

Turkey has sought for years to purchase the helicopters and drones for use against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq but has had difficulty winning approval from Congress. Some U.S. lawmakers have been reluctant to part with sensitive drone technology and are concerned by Turkey’s worsening relations with Israel.

In recent weeks, however, the Obama administration has achieved some breakthroughs in its attempt to solidify security ties with Turkey, a NATO ally and a reemerging economic and military power in the Middle East.

On Friday, the Defense Department notified Congress that it would sell three AH-1W Super Cobra helicopters and parts to Turkey for $111 million. While Congress could still block the sale, it would have to do so within 15 days. Key lawmakers have given tacit approval.

Pentagon officials also said this week that they support Turkey’s more controversial desire to buy Predator or Reaper drones, which can be equipped with Hellfire missiles and satellite-guided bombs. The unmanned aircraft have become a primary weapon in the Obama administration’s counterterrorism operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia.

They also are perpetually in demand among the U.S. armed services; the Pentagon’s willingness to sell the drones to Turkey underscores the importance that Washington places on its relations with Ankara.

On Tuesday, Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz reiterated his country’s desire to acquire the drones in a meeting at the Pentagon with Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, according to Navy Capt. John Kirby, a defense spokesman.

Congress, however, has expressed reservations, citing Turkey’s increasingly rocky relations with Israel, a key U.S. ally in the Middle East. The two countries, once regional allies, have been at odds since May 2010, when Israeli commandos killed nine Turks aboard an aid flotilla attempting to break the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip.

Alexander Vershbow, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, told the American-Turkish Council in Washington on Monday that the drone sale was being held up by concerns on Capitol Hill.

“This topic is influenced by the problems in Turkish-Israeli relations,” said Vershbow, who also led a delegation to Ankara last week to discuss counterterrorism cooperation. “This is not a secret. But just to repeat it, we do support the sale.”

Similar concerns affected negotiations between the United States and Turkey over a NATO missile-defense project under which Ankara agreed to host a key radar station.

Turkey originally said it would refuse if the radar could benefit Israel, a stance that raised concerns in Congress. The Obama administration finessed the issue by omitting any mention of Israel from the accord, which was approved in September.

Turkey wants to buy U.S. drones so it can deploy them against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK. The Kurdish group, which is fighting to create an autonomous enclave in Turkey, has for years launched cross-border attacks from its hideouts in northern Iraq.

The potential drone purchase is separate from Turkey’s request for the U.S. military to base a fleet of its Predator drones on Turkish soil.

The United States has flown the unarmed Predators from Iraqi bases since 2007 and shared the planes’ surveillance video with Turkey as part of a joint crackdown against the PKK. But the U.S. drones will have to leave Iraq by Dec. 31, the deadline for American forces to exit that country.

[buglerbilly]

Bell Helicopter, CCAD Deliver First A2D Kiowa Warrior to the United States Army

(Source: Bell Helicopter; issued Nov. 1, 2011)

CORPUS CHRISTI, TX. --- Bell Helicopter, in partnership with Corpus Christi Army Depot and the Armed Scout Helicopter Project Management Office, delivered the first OH-58D Kiowa Warrior Wartime Replacement Aircraft to the United States Army at a special ceremony. The aircraft was the first of a contracted 19 in the Army’s Wartime Replacement Aircraft program.

Colonel Michael Morgan accepted the aircraft on behalf of the 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division of the United States Army and commended the efforts of the depot and Bell Helicopter.

“I’m impressed with the initiative which combines CCAD’s aircraft depot level rebuild and Bell Helicopter’s full aircraft cabin modernization for OH-58 Kiowa Warriors,” said Col Morgan. “This initiative is providing cost-effective solutions as we begin to navigate the sobering reality of resource constraints. This is an efficient solution to provide Kiowa Warriors to our Army.”

The Army’s Kiowa Warrior Wartime Replacement Aircraft Program is a combined effort between CCAD, Bell Helicopter, and the Armed Scout Helicopter Project Management Office to return the Army to its requirement of 368 OH-58 aircraft. Currently, the Army’s fleet is down more than 40 aircraft from its authorized acquisition objective. The program takes an existing A model airframe and converts it to a D model aircraft. Bell has an additional 18 conversion cabins on contract with the USG with a second option for 10 – 21 more cabins in work.

Work on each aircraft begins at CCAD, where the aircraft is stripped down to a bare cabin. Bell Helicopter converts the cabin from an A model cabin to a D model cabin complete with a full wire harness, flight controls, and fuel cells. The modified cabin is returned to CCAD where the final work is completed on the aircraft. Work on the first cabin was done at Bell Helicopter’s XworX facility in Ft. Worth, Texas. The second cabin is on schedule for delivery ahead of contract, out of Bell Helicopter’s Military Aircraft Assembly and Delivery Center in Amarillo, TX during the second week in November. The remainder of Bell Helicopter’s work on the program will be completed at the Amarillo facility.

“We are pleased with the success we have had with our Army programs,” said Jim Schultz, Program Manager for OH-58D, Bell Helicopter. “We believe in the commitment we have to the war fighter and are willing to step up to the challenge to get these important aircraft back into the fleet.”

As part of the Wartime Replacement Aircraft contract, Bell Helicopter is working on a contract option to restart a new production line of cabins. These cabins would provide a hot production line of new metal cabins in lieu of conversion cabins. Bell Helicopter built 39 OH-58D new production aircraft in the late 1990’s for Taiwan.

In addition to work on this program, Bell Helicopter recently completed the last aircraft in the Army’s OH-58D Safety Enhancement Program, a program that ran for 13 years on or ahead on contract schedule, and Bell is currently working on the Kiowa Warrior Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program. The successful execution of all these programs reflects the continued commitment Bell Helicopter has with the US Army.

With more than 750,000 fleet combat hours, the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior is a combat-proven aircraft that is safe, rugged and reliable, maintaining the highest operational tempo and readiness rate of any Army helicopter operating in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Bell Helicopter, a wholly owned subsidiary of Textron Inc., is an industry-leading producer of commercial and military, manned and unmanned vertical-lift aircraft and the pioneer of the revolutionary tiltrotor aircraft. Globally recognized for world-class customer service, innovation and superior quality, Bell's global workforce serves customers flying Bell aircraft in more than 120 countries.

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[buglerbilly]

From Albania to Afghanistan, US Army integrates lessons into latest Apache

By: Stephen Trimble Washington DC

1 hours ago

Source:

On 2 November, Boeing delivered the first two of 690 AH-64D Apache Longbow Block III attack helicopters to the US Army.

A training aircraft will also be delivered to the first export customer - Taiwan - in mid-2012, with the balance of the nation's order for 30 Block III aircraft to begin delivery a year later.

The Block III version of the AH-64D is also the only aircraft now being considered by the Indian defence ministry for its attack helicopter contest, after the nation eliminated a rival bid from Russia's Mil Mi-28N.

And the US airframer's latest rotorcraft product is close to completing deals all over the world, including in Saudi Arabia and South Korea - not bad for a helicopter programme that survived at least two evolutions of its operational purpose since it was launched.

The AH-64D Block III now has no true competitor that can match its capability in the heavy helicopter gunship market.

The Block III programme was conceived in the immediate aftermath of a notorious operational deployment.

In 1999, Task Force Hawk revealed glaring performance shortfalls in the AH-64D, which Lt Col Dan Bailey - a member of the ill-fated task force, and now AH-64D Block III product manager - said was unable to fly with a full weapons load in the mountains of Albania.

Two decades of added bulk - including new sensors, weapons and support equipment - had eroded the Apache's lift and speed by 1999.

In response, the Block III introduces upgrades to the transmission with a split-torque face gear, allowing US manufacturer General Electric to increase the thrust rating of its T700-701D engines from 2,830shp (2,080kW) to 3,400shp.

Four years later, the AH-64D was again caught off guard. The Apache fleet generally performed well in the second invasion of Iraq in 2003, but a pre-planned deep strike mission on 24 March was a debacle. An Apache force was ambushed by Iraqi villagers and militiamen, and one aircraft was downed - possibly by a mere rifle bullet.

"That specific fight was not a decision point for [Block III]," said Col Shane Openshaw, AH-64 programme manager, adding: "It was an opportunity to re-look at the way we were going to use the aircraft."

Never again would a large formation of Apaches fly deep and alone into enemy territory.

The Block III standard allows the AH-64D to control unmanned air systems (UAS) - so instead of flying deep behind enemy lines alone, UAS could fly ahead of the formation and watch for anything unusual.

Nearly a year after the ambush, the army formally launched the Block III modernisation programme in February 2004. At the time, it planned to make the AH-64D a central node in the battlefield network in development by Boeing's Future Combat System (FCS) programme.

However, that part of the Block III programme's original justification was lost when the army terminated FCS.

The new variant includes additional antennas to communicate with UAS, but the ability to communicate with US Air Force aircraft will not arrive until a Link 16 datalink is added in a few years.

Other communications waveforms, such as the soldier networking waveform and wideband networking waveform, will not be integrated for several years.

In the aftermath of FCS' termination, Block III was re-cast as a service life extension programme and a necessary performance upgrade to keep the AH-64D fleet relevant through to its planned retirement in 2040.

Despite so many concept revisions, the demand for the Block III upgrades for the Apache never wavered. Rotorcraft of all types remain a top priority in the US military's acquisition plans. While budgets are starting to tighten, the AH-64D Block III is still fully-funded - and after orders for 51 aircraft in the low-rate initial production phase, the army is scheduled to make a full-rate production decision in August 2012.

Approval is expected, and the only debate is how fast the service will buy new Block IIIs.

The minimum rate is to deliver enough aircraft to equip a single combat aviation brigade with two battalions a year, Bailey said - and that is not expected to change.

[buglerbilly]

Boeing Eyes Allies For New Apache Attack Helicopter

By Carlo Munoz

Published: November 3, 2011



Washington: Defense giant Boeing is wasting no time pushing its newest attack helicopter onto the international market.

Boeing is already fielding informal solicitations from a number of foreign militaries about the newest version of the Army's AH-64 Apache. Representatives from several foreign militaries visited Boeing's facility in Mesa, Arizona to commemorate the delivery of the first Block III Apache to the Army, Mike Burke, director of business development for the company's attack helicopter division, said yesterday.

Those visiting military officials were doing "a little window shopping" on the new helicopter, according to Burke. Upgrades to the helicopter's engine, communications and command and control systems makes Block III Apache "faster and stronger than any Apache in the past," Army program manager Lt. Col. Dan Bailey, said yesterday. That cluster of capabilities has already drawn the attention of the Indian, South Korean and Taiwanese militaries, Burke said.

The Block III is the only helicopter left in the ongoing attack helicopter competition being held by India. Officials in New Delhi had been looking at the Apache and a version of the UH-1N Huey. The Huey was recently dropped from consideration, leaving the Apache as the sole competitor, Burke said. Taiwan is scheduled to get its first Block III trainer aircraft mid-2012. Company officials plan to pitch the new Apache for South Korea's upcoming AH-X competition for a new combat chopper.

That said, Burke was confident that several international militaries "will be flying" the Apache within months.

The new Apache is following in the footsteps of the Navy's new MH-60S helicopter in terms of international sales. Lockheed Martin officials, who build the new S models, have locked in sales to Thailand and Australia. Company officials are eying possible sales to the Danish, South Korean and Saudi Arabian militaries. The Australian helicopters are set to be delivered by fiscal year 2014, Navy officials say.

[buglerbilly]

Boeing Submits Multiyear Contract Proposal to US Army for CH-47F Chinook Production

(Source: Boeing Co.; issued Nov. 4, 2011)

RIDLEY TOWNSHIP, Pa. --- The Boeing Company has submitted a proposal to the U.S. Army for a multiyear contract for the production and delivery of 155 CH-47F helicopters.

"This second multiyear contract proposal will provide not only the vertical lift capability that warfighters use and need every day, but also will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in savings for taxpayers and the U.S. government," said Leanne Caret, Boeing vice president, H-47 Programs. "With this contract Boeing, and its partners in more than 45 states, will be able to negotiate longer-term agreements with suppliers, make necessary investments in production tooling and processes, and more effectively plan for capital expenditures."

The H-47 program is halfway through its first multiyear contract, awarded in August 2008, for 191 CH-47F Chinook aircraft and originally valued at $4.3 billion. This second five-year, firm fixed-price proposal would provide the Army with close to the full complement of 464 Chinooks outlined in the Department of Defense program of record for the CH-47F helicopter. The new contract will yield double-digit percentage savings over a single-year procurement strategy.

Since completing the first CH-47F production aircraft in August 2006, Boeing has trained and equipped eight U.S. Army units and is in the process of equipping the ninth. Six units have completed deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, where the helicopter has logged nearly 70,000 flight hours and maintained an operational readiness rate of over 85 percent conducting air assault, transport, medical evacuations and support operations.

A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is one of the world's largest defense, space and security businesses specializing in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Defense, Space & Security is a $32 billion business with 63,000 employees worldwide.

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[buglerbilly]

Boeing hunts 2nd Chinook multi-year deal

By Philip Ewing Friday, November 4th, 2011 10:06 am

More helicopter news this week: Boeing wants to make the Army a heckuva deal on a second multi-year contract for its workhorse CH-47 Chinook helicopter, the company said Friday.

Big B says it can deliver “double-digit percentage savings” to taxpayers, as compared to year-by-year deals for new aircraft. When it and its vendors and sub-contractors can rely on predictable work over the medium term, everybody wins, the company’s announcement said:

“This second multiyear contract proposal will provide not only the vertical lift capability that warfighters use and need every day, but also will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in savings for taxpayers and the U.S. government,” said Leanne Caret, Boeing vice president, H-47 Programs. “With this contract Boeing, and its partners in more than 45 states, will be able to negotiate longer-term agreements with suppliers, make necessary investments in production tooling and processes, and more effectively plan for capital expenditures.”

(Dare we add that this could mean … oh yes … the J-Word? The company did not make that claim itself, but there it is, clearly visible beneath the surface.)

Boeing explained that it’s about halfway through a 2008 multi-year deal for 191 F-model helos that was worth about $4.3 billion. The Army needs to add the rest of the helicopters it wants, Boeing’s ready to go, so c’mon, the company said: “This second five-year, firm fixed-price proposal would provide the Army with close to the full complement of 464 Chinooks outlined in the Department of Defense program of record for the CH-47F helicopter.”

Today’s grim, meat-hook realities in Washington mean both sides probably want to lock in this deal as soon as they can. Boeing wants the business. The Army wants the helicopters. And although defense contractors often sell these multi-year contracts as a bargain for taxpayers, it’s worth remembering that they’re almost more valuable to the vendors: When the government signs a long-term deal, that’s guaranteed income, and profits, no matter what happens in Congress with all the budget craziness. Either the feds keep taking delivery and signing out their checks, or they pay a hefty fee if they break their end of the deal.

Boeing has gotten this sort of thing down to a science — remember its recent F/A-18F deliveries to Australia? Sure, the Super Hornet isn’t the newest jet in the sky, and for that matter, the Chinook is nearly a 50 year-old design — not to mention the almost 30 year-old Apache we heard about this week. But Boeing officials believe their ability to keep pushing the replay button trumps customers’ desire for a brand-new tune.

Read more: http://www.dodbuzz.com/2011/11/04/boeing-hunts-2nd-chinook-multi-year-deal/#ixzz1ckXZUDh4
DoDBuzz.com

[buglerbilly]

Posted at 02:28 PM ET, 11/04/2011

Some in Congress balk at arms sale to Turkey

By Craig Whitlock


The AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter at an air base in the Gulf region. (Julie Jacobson — Associated Press)

Time may not be on their side, but some members of Congress are still trying to make the Pentagon sweat over a proposed weapons sale to Turkey.

Reps. Shelley Berkely (D-Nev.) and Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.) have introduced a bill that seeks to block the Defense Department from selling three AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopters to Turkey. The lawmakers said they want to scuttle the deal because they’re unhappy with Turkey for not getting along better with three neighbors: Israel, Armenia and Cyprus.

“We are deeply concerned by Turkey’s increased saber rattling, its threats against Israel, its outlook toward the European Union, its occupation of Cyprus and its unrelenting blockade of Armenia,” Berkley and Engel said in a joint statement Friday. “The U.S. should be busy raising these very serious concerns with Turkey, rather than selling arms to them.”

The Democrats have three Republican co-sponors on the bill: Reps. Michael Grimm (N.Y.), Gus Bilirakis (Fla.) and Ed Royce (Calif.).

The Pentagon formally notified Congress Oct. 28 that it intended to sell the choppers to Turkey as part of a package — including parts, maintenance and training — valued at $111 million.

Under the law, Congress has 15 days to pass legislation that would either block or modify the sale; otherwise the deal automatically goes through. That leaves only eight days for Congress to get moving, a fast-closing deadline that the bill’s sponsors might have a tough time making.

Even if they fail this time, however, the sale of the choppers is probably only round one in a much bigger fight with the Pentagon and Obama administration over selling Predator or Reaper drones to Turkey.

The Turks have been keen for years to acquire some drones to help them crack down against Kurdish militants in northern Iraq. The Pentagon wants to oblige, but acknowledged this week that Congress isn’t as eager.

[buglerbilly]

EADS North America's First Security and Support Battalion-Equipped Lakota Begins Operational Service

(Source: EADS North America; issued November 5, 2011)

ARLINGTON, VA and TUPELO, MS --- EADS North America's first UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) equipped with the Security and Support (S&S) Battalion Mission Equipment Package (MEP) has entered operational service with the Mississippi National Guard's Company C, 1st of the 114th Security and Support Battalion.

This first S&S Battalion UH-72A Lakota was built and retrofitted in Columbus, Miss. by the company's American Eurocopter business unit. The UH-72A Lakota is one of the U.S. Army's most successful acquisition programs and is repeatedly recognized by DoD officials for its on-time and on-budget deliveries.

"This new configuration provides a significant capability increase for the Army National Guard and the federal, state and local government agencies they support," said Sean O'Keefe, CEO of EADS North America. "The S&S Battalion MEP expands the capabilities of the Army's UH-72A Lakota, and further demonstrates this modern platform's flexibility for growth to support a broader range of demanding mission requirements."

The S&S Battalion MEP is the latest operational evolution of the UH-72A Lakota and provides National Guard units with the ability to seamlessly interface with and support federal, state and local law enforcement and first responders during disasters or emergencies.

The mission equipment package includes an electro-optical infrared sensor with a five-mile range that provides still imagery and real-time streaming video to ground stations or command centers, while an onboard computer can archive the footage for later use by law enforcement. Mission performance is augmented with enhanced radios, touch-screen monitors, GPS with street address capability and a 30 million candle power search light.

Lakotas equipped with the S&S Battalion MEP will be operated by Army National Guard units across the country and will soon enter operational service with units in Louisiana, Florida and North Carolina. Currently 69 of the 100 anticipated S&S Battalion MEP installations are on contract. Fifty-two of the 68 S&S Lakotas on contract will be built with the MEP integrated during production, and 16 Lakotas already in service with the Army National Guard will be retrofitted at the company's American Eurocopter facility in Columbus, Miss. In addition, the S&S MEP prototype was delivered and fielded to the National Guard unit in Tupelo, Miss.

UH-72A Lakotas are operating from 33 locations in the continental U.S., Puerto Rico, Germany and the Kwajalein Atoll. The U.S. Army has ordered 232 UH-72As to date out of a total program of 345 helicopters through 2015. To date 196 aircraft have been delivered to the Department of Defense, including five for the U.S. Navy Test Pilot School.

The U.S. Army is using UH-72A Lakotas in multiple configurations to fulfill a range of missions, including medical evacuation, search and rescue operations, homeland security, VIP transport, disaster response and relief, general aviation support, combat flight training and pilot sustainment training.

In addition to the UH-72A Lakota aircraft, EADS North America also provides the Army with FAA-certified flight and maintainer training. More than 600 pilots and nearly 400 maintenance personnel have completed classes at American Eurocopter's headquarters facility in Grand Prairie, Texas. The Lakota program also includes full and hybrid contractor logistics support to the Army and Army National Guard, and modifications and retrofit of mission equipment packages onto existing aircraft.

The UH-72A Lakota is a Defense Acquisition Category (ACAT) I major defense acquisition program. Deliveries of the aircraft to the Army and Army National Guard allow aging OH-58 and UH-1 rotary-wing aircraft to be retired, while freeing up UH-60 Black Hawks for assignment to combat missions.

American Eurocopter is a helicopter manufacturer that produces, markets, sells and supports the broadest range of civil and para-public helicopters offered by any manufacturer in the United States. The company is a subsidiary of EADS North America Holdings, the North American operations of EADS, a global leader in aerospace, defense and related services, and is an affiliate of Eurocopter, the largest helicopter manufacturer in the world. Company headquarters and main facilities are located in Grand Prairie, Texas, with a large manufacturing and production facility in Columbus, Miss., that produces the UH-72A for the U.S. Army's Light Utility Helicopter program.

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[buglerbilly]

Boeing's AH-6i helicopter gunship revives and improves a 35 year old concept

By: Stephen Trimble Washington DC

12 hours ago

Source:

In 1976, Hughes Aircraft rolled out a new product called the Defender - an export version of the US Army's OH-6 Cayuse. It quickly attracted orders from a variety of countries - including Iraq, Israel, South Korea and the Philippines - in the market for a gunship helicopter in a class below the Bell *Helicopter AH-1 Cobra and AH-64 Apache.

Some 35 years later the Defender concept has been reborn - and significantly enhanced - in the Boeing AH-6i.

Hughes and later McDonnell Douglas sold 471 MD500 Defenders around the world. Those aircraft are now in need of replacement - and still the AH-6i stands alone in the class for a light, single-engine gunship.


© Boeing
Following in the footsteps of the Defender, the AH-6i is ready for action

After spending two years marketing the *aircraft around the world, Boeing is now on the edge of receiving the first order, and it is likely this will come from a country in the Middle East. The rebuilding Iraqi Army has already passed on the opportunity to become the launch customer, selecting the armed Bell 407 instead, but interest remains high around the region.

Both Jordan and Saudi Arabia have announced plans to sign contracts for the AH-6i, among other interested buyers in the region.

There is no mistaking the design heritage of the helicopter. It is the 10th major iteration of the 50-year-old light helicopter first unveiled as the Hughes 300, which is now rebranded as the Sikorsky S-300C.

In 1960, Hughes offered an evolved version of the original design - the Model 369 - in *response to a US Army request for a light *observation helicopter. The Model 369 - *redesignated by the army as the OH-6A - bore the defining characteristics of this aircraft type as it progressed for more than half a century.

The most distinctive feature is the shape of the fuselage. It is variously described as *tear-drop shaped or as a "flying egg".

Despite the gross weight of the aircraft *increasing from 1,224kg (2,700lb) in 1960 to 2,132kg today, its silhouette has changed only to become sharper and more pointed at the nose. This space now houses the wiring and boxes necessary to support a modern cockpit and the addition of a sophisticated targeting sensor for the type.

Pointing aft from the cockpit of the AH-6i is another unmistakable evolution of the *original design of the OH-6A, and even some modern *antecedents. While the OH-6A featured a *conventional, semi-boomerang shaped vertical fin at the end of a long, narrow boom, the AH-6i configuration has exchanged the boomerang for a T-tail, which provides greater aerodynamic stability at increased speeds.

Like many new features of the AH-6i, the T-tail is borrowed from preceding designs, *including the A/MH-6M-series delivered in the last decade to the US Army's special *operations forces.

But the structural changes offer no hints of the performance improvements of the AH-6i, as compared to the Defender 500. Maximum take-off weight has improved from the *Defender's 1,361kg to 2,132kg, and the service ceiling has increased from nearly 14,000ft (4,267m) to 20,000ft. Meanwhile, maximum speed has risen from about 113kt (209km/h) to 126kt at sea level.

The AH-6i's increased power is the result of two key changes - the rotor system and the engine. For the AH-6i, Boeing integrated the Rolls-Royce Model 250-C30R/3 turboshaft *engine. As the military variant of the *commercial Model 250-C47 engine, the C30R/3 is the same engine that powers the US special forces' MH-6 mission enhanced little bird (MELB) and the US Army's Bell *Helicopter OH-58D Kiowa Warrior.

Like the AH-6-series, the Model 250 engine has evolved dramatically over the last half-century. The original powerplant was certificated at 317shp (236kW), while the latest version generates nearly 710shp - although the AH-6i drive system is limited to supplying 600shp. An improved fan draws 3kg (6lb)/s of air into the compressor.


© Boeing
A varied weapons loadout can be fitted on the stub-wings

Before the airflow enters the combustor it has been compressed by a factor of 9.2 *compared to when it entered the inlet, *according to Rolls-Royce.

The addition of full authority digital *electronic control (FADEC) is perhaps even more important than the thrust improvement. The digital controller starts the engine, *governs the fuel flow into the combustor and limits torque and gas temperatures.

However, while the Model 250-C30R/3 adds power, this means nothing unless the rotor system can carry a heavier load.

The A/MH-6 MELB addressed this *requirement by adding a sixth blade to the rotor system, which was carried forward to the AH-6i. It is a feature normally reserved for the world's largest helicopters, including the Sikorsky S-64 Skycrane and *CH-53A Sea *Stallion, but the sixth blade is a necessary *addition for the AH-6i, adding the capacity to lift 272kg more payload.

"It's got a very, very powerful engine in it," says Boeing experimental test pilot Todd Brown. "With a six-bladed main rotor there's lots of control power, so we can generate very rapid pitch and roll rates with the aircraft as well. With an aircraft of this size it makes it very well suited for close fights."

Although the maximum gross weight is more than 2,100kg, the AH-6i still lacks flight controls boosted by a hydraulics system. This makes the control load heavier on the pilot, but the AH-6i is still nimble and stable enough for close air support missions where high *agility is critical.

"The aircraft, I guess you can say, has a reputation of being maybe more difficult to fly than other aircraft because it doesn't have a boosted flight control system," Brown says. "There's not augmentation to the flight control system. But in terms of being easy to fly and being a stable enough platform to do the mission, it doesn't really need a boosted flight control system. I can roll into a Toyota pick up truck and I can put rounds into a Toyota *pick-up truck."

The AH-6i's designers had plenty of ideas for taking advantage of that extra power. Billed as a "light gunship", the AH-6i offers a full suite of weapons on two racks extending from both sides of the fuselage on stub-wings.

In Boeing's representative configuration, one rack carries a M-134 7.62mm minigun on the right inboard station and a .50cal GAU-19 machine gun on the left inboard station. On the outboard stations, the type carries two semi-active laser-guided Lockheed Martin AGM-114 Hellfire missiles on the left side and a seven-shot M260 launcher for 70mm folding fin aerial rockets on the right. The unguided rockets could be exchanged for precision guided rockets, such as the Lockheed direct attack guided rocket.



No helicopter gunship is relevant today without help from the world's most sophisticated sensors. Special forces fly with the Raytheon ZSQ-2 electro-optical/infrared sensor and target designator. The ZSQ-2 is not available for export, so Boeing selected the L-3 Communications Wescam.

Customers can also choose between the *MX-10D or MX-15D imaging sensors, with laser desgnators. Installed in a turret attached on the fuselage centreline - directly beneath the cockpit - both mid-wave infrared sensor options offer megapixel-class video in high-definition colour.

Another feature that distinguishes the AH-6i from the special forces variant is a new twist on the aircraft's integrated digital *cockpit. The AH-6i is not the first Little Bird variant to be equipped with an advanced *avionics suite, but it is the first to leverage the software suite designed for the Boeing *AH-64D Block III Apache.

[buglerbilly]

First Batch of Mi-17V-5 Helicopters Delivered to India Under 80 Units Order

(Source: Russian Helicopters JSC; issued November 8, 2011)

KAZAN, Russia --- The first batch of Mi-17V-5 helicopters have been delivered to the Indian side under the contract signed by Rosoboronexport, JSC in December 2008 during the visit to India of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

The helicopters are manufactured by Kazan Helicopters, a subsidiary of the Russian Helicopters holding company.

India is considered Russia’s a strategic partner in development and delivery of rotorcraft for defence purposes as well as state and private operators. Joint Russian-Indian projects to deliver new helicopters, spares, and aviation equipment are under way. As of 2011 the Indian Air Force operates over 200 Mi-8/17 type medium rotorcraft of Russian make.

The Mi-17V-5 is the most up-to-date modification of the Mi-17. The helicopters being delivered are manufactured to the customer’s specification and are unique in their configuration. Each helicopter is equipped with a KNEI-8 avionics suite. It replaced a number of systems indicators, resulting in a very clear and intuitive cockpit with four large multi-functional displays that are easy to read and help reduce pilot fatigue. This avionics suite also helps cut down pre-flight inspection time, displaying all systems data and alerting crew when necessary.

As of today, Kazan Helicopters and Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant, also a subsidiary of Russian Helicopters, have both delivered over 11 thousand rotorcraft of the Mi-8/17 family to 110 countries worldwide.

Rosoboronexport, JSC is the only enterprise in Russia entitled to offer for export the entire lineup of products, technology, and services of military and dual purpose. Rosoboronexport is one of the global leaders in arms supply and holds over 80% of Russian arms and military equipment exports.

UIC Oboronprom, JSC is a multi-profile industrial and investment group established in 2002. A part of Russian Technologies State Corporation, its main tasks include helicopter engineering (Russian Helicopters, JSC) and engine-building (United Engine Industry Corporation managing company).

Russian Helicopters, JSC is a subsidiary of UIC Oboronprom, a part of Russian Technologies State Corporation. It controls the following helicopter industry enterprises: Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, Kamov, Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant, Kazan Helicopters, Rostvertol, Progress Arsenyev Aviation Company named after N.I. Sazykin, Kumertau Aviation Production Enterprise, Stupino Machine Production Plant, Reductor-PM and Helicopter Service Company.

Kazan Helicopters, JSC manufactures the famous Mi-8/Mi-17 helicopter family, operated in 110 countries worldwide and featuring a wide variety of modifications: cargo, passenger, medevac, rescue, troop-carrying, and others. Ground is laid for the production of the Mi-38. In 1997 the company received certification for helicopter design and engineering: the light twin-engine Ansat is currently in production.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Gautam Datt New Delhi, November 7, 2011 | UPDATED 11:47 IST

Fresh roadblocks emerge in Army chopper deal


Eurocopter AS550C3 Fennec undergoes field trial in Leh.

As the army desperately waits for new light helicopters, fresh roadblocks have emerged to derail the purchase with anonymous complaints to the defence ministry linking arms dealers with the proposed contract.

The government wants to buy 197 light utility helicopters mainly for high-altitude operations. Though the process to buy the choppers was set in motion in 2003, not much headway has been made. This time, however, the army and the defence ministry are determined to not let the process derail again.


Russian Kamov Ka-226T.

The competition has narrowed down to the Russian Kamov Ka-226T and Eurocopter AS550C3 Fennec. The trials were completed some months ago, but the pace left a lot to be desired.

The army headquarters recently carried out a review, removing some of the sticking points. Questions were also raised over the evaluation process. It was found that some of the conditions set for performance were challenging. For instance, the helicopters were required to be based above 5,000ft and re-start after 24 hours. The trial reports are learnt to have been sent to the defence ministry.

In parallel developments, anonymous complaints about involvement of some arms dealers have also surfaced. Though these are being attributed to vested interests, it has made senior officials cautious, sources said.

Problems have plagued the contract since the beginning. Eurocopter had almost bagged the deal beating the Bell 407 four years ago. But the contract was scrapped after allegations of irregularities. Fresh bids were invited in 2008.

Sources said unlike the last time when the contract was immediately cancelled at the whiff of corruption allegations, the ministry was now treading cautiously to ensure there was no larger design to malign the process.

There is already an enormous delay. When the bids were invited, it was expected that the delivery of helicopters would be underway by this time. But the deal is still far from being finalised.

The army needs to replace its old Cheetah and Chetak light helicopters. Out of the 197 helicopters that would be bought, 64 are meant for the Indian Air Force (IAF).

The bids were invited from six contenders ranging from Augusta Westland, Bell Helicopter and Eurocopter to Kamov and Sikorsky. The final contest is between the Russian entry and Eurocopter.

Russia was also in the fray for supplying heavy and attack helicopters. It is learnt it lost the race for the attack helicopters meant for the IAF as their performance did not match that of Boeing's Apache Longbow. The government has already extended the light utility helicopter contract by a year.

[buglerbilly]

Development of multi-role NH90 TTH complete

08 November 2011 - 17:24 by the Shephard News Team



Great pic of a Kiwi TTH..............

Eurocopter has announced that the declaration of compliance for the NH90 TTH (Tactical Transport Helicopter) variant’s Final Operational Configuration has been issued by the NATO Helicopter Management Agency (NAHEMA), bringing the aircraft’s development programme to a close. The NH90 TTH will now begin deliveries ahead of the aircraft’s full operational definition at the end of 2011.

The announcement confirms that the NH90 TTH will meet the specifications and operational requirements of the founding customers. According to Eurocopter, the French Army will now receive the initial aircraft variant before start-up deliveries commence to Italy, Belgium and Germany.

The NH90 programme is the largest military helicopter programme ever undertaken in Europe. The new-generation NH90 TTH is designed for use in a wide range of missions, including logistics and utility transport, combat search and rescue, casualty and medical evacuation, electronic warfare, special operations and counter-terrorism.

In its approved final operational configuration, the helicopter offers a matured avionics system, allowing day and night missions with no major restrictions; full military communications system functionality for interoperability in foreign operations; a complete set of technical publications; and the approval for overseas deployments by ship.

According to Eurocopter, ‘the aircraft provides a common platform for army and navy and air force roles, enabling countries to rationalise their helicopter fleets while also organizing training and support on a larger scale, with flexible management of personnel and equipment. Its large cabin, rapid access (with two lateral sliding doors and optional rear ramp) and quick role-change capability ensures mission flexibility for multiple operational scenarios’.

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Department of State Orders Three Additional Upgraded S-61 Helicopters

(Source: Sikorsky Aerospace Services; issued November 8, 2011)

SHELTON, Conn. --- Sikorsky Aerospace Services today announced that the U.S. Department of State (DoS) has ordered three additional upgraded S-61 utility helicopters, bringing the total number purchased by DoS to 29 aircraft to date. Sikorsky Aerospace Services (SAS) is the aftermarket division of Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.

"The S-61 helicopter is known as an industry workhorse and for decades has reliably performed missions for U.S. and foreign allied militaries. The upgraded S-61 helicopter can be outfitted to meet a wide variety of requirements, and we believe it provides 'best-in-class-value' for a mid-size, multi-mission helicopter. In December 2010, we proudly delivered the first upgraded S-61 aircraft to the U.S. State Department for passenger and cargo transport missions," said John Johnson, Director, S-61 Programs.
The three aircraft will transport diplomatic personnel in Iraq and Afghanistan. Building on the S-61 helicopter's 50-year legacy of dependability, SAS initiated the S-61 Upgrade Program in early 2010. As Sikorsky's launch customer, the DoS has entered into a five-year IQ (indefinite quantity) agreement with the option to purchase up to 110 upgraded S-61 aircraft. This IQ purchase agreement serves as the contracting vehicle for any U.S. government agency to purchase upgraded S-61 aircraft.

The upgraded S-61 helicopters will undergo a full structural refurbishment with all major dynamic components zero-timed and key upgrades provided, including new composite main rotor blades (CMRB) and a survivability suite. The customer can select additional options such as a state-of-the-art glass cockpit and crashworthy primary and auxiliary fuel systems.

Sikorsky Aerospace Services, a Sikorsky company, provides comprehensive support to rotary and fixed wing operators worldwide. It offers its military and commercial customers a full portfolio of aftermarket support services, including material distribution, maintenance, overhaul & repair, aircraft modifications and life-cycle support. Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., based in Stratford, Conn., is a world leader in helicopter design, manufacture and service.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

FIND 2011: UK helicopters prove their worth as ISTAR assets

09 November 2011 - 16:21 by Beth Stevenson in Bisley



A UK helicopter chief has argued that rotary systems are the ideal choice for ISTAR operations rather than the unmanned systems that are routinely used.

Col Richard Leakey, commander for the MA3/Station Joint Helicopter Command (JHC) Flying Station Aldergrove, told the FIND conference in Bisley on 9 November that an unmanned fleet may be a reality 'one day in the future, but in the near term I see an absolute need for a man in the loop'.

Leakey described how the Apache 'has really been the essence of target acquisition on a helicopter', although JHC 'does not have a down link on the Apache at present'.

‘[For helicopter operations] surveillance probably comes quite far down in terms of priorities because it is a relatively recent innovation. However in my opinion across the ISTAR spectrum it [the Apache] is filling those capabilities,’ he said.

'It is not just about the pilot, we have analysts on-board. The manned platform has the ability to provide greater flexibility. UAVs with ground analysts will not have the same flexibility,' Leakey said about his operational experience.

The new AW159 Lynx Wildcat aircraft coming into the JHC in 2014 includes a MX-15Di for ISTAR operations, which Leakey used as an example of how the UK is utilising rotary assets for this type of mission.

'We have always been in this business since there was aviation, it has just been called different things,' Leakey explained.

For the conflict inNorthern Irelandthe army supported surveillance through airborne rotary assets, and 'in Germany specifically we had helicopters perform a special kind of [mission] on a Gazelle', Leakey said.

He also said that helicopter ISTAR under JHC was a 'pattern of life over Basra', that there were cameras on the Lynx in Iraq, and helicopters made a 'significant contribution' in Libya. The Lynx Mk9A with an MX-10 surveillance turret is 'absolutely crucial' for ISTAR operations, as the aircraft can find its own targets.

[buglerbilly]

Sikorsky Meets Accelerated UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopter Deliveries for Sweden

(Source: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.; issued November 17, 2011)

STRATFORD, Conn. --- Sikorsky Aircraft, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., today delivered to the U.S. Army the fourth of 15 UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft for further transfer to the Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV).

Sikorsky is building and delivering all 15 UH-60M aircraft to an accelerated 18-month production schedule that began in May, 2011. Seven aircraft are on schedule for delivery to the U.S. Army September through December, with eight additional deliveries through the fall of 2012.

The FMV is procuring the 15 aircraft via the U.S. Government's Foreign Military Sales program. The accelerated build schedule will enable the Swedish Armed Forces to deploy three UH-60M aircraft to Afghanistan in April, 2013. The Swedish Armed Forces will use the aircraft for medical evacuation, utility, and search and rescue missions.

"The Black Hawk Utility Helicopter (UH-60) is the world's best current and future force utility helicopter," said Gregory D. Gore, Deputy Project Manager, U.S. Army Utility Helicopters Project Office. "The UH-60 provides all commanders with rapid and agile maneuver capability through air assault, general support, command and control, and MEDEVAC missions. These features will provide Sweden an unparalleled asset to support their primary mission of medical evacuation and troop transport in Afghanistan as these aircraft are fielded in 2013."

Mr. Gore made his remarks during the delivery ceremony today at Sikorsky Aircraft's Stratford headquarters attended by senior members of the FMV and the Swedish Armed Forces.

Sweden is the first European country to acquire the U.S. Army's UH-60M BLACK HAWK aircraft. Introduced into service with the U.S. Army in 2007, the 'M' model is the latest variant of the world's most successful medium-lift military utility helicopter. Sweden's aircraft come equipped from Sikorsky with an advanced flight control system to reduce pilot workload, full night vision device capability for night operations, and a state-of-the-art communications suite.

The U.S. Army will further modify the aircraft with a variety of equipment, including an exterior rescue hoist, gunner seats, armored floor, stackable litters, a cockpit heater and environmental control system.

Swedish aircrew — already flight qualified in UH-60M aircraft at the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, Fort Rucker, Ala. — will receive follow on unit training at the Swedish Air Force base in Linkoping following the arrival of the first four unmodified aircraft in Sweden in early 2012. Sikorsky Aerospace Services and Swedish defense and security company Saab will provide maintainer training and long-term logistics support for the fleet.

"Close collaboration with the U.S. Army is enabling Sikorsky to build these UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft 18 months ahead of a typical production schedule," said John Pacelli, Sikorsky's Vice President for International Military Business. "We're very pleased our joint efforts will meet Sweden's urgent requirement for new helicopters and associated training and logistic support in time for deployment."

Black Hawk helicopters of all variants flown by the U.S. Army in the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters of war have accumulated more than 1.3 million fleet flight hours without a single Class A material failure. The combined operational sortie rate in both theaters stands at 85 percent. The U.S. Army's total Black Hawk helicopter fleet exceeds 1,945 aircraft.

More than 3,000 Black Hawk helicopters of all variants are in use today, operating in 30 countries. Designed to stringent U.S. military standards, the Black Hawk helicopter has become the leader in multi-mission type aircraft. Among the mission configurations it serves are troop transport, medical evacuation, electronic warfare, attack, assault support and special operations.

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., based in Stratford, Conn., is a world leader in aircraft design, manufacture and service.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Ares

A Defense Technology Blog

German Tigers Practice for Afghanistan

Posted by Robert Wall at 11/18/2011 7:01 AM CST

It is still hard to believe this German government will deploy an attack helicopter into a conflict zone, but that is not stopping the German army to prepare for that eventuality. The first deployment to the theater of operations is due in October, says the German army.



With that in mind, several of the rotorcraft are now involved in a two week training period where they will get to exercise weapons firing. As part of the drill, they will also practice being called in by personnel on the ground to conduct air strikes and lay down suppressive fire in case a convoy or patrol is under attack.





The German Tigers are equipped with 70 mm rockets, HOT missiles, and an underwing 12.7 mm machinegun.



(Photos: German army)

[buglerbilly]

Sikorsky sells International Black Hawks to Brunei

21 November 2011 - 13:08 by Tony Osborne in London



Despite being flown by the Airforce these are Army assets primarily.................

Sikorsky has won a contract to supply 12 S-70i International Black Hawks to the Ministry of Defence of Brunei Darussalam.

The company won the Royal Brunei Armed Forces Support Helicopter Project and will deliver 12 S-70i between 2013 and 2015. The aircraft will be used to replace Brunei's fleet of Bo105s and Bell 212s.

The contract is believed to be worth around $325 million.

According to a Brunei Ministry of Defence press release, the aircraft will 'enhance the Royal Brunei Air Force’s (RBAF) rotary wing capacity to meet the requirement for a single wave tactical air lift as identified in the Defence White Paper Update 2007'.

The MoD also said that the delivery of the new aircraft will allow the RBAF to further strengthen its troop deployment capabilities in military and humanitarian operations to fulfil its national and international obligation.

An invitation to tender for the contract was issued for four companies in February 2011 by the Ministry of Defence's Centre of Science and Technology, Research and Development (CSTRAD). Each vendor was requested to propose an innovative helicopter replacement solution suitable to meet the RBAF’s needs. In July 2011, the MoD down-selected Sikorsky and Eurocopter following an assessment of the vendors’ proposals.

The RBAF already operates four S-70A Black Hawks, which are flown by No. 4 Squadron, RBAF. The aircraft are used on special combat squadron operation taskings, troop-lift, casualty evacuation, medical evacuation, fire fighting, VVIP lift and SAR.

[buglerbilly]

Ongoing problems hit Defence's $2 billion MRH 90 choppers

by: Defence Writer Ian McPhedran

From:The Advertiser

November 23, 201112:00AM


FLYING HIGH: The Brisbane-based MRH90 helicopters are among projects to exceed their budgeted costs by more than $500 million.

THE $2 billion contract for 46 MRH 90 European-built multi-role helicopters is a "project of concern".

Military sources say the project will be added to the Government's so-called "projects of concern" list if the Minister for Defence Materiel, Jason Clare, accepts the recommendation of the latest "diagnostic review" of the project.

So far just 13 of the 46 machines have been accepted by Defence and the delivery schedule is running more than 18 months late.

A source said the chopper still had major problems with its navigation systems and the review would recommend that it be added to the list of shame.

The MRH 90 will be the second helicopter project to make the shame list after the Sea Sprite Navy helicopter debacle that cost taxpayers more than $1 billion before it was abandoned.

There are nine projects on the list, ranging from submarine sustainment to stand-off missiles and all companies involved, including multi-nationals such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin, are barred from further taxpayer-funded contracts until their project is removed from the list.

The high-tech fly-by-wire composite twin-engine MRH 90 helicopter is built by European giant Eurocopter.

It is assembled in Brisbane by its subsidiary Australian Aerospace.

The project has been dogged by serious technical issues including an engine failure due to overheating, cracked windscreens, soft cargo flooring and avionic and navigation problems.

It is the latter that continues to cause problems, especially for the navy variant when the choppers are operating from ships.

According to insiders, the MRH 90 will be a very capable helicopter once all the bugs are ironed out, but it is another example of taxpayers funding untested cutting-edge military technology.

Despite its small relative size, Defence has lost billions of dollars and suffered countless delays over the years by signing up for unproven cutting-edge equipment.

It is understood that the Government and Australian Aerospace are about to sign an agreement with a new timetable for fixing the outstanding faults and getting deliveries back on track by March next year.

[buglerbilly]

Air force to receive new choppers

SHANE COWLISHAW

Last updated 05:00 03/12/2011



The first pair of new NH90 helicopters will be delivered to the air force next week, after years of delays.

Eight of the medium-range helicopters were ordered in 2006 for $771 million. Despite test flights in France two years ago, delivery was deferred, largely because of certification issues.

They will replace the air force's aging Iroquois helicopters that have been in service for 45 years.

They will join the five lightweight Italian-made Westland-A109 Augusta helicopters that arrived earlier this year.

A $33.7m hanger has been built at Ohakea Airbase to house the new aircraft, while a $16m simulator complex to train pilots was opened last month.

New Zealand Defence Force spokesman David Balham said the two NH90s were expected to arrive on Tuesday.

The French airfield where they were being stored was about to close for maintenance. The helicopters would therefore not have arrived till well into next year unless their transport was organised now, he said.

Upon arrival, they would be under Defence Ministry control while various parts arrived before being handed to the air force. Mr Balham said it was inappropriate to comment on when the NH90s would be ready for use or what they would be used for till then.

Defence Ministry deputy secretary Des Ashton said while the helicopters had come in under budget, they were several years late. New Zealand was not alone, however, with other customers also experiencing delays, largely due to software integration issues and certification delays.

"In these projects you want to make sure you're getting what's specified, and sometimes there's a balance or compromise to be made between the schedule and getting what you specified."

Commercial sensitivity meant he could not reveal details of the deal, but the ministry had received some "financial compensation" for the delays, he said.

Delivery of the six remaining NH90s will be completed by 2013.

Ad Feedback - The Dominion Post

[buglerbilly]

Sikorsky Signs with Brunei Ministry of Defence for Sale of S-70i BLACK HAWK Helicopters

(Source: Sikorsky Aircraft Corp.; issued December 7, 2011)



LIMA Show, Malaysia --- Sikorsky Aircraft, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., has formally signed a contract with the Brunei Ministry of Defence to provide 12 S-70i Black Hawk helicopters with associated spare parts, training and ground support equipment. The contact contains an option for 10 additional aircraft.

"We thank the Brunei Government for selecting the S-70i Black Hawk aircraft to fulfill the Royal Brunei Armed Forces Support Helicopter Project," said Robert Kokorda, Sikorsky Sales and Marketing Vice President. "We look forward to a close collaboration with the Royal Brunei Armed Forces to provide best-in-class helicopter training and logistics support for the lifetime of the aircraft."

As part of the contract, Sikorsky will place an S-70i aircraft simulator in the south-east Asia region. The simulator will enable Brunei aircrew to become familiar with the helicopter, especially in the months leading up to the arrival of S-70i aircraft in Brunei beginning in 2013.

The Brunei Ministry of Defence announced its selection of the S-70i Black Hawk aircraft on November 15 following several months of rigorous evaluation of competing helicopters. Sikorsky signed the contract December 2 in Brunei.

Black Hawk helicopters are renowned for high reliability, performance and survivability in multi-role operations. Currently more than 3,000 Black Hawk helicopters are operating in 30 countries.

The S-70i helicopter is the latest variant of the Black Hawk helicopter family. The aircraft provides operators with the same power and lift performance as UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft, the preferred utility helicopter of the U.S. Army. The S-70i aircraft is sold directly by Sikorsky to international militaries and government agencies.

The S-70i aircraft's advanced avionics include a dual GPS/INS system with digital map that provides accurate navigation and enhanced situational awareness. An active vibration control system delivers smooth overall ride during flight. The aircraft can be ordered with user-specific navigation, communications and other tactical equipment.

Sikorsky Aircraft Corp., based in Stratford, Conn., USA, is a world leader in helicopter design, manufacture, and service. United Technologies Corp., based in Hartford, Conn., USA, provides a broad range of high technology products and support services to the aerospace and building systems industries.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Lockheed Martin delivers M-DSA to US Army

08 December 2011 - 14:58 by the Shephard News Team



Lockheed Martin has delivered the first Modernized Day Sensor Assembly (M-DSA) upgrade prototype units to the US Army for use on the Apache attack helicopter. Lockheed Martin made the announcement in a 7 December 2011 company statement.

Lockheed Martin recently delivered five System Design and Development (SDD) Laser Rangefinder Designators (LRFDs) to the Army a three-year contract awarded to Lockheed Martin in September 2008 to modernise the Apache's Day Sensor Assembly.

The LRFD is the chief targeting aid for the Apache, establishing the range to the target for accurate weapon aiming. For the HELLFIRE II missile, the LRFD designates the aim point with a laser spot. Additionally, the M-DSA LRFD adds an eye-safe laser for safe training exercises.

According to the company, the first phase of the upgrades is being performed to mitigate obsolescence and enhance the system's performance, as well as to increase the Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensor (M-TADS/PNVS) system's ability to fully accommodate future weapons. A second phase will include upgrades to the visible colour sensor, laser spot tracker, inertial measurement unit and day sensor structure assembly and adds a laser pointer/marker compatibility. This effort recently completed a successful critical design review in its SDD contract.

[buglerbilly]

Apache Block III Pilots Gain Control Of UAS

Dec 9, 2011

By Pat Toensmeier
New York



The U.S. Army last month rolled out the latest upgrade to Boeing’s iconic Apache attack helicopter—the AH-64D Longbow Block III. The version includes at least 25 technology upgrades and, importantly, interoperability with unmanned aerial systems (UAS) that permits a pilot in flight to control a drone, tap into its streaming video and use its sensors for target engagement.

The AH-64D Block III will reportedly be the only aircraft with such a capability.

This lets a pilot build situational awareness and reduce targeting and engagement time, speeding the response when alerted to an event or to troops in combat, says Lt. Col. Dan Bailey, product manager for the Apache Block III program. “I can use the UAS sensors as my sensors for weapons engagement,” he remarks. “The data link [between helicopter and UAS] shares target information and lets me upload ballistic solutions to the Apache.”

This is possible through installation on Block III Apaches of the high-bandwidth UTA—short for UAS Tactical Common Data Link Assembly—developed by Longbow LLC, a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. The UTA has been successfully flight-tested on an Apache with a General Atomics Gray Eagle MQ-1C UAS.

Its use on the Block III helicopter means pilots will no longer rely on voice information from UAS operators for situational awareness. Referencing his own combat experience, Bailey says that during a 2006-07 deployment to Iraq, Apache pilots had no interoperability with drones beyond voice contact with ground operators. “We’d spend time having UAS operators talk us onto a target.” As a result, identification and engagement wasn’t possible until the Apache crew was on top of a target. A pilot now will be able to control the flight path of a UAS, sending it well in front of his aircraft to avoid danger, view streaming video and upload sensor data.

Bailey declines to disclose the interoperability range between Apache and UAS. He notes, however, that the UTA’s capabilities exceed the Block III upgrade requirement. “We tested and qualified the UTA at more than two times over spec for range, which would be sufficient for a deep attack,” Bailey says. “The requirement for UTA performance provides [a crew with] ample lead time—the end result is more than two times that.”

Another important upgrade to the Block III Apaches involves high-hot operation. The helicopters are being refitted with T700-GE-701D engines from GE Aviation, which generate 3,400 shp, and with new composite blades that increase lift and speed. The Block III will be able to hover at 6,000 ft. at 95F with a 3,400-lb. payload. The previous maximum hover altitude at 95F was 4,000 ft. with less payload. Combat speed will be 164 kt., an increase of 20 kt.

The blades and spars are made entirely of composites—the spar is also hollow, which Bailey says makes it lighter than the previous spar, more flexible and better able to maintain a sustainable bend under dynamic load. The new blades are 6 in. longer than current ones and have a slightly different swept tip, both of which increase lift. The chord and chamber are virtually unchanged from those of legacy blades. The trim tabs on the trailing edge of the blades have been modified to extend performance.

The Army Acquisition Objective (AAO) calls for 690 Block III Apaches through 2026. Of these, 56 will be new builds and 634 remanufactured. The work is being done at the Boeing plant in Mesa, Ariz.

Bailey says looming budget cuts won’t affect the total number of Block IIIs in the AAO. “If there is reduced funding it will mean fewer helicopters in a given year, the number of which will be added to the end of the program.” Budget cutbacks, therefore, will “expand the timeline” of the program but not affect the total number of Block III helicopters.

The program, which began in 2006, has been “very successful,” he adds. “It is on cost and on schedule.” Follow-on development began this year, and will result in enhancements that will be added through 2017, Bailey says.

In addition to the AAO, several international customers are interested in the AH-64D Block III. One country, in fact, is on contract, though Bailey declines to disclose information about the deal beyond saying initial deliveries will begin this year. Many foreign sales will be new, and some will be remanufactures.

Photo: US Army

[buglerbilly]

Hungary requests Hueys

09 December 2011 - 15:04 by Tony Osborne in London



The Hungarian government has issued a request to purchase more than 30 Bell UH-1N helicopters from the US.

In a statement to the US Congress by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on 8 December, the government of Hungary has requested the sale of 32 Hueys as well as 20 spare engines, associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support.

The deal through the US Navy's Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) could be worth as much $426 million.

The UH-1Ns are likely to be former US Marine Corps examples which are now being replaced by UH-1Y Venoms.

Hungary is keen to increase the helicopter capability of its armed forces and has reportedly been studying the purchase of the UH-1s for around a year. Earlier this year, Finland donated its last two operational Mi-8 Hip transport helicopters to Hungary where they will be used for training purposes.

The DSCA said the sale would: 'Contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the US by helping to improve the military capabilities of Hungary and furthering NATO standardisation and interoperability between the US and other NATO allies.'

Hungary proposes using the helicopters to conduct humanitarian and SAR medical evacuation missions.

[Ecky]

Source: Ministers Release (http://www.minister.defence.gov.au/2011/12/12/minister-for-defence-and-minister-for-defence-materiel-adf-bolsters-ch-47d-chinook-capability/)
Posted: 12 December 2011

2 more Chinooks


Minister for Defence Stephen Smith and the Minister for Defence Materiel Jason Clare today announced that the Australian Defence Force’s (ADF) CH-47D Chinook fleet will be bolstered by a further two helicopters following the loss of one aircraft on operations in Afghanistan in May 2011.

The purchase of the additional CH-47D Chinooks, effected through Defence signing of a Letter of Offer and Acceptance with the United States will bring Australia’s total CH-47D Chinook fleet to seven.

The additional aircraft will reduce pressure on the training and maintenance schedule for the ADF Chinook fleet resulting in enhanced support to the two Chinook’s currently deployed to the Middle East Area of Operations (MEAO).

The two additional aircraft have been sourced from the United States, and will be transported to Australia for servicing and modification to the current Australian CH-47D configuration. The aircraft are expected to arrive in Townsville by the end of January next year and are anticipated to be ready for domestic operations from mid-2012.

The CH-47D Chinook undertakes the medium-lift utility role with great versatility, including troop movement, battlefield equipment transport, search and rescue and disaster relief roles. The CH-47D Chinook aircraft has been an extremely capable workhorse since they entered ADF service in 1995.

This procurement will ensure the continued utility of Chinook aircraft on overseas operations, domestically through Defence Assistance to the Civil Community and in training and sustainment of aircrews.

The CH-47D Chinook have been deployed on Operation Slipper in Afghanistan since 2006. They have performed an outstanding service for both ADF and ISAF forces and are in high demand across Afghanistan due to its superior performance in hot and high altitude conditions.

The CH-47D fleet will be replaced with seven new CH-47F Chinook helicopters from around 2016.

Ecky

[buglerbilly]

Interesting wording in there................


The two additional aircraft have been sourced from the United States.............

This could mean from US storage as in Ex Canadian ones OR it could mean Ex US Army ones...........certainly not new builds.

[JimWH]

Either way good outcome for Army/ADF. Now for the clever trick where we convince government to send some or all of them back for remanufacture into F-Chooks.

[buglerbilly]

Shephards also said this..............


It is understood that the Australian government had expressed interest in some of the former Canadian Forces CH-147Ds currently laying dormant at Kandahar following the departure of Canadian combat troops earlier this year.

The Canadian aircraft are no longer in Kandahar to my knowledge, they've been moved to desert storage in the USA...........

[buglerbilly]

Either way good outcome for Army/ADF. Now for the clever trick where we convince government to send some or all of them back for remanufacture into F-Chooks.

Agreed on all points..............

[buglerbilly]

Final Upgraded Lynx Helo Returned to British

By ANDREW CHUTER

Published: 15 Dec 2011 13:59



LONDON - AgustaWestland has handed over the last of 22 Lynx helicopters to the British Army in a deal aimed at improving the machine's ability to operate in Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Defence has spent 92 million pounds ($142.4 million) upgrading the light helicopter with a new engine, surveillance sensors, secure communications, a .50-caliber heavy machine gun and other equipment changes under an urgent operational requirement procurement which started in late 2008.

The first new Lynx Mk9As were delivered to theater in May last year and about a quarter of the fleet now operates in support of British troops and others in Helmand province.

AgustaWestland said the upgrade program, undertaken at its Yeovil plant in southwest England, had been completed on budget and three months ahead of schedule.

Prior to the upgrade, earlier versions of the helicopter using the Rolls-Royce Gem engine had been unable to effectively operate in the hot and high conditions of an Afghan summer. The M3M machine and new sensor suite allows the Mk9A to perform a variety of roles, including convoy overwatch, helicopter support, and surveillance and reconnaissance tasks.

The Italian helicopter company pulled through technologies such as the powerful CTS800-4N engine, which is destined for the Lynx Wildcat program being developed for the Royal Navy and British Army, to deliver the first Mk9A within 18 months of the project starting.

The Wildcat is now undergoing flight trials ahead of being delivered for duty with the Navy in 2014 and the Army a year later.

[buglerbilly]

Black Hawks arrive in Sweden

21 December 2011 - 12:11 by Tony Osborne in London



The first two of 15 UH-60M Black Hawks ordered by the Swedish Armed Forces have been delivered just 18 months after the aircraft were ordered.

The aircraft were flown to the Swedish Defence Material Administration's (FMV's) facility at Linköping on 19 December on board a USAF C-17. The FMV will now prepare the aircraft for entry into service and eventually operations in Afghanistan where they are expected be deployed by the second quarter of 2013.

Project managers involved in the programme believe the procurement of the Black Hawks, known in Sweden as the Hkp 16, maybe a world record in military helicopter procurement.

'Ask me again in the second quarter of 2013 but so far it has gone beyond our expectations. There are many reasons why it has gone so quickly. The staff at FMV that has worked incredibly hard and focused and co-operation with the armed forces and the US government has worked very well,' said Magnus Larsson, the Hkp 16 Project Manager.

'The Hkp 16 is a proven system with over 3,000 Black Hawk supplied to various customers around the world and our job is to facilitate for the Flight Safety Inspectorate to evaluate what the US aviation authorities have already approved,' added Larsson.

The Black Hawks have been ordered because of delays with the introduction of the NH90 into service, and the ongoing Swedish involvement with ISAF in Afghanistan which has demanded the use of medical evacuation helicopters in theatre.

Currently, that mission is being carried out by pair of heavily modified Super Pumas, known as Hkp 10Bs. The Black Hawks will take over from the Super Pumas in 2013.

The normal time from order to delivery for the UH-60M is 36 months, but the Swedish authorities were able to negotiate several early delivery slots with the final purchase contract signed in August 2011.

[buglerbilly]

SELEX Elsag wins Danish LOAM contract

22 December 2011 - 16:39 by the Shephard News Team



SELEX Elsag has won a contract from the Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organization to supply 8 Laser Obstacle Avoidance & Monitoring (LOAM) systems to the Royal Danish Air Force EH-101 helicopter fleet in Tactical Transportation configuration. The LOAM system is used to detect obstacles in low altitude flights.

According to Selex, the job order also includes testing and functional activities - in addition to the ones performed in the first months of this year - which will be carried out during the delivery phase of LOAM systems. Delivery is expected in the last quarter of 2012.

Of the eight systems to be delivered, six will be effective and two will be spares. They will replace the devices currently used on the helicopters and supplied by SELEX Elsag in 2006. New devices have been updated both in hardware
and software components; in particular they have been equipped with next generation microprocessors as well as more effective and high-performing algorithms.

LOAM is an auxiliary system for navigation, designed for rotary wing platforms in order to detect dangerous obstacles along the flight path allowing the crew to adopt beforehand contingent and effective countermeasures; offering a higher level of safety in the low altitude flight.

[buglerbilly]

Army gets two more Russian helicopters to be modified in Huntsville

Published: Friday, December 23, 2011, 8:30 AM

By Kenneth Kesner, The Huntsville Times


Col. Bert Vergez accepts the keys and logbook of an overhauled Russian Mi-17 helicopter from Pavel Borisov of Avia Baltika, at left, then hands them to Science and Engineering Services President Hyo Sang Lee and retired Brig. Gen. E.J. Sinclair, right, the company's CEO, during a ceremony Thursday. SES is modifying and modernizing Mi-17s for the Army to use at Fort Rucker in training.

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- In a small ceremony Thursday, Army Col. Bert Vergez got the keys to a couple of big things he badly wanted this holiday season: Russian-built Mi-17 helicopters.

He promptly handed them over to officials at Science and Engineering Services, which is already working in a facility at Huntsville International Airport to modify and modernize three other used Mi-17s with U.S.-standard avionics and other features. They are all destined for Fort Rucker, Ala., and the Army Aviation Center of Excellence, where they will join a small but growing fleet used for training pilots and crew chiefs.

"This is a huge Christmas present," said Vergez, program manager for the Army's Non-Standard Rotary Wing Aircraft office, part of the Program Executive Office for Aviation on Redstone Arsenal. "The training down at Fort Rucker is absolutely key to what we're trying to do in support of our efforts in Afghanistan and supporting our allies around the world."

These older Mi-17s will be made to look and perform like new ones the NSRWA office is arranging under a separate contract to have built in Russia then sent to Afghanistan for use by its forces. There are a number of reasons the Army is executing that mission: there is already an infrastructure and familiarity with the Mi-17 in that part of the world; it was designed specifically for the conditions in the region; and it is less expensive and readily available.

In Alabama, a new generation of Afghan pilots and instructors will learn to fly their helicopters. As more Mi-17s and crews become operational, it frees American aircraft and troops for other missions - or to come home.

In 2011, 22 brand-new Mi-17s were delivered to Iraq, Vergez said. And that directly contributed to making possible the recent withdrawal of U.S. troops and aircraft from the country.

The two Mi-17s at SES Thursday weren't the first to arrive here and aren't likely to be the last. But Vergez said they are a milestone for the program. They were overhauled by Saint Petersburg Aircraft Company in Russia and Avia Baltika of Lithuania, then airlifted directly to Huntsville International Airport aboard an Antonov An124 - one of the largest airplanes in the world.

"It's really unprecedented," he said. Previous deliveries had been shipped to Florida then flown here. "This intermodal facility is ideal to be able to bring them in and out."

Pavel Borisov, of Avia Baltika and SPARC, thanked the Army and SES "for great support and allowing us to participate in this kind of project, which expands our relations."

"This is truly a team," said retired Army Brig. Gen. E.J. Sinclair, CEO of SES. He pointed out that the ability to unload the Mi-17s right in front of the 14,000-square-foot hangar where the modification work is handled is one reason SES chose the airport location for the work.

"That's kind of the model that we're looking for in the future ... how we can bring teams from around the world and do the great work we do to support the Army and support the Huntsville community," Sinclair said.

SES is expanding in a 90,000-square-foot hangar on the airport, he said, primarily to handle Mi-17, Black Hawk helicopter work and other Army programs. About 40 of SES's approximately 800 Huntsville area employees work on the Mi-17 modifications, "but we see that expanding in the very near future," Sinclair said.

SES is very happy to support the Army mission here, said SES President and Chairman Dr. Hyo Sang Lee. "It means a great deal for the technology base in Huntsville as well as the industrial base for jobs and employment."

The Army will continue to work with SES to serve as a "Center of Excellence" for the modification and overhaul of used Mi-17s, Vergez said, and more could come here in 2012.

[buglerbilly]

Pentagon Mishandling Mi-17 Helo Fleet: IG Report

By DAVE MAJUMDAR

Published: 5 Jan 2012 19:50

The U.S. Defense Department has bungled the managing a fleet of Russian-built Mil Mi-17 Hip helicopters, the Pentagon's inspector general said in a report released Jan. 5.

The Pentagon has spent $1.6 billion over the last five years on what it calls non-standard rotary wing aircraft (NSRWA) and plans to spend an additional $1 billion in the future.

"DoD officials did not adequately manage the acquisition and support of NSRWA," the report reads. "Specifically, DoD officials were unable to identify a comprehensive list of all DoD-owned and supported Mi-17s, their total ownership costs, and all planned requirements in support of these aircraft."

That happened because the Pentagon didn't treat the program as a major procurement effort and instead took an ad hoc approach to managing the buy, the report says, and as a result DoD didn't get the most for its money.

The report recommends the Pentagon establish the NSRWA effort as a formal program, draw up proper documentation, consolidate various offices to which the program reports and designate the U.S. Army as executive agent for the aircraft.

[buglerbilly]

Boeing wins Chinook contract

11 January 2012 - 18:32 by the Shephard News Team



Boeing has announced that it has been awarded an award from the US Army to supply 14 CH-47F Chinook helicopters for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) contracts with the Australian and United Arab Emirates (UAE) governments. The contract is worth approximately $370 million.

According to Boeing, seven of the aircraft will be delivered to the Australian Defence Force and six aircraft will be delivered to the UAE under previously announced US FMS. An additional aircraft will be delivered to the US Army to fulfill its own requirements.

The aircraft will be delivered to the US Army beginning in 2014.

[buglerbilly]

Sikorsky’s Bidding Plan for the Army’s Scout Contest



Sikorsky executives today explained their strategy for moving their S-97 Raider coaxial rotor design forward in the Army’s armed aerial scout contest despite the fact that their design isn’t flying yet.

“We’re developing two prototype aircraft with the purpose of demonstrating this type of capability with the target of hitting the armed aerial scout,” said Doug Shidler, Sikorsky’s Raider program manager, when I asked him today how the company planned to effectively bid on the armed aerial scout contest with their unbuilt chopper at a press conference where Shidler was announcing the Raider’s 35 supplier companies.

“There aren’t any requirements out there yet for the armed aerial scout but what we’re trying to do is demonstrate that with new technology you can provide a great deal more capability to the Army versus extending the current fleet that has capabilities that have existed for many, many years,” said Shidler.

Keep in mind that the Army seems to largely be interested in developing an existing airframe into a new scout chopper.

Steve Engebretson, Sikorsky’s man in charge of winning the scout contest then added his two cents when I asked how the company can compete for the scout contract if it doesn’t have a prototype that can fly in this spring’s scout chopper demo.

“We have been told that everyone who was considered in the [Army’s analysis of alternatives for replacing the Kiowa Warrior chopper fleet] will have the opportunity to respond to the RfI we were one of the products included in the AoA,” said Engebretson. “The airplanes that fly , and this is my understanding of what the Army is looking for, will be evaluated to see whether there is an existing capability good enough to meet the next AAS requirement. The other products, like ours, that were also evaluated in the AoA will get to come in and show off where our technology is, what we’re gonna cost, what our timeline looks like and how viable we are. We’ve got a ton of data, we’ve got 35 companies building hardware, we think we’re gonna be in a very good position to demonstrate the fact that we’ll provide a capability that will outdo anything that exists today at a timeline that will still meet the Army’s requirements.”

The S-97 is designed to be able to fly at 250 knots and turn in half the radius of current helos. The first flight of the Sikorsky’s demonstrator choppers is set for 2014. If the company is awarded a contract to build scout helos, it can begin production around 2021 and start fielding the choppers around 2025.

Engebretson went on to say that the coaxial technology upon which the Raider is based has already been proven, by Sikorsky’s record breaking X2 chopper and a number of existing tech that is being designed for use on the Raider.

“This is a fairly mature level of technology, it’s a new design, it’s next generation capability but it’s not a high-risk type of approach,” said Engebretson. “We’re going to demonstrate it to show that it’s an achievable in the timeline that’s there for the military requirements and that it’s going to be affordable as well.”

He also revealed that the Raider is one of the four technologies Sikorsky is considering offering up for the Pentagon’s next generation Joint Multirole Helo effort. He wouldn’t say what the other three technologies are.

[I]Read more: http://defensetech.org/#ixzz1jIRWX97g
Defense.org

[buglerbilly]

PICTURES: Swedish military gets first Black Hawk helicopters

By: Craig Hoyle London

1 hours ago

Source:

Sweden's first of 15 Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk utility helicopters have been officially transferred to the nation's armed forces, ahead of the type's deployment to Afghanistan next year.

Pictured during a handover ceremony at Malmen air base on 17 January, the new aircraft will have the national designation HKP 16, and be flown by the Swedish Defence Forces Helicopter Wing.




Both images © Gunnar Åkerberg

Operations in Afghanistan will commence during 2013, with the Black Hawks to replace Eurocopter AS332 Cougars in supporting Stockholm's contribution to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.

Sweden is acquiring its UH-60Ms under an accelerated Foreign Military Sales deal signed with the USA last year.

[buglerbilly]

Army Eyes Kiowa Coffers To Fund Replacement

By Carlo Munoz

Published: January 19, 2012



WASHINGTON: If the Army wants to get the Armed Aerial Scout into the fleet -- which it wants to badly -- it's gonna have to sacrifice parts of its air portfolio to get there.

Federal funding for the Army's air directorate will likely remain static in the Pentagon's upcoming budget proposal for fiscal 2012, Maj. Gen Tim Crosby, head of the Army's program executive office for aviation, said last Friday. That's no small feat considering the tremendous pressure the department is under to cut costs. While Army aviation will be spared the most of the painful budget cuts in store for the rest of the service, the office won't be getting any more money either. That could make life a little difficult for service officials looking to get the AAS program off the ground. But the Army does have a plan, Crosby said.

The Army plans to shift dollars from its Kiowa Warrior service life extension program, or SLEP, and move those funds into the Armed Aerial Scout, the two-star general said at last week's Association of the U.S. Army's annual aviation symposium. The AAS will replace the Kiowa as the service's premiere attack reconnaissance helicopter. The Army will have to drop the number of Kiowas it plans to SLEP to pay for AAS development. "That's the delta" Army aviation leaders are working on now, Crosby said regarding the drop in Kiowa upgrades. But the sooner the service can get the AAS flying, the less upgraded Kiowas it will need in the fleet.

Army aviation leaders plan to hold tryouts for the various defense firms vying for the helicopter deal over the next few weeks, according to Crosby. These tryouts will consist of live-flight "evaluations" of the various helicopters being pitched for the program, he said. The Army got DoD's blessing to begin evaluating AAS proposals earlier this month, he said. But Crosby was quick to point out these evaluations are not intended to be a "fly-off" to determine which helicopter will become the AAS. Rather, they are just a chance for Army leaders to see what industry has been developing and how far that work as come along.

Currently, none of the current crop of AAS proposals meet the program's requirements, according to Crosby. That said, service officials may have to lower their expectations on what it expects to get from the AAS. The Army may want the "Lexus version" of its new armed recon helicopter, it may have to be happy with the "Chevy version" of that new helo, Col. Patrick Tierney, director of Army aviation, said at the same AUSA event.

[buglerbilly]

Army Presses FAA For Drone Flight Training Rights

By Richard Whittle

Published: January 20, 2012



The Army, eager to get Federal Aviation Administration permission to fly unmanned aircraft in civilian airspace near its U.S. bases for training, has issued a new directive on the subject and will apply for an FAA Certificate of Authorization to operate drones near Fort Stewart, Georgia.

"The Army's unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) represent emerging technology that requires access to the National Airspace System," Army Secretary John McHugh says in a Jan. 13 memo accompanying Army Directive 2012-02 (Supplemental Policy for Operations of Unmanned Aircraft Systems in the National Airspace System). "The Army intends to use UAS for warfighter training and directed mission support," McHugh's memo explains.

The directive was first made public today by the Federation of American Scientists Secrecy News blog.

The day McHugh signed his memo, Col. Patrick Tierney, the Army's director of aviation, told the Association of the United States Army's annual aviation symposium that the service's need for FAA permission to fly in civilian airspace is growing along with its unmanned aircraft fleet. The Army now flies five types of UAS, ranging in size from the hand-thrown, back-packable RQ-11B Raven surveillance UAS to the 3,200-lb. armed MQ-1C Gray Eagle.

The Army has fielded two Quick Reaction Capability units of the Gray Eagle, a larger derivative of the Predator made by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. of Poway, Calif., with one platoon of four aircraft in Iraq and another in Afghanistan. The Army bought 29 more Gray Eagles in fiscal 2011 and plans to have 13 three-platoon companies of the aircraft in all.

Unlike the Air Force, whose crews usually fly their remotely piloted aircraft from ground control stations in the United States, Army UAS crews deploy with their aircraft, which is one reason the service feels it's important to win FAA approval for training flights in civilian airspace.

Last year the Army flew a Gray Eagle in civilian airspace around a desert airfield at El Mirage, Calif., to test ground-based sense-and-avoid technology designed to alert UAS operators to other aircraft and prevent collisions. The FAA usually requires a chase plane and a ground observer to watch out for other aircraft when a UAS flies in civilian airspace, and the Army's COA for the El Mirage flights included stringent restrictions. Its UAS operators were required to fly below 10,000 feet and land when civilian aircraft neared their area of operations. The tests went well but the Army has moved the sense and avoid system to Dugway Proving Ground in Utah, where no FAA approval is required and "we can expand it a little more," Army spokeswoman Sofia Bledsoe said.

The FAA and the Pentagon have been struggling for years to find a way to accommodate the military's need for airspace for UAS training without endangering civilian airliners and general aviation. The defense authorization bill President Obama signed in December gave the FAA 180 days to carve out six civilian airspace "bubbles" for military UAS flights.

"God bless the FAA, their job is to protect our population," Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, the Army's chief aircraft buyer, told the AUSA aviation symposium. "We can't afford to get this wrong," Crosby added. "We can't do this in an environment where we're going to have a failure and cause somebody loss of life or loss of limb because we hurried to get it done. The FAA, God bless 'em, this is a first for them. They're being as helpful and supportive as they can, but they're also being cautious, and I don't think we can be critical of them for that."

[buglerbilly]

SAAF reveals cause of A109 crashes

Written by Guy Martin Monday, 30 January 2012 12:18



The three A109 Light Utility Helicopter crashes were caused by mechanical failure and pilot error, but all technical problems have been resolved, the chief of the South African Air Force has said.

Lieutenant General Carlo Gagiano was speaking to journalists at the Air Force Day parade held at Swartkop on Friday.

“All problems have been identified and rectified,” Gagiano said, adding that Air Force technicians went through all the A109’s systems and checked all parts to isolate the problems. Since entering service around five years ago, the A109 fleet has been subject to several engineering changes.

On May 12, 2009, an A109 crashed into Woodstock Dam, near Bergville in Kwazulu-Natal. All three crewmembers on board died (Lieutenant Simon Baloyi, 27, Flight Sergeant Moné Zuidmeer, 32, and Captain Bongani Mdluli, 34). The aircraft was in formation with two other A109s en route from Swartkop to Dragon Peak Park in the Bergville area to take part in a scheduled weeklong mountain training exercise. The formation was in nap-of-the-earth flight at the time. Gagiano said the crash was judged to be caused by pilot error, as it is ‘dangerous’ flying over flat water that reflects the sky.

Another two helicopters were damaged in November and December 2010, but with no loss of life. On December 15, 2010, an A109 made an emergency landing near Ballito on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast while assisting the police and Business Against Crime.

“During the flight, the pilot lost control of the helicopter and had to execute an emergency landing. There were no serious injuries reported, but the commander of the aircraft and a civilian were taken to the Ballito Hospital for observation,” the SANDF said. The rotorcraft was carrying a crew of two and two passengers.

Another A109 was badly damaged in a hard landing near Potchefstroom in the Northwest Province in November 2010. The crew were not seriously injured. Following the December crash, all the A109s were grounded, pending inspection.

Gagiano said that the cause of one of the 2010 crashes was due to tail rotor failure while the other crash was caused when a swash plate control rod broke, but that all mechanical problems have been solved.

The A109 LUH was purchased to replace the elderly Eurocopter SA-316/SA-319 Alouette III helicopters, which had been in service since 1962 in the light utility role. Delivery of the 30 A109 helicopters purchased from the Anglo-Italian AgustaWestland helicopter company under the R2.4 billion Project Flange commenced on October 19, 2005. Deliveries were beset with delays and difficulties and an option for a further ten was not exercised.

The SAAF required the type to take pressure off its Denel Oryx medium utility fleet. The Air Force has long had the need for a platform more capable than the Alouette III but less expensive and more efficient than the Oryx for the bulk of taskings. The A109 was expected to fill that niche.

Although the first five A109 aircraft were manufactured in Italy, the balance of the 25 helicopters was assembled by Denel Saab Aerostructures. By 2008 deliveries were four years late, leading to the imposition of a R90 million penalty, the only one imposed under the “arms deal”. It has been reported that offsets were tardy and the platform has failed to live up to expectations – one criticism is that it is underpowered.

[buglerbilly]

Eurocopter Delivers Today the First NH90 TTH Qualified in its Final Operational Configuration (FOC)

(Source: Eurocopter; issued January 30, 2012)

(See Editor’s note at bottom)


French Defense Minister Gérard Longuet announced France would order a second batch of 34 NH90 tactical transport helicopters, at well over 20 million euros each. (EC photo)

MARIGNANE, France --- During a visit by the French Defense Minister Gérard Longuet to its facilities in Marignane, Eurocopter officially delivered the first NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH) qualified in its final operational configuration to the French armament procurement agency today.

This initial on-time delivery comes on the heels of the qualification issued by the NAHEMA countries last November for the French NH90 TTH in its final operational configuration. The helicopter delivered today to the DGA will be handed over to the French Army Air Corps (ALAT), which will be using it for the tactical transport missions it was specifically designed to perform.

“The delivery of the first NH90 TTH in its final operational configuration is the culmination of the most important helicopter program ever launched in Europe,” declared Lutz Bertling, president and CEO of Eurocopter, which is one of the companies that make up the NHI consortium responsible for managing the NH90 program. “Eurocopter and its partners are extremely proud of this achievement. With its exceptional operational capabilities, we are convinced that this helicopter will successfully meet the needs of the French armed forces.”

France has ordered a total of 34 NH90 TTH helicopters, with an additional 34 on option, to progressively replace the Pumas currently in service for the ALAT.

The next-generation NH90 TTH has been designed to perform a wide range of missions - even the most demanding, such as utility transportation and logistics, combat search and rescue (RESCO), medical evacuations, special forces operations and anti-terrorism.

In its final operational configuration, the NH90 is equipped with field-tested avionics that enable the helicopter to carry out its missions both day and night with no major restrictions. It also has high-performance self-protection equipment, an interoperable military communication system for international operations, and equipment for ship-based deployment.

Established in 1992, the Franco-German-Spanish Eurocopter Group is a division of EADS, a world leader in aerospace and defense-related services. The Eurocopter Group employs approximately 20,000 people. In 2011, Eurocopter confirmed its position as the world’s number one helicopter manufacturer with a turnover of 5.4 billion Euros, orders for 457 new helicopters and a 43 percent market share in the civil and parapublic sectors.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Defense Minister Gérard Longuet announced during his speech that France is to order a second batch of 34 NH90 tactical transport helicopters for the French army, in addition to the 34 army versions and the 27 NFH navy versions already on order.
Both are known as Caiman in French service.
Longuet later told defense-aerospace.com that the order is to be formally awarded “in a matter of days,” at a unit cost “of the order of 20 million euros each.” With spares and support, the contract’s value could easily exceed 800 million euros.
The first French army regiment equipped with the NH90 will be fully operational in 2013, according to a senior Army representative attending the ceremony.
Longuet also added that the French government has decided to advance about 500 million euros to help Eurocopter develop its new X-4 family of helicopters, and to develop a range of new technologies for the next generation of helicopters.)

(ends)

France Receives Its First NH90 TTH

(Source: NH Industries; issued Jan. 30, 2012)

NHI is pleased to announce the delivery of the first NH90 tactical transport helicopter to the French DGA (Delegation Générale de l’Armement). This event took place according to the contractual schedule, in Marignane Eurocopter facility, where the helicopter has been produced.

The NH90 TTH delivered is the first FOC (Final Operational Capability) qualified standard delivered to a NAHEMA member. It is the first aircraft of a batch of 34 helicopters ordered in 2007 to replace the venerable Pumas in the ALAT (French Army Aviation).

When delivered, the NH90 TTH Caiman will join the Gamstat unit in Valence, where it will be used for training and evaluation.

For the French Army, the NH90 represent quantum leap in terms of versatility and technology. They will cover a wide spectrum of missions such as Utility, transport, Combat Search and Rescue, Medical Evacuation, special operations and counter terrorism operations.

The NH90 features a fully integrated weapon system enabling the helicopter to fly in the most demanding operational conditions by day or night. The NH90 TTH is fitted with a complete self-protection suite and a NATO interoperable communication system for international operations. It can operate from ground bases or military ships.

The NH90 is the most successful European helicopter programme ever. Firm orders have been placed by 14 countries including France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Greece, Spain and Belgium in Europe, as well as Australia, New Zealand and Oman overseas.

The NH90, developed in the TTH utility transport and NFH naval versions, proves the ideal solution to meet requirements from many potential additional customers worldwide for a number of duties. The NH90 programme is managed by NAHEMA (NATO Helicopter Management Agency) representing France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands and Portugal, and by the NHIndustries industrial consortium comprising AgustaWestland (32%), Eurocopter (62.5%), Fokker (5.5%).

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Friday Eye Candy: China’s Newest Attack Helo



Check out these latest photos of China’s newest attack helo, the Z-19. The twin-seat bird, an updated version of the Z-9W that’s been in service since the 1990s, is just one more example of China’s military modernization.

If the chopper’s lines look vaguely familiar, it’s because the bird is based on the Eurocopter Dauphin series, you know, the same ones the U.S. Coast Guard flies. The Z-9 series are licence-built versions of the Dauphin. Now Beijing has modified it into an attack helo.





Via China Defense Blog.

Read more: http://defensetech.org/2012/02/03/friday-eye-candy-chinas-newest-attack-helo/#ixzz1lN59Bcbe
Defense.org

[buglerbilly]

Turkey mulls cooperation with South Korea in attack helicopter project

6 February 2012 / TODAY’S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL

I always love the silliness of extreme Nationalism.............Turkey is licence-building some/majority of the Mangusta's with some Turkish equipment (not all!) Augusta Westland might have something to say about Turkey and/or Korea ferkin around with a re-design of the airframe..............

Turkish President Abdullah Gül on Monday said his country is willing to cooperate with South Korea in manufacturing Turkey’s new attack helicopter. “We want to cooperate with South Korea on the Atak helicopters, which will be included in the Turkish Armed Forces [TSK] inventory. In addition, Turkey is also willing to cooperate with South Korea in other areas such as aircraft manufacturing,” Gül said at a press conference with his South Korean counterpart Lee Myung-bak after a meeting in Ankara.

The Atak, officially known as the TAI/AgustaWestland T-129, is an attack helicopter currently under development for the Turkish army. Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) has been commissioned to develop domestic avionics and weapons systems as well as helmet-mounting cuing systems.

Gül also said Turkey wanted to make nuclear energy an element of the cooperation between the two countries as the two leaders signed a declaration on Monday to establish a strategic cooperation. Gül noted that the bilateral trade volume reached $7 billion in 2011, adding that the two countries agreed to bring that figure up to $10 billion in the coming years. The Turkish president also expressed a willingness to sign a free trade agreement between Turkey and South Korea, which he said would add new momentum to trade relations.

[buglerbilly]

French Amy Chief of Staff Inspects NH90 Caiman Helicopter

(Source: French Army; issued Feb 8, 2012)

(Issued in French only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

The Caiman, the French army’s new battlefield transport helicopter, was presented on February 6, 2012 to Army Chief of Staff General Bertrand Ract Madoux.

Delivered on December 22, 2011, the Caiman (Alligator) is currently, and for the next six months, being evaluated by the technical-operational air mobility group of the Technical Section of the Army (STAT GAM), in Valence, in south-eastern France.

Once qualified, it will be introduced to operational service with the Aviation Légère de l’armée de Terre, the French army’s aviation component, where it will assume the missions current assigned to the Puma and Cougar utility helicopters.

"Replacing the Puma had become necessary as battlefield utility helicopters bring added value to the conduct of land operations, whether on external operations or on national territory," the chief of staff said during his inspection.

With next-generation avionics and various sensors that will enable it to overcome current limitations, by day and night and whatever the flight conditions, and to avoid the dangers of obstacles on its flight path. The Caiman will offer great operational freedom of action to commanders. "Its extended endurance will allow it to considerably increase operational range, while its increased power rating will undeniably bring added capabilities to operational theaters like Afghanistan, where heat and altitude severely affect the flight performance of helicopters," Gen. Ract Madoux said.

By 2018, 68 Caiman helicopters will be delivered to the Army, of which 48 will equip the 3rd and 5th Combat Helicopter Regiments.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Aviation Week Flies Boeing AH-6i

Feb 15, 2012

By Douglas Nelms
Dubai, United Arab Emirates



The U.S. Army is not expected to issue final requirements for its planned Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) helicopter until after evaluation flights scheduled for the second quarter. Essentially, these flights are intended to allow the competing manufacturers to show what they have, what it will cost, and to help the Army decide what it can get for what it can afford.

The manufacturers have, however, come up with what they believe will be the basic requirements, roughly modeled on those for the Army’s Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH) program canceled in 2008. General needs are expected to be the ability to hover out of ground effect (HOGE) at 6,000 ft. on a 95F day (6K/95), while equipped with a highly capable target acquisition and designation system and an eclectic weapons package.

Boeing believes its company-developed AH-6i would fit the bill the way it is currently configured, with any additional options the Army might call for added as needed, according to Mike Burke, Boeing’s director of attack helicopters business development.

For the Army’s AAS program, Burke says the AH-6i has already proven its ability to meet the 6K/95 HOGE requirement at full mission weight. “Maximum gross weight of the aircraft is around 4,700 lb., and if you put on a combination of missiles, rockets and machine guns, plus ammunition and fuel, you don’t even get close to 4,700 lb. You’re right around 3,900-4,000 lb. And at that weight, the aircraft is very maneuverable and has great endurance.”

Developed for the international market, the AH-6i will be Boeing’s entrant in the Army’s AAS flight demonstration. A follow-on to the Army’s special-operations AH/MH-6M Mission Enhanced Little Bird (MELB), the aircraft has a six-blade fully articulated main rotor and four-blade tail rotor able to handle the 650 shp produced by its Rolls-Royce 250-C30R/3M full-authority digital electronic control (Fadec)engine.

Boeing has demonstrated the AH-6i to Middle Eastern militaries and conducted live-fire exercises for the United Arab Emirates, Jordan “and others,” Burke says. “So the system that we’re offering [for AAS] is tried and true and flying.”

There are roughly 2,000 older, obsolete aircraft in the light attack and reconnaissance class that need to be replaced, Burke says. That includes 470 MD 500 Defenders—versions of the AH-6—sold internationally during the 1970-80s.

Boeing arranged for Aviation Week and Space Technology to fly the AH-6i during the Dubai Airshow to get a feel for flying the aircraft in desert conditions. The company had been cleared to demonstrate the aircraft in the morning hours before the show started each day, so I showed up around 7:30 to meet Todd Brown, lead project pilot for the AH-6i, H-6 and AH/MH-6M MELB. He was to be my aircraft commander for the flight.

One noticeable feature of the AH-6i is its nose. When the original OH-6A debuted in the mid-1960s, it had a rounded nose which made the aircraft resemble an egg. Military versions stayed true to that egg-shaped nose through the AH/MH-6 MELB. But the civilian MD 500-series versions have a flattened, shark-like nose. The AH-6i’s extended box-like protuberance looks as though it was added as an afterthought, but the purpose of the oddly shaped nose is to allow all of the avionics to fit in a single compartment outside of the cabin. This increases space in the cabin while making the avionics more easily accessed for maintenance. It also improves the longitudinal center of gravity, Todd says.

Directly below the avionics compartment is the L-3 Wescam MX-15Di electro-optical/infrared sensor for target acquisition and designation. Its 15-in. turret allows for a large aperture; this, in turn, “means the [forward-looking infrared] image quality is very good, especially at long range,” Todd says.

“It’s a small helicopter, so we don’t have a lot of space available. With that sensor package, everything is contained within the sensor itself. It makes for a neat package for us, and the entire system weighs only 107 lb.”

The original AH/MH-6 MELB was designed based on requirements from the Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR), as a follow-on to the MD 500/600 series, which had a five-blade rotor system. The AH/MH-6 combines the MD 500 body with the more powerful MD 600 drivetrain. SOAR wanted the more powerful 250-C30R/3 engine. The sixth blade was added to handle the additional load while maintaining the aircraft’s small footprint.

The proximity of the tail to the ground restricted any growth in length of a two-blade tail rotor, so a four-blade system was fitted to produce the greater anti-torque thrust needed to handle the more powerful engine. The four blades are cantered 15 deg., which improves effectiveness and reduces noise, says Burke.

For its weapon systems, the aircraft has four stores stations. These consist of two pylons linked together to form a single unit on each side. In an emergency, the outboard pylons can be jettisoned.

The demonstration aircraft at the Dubai show had M134D 7.62mm mini-guns on the inboard pylons on both sides, and an M260 seven-shot rocket pod firing Hydra 70 unguided 2.75-in. rockets on the outboard pylon on the left side. However, with a Lockheed Martin DAGR (Direct-Attack Guided-Rocket) guidance system that screws directly onto the rocket’s warhead, the Hydra 70 becomes a laser-guided missile that can lock onto the laser designator while still in the launch tube. These DAGR rockets are fired from four-round rocket pods that attach to Hellfire missile launchers. For our flight, the right outboard pylon carried rails for Hellfire missiles or DAGR rockets. The aircraft can also carry the GAU-19 50-cal. mini-gun.

When we were seated and ready to go, Todd turned on the electrical power and cranked her up, monitoring the Vertical Information Display (VID) below the two multi-function displays (MFD). The VID consists of five vertical indicators that provide information for NR, N1, N2 rotor and engine speeds, turbine outlet temperature and torque. The linear vertical indicators simply provide “red,” “yellow” and “green” indications, although the specific numerical information is shown directly above each vertical indicator. The NR gauge shows percentage of rotor speed; 100% is at the top of the green.

Directly below the five vertical indicators are three indicators for oil temperature and pressure, fuel level and electrical amps. These are indicated by tri-color arcs, but numerical indicators are displayed directly below each gauge.

Once we got cranked, Todd briefed me on the multi-function displays.

While the two 8 X-6-in. MFDs provide the pilots with standard flight information, they also supply the mapping information for route and mission planning as well as both visible and thermal imaging from the EO/IR turret. The Wescam system provides three sensors and three lasers; a color electro/optical wide-angle sensor furnishes high-definition color day TV with continuous zoom from 1.5X to 77X; an infrared sensor with four fields of view shows magnification from 1.5X to 111X; and a low-light electro/optical system with a single, narrow field of view links to a laser pointer for coordination with ground troops in close combat. Two more lasers include a tactical designator/rangefinder for use with Hellfire missiles and laser-guided rockets, and an “eye-safe” rangefinder for use in built-up areas.

For tactical route mapping, the MFD can display maps ranging in scale from 1:50K to 1:2 million, Todd said. “We have a 1,000-point database in the mission computer [with] a coordinate data file where we can put waypoints, locations of towers, wires, all manner of things.”
Because the systems use a USB drive, all the tactical mission overlay information, such as intelligence on known enemy locations, can be generated during pre-flight briefings, downloaded onto a thumb drive, then plugged into the slot in the aircraft’s computer.

Todd says the aircraft has two USB slots, one for uploading mission data and the other for recording data for post-mission analysis. “We can store things such as shot-at locations with the precision-guided weapon systems, like Hellfire missiles. So if I engage an enemy tank, because our system is completely integrated, the computer automatically records the date and time [this occurred], plus our location and the location of the tank, without us having to do anything except shoot the missile at the tank.”

The target acquisition system allows the pilots to search the battlefield with the sensor, locate targets and relay that information back to the ground commanders or to other aircraft, such as AH-64D Apaches or other scout helicopters. The aircraft has a digital communication system that allows anything from text-messaging to real-time video streaming back to the ground commanders.

The brains of the aircraft are in the mission computer, and most of those brains come from the AH-6i’s big brother, the AH-64D. Burke says that 83% of the software in the mission computer comes from the latest Block III Apache. And since both aircraft have an open-architecture avionics suite, software can be easily installed as needed, he says.

After the quick briefing about the avionics and mission computer, we readied to take to the air. Show regulations required Todd to fly us out of the staging area and to a part of the Dubai desert that had been designated for demonstration flights.

It was a typical Dubai November day, with outside air temperature of 80F and virtually no wind. Airfield altitude is 62 ft. above mean sea level. With the demonstration weapons, two pilots and almost a full tank of fuel, Todd estimated our weight at 3,600 lb. He noted that we could add another 1,100 lb. of mission equipment before hitting maximum gross weight.

Todd brought us up to a stable hover pulling 55% torque. Adding about 10% put us into a 700 fpm. climb out. A maximum performance takeoff later in our flight, pulling 100% torque, gave us a 1,400 fpm climb.

With an 80F day, we were flying with the doors off, getting the roar of the wind into the cockpit—and, since the engine and transmission are not that far away in the AH-6i—it was a bit noisy. The noise could be lessened with the doors on. The doors are Plexiglas without any visual obstructions and bowed out about 6 in. to provide additional visibility and elbow room for the crew.

Upon reaching the designated demonstration area, Todd turned the aircraft over to me. The AH-6i has no hydraulic flight controls, so I did not expect it to respond to gentle movements. I have flown the MD 520N and 530, so I anticipated the controls being similar to flying a helicopter such as the UH-1 Huey with the force trim off—manly, but controllable if done with authority. The MD 520N and 530, however, have five rotor blades. The AH-6i has six, which puts more load on the controls.

I immediately found that with the strong control forces, I was over-controlling the helicopter, putting in a cyclic movement then not being able to neutralize it fast enough. It was definitely a learning experience. The cyclic does, however, have a trim switch, or “coolie hat,” to help control the aircraft. I had been advised by a pilot with hundreds of hours in an MD 520N that the trick is to use finesse, not muscle, to control the aircraft, by constantly using the trim switch to move the cyclic. He said the advantage of the stiffer controls was that you can use the trim switch to put the helicopter in a bank, take your hands off the controls and it will hold the angle of bank, doing 360-deg. turns until the fuel runs out.

We were not allowed to land in the demonstration area, but could make approaches to a hover. So I did that. Again, maintaining control was a challenge; the hardest part was keeping the nose straight. The aircraft constantly needed a hard left pedal to stay pointed straight ahead. This was caused by the torque of the 650-shp engine pushing against the small tail-rotor on its short tail boom—both valuable assets when scouting in urban warfare.

When I had a bit of a feel for the aircraft, I tried some fairly tight turns, about 30-40 deg., finally managing to feel somewhat comfortable with the controls. I then wanted to see just how maneuverable the AH-6i was.

Todd pointed out that the totally aerobatic aircraft would do anything we asked it to. He proceeded to show what a typical gun run might be like. Picking a truck parked in the demo area, and starting at just above 1,000 ft., he pointed the nose virtually straight down and made a simulated gun run that would have made a Luftwaffe Stuka dive-bomber pilot proud. He rolled out of the dive a couple of hundred feet above the ground, turned the aircraft 90 deg. almost without gaining any additional forward momentum, did a maximum performance climbout for a few hundred feet, then turned the aircraft 180 deg. on its own axis for a second diving run at the truck. It was impressive.

I then asked if we could do an autorotation. I knew that MD 500 series helicopters were not exactly autorotation friendly—normally, if the engine quits, look down between your feet, because that’s your landing zone. So I wanted to see what the AH-6i was like without power.

The restrictions on demonstration flights dictated that we could not “chop power,” so instead Todd went to full down-collective. We had no problem establishing an altitude-over-distance glideslope that would have put us in a safe landing area. The difference is in the sixth blade on the AH-6i, compared to the five on the MD 500 series. The extra blade increases the surface area of the rotor plane, thus increasing the glide ratio.

With time running out under the constraints on demonstration flights, we headed back to the airport. I flew most of the way back prior to reaching the airport’s perimeter, while also getting an excellent aerial view of the futuristic looking city. I was starting to get a true feel for the aircraft—another few hours and I would have had it pegged.

Once a scout pilot gains enough experience in the aircraft to handle the unpowered controls, its agility—combined with more-than-sufficient power—would appear to make the AH-6i an excellent armed reconnaissance helicopter.

Photo: Boeing

[buglerbilly]

India To Begin Inducting Medium-Lift Helos

Feb. 16, 2012 - 01:26PM

By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI

NEW DELHI — The Indian Air Force (IAF) will begin inducting Russian-made medium-lift Mi-17V5 helicopters Feb. 17, according to an Indian Defence Ministry release.

“Mi-17 V5, an upgrade of Mi-17 in the medium-lift category, is equipped with state-of-the-art avionics and onboard navigation systems. It is a glass cockpit variant; the first of its kind to get inducted into the IAF. It has onboard weather radar, state of the art autopilot and is compatible with the latest generation (Gen-III) night-vision goggles. With this, the helicopter can undertake all-weather, day-and-night operations in any kind of terrain. The helicopter is also equipped with a Bambi-Bucket that can be used for firefighting,” according to the release.

Nearly 60 percent of the Indian Air Force’s fleet of 800 helicopters are Russian-made, inducted between 1971 and 2003. These include the medium-lift (Mi-8, Mi-17) helicopters, with a payload-carrying capacity of 4 tons, and used for transportation and logistics support.

The other variant is heavy-lift Mi-26 helicopters, which have a payload capacity of 20 tons and are used for heavy-lift logistics and maintenance.

The Russian Mi series also includes attack helicopters designated Mi-25 and Mi-35, which are intended for anti-tank, offensive air operations.

The main concern of the Indian military is replacing light utility helicopters. Estimates say that nearly 78 percent of the helicopters in this category, which include Cheetah, Chetak and Mi series of helicopters, have already completed their prescribed life.

The Defence Ministry is currently purchasing 384 light utility helicopters for both the Army and Air Force to replace the aging Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.

“Induction of Mi-17 V5 will enhance the capabilities of the IAF manifold in undertaking varied roles to face the challenges thrown in by unforgiving weather, hostile environment and difficult terrain in India,” says the release.

[buglerbilly]

Photo: Close view of CAIC WZ-10 attack helicopter HMD

Posted in Army on February 22nd, 2012


Credit: aaq of top81

[buglerbilly]

Eurocopter airs frustration at Indian competition delay

By: Greg Waldron Singapore

2 hours ago

Source:

Eurocopter has sent a letter to the Indian army to express concern about delays in its acquisition of 197 light utility helicopters.

The company's AS550 C3 Fennec and the Kamov Ka-226 are competing for the contract, a request for proposals for which was originally issued in 2008.

"The programme has been delayed for a long time now, and the existing fleet of [Hindustan Aernautics] Cheetah and Cheetak are getting very old and need very quick replacement; hence the letter to express our concern," said Eurocopter in response to a Flightglobal query.

The Eurocopter letter was widely reported in Indian media, with one outlet quoting: "The technical evaluation process has now taken over 38 months and has not yet been concluded due to reasons which are unknown to us."

At the Aero India air show in Bangalore in February 2011, Eurocopter said the AS550 C3 had completed field trials carrying the full range of equipment required for reconnaissance and surveillance missions by the Indian armed forces.

Eurocopter had been poised to win the light utility helicopter competition in 2007, but the tender was abruptly scrapped owing to faults in India's selection process.

[buglerbilly]

TRACER radar deployed to SOUTHCOM

By: Zach Rosenberg Washington DC

7 hours ago

Source:

The Lockheed Martin tactical reconnaissance and counter-concealment-enabled radar (TRACER) will be deployed on its first operational deployment, said the company. Two of the synthetic aperture radars will be deployed aboard US Army Beechcraft C-12s to the Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of operations, which encompasses Latin America.

"It's being deployed the SOUTHCOM's area of responsibility, we can't say specifically," said Lockheed.

"Right now we're expecting most of calendar [2012]," said John Beck, business development manager at Lockheed, "but it's clearly up to the customer. We obviously hope to extend the deployment."

The low-frequency, foliage-penetrating radar has undergone 160 flights on both manned and unmanned aircraft. Additional testing in the USA will focus on adding movement detection and onboard processing capabilities to the radar, with flight tests planned on an army Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk utility helicopter later in 2012.

Beck said he expects the evaluation will eventually conclude in a formal programme of record for the US Army, but that any decision is several years away.

TRACER is a development of and replacement for the Lockheed foliage penetration radar, which has been operationally deployed in the SOUTHCOM area of operations since 2005.

[buglerbilly]

AUSA 2012: Boeing outlines CH-47F second multiyear enhancements

24 February 2012 - 10:13 by Scott Gourley in Fort Lauderdale, USA



Boeing executives used AUSA Winter 2012 to provide an update on current production numbers for the CH-47F as well as recent activities surrounding the pending second multiyear production contract.

According to Mark Ballew, Boeing director of business development for Chinook, the programme of record is for 464 ‘F’ models.

‘Of those 464 we have 306 on contract with 171 delivered,’ Ballew explained. ‘Back in December we exercised the bridge contract, so we were able to get 14 additional aircraft – with some of those for Australia and some for the UAE.’

In addition, the company submitted its proposal on 1 November for a ‘second multiyear’ buy.

‘It’s for 155 aircraft plus 60 option aircraft,’ he said. ‘Those 60 option aircraft are really to cover more of the Foreign Military Sales – if there’s any interest internationally, to have a contractual vehicle in place to do that.’

Ballew noted that the company had been developing the proposal for a year and a half prior to submission, working with service and government representatives.

‘The Cost Analysis and Procurement Evaluation (CAPE) team has evaluated our single year cost. They have come back and said, “Here’s what the projection is.” So we have gone through and will be able to demonstrate that we will be able to hit the 10 percent savings required for a multiyear,’ he offered.

Noting that certification by the Secretary of Defense is scheduled for 1 March, he added: ‘We anticipate that being approved. And we will continue the negotiations to get to a multiyear II contract award in January of 2013.

‘It’s not a guarantee by any stretch,’ he cautioned. ‘But we have worked together as a team and we’ve done everything we could do to position for success – not only Boeing but also our teammates, PM Cargo, and the other government organisations that worked on this.’

With 155 aircraft plus options for 60 more, production for multiyear II is expected to extend out towards the end of 2019,

Pointing to the fact that 155 aircraft will leave the US Army just three aircraft short of the stated programme of record quantity of 464 aircraft, he expressed the belief that some of the 60 option aircraft will be used to complete army requirements.

Multiyear II does feature some configuration changes from the multiyear I design.

‘We’ve looked at doing an upgraded floor, with a Cargo Onload Offload System [COOLS],’ he said. ‘We do a multitude of missions; whether it’s troop movement, sling loads, cargo or vehicles. And to facilitate the cargo movement it’s easier if you have rollers on the aircraft floor to put the pallets on and move them forward.’

The COOLS design is similar to the rotatable rollers on the floor of a C-17 that can be flipped up for cargo and down for troop movement. It will also allow additional ballistic protection system improvements under the floor.

The new floor design reportedly emerged from the after action review process that Boeing conducts with all units returning from theatre.

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army Hopes for Spring Demo of Armed Aerial Scout

Mar. 1, 2012 - 08:22PM

By MARCUS WEISGERBER

COLUMBUS, Miss. — The U.S. Army is still waiting for the Pentagon to give it the OK to conduct a demonstration of helicopters that could potentially replace the OH-58 Kiowa Warrior.

The Army hopes to do an Armed Aerial Scout demonstration this spring, but it is awaiting authorization in the form of an acquisition decision memorandum from the Pentagon, said Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, program executive officer for aviation.

Once authorized, the Army is expecting five or six companies to show up.

The demonstration will “inform us is it worth taking the risk to balance within our portfolio and pursue some system out there [that] may have a capability like that,” Crosby told reporters at a March 1 ceremony celebrating the delivery of the 200th EADS UH-72A Lakota helicopter here.

The baseline metric being used for the demo is doing service-life extension of the Kiowa. “We’re looking to see where we can get in the middle, and if we get somewhere in the middle, is it worth what we’re going to have to give up in order to go do that,” Crosby said.

EADS has built three technical demonstrator aircraft based on the UH-72 for the anticipated Armed Aerial Scout demonstration.

“We’re ready to show up any place they want to go, on our dime, and demonstrate what we have,” Sean O’Keefe, chairman and CEO of EADS North America, told reporters on a flight from Washington to the company’s Lakota factory here.

UH-72 Export on the Horizon?

Both Crosby and EADS officials touted foreign interest in the UH-72 Lakota, and other U.S. government agencies are also interested in the helicopter.

“There’s a lot of other opportunities and agencies out there,” Crosby said.

O’Keefe said the company is pursuing foreign military sales of the UH-72 — which is based on the commercial Eurocopter EC-145 — to countries in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The Army plans to buy 345 UH-72s of various configurations. The aircraft being delivered this week is the first production security and support aircraft, which includes advanced communications and other enhancements.

The facility here builds about 50 aircraft per year and could surge to around 70 helicopters, O’Keefe said.

EADS is “performing brilliantly” on the UH-72 program, Crosby said. “I wish I had other programs that performed as well.”

The general said there have been “discussions about buying additional, but nothing translating to me yet.”

Crosby is the brother of Ralph Crosby, former CEO of EADS North America.

EADS flew Washington-based reporters to its facility in Columbus for the delivery ceremony.

[buglerbilly]

Super Cobras to be delivered to Turkey in March


Turkey is using Super Cobra attack helicopters againts PKK terrorists in southeast Turkey. (Photo: AP)

1 March 2012 / EMRE SONCAN , ANKARA

Three AH-1 Super Cobra attack helicopters to be sold by the United States to Turkey will arrive in country in March, following negotiations to persuade the US administration to secure congressional approval for the sale, sources from the Ministry of Defense have told Today’s Zaman. The sale was approved by the US Congress in November.

The Obama administration formally notified the US Congress on Oct. 28 of proposal to sell three AH-1 Super Cobra twin-engine attack helicopters to Turkey from the US Marine Corps inventory. According to US law, the administration needs to notify Congress of the sale of arms to other countries and seek authorization. If the proposed sale is to a NATO member country, Congress has 15 days to reject the sale or it will be automatically authorized.

Turkey has had a long-standing request for Super Cobra helicopters. It has a shortage of attack helicopters, which it has been using in its ongoing fight against the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

The process of securing congressional approval for the $111 million helicopter sale to Turkey was successfully completed as no motion to block the sale was brought to the agenda in Congress.

The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) currently has six operational Super Cobra helicopters that serve the TSK well in fighting terrorism. These helicopters have a delivery system for 12 rockets and they can fly for three hours. The topographic features of Turkey’s Southeast require a greater number of capable helicopters. The Super Cobra has proven its capabilities in comparison to other helicopters, in past TSK operations.

[buglerbilly]

Army Helicopters Being Built in Huntsville

(Source: US Army; issued March 2, 2012)

MERIDIANVILLE, Ala. --- The top leadership from the Program Executive Office for Aviation, along with project officers for the Project Office for Armed Scout Helicopter’s Kiowa Warrior Product Office, announced Tuesday that three OH-58F Kiowa Warriors will be built at an Army facility in the Huntsville area.

Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, the program executive officer for aviation, and Lt. Col. Matthew Hannah, project manager for the Kiowa Warrior, presented the first airframe to be transformed into a new model at the Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Prototype Integration Facility at the Madison County Executive Airport.

“Most of the aircraft in the portfolio of Army aviation are upgrades or a re-manufacture of old systems,” Crosby said during the announcement event. “Our country’s in an austere budget environment,” he added, emphasizing the fiscal reasons behind the OH-58F upgrade program officially known as the Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program. Efforts to replace the Kiowa proved to be too costly, he said, adding that the decision was made to sustain the current platform.

The OH-58D on display in the AMRDEC PIF, representing the first vehicle to undergo the transformation process, had been stripped bare of its interior components and exterior accessories, reducing the helicopter to a literal shell of its former self.

The ‘de-population’ of the vehicle is just the start of its journey. At the other end of the timeline, the D model will have evolved into a state of the art F model.

The simplicity of the barren airframe belied the important role it has played in support of the warfighter in overseas contingency operations. The Kiowa Warrior has been heavily utilized and relied upon to support the troops on the ground and routinely maintains the highest operational tempo of any Army aviation asset in theater.

Developed in the 1980’s and introduced in the 90’s, the OH-58D is beginning to show its age. Its dramatic overhaul will provide not only a much needed life extension for the Kiowa Warrior, but a positive economic impact on the Huntsville community.

Upgrades to the new Kiowa Warrior OH-58F will include a nose-mounted Common Sensor Payload, a Dual Channel Full Authority Digital Engine Controller, an upgraded Control and Display Subsystem with three all-color displays, integrated Aircraft Survivability Equipment displays, a Digital Intercommunication System, an Emergency Standby Instrument System and improved side/transverse beam assemblies.

The airframe will also receive a new wiring harness designed and built by team members of the AMRDEC PIF.

“The first three conversions will all happen here at the Meridian PIF facility and the next three will happen at Corpus Christi Army Depot,” Hannah explained. He said the decision as to where to produce further OH-58Fs will be made at a future date.

The building of the OH-58F is the first time that the Army has built aircraft as the lead systems integrator, meaning that the Army is in charge of managing all of the activities necessary to integrate and build the aircraft. By managing the project internally through the Project Office for Armed Scout Helicopters, a significant cost savings, estimated to be approximately $37 million, will be realized during the research, development, test and evaluation phase. An additional $55 million is estimated to be saved during the procurement/production phase of the project.

The Kiowa Warrior CASUP is designed to extend the operational service life of the helicopter through fiscal year 2025.

Approximately 27 local government organizations and contractors are involved in the upgrade program.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Aviation brigade trains at NTC with first Shadow unmanned aerial system troop

March 6, 2012

By Sgt. Tracy Weeden, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade


Spc. David Thibault, F Troop, 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, unmanned aerial system maintainer, communicates with the UAS operator while conducting pre-flight operations, Feb. 17, 2012, at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, Calif.

FORT IRWIN, Calif. (March 7, 2012) -- For the first time, a task force of an Army aviation brigade deployed to a training scenario with their own unmanned aerial systems troop organic to them.

Task Force Saber, 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, made their debut to the National Training Center, known as NTC, at Fort Irwin, with F Troop and the RQ-7 Shadow UAS, which stands for unmanned aerial system.

The 101st CAB is the first to have the UAS organic to their unit, truly creating a full-spectrum aviation brigade.

One of the most advanced aspects of the Shadow is its ability to transmit live video feed to ground and aviation forces simultaneously, said Capt. Nathan Parker, F Troop commander. This technology also allows rotary wing assets, such as the CAB, to conduct covert operations by specifying a target prior to visual contact.

"It allows air mission commanders to have additional options for developing tactical operations," he said. "Serving as an external observation device, it permits for manned and unmanned teams to work in areas that are a high threat to aviation."

While the UAS is able to transmit live video, the ground force commander and the helicopter pilot can positively identify a target without risk to friendly troops.

"Ground forces will benefit from the additional surveillance the UAS will provide," said Parker.

The new troop is composed of UAS operators and maintainers. One operator will designate the UAS flight path, while the other will control the camera. The operator is also responsible for communicating with pilots and ground force commanders in order to achieve their intent.

"I'm looking forward to deploying now, because I know that providing surveillance will help our ground troops stay safe," said Spc. Jessica Palmer, F Troop, 2-17 CAV maintainer. "The time we are spending at NTC helps us come together as a team, and work out all the kinks before we deploy."

Because this is new technology to a combat aviation brigade, the squadron is working diligently with army aviation headquarters to develop a long-term doctrine, said Parker.

Since the 101st CAB is the first aviation brigade fielding this technology, some veteran operators are adjusting too.

"There is a lot of new equipment being with the first full-spectrum CAB," said Staff Sgt. Luther York, F Troop, 2-17 CAV UAS operator. "You also get to be a lot more involved in the mission with aviation."

A UAS operator gets to have radio communication with the ground and air elements while everyone is looking at the same video feed. Operators must be very vivid and descriptive with their target descriptions when handing it off to the aviators.

"After this, I have confidence we will have a much better idea of what we are doing in Afghanistan," said York.

Prior to the UASs being fielded with CAB units, UASs were mostly used by military intelligence and infantry units.

"It is completely different," said Spc. David Kennedy, F Troop, 2-17 CAV UAS operator. "Working with the pilots has taught operators a lot of what this new job entails, such as communication techniques."

Together, the pilots and operators of Task Force Saber are familiarizing themselves with the equipment and technology of their new tool at NTC to prepare for future operations.

[buglerbilly]

PICTURES: Australian Chinooks resume Afghanistan operations

By: Greg Waldron Singapore

3 hours ago

Source:

Two Australian Defence Force Boeing CH-47D Chinook helicopters have returned to operations in Afghanistan following deep-level maintenance undertaken in Kandahar.

Rotary Wing Group 7 is embedded with the US 25th Combat Aviation Brigade and will support International Security Assistance Force operations in the Uruzgan, Daykundi, Kandahar and Zabul provinces.






© Commonwealth of Australia

In a departure from past practice, the two helicopters underwent deep maintenance at Kandahar during the Afghan winter, as opposed to being broken down and returned to Australia aboard C-17 aircraft. This saved fuel and flying hours for Royal Australian Air Force C-17s.

"The troops of RWG 7 are experienced and their CH-47s are historically important helicopters for supporting coalition forces - moving thousands of passengers and hundreds of thousands of tonnes of freight during their annual rotation," says ADF major general Stuart Smith.

[buglerbilly]

FIDAE 2012: FAdeA to push ahead with Chinese helicopter production

27 March 2012 - 15:58 by Tony Osborne in Santiago, Chile



Officials from Fabrica Argentina de Aviones (FAdeA) say they hope to fly their first locally assembled Z-11 light helicopter at the end of this year.

The plans follow a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed with Chinese helicopter company Avicopter and its parent CATIC in October 2011 to assemble the Z-11 light helicopter for both the Argentine and the Latin American market.

Emilio Maligno, business development manager for FAdeA told Shephard that studies had shown a need for a helicopter of Z-11 size in the region for a range of roles in the military and civil markets.

'In Argentina, the government wants to standardise the helicopters which serve the various services such as the gendarmerie, the army and the air force,' said Maligno.

'Helicopters are in high demand in this part of the world. Just take big events like the Dakar rally, helicopters are used in the filming, for moving people and equipment.'

The first Argentine-produced aircraft would be a prototype and demonstrator assembled with Chinese components, but later aircraft would be likely to feature a greater level of Argentine content as locally produced components and equipment come on stream.

'We have some experience in design and customisation, our aim is to produce a helicopter more suited to our Argentine and South American customers.'

Maligno says he hopes to be able to offer customers a choice of three engines, one from China, one from Honeywell, the LTS101 and Turbomeca's Arriel engine. He also hopes to be able to offer new avionics fits to meet customer requirements.

FAdeA says the experience from the assembly and work on the Z-11 could also pave the way for a wholly-indigenous helicopter programme, but there were no plans for the assembly of other Chinese helicopter types.

For the Argentina armed forces, local production would mean that they could have a reliable source of parts and support for the aircraft. Currently each of the armed services operates helicopter types from many different OEMs including Bell, Eurocopter and Russian Helicopters.

The Argentine Army evaluated the Z-11 when it was searching for a new light helicopter back in 2006, but the results of the evaluation are not clear.

The signature of the MoU has caused some consternation at Eurocopter as the Z-11s introduction into the South American may have broken a previously undisclosed agreement made between Eurocopter and Avicopter in early 2011 about the sale of licence-built Eurocopter helicopters by Avicopter outside China.

The Z-11 is not a licence-built Eurocopter aircraft but is virtually identical to the AS350 Ecureuil and Eurocopter is understood to be concerned about protection from liabilities because the designs are so similar.

'The two aircraft look very similar,' said Maligno.

'For us this is not about producing a cheaper aircraft, but a different product that is more customised for the Latin American and Argentine market.'

Currently FAdeA working on several fixed-wing aircraft programmes including the IA-63 Pampa jet trainer and the PA-25 Puelche light aircraft.

Meanwhile, it is understood that Bolivia has ordered six Avicopter H425 helicopters. The H425, also known as the Z-9 in China, is a licence-built version of the Eurocopter Dauphin. The six aircraft will be first helicopters to fly with the Bolivian Army and first Chinese military helicopters to be delivered to a South American customer.

[buglerbilly]

FIDAE 2012: Boeing offers AH-6i to South American customers

28 March 2012 - 8:30 by Tony Osborne in Santiago, Chile



Boeing negotiations with Chile over a possible purchase of the AH-6i have been revealed at FIDAE 2012.

According to Brad Rounding, manager of AH-6 business development at Boeing, the Chilean Ministry of Defence has been given details of pricing and support for a purchase of up to nine of the light attack helicopters.

Rounding also said other nations in the region were also interested in the aircraft including Colombia, Brazil and also Argentina, although negotiations were less advanced with those countries.

The company is confident about proceeding with production of the aircraft following the signing of the letter of acceptance by the Saudi Arabian government for 24 aircraft as part of a wide-ranging re-capitalisation of the country's helicopter forces announced during 2011. Boeing is hopeful that the contract will be signed later this year with the aircraft delivered to the country in 2014.

'The aircraft has demonstrated a high level of performance and reliability,' explained Rounding, 'We carried out some trials in Saudi Arabia in December, and the aircraft performed 57 flights in five days without a problem. In fact the only issue was crew rest.'

The company had hoped to bring the aircraft to the FIDAE air show but it was required for further test flying.

Rounding said production aircraft would change little from the prototype aircraft that first flew in September 2009, but will feature some new improved crashworthy seats to further improve survivability. The company is also looking at the use of composite blades that have a longer on-airframe life compared to the metal blades currently in use.

Rounding also pointed out that the aircraft was ready for any fly-off demonstration for the US Army's Armed Aerial Scout programme, noting that the aircraft had a fully integrated weapons system and exceeded the stringent 6K/95 parameter set by the US Army, which is operating at the aircraft's gross weight at 6,000 feet on a 95F (35C) day. Rounding said the aircraft had operated comfortably at over 7,000 feet in these conditions.

The company has high hopes for further sales. Currently, Boeing is negotiations with Jordan for a direct commercial sale of the type and the Philippines had also expressed an interest in the helicopter to replace its long-serving fleet of air force MD500 Defenders.

If the Chilean buy came to fruition, the AH-6is would replace the MD530MGs currently serving with the Chilean Army. They have 17 aircraft which can be equipped with guns and unguided rockets.

Boeing says there are 2,000 light attack helicopters such as A109s and Gazelles that will need replacing in the next decade. They believe the AH-6i with its Apache systems could meet some of those needs.

[buglerbilly]

FIDAE 2012: Latin American countries express interest in former Marine Corps Sea Knights

28 March 2012 - 8:18 by Tony Osborne in Santiago, Chile



Three Latin American nations have expressed interest in purchasing former US Marine Corps (USMC) CH-46 Sea Knights, it has been revealed.

The aircraft, which are being retired to the boneyard by the marines in favour of the V-22 Osprey, have been subjected to a series of upgrades prior to retirement because of the Osprey's late introduction. The upgrades have given the Sea Knights increased airframe life making them ideal candidates for refurbishment and new roles overseas.

'Although it hasn't got the capability of the CH-47 Chinook, the CH-46 is still a very capable helicopter for troop transport and search and rescue, particularly with its tandem-rotor stability,' said Earl Godby, head of business development for maintenance, modifications and upgrades at Boeing Defense.

'The marines spent $1.2 billion upgrading the fleet and there is still plenty of life left in them, most of them have around 10,000 hours on them but they have a 17,000 hour airframe life.'

Godby said that despite the type's age, the aircraft are still achieving serviceability levels of in excess of 80%.

Several Sea Knights have already been refurbished and modified by the US Navy's Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) for use by the US State Department Air Wing, although Boeing has not been involved in this project. Boeing would however be involved if a request was made through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) scheme for the type.

[buglerbilly]

FIDAE 2012: Helibras soon to begin local assembly of EC725s

29 March 2012 - 8:34 by Tony Osborne in Santiago, Chile



The Brazilian subsidiary of Eurocopter, Helibras, is preparing to start the assembly of EC725 helicopters for the Brazilian armed forces' H-XBR programme.

A new final assembly line building for the EC725 is now complete at the company's site at Itajuba in Minas Gerais state and work on the first Brazilian assembled aircraft will begin in early April with the first Brazilian-built aircraft due to make its first flight about a year later.

'There have been many changes at Helibras over the past year, this is a very exciting time for us,' Helibras CEO Eduardo Marson Ferreira told Shephard.

'The new facility is complete and we are moving both the EC725 and Esquilo assembly into the new building, while our old facilities will be used for MRO.'

The company's workforce has increased to 655, while 45 Helibras engineers, who have been working alongside their Eurocopter counterparts at Marignane in France, will shortly return to share their knowledge and experience.

The first 16 of the 50 EC725s ordered by Brazil will be built in France, while from the 17th aircraft onwards the helicopters will feature increasing amounts of Brazilian content, including equipment and components sourced from domestic suppliers.

To date, one aircraft has been delivered to each of the armed forces – army, navy and air force – and it is the air force aircraft (FAB3510) that made a 25-hour journey from the north of Brazil to attend the FIDAE 2012 airshow.

Currently all the aircraft delivered are in a basic transport configuration, but two of the French-built aircraft – the fourth and fifth aircraft to be delivered – are to be used as prototypes for the mission systems integration that will be installed in later aircraft. Such systems are expected to include anti-surface warfare systems for the naval version.

Furthermore, Marson Ferreira indicated a possible order for Helibras-built EC225s for use by Brazil's quickly-developing oil and gas industry, but said that more would be revealed once the new plant had been officially opened in April.

As well as the EC725 assembly, Helibras has recently flown the first prototype of the newly upgraded AS565 Panther for the Brazilian Army. The company was awarded the contract to update the 32 Panthers plus two crashed aircraft in January 2010.

The update includes re-engining the aircraft with the new Turbomeca Arriel 2C2 turboshaft and new avionics suite and glass cockpit. The work on the Panthers will be complete by 2021.

The company is also negotiating the final specifications for a modernisation of the Brazilian Army's fleet of 36 AS350 Fennecs. The work is set to include the installation of new avionics and to bring the aircraft up to a single standard, rather than the fleets-within-fleets situation the Fennec is currently in.

[buglerbilly]

Interview: Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, PEO, U.S. Army Aviation

Apr. 2, 2012 - 10:39AM

By KATE BRANNEN


"Let’s face it, our country is in a financial jam and we need to do our part to tighten our belts. However, the message I’m getting is that Army aviation is a critical enabler on that battlefield," Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby said in an interview with Defense News. (Army)

As Program Executive Officer (PEO) for U.S. Army Aviation, Maj. Gen. William “Tim” Crosby manages the largest procurement budget in the Army. In its 2013 request, the Army asked for $6.3 billion for its aircraft programs, which include the CH-47 Chinook, the AH-64 Apache and the UH-60 Black Hawk.

Crosby, who is a Chinook pilot by training, commanded the VII Corps’ CH-47 unit in Operations Desert Shield and Storm in the early 1990s.

During the past 10 years, operations in Iraq and, especially, Afghanistan have increased the demand for Army helicopters to the point where the Defense Department directed the Army to create two combat aviation brigades in its 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review.

In the job as PEO since 2008, Crosby is now trying to meet this demand while making affordable plans to modernize the fleet for the future. The near-term question that needs answering is what to do with the OH-58 Kiowa Warrior helicopter, which has been upgraded several times over the years and has been in the Army fleet since 1969.

With a new development program looking unlikely given budget constraints, Crosby is weighing the costs and benefits of doing a service-life extension program (SLEP) or buying an off-the-shelf aircraft that could deliver some additional capability. To help make the decision, the Army has proposed a demonstration for this summer, but is awaiting approval in the form of an acquisition decision memorandum from the Pentagon’s acquisition chief.

Q. There have been a number of procurement delays or slowdowns in the Army aviation budget: Apache has gone down to the minimum requirement of 48 per year; UH-60 modernization is delayed; some CH-47 improvements have been delayed. What factors did you weigh making these budget decisions?

A. There are so many things that I’m charged with managing. It’s not just the readiness and sustainment of the fleet, and the upgrades and modernization; it’s also the industrial base of this country. Those are all considerations.

Also, as a steward of the taxpayer’s dollar, we want to make sure that we’re getting the best we can for our investment. Currently, the Chinook and Black Hawk are both in multiyear [contracts], and the Apache we’re going to try to go to a multiyear, so what we looked at was, how do we get to that? I mean, we’re talking hundreds of millions of dollars that are being saved by doing multiyears, and you stabilize your industrial base by giving them a five-year commitment. We were able to maintain those multiyears by reducing quantities a little bit. We’re not reducing the overall buy; we’re just extending that production.

Q. Do you feel that despite some of the reductions you had to make, Army aviation remains well supported?

A. I think without question. Many of my brother PEOs, in the other services as well as in the Army, we’re all taking hits. Let’s face it, our country is in a financial jam and we need to do our part to tighten our belts. However, the message I’m getting is that Army aviation is a critical enabler on that battlefield.

Q. Where do you see the biggest vulnerabilities in the industrial base?

A. We have done very well for the last 10 years because we have increased demand. Now, as we’ve come out of Iraq and as we start meeting the president’s mandate to come out of Afghanistan by 2014, we need to be cognizant of the impacts of reducing that operational tempo and what that does to our industrial base. As you reduce those quantities, we’ve got to work very closely with industry — and that’s going to be my message at [this year’s Army Aviation Association of America conference in Nashville, Tenn.] is how do we work with our industry partners? How do we flow this down to their second- and third-tier vendors without losing them? Because many of them are just barely keeping the lights on, even with the demand, because of the way the economy is.

Q. Are you concerned that it won’t be a gradual decline but a precipitous fall?

A. If we don’t do this right, we could cause a train wreck. That’s why I’m trying to get in front of this thing and be proactive. We need to share with them and be open so that they can find innovative ways to stay onboard. If I just all of a sudden turn the lights out, then we’ve got a huge issue.

Also, as numbers come down, the tendency is to focus on your short-term investments. My push to industry is we need to maintain a balance of long-term, short-term and midterm investments or we’re not going to have that capacity when we need it down the road.

Q. The analysis of alternatives (AoA) for the Armed Aerial Scout has been going on for a long time. Is there disagreement within the Army about the right path?

A. I won’t say there’s disagreement. I think there’s violent agreement across the Army and OSD that we have a shortfall in our scout area. That resulted from us terminating Comanche, terminating [the Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter] for the right reasons, and now we still have a valid need for a manned reconnaissance platform.

The AoA basically says manned reconnaissance is valid and there’s nothing out there today that can meet that requirement; it will take a full-scale development program. My supposition is that’s unaffordable in today’s environment.

That leaves us with two options. One is to do a service-life extension, which is what we put in the budget. The other is we talk constantly about 80 percent solutions. So, what we’ve challenged industry — and they’ve risen to the cause — is what is out there, off the shelf, that might be able to get to that 80 percent solution?

Our demo that we’re proposing to OSD is to just feel that out and find out if there really is something out there worth the investment, or do we just go do the SLEP? So the bottom line of the entire Armed Aerial Scout path ahead is taking an appetite suppressant and not doing a full-scale development. That way, we can focus on the long-term Future Vertical Lift program.

I guess what I’m boiling it down to is we’re trying to make an informed decision. All or nothing in the past got you nothing. We’re trying to say all or nothing may not be the right answer. Let’s look at that 80 percent solution. I don’t think folks are against that. I think they’re just trying to understand how we’re doing it.

Q. With the demo this summer, what do you hope to learn?

A. There will be an exportable instrumentation package. I’m an old tester. We know how to do this. We will accumulate the data based on some iterations that each vendor will fly, and then we’ll make that decision. Specifically, what we’re learning is, using the SLEP as a baseline and using the full up-armed Aerial Scout, where does the demo program fall in between that?

What that’s going to tell us: Is there really an 80 percent solution out there, and is it affordable? Some people say, ‘Well, you just did an AoA, don’t you know that?’ That AoA was started two years ago, and our vendors, to their credit, have stepped up and invested their dollars to demonstrate that they can get close to that solution. We’re trying to figure out just how close they have come.

Q. You mentioned Future Vertical Lift. Is that a new name for Joint Multi-Role?

A. You bet your boots. We’re changing the name. That’s what you’ve got to do in the Army. If someone doesn’t like a program, you change the name, right?

No, I’m kidding. We were confusing a lot of people with all of the different studies and all of the different things going on. As you know, the Future Vertical Lift concept — we don’t know if it’s going to be rotary-wing or tilt-wing, but it’s going to be a scalable architecture of aircraft: a scout variant, a utility-attack variant, a cargo variant and then what they call “ultra.”

We can’t afford to go after developing all of these programs, so we took a look at our fleet and said, 75 percent of the fleet is in the utility-attack variant. So, we’re going to focus on that Future Vertical Lift-Medium variant as the first one that we’re going to do. The others will be scalable up or down from that variant.

Q. What’s the timeline for Future Vertical Lift?

A. We want to have a Future Vertical Lift up and running in the field in 2030.

Q. Is reset a big concern for you? When you look at your portfolio, how much does reset compete for modernization dollars?

A. Remember, reset is only in existence to support the war. I’m a very big proponent of reset, but remember, that’s only end-of-war, plus two years. It is funded through [overseas contingency operations], so it’s not in competition for modernization dollars.

Q. Do you foresee a greater consolidation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) across the services as budgets get tighter?

A. The UAS in the Army today are focused on reconnaissance, surveillance and targeting acquisition. We have reaffirmed again in this war that Army aviation exists to support that ground commander. I’m very proud of what this team has done to accomplish that. The Marines are looking at a cargo variant of the UAS. We’re watching that very closely.

I see way down the road, and this is just Crosby’s opinion, looking at the potential for optionally manned vehicles that can be manned or not depending on the gravity of the situation, the threat and all of those aspects. There are no tactics or doctrine to back that up yet; I just see that as a capability that we may be able to offer to give more flexibility to that commander.

[buglerbilly]

QuadA2012: AAS-72X+ benefits from EC145 T2

02 April 2012 - 14:20 by Tony Osborne in Nashville



EADS North America is offering the updated version of the EC145 to meet the expected needs of the US Army's Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) programme.

The company revealed a mock-up of the AAS-72X+ on the opening day of the Quad A 2012 convention being held in Nashville. Based on the EC145 T2, the AAS-72X+ would feature the uprated Arriel 2E engines, new gearbox and the fenestron shrouded anti-torque system.

Gary Bishop, EADS vice president and AAS programme manager, told reporters that the improvements to the aircraft would deliver greater hot and high performance while the fenestron improves tail rotor authority at high altitude.

Until now, the company's work has been concentrated around the standard EC145 and the US Army's UH-72A Lakota Light Utility Helicopter. The company has invested its own money into building three technology demonstrators.

'Everything we have done so far on the demonstrators could be easily transferred to the AAS-72X+,' said Bishop.

The company says the 72X+ will exceed the performance already demonstrated by the standard AAS-72X, including the 6K/95 endurance requirement of 2 hours and 12 minutes plus a 20 minute fuel reserve, while carrying a 2,800 pound useful payload for mission equipment and crew.

Currently there is just one EC145 T2 prototype. That aircraft has completed more than 300 flight hours including hot and high flying and cold weather testing. A US Army test pilot flew the prototype in October last year.

In the meantime, the company is continuing to fly the three demonstration aircraft. Two of the aircraft are in the United States while the third is flying in Germany.

Work being carried out includes flight tests without the aircraft doors, and option which will certified for civilian use. The company is also doing integration work with radios and Raytheon's Multi-Spectral Targeting System (MTS) EO/IR turret.

Tests are also underway on a closed-loop fuel system which would replace the current gravity arrangement. This would allow the aircraft to conduct rotors running refuelling at forward arming and refuelling points (FARPs)for example.

[buglerbilly]

QuadA2012: US Army readies for scout helicopter flight demonstrations

02 April 2012 - 19:48 by Tony Skinner in Nashville, US



The US Army aviation branch is hoping to get approval for flying demonstrations of potential candidates for its Armed Aerial Scout requirement by the end of April.

Speaking to reporters at the Quad A exhibition in Nashville, Maj Gen William Crosby, US Army PEO Aviation, said the branch was looking to release an RfI for the demonstrations to industry following approval by the Defense Acquisition Board.

An industry day will then be held for interested companies – Crosby expects five vendors to express interest – followed by flying demonstrations in mid-2012.

‘We cannot afford everything we want but this is about identifying what we need. The demonstrations will help us pinpoint what we are looking at if we go for an off the shelf-based solution,’ Crosby said.

Candidate aircraft will be outfitted with an army flight test instrumentation and presented with a common scenario – although Crosby was careful to point out they will not taking part in a ‘fly-off’.

The current acquisition strategy to replace the OH-58D Kiowa Warrior is the result of the aviation branch taking an ‘appetite suppressant’ in regards to its desired requirements.

Future procurement will also be influenced by the new Army Aviation 2030 Campaign Plan, which aims to ensure that by 2030 the aviation force will be ‘redesigned, newly equipped and effectively manned’ despite the expected future funding constraints.

Maj Gen Anthony Crutchfield, commander of the US Army Aviation Center of Excellence, said the process would be governed through an online Aviation Campaign Plan collaborative work environment.

‘Everyone will be working in this virtual environment, working collaboratively and the leadership can look at the work that is being done. This is not just about materiel but is about the entire piece – sustainment, training, leadership development,’ Crutchfield said.

Under the road map, the core roles of the aviation branch in 2030 are expected to be the same as today – essentially ISR, precision attack, air assault and medevac operations – but the way aviation forces meet these missions will fundamentally change.

Future army aviation units will be expected to conduct continuous reconnaissance and operate in a more decentralised manner, more seamlessly with ground forces and over longer distances.

Key to this vision is the development of a Joint Multirole (JMR) aircraft, the roadmap says must be rapidly deployable and yet have a greatly reduced sustainment footprint.

Under the JMR initiative, the DoD is looking to a family of vertical lift aircraft that includes multiple sizes/classes of vehicles to both meet future vertical lift needs and bring a level of commonality between platforms that does not exist today.

The desired attributes of the JMR family include a scalable common core architecture; speed of 170+ kts; a combat radius of 424 km; and 6K/95 F performance. The project envisages an aircraft that will enter service sometime between 2025 and 2030, with prototypes flying before 2020.

[buglerbilly]

QuadA2012: Apache office detects opportunity in GFAS

02 April 2012 - 20:16 by Tony Skinner in Nashville, US



The US Army plans to deploy the Apache Ground Fire Acquisition System (GFAS) within the next six months, to assess its potential for fielding across the AH-64 fleet.

Col Shane Openshaw, Project Manager for the Apache, said a prototype version of the system would deploy, ‘most likely’ to Afghanistan, to test its ability to detect ground fire.

‘It is a prototype application but we are looking to assess its ability to detect ground fire as well as see how the technology might be used for wider applications, perhaps using the sensor to provide more situational awareness to the cockpit,’ Openshaw said.

He said pilots in Afghanistan were often returning from sorties with bullet holes in the airframe without being aware where they came from.

The GFAS infrared sensors detect muzzle flashes from the ground, the system then providing an icon on the crew’s display and allowing the MTADS/PNVS to move to the target.

Under an early user evaluation, the system has already undergone a range of key tests at Mesa, and Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona.

Meanwhile, the Apache Block III effort continues to ramp up. Although it is currently in low rate initial production (LRIP), the Apache project office expects Block III to be approved for full rate production (FRP) in August.

Ten Block III aircraft have already been delivered to the first Block III unit – 1st Battalion (Attack Reconnaissance), 1st Combat Aviation Brigade stationed at Fort Riley – for IOTE and FDTE testing. While 1-1st ARB crews carried out their Block III training both at Boeing and Fort Riley, subsequent units will receive training at their home station from the New Equipment Training Team (NETT).

Once FRP is approved, the office plans to insert a number of enhancements to Block III aircraft delivered in 2017. These include communication, navigation, manned/unmanned teaming, target detection, image fusion and processing enhancements.

Some of these will find their way to Block II aircraft through a field retrofit, although this will be done on a case-by-case basis.

For example, Openshaw said testing was currently being carried out to determine the effects of retrofitting the new composite main rotor blade to Block II aircraft.

In November 2011, the army marked delivery of the first Block III Apache from Boeing. The particular aircraft first entered service as an AH-64A in 1987 and was later remanufactured as a Longbow Apache is 2002.

[buglerbilly]

Turkey close to receiving first interim T129 attack helicopters

By: Tolga Ozbek Istanbul

2 hours ago

Source:

The first of nine interim T129 EDH attack helicopters being acquired under Turkey's ATAK project will enter service in June, with the nation's Undersecretariat for Defence Industries (SSM) expecting four of the type to be delivered this year.

Derived from AgustaWestland's AW129 by Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) and Aselsan, the T129 EDH was first flown in September 2011. Current activity with two of the aircraft includes test flights and weapon firings involving the design's 20mm cannon and 2.75in (7cm) rockets.

The EDH model, which is being bought to cover an urgent need to replace some of the Turkish army's Bell AH-1 Cobras, will lack the ability to fire other weapons intended for use by the main T129B variant. The other five EDH aircraft are to be delivered in 2013.


© Tolga Ozbek

TAI is continuing to produce and test the T129B, with the first of 51 aircraft to be handed over in July 2013. The remainder will follow by 2018.

[buglerbilly]

Budget Woes Leave Army Aviation Few Options

April 03, 2012

Military.com|by Michael Hoffman



NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Army plans to stick with its current helicopter inventory over the next two decades, opting to wait until 2030 at the earliest to revolutionize a fleet flown hard around Iraq and Afghanistan.

Army helicopters will receive upgrades over the next two decades, as they always have, but the austere budget environment has forced the Army to try and keep its current fleet in the air for as long as it can.

Army aviation leaders have gotten the message that helicopters don't sit atop the service's modernization priority list. Any money the service has in its shrinking defense modernization budget will go to new radios, the Ground Combat Vehicle and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle.

Rather than fight a losing battle, aviation officials have sunk all of their political capital into keeping a next-generation helicopter alive. Army officials have built expectations for the program up to such a level they won't even call it a helicopter program. Instead it's simply called the "Future Vertical Lift."

Maj. Gen. Anthony Crutchfield, head of the Army Aviation Center of Excellence, outlined the need for Future Vertical Lift last year. He continued to fight for it here April 2 at the Army Aviation Association of America's annual conference, saying the service can't continue the never-ending cycle of upgrading its legacy aircraft.

The "legacy" is a long one: The Army is still flying the very first CH-47 Chinook helicopter it bought from Boeing and introduced into the fleet in 1962. The airframe has since been upgrade to the Delta model, and it now flies in the Washington National Guard since returning to a deployment in Afghanistan.

"The helicopters we have today eventually will be obsolete, no matter how much money we put into them," Crutchfield said.

He urged the aviation community to "speak with one voice" when it comes to budget battles -- or risk losing programs altogether.

"We are not going to get everything that we want, but we must get everything that we need," Crutchfield said.

The Army's one hope for a relatively brand new helicopter remains its "Armed Aerial Scout." However, this summer the Army will find out if it makes more sense to fund a service life extension program for its existing Kiowa fleet.

In June, the Army has invited potential vendors to fly the helicopters they would submit for the competition. Maj. Gen. William Crosby, head of the aviation program executive office, said he's tired of reading about industry capabilities in PowerPoint presentations. He wants to see them in the air.

Their performance will help the Army determine if it's worth the cost of a new acquisition program to build the Armed Aerial Scout, said Maj. Gen. James Rogers, head of the Aviation and Missile Life Cycle Management Command.

Most of the funding dedicated to the Army's helicopters will go towards keeping the current fleet in the air. The Army has flown its helicopter fleet "six or seven times" harder over the past ten years than what officials expected when they were first built, Crosby said.

To save money, Army aviation leaders have had to delay planned upgrades to legacy aircraft such as the Chinook and the AH-64 Apache. Army budget planners pushed back the purchase of new rotor blades for the Chinook and delayed the purchase of the Apache Block 3.

Mechanics continue to fix the cracks that appear in the overworked airframes the military's depots. Crosby said what keeps him up at night is worrying about when a combat reset is no longer suitable to keep the legacy aircraft airborne.

"We're putting wear and tear on these aircraft that reset doesn't fix," Crosby said.

Army aviation officials have started to strip the paint off service helicopters and thoroughly test certain aircraft returning from combat to see if the stresses from war have gone beyond small cracks in the airframe, Rogers said.

"We're doing things that we've never done before … to try and understand what we're dealing with," Crosby said.

© Copyright 2012 Military.com. All rights reserved.

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army Defining New Multi-Role Helicopter

Apr 3, 2012

By Graham Warwick
Washington



It has been decades since the U.S. Army had the chance to define a clean-sheet rotorcraft. But an opportunity is approaching as the service heads toward the multi-year demonstration of configurations and technologies for next-generation utility/attack rotorcraft that could replace today’s Sikorsky UH-60s and Boeing AH-64s, beginning around 2030.

The Joint Multi-Role (JMR) concept evolved from an analysis of U.S. vertical-lift needs, which included a painful assessment of the shortfalls of current rotorcraft and gaps in industry capabilities. The conclusion was that another round of upgrades for existing platforms would not be enough, and that a technology demonstration program was needed to get industry up to speed to deliver a next-generation rotorcraft on time and on cost.

The JMR technology demonstration is intended to apply to all classes of Army rotorcraft, from armed scout to heavy lift, but is focused on the medium utility-class because replacing the Black Hawk fleet “offers the biggest bang for the buck,” says Ned Chase, JMR technology-demonstration team leader and chief of the platform technology division at the Army’s Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (AATD).

Boeing, Sikorsky, Bell-Boeing (the V-22 joint venture) and tiny AVX Aircraft are working under configuration trades and analyses contracts to define concepts for a medium-utility JMR and to decide which technologies will need to be matured through flight demonstration. AVX is studying a coaxial-rotor configuration with ducted-fan propulsion; Boeing is looking at a range of options; Bell-Boeing is focusing on tiltrotors; and Sikorsky is evaluating an advanced helicopter, tiltrotor and a compound helicopter using its X2 high-speed coaxial-rotor configuration. An independent government design team is looking at advanced and compound helicopter and tiltrotor concepts.

The goal of the configuration trades and analysis is to take the laundry list of vehicle attributes that operators say they want, and recommend concepts and technologies to meet them. The studies will evaluate specific attributes, such as higher speed and optionally manned capability, by establishing their payoff on the battlefield, and estimate the value and affordability of candidate configurations. The end product is to be a performance specification for the JMR technology-demonstrator aircraft.

The studies will help balance the often-conflicting vehicle attributes that operators want. “The community is coming to an understanding on where the trades are, but they are not a decision point yet,” Chase says. “And we are not ready yet, but there will come a time when we need to snap a line.”

The technology demonstration will be divided into two parts: Phase 1 for the air vehicle and Phase 2 for its mission system, which lags by two years, in recognition that electronics advance faster than airframes, rotors, engines and drive systems. Both phases are to be completed by the end of fiscal 2019, when the Army plans to be in position to launch the engineering and manufacturing development program for a next-generation rotorcraft.

In parallel with the configuration trades, the government is developing the Phase 1 demonstrator specification. “The trades finish in late summer and the last draft version of the spec will be out for comment soon after,” says Chase. “The next specification after that will be part of the solicitation [for Phase 1] in early 2013.”

Bidders will be asked to describe what their JMR medium-utility concept is expected to do, and what technologies critical to their design will have to be proved in flight. “They will not build to the spec, but demonstrate technologies that would enable them to achieve the spec if they built to it,” he says. The Army’s science and technology portfolio has been directed toward conventional helicopters until now, so compound helicopter and tiltrotor configurations could require additional technology maturation, he adds.

Under Phase 1, AATD plans to carry several performers through to the preliminary design review in early fiscal 2015. “At that time we will choose one or two,” Chase says. The Army has committed funds for a single air-vehicle flight demonstrator, with $187 million budgeted in fiscal 2012-16, but AATD is hopeful that funding from other services and cost-sharing by industry will enable it to afford two competing aircraft. “I think we can find a way to do two,” he says.

Phase 1 flight demonstrations are intended to verify contractor performance claims, determine the readiness of critical technologies for full-scale development and assess the value of configuration attributes. Results will feed into development of a specification for the objective JMR vehicle —whatever the Army decides that is.

Budget limitations mean the demonstrators are unlikely to be full-scale. Government studies suggest a medium-utility JMR could have a 45,000-lb. gross weight (compared with 22,000 lb. for the UH-60M). “We can’t afford to demonstrate something that big,” Chase says, although smaller vehicles will introduce the complexity of scaling up the results to objective JMR size.

In parallel, Phase 2 will get under way to demonstrate the JMR cockpit, decision-aiding software and integrated mission system—ideally in the air-vehicle demonstrators themselves, but alternatively in surrogate aircraft. This will kick off with the award of multiple contracts for mission-system effectiveness trades and analyses—equivalent to the configuration studies—to feed into the Phase 2 specification.

Proposals for the mission-system trades are due on April 1 and, as with the air-vehicle studies, contractors will be asked to identify those “game-changing” technologies that need maturing through flight demonstration to be ready for full-scale development. There are several supporting technology-development efforts under way this year. “We are having to do some things in parallel, which is not ideal,” says Keith Arnold, team leader for teaming and intelligence within AATD’s systems integration division.

The foundation for the JMR mission system is the open-system Joint Common Architecture (JCA), based on the Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) reusable-software standard developed by government and industry. “Based on open standards like FACE, JCA is instantiating an open systems architecture that is going to be key to any future aircraft,” says Arnold. “JCA has got to work if we are to change the way Defense Department aircraft are built and bought, and it’s a big part of what JMR is about.”

The new open standards and development tools will be used in a JCA demonstration planned for fiscal 2014-15. This will feed into the JMR Phase 2 demonstration, beginning in fiscal 2015, “which will develop specific pieces of the mission system and take others that exist and make then work together in a new architecture and airframe,” Arnold says. “We’d like to put the mission system on one of the air-vehicle demonstrators, but that injects risk,” he says. “So only the stuff that has to be will be tested in flight on the Phase 1 air vehicles. What we can, we will test in surrogate vehicles or on the bench.”

Also feeding into Phase 2 are AATD research programs developing advanced cockpit concepts and crew decision-aiding tools. Much of this work revolves around manned/unmanned teaming, vehicle autonomy and optionally piloted capability. “We are trying to take an integrated look at the battlespace. This aircraft will not be operating alone, but in a team as part of a larger battle,” Arnold says.

On the cockpit side, “there has been a lot of research into interface devices and methodologies that we would like to pull together to see what the best set of hardware is,” he says. On the decision-aiding side, work is aimed at “answering basic questions about the role of the human in future intelligent cockpits, “he says. “We have aircraft that can fly themselves, so what is the optimum allocation of tasks between the human and the machine?” The JMR demonstration will establish a baseline level of decision-aiding within the JCA architecture.

A parallel but different effort is looking at propulsion. The Improved Turbine Engine Technology (ITEP) program has two goals. One is to boost the range, payload and hot-and-high performance of the AH-64 and H-60 series by providing a drop-in replacement for the General Electric T700 family (developed 40 years ago) that is 25% more fuel efficient and 50% more powerful. The other is to prove the technology base for a JMR engine. A new requirement—added in 2011 after ITEP started—is to look at integrating dust and particle separation into the engine, doing a better job than external separators and sapping less engine performance.

GE and Advanced Turbine Engine Co. (ATEC), a Honeywell/Pratt & Whitney joint venture, are working in parallel on a science and technology phase of ITEP, which culminates this year with bench-testing of complete demonstrator engines. A Honeywell executive says ATEC expects this to be followed by a request for proposals for an initial engineering, manufacturing and development phase, involving both teams. “The Army’s strategy is to maintain two teams for as long as they can,” the executive tells DTI. In 2016, however, the plan is that one team will be selected to continue into flight tests.

ATEC’s HPW3000 is a two-spool engine (with high-pressure and low-pressure spools, plus a power turbine). which provides improved efficiency and the ability to start with a battery, eliminating the need for an auxiliary power unit.

The JMR technology demonstration will be the culmination of more than decade of science and technology work by the Army aimed at a next-generation rotorcraft. “A lot of things are coming together at the right time,” says Chase. “We put a lot of time and human capital into coming up with an investment strategy, and now the technologies are coming home to roost in the form of a demonstrator.”

Additional reporting by Bill Sweetman in Washington.

Photo: Eurocopter

[buglerbilly]

Aviation conference opens with 'sunrise' on Army aviation

April 2, 2012

By C. Todd Lopez


During the opening of the 2012 Army Aviation Association of America conference in Nashville, Tenn., Maj. Gen. Anthony G. Crutchfield, commanding general of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence at Fort Rucker, Ala., said despite budget cuts, the future of Army aviation is optimistic -- but the branch must work to clarify its needs before making spending decisions.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Army News Service, April 2, 2012) -- The military's budget may shrink, but the outlook on Army aviation is optimistic, said the commanding general of the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence.

More than 1,000 members of the Army aviation community and commercial aviation industry took in the opening remarks of Maj. Gen. Anthony G. Crutchfield here, April 2, at the opening of the 2012 Army Aviation Association of America conference in Nashville, Tenn.

A photograph on a display screen featured a helicopter in silhouette, with a low-hanging sun in the background. The general used the image, one in which it was hard to discern the time of day, to illustrate the future of Army aviation: is Army aviation in decline, like a setting sun? Or is it on the rise?

"Based on things that you read, there will be those who say this is a sunset, because of the problems we face," Crutchfield said. "I see this as a sunrise."

The general said the Army is changing again, as it has in the past. "Change is hard, but it's not bad."

A large change, most recently: the Army is coming back from 10 years at war. Operations in Iraq have ended, and the end of operations in Afghanistan is on the horizon. The Army has gone now to nine-month deployments, Crutchfield said, and that means more time at home. How the services uses that time will determine, in part, the future of Army aviation, he said.

"What do we have to do as an Army, as a branch, to make sure that with that time at home, we stay a sharp force, ready to be called and fight the nation's wars when called to do so," he asked.

The Army today is combat-proven, he said, and the Army must work hard to preserve that combat readiness.

At last year's AAAA conference, Crutchfield introduced the Army's "AimPoint 2030" vision. The year 2030, Crutchfield said, is "a point that we have to produce strong, capable aviators with future vertical lift that's different than what we have today: faster, lethal, reduced logistical footprint, expanded ranges -- all those things."

Since last year, the Army took the concept and "put meat on the bone." Four points of that include the goals of meeting future reconnaissance attack and vertical maneuver missions; organizing into rapidly deployable and adaptable formations; equipping with a new generation of multi-mission manned and unmanned aircraft; and greatly reducing the aviation sustainment footprint.

A new aviation campaign plan has also been introduced that spells out how to achieve those goals. That plan he said will have "measurable output."

"We know that there are three things that are important today that are going to remain important: that's train, sustain and modernize," he said. "This campaign plan uses the simplicity of [that] for the basis of everything that we write. All the objectives and all the tasks are rooted in those three things."

Modernizing the Army's aviation fleet is of critical importance to maintaining a strong aviation force, Crutchfield said. Topics of interest at the 2012 AAAA conference include modernization updates on the AH-64 Apache fleet, unmanned aerial systems, and the OH-58 Kiowa Warrior.

Crutchfield said sustaining today's fleet is important, but the Army must also look beyond modernizing and improving what it has already in today's arsenal.

"Our future really does depend on sustaining what we have today but [also] modernizing our future vertical-lift capabilities for tomorrow," he said. "At some point the helicopters that we have today will be obsolete. No matter how much money we put into them, they will be obsolete."

The Army, he said, must make sure that future aviators and future commanders have the technology and capability they need to fight future wars.

To meet its goals, Crutchfield said the Army aviation community must speak with a common voice, and clearly define what it needs. "The quickest way to get nothing is to ask for everything," he said.

The Army aviation community must clearly define its needs before moving forward to pursue acquisition, for instance. The Army will need to spend money, he said, but must do so at the best cost. Army must define what it needs, "snap the chalk line" and then go get it, without changing requirements, and without speaking with multiple voices. "That's how we're going to have a branch that will sustain the sharp edge that we have today."

"The bottom line is the Soldier," he said. "If we don't have a way to ensure we get what a Soldier needs to have for that Soldier to deploy, fight, win, and return to their families, then we have failed as leaders."

The AAAA conference runs April 2-4 in Nashville.

[buglerbilly]

Tender For Multipurpose Helicopters

(Source: Ministry of Defence Republic of Poland; issued March 29, 2012)

The Army has priority.............probably be the usual culprits (Sikorsky, Eurocopter, AW) but it'll be interesting to see IF the Russkies offer anything?

As Minister of National Defence Tomasz Siemoniak announced earlier, on 29th March multipurpose helicopters for the Land Forces, Polish Navy and the Air Force were put out to tender.

According to the Operational Program “Combat support, logistics and VIP transport helicopters” in 2009-2018, the contract concerns 26 helicopters in four different versions:

16 items for the Land Forces
- multipurpose-transport helicopter;

7 items for Polish Navy
- counter-submarine helicopter – 4 items
- search and rescue helicopter – 3 items

3 items for the Air Force
- search and rescue helicopter

Taking rationality of spending public money under consideration the principle of buying all the helicopters with identical base platform was accepted. The order also comprises logistic and training set including simulators.

The purchase of helicopters will be financed from the means of Technical Modernisation Program. The supply of the helicopters should finish in 2017.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Apache Block III Helicopter Performs Well In Tests

(Source: US Army; issued April 3, 2012)



NASHVILLE, Tenn. --- The U.S. Army's AH-64 Apache Block III next-generation attack helicopter is finishing up its Initial Operational Test and Evaluation at Fort Irwin, Calif., and should be ready to deploy with Soldiers sometime next year, officials said April 2 at the Army Aviation Association of America's 2012 Professional Forum and Exposition.

The IOT&E is a series of combat-like assessments and evaluations placing the aircraft in operationally-relevant scenarios as a way to prepare the platform for full-rate production, said Col. Shane Openshaw, project manager, Apache Attack Helicopters.

Although formal results of the Block III Apache's IOT&E are still in the process of being determined, preliminary observations and early indications suggest the high-tech aircraft is performing extremely well, Openshaw said. The force-on-force portion of the IOT&E has been completed and some live-fire exercises remain in coming days, he added.

So far, the Army has already taken delivery of 10 of the Boeing-built AH 64 Apache Block III aircraft, a helicopter engineered to bring the Apache fleet improved, next-generation range, performance, maneuverability and electronics. Total planned procurement for the Apache Block III is 690 aircraft.

The Block III Apache is being engineered such that an advanced, high-tech aircraft at the weight of the D model can have the power, performance and landing abilities of an original A model Apache. The current D-model Longbow Apache is heavier than the orginal A-model; the heavier Apache carries significantly improved targeting and sensing capabilities but lacks the transmission-to-power ratio and hard-landing ability of the initial A model.

"I had the opportunity to fly a Block III Apache a week ago and I will tell you the performance of the aircraft is tremendous," Openshaw said. "It's fast, strong and capable. We have also made improvements to the target acquisition platform. The backbone of the aircraft is an open-system architecture with improved mission command and interoperability."

Engineering the aircraft with an open-system architecture refers to efforts to design the electronics such that they have a "plug-and-play" capability and can easily integrate with current state-of-the-art and emerging next generation technologies, officials said.

The idea is to maximize interoperability by developing electronics and computing technologies according to a set of established technical standards through a "system-of-systems" type of approach so that new systems, sensors, applications, electronics, avionics and other technologies such as software-programmable radio can successfully inter-operate and work effectively with one another, they explained.

Built in this fashion, the Apache Block IIIs' avionics and mission equipment will be able to perform sophisticated "networking" and on-board computing functions and more easily accommodate valuable emerging capabilities, they said.

The Block III Apache is also engineered with what's called Level 4 Manned-Unmanned Teaming, or MUM capability, a technology wherein Apache pilots can not only view video feeds from nearby UAS systems scanning surrounding terrain, but can also control the UAS' sensor payload and flight path as well, Openshaw said.

In fact, the Gray Eagle UAS participated in the Manned Unmanned Teaming exercises during the Apache Block III IOT&E at Fort Irwin.

Called the UTA, or UAS Tactical Common Data Link Assembly, the new technology enhances pilots' ability to view and control nearby UAV assets with a mind to intelligence, targeting information and overall situational awareness. Army engineers have developed the software that equips the aircraft with this next-generation capability.

The advent of this technology is leading the Army to establish new tactics, techniques and procedures designed to maximize the value of the emerging technological capability, said Col. John Lynch, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command capability manager.

"For example, with the Block III Apache you might have a UAS that's overhead looking down into urban canyons; with Manned-Unmanned Teaming you have the ability to designate targets and you can see what is in the area where you are going to operate," Lynch said.

The Block III Apache will also bring improved endurance and payload capabilities to the attack helicopter platform; the Block III aircraft will be able to transport a larger amount of ammunition and fuel in what is described as "high-hot" conditions at altitudes of 6,000 feet and temperatures at or above 95 degrees Fahrenheit.

"With Block III you will be able to fly longer with more ammunition and a full tank of gas on missions because the aircraft has an improved drive train, composite rotor blades and increased performance capabilities," Lynch added.

Some of the Block III aircraft will be re-manufactured Block II D-model Apaches and, when full-rate production starts, some of the aircraft will be constructed with entirely new airframes, Openshaw explained.

Throughout its decades-long existence, the Apache platform has consistently upgraded and sustained its capability in order to incrementally incorporate new technologies as they emerge and bring the latest in capability to Soldiers. In fact, all but 51 of the 721 Apache aircraft in the Army inventory began as the initial or first variant, called A-model Apaches; many of these original aircraft were then subsequently remanufactured to become improved D-model Longbow Apaches engineered with Fire Control Radar and improved electronics. Today, only eight A-model Apaches remain in the fleet, Openshaw said.

Also, Apache attack helicopters will soon be flying with a prototype enemy fire detection system called Ground Fire Acquisition System, or GFAS, a suite of sensors and cameras able to locate the source, location and distance of incoming hostile fire, Army officials said.

Prototypes of the GFAS systems, which will soon undergo a "user evaluation" in theater, are built on to Apache aircraft; they contain camera sensors on each wingtip engineered to detect the signature and muzzle flash of nearby enemy small arms fire. The system is engineered with the ability to distinguish small arms fire from larger guns and rocket-propelled grenades.

The cameras and infrared sensors on the aircraft detect the muzzle flash from ground fire - and move the information through an Aircraft Gateway Processor into the cockpit so pilots will see an icon on their display screen; GFAS is integrated with Blue Force Tracking technology, digital map display screens which show the locations of nearby forces and surrounding terrain.

Apache program officials praised the performance of the attack helicopter platform in theater, calling it the world's most lethal, capable attack helicopter.

"Most of the air assaults we conducted relied upon the Apache platform. Two things you can't talk about enough are the pilots that fly them and the guys inside the cockpit that get the mission done. They are dedicated to supporting the guys on the ground," said Lt. Col. Christopher Downey, Task Force Six Shooters, who spent time with Apache attack helicopter units assigned to RC East, Afghanistan in 2007 and 2008.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

MD Helicopters Announces New MD 540F, Enterprise to Introduce First New Helicopter In 15 Years

(Source: MD Helicopters Inc.; issued April 3, 2012)



MESA, Ariz. --- MD Helicopters Inc. (MDHI) released details today of its new armed scout helicopter - the MD 540F, the newest addition to MD’s fleet of single engine turbine helicopters. The 540F is an upgrade to the popular MD 530F; boasting a 6-bladed, fully articulated rotor blade system made up entirely of composite material, in addition to a more rugged landing skid built for heavier take-off and landing weights.

“This aircraft will be a game changer for our company,” commented Ms. Lynn Tilton, CEO of MDHI. “The commercial and military markets have long sought an affordable, light, single engine helicopter that can perform exceptionally well at hot and high altitudes while carrying a larger useful load. The MD 540F will be that aircraft. Our engineers have bolstered performance to achieve a dramatic increase in max gross take-off weight and useful load capability. This increase will allow the MD 540F to carry a full avionics and weapons package while hovering at 6,000 feet/95°F.”

The MD 540F will be equipped with a fully integrated digital glass cockpit. Information will be displayed to the pilots on large, easy to read, multi-function color displays, and directly onto the pilot’s eyes using a sophisticated Helmet Display and Tracking System (HDTS). The weapons system will include fixed forward firing rockets and guns, laser guided rockets, and Hellfire missiles. The Targeting FLIR with laser designator coupled with the HDTS and laser guided rockets or Hellfire missile, will allow the pilot to easily locate and destroy hostile targets - day or night.

“The 540F will be a lethal fighting machine,” said Tilton. “The 540F will carry much of the same punch as the heavier attack helicopters at a fraction of the acquisition expense and life cycle operation costs. Using precise aim points and laser guided missiles and rockets, the MD 540F will be able to destroy enemy armor and infantry positions with little collateral battle damage.”

The increased useful load will allow the armed version of the 540F to carry an advanced, lightweight weapons platform with four stations. Various mixes of guns, rockets and missiles can be carried simultaneously.

Development of the MD 540F is ongoing, and flight tests have commenced. The armed version will be on display at the Army Aviation Association of America (Quad-A) convention in Nashville, TN. Certification is projected for the 1st quarter of 2013.

MD Helicopters, Inc. is located in Mesa, Arizona and manufactures single- and twin-engine small- to mid-sized helicopters, including the innovative no tail rotor design that provides safer, quieter, and confined-area access capability. MD Helicopters, Inc. is owned by Patriarch Partners, LLC, a private equity and investment firm headquartered in New York City. Patriarch Partners, LLC, is a private equity firm and holding company managing 76 companies with annual revenues of more than $8 billion.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

QuadA2012: US Army to carry out avionics upgrade to UH-60L Black Hawk fleet

04 April 2012 - 20:33 by Tony Osborne in Nashville, US



The US Army is planning to upgrade the cockpits on its fleet of UH-60L 'Lima' fleet in a bid to standardise the fleet, it has been revealed.

Col Thomas Todd, project manager of the army's Utility Helicopters Project Office, told reporters that the remnants of the 'Lima' fleet made up of some 760 helicopters were expected to continue operations out to 2030 by which time the medium utility-version of the Future Vertical Lift should have entered the fray.

The aim of the project is to bring the current 'Lima' cockpit up to the same or close to the same standard as the full glass cockpit found on the UH-60M model, of which 400 have now been delivered to the army.

'The projected is budgeted to begin in FY13, there will be a competition and then a downselect to see what industry has to offer,' says Todd. 'We want it to be as common to the Mike model as possible.'

Todd also pointed out that other foreign nations may also be interested in the update as well. Lima Black Hawks are currently in use with Colombia, the United Arab Emirates and Brazil among others.

The US Army is looking to standardise the Black Hawk fleet with the Lima and Mike models. With the remaining A/A+/Q models set to be eliminated from the inventory by 2026 and role of the EH-60A has been taken over by a UAS system, the Black Hawk fleet will be 2,135 strong, made up 760 Limas and 1,375 Mike models.

The army plans to give the Mike models an update making them compatible with Global Air Traffic Management (GATM) requirements.

The army and Sikorsky have also signed off on the next multi-year contract. Under the five-year 'multi-year VIII' deal around 60 aircraft will be produced each year for the US Army.

[buglerbilly]

US Army to hold flight demonstrations for Armed Aerial Scout

By: Dave Majumdar Nashville

16 hours ago

Source:

The US Army will hold voluntary flight demonstrations for its nascent Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) programme, but any would-be contractors must prove their helicopter offers are better value for money than a life-extended Bell OH-58F Kiowa Warrior.

The service's default plan is to extend the life of the current reconnaissance fleet.

"We will extend the service life of the Kiowa fleet today," says Maj Gen Tim Crosby, the army's executive officer for aviation, "because Armed Aerial Scout is unaffordable - that's kind of our baseline."

The US Department of Defense is expected to sign off on the service's analysis of alternatives, which says the army needs a new manned reconnaissance helicopter. "The only way to get there is a full-scale development," Crosby adds.

But the service faces a dilemma. It could do nothing, it could solider on with the OH-58F fleet, or it could buy a new helicopter - but money is the problem.

"We have put in the budget what we call a service-life extension," Crosby says, pointing out that the service is willing to accept the risk posed by not having a new scout helicopter.

The Kiowa cannot perform every mission the service wants, and although the army can cope with this state of affairs, it is willing to evaluate new machines that may prove more capable than the OH-58F.

"The only way we're going to know that is to demo [the other aircraft]," Crosby says. However, he stresses the tentative nature of the exercise. "It is not a fly-off. It is not a competition," he says.

Maj Gen James Rogers, commander of the army aviation and missile command, says: "Everyone says they've got something that's better than a [life-extended OH-] 58. All we want to do is say 'show us'."

Funding for the AAS would be drawn from another army programme, hence the need to ensure any replacement aircraft is worth the investment.

The army is expected to get the go-ahead on 23 April from the Defence Acquisition Board to proceed with the review. That will allow the service to release a new request for information, which will then lead to a new round of aerial demonstrations. But officials are unwilling to commit to a timeframe.

In the meantime, would-be contractors are displaying their hardware at the Army Aviation Association of America forum in Nashville, Tennessee.


© EADS

EADS unveiled its new AAS-72X (above), a version of its UH-72A light utility helicopter that has been heavily modified for the armed reconnaissance role. Meanwhile, Boeing promoted its AH-6 Little Bird, which it has sold to Saudi Arabia.

Incumbent manufacturer Bell likewise has a significant presence at the show. Sikorsky was also present with a mock-up of its S-97 Raider compound reconnaissance helicopter and high-speed X-2 concept.

Meanwhile, MD Helicopters is expected to announce the launch of the MD-540 armed helicopter on 3 April.

Crosby says he expects five contractors to take part in the AAS flight demonstrations.

[buglerbilly]

Army Moves Toward Pure Fleet of Upgraded Chinooks

(Source: US Army; issued April 4, 2012)



NASHVILLE, Tenn. --- The U.S. Army continues to modernize the next-generation F-model CH-47 Chinook cargo helicopter while simultaneously working to upgrade its entire fleet to F-model aircraft, service officials explained April 2 at the Army Aviation Association of America's 2012 Professional Forum and Exposition.

Thus far, the Army has accepted delivery of 169 F-model Chinooks, cargo helicopters engineered with next-generation avionics, electronics and cockpit digital moving map displays, said Lt. Col. Brad Killen, CH-47 F-model project manager.

Ultimately, the Army plans to have a "pure" fleet of 440 F-model Chinooks by 2018, he added.

"The goal here is to go to all F's. When you look at a D-model Chinook, it still has the steam gauges in it; whereas if you look at the F-model, it has five multi-function displays and full-motion video screens," Killen said.

Killen explained the tremendous value-added of the Chinook F's Common Aviation Architecture System, or CASS cockpit, which consists of multi-function digital displays providing pilots with situational and navigational information.

"With CAAS we've got a moving map. Now that a moving map is in front of me, I have all my instruments in front of me. It's reduced the work load," he said.

The F-model Chinook represents the latest iteration of technological advancement in what is a long and distinguished history for the workhorse cargo aircraft, often tasked with delivering food, troops and supplies at high altitudes in mountainous Afghan terrain.

In fact, 2012 marks the 50th anniversary of the Army's first CH-47 Chinook delivery which took place in 1962, said Col. Bob Marion, program manager, cargo aircraft.

In fact, that very first A-model Chinook received by the Army was recently found to be flying missions in Afghanistan, Marion said.

"I was surprised to find out that that first A-model was in Afghanistan. It is now a D-model as we have modernized the aircraft over time. This leads me to reflect on how much the Chinook means to the Army and our nation, including all of those Soldiers who have worked on and flown in it for 50 years," he added. "As we talk about the Future Vertical Lift and Armed Aerial Scout programs, we talk about continuing to use the Chinook as the medium and heavy lift solution to meet the Army's needs. It is therefore important for us to keep these aircraft flying and relevant for the next generation of Army aviators."

The Chinook program is preparing to issue its next multi-year procurement contract for the F-model aircraft by January 2013, Marion said.

As the Army continues to transition to a pure fleet of F-model Chinooks, the program office has, in the past year, stood up a special program manager tasked with pursuing additional modernization possibilities for the aircraft, Marion explained.

These efforts include the addition of new, composite rotor blades able to add 2,000-pounds of additional lift capability to the aircraft; the advanced composite rotor blade effort, which has already gone through some wind-tunnel testing, is slated for flight testing in the summer of 2015, said Lt. Col. Joe Hoecherl, product manager, Chinook modernization.

The Chinook program is also developing a new Cargo On/Off Loading System, or COOLS, engineered to build rollers into the floor to better expedite on and off-loading of supplies and gear, Hoecherl explained.

Having recently completed its Critical Design Review, COOLS will start fielding in February of next year, Hoecherl said.

"Right now we have a system that is not on the aircraft. We have to bring it on. What happens now when you are flying is you take off and, if you have a change of mission, you have to go pick up pallets. You can't push pallets on this floor as it is now. With COOLS, the rolls are going to be built into
the floor, so if you have a change of mission you just flip the floor up," Killen said.

COOLS is also built with additional underneath ballistic protection systems, Hoecherl added.

The CH-47 F program is also planning to add Conditioned-Based Maintenance to the aircraft - small, portable diagnostic devices which enable aircraft engineers to better predict maintenance needs and potential mechanical failures, Hoecherl explained.

"The Cargo Platform Health Environment, or CPHE, will provide continuous monitoring of all the vibrations. It will bring diagnostics and prognostics, which will help predict what might go wrong with the aircraft. Next month we will start doing the validation for the installation of CPHE," Hoecherl said.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

Industry officials divided over US Army future vertical lift requirements

By: Dave Majumdar Nashville

6 hours ago

Source:

Top industry officials are divided over what requirements the US Army should set for its nascent future vertical lift (FVL) programme. The service intends for the aircraft to become the centrepiece of its modernization efforts in the 2030s.

While some like Bell president John Garrison and Sikorsky's military aircraft president Mick Maurer are championing newer concepts like the tilt-rotor or high-speed compound helicopter respectively, others like EADS North America CEO Sean O'Keefe are calling for an 80% solution. The executives spoke at an Army Aviation Association of America forum in Nashville, Tennessee.

Garrison says that a second-generation tilt-rotor would be the ideal candidate for a new FVL aircraft. The company has teamed with Boeing to offer such a concept under the joint multi-role (JMR) programme, which has now been rebadged as FVL.

Garrison says that the conventional helicopter has reached the maximum extent of its technological development, but tilt-rotors are comparatively new and thus there is room for further growth. He prominently displayed a rendition of what such a machine might look like.



Maurer says that the most important task for the army and US Department of Defense at large is to define the requirements for the FVL. But the company already has some ideas based on its X-2 compound helicopter technology, he says. He showed off a chart with various size classes for a dual-rotor, pusher-propeller FVL type aircraft that might be used by the army and US Navy.

Meanwhile, Boeing's Leanne Caret says that the company--which is offering a JMR concept by itself in addition to the Bell-Boeing tilt-rotor team-is looking at various different concepts to try meet the army's need for greater speed and increased range.

But Sean O'Keefe of EADS, says that the army and DoD tend to plan for massive leap-ahead efforts while stretching the existing fleet to the breaking point. When that platform is inevitably late or cancelled, the existing aircraft need to be further extended. The cost of those delays and service life extensions are often equivalent to or greater than buying an interim solution that offers an "80% solution". Indeed, if the army could be satisfied with toned down requirements, that interim 80% solution could be a permanent solution.

At the same time, William Lewis, director of US Army Aviation Engineering Directorate, says that the government has it own team of engineers exploring various concepts for FVL. He says the speed and range requirements for the new FVL concepts mean that designers can not hang sensors and weapons onto the next-generation aircraft without taking into account drag-the new aircraft are likely to be far more aerodynamically slick than existing rotorcraft.

Right now, only the army has invested any cash into the FVL, but Lewis says he expects the US naval services to do so in time. The USN is not drawing up a whole new set of requirements, but adding new features to the existing ones to make the aircraft suitable for their needs, he says. Part of the problem for the Department of the Navy is the disparate needs of the US Marines and USN.

The US Air Force is also involved in the project.

[buglerbilly]

US Army working to overcome degraded visuals

By: Dave Majumdar Nashville

1 hours ago

Source:

The US Army is working on increasing the safety of its rotary-wing aircraft in degraded visual environments.

An army study recently concluded "the greatest threat to our aircraft was what we call degraded visual environments," says Col Anthony Potts, the army's aviation systems project manager.

A helicopter on its terminal approach might kick-up a cloud of dust and debris, known as a "brown out", which causes pilots to lose their visual reference to the Earth's surface, and could lead to a crash if the helicopter snags an object.

Potts says the army is working on a number of technological solutions to the problem--the most promising being a 94GHz millimetre wave radar system.

"There is a lot of debate about whether that is the right solution or not," Potts says. "I can tell you there are other solutions out there."



Those solutions include laser-based Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR), long-wave infrared cameras, and synthetic vision using precise geographic data-bases, among others.

"What we found was that the millimetre wave radar actually had the best capability to penetrate those heavy dust obscurants," Potts says.

The radar essentially creates synthetic imagery in front of the aircraft in real-time which alerts pilots to the presence of obstacles.

But having the right cockpit symbology also is important, Potts says. Newer versions of the Boeing AH-64D and CH-47F, for example, already have such cuing systems, and therefore do not need this type of augmentation as much as other aircraft.

The Sikorsky UH-60L, an older model Blackhawk, has the greatest need for such a pilot aid.

Part of the solution might also be adding a detailed database of the terrain to augment the system, Potts says.

Rockwell Collins was demonstrating a version of such a system on a UH-60 simulator at an Army Aviation Association of America (AAAA) forum in Nashville,Tennessee. The company says its technology is already being used on business jets and it will soon to integrating its system with radar.

Potts was seen visiting the Rockwell Collins simulator at AAAA.

Over the next five years, the army plans to spend $226 million on a solution to the degraded visual environment problem. In the next 18 to 24 months the service will write up an operational needs statement and buy five prototype 94GHz radar systems from Science and Engineering Services and Sierra Nevada Corp. If the system proves to be successful, the service has the option of buying more for limited user trials.

At the same time, the army is working on preparing a formal developmental programme which it hopes to start in the fourth quarter of 2012, Potts says.

The operational needs statement and prototypes will help inform the developmental program as will input from the army's elite special operations forces and the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (DARPA).

"We found a great partnership with those guys," Potts say.

The idea is to build a "backbone" architecture that can accommodate almost any sensor or a combination of sensors. "So when we get to a programme, we're not tiedto a specific material solution," Potts says.

[buglerbilly]

Lakota fleet more than 200 strong approaching 100K flight hours

April 5, 2012

By C. Todd Lopez


The Army's newest aircraft, the UH-72A Lakota, is approaching 100,000 flight hours, and maintains one of the highest mission capable rate among Army aircraft.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Army News Service, April 5, 2012) -- The Army's newest aircraft, the UH-72A Lakota, is approaching 100,000 flight hours, and maintains one of the highest mission-capable rates among Army aircraft.

The Army expects to buy a total of 345 of the aircraft, and the service has just taken delivery of 209 so far.

"The real success story for us: it's been on schedule [and] it's met its cost targets perhaps better than any other aviation program we have got that's active right now," said Col. Thomas Todd, project manager for Army utility helicopters, during an April 3 press briefing at the Army Aviation Association of America conference in Nashville.

The Lakota is a slightly modified version of the manufacturer's commercial EC-145 aircraft, and serves mostly inside the United States, though it has served in Haiti as part of relief operations there, Todd said. Right now, the Lakota is being used in 42 of 50 states. Only a third of the aircraft are headed for active-duty units. The remainder are bound for Army National Guard units.

In the field, Todd said, the Lakota has maintained remarkably high reliability rates.

"It maintains consistently 90 percent operational availability rates," Todd said. "We obviously take a lot of pride in the fact that 90 percent means [a commander] gets nine out of 10 to fly. It makes that unit commander, no matter where they are and what mission they are performing, more effective."

The Lakota can be configured with mission equipment packages to support medical evacuation missions, VIP support or and security and support. While most military aircraft deal with military threats, the Lakota, with the S&S mission-equipment package, was developed to work counter-narcotics on the southwest border. Along the Mexican border, for instance, 11 Lakota aircraft have racked up 700 flying hours working the Southwest Border Mission there out of operating locations in Larado and Harlingen, Texas.

In a time of constrained budgets, Todd said that the Lakota also delivers on maintenance costs. As a light utility helicopter, the UH-72A Lakota was pursued as a replacement for the OH-58A and C Kiowas as well as the UH-1 Iroquois. Repair parts for the Lakota are less expensive than for the older aircraft, and are delivered quicker.

"When we compare our parts fill rate is higher, and our parts cost or our contracts cost is easily 30-40 percent less," Todd said. "That's a huge measuring stick for us, in these resources constrained times."

[buglerbilly]

VTOL UAS, Tighter Teaming In U.S. Army Future

Apr 6, 2012

By Graham Warwick
Washington



Having pushed unmanned systems further than any other U.S. service, the Army is preparing to take the next steps, fielding a vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) aircraft and raising manned-unmanned teaming to a higher level. While VTOL will provide the U.S. Army with new basing, operating and sensing options, teaming is central to its plans for future rotorcraft that could be optionally manned.

The Army is embarked on the two-track journey to a vertical-lift unmanned aircraft, fielding an existing system as a quick-reaction capability while developing requirements for a follow-on VTOL UAS program of record. Three Boeing A160T Hummingbird unmanned helicopters are scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan in June, but the second track hit a bump in the road in February when the U.S. Navy canceled its planned Medium-Range Maritime Unmanned Aerial System (MRMUAS) program.

To help define its requirements for a VTOL UAS, the Army had joined the Navy’s MRMUAS analysis of alternatives (AOA). Despite the cancellation of the program for budget reasons, the Army says it will still complete the AOA with the Navy. “Once it is complete, the Army will make its own decision independent from the Navy MRMUAS on the utility of a VTOL UAS and what capability gaps or focus areas the platform can cover,” the service says.

Going into the AOA, the Army had envisioned its VTOL UAS being an existing platform such as the Boeing A160, Lockheed Martin/Kaman unmanned K-Max or Northrop Grumman/Bell Fire-X, but industry sources say the Navy’s range requirements were pushing the MRMUAS to a much larger vehicle. Separated from the Navy, it remains to seen whether the Army’s requirements can be met by an off-the-shelf platform.

Boeing, meanwhile, is preparing to fly the Autonomous Real-time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance Imaging Sensor (Argus-IS) on the A160, ahead of its planned deployment. Developed for the Defense Advanced Projects Research Agency (Darpa), BAE Systems’ Argus-IS is a wide-area surveillance sensor that provides multiple independent video feeds to the ground.

Mounted in a pod under the A160, the gigapixel electro-optical sensor can provide at least 65 video windows across its field of view to stream continuous imagery of fixed areas or automatically track moving vehicles or individuals. Argus-IS is a daylight-only sensor, but Darpa is working on an infrared version, Argus-IR; Lockheed Martin is developing the sensor and BAE Systems, the airborne processor. Argus-IR will provide at least 130 independently steerable video streams.

Darpa budget documents suggest the Army plans to use Argus-equipped A160s to detect threat networks by fusing wide-area motion imagery and radio-frequency signals intelligence to detect the locations, movements and communications associated with insurgent activity. Under the Wide Area Network Detection program, Darpa is to deliver a prototype “multi-entity geospatial activity correlator” to the Army Argus A160 program this year, with an upgraded version planned to follow in fiscal 2013.

While the A160s are prepared for deployment, the Army is monitoring the U.S. Marine Corps’ use of K-Max helicopters in Afghanistan for unmanned cargo resupply—a likely mission for the VTOL UAS. The Army’s Autonomous Technologies for Unmanned Air Systems (Atuas) is a joint concept technology demonstration for this mission, using the proven K-Max as the testbed.

Atuas will demonstrate a small beacon that can be placed on the ground at the delivery site. The aircraft will autonomously find the beacon, sense its direction and put down the load a pre-set distance away. This avoids the need for a soldier to take control of the air vehicle at the remote drop site, as must now be done with the K-Max in Afghanistan.

The program will also demonstrate a ladar-based delivery-site selection system. “No one will need to be there,” says Keith Arthur, team lead for teaming and intelligent systems in the systems integration division of the Army’s Aviation Applied Technology Directorate (AATD). “They will give it GPS coordinates, the system will scan the area and choose the spot,” he says. Atuas is also developing an autonomous retrograde cargo capacity. “The forward operating base can prepare a load and walk away. The helo will pick it up after delivering its load.”

The Atuas demonstration will lead into the Synergistic Unmanned-Manned Intelligent Teaming (Sumit) program, which AATD plans to launch in fiscal 2014 to demonstrate the next generation of UAS autonomy and crew decision-aiding. Running in fiscal 2014-19, Sumit is to comprise demonstrations of the unmanned aircraft acting as an autonomous wingman and of manned-unmanned teaming in the scout/attack mission.

“The vision of autonomy we are shooting for includes manned systems as well as unmanned,” says Arthur. “When the human needs something done, they will indicate it in some intuitive way, it will happen, and they won’t know whether the software and hardware that does it is on their own aircraft, another aircraft, on the ground or in the cloud.”

Photo: Kaman Aerospace

[buglerbilly]

U.S. Army Takes It Slow on Cargo UAV Program

Apr. 6, 2012 - 04:57PM

By PAUL McLEARY


The K-MAX completed its first unmanned aerial system cargo delivery in a combat zone in December 2011, delivering 3,500 pounds of food and supplies to a U.S. Marine Corps combat outpost in Helmand province, Afghanistan. (Cpl. Justin Boling / U.S. Marine Corps)

On Dec. 17, the U.S. Marine Corps made history by flying a cargo UAV in a war zone.

Marine controllers on the ground flew a K-MAX unmanned helicopter from Camp Dwyer, Afghanistan, to Camp Payne in Helmand province, ferrying 3,500 pounds of supplies to fellow Marines.

Since that inaugural flight, the K-MAX vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) UAV has flown about 240 missions and hauled more than 750,000 pounds of cargo to Marines. The UAV flies an average of six missions a day — mostly at night — according to a spokeswoman from Lockheed Martin, which builds the helicopter with Kaman Aerospace.

But for soldiers waiting for that capability, it’s unclear when the U.S. Army will step into the world of cargo UAVs.

The Army has been closely monitoring the Corps’ progress with cargo UAVs. In July 2011, it awarded Lockheed $47 million “to provide autonomous technologies for unmanned aerial systems to maximize performance requirements and capabilities with mature technologies.”

The Lockheed spokeswoman said the company has no update on that contract.

Overall, the Army is still working to build a formal program of record for an unmanned VTOL capability. One company that has long been interested in participating in such a program is Textron/AAI, which has been working with Carter Aviation to convert a manned, four-person rotary-wing aircraft into a UAV able to perform the cargo mission. A spokesman for Textron said “our relationship with Carter continues and we remain interested in the Army’s evaluation of potential technologies.”

The Army’s Maneuver Battle Lab conducted a series of user assessments on the K-MAX last year at Fort Benning, Ga., as part of its Annual Expeditionary Warrior Experiment.

The UAV was able to drop “various payloads using autonomous mode,” said an official at the battle lab at Fort Benning.

Still, an industry source involved in discussions with the Army during the Army Aviation Association of America meeting earlier this month said the service appears to be taking a wait-and-see approach to unmanned lift. Given its other more urgent aviation priorities, such as developing an armed aerial scout and the reset and refit of its rotary wing fleets, the cargo mission isn’t the service’s top priority.

A document provided by the Army said the service is an “active partner” with the Marines, and it is looking for industry to provide cargo UAV solutions in seven to 10 years.

The Corps worked with industry for several years on its unmanned cargo lift program, evaluating the K-MAX as well as Boeing’s A160T Hummingbird, also a VTOL platform. The Marines handed Boeing a stop-work order in December that ended the company’s participation in the program.

Two K-MAX UAVs were sent to Afgha-nistan in November, and weeks later began flying missions. During a quick-reaction assessment last summer, the K-MAX exceeded the Navy and Marine Corps’ requirement to deliver 6,000 pounds of cargo per day over a five-day period, eventually hauling 33,400 pounds of cargo during evaluations.

The Army was at one point considering the A160T Hummingbird for its unmanned cargo lift program, but Boeing spokeswoman Elaine Brabant said she is aware of no ongoing program to pursue that interest.

The Army has, however, contracted with Boeing on the ISR front to send two Hummingbirds to Afghanistan equipped with the Autonomous Real-Time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance Imaging System (ARGUS-IS) sensor, developed by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and BAE Systems. Boeing is “currently in the test phase preparing for deployment in June,” Brabant said.

The ARGUS-IS system features a 1.8-gigapixel camera that produces real-time video streams at the rate of 10 frames a second.

In January, the Army released a request for information to industry, looking for a cargo unmanned aircraft system that can deliver cargo up to 300 nautical miles at airspeeds of at least 250 knots with VTOL capability. It must also be able to fly in a variety of harsh weather conditions, operate 24 hours a day, and carry 5,000 to 8,000 pounds, according to the document.

The Army’s Logistics Initiatives Group, which is spearheading the effort, held an industry day in February to better explain its thinking to potential bidders. Much like the Army’s current focus on equipping and training units to fight at the brigade level and below, the service’s unmanned cargo request prioritizes operations conducted at that level. The document asks for the platform to be able to be “supported by a minimal ground control element located at brigade or lower,” as well as the “ability to accommodate networking that allows authenticated users to control multiple platforms.”

[buglerbilly]

Army Inspects Aging Helo Fleet

April 09, 2012

Military.com|by Michael Hoffman



NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Army's helicopter fleet is tired. It's flown six times harder over the past ten years than any Army leader expected in the hot, dusty climates of Iraq and Afghanistan.

That's why service leaders have started scraping the paint off select helicopters to find hidden cracks. Army maintainers found one helicopter riddled with over 300 cracks in its airframe after removing the paint

The Army officer in charge of buying helicopters said his biggest concern is missing the signs of fatigue and leave the Army with a broken down fleet keeping soldiers' boots on the ground.

"The one that keeps me up at night is flying at this optempo at these kinds of rates. Reset and [Aircraft Inspection and Maintenance] is not a service life extension program. We're flying these things at four to six, to sometimes seven, times the normal optempo. That's putting wear and tear on these systems that reset doesn't fix," said Maj. Gen. Tim Crosby, the Army's Program Executive Officer of Aviation.

Army helicopters have flown 3.6 million hours in Iraq and another 1.5 million hours in Afghanistan. Those hours have taken their toll. On average, Army helicopters have aged an additional nine years over the past decade.

Army maintainers and contractors have done their best at the Corpus Christi Army Depot, which is where the helicopters are sent when they return from a deployment, to keep the helicopters fleet in shape. Programs such as conditions based maintenance have helped maintainers fix problems before they take an aircraft out of commission, said Maj. Gen. James Rogers, head of U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command.

Service leaders have leaned hard on the helicopters and their crews to navigate battlefields in the new era of improvised explosive devices. Anytime a unit could fly, it would, rather than risk driving on roads littered with shells wired with remote control triggers.

Plus in Afghanistan, where roads don't travel to many of the hamlets where soldiers have set up combat outposts, commanders have no choice but to send soldiers on helicopters. This has placed massive amounts of stress on the Army's helicopter fleet, especially its workhorses, the CH-47 Chinook and the UH-60 Black Hawk.
"We're flying heavier and we're flying higher than had been planned," Crosby said.

Army brass wants to know exactly what toll those miles have taken and when they need to buy new helicopters or recapitalize the current fleet. A recapitalization program makes a helicopter new again. Maintainers replace almost everything except the frame.

To do this, of course, is costly, to the tune of $6 to $6.5 million per aircraft for the Black Hawk -- the helicopter that makes up 75% of the fleet. Every Black Hawk that returns from war is reset, which costs $1 to $2 million depending on the aircraft's wear. A brand new Black Hawk costs $16 million.

The Army doesn't plan to replace the Black Hawk until 2030, when service leaders expect the nascent Future Vertical Lift program to bear fruit. Army leaders need to keep these helicopters that have an expected service life of 20 years in the air.

The Army started a pilot program headed by U.S Army Aviation and Missile Command called Aircraft Inspection and Maintenance for the Black Hawk. Army leaders expect to eventually expand the program to rest of the fleet. Maintainers strip off the paint and take the Black Hawks apart so service leaders know the scope of its problems.

Maintainers took apart six helicopters last year and plan to take apart another four next year. The Army started inspecting the Black Hawk training fleet and they've already found problems.

Service leaders chose to inspect the training fleet first because some of those helicopters have experienced the most wear since students repeatedly land the aircraft -- and many times not so gently -- Rogers said.

During those inspections, crews have found that a key component -- the beam that bears most of the Black Hawk's weight and wraps around the airframe above the wheels -- has often developed cracks, said Gary Adams, chief of the Aircraft Logistics Maintenance Division for U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command.

Rogers and Crosby must decide if problems like these justify green lighting an expensive recapitalization program at a time when the Army's doesn't have money to spare. However, Pentagon leaders have shown enthusiasm for extending the service life of existing vehicles rather than buying and developing new ones.

"We're doing things we've never done before. We're trying to understand and minimize that because neither he nor I want to go run into the building and say ‘I need all this money to do this program' until we understand what we're dealing with," Crosby said.

© Copyright 2012 Military.com. All rights reserved.

[buglerbilly]

Future Vertical Lift Aircraft Faster, with Less Logistics Footprint

(Source: US Army; issued April 10, 2012)

WASHINGTON --- The Army's aircraft of the future will be faster than what the service has now, it will carry more weight, it will require less of a logistical footprint, and officials said it will better do what Army aviation is meant to do: serve the ground commander.

While what is now being called "Future Vertical Lift", or FVL, by the Army is still a concept, its capabilities are already known.

The FVL concept will be "able to support the Army and the ground commanders better than we can do it today," said Maj. Gen. Anthony G. Crutchfield, commander, U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence." I see this aircraft being able to do all the missions that we currently do. I see the aircraft that can do it because it can be scaled. It may be a medium variant, something that is the size of maybe a Black Hawk or an Apache is today, that can do the attack mission, or the assault/lift mission. I see the same aircraft scaled smaller that will be able to do the reconnaissance mission, similar to what a Kiowa Warrior does today."

Crutchfield said it's not known if the FVL concept will end up producing a rotary-wing aircraft, like the Army AH-64 Apache, or a tilt-rotor aircraft like the Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey.

What the FVL will do is perform missions the Army does today with its aviation assets, missions that will not change.

"The vision is that we can have an aircraft that can do all the missions that we currently have," he said. "Our missions will not change. We still will do attack and reconnaissance, we still will do sustainment and troop movements. It's an enduring mission that will not change. I just want to do it better."

The FVL aircraft will perform multiple roles, Crutchfield said, and that means that the end result is that there will be fewer types of aircraft in the Army's fleet. It's also possible that there will be fewer aircraft overall, because a more capable aircraft means that fewer aircraft will be needed.

"Today there are concepts where there are aircraft that we consider rotary wing, that can fly in excess of 300 knots," Crutchfield said. "No other aircraft we have today can fly 300 knots. If you have an aircraft that can fly 300 knots, it can cover more terrain faster, and if you can cover more terrain faster, theoretically, you would need less airframes to do the same type mission."

And because Crutchfield said the idea behind the FVL concept is to have the same aircraft be able to perform multiple missions, the Army will need fewer types of aircraft. That means a smaller number of parts will be needed to sustain the fleet, and a shared pool of maintainers and maintenance equipment. That will result in a reduced cost for logistics.

Crutchfield said that the FVL could come in different sizes, depending on the mission it will perform, but things like engine, drive train, and cockpit components would be the same, common between the two, and swappable.

Today's Army aircraft, Crutchfield said, are capable. But there is a limit to the performance that can be squeezed from them.

"Although we have great aircraft today, the best in the world, no matter how much money we invest in these aircraft of today - the aircraft are not going to fly any faster than they fly right now," Crutchfield said. "They are not going to be able to carry any more payload than they do right now. They will not be able to reduce any of the logistical footprint [more] than they do right now. That's what future vertical lift will do. That's what we see for the Army Aviation force of 2030."

It's expected that this summer, performance specifications for the FVL aircraft will be unveiled. Development of the program is an Army-led, joint program, that includes all military services, including the Coast Guard.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

New Fixed-Wing Aircraft Will Replace C-12s

(Source: US Army; issued April 11, 2012)

WASHINGTON --- The Army is looking to replace its fleet of 117 C-12 aircraft with something called a "Future Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft." The C-12 Huron is used by the Army for personnel transport, intelligence gathering and reconnaissance, as well as carrying cargo.

"The biggest program that we have got coming up, and of course this is going to replace all the Army C-12s, we're looking at putting a program together called the Future Fixed Wing Utility Aircraft," said Col. Brian Tachias, the Army's project manager for fixed-wing aircraft.

The colonel said a requirements document for that program is now "working in the Pentagon." When that is approved, he said, it will allow the Army to begin an analysis of alternatives, and eventually define the requirements for the program in a capabilities development document. If approved, that will allow the Army "to go out and procure the next fixed-wing utility aircraft."

Tachias spoke last week in Nashville, Tenn., at the Army Aviation Association of America conference there. He heads up the Army's latest project office, focused entirely on fixed-wing aircraft. The Project Office for Fixed-Wing Aircraft stood up in October 2011, and has a "leadership role over all of the Army fixed-wing aircraft," Tachias said.

Before the official stand-up date last year, the office managed about 256 Army aircraft. Today, the office manages about 366 fixed-wing aircraft. The consolidation of those aircraft under the oversight of one project office came after a push by the Army's vice chief of staff to centrally manage fixed-wing aircraft in one office because there are "a lot of efficiencies to be gained by consolidating them under one leadership role," Tachias said.

Tachias said there's been an estimated 10-15 percent cost savings by having the Army's entire fleet of fixed-wing aircraft managed by the office. He also said that managing them in one program means increased safety. The Army, he said, is "managing these programs under one Army standard to make sure we are providing safe aircraft for the pilots to fly, and of course consolidating the configuration management under one system, that way we don't have all these different configurations of all these different aircraft."

The colonel said that since October, the office has conducted 111 airworthiness releases on the aircraft it manages.

Among the aircraft the office manages are those used by the Army Corps of Engineers, the Golden Knights, and the United States Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. The office also handles special operations fixed-wing aircraft and aircraft that do intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance work.

In the near term, the project office is also buying aircraft for the Army Test and Evaluation Command, which has four aircraft that need replacement. The office has also procured new aircraft for the Golden Knights.

Recently, Tachias said, the office has stood up a foreign military sales cell and is working cases with the United Arab Emirates, Columbia, Egypt and Greece.

-ends-

[buglerbilly]

US Army puts out call for AAS flight demonstrations

26 April 2012 - 10:29 by Tony Skinner in London



The US Army has started the ball rolling on a “voluntary flight demonstration” of candidate aircraft for its Armed Aerial Scout (AAS) requirement, with the public release of a request for information (RfI) on 25 April.

Issued by the Armed Scout Helicopter (ASH) Program Management Office (PMO), the RfI said the army was seeking information on ‘commercial, commercial-modified, military, and conceptual air vehicle technologies’ as well as performance capabilities and technical data in support of any AAS acquisition.

‘Additionally, the ASH PMO is seeking information regarding industry's interest in participating in a voluntary flight demonstration of their existing air vehicles to display the state of the art in regard to helicopter systems and subsystem(s) technologies,’ the RfI stated.

The information collected from interested companies will be used to ‘assess the current state of technology’ and whether it can address the shortfalls in the current OH-58D fleet while providing 6K/95 performance.

The document revealed that the OH-58D had capability shortfalls in speed, range and endurance; performance margin to operate in hot and high environments; and lethality due to limitations in weapons payload capacity.

The projected average procurement unit cost (APUC) for an AAS aircraft was given as between $13 million and $15 million, although the army noted that this may change depending on the final acquisition strategy.

The document also revealed the perceived AAS ‘mission set’, which will include reconnaissance, security operations, close combat attack, mobile strike, and vertical manoeuvre.

Manufacturers interested in taking part in the flight demonstration were asked to register by 21 May with final responses due by 2 July.

With the AAS programme expected to be the last major army rotorcraft procurement before the introduction of Future Vertical Lift aircraft from 2030, the project is being eagerly eyed by industry.

Those that have publicly expressed their interest include AgustaWestland North America (AW109 or AW119), AVX (OH-58 coaxial conversion), Bell (OH-58F Block II), Boeing (AH-6i), EADS North America (AAS-72X or AAS-72X+), MD Helicopters (MD540) and Sikorsky (S97 Raider).

The document’s reference to a ‘concept air vehicle’, and acknowledgement it might be a compound aircraft with a pusher prop tail rotor, will give Sikorsky encouragement that its S97 Raider will be assessed on equal footing despite the fact its first flight is not expected until 2014.

Respondents were asked to propose a location for the demonstration and two week flight window as well as an initial flight demonstration plan, including planned flight manoeuvres and weight and balance data. No preferred timeframe for the demonstration was given.

‘To observe and assess the effects of the technologies on the air vehicle platform’s performance and air vehicle handling qualities, the US government will assign qualified experimental test pilots to the cockpit,’ the RfI stated.

[buglerbilly]

IDF develops active missile-shield for helicopters

By YAAKOV KATZ, Jerusalem Post

04/27/2012 03:35


Amid concern that shoulder-to-air missiles will be fired in large numbers at IAF aircraft in future warfare, army initiates plans for protective shield for helicopters.
Photo: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems

The military has initiated plans to develop a protective shield for its helicopters amid concern that shoulder-to-air missiles will be fired in large numbers at Israel Air Force aircraft in a future war.

The new system – Fliker – is under contract by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and successfully intercepted a rocket- propelled grenade in its first test recently.

Fliker is designed to serve as the second layer of defense for helicopters and will be activated when automatic flares fail to divert an incoming missile.

Fliker’s unique launcher can rotate in the direction of missile projection and fire an interceptor in defense. The interceptor is designed to minimize debris and thereby reduce the risk that shrapnel will hit and damage the aircraft.

In recent years and in the face of a similar threat, the IAF has modified its flight plans over the Gaza Strip and southern Lebanon due to intelligence reports that both Hamas and Hezbollah have obtained a significant number of shoulder- to-air missiles.

Hamas, for example, is believed to possess a significant number of Russian-designed shoulder-fired missiles, obtained from Iran and Libya.

Hezbollah has many shoulder- to-air missiles, according to the IAF. Israel is also concerned about reports that the organization might have the SA-8 – a Russian tactical mobile truck that offers a surface-to-air missile system with a range of 30 kilometers.

During the Second Lebanon War in 2006, Hezbollah shot down a Yasour (Sikorsky CH- 53) transport helicopter in Lebanon, killing its crew.

The Defense Ministry considered using the Trophy active protection system, which is installed on Merkava Mk 4 tanks in order to deflect antitank missiles.

The Trophy system, however, was found to be incompatible with helicopters since it fires off a cloud of countermeasures that could damage the aircrafts’ rotors.

[buglerbilly]

Redstone Report: RSA delivers helicopters to Iraqi Army

Posted: Apr 30, 2012 11:55 PM
Updated: May 01, 2012 8:51 AM

By Tricia Forbes - bio | email


Redstone Arsenal's Foreign Military Sales group is expected to deliver a total of 30 armed reconnaissance helicopters to the Iraqi Army by the end of 2012.

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - U.S. military operations are winding down in Iraq, which means the Iraqi Army needs new equipment to maintain security in the country.

Redstone Arsenal's Foreign Military Sales group is expected to deliver a total of 30 armed reconnaissance helicopters to the Iraqi Army by the end of 2012.

They routinely sell equipment to countries all over the world, but officials said this project is different.

"This is unique in that it's a customer defined aircraft configuration. So, this aircraft does not exist in the U.S. Army inventory," said Lt. Col. Courtney Cote, Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter Project Manager.

All of the equipment, technology and design elements on the new helicopter were custom-created for the Iraqi Army. Project leaders selected a commercial Bell 407 helicopter for the sale.

They transformed the 407 with commercial and military modifications.

Cote said delivering these aircraft is a crucial step in maintaining stability in Iraq now that U.S. Army soldiers are gone.

"We've brought back all of our forces and now they need the capability to fill that vacuum that was created by our departure," he said.

The Army has already delivered three Bell 407 helicopters from Huntsville to Iraq. The Iraqi Army worked with U.S. Advisors to train their troops on the new equipment. The U.S. Army will deliver the remaining 27 aircraft by the end of this year.

The custom venture also helped the team at Redstone with future projects for our Army.

"We learned a lot of lessons on how to do design, integration and qualification here on Redstone Arsenal on this program that are leveraged now forward to the OH-58 F program," Cote said.

The Cockpit and Sensor Upgrade Program (CASUP) will allow the Kiowa OH-58 F to stay in the air until 2025. Many members of the team working on CASUP also worked on the Bell 407 transformation.

Copyright 2012 WAFF. All rights reserved.

[buglerbilly]

Maryland Army Guard unveils newest helicopter in its arsenal

April 30, 2012

By Tech. Sgt. John Orrell, National Guard Bureau


The first of four UH-72A Lakota helicopters, which will be part of the Maryland Army National Guard's fleet used for civil support, search and rescue and homeland security missions, takes off at Camp Fretterd, Md., with senior members of the Maryland National Guard aboard for the inaugural flight April 18, 2012. The flight was crewed by Lt. Col. Michael Whelan, commander for the Maryland Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Renonzo Belcher, a Lakota pilot; and a Baltimore police flight officer and Staff Sgt. Joseph Beale, who was the flight's crew chief.

CAMP FRETTERD, Md. (Army News Service, April 30, 2012) -- The Maryland Army National Guard unveiled its first of four UH-72A Lakota helicopters, April 18. The aircraft will replace the older OH-58A Kiowa as their premier aircraft for civil support, search and rescue and homeland security missions.

The Lakota is actually replacing the aging Kiowa aircraft as well as UH-1 Iroquois "Huey" aircraft, nationwide, within Army National Guard units. The Army plans to purchase a total of 345 Lakota aircraft through 2015. About one third of those will go to active-duty units; the rest go to National Guard units, such as in Maryland.

As of April 5, the Army had taken delivery of 209 Lakotas. They're being flown in 42 of the 50 states and have logged about 100,000 flight hours so far.

Currently, the Maryland Army Guard has six personnel being trained on the new light utility helicopter and the "security and support" mission equipment package that it carries. According to Guard officials, the S&S version of the Lakota brings to the table many improvements over the Kiowa aircraft it will replace.

The new aircraft includes a nose-mounted center-line payload with infrared and electro-optical sensors and laser painter, which will allow for more accurate search and rescue by using heat signatures. Inside the aircraft, improvements include moving map and touch-screen displays, as well as a video management system. Additional avionics and communications equipment aboard the aircraft include radios that will allow Guard members to communicate with civilian law enforcement personnel and first responders.

Outside the aircraft, to enhance search and rescue capability, the Lakota includes a 30-million candlepower searchlight and an external hoist to allow the aircraft to move up to 600 pounds of equipment.

Compared to the Kiowa, which is a single-engine helicopter, the Lakota has twin-engines. During hurricane season, the increased capability will allow Maryland Guard pilots to fly and take off in winds up to 50 knots, about 60 mph. That capability was not available on the Kiowa.

"It's a state-of-the-art aircraft for state-of-the-art pilots," said Maj. Gen. James Adkins, the adjutant general for the Maryland National Guard.

The Lakota is also a more cost-efficient tool. According to Army aviation officials, the Lakota delivers cost savings on maintenance. As a light utility helicopter, the Lakota was pursued as a replacement for the Kiowa as well as the "Huey." Repair parts for the Lakota are less expensive than for the older aircraft, and are delivered more quickly.

In Maryland, the Army National Guard unit there was also using the UH-60 Black Hawk to do some missions, due to its capability over the Kiowa. The Kiowa, for instance, didn't have hoist capability so the Black Hawk provided that function. But now the Lakota will do that job, and Maryland Guard officials say the new aircraft can be maintained and operated at half the cost of the Black Hawk.

Additionally, Army-wide, the Lakota has maintained 90 percent operational availability rates, officials said.

With all of the upgrades the Lakota brings to the Maryland Army Guard fleet, Adkins feels this will position them to be even more efficient for multiple missions.

"Not only does it help Maryland by replacing older aircraft, but it supports the governor in emergencies and it supports the federal government as well," he said.

"Two of these aircraft will be going to the southwest border at the beginning of June to support U.S. Customs down there," Adkins said. "We'll use it in state emergencies whether we need to go out and look for lost individuals, or do analysis of the impact of a hurricane."

Chief Warrant Officer 2 Renonzo Belcher, a Lakota pilot and a Baltimore police flight officer, was one of the pilots for Wednesday's flight. He feels that even though the Kiowa was a useful tool for the Maryland Guard, he is looking forward to the capabilities the Lakota will bring to the fleet.

"The old [helicopter] was good, but this one has a lot more capabilities," he said. "[The Lakota has] a lot more radios, a little bit more power so that we can also conduct hoist missions [and] carry a lot more people and we're able to stay up in the air lot longer. Versus the older plane, where two hours of flight-time was feasible, the new Lakota can offer us three to three-and-a-half hours."

[buglerbilly]

Boeing awarded low rate production contract for Block III Apaches

By: Dave Majumdar Washington DC

1 hours ago

Source:

The US Army has awarded Boeing a $486.4 million firm-fixed-price contract for the low rate initial production (LRIP) of the AH-64D Apache Block III attack helicopter. At the same time, the company also received a $171.8 million firm-fixed-price contract for the procurement of Foreign Military Sales (FMS) Apache Block III aircraft.

Boeing says the LRIP contract for the Block III helicopters consists of 51 remanufactured production aircraft for the US Army. The first of those aircraft was delivered in October 2011. Delivery of LRIP aircraft will continue through December 2013.

"Boeing and Team Apache is thrilled to continue fulfilling the promise to deliver improved sustainment and advanced capabilities with the Apache Block III helicopters for US Army soldiers and allied defence forces around the world," says David Koopersmith, Boeing's attack helicopter programs via a spokeswoman.

The Block III is a much improved version of the older Block II variant. It incorporates new engines, transmission and rotors-which greatly improve performance. The aircraft also has vastly improved avionics

[buglerbilly]

Kazakhstan government seals deal for 20 EC725s

10 May 2012 - 14:18 by Tony Osborne in London



The government of Kazakhstan has signed a deal to buy 20 Eurocopter EC725s medium helicopters it has been announced.

The aircraft will be used by the country's ministry of defence and will be assembled in-country alongside 45 EC145 light-twin helicopters being assembled under a 50/50 joint venture Eurocopter Kazakhstan Engineering.

The agreement for the EC725s was formalised at KADEX-2012 military exhibition held in Astana on 3-6 May.

'With an ongoing success story based on the EC145 assembled locally in Astana, Eurocopter is proud to strengthen its strategic partnership with the Republic of Kazakhstan and Kazakhstan Engineering. Based on both a long term plan and mutual trust, our joint goal is to create a sustainable helicopter industry in Kazakhstan.' said Olivier Lambert, Eurocopter’s SVP for sales and customer relations.

'We are confident that the unequalled versatility and operational performances of the EC725 make it the best choice to fulfil 21st century operational requirements.'

The Kazakhstan government already operates six EC145 helicopters, which were assembled and delivered during 2011 to the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the ministry of defence.

The KADEX event also saw Eurocopter announce that a further eight EC145s have been ordered by the government. The order encompasses six EC145s that will be supplied in a medical evacuation configuration for the Ministry of Emergency Situations; and two which will be operated by the ministry of defence for SAR missions.

The order for the EC725s is part of a major re-capitalisation of the Kazakh armed forces and its parapublic agencies. Although its not been confirmed, the EC725s could be used to replace or supplement the Kazakh Air and Air Defence Force’s large fleet of Mi-8 and Mi-17 medium helicopters.

As well as orders for helicopters, the air arm has signed a contract for two Airbus Military C295 fixed-wing transport aircraft and has signed an MoU for a further six. These are understood to be replacing elderly Antonov An-26s. They are also believed to be negotiating for up to four Airbus A400Ms.

The air arm's large fighter fleet includes Su-27s which have received a series of upgrades allowing them to carry Litening targeting pods.

[buglerbilly]

Does Israel Have Stealthy Black Hawks?



Well, this is interesting. Former Pentagon senior policy analyst F. Michael Maloof claims there might be a lot more of those stealthy Black Hawk helicopters – the kind famoulsy used in the raid that killed Osama bin Laden last year — out there than has previously been reported. The best part of his claim; the U.S. isn’t the only nation to operate them.

Israel is possibly using stealthy Black Hawks to ferry armed, 12-man teams of Iranian dissidents living in northern Iraq into Iran in order to collect intelligence on Tehran’s nuclear programs, writes Maloof.

With the help of recruited Iranian dissidents in Kurdistan, the Israelis are attempting to gather sufficient information to convince the United States and the United Nations that Iran is involved in using its nuclear development program to make nuclear weapons.

Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government officially has denied claims by Iranian officials regarding the missions. But various reports including a recent Times of London report suggest that Israel is using specially modified U.S.-supplied Black Hawk helicopters to carry 12-member armed teams with sensitive equipment to monitor radioactivity and the magnitude of explosives tests. The helicopters may be similar to the specially modified stealth Black Hawks which were used in the May 2011 assassination of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden by U.S. Navy SEALS in Abbottabad, Pakistan.

One of those specially-modified helicopters crashed and was only partially destroyed, giving the Pakistanis access to the stealth technology which then was passed on to China, Iran and Russia, according to informed sources. In undertaking missions inside Iran, sources suggest that the commandos are dressed as members of the Iranian military and use Iranian military vehicles.

A quick Google search doesn’t turn up any of the media reports about Israel using stealthy Black Hawks to penetrate Iran that Maloof claims are out there. Still, this is a very interesting angle, since the most revealing reporting on the stealth chopper that crashed during last year’s raid to kill bin Laden stated that the stealthy-bird was one of only a handful ever made for the U.S. Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. Now, given the fact that the stealthy Black Hawks are super secret, it would make sense to say that only a couple exist when the reality is far different. Still, what would happen if an Israeli-operated, U.S.-made stealth Black Hawk went down inside Iran? There’s also the possibility that Israel has figured out how to modify its Black Hawks on its own — remember, the tech supposedly used to modify the 160th SOAR’s Black Hawks was apparently introduced in the 1980s and 1990s, so it’s not impossible to think that the IDF has figured out how to copy it.

Image above via David Cenciotti.

Read more: http://defensetech.org/#ixzz1v2HVe3x9
Defense.org

[JKM Mk2]

Copt it! The 'special' modifications were probably Israeli mods in the first place!

JKM

[buglerbilly]

Australia grounds Tiger helicopters after detection of cockpit fumes

By: Greg Waldron Singapore

6 hours ago

Source:

Australia has grounded its Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopters after fumes were detected in one of the aircraft.

"The Australian Army has suspended Tiger armed reconnaissance helicopter flying operations for training activities due to a concern following the detection of fumes in the cockpit of one of the aircraft," says Australia's department of defence.

The force has 22 Tigers, but the type has yet to enter full operational service. Of these, 19 have a "fully capable configuration" and three are being retrofitted.

Final testing of the type is planned for late 2012.


©Eurocopter

[buglerbilly]

Netherlands wants to buy 11 new-build CH-47F Chinooks

17 May 2012 - 12:02 by Tony Osborne in London



The Netherlands Ministry of Defence wants to change its Chinook procurement plans and buy 11 new build 'Foxtrot' models.

In a letter to the Netherlands Senate, Defence Minister Hans Hillen is urging that the government to buy new build CH-47Fs to replace its increasingly elderly fleet of CH-47Ds rather than upgrade those aircraft to the 'Foxtrot' model standard.

Currently the Netherlands has six CH-47Fs on order, the first of which flew in January 2011. These aircraft were ordered to supplement the current fleet of 11 CH-47Ds but will mainly support special forces operations.

The plan was to then bring the rest of the fleet up to the CH-47F standard.

Hillen argues that replacing the CH-47Ds with new build aircraft will allow the Netherlands armed forces to fly the type until 2045, while the upgrade only allows them to fly until 2035.

Hillen said: 'This is indeed a higher investment cost than the modification of the current Chinooks, but the difference is more than offset by operational efficiency and cost advantages.'

He also pointed out a reduction in risk associated with the modification programme and that the whole CH-47D fleet would continue to be available to the armed forces, something that would not happen with aircraft in the modification programme.

Hillen told the Senate that the project would cost €250 million and would allow the Ministry of Defence to sell on the existing fleet of CH-47Ds.

The Netherlands armed forces Chinook fleet originally numbered 13, but two losses in Afghanistan have reduced that to the current 11. They consist of seven 1974-vintage CH-47Cs purchased from Canada and upgraded to 'Delta' standard, while the other four aircraft are 1995 vintage CH-47Ds.

[buglerbilly]

Panetta to seal Apache deal during June 6 visit

Shishir Gupta , Hindustan Times

New Delhi, May 18, 2012

First Published: 00:07 IST(18/5/2012)
Last Updated: 00:09 IST(18/5/2012)

Exactly a week before Indo-US strategic dialogue in Washington, US defence secretary Leon Panetta is coming to the Capital on June 6 to discuss long term defence cooperation and seal the big ticket $1.4 billion worth sale of 22 Apache Longbow attack helicopters to India.

Government sources said Panetta will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, his Indian counterpart AK Antony as well as other senior leaders of the UPA government. Principal deputy assistant secretary of defence Dr Peter Lavoy was in Dehi today and briefed India about the Nato summit in Chicago on Afghanistan.

Secretary Panetta during his day long visit will share Pentagon's perception of political developments in China, Pakistan and Afghanistan. However, his main focus is going to be post 2014 scenario in Afghanistan after America withdraws from Kabul.

Both India and US are committed to a long term commitment to Afghanistan in order to have stablility in the regional neighbourhood. Panetta will be flying into India after attending the Shangri La dialogue in Singapore.

While the defence secretary will discuss long term defence cooperation with India, he will also ensure that the Apache deal is sealed during his visit. Pursued by India for the past two years, the Apache 64D II is possibily the best attack helicopter and has had a proven record in Iraq and Afghanistan operations. As of now, the two sides are trying to close the offsets part of the deal.

Terrorism is also going to be on the agenda for the bilateral talks with Panetta. A key player of Obama administration and a former CIA chief, he may also share the inside information about the US operation that took out Osama Bin Laden in Abbottabad in Pakistan last May.