Internationale fighter ontwikkelingen

[Harald]

U.S. To Buy Decommissioned British Harrier Jets

WASHINGTON and LONDON - Britain has agreed to sell all of its 74 decommissioned Harrier jump jets, along with engines and spare parts, to the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps - a move expected to help the Marines operate Harriers into the mid-2020s and provide extra planes to replace aging two-seat F-18D Hornet strike fighters.

Rear Adm. Mark Heinrich, chief of the U.S. Navy's Supply Corps, confirmed the two-part deal Nov. 10 during a conference in New York sponsored by Bank of America Merrill Lynch in association with Defense News.

Heinrich negotiated the $50 million purchase of all Harrier spare parts, while Rear Adm. Donald Gaddis, the U.S. Navy's program executive officer for tactical aircraft, is overseeing discussions to buy the Harrier aircraft and their Rolls-Royce engines, Heinrich said.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence in London confirmed the Disposal Services Agency was in talks with the U.S. Navy for the sale of the Harriers. The deal had yet to be concluded, he said Nov. 11.

Britain retired its joint force of Royal Air Force and Royal Navy Harrier aircraft late last year in one of the most controversial moves of the defense reductions, which also cut the aircraft carriers that operated the jets, other warships, maritime patrol planes and personnel.

Most of the retired Harriers are stored at the Royal Air Force base at Cottesmore, England.

They have been undergoing minimum fleet maintenance, including anti-deterioration measures, in order to keep them airworthy, Heinrich said.

A spokesman for the U.S. Navy's Naval Air Systems Command declined Nov. 11 to comment on the deal, deferring to the British military.

An MoD source said Nov. 11 that he thought both deals could be signed in the next week or two. The MoD source confirmed that the entire fleet of 74 Harrier aircraft was involved in the sale.

Heinrich noted that payment details were the only outstanding issue on the parts deal discussions, and he said the purchase will give the U.S. Marines a relatively economical way to get their hands on key components to keep the Harrier fleet running.

Similar Aircraft

While it is unusual for the U.S. to buy used foreign military aircraft for operation, integration of the British planes into Marine Corps squadrons shouldn't be a major problem, one expert said.

"I don't think it will be costly to rip out the Brit systems" and replace them with Marine gear, said Lon Nordeen, author of several books on the Harrier.

Nordeen noted that the British GR 9 and 9As are similar in configuration to the Marines' AV-8B night attack version, which make up about a third of U.S. Harriers. The British planes also are night planes dedicated to air-ground attack, he said, and while both types carry Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) sensors, neither is fitted with a multimode radar such as the APG-65 carried by U.S. AV-8B+ models.

The absence of the big radar, Nordeen said, makes the GR 9A and AV-8Bs "a better-performing plane. Weighing less, it's more of a hot rod."

British GR 9s, although upgraded with improved avionics and weapons, are powered by the Rolls-Royce Mark 105 Pegasus engine. GR 9As have the more powerful Mark 107, similar to the Rolls-Royce F402-RR-408s that power Marine AV-8Bs.

British and U.S. Harrier II aircraft had a high degree of commonality from their origin. The planes were developed and built in a joint arrangement between British Aerospace - now BAE Systems - and McDonnell Douglas, now a division of Boeing. While each company built its own wings, all forward sections of the British and American Harrier IIs were built by McDonnell in St. Louis, Mo., while British Aerospace built the fuselage sections aft of the cockpit.

"All the planes have to fit together," Nordeen said.

The Harrier IIs, built between 1980 and 1995, "are still quite serviceable," he said. "The aircraft are not that far apart. We're taking advantage of all the money the Brits have spent on them. It's like we're buying a car with maybe 15,000 miles on it."

Operationally, Nordeen said, "these are very good platforms. They need upgrades, but on bombing missions they have the ability to incorporate the Litening II targeting pod [used by U.S. aircraft]. They're good platforms. And we've already got trained pilots."

Marine Corps Harriers are to be phased out by 2025, when replacement by new F-35B Joint Strike Fighters should be complete.

Nordeen, however, said he expects the British Harriers to be used initially to replace two-seat Marine F-18D Hornet fighters now operated in the night attack role.

"The F-18Ds are more worn out than the Harriers," Nordeen said. "Most of the conversions [of ex-British aircraft] early on will be to replace 18Ds and not Harriers." He noted the first Marine F-35B squadron already is slated to replace an F-18D unit.

Nordeen applauded the move.

"I would see this as a good bargain to extend the operational utility of the Harrier II fleet, no matter what," he said.

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=8225756&c=EUR&s=AIR

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Eurofighter loses ground against F-35 in Japan contract race

The Eurofighter has fallen behind in the race to become Japan's next-generation air-defence fighter.

Defence analysts monitoring the three-way dogfight for the multi-billion contract say Tokyo has been impressed with the stealth technology of the Lockheed Martin F-35, which will enable it to carry out clandestine monitoring of Chinese, North Korean and Russian military assets in the region.

It also remains indebted to Washington for the assistance the US military provided in the aftermath of the March 11 earthquake.

"Even before March 11 there were many factors in favour of the F-35, but since then that national security relationship between the two governments has become much closer," one analyst with knowledge of the bidding told The Daily Telegraph.

The third aircraft in the running for the contract is the Boeing F/A18 Super Hornet and representatives of Eurofighter and Boeing have scheduled a joint press conference in Tokyo on Wednesday to debate the merits of their aircraft.

The consortium behind the Eurofighter Typhoon is continuing to promote the aircraft, however, and remains confident in its product.

"We are in daily contact with the Japanese Ministry of Defence regarding their F-X evaluation," said Andy Latham, vice president of Typhoon exports.

"We maintain that our cost-effective proposal offers Eurofighter Typhoon, the world's most advanced multi-role combat aircraft, as Japan's best option to meet the requirement for its F-X programme and the most capable deterrent to regional threats," he said.

A decision is expected in December and opting for Typhoon would be particularly welcomed by BAE Systems, one of the three European companies building the plane, which in September announced nearly 3,000 potential job losses across Britain.

However BAE is also building part of the F-35 for Lockheed.

RAF Typhoons flew around 3,000 operational hours over Libya, reporting a 99pc success rate against fixed targets and 98pc against mobile targets. That combat experience is seen as vital to the bid.

Eurofighter has declined to reveal the price tag on the aircraft, but each jet is believed to cost around £65m.

The Typhoon is in service with the air forces of the four countries that collaborated on the project and has been sold to Austria and Saudi Arabia.

The governments of India, Greece, Qatar, Oman, South Korea, Denmark, Switzerland, Turkey, Romania, Malaysia and Bulgaria are all also reportedly considering acquiring the aircraft.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/industry/defence/8887511/Eurofighter-loses-ground-against-F-35-in-Japan-contract-race.html

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Blow to Rafale as UAE eyes Eurofighter

nu is de UAE al langer naar alternatieven aan het vissen, dus helemaal een verassing is het niet, maar het leek er toch kort op dat er een deal aan zat te komen, en nu is die weer uitgesteld. Inderdaad een flinke tegenslag voor de Rafale.

Wellicht wordt de RFP bij EADS gebruikt om de onderhandelingen (weer) op scherp te zetten. De Franse hoop was op een accoord voor de aanschaf van 60 Rafale tijdens de Dubai Airshow van deze week.

De offerte aanvraag voor de EF zet een streep door deze ambitie, waarbij ik me niet kan voorstellen dat EADS de zelfde flexabiiteit heeft als de Fransen, immers zij bieden aan om alle overtollige Mirage 2000-9 terug te kopen c.q. in te ruilen.

We zullen zien wat het wordt.

2011 zal toch het eerste Rafale export  succes laten zien: 22 stuks voor Zwitserland en/of 126 voor India.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

November 13, 2011 4:01 pm

Blow to Rafale as UAE eyes Eurofighter

By John O'Doherty

The export hopes for France's Rafale fighter jet were dealt a heavy setback on Sunday after it emerged that the United Arab Emirates was considering buying the rival Eurofighter Typhoon for its air force.

The news will come as a blow to the French government, which has strong military links with the UAE and had invested considerable political capital in recent months on lobbying the country's government to choose the French-made jet.

Eurofighter, the consortium maker of the Typhoon, confirmed on Sunday that the UAE had approached the UK government for a briefing on the Typhoon and its capabilities. A briefing with the UAE took place on October 17 and shortly after this the UAE government submitted a "request for proposal" (RFP) to Eurofighter, inviting it to submit an offer to supply 60 jets.

"Eurofighter received an RFP from the government of the UAE and we are working on submitting a response as quickly as possible," a spokesperson for Eurofighter said on Sunday.

Eurofighter is a consortium comprising BAE Systems of the UK, Finmeccanica of Italy and the pan-European aerospace group EADS.

The UAE air force's combat fleet is composed of about 60 Lockheed Martin F-16s and 60 older Mirage 2000s, which are made by Dassault, the maker of the Rafale. The UAE's fleet of F-16s is relatively recent and thus any new combat aircraft it chooses will replace the Mirage jets.

France has been promoting the sale of Rafale aircraft abroad for several years but the jet has yet to find an export customer outside France. The Typhoon, by contrast, has won orders in both Austria and Saudi Arabia, in addition to the four "launch" nations that collaborated on developing the jet in Germany, the UK, Italy and Spain.

France's sales drive in the UAE has been in train for more than three years now. At several points during that time, French policymakers have expressed confidence that they were very close to signing a deal.

The most recent bout of optimism on the possibility of sales of the Rafale to the UAE came in September this year after a visit to Paris by the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Rafale's best hope for an export order now is a competition to supply 126 fighters to the Indian air force, a competition in which its only rival is the Typhoon.

Dassault was not available for comment on Sunday.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2011.

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Joint Strike Fighter Can Carry Raytheon Joint Standoff Weapon Internally
JSOW C-1 combined with JSF gives warfighter a powerful new capability


DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, Nov. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Raytheon Company /quotes/zigman/283276/quotes/nls/rtn RTN +1.97% has completed a fit check of the Joint Standoff Weapon in the internal carriage bay of the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft.

"The capabilities of the JSF combined with JSOW C-1's ability to precisely engage moving ships at sea from standoff ranges would give the U.S. and coalition warfighter a powerful capability," said Cmdr. Samuel Hanaki, U.S. Navy JSOW deputy program manager.

During the fit check, Raytheon technicians loaded a JSOW shape in the JSF's internal carriage bay and conducted a series of tests to prove the bay door could close properly without damaging the aircraft or the weapon.

"JSOW C-1 is the world's first net-enabled standoff weapon that can engage a moving maritime target," said Phyllis McEnroe, JSOW program director for Raytheon Missile Systems. "With its more than 110 kilometer range (68 statute miles) and tunnel defeat capability, JSOW C-1 will give members of the JSF a critical capability no other weapon can provide."

About the Joint Standoff Weapon

JSOW is a family of low-cost, air-to-ground weapons that employs an integrated GPS- inertial navigation system and terminal imaging infrared seeker, guiding the weapon to the target. JSOW C-1 adds moving maritime target capability and the two-way strike common weapon datalink to the combat-proven weapon.

JSOW C-1 is the world's first networked weapon, and has a range of more than 110 kilometers (60 nautical miles).

The U.S. Navy completed the first free-flight test of JSOW C-1 on July 26, 2011.

About Raytheon

Raytheon Company, with 2010 sales of $25 billion, is a technology and innovation leader specializing in defense, homeland security and other government markets throughout the world. With a history of innovation spanning 89 years, Raytheon provides state-of-the-art electronics, mission systems integration and other capabilities in the areas of sensing; effects; and command, control, communications and intelligence systems, as well as a broad range of mission support services. With headquarters in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 72,000 people worldwide. For more about Raytheon, visit us at www.raytheon.com and follow us on Twitter @raytheon.

Media ContactMike Nachshen+1.520.794.4088rmspr@raytheon.com

SOURCE Raytheon Company

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