Canadian DND figures shows little wiggle room in replacing CF-18s with stealth fighters

Ottawa, CANADA – There’s little wiggle room to prolong the life of Canada’s CF-18 jet fighters beyond 2020 and they may have to be flown gently if there are further delays in the F-35 program.

A Defence Department chart that tracks maintenance on all 77 aircraft shows the CF-18s had used up about 73 per cent of their airframe life prior to last year’s Libya bombing campaign.

National Defence has acknowledged there is no back-up plan if the multi-national F-35 stealth fighter program encounters more problems or postponements.

The retirement date for all but three of the CF-18s is set at 2020, according to the spreadsheet tabled in Parliament last year in response to written questions by Opposition parties.

On average, each aircraft is expected to end its service life with just over 7,000 hours in the air; most had already surpassed an average 5,151 hours at the time the snapshot was taken in late 2010.

The aging fighters have gone through a decade-long $1.8-billion upgrade to their weapons systems and sensors, and senior defence officials say they’ll “easily be effective” for another eight years.

All of the jets were purchased between 1984 and 1989. Aircraft No. 925 is expected to clock out with the airtime at 8,637 hours, according to the documents.

The first of the problem-plagued F-35s is supposed to be delivered in 2016, with the bulk of the planned 65 aircraft arriving in 2020.

The New Democrats say it’s foolish that the Harper government has not prepared a solid back-up plan, even if that contingency is simply investing in some sort of airframe life-extension.

“The way they are proceeding simply confounds me,” said NDP critic Matthew Kellway. “I don’t know how they could have painted themselves into this corner without a back up, and if they have one they refuse to tell us what it might be.”

But for the Harper government, the figures underscore the need to replace the aging fighters.

“Canada’s CF-18s are nearing the end of their usable lives,” said Chris McCluskey, a spokesman for Associate Defence Minister Julian Fantino.

“We have set a budget for replacement aircraft and we have been clear that we will operate within that budget. We will make sure that the Air Force has aircraft necessary to do the job we ask of them.”

Other nations, notably the United States, have invested in programs to keep their F-16 Fighting Falcons and F-15 Eagles flying because of delays in the US $328-billion stealth fighter, which is the most costly weapons program in American history.

In fact, Lockheed Martin, which manufactures both the F-35 and the F-16, announced last week that it would offer upgrade kits to keep older Falcons in the air and might even build new ones.

Industry observers see it as a hedge against more possible delays.

The current Defence Department plan in Ottawa sees the first F-35s arrive in 2016 and enter service in the 2018 time frame, at which point the oldest of the current fighters would be retired. But development setbacks and delayed orders from other allied nations have cast doubt on that.

Defence experts have been pushing the government since last fall to consider a further upgrade to the CF-18s.

Retired air force lieutenant-colonel Dean Black has said it’s something that should be considered rather than going down the road of Australia buying new Super Hornets, the beefed up version of the F-18.

 

-whistlerquestion.com

F-35 fighter eyes more sales abroad than in the U.S.

TOKYO (AP) — Detractors say the F-35 stealth fighter, the costliest military plane ever, is destined to go down as one of the biggest follies in aviation history.

But it may have found a savior: deep-pocketed U.S. allies hungry to add its super high-tech capabilities to their arsenal.

The program marked a major success last month when Japan chose it over the Boeing F/A-18 and the Eurofighter Typhoon as a replacement for 42 aircraft in its aging air force.

It was the F-35‘s first victory in an open-bidding competition, though countries from Britain to Israel previously made commitments and others are expected to follow.

Manufacturer Lockheed Martin also is looking to bring F-35s to South Korea in a deal that could be Seoul’s biggest single defense outlay ever — 60 top-of-the-line fighters worth more than $7 billion. A decision could come as soon as October.

In the U.S., however, the stealth jet has been called a boondoggle. John McCain, the ranking Republican on the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, has slammed the F-35 as a “scandal and a tragedy,” a “train wreck” and “incredibly expensive.” With U.S. defense budget cuts looming and many critics of the program still unconvinced, foreign support is a make-or-break issue for the program, which has been described as too big to fail. It could become the cornerstone of global air strategy for the next few decades, or a trillion-dollar bust.

“The U.S. fighter jet industry has all of its eggs in this one basket,” said Richard Bitzinger, a security expert at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University. So many countries have bought into the program, he said, there is now no realistic choice but to forge ahead with it.

“It would be almost impossible for the U.S. to cancel the F-35, since the repercussions would be global,” he said.

The F-35 is the world’s only “fifth-generation” fighter jet, combining state-of-the art stealth technology with highly advanced avionics and maneuverability. The first F-35 flew in 2006, and 42 have been produced so far. China and Russia are working on rival — and some experts say superior — aircraft.

About 130,000 people in 47 states and Puerto Rico have jobs related to the project. The only states without F-35 work are Hawaii, North Dakota and Wyoming.

“Simply put, there is no alternative to the F-35 program. It must succeed,” Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley said in September.

The Pentagon envisions buying 2,443 F-35s for the U.S. Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy, but some members of Congress and Department of Defense officials are balking at the price tag, which has jumped from $233 billion to $385 billion. Some estimates suggest it could top out at $1 trillion over 50 years, making it the most expensive program in military history.

In frustration over cost overruns, Congress added a requirement that Lockheed Martin cover extra costs on future F-35 purchases to the defense bill it passed last month.

“The delays and cost increases that F-35 has suffered have put it under substantial political pressure in Washington, so a win like the Japan program is a major boost,” said James Hardy, Asia Pacific specialist with IHS Jane’s in London.

Success rides heavily on foreign investment because the more F-35s are produced, the cheaper each jet is to build and maintain.

Lockheed Martin, in conjunction with Northrop Grumman, Pratt & Whitney and BAE Systems, has been careful to bring in international partners. The fighter is being developed with support from Britain, Norway, Denmark, Holland, Italy, Turkey, Australia and Canada.

Among the leading international partners, the U.K. is planning to buy 138 F-35s, Italy 131 and Canada 65. Australia has ordered 14 and has plans to buy as many as 100 for $17 billion.

The Israeli government selected the F-35A as its air force’s next generation aircraft in 2010 — making it the first country to receive the F-35 through the U.S. government’s Foreign Military Sales process.

Singapore also has said it will buy the F-35, although it hasn’t set numbers yet, and there may be longer-term interest from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil and India, said Hardy, of IHS Jane’s.

The wide range of buyers is in contrast to Lockheed Martin’s last stealth fighter, the now discontinued F-22 “Raptor.” It was hailed as a wonder of technology but failed in large part because Congress deemed it too sensitive to sell even to Washington’s closest allies.

Narushige Michishita, a professor at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies who has advised the Japanese government on defense issues, said he thinks the F-35 is Japan’s best option.

“If this was about a Cold War-type competition, then the F-22 would have been better. But if this is a long-term peacetime competition, you need numbers and presence, and close coordination among allies,” Michishita said.

But defense analyst Carlo Kopp, of the private Air Power Australia, think tank said he thinks it was a mistake for his country and others to buy in. He said the F-35 program should have been canceled years ago and that the policy of pushing forward with it at any cost only threatens to create a budgetary sinkhole that would weaken the defenses of the U.S. and its allies.

“It will never become a viable combat aircraft due to cumulative poor choices made early in the design, and later Band-Aid fixes,” Kopp said.

Further cost increases could prompt foreign buyers to cut their orders, which would put even more pressure on Lockheed Martin. Other problems also continue to trouble its international partners:

Concerns about whether Lockheed will be able to deliver on time prompted Australia to caution that it won’t decide until later this year whether to buy any more than the 14 ordered so far.

Structural glitches have emerged that compromise the F-35‘s ability to land on aircraft carriers. That’s a big issue for Britain, where the plane is slated to replace its carrier-friendly Harrier jets by 2020. British media have also reported that the F-35 can’t fire British air-to-air missiles.

Canada and Norway may have difficulty operating the F-35 on icy runways. The plane’s single-engine design — unlike the twin-engine F-22 or F-15 — could also be an issue. If the engine goes out, planes and pilots in the Arctic could be lost.

-record-eagle.com

VFA-204 F/A-18 crashed at NAS Fallon

An F/A-18A Hornet crashed while trying to land at the Fallon Naval Air Station in Nevada, early Tuesday. Luckily, the pilot ejected safely and suffered only minor injuries. No other casualties were reported.

According to the base report, the pilot was completing a mission as an adversary aircraft when the he crashed the F/A-18 fighter jet at about 1:10 a.m. The F-18 Hornet was operated by the New Orleans-based Strike Fighter Attack Squadron Two Zero Four. It veered off the runway and crashed on Navy property just east of the field, the Navy reported in a statement.

The F/A-18 “Hornet” is a single- and two-seat, twin engine, multi-mission fighter/attack aircraft that can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases. It has proven to be an ideal component of the carrier based tactical aviation equation over its 15 years of operational experience. The only F/A-18 characteristic found to be marginally adequate by battle group commanders, outside experts, and even the men who fly the Hornet, is its range when flown on certain strike mission profiles. However, the inadequacy is managed well with organic and joint tanking assets.

The other aircraft involved were forced to divert to Reno-Tahoe International Airport and Lemoore Naval Air Station in Northern California.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

Source: RGJ.com, FAS.org

JSF Delay concerns Australia and Canada

Australia and Canada share a common concern that the new Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) will be delayed, possibly requiring acquisition of an expensive interim air combat capability.

To present a united front, Australia and Canada will now conduct top level talks on procurement and capability issues of mutual concern.

As well as JSF, that will also touch on submarines, with both Australia and Canada experiencing big problems on maintaining submarine capability.

Visiting Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay said Canada wasn’t backing away from plans to acquire 65 JSF aircraft but shared all of the same concerns as Australia.

He said the good news was that the conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) variant of JSF, to be acquired by both Canada and Australia, was progressing well, unlike the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) and carrier variants.

“We are purchasing them at a time when they will be in peak production around 2014-15. Our fleet of F-18 Hornets will have to be taken out of use in 2017,” he told reporters.

“So there is a degree of urgency for us when it comes to this procurement being on time and being on cost.”

Australia is considering acquiring up to 100 JSF aircraft but has so far contracted to buy just 14, with the first to be delivered in 2015. Decision time on the next tranche of 58 will come in 2012-13.

The JSF has faced steady criticism that it will be late and too expensive and won’t deliver the promised level of capability.

Defence Minister Stephen Smith said he and Mr MacKay had agreed to conduct a regular strategic dialogue on shared procurement, acquisition, capability issues.

He said he was very concerned that delay in JSF meant it was rubbing up against the Australian schedule for retiring older F/A-18 Hornets around the end of the decade.

“I have always been of the view that this project will get up because the US is absolutely committed to the capability,” he said.

“But the risk for Australia and other partners like Canada is on the delivery side, on the schedule side and also on the cost side.”

Mr Smith said an an exhaustive risk assessment would be conducted next year.

“If I am concerned or worried or not dissuaded there won’t be a gap in terms of delivery of the JSF, then an obvious option for us is more Super Hornets,” he said.

“The last things I will allow to occur with our procurement of the JSF is a gap in capability.”

 

-au.news.yahoo.com

Old Weapons, New Tricks

As intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance expands into new sections of the electromagnetic spectrum, new capabilities are emerging – often within existing programs – to take on missions in cyber, electronic and information warfare.

Two weapons are illustrative: the high-speed, anti-radiation missile (HARM) that was designed to kinetically kill surface-to-air missile (SAM) sites, and the miniature air-launched decoy (MALD) that entices SAMs into revealing their positions electronically. To meet new military requirements, the missions of both are expected to expand, particularly in the areas of electronic and network attack.

The plain-vanilla MALD is basically a decoy. The payload allows it to replicate various targets depending on what the aircrew wants to simulate. The missile already is a required asset. It became operational in March 2010 on F-16s and B-52s.

“On the B-52, the Air Force has integrated it into the Smart 1760 [electrical] bus so an operator or intelligence specialist can sit in the B-52 and reprogram MALD in flight,” says Geoff White, business development manager for Raytheon’s MALD-J project. “He can launch it to fly a certain profile and trigger specific SAMs and electronic-warfare radars. You can then collect intelligence about the type and location of the IAD [integrated air defense] elements or go for a hard kill [with weapons like the HARM].”

Navy Interest

The Navy also is interested in MALD, and the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet is the likely airframe of choice. As planners look at attack-jamming devices, MALD is attractive because it can be released to conduct independent missions at stand-in ranges. It weighs less than 300 lb. with 80 lb. of fuel in it. It has a range of about 500 mi. or it can orbit for more than 2 hr.

The interest shown by the Air Force and Navy extends to an electronic-jamming variant, the MALD-J, that is to enter the Air Force arsenal in late 2012.

Perhaps more intriguing is that Raytheon intends to market the MALD-V, which is designed to carry a generic warhead that buyers can pack with their own payloads. The company has launched a study of electronic- and communications-attack payloads using high-power microwave or radio-frequency burst devices. It also has acquired companies that specialize in those areas.

“The truck is called the MALD-V,” White says. “You can put whatever you want in it. Some of the agnostic payloads that our international customers might be interested in include jamming devices, seekers, data links, communications relays or surveillance equipment. The most it can carry in its 2-foot-by-10-inch payload bay is about 50 pounds.”

MALD’s small size makes it hard to detect. It can take advantage of physics by getting much closer to a target than a manned aircraft or a larger unmanned airframe that is easier to track on radar. This makes it ideal for many missions, including attacking electronics with bursts of electromagnetic energy that can disable, disrupt or damage sensors, radars and computers. It fills the gap between a short-range, unpowered glide bomb and a long-range cruise missile. It operates up to 35,000 ft., and flies at speeds of Mach 0.2-0.9.

HARM also is expected to carry non-kinetic, directed-energy-type warheads as an anti-electronic weapon. An upgrade, the HARM Control Section Modification, is under way.

“What it brings to the table is enhanced [accuracy through] integrating GPS and an improved IMU [inertial measurement unit],” says David Young, HARM business development manager. “It would have the ability to reduce collateral damage and fratricide. We demonstrated that HARM could be upgraded to address low-power emitters, which addresses some of the shutdown tactics that [integrated air defenses] can employ.

 

-aviationweek.com

Nearby residents complains about noise in MCAS Beaufort

A full complement of F-18 Hornet squadrons at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort has caused a recent uptick in noise complaints, air station officials say.

For the first time in more than a year, all six of the air station’s F-18 squadrons are home and vying for flight time in the skies over Beaufort, those officials said. The increased activity at the base’s airfield has generated more noise complaints from nearby residents.

Lt. Sharon Hyland, base spokeswoman, said the air station’s public affairs office typically fields one or two noise complaints a month The office has been averaging 5 or 6 complaints a month this summer, she said.

“It’s been a really long time since we’ve had all of our squadrons back on deck,” said Hyland. “For the longest time, we’ve always had one or two of them doing something. All of the squadrons are back, though they won’t be for long. We’ll have some squadrons deploying soon. During the short time that they’re all here, they’re fighting for that flight time out there.”

While jet noise may be jarring to some area residents, Hyland said the flight training it generates is essential.

“Our training is never done in vain,” Hyland said. “A lot of times people forget that the noise you hear is directly associated with our training and our training is directly associated with how successfully we’re able to complete our mission.”

Hyland said the base tries to mitigate the effects of F-18 jet noise on nearby neighborhood by flying earlier in the day though that task becomes harder in the summer.

“We have to train during the day and during the night,” Hyland said. “When the sun goes down, we don’t land our jets. Not everything bad happens during the day time. It does make it harder in the summer because the sun goes down a lot later and we have to wait until later to start that night training.”

-islandpacket.com

Two more Hornets for Australia

Materiel Jason Clare, Minister for Defence announced Thursday the arrival of two new F/A-18F Super Hornets to RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland. A further three Super Hornets were delivered to Amberley last month.

This brings the current Australian fleet to 20 with a further four aircraft to be delivered by the end of the year.

“The Super Hornet is one of the best fighter planes in the world. It has an advanced multi-mode AESA (actively electronically scanned array) radar and ‘low observability’ characteristics that make it significantly better than any fourth generation fighter,” Mr. Clare said.

These Super Hornets give the Royal Australian Air Force the capability to conduct air-to-air combat; strike targets on land and at sea; suppress enemy air defences; and conduct reconnaissance. The Super Hornet can carry about one-third more fuel and weapons payload than the F/A-18A or F/A-18B Classic Hornet aircraft, while maintaining the same speed and handling characteristics in combat configurations.

The first 15 Australian Super Hornets became operational in December last year – following the retirement of the iconic F-111.

 

Source: ASD News

RAAF Hornet successfully fired JASSM

A RAAF F/A-18 Hornet successfully fired a Joint Air to Surface Stand-off Missile (JASSM) at the Woomera test range last week.

The Joint Air to Surface Stand-off Missile has a range of more than 200 kilometres and was selected in 2006 by the former Howard government to equip the F/A-18 Hornet fleet pending the retirement of the F-111 fleet.

The JASSM has been listed on the federal government’s “projects of concern” watch list, but makers Lockheed Martin are optimistic the successful Woomera test will mean its removal.

“A second successful firing of the JASSM baseline missile off a RAAF F/A-18 Hornet was achieved at the Woomera test range in South Australia last week,” a Lockheed Martin spokesman told The Australian.

JASSM is in service with four other air forces including the US Air Force which has ordered more than 3000 of the semi-stealthy cruise missiles each worth about $700,000. Experts say JASSM will give RAAF a leading weapons capability edge within the Asian region.

Source: The Australian National Affairs

Navy flight mechanics train locally

PENSACOLA, Florida – They are the Navy’s unsung heroes: the men and women chosen to work on the mechanical aspects of the fleet. They train at the Naval Air Technical Training Center.

As Petty Officer First Class Pawel Mikolakjewski said, aviation structural mechanics are responsible for 80 percent of the plane, and some of the repairs those sailors make will stand true for 30 years. They have to be precise, as much more hangs in the balance than an instructor’s reprimand.

“So many lives are in their hands. The pilots get on the aircraft, and they hope to come back to their families. These guys make sure that they do,” said Mikolakjewski.

“It’s a big responsibility. I think that we do have a lot at stake, messing something up, so we have to do everything to the T,” said student Moies Ochoa.

Wednesday, students worked on a simulated wing assembly. When they finished, instructors give them new repairs to make.

“All of the structure is ours. All of the hydraulics are ours, and after that, all that’s left is engine and electronics,” Mikolakjewski said.

FOX10 News caught up to those handling some of the other 20 percent of the aircraft. Aviation machinist mates work on F-18 engine components to practice for their days aboard the ship.

“During their six-week training here, they go through aviation physics and theory, as well as all the major sections and components of the engine, preparing them for what they’re going to be doing on the fleet,” said Petty Officer First Class Russell Lloyed, an instructor at the training center.

“It’s like every good race team needs a good pit crew. We maintain and make sure that the pilots can complete their missions and support the troops on the ground. Without us, the planes don’t fly,” said student Andrew Strillchuk.

F-18 engines put out 18,000 pounds of thrust per square inch. That’s the equivalent of putting a Corvette engine on a go-cart.

The sailors go through at least six weeks of training at the Naval Air Technical Training Center on Naval Air Station Pensacola.

 

-fox10tv.com

Israeli Jets said to be preparing to strike

Israeli fighter jets are conducting drills at a military base in Iraq in preparation for a strike on Iran, the Islamic Republic’s Press TV reported.

The report said the Israeli planes participating in the drills include F-15, F-16, F-18 and F-22 fighter jets. It said they have conducted weeklong exercises, flying mainly at night.

Press TV said its report was based on information received from a source close to Moqtada al-Sadr’s group in Iraq.

Sadr is considered to be one of the most influential religious political figures in Iraq but holds no official title. He has repeatedly called for the immediate withdrawal of U.S.-led coalition troops and U.N. forces deployed in Iraq.

The air drills are being conducted in collaboration with the U.S. military, the report said. It said Iraq was not informed of the exercises.

The U.S. maintains a number of military bases in Iraq and the government in Baghdad is not involved in any military activities occurring there, the report said.

There was no official comment on the report by Israeli government or military officials.

Last month, Brig. Gen Mohammed Ali Safari, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards, declared Israeli and American military bases in the Middle East are within range of Iran’s missiles.

“Although we are capable of increasing the range of our missiles, we don’t think it would be necessary because today our extra-regional enemy — the Zionist regime of [Israel] — is within the range of our missiles,” he told the Fars news agency.

“As for the American forces — if they were to back Israeli threats — they would be closer to us than them [Israel] and they would be within the range of our firepower as well,” he said.

-officialwire.com