24 // September 2019 #378 http://www.airforcesmonthly.comSingapore withdraws Stratotanker
THE REPUBLIC of Singapore
Air Force (RSAF) has
withdrawn its KC-135R
fleet after 20 years of
operations. A retirement
ceremony, attended by past
and present Stratotanker
crew, was held on July 10
at Changi Air Base (West),
with all four aircraft present.
No 112 Squadron ‘Twisters’
had operated the type
from this location, sharing
facilities with Changi Airport’scommercial traffic. KC-135
operations concluded on
June 28, when the type
conducted a final flight
together with its replacement- an A330 Multi-Role Tanker
Transport (MRTT) – as well
as an F-15 and F-16.
Four ex-USAF KC-135As
were purchased by
the RSAF in 1996.
They were removed
from storage at the
Aerospace Maintenance
and Regeneration Center
(AMARC), re-engined with
CFM56-2B turbofans and
provided with a Pacer Crag
avionics upgrade. Training
RSAF KC-135 crew was
conducted with the USAF’s
22nd Air Refueling Wing at
McConnell Air Force Base
in Kansas, under the Peace
Guardian programme,
the detachment receiving
three of the tankers.
Full operational capability(FOC) was achieved in
August 2002, supplementing
the RSAF’s KC-130B/H
and allowing simultaneous
refuelling of probe-equipped
A-4SUs and F-5Ss and
receptacle-equipped F-16s.
KC-135s deployed to the
Middle East in the 2000s to
support rebuilding efforts
in Iraq and again between
2015-17 to help counter
so-called Islamic State.
The first of six A330 MRTTswere delivered to the RSAF
in August 2018, with the
fourth arriving on June 20
this year, allowing the RSAF
to phase out the last KC-135
in a like-for-like replacement.
Earlier refuelling compatibility
issues between the MRTT
and F-15 during the turns
in racetrack patterns are
understood to have been
resolved. Roy ChooRSAF KC-135R serial 753 departs RAAF Base Darwin in August 2018 during a mission at Pitch Black 2018. The type has been heavily involved in RSAF fi ghter
deployments as well as supporting international air exercises. Roy ChooLatest US DoD report on Afghanistan
provides update on air force
THE US Department of
Defense’s (DoD’s) latest
semi-annual report,
Enhancing Security and
Stability in Afghanistan,
provides an update on
the current status of the
Afghan Air Force (AAF).
The report, delivered to
Congress on July 12, covers
progress from December
1, 2018 to May 31, 2019.
The current AAF inventory
comprises 162 aircraft, of
which 126 are in-country
and currently available or
on short-term maintenance.
The AAF has taken delivery
of ten AC-208 Eliminator
aircraft, the first arriving
in Kabul in February to
support the AAF’s emerging
intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance (ISR) and
precision-strike capabilities.
Of the 19-strong A-29
Super Tucano inventory,
12 are in-country. A further
13 are at Moody Air Force
Base, Georgia, for training.
In July, the AAF planned to
establish an A-29 formal
training unit at Mazar-e-
Sharif to advance pilot
qualifications in Afghanistan.Under the aviation
modernisation programme,
the US DoD is delivering two
UH-60A+ Black Hawks and
five armed MD530F Cayuse
Warriors per month. The
current UH-60A+ inventory
is 28 helicopters, of which 27
are available in Afghanistan.
Initial planned procurement
for the UH-60A+ is 53, but
the ultimate aim is to deliver
159 to the AAF, enabling
complete replacement
of the Mi-17 fleet.
The current Mi-17 inventorynumbers 47 helicopters of
which 22 are fielded and
available. Seven others are
undergoing depot repair
and 46 are described as
destroyed or expiring.
These figures do not include
additional Hips operated by
the Special Mission Wing.
There are just four Mi-35s
on the AAF inventory, but
none are currently available.
The defence department
report notes the US does
not provide any funding
or advisory support forthe Hinds. The Mi-35s
were removed from the
authorised fleet in 2015 but
the Afghans continue to
attempt to sustain them.
The DoD has advised
them against doing so
and to instead focus on
the aircraft it is providing
as a part of the aviation
modernisation programme.
A modification to non-
proliferation sanctions that
allows the DoD to continue
to sustain Mi-17s specifically
does not include Mi-35variants. India recently gifted
four Mi-35s to Afghanistan- see India donates Hinds
to Afghanistan, July, p27.
The AAF’s prior Mi-35
fleet reached the end of
its service life around 2010
and is not included in the
official authorisation level.
All four helicopters required
their 500-hour inspection
and have been grounded
until the work is completed
and the AAF is trying to
source funding to complete
repairs. Dave Allport
ANALYSIS
An Afghan pilot training in an A-29 Super Tucano over Kabul as part of the Train Advise and Assist Command’s (TAAC-Air)
mission last December 20. USAF/Senior Airman Maygan StraightNEWS A s i a P a c i fi c
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