combat aircraft

One of the latest three RNoAF

F-35As departs the Lockheed

Martin facility in Fort Worth, Texas,

before the fl ight to Ørland.

Lockheed Martin/Forsvaret

T

HE ROYAL NORWEGIAN

Air Force (RNoAF) received

three additional F-35As

when the  ghters arrived

at Ørland air base on

May 22. The arrival brings

the total number of  ghters at the

base to six. Since the  rst three

F-35As arrived in November 2017,

the air arm has been carrying out

operational testing and evaluation

of the F-35 in Norwegian conditions.

Under current plans it will achieve

initial operational capability (IOC)

in 2021 and the RNoAF will accept

six additional Lightning IIs annually

through 2024. Tom Kaminski A student from the Canadian Forces School of Search and

Rescue Technician course jumps from a CH-149 Cormorant

into Jarvis Lake in Alberta. Cpl PJJ Létourneau/19 Wing

INDONESIA PLANS

C-130J PURCHASE

INDONESIA’S DEFENSE MINISTER

has disclosed plans to purchase

 ve C-130J airlifters from

Lockheed Martin, although no

timetable was announced. The

Indonesian Air Force operates

24 Hercules including eight

C-130Hs that were purchased

from or donated by Australia

after they were retired from

Royal Australian Air Force service.

The C-130Js will likely replace

Indonesia’s surviving C-130Bs,

which were acquired in 1960 and

1961. Upgrades to the C-130Bs
      were completed by Malaysian
       rm Airod in 2017. Indonesia had
      previously expressed an interest
      in acquiring A400Ms from Airbus.
      Tom Kaminski

CORMORANT UPGRADE PLANS

THE CANADIAN DEPARTMENT of

Defence has selected Leonardo

to carry out a midlife update of

its  eet of 14 CH-149 search and

rescue (SAR) helicopters. The

Cormorants, which are based on

Leonardo’s AW101,  rst entered

service in 2002 and the upgrades

will allow them to remain in service

until 2040. The mid-life update

will modernize the aircraft’s  ight

management, communications,

navigation and safety systems

and make them compatible with

upcoming airspace regulatory

requirements. The aircraft will

also reportedly be equipped with

a new improved electro-optical

camera system.

The government plans to expand

the  eet by adding seven additional

CH-149s, which will allow it to re-

establish a SAR presence at 8 Wing/

CFB Trenton in Ontario. It is not

clear whether these new aircraft will

come from the nine VH-71A Kestrels

that Canada purchased from the

US Navy in 2011 after that service

cancelled their development as

presidential transports. The VH-71A

have thus far been cannibalized as

a source of spares for the CH-149s

and di ered greatly in con guration

from the Cormorants.

Sikorsky Aircraft had hoped

that the RCAF would consider

replacing the Cormorants and

o ered a version of its S-92, which

is now entering service in the anti-

submarine/maritime role under the

designation CH-148. Tom Kaminski

An Indonesian Air Force C-130H at RAAF Base Darwin for

Exercise ‘Elang AUSINDO’ last year. Indonesia’s C-130H

fl eet is likely to be supplemented by fi ve new C-130Js.

SGT Rob Hack/Commonwealth of Australia

ANOTHER AEW

GULFSTREAM

FOR ISRAEL

ELTA ELECTRONICS IS

out tting an additional

Gulfstream G550 (Eitam)

airborne early warning (AEW)

aircraft for the Israeli Air

Force. It will join two others

already in service with 122

Squadron at Nevatim Air

Base. The Eitam features the

Elta EL/W-2085 multi-sensor

suite, which comprises four

conformal L- and S-band

radars, communication and

electronic support measures,

communications, intelligence

and electronic intelligence

(ELINT) capabilities and

identi cation friend or foe

equipment. The aircraft’s four

main active electronically

scanned array antennas provide

360° wide-area coverage

and its sensors are fused and

continuously cross-correlated,

which enables the suite to be

automatically cued to search

for speci c targets. Known as

the ‘Nachshon’ Squadron, the

unit also operated three earlier

Gulfstream Vs modi ed for

signals intelligence (SIGINT)

missions. Tom Kaminski

JORDANIAN

COBRA UPGRADED

NORTHROP GRUMMAN RECENTLY

began  ight tests of a Royal Jordanian

Air Force (RJAF) Bell AH-1F attack

helicopter that has been upgraded

with systems based on the mission

equipment package developed for the

Bell UH-1Y and AH-1Z helicopters. The

upgrades to the Cobra were carried

out by Science and Engineering

Services (SES) in Huntsville, Alabama,

where  ight testing is under way. As

part of the upgrade, SES has rewired

the aircraft and provided them with a

full depot-level overhaul that will allow

them to remain in service for another

20 years. The integrated mission

equipment package (iMEP) includes

Northrop Grumman’s FlightPro Gen

II mission computer, liquid-crystal

cockpit displays, and a digital moving

map system. In addition to the laser-

guided Hell re missiles the Cobras will

be capable of  elding the Advanced

Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS)

laser-guided rockets.

Tom Kaminski

WORLD [NEWS]

http://www.combataircraft.net // August 2018 21

18-23 World News C.indd 21 22/06/2018 10:26