combat aircraft

T

HE ROYAL AUSTRALIAN

Air Force (RAAF)’s Air

Combat Group brought

together all four of its

anniversary-schemed

F/A-18A ‘classic’ Hornets at

RAAF Base Williamtown, New South

Wales, on April 27. The specially

painted jets were arranged on the

 ight line for a photo shoot. All four

units within the Air Combat Group’s

81 Wing have operated the ‘classic’

Hornet — No 2 Operational

Conversion Unit and Nos 3, 75 and

77 Squadrons — and they each

painted jets to celebrate their 75th

or 100th anniversaries.

No 3 Squadron marked its

centenary in 2016, while No 2

OCU and No 77 Squadron, both

based at RAAFB Williamtown, plus

No 75 Squadron, which is located

at RAAF Base Tindal, Northern

Territory, marked their 75th

anniversaries in 2017.

No 3 Squadron operated its

last  ight with the ‘classic’ Hornet

in December 2017 and is now

stationed at Luke Air Force Base in

Arizona where it is becoming the

 rst RAAF unit to transition to the

F-35A, 72 of which are on order to

eventually replace the RAAF’s entire

F/A-18A/B  eet.

CAMEROON AND CHAD

RECEIVE CARAVANS

THE US FORMALLY handed over

two Cessna 208B intelligence,

surveillance and reconnaissance

(ISR) aircraft to the Cameroon Air

Force at Yaounde Air Base on May

11. The Caravans will assist the
    Cameroon government with its
     ght against Boko Haram militants
    in the region. The ceremony was
    presided over by the US ambassador
    to Cameroon. The Grand Caravans
    have supported training since
    arriving in Cameroon in January.
    Just days earlier, on May 2, two
    Grand Caravans were handed over

to Chad during a delivery ceremony

that was held at Adjikossei Air

Base near N’Djamena. The Cessnas

originally arrived in Chad in

December 2017, and are pictured

on the  ight line at Adjikossei

earlier this year. The US Air Force’s

818th Mobility Support Advisory

Squadron (MSAS) provided training

for Chadian airmen. Intelligence,

surveillance and reconnaissance

equipment carried by the Grand

Caravans includes L-3 Wescam

MX-15 electro-optical surveillance

turrets. Tom Kaminski

Waseem Abbas

PAKISTAN ORDERS

MORE AW139s

PAKISTAN HAS PLACED an order

for additional AW139 helicopters,

the type’s manufacturer Leonardo

announced on April 16. The

company expects to deliver

the rotorcraft in early 2019. The

order is the  fth extension of

an original contract signed in

Islamabad during May 2016. The

initial contract called for deliveries

of an undisclosed number of

AW139s in multiple batches to the

Pakistan government for utility,

relief, transport, search and rescue

(SAR) and emergency medical

service (EMS) operations across

the country. Initial deliveries of the

type have been made to Pakistan

Army Aviation and the Pakistan Air

Force. The latter service recently

re-equipped its 88 Squadron with

the type for dedicated night and

maritime SAR duties. Meanwhile,

an emergency relief cell operates

the AW139s under the cabinet

division of government and has

seen extensive service during

natural disasters. Waseem Abbas

ANNIVERSARY HORNETS

GATHER AT WILLIAMTOWN

THAI MARITIME DORNIER UPGRADES

US NAVAL AIR Systems Command

recently released a request for

information associated with the

upgrade of seven Dornier 228

maritime patrol aircraft operated

by the Royal Thai Navy. The service

intends to increase the type’s maritime

surveillance capability by replacing

or upgrading the currently installed

Telephonics RDR 1550B radar and

the FLIR Star Sa re II electro-optical/

infra-red sensor turret as well as

communication, navigation systems

and other equipment. Tom Kaminski

KINZHAL-ARMED MiG-31

ON ‘TEST COMBAT DUTY’

RUSSIAN NEWS AGENCY TASS

reported in May that 10 MiG-31

interceptors armed with the Kinzhal

(dagger) air-launched hypersonic

missile are now on ‘test combat

duty’. The agency quoted Russian

deputy defense minister Yuri Borisov,

who described the aero-ballistic

missile as ‘a cutting-edge weapon...

capable of overcoming air and

missile defenses.’

A  rst Kinzhal missile system

began ‘experimental and combat

duty’ on December 1, 2017 and

examples of the weapon were

carried by MiG-31s during the recent

May Day parade. President Vladimir

Putin revealed the existence of the

Kinzhal project during his state of

the nation address to the Federal

Assembly on March 1.

Defense Minister Borisov added

that the 10 aircraft currently

equipped ‘are ready for use

depending on the situation.’

According to Russian o cials, the

Kinzhal can  y at more than Mach

10 and is capable of maneuvering to

avoid air defense and anti-ballistic

missile defense systems.

A MiG-31 undergoes tests with the Kinzhal at Akhtubinsk in the winter of

2017-18. Initially associated with the upgraded MiG-31BM, the weapon is

reportedly carried by a variant designated as the MiG-31K. Russian MoD

USAF/TSgt Gustavo Gonzalez

WORLD [NEWS]

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

18-23 World News C.indd 21 22/05/2018 17:21