AirForces Monthly – July 2018

8 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com

NEWS

// JULY 2018 #

United Kingdom

MFTS

orders on

track

PROGRESS WITH the

UK’s Military Flying

Training System (MFTS)

programme has included

the recent completion

of deliveries of both

the Juno HT1 (Airbus

Helicopters H135)

helicopter and Prefect T

(Grob G 120TP-A) fleets.

Six Juno HT1s arrived

at the Defence Helicopter

Flying School (DHFS)

element of MFTS at RAF

Shawbury, Shropshire,

earlier this year (see

DHFS retires Griffins

and Squirrels, May, p8),

leaving just one of the 29

on order still to arrive.

This final aircraft,

ZM532 (c/n 2045, ex

D-HECY, G-CKSA),

arrived at Airbus

Helicopters’ facility at

Oxford-Kidlington Airport

on February 21 before

flying to Shawbury

on May 25. The first

RAF student formally

began training on the

new type on April 7.

At RAF Cranwell,

Lincolnshire, the last

pair from 23 Prefect

T1s on order – ZM

(c/n 11147, ex G-CKSI)

and ZM321 (c/n 11146,

ex G-CKSJ) – were

delivered on March 8 and

March 14 respectively.

Having started flying,

as part of 3 Flying

Training School/No 57

Squadron, from nearby

RAF Barkston Heath,

the type is also now

operating from Cranwell.

At RAF Valley, Wales,

two more of ten

(Beechcraft T-6) Texan

T1s on order have joined

the first pair, delivered

in February – see First

T-6C Texan IIs arrive at

Valley, April, p8. The

latest trainers, ZM

(c/n PM-110, ex N2824B)

and ZM324 (c/n PM-111,

ex N2826B), flew into

Valley on May 15 from

Glasgow Airport, where

they had made a fuel

stop after their ferry

flight from the factory

in Wichita, Kansas.

Three Jupiter HT

(Airbus Helicopters H145)

helicopters delivered

to Shawbury last year

have since transferred

to their permanent base

at Valley, where they

are flown by No 202

Squadron. Dave Allport

Commando Merlin Mk4 delivered

Above: Commando Merlin Mk4 ZJ129 ‘N’ (c/n 50167) is unveiled at RNAS Yeovilton on May 24. The aircraft is a former Merlin

HC3 operated by 846 Naval Air Squadron. Crown Copyright

THE FIRST of 25

Commando Merlin Mk

helicopters for the Royal

Navy’s Commando

Helicopter Force (CHF)

has been handed over.

Minister for Defence

Procurement Guto Bebb

announced the delivery

during an event at Royal

Naval Air Station Yeovilton,

Somerset on May 24.

Leonardo Helicopters is

upgrading former Royal

Air Force Merlin HC3/3A

aircraft to Mk4 standard

under a £388m Ministry of

Defence (MOD) Defence

Equipment and Support

(DE&S) contract. The new

configuration includes

folding main and tail rotors,

upgraded flight controls

and a tactical computer

as well as a maritime

grey colour scheme.

Mr Bebb said: “This new

version of the Merlin will

provide an essential bridge

between sea and land for

our marines operating from

ships, including our brand-

new aircraft carriers. This

fleet will deliver troops

and supplies to the centre

of the action, be that a

conflict zone or the site of

a humanitarian disaster, as

well as providing search

and rescue cover.”

Service entry of the

Merlin Mk4 is expected

this summer and, under

current plans, all 25

helicopters should be fully

operational by 2023.

Col Lenny Brown RM,

the Officer Commanding

Commando Helicopter

Force, noted: “My aircrews

will soon begin training to fly

the Commando Merlin from

the Queen Elizabeth-class

carriers, marking the start

of a new era of Commando

support operations.”

Queen Elizabeth’s crew at Pax

CREW MEMBERS of the

Royal Navy aircraft carrier

HMS Queen Elizabeth

(R08) have undergone

initial familiarisation

training with the Lightning

at Naval Air Station

Patuxent River, Maryland

• conducting deck
  manoeuvres with the
  fighter, including towing,

using US Marine Corps

F-35Bs BF-02 and BF-04.

Around 20 personnel

from the flying control

and flight deck control

teams aboard the carrier

visited Pax in advance

of the F-35B’s first trials

aboard the ship off the US

east coast later this year.

After watching the F-

Pax River Integrated Te st

Force handle landings, the

RN crew acted as landing

signal officers and taxied

an F-35B for the first time.

Cdr James Blackmore

RN, Commander Air

aboard HMS Queen

Elizabeth, said: “It’s the

first time they’ve ever

seen the jet or been

up and close to it as

it’s performing its flight

manoeuvres, so they got

to feel the environment of

what it’s like, the sort of

noise, the heat, the sound

and the pressure of the

aircraft; so that when it

comes to deck for the first

time, it’s not a surprise.”

Crew from HMS ‘Queen Elizabeth’ observe and work with the F-35B at NAS Patuxent River. Lockheed Martin