Combat aircraft

LATEST BRITISH LIGHTNING II DELIVERED

THE UNITED KINGDOM’S 14th

F-35B was delivered to Marine

Corps Air Station Beaufort, South

Carolina, from Lockheed Martin’s

Fort Worth, Texas, facility on

December 14. Serial ZM148 is the

last Lightning II to be delivered

to the UK contingent at Beaufort

before operations move to

RAF Marham, Norfolk in 2018.

More than 200 British personnel

currently assigned to Beaufort will

return to the UK next year as No

617 Squadron and the program

is on schedule to achieve initial

operating capability (IOC) from

land next year. Preparations are

also under way for  rst-of-class

 ight trials aboard the aircraft

carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, which

will be carried out later this year.

The F-35B is due to achieve IOC

in the carrier strike role in 2020.

Tom Kaminski

FINAL DUTCH F-16s DELIVERED TO JORDAN

ON DECEMBER 14, the last three

former Royal Netherlands Air Force

(RNLAF) F-16s were delivered to the

Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF). The

jets — serials 242 (formerly J-870),

246 (J-193) and 249 (J-057) — left

Volkel Air Base in the Netherlands

and arrived in Jordan after a stop at

Aviano AB, Italy. They will join the

RJAF’s 2 Squadron.

Jordan has acquired 15 Dutch

F-16s. Previous delivery  ights left

Volkel AB on October 25, 2017 (serials

236/J-884, 240/J-638, 243/J-872,

244/J-873, 247/J-199 and 248/J-145,

which routed via Lajes in the Azores),

and on November 29 (serials

237/J-208, 238/J-623, 239/J-637,

241/J-868, 245/J-876 and 250/J-510,

which routed via Aviano AB).

F-35B ZM148 lands at Beaufort on December

14. USMC/Cpl Benjamin McDonald

Already wearing Jordanian markings, F-16AM serial 249 (formerly J-057)

was among the fi nal jets that left Volkel on December 14. Frits Jongerman

JAPAN AND KOREA EYE STOVL F-35B

JAPAN IS REPORTEDLY considering

the acquisition of F-35Bs and re tting

the Maritime Self-Defense Force’s

814ft (248m) helicopter destroyer

JS Izumo (DDH 183) to operate the

aircraft. The move could require

a change to Japan’s constitution,

which limits the operation of certain

o ensive military capabilities.

In the interim the government

plans to update the ship so it can

refuel US Marine Corps F-35Bs. In

addition to strengthening Japanese

and American military co-operation

amid mounting tension with North

Korea, the capability would improve

the country’s ability to defend the

more remote south-western Ryukyu

Islands and protect its naval vessels,

while acting as a deterrent against

China’s maritime expansion and

military build-up. The ability of the

Japanese military to attack enemy

bases will be considered as part of the

government’s review of its National

Defense Program Guidelines.

The Republic of Korea is also

understood to be considering adding

F-35Bs to its inventory for operations

from its 653ft (199m) amphibious

assault ship ROKS Dokdo (LPH 6111).

Tom Kaminski

CYCLONE ISSUES PERSIST

TESTING HAS RECENTLY revealed

that, as currently designed, the

helicopter long-range active sonar

(HELRAS) on the Royal Canadian Air

Force’s CH-148s must be removed

by helicopter air detachments

(HELAIRDETS) conducting embarked

shipboard operations because

of interference with the vessel’s

recovery assist, secure and traverse

(RAST) system.

Developed by L-3 Ocean Systems,

the DS-100 HELRAS system’s dipping

sonar protrudes slightly beneath the

fuselage and could strike the RAST

while landing aboard ship in extreme

weather/sea conditions. The Cyclone

can still be used for anti-submarine

warfare by deploying sonobuoys. The

system can stay installed during land

operations, allowing the Cyclones to

be used for training. An engineering

design change will correct the issue

in the Group 2 helicopters that will be

delivered from February.

The RCAF has received 14 of its

planned 28 helicopters, delivered in

Block 1 con guration. Pilot conversion

training began with 406 Maritime

Operational Training Squadron

at 12 Wing CFB Shearwater, Nova

Scotia, in September 2017. The  rst

operational Cyclone air detachments

will deploy aboard Royal Canadian

Navy ships beginning this summer.

Tom Kaminski

SEA KINGS STAND DOWN

THE FORMAL ENTRY into service

for the Royal Canadian Air Force’s

CH-149 maritime helicopter will

move a step closer on January 26,

when the CH-124 makes its  nal

operational east coast  ight with

423 Maritime Helicopter Squadron

at 12 Wing/CFB Shearwater,

Nova Scotia. The Sea Kings will

continue to operate with 443

Maritime Helicopter Squadron

from Victoria International Airport,

Vancouver, British Columbia until

December 2018. The  rst Sea Kings

entered service in Canada in 1963.

Tom Kaminski

NIGERIA TO BUY THUNDERS

NIGERIA HAS UNVEILED plans to

acquire an initial three Chengdu/

Pakistan Aeronautical Complex

JF-17 Thunder  ghters. The

jets are included in the 2018

budget proposal.

The budget allocation document

earmarks $36 million as partial

payment for the three  ghters,

as well as support equipment

and spares.

The budget document also

includes funds for the purchase of

two Leonardo AW109 helicopters,

and depot maintenance for two

Alpha Jets and a C-130H Hercules.

PEGASUS FOR JAPAN

BOEING HAS RECEIVED a

$279-million Foreign Military Sales

contract from the US Air Force

to deliver a single KC-46A to the

Japan Air Self-Defense Force. Japan

selected the Pegasus following its

KC-X aerial refueling competition,

marking the  rst international sale

for the tanker. The JASDF already

operates four KC-767J tankers and

E-767 airborne early warning and

control aircraft that are based on an

earlier version of the Boeing 767.

Tom Kaminski

FINAL AURORA RETURNS FROM OPERATION ‘IMPACT’

A LAST ROYAL Canadian Air Force

CP-140 maritime patrol aircraft and

its aircrew returned from the Middle

East when serial 140101 touched

down at 14 Wing/CFB Greenwood,

Nova Scotia, on December 16.

The RCAF has deployed Auroras

as part of Air Task Force-Iraq in

support of Operation ‘Impact’ since

October 2014. A pair of CP-140s

was initially deployed on short

notice to provide an overland

intelligence, surveillance and

reconnaissance (ISR) capability

to the coalition. Thereafter, the

Aurora detachment  ew 881

sorties totaling nearly 7,500 hours.

The  nal CP-140 mission was

conducted on December 11 last

year. Tom Kaminski

WORLD [NEWS]

http://www.combataircraft.net // March 2018 19

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