Airforces - Demo Hornet

12 http://www.airforcesmonthly.com

NEWS

// AUGUST 2018 #

Luftwaffe EF2000 live-fi re at Lossiemouth
THREE LUFTWAFFE
EF2000s spent three weeks
at RAF Lossiemouth,
Scotland, recently, to
take part in trials of
the AIM -120 AMRAAM
(Advanced Medium-Range
Air-to-Air Missile). The
Eurofighters arrived at
the Moray base on June

4. Two of the aircraft
   were from Taktisches
   Luftwaffengeschwader
   74 ( Tak tLwG 74) based
   at Neuburg – single-
   seater 30+93 and two-
   seater 30+42. The third

was another twin-seater,

Instrumented Production

Aircraft 3 (IPA 3) 98+

from Wehrtechnische

Dienststelle 61 (WTD

61, Defence Te chnical

Department 61) based at

Manching. The EF2000s

worked out of Lossiemouth

while conducting the

weapons trials over the

Outer Hebrides ranges,

firing a total of 13 missiles.

Right: EF2000 98+

carries a live AMRAAM

during a sortie on June 6.

Niall Paterson

Continental Europe

A400M refuels Rafale

THE DIRECTION Générale

de l’Armement (DGA) –

the French government

defence procurement and

technology agency – has

successfully completed

trials during which the

A400M transport refuelled

a Rafale. The flight test

campaign was conducted

by the DGA’s Essais en Vol

(DGA EV) flight test centre

with the support of the

French Air Force. The DGA

expects to issue clearance

“very shortly”, allowing the

Armée de l’Air to work up

on this new capability.

During the tests, the Rafale

was refuelled by an A400M

from Escadron de Transport

1/61 ‘Touraine’ throughout

its flight envelope. The

tests were conducted day

and night, including with

night-vision goggles.

Further campaigns

are planned next year,

including dual tanking of the

Mirage 2000, and of other

transport aircraft using the

centreline refuelling point.

A400 deploys Tigre

direct to Mali

A FRENCH Armée de l’Air

(French Air Force) A400M

Atlas has transported a

Tigre attack helicopter

directly from Base Aérienne

123 Orléans-Bricy to Gao,

Mali, for the first time.

The June 6 flight involved

A400M 0037/F-RBAJ from

Escadron de Transport

1/61 ‘Touraine’.

Normally, Aviation

Légère de l’Armée de

Ter re (A L AT, French Army

Aviation Corps) Tigres are

transported by A n-

heavy transport aircraft

for Mali operations. A

team of eight personnel

from the 1er Régiment

d’Hélicoptères de Combat

(1er RHC, 1st Combat

Helicopter Regiment) at

Phalsbourg are dispatched

to Orléans, where it takes

12 hours to remove the

rotor blades, tail fins and

turret prior to securing

the Tigre on board the

A n-124. It is then delivered

to Niamey, Niger, where

personnel from France’s

Operation Barkhane

force in Mali reassemble

the helicopter so it can

be flown to Gao.

The Barkhane force’s

Groupement Tactique

Désert-Aérocombat

(GTD-A – Desert Air

Combat Battle Group)

was in urgent need of the

Tigre and transporting

it direct to Mali saved a

considerable amount of

time. Dave Allport

Refuelling trials involved the 12th A400M delivered to the Armée de l’Air – the fi rst to be delivered with two underwing

Cobham 908 refuelling pods. DGA

Above: The ALAT Tigre helicopter is unloaded from the A400M at Gao on June 6. French MoD