Flight Int'l - January 26, 2016 UK

DEFENCE

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18 | Flight International | 26 January-1 February 2016

A

irbus Defence & Space’s
development of an air-to-air
refuelling system for the C295 is
moving ahead, with a “dry con-
tact” flight test planned in 2016,
ahead of a full fuel transfer trial.
The company’s A400M military
turboprop is late performing air-to-
air refuelling operations, causing
frustration among customers, with
France picking the Lockheed Mar-
tin KC-130J for the capability.
Now, Airbus wants to outfit the
C295 with a centreline, cabin-
mounted hose-and-drogue rig for
in-flight refuelling of combat heli-
copters. The system would be a
new option for C295 operators.
“We have already performed
the hose control test in the rig and
we are currently preparing the
hose control for in-flight [testing],”
the company tells Flight
International. “We aim to perform
the dry contact flight-test with a
C295W test aircraft during 2016
and then to perform the fuel trans-
fer flight test.”
If successful, the company says
the technology would become
available “during 2017”. Airbus is
already in talks with potential
buyers. ■

capability

C295 to perform

‘dry contact’ test

of fuel rig shortly

F-35A on target for Paveway II release milestone

evaluation

I

n February or early March, a
combat-coded F-35A from the
34th Fighter Squadron at Hill AFB
will release an inert, laser-guided
bomb at the nearby Utah Test and
Training Range.
This, the US Air Force says,
will be a “monumental achieve-
ment” for the multinational F-
programme, which has been
building to this moment since
Lockheed Martin won the Joint
Strike Fighter contract in 2001.
The Raytheon GBU-12 Pave-
way II release will be a test for the
conventional A-model, which
until now has only released
weapons in development and op-

erational testing.

The air force’s Block 3i aircraft

will first operate with basic laser

and GPS-guided weapons, as

well as beyond-visual-range Ray-

theon AIM-120 air-to-air missiles.

It will also have advanced target-

ing, surveillance and radar-jam-

ming equipment. The full com-

plement of weapons will not

arrive until Block 3F in late 2017,

but the armaments the F-35 does

have in Block 2B and 3i can ac-

complish basic close air support,

air interdiction and suppression

or destruction of enemy air de-

fence missions, says the USAF.

Meanwhile, the US defence

department and F-35 engine sup-

plier Pratt & Whitney have

reached a “handshake agreement”

in negotiations for the production

of 167 F135 turbofan engines.

The ninth and 10th low-rate ini-

tial production contracts cover 66

and 101 engines respectively, up

from 36 and 48, marking a 110%

jump from Lot 8 to 10. To date,

P&W has delivered 262 F135s for

all three variants. Lot 9 engine

deliveries are to begin this year,

US Air Force followed by Lot 10 units in 2017. ■

Tests are set for

February or early March

B

oeing has delivered six modi-

fied rotary launchers for the

US Air Force’s Boeing B-52 strate-

gic bomber, allowing the aircraft

to carry GPS-guided weapons for

the first time.

The new digital rotary launcher

allows each B-52 to carry eight

joint direct attack munitions inter-

nally, and will eventually carry

the Lockheed Martin AGM-158B

JASSM-ER and Raytheon

ADM-160 Miniature Air

Launched Decoy (MALD).

The modification turns the ex-

isting common strategic rotary

launcher in the weapons bay into

a conventional rotary launcher,

carrying weapons internally to

modification jAMes drew wAShIngton dC

b-52 gets weapons bay upgrade

new digital rotary launcher will allow aircraft to carry guided JASSM-ER and MALd munitions

help reduce drag. The January de-

livery follows a series of ground

and flight tests, Boeing says.

That combination of MALD

and JASSM-ER makes the Strato-

fortress a flexible combat aircraft

that can destroy targets from hun-

dreds of kilometres away and pro-

vide decoy support for formations

of frontline fighters. The new

launchers can be swapped be-

tween the B-52 fleet.

The upgrade comes as the air

force tries to keep its remaining 76

H-model B-52s combat-relevant

through 2040 as the planned

Northrop Grumman long-range

strike bomber enters service.

The Stratofortress has long been

Boeing

The strategic bomber can now carry smart weapons which will help keep the type relevant to 2040

praised for its capacity – it is capa-

ble of hauling 31.5t (70,000lb) of

ordnance – but its guided weapons

capabilities have often lagged be-

hind modern airframes.

“The upgrades to the B-52’s in-

ternal weapons bay make it possi-

ble to have zero gap on the long-

range bombing capabilities as we

transfer from conventional air-

launched missiles to JASSM-ER,”

says air force B-52 programme di-

rector Col Tim Dickinson. The

ability to carry more MALDs cre-

ates a new role for the B-52, as

they are designed to replicate the

flight path and radar signature of

US combat jets to distract air de-

fence systems. ■