Newsdesk — Military Aviation

The Spitfire I entered RAF service in 1938 and the aircraft was the only allied fighter to remain in production throughout the war. A total of 20,334 were built plus 2,408 of the shipborne naval variant, the Seafire. There were no fewer than 29 major Spitfire marks and 59 major subtypes produced, the last of them (a Seafire 47) delivered in March 1949. Spitfires served with 179 RAF operational squadrons between 1938 and 1954 while 25 Fleet Air Arm operational squadrons flew Seafires between 1942 and 1950. About two dozen other nations also flew Spitfires, both during World War II and afterwards.

Russia’s Ilyushin design bureau has opened up a new front on the firebombing debate by proposing to base an Il-76DMP in Australia for a three-month trial period. The leasing cost of $1.3m, including the crews, could in part be paid for by a barter of surplus wool or other Australian commodities. Fuel and other charges would come to an additional $700,000. According to Ilyushin’s Australian spokesman John Parkin, the Il-76 firebomber is capable of extinguishing a firefront up to one kilometre long and 100 metres wide. The aircraft’s 42,000 litre water/fire retardant capacity is seven times that of Canadair’s CL-415, although the Ilyushin needs to be refilled from a major airport, a process which it is claimed can be done in less than 15 minutes. The Il-76DMP has a cruising speed up to 430kt (800km/h) and a fully loaded range of 2,050nm (3,800km). The Ilyushin firebomber was displayed at last year’s Avalon Airshow. (Peter Barker)

Can You Help?

As an ongoing programme of building up our library, AA is interested in acquiring several editions of Jane’s All The World’s Aircraft of the 1950s. If you have any surplus editions and would be interested in either selling them to us or trading them for some of our own books, then please contact Gerard Frawley on (06) 288 1900 or fax (06) 288 2021.

The last operational flight by a Spitfire was in 1963 when an RAF PR.19 was flown against a BAC Lightning F3 to work out tactics in case Lightnings had to fly against Indonesian P-51 Mustangs during the time of ‘confrontation’ with that country.

Bae-Dassault Fighter Joint Venture

In what could be a landmark move, British Aerospace and Dassault have agreed to establish a joint research centre to develop technologies for future combat aircraft. The venture’s primary objective is to develop a new combat aircraft to follow on from the two companies’ Eurofighter and Rafale projects, from about 2020. Some of the technologies developed could also be incorporated into mid-life updates of those two aircraft.

The move is significant because it could foreshadow the formation of a single European military aircraft company which would rival the US giants. The evolution of such a co-operative organisation is also seen by most within the European industry as being essential for its long-term survival. Both BAe and Dassault have been keen to point out that the new arrangement does not mean they are planning to exclude themselves from co-operative ventures with US industry such as BAe’s current involvement with the Joint Advanced Strike Technology (JAST) programme. According to BAe’s chief executive Dick Evans, the aim is not to create “Fortress Europe” or to abandon US collaboration, but to allow European industry to enter joint ventures from a position of strength.

Defence On The Net

A new internet site is being developed by the Department of Defence to provide a reference point for industry interested in doing business with Defence. Defence’s Industry Involvement and Contracting Division has released several publications, including the third edition of The Defence Organisation — A Short Guide for Industry, on the internet as a first step in providing up-to-date defence industry and contracting information through the World Wide Web pages of the internet. Its aim is to facilitate doing business with Defence by providing details of acquisition policies, processes and procedures, and by identifying contact personnel who can provide further assistance. Access to the Industry Involvement and Contracting Home Page can be gained via https://www.adfa.oz.au/DOD/al/iic/iic.htm — got that? Now eat the paper it’s printed on!

Raaf 75th Dates Changes

A couple of the dates of this year’s RAAF open days, previously published in Australian Aviation, have been changed. They are the open days for Tindal (now Saturday August 3) and Darwin (now Sunday August 4). The only major airshow being conducted to celebrate the RAAF’s 75th anniversary is at Amberley on the weekend of May 4/5. Other RAAF bases holding open days during the year are Edinburgh (March 17), East Sale (March 24), Williamtown (April 21), Pearce (May 12), Townsville (August 11), Wagga (October 13) and Richmond (November 17).

Lead-In Fighter Rft Issued

The Request for Tender (RFT) for the RAAF’s lead-in fighter to replace the Macchi MB-326 has been issued. The manufacturers which have received the tender specifications are British Aerospace (for the Hawk 100), McDonnell Douglas (T-45A Goshawk) and Aermacchi (MB-339FD). The first of around 35 aircraft is scheduled to be delivered around mid-1999 with sufficient aircraft in service by early 2000 to take over from the MB-326.

The RFT was issued in mid-December last year and responses close on March 14. With maintenance and likely assembly of the aircraft to take place in Australia, the New South Wales Government has offered a $3m ‘sweetener’ to have the project based at Newcastle. The proposal is based on a ‘free’ upgrade of Newcastle Airport (Williamtown) to incorporate “appropriate assembly-support facilities”, according to a letter sent to the three manufacturers invited to bid for the contract. The offer is seen as an attempt to lure the manufacturers away from well-established connections in Victoria at HDH and ASTA, although Hawker de Havilland at Bankstown NSW has also been involved with most recent military aircraft manufacturing/assembly programmes plus maintenance activities.

This great 21.5cm long diecast model of the P-51 Mustang is just one of a number of quality diecast models available from Cowley’s Motorcycles & Collectables in Port Lincoln. Phone Ashley on (086) 82 4444 for further details.

Unique Career Opportunity

Australian Aviation is looking to employ a trainee journalist as part of a full cadetship programme. The applicant would need to have a comprehensive knowledge of all sectors of aviation and be capable of producing the standard of copy printed in Australian Aviation. Working in a magazine environment would also teach the successful applicant a full range of management and editorial skills not usually available via newspapers or the electronic media. This is indeed a unique opportunity to work with Australia’s largest selling aviation magazine. Naturally, the successful applicant would have to be resident in Canberra and wages would be to the appropriate industry requirements. Address all correspondence (plus phone number), including CV and any examples of literary effort to Jim Thorn, Australian Aviation, PO Box 3105, Weston Creek, ACT 2611. All enquiries will be treated with the utmost discretion.

AWA Defence Industries has signed a marketing agreement with DSTO to assess potential overseas markets for the DSTO-developed Kerkanya glide bomb. DSTO developed Kerkanya in the late 1980s and early 1990s and it has been successfully flight tested at Woomera. Kerkanya consists of scissor-like folding wings which deploy when the bomb is dropped from the aircraft and a finned tail which provides directional control. It has a high altitude drop range of up to 100km and is manoeuvrable enough to attack moving targets such as ships. Fitted with an appropriate guidance system Kerkanya could prove to be a very cost-effective alternative to other far more expensive precision-guided munitions, and may prove attractive to South East Asian nations. Kerkanya’s wings and tail unit can be fitted to existing dumb bombs.

Korean War Memorial Site Dedication

The proposed Korean War Memorial site on Anzac Parade in Canberra will be dedicated on April 24 during a ceremony commencing at 1100. All Fleet Air Arm members of HMAS Sydney who served during her two tours in the Korean theatre are invited to attend the ceremony and march as a group if numbers are sufficient. A reunion of aircrew members of the Sydney Carrier Air Group (first tour) is being organised by Norman Lee who invites all those still vertical to attend a barbecue at his place following the dedication ceremony. Phone/Fax (06) 288 2285 to advise your attendance.

C-130j Order Signed

The RAAF finally officially signed for 12 Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 Hercules II airlifters on December 21, in a contract valued at $900m. The new Hercules will replace the 12 ageing C-130Es of 37 Squadron, with deliveries commencing early next year. The contract also has options for a further 24 C-130Js for the RAAF plus eight C-130Js for the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The RNZAF currently operates five C-130Hs which are due for replacement at the turn of the century. Lockheed Martin says that by taking options alongside the RAAF order, New Zealand will benefit from launch customer advantages which were only on offer last year.

The RAAF is likely to use some of the C-130J options to replace 36 Squadron’s 12 C-130Hs, while others could be taken up to replace Caribou, or as platforms for AEW and tanker aircraft. The options are for fixed configuration aircraft at a fixed price. Lockheed Martin has asked Defence not to reveal the unit price of the C-130J because of commercial sensitivities, although the unit price could be as high as $58m, not $40m as earlier thought.

In replacing the standard fuselage length C-130Es with the same number of stretched C-130J-30s, the RAAF will get an appreciable boost in airlift capability. Not only does the C-130J-30 have a significantly bigger payload than the C-130E, it flies faster and further (Lockheed say a 5% improvement in payload range over the C-130E), and will be much less maintenance intensive (thus increasing availability). Australia joins the USA and the UK as a launch customer for this new generation Hercules model. Features of the C-130J include new Allison AE 2100 turboshafts, six-bladed Dowty propellers and a two-crew, glass cockpit with HUDs and multifunction LCDs. A full analysis of the C-130J appeared in the Nov 94 AA.

Aup F-111 Rolled Out

Rockwell Australia rolled out the first F-111C to undergo the Avionics Update Programme at RAAF Amberley late last year. F-111C A8-142 was the first F-111 to undergo the AUP upgrade in Australia and joins A8-132, the AUP prototype which was modified by Rockwell’s North American Aircraft Modification Division at Palmdale California. The prototype is currently undergoing performance evaluation flight testing (PEFT) to verify the AUP modification’s improved capabilities and to confirm the aircraft’s performance meets contract specifications. The PEFT is expected to be completed in mid-1996, after which the prototype is due to return to operational RAAF service.

The AUP contract involves replacing the analogue avionics of the RAAF’s 17 F-111Cs and four RF-111Cs and replacing them with digital systems. The navigation, communications, weapons delivery and flight control systems and the radar are all upgraded. (For details on the AUP programme refer our three-part Technology Explained series in our June, August & September 95 issues.)

Kingsford Smith In Space

At the suggestion of a Sydney high school student, a small medallion commemorating the achievements of pioneer Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith will be flown into space aboard the space shuttle Endeavour in mid-May. The medallion will be taken up on the space shuttle mission STS-77 by Dr Andrew Thomas, who will be the first Australian-born astronaut into space. Adelaide-born Dr Thomas has worked in the US since the late 1970s, first with Lockheed and then with NASA. He became a US citizen in 1986 and was selected as a Mission Specialist Astronaut in 1992.

Sydney Technical High School student Kwan Hee Lee first proposed that Dr Thomas take a memento of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith into space, with NASA approval for his idea coming in October. Sir Kingsford Smith attended the Sydney Technical High School as a teenager.

Fairbairn For Defence Hq?

Canberra’s Fairbairn RAAF base is being mooted as the most likely site to house the planned joint army, air force and navy headquarters. The integrated ‘Headquarters Australian Operations’ is intended to increase the efficiency of Australia’s defence forces by putting their overall command under one roof. The theory is that this will improve co-operation and increase Australia’s ability to defend itself in a major conflict. Over $500m will be spent on the restructure which will see the forces’ current nine headquarters reduced to just four.

Mikoyan Looks At Alternatives

Mikoyan is investigating developing a new, less expensive fighter to replace the advanced 1.42 project, development of which appears to have ground to a halt. Design work on the 1.42 began in the early 1980s as a replacement for the Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker. A large, close-coupled canard and very advanced multirole fighter, the 1.42 is also expensive — too expensive for the cash-strapped Russian Air Force to purchase. Although the prototype performed fast taxiing trials in 1994, it has yet to fly largely due to a lack of funding but also because of some technical problems. Mikoyan wants to incorporate the technology developed for the 1.42 into a smaller and less expensive fighter in the same size and weight class of the MiG-29.

Lockheed For Avalon?

Lockheed Martin is reportedly close to finalising a deal whereby it will relocate its regional maintenance base from Malaysia to ASTA Air Services at Avalon. Presumably connected with the RAAF’s order for 12 new C-130J Hercules, the arrangement — if completed — will see Avalon become the main site for servicing Hercules aircraft operated by air forces in the region. Apart from Australia, Asia-Pacific Hercules operators include Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand and the Philippines.

To Willytown By Train

Those interested in having a look at the RAAF’s primary fighter base at Williamtown NSW might find this an attractive idea. Great Southern Rail is operating a train trip to the base’s open day on Sunday April 21 to give those who participate not only a close look at the base but also a chance to be part of the RAAF’s 75th birthday celebrations. The specially chartered train departs Sydney’s Central Station at 7.30am and after stopping at Hornsby to pick up more passengers, travels nonstop to Newcastle. From there, a coach takes passengers to the base with arrival planned for around 10.00am.

Participants will be able to take in the flying display (which includes a performance by the Roulettes) and look at the wide variety of aircraft on static display plus a visit to Fighterworld, where many of the RAAF’s fighter aircraft from years gone by are displayed. The train arrives back in Sydney at around 6.00pm. Details for what promises to be a great day for aviation (and train!) enthusiasts can be obtained from Great Southern Rail on (041) 925 7007.

Taiwan Offshore Training

Faced with increasingly restricted airspace at home, Taiwan’s air force is looking to gain access to foreign military bases for the training of its pilots. A Taipei newspaper reported that Taiwan has approached Australia, the Philippines and the US on the matter, but given China’s continuing antipathy towards Taiwan (which it sees as a breakaway province) and the influence it commands on matters of trade, strong resistance to the idea is bound to come from the communist country.

Three Sukhoi Su-27s of the Russian Air Force aerobatic team the Russian Knights crashed fatally into a mountain in Vietnam while on descent to the Cam Ranh air base at Cam Ranh Bay recently. Five Su-27s were flying in close formation with an Il-76 support aircraft when the formation reportedly broke through cloud to discover they were in imminent danger of colliding with a mountain. The Il-76 ordered the formation to break. The three Flankers which crashed broke left, while the other two and the Il-76 broke right. The Russian Knights were returning to Russia from Malaysia via Vietnam and China. Pictured is three of the team’s aircraft in Canada. (Paul Merritt)

Taiwan already has training ties with Singapore, which has moved part of its military flying training to Australia. Through that link, Taiwan could possibly gain access to Australia’s military flying training areas. Taiwan has already asked to lease Philippines airspace (and sweetened the request by donating two surplus Northrop F-5s to that country’s run-down air force) but the best bet seems to be the USA, which is supplying 150 Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters from August this year. The delivery of these aircraft (and 60 Mirage 2000-5s from France) will only add to the airspace problem.