Yester Year

• Kelly AFB, Texas, the oldest continuously operating USAF base, was closed on July 13.

Named after Lt George E M Kelly, the first military pilot killed in a military aircraft crash, the base was originally opened as an Army airfield in 1916. In recent years it housed the San Antonio Air Logistics Center maintaining various aircraft including the B-52 and C-5. Since it was identified for closure in 1995, 37 companies including Boeing and Lockheed Martin have moved in, creating nearly 5000 civilian jobs.

• With a view to resuming Concorde services British Airways has made modifications to G-BOAF with the installation of new fuel tank linings and strengthened wiring in the undercarriage area. On July 17 it made a 3hr 10min supersonic flight from Heathrow before a landing at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, as a prelude to further test flights. Air France conducted air and ground tests with F-BTSD in April with new Michelin NZG radial tyres developed for the Concorde.

The aircraft has yet to regain its Certificate of Airworthiness.

• The USAF confirmed on July 27 that Beale AFB, California, has been selected as the first main operating base for the Global Hawk UAV. A recent enquiry concluded the 18 Global Hawks to be based at Beale would have no significant environmental impact.

25 Years Ago

• The Minister for Defence, Mr Kim Beazley, announced on July 10 that a $230 million contract had been signed with Hawker de Havilland for the supply of 67 Pilatus PC-9s. The first two aircraft to be delivered to the RAAF in June 1987 will be flyaway versions from the parent company and the remaining aircraft, assembled, fitted out and tested by Hawker de Havilland with increasing Australian content, will be delivered by the end of 1991.

• The first opportunity for the West to have a close-up look of the new MiG-29 Fulcrum fighter occurred on July 1 when six examples from the Kubinka air base near Moscow commenced a four day courtesy visit to the Finnish air force base at Rissala.

• The first flight of the prototype Dassault-Breguet Rafale A experimental advanced combat aircraft flown by chief test pilot Guy Mitaux-Maurouard took place from Istres on July 4. It reached a speed of Mach 1. 3 and 36,000ft altitude during the one hour flight.

• Design proposals were submitted on July 28 by seven US aircraft companies for the future ATF (Advanced Tactical Fighter). The USAF has assigned the designation YF-22A and YF-23A to the prototypes, and after one type has been selected after a fly-off, one type is likely to enter production as the F-22A or F-23A.

• An order has been placed for 81 Boeing 737s from GPA Group Ltd of Shannon, Ireland, comprising 30 of the recently announced 737-400 model, nine 737-300s, while variants of the remaining 42 aircraft in the order are yet to be determined.

Orders for the 737 now stand at 1708.

50 Years Ago

• In a test conducted on July 10 to ensure that the Republic F-105’s instrumentation and radar system is adequate for a squadron pilot to perform a long-range IFR mission at altitudes between 152 and 305m (500 and 1000ft), a tactical Air Command pilot flew a F-105D Thunderchief over a distance exceeding 2410km (1500 miles) without any external vision.

• On July 4 the Westland Wessex HAS. 1 anti-submarine helicopter was introduced into service with No 815 Squadron at RNAS Culdrose, Cornwall.

• Training of RAAF crews with the P2V-7 Neptune anti-submarine patrol aircraft is underway at Lockheed’s Burbank plant as a prelude to their introduction with No 10 Squadron.

• At an airshow held this month at Tushino Airport, Moscow, some previously secret aircraft made an appearance. Notable was the four engined Myasischev M-50 Bounder intercontinental supersonic bomber, accompanied in one flypast by two Sukhoi Fishbed delta wing fighters. Also on view were some Flashlight C variants of the Yak‑25 Flashlight.

• Three Qantas Boeing 707‑138B turbofan aircraft, VH‑EBI Winton, VH-EBJ Longreach and VH-EBK City of Newcastle, are in final assembly at Boeing’s Renton plant and are due to be delivered during August and September. The airline’s existing seven 707s will be progressively sent to the US to be re-engined with new turbofan engines.

• An ICAO report said that at the end of 1960 the world’s air transport fleet stood at 5014 aircraft including 388 jets, 723 turboprops and 3903 piston engined airliners.