Rotary recap: UK helicopter renewal continues apace

Transcription

1 Rotary recap: UK helicopter renewal continues apace [Content preview Subscribe to IHS Jane s Defence Weekly for full article] After years of neglect that resulted in a political crisis during the Afghanistan war, the UK's helicopter fleet is beginning to see the fruits of a long-overdue multi-billion-pound renewal programme. Gareth Jennings examines this effort, which is seeing additional platforms procured, old types replaced with new ones, and trusted workhorses upgraded with additional capabilities The procurement, use, and sustainment of helicopters in the United Kingdom have always been something of an afterthought, given their somewhat secondary status across all three of the armed services in which they are fielded. Although critical to the operations of each service, helicopters have never been the highest priority for any of them, with the Royal Air Force (RAF) focused on its fast jets, the Royal Navy (RN) on its ships, and the British Army on its tanks and armoured fighting vehicles. Decades of underfunding in helicopter provision came to a head in 2009 when the issue became the political 'hot potato' of the day as politicians and military chiefs publically clashed over the lack of helicopters available to ground forces operating in Afghanistan. The perceived paucity of rotarywing airlift provision crossed over into the mainstream media, garnering such headlines in the national press as 'Helicopter shortage puts UK troops at risk' ( Financial Times ) and 'Now we are borrowing Russian helicopters to fight the Taliban' ( Daily Mail ). Puma Having been in service with the RAF since 1971, the Puma twin-engine utility helicopter had served with distinction throughout the European theatre (most notably in Northern Ireland), but was shown to be somewhat underpowered for operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. While the RAF could have retired the type altogether in favour of the larger and more powerful Chinook and Merlin platforms, the flexibility of the smaller Puma (including its ability to airlifted by the Airbus A400M Atlas transport aircraft without the need to be broken down to quite the same extent as its larger stablemates) meant that options for addressing its shortfalls so as to keep it in service were pursued instead. Twenty-four helicopters (reduced from 28 originally on cost grounds) have been equipped with more powerful Turbomeca Makila 1A1 engines as well as 'glass' cockpit avionics, secure communications, the new Automatic Flying Control System (developed by Airbus and Sagem), and improved self-protection equipment. They are also being fitted with wire-cutters and an anticollision system as part of a safety upgrade to be rolled out across the whole of the UK's frontline helicopter fleet. Page 1 of 7

2 Having only recently been reintroduced into RAF service in its latest HC2 guise in early 2015, the Puma has already spent more than a year deployed on operations in Afghanistan. (Crown Copyright) Chinook The Boeing Chinook has been the mainstay of the UK's vertical-lift capability since the HC1 was introduced into service in 1981, being operationally employed in theatres as varied as Northern Ireland, the sub-antarctic Falkland Islands, the jungles of Sierra Leone, the deserts of Iraq, as well as the mountains and deserts of Afghanistan. The type has even operated from the decks of RN ships, rescuing UK nationals from Beirut in the early 1980s and in [check] With the HC1 having long been upgraded by the time the political storm erupted over the paucity of UK helicopter capability in Afghanistan, the RAF had a fleet of 40 HC2 platforms in 2009 (two of which were subsequently lost in operations). As part of its rotary-wing capability drive the MoD chose to add to this fleet with eight 'reverted' HC3 platforms that had originally been procured for special operations use. These special-forces-configured HC3 helicopters were part of a batch of 14 HC2 Chinooks purchased by the MoD in Having been upgraded to HC3 standard - which involved the fitting of a 'glass cockpit' and advanced avionics and systems - the eight helicopters were delivered back to the MoD by December However, as the new avionics suite failed to meet a new UK defence standard for software, all eight helicopters were put into storage until a solution could be agreed. Page 2 of 7

3 The last of 14 new Chinook HC6 helicopters has now been handed over to the UK. (Boeing) Merlin As part of the Chinook buy for the RAF, the service transferred its 25 AW101 Merlins over to the RN to replace the Westland Sea King HC4 Commando platforms being retired in 2016 (reduced from 28 originally). These Merlin HC3/3A platforms are to be upgraded to the HC4 standard through the Merlin Life Sustainment Programme (MLSP) to make them better suited to shipborne operations, with automatic folding main rotor blades and tail boom among a number of maritimespecific enhancements (the navy will ultimately operate 19 HC4s and six HC4As, to be fielded by 845 and 846 Naval Air Squadrons (NAS) at Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton). Page 3 of 7

4 The Royal Navy has received the entirety of the RAF's Merlin fleet as a replacement for its 'Junglie' Sea Kings and to clear the way for the RAF to receive additional Chinooks. (IHS/Patrick Allen) With the Merlin HC3/3A platforms having been handed over to the RN in July 2015, deliveries of full HC4 variants will begin in 2017 and continue until 2020 (with full operating capability forecast for March 2022). The Merlin is slated to remain in RN service through to Page 4 of 7

5 A chart from the National Audit Office's Major Projects Report 2012 showing the UK's helicopter lift requirements set against capabilities out to (NAO/IHS) Beyond the 'Junglie' troop transport variant of the Merlin, the RN is to transfer its Airborne Surveillance and Control (ASaC) capability over to the platform from the incumbent Sea King ASaC7. Of the 44 Merlin HM1 helicopters that the RN received from 1998 to 2002, 30 are being modernised to HM2 standard (pictured) with new avionics, aircraft management systems, cockpit displays, communications, and navigation systems under the MCSP. (IHS/Patrick Allen) Lynx Wildcat A further example of the UK upgrading an existing helicopter type to increase capability and add decades to service life is that of the AW159 Lynx Wildcat programme, although the term 'upgrade' does not really do the Wildcat project justice as it is essentially an all-new platform with enhanced ASW and ASuW capabilities. Being introduced into service in both the RN (Surface Combatant Maritime Rotorcraft [SCMR] HMA2) and AAC (Battlefield Reconnaissance Helicopter [BRH] AH1), the Wildcat is set to replace the legacy Lynx variants in both services. The RN is set to receive 28 Wildcat HMA2 helicopters to replace its legacy Lynx HMA8 fleet, which is due to be retired by the end of March 2017, while the Page 5 of 7

6 AAC is to receive 34 examples to replace the Lynx AH7 and AH9A. Both the navy and army will operate their Wildcats as a common pool of aircraft out of RNAS Yeovilton. The UK is now pretty far advanced with its Lynx Wildcat procurement, with the Royal Navy having received most of its SCMR variant helicopters and the army all of its BRH variants. (IHS/Patrick Allen) As noted in IHS Jane's World Navies, the Wildcat HMA2's primary air-to-surface weapon will be the joint Anglo-French Future Air-To-Surface Guided Weapon (FASGW), which will replace the current inventory of Sea Skua missiles. The FASGW has two variants: the Thales Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM), otherwise known as FASGW (Light); and the MBDA ANL, known as FASGW (Heavy). FASGW (Light), of which the Wildcat will carry four five-round launchers, is designed to counter small boat and fast inshore attack craft. FASGW (Heavy), of which the Wildcat will carry four, is for use against larger targets up to corvette size. Alternatively, the Wildcat will be able to carry a mixed load of two LMM launchers (inboard) and two ANL (named Sea Venom by the RN) missiles (outboard) for maximum mission flexibility against maritime and/or 'soft' coastal land targets. Apache Page 6 of 7

7 The final link in the UK's helicopter capability enhancement chain is to replace the AAC's 66 AgustaWestland/Boeing WAH-64D Apache AH1 attack helicopters (of which 50 remain operational) with 50 of the latest-generation AH-64Es. While this project has not yet been officially sanctioned by the UK government, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced in August 2015 that the MoD has requested that 50 of its older-model WAH-64D Apache Longbows be remanufactured to the AH-64E Apache Guardian standard at a cost of about USD3 billion. The British Army is expected to remanufacture 50 of its current AH-64D Block 1 Apache helicopters into the latest AH-64E standard (pictured). A final decision is pending. (Boeing) For the full version and more content: IHS Jane's Defence Industry and Markets Intelligence Centre This analysis is taken from IHS Jane s Defence Industry & Markets Intelligence Centre, which provides world-leading analysis of commercial, industrial and technological defence developments, budget and programme forecasts, and insight into new and emerging defence markets around the world. IHS defence industry and markets news and analysis is also available within IHS Jane s Defence Weekly. To learn more and to subscribe to IHS Jane s Defence Weekly online, offline or print visit For advertising solutions contact the IHS Jane s Advertising team Page 7 of 7