AH-64E Apache Block III: Evolving Battlefield Roles

Feb 21, 2020 04:54 UTC

Latest updates[?]: British Army Apache Attack helicopters, Wildcat reconnaissance helicopters and RAF Chinook transport helicopters, will be among more than 2,500 British troops taking part in Exercise Defender Europe 20, say the British Army. The pilots and ground crew of 3 Regt AAC’s 662 Squadron, based at Wattisham Flying Station in Suffolk, have been put through their paces this week ahead of the deployment, which will see them training in Germany and Poland in the spring. Defender Europe 20 is a US Army-led exercise involving 35,000 troops from 18 nations. It aims to demonstrate the ability to rapidly surge combat ready forces into and across Europe to support the NATO alliance.

AH-64 in Afghanistan

The AH-64 Apache will remain the US Army’s primary armed helicopter for several more decades, thanks to the collapse of the RAH-66 Comanche program, and the retirement sans replacement of the US Army’s Armed Reconnaissance Helicopter (ARH). Apaches also serve with a number of American allies, some of whom have already expressed interest in upgrading or expanding their fleets.

The AH-64E Guardian Block III (AB3) is the helicopter’s next big step forward. It incorporates 26 key new-technology insertions that cover flight performance, maintenance costs, sensors & electronics, and even the ability to control UAVs as part of manned-unmanned teaming (MUT). In July 2006, Boeing and U.S. Army officials signed the initial development contract for Block III upgrades to the current and future Apache fleet, via a virtual signing ceremony. By November 2011, the 1st production helicopter had been delivered. So… how many helicopters will be modified under the AH-64 Block III program, what do these modifications include, how is the program structured, and what has been happening since that 2006 award? The short answer is: a lot, including export interest and sales.

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MH-60R/S: The USA’s New Naval Workhorse Helicopters

Feb 21, 2020 04:52 UTC

Latest updates[?]: The Cabinet Committee on Security of India has reportedly approved the procurement of 24 MH-60R multi-role helicopters from the US. The $2.6 billion worth helicopter acquisition is for the Indian Navy and will be done through the US Foreign Military Sales program. In April 2018, the procurement was cleared by the Defence Acquisition Council, while the sale was also approved by the DoS in April last year. US Congress has also been notified about the possible sale. Lockheed Martin was selected to serve as the sale’s principal contractor. The helicopters will replace the Sea King helicopters that were phased out in 2000. According to US Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the MH-60R Seahawk helicopters will enhance India’s capability to perform anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare missions.

USN Heli Plan

The US Army’s UH-60 Black Hawks have always had a naval counterpart. SH-60B/F Seahawk/ LAMPS helicopters were outfitted with maritime radar, sonobuoys, and other specialized equipment that let them perform a wide variety of roles, from supply and transport, to anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue, medical evacuation, and even surface attack with torpedoes or Kongsberg’s AGM-119 Penguin missiles. Like their land-based counterparts, however, the Seahawks are getting older. The Reagan defense build-up is receding into history, and its products are wearing out.

European countries chose to build new designs like the medium-heavy EH101 and the NH90 medium helicopter. They’re larger than the H-60s, make heavy use of corrosion-proof composites, and add new features like rear ramps. The USA, in contrast, decided to upgrade existing H-60 designs for the Army and Navy. Hence the MH-60R Multi-Mission Helicopter (aka. “Romeo”) and MH-60S (aka. “Sierra”) Seahawks. MH-60Rs and MH-60Ss will eventually replace all SH-60B/F & HH-60H Seahawks, HH-1N Hueys, UH-3H Sea Kings, and CH-46D Sea Knight helicopters currently in the US Navy’s inventory. Both programs are underway, and will be covered in this DID FOCUS Article.

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Armed & Versatile: Sikorsky’s ‘Battlehawk’ Helicopters

Feb 17, 2020 04:52 UTC

Latest updates[?]: Taiwan media reports that the the Ministry of Defense has revealed a preliminary finding on February 15 into the fatal crash of a UH-60M helicopter on January 2. According to the information given, the pilot was navigating on VFR route C-10 in the direction from Sindian to Yilan. The information published on the AIP for Taipei FIR shows that the route to be taken from Sindian to Yilan is along Highway No.9. This will take the aircraft over the outskirts of Yilan city before the highway turns south for the city center. However, based on the data provided in the report. It shows the pilot did not follow the exact route of Highway No.9 to exit the mountain regions but he had turned south much earlier to track towards Jiaoxi Township.

AH-60L
(click to view larger)

The UH-60M Black Hawk is currently the most advanced UH-60/S-70 model, whose variants are in service with the US Army and over 20 other countries around the world. To date, UH-60M customers include the USA, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, plus a request from Egypt. Unlike global competitors such as Russia’s Mi-8/17 series, however, the UH-60’s operational armament is generally limited to door guns. That may be about to change, thanks to a UAE initiative.

Colombia currently flies the armed S-70 “Arpia III”, and Sikorsky has worked on armed “AH-60” versions as an offering in some foreign competitions, but efforts to sell the concept in Australia and elsewhere were less successful. Nevertheless, Sikorsky executives see considerable potential for multi-role helicopters and conversion kits, in an era of global insurgencies, tight budgets, and limited helicopter numbers. Now, the UAE has become their launch customer. What is Sikorsky’s Battlehawk, and what are their plans?

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The New Chinooks: Boeing’s Modern H-47 Heavy-Lift Helicopters

Jan 27, 2020 04:54 UTC

Latest updates[?]: The Pentagon’s semiannual report “Enhancing Security and Stability in Afghanistan” revealed that Washington plans to provide CH-47 helicopters to Afghanistan’s Special Mission Wing. The report says the Pentagon has approved the plan and the Wing’s Mi-17s will be replaced by the Chinook by 2023. It states that “The United States continued to provide the ANDSF the necessary equipment and training to improve their capacity during this reporting period and focused advisory efforts at the “point of need” with reliable security partners to increase their effectiveness.” “DoD continued to provide additional combat aircraft to the Afghan Air Force and plans to provide CH-47 Chinook helicopters to the Special Mission Wing to support its counter-terrorism operations and replace its Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters,” the report also said. The NATO-led Train, Advise, Assist Mission officials had earlier said that the alliance would step up efforts to triple the size of the Afghan Air Force by 2023.

CH-47Fs take off

DII FOCUS articles offer in-depth, updated looks at significant military programs of record; this FOCUS Article covers the CH-47F/MH-47G Chinook helicopter programs, in the USA and abroad. These helicopters’ distinctive “flying banana” twin-rotor design stems from the brilliant work of aviation pioneer Frank Piasecki. It gives Chinooks the ability to adjust their positioning very precisely, while carrying a large airframe whose load capacity has made it the world’s most popular heavy-lift helicopter. The USA expects to be operating Chinooks in their heavy-lift role past 2030.

The CH-47F looks similar to earlier models, but offers a wide range of improvements in almost every aspect of design and performance. While the related HH-47’s $10-15 billion CSAR-X program win was terminated, delivery orders continue for CH-47Fs and for MH-47G Special Forces configuration helicopters. International orders or formal requests have also come in from Australia, Britain, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey, and the UAE, with India and other countries expected to follow.

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US Hellfire Missile Orders, FY 2011-2020

Jan 20, 2020 04:56 UTC

Latest updates[?]: Lockheed Martin won a $9.8 million contract modification for engineering services in support of the Hellfire Missile and Joint Air-to-Ground Missile. The Hellfire is an air-to-ground, laser guided, subsonic missile with significant anti-tank capacity. It can also be used as an air-to-air weapon against helicopters or slow-moving fixed-wing aircraft. Hellfire can be used as an air-to-air or an air-to-ground missile. The Air-to-Ground (AGM)-114 provides precision striking power against tanks, structures, bunkers and helicopters. The Hellfire missile is capable of defeating any known tank in the world today. It can be guided to the target either from inside the aircraft or by lasers outside the aircraft. Work will take place in Orlando, Florida. Estimated completion date is January 15, 2021.

USN MH-60S test

Hellfire I/II missiles are the USA’s preferred aerial anti-armor missile, and are widely deployed with America’s allies. They equip America’s helicopter fleets (AH-64, AH-1, OH-58D, MH-60S/R), AH-64 and S-70 helicopters flown by its allies, and even Australia and France’s Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopters. Range is officially listed as 9 km/ 5.6 miles.

While Hellfires lack the fast-jet launch capabilities – and correspondingly extended maximum range – of the UK’s MBDA Brimstone missiles, Lockheed Martin’s missile has made big inroads as the world’s high-end helicopter-launched missile. It has also carved out unique niches as tripod-launched coastal defense assets, as the guided missile integrated into American UAVs like the MQ-1 Predator family, and even as a missile option for transport aircraft like the AC-208B Combat Caravan and C-130J/W Hercules.

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France’s Rafale

Jan 16, 2020 04:56 UTC

Latest updates[?]: Egypt now has the capability to aerial refuel combat aircraft, Janes’s reports. An official video released by the Ministry of Defense shows 'buddy-buddy' systems fitted to Air Force MiG-29M 'Fulcrum' fighters. The video is supposed to highlight capabilities of the Egyptian Armed Forces. It shows a pair of MiG-29Ms equipped with centerline hose-and-drogue units preparing to offload fuel to two Dassault Rafale combat aircraft. The 'buddy-buddy' system seen fitted to the MiG-29M in the video is called the PAZ-MK Refueling Pod. According to its manufacturer, Zvezda-NPP, it was designed to increase the range of carrier-borne MiG-29K/KUB aircraft, as flown by the Russian and Indian Navies.

Dassault Rafale
(click for cutaway view)

Will Dassault’s fighter become a fashionably late fighter platform that builds on its parent company’s past successes – or just “the late Rafale”? It all began as a 1985 break-away from the multinational consortium that went on to create EADS’ Eurofighter. The French needed a lighter aircraft that was suitable for carrier use, and were reportedly unwilling to cede design authority over the project. As is so often true of French defense procurement policy, the choice came down to paying additional costs for full independence and exact needs, or losing key industrial capabilities by partnering or buying abroad. France has generally opted for expensive but independent defense choices, and the Rafale was no exception.

Those costs, and associated delays triggered by the end of the Cold War and reduced funding, proved to be very costly indeed. Unlike previous French fighters, which relied on exports to lower their costs and keep production lines humming, the Rafale has yet to secure a single export contract – in part because initial versions were hampered by impaired capabilities in key roles. The Rafale may, at last, be ready to be what its vendors say: a true omnirole aircraft, ready for prime time on the global export stage. The question is whether it’s too late. Rivals like EADS’ Eurofighter, Russia’s Su-27/30 family, and the American “teen series” of F-15/16/18 variants are all well established. Meanwhile, Saab’s versatile and cheaper JAS-39 Gripen remains a stubborn foe in key export competitions, and the multinational F-35 juggernaut is bearing down on it.

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Ships Ahoy! The Harpoon Missile Family

Dec 12, 2019 04:56 UTC

Latest updates[?]: Boeing won a $9.5 million delivery order, which provides Harpoon/SLAM-ER missile system and Harpoon launch systems follow-on integrated logistics and engineering services support for the Navy and various Foreign Military Sales customers. The A/U/RGM-84 Harpoon is an anti-ship missile system capable of being launched by aircraft, surface ships, submarines and shore batteries. The Harpoon is a subsonic missile with a range of over 70 miles and a 488-pound blast/fragmentation warhead. It has been in use with upgrades since 1977 and is a standard anti-ship weapon with 28 countries. The AGM-84K Standoff Land Attack Missile-Expanded Response is a longer ranged upgraded version of the original SLAM, which is itself a development of the Harpoon. Work will take place in Missouri and Virginia. Expected completion is February 2022.

Harpoon in flight

The sub-sonic, wave-skimming GM-84 Harpoon is the US Navy’s sole anti-shipping missile, with the minor exception of small helicopter-borne AGM-119B Penguin missiles. The Harpoon has been adapted into several variants, and exported to many navies around the world. At present, the Harpoon family includes AGM-84 air, RGM-84 sea/land, and UGM-84 submarine-launched versions. Variants such as the Joint Standoff Land Attack Missiles and the upgraded AGM-84K SLAM – Expanded Response will also be covered in this DID FOCUS Article. It describes the missiles themselves, and covers global contracts involving this family.

The Harpoon family’s best known competitor is the French/MBDA M38/39/40 Exocet, but recent years have witnessed a growing competitive roster at both the subsonic (Israel’s >Gabriel family, Russia’s SS-N-27 Klub family, Saab’s RBS15, Kongsberg’s stealthy NSM, China’s YJ-82/C-802 used by Hezbollah in Lebanon), and supersonic (Russia’s SS-N-22 Sunburn/Moskit, SS-N-26 Yakhont, and some SS-N-27 Klub variants, India’s SS-N-26 derived PJ-10 BrahMos) tiers.

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UAE Buys Saab’s Erieye AEW&C Aircraft

Nov 21, 2019 04:56 UTC

Latest updates[?]: At this year’s Dubai Airshow, the UAE surprisingly announced that it will acquire two more GlobalEye Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft and three Airbus A330 MRTT tankers. The Dubai Airshow started on November 17 and will continue through November 21. The United Arab Emirates' Air Force and Air Defense is reportedly in the closing stages of negotiations with Saab for an additional two GlobalEye AEW&C aircraft, as well as a further three Airbus A330 MRTT (multi-role tanker transport) aircraft. The procurement for the two GlobalEye aircraft is valued at $1 billion, and comes as Saab is moving ahead with the program for three aircraft on order for the UAEAFAD. The first two aircraft were ordered at the 2015 Dubai Airshow, with an order for a third being placed in early 2017. The first aircraft was rolled out in February 2018, undertaking its first flight in March 2018. Testing and evaluation continued throughout 2018 and 2019. Saab officials told Jane's that the certification flight testing has been concluded, with the aircraft currently under modification to final status.

Arabian/Persian Gulf

In November 2009, Saab announced a 1.5 billion SEK (about $220 million) contract from the United Arab Emirates for 2 of its Saab 340 regional turboprops, equipped with Erieye active-array radars that can scan large airspace volumes, and with related command and control systems. The Saab 340 AEW contract also includes ground equipment, initial spares, and support services.

The UAE is just the latest buyer of Saab’s Erieye system.

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THAAD: Reach Out and Touch Ballistic Missiles

Sep 04, 2019 04:58 UTC

Latest updates[?]: Lockheed Martin announced that its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system successfully intercepted a medium-range ballistic missile target on August 30 in a missile defense test. The test was led by the US Missile Defense Agency with support provided by the US Army. During the test, the THAAD system located at US Army Garrison Kwajalein Atoll in the Republic of the Marshall Islands successfully detected, tracked and intercepted a threat representative target using a THAAD launcher that was positioned at distance from the other THAAD end items, the company said. The THAAD system, made by Lockheed Martin, is designed to intercept threats from inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere. It has had 16 consecutive successful launches and interceptions, but the test early Friday demonstrated the capability of engaging the system remotely with a government-developed remote launcher kit.

THAAD: In flight

The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system is a long-range, land-based theater defense weapon that acts as the upper tier of a basic 2-tiered defense against ballistic missiles. It’s designed to intercept missiles during late mid-course or final stage flight, flying at high altitudes within and even outside the atmosphere. This allows it to provide broad area coverage against threats to critical assets such as population centers and industrial resources as well as military forces, hence its previous “theater (of operations) high altitude area defense” designation.

This capability makes THAAD different from a Patriot PAC-3 or the future MEADS system, which are point defense options with limited range that are designed to hit a missile or warhead just before impact. The SM-3 Standard missile is a far better comparison, and land-based SM-3 programs will make it a direct THAAD competitor. So far, both programs remain underway.

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RIM-162 ESSM Missile: Naval Anti-Air in a Quad Pack

Aug 29, 2019 04:56 UTC

Latest updates[?]: The US Navy contracted Raytheon with a $190 million low-rate initial production contract for ESSM Block 2 missiles featuring a new guidance system with a dual mode active and semi-active radar. Raytheon says in a press release that the award follows the Navy's decision to shift from development to production on the enhanced intermediate-range, surface-to-air missile, placing the Block 2 variant on track for initial operating capability in 2020. The ESSM Block 2 program is a co-operative effort between the USN and its 11 NATO SeaSparrow Consortium partners to develop an upgraded ESSM 'front-end' to counter current and future threat capabilities within the existing envelope. These include anti-ship cruise missiles, anti-ship ballistic missiles, and surface threats.

RIM-162: sections

The RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) is used to protect ships from attacking missiles and aircraft, and is designed to counter supersonic maneuvering anti-ship missiles. Compared to the RIM-7 Sea Sparrow, ESSM is effectively a new missile with a larger, more powerful rocket motor for increased range, a different aerodynamic layout for improved agility, and the latest missile guidance technology. Testing has even shown the ESSM to be effective against fast surface craft, an option that greatly expands the missile’s utility. As a further bonus, the RIM-162 ESSM has the ability to be “quad-packed” in the Mk 41 vertical launching system, allowing 4 missiles to be carried per launch cell instead of loading one larger SM-2 Standard missile or similar equipment.

This is DID’s FOCUS article for the program, containing details about the RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow missile family, and contracts placed under this program since 1999. The Sea Sparrow was widely used aboard NATO warships, so it isn’t surprising that the ESSM is an international program. The NATO Sea Sparrow Consortium includes Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, and the USA – as well as non-NATO Australia. Foreign Military Sales ESSM customers outside this consortium include Japan, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates.

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