No Stealthy McBombface Moniker for B-21 | Turkey’s Erdogan Announces Lofty Naval Ambitions | Spain Selects Thales Scorpion HMCS for Hornets

Americas

• The USAF has requested $165.7 million in the FY 2017 defense budget to convert the EC-37B (military designation for the G550) into an electronic attack platform. If selected, the C-37B will eventually replace the EC-130H currently used. According to the service, the selection of the C-37B was made uncompetitively as the aircraft did not require any further certification work.

• A naming contest for the B-21 bomber ended on May 5, with over 4,600 entries received by the USAF. Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James announced that a name will be selected this fall. Luckily, the name wasn’t selected by public vote, so we can rule out a name like Stealthy McBombface.

• Software updates for the FA-18 and EA-18G have been validated by the US Navy after a series of flight tests between April 18-29. The first set of software: 27C, is designed for use in F/A-18A-D Hornets; H12 is for F/A-18F Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers. Testing took place at the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division-managed Point Mugu Sea Range which contains 36,000 square miles of controlled sea and airspace, allowing for testing in a real-world environment.

Middle East North Africa

• Turkey’s iron fist president Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced his country’s ambitions for indigenously produced aircraft carriers and nuclear vessels just as its tentative production of its landing platform dock (LPD) began last month. The plans were announced among generous praise for Turkey’s domestic defense industry, which has moved from a 20-60 percent market share since his AKP party came to power in 2002. Zero dependency is expected by 2023. Ambitious indeed.

Europe

• Spain has selected the Thales Scorpion Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems (HMCS) for its F/A-18 Hornet fleet. This is the first time the HMCS has been selected by a F/A-18 operator, and Thales said it “will be responsible for the viability study, testing phase, integration with test aircraft, qualification support, and integration in the fleet.” The system offers full color symbology (navigation, intelligence, combat, etc.) for both nighttime and daytime missions, in addition to target cueing in potentially degraded visual environments.

Asia Pacific

• Ski-jump tests of a naval version of India’s Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) have been successful. The tests involved the aircraft taking off under 200 meters with the aid of a ski-jump while carrying two R-73 air-to-air missiles. Next up for the two prototype LCAs will involve touch-and-go testing on a simulated deck at the Shore Based Test Facility (SBTF) in Goa. The navalized versions will be added to the INS Vikrant aircraft carrier after it is commissioned in 2018.

• Airbus Helicopters is being kept busy with its Australian customers as it rushes to complete specifications of NH Industries NH90, in which Airbus Helicopters is the largest shareholder. Requirements by the Australian government include a weapons system and fast-roping and rappelling capability, as well as limitations to maritime deployment. Australia is also looking to replace its fleet of Airbus Tiger helicopters which have not met service standards.

Today’s Video

• “Our missile capabilities are not negotiable.” Iran unveils its new S-300 missile defense system:

Spain Looks to Equip its F-18s With New EW Suite

Spanish EF-18B

Spanish reader Pedro Lucio tips DID off to a Spanish Council of Minister notice that says Indra Sistemas will be supplying a new electronic warfare suite for that country’s F/A-18 Hornet fighters. The EF-18 designation denotes “Espana,” not “electronic warfare” as it does in American designations like the EA-18G “Growler” Super Hornet derivative. Australia has also moved to re-equip its F/A-18 Hornets with a new domestically-developed EW suite, but failed and ended up buying Raytheon’s AN/ALR-67(V)3 instead.

Indra is a participant in the Eurofighter Typhoon’s DASS EW suite as a subcontractor to SELEX, and also makes most of the EW suites that equip Spanish Navy ships. The maximum value of the initial contract is announced at EUR 7.13 million (currently about $9.2 million). Approximately 109 EF-18s are in service in the Ejercito del Aire.

Updates

May 12/16: Spain has selected the Thales Scorpion Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems (HMCS) for its F/A-18 Hornet fleet. This is the first time the HMCS has been selected by a F/A-18 operator, and Thales said it “will be responsible for the viability study, testing phase, integration with test aircraft, qualification support, and integration in the fleet.” The system offers full color symbology (navigation, intelligence, combat, etc.) for both nighttime and daytime missions, in addition to target cueing in potentially degraded visual environments.

NH90: Europe’s Medium Helicopter Gets New Order Despite Issues

NH90: TTH & NFH

The NH90 emerged from a requirement that created a NATO helicopter development and procurement agency in 1992 and, at almost the same time, established NH Industries (62.5% EADS Eurocopter, 32.5% AgustaWestland, and 5% Stork Fokker) to build the hardware. The NATO Frigate Helicopter was originally developed to fit between light naval helicopters like AW’s Lynx or Eurocopter’s Panther, and medium-heavy naval helicopters like the European EH101. A quick look at the NFH design showed definite possibilities as a troop transport helicopter, however, and soon the NH90 project had branched into 2 versions, with more to follow.

The nearest equivalent would be Sikorsky’s popular H-60 Seahawk/ Black Hawk family, but the NH90 includes a set of innovative features that give it some distinguishing selling points. Its combination of corrosion-proofing, lower maintenance, greater troop or load capacity, and the flexibility offered by that rear ramp have made the NH90 a popular global competitor.

As many business people discover the hard way, however, success can be almost as dangerous as failure. NH Industries has had great difficulty ramping up production fast enough to meet promised deliveries, which has left several buyers upset. Certification and acceptance have also been slow, with very few NH90s in service over a decade after the first contracts were signed. Booked orders have actually been sliding backward over the last year, and currently stand at around 500 machines, on behalf of 14 nations.