June 18, 2020 | International, Aerospace, Naval

Boeing Completes Resurrection Of F/A-18E/F With First Block III Delivery

Boeing on June 17 delivered the first F/A-18E/F Block III to the U.S. Navy to launch a yearlong testing campaign on a new configuration with around a $60 million flyaway cost that is currently being offered to five foreign air forces.

“The Navy is going to go through their test program with these two test assets over the next year, and then about this time next year is when we'll start delivering the fully operational Block IIIs,” said Jennifer Tebo, Boeing's director of development for F-18 programs.

The delivery milestone completes an unexpected resurrection of the twin-engine, carrier-based fighter. Until the fiscal 2019 budget was released, the Navy planned to order no additional F/A-18E/Fs after the last of 608 Block II jets ordered in fiscal 2018, which Boeing delivered to the Navy on April 17.

But the newly-inaugurated Trump administration had different plans for the 25-year-old design. Although the Navy previously showed no interest in a 2013 Boeing proposal to reduce the radar cross section by half, the Navy in 2017 started showing interest in a more modest improvement. Rather than attempt to remake the F/A-18E/F to operate alongside the more stealthy Lockheed Martin F-35C, Boeing made tweaks to allow the Super Hornet to shoulder the predominantly air-to-air fleet defense mission, while staying on-station longer, carrying more weapons and more tightly integrating into the Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air system.

The result is an F/A-18E/F Block III configuration anchored by the addition of the Distributed Targeting Processor Network (DTP-N), a mission computer 17 times more powerful than the previous system and capable of fusing data from onboard and off-board sensors. Boeing also integrated the high-bandwidth Tactical Targeting Network Technology datalink for the aircraft to receive the off-board data. To complete the new capability, Boeing also installed the Advanced Cockpit System, with large format displays to present the fused situational awareness data to the pilot.

The new upgrade also comes with a pair of dorsal-mounted conformal fuel tanks to extend the aircraft's range. Meanwhile, the belly-mounted, centerline fuel tank is upgraded with an improved infrared search-and-track sensor, which is needed to help the F/A-18E/F acquire aerial targets without giving away its location by turning on its radar. Finally, Boeing also modified the structure to accommodate a 9,000-hr.-plus service life.

The aircraft is also set to receive new kinetic capabilities, likely starting with the H18 Operational Flight Program scheduled for release in fiscal 2023. The H16 release planned next year adds most of the Block III enhancements. The H18 release adds a powerful new weapon with the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range. The U.S. Air Force has also said that the F/A-18E/F will receive the Lockheed Martin AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile after fiscal 2022, which aligns with the H18 release.

Finally, the Navy has not defined the service's vision for manned/unmanned teaming, but the scheduled arrival of the Miniature Air-Launched Decoy-Navy (MALD-N) in fiscal 2023 adds an intriguing new capability, with a single-use decoy or munition capable of operating in swarms with other unmanned or manned assets. The Boeing MQ-25 unmanned tanker is also scheduled to enter service in fiscal 2024.

“We're obviously exploring that area, trying to determine what are the best use cases,” Tebo said. “So I see that start to become more and more a reality as you start to see things like MQ-25 on the carrier deck and then other unmanned vehicles such as MALD-N.”

The Navy decided this year to truncate new F/A-18E/F Block III production after fiscal 2021 and divert the funding to the Next Generation Air Dominance program. Boeing now plans to deliver 72 new F/A-18E/F Block IIIs over the next two years, then start delivering 364 Block II jets modified to the new standard. Canada, Finland, Germany, India and Switzerland are also considering additional orders, which could extend new production well beyond fiscal 2021.

https://aviationweek.com/defense-space/aircraft-propulsion/boeing-completes-resurrection-fa-18ef-first-block-iii-delivery

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May 17, 2021 | International, Aerospace

L’armée de l’Air et de l’Espace et le GIFAS soutiennent le projet TARMAQ
Le général Philippe Lavigne, chef d'état-major de l'armée de l'Air et de l'Espace, et Éric Trappier, président du GIFAS et PDG de Dassault Aviation, seront le 18 mai à Mérignac pour apporter leur soutien au projet TARMAQ, future Cité des savoirs aéronautiques et spatiaux. À cette occasion, TARMAQ et l'armée de l'Air et de l'Espace signeront une convention de partenariat. Seront également présents Alain Rousset, président du Conseil régional de Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Alain Anziani, maire de Mérignac et président de Bordeaux Métropole et Jean-Jacques Gondallier de Tugny, président de TARMAQ, précise le quotidien Sud-Ouest. Sud-Ouest du 17 mai
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Indonesia orders five C-130J aircraft from Lockheed
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May 14, 2018 | International, Aerospace

Army, Uber will partner on silent rotor technology for UAVs
By: Charlsy Panzino The Army is partnering with Uber to create safer, more lethal unmanned aerial vehicle missions. The new effort between the Army Research Laboratory and the rideshare company, announced on Tuesday, aims to create silent rotor technology. The goal is to reduce the noise caused by traditional UAV rotors. “When UAVs are doing an [intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance] mission, they're out there collecting or observing to collect intelligence or to do surveillance,” Jaret Riddick, director of ARL's Vehicle Technology Directorate, told Army Times after the announcement. That mission is hampered, however, when the adversary can hear the UAV coming, Riddick said. “They know a certain noise in the distance means a certain type of operation is underway,” he said. “When you can do that with the advantage of not being detected ... it changes how you execute a mission.” Uber Elevate, under which the air taxi side of the company falls, is interested in noise-reduction technology because its vehicles would be operating in dense urban areas. Since Uber is a technology company, ARL will build the UAVs for testing the technology. One kind of technology Uber is looking at to solve the noise problem is the idea of having stacked rotors on a vehicle that spin in the same direction. Traditionally, UAVs have stacked rotors that spin in opposite directions. “When those rotors are spinning in opposite directions, they create a type of turbulence that contributes to noise in the operation,” Riddick said. “By having them spin in the same direction and adjusting their position to one another, research has shown that using this technique can offer advantages in performance while reducing the noise compared with traditional operations.” One of these performance advantages is more lift capability, he said. Last year, Uber announced the Dallas-Forth Worth area as its first location for flight demonstrations in 2020, and Riddick said Uber will collaborate with ARL-South researchers in Austin. Uber and ARL-South will build the infrastructure needed for testing, Riddick said, adding that progress will be checked every six months. “Uber is proud to be partnering with ARL on critical research on flying vehicle innovations that will help create the world's first urban aviation rideshare network,” Eric Allison, head of Uber Elevate, said in a news release. “Our first jointly-funded project will help us develop first of its kind rotor technology that will allow for quieter and more efficient travel. We see this initial project as the first of many and look forward to continued collaboration with the lab on innovations that will make uberAIR a reality.” https://www.armytimes.com/news/your-army/2018/05/08/army-uber-will-partner-on-silent-rotor-technology-for-uavs/

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Boeing Completes Resurrection Of F/A-18E/F With First Block III Delivery

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Indonesia orders five C-130J aircraft from Lockheed Indonesia has quietly signed a contract with Lockheed Martin for C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft, multiple sources have told Defense News.

Indonesia orders five C-130J aircraft from Lockheed
Indonesia has quietly signed a contract with Lockheed Martin for C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft, multiple sources have told Defense News.