UK Set To Start C-130J Upgrade Flight Tests

A Royal Air Force C-130J Hercules is set to take to the air in the next few days to recommence trials of a major upgrade to the aircraft that is so late it has already been rolled into a subsequent improvement program.
Fitted out with an extensive suite of software and hardware improvements known as Block 7, the British C-130J kit installation trials aircraft is set to undertake months of operational test and evaluation work ahead of being further modified by prime contractor Lockheed Martin with additional capabilities known as Block 8.1.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said British flight trials on the Block 8.1 improvements are set to be completed in 2019.
The updates are crucial to the British and other C-130J fleet operators around the world as they provide additional capabilities for special operations forces and others.
The modifications will also allow operators to meet the latest civil air traffic management regulations. Without the update, C-130J aircraft will not be able to effectively operate in prescribed airspaces.
All seven members of the users group — Australia, Canada, Denmark, Italy, Norway, the UK and the US — are contributing to the development, evaluation and trial kit installation phases of the program.
Britain operates 24 C-130Js but is scheduled to run that fleet down starting next year as the Royal Air Force begins operations of the first of 22 Airbus A400M airlifters it has on order.
Two aircraft have been delivered to the RAF with a third scheduled to be handed over soon. A further six machines are expected to be delivered by the end of this year.
As things stand, the British are scheduled to take the C-130J out of service by 2022, although there is a debate within the military as to whether seven or eight of the fleet are kept on for special forces duties.
defensenews

Sweden will replace C-130H with either KC-390 or A400M

The Swedish air force is likely to field a replacement for its aged Lockheed Martin C-130H tactical transports at some point during the next decade, with potential candidates including the Embraer KC-390 and Airbus A400M.
Sweden Air Force will mark the 50th anniversary of its introduction of the Hercules, with its active fleet now including five transports and one KC-130H tanker. Two other aircraft have already been retired and are in storage in the UK, and the service could in time decide to reduce its operational fleet to only four examples.
Sweden’s recently published defence bill for the 2016-2020 period identifies the need to address the C-130H replacement issue only post-2021. The nation’s air force has already shown interest in Embraer’s developmental KC-390 transport and tanker. Sweden could also investigate the potential acquisition of the A400M. Several of the latter model are likely to become available early next decade, as Germany and Spain have said they will not be able to fully field their on-order fleets.
flightglobal

Bangladesh preparing to receive first of three L 410 transports

Czech manufacturer Aircraft Industries has completed the first of three L 410UVP-E20 twin-turboprop transport aircraft for the Bangladeshi Air Force.
The current BAF transport fleet includes three Antonov An-32s, two of which were delivered in 1990 and the third in 1995, and four 1960s-era ex-US Air Force Lockheed C-130B Hercules, delivered from 2002.
In 2012, the US Congress was notified of a possible sale of four ex-USAF C-130Es to Bangladesh, but nothing further has been heard of that potential deal.
janes

RAF C-130J deployed to South Sudan For Humanitarian Effort

The Royal Air Force says that its Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules strategic transport has been deployed to northeastern Africa to deliver supplies to a remote region under the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) humanitarian relief effort.
The C-130J will deliver vital supplies to the remote city of Malakal.
The C-130 is desperately needed both to help the UN’s transport infrastructure, which is in great demand, and to provide critical supplies to a country in the grip of a humanitarian crisis.
The C-130 is expected to be utilised until mid-April.
RAF has having 24 C-130Js in its current inventory.
flightglobal

Malaysia Receives First A400M

Malaysia has received the first of its four Airbus Defence and Space A400M Atlas , the company announced on 10 March.
The handover of aircraft MSN022 to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) took place at the final assembly line in Seville, Spain.
The aircraft will shortly arrive in Malaysia, ahead of the LIMA Airshow that is to take place in Langkawi from 17 to 21 March.
Malaysia became the A400M's first (and so far only) export customer in 2005 when it signed a contract for four aircraft to supplement its Lockheed Martin C-130H-30/KC-130H Hercules fleet.
The RMAF was originally due to have received its first two aircraft in the second half of 2013, with the remaining pair to follow in 2014. However, this timeline was revised when the programme was re-baselined in 2009, with the commencement of deliveries put back to the first quarter of 2015. Malaysia is due to receive two more aircraft this year, with the final one set to arrive in 2016.
With 12 of the 174-aircraft orderbook now delivered to five customers (France, Germany, Malaysia, Turkey, and the United Kingdom) in a logistics configuration, Airbus DS will shortly begin rolling out additional tactical capabilities (featuring full airdrop, self-defence, and a tanker role). This will lead through to the release of the Full Common Standard Aircraft in 2018.
defense-studies

Lockheed Martin Expects India Order For 6 C-130J to Replace Lost Units

Lockheed Martin is confident that New Delhi will replace the C-130J tactical transport lost in a 2013 crash, and expects deliveries from a follow-on order for six of the type to commence in 2017.
The US company's joint venture with Tata Systems in Bengaluru – Tata Lockheed Martin – is performing well at producing sub-assemblies for the C-130J.
flightglobal

Australia upgrading C-130s

Upgrades to the Royal Australian Air Force's (RAAF's) 12-strong fleet of C-130J-30 tactical transports are being progressed in parallel with changes in aircrew training intended to provide the government with a broader range of combat-focused options.
Installation of satellite communications in the first C-130J to augment its existing high frequency radio link should be completed in February, followed in June by installation secure beyond line-of-sight datalink.
janes

Italy To Send 4 Tornados To Kuwati To Join Coalition Against ISIS

Italy will send four Tornado aircraft to join coalition operations against the Islamic State in Iraq.
The aircraft, which will be based in Kuwait, will be used for reconnaissance missions only.
The aircraft will be accompanied by 135 support staff.
Pinotti said Italy was also dispatching to Iraq a number of Folgore 80mm anti-tank weapons previously used by the Italian Army.
In October, Italy said it would send a 767 tanker aircraft and two unarmed Predator drones to assist operations against fighters in Iraq, as well as 280 instructors.
Italy also sent a loaded C-130J to Baghdad, for shipment to Erbil, on Sept. 12. On board was a collection of arms, including 100 MG 42/59 machine guns and 100 12.7 Browning machine guns, plus munitions taken from Italian military stocks.
But there were also 2,000 RPG munitions and 400,000 machine gun rounds taken from a collection of arms and munitions seized in 1994 from a vessel allegedly defying a blockade to ship arms to Serbian fighters during the Balkan wars.
defense-update

KC-390 enters production phase of development

The Embraer KC-390 tanker-transport aircraft has entered into the production phase of its development schedule that includes the series manufacture of 28 aircraft for the Brazilian Air Force (Forca Aerea Brasileria - FAB).
With the roll-out of the first of two prototype aircraft in the coming days marking the end of the first phase of the development programme, the company has begun to allocate USD1.9 billion of funding for the purchase of materials for the manufacture of the series aircraft.
The maiden flight of the first prototype is set to take place before the end of 2014, with certification of the 'green' aircraft expected at the end of 2015. Final operational clearance is set for mid-2016, with Embraer commencing delivery of production aircraft to the FAB launch customer from that date.
With a payload of 23 tonnes (or 19 tonnes to a range of 2,000 n miles) and a 36,000 ft service ceiling, the KC-390 is being billed as a competitor to the Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules (22 tonnes). It could also be pitted against the Airbus Military C295 (7 tonnes), Antonov An-72/74 'Coaler' (10 tonnes), Alenia Aermacchi C-27J Spartan (11.5 tonnes), and even the Airbus Military A400M Atlas (37 tonnes).
Embraer currently has a potential order book numbering 60 KC-390 aircraft, covering 28 for Brazil, 12 for Colombia, 6 each for Argentina, Chile, and Portugal, and 2 for the Czech Republic. Embraer expects that the KC-390 will secure a large portion of a fixed-wing medium-lift market that amounts to approximately 700 aircraft in 77
janes

Brunei could operate C-130J

Brunei has requested a sale of 1 C-130J aircraft, 6 AE2100D3 turboprop engines (4 installed and 2 spares), Government Furnished Equipment, communication equipment, spare and repair parts, support and test equipment, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support services, and other related elements of logistical and program support. .
dsca

UK may retain C-130J Hercules for special forces duties

The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) may retain in service a number of its Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules transport aircraft for special forces use.
According RAF Oficcial "there may be a continued need for the C-130J beyond its current planned out of service date of 2022, probably for special forces use".
The RAF currently operates 24 C-130J aircraft out of RAF Brize Norton. With the first of 22 Airbus Defence and Space (DS) A400M Atlas transport aircraft set to arrive at the base in the coming weeks, the C-130J is due to be withdrawn from service in favour of a joint A400M and Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlift force.
Ther retain of C-130 fleet is in large part dependent on the state of the airframes after more than a decade of intense operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and beyond.
With the possible exception of special forces work, there is no real gap in the tactical capabilities between the C-130J and A400M, nor in the strategic capabilites between the A400M and C-17, and that the introduction into service of the Atlas will significantly enhance the RAF's air mobility capacity.
janes

Hércules del Ejercito del Aire evacua a ciudadanos españoles de Libia

Llega a la base de Torrejón el Hércules de @EjercitoAire fletado para evacuar a los ciudadanos españoles de Libia pic.twitter.com/2y9pSP5cSX
— Ministerio Defensa (@Defensagob) July 29, 2014

Bomber-Plane Budget by U.S. Air Force Projected to Double

The U.S. Air Force projects that its annual spending on long-range bombers will almost double after 2019 as it seeks a new stealth aircraft that may pit Northrop Grumm anagainst a joint bid from Lockheed Martin and Boeing.
The current goal is to achieve an initial capability in the mid-2020s for the new Long-Range Strike Bomber while also upgrading the B-2 and the B-1 and B-52, according to the plan that was submitted to Congress last month.
The new bomber is described by the Air Force as vital to reaching far-flung, heavily defended targets worldwide. The service has said it may buy as many as 100 of the new aircraft in a program.
Lockheed and Boeing said in October that they planned to bid on the project as a team. Northrop Grumman, hasn’t announced that it intends to bid.
In addition to funding for bomber programs, the Pentagon report, “Annual Aviation Inventory and Funding Plan” for fiscal years 2015 to 2044, outlines long-range plans for fighters, drones and helicopters.
It anticipates continued purchases of Lockheed’s C-130J transport plane, buying 32 more by 2021 for use by special operations forces as AC-130 gunships.
In addition, the Marine Corps will continue to purchase the aircraft as an aerial tanker.
P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft didn’t fare as well. The Pentagon has cut its planned inventory to 109 from 117.
The report also outlines steps the Navy is taking to make up for delaying the purchase of 33 F-35C aircraft from Lockheed beyond fiscal 2019.
These include extending the service lives of 150 Boeing F/A-18A-D jets and accelerating the conversion of older F/A-18C models into the newer E/F jet.
The Navy also is undertaking a program to extend to 9,000 hours the current 6,000-flight-hour life of the E/F aircraft.
bloomberg

4 Army units heading to Eastern Europe

The U.S. military in Europe is sending four company-sized infantry units, a total of about 600 soldiers, to Eastern Europe, the latest effort to reassure NATO allies in light of Russian aggression in Ukraine.
Four countries — Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia — each will receive a company of paratroopers from the U.S. Army’s 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team based in Vicenza, Italy.
U.S. European Command will maintain a rotation of ground forces in those countries for at least the next several months. The companies will conduct live-fire training exercises with local military forces for about one month, then will depart and be replaced by another U.S. Army company.
Last week NATO announced that it would have “more planes in the air, more ships on the water and more readiness on the land” but details of those additional operations have not been made public.
The Army deployment marks the first sustained addition of ground forces into Eastern Europe since Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine’s Crimea region began in late February.
The Pentagon expects to announce further U.S. troop deployments within NATO soon.
Last week, USA extended until the end of the year the deployment of about 200 airmen and Air Force F-16 fighters and C-130 cargo planes in Poland.
At Powidz Air Base, also in Poland, U.S. Air Force KC-135 tankers also are temporarily flying daily missions to refuel NATO-owned surveillance aircraft tracking Russian military movements along the eastern frontiers of Poland and Romania.
militarytimes

Israel's first C-130J set for delivery on 9 April

The Israeli air force's first Lockheed Martin C-130J will arrive on 9 April, with preparations at Nevatim air base now complete.
In June 2013 Lockheed delivered the first of four on-order C-130Js to Israel at its Marietta site in Georgia, ahead of the airframer supporting training activities in the USA. The remaining three transports will be delivered towards the end of this year and in early 2015.
The Israeli air force has also made a formal proposal for an additional two aircraft.
Israel's new-generation Hercules have a cockpit configured for three crew members, similar to that used by US special forces. They will also be modified post-delivery to carry some Israeli-produced systems.
Israeli air force is having a current active fleet of 16 Hercules, comprising 12 C-130Hs and four C-130Es. The latter are being phased out, while the H-model fleet is receiving structural treatment to extend their use.

Iran manages C-130 Overhauls

Iranian experts repaired and overhauled a C-130 military plane used for transporting equipment and military forces.
The overhauling operations of the plane took 23,000 man/hours of work.
The C-130 plane joined the Iranian Air Force fleet after making its maiden flight.
The Iranian Air Force announced in August that the Iranian experts managed to overhaul two mirage F-1 fighter jets.
The overhauling operations of the two fighter jets took 45,000 man/hours of work. The two aircraft joined the Iranian Air Force fleet after making their maiden flights.
Iran also announced in June that its experts are overhauling different types of aircraft, including Mig-29 and F-5 fighter jet.
In August 2012, a Mig-29 fighter jet of the Iranian Army conducted its test flight successfully after being overhauled by local experts.
The aircraft which was down for 12 years could experience its first flight after it was overhauled, which took 21,000 man/hour of work.
The Iranian experts spent 24 months to overhaul the strategic fighter jet and mounted three types of modern electronic systems onto the aircraft in a bid to increase its technical and backup capabilities.

France Eyes King Air, Upgrades for C-130

The French Air Force is eyeing the King Air for ISR missions, while France’s special operations forces are keen to fit mission packages to their Hercules airlifters.
The Air Force is studying the twin-engine Beechcraft King Air as part of its search for a light aircraft to deliver a “development of force”.
Meanwhile, France’s special operations forces are looking to add various capabilities to their 14 Lockheed Martin C-130s, such as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), gunship and low-level air-drop.
France is studying bids to upgrade the C-130s’ avionics and cockpits.
The French Air Force is flying MQ-9 Reaper UAVs from Niger to back up special forces in northern Mali.
Today, the French Air Force flies two C-160 Gabriel aircraft for ISR missions..
defensenews

RAF C-130Ks make last operational flight

The UK Royal Air Force’s remaining Lockheed Martin C-130K tactical transports will be formally retired next week, with its last two examples having made their final operational flights on 25 October.
Operated from Brize Norton air base in Oxfordshire, the RAF’s final K-model Hercules will be flown to St Athan in south Wales on 29 October.
The RAF began operating its first C-130Ks in 1966. The type will be replaced by 22 Airbus Military A400Ms, the first of which is scheduled to be delivered to Brize Norton in September 2014. It also expects to continue flying its new-generation C-130Js until around 2022.
Austria, Mexico and Sri Lanka still operate the C-130K.
flightglobal

Afghans take delivery of US C-130 transport planes

Afghanistan took delivery on Wednesday of two C-130 transport aircraft from the United States,.
Afghanistan will get another two C-130 by the end of next year.
The two planes were turned over during a ceremony at Kabul airport. They will replace 16 smaller Italian-made transport craft that were grounded because of maintenance problems.
Afghanistan's air force is mainly made up of Russian-made transport helicopters and a handful of Russian attack helicopters.
thesouthern.com

Argentina comprará nuevos aviones Mirage F1 a España

De los 15 aviones Mirage F1 que comprará la Fuerza Aérea Argentina, la mitad tendrá la capacidad de reabastecerse de combustibles en pleno vuelo. Fuentes de la fuerza destacaron que se “siete u ocho de los F1” que se adquirirán a España “tienen la capacidad de reabastecerse de combustible en el aire, a través de un avión tanque, como los Hércules C-130”.
Las aeronaves serán compradas al Ejército del Aire de España y prestaron servicios en la base aérea de Albacete, y reemplazarán a los viejos Mirage III, que tienen más de 30 años de servicio en la Argentina y hasta combatieron durante la guerra de Malvinas en 1982.
La adquisición de estas aeronaves figura en el mensaje firmado por el jefe del Gabinete, Juan Manuel Abal Medina, que acompañó el envío al Congreso del presupuesto 2014 .
En ese escrito se explica que deben ser desactivados los Mirage III, de la década del 70, y el cambio por el modelo que el Ejército del Aire español operó hasta julio de este año. La primera partida prevista para la operación es de unos 217 millones de dólares.
nuevodiarioweb