Turkey TAI to deliver Hurkus-C combat aircraft to Niger, Chad

Turkish Aerospace Industries has signed a contract to deliver two Hurkus-C light trainer and combat aircraft to Niger and three to Chad.

TAI’s deputy general manager, told media that the firm will deliver the aircraft to Niger by the end of the year, and to Chad in the first quarter of 2023.

Industry sources say the price for a single Hurkus-C is about $40 million to $50 million.

The contract with Niger follows the sale of 12 Hurkus-B aircraft to the African nation under a deal signed in 2021. 

In May, the Libyan Air Force signed an agreement with TAI for the acquisition of the Hurkus-C. No details were given on quantity or delivery timeline.

The Hurkus-C is a tandem two-seat, low-wing, single-engine, turboprop aircraft that can perform close ground support missions. It is able to carry a 1,500-kilogram payload, including Cirit laser-guided missiles, Roketsan’s UMTAS anti-tank guided missiles and Mizrak anti-tank missiles.

It has external fuel tanks and can carry Aselsan’s electro-optical/infrared pod, dubbed the Common Aperture Targeting System.

The Hurkus-B is an advanced version of the Hurkus-A, with integrated avionics. The cockpit avionics of the “B” variant have a layout similar to the American F-16 and F-35 fighter jets.

defensenews 

First of Chad’s MIG-29 Arrives In N’Djamena

Satellite imagery shows the arrival of Chad’s first MIG-29 at N’Djamena airbase.
1.bp.blogspot.com

Air Force may move drones, personnel inside Niger

The Air Force may redeploy its remotely piloted aircraft in Niger, moving the drones to a remote area in the Sahara to better position them to watch Islamic militants in the area.
Last year, the Air Force deployed about 100 airmen and remotely piloted aircraft to Niamey in the southwestern region of Niger to “provide support for intelligence collection and ... facilitate intelligence sharing with French forces conducting operations in Mali”. The deployment included Air Force security forces to protect the aircraft.
U.S. Africa Command is looking to move the aircraft about 450 miles north to Agadez. That city of in the northern part of the country has a small airstrip on its southern edge.
The move is at the request of, and in coordination with the government of Niger and the Nigerian Armed Forces, AFRICOM.
This location would be closer for crews to keep an eye on militants spreading in Libya to the north. Nigeria agreed to the U.S. presence to help secure the country’s borders against jihadist infiltrations from Libya.
Aircraft would still operate at the Niamey base.
The Air Force, on Aug. 21, posted a solicitation for 18 shelter systems to house U.S. aircraft and personnel in in Agadez. Earlier solicitations sought jet fuel and runway repair in the area. The move would not fully take place until the infrastructure at the base is ready.
U.S. drones have also been deployed to N’Djamena, Chad, and bases in the Horn of Africa and the Seychelles. Additional surveillance flights over Libya are flown from bases in Italy.
airforcetimes

España apoyará con un avión la intervención en Centroáfrica

El Consejo de Ministros tiene previsto aprobar este viernes la participación de las Fuerzas Armadas españolas en la Operación Sangaris, liderada por Francia para poner fin al caos en la República Centroafricana. Defensa, que es partidario de que la misión sea asumida por la UE, estudia el envío de un avión de transporte C-130 Hércules, con unos 50 militares. Francia ha pedido también helicópteros de evacuación médica, pero esta opción es más compleja, pues obligaría a desplegar un contingente sobre el terreno.
Francia ha enviado 1.600 soldados a la capital del país, Bangui, y ha sufrido ya dos bajas en combate con las milicias rebeldes. La intervención francesa, que bendijo el Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU el pasado jueves, se completa con una fuerza africana de 3.000 efectivos (Misca).
París cuenta ya con apoyo aéreo de Estados Unidos, Reino Unido, Alemania o Bélgica. El presidente francés, François Hollande, planteó el asunto a Mariano Rajoy en su reciente encuentro en Madrid.
La contribución española deberá ser aprobada la semana próxima por el Congreso de los Diputados. Aún no se ha decidido si el avión se destacará en la República Centroafricana o en algún aeropuerto de la región: Libreville (Gabón) o Yamena (Chad). España tiene ya un avión de transporte en Dakar (Senegal) para apoyar la intervención en Mali y es el segundo contribuyente a la misión de la UE en dicho país, con un centenar de militares.
elpais

C27J SPARTANS FOR CHAD AIR FORCE

Alenia Aermacchi of Italy is preparing to deliver the first of two C-27J Spartans to a new customer, Chad, as the aircraft face the final stages of assembly at the company's Caselle site in Turin.
The first example of the tactical transport for the African nation is largely complete, with its Rolls-Royce AE2100 engines installed. Avionics and mission systems are presently being added, with painting and a number of tests still to be performed ahead of delivery provisionally scheduled for mid-December.
The fuselage for the second aircraft will shortly arrive from Alenia's plant at Capodichino, Naples, says Francesco Dogliatti, product co-ordinator for the C-27J.
Training of Chad air force technicians and flight crew is already under way.
These new transport aircraft will add to the single C-130 Hercules currently in service with the Chad Air Force. Recent acquisitions by Chad of armoured vehicles and small arms, mainly from Eastern Europe, to re-equip its military forces may indicate an increase in military activities to combat the threat from rebel forces operating from the Darfur region in Sudan.
aafjournal

RETIRADA DE LOS MIRAGE F1 CR FRANCESES DE CHAD TRAS 27 AÑOS

(video de los Mirage F1 franceses sobre Chad)

El 17 de junio de 2010, los Mirage F1CR destinado en el Chad, serán sustituídos por Mirage 2000C RDI del Escuadrón 12.1 Cambrésis.
Para marcar el final de 27 años de presencia de los Mirage F1 en África, se celebró una ceremonia 28 de mayo en la base aérea de Kossei, en el mismo lugar donde en 1983 el primer Mirage F1C participó en la Operación Manta.
En total, el Mirage F1 ha realizado 12.000 misiones, 30.000 horas de vuelo, y han participado 500 pilotos, demostrando el Mirage F1 su versatilidad.

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