Manned Aircraft

Modern dispersed battlefields not only mandate increases in ground vehicle mobility and survivability, but also enhanced levels of mobility and performance in manned aircraft to support land forces in roles from cargo and utility to attack platforms.

In the case of cargo aircraft, for example, January 2011 saw the announcement by Boeing and its Boeing Defense UK subsidiary that the Boeing UK Rotorcraft Support team had begun flight testing the first Chinook Mk4 helicopter for the Royal Air Force (RAF).

“Project JULIUS, as the Mk4 program is known, will modernize the current Royal Air Force Chinook fleet – essentially giving us new aircraft,” observed Chris White-Horne, Mk4 project team leader for the United Kingdom Ministry of Defense.

Project JULIUS will modify 38 Mk2/2A Chinooks into the Mk4/4A configuration and eight Mk3 Chinooks into the Mk5 configuration. A major part of the modification for both the Mk4/4A and Mk5 aircraft is the Thales TopDeck cockpit. Thales UK is under contract with Boeing to supply its Cockpit Display System/Mission Avionic System, which will provide improved situational awareness, increased safety, and options for capability enhancement. The upgraded and integrated cockpit display includes four multifunction displays, two stand-by flight displays, updated communications interfaces, and two new air data computers.

“The first of the modified JULIUS Chinook helicopters is expected to be available to commanders before the end of 2011,” said David Pitchforth, managing director, Boeing UK Rotorcraft Support. “The entire Mk2 fleet will be fitted with the JULIUS cockpit by early 2015, followed by Mk2A and Mk3 modifications by 2015 and 2016, respectively.”

Just two days later, on Jan. 26, 2011, representatives of Boeing, its suppliers, and the Netherlands Ministry of Defense marked the first flight of the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) CH-47F (NL) Chinook heavy-lift helicopter in a ceremony Jan. 25 at Summit Aviation in Middletown, Del.

The RNLAF has ordered six CH-47F (NL) Chinooks to enhance its current fleet of 11 CH-47D (NL) aircraft. The new Chinooks are equipped with survivability equipment, a forward-looking infrared system, and fast rope positions, which will be used to support special forces operations. The engines will include air particle separators for operation in harsh environments. These additions will make the RNLAF CH-47F a versatile, multi-role aircraft for worldwide operations.

“The Chinook has over the years proven itself to be a true workhorse for the Netherlands Air Force,” said Air Commodore Theo ten Haaf, commanding officer, Defense Helicopter Command of the RNLAF. “The aircraft proved to be ‘the right tool’ for a difficult and challenging job, especially in austere environments and during the combined air and ground operations in Afghanistan. Both ground troops and aircrew speak highly of it.”

He added, “The CH-47F is a major improvement over the 47D model. The arrival of these new aircraft in the RNLAF will ensure that the RNLAF continues to operate with the best in the field of tactical transport helicopter operations both now and in the future.”

A representative example of myriad activities surrounding the Black Hawk utility helicopter family surfaced in November 2011, when Sikorsky Aircraft, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., announced delivery of the fourth of 15 UH-60M Black Hawk aircraft for further transfer to the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV).

According to the announcement, Sikorsky would build and deliver all 15 UH-60M aircraft to an accelerated 18-month production schedule that began in May 2011. Seven aircraft were scheduled for delivery to the U.S. Army September through December, with eight additional deliveries through the fall of 2012. The FMV is procuring the 15 aircraft via the U.S. government’s Foreign Military Sales program. The accelerated build schedule will enable the Swedish Armed Forces to deploy three UH-60M aircraft to Afghanistan in April 2013. The Swedish Armed Forces will use the aircraft for medical evacuation, utility, and search and rescue missions.

And in one final representative example of programs and technologies coming full circle, in mid-August 2011 Boeing linked new simulation technologies to manned helicopters by announcing that it would be using a Helimod helicopter simulator leased from Ryan Aerospace to help train Australian army pilots to fly Bell 206B-1 Kiowa helicopters.

“Under our Army Aviation Training and Training Support (AATTS) contract, Boeing has traditionally taught students to fly Kiowas using classroom-based instruction and real flight hours,” said Mark Brownsey, senior manager of AATTS for Boeing Defense Australia. “Over the next year, we’ll assess the effectiveness of transferring some of this curriculum to the synthetic environment, which has the potential to reduce costly flight hours and improve safety and training outcomes for the Australian army.”

This article was first published in Defense: Review Edition 2011/2012.