Royal Australian Air Force [RAAF] News, Discussions and Updates

SpazSinbad

Active Member
Continuing about training NEW pilots for the F-35 (Oz instructors at LUKE AFB also) with 50/50 split between flight and FMS hours:
"..After a year of routine training, the new pilots arrived at Luke in December to begin basic systems, simulation and weapons training to familiarize themselves with the avionics. In February, the students took to the skies for the first time.

During the 141-day training course, the pilots will rack up 300 hours of academics; 46 simulator exercises, amounting to 80 hours; and 48 flights in the F-35, also roughly 80 hours, Osterreicher said...." https://www.defensetech.org/2017/05...ning-brand-new-air-force-pilots-on-the-f-35a/
 

gf0012-aust

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
Also a fair point. Mind you I was talking more about a higher visibility weapon like HARM/AARGM with respect to potential for enemy hard killing our PGMs. Perhaps not as likely against less capable opponents but still a possibility in the near-peer fight. For example I would imagine it might factor into the development of a China-oriented deterrent in our context.
the other issue is there is greater ability to neutralise a threat without always having to kill the threat

killing a threat automatically announces and allows red to start planning further defensive meausures along theoretical range rings etc...

subtle disruption is a form of delamination in its own right
 

Boagrius

Well-Known Member
the other issue is there is greater ability to neutralise a threat without always having to kill the threat

killing a threat automatically announces and allows red to start planning further defensive meausures along theoretical range rings etc...

subtle disruption is a form of delamination in its own right
Yeah but how is that supposed to help me get more hits on my blog!? "F35 flight renders double digit SAM threat impotent by... flying around it". Just doesn't have the same same ring to it you know? Haha :D ;)

In all seriousness though that does make sense. I am sure there are a very many ways to skin a cat, with those ending in a bang being only the tip of the iceberg that we civvies are allowed to see.
 

gf0012-aust

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
Yeah but how is that supposed to help me get more hits on my blog!? "F35 flight renders double digit SAM threat impotent by... flying around it". Just doesn't have the same same ring to it you know? Haha :D ;)

In all seriousness though that does make sense. I am sure there are a very many ways to skin a cat, with those ending in a bang being only the tip of the iceberg that we civvies are allowed to see.
Prior to F-22 and F35 thats what happened anyway - mission planners would work out how to go from A to B and that might include points where flight was moved around specific obstructions be they natural or man made... the difference now is that aircraft such as F22 and JSF can enter that enemies defensive and detection range rings with less fear of molestation

so the planning always includes material around known threat detectors, sensors etc and how does blue enter the fight and minimise the detection ring so that they can breach and kill/do the designated job.

its just that now F35 has the potential to be much further into reds onion. etc....
 

hauritz

Well-Known Member
These are the projected flying hours for aircraft operated by Australia's armed forces for the next 3 to 4 years.

BUDGET 2017 – F-35 flying hours increase | Australian Aviation

The PC-21 will be flying a lot of hours over the next few years ... in fact almost 3 times as many hours as any other aircraft in the fleet. No other surprises with the classic hornet, P-3C and PC-9 all being phased out over the next 3 or 4 years.

Also on the army aviation side of things the Kiowa looks like it will be withdrawn from service in a couple of years. That is in spite of it obviously being a very useful helicopter. It currently is second behind the Taipan in terms of hours flown and yet it seems to have been withdrawn without any real replacement.The Black Hawk is also soldering on into the 2020s but it obviously won't go on forever. It makes me wonder whether or not the army might find itself short of helicopters in a few years. When the Kiowa and Blackhawk go they will effectively lose half their helicopter fleet.

The navy will be losing its remaining S-70B-2 and AS350 helicopters leaving it with just 24 Romeos and some access to the taipans. I would have thought a number of small utility helicopters would be useful ... particularly as just about every ship in the navy will eventually be able to operate helicopters.
 

Pusser01

The Bunker Group
Verified Defense Pro
These are the projected flying hours for aircraft operated by Australia's armed forces for the next 3 to 4 years.

BUDGET 2017 – F-35 flying hours increase | Australian Aviation

The PC-21 will be flying a lot of hours over the next few years ... in fact almost 3 times as many hours as any other aircraft in the fleet. No other surprises with the classic hornet, P-3C and PC-9 all being phased out over the next 3 or 4 years.

Also on the army aviation side of things the Kiowa looks like it will be withdrawn from service in a couple of years. That is in spite of it obviously being a very useful helicopter. It currently is second behind the Taipan in terms of hours flown and yet it seems to have been withdrawn without any real replacement.The Black Hawk is also soldering on into the 2020s but it obviously won't go on forever. It makes me wonder whether or not the army might find itself short of helicopters in a few years. When the Kiowa and Blackhawk go they will effectively lose half their helicopter fleet.

The navy will be losing its remaining S-70B-2 and AS350 helicopters leaving it with just 24 Romeos and some access to the taipans. I would have thought a number of small utility helicopters would be useful ... particularly as just about every ship in the navy will eventually be able to operate helicopters.
The 15 Airbus EC135 the ADF has ordered under Joint Project 9000 Phase 7, the Helicopter Aircrew Training System are replacing the Kiowa & Squirrel. Whether they end up gong to sea on other platforms other than Sycamore remains to be seen.
 

Milne Bay

Active Member
Interesting no mention of the G550s to be operated by presumably RAAF - the first two are supposed to be completed by November 30 2017. No mention of delivery that i can find, Google falls into a big black hole for me.....
rb
Secret squirrel stuff I think you will find.
Not for publication I am guessing
MB
 

John Newman

The Bunker Group
The third RAAF P-8A, A47-003, arrived Auckland International Airport late yesterday arvo on its delivery flight to Australia.
And no Ngati you can't keep her!

No running out there and painting over the little black Roo with a little black Kiwi, Ok? (hopefully the RNZAF get their own in the not too distant future, fingers crossed!).

Certainly good times for the RAAF (and ADF aviation generally) with the constant flow of new airframes being delivered, glad to see my tax dollars going towards new procurement.
 

south

Well-Known Member
Just a guess, but growler will be kept. Consider it a different aircraft to the super. We aren't buying them to keep for 7 years and hand 'em back!

The oldest super will be 15y/o by then, but doesn't offer anything that the JSF can't do. Unlike the Growler.
 

Boagrius

Well-Known Member
The growler will be kept. Consider it a different aircraft to the super. We aren't buying them to keep for 7 years and hand 'em back!
So this would seem to foreshadow an additional buy of F35's (to replace the SH) if I am not mistaken..?
 
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