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ISSUE 8 • 2008 AviationWWW.SPSAVIATION.NET

• L1 Dilemma in Procurement • LABACE ’08 Photo Feature • IAF at Red Flag • Green Initiatives FAST & FABULOUS

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www.breitling.com Table of Contents

Regular Departments SP’s AN SP GUIDE PUBLICATION 4 A Word from Editor News Flies. We Gather Intelligence. Every Month. From India. 5 NewsWithViews - HAL to grow civil wings AviationISSUE 8 • 2008 - US hits space vacuum 7 InFocus Civil Unravelling the L1 10 ENVIRONMENT 8 Forum GREEN BRIGADE Grappling with the L1 One to One 32 NewsDigest 36 LastWord 13 EUROFIGHTER Forging Ties Cover Story 16 BUSINESS AVIATION Cover Photo: ��

TRENDY JETSETTERS 16 The CJ1+—ﬁrst introduced �� as the CitationJet in 1993 as �� On Camera Trendy Jetsetters: The range of a modern replacement for the 24 LABACE 2008 offerings now available in the business original Citation 500—was �� jet segment of general aviation is quite the ﬁrst Cessna jet to be �� ROLL OUT THE RED CARPET wide. Any firm with travel requirements powered by Williams fanjets. �� should be able to find a suitable aircraft �� Military for its needs. (Seen here: The Cessna �� Photo Credit: Cessna SP's Avn 8 of 08 Cover.indd 1 9/11/08 7:56:12 PM 27 RAFALE Columbus in flight) CATCH ME IF YOU CAN PUBLISHER AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR: Ratan Sonal OINT XERCISE 30 J E Jayant Baranwal LAYOUT DESIGNS: Raj Kumar Sharma RED FLAG: LAUDED & APPLAUDED ASSISTANT EDITOR © SP Guide Publications, 2008 Arundhati Das Hall of Fame ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION 29 IGOR SIKORSKY SENIOR VISITING EDITOR Inland: Rs 850 • Foreign: US$ 250 Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia Email: [email protected] FOR ADVERTISING DETAILS, CONTACT: SENIOR TECHNICAL GROUP EDITORS [email protected] 10 Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey [email protected] Lt General (Retd) Naresh Chand [email protected]

SUB-EDITOR SP GUIDE PUBLICATIONS PVT LTD Bipasha Roy A-133 Arjun Nagar, (Opposite Defence Colony) New Delhi 110 003, India. CONTRIBUTORS India Air Chief Marshal (Retd) S.P. Tyagi, Tel: +91 (11) 24644693, 24644763, 24620130 GREEN Air Marshal (Retd) P.K. Mehra, Fax: +91 (11) 24647093 BRIGADE Air Marshal (Retd) Raghu Rajan, Email: [email protected] Air Marshal (Retd) N. Menon, POSTAL ADDRESS Group Captain (Retd) A.K. Sachdev, Post Box No 2525 Group Captain (Retd) Joseph Noronha 24 New Delhi 110 005, India. Europe Alan Peaford, Phil Nasskau, Rob Coppinger USA & Canada Sushant Deb, Lon Nordeen, REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE Anil R. Pustam (West Indies) BANGALORE, INDIA 534, Jal Vayu Vihar CHAIRMAN & MANAGING DIRECTOR Kammanhalli Main Road Jayant Baranwal Bangalore 560043, India. Tel: +91 (80) 23682534 ON THE RED ADMIN & COORDINATION CARPET MOSCOW, RUSSIA Bharti Sharma LAGUK Co., Ltd., (Yuri Laskin) Krasnokholmskaya, Nab., Owned, published and printed by Jayant Baranwal, printed at Rave India and published at A-133, Arjun Nagar (Opposite 11/15, app. 132, Moscow 115172, Russia. 30 Defence Colony), New Delhi 110 003, India. All rights reserved. Tel: +7 (495) 911 2762 No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a Fax: +7 (495) 912 1260 retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, photocopying, recording, electronic, or otherwise without prior written permission of the Publishers. www.spguidepublications.com

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F900LX_210x267.indd 1 15/07/08 15:53:06 A Word from Editor Trendy wings for the jetsetting corporate sector vie with serious issues pertaining to environmental concerns and India’s procurement policy even as the race for the MMRCA deal hots up with two of the frontrunners drawing aces.

usiness aviation has over the past few decades as- Enumerating on a key aspect of defence acquisi- sumed mind-boggling connotations. Earlier, compa- tion, InFocus and Forum ignite a debate on the enigmatic ny executives made do with converted military and L-One (L1)—simply put, the lowest bidder among shortlisted airline airplanes, which often were overly large and vendors who meet all technical criteria. Does the concept work Bcostly, both to acquire and to operate. Today, the range of of- towards the goals and objectives for which it has been put in ferings in the business jet segment of general aviation is quite place? Undeterred by policy hurdles back home, the Indian wide. In the Cover Story, LeRoy Cook painstakingly elaborates Air Force (IAF) persists in its efforts to consolidate its over- on the plethora of choices. Some of these trendy jetsetters were seas relations with the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal seen at the three-day Latin American Business Aviation Confer- F.H. Major, paying a three-day visit to Malaysia. Underlining ence & Exhibition held at São Paulo’s Congonhas International the vital implications of the visit, LastWord reasons that while Airport from August 14. A pictorial spread captures the buzz Malaysia’s objectives in seeking India’s assistance for training and the business. On the flip side, boom in aviation has inevita- on the Su-30 fleet may be limited, the experience will enable bly invited the spotlight of environmental concerns on the sec- the IAF to grow in capability, confidence and reputation to tor. Taking up the challenge of reducing greenhouse gases, jet lend credibility to the nation’s regional power status. engine manufacturers have already embarked on developing Doing India proud, the IAF participated in Exercise Red ‘green’ engines that reduce emissions and noise pollution. Flag 2008 at the US Air Force Base Nellis, Nevada, which Meanwhile, the race to bag India’s medium multi-role concluded on August 23. Eight Sukhois along with two IL-78 combat aircraft deal hots up in the pages of this edition with mid-air refuellers and an IL-76 heavy-lift aircraft flew over Dassault elaborating on the SPECTRA—a state-of-the-art self- 120 sorties just in the “work-up” phase. If daredevil perfor- defence system mounted on the Rafale. On the other hand, mance earned the force accolades, the IAF’s culinary spread Eurofighter Campaign Director in India Matthias Schmidlin to celebrate Independence Day had the hosts quite literally spells out the benefits that would accrue to India if it accepts eating out of their hands! According to a senior IAF official, the EADS offer to join the Eurofighter programme. “The IAF hosted a small lunch for the US Air Force and South Korean Air Force personnel on August 15... finding a taste for the Indian delicacy, the air warriors also tried to emulate the Indian way of eating rajma-chawal—that is, by hand. They were licking their fingers at the end of the lunch.” Now turn the pages to feast your eyes on the special moments.

Jayant Baranwal SP’S AVIATION EDITOR-IN-CHIEF JAYANT BARANWAL WITH MINISTER OF STATE FOR DEFENCE PRODUCTION RAO Publisher & Editor-in-Chief INDERJIT SINGH AT INDAIR 2008 (REPORT ON PAGE 35)

4 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net ILLUSTRATION: MAMTA NewsWithViews tablishments, demand for trainer aircraft was low.Despite was aircraft trainer for demand tablishments, es training flying civil of state deplorable the and industry aircraft.theture Unfortunately, sluggishaviationa owingto manufac to company,tasked private wasBangalore-based operations.TanejanightAviation anda Limited,Aerospace eral of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in 2000 and cleared for day and later,yearsGen Directorate threethe type-certifiedby was basic flew prototype Theroles. for miscellaneous other and training aircraft two-seat all-composite, Hansa—an the signing of aircraft in 1990 with pro gramme,NALdecommenced space ar India’s of the chitect Dhawan, Satish Dr space. of regime the outside ciplines dis other of host a in projects in involved also is it gramme, pro space Indian the fo on cus primary with laboratory aerospace civilian India’sonly centralunderthegovernment. body apex an India, of search IndustrialRe Scientificand of laboratoriesCouncilunderthe R&D civilian 40 of one ry,is it Laborato in Aerospace National renamed Bangalore Subsequently 1960. to relocated was National Laboratory the Aeronautical Delhi, at 1959 embark in Established project. the to on NAL prompting latter HAL developed cold feet, the of collapse the with ever, How col Russia. with in laboration Saras the developed senger aircraft. pertise to handle a project involving the integration of a pas ex and experienceknowledge, the lacks sector private the that denying no is there contrast, In years. several for IAF projects in the past and has provided product support to the bly of transport aircraft, the experience of two similar major T VIEWS manufacturing activity in the country has been conducted by HAL or the Defence Research and Development Organisationfactured in (DRDO) the country. and that too Sarasfor military is a product use. of the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), a sectorstate-run companieslaboratory forsuch civil aircraftas Mahindra design. SoAerospace far, and all aircraftLarsen designand and Toubro the Ltd.country. The The14-seater, state-run organisation multi-role was bestowed Saras the uniquewill privilegebe the afterfirst it gotpassenger Indiantheaerospace nod andfromplanedefence manufacturing launch to customer,begiant Hindustandesigned Aeronautics andthe IndianLtd(HAL)manu willproduce thefirst Air passenger Forceaircraft (IAF),designedbeto andmanufactured pippingin Indian privateHAL TO GROWCIVIL WINGS rwn isiain from inspiration Drawing have to was HAL Initially, has a fully developed facility at Kanpur for assem for Kanpur at facility developed fully a has factured in India comes as no surprise. HAL already productionagencyforthe first commercial aircraft tobemanu the as HAL choose should IAF the hat ------a foreign company for this project. transport aircraft. regional NAL may seek partnership civilwith HAL and even with seat 50-70-90 a develop to tioned addition, In a sum aircraft.of Rs 300 crore ($70 purposemillion) has been sanc general five-seat a develop to Plexion 172. NAL has now entered into collaboration with Mahindra the entrenchedandwell 152Cessnacompeteagainstthe to difficult was attributes,it advertised other and cost low the optto fr h dfne S wih nos n unchal lenged and unhealthy monopoly today. an enjoys which PSU defence the for competition introduce also but sector private the invigorate only not to move decisive a for ripe is time the Perhaps option. ment invest foreign and field playing level a given challenge the L&T, Reliance and TAAL, cannot rise to the occasion to meet Tatas,theAerospace, Mahindra likeentrepreneurs, private Saras—a 14-seat,transportSaras—atwin-engine, light multi-role Issue 8•2008 — Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey aircraft—is to replace the cur the replace to aircraft—is sector. Therereasonnois why been the preserve of the public hitherto has which field a into private sector to make an entry and golden opportunity for the tive, Saras could well be a rare signed in Israel. de but India in jets executive and jet regional seat 80 to 60 ing for joint ventures to build a scout is Industries Aerospace Israel Meanwhile, numbers. large in manufactured be not aircraftwillthe as down come category. The cost is unlikely to same the in others with pared com machine expensive very a be would million),Saras ($9 crore 39.4 in Rs at expectedPriced 2010. is DGCA the by Certification stage. later a at 30 another by followed initial 15 for intent of letter a issued has IAF The mid-2009. in fly to expected and NAL at ment develop under third the with air the to taken have totypes the civil sector. So far, in two pro requirements meet as to 228 also Dornier of fleet rent rm bodr perspec broader a From

SP SP’S AVIATION

- 5 ------ILLUSTRATION: MAMTA NewsWithViews VIEWS 6 sion STS-133 in 2010. In the meantime, NASA was hoping hoping NASAwas meantime, the In 2010. in STS-133 sion an now that all will be nounced mis after the shuttles space retired has NASA However, years. 10 beyond periodically extended been has life to operational close their anywhere launches, come 100 have shuttles the of none while 1981, in launch first the With life. operational years launches 10 100 or of lifespan projected a for designed was tle shut Each 2003. in re-entry during apart broke Columbia and 1986 in phase launch the into seconds Challenger 73 disintegrated Endeavour. and Challenger,Discovery, Atlantis Columbia, were: built purposes. shuttles space-worthy five testing other The for only used and flight space for not built was Enterprise, orbiter, first The built. were shuttles loads fromtheISStoEarth. pay large transport to sively exten used been has it hand, other the On often. used been Earth, but this capacity has not to them return and orbit from payloads other and satellites recover also can orbiter The Telescope. Space Hubble the missions, such as in support of the ISS and performs servicing for rotation crew provides bit, ries payloads to Low Earth Or spacecraft. Among its various tasks, it car orbital reusable first the was recalled, be may flight.shuttle,it of The phases all in systems saving life crew include to influenced heavily ter and its design, therefore, is disas Columbia Shuttle Space payloads totheISSafterspaceshuttleswereretired. and scientists astronauts, ferry to vehicle replacement a as act also would However,it orbit.Earth’s the beyond nauts astro carry to was CEV the of purpose primary The tion’. O

to the space station and on private companies to deliver cargo during the gap. Houston. TheUSwill bewithout meansa totransport people toand from space after the shuttle fleet isretired in2010 and intends torely onRussia toferry crews deadline of March 2015. “The window of opportunity for us to accelerate Orion has closed,” said Programme Manager Jeff Hanley at NASA’s Johnsonspaceagency Spacehadhoped tofly Centreastronauts intothe International Space Station (ISS) aboardspaceship new Orion asearly asSeptember 2013, well before theformal NASA has abandoned plans to get replacements for retiring US space shuttles into service by 2013 because of lack of additional funds and technical issues. The US US HITSSPACE VACUUM

n l, i air-worthy six all, In The Orion spacecraft was proposed partly as fallout of the SP’S CV—s at f h ‘iin o Sae Explora Space for ‘Vision the of part (CEV)—as space Orion craft—known then as the Crew Exploration Vehicle the of Bush W. development George the announced President 2004, 14, January n AVIATION

Issue 8•2008 - - - - -

------a solid rocket-powered launch abort motor more powerful powerful more motor abort using launch rocket-powered vehicle solid a launch the from Module Crew the separate will (LAS) System Abort Launch the ascent, during or pad launch the on emergency an of event launch the In I. the Ares vehicle with mating for adapter spacecraft a and sys tem abort launch a have to configured be will Orion tion, Orion. the of development hasten to support financial necessary the get would it that uum inspace. vac face to destined are US the NASAyears,and long four European the and ATVsleast in.at step for to But likely are spacecraft Soyuz Russian the gap, the To2010.fill shuttles beyond ageing these of life the extend cannot apparently NASA service, in continue would shuttles remaining three missioning of one orbiter, Atlantis, in 2008. But, while all the n diin o h ce ad evc mdl combina module service and crew the to addition In SP — Air Marshal(Retd) V.K. Bhatia than the Atlas 109-D booster booster 109-D Atlas the than space shuttles with the decom the of retirement phased a ing initiat of decision its versed of opportunity. window golden the lost have US Congress, NASA appears to the by approved been having not so do to funding ditional ad with But 2015. goal March of or deadline formal the before 2013—well September as early as Orion the aboard and flying the astronauts to the ISS schedule the squeezing launch. of minutes two-and-half first the during a or abort launch-pad in-flight an Ares I rocket in the event of Orion crew module away from tervals, would fire in and pull the degree 90 at placed and, cover protective the into boost motors integrated solid-rocket existing four which System,in Launch Abort Max with tower LAS the with replacing 1962. of idea toying the in also was orbit NASA into Glenn John astronaut launched that AA a erir re earlier had NASA of hopeful was NASA www.spsaviation.net ------InFocus PROCUREMENT Unravelling vendor situation is discouraged to the utmost.theTherefore, discouraged atto situationisvendor single- a and at aimed competitionismaximum2008, DPP cial offers are kept unopened in safe custody of the MoD. ment’ with respect to SQR. Envelopes containing the commer starts the process with the structuring of a ‘Compliance State constitutedHQ Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC)which openedbythe concerned agency and handed over toService are offers technical the only containingInitially, envelopes gle-Stage Two-Bid’ system—in two separate sealed envelopes.commercialalsoproposals—termedtechnicaltheirbut ‘Sin eligibletorequiredRFPonlyvendors notsubmitare whoto Wing which maintains a comprehensive data bank issues the government-sponsoredand exportagencies. TheAcquisition (RFP) to original equipment manufacturers authorisedthe Acquisitionvendors Wing through issuance of Request forquisition ProposalCouncil (DAC), solicitation of offers are processed by management and execution. and negotiations and; finally, the contract signing and project evaluation commercial oversight, evaluation,technical staff trials,evaluation,offers,technicalfieldsolicitation(SQR),of quentially):formulation of Services (seQualitative Requirements of consist concept L1 the of understanding the to lead cess which is of immediate interest right now and which will independentofeach other. Theprocurement part ofthe pro procurement,exclusiveneitherplanningnorandare which stages,two into dividedbroadly be can processacquisition anomaliesand make it more comprehensive. India’s defence perceived all remove year—to finally, and, this 2006 2005, procedureThe has, sincethen, beenrevised threetimes—in 2002.30,December on effectinto put procedurewas ment the Ministry of Defence (MoD) in October 2001 and a procure the 1999 Kargil Conflict, a new setup had been established of inwake Ministers,the constitutedofin Group the of report gime truly transparent, equitable and responsive. Or,procurementre hasdefence it? the make to (L1) L-Oneenigmatic 2008).furtherunravelthehelpedtoalsodocument hasThe D compliance parameters and technical evaluation tests and who rpgtd y P 20 ad ute cnoiae in consolidated further and 2006 DPP by Propagated DefenceAc the by approved been have SQRs the Once the acceptanceof theuninitiated, theconsequentto For vendors. However, is also the lowest bidder among all the otherwise successful L1 is the vendor whose product has successfully passed all eec Poueet rcdr 20 (DPP 2008 Procedure Procurement Defence process through its revised and recently released mentIndiaofhasfurther refined theacquisition Govern the procedures, procurement defence INFIRMITIES REMOVE TO ETERMINED and objectives does the concept work towards the goals for which it has been put in place? n the in ------the exhaustivethetechnical evaluation, ofincludes whichtrifield end the at that, is at aimed is What issued. parameters latesthattheRFP retractedbe freshanda RFP with revised claims compliance with the parameters, the procedure stipu vendorone only theTEC, evaluationif paper by of time the page to Forum for details. and equitable? Does it ensure best value for money? Turn the than two decades. more forwaiting already been much had it theassettraining needed of deprived was IAF the that meant also which were wasted in concluding the last stage of price negotiations yearssingle-vendortwo than whereinmoreHawkdeal AJT recentthe is point in casedor,prices. finalA over haggling time-wastingprotractedintoandvennegotiations the with get to have would Committee Negotiation Price the where conclu‘single-vendor’ situation a with compared speedier contracts of sion for allows also This circumstances. any by the CNC to determine the lowest bidder. openedare successfulvendors the ofcommercial offersthe sealed envelopes. It is only after the technical evaluation that cialproposals initialtheat stage itself albeitseparate twoin lier,submittechnicaltheircommervendorstoandhaveall of a single vendor situation post evaluation. As explained ear his commercial offer consequent to the possible development tory as it guards against the possibility of a vendor increasing contract is awarded to the L1 vendor. tentfinancial authority approvalforreceipt which,on of the negotiationsfinalised,are referredcompecaseisthethe to commercialOnce L1. the with only out carried are tiations beingthisracethestage,atofout further commercial nego among all the otherwise successful vendors. All other biddervendorslowestthe also is technicalwhoevaluation andtests the and parameters compliance the all passedsuccessfully hasproduct whose vendor the is L1 L1.The the determine commercialopensthe(hitherto custody)bidssafe toinkept the Acquisition Manager under (a constituted civilian official is of the (CNC) MoD), Committee which Negotiation mercial Com a stage, this reached.At is commercial-bid stage the Committee,amultiple-vendor situation should emerge when Technicalthe scrutinyby Oversightevaluationandstaffals, u i te e poeue oal tasaet foolproof transparent, totally procedure new the is But commercialpermittedalterationtheNoisofferunder in The ‘Single-Stage Two-Bid’ system has been made manda Issue 8•2008 — Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia SP

the

SP’S AVIATION

7 ------ILLUSTRATION: MAMTA Forum provisions, acceptance criteria and a host of other provisions. schedules, delivery performance the warranty, in guarantee ilarly,statementaprepared deviationsistermsof in noticed analysis of the discordance if any and impact mercialofterms offered againstthe whathadbeen sought same. withan Sim subsequent pricenegotiations. for strategy effective an evolving in base the provides This the price quoted by the lowest bidder is fair and reasonable. whether ascertain to is L1 the determining in (CNC) mittee Com Negotiation Commercial the of of task first the Ministry Defence, the under Constituted contract. the of signing the commercial evaluation process of which finally leads beginning to the the just is it ways, some In equipment. fence O 8 PROCUREMENT

A ‘ComplianceStatement’ is prepared incorporating com SP’S Grappling the complex and arduous process of procuring de procuring of process arduous and complex the end not declaring (L1)—does L-One and bidder—the lowest the vendors accepted technically the OFFERS COMMERCIAL SEALED THE PENING AVIATION

Issue 8•2008

L1 of - - - - other hand, no such provision was automatically made by made automatically was provision such no hand, other as the On staff.squadron’s technical the to by Boxes’ the ‘Dowry aircraft—referred each for arrived boxes in gadgets items The scaled on.as so and launchers missile racks, bomb pods, rocket tanks, drop as such equipment, cillary an with supplied automatically were that aircraft Russian comparing while offers butarefullyexploitedlateronbythesmartvendors. stages initial the in hidden remain not only and price total on effect profound a have which ment equip main the to factors/items related of number large a requirements.all are meet There to enough comprehensive ence has shown that Experi the list is on.neither all-encompassing nor so and equipment optional of cost training, of cost equipment, test special of cost spares, of list mended recom manufacturers’ of cost equipment, down knocked completely and down knocked semi and/or assembled fully costs of all items listed in the format, such as the unit cost of prepared as such. However, vendors are required to provide in the current format of commercial evaluation, no matrix is cess, there is scope to streamline it further. Thoughrecent reforms havesubstantially improved thepro eted aspects with commercial overtones have to be addressed.intohighlya complex process largeasa number ofmultifac negotiationsare carried out with the L1only inwhat evolves Tenders’ to determine the of Statementlowest ‘Comparative a acceptable prepares CNCoffer Thereafter, the(L1). Further reduce commercial evaluations can provide a great tool to help This view is widely held by the military brass who cite who brass military the by held widely is view This One of the most glaring inadequacies in the system is that and objective comparisons ensuring easy, transparent matrices for technical and comparable scale to determine the L1 Creation of suitable all offers to a common

with www.spsaviation.net , thus the

------FORUM PROCUREMENT the OEM when the Jaguar deal was signed and as a result escalation clauses and inflated charges for product support the IAF had to pay heavily even to acquire mundane items, including spare parts. Seen from a different angle, while the such as drop tanks, to exploit full range potential of the so- financial authority acting on behalf of the government has called Deep Penetration Strike Aircraft. “The IAF would like a clear mandate to minimise expenditure with the lowest to go beyond the L1 concept in its existing form to enable quote for them being the primary consideration; the quote more collaborative and long-term relationship with poten- for the equipment on offer should actually relate to quality tial partners in the area of modernisation,” said the Joint of the product vis-à-vis operational requirements, reliability Director Engineering, Air Headquarters, Wing Commander factor of the vendor, transfer of technology package and life- Samir Chabra during a presentation on “A Perspective of cycle support, among other parameters. Business Prospect for Aircraft Upgrades” at the recently held For reputed vendors, quality being of prime consideration, joint CII/IAF seminar INDAIR 2008 in Delhi. offering the lowest quotation may not always be viable as A fair comparison can be done only when all expenses they would not like to dilute the minimum quality standards are listed to work out overall cost of owning particular equip- laid down for themselves. Air Commodore (Retd) V.B. Goley ment. Creation of a suitable matrix for commercial evalua- of Larsen & Toubro expressed this very sentiment at INDAIR tion can provide a great tool to help reduce all offers to a 2008. He categorically said, “If the L1 persists in its present common comparable scale thus ensuring easy, transparent form in the defence procurement procedure, L&T will not be and objective comparisons to determine the L1. Matrix must able to participate in defence procurement programmes.” be issued with RFP to enable vendors to provide their com- Top government officials are quick to point out that while mercial quotes for all items. Preparation of a viable and effec- procedures stipulated for all contracts lay emphasis on the tive commercial matrix is not easy as it requires a thorough lowest quotation as the preferred vendor, the competent knowledge of likely exploitation of the equipment, covering all authority is, however, not debarred from rejecting the low- aspects that have a financial bearing which include support est bid provided there are strong enough grounds to justify facilities and Life-Cycle Costs (LCC). The latter analysis calcu- the decision and the reasons are clearly spelt out in writing. lates the cost of a system or product over its entire life span in That may be so, but it is more easily said than done. First, service and thus helps in choosing the most cost-effective alternative available to least long term “LIFE CYCLE COST CONSISTS OF ACQUISITION COSTS AND “THE GOVERNMENT OF THE DAY COULD BE INFLUENCED SUSTAINING COSTS. BOTH ARE NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE. BY OTHER CONSIDERATIONS, SUCH AS GEO-POLITICAL, cost of ownership. The concept is AT TIMES, COST OF SUSTAINING MILITARY EQUIPMENT IS GEO-STRATEGIC AND GEO-ECONOMIC, FOR THE FINAL also called as ‘cradle-to-grave’ or MANY TIMES THE COST OF ACQUISITION.” DECISION MAKING RELATED TO THE DEAL.” — MAJOR GENERAL (RETD) MRINAL SUMAN, —AIR MARSHAL (RETD) B.K. PANDEY, ‘womb-to-tomb’ analysis, which NOTED ANALYST ON OFFSETS AND DEFENCE FORMER AIR OFFICER COMMANDING IN CHIEF, facilitates equipment selection PROCUREMENT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES TRAINING COMMAND based on total costs rather than “THE IAF WOULD LIKE TO GO BEYOND THE L1 CONCEPT “IF THE L1 PERSISTS IN ITS PRESENT FORM IN THE DEFENCE the initial purchase price. IN ITS EXISTING FORM TO ENABLE MORE COLLABORATIVE PROCUREMENT PROCEDURE, L&T WILL NOT BE ABLE TO While it is an excellent tech- AND LONG-TERM RELATIONSHIP WITH POTENTIAL PARTNERS PARTICIPATE IN DEFENCE PROCUREMENT PROGRAMMES.” nique for equipment where ad- IN THE AREA OF MODERNISATION.” —AIR COMMODORE (RETD) V.B. GOLEY, —WING COMMANDER SAMIR CHABRA, HEAD BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT (AVIONICS), equate data is available and its JOINT DIRECTOR ENGINEERING, AIR HEADQUARTERS LARSEN & TOUBRO usage can be predicted, however, its applicability to military equipment is uncertain due to a large number of unpredictable as brought out earlier, the techno-financial bid is extremely factors. Major General (Retd) Mrinal Suman, a noted ana- complex and not easily comprehensible. Second, the con- lyst on offsets and defence procurement policies and proce- cerned agencies lack expertise to carry out in-depth and dures, observes: “Life Cycle Cost consists of acquisition costs qualitative analysis of the proposals especially those involv- and sustaining costs. Both are not mutually exclusive. At ing transfer of technology and life-cycle costs. Comparisons times, cost of sustaining military equipment is many times are not easy and the decision by the competent authority the cost of acquisition. However, LCC analysis is a complex can always be challenged. Decision makers, therefore, often task. Whereas deterministic costs (cost of acquisition/devel- prefer to follow the path of least resistance and settle for L1 opment) can be firm, probabilistic costs (cost of operation, rather than face scrutiny at a later date. The way to tackle maintenance and failures) remain inestimable.” Complexi- these problems perhaps lies in the very way L1 is deter- ties of calculating the LCC notwithstanding, its inclusion for mined. It has been already suggested that a matrix system determining the L1 would be a step in the right direction. be evolved for commercial evaluation. Similarly, a matrix It would certainly help in choosing the most cost-effective system could also be evolved in the area of technical evalu- equipment to cover the entire period of ownership rather ation as well where extra marks could be given for each pa- than getting lured by just the initial acquisition costs, as has rameter in which a product proves its superiority over com- been the case in the past with the Russian equipment. peting offer(s), by employing a sliding scale methodology. Understandably, procedure stipulated for all contracts Drawing the bottomline, former Air Officer Commanding in on behalf of the government lays emphasis on the lowest Chief, Training Command Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey suc- quotation as the preferred vendor. But while a vendor would cinctly puts in: “The government of the day could be influenced like to maximise the profit margin, there is a minimum prof- by other considerations, such as geo-political, geo-strategic it margin below which he is unlikely to quote. In some cases, and geo-economic, for the final decision making related to the vendors are known to bid lower rates with the knowledge deal.” But can any matrix be drawn for such eventualities? SP that they will be able to compensate at a later stage through — Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 9 CIVIL ENVIRONMENT

he spotlight of environmental concerns invariably encom- passes the world of aviation, an industry perceived as a major contributor in aggra- vating the problems connected with carbon dioxide emissions. Media hue and cry over deteriorat- ing environment has perennially targeted air transport as the key polluter of the Earth’s atmosphere. While the jury is still out on the validity of that allegation, in air transportation, perception has inexplicably scored over hard facts, not surprising given the sector’s high visibility which fans such il- lusory and pre-conceived notions. Misconceptions apart, it goes to the credit of the entire aviation industry, specially the civil aviation sector, for taking on the challenge of reducing greenhouse gases with the utmost sincerity it deserves. Two years ago—on September 27, 2006, to be precise—Chairman of Virgin Atlantic Sir Richard

Green Brigade Airframes, airlines, airports—the ‘AAA’ approach supplements engine manufacturers’ initiatives to curb aviation’s adverse impact on the environment

By Air Marshal (Retd) V.K. Bhatia to unanimously support a new cross- Branson had called upon the global industry forum that will help deliver aviation industry to develop a shared practical ways of tackling climate solution to the growing issue of cli- change. Committing Virgin Group’s mate change. He urged other airlines, plans to invest $3 billion (Rs 13,300

ILLUSTRATION: RATAN SONAL RATAN ILLUSTRATION: engine and aircraft manufacturers, and airport operators crore) in related initiatives, he said: “We need to accelerate

10 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net CIVIL ENVIRONMENT

GREEN ENGINES & BEYOND However, contrary to general belief, of the 50 per cent reduction in fuel burn, only 20 per cent can be managed from the engines. The larger segment of 30 per cent is expected to be shared in a 2:1 ratio by incorporating substantial and ‘out of the box’ changes in airframe designs and, from efficiencies brought about by equally imaginative changes in air traffic management (ATM). For obvious reasons, engine manufacturers were the first ones to address these issues through novel technological innovations. Improvements in propulsive and thermal efficiencies, TAPS (twin an- nular pre-mixing swirlers) fitted combustion cham- bers and counter-rotating turbines to reduce energy losses are some of the major areas which are being focused upon to ultimately achieve the desired goals of emissions per passenger kilometre. Pratt & Whitney, in addition, is aiming to drive engine efficiency higher and pollutant emissions and noise levels lower with its ‘geared turbofan’— a unique design by which a gear system inserted between the fan and the low-pressure (LP) turbine allows the two to run at different speeds to op- timise the fan speed independently from the LP speed which eventually leads to greater fuel efficiency and low noise levels. But while the engine makers are trying different avenues of technology to tackle the problem, what are the airframers and the airport authorities doing in their respective areas to achieve the end results?

AIRFRAMES: THE FORCES AT WORK Studying the basic principles of flight establishes the pace at which we reduce aviation’s impact on the envi- a simple diagram of forces in stabilised level flight, with lift ronment. We cannot ignore that aviation does create envi- (upward) balancing weight (downward) in the vertical axis ronmental problems, even though only 2 per cent of global and similarly, thrust (forward) balancing drag (rearward) in CO2 emissions; although equally, it makes a significant con- the longitudinal axis. In simplistic terms, greater the weight tribution to economic and social benefits (8 per cent of the of an aircraft, greater will be the requirement of lift. On the world’s GDP).” other hand, greater the lift, greater will be the drag which would require greater amount of thrust to counter it in level GREEN AVIATION: THE GOALS flight at a given speed. Greater thrust from the engines would Spurred by environmental concerns and relentlessly rising invariably mean higher fuel consumption with the resulting Brigade fuel costs, jet engine manufacturers have already embarked adverse rise in emissions and environmental pollution. upon developing ‘green’ engines that reduce emissions and The airframers’ main concern, therefore, has been on how noise pollution. Next-generation concepts, such as open ro- to reduce the weight of a given size of aircraft. The second Green tor and embedded engines, to boost efficiency and reduce concern revolves around improving the aerodynamic design noise are all being aggressively pursued. But today’s new of the aircraft to reduce drag. Using alternative sources, rather engines, such as the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000, the General than depending on engine power, to run the onboard systems Electric GEnx and the Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan, al- can also help enhance fuel efficiency of an aircraft. It would be ready claim advances in environment-friendly technologies. worth examining as to how have the two leading manufactur- The Advisory Council for Aeronautics Research in Europe ers of airliners are addressing these issues. (ACARE), an organisation comprising around 40 members Boeing 787—The Dreamliner: Take the case of the new including government agencies and private companies like 787 airframe being developed by the US Boeing Company. the engine-maker Rolls Royce, has set goals for its members Boeing claims the 787 will be at least 20 per cent more fuel to achieve the following by 2020 compared with the base- efficient than the current competing aircraft, coming close line year of 2000: to the international emission goals such as the ones set by • 50 per cent reduction in fuel burn and carbon dioxide ACARE. While one-third of the efficiency gain will come from (CO2) emissions per passenger kilometre; the engines, another one-third will result from aerodynamic • 80 per cent reduction in nitrogen oxide (NOx); and improvements and the increased use of lighter weight com- • 50 per cent reduction in the perceived external noise. posite materials, and the final third from advanced systems.

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 11 CIVIL ENVIRONMENT

all will have to work in unison. One of the core issues to be addressed relates to removing congestions during ground manoeuvring at the airports and eliminating wasteful hold- ups in the air while queuing up for landings. One innovative idea expounded by one of the leading international airlines—the Virgin Atlantic—is about creating ‘Starting Grids’ for all aircraft departures. A starting grid is a holding area, close to the runway, consisting of several park- JOLLY GREEN: BOEING 787, AIRBUS A380 ing bays for aircraft. The idea is to tow the aircraft closer to the departure runway before take-off thus substantially re- One of the most notable features of the 787 is its light- ducing the time that engines need to be running on ground. weight construction. Its materials (by weight) are: 50 per Towed by a tractor/tug from its stand, an aircraft would cent composite, 20 per cent aluminum, 15 per cent titanium, start its engines once on the starting grid, approximately 10 per cent steel and 5 per cent others. Composite materi- 10 minutes before take-off. A starting grid would also re- als are significantly lighter and stronger than traditional duce congestion around stands, meaning aircraft that have aircraft materials, making the 787 a very light aircraft for recently landed wouldn’t have to wait, with their engines its capabilities. By volume, the 787 will be 80 per cent com- running, to get onto the stand. The arriving aircraft could posite. Each 787 contains approximately 35 tonnes of com- also turn off their engines in ‘Arriving Grids’ and be towed to posite reinforced plastic, made with 23 tonnes of carbon their respective stands saving considerably on the unneces- fibre. Composites are used on fuselage, wings, tail, doors sary fuel burn and, in the process, reducing emissions. This and interior. Aluminum is used on wing and tail leading could also mean that an aircraft, say flying from JFK airport edges, titanium used mainly on engines with steel used in in New York to London’s Heathrow, could carry around two various places. The other notable contribution to efficiency tonnes less fuel for the flight, which would mean less fuel is the electric architecture which replaces engine-driven burn in the air, reducing CO2 emissions even further. bleed air and hydraulic power with electrically powered Another innovation suggested by Virgin is the ‘Continu- compressors and pumps. The above innovations will enous Descent Approach’. This involves aircraft beginning sure that the 787 measures up to Boeing’s claim with re- their descent from high altitudes much earlier, leading to gard to fuel efficiency. a slower, more fuel efficient and smoother approach before Airbus A380—The Jolly Green Giant: For Airbus, size does landing. These types of approaches would be easier to adopt matter which has been so convincingly demonstrated in its with the induction of differential GPS navigation equipment superjumbo aircraft, the A380. Compared to Boeing’s main- in the overall air traffic management systems. ly composite fuselage of 787, the A380’s is mostly aluminum Other initiatives to reduce aircraft weight include paint- with composite materials making up 25 per cent of its air- ing the exteriors of aircraft with lighter paints, creating frame by weight. But what it has lost out on the composites’ lighter fittings onboard, changing oxygen bottles from metal front, it has made up with a unique full-length double decker to carbon-fibre materials and using even cargo bins made fuselage design. A380’s fuselage is actually shorter than the from lighter, but stronger carbon composites, rather than other Airbus behemoth A340-600 but carries significantly metal. Some airlines have gone to the extent of removing more number of passengers because of the twin-deck con- in-flight magazines from the passengers’ seats, which, in an figuration. Other weight-saving devices include the use of aircraft such as the A380, could mean a saving in weight of aluminum power cables instead of copper which adds up to about two to three tonnes. Virgin Atlantic is even seeking to a significant amount due to the length of cables used for an remove empty champagne and beer bottles, the contents of aircraft of this size and complexity. which have been consumed before leaving the stand in a bid Another first to the A380 commercial jetliner is its cen- to eliminate every bit of ‘dead weight’ in the air. tral wing box which is made of carbon fibre reinforced plas- There are also calls for adopting a ‘single sky system’ tic, and it is the first to have a wing cross-section that is (from air traffic control point of view) which would opti- smoothly contoured. Other commercial airliners have wings mise air routings by aircraft that are partitioned span-wise in sections. The flowing, making full use of favour- continuous cross-section allows for maximum aerodynam- able winds aloft and direct ic efficiency. The use of wingtip fences like the A320 and Airframers’ main routings, like migratory A310 also helps to alleviate the effects of wake turbulence, concern is to reduce birds. The International increasing fuel efficiency and performance. With all these Air Transport Association measures to achieve greater fuel efficiency, the sobriquet of weight of a given predicts the environment ‘The Jolly Giant’ that A380 has earned for itself could easily size of aircraft. would be spared 12 per be changed to ‘The Jolly Green Giant’. The next concern cent of global CO2 emissions if air traffic control INITIATIVES IN AIR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT revolves around systems were more effi- A large number of initiatives present in the realm of air traf- improving cient. Evidently, the indus- fic management, if implemented in letter and spirit, could aerodynamic try is determined to adopt substantially reduce the avoidable emissions on ground as every means and measure well as in the air. However, to achieve this, infrastructure design to cut down its contribution providers, air traffic controllers and the airline operators; to reduce drag. to global warming. SP

12 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net ONE TO ONE EUROFIGHTER

Matthias Schmidlin, Eurofighter Campaign Director, India in a candid ‘India will interview to SP’s Aviation underlines the benefits that would accrue to gain India if it accepts the EADS offer to join the Eurofighter programme. politically, He also elaborates on the European industrially, consortium’s interest in the country’s LCA and MMRCA programmes. operationally’

SP’s Aviation (SP’s): The European Aeronautic Defence and players such as EADS, BAE Systems, Finmeccanica, Rolls Royce, Space (EADS) Company has invited India to be a part of its MTU and others. This will give India access to an attractive in- prestigious Eurofighter project, offering Indian companies ternational sourcing network of unparalleled scope. On the other a platform to enhance skills in the aviation field. What are side, EADS is ready to support India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) the areas in which EADS would expect the Indian aerospace programme in order to make it a real success. industry to participate? Matthias Schmidlin (MS): On behalf of the Eurofighter SP’s: To what extent do you think this move is likely to im- consortium, EADS invited India to join the Eurofighter pro- prove chances of EADS winning the contract for India’s Me- gramme as a partner because we want India to become a dium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA)? member of the successful Eurofighter family. We are inter- MS: I am convinced that our invitation to India to become ested in a long-lasting political, industrial and military part- a new partner of the Eurofighter family was the right deci- nership and, therefore, the door is widely open for India. sion. We are a strong and reliable partner and look forward The four Eurofighter partners have intensive experience in to establish closer relations with this rapidly growing coun- international cooperation because the combat aircraft is de- try. All in all, I see a win-win-situation on three levels. veloped and manufactured as a quadronational programme Politically, the procurement decision in favour of the Euro- from the very beginning. fighter Typhoon will strengthen India’s political relations with Opportunities for India’s industrial cooperation in the Euro- Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK as Europe’s leading industrial fighter programme could involve future capabilities of this com- nations. The four nations, the four air forces and the four Euro- bat aircraft, such as the development of a new-generation radar, fighter partner companies will provide full support to stimulate avionics, electronic warfare and so on. Our offset offer, which we economic growth and industrial development in India. delivered on August 4, will leverage the strength of the whole Eu- Industrially, the Eurofighter partner companies will provide rofighter consortium, including strong aerospace and defence the most attractive industrial partnership to India, paving the

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 13 ONE TO ONE EUROFIGHTER way for the country to become a self-reliant global aero- “Procuring the to jointly identify areas where India space and defence player. Euroﬁghter could become a partner. Operationally, Eurofighter is a multi-role combat air- Typhoon will craft which employs the latest technologies to deliver out- SP’s: Has EADS initiated any dialogue standing operational performance with the flexibility and strengthen with HAL to explore the possibility of development potential to fulfill operational commanders’ India’s political collaboration and cooperation? needs for the next decades. Eurofighter is acknowledged for relations with MS: We have an intensive dialogue its air-to-air superiority and combined with its outstanding Germany, Italy, with HAL about future opportunities air-to-ground capabilities, it delivers the required mission Spain and of cooperation in terms of offset for effectiveness to meet the operational requirements of the the MMRCA competition and we will Indian Air Force (IAF). the UK.” inform the public about this once all details are clarified. SP’s: Is the offer for participation open to the private sector as well? SP’s: Did you find the request for MS: The offer stands primarily with state-owned com- proposal (RFP) by the Government of panies, but we will also cooperate with private compa- India for the MMRCA deal to be com- nies as well as small and medium-sized suppliers. Till date, prehensive and easily comprehensible? we have signed more than 20 MoUs with Indian defence MS: The RFP was quite demanding but our team worked companies and we are talking to them to explore common very hard to deliver our bid proposal to the Indian Ministry business opportunities for the benefit of both sides. of Defence (MoD) on April 28. We are fully convinced that we prepared a proposal that will be very attractive for the IAF. SP’s: In what specific way do you see the Indian aerospace industry benefiting from this offer? SP’s: Briefly describe the ingredients of the Eurofighter MS: My forecast is after the MMRCA procurement decision Tranche 2 Upgrade Programme. and the following industrial set-up for a final assembly line, MS: The so-called Phase 1 Enhancement for Tranche 2 air- India’s aerospace and defence companies will benefit from craft will focus on the enhancement of Eurofighter’s air- a strong economic growth and an enlargement of techno- to-ground capabilities and interoperability in accordance logical know-how. The Eurofighter partners will offer plenty with future requirements. This will include the integration of opportunities to India and EADS, which is leading this of new weapons like Paveway IV and the Enhanced GBU- campaign, is currently deploying a group-wide industrial 16 Laser Guided Bombs, alongside integrating a Laser Des- partnership comprising development, manufacturing, train- ignator Pod into Tranche 2 aircraft. The Human Machine ing and through-life-support. A concrete example for this is Interface will also receive performance upgrades required Airbus which has already initiated projects such as the Air- for the simultaneous swing role operation, allowing a pilot bus Engineering Centre, Pilot Training Centre and a coop- to continue a bomb run while at the same time fight air eration with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for A320 attacks by minimising the pilot’s workload in complex air passenger doors. warfare scenarios. The final Tranche 1 capability already covers air-to-ground operations with Paveway II and GBU- SP’s: Would acceptance of this offer entitle India to partici- 10/16 Laser Guided Bombs plus conventional bombs and pate in the development of other fixed wing aircraft, heli- the gun. copters or weapon systems? MS: Yes, the four Eurofighter partner companies offer a full SP’s: Has the Typhoon been fully developed to undertake the range of aerospace and defence products and we are ready complete range of ground attack roles? MS: Yes, and I can give you an excellent example for that. While taking part in Green Flag, a major exercise held at FACTS & FIGURES Nellis United States Air Force Base in Nevada, seven Eu- rofighter Typhoons from XI Squadron, based at RAF Con- With more than 148 aircraft deliveries to Germany, UK, Spain, ingsby/Lincolnshire, dropped munitions and fired cannons Italy and Austria, the Eurofighter Typhoon is a fully operational with such precision that these have been declared com- weapon system. Since the aircraft’s entry into service in spring bat ready by the target date of July 1. Wing Commander 2004, its order book has increased to more than 700 orders from Gavin Parker, Officer Commanding XI Squadron, said dur- seven nations, including Austria and Saudi Arabia as first export customers. Countries such as Greece, Turkey, Switzerland, Japan, ing the pre-exercise training at Davis Monthan Air Force Bulgaria and Romania have also shown strong interest. Base, Arizona that his squadron dropped a total of 67 munitions comprising 43 Paveway II bombs, eight enhanced Order Book: Paveway IIIs and 161,000 lb (454 kg) free fall weapons. Germany 180 He said and I quote: “It has been an outstanding success. United Kingdom 232 The aircraft loved the hot and dry conditions. It achieved Spain 87 a 99.3 per cent strike rate at Davis Monthan, which means Italy 121 we achieved 99.3 per cent serviceability. We only lost two sorties, one due to high wind when no one flew, and the 15 Austria other to a technical failure—again, unprecedented in my Saudi Arabia 72 knowledge and experience.”

14 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net ONE TO ONE EUROFIGHTER

SP’s: Would EADS be prepared for full transfer of technology a mature and stabile combat aircraft programme. Thirdly, (ToT) for the Eurofighter Typhoon if contracted or are there most impressive key feature of the Eurofighter Typhoon is any restrictions in respect of sensitive technologies? its multi- and swing-role capability, which provides military MS: We think ToT is a challenge for all competitors. In our commanders with enormous flexibility. This means that the view, ToT will happen in an incremental way. First, we start aircraft can fly either air-to-air or air-to-ground missions or with the deliveries of 18 aircraft as stipulated in the RFP. both sorties at the same time. Also, in terms of weapons pay- Then we would build up a final assembly line in India. This load, the aircraft is capable of carrying six air-to-air missiles will be followed by ToT in the areas of equipment and the plus additional air-to-surface weapons, such as Paveway II development of capabilities. We will discuss with the Indian or GBU-10/-16, or external fuel tanks on seven further hard MoD how we can fulfill its expectations so that both sides points. Another operational benefit is the installation of the are satisfied. electronic warfare equipment in the wing tips without sacri- ficing external stores capacity. Looking at these impressive SP’s: India has also embarked on a collaboration with Rus- capabilities, we are optimistic whenever the Eurofighter Ty- sia for a Fifth Generation combat aircraft. Do you see any phoon is compared with the F-18. conflict between this programme and the MMRCA project, especially since the time frame for acquiring the two is likely SP’s: As a unified entity of nations, does Europe have politi- to be nearly similar? cal leverage as compared to the US or Russia to swing the MS: This question should be addressed to deal in the favour of EADS? the Indian MoD. “Euroﬁghter MS: The success story of Airbus has clearly demonstrated Europe’s industrial capabili- SP’s: How does the Eurofighter Typhoon delivers the ties in commercial aircraft manufacturing. In compare with the F-18 in terms of genera- required military aviation, Eurofighter has also a quite tion and technology? mission impressive track record if you look for in- MS: First of all, I want to highlight that the effectiveness stance at the customers and the orderbook of Eurofighter Typhoon is the most modern to meet the this quadronational programme. The Euro- combat aircraft currently available in the fighter enjoys the strong political support of world market. Secondly, the Eurofighter is operational four governments in Europe, four Air Forces fully operational in four countries and with requirements and four leading European aerospace and more than 700 orders from six custom- of the IAF.” defence companies. This sums up to a politi- ers (Germany, UK, Spain, Italy, Austria and cal heavyweight and I am strongly convinced Saudi Arabia), the Eurofighter Typhoon is that India is Europe’s partner of choice. SP

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 15 CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION COVER STORY

Trendy Jetsetters The range of offerings now available in the business jet segment of general aviation is quite wide. Any firm with travel requirements By LeRoy Cook, should be able to find a suitable Missouri, USA aircraft for its needs.

UILDING AIRCRAFT SPECIFICALLY TAR- market. Dwane Wallace, President of Cessna Aircraft, Marcel GETED TO THE NEEDS OF BUSINESS Dassault, Chairman of Dassault, William P. Lear of Learjet and TRAVEL has not always been possible. In Leon Swirbul, President of Grumman Aircraft, pursued differ- the early days of business aviation, com- ent means to achieve the end result—all highly successfully. pany executives made do with converted Cessna Aircraft was known primarily as a builder of light military and airline airplanes, which often single and twin-engine piston airplanes, but it had also sup- were overly large and costly, both to acquire plied the T-37 jet trainer for the US Air Force since the mid- and to operate. Available general aviation 1950s, giving it valuable experience. Dwane Wallace correctly airplanes, on the other hand, were too saw the need for a light fanjet-powered business transport small and lacked performance. Fifty years that could service small airfields as well as large metropolitan ago, few business aircraft options existed above the Beech- airports. His Citation 500 would have a straight wing for good bcraft Model 18 Twin Beech, even though airline fleets were low-speed handling and, while it cruised slower than other rapidly converting to jet aircraft. During the following decade, business jets, it offered jet comfort while flying from 1,000- this situation would be corrected. metre runways. First marketed in 1972, the original Citation In the usual manner of visionary industry leaders, four has been joined by both lighter and heavier variants, culmi-

PHOTOGRAPHS: LEROY COOK & RESPECTIVE MANUFACTURERS PHOTOGRAPHS: LEROY men saw an opportunity to build airplanes for the business jet nating in the owner-flown Citation Mustang, the Mach .92 Ci-

16 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

SPEED & ELEGANCE: HONDAJET (FACING PAGE) IS A NEW ENTRANT WHILE CESSNA COLUMBUS ENJOYS A MARKET NICHE Jetsetters Trendy tation X speedster and a large-cabin Citation Columbus 850 reach small towns with jet speed, and soon grew into longer- under development. cabin and swept-wing models. Today, Cessna begins its line of French designer Marcel Dassault conceived a fast twin-en- jets with the Citation Mustang, powered by Pratt & Whitney gine fanjet transport called the Mystere 20. Initially marketed 615F fanjets of 1,450 lbs thrust each. The Mustang seats six in the US by Pan American Airways in 1965 as the Fan Jet and is often flown single-pilot, like most smaller Citations. It Falcon, the Falcon series has expanded into a well-known and cruises at 340 knots and can climb as high as 41,000 ft. desirable family of business aircraft. Performance has always Next and larger, the CJ1—first introduced as the Citation- been the primary goal of Dassault airplanes, and the Falcons Jet in 1993 as a modern replacement for the original Citation deliver it with beauty and style. 500—was the first Cessna jet to be powered by Williams fan- In the early 1960s, inventor and aviation enthusiast Bill jets. In its current version, the CJ1 uses the FJ44-1AP, develop- Lear’s vision of a small executive jet required starting his own ing 1,925 lbs of thrust. The more-popular CJ2, introduced in airplane company as well as adapting a Swiss military airplane 2001, uses FJ44-3A-24 engines of 2,490 lbs thrust; the CJ2 into what became the Lear Jet. Small and speedy from the out- seats eight like the CJ1, but with greater comfort in its cabin, set, the Lear legacy is now carried on by Bombardier Aero- longer by 3 ft. Both are now being sold as CJ1+ and CJ2+ mod- space through a wide range of aircraft. els, reflecting instrument panel upgrades with Collins Pro Line Grumman Aircraft sought to diversify from its military 21 “glass cockpit” avionics. products by developing the Gulfstream series of executive The CJ3’s cabin is stretched nearly 2 ft longer than the CJ2, transports, beginning cautiously in 1958 with the Gulfstream using Williams FJ44-3A engines developing 2,780 lbs of thrust. I, which was powered by Rolls Royce Dart turbopropeller en- Its increased wingspan and fuel capacity placed it in a new gines. It was soon replaced by the Gulfstream II with Spey fan- level of capability for the CJ line. The coming CJ4, now in flight jet engines, introduced in 1967. Grumman’s Gulfstream divi- test, uses FJ44-4A engines of 3,400 lbs thrust and will offer sion was later sold, but through the years the company now even more interior space and higher performance, incorpo- known as Gulfstream Aerospace has continually built the most rating a new, slightly-swept wing and a fuselage that is four sought-after of executive aircraft. This report will present each inches wider than other CJ models. company’s current offerings. Continuing with the Encore, the legacy Citation line uses Pratt & Whitney Canada PW535B engines of 3,400 lbs thrust. THE CESSNA CITATIONS The Citation Encore is vastly improved over the first Citations, Cessna Aircraft Company has continually expanded and re- with a cabin 17 ft long, trailing-link main landing gear for soft- fined its Citation jet line, in both upward and downward direc- er touchdowns, single-point refuelling, and the “+” configurations. The gamble to build a late-arriving business jet that was tion, featuring Collins Proline 21 EFIS in the cockpit. Seven to slower and smaller than almost any competitor turned out to eight passengers are carried by the Encore. be a wise bet indeed. The original straight-wing Citation could Citation XLS features a bigger cabin, PW545C engines of

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 17 CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

EYEING THE MARKET: The Cita- (CLOCKWISE FROM EXTREME LEFT) tion Sovereign DASSAULT’S FALCON uses an en- 2000LX; GULFSTREAM tirely different G150; SJ30 BY SINO SWEARINGEN wing than the smaller, slower Cessna jets, with a swept leading edge. It also has more powerful Pratt & Whitney PW306C engines of 5,770 lbs thrust. These boost the maximum cruise speed up to 458 knots, yet allow it to use runways only 3,600 ft long. The cabin offers seating for 10 to 12 with two sets of club-style seating. Top of the Cessna line is the Citation X (pro- nounced “Ten”), the fastest business jet available, with a high-speed cruise of Mach .92. Huge AE3007C1 Rolls Royce Allison engines of 6,764 lbs thrust make this possible. The Citation X can cover the New York to London route in six hours; Cessna claims that no other business jet can fly 4,119 lbs thrust and the “+” upgrade as well. With a 20,200-lb 3,000 nautical miles more quickly. gross weight, the XLS is the largest of the straight-wing Cita- Coming over the horizon is the Citation Columbus, a large- tions, offering seating for eight to nine yet preserving short- cabin intercontinental jet that will reach the market in 2013. field capability; standard-day, full gross weight runway takeoff Using new Pratt & Whitney 810 engines with 8,830 lbs of requirement is only 3,550 ft. The XLS’s chief feature is its mar- thrust, it is expected to have a 4,000 mile range at Mach .80. It riage of a taller 5-ft-8-in cabin, similar to larger Citations, to an will offer seating for eight to 10 and much more spacious ac- optimised straight wing that cruises at up to 437 knots. commodations than even the Citation X, with a cabin over 36

It’s as if we read the minds of India’s business leaders. In many ways, we did.

Some Citation business jets are so perfectly suited to doing business in India, it’s as if they were created specifically for that purpose. Here’s why: Every Citation is based on what customers tell us they need. Those customers come from all over the world, but they all have three things in common: They are poised on the brink of a major breakthrough in the growth of their business. They are seeing opportunities like never before. And they are looking for the undeniably best way to seize them. Their answer can be your answer – the best-selling business jets and propeller aircraft in the world. For a free, no-obligation analysis of what a Citation business jet can do for your company call Mike McGreevy at 971.4.295.4822 or visit Citation.Cessna.com.

Cessna Aircraft

® 18 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net S u r e Th i n g

Citation Emerging Markets ad for SP’S gs-EmMark_SPs.indd 1 Trim: 40.6 cm x 12.5 cm • Bleed: 41.6 cm x 13.5 cm • Live: 38 cm x 11.5 cm 11/13/07 3:26:24 PM File: CD-ROM, HR PDF with 1 digital proof CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

ft long, offering more than 6 ft of headroom. The Columbus will be Cessna’s first foray into large-cabin jets.

DASSAULT FALCON AIRCRAFT The Dassault Falcon family consists of two- and three-engine configurations, the latter giving added options during extended over-water routes in the case of an engine failure. The three engines of Dassault’s larger jets also minimise takeoff runway QUALITY OPTIONS: (RIGHT) GULFSTREAM requirements, which are predicated on G550; (BELOW) CESSNA the loss of one engine at V1 speed. The CITATION ENCORE AND Falcon 2000 twin jet features a larger EMBRAER’S PHENOM cabin cross section than the earlier Falcon 20s, sharing the wing and forward fuselage of the triple-engine 900 model. Both the 2000 and 900 are available with longer-range fuel tank- age, initially called the “EX” for extended range, but now known as the “LX” version. However, the standard “DX” variant is more than adequate for many operators. The 2000DX, for instance, has an IFR-reserves range fuel available. Landing weight for both aircraft is 39,300 lbs. of 3,250 nautical miles, while the 2000LX can cover an as- Falcon’s 900-series features a 7-ft greater cabin length over tounding 4,000 nautical miles. the Falcon 2000. The Falcon 900DX flies 4,100 nautical miles The Falcon 2000 models are powered by Pratt & Whitney with reserves, powered by three Honeywell TFE731-60 turbo- Canada PW308Cs of 7,000-lb thrust. The cabin is over 26 ft fan engines of 5,000 lbs thrust. Using the same wing and en- long, with 6-ft, 2-inches of headroom. The LX version grosses gines, the 900EX offers 400 nautical miles of additional range 1,200 lbs heavier than the 2000DX, with 2,060 lbs of added with 2,170 lbs more fuel available, and it does this with eight

It’s as if we read the minds of India’s business leaders. In many ways, we did.

Cessna Aircraft

® S u r e Th i n g Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 19

can provide world-span- ning wings to the business traveler. Bombardier offers the Global 5000 and Global Express models, giving it a wide range of business jets with varying capability and capacity.

GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE Gulfstream’s jets are no longer the familiar G-III, G-IV and G-V, successors to the Gulfstream II. In- stead, the G-V became the ENDURING LEGACIES: (CLOCKWISE FROM TOP) Gulfstream 550 and the G- passengers on board. The DASSAULT FALCON 900 DX; IV is now the Gulfstream 900LX, by comparison, BOMBARDIER’S LEARJET 45 450, while the Gulfstream incorporates nearly 7 ft XR; LEARJET 60 XR 350 is a slightly-modified more wingspan with the lighter version of the G-IV. same takeoff weight and With the acquisition of the fuel capacity as the 900EX, allowing it to fly 4,800 Israel Aircraft Industries nautical miles at long-range cruise with the same line, there are now Gulf- eight passengers. stream 200 and 150 mod- Falcon’s large-cabin long-range airplane is els. This gives Gulfstream the 7X, featuring a wing span of 86 ft and a takeoff weight Aerospace a full range of business jets, from the intercontinen- of 69,000 lbs. It is powered by three Pratt & Whitney Canada tal 550 to the widebody 200, formerly the IAI Galaxy, and to 307A engines of 6,402 lbs thrust, and with 31,940 lbs of fuel the versatile 150, formerly the Astra 1125 before it acquired capacity it can fly nearly 6,000 nautical miles non-stop, with a larger cabin. Under development is an even-larger, longer- eight passengers and a crew of three, while maintaining a range Gulfstream 650, which will supplant the 550 as the king Mach .80 cruise speed. The cabin length of 39 ft allows great of the business jet hierarchy. interior flexibility for such ambitious missions. The 7X is the The Gulfstream 150 is now a mid-size jet, with 2,954 nau- first Falcon to incorporate an electronic fly-by-wire control sys- tical miles of range carrying four passengers plus crew from a tem, rather than conventional hydraulic-boosted controls. This 5,000 ft runway. Cabin payload with maximum fuel is 850 lbs, lack of cables and linkages allows the use of side-stick controls and the cabin is usually outfitted for six to eight seats. Cabin in the cockpit, integrating perfectly with the EASy electronic length is 17 ft 8 in, and width is 5 ft 9 in, compared to 7 ft 2 flight instrumentation and management system. in for the G-200. Power for the G-150 is provided by two Hon- eywell TFE 731-40AR-200G fanjets, rated at 4,420 lbs thrust. BOMBARDIER: THE LEAR LEGACY Wingspan of 55 ft 7 in is slightly less than the fuselage length Perhaps the consummate originator of the business jet concept of 56 ft 9 in. resides in the Bombardier family of corporate aircraft, which Marketed as a large-cabin mid-range jet, the Gulfstream has grown into a three-segment purveyor of business jets—the 200 spans out to 3,400 nautical miles at Mach .75 while car- Learjet, Challenger and Global. The original Learjet, developed rying four passengers plus crew. In length, the cabin measures in the 1960s by innovator William P. Lear, has today grown into 24 ft 5 in, typically outfitted for eight to 10 seats. Payload with the Learjet 40XR, 45XR, 60XR and 85 models, the latter un- maximum fuel, however, is 650 lbs, due to the 15,000 lb fuel der development as an entirely-new composite airframe while capacity. Power is provided by two Pratt & Whitney Canada the present Learjets are all-aluminum aircraft. The Learjet 85 306A fanjets of 6,040 lbs thrust. At the 35,450 maximum take- is expected to reach market in 2012, using Pratt & Whitney off weight, runway requirement is 6,083 ft. PW307B engines of 6,100 lbs thrust. The Learjet 85 will add Identical to the G-450 but with 3,500 lbs less fuel capac- about five inches of headroom and cabin width over the next- ity, leaving it with 3,800 nautical miles of range at Mach .8, smaller Learjet 60XR. the Gulfstream 350 is still quite capable. With takeoff weight After leaving the Learjet company, Bill Lear embarked on reduced by 3,000 lbs from the G-450, the runway requirement a larger mission, to develop a stand-up cabin fanjet that would is reduced to 5,050 ft. Thus, the G-350 represents an excellent provide executives with every amenity. His visionary airplane value in a large-cabin jet if long range is of limited interest. became the Canadair Challenger, and when Bombardier ac- The Gulfstream 450 offers a 5-ft shorter cabin while retain- quired Canadair as well as the Learjet corporation, the current ing most of the G-550 features, its range and speed lessened product line was formed. The original Challenger 600 eventu- by a 15-ft-8-in smaller wing. The engines are Rolls-Royce Tay ally stretched into the CRJ airliner series. The corporate Chal- Mk 611-8C bypass jets, offering 13,850 lbs thrust. Range is a lenger aircraft are the 300, 605 and 850 models. quite respectable at 4,350 nautical miles at Mach .80, operat- The larger size and weight-lifting ability of the CRJ lent itself ing from a 5,450 ft takeoff runway. Cabin seating is typically 12 to development into the Global long-range business jets, which to 16, with 1,800 lbs available for payload with max fuelling.

20 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

Gulfstream 550 appeared in 1995 as the Gulfstream V and ted for business use. In a way, converting airliners into compa- has reigned supreme ever since. Price seems to be no barrier ny planes represents a return to the roots of business aviation. to those seeking its capability, which will be around $45 mil- However, Boeing Business Jets (BBJs) and Airbus Corporate lion (Rs 197 crore), complete with a worthy interior. Powered Jets (ACJs) are much more specifically designed around corpo- by two BMW-Rolls Royce BR710 G4-11 engines of 15,385 lbs rate needs than the modified DC-3s of the 1950s. thrust, it can reach 51,000 ft on its huge 93.5-ft wing, and the The BBJs are usually based on the 737 airliner, one of cockpit is outfitted with every available innovation, including three sizes of the popular baby Boeing, although airplanes up heads-up display and synthetic vision. The G-550 seats up to to 747s have been converted. The BBJs have interiors starting 19, but usually is outfitted for 14 in comfort. at 800 sq. ft—more than twice that of the largest conventional The G-550’s mission is to range up to 5,800 nautical miles business jet. Range is brought up to intercontinental standards at Mach .80, or 5,100 nautical miles at Mach .85, all while by adding fuel tanks in the cargo holds, allowing a BBJ to fly carrying eight passengers and a crew of four. Even with maxi- 6,200 nautical miles with eight passengers. The 737-800- mum fuel of 35,200 lbs, it can still carry 2,300 lbs of payload, based BBJ2 is 20 ft longer than the smaller BBJ, and the BBJ3 requiring only a 5,150 ft runway for departure. Thus, the Gulf- adds another 8 ft of length. Power is provided by CFM56-7 stream formula is evident; a luxurious cabin on a giant wing engines of 27,300 lbs thrust. Maximum takeoff weight begins optimised for range and altitude capability, pushed along by at 171,000 lbs. huge engines. A typical Airbus Corporate Jetliner is a slightly short- Scheduled to enter service in 2012, the Gulfstream 650 will ened version of the A319 airliner, although the four-engine be a radical departure for the company in that it incorporates or widebody Air- bus airframes can be used. Even the smallest ACJ’s fuselage is a foot longer than the BBJ and its cabin is half-a-foot wider than the Boe- ing aircraft. Overall, the basic ACJ cabin measures about 850 sq. ft in size. As a fly- by-wire airplane, the ACJ cockpit is fitted with side-stick controls. Power is provided by CFM 56-5B7 fanjets, or optionally by IAE V2527M-A5 engines, both deliv- VARIED WINGS: (ABOVE) GULFSTREAM ering about 25,000 G650; (RIGHT) HAWKER the first change in fuselage cross-sec- lbs of thrust. With BEECHCRAFT 900XP tion in its history: a flattened oval shape optional long-range tanks fitted, the eight-passenger range is SHOT FROM TWO DIFFERENT ANGLES that results in a cabin 14 inches wider almost 6,000 nautical miles. and 3 inches taller than the G-550. The Advantages of the airliner-based business jets are cabin wing will span 99 ft 7 in, gross weight size, airline-proven dispatch reliability and availability of parts is targeted for 99,600 lbs and the cabin and service anywhere in the world. Not to be overlooked is will be a huge 53 ft 6 in in length. Range is projected to be the live-aboard capability of these flying yachts, with their 7-ft 5,000 nautical miles at an astounding Mach .90, or 7,000 nau- headroom and 12-ft cabin width. The disadvantages are the tical miles at Mach .85. Power is to be provided by two BMW- necessarily larger ramp and runway requirements, economics Rolls Royce BR 725 engines of 16,100 lbs thrust. The price, if and perceived footprint. you have to ask, is projected to be between $50 million (Rs 220 crore) and $60 million (Rs 260 crore). EMBRAER Such originating companies represent the vision and de- The Brazilian plane-maker Embraer burst onto the corporate sign capability to meet the needs of business, with years of scene after initial forays into the commuter airline market, experience behind them. Their products offer corporate users with its Legacy 600 business jet, and is now offering a line of an array of choices when it comes to flight needs. aircraft from the light-jet Phenom 100 to the regional-jet based Legacy 600 intercontinental airplane. The present line includes SOMETHING IN A LARGER SIZE? the coming Legacy 450 and Legacy 500, and the Legacy 600 However, if the Gulfstream 650 is not sufficiently spacious for a and Legacy Shuttle, based on ERJ airliners, along with new corporate transport, the Boeing Business Jet division of Boeing Phenom 100 and 300 light jets. and its competitor, Airbus Industries’ Corporate Jetliners unit, The Legacy airplanes are powered by Honeywell HTF7000- are capable of delivering large-cabin airplanes custom-outfit- series engines in the 6,000-lb-thrust range. Deliveries of the

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 21 CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

Legacy 450 are to start in 2013, while the Legacy 500 will en- jet has a certified ceiling of 49,000 ft and it can achieve 476 ter service in 2012. The Phenom light jets are powered by Pratt knots at 37,000 ft. and Whitney PW617F engines of 1,615 lbs thrust and a cabin roughly 5 ft in diameter. All Embraer interiors are heavily in- THE COMING (AND GOING) OF VLJS fluenced by the BMW Design Group, reflected in the luxurious Volatile has to be the operative word for a crowded field of Very styling and comfort. Light Jets (VLJs), mostly aimed at the owner-flown or light business market. The ups-and-downs of company fortunes are HAWKER BEECHCRAFT of daily interest and, while some models have achieved certi- When one of the oldest makers of business aircraft, Beech fication, finding capital and a marketing niche has not always Aircraft, became a business jet supplier, it was by initially ac- been easy. Adam Aircraft’s A700 twin-boom composite jet—an quiring the Mitsubishi Diamond jet and polishing it into the outgrowth of its A500 push-pull piston twin—was placed on Beechjet 400 (now the Hawker 400XP), then buying the re- hold after Adam suffered bankruptcy and the assets are now spected Hawker 125. Hawker Beechcraft (then Raytheon) then in Russian hands, where it hopes to find resuscitation. Grob developed the much-larger Hawker Horizon, now the Hawker Aerospace, originally a German builder of fiberglass sailplanes, 4000, after introducing its own Premier light jet. The Premier has similarly slipped into receivership and hopes to find new IA was recently joined by a forthcoming Premier II. financing for its SPn twin jet. The Beech Premier IA is a six to eight place jet that can be The Eclipse 500, once promised to deliver twin-jet personal flown single-pilot, powered by Williams FJ44-2A turbofan en- flying for less than $1 million (Rs 4 crore), now is being deliv- gines of 2,300 lbs thrust. Takeoff weight is 12,500 lbs and max ered for over twice that sum, and its founding promoter Vern cruise speed is 450 knots. The Premier IA’s fuselage is built of Raburn is no longer associated with the company. The future of carbon fiber filament to reduce weight and allow more interior the Eclipse 400 single-engine concept jet is under a cloud until room, while the wing and T-tail are made of aluminum. Four- the fate of the 500 is cleared. Grob’s all-composite SPn per- passenger range is nearly 1,200 nautical miles and takeoff sonal jet is well along in development, after the tragic loss of runway requirement just under 3,800 ft. The Premier II will the prototype airplane, and Diamond’s D-Jet single-engine jet carry Williams FJ44-3AP engines of 3,000-lbs thrust, allowing is similarly flying with future plans unclear. Meanwhile, Cirrus takeoff weight to move to 13,800 lbs and a range of Aircraft is flying a testbed of its SJ50 Vision 1,500 nautical miles, thanks to winglets added to Embraer’s jet single, and Piper recently made the first the wingtips. Cruise speed will be about 465 knots. present line flight of its PiperJet, a single-engine jet that Deliveries are to begin in 2010. draws on the Malibu Meridian turboprop. Hawker 400XP continues in production, pow- includes the Cirrus and Diamond airplanes seem to ered by two Pratt & Whitney JT15D-5 engines of coming Legacy be taking a practical approach to the owner- 2,900 lbs thrust. The speedy 400A cruises at up to 450 and Legacy operator’s needs and abilities by setting the 450 knots, seating six to nine passengers and of- 500, and the maximum operating altitude in the mid-to- fering a 1,482 nautical mile range. Spoiler lateral Legacy 600 and upper 20s, which is less risky for single-crew control is employed, allowing full-span flaps to be pilots of limited experience. Speed and range fitted, which reduces takeoff distance to 3,906 ft. Legacy Shuttle, will necessarily be compromised, but will Well-respected, the Hawker business jet was based still offer a step up for respective companies’ one of the first to be built specifically for corporate on ERJ owner-flown buyer. Automotive giant Honda mission, with no military aspirations. Now powered airliners, is boldly stepping into aviation with dual de- by Honeywell TFE-731-5BR engines of 4,660-lbs alongwith new velopment programmes, as it is powering the thrust, the Hawker can seat eight comfortably and new Hondajet with its own engine design, the deliver a range of 2,640 nautical miles, although Phenom 100 and Honda HF120 of 1,670 lbs thrust, mounted not simultaneously. The current offerings encom- 300 light jets unconventionally on above-the-wing pylons. pass the Hawker 750, 850XP and 900XP. To reach The homebuilt jet market, once seen additional buyers, the Hawker 4000 was recently as an entry path for start-up companies to certified, with a composite fuselage similar to the quickly get their jets into the hands of buy- Premier 1, which gives it more space for its passen- ers, may not be so easily opened. The US’ gers and, with the 6,900-lbs-thrust Pratt & Whitney Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has PW308A engines, a range of 3,200 nautical miles. recently given notice that it will strictly en- force the amateur-built rules, which allow kit airplanes to be SINO SWEARINGEN SJ30-2 licensed for an individual’s education and enjoyment. No con- Despite a lengthy development and challenges in achieving tract building or token builder participation will be allowed. production, the Sino Swearingen SJ30 is the fastest and lon- The major portion of a project, defined by FAA inspection, gest-ranging light jet powered by Williams FJ-44 fanjets. It must be completed by each builder. It remains to be seen if achieves its outstanding performance with a swept wing and the burgeoning light jet segment is truly viable and if it offers sleek aerodynamics. useful transportation for executive travel. Support from an New ownership by middle-eastern investors has renewed established company with a track record is the logical crite- the company, which remains the performance leader in the rion. In any event, the range of offerings now available in the light-jet category. The SJ30-2 is powered by FJ44-2A engines business jet segment of general aviation is quite wide. Any producing 2,300 lbs of thrust each, and it carries enough fuel firm with travel requirements should be able to find a suit- to range out to 2,500 nautical miles. Sino Swearingen’s light able aircraft for its needs. SP

22 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net CIVIL BUSINESS AVIATION

BUSINESS JETS: CONTOURS & CHARACTERISTICS

Model Wing span Length Height Weight Fuel Range Max speed Take-off Seats (ft) (ft) (ft) (lbs) (lbs) (n.mi.) (knots) (ft) (max) BOMBARDIER Learjet 40 47.8 55.6 14.1 21,000 5,375 1,732 465 4,680 7 Learjet 45XR 47.8 57.6 14.1 21,500 6,062 1,975 465 5,040 7 Learjet 60XR 43.8 58.7 14.6 23,500 7,910 2,338 466 5,450 9 Learjet 85 61.5 68.2 19.2 33,500 n/a 3,000 Mach.82 4,800 8 Challenger 600 63.8 68.6 20.3 38,850 14,150 3,100 470 4,810 9 Challenger 605 64.3 68.4 20.7 48,200 20,000 4,045 470 5,840 12 Challenger 850 69.6 87.8 20.4 53,000 18,274 2,770 459 6,305 15 Global 5000 94.0 96.8 25.5 92,500 39,250 5,200 513 5,540 17 Global Express 94.0 99.4 25.5 98,000 44,975 6,150 513 6,190 19 CESSNA Mustang 42.8 40.5 13.4 8,645 2,580 1,130 340 3,110 5 CJ1+ 46.9 42.6 13.8 10,700 3,220 1,300 389 3,250 6 CJ2+ 49.5 47.7 14.0 12,500 3,930 1,613 418 3,360 6 CJ3 52.9 50.1 15.1 13,870 4,710 1,875 417 3,180 8 CJ4 50.8 53.3 15.3 n/a n/a 1,825 435 3,300 8 Encore+ 52.2 48.9 15.0 16,300 5,400 1,760 428 3,590 10 XLS+ 55.7 51.8 17.2 20,200 6,740 1,858 440 3,560 8 Sovereign 63.3 63.5 20.3 30,300 11,216 2,841 458 3,640 12 CitationX 63.6 72.3 19.3 35,700 12,931 3,070 525 5,140 10 Columbus 80.0 n/a n/a n/a n/a 4,000 488 5,400 10 DASSAULT FALCON 2000DX 63.4 66.3 23.2 41,000 14,600 3,250 480 5,375 12 2000LX 63.4 66.3 23.2 42,200 16,600 4,000 480 5,475 12 900DX 63.4 66.3 24.8 46,700 18,830 4,100 474 4,890 14 900EX 63.4 66.3 24.8 48,300 21,000 4,500 474 5,215 14 900LX 70.2 66.3 24.8 48,300 21,000 4,800 474 n/a 14 7X 86.0 76.1 25.7 69,000 31,940 5,950 514 5,200 19 DIAMOND D-Jet 37.5 35.1 11.6 5,600 1,740 1,350 315 n/a 5 ECLIPSE 500 37.9 33.5 11.0 6,000 1,698 1,300 370 2,345 6 EMBRAER Phenom 100 40.3 42.1 14.3 n/a n/a 1,160 380 3,400 6 Phenom 300 52.2 51.3 16.8 n/a n/a 1,800 450 3,700 6 Legacy 450 66.4 62.8 22.1 n/a n/a 2,300 Mach.78 4,000 8 Legacy 500 66.4 67.3 22.2 n/a n/a 3,000 Mach.80 4,600 8 Legacy 600 68.9 86.4 22.2 49,604 18,170 3,250 Mach.80 5,614 13 GROB SPn 48.8 48.6 16.8 13,889 4,400 1,800 415 3,000 8 GULFSTREAM G150 55.6 56.8 19.1 26,100 10,300 2,954 459 5,000 8 G200 58.1 62.3 21.4 35,450 15,000 3,400 459 6,083 10 G350 77.8 89.3 25.2 70,900 26,000 3,800 459 5,050 16 G450 77.8 89.3 25.2 73,900 29,500 4,350 459 5,450 16 G550 93.5 96.4 25.8 91,000 41,300 6,750 500 5,910 18 G650 99.6 99.8 25.3 99,600 44,200 7,000 516 6,000 18 HAWKER BEECHCRAFT Premier 1A 44.5 46.0 15.3 12,500 3,670 1,195 451 3,792 7 Hawker 400XP 43.5 48.4 4.8 16,300 4,912 1,482 450 3,906 9 Hawker 750 51.3 51.2 18.1 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Hawker 850XP 54.3 51.2 18.1 28,000 10,000 2,642 448 5,032 15 Hawker 900XP 54.3 51.2 18.1 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a Hawker 4000 61.8 69.5 19.8 39,500 14,600 3,280 482 5,200 14 HONDA AIRCRAFT COMPANY HondaJet 39.9 41.7 13.2 9,200 2,300 1,180 420 3,120 6 PIPER PiperJet 44.6 33.8 16.5 n/a n/a 1,300 360 n/a 7 SINO SWEARINGEN SJ30-2 42.3 46.8 14.2 13,950 4,850 2,500 476 3,939 6

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 23 ON CAMERA LABACE ’08

Roll Out the Red Carpet Ricardo Nogueira voiced doubts about whether the conveniently located space at the old VASP hangars will be available next year and if there will be room for the growing event

ugust 14 to 16, São Paulo’s Congonhas International Airport was buzzing with a record number of 11,300 visitors and a total of 108 exhibitors as the three-day Latin American Business Aviation Conference & Exhi- bition (LABACE) generated business reportedly worth around $400 million (Rs 1,778.5 crore). Addressing the opening general session, Brazilian Minister of Defense Nelson Jobim was candid in his appraisal of the country’s disappointing aviation infrastructure which, he said, posed a serious hurdle to what is at present the fastest-growing economy in Latin America. “We need to rethink our aviation infrastructure. We need a sense of urgency,” he emphasised. Highlighting the market potential for business jets in Latin America, sponsor Associação ABrasileira de Aviação Geral’s (ABAG) outgoing President Rui Thomaz de Aquino drew focus on the 308 aircraft delivered in the region last year. As for the region’s aging fleet, he noted that 52 per cent of executive jets and 66 per cent of helicopters are at least 15 years old. ABAG is on the look out for a new venue for the event as Aquino’s successor Ricardo Nogueira voiced doubts about whether the conveniently located space at the old VASP hangars will be available next year and if there will be room for the growing event. “We are considering those options and reviewing the 2008 show to see what changes SP

PHOTOGRAPHS: FLICKER.COM we might make in 2009,” he added. The date for LABACE 2009 is yet to be finalised.

24 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net ON CAMERA LABACE ’08

BEVY OF CLASSIC OPTIONS: FACING PAGE: EMBRAER LAID EMPHASIS ON THE LEGACY; (INSET) LUÌS CARLOS AFFONSO, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, EXECUTIVE JETS OF EMBRAER THIS PAGE: DASSAULT FALCON 200LX (TOP) AND FALCON 900 EX (INSET); GULFSTREAM’S FAMILY INCLUDED THE G150 (ABOVE) AND G550 (RIGHT)

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 25 ON CAMERA LABACE ’08

UNPARALLELED COMFORTS: (ABOVE) CESSNA EXHIBITS; (BELOW AND RIGHT) OFFERINGS FROM BOMBARDIER

HALF PAGE AD TO COME HERE

26 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net MILITARY RAFALE Catch Me if You Can Combining the dual strengths of speed and subterfuge, the Rafale’s systems— equipped with the SPECTRA— have set new standards in low-observability and survivability

n modern air-warfare, survivability is the key to com- intake ducts to hide the engine compressor faces. Thanks bat effectiveness. Pitted against the latest threats, to the Hot Spot treatment, infrared signature is minimised, the Rafale fighter is well-equipped to slip undetected and the Snecma M88 turbofans have been optimised to limit through dense air-defence networks and survive. infrared detectability. I Low-observability is not the only way to boost survivability. As radar and radio emissions can betray the position FLYING UNDETECTED of a fighter, the designers have adopted for the Rafale a wide A ‘low-observable’ aircraft, the twin-engine fighter’s sys- range of unique passive sensors and missiles: the passive tems have set new standards in low-observability and sur- Front Sector Optronics used in conjunction with the long- vivability. Every effort has been made by Dassault engineers range, infrared-guided Mica IR missile gives Rafale pilots to minimise its infrared and radar signatures. The objective unprecedented capabilities, allowing totally silent intercep- was not to make the aircraft undetectable or to match the tions to be performed, especially when accurate targeting Radar Cross Section (RCS) of the F-117 or B-2, but to sig- data is received via a datalink. Additionally, radar emissions nificantly reduce the detection and tracking range of hostile can be carefully controlled, and emission limitations can air-defences. Accordingly, the airframe has been carefully even be programmed on a data transfer cartridge before shaped to cut down its RCS. Other signature reduction mea- the mission. sures include state-of-the-art Radar-Absorbing Materials The Rafale is fitted with a discrete terrain avoidance/fol- in various areas of the airframe, ‘sawtooth’ edges on the lowing system optimised to improve survivability while fly- foreplanes, on the flaperons and on some access panels and ing at extremely low altitude and very high speed. For threat

PHOTOGRAPHS: H.P. GROLLEAU PHOTOGRAPHS: H.P. doors, specially treated canopy, plus ‘double-S’ shaped air- avoidance, the Thales/MBDA SPECTRA Electronic Warfare

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 27 MILITARY RAFALE

Suite is capable of accurately localising air- Even in a very dense borne systems and targeting enemy Surface- signal environment, to-Air radar emitters . direction-finding accuracy is excellent, and FULLY INTEGRATED SYSTEM: THE SPECTRA the time taken for sig- In recent years, the proliferation of Air-Defence nal identification is ex- systems has put considerable pressure on air- tremely short (all data borne electronic warfare specialists. Moreover, is classified). potentially hostile fighters are equipped with Additionally, very more and more efficient fire control systems, high processing power again imposing the adoption of sophisticated gives excellent detec- self-defence suites. Modern air warfare places tion and jamming per- a severe requirement on aircraft self-defence formance, optimising capabilities, and only the most advanced fight- the response to match ers will survive any major conflict. Thankfully, the threat: incoming the Rafale is equipped with highly-automated electromagnetic signals and affordable systems which provide an un- are analysed, and the precedented level of protection against threats bearing and location of likely to appear in the future. the emitters are deter- The Self-Protection Equipment Counter- mined with great preci- ing Threats of Rafale Aircraft (SPECTRA)—a sion. The exact location state-of-the-art self-defence system mounted and types of systems on the Rafale—is a complete and totally in- detected by SPECTRA tegrated Electronic Warfare Suite designed can be recorded for and produced by Thales in co-operation with later analysis, giving MBDA. The system, which offers a dramatic increase in sur- Rafale operators a substantial built-in SIGINT/ELINT capa- vivability against modern and emerging threats, is entirely bility while minimising the need for specialised and costly mounted internally in an effort to keep weapon stations free. dedicated intelligence platforms. The adoption of high debit It ensures efficient electromagnetic detection, laser warning, datalinks allows two Rafale to carry out instantaneous tri- missile approach warning using passive IR detection tech- angulations of threats, giving positioning accuracy within a nology, Multi Threat and beam electronically steered jam- few metres. SPECTRA is also fully flightline software repro- ming and chaff/flare dispensing, even in the most demand- grammable. ing multi-threat environment. A laser warning system has been mounted on the sides of SPECTRA is much more than a traditional self-defence the nose and on the tail of the fighter, providing 360 degree system as it is closely integrated with the primary sensors coverage, and ensuring detection and warning of incoming also supplied by Thales, the RBE2 multimode Electronic beam-riding missiles and of emitting Laser Range Finders. Scanning Array Radar ESA and the FSO passive front sector To tackle the proliferation of new generation weapons such system. As such, it considerably improves pilot situational as man-portable surface-to-air missiles, discreet IR missile awareness: all data obtained thanks to the various means is approach warner ensures high probability of detection and fused into a single tactical picture, offering the pilot a clear low false alarm rate, even against totally passive weapons image of the evolving tactical situation. Lethality zones, de- including shoulder launched and IR guided. The exhaust termined by SPECTRA according to the detected air-defence plume of an incoming missile can be detected at very long- weapon types and the local terrain, can then be displayed on range without any emission that would betray the presence the colour tactical screen, enabling the aircrew to avoid dan- of the Rafale. Four upward-firing launcher modules for vari- gerous areas. This smart data fusion significantly increases ous types of cartridges—flares or electro-optic decoys—are mission success rates through enhanced crew awareness built into the airframe, and the Rafale is equipped with two and improved aircraft survivability. high capacity, internal chaff dispensers.

SIGINT/ELINT CAPABILITY IN-DEPTH TESTING SPECTRA is divided into different modules and sensors stra- Since the first SPECTRA flight on-board a Rafale, the sys- tegically positioned throughout the airframe to provide all- tem has been thoroughly tested in very complex Electronic round coverage. The latest advances in micro-electronic tech- Warfare scenarios. With the advent of new Rafale variants, nology have led to a new system which is much lighter, more the SPECTRA suite has been progressively upgraded to keep compact and less demanding than its ancestors in terms of ahead of potential threats, and the latest Standard F3 vari- electrical and cooling powers. Thanks to its advanced digital ant has been qualified in July 2008. technology, SPECTRA provides passive long-range detec- SPECTRA is now fully operational, and has already tion, identification and localisation of threats, and allows been engaged in combat operations in Afghanistan where the pilot or system to react immediately with the best de- aircrews praised its combat efficiency. Keeping growth in fensive measures: jamming, decoys dispensing, evasive ma- mind, the suite has been designed to keep the Rafale abreast noeuvres and/or any combination of these actions to evade of emerging threats, and further developments are now en- or defeat a diversity of airborne and ground-based threats. visioned to increase even further its efficiency. SP

28 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net Hall of Fame O THIS DAY, ‘SIKORSKY’ is syn- vast expanses of the Pacific and Atlantic tracted a major military contract, be- onymous with helicopters. should go to his S-42 Flying Clippers. coming the world’s first mass produced Helicopters, however, were These, perhaps, gave the crew and pas- helicopter. There was a lull following the just one part of the amaz- sengers alike the confidence that in case end of World War II, but the helicopter ing life of Igor Sikorsky that of engine failure the plane could touch really came into its own during the Ko- Tspanned over eight decades and two down on the ocean and survive. rean War when the brilliantly designed great nations. To begin with, he made Sikorsky S-55 was widely the world’s first multi-engine aircraft in employed by the US Navy. Russia. Then, after immigrating to the Helicopters were extensively US, he achieved success by designing the used to rescue injured sol- Flying Clipper seaplanes and ushering in diers and ferry them back the era of intercontinental aviation. Last- for immediate treatment, ly, his helicopters became famous. thus saving an estimated Igor Sikorsky was born in Kiev, Rus- 10,000 lives. They were also sia on May 25, 1889. His lifelong inter- used for troop and cargo est in flying machines began early. His transport and air assault. mother Mariya, who schooled him at Their versatility resulted in home, instilled in him a fascination for a huge production run—over Leonardo da Vinci’s flying machines and 1,700 were built. Though his Jules Verne’s fantastic tales. At the age of machines were used for at- 12, he made a small rubber-band pow- tack as well, the rescue role ered helicopter. By 20, he constructed was the most meaningful to two full-scale helicopters. Sadly, neither Sikorsky. He later said the pi- of them proved successful. Somewhat Igor Sikorsky lots of rescue helicopters had discouraged, he turned his attention to contributed “one of the most fixed-wing aircraft. In the space of just (1889 – 1972) glorious pages in the history two years, with no one to teach or guide of human flight. It is to these him, he designed and flew the world’s gallant airmen that I address first large multi-engine plane. There is ‘Sikorsky’ is synonymous my thankfulness, respect, an interesting story of how Igor became with helicopters. Helicopters, and admiration”. convinced about the need for multi-en- Igor Sikorsky was a born gine aircraft. When he had to force land however, were just one genius, yet a kind, consider- one of his early planes following engine part of the amazing life ate, humble and deeply reli- failure, investigation revealed that a gious person. Ann Morrow mosquito had blocked the carburettor. of Igor Sikorsky. To begin Lindbergh said, “The thing He felt that if something as trivial as an with, he made the world’s that’s remarkable about Igor insect could bring down an expensive is the great precision in his aircraft, it was essential to incorporate ﬁrst multi-engine aircraft in thought and speech, com- more engines to ensure survivability, if Russia. Then, he successfully bined with an extraordinary nothing else. His first four-engine plane, soaring beyond facts. He can christened The Grand, included an en- designed the Flying Clipper soar out with the mystics and closed cabin, a washroom, upholstered come right back to the prac- chairs and an exterior balcony for pas- seaplanes. Lastly, his tical, to daily life and people. sengers. The Grand was followed by helicopters became famous. He never excludes people. a larger aircraft, the Il’ya Muromets, Sometimes the religious after a legendary Russian hero of the minded exclude people or 10th century. This, in a military version, force their beliefs on others. proved highly effective as a bomber in In the late 1930s, Sikorsky returned Igor never does.” He died on October 26, World War I and more than 70 of these to his first love—helicopters. He saw 1972, at the age of 83, at work as an bombers were built. helicopters as liberating aircraft from engineering consultant for Sikorsky Air- Following the Revolution, he was their crippling dependence on runways. craft Division till the very end. His con- forced to flee his homeland in 1919, Though he toyed with around 20 differ- tributions to aviation brought him many leaving his wealth behind, and ended up ent designs, he finally settled on what honours and awards—the list fills nine desperately poor in America. In 1923, remains the most popular and useful typewritten pages. Thomas K Finletter, he set up the Sikorsky Aero Engineering configuration to this day: a single main then Secretary of the Air Force, said: Corporation with borrowed capital. Over rotor with a single vertical tail rotor “He is a milestone in the history of avia- the next 10 to 15 years, the company for stability. The VS-300, established tion, an equal giant and pioneer. Look produced several successful designs but a world endurance record by staying upon him well and remember him.” SP barely managed to break even. Much of aloft an hour and 32 minutes on May — Group Captain (Retd) the credit for the rapid spread of com- 6, 1941. Thus, helicopter fundamentals Joseph Noronha, mercial air transportation across the were firmly established and his R-4 at- Goa

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 29 MILITARY JOINT EXERCISE

RedUS Air Force Base Nellis, FlagNevada, USA Lauded &

PHOTOGRAPHS: INDIAN AIR FORCE Applauded

30 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net MILITARY JOINT EXERCISE

FACING PAGE– AFTER A GRUELLING SOARING WITH CONFIDENCE: DAY: (ABOVE) THE IAF’S (TOP) IAF’S SU-30MKIS IN FLIGHT AT THE EXERCISE (TWO DIFFERENT VIEWS) SU-30MKI IS FLANKED DEDICATED & DETERMINED: (BOTTOM) DESPITE 50 DEGREES CELSIUS BY F-15S AND AN TARMAC TEMPERATURES, IAF TECHNICIANS MAINTAINED HIGH AVAILABILITY F-16 OF THE OF AIRCRAFT, DRAWING APPRECIATION: “THE IAF SOFTWARE EXPERTS MAKE PARTICIPATING FORCES SU-30MKIS MORE VERSATILE”

SHOWCASING PRIDE & BONHOMIE: (ABOVE) A SU-30MKI TAXIS OUT FOR THE DRILL; (ABOVE CENTRE) LT GENERAL LOYD UTTERBACK, COMMANDER 13TH AIR FORCE, USAF CONVERSES WITH AIR MARSHAL P.V. NAIK, VICE CHIEF OF AIR STAFF, INDIAN AIR FORCE; (ABOVE RIGHT) LT GENERAL LOYD UTTERBACK GREETS MEMBERS OF THE IAF TEAM; (RIGHT) THE VICE CHIEF (THIRD FROM LEFT) WITH THE IAF AIR CREW

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 31 NEWSDigest MILITARY IAF TO DONATE RATION IN BIHAR Europe QuickRoundUp Asia-Pacific On behalf of the IAF, the Chief of Air Boeing, US Navy offer the Staff has directed 223.80 metric Super Hornet to Denmark AEROVIRONMENT Offsets for MMRCA deal tonnes of ration to be distributed Boeing F/A-18E/F, Dassault during flood relief operations in Bihar. • AeroVironment, Inc. has announced Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon, The ration will include atta, rice, dal, receipt of $4.6 million (Rs 20 crore) Lockheed Martin F-16, the sugar, salt and ghee. The distribution from the Defense Advanced Research RSK MiG-35 and Saab Gripen, of this ration will take place through Projects Agency to develop a small Un- who have responded to the Army Central Command which is des- manned Aircraft System (UAS) capable $12 billion (Rs 54,065 crore) ignated as the nodal agency for Bihar of performing “hover/perch and stare” RFP for India’s medium multi- flood relief operations. missions. The Stealthy, Persistent, Perch role combat aircraft (MMRCA) and Stare UAS is based on AV’s small deal, have also submitted their Wasp UAS that is being procured and offset proposals. The compa- LCH, built on the platform of In response to a Request for deployed by both the US Air Force and nies have shown eagerness a Cheetah body, would be the Information from Denmark, the Marine Corps. to have Indian entities as second big feather in HAL’s cap Boeing and the US Navy have partners in joint ventures and after the Advanced Light Heli- delivered a proposal offering AFGHAN NATIONAL ARMY collaborations. Boeing, for copter. The LCH would fill vital the advance F/A-18E/F Super AIR CORPS instance, states it has 37 local gaps as the armed forces lack Hornet to the Royal Danish partners as part of its indus- a helicopter gunship which can Air Force. The initial require- • The Afghan National Army Air Corps trial participation programme. operate in extreme high-alti- ment is for 48 aircraft. The An-26 and An-32 have flown more EADS has invited India to tude environment. The indig- Super Hornet variant offered than 78 sorties transporting 1,697 participate in the Eurofighter enous development of such a to Denmark is based on the passengers and more than 27,000 programme. Lockheed stresses helicopter comes even as IAF F/A-18E/F model flown by the lbs of cargo in two months, supporting on its long history of delivering recently floated international US Navy and the 24 F/A-18Fs Afghan National Army Operation DAOR on commitments on industrial tenders for the purchase of 22 being produced for the Royal BUKHOU in response to the Kandahar cooperation and offsets pro- advanced helicopter gunships. Australian Air Force. prison escape. These were the first grammes. The RFP is for 126 Besides Eurocopter, the major combat support missions for the two MMRCA—18 purchased in fly- contenders are Boeing’s AH- US, Poland enter Ballistic NAVAIR-acquired AN-32 aircraft. away condition, 108 under-li- 54D, Augusta Westland’s AW- Missile Defence pact cence production by Hindustan 129 Mangustu and Russia’s On August 20, Secretary of AMR CORP Aeronautics Limited (HAL). MI-28N NightHunters. State Condoleezza Rice and Poland’s Foreign Minister • Boeing and American Airlines, Inc., a India and Russia review IAF gets first Indian-built Radoslaw Sikorski signed wholly-owned subsidiary of AMR Corp., implementation of projects Hawk trainer in Warsaw an agreement have ordered an additional 26 next The 8th meeting of the Indo- The Indian Air Force (IAF), concerning the deployment of generation 737-800s. To date, 117 Russian Working Group on which has so far imported 14 ground-based Ballistic Missile customers have placed orders for nearly Shipbuilding, Aviation and UK-built Hawk advanced jet Defence (BMD) Interceptors in 5,000 next generation 737s even as Land Systems was held from trainers (AJT), took delivery the territory of the Republic of unfilled orders exceed 2,200 airplanes. August 18 to 19 in Delhi within of the first indigenously-built Poland. The agreement calls the framework of the Indo- Hawk Mk132 on August 15 for the establishment and ARIANESPACE Russian Inter-Governmental from HAL. Under licence from operation of a US BMD inter- Commission on Military BAE Systems of the UK, HAL ceptor facility in Poland. This • Arianespace has orbited two commu- Technical Co-operation. A has built this transonic (which BMD interceptor site would nications satellites, primarily intended Protocol was signed by both flies just under the speed of provide a defensive capability for TV broadcast services: Superbird-7 sides at the end of the Working sound), ground attack trainer to protect Europe and the US for Japan’s Space Communications Cor- Group meeting. Views were aircraft powered by a single against longer-range ballistic poration, within the scope of a contract exchanged on implementation Rolls Royce Adour Mk871 missiles launched from the with Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, and of current projects, like T-90 turbo fan engine. It is the first Middle East, and will be linked AMC-21 for the US’ SES AMERICOM, a tanks, missile systems, various of the 42 Hawk aircraft being to other US missile defense company of the SES group. shipbuilding activities and built under licence by HAL. facilities in Europe and the US. aviation sector projects like the To meet its training Russia regards the system BOEING Fifth Generation fighter air- requirements, the IAF is as an affront and has fiercely craft and multi-role transport acquiring 66 Hawk Mk132. A opposed the missile shield. The • The Boeing Company has delivered a aircraft. They also agreed to total of 24 machines would be decision by Poland, and earlier detailed proposal offering its advanced take steps for ensuring suc- supplied by BAE Systems in by the Czech Republic, to host F/A-18E/F Super Hornet to the Brazilian cessful implementation. flyaway condition to the IAF, elements of the US shield, “has Air Force. The initial requirement is for while the remaining 42 would the Russian Federation as 36 aircraft, with the potential for 120. India to soon carry out be built by HAL’s aircraft its target”, Russian President test flight of LCH division. Another 57 Hawk Dimitry Medvedev has said. CYCLONE AVIATION HAL has completed develop- aircraft are in the pipeline for PRODUCTS LTD ment of India’s first indig- the IAF and the navy. Of these, Tests with Gripen completed enously-developed Light Com- 40 will go to the IAF and 17 Trials of the Swedish Gripen • Elbit Systems Ltd’s subsidiary bat Helicopter (LCH) which will to the navy. The aircraft will aircraft for the partial Cyclone Aviation Products Ltd has been be test flown later this year in join the fleet of BAE Systems- replacement of the fleet of awarded a Boeing contract to supply a major step aimed at boosting built Hawks that have recently Switzerland’s Tiger aircraft structural components for F-15 fighter the nation’s fighting capabili- commenced training the next have now been completed. jets. Deliveries are scheduled between ties on the Himalayas. If the generation of IAF pilots at the This evaluation was carried 2009 and 2011. test flight goes smoothly, the air force station in Bidar. out by armasuisse, the Swiss

32 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net NEWSDigest SUBROTO CUP 2008 FOOTBALL TOURNAMENT

defence procurement authority in Berne, in cooperation with the air force. Ground and flight trials began on July 28. The aircraft were flown by armasuisse and air force pilots for a total of Highlights of the inaugural ceremony of the pre-quarter final round included fly past by IAF about 35 flight hours. Rafale helicopters, gymnastics display by Motilal Nehru School of Sports, RAI, Sonepat, aero modelling will undergo trials in Octo- by the NCC Cadets and a display by the IAF band. ber/November followed by re-quarter final round of the Subroto Cup Football Tournament 2008 commenced on Sep- Eurofighter. The evaluation tember 9 at Dr Ambedkar Stadium in Delhi with Air Marshal J.N. Burma AVSM, VSM Air Of- process will end by early Pficer-in-Charge Administration and Vice Chairman, Subroto Mukerjee Sports Education Society December. The final selection gracing the inaugural ceremony as Chief Guest. Highlights of the event included fly past by Indian is scheduled for July 2009. Air Force (IAF) helicopters, gymnastics display by Motilal Nehru School of Sports, RAI, Sonepat, aero Editor’s Note: Switzerland is modelling by the NCC Cadets and a display by the IAF band. likely to complete the trials The opening match was played between St. John Secondary School, East Khasi Hill, Shillong, and selection within a year. Meghalaya and Government Central Higher Secondary School, College Veng, Aizawl, Mizoram. The India has also issued a mul- team from Mizoram won 3-0 with H. Lalmuankima (7), Joseph Ramdinmawaia (8) and H. Lanmufela tiple vendor RFP for fighter (20) scoring a goal each in the 28th, 46th and 70th minute, respectively. Present on the occasion aircraft. We will watch with was the Switzerland (U-14) team, FC Kusnaught, who will play a few exhibition matches and also interest how quickly India conduct clinics for the other participating teams. concludes the deal.

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Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 33 NEWSDigest APPOINTMENTS CIVIL AVIATION Exclusive terminals planned RoundUp for low cost carriers Quick HONG KONG CIVIL Asia-Pacific The new domestic terminal AVIATION NAMES NEW coming up at Delhi’s Indira EMBRAER ACTING ASSISTANT DG IAF, AAI join hands in Gandhi International Airport is Civil Aviation Department of airspace management being planned as a no-frill ter- • Embraer and the Chilean Air Force Hong Kong has named P.F. The IAF and Airports Au- minal to help low-cost carriers have signed a contract for the sale Wong the Acting Assistant thority of India (AAI) have (LCCs), a senior official of the of 12 Super Tucano aircraft. The first Director-General of Civil Avia- decided to jointly facilitate company developing the air- Super Tucano should be delivered in the tion. He has taken over from more flexible usage of airport said. With cash strapped second half of 2009. Leung Woon-yin. space across the country. The LCCs paying the same charges duo have set up the Joint as any other scheduled carrier, GE-AVIATION LT GENERAL B.S. NAGAL TO Regional Air Traffic Coordi- no-frill airport terminals are LEAD INDIA’S STRATEGIC nation Centre (JRATCC) at seen as a viable solution to • GE-Aviation is under contract to FORCES COMMAND Chennai airport, and the IAF help them cope with losses. supply flight control actuation, electrical Lt General Balraj Singh Nagal now plans to replicate this “This is expected once the power generation & control, emergency will take over command of in other parts of the country. Terminal 3 (T3)—coming-up power and other aircraft systems for India’s strategic forces and Air Chief Marshal F.H. Major adjacent to the 3rd new run- use on the RQ-4 ‘Block 20’ Global Hawk nuclear arsenal by September has said the JRATCC is the way—becomes operational by unmanned reconnaissance aircraft. 30. Nagal, would be the first nodal agency for coordina- 2010,” said Andrew Harrison, army officer to take over com- tion between civil and IAF COO of the Delhi International GENERAL DYNAMICS mand of the nuclear weapon air traffic control units within Airport Ltd, the company operating forces. So far, only Chennai. However, ‘restricted’ developing the airport. • General Dynamics and Dreamliner air force and naval officers and ‘danger areas’ under IAF Lux S.a.r.l., a company controlled by have headed the command. control will continue to be the Permira Funds, have entered into a managed by the force. INDUSTRY definitive agreement for General Dynam- CHARLIE MILLER TO LEAD ics to acquire Zurich, Switzerland-based BOEING’S INTERNATIONAL Malaysia Airlines inks Asia-Pacific Jet Aviation for CHF 2.45 billion (ap- COMMUNICATIONS MRO deal with India proximately $2.25 billion or Rs 10,140 The Boeing Company named An agreement between Ma- ‘India eyeing partnership to crore) in cash. Jet Aviation, with its Charlie Miller Vice President of laysia Airlines E&M and GMR build new regional jet’ worldwide headquarters in Zurich is one International Corporate Com- Hyderabad International India is reportedly seeking to of the world’s leading business-aviation munications, reporting to Tom Airport will see the estab- partner either Bombardier services companies. Downey, Senior Vice President lishment of a maintenance, or Embraer to build a 70 to of Communications, and Shep repair and overhaul (MRO) 100 seater regional jet. Media GRIPEN Hill, President of Boeing Inter- organisation to provide main- reports claim the government national. He succeeds Matthew tenance services on narrow- has asked HAL to formulate a • The Hungarian Offset Committee, de la Haye. and wide-body aircraft at the plan for the design and con- headed by the Hungarian Ministry of Rajiv Gandhi International struction of the regional jet. Economy and Transport, approved the INDIGO APPOINTS ADITYA Airport in Shamshabad, final offset achievements submitted by GHOSH PRESIDENT Hyderabad. With around 300 India’s Hero Motors to the Saab/Gripen team. The remaining 2 No-frills carrier IndiGo has aircraft in service, the Indian manufacture light aircraft per cent that was approved comprised appointed its Director Aditya aviation market is one of the Hero Motors, India’s largest the balance of the investment element Ghosh as its new President fastest growing in the world. manufacturer of motorcycles, of the offset contract. after its CEO Bruce Ashby plans to move into the produc- decided to quit. The changes Facelift to Chennai, Kolkata tion of light aircraft as part IRAN would be effective from the airports gets Cabinet nod of a joint venture with an third quarter of this year. The Indian government has unidentified German company. • Iran has successfully test-launched a approved modernisation of the Its subsidiary, Hero Aviation, rocket called Safir, capable of carrying KANU GOHAIN TO HEAD Chennai and Kolkata airports. is spearheading the move into a domestically-built satellite into space. DGCA FOR ANOTHER Expansion of the two airports the aerospace business, and White House spokesman Gordon THREE MONTHS is estimated to cost over Rs hopes to set up the facility at Johndroe said the Iranian rocket launch The tenure of Kanu Gohain, 3,750 crore ($900 million) and the proposed aerospace park is troubling because the technology the Director General of Civil the projects are to be com- in Madhya Pradesh. could be diverted to ballistic missiles. Aviation, has been extended pleted within three years. The for another three months as entire modernisation work MRF to enter aviation IRAQ legal problems delayed the would be taken up by the AAI MRF, the largest tyre manu- appointment of his successor. beginning September this year. facturer in the country, has • An MQ-9 Reaper dropped a 500-lb AAI will invest 80 per cent of announced its entry into the bomb against an anti-Iraqi target in AIRBUS APPOINTS STEFAN the required capital through aviation sector by developing one of the first weapons engagements SCHAFFRATH AS NEW internal resources; the re- aviation tyres. The company for the UAS. The Reaper has joined the HEAD OF MEDIA RELATION maining 20 per cent would be had invested Rs 150 crore in MQ-1 Predator as another UAS patrol- Stefan Schaffrath has been borrowed. “The AAI can create the last three years for indig- ling the sky to protect coalition forces in appointed new Head of Media these two airports into models enously developing aviation Operation Iraqi Freedom. Relations at Airbus S.A.S. He and compete with the private tyres. MRF Chairman K.M. will be responsible for the sector to develop world- Mammen said the product KHRUNICHEV SPACE CENTER management and coordina- class airports. They can even had been tested rigorously tion of the Airbus’ press ac- compete in the international under international standards • A Proton Breeze M launch vehicle, tivities worldwide and act as arena,” Civil Aviation Minister and norms set by authorised built by Khrunichev Space Center the company’s spokesperson. Praful Patel said. government agencies.

34 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net NEWSDigest SHOW CALENDAR INDAIR 2008 QuickRoundUp 10 September The two-day international NBAA REGIONAL FORUM seminar-cum-exhibition was of Moscow, successfully lifted the Bedford, Mass attended by around 195 reg- Inmarsat-4 F3 satellite into orbit, URL: www.nbaa.org istered participants, includ- marking the third mission of the year for ing 20 representatives of for- International Launch Services. 15 September – 17 September eign OEMs AIR & SPACE CONFERENCE INDAIR 2008, a two-day international LOCKHEED MARTIN AND TECHNOLOGY seminar cum exhibition with a theme ‘A EXPOSITION Strategic Partnering of IAF and Industry • Lockheed Martin has finished Marriott Wardman Park on Indigenisation and Modernisation of assembly of the fourth F-35 aircraft, a Hotel, Washington, DC, USA IAF’ was conducted jointly by the Indian short takeoff/vertical landing F-35B. The Organisers: Air Force Air Force (IAF) and Confederation of In- production is progressing well with one Association dian Industry (CII) on August 26 and 27 F-35 Lightning II aircraft in structural at Vigyan Bhavan, Delhi. The seminar provided a common platform for the IAF and in- testing, two in flight test, six in final 17 September – 19 September dustry to interact and facilitate thrust and focus in the process of Indigenisation and assembly and another 14 in various JET EXPO 2008 Modernisation. The event was co-sponsored by CII and Maintenance Command IAF. stages of production. Moscow Crocus Expo, Moscow Inaugurated by Defence Minister A.K. Antony, various distinguished speakers URL: www.jetexpo.ru highlighted the following major issues: NORTHROP GRUMMAN • Atul C. Kirloskar, Chairman, CII National Committee on Defence, while delivering CORPORATION 25 September – 26 September welcome address brought out that the DPP-08 is a forward move for the Indian ELECTRONIC WARFARE 2008 industry to partner in the production and maintenance of Defence systems. He • The US Air Force has awarded Cafe Royal, London, UK however, felt that the challenge would be in operationalisation of the provisions Northrop Grumman Corporation a Organisers: Defence IQ in DPP such as “Make” procedure in totality. firm fixed-price contract to provide (a division of IQPC) • Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal F.H. Major while delivering the keynote contractor logistics services to US Air URL: www.electronic-warfare. address said, “India has an increasing role in world affairs, and in keeping with Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps’ co.uk that, the Indian Air Force is in the midst of an exciting transformation.” He in- C-20 aircraft. formed that technology is the core of an air force and the IAF seeks to exploit 1 October – 5 October emerging technologies. The CAS said he “foresees $100 billion (Rs 4,49,015 ORBITAL SCIENCES JAPAN AEROSPACE 2008 crore) modernisation programmes being taken up by the armed forces in the CORPORATION Yokohama, Japan coming 15 years” and that the industry needs to appropriately factor its re- URL: www.japanaerospace.jp sponse to the immense opportunities • Orbital Sciences Corporation, the • The Defence Minister emphasised on the importance of indigenisation and world’s leading manufacturer of smaller- 6 October – 8 October modernisation of maintenance infrastructure. He exhorted the industry to sized geosynchronous communications NBAA ANNUAL MEETING improve its technological capabilities so as to become supplier of complete satellites, has successfully launched the AND CONVENTION systems rather than just being supplier of raw materials and components. He AMC-21 satellite, which is based on the Orlando, Fla informed that the provisions in DPP 2008 provide an opportunity for the Indian company’s STAR-2 platform. URL: www.nbaa.org industry to become an active partner in the modernisation of defence forces. He highlighted the areas of concern in R&D and opined that these must be ad- ROYAL NEW ZEALAND 12 October – 13 October dressed at such joint forums and the process taken forward with an open mind AIR FORCE AIR POWER MIDDLE-EAST for mutual benefit of both sides. CONFERENCE 2008 The seminar was attended by approximately 195 registered participants from • The first of two aircraft (Boeing Armed Forces Officers Club, industries, including about 20 representatives of foreign OEMs. A business-to-busi- 757) have returned to New Zealand Abu Dhabi, UAE ness session was organised on the second day for interactions between the IAF and from Mobile Aerospace Engineering Organisers: Shephard Confer- industry on specific issues of common interest. in Mobile, Alabama after undergoing ences and Exhibitions modification and upgrade programme URL: www.shephard.co.uk/ which is a major milestone for the Royal AirPower-ME New Zealand Air Force. size of 96, 110, 130, 150, 180 munications Squadron, which 28 October and 210 seats representing is tasked with the job of fer- SWISS AIR FORCE UK DEFENCE CONFERENCE all types of narrow-body air- rying the country’s VIPs, in- Radisson Edwardian Mayfair craft. At present, the Airbus cluding the President, Prime • The first three EC635 light liaison Hotel, London, UK A320 and Boeing 737 are Minister and other dignitaries. and training helicopters (HTLF) have Organisers: Jane’s Informa- dominating this market. Irkut been officially handed over to the Swiss tion Group & Cityforum will take on the MS-21 family Air Force. The purchase of 20 HTLF URL: www.conference.janes.com with over 150 seats and Suk- was authorised as part of Armaments hoi, in addition to the first- Programme 2005 and will replace the generation 96-seated Sukhoi Alouette III. Europe Superjet 100 (SSJ-100), will design two Second Genera- UK’S MINISTRY OF DEFENCE Irkut, Sukhoi divide market tion aircraft, the SSJ-110 and Russian aircraft-building SSJ-130. • The Financial Times has reported majors Irkut and Sukhoi have that the UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) agreed to divide the market AgustaWestland bags IAF’s The contract, reported to has been in talks with other countries of medium-range airliners. VIP squadron contract be potentially worth around to “offload” Eurofighter Typhoons that it They will jointly provide The IAF has selected Ital- $300 million (Rs 1,350 has ordered but can no longer afford. the United Aircraft Building ian helicopter manufacturer crore), had Sikorsky S-92 and The MoD remains in discussions with Corporation with advanced AgustaWestland’s EH101 for AgustaWestland EH101 as its the Eurofighter partners on Tranche 3. airliners of the most popular its Air Headquarters Com- main contenders. •

Issue 8 • 2008 SP’S AVIATION 35 LASTWord FORGING TIES

n August 18, Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief of. Perhaps the only cooperation with countries in the region Marshal F.H. Major embarked on a three-day visit to in the last two decades involving the Indian armed forces have Malaysia. He met the Malaysian Defence Minister and been the four-year training mission to the Republic of Singa- the Chief of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) to pore Air Force (RSAF) from 1979 to 1983, ground training on Odiscuss bilateral issues pertaining to defence cooperation. The MiG-29 aircraft for personnel of the RMAF in 1994, display by CAS also visited the Gong Kedak Air Base in northeast Malay- the IAF aerobatic teams in selected locations, humanitarian as- sia where the training team of the Indian Air Force (IAF) is sistance and, in more recent times, a joint exercise with RSAF located. The team of IAF pilots and technicians has been as- in India, use of the IAF base at Kalaikunda in West Bengal for signed to Malaysia for two years to train pilots, weapon system training by the RSAF as also the use by the Singapore Armed operators and maintenance staff for the Forces of the firing ranges at Babina/ smooth induction and operationalisation Deolali and joint exercises with the of the newly acquired Su-30MKM com- Indian Army. Military personnel from bat fleet. The protocol in this regard was Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and signed in December 2007 at Langkawi. Thailand continue to be trained, al- The IAF top brass have always laid beit in very small numbers, more as a great emphasis on India’s national and diplomatic exercise than any effort at security interests transcending geo- serious defence cooperation. graphical boundaries and extending Traditionally a region under US in- from the Gulf of Oman to the Straits of fluence, most countries in South East Malacca. But there are challenges. India Asia have been subscribing to military has been effectively outflanked by China aircraft of western origin. However, in- whose influence has been growing men- dicative of winds of change, Malaysia acingly in practically all neighbouring some years ago acquired 18 MiG-29s. states. Rather tragically, since Indepen- Training pilots of the Indonesia has two Su-27s and eight dence, India has displayed remarkable Royal Malaysian Air Force of the 12 Su-30MK2s ordered even on the Su-30MKM ﬂeet consistency in maintaining turbulent re- will enable the IAF to grow as Thailand mulls the purchase of the lationship with practically every neigh- in capability, conﬁdence aircraft. In 2003, Malaysia ordered 18 bouring country, even those with a high and reputation to lend Su-30MKM fighters for $900 million degree of cultural accord such as Nepal. credibility to India’s status (Rs 4,000 crore) to replace the ageing With serious threats to national security as a regional power fleet of US-made F-5E combat aircraft. lurking in the immediate neighbour- The first lot of six Su-30MKMs was hood and overwhelming preoccupation delivered in May 2007. This makes with wooing the new-found ally on the Malaysia the fourth country after In- other side of the globe, there may be little inclination or time to dia, Vietnam and Indonesia to operate this advanced machine. engage countries like Malaysia into a mutually beneficial and While the initial training for air and ground crew was a part constructive relationship. of the deal with the OEM, the request for further operational An erstwhile British colony, Malaysia is today an economi- training for pilots, training of technical personnel and technically prosperous and progressive democratic Islamic state. cal support by HAL—who manufacture the aircraft under li- Open-minded and with a modern outlook, its people enjoy cence—came from Malaysia a few years ago for obvious rea- a high standard of living. Its military is suitably equipped to sons: lower cost and commonality of language. contribute significantly to any combined military effort by the Cooperation of this magnitude would help the IAF establish ASEAN, a somewhat remote possibility in the prevailing geo- long-term bilateral relations, enabling it to grow in capability, political and geo-strategic disposition of the region. In Asia and confidence and reputation to lend credibility to the nation’s re- South East Asia, India has been aspiring to emerge as a region- gional power status. More importantly, this will afford India a al power. However, it seems to be falling behind China whose window of opportunity to forge strong and meaningful ties with

: IAF economy is four times that of India and whose equation with countries in the region, in general, and Malaysia, in particular. the ASEAN and Australia appears to be on a better footing. The CAS visit to Malaysia, therefore, holds profound signifi- Despite the presence of sizeable communities of Indian origin cance and is not to be dismissed as merely ceremonial. SP

PHOTOGRAPH in the countries of the region, India has little influence to boast — Air Marshal (Retd) B.K. Pandey

36 SP’S AVIATION Issue 8 • 2008 www.spsaviation.net www.spguidepublications.com ��

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