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A Sample Feature From Aviation News Britain's Aircraft Industry 2002
Above: Eurofighter is now in production and will provide work across Europe for at least the remainder of this decade with upgrades keeping it viable for the following 20 years. (Photo, Geoff Lee/BAE Systems). IN THIS Jubilee Year celebrating Her Majesty The Queen’s 50th anniversary, it is difficult not to begin this review of Britain’s aircraft industry by looking back for a moment at 1952. What a spectacular year it was. At Farnborough that September, the industry showed no less than 45 British aircraft from 18 manufacturers of which no less than eight types were displayed in public for the first time. The UK had emerged from the second World War only seven years earlier and showed what it was capable of. Half a century later, in 2002, British-designed aircraft expected at this year’s Farnborough total only six (Lynx, ATP, Harrier, Hawk, Nimrod, T67) plus three more (Eurofighter, Merlin, Tornado) as well as the Airbus range in which the UK has a sizeable stake. In 50 years, the industry has changed beyond recognition and while it must be of concern that the number of different types produced has shrunk alarmingly, UK aerospace export figures continue to show a healthy contribution to HMG’s coffers, £2.8bn in 2001, confirming the quality of British inventiveness remains reassuringly high. Yet, another anniversary will dog the record books for this year and that is Britain’s final withdrawal from indigenous airliner production as the 171st and last Avro RJ completed its flight tests and flew into store to await a customer. Things would have been different if BAE Systems had continued development and shown faith in the RJX successor, but that was not to be. It would also be invidious to look back 15 years and remember the twin-jet regional development of the BAe 146 that made so much sense then, but was not considered viable, yet in various forms is now filling factories in Brazil and Canada. For Britain, Airbus provides most of the civil content in the nation’s aerospace exports and continues to be a hugely important product with every aircraft produced, over 4,500 of them, flying with UK-built wings. Undergoing design are those for the upcoming 550-seat A380 airliner and the more distant A400M military transport. The latter is at last moving towards firm development after years of high-level inter-governmental discussion and prevarication across Europe over requirements, cost, numbers and work-share. The RAF has had a long-stated need for 25 of the previously named Future Large Aircraft, but the Service must be wondering at their value now that its experience with supporting the Afghan operation with the four leased Boeing C-17s has clearly shown the worth of this big American long-range ’lifter. BAE Systems continues to be the UK’s largest aerospace manufacturer of aircraft of which only the Hawk and the much-modified Nimrod remain ‘home-grown’ products. In its current Series 100 and LIFT (Lead-In Fighter Trainer) versions, the Hawk ranks as the world’s most effective advanced jet-powered instructional platform and were it not for its relatively high unit cost (around £10-12m) the already substantial customer list would be larger. An order for more than 60 from India is an ever elusive goal. For the present, there are no plans for a replacement design, subsonic or supersonic, but with the development of types in South Korea (T-50) and Europe (Mako), the UK industry should not let the present success of the type be overtaken by others with an eye on a significant market in the second decade of this century. With the forthcoming Nimrod MRA.4 the RAF will have the fastest, most advanced maritime patrol aircraft in the world. Its late, but so are most programmes these days, but when it arrives it will be an almost new design capable of tracking, searching and attacking both surface and sub-surface vessels as well as conducting SAR operations. As far as export prospects for the MRA.4 are concerned, the chances remain slim, particularly as over-water patrol variants of Boeing and Airbus airliners are being proposed to replace Atlantics and older P-3s. Large UAVs (Unmanned Air Vehicles) like Global Hawk are also likely to partially answer the need for MP replacements. Of all the BAE Systems’ programmes, that of Eurofighter is the most important, holding as it does the key to the future defence of the realm as well as three other European countries. Tens of thousands of workers are employed on building, developing and supplying parts for the Mach 2 aircraft and its EJ200 engines, and production will keep factories going for some years to come. Over 600 aircraft are planned and but the type hasrecently gained its first export order from Austria. The RAF is due to receive its first Eurofighter near the end of this year, but operational deployment is still some way off. While Tornado GR.4s will continue to roll off the conversion line until next March, BAE Systems is working on a range of future products including stealthy UAVs, the F-35 JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) and, of course, the Royal Navy’s tow 50,000-ton aircraft carriers. Powering most of the types now in service are the engines of Rolls-Royce, arguably the world’s greatest high technology company in its field. Providing engines between 95,000lb thrust and a few hundred, R-R’s engineering skills are remarkable and their quality is the reason for the 2001 sales figures of more than £6bn for the first time. The Trent 500 for the A340-500/600 is about to enter service with Virgin Atlantic while the Trent 900 has won valued business for the forthcoming A380. On the military front, the EJ200 is now in production for Eurofighter with more than 1,200 ordered and the company is bidding to provide the engines for the A400M. As the outgoing chairman, Sir Ralph Robbins, said in May this year, “Rolls-Royce has made tremendous progress since our flotation in 1987 and we are now firmly established as a major international player in our chosen markets and I believe, as the foremost UK engineering company”. So the industry moves forward, increasingly as a supply and system base. Complete indigsnously-designed airframes are now few as this review shows, but the success of its current products is undeniable and contributes as annual turnover of £18.42bn from a workforce of 147,000 employees. International colloboration remains the way ahead but where opportunities present themselves for national enterprise, both industry an government need the coverage and foresight to grasp such opportunities to further the success of Britain’s aerospace in the future. Aircraft Review UK HQ: Town Hall, 6th Floor, St Paul’s Square, Bedford MK40 1SJ. website: www.airship.com Currently developing a range of advanced airships under the leadership of Roger Munk. Main work undertaken at Cardington, Beds. Programmes involve the SkyCat 20, 200 and 1000 heavy-lift helium-filled airships, the AT-10 and the StratSat high-altitude telecommunications and surveillance platform.
Above: The first AT-10 airship which made its first flight earlier this year and is due for delivery this autumn. (Photo, ATG). AT-10 is an advanced non-rigid helium-filled airship designed for aerial advertising and as a camera platform. It seats four/five in a central gondola constructed mainly of Kevlar composites. Two lightweight diesels of ATG’s own design are fitted in propulsor ducts at the rear of the cabin. It has a 350kg payload and a speed of 65kt. In certification trials for delivery later this year. SkyCat 20 Twenty-tonne payload airship for passengers and freight combining lighter-than-air with air-cushion technologies to produce a broad eliptical hull capable of operating from any surface, but not requiring any external support infrastructure such as masts, ground-crews, etc. Powered by four two-stroke diesel engines giving a cruise speed of 70kt (130km/h). Length overall, 269ft 5in (82.1m). First flight due 2003. SkyCat 200 This is the 200-tonne mid-size vehicle in the SkyCat range incorporating a payload module located on the centreline with roll-on/roll-off capability. Hover skirts retain the flexibility of ground operation and four 8,000shp turboshafts provide the power and the cruise performance of 75kt (139km/h) over a range of 3,225nm (5,976km). Overall length is 607ft (185m) with a cargo bay measuring 162ft (49.4m) long by 24ft 6in (7.5m) wide and 16ft 6in (5m) high. IAR-SA Brasov in Romania is involved in building components for assembly in the UK. First flight is expected in 2004–5. SkyCat 1000 This is the Grandaddy of the ‘heavylifters’ with a 1,000-tonne payload and a length of 1,007ft (305m). It is the subject of a $1m US DoD study and is powered by six 15,000shp engines in ducted propulsors with steering vanes. It will be capable of carrying up to 16 main battle tanks or a balanced fighting force on variable decks, each 11ft 6in high and 269ft in length and have a range of some 8,000nm (14,824km). ATG cite that a US Armoured Cavalry Regt would need multiple C-17 flights to transport its equipment compared with only a fraction using a SkyCat 1000. First flight is planned for 2006-7 StratSat is generating much interest, according to ATG. It is intended to remain airborne for up to five years at 60,000ft undertaking narrow and broadband communications, either independently or as part of a much larger global comms and surveillance network. It will have a solar array and a 450hp diesel engine in a propulsor unit behind the x-configuration tailfins. Overall length is 656ft (200m). Completion of the first vehicle is expected in 2003-4. UK HQ: Yeovil, Somerset BA20 2YB. website: www.agustawestland.com Above: The first of six Super Lynx 300s for the Malaysian Navy, pictured on its initial flight. (Photo, AgustaWestland). EH101 Production of this medium-lift multi-role helicopter is well over three-quarters through its present order book with final deliveries to meet RAF and RN contracts for 22 HC.3s and 44 HM.1s respectively, due this autumn. Agusta is currently producing the Canadian order for 15 CH-149 Cormorants and EH Industries is hoping to clinch the deal to supply the Canadian Sea King replacement, but this could prove difficult given reported Canadian government bias against the Anglo-Italian design. Denmark (14) and a further order from the Italian Navy (16 on delivery with eight more expected) could be joined by a small quantity for the RN to fulfil the AEW role later this decade. Above: The first of six Super Lynx 300s for the Malaysian Navy, pictured on its initial flight. (Photo, AgustaWestland). EHI EH101 Merlin HM.1 specification
Above: EHI Merlin HM.1s from No 814 NAS undertaking carrier-compatibility trials. (Photo, Ldg Wren Phot Nicky Harper). Super Lynx 300 The first flight of the initial Malaysian Super Lynx 300 designated Mk 100, on March 28, marked the start of the latest Lynx production programme. Six are on order as well as two for Thailand (Mk 110s) and 16 for Oman as Mk 120s, taking the total ordered to at least 418 of all variants since the Lynx prototype flew on March 21, 1971. The Super Lynx 300 demonstrator first flew with LHTEC CTS800-4N engines on June 12, 2001. It incorporates an eight-screen EFIS cockpit, new navigation suite and upgraded communications. Chin-mounted 360º track-while-scan radar, either BAE Systems Seaspray Mk 3 or 3000, or Telephonics RDR 1500 or APS-143 (the latter chosen by S Africa if order is reinstated for four Mk 64s). Lynx AH.10 Possible British Army designation for Lynx upgrade now under study as a more advanced support helicopter to complement the Army’s Apache anti-armour units. The programme could involve new-build airframes or a re-engining with glass cockpit and new defensive aids suite. WAH-64 Apache Under an agreement with Boeing, Westland is assembling 59 AH-64D Apache Longbow AH.1 two-seat anti-armour helicopters following the initial supply of eight examples from the USA. The first production example was handed over to the Army Air Corps in April 2000 and deliveries are continuing into late 2003 when all three Apache Regiments, No 3 and 4 at Wattisham and 9 at Dishforth, should be equipped. Changes from the US version of the Longbow include Rolls-Royce Gem engines, a BAE Systems-supplied defensive aids suite and optional British weapons including Shorts Starstreak air-to-air missiles.
Above: The British Army’s first Apache AH.1 attack helicopter. (Photo, AgustaWestland). AgustaWestland Super Lynx 300 specification
HQ: Warwick House, Farnborough Aerospace Centre, Farnborough, Hants GY14 6YU. website: www.baesystems.com. Main aircraft production centres: Warton Aerodrome, Preston, Lancs PR4 1AX (Eurofighter, Tornado GR.4, Harrier/Sea Harrier support, future project development incl Joint Strike Fighter). Brough, North Humberside HU15 1EQ (Hawk and component manufacture). Woodford Aerodrome, Chester Road, Woodford, Cheshire SK7 1QR (Avro RJ support and Nimrod MRA.4). Component and support activities at Salmsbury, Lancs; Chadderton, Manchester; Prestwick Airport, Ayrshire; and Filton, Bristol. Eurofighter This collaborative project for an agile, twin-jet, supersonic combat aircraft, for which feasibility studies were initiated by the UK, Germany, Italy, France and Spain in 1983 (France withdrew in ’84 to pursue the Dassault Rafale), resulted in the first flight of Development Aircraft (DA) No 1 on March 27, 1994. The production stage has now been reached although the first delivery to the RAF has again slipped from mid- to late-2002. The first Instrumented Production Aircraft (IPA) to fly was the Italian IPA2, on April 5, 2002, followed by the German IPA3 three days later and the UK IPA1 on April 15. All are two-seaters, with the remaining Italian Air Force IPA4 and RAF IPA5 being single-seaters due to fly in 2003. Among work to enhance later Eurofighters is the development of 1,500lit conformal fuel tanks (CFTs) which will locate on the upper fuselage and which are expected to extend the aircraft’s operational range by more than 25%, while having ‘little effect to the aerodynamic performance’. This enhancement is for the Tranche 3 multirole Typhoon variant, described as ‘key to certain export markets’. Recent trials with the seven Development Aircraft have included the firing of the first fully-guided Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) by DA4 on the QinetiQ Benbecula range off Scotland, air-to-air refuelling from a Tornado tanker, a four hour 22min mission by DA4 with external tanks and the first night airborne refuelling, engine certification flying, and Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) tests. Supersonic low-level flights are being undertaken by DA1 off the German North Sea coast and, with new software installed, Germany’s DA5 will operate with Luftwaffe F-4F Phantoms on general radar verification trials as well as Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) tests. In-flight trials with the 27mm Mauser cannon are being flown by DA3. Rolls-Royce will deliver 32 EJ200 engines to BAE Systems Warton for the first RAF aircraft and similar deliveries will be made by the engine manufacturer’s Eurojet consortium (Fiat, ITP and MTU) to the final production sites in the partner nations. The seven-aircraft programme to date has amassed over 1,900 test flights totalling around 1,600hr. Eurofighter has gained its first export order with up to 24 aircraft for Austria, other prospective customers being Singapore, Norway and Saudi Arabia. Eurofighter specification
Meanwhile 620 aircraft are to be built for the four partner nations (UK 232, Germany 180, Italy 121 and Spain 87).
Above: RAF Tornado GR.4s will at last gain a stand-off capability when the Storm Shadow missile enters service. Four are seen under the fuselage and inner wing pylons of this trials aircraft. (Photo, BAE Systems). Tornado The upgrade of 142 Tornado GR.1/1As to improved GR.4/4A standard will give the RAF, for the first time in many years, a common configuration for its Panavia bomber/reconnaissance force of aircraft. With more than 100 GR.4s received by the front-line squadrons (No 2, 9, 12, 13, 14, 31 and 617 Sqn) by mid-2002, the last GR.1s were withdrawn from service. The GR.4 upgrade, undertaken by BAE Systems at Warton, includes the integration of the Thermal Imaging And Laser Designator (TIALD), a Laser Inertial Navigation System (LINS), Global Positioning System (GPS), Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS), and a wide-angle Head-Up Display (HUD). Additionally, aircraft receive a video recording system for post-flight debrief, a night vision goggle-compatible cockpit, Have Quick secure radios, a colour moving map display and a Mil Std 1553B/1760A data-bus. The GR.4 will also carry the latest 2,000lb Paveway III LGB, Brimstone anti-armour missile and the Storm Shadow stand-off missile, while the GR.4As are receiving the Reconnaissance Airborne Pod for TORnado (RAPTOR). Further enhancements are planned including the Successor IFF before the aircraft begins its planned withdrawal from service in 2017/18. Final GR.4 deliveries to the RAF are due in March 2003. Hawk Current production centres on the Series 100 and the Lead-In Fighter Trainer version developed from the Australian Mk.127 LIF variant. Built at Brough, Hawks are currently being produced against orders for Canada for the Nato Flying Training Programme. Future contracts involve a batch for South Africa (see customer list below), but if the line is to remain open, the long-awaited order for India is needed as is a batch for the RAF fitted with ‘glass’ cockpits for Eurofighter training. Compared with earlier versions, the Srs 100 has an increase in engine power, improved weapon systems management for the dual attack/trainer role, a new wing with leading-edge droop for improved manoevrability and manually-operated combat flaps. It has Hands-On Throttle And Stick (HOTAS) and provision for nose-mounted Forward-Looking Infra-Red (FLIR)/laser ranging, while the wingtips have missile launch rails to take the number of external pylons to seven. Hawk LIFT incorporates changes to the avionics and systems including a health monitoring system to manage aircraft usage and fatigue life which is now 10,000hr. A fuselage replacement programme for the RAF Hawk T.1/1A is underway at the Defence Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) at St Athan. In co-operation with BAE Systems, new centre/rear Mk 60 fuselage sections are being mated to the existing forward fuselages of 80 aircraft to extend the Hawk’s service life to 2010; nearly 60 have been re-delivered.
Above: BAE Systems Hawks of the Nato Flying Training Programme. (Photo, Peter Foster). Hawk customer list
BAE Systems Hawk 100 specification
Nimrod MRA.4 A major £2.2bn contract was awarded to BAE Systems by the UK Ministry of Defence on behalf of the RAF in December 1996, involving the extensive upgrade of 21 Nimrod MR.2s to a new MRA.4 standard. The company underestimated the work required and the contract was later renegotiated to reflect a more achievable delivery date. A subsequent defence budget cut reduced the order to 18 aircraft. The programme involves the total replacement of the aircraft’s systems and over 80% of its airframe, resulting in almost a new aircraft. The first four Rolls-Royce Germany BR710 turbofans were delivered to BAE Systems Woodford factory in January 2002 for installation in XV247 or PA1, the first aircraft. This is expected to fly by late October, followed by XV234 PA2 which will transfer to Warton for mission system installation. BAE Systems expect to have delivered enough aircraft to meet the current in-service date of 2005 when No 120 Sqn, RAF, will become operational; the last of the 18 aircraft is due in 2008. (A full technical feature on the Nimrod MRA.4 appeared in the January 2002 edition of AIR Pictorial/Aviation News).
Above: A new company illustration of the Nimrod MRA.4. Below: RAF Harrier GR.1s (foreground) and RN Sea Harriers (parked at the stern) aboard HMS Ark Royal. (Photo, POA (Phot) Dave Coombs).
BAE Systems Nimrod MRA.4 specification
Harrier GR.9 The controversial announcement in February 2002 that the Royal Navy was to withdraw the Sea Harrier FA.2 force from 2004, was accompanied by the statement that RAF Harriers would deploy aboard the three Invincible class aircraft carriers for both the attack and fleet defence missions. To meet the need for increased performance, 30 RAF Harrier GR.7s are to receive the Rolls-Royce Pegasus Mk 107 engine in place of the present Mk 105 under a £150m programme, the aircraft being designated GR.7As. A further £330m will be allocated to an avionics and weapon-system upgrade for the aircraft which, when completed, will take the designator, GR.9. BAE Systems will have design authority for the work which will involve production of a new rear fuselage for the larger engine. However, the GR.9 will have no long-range radar or AMRAAM armament, the fleet defence role being reliant on ship or helicopter-based radar data. The F-35 JSF will replace the GR.9 in this role from around 2012. Avro RJ/RJX The final cancellation of this successful regional jet programme was announced in November 2001, thus ending 80 years of commercial airliner production in the UK. The last of 172 RJs was completed in 2002, comprising two prototypes, 12 RJ70s, 85 RJ85s and 69 RJ100s. Four aircraft remain to be sold, two RJ85s and two RJ100s. The follow-on RJX programme was launched on March 21, 2000, and lasted 21 months during which time 14 aircraft had been ordered by Druk Air (2) and British European (12). However, this was considered insufficient to continue with the programme. Honeywell, which supplied the AS977-1A turbofans, withdrew support following the cancellation announcement and the sole flying prototype (G-ORJX) failed to reach certification. It and two other airframes await a decision on their fate, with the transfer to a museum or the scrapyard being the likely choice.
Above: The 172nd and last Avro RJ left Woodford on June 24 for temporary storage, pending a customer. (Photo, Ian Lowe). Airbus BAE Systems has a 20% share in Airbus Industrie and produces all the wings for the consortium. Wing design and manufacturing operations are based at Broughton and Filton and the former factory recently dispatched the 3,000th ship-set, for a US Airways A321, and 3,001st set to the single-aisle final assembly line at Hamburg, Germany. The wings are completed fully-equipped with all-moving control surfaces and electrical, hydraulic and fuel systems installed. With nearly 4,500 Airbus airliners ordered, the future for Britain’s contribution to the programme appears bright and, of course, the figure includes some 85 A380 550-seat twin-aisle, twin-deck airliner for which the UK is designing the wing and will produce it at a new assembly hall being built at Broughton. Another design team is involved in design of the military A400M wing which will be manufactured from hybrid carbon composites. More than 62,000 jobs in over 400 UK companies are dependant on the UK Airbus operation.
Above: The Airbus A400M for which 196 orders have been tentatively placed. (Photo, EADS). HQ: Bembridge, Isle of Wight PO35 5PR. e-mail: britten-norman@compuserve.com Islander Since August 1967 when the first Britten Norman BN-2 Islander was delivered, some 1,140 have been produced for world-wide service and the company expects to return to a production rate of one piston-engined Islander per month by the start of 2003. In anticipation of this, B-N has signed for a further 25 airframes from their long-existing Romanian production base. Islander support operations have contributed more than new production to the Dubai-owned company announcing a modest profit for 2001. Defender A turbine-powered BN-2T-4S Defender 4000 is to be delivered to the Greater Manchester Police in time for the Commonwealth Games in July. Costing around £2.5m, the new aircraft follows others purchased by customers in Malaysia and Ireland and by the Hampshire Police. B-N Defender 4000 specification
Trislander A total of 81 three-engined Trislander utility aircraft were built between 1971 and 1984 and B-N is actively marketing the aircraft to gain sufficient orders to restart production. A minimum order for five is needed and the projected ‘new’ Trislander would incorporate a much-modified cockpit design, improved interior and upgrades to equipment and avionics. Aero Nexx Aero Nexx is a new joint venture with the French Paris-based SMA company (formed by Renault, EADS and Snecma) to develop and market a 250hp diesel engine for use in single and light twins. The powerplant has already undergone flight trials in a TB20 from Bembridge and when the higher-powered 300hp version gains certification next year, this will be offered as a retrofit to operators of piston-engined Islanders. B-N is confident that environmental issues, as well as cost and the increasing paucity of Avgas in remote areas of the world will see diesel-power gain increasing acceptance. Chichester-Miles Consultants (CMC) HQ: No 4 The Woodford Centre, Lysander Way, Old Sarum, Salisbury, Wilts SP4 6BU. CMC Leopard SIX Planned six-seat business jet development of the Chichester-Miles Leopard FOUR which first flew on December 12, 1988. The second prototype Leopard FOUR, G-BRNM, has undertaken 84 flights accumulating some 70 hours since it first flew on April 9, 1997, fitted with the wing profile design for the 25% larger Leopard SIX. The latter would be constructed of composite materials and powered by two 1,500lb thrust Williams FJ33 turbofans which are expected to receive certification in 2003. The two-seat cockpit will have a three-screen EFIS display as well as GPS, an air-data computer and a three-axis autopilot with separate yaw damper function. At the present time, CMC is trying to raise funds for the construction of a first prototype, the development and the initial production of the Leopard SIX (below), for which limited design work has already begun. CMC is currently assisting with design of the Warrior (Aero-Marine) Centaur amphibian.
CMC Leopard SIX specification
For the rest of this article please see the August issue. |
