Re: Aviation News Mega-Thread
Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2020 3:38 pm
https://www.facebook.com/Scramblemagazi ... &__tn__=-RThe Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda has announced that LIAT is going to be liquidated.
The airline has been in bad financial shape for a while, but not being able to operate due to the outbreak of COVID-19 proved to be the final straw.
LIAT, which is originally short for Leeward Island Air Transport, was founded in 1956 and currently has a fleet of five ATR42s and five ATR72s.
As air transport is vital for the islands, the Prime Minister is hoping a new LIAT 2.0 can be formed later on.
https://www.facebook.com/Scramblemagazi ... &__tn__=-RWill the USAF opt for more combat-coded Raptors. Will they be necessary?
A closer look at what the USAF is currently struggling with. (10 minute reading !!)
With Russia's 4th+ Generation Sukhoi Su-57 (also known as PAKFA) and China's 5th Generation Chengdu J-20 (also known as Mighty Dragon) seemingly lurking to overtake USAF's Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptor capacities, its worth to look closer at some more indepth information. The past years, ever since the last Raptor was delivered during 2012, multiple media outlets, current and former USAF generals have been suggesting that the USAF's F-22A inventory has never been enough to topple (future) adversaries.
It is expected that for the next 40+ years, the Raptor will provide air superiority to the Joint Forces, will have access in a highly contested operational environment and will participate in the US homeland and cruise missile defense. The F-22A was the first operational multi-mission jet fighter aircraft that combined stealth, supercruise, sensors, manoeuverability and integrated avionics together. Todays Raptor's results and capacities had to go a long way of testing the different techniques and integrating them into a single platform.
This is where Russia and China are lagging at this moment. Not only in quality but also in quantity. Scramble Magazine tries to keep track of every single military aircraft in the world. With the first loss of a Su-57 at the end of 2019, notably the first serial production example, the delivery schedule has been hampered for a while. At this moment Russia has only ten Sukhoi Su-57s in its inventory. Although having problems gaining micro electronic components for the Su-57 project since 2014, the Russian military have stated that Su-57s have been successfully tested during combat conditions in and over Syria and that the first will be assigned to Russia’s Southern Military District in 2020. The latter is doubtful. Scramble assesses that they are not considered to be used by an operational unit very soon. Some of them are already used by the Akhtubinsk based 929 GLITs state flight test center, also known as "Valery Chkalov". Probably more will follow suit, also to the Zhukovsky state flight test center.
In 2019, it was announced that the Russian Ministry of Defence had ordered 76 examples to be delivered by 2028. The latter remains to be seen. Serial production Su-57s will receive the NPO Saturn Izdeliye 30 engine, said to be similar in performance to the F-22A's Pratt & Whitney F119. But the production of the Izdeliye 30 has been postponed multiple times. For now it is expected that the Su-57 will receive the less capable AL-41F1 engines, also manufactured by the Saturn plant. Despite the fact that it has a nice shape, the Su-57 "Flattened Flanker" has structural design problems that will be obvious during a large scale conflict. Because of its minimum bay capacity, weapons have to be hung on outer stations. Than, the Su-57 will never be a real stealth plane in a highly contested operational environment. It is expected that the second serial production Su-57 will be delivered to the Russian Air Force shortly.
As for the Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) J-20/J-20A; in contrast to Russia's 4th+ Generation Su-57, the Chinese J-20 is probably having most of the 5th Generation jet fighter capacities. The J-20 fighter was originally intended to be equipped with a Shenyang/Xi'an WS-15 engine designed specifically for stealth and supercruise. However, immediately after being put to the test, the WS-15 engine showed low reliability and constantly having problems. So far, Chinese aircraft engineers have not been able to overcome those reliability problems. Currently the PLAAF's J-20s and J-20As are probably mostly fitted with Russian NPO Saturn AL-31F and modified WS-10B engines. The indigenous built WS-10B is derived from the WS-10 model, originally destined for 4th Generation jet fighters such as the J-10 and the J-11. The latter was considered to be an interim solution before China started importing large quantities of Russian AL-31F variant engines.
China announced that the first operational J-20 entered PLAAF service by late 2016. Scramble assesses that as of mid-July 2020, some 25 J-20A aircraft, excluding the 14 J-20 prototypes, have been delivered to operational units within the PLAAF. In February 2018, it was stated that J-20s subsequently had been commissioned within Chinese operational units. It is expected that a dozen J-20As were activated in the 176th Brigade Flight Test and Training Base in Dingxin and the 172nd Brigade Flight Training Base in Cangzhou, respectively. Although the latter two are Chinese training units, the first regular frontline PLAAF unit to receive J-20As was the 9th brigade located in Wuhu, subordinated to the Eastern Theater Command. The strategically located Wuhu has now some twelve J-20As as its home base. Strikingly, examining the Scramble database, during the past few years, less or no Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) J-20/J-20A prototypes have been sighted. This in comparison to when the J-20 was in development between 2011 and 2016. Assuming that some prototypes have been converted to "combat-coded" J-20s, the PLAAF has less 5th Generation aircraft at their disposal than expected.
Back to the F-22A Raptor. What is the fuzz of more combat-coded F-22s all about? Certainly not the quantity. With 185 examples left, this is way more than Russia and China will have for the next decade to come. The quality? The weaponry? The most advanced missile to be carried by the Raptor is the D-model of the AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM). Unconfirmed reports have stated that the AIM-120D will be able to kill targets over a distance of more than 200 km. Maybe that is the trigger. The Department of Defense Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 Budget Estimates for the F-22A only mentions funding in the form of Capability Improvement (Link 16 and Sensor Enhancement), but nothing on weaponry or weapons testing.
Russia is developing and testing the The Vympel R-37M missile. The missile has been under development at Vympel, part of the Tactical Missiles Corporation since the 1990s and it is expected that it can destroy targets over 300 km til 400 km. Although there is no confirmation that it will be used by the Su-57. The MiG-31BM and Su-35S, also in Russia's inventory, will certainly carry the R-37M. Than there is the Chinese PL-15 missile which is said to be an advanced long-range air-to-air missile capable of hitting targets at a distance from 300 km up to 400 km. During the most recent public appearances, J-20s often had their weapons bays open and PL-15 missiles could be seen prominent. Although it is expected that both the Russian R-37M and Chinese PL-15 missiles will be mainly used against force multipliers, like Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) aircraft, in combination with their carrying platforms, they will be also posing a realistic threat to USAF's "Golden" F-22A Raptor. More combat-coded Raptors are unlikely and unfeasable. Newer, upgraded and integrated long range air-to-air missiles with more capacity are an option.