Smart procurement in action...
It's certainly worth a watch:
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/4od/player/3129790
Whilst Typhoon may be great at turning on a six pence and is no doubt a fantastic airplane, this is fairly irrelevant in modern aircombat (if it were ever to happen). I'm no jet bloke however surely:
· CAS capability = pod + bomb/gun.
· Air combat = radar and missile capability (with the performance required to get there to deliver said weapon).
One does wonder what the point is exactly.... Particularly liked the Farnborough shots with Typhoon wazzing around laden with bombs when it is very unlikely to be capable of deploying to AFG in the CAS role. Indeed, the most desired CAS platform in theatre - AC130. 5 please.
A grossly expensive and very late mess.
Thought it was also v interesting that he picked up on Wildcat. I do hope that the reason the AAC has not stuck itself with Wildcat is that it wasn't willing to take on the aircraft size/weight debate with the RAF over Blackhawk. Wildcat looks like a very effective Battlefield Recce Heli (BRH) platform. Great. But even in the unlikely event we were pitched into a conventional fight why on earth would we even need BRH when you've got Apache with a tank spotting radar.
What this SDSR sounds like it will lack is asking what you want from your heli fleet and then procuring it. One might even call such thinking a 'Strategic Review'. Col Tootal summed it up well I thought: heavy, medium and fires. So:
· Heavy: CH47. No debate there. Great trooping and CASEVAC aircraft flown well by RAF crews and bought off the shelf from Boeing.
· Fires: Apache - fires. No issues and maybe with joint crewing (as its already going). Bought off the shelf, and given to Westlands to charge a fortune to put new engines in and change the name on the manual.
· Medium: 'Blackhawk' (sized anyway). Everything else including ISTAR and limited fires. Ever seen a Blackhawk DAP! Crikey.... Could do either, buy off the shelf (hurrah), or Westlands could change the name on the manual (again) and charge £1m for each person who works there.
Does make you wonder where Merlin fits in. A huge, expensive aircraft that is only just more than ‘Medium’ capable but with no fires / ISTAR capability.
So, Wildcat. Err... Movement of 4 blokes. There's no decent weapons fitted to make it an effective fires platform (beyond crew served) and the EO is only suited for low level forward observation. So, even if it did arrive in time for AFG, you’ve got it, first UOR - an ISTAR camera.
Maybe Wildcat will get binned on Tue (along with Puma), leaving the door open for a switch to a medium heli. Would probably see this as either mixed or separate Army/RAF Sqns. Why not, it's worked in other areas... The Yanks have also very successfully fitted them with Mx cameras and weapons. Yet if that’s the game the AAC are playing I’d very surprised/impressed! Ultimately I care far less about who flies our aircraft than getting the best myriad of capabilities to support ground troops and deliver fires. If that means the AAC becomes an AH only fleet with RAF getting Blackhawk so be it. Although I would still argue (strongly) that the Army should be flying it.
Anyway, smart procurement in action... 