Your ideal Airforce.

[Yeoman_dai]

Since my other thread has causes so much angst, I thought I'd try a more light hearted one - so, you have 10-odd billion £, you don't have to worry about 'buying British' (although avoid straying out of NATO) and your brief is to create a good all purpose airforce for the UK. See what you all come up with.

So, if you're bored - have a go!

I'll freely admit i'm no expert, but I believe a left field choice would be Gripen for a Ground support aircraft - small, capable of being refuelled/armed by a team of five off rough airstrips close to the front line, good payload, yet with radar and capable of looking after itself! Plus about half the cost of Typhoons, Dave B/C, Rafale, F/A-18...even if its shorter range means it'd be less useful in the interdiction/bombing role.



Also, as a disclaimer I apologise profusely if this has been done before, I did have a quick skim but couldn't see one like it.

[Culio]

Buy Globemaster, buy fuel, fill with porn bought from remaining money (a bit of food may come in handy if it takes your fancy), fly to Hawaii. Waheeeeey.

[Yeoman_dai]

Genius!

[Backwards PLT]

Interesting. Have to make a couple of assumptions:
1. Don't have to support RN (no carrier requirement) - if we do add F35C to the list.
2. Wild ass guess at what things cost.
3. Ignore the "keep in NATO!"
4. Has to be available nowish - no dream aircraft
5. We aren't going to war with anyone too capable like Russia!

Fast Jet:
1 multi role type jack of all trades - F15E or Typhoon
1 Dedicated CAS type - A-10 with all the bits the USAF want on theirs

Heavies:
C17s and Hercs
E3s
Off the shelf airbus tanker/transport

Helos:
Don't really know, can't even pretend to be an expert (although that doesn't usually stop people on PPRuNe) but:
Apache (prob better to let the army run them)
Chinook
Smaller thing - I have seen the Merlin in action and liked it but it seems to be a bit of a marmite thing.

UAVs
Whole range, smaller ones operated by army. Plenty of Reapers or Reaper+.

Superficial and very little thought gone into it, but hey there you go.

[KeepItTidy]

Buy RAF fighter pilots and then ask them what aircraft they want. That way I will have the best Air Force in the world.

btw im not a pilot im just a backroom boy without whom nothing would leave the ground, but I know enough in the world to say we got the best no matter what equipment is given.

crikey its xmas time and im being nice , WTF I can spell as well , im shocked

[L J R]

Buy lots of Land in Maroochydore, build base, advertise its location and enjoy the retention.

RAF Maroochy anyone?

[Chris Griffin]

1. Get rid of JPA
2. Get rid of BOCS

Make the working environment easier to cope with. Then buy any airframes you want.

[pohm1]

Plenty of RAF Police to generally keep good order and ensure berets are worn.

P1

[minigundiplomat]

Lets get loads of airliners, start charging for our service and call ourselves oh I dont know... Emirates or British Airways.

By charging for our services, we could then up our level of service and pay ourselves properly, as well as sourcing new technology.

Of course, we would have to keepour costs down, so Iraq and Afghanistan would be off, and we'd have to let a few Air Officers without meaningful portfolio go.

[Flying Serpent]

60,000 Tucanos fitted with missiles and a gun..

[Wrathmonk]

Judging by the majority of the threads on Mil Aircrew then I would suggest (with tongue firmly in cheek) the following...

Trade in Typhoon (keep a few for the Memorial flight), scrap the rest of our current FJ fleet, and buy Vulcans, Sea Harrier, Jaguar, Lightning, Buccaneer, F4, Canberra. Make sure they can all operate off aircraft carriers. Downgrade all current rotary assets to previous versions.

Scrap RAF Regt (the Army will cope just fine...), Movers (use Heathrow / Gatwick / Stansted etc as airheads), RAF Police (don't need them 'cause we're all good boys and girls) and PTIs (we can be trusted to keep fit)

Give everybody "flying pay".

Move all trades onto High Band.

Reintroduce the three year Cranwell officer training.

Bring back the JT rank.

Make flying suits normal working dress for everyone.

Disband MOD Air Staffs, AIR CMD, Groups etc. Give station commanders all the money and let them do as they wish.

Any money left over can be used to create a full hospital capability (inc opticians) at all units (regardless of size).

I'm sure there are more good ideas out there ....

[Gainesy]

Just duplicate the air force we had in, say, 1975.

[tonker]

Whatever is bought, could some of it that's primary job air defence please be posted an hour away in the south and south west too. Just in case.

And a few SAMs just in case a Blackjack pops up over the hills.

And i wouldn't line up all our AWACS planes in a row, in a remote part of Waddington so anyone with an large JCB could mash through a fence and cripple our AEW in a matter of minutes.

Everything to be run on a war footing. Any politician, or goverment division that is found to of wasted money on ridiculous long winded projects, that in turn lead to a degredation of our air defence could be tried for aiding the enemy. This would help focus a few minds in departments vital to our existence.

If Aircrew and engineering need it, it is bought.

Merry Xmas

[green granite]

Or alternately, save the money. Buy an answer m/c, give our potential enemies the phone No.and tell them when they wish to attack us to ring that number first. Record the message on said m/c "We surrender". Job done.

[Tiger_mate]

1) An admission that the Mull of Kintyre Chinook inquest was a miscarriage
of justice.
2) PSF Staff
3) 3 'Get you home' Travel Warrants per annum.
4) RAF Hospitals, at least 2. One of which colocated at an airhead suitable
for TriStar / C17.
5) A Medical Centre in which you can be seen by a Doctor today.
6) A Dental Centre - ditto -
7) One man - one job
8) NO Acting promtion, if you need 'em, up the establishment at Promotion
Boards.
9) Commisioning opportunities for NCA.
10) WRAF proud to be WRAF.
11) Investment in technilogically advance airframes not out of date ones.
12) Replace Dominie / VC10 / TriStar / Nimrod / Puma before they start
falling out of the sky.
13) Move AIDU and all who work there to the Falkland Islands TFN.
14) Invest in Officers & WO-Sgts Mess' so they look like an environment to
aspire to, whilst accepting that a few are already there.
15) Remove civil contractors in toto, and bring back an RAF.

[The Real Slim Shady]

Find a leader who can lead.

[Gen. Jack D Ripper]

1)Tanker/Transport, EW/ELINT & AWACS- New model based around A340-300.VIP-A340-300,A330-200 & A319.
1A) Tactical/Battlefield Airlift Transporters- C-17's & C130's

2)Air Defence-Typhoon.

3)Tactical Strike/Ground Attack/- Modify Typhoon to move the APU exhaust out of the wing root to allow Israeli style 'blended' fuel tanks to give an increased range & make it a two seater & give it a gun!!!!!.
Also have a couple of squadrons of F117's for 'special jobs'.

3A) Strategic Strike - B1's.

3B) CAS- A-10's & AC-130's.

4)Recce- UAV's plus a couple of modified F117's (RF117's) for those jobs that a UAV can't do.

Helicopters- Give the 'Battlefield Lifters' to the Army

Maritime- Give the Nimrods & SAR helicopters to the Navy

Strongly agree with dedicated hospitals near capable 'AirHeads' & introducing Flight Pay.

Increase levels of renumeration 'across the board'.

Off back to bed,now to fight off a nasty cold.

[Backwards PLT]

F117?? Are you mad? Not even the USAF thinks that they are worth having! If you insist on stealth then F35A/C is the only way to go, although that might bust my "available nowish" assumption.

[GeeRam]

Originally Posted by Gainesy

Just duplicate the air force we had in, say, 1975.

Funny you should say that.....

How about as of summer of 1974.......

35 different aircraft types.....

1 Sqn Wittering – HS Harrier
2 Sqn Laarbruch – McD Phantom
3 Sqn Wildenrath – HS Harrier
4 Sqn Wildenrath – HS Harrier
5 Sqn Binbrook – BAC Lightning
6 Sqn Coningsby – McD Phantom
7 Sqn St.Mawgan – BAC Canberra
8 Sqn Lossiemouth – Avro Shackteton
9 Sqn Akrotiri – HS Vulcan
10 Sqn Brize Norton – BAC VC.10
11 Sqn Binbrook – BAC Lightning
12 Sqn Honington – HS Buccaneer
13 Sqn Luqa – BAC Canberra
14 Sqn Bruggen – McD Phantom
15 Sqn Laarbruch – HS Buccaneer
16 Sqn Laarbruch – HS Buccaneer
17 Sqn Bruggen – McD Phantom
18 Sqn Gutersloh – Westland Wessex
19 Sqn Gutersloh – BAC Lightning
20 Sqn Wildenrath – HS Harrier
21 Sqn Andover – DH Devon
22 Sqn Thorney Island – Westland Whirlwind
23 Sqn Leuchars – BAC Lightning
24 Sqn Lyneham – Lockheed Hercules
26 Sqn Wyton – DH Devon
27 Sqn Scampton – HS Vulcan
28 Sqn Kai Tak – Westland Wessex
29 Sqn Wattisham – BAC Lightning
30 Sqn Lyneham – Lockheed Hercules
31 Sqn Bruggen – McD Phantom
32 Sqn Northolt – HS Andover, HS125, Westland Whirlwind
33 Sqn Odiham – Westland Puma
35 Sqn Akrotiri – HS Vulcan
36 Sqn Lyneham – Lockheed Hercules
39 Sqn Wyton – BAC Canberra
41 Sqn Coningsby – McD Phantom
42 Sqn St.Mawgan – HS Nimrod
43 Sqn Leuchars – McD Phantom
44 Sqn Waddington – HS Vulcan
45 Sqn Wittering – HS Hunter
46 Sqn Thorney Island – HS Andover
47 Sqn Lyneham – Lockheed Hercules
48 Sqn Lyneham – Lockheed Hercules
50 Sqn Waddington – HS Vulcan
51 Sqn Wyton – BAC Canberra, HS Nimrod
53 Sqn Brize Norton – Short Belfast
54 Sqn Coltishall – BAC Jaguar
55 Sqn Marham – HP Victor
56 Sqn Akrotiri – BAC Lightning
57 Sqn Marham – HP Victor
58 Sqn Wittering – HS Hunter
60 Sqn Wildenrath – Hunting Pembroke, HS Andover
70 Sqn Akrotiri – Lockheed Hercules, HS Argosy
72 Sqn Odiham – Westland Wessex
84 Sqn Akrotiri – Westland Whirlwind
85 Sqn West Raynham – BAC Canberra
92 Sqn Gutersloh – BAC Lightning
98 Sqn Cottesmore – BAC Canberra
99 Sqn Brize Norton – Bristol Britannia
100 Sqn West Raynham – BAC Canberra
101 Sqn Waddington – HS Vulcan
103 Sqn Tenagh – Westland Wessex
111 Sqn Coningsby – McD Phantom
115 Sqn Cottesmore – HS Argosy
120 Sqn Kinloss – HS Nimrod
201 Sqn Kinloss – HS Nimrod
202 Sqn Leconfield – Westland Whirlwind
203 Sqn Luqa – HS Nimrod
206 Sqn Kinloss – HS Nimrod
207 Sqn Northolt – DH Devon, Hunting Pembroke
208 Sqn Honington – HS Buccaneer
214 Sqn Marham – HP Victor
216 Sqn Lyneham – DH Comet
230 Sqn Odiham – Westland Puma
360 Sqn Cottesmore – BAC Canberra
511 Sqn Brize Norton – Bristol Britannia
617 Sqn Scampton – HS Vulcan

226 OCU Coltishall – BAC Lightning [soon to be Jaguar]
228 OCU Coningsby – McD Phantom
229 OCU(TWU) Brawdy – HS Hunter
230 OCU Scampton – HS Vulcan
231 OCU Cottesmore – BAC Canberra
232 OCU Marham – HP Victor
233 OCU Wittering – HS Harrier
236 OCU St.Mawgan – HS Nimrod
237 OCU Honington – HS Buccaneer
240 OCU Odiham – Westland Wessex, Westland Puma
241 OCU Brize Norton – Belfast, Britannia, Comet and VC.10 as required
242 OCU Thorney Island – HS Andover, Lockheed Hercules

1 FTS Linton-On-Ouze – BAC Jet Provost
2 FTS Church Fenton – DHC Chipmunk, Bulldog
3 FTS Leeming – BAC Jet Provost
4 FTS Valley – HS Gnat, HS Hunter
5 FTS Oakington – Vickers Varsity, Jetstream
6 FTS Finningley – HS Dominie, Varsity, BAC Jet Provost

CFS Little Rissington, Kemble and Ternhill

5 MU Kemble
19 MU St.Athan
23 MU Sydenham
27 MU Shawbury
32 MU St.Athan
60 MU Leconfield
71 MU Bicester
103 MU Akrotiri
431 MU Bruggen



I was bored for an hour.......

[minigundiplomat]

Westland Puma ? Even I wouldn't accuse Wastelands of that!