RAF announces Puma Replacement plan
no RAF helicopter has ever had a credible replacement date - such a waste of ink and hot air. Tail wheel and high TR is a must - have we not at least learnt that much!!!
Lost count of the number of dates we were given for Wessex/Puma replacement back in the day
Lost count of the number of dates we were given for Wessex/Puma replacement back in the day
AW149 Farnborough 2014 and 2016
First time I came across the AW149 was Farnborough Air Show 2014 (my pics below ) and as it happened on the Monday, the Italian MoD / Armaments Directorate had approved the AW149.
Two years alter Farnborough Airshow 2016, I attended the Leoanrdo brief on the AW149 (my photos). They had announced AUW increase for the a/c and as such also cleared it to integrate Russian gun/rocket system to attract say Eastern European countries. Anyhow they brought 2 x a/c with them.
Say for example we pick it in 2025-2030 timeline so it be decade plus in existence. I believe the Egyptian military are a recent customer of the type (probably supplied via US Army like their SAR AW139).
Cheers
Two years alter Farnborough Airshow 2016, I attended the Leoanrdo brief on the AW149 (my photos). They had announced AUW increase for the a/c and as such also cleared it to integrate Russian gun/rocket system to attract say Eastern European countries. Anyhow they brought 2 x a/c with them.
Say for example we pick it in 2025-2030 timeline so it be decade plus in existence. I believe the Egyptian military are a recent customer of the type (probably supplied via US Army like their SAR AW139).
Cheers
Avoid imitations
Maybe Blackhawk powered by something like RTM322?
Oh hang on....I’ve just had a flashback.
Oh hang on....I’ve just had a flashback.
Shy - better get Michael Heseltine on the phone
From a crewman's perspective, none of the types that have transverse seating are suitable for the crewman to move around the cabin. On the Blackhawk for instance from their seat they cannot reach the doors and have to rely on the troops to close it. RAF Crewman have always had room to move from Whirlwind to Wessex to Puma to Chinook and then Merlin. We have always been able to use the cabin with minimum of fuss from troops to freight to casevac, or mixture of all. Small low cabins are pointless no matter how many fancy digital screens at the pointy end for the pilots, if you cannot achieve the task for the Army, which is why we have them in the first place.
From a crewman's perspective, none of the types that have transverse seating are suitable for the crewman to move around the cabin. On the Blackhawk for instance from their seat they cannot reach the doors and have to rely on the troops to close it. RAF Crewman have always had room to move from Whirlwind to Wessex to Puma to Chinook and then Merlin. We have always been able to use the cabin with minimum of fuss from troops to freight to casevac, or mixture of all. Small low cabins are pointless no matter how many fancy digital screens at the pointy end for the pilots, if you cannot achieve the task for the Army, which is why we have them in the first place.
cheers
Something like that. Is there a hot n high H225/725 because an off the shelf H225 is optimised for those long crew change flights over the ocean and we'd be back where we were several decades ago?
H175M
With the musings on H225M/H215M any thoughts on Airbus offering H175M?? AFAIK only two government operators, albeit prapublic Royal Thai Police Aviation Division (VIP??) and Hong Kong Government Service - (Special Duties Unit and SAR/EMS support). I am not awaree of any mil developments planned...
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/n...acement-for-uk
Cabin space probably a tad more with headroom, then AW149 ....I suppose thats about it.
cheers
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/n...acement-for-uk
Cabin space probably a tad more with headroom, then AW149 ....I suppose thats about it.
cheers
Sikorsky and Boeing
Supposedly L-M Sikorsky may be offering UH-60M / S-70i
Hmmm let’s throw Boeing into the mixed bag with Mh-139 according to their musings
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/n...-later-in-2021
cheers
Hmmm let’s throw Boeing into the mixed bag with Mh-139 according to their musings
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/n...-later-in-2021
cheers
Avoid imitations
Looking at the photos of the AW149, as posted above. Very nice.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
Crab and Shy: your posts brings back memories of flying the Rolls UH-60 with their RTM-322 installed and after the engine/airframe integration testing had been accomplished. Flew with Rolls test pilot Ken Robertson, and was impressed with both the performance of that engine, and the rigor with which they had tested same. Wouldn’t it be ironic to see something resurrect that idea this far down the road. BTW, there is some decent coverage of the Heseltine Affair in the Alan Bristow biography, but not the whole story, aircraft configuration-wise, as to why that ship wasn’t bought by the Saudi government. A missed opportunity for both companies.
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Thats a pretty strange architecture if failure of one DAU causes all systems to fail.... what about redundancy??? In the aircraft I fly at least two, in some cases even three “DAU’s” would have to fail before I loose all information.... the screens auto-reconfigure if a screen fails... etc etc..
Thats a pretty strange architecture if failure of one DAU causes all systems to fail.... what about redundancy??? In the aircraft I fly at least two, in some cases even three “DAU’s” would have to fail before I loose all information.... the screens auto-reconfigure if a screen fails... etc etc..
Looking at the photos of the AW149, as posted above. Very nice.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
Looking at the photos of the AW149, as posted above. Very nice.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
However, having flown both analogue and more modern glass screen cockpits, I can’t help thinking how much could be put out of action in that cockpit by just one bullet, especially bearing in mind that a Data Aquisition Unit has to process all the information displayed.
As much as I like modern displays, I’ve suffered an inflight loss of a DAU, which resulted in the loss of ALL aircraft systems information, including engine temperatures, pressures, rpm, torque, electrics, hydraulics, rotor rpm, fuel contents, the lot.
Sometimes I’d prefer analogue, rather than having all the eggs in one basket.
