Asian Military Review - October/November 2021

Volume 29/issue 5

october/NOVEMBER 2021 US$15

A s i a P a c i f i c ’ s L a r g e s t C i r c u la t e d D e f e n c e M a g a Z i n e

SYNTHETIC TRAINING AUSTRALIA'S NUCLEAR GAMBLE ASIAN AIR FORCE UPDATE ANTI-RADIATION MISSILES DSEI SHOW REPORT www.asianmilitaryreview.com

The Digital Issue of Asian Military Review October/November 2021 is Supported by

www.ses.com

BARAK MX Setting the Air Defense Standard in Every Arena

IAI’s Barak MX - Multi-mission.

Multi-target. Multi-range.

• Combat proven • Anti-Tactical Ballistic Missile (ATBM) capable • Incorporating cutting-edge technologies - Wide aperture active seeker - Dual pulse motor for high energy end game maneuvering - Net centric - Advanced fully digital radar • Single solution in both land and naval configurations • Modular and expandable • Simple integration with any legacy or new sensor / C2 www.iai.co.il • iai-mth-sms@iai.co.il

Meet us at

ADEX 2021 Booth #B61

Contents october/november 2021 VOLUME 29 / ISSUE 5

06

Swedish company Saab’s Ground Combat Indoor Trainer has been designed to be modular and scalable, offering multiple configurations over a variety of weapons including small arms, support and anti-tank weapons as seen here.

AUSTRALIA’S NUKE SUB GAMBLE Tim Fish examines the decision of the RAN to select nuclear powered submarines.

12

18

ASIAN AIR FORCE MODERNISATION JR Ng reports on the plans for regional Air Force upgrades and acquisitions.

SYNTHETIC BATTLEFIELD

Stephen W Miller delves into the recent developments in synthetic training.

28

34

WHITHER THE WEASEL? Do anti-radiation missiles still have a role to play in defeating surface-to-air missiles?

Martin Streetly finds that they do.

DSEI RESTARTS INTERNATIONAL DEFENCE EXPOS If you couldn’t get to DSEI in London, here’s a selection of what you missed.

By Andrew Drwiega, Christopher Foss and David Oliver.

| october/november 2021 |

03

Index of Advertisers

Aerometals 11 Aeronautics 25 Aimpoint 17 Aselsan 27 Collins Aerospace 15 D&S Thailand Cover 3 DSEI Japan 47 dimdex 46 adsb (EDGE) 31 Embraer 19 Eurosatory 41 IAI Cover 2 Interface Concept 39 ITPS 33 Leonardo 5,COVER 4 MBDA 21 Nexter 13 Roketsan 9 Rosoboronexport 23 Ruag 37 ses 2,3 Singapore Airshow 42 Smith & Wesson 35 Advertising Offices France/Spain Stephane de Remusat, REM International Tel: (33) 5 3427 0130 E-Mail: sremusat@rem-intl.com Germany Sam Baird, Whitehill Media Tel: (44-1883) 715 697 Mobile: (44-7770) 237 646 E-Mail: sam@whitehillmedia.com UK Zena Coupé Tel: +44 1923 852537 E-Mail: zena@expomedia.biz Nordic Countries/Italy/ Switzerland Emanuela Castagnetti-Gillberg Tel: (46) 31 799 9028 E-Mail: emanuela.armada@gmail.com Russia Alla Butova, NOVO-Media Ltd, Tel/Fax: (7 3832) 180 885 Mobile: (7 960) 783 6653 Email: alla@mediatransasia.com USA East Coast / Canada Margie Brown, Blessall Media, LLC. Tel: (+1 540) 341 7581 Email: margiespub@rcn.com USA West Coast Pat Walker Tel: +1 415 994 0019 E-Mail: walkercom111@gmail.com India Sanjay Seth, Global Exposures Tel: +91 11 466 96566 Mob: +91 9818 697279 Email: sseth.globex@gmail.com Turkey Zeynep Özlem Baş Mob: +90 532 375 0046 Email: media@oz-ist.com All Other Countries Jakhongir Djalmetov, Media Transasia Limited Tel: +66 2204 2370, Mobile: +66 81 6455654 Email: joha@mediatransasia.com Roman Durksen, Media Transasia Limited Tel: +66 2204 2370, Mobile +66 83 6037989 E-Mail: roman@mediatransasia.com

Editorial WHILE AIR POWER SOARS, CYBER PENETRATES he tension around Taiwan is showing no signs of abating anytime soon. It was widely reported on 16 October that Taiwanese officials had been involved in discussions with the US government to shorten the delivery time for Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters.

On 20 August 2019, it was revealed that an $8 billion acquisition order placed by the Taiwan government for 66 Lockheed Martin’s F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft had been approved

by US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA). The package included a full set of additions that would make the aircraft a potent adversary including: 75 each of APG-83 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars, LN-260 embedded GPS/INS, M61 Vulcan 20mm guns, 138 LAU-129 multipurpose launchers, AN/ALE-47 countermeasure dispensers and much more. However, deliveries were not due to begin until 2026.

But the ramping up of Chinese belligerence towards Taiwan, particularly the recent campaign in early October by the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) of sending waves of aircraft into Taiwan’s national airspace, has caused concern to the government in Taipei. Over 150 PLAAF fighters, bombers and early warning aircraft crossed into Taiwan’s southwestern air defence identification zone (ADIZ) during the first five days of October.

Concerns over China’s international ambitions are not only restricted to the physical and geographical challenges embodied by its armed forces. On 21 October, SecAlliance, a UK-based cyber security organisation, warned of continuous and growing cyber operations sponsored by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in line with its Five Year Plan (FYP) issued in March 2021.

While a proportion of China’s cyber activities are being directed towards supporting economic goals including “pulling the global community away from western technologies, systems and institutions and promoting Chinese solutions,” according to SecAlliance, there is also a deeper malevolence to undermine Western democracies, global influence and industry. There is also still a priority requirement to steal research and development as well as intellectual property.

According to Rob Dartnall, head of Intelligence at SecAlliance there is now a steady growth of information collection, including personal information, and disruptive operations. “The collection of intellectual property is essential to bolstering political and economic competitiveness in key sectors, so, it is likely that CCP’s targeting will be directed at critical national infrastructure, government and military entities as well as supply chains,” he warns.

Supply chains are particularly seen as a weak link. “To breach organisations, Chinese threat actors will continue to utilise the supply chain as the weak point in many networks and valuable source of aggregated information,” asserts Dartnall.

Andrew Drwiega, Editor-in-Chief

Editor-in-Chief: Andrew Drwiega Tel: +44 1494 765245, E-mail: andrew@mediatransasia.com Publishing Office: Chairman: J.S. Uberoi Media Transasia Limited,1603, 16/F, Island Place Tower, 510 King’s Road, Hong Kong Operations Office: President: Egasith Chotpakditrakul Chief Financial Officer: Gaurav Kumar General Manager: Jakhongir Djalmetov International Marketing Manager: Roman Durksen Digital Manager: David Siriphonphutakun Art Director: Rachata Sharma Media Transasia Ltd. 75/8, 14th Floor, Ocean Tower II, Soi Sukhumvit 19, Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok 10110, Thailand.

Tel: 66 (0)-2204 2370, Fax: 66 (0)-2204 2390 -1

04

| Asian Military Review |

Circulation Audit Board Controlled circulation: 22,183 (average per issue) for the period 1st January 2019 to 31st December 2019.

Subscription Information ASIAN MILITARY REVIEW can be obtained by subscription. Subscription rate for one year (8 issues) is U.S.$ 100.00 Readers should contact the following address: Subscription Department, Media Transasia Limited.

75/8, 14th Floor, Ocean Tower II, Soi Sukhumvit 19, Sukhumvit Rd., Bangkok 10110, Thailand Tel: 66 (0)-2204 2370, Fax: 66 (0)-2204 2387 Email: accounts@mediatransasia.com

Multi-Mission Performance

Focus on your mission and trust your equipment - The AW149 is the latest generation, multi-role, military helicopter; capable, cost-effective, survivable and rapidly reconfigurable to a wide range of missions: Transport, re-supply, MEDEVAC, SAR/CSAR, special ops, close air support and ISR. Big enough for troops, gear and armaments, yet small enough to operate in confined areas and hostile environments.

Inspired by the vision, curiosity and creativity of the great master inventor – Leonardo is designing the technology of tomorrow.

Visit us at ADEX, Stand B62

leonardocompany.com Helicopters | Aeronautics | Electronics, Defence & Security Systems | Space

sea

power

HMS Audacious lines up with her sister submarines HMS Anson and HMS Agamemnon as she prepares to leave the BAE Systems Devonshire Dock Hall, in Barrow in Furness.

AUSTRALIA’S NUKE SUB GAMBLE With the selection made to go nuclear, the next question is from where, and which type? Is this the wrong time for a long odds bet?

O

n 15 September 2021 the Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson made a surprise joint media appearance to announce the formation of a new Australia-UK-US (AUKUS) defence partnership.

In his announcement, Morrison stated that Australia would be pursuing the development of nuclear-powered submarines (SSNs) with support from the two other members of the AUKUS group.

This simultaneously slammed the door shut on Australia’s cooperation with France on the SEA 1000 Attackclass diesel-electric powered submarine

06

by Tim Fish (SSK) programme killing it dead, while signalling the beginning of what will be a long and expensive process of building and crewing eight new SSNs. Although the AUKUS agreement will primarily be about the process of bringing technology to Australia for a new SSN programme, it included other elements of future technology cooperation and exchange relating to Artificial Intelligence (AI), cyber, quantum computing and others.

The partnership is not officially a treaty or an alliance, but considering that it will formalise the exchange of closelyguarded secret nuclear technology, AUKUS just as significant because of the impact it will have on the balance of

| Asian Military Review |

power in the Indo-Pacific.

The three leaders were at pains to ensure that they did not mention the People’s Republic of China, but this partnership is primarily about countering Chinese expansionism in the region. It is sending a warning to Beijing that the US and UK are united in their opposition to Chinese expansion to the extent that they are willing to provide a close ally with unparalleled levels of technological assistance – not seen since the 1958 US–UK Mutual Defense Agreement on nuclear weapons cooperation – to bring about a step change in Royal Australian Navy (RAN) capability.

China, as expected, has not been happy about this development, with

sea power

Australia reinforced these assumptions, whether they are justified or not, and the sudden collapse of Australian defence cooperation with France is a national humiliation.

Although relations are starting to improve again with the return of the ambassadors and the leaders back to speaking terms again, the long-term damage is that France no longer trusts some of its closest allies in NATO. This is something that France will emphasise as one of the European Union’s major powers. Whether the EU will follow France’s lead is another matter, but it is clear the ramifications of this will be longlasting.

Volte face France would have known Naval Group’s submarine deal with Australia was not running smoothly. Despite being in the early stages of development, the SEA 1000 was already in significant trouble and there was a growing opinion in Australian defence circles and media that the Attack-class programme would not deliver on time or to its already inflated cost. The Elysee Palace and Naval Group may have become complacent that Australia would never actually cancel the

flagship defence programme it had been promoting for five years.

There is no question that the 4,500 tonne Attack-class submarine Barracuda Shortfin 1A design, which is a modification of the French Navy’s Suffren-class SSN design, would have been a very capable SSK. But the problem is at what cost would the acquisition of 12 of these boats be for Australia, and were they going to meet the RAN’s future subsurface requirements of the 2050s.

Following the selection of Naval Group’s Barracuda design and contract signing in 2016 there was a significant two-year delay in signing the Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA). The SPA was designed to manage the relationship between the Australian Department of Defence and the company throughout the programme’s expected 30-year construction and the delivery cycle for all 12 boats that would take place through from 2034-2056. This is already late.

Under the original plans in Australia’s 2009 Defence White Paper the first boat was supposed to be in-service by 2025.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) had reported in 2020 that were was an overall nine-month delay in the project and Naval Group had failed to

Huntington Ingalls Shipbuilding

Zhao Lijian, Beijing’s foreign ministry spokesperson stating that it "seriously undermines regional peace and stability and intensifies the arms race". The Chinese embassy in Washington said that the AUKUS countries had a "Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice".

However, the most serious fallout from the new partnership is the impact on NATO ally France. Paris has seen its staterun shipbuilder Naval Group ejected from its position as prime contractor on Australia’s largest-ever defence procurement programme (SEA 1000 has been valued at $65 billion). Although the official language is that Canberra opted not to proceed through the next milestone on SEA 1000 it gave neither Paris nor Naval Group any advance warning about the decision.

This has been received very badly in France. French foreign minister JeanYves Le Drian said it was a “stab in the back” and called it “unacceptable behaviour among allies and partners”.

Paris recalled its ambassadors to the US and Australia. This is not an overreaction because it damages French perceptions that it is a major power with strong interests and influence in the IndoPacific region. Building submarines for

The USS Washington (SSN-787) is a Virginia-class nuclear powered attack submarine commissioned into the US Navy in October 2017.

| october/november 2021 |

07

sea

power

HMAS Rankin conducts helicopter transfers in Cockburn Sound, Western Australia, as part of Rankin's training assessments to ensure the boat is ready to deploy.

meet two of its key design milestones dates. The project had already been reset. The ANAO also found that differing approaches to the engineering work required and expected deliverables at each stage had an impact on the project and that any delay of three years or more to the programme more could mean a reduction in submarine capability for the RAN. Relations between the company and the Australian DoD had soured significantly over this time and there were already rumours in the media – despite the DoD’s vociferous denial – that a backup plan was being put in place.

Ultimately it was these programmatic problems that opened to the door for the DoD to look at other options including SSNs. Until now the nuclear option had been ruled out because of cost and the lack of any civilian nuclear infrastructure to support it. But the geo-strategic outlook had changed. Looking ahead the DoD could see that the expansion of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), including its nuclear submarine force, would pose a significantly higher threat much sooner than previously imagined.

Even a force of 12 SSKs would be limited in what it could achieve considering the distance from naval

08

bases in Australia to its area of operations across the Indo-Pacific region, including the South China Sea, East China Sea and at maritime choke points. Furthermore, the capabilities that the Attack-class can offer would not be that far removed from those already provided by the RAN’s existing fleet of Collins-class SSKs. Dieselelectric boats are just not able to offer the kind of range and endurance, or support the kinds of weapons and sensors that the RAN will need in the future that can only be hosted by a SSN. It may be a fair assessment that for $65+ billion the RAN would not be getting enough bang for the buck to meet the new naval threats that would emerge by the time all 12 boats Attackclass boats would be delivered. If there was a delay in the programme it would mean that the first of the six Collins-class SSKs would start to leave service (after a Life of Type Extension - LOTE) from 2038 without a replacement, causing the RAN a significant capability reduction.

However, Marcus Hellyer from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) told AMR that although the SSN decision is the right one in capability terms it raises serious concerns relating to delivery; choosing a SSN instead of a SSK at this late stage isn’t going to improve

| Asian Military Review |

the cost and schedule implications.

“Those eight SSNs are going to cost significantly more than 12 conventional boats,” he said. “The government's 2020 Defence Strategic Update said that it is no longer expected that it will be 10 years before a conflict may arise involving Australia. Well, there is a discrepancy between that high level assessment and the timeframes around the naval shipbuilding programme; that inconsistency is even more stark and glaring, because it's going to take even longer to get the future SSN submarines.”

Submarine gap The Attack-class SSKs were expected to enter service from 2034 giving a fouryear gap before the first LOTE upgraded Collins-class SSK, HMAS Farncomb, is expected to be decommissioned. The DoD has said that the decision to build SSNs instead would add two to four years compared to the Attack-class delivery schedule giving a possible in-service date of the first boat from 2036-38, assuming no delays or problems.

Hellyer said that other DoD briefings have concluded that 2040 is a more realistic date for the arrival of the first SSN, which surely would mean a gap. But despite the 10 extra years the LOTE will

sea power

| september 2021 |

09

sea

Naval Group

power

What was to have been - Naval Group’s Attack class submarine.

years and do not need refuelling. This give the Collins-class, there is no absolute suits Australia because it does not want date as to when they should retire. a nuclear industry to manage the SSN’s “But there is no risk margin in that nuclear cycle, and it simplifies the transition,” he said, meaning there is still support requirements significantly by a high chance of a submarine capability avoiding this. gap for the RAN. “The Minister has But even if Australia purchases offtalked about the possibility of leasing the-shelf reactors in a box from the US an SSN, but there is nobody out there or UK to reduce that risk, Hellyer said who has an extra SSN in good condition waiting for somebody to come along,” that does not eliminate the need for a regulatory and safety superstructure: Hellyer warned.

An 18-month scoping phase is “There is a huge amount of training that all personnel, either crewing the boats underway between the AUKUS countries or on-shore involved in that regulatory to decide the best way for Australia to structure, have to do to ensure they have acquire new SSNs. The DoD has stated that the SSNs will be built in Adelaide, the requisite skills in nuclear technologies.

There is a very large infrastructure that likely at the Osborne North facility where comes with this, even if we try to do this Naval Group had started the early stages in the easiest possible way,” he explained. of construction of a shipyard to build the This will be a key part of the 18-month Attack-class. This area will be re-tasked assessment. but it will have to be a different kind of yard to build a 10,000 tonne boat instead of one that half that size, and it is not clear Is the timing right? what will be required to support SSNs Australia has a limited choice in the design long-term. and type of the SSN. Buying existing “This is one of the big unknowns,” reactors for an existing design that is Hellyer said, “People can do a quick merely assembled in Australia is the least costing exercise to work out the cost risky option. This means either selecting of the boats, but what we don’t really the UK Royal Navy’s Astute-class SSN understand is the overhead in operating design or the US Navy’s Virginia-class nuclear boats.”

SSN with as few modifications as possible.

The US and UK will be providing A completely new design is a third option, nuclear reactor technology and, unlike but this would entail too much risk.

France, its latest reactors will last for 35 “The government has sort of said it

10

| Asian Military Review |

is aiming to start construction in the late 2020s, which is a very racy timeline; it does not leave any, any room of messing around with substantial design modifications,” Hellyer said.

The question then becomes one of timing, and which type of Astute-class or Virginia-class design is chosen. Hellyer explained that the US is already starting construction of its Block V Virginia-class and by the late 2020s they will have a new block design ready for construction in the early 2030s. Around the same time the UK will be moving on to its SSN(R) Astuteclass replacement.

“So we'll just be starting our programme at the time the US is moving to whatever comes next and that is looking to be even bigger and even more expensive,” he said, adding that Australia will not want to start building one type and then transition to another.

There are further concerns about the engagement of Australian industry. It is unlikely that local firms will be able to produce many components for the SSNs in Australia due to the inordinate amount of time it would take to certify thousands of pieces of equipment.

“Nothing about this is simple or straightforward. So even when we want to keep it as simple as possible, implementing that has already raises some fairly difficult questions,” Hellyer concluded. AMR

Regional

US Army

M i l i t a r i e s

Synthetic training using Virtual or Augmented reality can be used as a tool for both individual training or for a group working together in a common scenario. The US Army Dismounted Soldier Training System (DSTS) translates soldiers’ movements into a simulated training environment where soldiers can conduct patrols, clear buildings, and practice tactics.

SYNTHETIC BATTLEFIELD Rapid advances in training, including gaming, are cutting costs while honing a wide range of soldiering skills.

S

ynthetic training seeks to bring together live, virtual, and constructive training in a common environment.

Also referred to as Synthetic Training Environments (STE), it can provide individual, small unit and crew training, as well as tactical unit interaction at various levels including brigade and higher. STE elements can be applied to mounted and dismounted ground forces, to aerial platforms, and to command exercises. By combining virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence, it can project various scenarios placing participants in seemingly realistic situations and circumstances.

Various operating terrains and

12

by Stephen W. Miller tactical events can be set, confronting participants with simple to complex exercises. Training in a synthetic environment provides both the opportunity to review and critique the exercise and to repeat it.

Former US Secretary of Defense and retired Marine Corps General James Mattis in support of the synthetic training concept stated that it “could allow a soldier to fight twenty-five bloodless battles.” The objective is allowing for repetition in a task or situation, while allowing mistakes facilitates in this ‘bloodless’ environment and learning from them. Further, this learning process allows new challenges to be introduced into subsequent iterations as appropriate encouraging adaptability.

| Asian Military Review |

Technical Origin Synthetic training provides an immersed experience to those participating. In this, the military is drawing from existing and rapidly evolving commercial computer and gaming technologies. It parallels and, in some cases, expands on its combination of processing, an array of sensors, Bluetooth links, and display technologies. An example is Microsoft’s application of its HoloLens head mounted gaming display adapted as the US Army Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS).

Doug Bonderud, writing in Northrop-Grumman’s NOW on-line magazine observed that “commercial gaming VR [virtual reality] in mimicking real-world scenarios such as combat

Regional

M i l i t a r i e s

| october/november 2021 |

13

Regional

SAAB

M i l i t a r i e s

The ability of synthetic training to not only provide realistic scenarios in a tactical exercise but to also offer the capability for participants to playback to review and critique their actions. In Saab’s GAMER system events recorded and time tagged for later After Action Review.

situations or high-speed racing, generated. Augmented Reality overlays outside data, 3D objects and/or video replicates military’s requirements… It real or simulated on top of one’s current is also making its way into the world of view of the world, while continuing to quick decision-making. Current games let you see the world around you. Live, provide the foundation for improving Virtual and Constructive (LVC) provides cognitive ability, communications, and a resilient and secure open architecture teamwork. VR gaming introduces a and modular scenarios so warfighters kind of controlled chaos where gamers can adapt to any mission and combat are immersed through visual, auditory exercise. Augmented Virtuality (AV) is and even tactile stimuli and must then like Virtual Reality, with one exception respond to chaotic situations.” Parallels to the battlefield, combat and military — not everything one sees, hears, and interacts with is virtually generated. In challenges are evident. Taking the AV, real-world objects are merged into process from the living room to the field and interact with the virtual world, such is the focus of a number of industry and as sounds, smells, sensations, movement, government efforts. and information.

Computer-based modelling and simulation programs Synthetic Training Environments (STE) provide computer-based modelling Northrop-Grumman Training and and simulation capabilities to enhance Simulation Solutions’ understanding of mission readiness using models to create STE is as follows: ‘Synthetic Training and display simulations and analysis actually consists of a number of elements including Virtual Reality (VR), on a computer. The computer-based modelling and simulation can be used for Augmented Reality (AR), Live, Virtual training, data analysis, experimentation, and Constructive (LVC), Augmented and gaming.’

Virtuality, and computer-based modelling and simulation programmes.

The differences are at times subtle but Benefits of Synthetic Training important. VR replaces your world ST offers a range of benefits such as with a simulated one in which you are training on systems and tasks that would fully immersed and everything you be otherwise too expensive or dangerous, see, hear, and interact with is virtually such as bomb disposal. It also allows

14

| Asian Military Review |

the safe simulation of events such as equipment failures or collisions in order to teach the proper responses. ST can also offer step-by-step guidance in conducting maintenance, repair and assuring the proper execution of procedures.

Equally important is its ability to not only introduce various situations and conditions into a simulated event, but to then re-enact that event again and again. Participants confront problems in a ‘real’ scenarios and can then repeat the exercise addressing errors and refining their responses. Through this repetition, procedures and teamwork can be perfected while the insertion of unanticipated contingencies to expand the learning.

Another advantage of training in the synthetic environment is its portability and ready accessibility. As Mike Knowles, president at Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions, shared: “Virtual and augmented reality training mediums can be provided that can be used almost anywhere. They do not necessarily require dedicated onsite infrastructure or even prescribed training times. It allows for training to be conducted at more convenient times and at more locations, even sites across the globe.” This is particularly useful in providing deployed training where maintaining and improving proficiency can be a challenge.

Augmented Reality (AR) Virtual Reality, according to data gathered by Northrop-Grumman, has demonstrated 80 percent increased effectiveness over traditional learning in many military applications such as individual skill, vehicle, equipment, and operational training. It provides an improved learning experience that fully engages the user. It can reduce training time and costs. Yet, it is augmented and mixed-reality capabilities that are being viewed by the military as offering the most significant advances. As Marlo Brooke, CEO of AVATAR Partners, a company offering AR software, pointed out: “Augmented reality transposes data or other digitally created images on top of a real-world field of view. Mixed reality also merges real and virtual worlds to produce new environments where physical and digital entities coexist.” Plus, it can be equally applied to training and actual service and combat.

The military’s embrace of AR is well represented by the US Army’s pursuit

l and

w us a rat f aSeoul r e ADEX Visit

DE L I V E RI NG O N TARG E T

New technology for more capable, high-performance weapons guidance Our Atlantic Inertial Systems’ ultra-reliable Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) inertial measurement units extend the range and performance of many weapons types.

And now, they deliver fibre-optic gyro levels of performance without the added size, weight and cost. collinsaerospace.com/gnc

© 2021 Collins Aerospace

| september 2021 |

15

Regional M i l i t a r i e s

Embracing Military Synthetic Training

USMC

The capabilities and benefits of synthetic training has been recognised by militaries worldwide. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China has taken initiatives to use these technologies to improve the training given to its military

forces. The Intelligent Commando VR training system developed by the stateowned China Electronics Technology Group, allows trainees to carry out combat drills on virtual battlefields, alongside either real teammates or AI manufactured avatars. Trainees wear VR headsets in which battlefield simulations are presented. Interactions can be recorded allowing post-event review and critique. Said Wu Zhen Feng, vice director of the 28th Research Institute of the CETC: “we have integrated a number of key technologies including large space positioning technology, optical and inertial navigation sensor interaction space positioning technology, the technology to rapidly construct virtual scenes based on geographical information, as well as the technology to assess combat drills based on machine learning.”

Derek Williams, director of communications at OTR, a United Kingdom IT integrator working in VR/ AR since 2007 commented that “the Chinese military have consistently proclaimed that virtual reality technology will provide the PLA with a distinctive edge in combat readiness, vehicle and weapons lifecycle, personnel

USMC

and recent $21.88 billion ten-year contract to Microsoft for 120,000 augmentedreality headsets. The HoloLens based Integrated Visual Augmentation System (IVAS) combines a computer, a sensor array, a wide lens with internal display and communication and data links to produce, share, and enhance information presented to the soldier wearing it.

These allow IVAS to also be used as a training device that can replicate various scenarios and situations reflecting individual to unit tasks. Coupled with outside video and event data collection it would contribute to an interactive and reviewable tactical training system combining physical and virtual features.

In fact, Microsoft’s HoloLens 2, its current civilian version, is now being pitched more for surgeons, maintenance engineers and work applications than for gamers.

Synthetic training environments can include construction of surroundings replicating a particular environment which is then augmented by simulations as in this infantry squad training facility.

Here a Canadian Army team practices clearing a village.

16

| Asian Military Review |

management, and even information warfare.” China has made significant investment toward realising this goal.

The Republic of Korea (ROK) Army has committed to being ‘slimmer but smarter’ by strengthening individual soldiers' combat capability. It introduced its Warrior Platform, an advanced combat system for individual soldiers allowing them to become more independent combat capability. A critical part in achieving this is enhancing combat skills. For that the ROK is turning to Synthetic Training. In 2018 it invested in VR comprehensive training systems for firing and tactical training, later adding AR simulation for exercising command and control. In March 2021 Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI) committed to entering the LCV integrated training market. This may be in response to the Ministry of Defence 2020 White Paper plans for establishing LCV with VR and AR as part of its ‘small defence’ innovation.

Singapore’s limited land space, a common constraint in the Indo-Pacific, makes ST especially attractive. In fact, it is viewed as a pioneer in simulation training. According to the Ministry of Defence, it realised a 60 percent reduction in time to train its truck and small vehicle drivers in road and crosscountry using VR developed by its Defence Science and Technology Agency (DTSA). It is also adapting commercial games for military applications. As a conscript force levering gaming ST has shown significant benefits.

Swedish defence company Saab has been active in military training systems for over 35 years. Its live combat training solutions are in service with over 25 nations including the US, the UK, a majority of the European nations as well as Thailand, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. Asap Thegström, head of Training & Simulation, Saab’s Dynamics business explained: “Every training scenario, environment, or system, needs to reflect authentic battlefield experiences in order to hone combat instincts. The foundation of this is allowing warfighters to train with weapons and equipment that accurately simulate the fit, form and function of their battlefield kit.” This includes reflecting as closely as possible its actual performance so as not to demonstrate false capabilities. “From this standpoint,” he continued, “range, ballistics and time of flight are hugely

Regional

KMW

M i l i t a r i e s

Gunnery training is critical to developing a combat vehicle crew’s proficiency. Utilising an actual vehicle, ammunition and necessary range facilities are, however, expensive. Synthetic training technologies applied to gunnery simulators are offering, like this one by Kraus-Maffei Weggmann for the Leopard tank, realistically replicate the environment and experiences.

important characteristics of any weapon system. These characteristics need be in the warfighter’s mind both when conducting training and on operations.

So, training systems must also replicate these same characteristics, in order that weapons can be correctly employed, and the necessary and correct lessons learned.”

The Australian Armed Forces have been exploring ST for some years and have introduced VR marksmanship, flight, and other individual skill trainers since 2015. A collaboration by the Defence Science and Technology Group (DST) and Saab Australia recently demonstrated the HoloLens.

It and other ST technologies are being investigated toward exploiting existing tools to facilitate the transition to a fifth generation fighting force. GPCAPT Pete Mitchell, for the director of Plan Jericho, shared: “We are exploring the possibilities…As ARV applications become more commercial and mainstream, we expect this potential to grow exponentially.” In fact, the Army’s is using VR as its primary training medium for its new Protected Mobility Vehicle (PMV) and for close combat visualisation. Australian industries like InVeris, Saab and Cubic Australia are offering state-of-the-art ST products.

InVeris displayed a range of ST products

at the June 2021 Land Forces show in Brisbane. These include the FATS 180MIL high-fidelity simulation trainer that had been endorsed and fielded by the US Army and Marines,

ACRO P-2™

The Future Craig Beddis, CEO and co-founder, Hadean said: “Synthetic training environments leverage gaming engines to simulate the battlefield and its many different facets. Military training today often involves multi-domain operations, where forces from land, sea, air and now even space and cyberspace come together. These are complex scenarios, with a number of potential outcomes, making them difficult to simulate for training purposes.”

The challenge for ST is incorporating the differing aspects of land, sea, air and cyber into a representative yet common picture and accommodate their interaction. Still, given the projected advances in technology Beddis suggests this is possible explaining that “the technologies (such as Hadean’s) provide robust and secure scalability, enabling vast simulations, including more detail, realism and complexity. Plus, users can connect from anywhere in the world and interact through a common operating picture.” AMR

EXPERIENCE THE ACRO ADVANTAGE • Professional grade pistol optic • CR2032 battery – 5 year life, constant-on • Fully enclosed optical channel • Compatible with night vision • Withstands extreme G-force vibration & temperature changes • Legendary Aimpoint ruggedness • Submersible to 35 meters

www.aimpoint.com M03551

| october/november 2021 |

17

AIR power

to bolster the armed forces’ air and naval capabilities.

Although the Executive Yuan did not identify specific platforms, draft legislation to support the special budget reportedly includes funding priorities to acquire indigenously developed Tien Chien II (Sky Sword II) medium-range air-to-air missiles (MRAAMs), Tien Kung III (Sky Bow III) surface-to-air missiles, and Hsiung Feng IIE (Brave Wind IIE) surface-to-surface cruise missiles. The MRAAMs arm the domestic Aerospace Industrial Development Corporation (AIDC) F-CK-1A/B ChingKuo (Indigenous Defence Fighter, IDF) aircraft.

South Korean president Moon Jae-in addresses the audience during the unveiling of the KF-21 Boramae 4.5-generation combat aircraft.

ASIAN AIR FORCE MODERNISATION Regional tensions have forced the pace for regional air forces to buy new capability or update legacy platforms.

T

by JR Ng

he increasing prospects of a peeron-peer conflict among Asia Pacific armed forces, particularly in East Asia, are steadily rising as China’s increasingly belligerent behaviour ramps-up concern within the immediate region as well as further afield.

Amid heightened tensions across the Taiwan Strait, China has been deploying a record number of military aircraft near the self-ruled island – which Beijing considers as a renegade province that must be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary – in a renewed show of force that commenced on 1 October: the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) announced on 4 October that an unprecedented 56 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, including two Sukhoi Su-30 and 38 Shenyang Aircraft Corporation J-16 multirole fighters, two Shaanxi Y-8Q/ KQ-200 anti-submarine warfare (ASW)optimised aircraft, two KJ-500 airborne

18

early warning and control (AEW&C) platforms, and 12 H-6 strategic bombers, had entered the island's southwestern air-defence identification zone (ADIZ).

The figure represents the largest number of PLA aircraft registered in a single day since the MND began announcing PLA aircraft movements near Taiwan in September 2020.

The surge in military aircraft followed three earlier days of PLA aircraft operations in the same area, with 39, 16, and 39 aircraft entering the ADIZ between 1-3 October respectively. The MND noted that the Republic of China Air Force (RoCAF) reacted on each occasion by deploying its own fighters, issuing radio warnings, and mobilising its air-defence systems until the PLA aircraft left the area.

The escalating tensions come as Taipei continues to acquire advanced US military equipment and establish closer ties with Washington. Moreover, Taiwan's Executive Yuan recently announced a plan to spend $8.56 billion (NT$240 billion) over the next five years

| Asian Military Review |

Further trouble brewing China has also piled pressure on other regional rivals such as Japan, with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) recording 725 scrambles in fiscal year (FY) 2020, 458 times (63 percent) against Chinese aircraft, 258 times (36 percent) against Russian aircraft and one percent others in the period of 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021. According to the JASDF, the bulk of scrambles were undertaken by its southwestern air defence forces with 404 sorties – almost double that of the northern sector forces.

The PLA’s aggressive modernisation since the 1990s, initially fuelled by Russian combat aircraft and weapon imports but now underpinned by new and increasingly capable indigenous systems, have significantly shifted the aerial balance of power in East Asia and places it in a favourable position to challenge Japanese, South Korean, Taiwanese, and even US regional airpower.

Air superiority State-owned Chinese military aerospace companies have made some remarkable advancements over the past 20 years, moving up the value-chain from modifying or reverse engineering Soviet and Russian aircraft technology to developing indigenous platforms.

China’s military aerospace ambition can be seen in a growing number of local designs, starting from the single-engine Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) J-10 multirole combat aircraft which was developed from the 1980s by its Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) and entered the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) service in 2003. The initial model, the J-10A, was superseded by the improved J-10B with a

AIR power

C-390 MILLENNIUM

UNBEATABLE COMBINATION

RAPID RECONFIGURATION AND THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY. Delivering paratroops, transporting cargo, conducting air-to-air refuelling, or delivering critical medical care, the C-390 Millennium has class-leading multi-role capabilities and features. This new generation aircraft exploits latest technologies and innovations. These include advanced fly-by-wire and digital integrated avionics.

This not only makes the C-390 Millennium easier to fly, it also reduces the workload on the crew. Already proven in service with the Brazilian Air Force, the C-390 has also been selected by the Portuguese and Hungarian Air Forces to meet their current and future mission demands. The C-390 is setting a new benchmark in reliability, efficiency and mission capability.

#C390UnbeatableCombination embraerds.com

| october/november 2021 |

19

AIR

Russian MoD

power

An AVIC Chengdu J-10C fighter

redesigned airframe and more powerful Russian-made Salyut AL-31FN Series 3 engine offering over 30,200lb (134.4kN) of thrust around 2013.

The latest variant of the J-10 family is the J-10C, which made its maiden flight in December 2013 and entered service in April 2018. The J-10C features a new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar of unknown designation, improved avionics including a new datalink for the PL-15 beyond visual range anti-air missile (BVRAAM).

At least 600 J-10s are expected to eventually enter service with the PLAAF to replace the ageing CAC J-7 fighterbombers, which entered service in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

CAC also developed the twin-engine J-20, a single-seat multirole fighter with low-observability features such as twin, outward-canted, serrated edge landing gear doors, and an internal weapons bay.

The J-20 is also equipped with a chinmounted electro-optical targeting system (EOTS) that appears to be comparable to the one found on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF).

Low-rate initial production (LRIP) aircraft are believed to have been fitted with a heavily modified version of the Russian 99M2 (AL-31FM2) engine.

However, it is known that the intent is to equip serial production J-20s with domestically manufactured engines. This desire appears to be close to fulfilment, with the PLAAF demonstrating two examples powered by indigenously developed WS10C turbofan engines at the recently concluded Airshow China 2021 in Zhuhai.

Other in-service PLAAF twinengine combat aircraft include the AVIC

20

Shenyang Aircraft Corporation (SAC) J-11B air superiority fighter, which is essentially derived from reverseengineered technology from imported and locally assembled Russian Sukhoi Su-27 airframes. Initial deliveries of the type commenced in the late 1990s, followed by a tandem-seat version, the J-11BS, around 2010.

The latest J-11B variant, which reportedly entered serial production in late 2020, features substantial improvements including a strengthened airframe with reduced radar crosssection (RCS), an improved AESA firecontrol radar, as well as modernised avionics and the domestically produced Liming WS10B engine.

SAC has also developed a long-range strike variant of the J-11BS, the J-16, featuring locally developed avionics and weapons as opposed to the mainly Russian-supplied equipment used in the earlier model. The J-16 further improves on the J-11 with an increased stores carrying capacity using 12 hardpoints as opposed to the 10 available to the latter,

as well as a wider range of precision guided munitions. With the fielding of the stealthy J-20 for air superiority missions, the type is now considered by many to be an ideal standoff engagement platform comparable to the F-22/F-35 and F-15 mix being explored by the US Air Force (USAF).

A new electronic warfare (EW) variant of J-16, known as the J-16D, was first sighted in December 2015. Although no official data of this variant has been released, the type is clearly distinctive from the baseline J-16 multirole fighter in several aspects, featuring a shorter nosecone believed to house an AESA radar and large wingtip pods with vertical antennas. The standard internal 30mm cannon and the infrared search and track (IRST) sensor system have also been removed, likely to free up space for the additional EW systems required for its specialised role.

The PLAAF debuted the type at Airshow China 2021, with the displayed aircraft also featuring four large jamming pods under its wings and air intakes. Each pod is clearly physically distinct and is therefore likely to cover different frequency ranges in the electronic spectrum. The first J-16D prototype that reportedly first flew in late 2015 had been seen with KG600 EW pods developed by China Electronics Technology Group, although the new pods seen on the aircraft in Zhuhai have not been previously documented.

Meanwhile across the Taiwan Strait, the RoCAF has committed to a recapitalisation of its combat aircraft fleet. The Legislative Yuan in October 2019 approved the procurement of 66 Lockheed Martin F-16V Fighting Falcon multirole combat aircraft – coming after US State Department clearance about two months prior – worth around $8 billion

The J-16D is the electronic warfare (EW) variant of J-16.

| Asian Military Review |

AIR power

| october/november 2021 |

21

AIR

single-seat F-15Js and two-seat F-15DJs are believed to have been built by MHI under license from Boeing between 1980 and 2000.

The DCS agreement, which was announced by Boeing on 28 July, lays the groundwork for the wider $4.5 billion modernisation programme for up to 98 F-15J/DJs into the Japanese Super Interceptor (JSI) configuration approved by the US State Department under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism in October 2019.

“Sojitz Corporation, a trading company that works with Boeing’s team in Japan, will support this effort,” Boeing said in its statement, adding that it will provide MHI with retrofit drawings, technical publications, and ground support equipment for the upgrade of the first two F-15J aircraft to the F-15JSI configuration.

In contrast, MHI will be responsible for developing detailed modification plans and putting in place the necessary infrastructure and skilled workforce for upgrade work to commence in 2022.

According to Boeing the upgrades will introduce state-of-the-art electronic warfare and weapons: “An all-new advanced cockpit system, running on the world’s most advanced mission computer, will deliver pilots enhanced situational awareness.”

The F-15JSI configuration will also feature the Raytheon AN/APG-82(V)1 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, the Honeywell Advanced Display Core Processor II (ADCP II) mission computer, and the BAE Systems AN/ ALQ-239 Digital Electronic Warfare DAPA

to add to those already received under the service’s ongoing Phoenix Rising upgrade programme, which involves the upgrade of 142 older F-16A/B aircraft to the F-16V standard.

As with the comparable upgrade programmes underway for Singaporean and South Korean F-16s, Phoenix Rising includes the Northrop Grumman APG83 active electronically scanned array Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR), a new mission computer, as well as updates to the electronic warfare suite and avionics. The AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missile and precision-guided Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) have also been integrated.

The programme experience delays in its initial development stage due the discovery of airframe corrosion and various technical issues. Lockheed Martin’s local partner, AIDC, handed over the first upgrade F-16V at its Taichung facility in October 2018. A further 36 aircraft were handed over to the RoCAF by December 2020, with the last aircraft due to be completed by 2023.

However, while the additional newbuild F-16Vs will certainly be welcome news for the RoCAF, the service’s long-term stated ambition is to procure a fifthgeneration fighter such as the Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II JSF. A comprehensive effort to modernise and upgrade the Japan Air Self-Defense Force’s (JASDF) fleet of F-15J interceptors has progressed following a Direct Commercial Sale (DCS) agreement signed between Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Boeing to support upgrades to the aircraft. Over 200

KAI's KF-21 Boramae is set to be the next-generation mainstay fighter for the Republic of Korea Air Force.

22

| Asian Military Review |

USAF

power

A Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) F-15J Eagle over Misawa Air Base, Japan, 2017. A $4.5 billion modernisation programme will upgrade 98 F-15Js into the Japanese Super Interceptor (JSI) configuration.

System (DEWS). Other enhancements include new aircraft radios and antispoofing GPS systems.

Many of these upgrades are comparable to those developed under Boeing’s Advanced Eagle programme, which has resulted in Qatar’s F-15QA, Saudi Arabia’s F-15SA, and the United States’ upcoming F-15EX platforms.

Japan officially selected the conventional take-off and landing Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II JSF as its next-generation fighter in December 2011 to replace the ageing F-4EJ Phantom which had been used by the JASDF for close to 50 years before being retired in December 2020. The country plans to acquire a total of 105 F-35A aircraft to be initially being based at Misawa Air Base, although it is reportedly looking to expand F-35A activity to Komatsu Air Base by 2025.

Over in the Korean Peninsula, South Korean aerospace and defence prime Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) has rolled out the first prototype aircraft under development for the Korean Fighter eXperimental (KF-X) programme, which aims to develop a multirole platform that will replace the Republic of Korea Air Force’s (RoKAF’s) ageing F-4D/E Phantom II and F-5E/F Tiger II aircraft. The RoKAF is expected to acquire 40 KF-21s by 2028 and another 80 aircraft by 2032.

The indigenously developed twinengine prototype was officially unveiled in a ceremony held on 9 April at KAI’s headquarters in Sacheon. The event was also attended by South Korean President Moon Jae-in and Indonesian Defence

AIR

Airbus Defence & Space

power

Following years of uncertainty, Airbus has finally inked a deal to supply its C295 airlifter to the Indian Air Force.

Minister Prabowo Subianto.

Now officially named KF-21 Boramae (Hawk), the ‘4.5-generation’ aircraft is powered by two General Electric F414GE-400K engines from General Electric (GE) Aviation and is expected to have a maximum take-off weight of 56,300lb (25,580kg) with a payload capacity nearly up to 17,000lb (7,700kg).

The maiden flight of the first prototype, designated aircraft 001, is scheduled for 2022 following ground testing. KAI earlier stated that the initial production aircraft will be optimised for air-to-air combat and will have limited air-to-ground capabilities. It will feature three hardpoints under each wing for weapons and/or external fuel stores, while missiles can also be externally carried under the fuselage. Serial production aircraft, however, will be fully capable of performing both mission sets. LRIP production is expected to commence from 2026, with full-rate production following from 2028.

The KF-21 will be equipped with an AESA radar jointly developed by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) and Hanwha Systems, which is claimed to be capable of detecting and tracking more than 1,000 targets simultaneously.

Other local content includes an electrooptical targeting pod and an infrared search-and-track (IRST) system from Hanwha Systems, while LIG Nex1 is supplying its electronic warfare (EW) self-protection system.

The aircraft will also feature terrain following/terrain avoidance (TF/TA) systems from Israel’s Elbit Systems and several critical systems from Collins Aerospace, including its Environmental Control System (ECS) – which comprise air conditioning, bleed air control, cabin pressurisation and liquid cooling systems – and Variable Speed Constant

24

Frequency (VSCF) generator, as well as engine start components.

It will be armed with a range of European and US-made weapons, with planned integration of systems such as the Diehl Defence IRIS-T short-range airto-air missile and MBDA Missile Systems Meteor BVRAAM, as well as the Boeing GBU-31/38 JDAM, GBU-54/56 Laser JDAM, and GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb1 (SDB1) and Raytheon GBU-12 Paveway II. Indonesia is the only foreign partner in the KF-X development programme, which is known as the Indonesian Fighter eXperimental (IF-X) programme and had earlier committed to paying 20 percent of total development costs, although it has reportedly fallen behind on payments and is renegotiating its position.

KAI revealed in an April 2021 stock exchange filing that it is planning to develop a new ‘smart factory’ to support the production of the KF-21 platform.

The company said it will invest around $87 million over five years to set up a ‘smart manufacturing system’ that will leverage on 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and big data analytics.

While the new facility will be utilised across several projects, one of its initial tasks is expected to be the production of KF-21 components and structures. It is understood that KAI aims to localise production of approximately 65 percent of KF-21 components, involving the participation of over 700 domestic companies.

Boosting airlift capacity Besides their primary role of airborne logistical support, tactical airlifters have gained widespread attention in recent years due to their outsized contributions

| Asian Military Review |

to regional humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations.

Among the most notable demonstrations of airlift in recent months is the use of the USAF’s Lockheed Martin C-5M Super Galaxy and Boeing C-17 heavy airlifters to deliver much needed aid to alleviate India’s COVID-19 surge in mid-2021.

According to the USAF Transportation Command, deliveries performed by a C-17 and three C-5M aircraft included more than one million N95 masks, over 440 oxygen cylinders, and more than one million rapid diagnostic test kits. One of the flights also carried a Deployable Oxygen Concentration System donated by the state of California.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) likewise deployed its airlift assets around the Asia Pacific region to collect urgently needed medical and oxygen supplies, including one sortie with one of its C-17s to Singapore’s Changi Airport to receive four liquid oxygen tanks in late April. The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) followed within the same period with two of its Lockheed Martin C-130 medium transporters, delivering 256 oxygen cylinders from Singapore to West Bengal.

India has since committed to increasing its airlift capacity by signing for 56 new Airbus Defence and Space C295 transport aircraft, the company announced on 24 September. The first 16 aircraft are to be built by Airbus in Spain, with the remaining 40 to be assembled in India by the end of 2031 through local partner Tata consortium under a joint venture between the two companies.

Deliveries are expected to commence from 2025.

India is to receive the latest variant of the twin-turboprop airlifter designated the C295MW (Modernised, Winglets) that has been acquired by 34 other operators, with the aim of replacing its 1960s-vintage licence-built Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Avro 748M aircraft. The updated model offers improved hot and high runway performance, with increased range, endurance, and payload, and reduced operating costs compared to the baseline platform.

“India has formalised the acquisition of 56 Airbus C295 aircraft to replace the Indian Air Force (IAF) legacy Avro fleet. It is the first ‘Make in India' aerospace programme in the private sector, involving the full development of a complete industrial ecosystem:

AIR

L3Harris

power

including recent COVID-related airlift and medical delivery operations. The country also encounters natural disasters such as earthquakes and flooding regularly, with the remote nature of many of its islands complicating any attempts to respond via sea or land.

Airborne intelligence

Australia is acquiring four new MC-55A Peregrine airborne intelligence aircraft.

from the manufacture to assembly, test and qualification, to delivery and maintenance of the complete lifecycle of the aircraft,” said Airbus in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Air Force (Tentara Nasional Indonesia-Angkatan Udara: TNI-AU) has quietly emerged as the latest operator of Lockheed Martin’s C-130J medium transporter, adding to its current fleet of older C-130B and H model aircraft. The TNI-AU has reportedly acquired five new C-130J-30 aircraft.

TNI-AU Chief of Staff Air Marshal Fadjar Prasetyo said in statement released on 7 September during a visit to Lockheed Martin's C-130J production site in Marietta, that the additional C-130Js will enhance Indonesia's airlift capabilities, noting that the platform type will continue to serve as the backbone of TNI-AU logistics and HADR operations.

CAS Prasetyo added that the service’s older C-130s have been successfully used in supporting disaster relief efforts in the Indonesian archipelago over the years,

The ability to detect, intercept, geo-locate, and analyse physical or electromagnetic activity of an adversary at long range is highly prized among modern armed forces, and Asian air arms are often seen as the vanguard against any potential incursions of sovereign territory.

Airborne platforms are particularly advantageous in this domain as they can naturally overcome line-of sight limitations imposed on land- and seabased platforms and are potentially capable of intercepting signals at greater distances, enabling information gathering beyond territorial boundaries.

Australia announced in March 2019 that it would acquire four MC-55A Peregrine signals intelligence (SIGINT) aircraft for approximately $1.9 billion

DOMINATORXP XP DOMINATOR

Medium MediumAltitude AltitudeLong LongEndurance EnduranceUAS UAS

ORBITER 4

Small Tactical UAS

ORBITER 3

Small Tactical UAS

Ahead of Time

ORBITER 1K

Loitering Munition UAS

Ahead o f Time

| october/november 2021 |

25

AIR

JR Ng

power

The Indonesian Air Force has acquired several examples of the Chinese-made CH-4 armed reconnaissance UAV.

with the intention of basing these at RAAF Base Edinburgh as well as three forward operating bases in Darwin and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands.

The RoKAF is looking to replace its four ageing Hawker 800SIG Peace Pioneer ISR aircraft with potentially more Dassault Falcon 2000S-based Baekdu SIGINT/ISR platforms to be constructed between 2022 and 2026 at a cost of around $728 million. Korean Air, which successfully developed and delivered the first two Baekdu aircraft between 2011 to 2018 with assistance from L3Harris Technologies (for the first aircraft), announced in July 2021 that it will also bid for the second Baekdu programme comprising up to four new aircraft.

The company noted that it had already entered into an agreement with Dassault Aviation in anticipation of a successful contract award, which suggests that the new programme will likely be based on the same Falcon 2000S platform. The four new aircraft are also expected to be equipped with foreign instrumentation signature intelligence (FISINT) capabilities as well as the ability to detect ballistic missile launches.

In June 2020 the Republic of Korea Defense Project Promotion Committee approved plans to acquire an undisclosed number of additional airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) and SIGINT aircraft to “minimise potential surveillance gaps amid growing security threats by neighbouring countries”, particularly as foreign military aircraft continue to enter South Korea's ADIZ without notice.

Close by, the JASDF is fielding new electronic and communications intelligence (ELINT AND COMINT)optimised aircraft built domestically

by Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI).

Designated RC-2 in JASDF service, the variant is differentiated from the baseline

26

C-2 heavy airlifter by its nose, dorsal, lateral, and fincap radomes, as well as an extended tail-cone and a ventral antenna farm. The RC-2 is expected to replace the service’s ageing turboprop Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (NAMC) YS-11EB aircraft.

“The current battlespace is a combination of conventional areas and new areas such as space, cyber, and the electromagnetic spectrum,” the JASDF announced during the acceptance ceremony of the first aircraft in October 2020. “The RC-2 will be an indispensable platform for securing the superiority of the electromagnetic domain, and in realising multi-domain operations.”

Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) Despite emerging concerns about the survivability of medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in contested environments, demand for these platforms is clearly still growing in the Asia-Pacific region.

Despite their vulnerability to air defence systems, the demonstrated operational use of MALE-class UAVs for both intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and strike in the Middle East and Pakistan over the past 20 years has captured the attention of several regional countries, especially those with expansive land borders or maritime territory to secure. What makes these platforms especially compelling for resource-constrained countries is their inherent ability to transit long distances and loiter for extended periods while carrying multiple types of sensor and mission equipment.

In November 2019 the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) shortlisted General Atomics Aeronautical Systems’ (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SkyGuardian to fulfil its requirement for an armed reconnaissance MALE UAV for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) under Project Air 7003 Phase 1, with the aim of fielding a fleet of 12 to16 MQ-9B platforms. In April 2021, the US State Department approved a potential $1.65 billion FMS of up to 12 weapons-ready MQ-9B systems, along with a sensors and weapons package and related equipment and services.

The SkyGuardian is a derivative of GA-ASI’s Reaper platform with hardware and software upgrades, including new flight control software and design improvements to reduce

| Asian Military Review |

structural fatigue and increase damage tolerance and environmental resistance.

The variant is also specifically designed to be able to operate in unsegregated airspace.

Australia is also anticipating six high-altitude long endurance Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton UAVs that were ordered in separate deals between 2018 and 2019. These are expected to enter service in mid-2023 and fully operationalised by 2025 with the intention of supporting the RAAF’s Boeing P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft in long-range maritime surveillance.

Southeast Asian countries have also demonstrated interest in long-range unmanned capabilities, Indonesia and the Philippines respectively fielding the Chinese-made Caihong 4 (CH-4) and the Israeli Elbit Systems Hermes 900 platforms. China is widely seen to be one of the leading regional suppliers of MALE-class UAVs, having deployed such platforms operationally for decades.

For instance, the interception of a brand-new Chinese-made air vehicle identified to be the Sichuan Tengden TB001 ‘Twin Tailed Scorpion’ by a Japanese fighter patrol over the East China Sea in late August 2021 provided the first glimpse of the country’s emerging confidence in its unmanned ISR capabilities.

Indonesia’s TNI-AU officially unveiled two satellite communicationsenabled CH-4 platforms during a parade to mark the 74th anniversary of the Indonesian Armed Forces in October 2019. The two UAVs, seen at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in East Jakarta, were supplied by the Beijing-based China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) and are understood to be part of a deal comprising up to six air vehicles, associated ground control systems (GCSs) and mission payloads, training, and technology transfers.

With its new CH-4s, the TNI-AU appears to be the first Southeast Asian country to field armed unmanned platforms with the reported delivery of CASC’s AR-2 precision-guided missiles in April 2021. The missile can engage lightly protected threats at ranges of up to 4.3nm (8km) with a 11lb (5kg) warhead, and features an inertial guidance system for mid-course updates and a semi-active laser (SAL) seeker for terminal guidance.

The Indonesian CH-4s were also seen carrying the larger AR-1 missiles during a 2019 exercise in East Java. AMR

AIR power

| october/november 2021 |

27

AIR power

WHITHER THE WEASEL? The real threat from ground based surface-to-air missiles means that the Vietnam era 'Wild Weasel' mission is still needed.

by Martin Streetly

T

he US Navy’s (USN) announcement that the Northrop Grumman AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile Extended Range (AARGM-ER) had received Milestone C programme approval on 23 August 2021 focused attention on the role and utility of antiradiation missiles (ARM) in 21st Century warfare.

Historically, ARM technology emerged during the Southeast Asian conflicts of the 1960s/70s when an urgent need arose for an effective counter to radar guided surface-to-air missiles (SAM). Accordingly, the US Air Force (USAF) and the US Navy (USN)

28

fielded the Naval Weapons Centre AGM45 Shrike weapon which incorporated a passive radar seeker to home-in on the radars associated with North Vietnamese SA-2 SAMs. While potentially effective, Shrike had the singular disadvantage of going ballistic if the signal being homed on went off air. To counter this, the General Dynamics AGM-78 Standard ARM was introduced which brought to the table the ability to remember the location of a shut-down emitter. Moving forward, SAM technology improved and proliferated to the point where a much faster and flexible ARM was required, a situation that resulted in America’s third generation AGM-88 High-Speed ARM

| Asian Military Review |

(HARM) which remains in widescale service at the time of writing.

While effective, baseline HARM has to an extent been overtaken by SAM technology and as of 2021, was expected to be replaced in US and other services by the AGM-88E configuration which adds an active terminal guidance seeker to the earlier models passive receiver in order to maximise effectiveness. The AARGMER variant is, as its designation indicates, an extended range configuration of AARGM that in the words of the USN, improves the baseline AARGM capability to include “extended range, survivability and effectiveness against future threats”.

Perhaps more importantly, AARGM-ER

AIR

USAF

power

Shown here on the outboard wing pylon of a USN VAQ-131 EA-18G Growler, AGM-88 HARM variants have been supplied to 11 air forces around the world together with the USN and the US Marine Corps

is compatible with the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. While the US (and at least four other countries) continue to use and develop ARM technology which is an obvious endorsement of the capability, it should be remembered that the combination of battle space connectivity, ‘smart’ weaponry and lethal drones, offer effective alternatives to the ARM in the counter-SAM role.

SAM site or missile Equally, the range and speed of ‘highend’ SAMs creates a fine balance between the ARM hitting its target before the SAM itself hits. Again, the

argument continues as to whether or not it is better to destroy a SAM site rather than to drive it off-air and/or disable its radar antenna/s and wound its operating crew. These latter points are significant in that it is probably easier to replace a SAM system than to expend time and energy on attempting to repair a damaged system and/or tend to its wounded crew members. A final point regarding the continuing utility of ARMs is their ability to be rather effective strike weapons with, for example, a HARM round being quite capable of severely damaging, if not sinking, a warship onto whose radars it has homed.

As already noted, ARM technology

| october/november 2021 |

is not the sole prerogative of the US, with manufacturers in Brazil, India, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the Russian Federation all producing ARMs in addition to the AGM-88 series developed by the Americans. To these, the British Air-Launched Anti-Radiation Missile (ALARM) should be perhaps added as although withdrawn from Royal Air Force (RAF) service during 2013, the weapon may remain in the Royal Saudi Air Force’s (RSAF) inventory.

Saudi ALARMs are known to have been re-qualified during late 2012 and to have been used operationally against targets in Yemen during 2015.

Returning to the given list of ARM producers, development of Brazil’s MAR-1 ARM is understood to have begun during the late 1990s, with captive flight trials following a decade later. A product of a consortium made up of the then Mectron and the Brazilian Air Force’s Aerospace Technology and Science Department, MAR-1 is believed to be a 586lb (266kg) weapon that is 12.7ft (3.9m) long; incorporates a 200lb (90kg) warhead, a locally produced passive radar seeker, a laser/impact fusing and a rocket motor and which has a range of between 60-100km (37-62 miles). Operating modes are thought to comprise reactive and pre-programmed

29

AIR power

AARGM-ER completed its first live fire event on 19 July 2021 off the coast of the Point Mugu Sea Test Range in California, USA.

and the type is known to have been test fired from Brazilian AMX (A-1M) strike aircraft and to have been supplied to Pakistan where it has been integrated with that country’s Dassault Mirage V and Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (PAC) and the Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) JF-17 fast jets. At the time of writing, Brazil’s Embraer A-1M aircraft have been quoted as being slated to remain in service until the early 2030s.

India’s NGARM Intended to be an equivalent of the American AARGM capability, India’s 18ft (5.5m) long Rudram1 next generation ARM (NGARM) has been designed by the country’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and is slated for production by various divisions of national contractor Bharat. Weighing in at 1,322lb (600kg), the weapon is billed as featuring a locally developed passive radar seeker/ millimetre-wave terminal guidance homing head, as being fitted with a fragmentation warhead with a proximity fuze, as being powered by a solid-fuel rocket motor and as having a range of up to 200km (1,243 miles). Again, the missile is designed to be compatible with the SEPECAT Jaguar, Mikoyan MiG-29, Mirage 2000, Hindustan Aeronautics Tejas and Sukhoi Su-30MKI types.

According to local news reports, Rudram 1 development began during 2012, with captive flight trials taking place during 2016. Follow-on flight trials are said

30

to have been undertaken during 2018, with a 2019 test shot being said to have hit its designated target with a “high degree of accuracy”. The cited media sources further suggest that the Indian Air Force (IAF) would like to introduce Rudram 1 into service circa 2022, with (at the time of writing) the DRDO working on improved software for the missile together with a ground-launched variant.

For its part, the PRC’s YJ-91 ARM variant (there is also an anti-shipping configuration) is understood to be a development of the Russian Kh-31P that features, in the first instance, fieldchangeable passive seekers tuned to particular target frequencies. As such, the missile is produced by the Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation, is 15.4ft (4.7m) long, is equipped with a 364lb (165kg) warhead and is quoted as having a maximum range of 120km (74 miles).

Thought to have entered service circa the late 1990s, European media sources indicate that one of its latest applications is aboard the People’s Liberation Army Navy Air Force’s Shenyang J-15 aircraft.

Again, it is further suggested that the Chinese are in the throes of developing a wideband, multi-frequency homer that will replace the baseline YS-91’s interchangeable seeker configuration.

Within the Russian Federation, ARM production is vested in the country’s Tactical Missile Corporation (TMC) whose September 2021 portfolio included the Kh-31P, Kh-31PD, Kh-31PK, Kh-58E and Kh-58UShKE. In order, the

| Asian Military Review |

1,322lb (600kg) - launch weight - Kh31P is equipped with interchangeable, frequency specific homing heads (designated as the L-111, -112 and -113) and an 191lb (87kg) warhead. Again, it is 17ft (4.7m) long, has a 3,281 to 49,215ft (1,000 to 15,000m) launch envelope, has a range of up to 110km (68 miles) and has a target set that includes the American AN/MPQ-53 and AN/SPY-1 radars.

Aircraft that are compatible with Kh-31P include the MiG-29, Su-25, Su-27, Su-30 and Su-34 types and the missile can be used with the L-080 Fantasmagoria-A and L-081 Fantasmagoria-B emitter location systems. For its part, the Kh31PD configuration is designed for use against SAM-related radars, is 17ft (5.3m) long, has a maximum launch weight of 1,576lb (715kg), utilises a ‘universal cluster’ warhead, has a range of up to 250km (155 miles) with high-altitude launch, is equipped with a wideband passive seeker and is compatible with the MiG-29, MiG-35, Su-35 and Su-35MK (including the MKI, MKM and MK2 subvariants) types.

The remaining member of the Kh-31P family (the Kh-31PK) is a -31P variant that is equipped with a proximity fuse, an ‘increased efficiency’ payload, interchangeable frequency-specific seeker heads and is optimised for use against medium- and long-range air defence radar emitters. In more detail, the weapon is 15.4ft (4.8m) long, has a launch weight of 1,333lb (605kg) (± 10kg), has a maximum range of 110km (68 miles) and has a launch envelope of between 328 to 49,215ft (100 to 15,000m).

Beyond the Kh-31 series, the TMC ARM portfolio also includes the Raduga developed/manufactured Ku-58 family which includes the baseline Kh-58E (the ‘E’ indicating export configuration) and the Kh-58UShKE configurations. For its part, the 1,433lb (650kg) (launch weight) Kh-58E missile is 15.4ft (4.8m) long, incorporates a 328lb (149kg) warhead, has a maximum range of 200km (124 mile) high-altitude launch, a launch envelope of between 656 to 65,620ft (200 to 20,000m) and is equipped with a three band homing head which includes in its target set the American AN/TPS-43, -44 and -53 radars. Aircraft types compatible with the Kh-58E include the Su-24MK and Su-25TK types. Although included in the Kh-58 family, the 1,433lb (650kg) (launch weight), export orientated Kh-58UShKE is a somewhat different weapon in that it is suitable for both

US Air Force A US Air Force McDonnell Douglas EF-4C Phantom II over North Vietnam in December 1972. It is armed with AGM-45 Shrike and AIM-7 Sparrow missiles and carries an AN/ALQ-72 ECM pod.

external and internal carriage, features folding fins for the latter option, has a maximum range of 245km (145 miles), is fitted with a 328lb (149kg) warhead and utilises a seeker head that covers pulsed (1.2 to 11GHz frequency band) and continuous wave emitters.

Of these various Russian-sourced weapons (and over time), Kh-31P missiles have been supplied to the air forces of Russia (Su-24 only), China, India and Syria, while Kh-58 series munitions have been sold to Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, the Czech and Slovak Republics,

Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, North Korea, the Ukraine and Uzbekistan. How many such weapons remain in service (and with whom) is a matter for conjecture.

Turning to ongoing US activity, an AGM-88 HARM development contract was awarded during early 1974, with operational testing being completed in November 1982. Full scale production began in April 1983, with the weapons initial US operating capability (IOC) being declared during US Fiscal Year (FY) 1983. The USN’s first operational rounds were deployed aboard the USS

ADSB fast patrol boats set to tackle maritime threats Nations across the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean face the same maritime challenges; piracy, insurgency, people and drug smuggling, and incursion into valuable fishing resources. This is driving a boom in the need for patrol vessels with the key characteristics of range, speed and cost effective armament sufficient to counter the threats faced.

Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB), the GCC region’s leading shipbuilder that specialises in the design, new build, repair, maintenance, refit, and conversion of naval and commercial vessels, is tapping that demand with its newly launched series of fast patrol vessels designed to boost maritime security.

Having reinforced its in-house design capabilities, ADSB has developed a

range of fast patrol boats that are entirely designed and built in the UAE. The 160 ITEP patrol boat, a 16 m inshore tactical and engagement platform, and 120 FIP interceptor, a 12 m fast inshore platform, provide key tactical capabilities to naval, security, and coast guard operations.

The vessels are deployed in missions such as anti-smuggling, anti-piracy, fisheries protection, search and rescue (SAR), exclusive economic zone (EEZ) surveillance, and coastal patrol.

ADSB’s 16 m vessel delivers performance and endurance for highspeed pursuit and interception, in addition to a wide range of patrol operations. Fitted with two diesel inboard engines, the patrol boat offers a range of over 350 nautical miles and speeds up to 50 knots. Armament ranges from a manually operated 12.7 mm machine gun to a 30 mm cannon installed on a remote weapon station mounted on the superstructure. Surface-to-surface missile options are available and the rear deck can be configured for UAV operations.

Flexible to deploy, 160 ITEP fulfils the needs of naval forces, coast guards, and other security organisations. Having

AIR power

Kitty Hawk during January 1984. As might be expected, AGM-88 has gone through a number of iterations which Armada identifies as having been designated as the AGM-88A, -88B, -88C, -88E (the AARGM configuration which is dealt with separately) and -88F. In order, the 1983 vintage AGM-88A incorporated a fusable-link memory (necessitating the return of the missile’s guidance section to its manufacturer if its tactical software required change) and made use of Block I and II software, with the latter offering guidance and fuzing improvements.

AGM-88B achieved its IOC during US FY 1986 and introduced an Erasable, Electronically Programmable, ReadOnly Memory (EEPROM) that facilitated its embedded software being changed without having to disassemble it.

Initially fitted with Block II software, a Block III update was introduced during 1989/1990. Follow-on Block IIIA software introduced a limited “geographic specificity” capability (that is, improved

worked alongside coast guard forces to meet their requirements for the 16 m boat, ADSB has the utmost confidence that the vessel meets the highest standards of safety and performance to address the rise in maritime incursions. In the event of capsizing, the boat is also self-righting to ensure the safety of its crew.

Powered by two or three 400hp outboard engines according to customer requirement, 120 FIP can reach speeds exceeding 65 knots at full load, with manoeuvrability and stability. The 12 m vessel has a payload of up to two tonnes, allowing it to carry a remote-controlled weapon station or small missile systems if required.

ADSB’s fast patrol boats are highly customisable, designed to perform multiple missions and meet the specific operational requirements of the end user. Other designs and prototypes are currently in the pipeline to be completed this year and are certain to meet all maritime security, defence, and surveillance requirements to protect territorial waters.

Securing a country’s maritime borders is essential to national sovereignty and economic prosperity. As the Middle East region’s leading shipbuilding company for over 25 years, ADSB is a trusted partner in strengthening maritime security.

AIR

USN

power

The AGM-88E AARGM missile utilises the same airframe envelope as earlier iterations of the AGM-88 HARM

iteration that utilises the legacy HARM’s rocket motor, warhead, wings and fins was a new guidance section (combining passive and active sensors) and a modified control section. As such, the configuration offers an expanded target set, a counter shut-down capability, improved emitter detection/location, geographic specificity and an impact assessment broadcast capability. At the time of writing, AARGM was being procured for the USN (EA-18G and F/A-18), Germany (Tornado), Italy (Tornado) and Australia (EA-18G), with most rounds taking the form of existing

inventory that has/is being upgraded.

For its part, AARGM-ER development began during US FY 2016 and is aimed at creating a capability that has a longer range than baseline AARGM, increased survivability and improved effectiveness against future threats, with the whole making use of a new motor and a refined airframe shape. Within the USN, AARGM-ER is to be integrated with the service’s EA-18G and F/A18E/F aircraft and, as noted earlier, the type is understood to be compatible with the F-35 family. AMR

USAF

control over the missile’s geographic footprint), improved capabilities against emitter shutdown and use of ‘complex’ wave forms. The 1993 vintage AGM88C introduced a new guidance section; improved receiver sensitivity; a larger memory; the WAU-27/B warhead; Blocks IV and V software updates and target-of-opportunity, pre-briefed, selfprotection and range-known operating modes. Of these, range-known is only available to the EA-18G and those F-16s equipped with the AN/ASQ-213 emitter location system. Again, the 15.4ft (4.17m) long missile weighs 809lb (367kg) at launch and has a maximum range of better than 91km (56 miles). Last but not least, the USAF AGM-88F upgrade utilises Raytheon’s HARM Control Section Modification (HCSM) package that incorporates a GPS receiver, an improved inertial measurement unit, new circuit cards, a new power supply and a digital flight computer. Taking the family as a whole (and over time), HARM users include Australia (Boeing EA-18G), Germany (PANAVIA Tornado), Greece (F-16), Italy (Tornado), South Korea (General Dynamics F-16), Morocco (Boeing F-16), the RSAF (F-15), Spain (EF-18A), Turkey (F-16), the United Arab Emirates (F-16), the USAF (F-16), the US Marine Corps (F/A-18) and the USN (EA-18G and F/A-18).

Fifth generation To conclude (and as alluded to earlier), the US is on the cusp of introducing its fifth generation ARM in the form of the AARGM-ER variant of the AGM-88E AARGM missile. The USN describes baseline AARGM as being a mediumrange, 15.4ft (4.17m) long, 795lb (361kg)

32

On USAF F-16CJ/DJ aircraft, HARM is teamed with the AN/ASQ-213 emitter location system which allows them to make use of the missile’s ‘range-known’ operating mode.

| Asian Military Review |

A IR Marketing l and

pw wro efrm po r a a roe t i o n

AdvAnced AircrAft SimulAtion centre for tActicAl trAining

t

he International Tactical Training Centre (ITTC) is a unique resource providing bespoke training to military and aerospace customers around the world, a division of the International Test Pilots School (ITPS) in London, Canada, ITTC draws on over twenty years of experience providing advanced tactical training to over 25 air arms.

Leveraging advances in simulation

F-18 domed simulators The Advanced Aircraft Simulation Centre (AASC) is a unique facility established by ITTC to leverage advances in simulation to enhance the learning experience whilst driving down costs. The centre uses Virtual Reality (VR) and Mixed Reality (MR) as well as conventional simulators.

An early adopter of such tactical training simulation, ITTC invested in this world-class facility to implement modern training curricula leveraging the latest synthetic technology. The AASC comprises four F-18 domed simulators, four F-35 pilot stations, an AW139 rotary-wing simulator, a Boeing 787 full flight deck FBW simulator and an F-16 based Variability Stability System (VSS) engineering simulator used by the test pilot school.

Mission briefing room The AASC also contains a mission briefing room and a large lecture theatre for unpacking missions in a collaborative classroom style.

Simulators are networked, and within a

synthetic battlespace, complex missions include real-time ACMI (Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation) to monitor the progress of an exercise and post-mission debriefing.

Live Virtual Constructive Training (LCVT) allows for very realistic tactical training in complex scenarios at a relatively low cost. The facility is customizable to meet training needs with optional refuelling or simulating Airborne Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) assets and up to six additional adversary simulators.

The simulator centre includes virtual reality using VR 360˚ headsets with a synthetic image. Thus, students learn in a photorealistic immersive environment with extraordinary realism. The variety of available technologies allows ITTC to optimize training with the most advantageous devices.

ITTC brought its expertise to bear to develop a new program within 30 days.

ITTC can deliver a bespoke Advanced Airlift Tactical Training (AATT) course onsite at the customer's operating base.

This course commences with ground training followed by a number of flight training sorties to increase a crews' ability to survive in real-world hostile missions. Courses fully optimize student learning with ground, simulation and flight training.

The Royal Malaysian Air Force contracted ITTC to provide a shortterm solution to its fighter pilot training needs. ITTC provided at short notice, a program based on its upgraded L-39 jets and its advanced simulation capabilities. Anticipating the need for the FLIT graduates to go directly to F-18 and SU-30 conversion training, ITTC downloaded advanced training such as Beyond Visual Range (BVR) training to the RMAF FLIT course. The graduates of this program are now well into the tactical phase of conversion to the fighter and are performing well.

A Flexible Approach to Program Delivery by ITTC

Student training using Virtual Reality headset and F-35 pilot station.

Bespoke Training Solutions

Bespoke Training Solutions ITTC is both responsive and innovative.

Brendan Pierce is the ITTC Deputy Head of Training, a former Royal Canadian Air Force pilot and a Fighter Weapons Instructor. Pierce says, "our expert instructors develop a recommended syllabus based on thousands of hours of tactical experience. That syllabus is then optimized in consultation with the customer to maximize its training benefit in accordance with their specific needs."

As air arms are looking for advanced tactical training in multiple areas of proficiency, including 5th Gen. threat, new standoff weapons and cyber threats are disciplines to be addressed.

Presented with a request for advanced training for tactical transport crews by a Southeast Asian customer,

| october/november 2021 |

ITTC customers are constantly looking for international standard training for their fighter pilots, helicopter pilots, fighter controllers, terminal attack controllers and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) crews. Places at military training establishments for military students are limited, often security restricted and extremely expensive. This is where ITTC excels, providing a single entity that can rapidly provide training solutions based on the expertise of its cadre of highly experienced instructors.

Delivery of the training is also flexible, with theoretical lecture modules deliverable as Computer Based Training, live-online, in the classroom in Canada or the customer's country. Similarly, practical training or flight training can be presented in Canada at ITTC's world class training facility and Advanced Aircraft Simulation Centre (AASC) or partly or wholly in the customer's country utilising national assets.

Visit www.ITTC-Canada.com for more information and contact details.

33

land

DSEI

warfare

DSEI London was buzzing with outdoor fast craft, larger warships, an external helicopter park and many of the usual larger exhibits around the show floor.

DSEI RESTARTS INTERNATIONAL DEFENCE EXPOS Here is a brief taste of some of the new systems across maritime, air and land that could be seen at DSEI 2021. by by Andrew Drwiega, Christopher Foss and David Oliver

T

he first major defence event in Europe, DSEI 2021, staged at London’s ExCel from 14-17 September, was judged to have been a success by the people that the AMR team approached. Although the number of international visitors was inevitably down with travel restrictions for many nationalities still in place, exhibitors reported satisfaction at the volume and quality of those that they did meet.

General Sir Patrick Sanders, Commander, UK Strategic Command, in his keynote address set one of the themes to be discussed - that of the need for multi-domain integration. He began with a warning that “the threat is not diminishing. The security outlook is more perilous that it was two years ago and we are now facing the twin spectre of emboldened jihadi terrorists and something not seen since the 1930s, a growing authoritarian zeitgeist that celebrates the suppression of political

34

and individual freedom as a better way to govern.”

This was driving Great Power competition, he stated, which in turn was fuelling risk-taking strategies. Regimes such as those in Russia and China were investing in a new modus operandi: to win without fighting [through the development of new technologies]; the expansion of warfare into space; and cyber - all of which were contributing towards “a race for advantage in the defining technologies of the future.”

Gen. Sanders warned that China’s push for technological advantage by 2025 included artificial intelligence (AI), advanced computing, quantum technologies, robotics, autonomous systems, commercial space technologies, additive manufacturing, the internet and new generations of technology such as 5G communications. “They look to dominate the system of systems confrontation creating new operating concepts, cross domain, autonomous

| Asian Military Review |

swarms and precision attack to achieve persistent paralysis,” stated Gen. Sanders.

Naval News SAAB demonstrated its new Combat Boat 90 (CB90 NG) Next Generation at the dockside outside the ExCel halls.

This is now being introduced into the Swedish Navy’s existing fleet, which already has 149 older CV90s.

It is very much seen as an archipelago type of craft due to its high manoeuvrability. The CB90 NG has a top speed greater than 40 knots (74km/h) and is incredibly quick to stop (as my media group who had been invited onboard for a short on-water demonstration can attest).

This NG design is no longer just a transport, but it has been designed to lay down firepower through its Trackfire automatic weapons position mounted above the wheelhouse but controlled from within the internal trooping bay (it

l and warfare

can carry up to 21 troops and their manpacked equipment). In addition, there are five new weapons mounts toward the stern of the craft which could mount heavy or general purpose machine guns as well as grenade launchers.

Atlas Electronik featured a number of naval systems, including its Active Towed Array Sonar (ACTAS) advanced ASW systems. These deploy hightransmission-level low-frequency sonar equipment at variable depth to achieve long-range submarine detection. This is also deployable off the company’s two Sea class marine boats - one of 11m and one slightly larger at 15m.

Ultra Group’s president Thomas Link, talking to AMR at the show, reported that the organisation’s three year restructuring had concluded with 30 business units being reconfigured into just five strategic groups. Among these the Maritime division was responsible for around 40 percent of the Group’s business, split into the following business units: Sonar Systems; Sonobuoy Systems; Naval Systems and Sensors; and Signature Management and Power.

Link said that the Sonar Systems business was particularly structured to meet the naval requirements of Five Eyes nations (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and US), to provide interoperability of sonar solutions whether hull-mounted or towed.

Recent business successes include being selected for the US Navy’s AN/ SPS-73(V)18 Next Generation Surface Search Radar (NGSSR) programme.

This multi-mission navigational radar is being developed to eventually provide all naval vessels with safe navigation, surface search and periscope detection capabilities. To this end Ultra was awarded a further $40 million modification contract on 30 September by the US Department of Defense, following early awards of $42 million on 14 July 2020 and $27 million on 15 March.

increased range and higher rates of fire.

In some countries there is a clear trend towards the procurement of wheeled 155mm SP artillery systems as potentially these have lower operating and support costs and have greater strategic mobility and do not require heavy equipment transporters (HET) to deploy them nearer the front line.

While tracked 155mm SP artillery systems are heavier, they do carry more ammunition and the crew are fully protected while carrying out a fire mission. In addition they have greater cross-country mobility and a lower ground pressure.

BAE Systems Bofors showed its Archer 155mm (6x6) SP artillery system at DSEI, which is now deployed by

During his keynote speech, UK Strategic Commander General Sir Patrick Sanders stated that "the threat isn’t diminishing. In fact, the security outlook is more perilous than it was two years ago." He referenced the twin threats of "emboldened Jihadi terrorists' and a growing authoritarian zeitgeist that celebrates the suppression of political and individual freedom as a better way to govern."

Self-Propelled Artillery Now that NATO forces are no longer engaged in operations in Afghanistan or Iraq, attention is being focused in a number of other areas including enhanced indirect fire capabilities, especially guns and their associated suites of ammunition.

A number of countries have requirements for new 155mm selfpropelled (SP) artillery systems, with an increased emphasis on systems with

| october/november 2021 |

35

land

SAAB

warfare

Saab not only flashed its new Combat Boat 90 (CB90 NG) Next Generation on the Thames by the Houses of Parliment, but also around the dockside outside the ExCel halls.

36

This is essentially a protected turret armed with the same 155mm/52 calibre ordnance as that fitted to the PzH 2000, but with a fully automatic ammunition handling system that holds a total of 30 projectiles and associated charges. This is aimed and controlled by the crew seated in the forward part of the Boxer.

Rheinmetall unveiled a full scale mock-up of its Wheeled Self-Propelled Gun (WSPG) which is based on the latest generation Rheinmetall MAN Military Vehicles (RMMV) HX3 series cross-country truck. This features a armoured protected cab at the front with a remote control turret armed with

Christopher F Foss

the Swedish Army and was one of the systems recently tested by the US Army to meet its requirements for a wheeled gun system to support its Stryker (8x8) brigades.

Archer is based on a Volvo (6x6) crosscountry chassis with the fully protected crew compartment at the front and the 155mm weapon at the rear which is fed from a magazine that holds 21 rounds of 155mm ammunition plus associated charges.

Nexter Systems showed their latest production CAESAR 155mm/52 calibre SP artillery system fitted with a four door fully enclosed cab based on a Tatra (8x8) chassis which has a high level of cross country mobility.

The original CAESAR was based on an Renault (now Arquus) (6x6) Sherpa chassis and also fitted with a 155mm/52 calibre ordnance at the rear but carried only 18 rounds of ammunition (projectile, charges and fuzes), but the CAESAR (8x8) can carry 32 projectiles and charges.

The first customer for the CAESAR (8x8) is the Danish Army who is taking delivery of an initial batch of 15 units.

The German ARTEC Boxer MultiRole Armoured Vehicle (MRAV) (8x8) is being used for an increasing number of more specialised roles due to it being fitted with a removable rear mission model.

Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW), prime contractor for the tracked PzH 2000 155mm/52 calibre SP artillery system has developed the Remote Controlled Howitzer 155 (RCH-155).

a 155mm/60 calibre gun at the rear. It offers a significant increase in range when compared with currently deployed 155mm/52 calibre systems.

Although not at DSEI 2021 Elbit Systems of Israel showed a scale model of its ATMOS truck mounted 155mm SP artillery system which is being marketed with a number of ordnance options, including 155mm/52 calibre as well as being integrated onto a 6x6 or 8x8 platform.

Under development for the Israel Defense Force (IDF) by Elbit Systems is the SIGMA which is based on an Oshkosh (10x10) cross- country chassis with a rear-mounted 155mm/52 gun in a protected turret. It is fed by an automatic ammunition handing system with a total of 40 x 155mm rounds.

Although the emphasis at DSEI 2021 was on wheeled SP artillery systems, the South Korean company Hanwha Defense confirmed that it is offering its latest K9A2 Thunder 155mm/52 calibre SP artillery system to the British Army for its Mobile Fires Platform. Team Thunder has been formed to manage this which includes Leonardo UK, Pearson Engineering, Horstman Defence Systems and Soucy with addition contractors expected to be added.

The company has already produced almost 1,700 K9 Thunder systems for the Republic of Korea Army as well as for Estonia, Finland, India, Norway, Poland (with a different turret) and Turkey (locally produced as the Firtina), and with Australia expected to be the eighth customer.

The BAE Systems Bofors Archer 155mm self-propelled artillery features a fully automatic loading system with the crew in the fully protected armoured cab at the front.

| Asian Military Review |

l and warfare

SAAB

The K9A2 will be fitted with a fully automated ammunition handing system which will not only give a higher rate of fire but also allow the crew to be reduced.

The actual platform is only part of a total artillery system that also includes the key ammunition, artillery fire control, forward observers, target acquisition systems and ammunition resupply.

Air Domain For a company that has yet to produce a military aircraft, Aeralis has attracted a heavyweight team of partners at DSEI to its new venture.

Aeralis is a UK-based aircraft developer creating a new class of transformative military aircraft. The new aircraft will be based on a modular system, enabling the company to deliver a range of configurations for different missions including advanced jet training and light attack by using common fuselage and avionics while switching engines, wings and mission systems.

The company has already has already entered into strategic agreements with Thales UK, Atkins, a Member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, and Siemens

Hanwha Defense exhibited its K9A1 Thunder 155mm/52 caliber Self-Propelled Howitzer system at DSEI.

Digital Industries Software.

At DSEI it announced that a Middle East sovereign wealth fund has invested an initial amount of £10.5 million in Aeralis which will support the design, development and first flight of its first aircraft, an Advanced Jet Trainer. Aeralis marked another key milestone at DSEI

by entering a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with RollsRoyce to meet the company’s propulsion requirements. Rolls-Royce’s family of small digital propulsion systems are being rapidly developed to deliver disruptive and innovative technologies whilst also being more cost effective.

.375 SWISS P – Your tactical advantage The new .375 SWISS P provides discerning professionals and forward-thinking organizations with a solid foundation for mission success: you benefit from cost-efficient equipment for all .338 weapon systems, expanded operational spectrum (up to 1,600 m supersonic flight) and increased projectile weight – for maximized precision, consistent shooting performance, higher target energy and increased penetrating power.

RUAG Ammotec AG sales.ammotec@ruag.com

www.swiss-p.com

SWISS P® is a registered trademark of RUAG Ammotec AG, a RUAG Group Company

37

land warfare

Concepts of Aeralis' two-seat and single-seat advanced jet trainers and light attack aircraft.

38

Unmanned UAS Tekever’s unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are developed and produced in the United Kingdom and Portugal gathering intelligence to support the most demanding missions.

The UK Home Office uses Tekever’s UAS-as-a-Service as the key asset to survey the British Channel and help prevent Illegal Migration and Illegal Fishing activities. The company has been operating its AR5 medium-altitude, medium endurance twin-engine fixedwing UAS designed for maritime surveillance missions from 2019 over the English channel. The AR5 can fly for more than 12 hours, and carry multiple payloads, including maritime radars, synthetic aperture radars, day and night cameras and AIS and EPIRB receivers.

The specific payload package used to survey the Channel allows it to cover vast areas, detecting and recognising potentially illegal vessels, and then track and identify them, providing the authorities with real time and highly accurate intelligence.

At DSEI Tekever announced that it has added a new life-saving capability to the maritime patrol version of its AR5 UAS, carrying an eight-person life-raft that can be precision-dropped to aid

| Asian Military Review |

people in distress in the water. This new capability has been fully proven and demonstrated during multiple search and rescue exercises over the Atlantic Ocean and will be delivered under upcoming contracts in Europe and Africa.

With fully automatic operation, the AR5 Lifesaver onboard system can detect, identify and locate people on the

Tekever

As Aeralis aircraft concepts can be reconfigured with different single and twin-engine configurations, the MOU will focus initially on using a RollsRoyce propulsion system to power the pre-production aircraft, and the ability to integrate them digitally in the aircraft design process.

“I am delighted to see AERALIS and Rolls Royce partnering to develop advanced digital design methodologies and investigate future power systems options for the AERALIS modular aircraft design,” said Air Commodore Jez Holmes, Head of the RAF’s Rapid Capabilities Office.

“This digital engineering and digital twinning approach could deliver considerable savings relative to traditional air system design, development and sustainment, and offer the opportunity for rapid capability adaption. As such, the learning achieved could be broadly applicable across a broad range of acquisition programmes including FCAS” The company has completed phase one and phase two development, with feasibility studies complete and its core team established in preparation to develop a pre-production aircraft with first flight targeted within the next three years.

Tekever's AR5 unmanned life-raft drop capability.

l and warfare

water, and then precisely calculate the optimal drop-point and automatically re-route the UAS, enabling the life-raft to be deployed at a close, but safe, distance.

The system automatically considers weather conditions and flight plan restrictions, allowing the Lifesaver to be easily used in a wide range of situations.

BAE Systems and Malloy Aeronautics announced plans to explore the development of an electric-powered T-650 heavy-lift unmanned aerial system (UAS), as a potential new solution to deliver cost-effective, sustainable rapid response capability to military, security and civilian customers.

The UK-based Malloy Aeronautics has been conducting research and development on unmanned Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) technology since 2013. It has created and produced a family of heavy-lift unmanned vehicles designed to solve the so-called ‘last mile’ logistics for the most extreme and demanding operations.

The all-electric powered concept vehicle will be designed with a top speed of 75 knots (140km/hr) and the ability to carry 661lb (300kg) payload over a range of 30km (18.6 miles). The technology could be used for a range of applications such as performing shipto-ship and ship-to-shore movements to support military and security operations and logistics. Emitting zero carbon, the UAS could help revolutionise military operations where there is a requirement

A collection of Malloy Aeronautics T-150 on the flight deck of the Royal Navy's aircraft carrier, HMS Prince of Wales. The T-150 can lift up to 150lbs (68kg) and has a removable battery pack for quick change.

to carry heavy loads, keeping military personnel out of harm’s way in dangerous situations or disaster zones, while reducing the environmental impact of armed forces.

Potential applications include automated logistics and re-supply, casualty evacuation (CASEVAC), antisubmarine warfare (ASW), maritime search and rescue (MSAR), surveillance and monitoring, mine countermeasures (MCM) and close air support (CAS).

Back in August Schiebel completed

flight trails with the US Navy. Neil Hunter, Schiebel’s director of Business Development said that the company had teamed with Areté Associates to allow the S-100 to use Areté’s Pushbroom Imaging Lidar for Littoral Surveillance (PILLS) sensor, for demonstrations to the US Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR).

The PILLS sensor can hydrographically map shallower littoral areas.

Schiebel has also teamed up with Thales to demonstrate a potential for maritime sensor operations. Trailed off

RUGGED COTS SOLUTIONS Manufacturer of Ethernet switches, Intel® or NXP ARM® processor-based Single Board Computers and FPGA boards Since 1987, Interface Concept has been a leading developer and manufacturer of leading-edge HPEC embedded boards and systems for military, aerospace and industrial applications.

• www.interfaceconcept.com • +33 298 573 030 • info@interfaceconcept.com

IC-pub AMR-Rafale-90x184-exe.indd 1

• Ethernet Switches developed in alignment with the SOSA™ Technical Standard • 3U and 6U VPX form factors • Optical VITA 66.5 standard

• Switch management software stack • Expert technical support and custom-design • From standard to conduction-cooled grades

27/05/2021 19:24

land

David Oliver

warfare

The General Dynamics Mission Systems/ Laflamme Aero’s LX300 UAS multi-role twin-rotor unmannedhelicopter was being shown for the first time in Europe.

the North Wales coast in August, the S-100 was fitted with a sensor suite which combined Thales’ I-Master radar, the IAI POPULTRA EO/IR sensor pod, an IFF transceiver and AIS receiver. A CarteNav AIMS Mission System fused the collected date which was then sent to the Thales TACTICOS Combat Mission System for interpretation.

In May the UK Ministry of Defence issued a tender for a Flexible Tactical Uncrewed Air System (FTUAS) for the Royal Navy. The requirement is for a number of warship based UAS systems that can “find, fix, track and assess fast inshore attack craft, crewed and uncrewed, operating alone or in large numbers.”.

David Willems, vice president of Business Development for UMS Skeldar told AMR that the company’s V-150 platform had completed a Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) flight and approach to an airport as part of the Egnos Civil Aviation ROadmap (ECARO), which feeds into work being

40

done on the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) that aims to improve the performance of the global positioning systems.

“Integrating with high precision GNSS [Global Navigation Satellite System] based flight procedures into IFR [Instrument Flight Rules] airport rules is a key requirement for adopting a UAS within controlled airspace,” said Willems.

Mini-Chinook Look General Dynamics Mission Systems Canada showcased Laflamme Aero’s LX300 multi-role twin-rotor unmanned helicopter for the first time in Europe, after recently signed a co-operation agreement with Laflamme Aero to promote the LX300 for defence and security opportunities in Canada and internationally. The agreement also supported advances in mannedunmanned teaming (MUMT) operations, autonomy, network security and humanmachine collaboration in common

| Asian Military Review |

mission management systems.

Laflamme Aero specialises in the development and the manufacturing of tandem-rotor remotely piloted helicopters. Located in Quebec, Canada, the company offers unmanned aerial systems (UAS) with unique capabilities for both military and commercial applications.

The LX300 is designed to meet the demand for alternate options to manned platforms for multi-mission roles such as maritime patrol and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

Built to helicopter certifications and standards, its advanced tandem-rotor technology and the ability to carry nearly 200lb (90kg) of payload will allow for sustained multi-mission operations. It also features aeronautical grade composite materials for blades and airframe and eliminates vibration at its source using advanced rotor technology. It is powered by a certified heavy fuel engine. Six prototypes have flown to date. AMR

LAND AND AIRLAND DEFENCE AND SECURITY EXHIBITION

l and

warfare

13-17 JUNE 2022 / PARIS THE DEFENCE & SECURITY

GLOBAL EVENT 1,800

exhibitors

+14,7%

from 63 countries 65,9% of international

65 startups at Eurosatory LAB

98,720

Total attendance (exhibitors, visitors, press, organisers)

227 Official delegations from 94 countries and 4 organisations (representing 760 delegates)

690

journalists

from 44 countries

75 Conferences 2,100 Business meetings made 2018 key figures

| october/november 2021 |

41

land warfare

42

| Asian Military Review |

2022

IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Center, Bangkok, Thailand

NEW DATES

Diamond Sponsor

Official Show Guide Producer

Official Digital Daily News & WebTV Producer

Bronze Sponsor

Gold Sponsors

Media Partners

AIR | LAND | NAVAL | SECURITY | JOINT

26-28 JANUARY 2022 MAKUHARI MESSE

JAPAN’S ONLY FULLY INTEGRATED DEFENCE EVENT BOOK YOUR STAND TODAY

www.dsei-japan.com @DSEI_Japan_EN

Media Partners

Defence Beyond Limits

Precision is everything.

Leonardo’s HITFACT® MkII turret, armed with 120mm/45 caliber gun and fitted for 105mm/52, provides accurate, responsive tactical capability to armed forces, worldwide.

The three-man, power-operated turret can be installed on light to medium weight tanks and wheeled or tracked tank destroyers.

The light-weight turret design and low-recoil characteristics of the gun ensure tactical mobility and high firepower for a strategic battlefield advantage.

Inspired by the vision, curiosity and creativity of the great master inventor Leonardo is designing the technology of tomorrow.

leonardocompany.com Helicopters | Aeronautics | Electronics, Defence & Security Systems | Space