Page 19 - Australian Defence Magazine March-April 2022

MARCH-APRIL 2022 | WWW.AUSTRALIANDEFENCE.COM.AU
DEFENCE BUSINESS SINGAPORE AIR SHOW 19
Singapore in Mk.1 form. The Indian Government has re- cently placed an order for 83 improved Tejas Mk.1A fight- ers, which will be fitted with an Airborne Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar.
A full-size mock up of Turkey’s TF-X fighter was also on display, for which Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) is currently trying to interest customers and development partners – particularly in the region. According to TAI, the stealthy TF-X design will be a Mach 1.8 fighter, with twin engines, each in the 29,000lb thrust class.
Displayed in model form inside the expo halls were exam- ples of Korea Aerospace Industries’ KF-21 Boramae 4.5 gen- eration fighter which is expected to make its first flight this year and the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) JF-17B Thunder, developed in partnership with Pakistan.
AUTOMATIC AIR TO AIR REFUELLING
Of interest to the Royal Australian Air Force, Airbus De- fence and Space’s Automatic Air to Air Refuelling (A3R) system being developed for the Multi-Role
Tanker Transport (MRTT) will receive certifi-
cation this year, according to Airbus DS CEO Michael Schoellhorn.
The A3R system permits air to air refuel- ling to be carried out and the first customer is the Republic of Singapore Air Force, which announced its intentions at the Singapore show in 2020. The RAAF is closely watching developments for its similar KC-30A tanker and has previously participated in the flight test and development program.
Beyond A3R, Airbus DS is working on an A4R (Automated, Automatic AAR) system which will remove the human from the loop and, while Schoellhorn would not put a time- line on it entering service, he said the pro- gram was in the definition stage.
Schoellhorn also revealed that Airbus is in talks with Australia over the upgrade of its KC-30As, which are ‘original wave’ aircraft (Australia was the initial customer for the A330-200 based MRTT). Later aircraft, such as those operated by Singapore, are ‘second wave’ or ‘smart’ tankers which have a num- ber of improvements. It is unclear whether the RAAF is seeking to simply add some of the features available on ‘second’ wave
ABOVE LEFT: A US Marine Corps F-35B hovers in front of the crowd during Singapore 2022
RIGHT: Turkish Aerospace Industries displayed a full-size mock-up of its TF-X fighter concept at Singapore 2022
ABOVE RIGHT: The Airbus A400M was represented by this example from Germany’s Luftwaffe, the manufacturer hopes to win more orders in the Asia-Pacific region
aircraft (such as A3R), or recapitalise the existing fleet. Airbus has also partnered with Lockheed Martin on the LMXT program, which is based on the MRTT but primarily a tanker aircraft rather than tanker/transport. It will fea- ture a fuel load increased to 123 tonnes (from 111 tonnes), but will have no underfloor cargo capability or ‘airline’ style cabin interior. The LMXT is being pitched at the US Air Force’s KC-Y (Bridging Air Tanker) program, which will ac-
quire up to 160 additional tankers from 2029.
BOEING HOPES FOR WEDGETAIL RENAISSANCE
Speaking on the opening day of Singapore 2022, Boeing Senior Director of India, Asia and Pacific International Sales Randy Rotte said the company was looking towards a surge on sales for its E-7 Airborne Warning & Control (AEW&C) platform following the recent decision in the UK to order it and burgeoning interest in the US.
Rotte added that a US purchase of the aircraft would potentially allow the aircraft to be sold via the Foreign
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