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The European Parliament has adopted an initiative report this week about the conformity of fisheries products that have access to the EU market. The EU is the largest market for fish in the world and it may need to be even more vigilant to keep illegally caught fish from arriving in the EU indirectly, writes Linnéa Engström.

En pleine crise politique et migratoire, les Transalpins quittent leur pays, au même niveau que dans les années 60

Americas

• Lockheed Martin is being tapped for work in support of the Air Force’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) system. The $9.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order provides for the continued conversion of the JASSM Extended Range (ER) missile operational flight program (MOFP) software baseline. The 2,000-pound AGM-158 JASSM is intended to be a stealthy, inexpensive GPS/IIR guided cruise missile. It’s designed to attack well-defended targets without putting its carrier aircraft in the crosshairs of new long-range surface to air missile systems. The JASSM-ER shares about 70% of hardware and 95% of the software with the normal JASSM. The Extended Range version however comes with an increased range of over 500 nautical miles and is certified for use in environments where GPS is heavily jammed, or not available. A preliminary software design review includes both the MOFP and an integrated flight simulation. Under this contract Lockheed will provide support, source data and analysis so that the government can obtain an authority to operate the C++ version of the JASSM-ER weapon system. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be complete by August 2019.

• The Navy is contracting Boeing for design agent and technical engineering services for the AN/USQ-82(V) family of systems. Boeing will provide advanced and highly specialized technical engineering to assist with system sustainment, cybersecurity and system integration under this $15.8 million contract. The AN/USQ-82(V) family of systems include a data multiplex system, fiber optic data multiplex system, and gigabit ethernet data multiplex system. This family has been developed for use on the Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers. The AN/USQ-82(V) family allows for network transfers inputs and outputs for the Burke-class destroyer’s machinery control systems, damage control system, steering control system, Aegis combat system, navigation displays, and interior communications alarms and indicators. It is designed to transfer data via a reliable, redundant, mission-critical network aboard Navy surface warships. It offers enhanced network communication capabilities by providing an IP-based backbone that supports multimedia services such as video and data. The cumulative value of the contract could rise to $82 million if all included options are exercised. Work will be performed at multiple locations, including Huntington Beach, California; Arlington, Virginia and Pascagoula, Mississippi. The contract is expected to be completed by May 2019.

Middle East & Africa

• One of Belgium’s NH-90 transport helicopter has reportedly carried out its first operational mission in Mali. The NH-90 emerged from a requirement that created a NATO helicopter development and procurement agency in 1992. The nearest equivalent would be Sikorsky’s popular Black Hawk family, but the NH-90 includes a set of innovative features that give it some distinguishing selling points. Its combination of corrosion-proofing, lower maintenance, greater troop or load capacity, and the flexibility offered by that rear ramp have made the NH-90 a popular global competitor. The NH-90 TTH base variant for land and air forces can carry between 12-20 troops and can load about 5,500 pounds. The NH-90 Fame MEDEVAC variant adds 2 intensive care bays for treating wounded personnel, on-board equipment, and seats for the medical team. Belgium nation has currently two NH-90s deployed in Mali in support of the United Nations peacekeeping mission. They became operational in March and will be used to transport wounded to specialized emergency stations. Initial deployment is four months, but this can be extended.

• The South African defense manufacturer ADG Mobility has successfully tested its 4×4 and 6×6 versions of the Ural Next range of trucks. The Ural Next series of trucks are the latest versions of Ural trucks that have been in service with Soviet-aligned countries since the early 1960s. The Ural Next is the successor of the Russian Ural-4320 heavy high mobility truck, designed for tough off-road conditions. Changes over the previous Ural-4320 include new cab, new engine and a number of other detailed modifications. However, it uses the same chassis and many automotive components are interchangeable between the Ural Next and Ural-4320. So, the Ural Next is rather an upgraded version than an entirely new design. The URAL 6×6 is also the basis for the Ural Taifun mine-resistant, ambush protected (MRAP) vehicle, in use by the Russian military. The main role of Ural Taifun is to carry troops in combat theatres where mines and improvised explosive devices are likely to be encountered. Alternatively, this vehicle can be used as command post or armored ambulance. The South African company imported these vehicles for delivery to the military of South Africa and the armed forces of Southern African Development Community region. The trucks are already in use by the militaries Namibia, Angola and Mozambique.

Europe

• The Italian defense contractor Leonardo has launched a more powerful version of its BriteCloud decoy jammer. This new version has been optimized for the protection of medium and large transport aircraft. The BriteCloud 55-T fits in the same 55 mm chaff and flare dispenser as the fighter variant. It can also be fitted into a square format dispenser using an adapter magazine as required. The system emits a stronger decoy radar signature to mimic the size of a transport aircraft. A BriteCloud decoy is released after an incoming missile has been detected by an aircraft’s radar warning receivers and generates a false radar target which draws the weapon away from its intended target. The BriteCloud 55-T can be installed on C-27J Spartan, A400M, KC-390 and C-130 aircraft. Other assets which could benefit from carrying the expendable decoy include air-to-air refueling aircraft and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance platforms, it adds.

• The UK Royal Navy is fitting its Type 45 destroyer with the Shaman communications electronic support measures (CESM) system. The HMS Defender is the first vessel to receive the system which is based on the US Navy’s AN/SSQ-130(V) Ship’s Signal Exploitation Equipment (SSEE) Increment F. SSEE essentially is a signals exploitation system that allows the operators to monitor and analyze signals of interest aboard a variety of ship classes. The Royal Navy has described the Shaman as “an essential information, surveillance, targeting, and reconnaissance tool in the delivery of maritime force protection, security and maneuver”.

Asia-Pacific

• The government of Japan is set to receive one E-2D Advanced Hawkeye Aircraft as part of A US foreign military sale. The $135 million fixed-price-incentive contract will be exercised by Northrop Grumman. The E-2D Hawkeye is a carrier-capable “mini-AWACS” aircraft, designed to give long-range warning of incoming aerial threats. Secondary roles include strike command and control, land and maritime surveillance, search and rescue, communications relay, and even civil air traffic control during emergencies. The Hawkeye is based on the same airframe as the USA’s C-2 Greyhound cargo aircraft, with the obvious addition of the 24-foot diameter, frisbee-shaped, rotating radome on its back. It carries a crew of 5 – pilot, copilot, and 3 mission system operators. Work will be performed at various locations inside and outside the continental US including St. Augustine, Florida; Syracuse, New York; Melbourne, Florida and Aire-sur-l’Adour, France. Work is expected to be completed in March 2020.

Today’s Video

• British Army tests its LandCeptor missile.

JASSM-ER from B-1B
(click to view full)

The 2,000 pound AGM-158 JASSM (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile) is intended to be a stealthy, inexpensive GPS/IIR (Global Positioning system/ Imaging InfraRed) guided cruise missile. It’s designed to attack well-defended targets without putting its carrier aircraft in the crosshairs of new long-range surface to air missile systems. JASSM has experienced a rocky development history, due to long-standing reliability issues. In 2005 it was threatened with cancellation following a series of poor test results. The program went through 2007 on an ongoing roller coaster of ups and downs, and by May 2009 it appeared the program was facing cancellation once again.

A production hiatus did take place between Lot 7 and FY 2010’s Lot 8 in FY 2010, but test results allowed the USAF to move forward, and the missile is beginning to win export orders.

The JASSM Missile Family

F/A-18 & test JASSMs
(click to view full)

JASSM family missiles are guided by a combination of GPS/INS positioning en route, and Imaging Infrared (IIR) for final targeting. They carry a dual-mode penetrator and blast fragmentation warhead at subsonic speed, in a body shape designed to have a very low radar profile.

The US military intends to buy over 5,000 missiles in this family: 2,400 JASSMs, and 2,978 JASSM-ERs. AGM-158 JASSM production looks set to end around FY 2021, but planned AGM-158B JASSM-ER orders would keep the production line going into the late 2020s, and possibly beyond. Customers include the USA, Australia, Finland, the Netherlands, and Poland.

The AGM-158 JASSM is currently integrated on B-2A Spirit stealth bombers, B-1B Lancer, and B-52H Stratofortress bombers. On the fighter front, its platforms include the F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Falcon (MLU standard & Block 50), and the Royal Australian Air Force’s upgraded F/A-18 AM/BM Hornets. Finland is following suit for its own F/A-18C/D Hornets.

The US military intends to add the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet family to this list, and to extend F-16 compatibility to earlier Block 40 models. JASSM will also be carried by the F-35, eventually, but it’s no longer on the list of weapons for certification by the end of the development program. If and when it’s certified for the F-35 family after 2020, it will have to be carried externally, because it’s too large for the internal weapon bays.

Unit cost for the baseline AGM-158 JASSM is currently around $1 million per missile, but the USAF hopes to bring that down to around $800,000 eventually. Don’t forget the ongoing maintenance costs, either: Lockheed Martin has a 2012-2017 support contract underway for the entire weapon family.

JASSM-ER: Long Range Reach

JASSM-ER Medley
click for video

The AGM-158B JASSM-ER maintains the same mold line and size, but it substitutes a Williams International turbofan for the baseline JASSM’s Teledyne turbojet, and adds extra fuel within the missile body, without dropping payload or electronics capabilities. The 2 variants share 70% of their hardware, and 95% of their software.

The result is an extension of the missile’s range from “over 200 nm” to “over 500 nm”. JASSM-ER has also been certified for use in environments where GPS is heavily jammed, or not available.

JASSM-ER unit cost is eventually expected to be around $1.25 million per missile, but current costs are running around $1.75 million.

The USAF says that AGM-158B JASSM-ER will eventually be integrated with as very similar plane set: B-1 Lancer, B-2 Spirit, B-52 Stratofortress, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Falcon (Block 25+), F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, and F-35A-C Lightning II.

Under current USAF plans, the B-1 Lancer will be the only plane certified with the new missile for the next few years. The B-1’s 24-missile payload capacity is double the B-52’s, and the new missile will make the USAF’s Lancer fleet its key strike force in the Pacific theater. Even as operating costs per flight hour are putting very large crosshairs on that same fleet’s continued existence.

LRASM

The Navy may have an answer. A variant of JASSM-ER called LRASM will add F/A-18 Super Hornets as a carrying platform, with orders beginning in FY 2017, as part of the Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare (OASuW) program that’s also designed to hit targets like ships. OASuW’s next phase promises will focus on shipborne vertical launch capabilities, and LRASM is just one of several potential competitors for that phase of the program. Even if LRASM isn’t picked for that phase, Lockheed Martin is likely to cycle some of its design and technology improvements back into the JASSM family.

Global Competition

Storm Shadow
(click to view full)

The JASSM family has several international competitors, with MBDA’s Storm Shadow leading the pack. Storm Shadow was used over Libya by French and British aircraft, and a SCALP Naval variant offers very long range strike from submarines, or from shipborne Sylver A70 vertical launch cells.

MBDA & Saab’s Taurus KEPD 350, Raytheon’s powered JSOW-ER, and Boeing’s AGM-84K SLAM-ER also represent sub-sonic air-launched cruise missiles with some level of stealth, and similar range to the base AGM-158. Norway’s NSM/JSM is about to add itself to that mix, and will fit inside the F-35. The JASSM family can’t match that stealthy internal carriage, which may open a significant global niche for Kongsberg.

Russian strike missile designs, and derivatives like the Russo-Indian PJ-10 BrahMos, emphasize speed over stealth, and aren’t compatible with the same base platforms. They aren’t really competitors in the same niche.

Contracts & Key Events

Unless otherwise noted, JASSM contracts are issued to Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL. Note that naval LRASM/ OASuW contracts and events are covered separately.

FY 2016 – 2018

Full rate production approved.

Infographic

June 7/18: Software design review Lockheed Martin is being tapped for work in support of the Air Force’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) system. The $9.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee delivery order provides for the continued conversion of the JASSM Extended Range (ER) missile operational flight program (MOFP) software baseline. The 2,000-pound AGM-158 JASSM is intended to be a stealthy, inexpensive GPS/IIR guided cruise missile. It’s designed to attack well-defended targets without putting its carrier aircraft in the crosshairs of new long-range surface to air missile systems. The JASSM-ER shares about 70% of hardware and 95% of the software with the normal JASSM. The Extended Range version however comes with an increased range of over 500 nautical miles and is certified for use in environments where GPS is heavily jammed, or not available. A preliminary software design review includes both the MOFP and an integrated flight simulation. Under this contract Lockheed will provide support, source data and analysis so that the government can obtain an authority to operate the C++ version of the JASSM-ER weapon system. Work will be performed in Orlando, Florida, and is expected to be complete by August 2019.

April 17/18: JASSM-ER makes its combat debut The USAF has fired Lockheed Martin’s AGM-158B Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile Extended Range (JASSM-ER) missile in combat for the first time. 19 such missiles were launched from two B-1B Lancer bombers during last weekend’s sortie against Syrian chemical weapon research and storage facilities, and were joined by 57 Tomahawk missiles launched from US naval assets, as well as Storm Shadow and SCALP missiles from British and French warplanes. While Russian sources in Syria claim that Russian and Syrian air defenses managed to down 71 or the total 105 cruise missiles launched during the Friday night operation—claims Washington refutes—a report on the mission by the Aviationist reckon the newer missiles—in particular the JASSM-ER, SCALP and Storm Shadow—would have been highly effective against their targets. Despite the geo-political posturing, the $1.3 million per unit JASSM-ER has now officially debuted with potential buyers of the missile, like Japan, getting a preview of its capabilities.

February 9/18: JASSM-ER Operational! Lockheed Martin has declared that the Extended Range variant of its Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), the JASSM-ER, is now fully operational on the F-15E Strike Eagle fighter. A company statement released by the firm on February 6 said that the F-15E is the first Universal Armament Interface (UAI)-compliant platform—which features standardized interfaces to support future weapon integration—to field JASSM-ER, following a period of integration of the baseline and ER-variant of the missile led by the US Air Force Seek Eagle Office. The JASSM-ER boasts a range of over 500 nautical miles, or over two-and-a-half times the range on its baseline equivalent, and Lockheed already have planned block upgrades for the missile already in the works.

July 21/17: Lockheed Martin has been granted a $37.7 million contract for the continued development of a new wing design for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile – Extended Range (JASSM-ER). The new wing design will provide greater range for the missile, which currently can strike targets more than 550 miles away. Speaking on the award, Jason Denney, program director for Lockheed’s Long Range Strike Systems said the company has “developed a novel design that provides additional standoff range to further increase pilot survivability in an Anti-Access-Area Denial threat environment.” This further increase in the range of the missile will be incorporated into production lot 17.

June 29/17: AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) have been deployed to South Korea by the US military. As many as ten of the long-range, precision-guided missiles are now on the peninsula, and will be deployed on F-16 fighters located at Kunsan Air Base. While the type of JASSM variant deployed remains unknown at this time, the base model boasts a range of 300 kilometers and is equipped with a penetrating blast-fragmentation warhead. Manufacturer Lockheed Martin stated in March that it had performed several flight tests with an updated version of the JASSM. Its JASSM-Extended Range (ER) is also in production.

June 5/17: Lockheed Martin has been contracted to deliver Lot 15 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles Extended Range (JASSM-ER) to the USAF. Valued at $413.8 million, 360 missiles alongside engineering and testing equipment will be delivered under the order, which is expected to run until August 21, 2020. This order brings to 910 the number of JASSM-ER missiles under contract with Lockheed, and over 3,000 missiles when combining all JASSM variants.

April 20/17: The USAF has awarded Lockheed Martin a $100 million contract to support efforts related to the AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM). Work to be carried out by Lockheed includes life cycle support for all the missile’s variants, including the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile and the Extended Range variant, as well as the provision of system upgrades, integration, production, sustainment, and logistical support. The contract is expected to run until April 2020. Alongside the USAF, foreign operators of the JASSM include Finland, Poland, and the Royal Australian Air Force.

March 9/17: Lockheed Martin has successfully completed several flight tests with an updated version of the company’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM). Testing involved equipping the munitions with modernized GPS anti-jam hardware and software, and launched from B-2 and B-52 bomber aircraft at altitudes over 24,000 feet. Lockheed stated that the successful tests verified the weapon’s capabilities in GPS-degraded and non-jammed environments. JASSMs have been equipped on a variety of US fighters and bombers, including the B-52, F-16, F-15E and B-1B.

January 24/17: Saudi news outlet Al Arabiya has reported that Ukrainian authorities have seized a plane allegedly transporting Russian-made anti-tank guided missiles to Iran. A search of the plane’s hold at Kiev’s Zhulyany Airport was conducted when 17 containers onboard were not registered in the flight’s cargo manifesto. Three containers were filled with 9K111 Fagot ATGMs.

December 1/16: The US State Department has cleared the potential sale of Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles – Extended Range (JASSM-ER) to Poland. Estimated at $200 million, if passed Warsaw will receive 70 AGM-158B JASSM-ER missiles, 2 AGM-158B Flight Test Vehicles, 2 AGM-158 Mass Simulant vehicles, and 1 Captive Carry variant of the AGM-158B Flight Test Vehicle. F-16 C & D upgrades, along with training services, and additional supporting equipment are also included in the deal.

September 8/16: Lockheed Martin announced that it recently delivered the 2,000th Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) to the USAF. This missile is a baseline version completed under the 12th production lot. Production of this lot began in January and covers 150 baseline JASSM cruise missiles and 60 JASSM-Extended Range (ER) missiles.

March 7/16: Lockheed Martin is to provide more Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) for the USAF. The $116.8 million contract will also include provision of system upgrades, integration, sustainment, management, and logistical support. Delivery of the missiles will be completed by June 2019. Lockheed Martin’s Joint Air-to Surface Standoff Missile is a long-range, radar-evading cruise missile designed to destroy hostile air defenses before aircraft are within range.

November 27/15: Lockheed Martin has been put on contract to upgrade the B-52H to carry its new extended-range Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff (JASSM) Weapon in a deal worth $9.1 million. The facelift will allow the B-52 to carry missiles that will double the bombers strike distance. The JASSM takes advantage of several concurrent digital upgrades that will allow every B-52 to carry smart weapons internally for the first time and on its pylons, giving the 54 year old a new lease on life and usability.

October 15/15: Lockheed Martin has been awarded a production contract for the Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM), with the $305.5 million contract also covering upgrades, logistics and support services. The stealthy cruise missile’s extended-range (ER) upgrade hit full-rate production in December last year, with the US planning to purchase around 2,400 JASSM missiles and a further 3,000 JASSM-ER variants. Poland became the third JASSM export customer in September after Lockheed Martin announced a Foreign Military Sales contract to provide forty missiles to equip the Polish Air Force’s fleet of F-16C/D fighters.

FY 2015

Full rate production approved.

September 15/15: Lockheed Martin has bagged a contract to integrate its Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) onto Polish F-16s, signing a Foreign Military Sales contract with the US Air Force on Monday. The contract covers an initial batch of 40 missiles, estimated to value approximately $500 million, including test and training missiles, aircraft upgrades and support services, according to a FMS request in September 2014. Poland’s fleet of 48 F-16C/D Block 52s are to receive the missiles as part of an expanding arsenal of Polish strike weapons, with the country being the third international JASSM customer following Australia and Finland.

Dec 15/14: FRP. Almost 4 years after Milestone C, Lockheed Martin announced that the U.S. Air Force has approved full rate production for JASSM-ER.

FRP

Dec 11/14: Poland. Reuters reported on Dec. 5 that Poland’s JASSM order is worth about $250M and should be officially confirmed on December 11. And indeed the contract was officially confirmed on that date. First the Americans will upgrade Poland’s F-16s, as well as their software to Operational Flight Plan M6.5 tape. Missile deliveries should then follow in the second half of 2016.

The US congress had already approved the sale of 40 missiles to Poland (q.v. Oct 4/14), and in November Reuters had reported that the deal was underway for Poland’s initial JASSM missiles and F-16 upgrade, so this has been a well-scripted ramp-up to the contract:

“Deputy Defence Minister Czeslaw Mroczek also told reporters negotiations have been concluded for the purchase of 40 JASSM long-range air-to-surface missiles for its 48-strong fleet of F-16…. the agreement will be signed in December and the missiles will be fully operational in March 2017, Mroczek said.”

Sources: Reuters, “Lockheed missile deal with Poland worth $250 million” | Polish government: Umowa na uzbrojenie do F-16 | Reuters, “Polish attack helicopter tender attracts four potential bidders”.

Polish order

Oct 22/14: Poland – and Russia. Russian Air Force commander Gen. Viktor Bondarev, announces that Russia’s airbase in Belarus will be located in Babruysk by 2016. That’s almost 250 km east of, and a year later than, earlier reports that Russia would be a joint tenant at Baranovichi AB by 2015. Babyrusk will begin with 24 modernized Russian Su-27M3 fighters, which will provide depth behind the RBAADF’s SU-27P/UBs and MiG-29(U)BMs at Baranovichi.

Defence analyst, Alexander Alesin is quoted as saying that the new location will be “harder to reach by the cruise missiles which are to be acquired by the Polish Air Force.” That’s certainly true, and it also keeps a Russian base off of Belarus’ territory before their 2015 Presidential elections. On the flip side, Babruysk gives the Russians an unused base that was once supposed to hold Tu-22 bombers, and has space for a larger and more varied Russian presence once it’s refurbished and ready. Time to order some JASSM-ERs… (q.v. Oct 4/14). Sources: Defence24, “Russian Air Base Pushed Away from the Polish Borders – JASSM is the reason”.

Oct 4/14: Poland. The 15-day period for NATO allies has expired, which green-lights Poland’s JASSM request (q.v. Sept 19/14). At the same time, the cost has become somewhat controversial. Up to $500 million for 40 missiles and F-16 upgrade bundle seems like a lot beside Finland’s $225 million public request for 70 JASSM missiles – but Finland ordered about $400 million in F/A-18C/D MLU3 fighter upgrades separately.

Poland is apparently interested in buying more missiles once the F-16 fleet’s OFP 6.5 fighter software upgrade is done, including AGM-158B JASSM-ER missiles that will extend their strike range even further. Meanwhile, Russia is beginning to introduce S-400 advanced anti-aircraft missile systems, whose 400 km range could cover much of Poland if they’re forward-based in Belarus. Source: US Embassy in Warsaw.

FY 2014

Orders: USA, Poland; Australia’s ANAO report, as JASSM acquisition wraps up; Polish request changes Russian basing decisions.

Sept 30/14: Support. Lockheed Martin in Orlando, FL receives a $100 million sole-source indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract for JASSM system upgrades, integration, sustainment, management and logistical support from FY 2015 – 2019.

Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and is expected to be complete by Sept 29/19. This award is the result of sole-source acquisition. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center at Eglin AFB, FL, manages the contract (FA8682-14-D-0029).

Sept 24/14: Upgrades. Lockheed Martin Missile and Fire Control in Orlando, FL receives a $9.1 million sole-source, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Subminiature Flight Safety System integration onto JASSM. The contract covers all activities necessary to design, develop and qualify an SFSS demonstration unit via ground, captive-carry and flight tests. $8 million is committed immediately, using FY 2013 & 2014 USAF RDT&E budgets.

Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and is expected to be complete by March 24/18. the USAF Life Cycle Management Center’s Armament Directorate, Advanced Programs Division, at Eglin AFB, FL manages the contract (FA8677-14-C-0137).

Sept 19/14: Support. Lockheed Martin Information Systems & Global Solutions in King of Prussia, PA receives a $7 million sole-source, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for JASSM software maintenance; specifically, improvements to JASSM Enterprise Management System (JEMS) Phase 3B. All funds are committed immediately, using FY 2014 USAF O&M budgets.

Work will be performed at King of Prussia, PA, and is expected to be complete by Sept 14, 2015. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. The USAF Lifecycle Management Center at Eglin AFB, FL manages the contract (FA8682-14-C-0264).

Sept 19/14: Poland. The US DSCA officially announces that Poland’s earlier interest (q.v. May 26/14) is formalized through an export request worth up to $500 million. If a contract is concluded, the principal contractor will be F-16 and JASSM manufacturer Lockheed Martin in Ft. Worth, TX.

It could include 40 AGM-158A JASSM missiles, 4 missiles (2 of them inert) with Test Instrumentation Kit (TIK) and Flight Termination Systems (FTS) for testing, and 2 Flight Certification Test Vehicles. The Polish will also need to upgrade their F-16C/D Block 52s fleet’s core Operational Flight Plan software to M6.5 tape. so that their Modular Mission Computers (MMC) can work with JASSM.

This OFP release is specific to European F-16 fleets, adding features like Link 16 and GPS updates alongside integration with new UAI weapons like JASSM. the request also includes the usual integration, missile containers, spare and repair parts, support and test equipment, technical documentation, personnel training and related equipment, and other US government and contractor support services. Sources: US DSCA #14-44 | USAF FY15 budget for F-16 squadrons.

DSCA: Poland (40 + fighter upgrades)

RAAF JASSM tests

May 28/14: Australia. Australia’s DoD announces that Project AIR 5418 has achieved Final Operational Capability (FOC) with the AGM-158A Joint Air-to-Surface Stand-Off Missile (JASSM), which closes out the acquisition program. That’s a bit past the recent target date of September 2013, but Australia’s JASSM program has been consistently late due to unforseen difficulties. For full coverage, see “Australia Chooses JASSM Missiles on F-18s for Long-Range Strike.”

May 26/14: Poland. Deputy Defence Minister Czeslaw Mroczek says that Poland will accelerate some planned arms buys, changing their PLN 131.4 billion (about $43.1 billion) “Technical Modernisation Programme 2013-2022” in response to the Ukrainian situation. One of the changes involves JASSM missiles for its F-16C/D fleet. Sources: IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly, “Poland to accelerate arms programmes”.

March 4/14: FY15 Budget. The USAF and USN unveil their preliminary budget request briefings. They aren’t precise, but they do offer planned purchase numbers for key programs between FY 2014 – 2019.

The FY 2014 USAF budget included a total of 187 JASSMs for about $271 million, while the FY 2015 request includes a total of 224 for about $337 million. That’s where the USAF’s briefing window ends, but the Navy’s brief introduces low-rate production of the LRASM derivative later on: 30 in 2017, 40 in 2018, and 40 in 2019. Source: USN, PB15 Press Briefing [PDF] | USAF, Fiscal Year 2015 Budget Overview.

Feb 27/14: Industrial. Lockheed Martin breaks ground on a 62,000 square foot annex to its Pike County Operations’ Long Range Strike Systems cruise missile production facility in Troy, AL. When it’s complete, the facility will have expanded its existing space by 67%. The annex is supposed to be done by Q1 2015.

The Pike County facility builds JASSM missiles, and also produces test missiles for the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) development program. While there is foreign interest in JASSM, an expansion of this magnitude suggests that the firm expects LRASM/OASuW to become a program in its own right. Sources: Lockheed Martin, “Lockheed Martin Breaks Ground on New Cruise Missile Annex at Award Winning Facility in Alabama”.

Feb 26/14: Upgrades. Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL receives a sole-source $10.2 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification. The contract pays them to develop JASSM’s anti-jam GPS receiver, with Selective Availability Anti-Spoofing Module Version 3 (JAGR-S V3), and exercises options for a V3 Qualification Failure Review Board (FRB), V3 Flight Test FRB, and Transit Case Assembly.

All funds are committed immediately, using FY 2014 missile procurement budgets. Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and Troy, AL, and is expected to be completed by Dec 31/16. The USAF Life Cycle Management Center/EBJK at Eglin AFB, FL manages the contract (FA8682-12-C-0006, PO 0017).

Dec 19/13: FY 2013 – 2014. Lockheed Martin receives 2 sole-source contracts worth a total of $449 million, for a total of 410 missiles: 310 AGM-158 JASSM baseline, and 100 AGM-158B JASSM-ERs. Both contracts will also implement a redesign of the JASSM-ER’s Avionics Bulkhead, as shared-savings “Value Engineering Change Proposal”, and contracts Lockheed Martin to act as the designer and manage electronics obsolescence. For the military, that doesn’t mean slow chips, it means items that aren’t being manufactured any more. Management can involve laying in a large stock of spares, improving the supply chain, or redesigning the missile to use newer technology that is in production. Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and Troy, AL, and expected to be completed by Nov 30/16. The USAF’s Life Cycle Management Center/ EBJK at Eglin Air Force Base, FL manages these contracts.

A $232.5 million firm-fixed price and cost-plus-fixed-fee contract will provide 190 JASSM baseline missiles and 40 JASSM-ER missile, plus systems engineering, foreign military sales test assets, etc. All funds are committed immediately, using USAF FY 2013-2014 missile procurement budgets, and about $7 million (3%) that involves foreign military sales for Finland and Australia (FA8682-14-C-0069).

A $216.5 million firm-fixed-price and cost-plus-fixed-fee contract buys 150 JASSM and 60 JASSM-ER missiles for the USAF, plus the items common to both contracts as noted above. All funds are committed immediately, using USAF FY 2013-2014 missile procurement budgets (FA8682-14-C-0084).

Lot 11 & 12 contracts

Dec 17/13: ANAO Report. Australia’s National Audit Office releases their 2012-13 Major Projects Report. JASSM falls under Project AIR 5418, Phase 1, otherwise known as the Follow On Stand Off Weapon (FOSOW) program. Australia retired its long-range FB-111 fighter-bombers in 2011, and picked the AGM-158 to give its modernized F/A-18AM/BM Hornets some extra strike reach. It doesn’t fully compensate, but it helps. The missiles were also supposed to have anti-ship capabilities, but when the USAF dropped funding for that capability, Australia had to follow suit in mid-2010. Initial Operational Capability was about 2 years late, arriving in 2011 instead of 2009.

The program is mostly complete, with expected delivery of all purchases and close-out of the program in September 2013. Two live test firings occurred in mid-2013, and explosive ordnance storage facilities are available to meet all storage requirements. Initial inspections had yanked the facilities’ Explosive Limit Licenses due to design shortcomings, but Australia found alternative temporary storage facilities during the rectification gap.

FY 2013

Finnish integration contract; Missiles shifted from JASSM to JASSM-ER.

AGM-158 JASSM

July 15/13: Sub-contractors. ITT Exelis announces a contract “in excess of $10 million” to produce JASSM and JASSM-ER composite missile bodies and structures, as part of Production Lot 10 (FY 2012). Deliveries for this order will be completed by June 2014.

Their Salt Lake City, Utah facility uses braiding, resin transfer mold, and vacuum-assisted resin transfer molding to produce the complex structures, and the release says that they have built more than 1,500 missile bodies and structures so far. ITT Exelis.

June 14/13: Australia & Finland. A $9.9 million delivery order for JASSM Common Unique Planning Component software, on behalf of Australia and Finland.

Work will be performed at Orlando, FL, and is expected to be complete by June 2/15. All funds are committed immediately by USAF Life Cycle Management Center/EBJK at Eglin AFB, FL manages the contract on behalf of their clients (FA8682-11-D-0155, #0030).

June 10/13: Finland. Lockheed Martin announces a follow-on a $34.2 million contract to integrate JASSM with Finnish Hornets. It’s the 2nd contract (q.v. Dec 3/12) in a 6-year integration, production and sustainment effort.

Airworthiness activities will occur at NAS Patuxent River, MD, followed by flight testing at the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division in China Lake, CA.

May 31/13: Finland. A $34.2 million contract modification for initial development of the Precision Targeting Module software package brings total funds committed to $39.3 million to provide key items for Finland, upgrade and expand Pike County Operations at the JASSM AUR building, and provide general JASSM systems engineering services. Deliverables for Finland include 1 containerized instrumented JASSM test vehicle, 1 containerized Jettison test vehicle, 2 containerized separation test vehicles, 2 containerized mass simulation vehicles, global positioning systems controlled radiation pattern antennas, 1 weapon support simulator consisting of a system support simulator and transit case assembly, and tooling, along with various forms of support (FA8682-11-D-0155, #0022 modification 04).

Work will be performed at Orlando, FL and Troy, AL, and is expected to be complete by Jan 31/16. USAF Life Cycle Management Center/EBJK at Eglin Air Force Base, FL manages the contract.

May 24/13: SAR. The Pentagon finally releases its Dec 31/12 Selected Acquisitions Report [PDF]. Both programs are mentioned, as the USAF shift 447 missiles out of the standard variant and into the JASSM-ER program:

“JASSM Baseline – Subprogram costs decreased $641.5 million (-18.0%) from $3,555.6 million to $2,914.1 million, due primarily to a quantity reduction of 447 missiles from 2,400 to 1,953 missiles (-$313.0 million) and associated schedule, engineering, and estimating allocations (-$198.0 million). There were additional decreases related to the movement of all support requirements from the JASSM Baseline subprogram to the JASSM-Extended Range (ER) subprogram starting in FY 2017, since the JASSM Baseline program ends in FY 2016 (-$210.9 million). These decreases were partially offset by the reallocation of development work from the JASSM-ER subprogram to the JASSM Baseline subprogram (+$48.9 million).

JASSM-ER – Subprogram costs increased $653.6 million (+17.4%) from $3,750.5 million to $4,404.1 million, due primarily to a quantity increase of 447 missiles from 2,500 to 2,947 missiles (+$436.6 million) and associated schedule, engineering, and estimating allocations (+$108.1 million). There were additional increases in support, since the JASSM program will transition to an all JASSM-ER missile in FY 2017. All support funding from the JASSM Baseline program transitioned to the JASSM-ER program between FY 2017 to FY 2035 (+$193.5 million).”

SAR – switch from JASSM to ER variant

April 19/13: Exports. The Pentagon announces potential deals for “standoff weapons [that]… can navigate to their targets and are more precise and can be fired at further distances.”

Saudi Arabia and the UAE will still require DSCA notifications, and then negotiated contracts, before any weapons head their way. While it’s possible that the announcement is referring to weapons like the GBU-39 SDB-I or AGM-154C-1 JSOW glide bombs, the announcement seems to be tipped toward JASSM as the true standoff weapon of the trio. The irony is that it was the USA’s initial refusal to let UAE F-16E/Fs carry JASSMs that pushed the UAE to modify their Mirage fleet to Mirage 2000-9 status, and equip them with “Black Shaheen” derivatives of MBDA’s competing Storm Shadow. US DoD.

March 28/13: GAO Report. The US GAO tables its “Assessments of Selected Weapon Programs“. Which is actually a review for 2012, plus time to compile and publish.

“According to the program office, they successfully completed [JASSM-ER] operational testing in October 2012 with initial results indicating the missiles achieved a direct hit on 16 out of 16 targets. Program officials stated since 2006, JASSM-ER successfully performed 26 out of 27 flight tests, including developmental, integrated, and operational testing.”

Overall, the technologies are judged to be mature and the program is fairly stable, but it’s still assessed as a moderate risk. The internal oil leak was fixed, and program officials say that the issue with metal shavings in the oil have also been resolved with engine retrofits. Fuzes have been a problem in the past, and that has created production shortages. The program intends to move to an electronic safe and arm fuze that can be tested without destroying it, but the fact that smaller issues keep cropping up, and that fuze supply is an issue, pushes the program into moderate risk.

Dec 3/12: Finland. Lockheed Martin announces a $5.1 million initial contract to support integration of the AGM-158 JASSM onto Finnish Air Force (FiAF) F-18C/D Hornets. It’s the 1st phase of a 6-year software development and aircraft integration support program, with additional contract awards expected for the remaining phases of integration support, missile procurement and post-production support. For convenience and economies of scale, the award aligns with the FY 2012 JASSM Production Lot 10 procurement contract.

Finland becomes the 2nd international customer for JASSM, whose integration will coincide with the FiAF’s F/A-18 Mid-Life Two upgrades. The U.S. Navy will lead the integration effort in coordination with the U.S. Air Force, Lockheed Martin and the FiAF. Integration activities will take place at the Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division in China Lake, CA.

Finnish integration

JASSM-ER successfully completes Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E). The missile is later recognized as “operationally effective and suitable” by the Pentagon’s DOTE office, with the caveat that Lot 8+ production missiles haven’t been tested yet. Source: DOTE FY13 report [PDF].

IOT&E

FY 2012

Lot 10 order; 5-year support deal; Requests – Finland; Done testing with B-1B bomber; F-15E integration 1st with UAI; Off the concern list in Australia.

Blowing stuff up
click for video

Aug 9/12: The USAF says that the 337th Test and Evaluation Squadron is scheduled to complete JASSM-ER’s final phase of operational testing with its “threshold” B-1B platform on Aug 30/12. USAF Capt. Philip Atkinson adds that:

“One of the emphasis items is to be able to operate in contested and degraded environments… and we have demonstrated the ability to operate with intense GPS jamming. Even without GPS, the JASSM can find its target due to its internal sensor.”

July 26/12: F-15E integration. Lockheed Martin announces that its AGM-158 JASSM has completed F-15E platform integration, following a successful all-up round (AUR) launch test at White Sands Missile Range, NM. This marked the 1st time that any missile, has been integrated onto a platform using the new Universal Armament Interface (UAI).

F-15E added

June 28/12: JASSM Lot 10. Lockheed Martin announces a $241.6 million contract for Lot 10 production of 221 AGM-158 JASSM family missiles. It includes 190 AGM-158 JASSM missiles, plus 30 missiles in the 2nd year of low-rate initial production for the AGM-158B Extended Range JASSM-ER variant. The contract also buys Test Instrumentation Kits and systems engineering support.

The missiles are produced at the company’s Shingo award-winning manufacturing facility in Troy, AL. to date, Lockheed Martin says they’ve has assembled more than 1,100 JASSMs for testing and operational use, toward a total objective of 4,900 JASSM and JASSM-ER missiles.

The release adds an update re: “January [2012] certification of JASSM on the Royal Australian Air Force F/A-18 and successful integration on the U.S. Air Force F-15E.”

Lot 10 contract

March 30/12: SAR. The Pentagon releases its report, and JASSM-ER is highlighted for a good news reason:

“Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile-Extended Range (JASSM-ER) – Program costs decreased $637.0 million (-14.5%) from $4,387.5 million to $3,750.5 million, due primarily to an acceleration of the procurement buy profile that shortened the program by five years from FY 2028 to FY 2023 (-$726.0 million), offset by the application of revised escalation indices (+$85.0 million).”

JASSM-ER cost drop

Dec 13/11: Australia. Australia’s DoD removes JASSM from their notorious “Projects of Concern” list, and explains the rocky procurement history to date:

“This project was approved in December 2005 to acquire JASSM for deployment on Classic Hornets. The project was listed as a Project of Concern in November 2010… The JASSM project has been used as a case study for improvements in the management of major Defence projects. Lessons from the project informed the Government’s response to the “Review of the Defence Accountability Framework” (the Black Review), which Minister Smith released in August [2011].

In July this year, the missile was successfully tested at the Woomera Test Range in South Australia. In November [2011] the Chief of Air Force provided service release, certifying the JASSM for use on Australia’s F/A-18 A/Bs.”

Following positive recommendations from the Airworthiness Board, AIR 5418 has also achieved Initial Operational Capability on F/A-18 mission software OFP 23X. This is 2 years later than the original December 2009, and ANAO attributes the delay to “delays in the AF/A-18 A/B software development and certification process, which has required extensive testing and redevelopment”. Read: “Australia Chooses JASSM Missiles on F-18s for Long-Range Strike” for full coverage.

Australia: IOC, and Off the “Projects of Concern” list

Oct 31/11: Finland request. The US DSCA finally allows Finland’s official request [PDF] for AGM-158 JASSM cruise missiles to go forward. Finland would receive 70 AGM-158 cruise missiles, 2 test vehicles, plus support and test equipment, publications and technical documentation, personnel training and training equipment, and U.S. Government and contractor support. The estimated cost is up to $255 million. Read “Finland to Buy Cruise Missiles for its Hornets” for full coverage.

Finland request

June 13/11: The Pentagon announces a 5-year, $100 million support contract for Lockheed Martin’s JASSM family, and its WCMD family of GPS-guided cluster bombs. Read “$100M to Support JASSM & WCMD family Weapons, 2011-2016” for full details.

%-year support

FY 2010 – 2011

Production resumes; JASSM-ER Milestone C approval; JASSM-ER production begins.

Gotcha
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May 9/11: Lot 9 to 200. Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL receives a $45.8 million firm-fixed-price contract modification to increase the Lot 9 Joint-Air-to-Surface-Missile buy by 75 AGM-158 baseline missiles. At this point, all funding has been committed by the AAC/EBJK at Eglin Air Force Base, FL (FA8682-11-C-0001, PO 002).

In their June 1/11 teleconference, Lockheed Martin personnel said that funding under the Continuing Resolution would have meant a low number of JASSMs produced (125, vs. the Troy, AL plant’s current maximum of 360). That would have upped the price per missile, due to manufacturing inefficiencies. Once a budget passed, the USAF stepped in to remedy that by raising the order to 200, out of a maximum of 391 possible under the Lot 9 authority.

This order brings the Lot 9 contract to $208.5 million for 200 missiles (170 AGM-158, 30 AGM-158B JASSM-ER), plus warranty and continued systems engineering work. The FY 2011 budget is for $238.5 million, which also include USAF costs for testing, etc. Lot 9 brings the contracted total over the years to more than 1,300 missiles. Lockheed Martin has assembled approximately 1,100 JASSMs for testing and operational use at its Troy, AL facility, towards its total objective of 4,900 missiles. The USAF’s objective reportedly sits at 3,700 missiles, but that could change. See also Orlando Sentinel.

April 4/11: Lockheed Martin Corp., of Orlando, FL receives a $162.7 million firm fixed price Lot 9 production contract for approximately 95 JASSM and 30 JASSM-ER missiles, which also includes warranty, systems engineering, and test support.

According to Lockheed Martin personnel, some of the JASSM “systems engineering” efforts underway include reliability & producibility upgrades for the current fuze, as they try to automate some of the steps in its rather involved manufacturing. A new fuze type has been discussed, but isn’t funded in Lot 9. Lockheed Martin also acknowledged USAF interest in modifying JASSM to strike ships within the near future, though the technical approach for that isn’t set yet. Raytheon’s AGM-154C-1 JSOW Block III glide bomb has already made this transition for the Navy.

Officially, work will be performed at Orlando, FL, which is HQ for the firm’s Missiles and Fire Control division. In practice, the missiles are assembled at the firm’s Troy, AL facility, though about 135 Orlando jobs are tied to JASSM work, along with more than 2 dozen jobs at Lockheed Martin’s military electronics plant in Ocala, FL. The AAC/EBJK at Eglin Air Force Base, FL, manages this contract (FA8682-11-C-0001).

Lot 9

Feb 28/11: Australia. A Letter of Certification re: JASSM’s integration with Australia’s F/A-18AM/BM Hornets running OFP 23X mission software is issued by the USN. Interesting ANAO lesson learned from the experience: “Interface Control Documents are not always correct or may not have been interpreted correctly during host platform design.” Source: ANAO 2012–13 Major Projects Report.

January 2011: JASSM-ER Milestone C/LRIP. The US Defense Acquisition Board issues Milestone C authorization go-ahead for JASSM-ER to,allowing it to proceed into Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP), after the missile went 10 for 11 (91%, goal 80%) against a variety of targets and mission objectives. Source.

Milestone C

Feb 4/10: Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL receives a $245 million contract to produce 160 AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM). The contract includes both baseline and extended range missiles to support the US Air Force and Foreign Military Sales customers.

Lot 8 includes up to 391 JASSMs and JASSM-Extended Range systems. The 308th Armament Systems Group at Eglin Air Force Base is the contracting activity (FA8682-10-C-0016). FBO.gov | Lockheed Martin release.

Lot 8

Dec 22/09: The USAF issues FedBizOpps pre-solicitation #FA8682-11-C-0001, “JASSM Lot 9 Production”:

“The 308th Armament Systems Group plans to award a sole source contract to Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control-Orlando… The proposed contract covers JASSM production Lot 9 for the Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM) , FMS, and/or Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles-Extended Range (JASSM-ER) systems. Also included are Systems Engineering, Telemetry Instrumentation Kits (TIKs); Operational Safety, Suitability and Effectiveness (OSS&E). The Lot 9 quantity of up to 391 units will be authorized in first or second quarter of fiscal year 2011… Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Orlando FL is the only known source to meet the government’s requirement under the SPS… Direct any questions to 676 ARSS, Attn: Bridget Smith, Contracting Officer, 205 West D Ave Ste 632, Eglin AFB, FL…”

Additional Readings

Readers with corrections, comments, or information to contribute are encouraged to contact DID’s Founding Editor, Joe Katzman. We understand the industry – you will only be publicly recognized if you tell us that it’s OK to do so.

• Lockheed Martin – JASSM. See also JASSM brochure [PDF].

• DID – Australia Chooses JASSM Missiles on F-18s for Long-Range Strike.

• DID – Stealthy JASSM Cruise Missiles for Finland’s Hornets. The Finns were initially rebuffed, but eventually became JASSM’s 2nd export customer.

• Finnish Institute for International Affairs (Sept 13/12) – Not just another arms deal: The security policy implications of the United States selling advanced missiles to Finland.

• Arms Control Wonk (May 31/11) – Storm Shadow, Saudi & the MTCR. The author is hostile to the military generally, but the Missile Technology Control Regime will also come into play for JASSM-ER.

JASSM Alternatives

• DID – LRASM Missiles: Reaching for a Long-Range Punch. A JASSM-ER derivative is the R&D program’s centerpiece, and could position JASSM as the replacement for America’s ubiquitous Harpoon anti-ship missile.

• DID – USA Issues JSOW Block III Production Contracts. Raytheon’s less-expensive JSOW glide bomb has a solid international customer base, and a new JSOW-ER variant turns it into a powered missile with a 150 mile range.

• DID – Kongsberg’s New NSM/JSM Anti-Ship & Strike Missile. Potential future competitor for JASSM.

• RAF – CASOM/ Storm Shadow.

• MBDA – MdCN.

• Missile Threat – SCALP EG/Storm Shadow/Black Shaheen.

• Missile Threat – SCALP Naval/ MdCN.

NH90: TTH & NFH
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The NH90 emerged from a requirement that created a NATO helicopter development and procurement agency in 1992 and, at almost the same time, established NH Industries (62.5% EADS Eurocopter, 32.5% AgustaWestland, and 5% Stork Fokker) to build the hardware. The NATO Frigate Helicopter was originally developed to fit between light naval helicopters like AW’s Lynx or Eurocopter’s Panther, and medium-heavy naval helicopters like the European EH101. A quick look at the NFH design showed definite possibilities as a troop transport helicopter, however, and soon the NH90 project had branched into 2 versions, with more to follow.

The nearest equivalent would be Sikorsky’s popular H-60 Seahawk/ Black Hawk family, but the NH90 includes a set of innovative features that give it some distinguishing selling points. Its combination of corrosion-proofing, lower maintenance, greater troop or load capacity, and the flexibility offered by that rear ramp have made the NH90 a popular global competitor.

As many business people discover the hard way, however, success can be almost as dangerous as failure. NH Industries has had great difficulty ramping up production fast enough to meet promised deliveries, which has left several buyers upset. Certification and acceptance have also been slow, with very few NH90s in service over a decade after the first contracts were signed. Booked orders have actually been sliding backward over the last year, and currently stand at around 500 machines, on behalf of 14 nations.

Program Summary

NH90: TTH & NFH

The NH90 began life as a leap-ahead competitor that would create a compelling alternative to Sikorsky’s 1980-era H-60 family airframe designs, as a European joint venture involving Airbus, AgustaWestland, and Stork Fokker. Their design has achieved respectable sales success, especially in Europe, but a bevy of technical and industrial issues have blunted its potential.

Orders as of late 2014 stood at 513 machines, in an array of structural and equipment customizations that reach beyond the simple division of naval NFH vs. army TTH. Customers to date include Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, New Zealand, Netherlands, Oman, Norway, Portugal, Qatar, Spain, and Sweden. Customer charts and timelines can be found below.

On the flip side, the NH90 has lost competitions in existing customer countries (Australia naval, Norway SAR, Sweden CSAR), and has received several cancellation threats to go with Portugal’s withdrawal from the program in 2012. Orders and certifications have often been years behind promises, full functionality wasn’t always present in delivered helicopters, and a number of performance complaints trace back to the helicopter’s specifications, which makes them hard to fix. Experience in the field has added engine issues, the TopOwl helmet-mounted display, and unexpected corrosion to the list of concerns. The NH Industries consortium needs to address these issues, and rack up convincing customer testimonials. Otherwise, the NH90 will struggle in the export marketplace against America’s Sikorsky, Russian Helicopters Company, and rival offerings from some NHI member firms.

The NH90 Platform(s)

NH90 cockpit
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NH Industries’ design makes extensive use of composite materials instead of riveted metal alloy plates, which makes the helicopter lighter and was supposed to reduce routine maintenance and corrosion issues. On the other hand, it also creates potential issues with damage in the field, and with durability. Germany in particular has complained that the composite body is essentially too flimsy for normal infantry use, or the carriage of heavy items. Time will tell if these issues can be fixed.

Electronic fly-by-wire systems also contribute to the NH0’s lift capacity, by saving the weight of heavy power-boosted hydraulic control systems. This allows the NH90 to remain within the 10-tonne weight class, while carrying about 50% more troops or stretchers than its American UH-60 counterpart. A pair of Rolls-Royce Turbomeca RTM322 engines delivering 2,412 – 2,544 shp, GE T700-T6Es delivering 2,269 – 2,380 shp, or GE CT7-8F5s delivering up to 2,520 shp at sea level, power the aircraft. At present, RTM322-powered NH90s have been sold to Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Portugal and Sweden; Oman uses a special RTM322 variant certified for very hot and high altitude conditions, where engine power must compensate for thinner air. Spain (CT7-8F5) and Italy (T700-T6E) use GE’s engines instead.

The NH90’s physical dimensions were intended to take advantage of that extra power. Removal of the C-130 air-portability requirement that constrained the H-60 family’s height let NH Industries expand the NH90’s cargo area size. Features like dual-side exits and an optional rear ramp let the 10-tonne helicopter carry light vehicles or small boats internally, load MEDEVAC stretchers smoothly, drop search-and-rescue swimmers out back, etc.

Built for what NH Industrie calls “extreme adverse weather” operations, the NH90 can start up and fly, land, and shut down in winds gusting up to around 110 km/h without losing rotor control, flying day and night in heavy icing conditions down to temperatures of -30 C/ -22 F. Normal maximum range is approximately 200 nautical miles/ 370 km, or up to 300 nm/ 555 km using internal and/or external auxiliary tanks.

Advanced avionics and other standard features round out these helicopters, with frequent local customization in the electronics area. Accompanying surveillance and/or targeting turrets are standard features, and Thales’ TopOwl helmet-mounted display helps pilots take full advantage, though some complaints have been reported about its weight. An EADS Defence Electronics/Thales partnership will deliver a standard Electronic Warfare Suite comprising a missile approach warning system, laser warning receiver, radar warner, central processing unit, and chaff/flare dispenser. This EWS has been selected by Australia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, and Portugal, at minimum. Sweden is known to have their own Saab suite instead, and Norway uses ITT’s popular AN/ALQ-211.

NH90 Variants

NH90 NFH
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The NH90 is produced in 2 main variants: Tactical Transport Helicopter for troops (NH90 TTH), and the NATO Frigate Helicopter for naval utility and anti-submarine (NH90 NFH). One problem for NHI is that national customizations have created a tremendous number of sub-variants, impacting production and modernization. This article will only look at the broad variants and major kits.

NH90 TTH. The base variant for land and air forces. It can carry 12-20 troops (depending on equipment level), and normal load is up to 2.5 tonnes/ 5,500 pounds inside.

An optional High Cabin Version (HCV) raises the cabin height from 1.58m to 1.82m, increasing volume from 15 to 17.5 cubic meters. The high cabin is especially helpful for long search and rescue operations, or MEDEVAC flights where medical personnel need to be able to stand up and move freely.

Equipment can be added to create the NH90 Special Operations configuration (NH90 SOF, generally based on NH90 TTH), and MEDEVAC and CSAR (combat search and rescue) fit-out kits are also available. The NH90 FAME MEDEVAC variant adds 2 intensive care bays for treating wounded personnel, on-board equipment, and seats for the medical team. Options for the NH90 CSAR kit include up to 3 machine guns (each side door and the tail ramp), extra ballistic protection, a rappel system, a double rescue hoist, an emergency flotation system, sand filters, an obstacle warning system, and improved self-protection electronics.

The NH90 NFH. The naval variant can be used as a utility helicopter like the TTH, or as an anti-submarine helicopter, depending on how they’re built. ASW helicopters will add a naval radar (Thales ENR or Telephonics Ocean Eye), a dipping sonar (Thales FLASH or L-3’s HELRAS), sonobuoys, a magnetic anomaly detector, and up to 2 MBDA Marte Mk.2/S light anti-ship missiles or torpedoes (Eurotorp MU90, Raytheon Mk.46, or BAE Stingray) on side pylons. The Franco-British Sea Venom/ ANL light anti-ship missile may join the Marte around 2020, and work is already underway to add MBDA’s longer-range Marte-ER anti-ship missile as a nearer-term addition.

NH90: The Competition

UH-60, Iraq
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The NH90’s nearest comparable serving helicopter is probably the American H-60 Black Hawk/ Seahawk family, a 10-tonne helicopter flying since 1979 that remains America’s current and future mainstay helicopter for its Army (UH-60M, S-70i) and Navy (MH-60R/S, S-70B). Within its 10 tonnes of maximum takeoff weight, the Black Hawk normally carries 11 equipped troops to a normal maximum range of around 550 km/ 330 miles. Unlike the NH90, the H-60 family has no rear ramp, which means vehicles must be attached using a hook and sling system that sharply cuts the helicopter’s range, maneuverability, and maximum speed.

While the H-60 family remains popular, Sikorsky has felt the pressure of the implicit comparisons. Their new UH-60 derived H-92 Superhawk, a heavier aircraft that makes heavy use of composite materials, features a rear ramp, and has a higher cargo capacity than the smaller H-60 series. It has been selected by Canada’s Navy (28 helicopters), and is in use a civilian and VIP transport helicopter.

Mi-17
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Even within the NH Industries consortium, competition is emerging for the NH90. Airbus Helicopters’ EC725 offers a slightly larger machine with links to existing fleets of AS332 and AS552 Puma Family machines in service around the world. Meanwhile, AgustaWestland has several customers for its medium-heavy AW101, including NH90 customer Norway’s new search-and-rescue fleet.

Beyond the West, Russia Helicopter Company competes all over the world, and its Mi-17 family remains very popular in the NH90-TTH’s market class.

The NH90 Production Program

NH90 manufacture
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The first NH90 series production helicopter made its maiden flight in May 2004, but the first acceptance by a customer didn’t take place until 3 NH90 TTH were accepted by Germany on Dec 13/06. Even so, it would be many years before Germany could declare Full Operational Capability, and other countries that ordered early have been faced with even longer waits. Portugal ordered NH90s in 2001, and canceled in 2012 without a single machine delivered. Customer acceptances for the NH90 NFH naval variant were expected to begin in the second half of 2009, but actually began in mid-2010, and Final Operational Capability wasn’t present until late 2013.

The NH90’s NAHEMO international program organization consists of 5 countries: France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, and Belgium (2007). Portugal dropped out in 2012. Others may be customers, but they aren’t full program partners. Other key players include:

NAHEMA. NATO Helicopter Management Agency represents the national customers, just as NAHEMO represents the national producers. NAHEMA acts as the single contact with NH Industries for the negotiation, attribution and execution of the primary contracts. They also handle qualification of all weapon systems.

NHIndustries. The Eurocopter/ AgustaWestland/ Stork Fokker joint venture. It acts as the prime contractor, responsible for the design, development, industrialization and production of the NH90, including program management, order sub-contracting, marketing, sales, and support for helicopters in service worldwide. It’s also the owner of the helicopter’s type certification. The NH90’s 3 main assembly lines, and their general work share items, are:

Base workshare
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Eurocopter France in Marignane, France: Powerplant & section, rotors, electrical systems, flight controls, central avionics.

Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH in Donauworth, Germany: Central sections, fuel, communications, avionics control. Lead for TTH tactical transport, and makes nose sections until Spain’s plant reaches full production.

AgustaWestland in Cascina Costa, Italy: Tail cone and drive shaft, main gearbox, automatic flight control, hydraulics, electric system, rear ramp, rear fuselage, installation monitoring systems. They are alternates for engine installation, and the lead for NFH mission packages & installation and the construction and flight testing of the naval prototype. AgustaWestland has final assembly line responsibility for all TTH and NFH helicopters to be procured by the Italian Army and Navy, and for the Dutch and Norwegian NH90 NFH helicopters as well, for a grand total of 150 helicopters so far.

Stork Fokker, the Netherlands: This isn’t a main assembly line, but they’re a founding partner with responsibility for the tail boom, doors, flotation boxes, landing gear, and intermediate tail gearbox.

The Nordic countries ordered 52 NH90 helicopters with an option for 17, and Patria Oyj runs the final assembly line in Halli, Jamsa, Finland as a subcontractor to Airbus Helicopters in Marignane. The Finnish assembly line was the 4th operational assembling line for the NH90, handling final assembly for all Finnish and Swedish NH90s. Per subsequent agreements, there have also been assembly lines in Albacete, Spain (Eurocopter Espana, will manufacture nose sections for all NH90s) and Brisbane, Australia (Eurocopter subsidiary Australian Aerospace), fir a total of 6.

At present, NH Industries’ orders total 513, with around 40 live options available as possible future orders. The breakdown is:

Over the past year or so, Portugal has canceled its buy of 10 helicopters, Germany cut its orders by 40 machines, and Spain decided to reduce its contract by half to 22. Greece’s contract for 20 has also been in question, with just 4 helicopters delivered nearly 9 years after the order was placed. On the bright side, Qatar became the first new customer in a long time, with a mixed order for 22 in 2014.

A timeline of NH90 customers and their key decisions follows:

Contracts & Key Events 2016 – 2018

June 7/18: Belgian debut One of Belgium’s NH-90 transport helicopter has reportedly carried out its first operational mission in Mali. The NH-90 emerged from a requirement that created a NATO helicopter development and procurement agency in 1992. The nearest equivalent would be Sikorsky’s popular Black Hawk family, but the NH-90 includes a set of innovative features that give it some distinguishing selling points. Its combination of corrosion-proofing, lower maintenance, greater troop or load capacity, and the flexibility offered by that rear ramp have made the NH-90 a popular global competitor. The NH-90 TTH base variant for land and air forces can carry between 12-20 troops and can load about 5,500 pounds. The NH-90 Fame MEDEVAC variant adds 2 intensive care bays for treating wounded personnel, on-board equipment, and seats for the medical team. Belgium nation has currently two NH-90s deployed in Mali in support of the United Nations peacekeeping mission. They became operational in March and will be used to transport wounded to specialized emergency stations. Initial deployment is four months, but this can be extended.

May 16/18: Error 404 Simulator Missing The German Navy is currently facing delays regarding the introduction of the NH-90 Sea Lion helicopter into its service. So far, the Navy was unable to procure a bespoke simulator system, necessary for training pilots. The Sea Lion simulator is being procured through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency. With the requirement comprising infrastructure, a full-mission simulator, and a rear-cabin crew trainer, the bids from industry have all been received and the technical evaluations are in progress but will not be delivered before the first of the 18 ordered helicopters will arrive at its main operating station. The NH-90 Sea Lion can be used as a utility helicopter, or as an anti-submarine helicopter, depending on how they’re built.

April 18/18: Germany’s Sea Lion program Helicopter consortium NI Industries (NHI) is gearing up for qualification tests on the naval variant of the NH90 helicopters it is building for Germany’s Sea Lion program. Prior to deliveries, military certification trials will take place later this year on the second flight-test aircraft, which underwent its maiden flight in November of last year. First deliveries of the 18 NH90 Naval Frigate Helicopters (NFH) ordered by Germany are scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2019 with three models included in the first batch, and further deliveries are expected to run at a pace of about one aircraft every two months from 2020. The aircraft will replace the German navy’s 21-strong fleet of elderly Westland Sea Kings. In addition to search and rescue and transport missions, the helicopters may also be used to fill a German anti-submarine warfare (ASW) requirement, with Eberhard Schoell, head of the NH90 program, saying very few changes would be required to modify the basic Sea Lion helicopter to make it suitable for the ASW role, as it is already pre-wired for the mission equipment.

March 16/18: FMS-Finalized orders! Qatar has signed a deal at its biennial defense expo, DIMDEX, with the NHI consortium—which includes Airbus’ and Leonardo’s helicopter divisions and Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker, which respectively hold 62.5 percent, 32 percent and 5.5 percent of the consortium—for the purchase of 28 NH90 and 16 H125 helicopters. A statement by Airbus from Doha said that 16 of the NH90s are in the tactical transport (TTH) configuration while the remaining 12 NH90s are in naval (NFH) configuration. The H125s will be received by the Qatar Armed Forces Air Academy for training purposes. Work will be split between Airbus—who will assemble the NH90 TTH aircraft from its facility in Marignane, France—and Leonardo—who will be responsible for final assembly and delivery of the 12 NH90 NFH helicopters in Italy. The deal is estimated to be worth at least $3.7 billion.

February 15/18: Sweden-High Costs Cause Shock! High operating costs may cause the Swedish military to ground nine of its NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH) fleet used for ground operations. Speaking on the issue, Defense Minister Peter Hultqvist said the procurement had a long history and background of broken expectations, and that life-cycle and operating costs should have been investigated and controlled prior to this. A report by Swedish broadcaster Ekot reported that Defense Force Helicopter 14 costed an average 200,000 kroner (almost $25,000) per hour—by comparison, the US DoD costs UH-60 Black Hawks at about $4,500 per flight hour. Hultqvist added that the helicopter’s high costs will be investigated further before a final decision on whether the nine NH90s will have their flight hours cut or grounded completely. First ordered in 2001 Sweden’s Defense Helicopter Wing operates 18 NH90 TTHs, alongside 16 UH-60Ms, and 20 AW109s (eight of which designated for sea roles).

February 6/18: Norway-FMS A report published by Norway’s defence research institute has found that Norway’s planned procurement of 12 NH90 naval helicopters will not meet its flight hours requirements to fulfil both frigate-based anti-submarine warfare (ASW) missions for the navy, as well as search and rescue (S&R) and fisheries and border protection missions for the coastguard. The report found that in order to fill both the needs of the navy and coastguard, Oslo requires 5,400 flight hours a year from the entire fleet, however, an analysis performed by the armed forces suggests that availability is only 2,100h a year. Instead, it has been recommended that all 12 NH90s—seven of which have already been delivered—should now be used for the navy’s ASW mission, while the coastguard requirement is filled by a procurement of civilian operators or unmanned platforms.

February 2/18: Qatar-FMS NH Industries is expecting firm orders from Qatar for both the TTH troop transport and NFH maritime variants of the NH90 helicopter, Flight Global reports. Back in 2014, Qatar signed a tentative agreement for 22 examples of the helicopter, however, despite finalizing multi-billion purchases for fighter aircraft, Doha has shied away from inking the NH90 deal. But with Qatar’s biennial Dimdex defence exhibition coming up in March, the firm is confident that the order will come to fruition. “We are still working with the Qatari customer to close the contract,” says NHI president Vincent Dubrule, “it is still very active.”

January 16/18: Radar Issues-Belgium Three of the four NH90 NATO frigate helicopter (NFH) delivered to Belgium have reported defective radars, the Belgian Air Force has revealed. Purchased in 2015 at a cost of €35 million each, the helicopters were scheduled to replace the older Sea King helicopters for sea-rescue operations once the Sea Kings went out of service in 2019. The replacement of the defective radars is expected to take between three and six months, however, some reports suggest that each helicopter could be out for as long as 18 months, leaving only one model operational for four helicopter teams.

November 30/17: Milestone NH Industries announced the successful maiden flight of its second NH90 Sea Lion platform, a naval variant of the medium-size multi-role helicopter being developed for the German Navy. The November 24 test comes roughly one year on from when model one took off from the Donauwörth facility of NHI consortium member Airbus Helicopters. Next up, NHI will undertake a several-month period of development testing that will focus on avionics and software, followed by further modifications to the aircraft throughout 2018. The initial serial production aircraft is now in final assembly, ahead of first delivery scheduled for late 2019. Berlin will acquire 18 Sea Lions to replace its navy’s fleet of aged Westland Sea King 41s.

2015 – 2016

New order to Germany; Belgium fleet achieves IOC

May 12/16: Airbus Helicopters is being kept busy with its Australian customers as it rushes to complete specifications of NH Industries NH90, in which Airbus Helicopters is the largest shareholder. Requirements by the Australian government include a weapons system and fast-roping and rappelling capability, as well as limitations to maritime deployment. Australia is also looking to replace its fleet of Airbus Tiger helicopters which have not met service standards.

January 22/16: France and Australia may look to collaborate on investing in a special forces variant of the NH90 attack helicopter. A common version and shared financial expenditure for the limited amounts of the helicopter required would help slash development costs for both countries. Both France and Australia have made substantial orders of the NH90 with seventy-four and forty-seven to be delivered respectively. A small portion of these orders will be developed to carry out special missions with requirements likely to encompass a central trapdoor for fast roping, a rear door gun, and changes to the communications suite.

January 11/16: After extensive use in operations in Mali, France is to procure seven more NH90 military helicopters. The latest addition brings their total order to seventy-four. Two variants of the helicopter are to be used; the Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH), for use by the French Army, and the navalized NATO Frigate Helicopter (NFH) for the French Navy. Forty-four TTH and twenty-seven NFH will be delivered and operational by 2019. At $31 million per chopper, the latest to be ordered will all see service across five partner nations in Africa’s Sahel region.

December 21/15: The first of Sweden’s NHIndustries’ NH-90 Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) variant helicopter has been delivered. The Swedish Air Force hopes to have nine out of a total eighteen NH-90s ordered to have ASW capabilities. The delivery coincides with the the Swedish procurement agency, FMW, signing an agreement with NHI to convert four existing NH-90 Search and Rescue variants to have ASW capabilities.

October 7/15: Egypt and France are reportedly engaged in talks over a potential acquisition of NH90 helicopters. With Egypt recently purchasing a significant quantity of French naval hardware with Saudi funding – including Gowind corvettes and a FREMM frigate – with which the NH90 would be compatible, the precise model being discussed could be the naval NFH variant, or a mix of NFH and TTH troop transport variants. Egypt signed a contract to buy the two Mistral LHDs formerly destined for Russia, with reports indicating that the country had also ordered Ka-52 navalized attack helicopters from Russia to equip the new vessels; however, these reports now appear to have been erroneous, with Russian officials now denying that an order has been placed.

August 25/15: Belgium’s four NH90 NFH naval helicopter fleet have achieved Initial Operating Capability, eight years after they were ordered in May 2007 through a mixed order for ten NH90 helicopters. Three of the country’s four helicopters have now entered service, with a fourth scheduled to join them in early 2016.

June 22/15: Belgium’s fleet of NH90 tactical transport helicopters has achieved Initial Operating Capability, following a procurement contract in 2007. The fourth and final NH90 helicopter was handed to the Belgian military last November. The country has also ordered four naval variants of the helicopter. France announced last week that it intends to modify some of its NH90s for Special Forces use, including installing electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) systems and data links.

March 6/15: New order to Germany. Despite the spontaneous combustion issue, Germany remains committed to the NH90, signing a deal for 18 new helicopters for its navy.

Feb 8/15: Germany is no longer putting happy face on NH90 issues; demanding Airbus fix the mess, which apparently involves a manufacturer-admitted “design flaw.” A February 6 statement(German): “The MoD now expects soon as possible the elimination of the problem by the manufacturer.” Analysts and the press are griping that the Bundeswehr didn’t play it straight.

2014

Qatar orders 22; New Zealand completes 2006 order; Finalist in India; Dutch, Germans, French have a problems with NH90 corrosion; Dutch suspend deliveries; German engine explosion suggests a troubling flaw; Marte-ER integration work would give the NH90-NFH a full anti-ship missile.

Nov. 26/14: Fluganst doesn’t stop deal. Germany’s defense ministry came to an agreement with NHI, following cuts announced in March 2013 whose structure didn’t fully satisfy defense minister Ursula von der Leyen and had been put on ice. The new master contract, worth about €8.5B ($10.5B) settles on 80 NH90s for the Army, 18 for the Navy, and 22 options that the Germans are now pitching to NATO countries as a Germany-based pooled resource. A previous order for 80 Tigers is cut down under this same deal, with a final operational fleet of only 40 Tigers. This still needs to be approved in Parliament, and get traction among alliance partners.

Earlier in November the Bundeswehr had lifted a flight ban on NH90s after concluding that the June incident in Uzbekistan was an isolated problem. But the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports that pilots are afraid safety issues are glossed over for political reasons. Fluganst (flight fear) is a more dangerous condition than Schadenfreude when your job is to fly helicopters.

Sources: Der Spiegel: Von der Leyen beendet Hubschrauber-Chaos | FAZ: Flugangst [both in German].

German cuts formalized

NH90 & Marte 2/S
(click to view full)

Oct 31/14: New Zealand. More than 8 years after New Zealand’s order for 9
NH90-TTH helicopters (q.v. July 31/06), the last NH90 arrives at RNZAF Base Ohakea on North Island. Sources: IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly, “New Zealand receives final NH90 helo”.

Final NZ delivery

Oct 31/14: Netherlands. Defence minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert report to the legislature that delays caused by late NH90-NFH deliveries and corrosion issues will cost the Dutch another EUR 105.8 million to keep the existing Eurocopter AS532 Super Puma fleet flying, on top of EUR 1.2 billion for the 20 NH90s. Neighboring Belgium has had a similar experience with its H-3s (q.v. June 6/13).

So far, the Dutch have accepted 13 NH90-NFHs, but deliveries remain suspended (q.v. June 27/14) until the corrosion problem is fixed. The Dutch MvD now expects to have a solution and finish negotiations over who should pay for this by the end of 2014 – a bit of slip from the June forecast of September 2014. The last Dutch NH90 is now scheduled for delivery in 2016. Sources: Flightglobal, “Dutch NH90 delays cost government more than €100 million”.

Oct 24/14: Germany. German media report that a June 2014 NH90 MEDEVAC flight from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan had to make an emergency landing in Termes, Uzbekistan after an engine exploded shortly after takeoff. Most electronic systems immediately failed, and the landing was a narrow escape for the pilots. The NH90 remains in place, until it can be repaired well enough for a short flight to Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan, and be transported out in a leased SALIS AN-124 heavy-lift aircraft.

Engineers later found that a drive shaft in the engine was bent, and a report from engineering firm P3 says that a temporary flight ban may be needed. Analysis of numerous machines has raised concerns about engines that had been started too many times in one day, which is a serious limitation for a combat helicopter. P3’s conclusion was that the NH90s wouldn’t be able to support foreign deployments effectively until at least 2016. Sources: Die Welt, “Motor des NH90-Helikopters zu sensibel für Einsatze” | The Local – Germany, “German helicopter fleet ‘not fit for Nato'” | Eurasia.NET, “Helicopter Crash Complicates Germany-Uzbekistan Base Negotiations”.

German accident

Oct 15/14: HMD. A 1,500 page from international audit firm KPMG has lots of criticism for the Bundeswehr, and some of its details pertains especially to the NH90.

The Thales TopOwl helmet mounted display comes in for special mention, as its weight is causing pilot injuries that make them unavailable for flying. Co-pilots, who spend their time monitoring the various instruments and screens, are especially hard-hit. The helicopter also gets dinged for not having enough reliable seating, and for corrosion issues (q.v. June 27/14). Sources: Der Spiegel, “Mangel bei der Bundeswehr: Schwere Helme machen Piloten krank”.

HMD problems

July 28-29/14: India. The investigation into India’s AW101 VVIP helicopter buy, which became a full-blown legal dispute between India and Finmeccanica in 2013, continues to stall India’s maritime helicopter buy. The introduction of a new BJP government doesn’t seem to have changed that yet, but Italy’s decision to end its investigation seems likely to leave India’s CBI without a case.

India’s MRH finalists are reportedly Sikorsky’s S-70/ MH-60R, and the NH90 NFH which is led by Finmeccanica. Meanwhile, India’s Navy can only provision 20% of its capable ships with helicopters, and its anti-submarine capabilities are crumbling. For a full account, read “Anti-Submarine Weakness: India Has a Problem“.

July 18/14: Weapons. Navy Recognition reports that NH Industries and MBDA have started integration of the 100+ km Marte-ER anti-ship missile on the NH90 NFH. The Marte Mk.2/S light anti-ship missile gives the helicopter a 30 km reach, but naval defenses are quickly making it difficult to survive at that distance. Meanwhile, the longer-range AM39 Exocet is ineligible; it apparently creates too much turbulence, and messes with the NH90’s center of gravity. The Marte-ER is much more compact, and Italy has reportedly expressed interest. Navy Recognition doesn’t mention this, but India’s maritime helicopter competition may be the larger driver, since it demands an anti-ship missile with 100+ km range. At present, neither finalist has an integrated missile with this performance; adding Marte-ER first could give the NH90-NFH an edge against Sikorsky’s S-70B.

Marte-ER fitting trials began in June 2014, and while flight and separation tests are planned for the fall of 2014. Sources: Navy Recognition, “NHIndustries and MBDA started integration of MARTE ER missile on NH90 maritime helicopter”.

June 27/14: Corrosion. The Dutch will suspend NH90 deliveries until corrosion problems are solved, after the Dutch National Aerospace Laboratory found 92 corrosion issues in their NH90-NFH helicopters. That’s a somewhat surprising problem, given that the NH90’s composite construction was supposed to minimize corrosion. The problem is apparently due to combination of combining materials without isolating them, the wrong choice of materials in some cases, and other design and assembly faults. France is reportedly having similar problems, albeit on a smaller scale.

The Dutch Ministry of Defense says that they informed NHIndustries of this problem in March 2013 through the program managers at NAHEMO (NATO Helicopter Management Agency),; so far, NHI’s engineering task force has found technical solutions for around 60% of the problems. The rest are expected to be solved by September 2014, which will need to be followed by a refit and remediation program. Unsurprisingly, the MvD wants NHI to pay for the fixes, which remains an unsettled contract issue. Meanwhile, the Dutch are working on a corrosion prevention program with NHI that will add some overhead, and the problem is expected to delay the overall delivery schedule by about 6 months. Sources: Dutch MvD, Full brief [PDF] and “Minister van Defensie schort afname Nederlandse NH90-helikopters op” | Aviation Week, “Corrosion Delays Dutch NH90 Acquisition” | War is boring, “Uh Oh—A Crappy Italian Company Might Build The Netherlands’ New Stealth Fighters”.

NFH corrosion issue

March 27/14: Qatar. The Gulf Emirate orders 22 NH90s, at a reported purchase price of around QAR 8.9 billion (about $2.446 billion). The order is for 12 NH90-TTH utility helicopters, and 10 NH90-NFH naval helicopters. It’s just one part of a $23 billion weapon shopping spree announced at DIMDEX 2014 in Doha, Qatar.

The helicopters will replace Qatar’s 12-13 old Westland Commando (Sea King) maritime utility and patrol helicopters, and at least some of its Lynx and/or Puma family helicopters. With this buy, Qatar joins their near neighbor Oman as an NH90 customer. No word yet re: their delivery schedule.

Other Qatari buys at DIMDEX included 24 attack helicopters, air defense and anti-tank missiles, fast attack boats, 2 A330 aerial refueling planes, and 3 E-737 AWACS aircraft. Sources: Al Defaiya, “Qatar Announces Big Defense Deals at DIMDEX 2014” | Arabian Aerospace, “Qatar in $23bn arms order including Apache and NH90 helicopters” | Reuters, “Qatar buys helicopters, missiles in $23 billion arms deals”.

Qatar: 22 mixed

2013

France orders 34 TTH; Germany cuts its contract by 40, but will fly NH90-NFH too; Spain wants to cut from 45 – 22; NH90 loses SAR Australia settles contract issues; Dutch are 1st NH90-NFH foreign deployment.

German NH90 & Tiger
(click to view full)

Nov 29/13: Dutch. The Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) has taken delivery of the Final Operative Configuration for their NH90 NFH Mission Planning & Analysis System (MPAS), following operational feedback from more than a year of RNLN service experience. The initial version, based on AgustaWestland’s multi-helicopter SkyFlight system, was released into service in 2011. Sources: Shephard Rotorhub, “RNLN takes delivery of NH90 NFH MPAS”.

Nov 8/13: Italy. The Navy’s 5th Helicopter Sqn at Sarzana-Luni NB receives its 6th helicopter, and its 1st fully operational “Step B” NH90-NFH. The new configuration adds mission systems integration for Marte MK/2S anti-ship missiles and torpedoes, advanced satellite and encrypted communications, and radar and avionics enhancements. Italy’s first 5 NH90-NFHs will be retrofitted to this status in 2014. Sources: NH Industries, “Delivery Of The First NH90 Step B To Italian Navy”.

Aug 1/13: Belgium. Eurocopter delivers Belgium’s 1st NH90 NFH, which is also is the first one built at Eurocopter’s Donauworth, Germany facility. Its configuration is identical to the Dutch NH90-NFH, and the helicopter was delivered at the Full Operational Capability rating. Belgium becomes the sub-type’s 5th customer, after France, Italy, the Netherlands and Norway.

Training of Belgian Navy flight and maintenance crews will begin next month, and operational capability will begin in 2014 using 2 of the 4 contracted helicopters. The NH90s are replacing Belgium’s H-3 Sea Kings. EADS.

July 26/13: Spain. The Spanish government approves an extra EUR 877.33 million (about $1.165 billion) in their 2013 budget, in order to finance payments that have come due on several major weapons programs. At the same time, in order to finance investments in their troubled S-80 submarine program, and purchases of their Pizarro (ASCOD) tracked IFVs, they will look to cut other programs.

The NH90 will see the sharpest cuts, as Spain looks for a way to reduce their planned buy of 45 NH90-TTH to just 22. That has been rumored for a little while, but the decision is now confirmed. The next step will involve negotiations with NH Industries around issues like cancellation fees, potential resale, etc.

The A400M aerial transport contract doesn’t allow Spain to cancel deliveries, but the government has officially decided to take delivery of the last 13 planes in “austere” condition, with few to no options, and then sell them on the second-hand market. They also intend to sell 6 of their 24 Tiger HAD/HAD-E attack helicopters, and reduce the number of serving Leopard 2A6E tanks from 190 – 116. Sources: Defense-Aerospace | Publico [in Spanish].

Spain wants to halve their order

July 9/13: Norway loss. Norway’s Ministry of Justice and Public Security announces the finalists for their NAWSARH search and rescue helicopter competition. The program had started with the NH90-NFH as the assumed platform, with 10 options built into Norway’s initial NH90 contract, but now the NH90 is out. Sikorsky, who forced the buy into a competition, is also out.

Further negotiations will now take place with AgustaWestland (AW101) and Eurocopter (EC725). Norway aims to sign a contract by the end of 2013, and aims to phase out the last H-3 Sea King by 2020. For full coverage, see “AW101 Flies off With Norway’s SAR Helicopter Competition“.

Norway loss

June 23/13: German FAME. The German army declares its NH90 FAME MEDEVAC helicopters “operationally capable.” The Germans have 4 helicopters in Afghanistan at Mazar-e-Sharif, and Aviation Week reports that a MEDEVAC mission will use both operational helicopters in a pickup-escort arrangement, while the other 2 are held back as “technical reserve”. The German contingent’s 4 EC665 Tiger Asgard-T attack helicopters are also available as escorts, if needed. Aviation Week.

June 18/13: Industrial. Aviation Week reports that NH90 partners have been delivering around 30 per year year, but are looking to continue ramping up production to 40-50 in 2013, and 60 per year beyond that. The problem is budget crunches among participating governments, which are likely to create renegotiated and extended delivery schedules. Even at 60 per year, existing orders would keep the consortium busy for another 6 years just clearing the backlog.

Portugal continues to negotiate the cancellation of its 10-helicopter order, and Spain is reportedly looking to cut its 45-helicopter order in half, to 22. Eurocopter EVP Dominique Maudet is more optimistic about Norway, which is reportedly satisfied with its initial models and will make its SAR helicopter decision in 2014. India and Qatar have also reportedly expressed interest. Aviation Week.

May 29/13: France. La Tribune reports that France has ordered their final tranche of 34 NH90 TTH Army helicopter options from Eurocopter, in a contract that was said to approach EUR 1 billion. Defense-Aerospace points out that the order had been described as “imminent” back in January 2012. La Tribune [in French] | Defense-Aerospace | Lloyd’s.

France: 34 TTH

June 6/13: Belgium. A delay in the delivery of Belgium’s 4 NH90-NFH helicopters means that they can’t retire their fleet of aged H-3 Sea Kings on-schedule. Which means more money, and availability problems. Add Belgium to the list of unhappy customers, especially since they placed their order 6 years ago, in 2007 (q.v. June 19/07). Shephard Rotorhub.

May 9/13: Australia. Australia’s Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) signs a Deed of undertaking with Eurocopter subsidiary Australian Aerospace and their industry partners to re-baseline the “MRH90” army helicopter project’s schedule, settle a number of disputed program issues, and change some contract terms. The biggest change is free delivery of a 47th helicopter for maintenance training at the Army’s Aviation Maintenance school at Oakey, Queensland.

The MRH90 program is 3 years behind, and currently sits on the government’s notorious “Projects of Concern” list. Australian Aerospace agreed on a number of technical fixes back in 2012, and this contract aims to settle the remaining issues and get the MRH90 removed from the Projects of Concern list by the end of 2013. Meanwhile, the MRH90’s problems appear to have cost the NH90 a role as Australia’s future naval helicopter, which was awarded to Sikorsky’s MH-60R Seahawk instead (vid. June 16/11 entry). Australia DoD | Australian Aerospace | Projects of Concern.

Australia MRH90 settlement & changes

May 2/13: Italy. The Italian Army gets its 21st of 60 NH90-TTH machines, but it’s the 1st in Full Operational Configuration. Meanwhile, the Italian Army has now flown 5 Initial Operational Configuration NH90s in Afghanistan’s demanding conditions for 470 combat flight hours.

Note that Italy’s order total in DID’s table shows 70 NH90 TTH helicopters, because the Italian Navy ordered 10 of its own. NH Industries.

April 8/13: Belgium. NH Industries announces the first flight of Belgium’s NH90-NFH, part of Belgium’s 8-helicopter, evenly split order. It’s being delivered:

“…in its full operational capability standard, already known as the “Step B.” This aircraft is very close to the Dutch NH90 NFH Step B currently operationally deployed with the Royal Netherland’s [sic] Navy.”

March 15/13: German cuts. Germany and Eurocopter sign an agreement that substantially cuts its NH90-TTH and Tiger UHT buys, while adjusting their mix of helicopters and ending any hope of a naval helicopter competition.

Under the agreement, Germany’s total buy of NH90s shrinks from 122 to 82, and its purchase of Army & Air Force helicopters shrinks even further. As part of the agreement, Germany will buy 18 NH90-NFH naval helicopters, down from its original requirement of 30. This removes any potential competition for that order, and marks a reduction of 58 NH90-TTH helicopters (47.5%) for the Army and Air Force.

At the same time, Germany is cutting its order for EC665 Tiger UHT scout/attack helicopters from 80 to 57 – a cut that will require them to return 11 helicopters to Eurocopter for resale. Financial savings have not been disclosed yet. German Ministry of Defence [in German].

Germany cuts its order

Jan 21/13: Netherlands. A Dutch NH90 NFH becomes the 1st of its type to deploy abroad, embarked aboard HRMS De Ruyter for anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden. Rotorhub.

1st NFH deployment

2012

Portugal cancels its 10 NH90s; 1st NH90 combat deployment; Norway threatens cancellation; 100th NH90 delivered – took a while.

FS Aquitaine & Caiman
(click to view full)

Nov 28/12: Norway. NHIndustries delivers Norway’s 2nd NH90 NFH at AgustaWestland’s Tessera, Italy facility, where it was assembled. The Norwegians have been getting antsy (vid. Aug 2/12 entry), so every little bit helps. Note that delivery is not the same as “ready for operations.” NH Industries.

Sept 18/12: Belgium. Belgium’s 1st of 4 NH90 TTH helicopters begins flight testing from Eurocopter’s facility in Marignane, France. NH Industries adds that:

“The Belgian NH90 TTH is a Full Operational Capability standard helicopter. This aircraft is very close to the french [sic] NH90 Caiman TTH for which deliveries started in the end of 2011 in Full Operational Capability Standard. This commonality brings to the Belgian customer all the return of experience collected during the development of the French NH90 TTH.”

The same may not be true of Belgium’s 4 NH90 NFH naval helicopters, as that variant isn’t finished development yet. The helicopters were ordered in July 2007. NH Industries.

Aug 31/12: Deployed. Italy deploys the 1st NH90 helicopters abroad.

The 5 helicopters were airlifted into Afghanistan aboard C-17s (either NATO SAC or USAF), and the plan is to have 6 NH90s in Herat for 6 months. They will serve alongside heavier Italian CH-47 Chinook heavy-lift helicopters, and A129 Mongoose attack helicopters, to help Italy cover ISAF’s large northwestern sector near Iran. NH Industries and follow-on.

1st deployment abroad

Aug 2/12: Norway out? Flight International reports that Norway, which ordered 8 NH90-NFH utility helicopters in 2001 and has received just 1 so far (vid. Nov 30/11 entry), is threatening to cancel its order and buy a different helicopter.

“Speaking last month on a tour with the coastguard in northern Norway, secretary of state for defence Roger Ingebrigtsen said: “NH90 is greatly delayed and I am very concerned about this situation. We therefore have to consider what the options are to ensure the coastguard has the helicopter capacity we depend on.”

The defence ministry adds: “If the manufacturer doesn’t manage to deliver the helicopters [to deadline] we are considering cancelling the contract… There are several helicopters on the market that are combat-proven and in use by other nations,”

If Norway canceled its entire order, it would also be canceling its 6 NH90-NFH anti-submarine helicopters. There are alternatives. Sikorsky’s comparable S-92 is already in use by other Coast Guards, and their smaller MH-60R is a proven anti-submarine helicopter. AgustaWestland’s larger AW101 has Coast Guard credentials, and its naval helicopter variant is in service with Britain and Italy. A few days later, an article in AftenPosten [in Norwegian] states that an Air Force report recommends asking a quote from Sikorsky for MH-60Rs, as a plan B in case NH Industries continues to fail. Back in 2007 their neighbor Finland settled its differences with the manufacturer for a relatively modest penalty, but that was a short delay on a smaller order.

July 3/12: Portugal out. Jane’s reports that Portugal has chosen to cancel its Puma replacement effort, and suspend its participation in the NH90 program. This means the country will abandon the monies paid to date, as well as all 10 helicopters they were to have received. Savings are estimated at EUR 420 million (about $530 million).

Portugal is also said to be renegotiating other contracts, such as its 2005 order with General Dynamics for 260 Pandur II 8×8 wheeled armored personnel carriers.

Portugal quits

June 29/12: Oman. NH Industries delivers another 2 NH90-TTH to Oman, bringing their total deliveries to 10 of 20 ordered. The contract was signed on July 24/04.

May 27/12: Flight International reports that the NH90’s orders from Greece, Portugal, and Spain are all in peril of cancellation or reduction.

To date, Greece is the only one of the 3 that has received any helicopters, despite orders that began in 2001. Only 1 of Greece’s 4 delivered NH90s is even in the process of conversion to the full operational version, out of a 2003 order for up to 34 (16 TTH, 4 Special Ops variants, 14 options). Portugal has yet to accept any of its 10 TTH machines ordered in 2001, while Spain is reportedly looking to cut up to 8 helicopters from its 2006 order for 45.

March 8/12: Writedown. EADS reports its 2011 financial results, and Eurocopter results were generally good. The firm finished its 100th NH90 in 2011, but:

“A net charge of around [EUR] 115 million was booked in 2011. This mainly relates to governmental programmes [i.e. NH90 and Tiger] as well as to SHAPE [the firm’s restructuring plan]. The 2010 figure included a net charge of [EUR] 120 million.”

Aviation Week adds that:

“Departing EADS CFO Hans-Peter Ring says he “cannot guarantee” that there won’t be further charges . He blames the NH90 problems on the companies’ willingness to allow too much customization, with almost every buyer having a near-bespoke configuration.”

March 8/12: France. DCNS, the French Navy, and the French DGA procurement agency successfully complete a series of deck landing trials with the new NH90 NFH (“Caiman Marine”), on board the new FREMM frigate FS Aquitaine. DCNS.

Jan 30/12: France. An official unveiling ceremony is held for the 1st French Army NH90 TTH, which will also be referred to as “Caiman” in French service, alongside the NH90 NFH utility variant. The helicopter will go to GAMSTAT in Valencia to begin its technical and operational testing. French DGA [in French].

Jan 3/12: #100. NH Industries announces delivery of the 100th NH90 variant, about 11.5 years after the initial base contract was signed.

2011

Germany will upgrade 12 NH90s for MEDEVAC; Final Operational Configuration for NH90-TTH; French NH90 naval helicopters enter service; Problems in Australia force a diagnostic review of the program; Australia buys MH-60R naval helicopters, instead of more NH90s; Sweden buys UH-60Ms for MEDEVAC, instead of more NH90s.

Australian MRH-90
(click to view full)

Dec 8/11: France’s “Caiman”. French NH90 NFHs operational. A ceremony marks the official entry of France’s NH90 NFH “Caiman” naval helicopters into service with Flotille 33F. So far, 5 helicopters have been delivered in utility configuration, of the 27 total. The name “Caiman” was chosen in conjunction with the French Army, who has ordered 34 NH90 TTH helicopters of its own.

The Marine Nationale’s eventual mix will be 13 utility models with a rear ramp, and 14 full anti-submarine models without the rear ramp. They’ll be based at BAN (NAS) Hyeres on the French Riviera and BAN Lanveoc in Brittany, plus 1 detached to Cherbourg in Normandy. From there, they’ll deploy aboard France’s high-end frigates: the 2 Horizon Class air defense ships, and its forthcoming Aquitaine Class FRMM multi-role ships. They may also deploy to France’s amphibious ships like the Mistral Class, but the number of NH90 NFH helicopters ordered will make that an occasional posting. Besides a door gunner, their initial armament will be MU90 Eurotorp lightweight torpedoes, with light anti-ship missiles to follow around 2021. Navy Recognition.

French “Caimans” operational

Nov 30/11: Norway. Norway holds a delivery ceremony at AgustaWestland in Verigate, Italy, for their 1st NH90 NFH naval helicopter. Their 14 NH90s will replace the Coast Guard’s AgustaWestland’s Lynx helicopters (8 NH90s), and serve as the new Nansen Class AEGIS frigates’ ASW helicopters (6 NH90s). They will be based at Bardufoss Air Station. AgustaWestland.

Nov 8/11: Germany. Reuters reports that Eurocopter and HN Industries are looking to compensate for Germany’s NH90 TTH cut by pushing the country to buy the naval NH90-NFH, to replace 21 H-3 Sea King and 22 AgustaWestland Sea Lynx helicopters. Reuters adds that the German Navy hasn’t been impressed with the NH90-NFH so far, and has concerns about its upgradeability.

Even if that’s true, Eurocopter has a card to play. Eurocopter CEO Lutz Bertling said that talks over the proposed contract changes would begin in mid-December 2011, with the goal of an agreement in principle by March 2012. The implication is that Eurocopter would forego some or all cancellation fees on existing EC665 Tiger UHT and NH90-TTH contracts, if Germany agreed to buy the NH90-NFH instead of competitors like Sikorsky’s MH-92/CH-148 or MH-60R/S; or AgustaWestland’s EH101 or AW159 Wildcat.

Another possibility involves agreement to fund development of a joint FTH heavy-lift helicopter with France and/or the USA, in which Eurocopter would likely partner with Boeing or Sikorsky.

Nov 8/11: NH90-TTH final configuration. NAHEMA issues the NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopter’s Final Operational Configuration certification, stating that it fully meets customer specifications. With this go-ahead, the French Army will receive their initial FOC NH90 TTH before 2011 ends, and deliveries to Italy, Belgium and Germany will begin in 2012.

The announcement also implies the start of retrofit programs, among customers who have already received early model NH90 TTHs for training use. NH Industries | EADS.

NH90 TTH FOC cert

Oct 21/11: German cuts? As German austerity measures cut further into an already weak defense budget, the government announces changes to its NH90 TTH plans. They’ll be cutting 42 NH90s from the 112 helicopter procurement plan, capping the total buy at 80. The final split between the Army and Air Force, who were going to fly slightly different versions of the TTH model, remains unclear. Also unclear: potential termination costs under the contract with NH Industries.

Eurocopter will actually be taking 2 hits. One from its share of NH90 work, another from Germany halving its buy of Tiger HAC/UHT scout/attack helicopters, to just 40. Aviation Week.

Aug 31/11: Finland. Patria announces an agreement with the Finnish Defence Forces, to design and manufacture NH90 ballistic protection plates that will protect both pilots and transported personnel. The project will be implemented during 2012-2014. Patria Oy | Rotorhub.

June 23/11: Italy. The Italian Navy formally takes delivery of its first NH90-NFH naval helicopter. they’re the 2nd NFH customer to take delivery, after the Dutch (vid. April 21/10 entry). AgustaWestland.

June 20/11: NH90 FAME MEDEVAC. Eurocopter signs an agreement with Germany to upgrade 12 German NH90-TTH helicopters to NH90 FAME (Forward Air Medical Evacuation/ MEDEVAC) configuration, using upgrade kits that can be installed in 30 minutes (vid. June 4/10 entry). NH90 FAME helicopters will be equipped with 2 intensive care stations for treating wounded personnel, along with a defibrillator, a transport ventilator, a surveillance monitor, and seats for the medical team. the helicopters are expected to enter service in July 2012.

Germany: 12 MEDEVAC upgrades

June 16/11: Australia. The MH-60R beats the NH90-NFH for Australia’s 24-helicopter, A$3+ billion (over $3.16 billion) AIR 9000, Phase 8 helicopter competition, even though Australia had switched from H-60/S-70 Army helicopters to the NH90-TTH several years ago. A combination of problems with its “MRH-90s,” slow NH90 TTH development, MH-60R naval interoperability benefits, and the MH-60R’s low-risk operational status tipped the balance. Read “MH-60R Wins Australia’s Maritime Helicopter Competition” for full coverage.

Loss in Australia

May 9/11: Sonar. Marport C-Tech Ltd. receives “a multi-million dollar contract” From SELEX Galileo to manufacture OTS-90 helicopter dipping sonar modules. The firm is a specialist in software-defined sonar, and work will be carried out at its facilities in Cornwall, Ontario, Canada.

The OTS-90 system is derived from L-3 Ocean Systems’ HELRAS(Helicopter Long Range Active Sonar), and some component units are manufactured under license by SELEX Galileo. Marport manufactures some HELRAS modules as well, which gives it links to a broad array of maritime helicopters: HELRAS-equipped SH-60 Seahawks, AW101s, and Canada’s CH-148/H-92 program; as well as NH90 NFH helicopters belonging to Italy and The Netherlands (OTS-90).

May 5/11: Netherlands. AgustaWestland announces that the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) has taken delivery of the firm’s Skyflight Mission Planning & Analysis System (MPAS) for their NH90 NFH naval helicopters, following successful completion of installation and Site Acceptance Tests.

The system will be fully operational on Dutch NH90s by the end of 2012 (vid. Dec 23/09 entry, looks like they’ll miss the Q3 2011 date for full capability), and Skyflight also serves aboard a number of other helicopter types around the world.

April 29/11: Australia. Australia completes its “full diagnostic review” of the MRH-90 program, after engine failures, transmission oil cooler fan failures and the poor availability of spares ground the fleet. To date, 13 of 46 MRH-90 helicopters have been accepted by Australia’s DoD and are being used for testing and initial crew training. They aren’t operational yet, and so far, the Army helicopters are 12 months behind schedule and the Navy helicopters, 18 months.

The review doesn’t consign the program to the infamous “Projects of Concern” list – yet. It does ask for a remediation plan, before a follow-up diagnostic review later in 2011 looks at the project again. With the Australian naval helicopter contract looming, a good follow-on review is important to Eurocopter. Australian DoD.

April 2011: Sweden. Sweden ordered its NH90s in 2001, and has received 7 helicopters, but their fleet won’t be fully operational until 2020 or later. Those delays have created a opening for Sikorsky’s H-60M, as Sweden pursues final negotiations for 15 Black Hawk helicopters to perform combat search and rescue and MEDEVAC roles in Afghanistan and beyond, beginning in 2013. The contracts will reportedly be worth $550-750 million. See full DID coverage.

Loss in Sweden

Feb 1/11: Australia. The Australian DoD makes an announcement concerning its MRH-90s:

“Mr Smith and Mr Clare also announced that a high-level comprehensive diagnostic review of the MRH-90 helicopter project would occur this month. As reported in both the Defence Annual Report and the ANAO Major Project Report released last year, the project has suffered delays of 12 months for the Navy’s helicopters and 18 months for the Army’s helicopters. Delays are due to a series of key issues, including engine failure, transmission oil cooler fan failures and the poor availability of spares… 13 MRH-90 helicopters have been accepted by Defence to date and are currently being used for testing and initial crew training. Minister Smith said that the full diagnostic review would be supported by external specialists. It will provide recommendations to Government on the actions necessary to fully implement this important project.”

The timing here is poor, as the NH90 is competing with Sikorsky’s proven MH-60R to replace Sikorsky’s S-70s as Australia’s next naval/ASW helicopter.

2010

German complains of deficiencies made public; MEDEVAC variant unveiled; 1st NH90-NFH delivered; Naval opportunities in Germany & Australia.

Dutch NH-90 NFH
(click to view full)

Dec 17/10: Spain. NHI announces the 1st flight of a Spanish NH90 TTH, at Eurcopter’s facilities in Marignane, France. This event marks also the first flight of a GE CT7-8F5 powered NH90, instead of the RTM322.

Spain ordered 45 of the medium utility helicopters in December 2006, with the first 2 built in France and the other 43 assembled in Albacete, Spain. The initial NH90 TTH will be transferred to Albacete in 2011 in order to complete the development flights, leading to a full qualification by the Spanish Ministry of Defence and expected induction in 2012.

Dec 16/10: France. NHI announces the maiden flight of the first French NH90 TTH medium utility helicopter for French Army Aviation (ALAT), at the Eurocopter facilities in Marignane, France. The flight follows the December 2007 order for 34 NH90 TTH machines.

Oct 23/10: Australia. The Australian reports on the Project AIR 9000, Phase 8 helicopter competition. A navy evaluation team reportedly test-flew the MH-60R in early October 2010, and wants to fly the NH90 NFH as well, even though its mission systems software won’t be ready until mid-2011, and the helicopter won’t be operational until late 2011 – well after Australia’s decision deadline.

In the end, the NH90 lost. Read “MH-60R Wins Australia’s Maritime Helicopter Competition” for full coverage.

Sept 30/10: Swedish switch. The US DSCA announces Sweden’s request to buy 15 UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters for combat search &and rescue & MEDEVAC duties in Afghanistan. Sweden already flies the NH90 TTH in a “high cabin” configuration that’s especially well suited to combat search and rescue and MEDEVAC operations, and Eurocopter unveiled a German NH90-TTH MEDEVAC kit on June 4/10.

Even so, the NH90’s slow delivery and certification times end up shifting the additional order to the NH90’s main competitor instead, as the contract goes through. See full DID coverage.

June 28/10: Oman. The Royal Air Force of Oman takes delivery of its first 2 NH90-TTH helicopters, out of an order of 20 that was placed on July 24/04. It will be followed in July 2010, by the acceptance process for the second batch of NH90s. These helicopters are supported by an integrated NHI/ RAFO maintenance team who will inaugurate the NH90’s GLIMS (Ground Logistic Information Management System). NH Industries.

June 14/10: New Zealand. News 3 quotes New Zealand Defence Minister Wayne Mapp of the National Party, who says that despite German reports citing issues with the NH90 (vid. Feb 23/10 and March 31/10 entries), he won’t be canceling New Zealand’s order.

June 7/10: Germany naval. Sikorsky is looking to pursue a 30-helicopter bid to replace Germany’s H-3 Sea Kings with their MH-92 Cyclone instead of the NH90 NFH, and also wants to compete for an 8-19 helicopter Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR) opportunity to replace German UH-1Ds. A decision is expected in late 2010, if proposed budget cuts don’t derail the programs.

At the ILA 2010 airshow in Berlin, Sikorsky signed a Memorandum of Understanding “to explore opportunities” in aftermarket support involves their long-standing partner ZF Luftfahrttechnik GmbH (ZF Aviation Technology), while the other involves Switzerland’s RUAG, and will explore “Maintenance and Repair Operation as well as integrated logistics support and completion capabilities.” Rheinmetall and MTU are also reputed to be involved in discussions.

The Cyclone might be operational in a maritime role before the NH90 NFH, and the firm has some HH-92 CSAR design experience from its participation in the aborted American CSAR-X competition. Their bid remains something of a long shot, but Sikorsky representatives are quoted as saying that the partnerships and experience will stand them in good stead to bid the future CH-53K heavy-lift helicopter for the Franco-German HTH program. Sikorsky has reportedly secured American export approval for the Cyclone, and would conduct final assembly in Germany. Aviation Week | Flight International | Shephard Group.

June 4/10: NH90 MEDEVAC. Eurocopter unveils an NH90-TTH MEDEVAC variant for the German Army, which does not consider any of its 14 delivered NH90s operational yet. A total of 12 helicopters will be modified to this MEDEVAC configuration. The 20-month expedited buy led Eurocopter to move Final Operational Configuration (FOC) NH90 features forward, including the MG-3 machine gun parts kit and ballistic protection. Existing NH90 systems such as electronic countermeasures, TopOwl helmet-mounted display for low-altitude night flight, and secure voice communications received adaptations, and the MEDEVAC helicopters install seats for the medical team and 2 intensive care bays for treating wounded personnel.

The MEDEVAC helicopters will also have some combat search and rescue related capabilities, but Eurocopter plans to offer a separate refit kit for that role. Options for the CSAR kit include up to 3 machine guns (each side door and the tail ramp), anti-ballistic protection, a rappel system, a double rescue hoist, an emergency flotation system, sand filters, an obstacle warning system, and improved self-protection electronics. EADS Eurocopter.

MEDEVAC/ FAME

May 18/10: Australia. Australia’s government announces that specialists from Turbomeca and Rolls Royce have been brought to Australia to help investigate an MRH90 engine failure that took place on April 20/10, about 30 minutes north east of Adelaide. The helicopter returned to RAAF base Edinburgh without further incident or injuries to personnel, but the incident resulted in a fleet-wide grounding.

May 14/10: Finland. Finland announces that it will retire its last 2 Mi-8 helicopters. The Finnish Army is reportedly flying 7 of its eventual 20 NH90 TTHs at Utti, and has amassed over 1,400 fleet flight hours, with deliveries from local assembly partner Patria to be completed in 2012.

Local commanders expect the NH90s to reach full operational status by 2013-14, but believes that could be moved forward to 2012 on an emergency basis, if required for an international deployment or sudden circumstances. Flight International.

April 28/10: Australia. Australia issues its formal solicitation for “AIR 9000, Phase 8” to buy naval helicopters: either the NH90 NFH or the MH-60R, decision in 2011. Ministerial release

April 23/10: France. The French Navy receives its first NH90 NFH naval helicopter. Following operational testing and training, the helicopter is expected to enter French Navy service near the end of 2011. France has ordered 27 NH90 NFH helicopters: 13 in support configuration, and 14 in naval combat/ ASW configuration. The NH90s will embark on its modern Lafayette, Horizon, and Aquitaine Class frigates, and on its Mistral Class amphibious ships. France DGA [in French] | NH Industries.

April 21/10: Netherlands is 1st NFH delivery. AgustaWestland announces that The Royal Netherlands Navy received its 1st of 20 NH90 NFH naval helicopter during an official ceremony held at AgustaWestland’s Vergiate plant in Italy. See also Dec 23/09 entry for background.

Today’s event marks the first delivery of a naval NH90 NFH variant to any customer. AgustaWestland | NH Industries.

1st NH90 NFH delivery

March 31/10: Defects? On the occasion of a visit to Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH, defpro.com [ed.: link no longer working] asks for Eurocopter’s response to BILD’s report, and receives a response from Eurocopter Vice President & NAHEMA Programme Coordination Manager Dr Clive Schley.

As a quick rundown, the answer to most of these is “contractual specifications.” Dr. Schley says the ground clearance is to specifications, as is the winch’s 270 kg load. Other customers have done fast-roping from the NH90, but Germany did not buy that ancillary equipment. The approved internal 110 kg seat load is not the maximum load, and first results of tests for stretcher loading procedures when a machine gun is installed in the door are “promising.” Trials of the NH90 MedEvac demonstrator are scheduled for Q2 2010.

March 1/10: Defects? The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Australia’s military is aware of the German report, but is making no commitments:

“A defence spokesman said Australia was seeking an English translation of the German Army trial report on its NH-90 helicopters. He said all matters of operational effectiveness and airworthiness were taken seriously and the German report would be reviewed in detail.”

Australia operates the same model helicopter, but designates it as MRH90.

Feb 23/10: Defects? The German Army is concerned over several deficiencies with the NH90 TTH helicopter as fielded, and says so in an official report. Germany’s Bild daily says the army has tried out 13 test helicopters, and concluded they were not fully battle-ready. Key complaints reportedly include:

• Seats with weight capacities of just 110 kg, very low in an era where soldiers routinely carry 20-30 kg of protective gear;
  
• Helicopter winch that can’t handle the needs of fast-roping commando teams or boarding parties;
  
• No defensive machine gun and door-gunner, due to limited cabin space;
  
• An infantry team can be carried only if team members leave their personal weapons and kit on the floor, slowing offloading; worse, there are no floor straps to secure those weapons;
  
• The lack of floor straps means that heavier weapons like shoulder-fired missiles can’t be transported at all;
  
• The composite floor is too prone to damage, and the rear ramp can’t support fully equipped soldiers. Note that the Bild report refers to a floor that can’t handle soldiers with dirty boots, which makes little sense. If the rear ramp can’t support the banging weight of fully-equipped troops, however, the floor may also have issues.
  
• The Bild report refers to difficulties with soldiers exiting the helicopter on ground with obstacles over 16 cm tall, due to low ground clearance, which makes little sense on its face. If there’s a problem with low clearance and damage-prone composites, however, it could create problems landing the helicopters on obstacle-strewn ground. That might in turn force slower methods of exit, like hover-and-rope, but the connection isn’t intuitive.

See Bild [in German] | Defense News | UPI.

Performance issues?

Jan 6/10: Australia. Australia’s Daily Telegraph reports that Australia’s Labor Party government has rejected a DoD request to approve a $4 billion “rapid acquisition” of 24 MH-60R Seahawk helicopters and related equipment. The buy would have been an emergency replacement for the long-running, ill-starred, and canceled SH-2G Super Seasprite program.

Instead, successful lobbying by Eurocopter will force a competition between Sikorsky’s MH-60R, in service with the US Navy, and the European NH90 NFH variant, which is expected to be ready for service sometime around 2011-2012.

2009

Orders: France (22); Germany reporting defects and problems.

MRH90 w. 105mm Hamel
(click to view full)

Dec 23/09: Netherlands. The Netherlands gets its 1st NH90-NFH naval helicopter at AgustaWestland’s Italian facility, but the machine will not be officially accepted until after a series of inspections and tests. Once accepted and formally delivered, however, the helicopters will only be suitable for crew training and basic coastal patrols.

This “meaningful operationally capable” standard is the consequence of technical issues involving weight gain, the helicopter’s maritime radar and tactical navigation, etc. In order to minimize delays and begin delivering helicopters, which was supposed to happen in mid-2009 for the Dutch, NH Industries and its customers agreed to a phased fielding program. That allows basic acceptance trials and familiarization to begin earlier, which mitigates normal post-delivery service delays, but does not provide fully operational helicopters. Per the July 10/09 entry, NHIndustries believes they can deliver NH90-NFHs that fully meet Dutch specifications by Q3 2011.Dutch MvD [in Dutch] | Aviation Week | Europe Aviation News.

November 2009: Australia. Australia conducts naval trials of its MRH90s, which are closely derived from the NH90-TTH Army variant. The month long testing regime on board the LST amphibious ship HMAS Manoora gauged the MRH90’s capabilities at sea through takeoffs, landings, munitions transfers and weight load carries.

This month, the Army also conducts “lift trials” for various vehicles and loads with the MRH90’s external sling system. Australian DoD LST release and image gallery | Lift Trials release & gallery.

Oct 23/09: Australia. The Australian reports that the country’s military chiefs have recommended the MH-60R as Australia’s next anti-submarine helicopter, citing it as a cheaper and lower risk solution compared with the NH90 NFH, with better allied interoperability. Australia would be looking to buy 24 helicopters for service by 2014, per the 2009 Defence White Paper.

In the end, the MH-60R did win. Read “MH-60R Wins Australia’s Maritime Helicopter Competition” for full coverage.

Oct 14/09: Norway. A NH90-NFH naval test helicopter lands on Norway’s North Cape Class coast guard vessel Nordkap, at Helligvaer, in Vestfjorden. Nordkap will be used as the platform for operational testing of maritime landings, including landings under Norway’s famously difficult conditions. Mother Nature didn’t disappoint, as weather during the initial trials went from fair, to southwest winds gusting up to 60 knots.

Even though Norway was one of the NH90’s early export orders in 2001, deliveries of operational Norwegian aircraft are expected to begin during the second half of 2010. The Navy will then require additional time to test and qualify the helicopters before they can see operational use. Forsvaret [in Norwegian] | NH Industries.

Aug 4/09: Defects? Germany’s Der Spiegel runs “German Army Angry over EADS Delays and Technical Glitches,” which is critical of several EADS products including the NH90. Relevant excerpt:

“The NH90 transport helicopter is also regarded as a flop by the military… The Bundeswehr had ordered 80 of the helicopters for a total of [EUR] 1.7 billion. However, the first sample aircraft only arrived at the end of 2006. Admittedly, the army is now in possession of eight of them. However, they are only 26 percent fit for service. That means that on average only two of the helicopters are ready to start at any given time.

And the helicopters cannot be deployed in the way the military had originally planned. The NH90 is supposed to accommodate 16 fully-armed soldiers. It’s not yet clear if this can be achieved. Recently a somewhat heavy passenger was told that the maximum weight per seat was 100 kilograms. However, even a slim soldier with a combat pack would easily make that weight – after all, a bullet-proof vest alone weighs around 15 kilograms.”

July 10/09: Netherlands. The Dutch MvD expects to receive their first “Meaningful Operational Capabilities” NH90 NFH naval helicopters for acceptance testing by the end of 2009. Mid-2009 was supposed to mark induction of Full Operational Capability (FOC) helicopters, but he NH90 NFH weight growth has affected some operational capabilities, and so have technical delays. Instead, NHIndustries ‘believes’ they can deliver the first FOC NH-90s by Q3 2011. MvD release [in Dutch].

The Dutch eventually take delivery of their first partially-capable NH90 helicopter on Dec 23/09.

Jan 8/09: French order. France’s DGA announces that it is picking up a EUR 600 million (about $820 million) option for 22 more NH90-TTH battlefield transport helicopters. The purchase was planned as part of France’s multi-year military budget. The NH90-TTH helicopters are scheduled for delivery from 2011 onward, and will be assembled at Eurocopter’s facility in Marignane, France.

EADs release states that to date, 25 NH90 helicopters have been delivered to customers and another 50 are under construction, out of total orders of 529. DGA [Français] | EADS.

France: 22 TTH

2008

Germany continues developing mission planning system; RTM322 cements hold on NH90 market; Finnish reports.

Italian NH90-TTH
(click to view full)

July 16/08: RTM322 Engine Wins. The Rolls-Royce Turbomeca partnership announces that its RTM322 engine has been selected over GE competitors to power new NH90 fleets in France (61 + 34 options), Belgium (8 + 2), and New Zealand (9).

RTM322-powered NH90s will now be flown by Australia, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Oman, Portugal and Sweden. Spain and Italy will use GE’s engines instead.

March 11/08: Finland. Finnish Army Aviation officially takes delivery of its first NH90. The ceremony took place at Eurocopter in Marignane, France where the helicopter was assembled. Most of Finland’s subsequent helicopters will be assembled locally by Patria. NHIndustries release.

March 4/08: Finland. Suila’s NH90 program report is released to the Finnish public, and a summary is posted by the MoD. Key takeaways include a finding that both parties to the contract have been acting in good faith, that Finland received acceptable compensation of the delay in delivery, and that the choice of helicopter suits both Finland’s needs and interoperability requirements for deployments abroad.

With respect to areas for improvement, the Finnish Ministry of Defence release had an appropriate quote from the report: “The haste of the initial phase is usually a setback.” Risk assessment needs to be more fully developed, rules for communication need to be improved since this became a bottleneck at times, other areas of procurement policy also need to be streamlined, and more commonality in national aircraft certification processes needs to be developed in Europe. Ministry of Defence release | The full Suila report [PDF]

Jan 29/08: German EUA Planning System. The German BWB procurement agency has placed a EUR 40+ million 3rd tranche order with EADS Defence & Security (DS) for the EUA Operations Support System. In its final configuration, the EUA OSS will cover the entire process cycle of a helicopter squadron – from receipt of command through complete tactical and technical mission planning up to evaluation and logistics – using one single planning system. The EUA system also includes voice radio and radio data transmission with military command and control systems, as well as the ability to establish a connection with other information systems for weather, maps, aeronautical information and air-traffic monitoring, and other useful real-time updates.

The EUA is planned for deployment with the Fritzlar Army Air Corps in Spring 2008. Eventually, the system will prepare, plan and execute missions for Germany’s NH90-TTH medium transport, Tiger HAP attack, and CH-53G heavy transport helicopters. EADS release. See also May 16/06 entry.

Jan 8/08: Italy. AgustaWestland announces that the Italian Army’s Aviation Unit officially took delivery of its first NH90 TTH helicopter in “late December, 2007.”

Italian Army NH90s will be operated by Friuli Airmobile Brigade, replacing older models currently operated by the service in various utility roles. AgustaWestland will also provide a complete product support and training package through a Phased Logistic Support program, with an initial commitment of 3 years.

2007

Orders: Belgium (10), France (12), Germany (42); Nordic RTM322 engine support agreement; GE’s CT7-8F5 to power Spain’s helos; Dutch and Finland very unhappy with lateness, but stay in the program; Sweden passes on 7 options; Norway drops 10 options, opens SAR competition.

MRH90 arrives
(click to view full)

Dec 18/07: Australia. The first 2 Australian Defence Force MRH-90s are accepted into service during a ceremony at Australian Aerospace facilities in Brisbane.

Dec 12/07: Finnish settlement. The Finnish Ministry of Defence announces a satisfactory agreement with NH Industries re: its NH90 order, which was supposed to begin delivery in 2004 and end in 2007. An adjusted contract was signed on Dec 14/07.

Published reports vary re: the delivery schedule, but Jyrki iivonen of Finland’s MoD informs DID that it will be: 5 in 2008, 4 in 2009, and the remaining 11 in 2010-2011. The 9 helicopters delivered in 2008-2009 will not be fully operational, however, and will be used for training and development of concepts of operations. They will be upgraded to full capability by Patria in Finland during 2010-2011. This still leaves NH Industries at least 3 years late in fulfilling its commitments, so the firm will pay a penalty of just under EUR 20 million on the EUR 343 million order. Finnish Ministry of Defence | YLE News | STT | Helsingin Sanomat | Forbes re: penalty | Reuters.

Dec 12/07: Finland. In a move that may not be coincidence, Patria and NHI sign an agreement to give Patria an extended NHI Service Centre for Finland, which NHI and Patria will jointly offer to the other Nordic NH90 customers. There had already been some level of cooperation involving RTM322 engines, but this new agreement expands Patria’s capabilities considerably. In the Patria release, Executive Vice President Eukka Holkeri said:

“We are very pleased with the co-operation agreement. This agreement further strengthens the unique skills and competencies of Patria in helicopter support and repair technologies as well as represents an opportunity to gain even more in-depth knowledge of the NH90 helicopters. For Patria the agreement will bring further increased competencies and an opportunity to win a major role in the Nordic NH90 maintenance. This supports our strategy to strengthen Patria’s position as the leading helicopter maintenance provider in the Nordic countries.”

Dec 3/07: Australia ancillaries. Thales Australia announces a contract from Eurocopter subsidiary Australian Aerospace worth A$ 100M (about $88.2 million) for “MRH90” related services helicopters under Project AIR9000 Phases 4 & 6. Thales will add the responsibility to provide aircraft equipment and spares, incl. TopOwl helmet-mounted displays with night vision capabilities, other cockpit avionics including navigation, internal secure communications, identification systems, and tactical systems for the 34 new MRH90s, bringing the total number of helicopters they’re responsible for to 46. The delivery of this equipment will be scheduled from 2008 – 2013.

As an A$ 20 million portion of that contract, Thales will also supply the Australian developed Ground Mission Management System (GMMS) to fulfill Army Aviation Training & Operation requirements. DID coverage.

Nov 30/07: More for France. France’s DGA procurement agency turns its selection of the NH90 as its next battlefield helicopter into a contract worth up to EUR 1.8 billion (currently $2.64 billion), a rate of about EUR 26.5 million (currently $38.9 million) per helicopter.

The initial buy is 12 NH90 TTH helicopters, with options for another 56, to total 68. The current plan is to exercise 22 of the options in 2008, and another 34 in 2010. Even so, the current Puma battlefield helicopter fleet won’t begin to see replacements until 2011. As one might imagine, these helicopters will be manufactured at Eurocopter France’s Marignane site. DGA release | NHI release.

France: 12 TTH

Nov 14/07: Sweden passes on options. NH Industries informs DID that Sweden has chosen not to exercise its additional 7 helicopter options, due to budgetary constraints.

Swedish options

Nov 13/07: Australia. The 1st two MRH90 helicopters arrive at the Australian Aerospace facility in Brisbane inside a leased Antonov aircraft. They are celebrated by a small ceremony at the Australian Aerospace facility involving Industry, DMO and Defence representatives.

The MRH90 aircraft will be returned to flying condition after the transit, and test flown by Australian Aerospace flight test crews in preparation for delivery to the Commonwealth. Australia’s contract calls for the first 4 NH90s to be delivered from Eurocopter in Marignane, France, with final assembly of the other 42 performed by Eurocopter subsidiary Australian Aerospace in Brisbane under the co-production agreement. Australian MoD release.

Nov 11/07: Finland. Finnish News Agency STT covers a report from national daily Helsingin Sanomat that Finalnd is looking into “Plan B” options, including buying or leasing UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters. Puolustsministerio Forsvarsministeriet spokesman Jyrki Iivonen downplayed those reports, however, stressing their interest in concluding negotiations and adding that Finland’s point of departure was that compensation for the delay had to be paid in full, but not necessarily in cash.

“We have built our own systems on the premise that it will be this specific type of aircraft… And we must also bear in mind that there is no oversupply of helicopters at the moment.” STT report | PF release.

Oct 19/07: Finland unhappy. With Finland’s initial NH90 delivery and acceptance over 2 1/2 years behind schedule, Defense Minister Jyri Hakamies appoints former Finnair CEO Keijo Suila to lead a working group that will assess their $790 million NH90 program. The 2001 Nordic Group contract was intended to replace Finland’s 4 Russian Mi-8 medium helicopters and 8 MD500 light utility helicopters with 20 NH90s that would enter service from April 2005 – October 2008, allowing a reorganized helicopter battalion to stand up in 2010. The common procurement action was directly linked to the establishment of the European Union’s Nordic Battle Group (NBG), which also driving other defense buys in the area.

Patria has assembled 3 Finnish NH90s so far, but Finland’s Military Aviation Authority is still securing supplementary technical data from NH Industries before it issues a type certification that would allow them to enter service. This process has been cited as part of Finland’s problem, but as in the Netherlands, there are also complaints that Germany and France’s demands for delivery from the delayed NH90 program are pushing out other customers. There are reports that about $30 million equivalent in compensation was offered when serious production delays made it clear that the planned 2005 delivery was impossible – and the 2 year delay at that time has only grown. NIH officials believe deliveries may begin around mid-2008.

Suila’s report is expected to be in by that time. It will focus on a detailed assessment of exactly what went wrong, and then recommend changes to future procurement processes. Depending on how things go with NH90 delivery, of course, it could also form a very handy basis for quantified compensation claims from the Finnish government. Finnish MoD | Defense News | Newsroom Finland.

NH90-TTH HCV
(click to view full)

Sept 6/07: Sweden. The 1st Patria-assembled Swedish NH90-TTH High-Cabin Version (HCV) helicopter is flown to Sweden. This helicopter is Sweden’s 2nd delivery (vid. June 20/07), but it will be the first NH90 to be operated in Sweden by the Swedish Defence Forces. It will initially be used for training purposes. Patria release | NHI release | EADS release.

Aug 10/07: Netherlands. The 1st serial production NH90-NFH for the Royal Netherlands Navy performs its maiden flight at AgustaWestland’s Vergiate facility in Italy. Final Assembly of the 20 Dutch helicopters takes place at that facility, which is also responsible also for the assembly of the NH90-NFH variant for the Italian (46) and Norwegian (14) navies, and the Italian Army’s NH90-TTH (70).NHI release.

Aug 9/07: Sonar. Thales announces that its FLASH (Folding Light Acoustic System for Helicopters) SONICS have been successfully integrated into a French NH90 NFH naval helicopter, and that flight testing is going well. The first system was delivered to Agusta in July 2005 for platform integration, completing its first test flight on board the NH90 in December 2006. Additional test with the helicopter manufacturer are planned later this year and official testing is scheduled for early 2008.

The FLASH system is a low frequency sonar for helicopters, which is incorporated into the ALFS system on board American Sea Hawk helicopters, and also serves on British EH101 naval helicopters and the UAE’s Cougars. This sonar will be installed on 14 French NH90 NFHs that will be used for anti-submarine missions, while another 13 will be used primarily for naval transport missions and other roles. Norway has also picked FLASH for its NH90 NFHs. Thales release.

June 21/07: GE CT7 Engine win. GE Aviation announces that Spain’s Ministry of Defense has selected GE’s CT7-8F5 engines to power its 45 NH90 helicopters. The engine generates slightly more power than the T700s installed in Italian NH90 helicopters, and is compatible with the upper range of the Rolls Royce/ Turbomeca RTM332’s performance.

As part of the deal, GE will “implement an industrial plan that will focus on the development and diversification of the Spanish aeronautical industry.”

June 20/07: Sweden. The first delivery of the Swedish serial production NH90-TTH High Cabin Version takes place from the Marignane, France facility to the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) during the 2007 Paris Air Show. Delivery of Sweden’s Hkp 14 helicopters had originally been scheduled for “early 2005,” per the Sept 26/01 contract announcement. During this ceremony Gala Gonçalves, General Manager of NHIndustries, underlined the importance of this event since it is “the first serial NH90 transfer of ownership to an Export Customer” (i.e. outside the original French, German, Italian & Dutch consortium).

This particular helicopter will support the Swedish instructors’ training program in France until 2008. FMV release [English] | NHI release.

June 19/07: More for Germany. Germany signs a formal order for 42 additional NH90-TTH helicopters, drawn from its 54 options. German Army (Heer) Aviation will operate 30 of them, and the other 12 will be operated by the German Air Force. The 12 for the Air Force will feature the NH90’s optional rear ramp, plus provisions for armor protection and a machine gun. A total of 8 NH90-TTH from their previous order of 80 are scheduled to be in service with the German Armed Forces by the end of 2007, down from the 14 promised by Eurocopter’s president in the Dec 13/06 release.

See “Germany Exercises Option for 42 More NH90s.” By 2012, however, cuts threaten to erase the buy.

Germany: 42 TTH

June 19/07: NHIndustries signs the Belgian contract for up to 10 NH90 helicopters at the Cercle Militaire Saint-Augustin in Paris, during the Paris Air Show 2007. See “Belgium Orders up to 10 NH90s as Netherlands Complains.”

Belgium: 10 mixed

June 19/07: Nordic engine support agreement. Rolls-Royce Turbomeca signs a “Repair Co-operation Agreement” with Patria Oyj and Norwegian Air Depot Kjeller (ADK). This extends the current arrangements which cover over 110 RTM322 engines that have been built jointly by Patria and ADK, and are jointly supported by their respective facilities in Linnavuori, Finland (Patria) and Kjeller, Norway (ADK).

Initially, this additional “Repair Co-operation Agreement” covers the engines powering NH90s which form part of the Nordic Standard Helicopter Procurement Program, “but this could be extended to cover future requirements” if and when more helicopters powered by RTM322 engine are bought in the region. The engines power helicopters flown by Norway (EH101), Finland and Sweden (NH90). Patria release.

Nordic engine support

May 9/07: Oman. The first Omani NH90 takes to the air from Eurocopter’s Marignane facility. It represents the 9th country out of 14 to achieve the maiden flight of NH90 serial production aircraft after Germany, Italy, Finland, Sweden, Greece, France, Norway and Australia. NHI release | EADS release.

Given this timing, and other production issues, the likelihood of meeting the contracted delivery schedule of 20 helicopters arriving “from the end of 2008 to the end of 2010” would appear to be remote.

Dutch NH90-NFH
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April 28/07: Netherlands. Dutch Defence State Secretary Cees van der Knaap openly expresses anger at the delayed supply of new NH90 helicopters, which has forced the Netherlands to invest EUR 6.5 million to extend the operational lives of 10 AgustaWestland Lynx helicopters as a stopgap measure. He expresses especial annoyance at France, whom he believes to be largely responsible.

The NH90 cockpits have also been a source of complaint; the Christian Democrat party (CDA) proposed to fit Dutch NH90s with American avionics, but this was quashed on regulatory grounds: it would apparently require changing aviation authority regulations. NIS News bulletin.

April 28/07: Belgium. The Belgian government’s Council of Ministers officially decides to procure up to 10 NH90 helicopters, consisting of 8 firm orders (4 TTH and 4 NFH) plus 2 optional aircraft. See “Belgium Orders up to 10 NH90s as Netherlands Complains” for more, including the associated political controversy and the NH90s’ likely deployments.

April 5/07: Finland. Patria Oyj announces that the first Patria-assembled NH90 destined for the Swedish Defence Forces has been successful in its test flights The helicopter in question is the 3rd Swedish NH90 to take off, with 2 others assembled by Eurocopter in Marignane, France. Of the remaining 16 Swedish helicopters, 14 will be assembled in Finland and 2 in France.

MRH90: first flight
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March 29/07: Australia. The first of Australia’s 46 MRH-90 helicopters conducts its maiden flight in Marignane, France. The Australian DoD release adds that: “The first 4 MRH-90 are on schedule for delivery into Australia by the end of 2007, and the first fuselage of the 42 aircraft to be assembled in Australia arrived in Brisbane on 27 March.”

Feb 1/07: Norway SAR. Norway decides to open up its search-and-rescue helicopter choice to a full competition rather than just exercising its 10 NH90 options, following political controversy and a pair of lawsuits. The existing contract’s options remain open if the NH90 should win.

Likely competitors are all larger, and include AgustaWestland’s EH101, Sikorsky’s S-92 Superhawk, and possibly Boeing’s HH-47 Chinook. See “Norway Opens Up SAR Helicopter Competition.”

2006

Orders: Australia (34); New Zealand (9), Spain (45); German certifications.

NH90 TTH, Heer
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Dec 22/06: Spain order. Spain orders 45 NH90-TTH helicopters, as part of a larger Eurocopter order. They will pay EUR 1.26 billion (about $1.66 billion) for the NH90s, to be distributed over 19 annuities from 2007-2025, and the contract comes with a technological and industrial development agreement that makes Eurocopter Espana S.A.’s new plant in Albacete, Spain the site for the assembly of Spain’s NH 90 helicopters, as well as manufacturing the front NH90 fuselage for all customers. Spain’s Department of Industry, Tourism and Trade will contribute to the funding of the program via a grant “of returnable lendings to type of interest zero,” up to EUR 990.6 million (currently about $1.3 billion), “depending on his budgetary availabilities.” See “Spain Orders Civil & Military Helicopters from Eurocopter.”

Spain: 45 TTH

Dec 20/06: Norway. The first Norwegian NH90-NFH, wearing the Customer designation NNWN #01, takes off for a successful test flight from AgustaWestland’s facility in Vergiate, Italy. NHI release.

Dec 13/06: Germany. The first 3 NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopters (TTH) are handed over to the German Army at Eurocopter’s Donauworth facility. The press release [EADS | NH Industrie] states that “The German Army is the first customer to take delivery of the NH90. The aircraft with the serial numbers TGEA02 and TGEA03 will be used for flight training at the German Army Air Corps Weapons School in Bückeburg, while serial number TGEA05 will be used to train maintenance staff…” Eurocopter President Dr. Lutz Bertling adds:

“Following a period of complex evaluation and comprehensive qualification processes we are proud to now be able to officially launch the NH90 for training purposes. Until the end of 2007, we plan to deliver 14 aircraft to Bückeburg.”

Dec 1/06: Germany. German type certification is granted, clearing the way for initial deliveries and for respective NH90-TTH national certifications by other NAHEMA and export customers. Source.

Sept 14/06: Australia. The Australian Army’s 5th Aviation Regiment based at RAAF Townsville has received parliamentary approval for A$ 20 million in new facilities for one of the key bases supporting its expanded NH90 helicopter fleet. The first NH90s are scheduled for delivery in late 2007, and the “Facilities for Troop Lift Helicopter” project combines the reconfiguration and refurbishment of a number of existing facilities and construction of some new ones. An advanced mission planning and computer-based training facility, a new Army Aviation Training Facility to provide transition training on the MRH90, a composites material workshop, and upgrades to some existing facilities for the S-70 Black Hawk fleet are all envisaged as part of this project.

NH90-TTH, SAR
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July 31/06: New Zealand’s order. New Zealand’s NZ$ 771 million (then about $475 million) contract for 9 NH90-TTH helicopters is signed in Wellington, NZ, after a 2-week final negotiation round up. Read “New Zealand Selects NH90, A109 Helicopters as its new Fleet“.

New Zealand: 9 TTH

June 19/06: Australia adds. Australia approves the acquisition plan for 34 more NH90-TTH helicopters plus 3 MRH90 simulators at A$2 billion (about $1.475 billion) under the Australian AIR9000 Programme. Commonality of operational, training and logistic systems and personnel played a role, as this order will be added to the first batch of 12 “MRH90s” ordered by the Australian Defence Materiel Organisation (vid. June 2/05). Final assembly will be performed by fully-owned Eurocopter subsidiary Australian Aerospace in Brisbane.

The lifetime real dollars project value for the total acquisition of all 46 aircraft is around A$ 4.2 billion. This includes an A$ 1.2 billion Australian Industry Capability package that focuses on development of the skill base required to support the MRH 90 into the future. Initial deliveries are slated for December 2007, with 3 more MRH 90 delivered in 2008 and then 7-8 per year until 2014. Deliveries of Australian Assembled helicopters will commence in December 2008. As these new helicopters are delivered, Australia’s old Sea Kings will be retired in 2010, followed by progressive replacement of the smaller S-70A-9 Black Hawks between 2011-2015. See “Australia Tightens Eurocopter Ties With A$ 2B Buy of 34 NH90s” for full coverage and ongoing updates.

Australia: 34 TTH

May 16/06: Germany EUA. EADS announces that Germany’s Federal Office of Defence Technology and Procurement (BWB) has awarded EADS Defence Electronics an additional contract portion worth approx. EUR 12 million to develop the Operations Support System (in German: Einsatzunterstutzungsanlage – EUA) for the German NH90 helicopters.

In its final configuration, the Operations Support System EUA is due to cover the entire process cycle of a helicopter squadron – from receipt of command through complete tactical and technical mission planning up to evaluation and logistics – using one single planning system. As an integral part of network-centric operations, the EUA/OSS makes it possible to connect the helicopter with its own command and control structures (C3I) via voice radio and radio data transmission, or establish a connection with specialist information systems for weather, maps, aeronautical information and air-traffic monitoring, et. al. The system can also be used for operations support of other types of aircraft, such as Tornado or A400M.

March 31/06: Germany. Qualification of the German NH90-TTH variant is completed by NATO’s NAHEMA. It is the first Qualification to a NH90 TTH Variant, an essential milestone that, through a process of delta qualification [DID: qualifying the differences rather than requalifying the whole aircraft], will lead to the Qualification of the others NH90 national Variants. The NH90 German Army TGEA Variant includes a few specific National Operational Customizations, mainly in the communications field. EADS release.

FY 2005

Orders from Australia (12); Picked by Belgium, New Zealand, Spain; German long-term training contract.

NH90 NFH
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Dec 15/05: Italy. The first Italian Navy serial production NH90-NFH has a successful initial test flight. Under the NH90 program work-share, AgustaWestland will build 150 helicopters for 3 of the 4 initial NH90-NFH customers (Italy, the Netherlands and Norway), and is responsible of the overall integration of the naval mission system for all NH90-NFH variants. NHI release.

Dec 14/05: Belgium pick. Belgium becomes the 14th Country to select the NH90, though no contract is signed. “…following the proposition of the Belgian Ministry of Defence Mr. Andre Flahaut, the Council Minister authorised today the launching of the procedure for the acquisition of 10 NH90 multirole helicopters by entering into the International Programme Organisation NAHEMO.” NHI release.

Nov 21/05: Trials. Eurocopter announces the completion of high-altitude NH90 trials at the 9,191 foot/ 2,801 m high airfield at Latacunga, Ecuador. It was chosen because of its facilities, safety equipment, 3,700 m long runway, and other advantages. The 21 flights representing 20 hours 35 minutes of testing were mainly devoted to performance (hover, level flight, climb, Cat B, Cat A), engine operation (transients, one engine inoperative power), simulated autorotations, maneuverability in and out of ground effect, altitude-speed envelope, and fly-away characteristics. EADS release.

Sept 17-30/05: Trials. The NH90 undergoes French Army trials in the hands of the Gamstat (Airmobile Group of the French Army Engineering Branch), using the PT4 test aircraft with German Army markings and a team of ground mechanics from Eurocopter Deutschland. France has selected the NH90-TTH, and stated plans to order up to 68, but hasn’t yet placed a contract.

The main aims of the trials were to verify that the mission system operated as intended in an operational environment, validate the Thales TopOwl helmet-mounted display, and study work sharing between crew members. The majority of the missions took place at night to successively test the utilization of the standard ALAT night vision goggles (NVG) and then the Topowl helmet coupled to the piloting FLIR. The pilots did report that a short period of adaptation was necessary, but tests completed successfully.

The nighttime NOE flights were made in the Valence area at heights of 0-400 ft at 130-140 kts. NOE observation flights were also flown by Gazelles equipped with the Viviane sight or Mistral missiles to measure the NH90’s infrared signature. The engineering trials finished with a final 90-minute flight involving a complex scenario: after taking off at night, the NH90 performed an IFR penetration, followed by a visual NOE flight, before picking up a commando and returning to its base with its autopilot in simulated degraded mode. EADS release.

July 13/05: Finland. KH-202, the first Patria-assembled NH90 helicopter, makes its successful maiden flight in Halli, Jamsa, Finland. The main modules were supplied to Patria from NHI Partner Companies: Eurocopter France, Eurocopter Germany, Agusta Italy and Fokker the Netherlands. The splicing Phase of KH-202 was completed in October 2003, Installations during 2004 and System tests were started in January 2005. For its inaugural flight, the helicopter was piloted by Eurocopter’s flight test crew, and lasted 1 hour and 5 minutes.

This effort follows the Sept 15/04 first flight of the first Finnish NH90-TTH, which was produced in France. NHI release. As the Patria release notes:

“This first helicopter from Patria assembly line will be delivered to the Finnish Defence Forces.”

July 13/05: Greece. The first Hellenic Army NH90 takes to the air for a successful test flight at the Eurocopter Marignane facility in France. This is the 6th serial production NH90 leaving the ground, following NH90s for Germany (the first), Finland, Italy and Sweden. At the time, NHI’s release adds that:

“The delivery of the whole series of 20 Hellenic NH90 will be achieved by the beginning of 2009 as planned, by the beginning of 2011 if the 14 options are confirmed.”

NH90 TTH
(click to view full)

June 2/05: Australian order. Australia signs an Acquisition Contract for 12 NH90-TTH helicopters. The A$1 billion contract is signed in Canberra between the Australian Defence Materiel Organisation and Australian Aerospace, the local fully-owned subsidiary of Eurocopter. According to the Australian AIR9000 programme, the 12 NH90 ordered are identified under the designation “MRH90,” standing for “Multi Role Helicopter.” project to provide the Australian Army with 12 new troop lift helicopters and associated equipment has taken a significant step forward with the signing of a contract with Australian Aerospace, a subsidiary of Eurocopter. Defence Minister Robert Hill said in total more than $500 million worth of Australian Industry participation will arise from the project:

“The new squadron will increase Army’s troop lift capability by more than half and give the Army the ability to move more soldiers further and faster from our amphibious lift ships. In addition to providing the 12 helicopters and associated equipment, Australian Aerospace will also provide a significant element of through-life-support under a performance-based contract.”

Australia is the 11th nation to order the NH90. Australian DoD release | NHI release.

Australia: 12 TTH

May 20/05: Spain pick. Spain selects the NH90 as its next-generation troop transport helicopter, with an anticipated buy of 45 helicopters, but no contract has been signed yet. EADS release.

April 5/05: New Zealand pick. New Zealand selects the NH90 as its next troop transport helicopter, replacing the current UH-1H Iroquois (aka. Hueys). No contract has been signed yet, and final number are not confirmed. New Zealand becomes the 12th country to have chosen the NH90. See “New Zealand Selects NH90 Helicopter” for more details, and ongoing coverage.

March 18/05: Sweden. First flight of the Swedish NH90-TTH-HCV variant. The first Swedish NH90 will now stay in Marignane, France to qualify the High Cabin version and perform the integration of the Saab mission system requested by Sweden’s government. NHI release.

January 2005: German training PPF contract. The German government approves a major private-finance initiative, awarding a EUR 488 million (about $642 million) contract to Helicopter Flying Training Services GmbH (HFTS, a consortium owned equally by CAE, Eurocopter, Rheinmetall Defence Electronics and Thales) to provide training at industry-owned training centers. The consortium will design, build and operate all 3 training centers at Bückeburg, Fassberg and Holzdorf , plus 4 NH90 full-mission simulators, followed by a 14.5-year period of operational service beginning in mid-2008 and continuing through 2022. During operational service, HFTS will deliver turnkey training services to the Bundeswehr, which will pay an agreed hourly rate. Source.

Germany: training

FY 2003 – 2004

Orders from Greece (20), Oman (20); Australia picks NH90 for Army; 1st all fly-by-wire helicopter flight.

Finnish 1st flight
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Sept 15/04: Finland. The 1st NH90 destined for the Finnish Armed Forces takes off for a successful maiden flight at Eurocopter’s production site and headquarter in Marignane, France. The aircraft is the first NH90 serial produced in France. EADS release.

Sept 16/04: Sub-contracts. Patria announces a EUR 30 million order from AgustaWestland subsidiary Agusta SpA for the manufacture of about 150 NH90 helicopter rear fuselages, with the first is to be delivered by the end of 2005. Patria’s Aerostructures Business Unit has been manufacturing the sponsons for the NH90 helicopter since 2003 as a single source manufacturer for the Dutch NIH partner Stork Fokker, and is responsible for an NH90 Nordic final assembly line in Jamsa, Finland. Patria release.

Aug 31/04: Australia pick. The Australian Government Prime Minister John Howard and Defence Minister Robert Hill confirmed the selection of the NH90 as a future troop transport helicopter. The intended order is 12 NH90-TTH helicopters for the Army, but no contract is signed. Sen. Hill said that “This will bolster Australia’s counter-terrorism capabilities by releasing a Black Hawk squadron to provide dedicated support to our Special Forces on the east coast.” Australian DoD release | NHI release.

Omani NH90 TTH
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July 24/04: Oman’s order. The Sultanate of Oman orders 20 NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH) battlefield helicopters for the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO), to be delivered from the end of 2008 to the end of 2010. Amounts are not disclosed, but EADS adds that “The contract also foresees a comprehensive support package and services with a contractor’s field assistance on several bases, training aids and mission preparation stations.” This would tend to push the contract’s price up.

The NH90 RAFO Variant is tailored to the extreme environmental conditions of the Middle-East region, with enhanced Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca RTM 322-01/9A engines in order to maintain performance in Oman’s hot weather and high altitudes. This specific engine version installation is scheduled to be validated in Oman in July 2007 during the “Hot Weather Campaign.” NHI release | EADS release.

Oman: 20 TTH

May 11/04: NHIndustries and its partners companies, Eurocopter, Agusta and Stork Fokker are proud to announce that the first serial NH90 helicopter to come off the Eurocopter production line in Germany, is publicly presented today at the ILA Berlin Air Show. The event comes 4 years after the official production go-ahead was given at ILA 2000. NHI release.

May 4/04: Germany. First flight of the first production NH90-TTH aircraft for the German Armed Forces. Source.

March 15/04: Sub-contracts. EADS Defence Electronics announces that it will deliver EUR 200 million worth of advanced self-protection systems to the Eurocopter Tiger and NH90 helicopter programs in Germany, France, Italy, Australia, Portugal and Finland. Deliveries will take place through to 2012.

EADS Defence Electronics in a consortium with Thales will deliver an Electronic Warfare Suite comprising a missile approach warning system and a laser warning receiver developed by EADS DE in combination with a radar warner and the central processing unit developed and integrated by Thales as well as a chaff/flare dispenser from MBDA.

NH90 TTH
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Dec 12/03: FBW FTW. The NH90 becomes the first medium-sized transport helicopter to fly with full fly-by-wire controls, with no mechanical back-up. NHI release adds that:

“On this occasion NHIndustries is very pleased to mark the concurrence with the Centennial commemoration of the first sustained controlled powered flight of the history of the Wright brothers in Kitty Hawk (12-17 December 1903).”

Sikorsky’s H-92 Superhawk competitor wouldn’t duplicate that feat until December 2007; the firm’s new UH-60M Black Hawk model will also feature fly by wire.

1st fly by wire only helicopter flight

Oct 30/03: Finland. Finnish state partnership Patria Oyj (75% state/ 25% EADS) officially inaugurates its new facilities for NH90 final assembly in Halli, Jamsa, Finland, which add 2,800 square meters of additional area. The Halli facility had previously been the site for , by merging an F/A-18C with a Canadian F/A-18B section. Patria release:

“Patria has already started the final assembly in the new facilities in September 2003 and will deliver 50 NH90 helicopters during 2005-2011. The first NH90 assembled in Finland will be delivered to the Finnish Defence Forces in 2005… The Nordic countries ordered 52 NH90 helicopters with an option for 17, from NHIndustries, owned by Agusta, Eurocopter and Fokker. Patria signed contracts on helicopter and engine assembly with Eurocopter and Rolls-Royce Turbomeca in October 2001. The value of these contracts is more than EUR 40 million.

Employment effect of the NH90 final assembly at Patria is approximately 750 man-years. Eurocopter S.A.S. has subcontracted the final assembly to Patria having also technical personnel working at Patria. One of Patria’s strategic focus areas is the helicopter life cycle support in the Baltic sea area.”

Aug 29/03: Greece’s order. Greece orders 20 NH90s plus logistics support (spares et. al.), together with a corresponding industrial offset agreement involving Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI). Part of this agreement is the creation of a Composite Facility at Tanagra, to be operated by the Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI), which broke ground in February 2006. An Oct 3/06 EADS release places the contract value as “close to 657 million euros.”

The 16 NH90-TTH and 4 NH90 Special Operations helicopters will be operated by Greek Army Aviation. All Hellenic NH90s can also be converted into a MEDEVAC variant, thanks to 4 role change kits included in the order. Another 14 NH90s are on option, consisting of up to 12 NH90-TTH and 2 NH90-SOF variants with “state-of-the-art Special Operation suite to enhance the capability of the user to support diverse military scenarios.” The NHI release adds that:

“First NH90 Tactical Transport will be delivered to Greece by late 2005 and the whole firm series will be completed within the year 2010 (including option).”

Greece: 20 mixed

2002 and Earlier

From initial development to 242-helicopter core partner order; Orders from Finland (20), Norway (14), Portugal (10), Sweden (18).

NH90 NFH
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Nov 30/01: Norway’s order. Royal Norwegian Air Force Material Command signs the contract for up to 24 NH90 helicopters: 14 NFH helicopters (6 naval, 8 Coast Guard), with an option for another 10 to perform search-and rescue. The NHI release adds that:

“The customised configuration of the 14 Norwegian NH90 helicopters (6 ASW and 8 Coast Guard), derived from the NAHEMA NFH version, features nationalised avionics, and dedicated equipment, such as a dual rescue winch, digital map generator, survival raft, additional fuel tanks, to be easily fitted to both the Coast Guard and ASW mission… First NH90 CG helicopter will be delivered to the Norway in late 2005 and the remaining series will be completed in 2008.”

Norway: 14 mixed

Oct 19/01: Finland’s order. The Finnish Defence Minister signs a EUR 343 million contract [direct MoD answer] for 20 NH90 TTH helicopters. The NHI release adds that:

“Besides the Acquisition Contract the Finnish MOD and NHI signed the Side Agreement concerning the allocation of a NH90 final assembly line to Finland, as well as the Agreement on Industrial Participation giving Finnish defence industry the opportunity to participate in the manufacturing of parts and the assembly of purchased equipment… First NH90 TTT helicopter will be delivered to Finnish Defence Forces in late 2004, and the series will be completed at the Finnish assembly line specifically arranged in Patria Finavitec, in collaboration with NHIndustries, within the year 2008.”

Finland: 20 TTH

Sept 26/01: Sweden’s order. The Swedish procurement department (FMV) signs the contract for 18 NH90s, plus another 7 on option (subsequently declined – see Nov 14/07). In Sweden, they will be known as Hkp 14/ Type 14 helicopters. The 18 machines on firm order include 13 TTH high-cabin variant and 5 naval variants; they will be operated by the Swedish Air Force.

Of the 18 ordered NH90s, 14 are to undergo final assembly in Finland. All will be equipped with a new Tactical Mission System (TMS) developed by Saab in cooperation with NHIndustries. The NHI release adds that:

“First NH90 TTT helicopter will be delivered to Swedish Air Force early 2005, and the series will be completed within the year 2009.”

Sweden: 18 mixed

Sept 13-18/01: Nordic pick. NH90 selected by NSHP committee for Finland, Norway, and Sweden.

June 21/01: Portugal added. The Armament Directors of France, Germany, Italy, and The Netherlands and the State Secretary of Portugal sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Le Bourget (Paris Air Show 2001) to include Portugal as 5th European Nation in the NH90 Programme. This was based on the go-ahead and the Parliamentary approval of the 5 Participating Nations.

Portugal will purchase 10 NH90 helicopters for Tactical Transport missions and will become a member of NAHEMO (NATO Helicopter Management Organisation, comprising the Steering Committee and NAHEMA, the NATO Helicopter Management Agency), the government authority which controls the programme. NHI release.

Portugal: 10 TTH

NH90
(click to view full)

June 30/2000: Base order. The initial EUR 6.6 billion, 298 helicopter NH90 production order is signed. This 1st batch of 298 NH90 helicopters is part of the immediate Production Investment and Production (PI/P) commitment for a 1st batch of 366 helicopters [DID: when the 98 “selected” french & German helicopters are added], within the stated eventual requirement of 595 NH90s among the 4 founders.

Under this agreement, Italy orders 60 TTH (Tactical Transport Helicopter) for the Army, 46 NFH (NATO Frigate Helicopter) and 10 TTH for the Navy, and 1 TTH as an option for the Italian Air Force; France will receive 27 NFH for their naval forces; Germany receives 50 TTH + 30 options for the Army and 30 TTH +24 options for the Air Force, of which 23 are foreseen for Combat Search and Rescue missions following a dedicated further contracted development; The Netherlands will receive 20 NFH helicopters. Germany also “selects” 30 NFH but signs no contract, and France does the same for 68 TTH.

The total value of the signed contract amounts to EUR 6.6 billion, and, in addition, national industries are participating with a self financing for the 25% amount of the Production Investment. This makes the NH90 the biggest helicopter programme ever launched in Europe, by a wide margin. The release cites continuous design to cost analysis and control of the technical configuration as key reasons they were able to meet their earlier cost estimates. Production shares among the 4 founding countries will be 31.25% for France (Eurocopter), 32% for Italy (Agusta), 31.25% for Germany (Eurocopter Deutschland) and 5.5% for The Netherlands (Stork Fokker).

NHIndustries is responsible for the programme management, marketing, sales, and after sales support. The release adds that “Deliveries will start on 2003 for the Tactical Transport version,” and says that “This commercial approach, to achieve the PI/P 1st batch contract ensures the customer: World market competitive prices; Guaranteed performance backed by stiff penalties…”

If true, that last bit will eventually come back to haunt them. NHI release.

Base Order:
France 27 NFH
German 80 TTH
Italy 116 mixed
Dutch 20 NFH
Country options

June 8/2000: Go-ahead. The governments of France, Italy, Germany, and The Netherlands gave their go-ahead for the production launch of the NH90 helicopter during the ILA 2000 airshow in Berlin. During an official ceremony at ILA, a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) covering a global intention of acquiring 595 helicopters and a global commitment for the industrialisation and the production of 366 NH90 helicopters was signed by Jean-Yves Helmer, Delegation General pour l’Armement (France), State Secretary Dr. Walther Stützle (Germany), Onorevole Dott. Domenico Minniti, Sottosegretario alla Difesa (Italy) and Dr. Jan Fledderus, Directeur Generaal Materieel (The Netherlands). This will be followed by the signature of a contract for the Production Investment and the Production (PI/P) of a 1st batch of helicopters. NHI release.

Go!

Dec 22/99: The maiden flight of the 5th and last prototype of the NH90 (PT5) takes place successfully at Agusta’s facilities in Italy. NHI release.

(click to visit)

Jan 13/98: ISO 9001. NHIndustries, the Prime Contractor for the quadrinational NH90 Helicopter Programme (launched by France, Italy, Germany and The Netherlands), announces that it has just received the ISO 9001 certification by Bureau Veritas Quality International (BVQI). NHI release.

June 26/96: Trials. Following the scheduled inspection and ground test activity, the NH90 is resuming intensive flight trials. The first prototype of NH90 helicopter (PT1) logged 35 flight hours, and preliminary evaluation flights have been already performed by the Test Pilots and Flight Engineers of the Armed Forces of France, Italy and Germany. NHI release.

Dec 18/95: 1st flight. 3 years after the signature of the Design & Development Contract, the first prototype of the NH90 (PT1) was successfully flown, as scheduled, from the Eurocopter plant in Marignane, France. NHI release.

1st flight

Oct 6/95: Contract. A ECU (Euro) 58.23 million “contract for the Additional Work and National Customisation” addendum to the general Memorandum of Understanding is signed by the 4 founding nations (France, Italy, Germany, The Netherlands), NAHEMA (NATO Helicopter Management Agency), and NHIndustries.

The “Additional work” groups items that “could be commonly utilised.” They will be developed within the main contract, and include a second engine option (from GE/Alfa Romeo, to become Avio SpA), a rear ramp for the Tactical Transport version, and second missile reinforcement for installation of heavy stores up to 700kg. The “National Customisation” work includes a command post study, a cannon pod installation study, sand filter, a radiameter, a second VHF/FM for the Tactical Transport version and a sonobuoy data relay study, a Tacan and the rear ramp for the Naval version.

The activities will be carried out by the four industrial partners, Agusta S.p.A (Italy), Eurocopter Deutschland GmbH, Eurocopter France S.A. and Fokker (The Netherlands) according to the design responsibility defined in the contract. The global contract value creates a slight adjustment of the national shares in the Programme (at the time, 41.6 % for France, 28.2 % for Italy, 23.7 % for Germany, 6.5 % for The Netherlands). NHI release.

Final development contract

Sept 28/95: The first run of the NH90 “Iron Bird” Ground Test Vehicle takes place at Agusta’s Cascina Costa, Italy plant. About 300 aircraft parameters are presently installed, with the main modules, groups and components arrived from the plants of the 4 European companies sharing the development work for NHIndustries: Agusta, Eurocopter Deutschland, Eurocopter France and Fokker. All of this is necessary preparation for the first flight. NHI release:

“On a tie-down metal structure solidly attached to the ground, the NH90 upper-deck, the rear fuselage and the tail unit are installed. The whole dynamic system is the same as the one installed on the first NH90 prototype, including the two engines, the main gear box, the tail drive system, the flight controls, the main and tail rotors. The installation of the vehicle subsystems have been supported by on-site working teams of the four Partner Companies according to their System Design Responsibility and have given excellent results.”

Additional Readings & Sources Background: NH90 – core equipment.

• NH Industries – NH90 Official Site.

• Airbus Helicopters – NH90.

• AgustaWestland – NH90. They’re the lead for the NFH ASW model.

• Army Technology – NH90 Tactical Transport Helicopter, France.

• Naval Technology – NH90 NFH.

• Rolls Royce – RTM322 engine. This collaboration of Rolls Royce and Snecma subsidiary Turbomeca powers about 85% of NH90s ordered, offering between 2,412 (01/9) – 2,544 shp (01/9A). Interestingly, it is the H-92 Superhawk’s alternate engine, and is being promoted as a drop-in upgrade to replace the GE T700s that power Sikorsky’s H-60 family.

• GE – T700-T6E engine. A collaboration of GE & FiatAvio. Offers 2,269 (T6E) – 2,380 (T6E1) shp at sea level. Powers Italian NH90s.

• GE – CT7-8 engine. The CT7-8F5 powers Spanish NH90s, with a rating of about 2,520 shp at sea level. The CT7-8 was co-developed with Avio SpA, but is considered a commercial engine as opposed to the military T700 counterpart from which it was derived. Other CT7-8 variants power the S-92 Superhawk, and will power the VXX (H-92) US Presidential helicopter as well.

• Thales – TopOwl® helmet-mounted sight and display for helicopters. The helmet has attracted weight complaints from pilots.

News & Views

• DID – Anti-Submarine Weakness: India Has a Problem. The NH90 is a finalist, but there’s also a larger context addressed in this article.

• Der Spiegel (Oct 15/14) – Mangel bei der Bundeswehr: Schwere Helme machen Piloten krank. In English: the TopOwl helmet is so heavy that it’s taking pilots out of action due to injuries, with co-pilots especially hard-hit.

• Flightglobal DEW Line (Oct 17/13) – NH90 variants: a surprise total. “In fact, 20 individual variants exist, with this sprawling further down to comprise some 38 sub-variants. Not bad going, when you consider that NHI has so far delivered 161 of the twin-engined type to 12 operator nations.” TTH, High-cabin, and NFH are structurally very different variants. Is a different engine a variant? FAME MEDEVAC kit a variant, or just a sub-variant? Rear ramp vs. none a variant? Different EW system? The lack of standardization has been a problem for NHI, but you can also go overboard with this point.

• Training & Simulation Journal (April 30/07) – NH90 training pact draws attention. “A complex private-finance initiative involving four companies to provide NH90 helicopter training services at three locations in Germany is now in its third year and is drawing interest from other countries…”

• DID (Oct 26/06) – F&S on Europe’s Military Helicopter Market: 2006-2015. The NH90 is seen as fitting into a market sweet spot, and a successful future is predicted.

Daring Class
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The 5,200t Type 42 Sheffield Class destroyers were designed in the late 1960s to provide fleet area air-defense for Britain’s Royal Navy, after the proposed Type 82 air defense cruisers were canceled by the Labour Government in 1966. Britain built 14 of the Type 42s, but these old ships are reaching the limits of their operational lives and effectiveness.

To replace them, the Royal Navy planned to induct 12 Type 45 Daring Class destroyers. The Daring class would be built to deal with a new age of threats. Saturation attacks with supersonic ship-killing missiles, that fly from the ship’s radar horizon to ship impact in under 45 seconds. The reality of future threats from ballistic missiles, and WMD proliferation. Plus a proliferation of possible threats involving smaller, hard to detect enemies like UAVs. Overall, the Type 45s promise to be one of the world’s most capable air defense ships – but design choices have left the cost-to-value ratio uncertain, and limited the Type 45s in other key roles. A reduced 6-ship program moved forward.

The Type 45 Destroyer Program

HMS Southampton
– a Type 42
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A total of 14 Type 42s were built, but no ship lasts forever. HMS Sheffield and HMS Coventry were sunk in the 1982 Falklands War, and Birmingham, Newscastle, Glasgow, Cardiff, and Southampton are no longer in service. Another 2 have been downgraded by removing their defensive Sea Dart missiles as an ‘economy’ measure, and are in reserve, leaving just 5 operational ships.

The Type 45 destroyer project really began when the 8-nation NFR-90 frigate program fragmented into pieces. The USA and Canada elected not to pursue a modern frigate at all. Spain developed the 6,250t F100 AEGIS frigate, which it has now sold to Australia as the future Hobart Class. Holland and Germany developed the 5,700t F124 Sachsen/ LCF De Zeven Provincient Class air defense frigate. The UK, Italy, and France, meanwhile, embarked on the Horizon Class New Generation Common Frigate. In 1999, about 7 years after the initial requirement was floated, Britain dropped out of the NGCF project, citing a need for a larger ship, with wider air defense capabilities, and a British combat management system. Italy and France went on to order a total of 4 (2 each) 6,600t Horizon Class frigates.

Rather than using a modified variant of America’s multi-role 8,000t DDG-51 Arleigh Burke Class, whose costs and performance were stable, Britain proposed to develop its own air warfare destroyer, with better high-end anti-air capabilities. The new 7,350t base/ 7,800t full displacement ships would share the MBDA PAAMS system, built on its Aster-15 and Aster-30 missiles, instead of the popular Raytheon SM-2/SM-3 missile family. PAAMS would be complemented by a different set of radar systems on the Type 45, but the Horizon Class had different radar fittings for each country anyway.

Horizon/Forbin Class
(click to view full)

Plans originally called for 12 Type 45s. They would restore Britain’s anti-air capability by replacing the 14 Type 42 destroyers, and supplement Britain’s remaining Type 23 frigates given the Duke Class’ limited ability to cope with the newest threats. In July 2000, Britain approved expenditure of GBP 5 billion, with a maximum acceptable cost of GBP 5.47 billion, to buy 6 Type 45 destroyers out of a planned class of 12. The first ship was expected to enter service in November 2007.

Since then, the project has experienced significant cost increases and delays. At the same time, planned ship buys were cut. The 12-ship plan became 8 Type 45s in 2004. And the program experienced a full contract renegotiation in 2007. Even after that re-negotiation, Britain’s 2008 Defence Equipment Report listed the overall program as 36 months behind schedule and GBP 989 million (almost $2 billion) over budget. In June 2008, the British government declined its option on Daring Class ships #7 and 8.

The NAO’s 2012-13 Major Projects Report places the overall cost for the 9-year Assessment Phase, the 6-ship Demonstration & Manufacture Phase, and initial support at GBP 5.802 billion (about $11.49 billion), plus another GBP 747 million (about $1.48 billion) for long-term support.

Ships of class include:

• D32 HMS Daring
  
• D33 HMS Dauntless
  
• D34 HMS Diamond
  
• D35 HMS Dragon
  
• D36 HMS Defender
  
• D37 HMS Duncan

Aster-30 test,
Longbow barge
(click to view full)

The first of class HMS Daring successfully completed contractor-led sea trials in September 2008, and Royal Navy sea trials in July 2009. D32 Daring was formally handed over to the Royal Navy in December 2009, over 2 years later than planned. and achieved limited operational capability in February 2010. HMS Daring did not fire her 1st air defense missile, however, until May 2011, which makes for an arguable slippage of 3.5 years. HMS Daring’s 1st mission began in January 2012, but full capability for even this 1st ship of class may have to wait until 2014.

HMS Dauntless completed her 2nd set of contractor-led sea trials in summer 2009, was handed over in December 2009, and was commissioned in June 2010 – at which point, the ship’s primary air defense system wasn’t operational yet. She is now considered to be operational.

HMS Diamond began sea trials in October 2009, was handed over in September 2010, and was commissioned in May 2011. She was deemed ready for operations in December 2011.

HMS Dragon’s contractor-led trials began in summer 2010. She arrived in Portsmouth in September 2011, and was commissioned into the fleet in April 2012.

HMS Defender was launched onto the Clyde in October 2009, and completed initial contractor sea trials in November 2011. She completed 2nd sea trials in April 2012, and was commissioned in March 2013.

The 1st construction block of D37 Duncan was moved to berth in January 2010, and Duncan was formally launched in October 2010. First sea trials have taken place, and she sailed into her home port of Portsmouth in March 2013. Commissioning took place at the the end of December 2013.

The Daring Class

Type 45 concept
(click to view full)

The final Type 45 design is 152.4m long and 21.2m wide, with a standard displacement of 7,350t and full displacement of 7,800t. The ships will cruise at 17 knots using all-electric propulsion, powered by 2 WR-21 advanced cycle modular gas turbine engines, with intercooler and exhaust recuperator (ICR) heat exchangers to reduce fuel consumption. Each turbine will provide 25MW of power, and the propulsion systems will be built by a team that includes Rolls-Royce, Northrop Grumman, and Alsthom Power Conversion Ltd. Expected top speed is 27 knots, but in trials, HMS Daring reportedly bettered 30 knots with both turbines engaged. At 190 sailors, the embarked crew will be smaller than previous ships, with better accommodations and provisions for up to 235. The ship will also be able to carry up to 60 Royal Marines.

Daring Class weapons will include the 4.5-inch Mark 8 Mod 1 gun, and a pair 30 mm guns integrated to an Electro-Optic Gun Control System. The ships were not initially fitted with defensive weapons like Raytheon’s 20mm Mk15 Phalanx or Thales’ 30mm Goalkeeper for last-ditch missile defense and close-in kills, but late 2011 will see installation and trials of the Phalanx Block 1B.

For anti-submarine use, the ships will rely on a multi-function MFS-7000 bow sonar, and Stingray anti-submarine torpedoes that must be launched from its helicopters, since the ship carries no torpedo tubes. The ship will also be equipped with the Surface Ship Torpedo Defence System, designed to protect the ship against the threat of advanced current and future torpedoes.

The embarked helicopters will initially be Lynx HMA Mark 8s, but could eventually be EH101 Merlins or AW159 Lynx Wildcats, with all associated weapons. Since the Type 45s will not initially be fitted with any anti-ship missiles, they will also be forced to depend on their helicopters for this capability.

Quick tour
click for video

The Type 45’s main armament is its PAAMS air defense system, now known as “Sea Viper.” Sea Viper has several components.

The ship’s radars are what will really set it apart from previous vessels. BAE’s SAMPSON is an dual-face, active-array, digital beamforming radar that operates in the E/F bands, and can continuously and simultaneously illuminate a large number of targets for surveillance and fire control. It will be supplemented by the Long Range Radar (LRR), which is an evolution of Thales’ SMART-L active array volume search radar. The Thales/Marconi S1850M operates in the D-band, for wide air and surface search that can include ballistic missile tracking.

A digital Vigile DPX R-ESM system from Thales will help the destroyers monitor the electromagnetic environment around them, picking up on key items like incoming missile radars. Thales’ Vigile is designed to operate in electro-magnetically “crowded” environments, like the near-shore littoral zones.

Once targets are detected, BAE’s combat system will be able to call on the ship’s 48-cell Sylver A50 vertical launcher system (VLS). That means a mix of up to 48 missiles that can include medium range Aster-15s with a 30 km/ 18 mile reach; or the longer range, ballistic missile defense capable Aster-30s with an 80-100 km/ 50-60 mile range. Smaller Sylver A43/A35 launchers can quad-pack 4 short-range Crotale NG/VT-1 missiles per cell, but these weapons are not expected to be part of the Type 45’s armament.

Other roles beyond air defense and anti-submarine duties are possible for the Daring Class. These ships will be able to act as a base platform for a deployable headquarters, and will be able to embark up to 60 troops and their equipment, over and above the ship’s normal complement. A modern medical facility is available with surgical facilities, and the ships can take on up to 700 people in support of a civilian evacuation.

Missing From Action

CEC Concept
(click to enlarge)

Cost growth on the Type 45 destroyers has whittled away many of the ships’ planned capabilities, as features and items were removed. These capabilities could be added later, but until they are, the Type 45s will be missing key features one would expect in a top-of-the-line modern destroyer, or even in a high-end frigate.

Offense. The most obvious gap is anti-ship missiles, and their lack means that the Daring Class will require protection of their own from other ships. Britain’s dwindling frigate strength, and complete lack of maritime patrol aircraft with the retirement of its Nimrods, are going to create limitations in the fleet’s ability to cover all of those bases, and will make its naval groups more brittle in the event of losses.

Torpedoes. Another obvious gap involves torpedoes. Type 45s aren’t fitted with torpedo launchers, and their vertical launch cells won’t hold rocket-launched torpedo systems like the USA’s ASROC-VL. The Type 45 is being sold as an advanced anti-submarine platform, which makes this omission rather puzzling. The ships’ only response will involve readying and launching a torpedo-armed helicopter, which may take more time than a ship has in a difficult situation.

The good news is that these may be the easiest gaps to fix. If Britain wishes to sidestep vertical launch requirements, there is some space abaft the PAAMS silos for mounting fixed missile launchers to house anti-ship and/or anti-submarine missiles. Nevertheless, those spaces will be empty when the ships are built and accepted.

Other gaps are less obvious, but equally consequential.

CEC. The ships were originally slated to receive Co-operative Engagement Capability (CEC). This American system gives fitted ships the ability to see what other CEC-equipped ships, aircraft, or land stations see, and to fire at targets the launching ship’s radars cannot see. It’s vital for wide-area anti-air defense, and for ballistic missile defense. Preliminary contracts were issued, but in 2012 the Ministry of Defence decided not to install this relatively inexpensive capability on its ships. The consequence is that the Type 45s will be less effective in their central role of air defense, when compared to ships with less advanced technologies on board plus CEC.

Short Sylver. For other tasks beyond air defense, this ship’s DCNS Sylver A50 launchers are only 5m long, which means they’re not able to carry Scalp (Storm Shadow) vertically-launched land attack cruise missiles, or other strike-length payloads like the SM-3 naval anti-ballistic missile. The 4.5m long VL-ASROC anti-submarine missile/torpedo would fit the A50, but it is designed to work with the Mk 41 vertical launch system and would have to be integrated and tested.

The ships reportedly do have space in front of the 48 cell Sylver A50 system to accommodate another 12-cell launcher, but they will not initially be fitted with one. DCNS’ Sylver A70 is an obvious option, but there has been talk of retrofits involving a BAE/Lockheed Mk.41 strike-length VLS there instead. Either VLS choice would give the Daring Class the space to host land-strike missiles, though Britain’s current naval doctrine assigns that role exclusively to its nuclear-powered fast attack submarines. Choosing the Mk.41 would also allow the ships to add SM-3 missiles, if additional upgrades were made to the ship’s datalinks and combat system.

Type 45: Comparisons

HNLMS Tromp LCF
(click to view full)

The 7,350t Type 45’s VLS holding capacity is smaller than the equivalent American Arleigh Burke Class destroyer’s 90-96 Mk41 cells; indeed, at just 48 cells, it’s equivalent to Spain’s 6,250t F100 AEGIS frigates.

Daring’s missile array is slightly more capable than, and boasts more range than, the RIM-162 Evolved Seasparrow/ SM-2 combination found on many other western anti-aircraft ships. Unfortunately, that performance improvement comes with a penalty: Aster-15s cannot be quad-packed in Sylver launchers, the way the RIM-162 can be quad-packed in the popular Mk41 VLS. As the table above demonstrates, the resulting math is merciless.

On the other hand, Navantia’s F100 is restricted by the 2 SPG-62 radar illuminators available for final targeting of incoming missiles. Fast switching is less than optimal against supersonic missiles with terminal maneuvering, whereas the Sea Viper radar system has the option of continuous tracking and guidance for up to 10 targets, in order to make better use of the missiles that it has against saturation attacks.

The 5,700t German/Dutch F124/ De Zeven Provincien Class air defense frigates might be a better comparison. Against these ships, the Daring Class comes off poorly. The German & Dutch ships use a similar active array radar approach (Thales APAR/ SMART-L), giving them similar defensive capabilities against saturation attacks, but they field more anti-aircraft missiles, as well as a rounded set of naval capabilities. Like Navantia’s F100s, the De Zeven Provincien Class’ ballistic missile defense capabilities and CEC compatibility are partially proven, as they have participated in BMD exercises with the US Navy.

As of 2013, Britain’s CAMM-M/ Sea Ceptor missile offers the Type 45s a way out of this dilemma. Sea Ceptor missiles have shorter range than the ESSM, but they can be quad-packed in Sylver launchers, and their active radar seekers don’t require continuous illumination from the ship’s radar. With Sea Ceptors on board, a Daring Class ship regains competitiveness with its air-defense peers by hosting a formidable 3-tiered defense of 16 long-range Aster-30s, 20 medium-range Aster-15s, and 48 CAMM missiles.

Many of these design differences with their fellow NF-90 spinoffs trace back to the Type 45 project’s fundamental mandate. Britain’s government decided that it preferred to leverage and extend the investments they had made in the PAAMS air defense system before Britain left the Horizon Class project, while pursuing its own destroyer design instead of buying or modifying an off-the-shelf ship type. The choice of PAAMS forced the Sylver/Aster missile combination instead of the Mk. 41, while cost overruns and the need for cost containment on its custom-designed destroyer cut further into the Type 45’s fielded capabilities.

Contracts and Key Events

Editor’s note: this section is not yet comprehensive, and will be expanded.

Vertical launch system. Sensor support.

D35 Dragon
(click to view full) 2018

June 7/18: Updated CESM capability The UK Royal Navy is fitting its Type 45 destroyer with the Shaman communications electronic support measures (CESM) system. The HMS Defender is the first vessel to receive the system which is based on the US Navy’s AN/SSQ-130(V) Ship’s Signal Exploitation Equipment (SSEE) Increment F. SSEE essentially is a signals exploitation system that allows the operators to monitor and analyze signals of interest aboard a variety of ship classes. The Royal Navy has described the Shaman as “an essential information, surveillance, targeting, and reconnaissance tool in the delivery of maritime force protection, security and maneuver”.

2013

Dec 30/13: D37 commissioned. The UK announces that:

“HMS Duncan, the Royal Navy’s sixth Type 45 Destroyer, has entered into service four months ahead of schedule. The ship was scheduled to enter service in early 2014, but thanks to the hard work of both the ship’s company and industry since her arrival in Portsmouth, HMS Duncan is ready to take up duties now. The 7,500 tonne vessel will now embark on a programme of trials to prepare the ship and her crew for operational deployment.”

Sources: Royal Navy, “Final Type 45 Destroyer enters service early”.

Sept 10/13: Sea Ceptor for Daring. The UK Ministry of Defence announces the 1st CAMM production contract: GBP 250 million (about $393 million) for the Sea Ceptor/ CAMM-M. Final assembly will take place at MBDA’s Lostock facility, with 9 Tier-1 subcontractors distributed across sites in England and Scotland.

The UK’s announcement of the missile’s platforms is equally significant. Sea Ceptor will be retrofitted to Type 23 Duke Class frigates beginning in 2016, serve aboard the forthcoming Type 26 frigate as its primary air defense system – and complement the Aster missiles on the Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyers. That seemingly simple addition changes how the Daring Class stacks up against other nations’ air defense ships, as shown in this article’s revised comparison chart. Sources: UK MoD, Sept 10/13 release | Royal Navy, Sept 11/13 release | MBDA, Sept 9/13 release.

Sea Ceptor added

Aug 21 – Sept 10/13: Naval FAC. During her deployment in the Persian Gulf, HMS Dragon conducts a number of exercises with British and American planes, acting as a forward air controller to vector them onto targets at sea. Participating aircraft included RAF Tornado GR4s, USMC F/A-18s, USAF F-15 fighters and B-1 bombers, and H-60 Seahawk helicopters. The ship also worked with ScanEagle UAVs, a British Sea King Mk7 for wide-area aerial surveillance, and a USAF E-8C JSTARS for wide-area surface scans. Sources: Royal Navy, Aug 21/13 and Sept 10/13 releases.

Aug 29/13: Costs. In response to a question from a May 20/13 hearing of the Public Accounts Committee, Britain’s Ministry of Defence provides operating costs figures for a Type 45 Destroyer. The annual Type 45 unit running cost at FY12/13 rates is GBP 48.57 million (about $77.75 million): 8.76 million personnel; 6.41 million fuel, inventory and services; and 33.4 million general ship maintenance.

There are useful caveats to this information. One is that the destroyers are new platforms, which means that operating costs tend to be low. Data will improve as deployments become more routine, but costs will be controlled somewhat by the presence of a “Contracting for Availability” support contract. Sources: HC 113 Public Accounts Committee Session 2013-14, “Written evidence from the Ministry of Defence”

Operating costs

Aug 30/13: Training. While in the Persian Gulf, HMS Dragon works to embark all 3 of the Royal Navy’s helicopter types: AW101 Merlin, Lynx, and the Sea King Mk.7 ASaC airborne early warning helicopter. The Royal Navy release notes that for “lilly-pad” operations:

“The flight deck, which remains unmanned throughout takeoff and landing, also has an automation and signalling system – involved in launching and recovering aircraft – that can land helicopters as large as a Chinook on board.”

July 4/13: Criminal case? The Herald reports that a dispute over Type 45 work could end up in criminal court over false testimony by Tom Stark, the managing director of Wilh Wilhelmsen subsidiary Ticon Isulation in Stepps, North Lanarkshire. Deck-Rite of Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire sued Ticon for GBP 750,000 over work they did insulating the decks of Britain’s Type 45 destroyers. In their defense, Ticon submitted an April 14/04 tender letter that their own lawyers now admit was a fabrication.

While lying in court rarely attracts penalties in America, it’s taken seriously in Britain, and results in criminal prosecution. Mr. Stark could face up to 2 years in prison if convicted. Meanwhile, Ticon also owns a GBP 57 million contract to insulate the decks of Britain’s 2 forthcoming Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers. The Herald.

May 28/13: SSOP. Thales UK signs a 10-year, GBP 600 million Sensor Support Optimisation Project (SSOP) with the Ministry of Defence. It extends the 2003 Contractor Logistics Support deal that covered electronic warfare/ ESM and sonar system support on an array of submarines and surface ships, and the Daring Class falls within its ambit. Read “SSOP: Britain Extends Contracting Innovations into Naval Sensors” for full coverage.

SSOP support contract

May 14/13: Mk-41 + MBDA. MBDA signs an MoU with Lockheed Martin to jointly explore the market for the integration of MBDA naval missile systems into Lockheed Martin’s MK-41 Vertical Launch System, and ExLS VLS/cell insert. They’ll begin with a late 2013 demonstration involving Britain’s new CAMM-M Sea Ceptor missile, which seems to indicate a favored position for the Mk-41 on board Britain’s forthcoming Type 26 frigates.

The implications reach far beyond CAMM. Britain has already been considering adding a set of Mk-41 cells to the Type 45 destroyer, in order to hold SM-3 ballistic missile defense missiles. Adding CAMM to those cells would make the drop-in even more attractive, by giving the Type 45s two things they don’t currently have: snap-launch anti-submarine defenses (VL-ASROC), and a larger array of air defense missiles that offer excellent coverage against saturation attacks (quad-packed CAMM). If the same VLS could fire MBDA’s Aster-15 and Aster-30 missiles, it might even be worth considering a full swap-out of DCNS’ Sylver A50 VLS. Read “CAMM Opener for the Naval Missile Market: MBDA & LMCO’s MoU” for full coverage.

MBDA/ Lockheed Mk-41 MoU

March 22/13: D37. Duncan arrives at her home port of Portsmouth. UK MoD.

March 21/13: D36 Commissioned. HMS Defender is commissioned into the Royal Navy at a ceremony in her home port of Portsmouth. The News.

Jan 10/13: NAO Report. Britain’s National Audit Office releases their 2012 Major Projects Report. With respect to the Type 45 project, figures have become fairly refined. The Demonstration & Manufacture Phase’s expected cost to completion at approval was GBP 4.757 billion, but actual costs will be closer to GBP 5.556 billion, which is a 16.8% increase. The good news is that the final cost estimate dropped about GBP 108 million over the past year. Why so?

“The successful delivery of the above programme milestones has allowed the MoD to retire risk funding and for both Industry and MoD to re-cost remaining activities with greater certainty in the final outturn of the programme.”

Overall cost for the 9-year Assessment Phase, D&M, and initial support comes to GBP 5.802 billion (about $11.49 billion). NAO forecasts another GBP 747 million (about $1.48 billion) for long-term support.

2012

EuroSAM support.

D33 Dauntless
(click to view full)

Aug 31/12: D37. Duncan puts to sea for the first time for trials. UK MoD.

July 25/12: D36. Defender sails into HMNB Portsmouth for sea trials on schedule, before being declared ready for operations in 2013. UK MoD.

July 9-13/12: D35 missile firing. HMS Dragon successfully tests her Sea Viper weapon system against a target drone, at the Outer Hebrides missile range off Scotland. UK MoD.

July 2/12: The Thales/MBDA joint venture EuroSAM signs a 5-year, EUR 360 million Integrated In-Service Support (IISS) contract with the EU’s OCCAR. It’s their 1st joint, multi-system and multinational (Britain, France, Italy) support contract for air defence systems, based on MBDA’s Aster-15/30 missiles and associated combat systems.

The big agreement launching PAAMS/Aster orders was signed in March 2002, but it takes time for development and delivery to make long-term support an issue. It also isn’t easy to get agreement on a support framework that can serve the operational requirements of navy, air force, and army customers, across multiple countries. International customer exchange meetings and an official forum “equal to an “Aster family Users’ Club,” will become part of this arrangement going forward. The combination of a common agreement and common forums is also expected to help ensure some consistency in upgrades and improvements.

MBDA produces the Aster missiles. Thales is responsible for the Fire Control Systems on board France’s Charles de Gaulle nuclear aircraft carrier (SAAM-Fr), France & Italy’s 4 high-end Horizon Class air defense “frigates”, and Britain’s Type 45 destroyers (PAAMS), and 17 French & Italian ground-based SAMP/T air defense systems, which use the Aster-30 missile. They’re also responsible for the Horizon and Type 45’s S1850M wide search radars, derived from Thales’ SMART-L. Note Britain’s complementary Sea Viper support contract, announced on May 17/11. EuroSAM | Thales.

EuroSAM support contract

June 11/12: No CEC. Speaking during question period in the House of Commons, Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the Royal Navy had identified Co-operative engagement Capability as a “lesser priority” during the Planning Round 12 process, and decided not to spend around GBP 500 million to implement it on their 6 Daring Class destroyers and 12-13 forthcoming Type 26 frigates. Media coverage criticized the decision, and the UK MoD’s blog responded that:

“The MoD’s comprehensive assessment of CEC informed the decision made during PR12 that it was not necessary to commit to purchasing the capability at this stage. As the Defence Secretary made clear last month, the MoD budget has headroom of £8bn over the next 10 years for potential new programmes. The Armed Forces Committee will prioritise which projects to commit to when necessary, and not before.”

The American CEC system gives fitted ships the ability to see what other CEC-equipped ships, aircraft, or land stations see, and to fire at targets the launching ship’s radars cannot see. It is vital for wide-area anti-air defense, and for ballistic missile defense. Daily Telegraph | Defence Management.

No CEC

June 12/12: D34 deploys. HMS Diamond will spend 6 months carrying out maritime security patrols in the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden and the Persian Gulf, replacing her sister ship HMS Daring. UK MoD.

June 1/12: Nice timing. HMS Diamond launches the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee weekend with a spectacular ceremonial entry into Portsmouth, celebrating 50 years on the throne for one of Britain’s greatest monarchs. Royal Navy.

May 1/12: D34 missile firing. HMS Diamond [D34] fires its PAAMS/Sea Viper air defense system, destroying a target drone. The successful test leaves her ready for operations. BFBS | UK MoD.

April 23-27/12: D33 exercise. HMS Dauntless [D33] participates in Exercise Saharan Express off the coast of Senegal. The 11 nation exercise includes France, Gambia, Senegal and Morocco, among others. Next stop, the Falklands (vid. Jan 31/12). UK MoD.

April 26/12: D35 commissioned. HMS Dragon [D35] is formally commissioned into the fleet. UK MoD.

April 26/12: Lord West, who was Britain’s First Sea Lord from 2002-2006, is pushing for 2 more Type 45 destroyers from his seat in the House of Lords. That had been the plan while he held his post, until rising costs and other budgetary priorities led Britain to decline its option on ships # 7 & 8 in 2008. The government’s recent admission that there was ‘no provision’ for the loss of any ships in its SDSR plans appears to have been the catalyst. From Portsmouth’s The News:

“Lord Alan West said a fleet of 19 frigates and destroyers is not big enough for Britain and raised his concern about the lack of a contingency plan if the navy lost ships fighting in a war… I think we are in desperate need of more than 19 ships. It’s just not enough and the government needs to come up with some way to increase that fast. We need at least two more Type 45s.”

Absent huge budget increases, there is no way to increase fleet size quickly, unless Britain were to shift toward lower-end small frigates and corvettes as accompaniments to the Type 45s.

April 18/12: Daring a dud? The Portsmouth News reports that HMS Daring went alongside for 3 days of secret repairs at Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard in Bahrain in March, after she encountered propulsion problems with a starboard shaft bearing off of Kuwait.

“The News has been told the problems are being caused by a propeller drive shaft which is bent out of alignment. A well-placed source said it’s an issue isolated to Daring and was known about before the high-profile ship was commissioned in July 2009.”

If that’s true, it helps make sense of the 2010 (q.v. Nov 19/10 entry) and 2012 incidents, but it’s very bad news for the ship. A bent shaft means a long future of problems ahead, until a very difficult and expensive fix is made.

April 10/12: After a month at trials of her maneuvering, power, and combat systems trials, D36 Defender has completed her 2nd trial set, and remains on track for a July 2012 induction into the Royal Navy. See also Nov 21/11 entry. UK MoD.

April 4/12: SSST test. A GQM-163 Coyote launched from the Mediterranean island of Levant is used as a supersonic maneuvering target for France’s high-end Forbin air defense ship, which shoots it down using an MBDA Aster-30 missile. Her sister ship, FS Chevalier Paul, tracked the target and the missiles fired.

France’s Horizon Class destroyers use a different radar than the Daring Class, but shares the same air-defense missiles and the PAAMS combat system. DGA [in French] | US NAVAIR

Jan 30/12: Digital ESM. Thales UK touts its new fully digital, radar electronic support measures (RESM) digital antennas on board HMS Daring. The new antennas were installed under the UAT MOD 2 program, and are one of the attractions being shown at the DIMDEX 2012 exhibition in Doha, Qatar.

Thales had to develop the direct radio frequency sampling and wideband digital receiver technology that allows the RESM to manage multiple, truly simultaneous signals, and to perform better in dense electronic environments.

March 13/12: D35 Dragon and D36 Defender begin 2nd stage sea trials. UK MoD.

Jan 31/12: D33 1st mission. HMS Dauntless [D33] gets her own initial deployment, to the Falkland Islands. The move comes amidst growing threats and hostility from Argentina, who invaded the islands and then lost a war with Britain in the 1980s. Naturally, the British government denies that there’s any connection. BBC.

Jan 11/12: D32 1st mission. HMS Daring sets sail for the new ship type’s 1st operational mission, to take place “east of Suez.” There’s wide speculation that this means the Persian Gulf, where Iranian threats to close the Strait of Hormuz are focusing global attention.

2011

Long-term support. Phalanx added.

HMS Daring fires
Sea Viper
(click to view full)

Dec 7/11: D34 ready. The Royal Navy declares HMS Diamond [D34] ready for operations, after its crew passes both BOST(Basic Operational Sea Training) and FOST(Flag Officer Sea Training). The culmination is the “Thursday War,” when the crew must deal with simulated incoming missiles, while the ship’s company works in darkness and smoke to handle simulated fires and flooding, loss of propulsion and steering, and other fun times.

HMS Daring [D32], HMS Dauntless [D33], and HMS Diamond [D34] are all scheduled to deploy in 2012. UK MoD.

Nov 21/11: D36. D36 Defender has successfully completed her 1st set of sea trials, testing speed, manoeuvrability, sensors and weapons. Her next step is to return to the BAE Systems yard in Scotstoun, Glasgow, where she was built. The ship has been linked to Glasgow as its patron city, and the crew has been busy forging links.

Defender will return to sea in March 2012 for a 2nd set of trials, and is on schedule to make her debut in her future home of Portsmouth in mid-July 2012. After more trials and training, she’s expected to join the fleet in early 2013. UK MoD.

Sept 13/11: SM-3s? Raytheon announces successful testing for their prototype dual-band datalink, allowing ships that use either Lockheed Martin SPY-1/ AEGIS or Thales Nederland’s SMART-L and/or APAR radars to employ the full range of Standard Missiles for air and ballistic missile defense, including the SM-3.

The firm cites up to 20 eligible ships, including SPY-1/ AEGIS/ MK41 VLS operators in Norway (Fridtjof Nansen) and Spain (F100); as well as APAR/ SMART-L/ MK41 radar operators in Denmark (Iver Huitfeldt), Germany (F124 Sachsen), the Netherlands (De Zeven Provincien); and closely derived S1850 operators in France (Horizon), Italy (Horizon) and the United Kingdom (Type 45).

For discussion of the issues, and the ships Raytheon left out, read “Raytheon’s Datalink: A New Naval Standard for the Standard?”

Aug 27-31/11: D35. Dragon sets sail from BAE’s Scotsun yard on the Clyde River, manned by a combined BAE Systems and Royal Navy crew, for the journey to her new home port of Portsmouth. Formal handover happens in Portsmouth on Aug 31/11, followed by more trials. BAE Systems | UK MoD.

July 12/11: D34 commissioned. Britain’s 3rd Type 45 air defense destroyer, HMS Diamond, officially joins the Royal Navy. UK MoD.

June 27/11: Sea Viper sub-contract. BAE Systems announces a 6-year, GBP 46 million (about $73.5 million) contract from Sea Viper lead MBDA. BAE will support all Sampson radars over its period of performance, including those that have not yet entered service. BAE will provides technical support, a spares and repairs service, maintenance through the joint MBDA/BAE Systems waterfront team in Portsmouth. The team will also provide ongoing support at the Maritime Integration and Support Centre (MISC) in Portsmouth, and at BAE’s Cowes, Isle of Wight radar testing facility. BAE Systems will remain the design authority and designated help desk support for Sampson.

This new arrangement follows a GBP 6 million, 18-month contract in September 2010, and is intended as a forerunner to a full ‘contract for availability’ arrangement. First, however, all parties need to generate data on the radar’s performance, in order to act as a long-term baseline. BAE Systems.

June 21/11: Phalanx added. Babcock International Group announces the pending qualification and testing of Raytheon’s MK.15 Phalanx 1B 20mm close-in weapon system on HMS Daring. The Type 45s were not delivered with secondary defensive systems for use against UAVs, small boats, and incoming missiles, so the pending qualification will help to patch the gaps in their defenses.

Babcock will supervise the installation of 2 systems in HMS Daring at Portsmouth Naval Base, as a lead-in to Naval Weapon Sea Trials (NWST), including a towed target firing. Most British ships have used Thales larger 30mm Goalkeeper system, but the Phalanx is an easier and cheaper as a “bolt-on” addition. Babcock’s previous Phalanx installations have been upgrades on the Type 42 destroyer HMS York, and the fleet replenishment ship RFA Fort Victoria.

MK15 Phalanx CIWS

June 20/11: SM-3s for Type 45s? Raytheon Missile Systems VP Ed Miyashiro is telling journalists that a number of other platforms are being looked at for NATO/European ballistic missile defense, including Britain’s Type 45s. The ship class’ MBDA Aster-30 missiles have just begun land tests against ballistic missiles, but Raytheon’s SM-3 family has both a longer testing record, and an SM-3 Block II that promises very significant performance improvements. For cash-strapped European governments, it also comes with much cheaper missile defense development costs, thanks to American and Japanese advance work.

The issue would be integration. Spanish F100 frigates are the most straightforward, with the same AN/SPY-1D radars and Mk.41 Vertical Launch System (VLS) as American ships. The same AEGIS BMD upgrade set used in American destroyers would suffice. Dutch and German F124 frigates, and the pending Danish Ivar Huitfeldt Class ships, also carry the MK.41 VLS, but use higher-performance Thales APAR and SMART-L radars. That requires additional integration and modification work, but all 3 classes are using a shared core system. The British, French, and Italian ships would be the most work. While they all share a similar core air defense system, they all use different radars, while sharing key electronics and DCNS’ Sylver VLS. That means both electronics work, and physical changes to the weapons array. In his conversations, Miyashiro mentions that they’re looking into the possibility of fielding SM-3 compatible inserts in DCNS’ Sylver A70 VLS, which is the required size for the 6.6 meter SM-3. Britain’s Type 45 Daring Class has space for adding the larger Sylver A70 launchers up front, but Miyashiro has reportedly said that they’re also looking at the possibility of inserting the Mk.41 VLS there.

A Mk.41 VLS would require some combat system integration, in exchange for very wide flexibility beyond the SM-3s. It would also give the Daring Class the ability to use an array of new weapons, including Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles, which current British doctrine will only fire from submarines. Aviation Week | Defense News.

May 25/11: Engine support. Rolls Royce announces a long term Class Output Management contract with BAE Systems to provide guaranteed availability of the Type 45 destroyers’ WR-21 engines. The initial GBP 20 million ($) contract is for 6 years, but options for extensions would cover the entire 30+ year life of the vessels. BAE’s Head of Supply Chain for UK Ship Support Programmes, Chris Curtis, described the contract as “a highly incentivised and cost effective support provision.”

Each destroyer is powered by 2 WR-21 turbines, derived from the firm’s RB211 and Trent engine families that power modern widebody and jumbo jets. Advanced marine features include compressor inter-cooling and exhaust heat recuperation, which recovers exhaust air for heating incoming combustion air. The effect is to reduce fuel consumption by about 27% over similar single-cycle turbines. The WR-21 has also been made very modular, and the gas generator and power turbine consists of 12 interchangeable pre-balanced modules. Because of their size and low weight, these modules can be removed and new modules can be fitted, in order to reduce maintenance costs and down time.

Beyond the engine, Rolls Royce is also providing propellers, shaftlines and bearings, stabilizing fins and low voltage electrical systems for the class.

Long-term engine support contract

May 17/11: D32 Missile firing. The UK MoD announces that HMS Daring has successfully fired its Sea Viper/ Aster-30 air defense system for the first time, joining HMS Dauntless. Photo metadata show that the firing took place on April 18/11.

At the same time, the Navy announces a 6-year, GBP 165 million (about $267 million) contract has to MBDA UK in Bristol and Stevenage, UK, to provide technical assistance to the fleet’s Sea Viper air defense systems. The Project Availability Support Service – Sea Viper (PASS-SV) contract is the first support contract let under the April 2010 Complex Weapons Through Life Enabling Contract, which will cover a range of British missiles.

MBDA will be working with BAE Systems Maritime Mission Systems to support the Sampson radar, while DM Gosport will be responsible for the out-loading of munitions to the Type 45 Class and for processing them at a new Munition Maintenance Facility (MMF) located in Gosport, UK. The MMF is a four year development that will give Britain a native test and repair facility for MBDA’s Aster missiles, and its construction and operation involves a separate contract. UK MoD | Royal Navy | MBDA | Defence Management.

Long-term Sea Viper support contract

May 6/11: HMS Diamond. The Royal Navy commissions D34 as HMS Diamond. The 4th ship of class, Dragon, is due to arrive in at the type’s Portsmouth base for the first time in September 2011, to begin preparations for its own commissioning. UK MoD.

2010

C4 contract. Missile firing.

D36 Defender Launched
(click to view full)

Nov 19/10: Mechanical difficulties. HMS Daring sails back into Portsmouth Harbour. She was forced to go to Canada for urgent repairs, after losing propulsion in the Atlantic. The incident came just 4 months after one of her drivers packed up out in the Solent, during a visit from sailors’ families.

Martin Carter, whose son Philip serves as a marine engineer on Daring, told Portsmouth’s The News that: “They’ve been having lots of trouble with the drivers on the ship. It’s obviously not good but I’m sure they’ll get it all sorted out soon.”

Oct 11/10: D37 launch. Duncan [D37] is launched down the slipway. She is likely to be the last ship to be “dynamically launched” on the Clyde River in the traditional fashion, the final example of more than 22,000 vessels launched from Clyde shipyards. Future ships are likely to use flooding techniques like building them on a barge, or in a drydock. UK MoD | For Argyll, also explains Adm. Adam Duncan’s legacy | BBC [incl. video] | Caledonian Mercury | The Guardian | Glasgow Evening Times | The Scotsman.

Oct 4/10: Missile firing, finally. The UK MoD announces that a Type 45 destroyer fired a missile for the first time at the end of September 2010. HMS Dauntless fired an Aster-30 missile at a navy range in the Hebrides, hitting a target drone.

/changeNav/6568">Royal Navy | UK MoD.

Aster, fired

Sept 22/10: Diamond [D34] arrives in her home port of Portsmouth for the first time, following sea trials in Scottish waters. She is formally handed over to the Royal Navy on Sept 23rd, and will undergo another set of sea trials before commissioning.

HMS Daring [D32] arrived in Portsmouth in January 2009, and HMS Dauntless [D33] arrived in December 2009.

/changeNav/6568">Royal Navy | UK MoD.

June 28/10: Aster-30 tests. MBDA Systems announces that its Aster-30 missiles have added Britain’s PAAMS-equipped “Longbow” barge to the roster of successful test firings using modified missiles.

“Over the last month… The trials were conducted over a range of scenarios of steadily increasing complexity, culminating in a final trial featuring a salvo firing against a sea skimming target performing a high-g terminal manoeuvre. All the trials [by Italy, France, and the UK] were fully successful.”

See also OCCAR release.

June 3/10: HMS Dauntless. D33 is formally commissioned into Royal Navy service, at a ceremony in Portsmouth Naval Base. Neither HMS Daring, nor HMS Dauntless, is operational with its primary air defense weapon. UK MoD.

May 25/10 – June 1/10: Aster fixed? Italy and France conduct test-firings of the Aster-30 missile from their destroyer-sized Horizon Class air defense frigates. The Andrea Doria fires a missile on May 25/10, while France Forbin fires a missile on June 1/10.

The test-firings are meant to ensure that the problems identified in Britain’s test firings from its Longbow test barge have been fixed, and are touted as successful by the French DGA. Renewed firings from the Longbow are expected to begin in a few weeks, leading at some point to actual firings from Type 45 destroyers. Mer et Marine [in French].

April 1/10: Aster flaw. Portsmouth’s The News confirms that the PAAMS test failures have been traced back to a design flaw with the Aster missiles, which are being redesigned.

“An MoD spokeswoman said: ‘Some production weaknesses in the most recent batches of the Aster missile have been identified and these are being corrected through minor re-design work… Portsmouth South MP Mike Hancock, who sits on the Commons defence committee, said: ‘I am very sceptical about this – are we really to believe that a whole batch of missiles was just made wrong for such an expensive system? If you read this in a novel it would be believable, but when it’s a programme that is already late it’s incredible.

‘I think the only way we can be certain that the problem is resolved is when these missiles are fired from a moving ship, and not from a static platform off France.'”

March 22/10: C4 contract. Thales UK announces a 7-year support contract for the fully integrated communications system (FICS) in the UK’s Type 45 fleet. The “multi-million pounds contract” awarded by BAE Systems Surface Ships covers all internal and external communications systems on all 6 destroyers, requires Thales to guarantee the availability of the communications systems, and will run until 2016. In addition to providing support to the vessels themselves, Thales will also provide support for a single shore-based reference system.

Thales already has some experience with availability-based contracts for hand-held range-finding and thermal imaging units, all of which have exceeded the requirements set out in the initial contract. Thales UK release | DID on Britain’s “Future Contracting for Availability” approach.

FICS C4 support

March 18/10: CEC. A $13.7 million modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-08-C-5202) for the design agent and engineering services for the cooperative engagement capability (CEC) system, which helps equipped ships by sharing their air defense picture and targeting. This contract combines purchases for the US Navy (97%) and the government of the United Kingdom (3%) under the Foreign Military Sales program. Work will be performed in Largo, FL (80%); St. Petersburg, FL (19%); and Dallas, TX (1%), and is expected to be complete by September 2011.

A 3% participation share may not seem like much, but the UK has been absent from past CEC contracts, and a firm decision on the Daring Class was expected in 2010. Looks like it was positive.

March 18/10: Dauntless, the 2nd of the Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyers, and Astute, the 1st Astute Class nuclear powered fast attack submarine, combine on sea trials in the firth of Clyde. Dauntless was handed over to the UK Ministry of Defence by BAE Systems in December 2009 and will be commissioned into the Royal Navy fleet later in 2010. BAE release.

March 12/10:Aster flaws. The French naval site Mer et Marine runs an article [in French] about France’s Forbin/Horizon Class “frigates,” which are really advanced air defense destroyers. In that article, it discusses recent failures of the PAAMS/Aster air defense system.

Apparently, the failures were due to a minor manufacturing defect in the missiles, and a Board of Inquiry will make their findings at the end of Q1 2010, ‘said Laurent Collet-Billon, Delegate General for Armaments. The investigation must also determine if a single missile was defective, or if entire batches could be affected.

2009

Fleet support. Aster flaws.

Daring’s trials
(click to view full)

Dec 18/09: Aster flaws. The News of Portsmouth reports that problems with the PAAMS system could delay HMS Daring’s in-service date:

“The News can reveal that the navy has switched Daring’s in-service date from February 2010 to just 2010 – potentially buying an extra 10 months as technicians try to identify the problems with the Sea Viper missiles… When asked by The News if it was a problem with the missile launcher or the missile itself, the MoD said they did not know. An MoD spokeswoman said… [that] ‘The cost of the technical investigation and any redesign to resolve the issues that emerge during trials, falls to MBDA.’ “

Dec 4/09: Aster flaws. The British MoD responds to media reports regarding the PAAMS system, via its “Defence in the Media” blog:

“The claims that the missiles don’t work are incorrect. The Sea Viper system trials are ongoing with the intention that the missile will be ready to meet the Type 45s’ first operational deployments from 2011. As the destroyers enter service they, along with Sea Viper, undergo a rigorous trials programme to ensure that all systems meet their design specification before the ships deploy on operations.”

Dec 2/09: D33 handover. HMS Dauntless is formally handed over to the Royal Navy in Portsmouth. She was launched from BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard in Glasgow on Jan 23/07, and joined HMS Daring in Portsmouth after extensive sea trials. As part of the hand-over, the BAE Systems company flag was lowered and replaced by the Royal Navy’s White Ensign. UK MoD |

/changeNav/6568">Royal Navy | BAE systems.

Dec 1/09: CEC? Jane’s Naval Forces reports that the Royal Navy will decide whether or not to buy Cooperative Engagement Capability in 2010:

“…for integration into selected Royal Navy (RN) surface ships after concluding a third tranche of Assessment Phase (AP3) studies. This comes five years after initial plans [link added] to integrate the UK CEC system into Type 23 frigates and Type 45 destroyers were brought to a sudden halt as a result of budget pressure.”

Dec 1/09: Aster fail. Aviation Week’s Ares blog reports a test failure of the PAAMS/ Sea Viper system. Final qualification tests are generally the most difficult in any series, and this one is thought to be have been a 2 target engagement. UK Defense Equipment and Support Organization COO Andrew Tyler describes the final test’s failure as a “setback”, and adds:

“We are working extremely hard with the other partner nations and the company to resolve what the problems were with the final firing… [but it is] too early to come up with the diagnosis.”

The Daily Mail adds its own coverage, and The Register adds that:

“The weapons are already so late that the first [GBP] 1bn+ Type 45 has been in naval service for nearly a year – almost completely unarmed.”

Oct 20/09: D36 launch. BVT Surface Fleet’s shipyard at Govan, in Glasgow, launches Defender, the 5th Type 45 anti-air warfare destroyer. The ship is already 65% complete, and the team has outfitted the ship to the maximum weight possible ahead of launch; the electrical systems on board are already live. Focus will now turn to completing systems and commissioning power and propulsion and combat systems, ahead of her hand over to the Royal Navy on schedule in 2012. UK MoD |

/changeNav/6568">Royal Navy | BAE Systems.

Sept 16/09: Fleet support. The UK MoD issues a GBP 309 million (currently $510 million), 7-year support contract for its Type 45 fleet. The majority of maintenance work will be carried out around the class’ home port of Portsmouth Naval Base, and the effort is expected to support about 120 jobs directly. Royal Navy Rear Admiral Bob Love adds that:

“The Type 45 support solution is an innovative contract which sees the prime contractor for the build of the ships providing in-service support… BVT will manage equipment availability to agreed targets, incentivising them to minimise the cost of support by improving equipment reliability. This is the first time this arrangement has been used for a major warship.”

The BAE Systems and VT Group joint venture and shipbuilder BVT Surface Fleet will act as the Class Output Manager (COM) and will co-ordinate all aspects of support delivery to the ship including maintenance, supply chain and design management, managing obsolescence issues, incorporating support-related changes where required, as well as planning and optimizing support to reduce cost and maintenance over time. Built-in contract flexibility will accommodate variations in the operational profile that don’t require any contract changes.

Availability of the ships’ major systems will be handled through BVT partnerships with Thales, BAE Systems Insyte, Raytheon, Northrop Grumman Sperry Marine, Ultra and Converteam. UK MoD | BAE Systems.

Class support contract

March 13/09: NAO report. Britain’s National Audit Office (NAO) issues a report covering the Type 45 Daring Class program, which it says has improved since the 2007 contract renegotiation.

With respect to the program’s present and future, its worries are threefold: cost, capabilities, and coverage. With respect to cost, NAO estimates that a program once estimated at GBP 5 billion will now cost a total of GBP 6.46 billion for 6 ships. The NAO adds that the MoD’s decision to create 2 timelines with different official/corporate dates, and “no problems” target dates, can create a time mismatch between project requirements and allocated funds.

With respect to capabilities, HMS Daring reportedly lacks some communications systems over 2 years after its 2006 launch, and will not be fully operational with its main “Sea Viper” air defense system until 2011. Specifically, HMS Daring will enter into service before the Aster missiles are first fired from a destroyer, and before the full on-board PAAMS training package is complete in mid 2011, although the missiles will have been tested on the Longbow barge. Co-operative engagement capability (CEC), which gives fitted ships the ability to see what other CEC-equipped ships or land stations see, and to fire at targets the launching ship’s radars cannot see, will not be present until 2014 at the earliest. It is vital for wide-area anti-air defense, and for ballistic missile defense.

With respect to coverage, the NAO says that “The Department’s policy requirement is to have five ships available for tasking at any time. It will be challenging to meet this requirement, established when the Department intended to buy eight ships [with only 6 ships].” NAO Report | Royal Navy response | BBC News.

Feb 4/09: PAAMS test. The “Sea Viper” PAAMS air defense system is successfully fired from a 12,000t trials barge parked near the Ile du Levant, off the French coast. The target for this 2nd live fire test is designed to simulate a low-level anti-ship missile at close range, and the test is reportedly successful.

The Longbow barge has a full replica of the air defence equipment the new Type 45 destroyers will carry, including long-range and missile- directing radars, a combat control centre and missiles in their vertical launcher silos. Royal Navy.

Jan 28/09: Sea Viper. Britain officially names the PAAMS air defense system “Sea Viper.” The name refers to the combination of the ships’ Sampson fire control radar and S1850M volume search radar, the combat system, the Sylver vertical launch system, and the MBDA’s Aster-15 and Aster-30 missiles carried inside the Sylver cells.

2008 and Earlier

Options declined. First of class.

Dragon’s launch
(click to view full)

Dec 17/08: D33 trials. HMS Dauntless returns from 4 weeks of sea trials, which tested her power and propulsion and Combat System gunnery. Her second set of sea trials is due in July 2009, and will focus on fuller Combat System testing and pre-acceptance activity. Royal Navy

Dec 14/08: Britain’ unofficial Navy Matters site offers its year in review. The overall recap is strongly negative for the Royal Navy as a whole, and it has this to say about the “accelerated” Future Surface Combatant program that is slated to replace the 7th and 8th Type 45 destroyers, as well as Britain’s Type 23 Duke Class frigates:

“At the time of the T45 Batch 3 cancellation it was stated that the MOD was “bringing forward the replacement programme for [the] Type 22 and 23 frigates”, apparently to 2018. This is a quite aggressive timescale but six months later there is no sign that the Future Surface Combatant is about to become a stand alone “Assessment Phase” project, indeed the MOD’s Frigates Integrated Project Team is apparently investigating whether the Type 22 Batch 3 frigates could remain in service until at least 2020 – a five year extension compared to currently announced plans.”

It lists the fact that all 6 Type 45 destroyers are under construction, with 4 already launched, as part of the year’s slim good news section.

Dec 12/08: D34. The Royal Navy provides an instructive update on Diamond, which was launched in November 2007:

“The external appearance is taking shape with the installation of major equipments such as radars, aerials, missile launchers and the installation of the 4.5 inch gun. The internal layout is also progressing nicely with the Operations Room fully fitted out and a large proportion of equipment that support weapon and sensor systems are also in place. The propulsion machinery and integral systems are nearing completion. The diesel generators have been run and load trialled, and the WR21 gas turbines are planned to be run in early 2009, culminating in a Basin Trial at Easter. Installation of the auxiliary equipment is now the main focus, with most of the shipbuilder’s efforts currently on the vast amount of wiring, cabling and optical fibre that goes into a Type 45 Destroyer… The next milestone for the ship will be her first set of sea trails planned for autumn 2009.”

Dec 10/08: HMS Daring hand-over. Daring is formally handed over to the MOD in an Acceptance-off-Contract ceremony at the Scotstoun shipyard on the Clyde. HMS Daring is due to sail to her home port of Portsmouth in January 2009 to undertake 12 months of exhaustive Stage 2 trials and training, before she is declared ready for operational service.

Since being launched by the Countess of Wessex in 2006, Daring has been fitted with elements of the Principal Anti-Air Missile System (PAAMS), and her long range and multi-function radars. UK MoD release.

1st of class accepted

Nov 17/08: D35 launch. Dragon is launched into the Clyde from BVT’s shipyard at Govan near Glasgow, complete with a Welsh Dragon on its bow. The destroyer has yet to receive critical equipment like radar and mission systems, which will be installed during the final phases of construction. Royal Navy.

June 19/08: Options declined. Armed Forces Minister Bob Ainsworth admits in the House of Commons that Gordon Brown’s Labour government has declined the option on the 7th and 8th Daring Class destroyers. So far, HMS Daring has participated in sea trials, while Dauntless and Diamond have been launched. Dragon has all sections fully joined but has not been launched yet, while Defender and Duncan will complete the class. Steel cutting on Duncan began in March 2008.

The Hon. Mr. Ainsworth added that the entire Armed Forces equipment program was being reviewed in light of planned budgets, which most observers believe means cuts in store for the Army (FRES seen as the biggest target) and Air Force (Tranche 3 Typhoon fighters in question). At the same time, Ainsworth said that Britain’s Future Surface Combatant to replace the smaller Type 22 and Type 23 frigates was being moved forward. This may or may not be significant; no timeline was specified, and promises surrounding distant “out-year” programs must always be viewed with great skepticism.

On the industrial front, reaction was muted. This is true in part because Clyde and Portsmouth yards’ immediate future were safeguarded in May 2008 with confirmation that both sites will share in construction of the Royal Navy’s 2 full-size Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers between 2009-2016. BAE Systems and the VT Group, who build the Type 45s, will also share that contract, and are expected to share in future surface combatant construction and maintenance contracts via their forthcoming joint venture.

A navy that has already seen its number of surface combatants sink below the level of the French fleet for the first time since the 17th century will view this as a bitter blow, but the budgetary math is remorseless. The move was condemned by the Conservative Party, who warned that 6 ships were not adequate, and could mean as few as 3 operational Daring Class ships on station at any given time. In an unusual move within the Parliamentary system, prominent Labour Party MP and former chairman of the Defence Select Committee Bruce George also warned that:

“It has now reached the point where, in terms of personnel and in terms of equipment, [the UK armed forces] is inadequate to take the [global missions] stance that is being taken… Lives are lost if equipment is inadequate and wars can be lost if equipment is inadequate.”

Coverage: Daily Mail | Financial Times | Glasgow Evening Times | The Herald of Glasgow | Portsmouth News | This is London | UK Shipping Times. Non-British readers might note that “Six of the Best…” is a double entendre that can also refer to the school punishment of six hits with a cane.

Stop at 6

Nov 27/07: D34 launch. Diamond is launched. Her motto is “Honor clarissima gemma,” (trans: Honour is the brightest jewel).

July 18/07: HMS Daring sails under its own steam for the very first time, escorted by tugs from BAE Systems Scotstoun.

Additional Readings

• Royal Navy – Destroyers.

• Naval Technology – Type 45 Daring Class

• Navy Matters – Type 45 (“D Class”) Destroyer. Comprehensive.

Ancillary Equipment

DID thanks reader Roderick Louis for his tips and translations.

• Navy Matters – SAMPSON Maulti-Function Radar

• BAE Systems – SAMPSON Multi-Function Radar

• Deagel – S1850M [Radar]

• Navy Matters – PAAMS – Principal Anti Air Missile System. Now called “Sea Viper” by the Royal Navy.

• MBDA – ASTER PAAMS / SAAM

• MBDA, via WayBack – Aster 15 & 30 PAAMS: Principal Anti-Air Missile system. A more useful presentation.

• DCNS – Sylver. Stands for “SYsteme de Lancement VERtical,” French for “vertical launch system.”

• Wikipedia – Sylver launcher.

• Navy Recognition – VIGILE DPX Thales Digital Radar Electronic Surveillance for Naval Platforms. Thales R-ESM system.

• Rolls Royce – WR-21 Marine Gas Turbine

• DID – I Think I CAMM: Britain’s Versatile Air Defense Missile. Adding CAMM-M to the Type 45 gives it the quad-packed air defense option it needs, in order to increase its missile load.

• DID Spotlight – CEC: Cooperative Engagement for Fleet Defense. The Royal Navy decided not to include this inexpensive and very valuable capability.

Official Reports

• UK National Audit Office (March 13/09) – Providing Anti Air Warfare Capability: the Type 45 destroyer.

• UK Parliament Select Committee on Public Accounts Minutes of Evidence (Jan 15/01) – Examination of Witnesses (Questions 20 – 39).

Nordkoreas Machthaber Kim Jong Un hat nach Worten des Anwalts von US-Präsident Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, «auf Händen und Knien» um einen Gipfel mit Trump «gebettelt». Die USA hätten den Gipfel zunächst abgesagt, weil Nordkorea den USA mit einem Krieg gedroht habe.

Nordkoreas Machthaber Kim Jong Un hat nach Worten des Anwalts von US-Präsident Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani, «auf Händen und Knien» um einen Gipfel mit Trump «gebettelt». Die USA hätten den Gipfel zunächst abgesagt, weil Nordkorea den USA mit einem Krieg gedroht habe.

 

«Kim Jong Un ging zurück auf seine Hände und Knie und bettelte darum, was exakt die Position ist, in die man ihn bringen will», sagte Giuliani bei einer Konferenz in Tel Aviv laut einem Bericht des «Wall Street Journal» vom Mittwoch. Nun, da der Gipfel wieder geplant sei, hätten die USA die Oberhand, sagte Giuliani dem Bericht zufolge weiter.

Historisches Treffen in Singapur

Das Gipfeltreffen von Trump und Kim soll am Dienstag in Singapur stattfinden. Der Gipfel gilt als historisch, weil noch nie ein amtierender US-Präsident mit einem amtierenden Machthaber des weitgehend isolierten Landes zusammengetroffen ist.

Im Mai hatte Trump den Gipfel zunächst unter Verweis auf «offene Feindseligkeit» Nordkoreas abgesagt. Da sich Pjöngjang aber dennoch weiter offen für Gespräche zeigte, änderte Trump kurz danach seinen Kurs wieder. (SDA)

A two-year undercover investigation reveals footage of over 100 officials taking cash before games.

Guatemala-Stadt – Nach dem heftigen Ausbruch des Feuervulkans in Guatemala steigt die Zahl der Todesopfer weiter. Seit der gewaltigen Eruption am Sonntag wurden 99 Leichen gefunden, wie das Forensische Institut des lateinamerikanischen Landes am Mittwochabend (Ortszeit) mitteilte.

Vor Bekanntgabe der neuesten Zahlen hatten nach Behördenangaben noch gut 190 Menschen als vermisst gegolten.

Laut der Sprecherin des Instituts, Mirna Zeledón, waren erst 28 der 99 Toten identifiziert. Das Institut veröffentlichte eine Liste der Toten und erklärte, am Mittwoch seien 24 weitere Todesopfer in den Leichenhallen registriert worden. Allein 88 Leichen waren demnach in zwei Leichenhallen im Department Escuintla aufgenommen worden. Das Gebiet war besonders schwer von dem Ausbruch des Vulkans getroffen worden.

Der Katastrophenschutz des Landes teilte mit, dass bis Dienstag mehr als 12'000 Menschen in Sicherheit gebracht worden seien. 44 Opfer erlitten Verletzungen. Die US-Luftwaffe kündigte an, sechs Kinder mit schweren Verbrennungen zur Behandlung in die Vereinigten Staaten zu bringen. Die Kinder und deren Begleitpersonen würden nach Texas ausgeflogen, teilte die US-Botschaft in Guatemala auf Twitter mit. Die Regierung des mittelamerikanischen Landes habe die Hilfe angefordert. Die Luftwaffe habe zudem Ausrüstung gespendet, um guatemaltekische Einsatzkräfte zu unterstützen.

Auch das Nachbarland Mexiko entsandte nach Angaben des Aussenministeriums Hilfe. Ein Ärzteteam und mobile Praxen würden nach Guatemala geschickt, teilte das Ministerium mit.

Die Bergungsarbeiten mussten immer wieder unterbrochen werden. Mal machten heftige Regenfälle die Suche unmöglich, dann wieder rumorte der Vulkan und versetzte Anwohner und Helfer in Panik. Das Institut für Vulkanologie meldete am späten Nachmittag einen erneuten Abgang eines Lava-Stroms vom Feuervulkan. Dieser sei rund 30 Meter lang und stellenweise bis zu drei Meter hoch, erklärte das Institut auf Twitter. Der Strom habe Felsbrocken und Bäume mitgerissen.

Der Feuervulkan war am Sonntag ausgebrochen, ein Lavastrom zerstörte mehrere umliegende Dörfer. Am Dienstag rauschte erneut ein Strom aus Staub und heissen Gasen die Berghänge hinab.

Seit 2002 ist der etwa 3700 Meter hohe Berg wieder verstärkt aktiv. Erst im Mai brach der Vulkan aus und löste eine Schlammlawine aus.

Quelques mois après la présentation de sa berline radicale, Peugeot lève le voile sur la version SW de la nouvelle 508 qui puise son inspiration dans l’univers des shooting brakes, univers très prisé dans plusieurs marchés.

Le segment D représente un marché de 1 400 000 véhicules en Europe. La proportion de breaks reste majoritaire depuis une décennie, malgré l’augmentation croissante des offres et des silhouettes, et notamment des SUV. En Europe, un véhicule sur trois vendu dans le segment D est un break.

Bénéficiant de tous les attributs stylistiques du design radical de la berline et adopte une morphologie très dynamique en étant presque aussi basse que la berline – à peine 1,42 m, soit presque 6 cm de moins que la génération précédente. Longue de 4,78 m (+3 cm seulement vs la berline et -5 cm vs la génération précédente), le profil de la nouvelle PEUGEOT 508 SW dévoile des lignes tendues et fluides, surmontée d’une ligne de pavillon basse et étirée.

Comme sur la berline, la 508 SW se distingue par les portes sans cadre et si elle reprend logiquement une face avant agressive avec une signature LED verticale qui descend vers le bouclier comme si le Lion montrait ses crocs avant de bondir, sa partie arrière se distingue par bandeau horizontal noir brillant encadré par des feux arrière Full LED tridimensionnels issus de la berline. Quant aux doubles canules d’échappement chromées, elles assoient la voiture et lui confère un surcroît de sentiment de dynamisme.

L’accès au coffre se fait au moyen d’un hayon pratique (pouvant être motorisé et mains libres), privilégiant l’accessibilité. Le seuil de coffre est à la fois bas et large (6 cm plus bas que la berline à seulement 63.5 cm du sol et 2.4 cm plus large). Le tendelet escamotable à manipulation rapide permet une visibilité immédiate de l’ensemble du coffre. D’une capacité sous tendelet de 530 litres, ce dernier dévoile des formes simples et se montre totalement exploitable. Ce volume est très proche du volume sous tendelet du coffre de la version break remplacée (560 litres) et atteint un volume total de chargement de 1780 litres, banquettes rabattues.

L’habitacle reprend logiquement le fameux i-Cockpit au succès indéniable avec son volant méplat, ses touches piano et son instrumentation digitale. Elle embarquera également les différents systèmes d’aide à la conduite telle que l’Active Safety Brake , Alerte risque de collision, Alerte active de franchissement involontaire de ligne (Active Lane Departure Warning), Alerte d’attention conducteur, Commutation automatique des feux de route, Reconnaissance des panneaux de vitesse et préconisation, Régulateur de vitesse adaptatif avec fonction Stop (sur BVA) et autre Système actif de surveillance d’angle mort.

Sous le capot, la Peugeot 508 reprend les motorisations de la berline avec, en essence, deux versions avec le moteur PureTech de 1.6L de cylindrée de 180ch S&S EAT8 et 225 ch S&S EAT8, tandis que quatre diesel BlueHDi en 1.5L ( 130 S&S BVM6 et 130 S&S EAT8) et 2.0L (160 S&S EAT8 et180 S&S EAT8).

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Elle a su s’imposer sur la scène musicale grâce à sa voix magique, sa persévérance et son travail.

On l’a comparée à la chanteuse anglaise Adel, on a dit d’elle qu’elle est une Diva de la chanson algérienne, on a surtout apprécié son côté humain. Elle, c’est Yasmine Ammari, qui ne chante pas qu’en anglais, mais en arabe, en tamazight, en français et même en espagnol. Elle, c’est réellement l’ambassadrice de la chanson algérienne, une femme complète avec un humanisme exceptionnel. Elle a su s’imposer dans ce monde de stars, grâce à sa voix magique, sa persévérance et son travail.
Elle a su représenter l’Algérie dans l’émission The Voice en France, en séduisant les plus grandes stars françaises tel que Florent Pagny. Elle a interprété, s’il vous plaît, «La Mamma» de Charles Aznavour. Yasmine a été l’invitée en cette soirée du mardi, de l’Office national de la communication et de l’information qui a encore une fois répondu aux demandes du public. Elle s’est produite devant un nombre impressionnant de spectateurs. Ces derniers se sont déplacés en familles et ont rempli la grande salle de spectacle du Zénith. C’est très rare qu’une salle aussi immense soit pleine, mais Yasmine Ammari l’a fait et c’est un défi relevé par elle. Car notre star avait peur en venant ici à Constantine, surtout que c’est la première fois, néanmoins, comme elle l’a souligné à L’Expression à qui elle a accordé un petit entretien «je suis surprise, je suis agréablement choquée, franchement je ne m’attendais pas à cet accueil, je ne savais pas que j’avais des fans dans cette belle ville». Encouragée par les coeurs des Constantinois qu’elle vient de décrocher, Yasmine Ammari ajoute non sans avoir rendu hommage à L’Expression pour l’article publié la concernant «cette magnifique ambiance qui m’a séduite et ce public magnifique que j’aime, sont un nouveau départ pour moi, cela m’incite à aller de l’avant pour des tournées dans mon pays, notamment le Sud».
Sur scène, la Diva chantera pour tous les goûts et a réussi en une seule interprétation à enflammer la salle. «J’ai toujours quelque chose à dire à mon public, toujours ce désir de partager avec lui les émotions d’où mon envie de répondre à ses demandes, de chanter l’amour, le bonheur et d’interpréter dans mes chansons les maux de la société. J’ai toujours dit que la musique n’a pas de frontière et à travers elle on peut réaliser des miracles.» Pour revenir sur son passage dans l’émission The Voice, Yasmine Ammari n’aura aucune hésitation en soulignant d’abord que ce fut une expérience qui l’a rendue plus consciente de l’importance de sa mission, une aventure qui lui a permis de constater la simplicité des gens, assurant qu’«à aucun moment je ne me suis sentie dépaysée, dans mon entourage, il n’y a que des personnes positives, professionnelles et surtout modestes malgré leur statut de star».
«La Mamma», de Charles Aznavour, une chanson que Yasmine, cette chanteuse au charisme impressionnant, avec une beauté rare, a interprété lors de son passage à l’émission The Voice qui l’a fait sangloter à la fin, aujourd’hui elle avoue pourquoi à L’Expression: «J’ai toujours parlé de mon père et en choisissant cette chanson j’avais envie de dire à ma maman qu’elle aussi est importante dans ma vie, qu’elle a sa place au même titre que mon papa, au fait je voulais lui rendre hommage. Cette chanson je l’ai vécue du début jusqu’à la fin et sous l’effet de l’émotion je n’ai pas pu retenir mes larmes en pensant à ma mère et en constatant à ce moment précis combien elle me manque.»
Yasmine Ammari n’avait pas vu sa maman depuis plus d’un mois quand elle a opté pour ce tube, une maman qui a su lui inculquer l’amour et la patience à travers Charles Aznavour, car c’est sa maman qui le lui a fait découvrir étant toute petite. Que peut-on ajouter au spectacle de Yasmine Ammari si ce n’est cette particularité d’avoir donné de son temps après son spectacle à ses fans de prendre des photos sans exclure personne?

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La contrefaçon fait perdre chaque année 60 milliards d’euros à un ensemble de 13 secteurs de l’économie européenne, selon une étude de l’Office de l’Union européenne pour la propriété intellectuelle (EUIPO) publiée mercredi à l’occasion de la journée mondiale anti-contrefaçon. Cette enquête, menée auprès des secteurs vulnérables à la contrefaçon, montre que les pertes directes annuelles atteignent 7,5% des ventes, indique l’EUIPO dans un communiqué. La contrefaçon pèse aussi sur l’emploi, puisque les fabricants produisent moins, compte tenu de la part de leurs ventes prise par les produits contrefaits, et donc emploient moins de travailleurs. L’étude chiffre à près de 435.000 les emplois perdus à cause de la contrefaçon.

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L’Iran a annoncé mercredi à Vienne, lors d’une réunion du conseil des gouverneurs de l’Agence internationale de l’énergie atomique (AIEA), se livrer à des « travaux préparatoires » destinés à relancer son programme nucléaire en cas d’échec de l’accord de 2015 avec les grandes puissances à la suite du retrait de Washington le 8 mai dernier. Téhéran a lancé des « travaux préparatoires au cas ou le JCPOA (sigle officiel de l’accord) venait malheureusement à échouer, de façon à ce que l’Iran puisse relancer ses activités sans les restrictions liées au JCPOA », a déclaré son ambassadeur auprès de l’AIEA, Reza Najafi.

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C’est une véritable situation de laisser aller, du fait que plus de 50% des projets structurants en souffrance, ce qui a prévalu durant toute l’année dernière. L’administration a encore brillé par une bureaucratie assassine du développement local. Sur les 762 opérations dûment inscrites pour l’année 2017, il est comptabilisé exactement la moitié de ce volume de projets qui n’a pas vu le jour soit, 393 projets retardés. Les raisons avancées sont essentiellement dues aux lenteurs administratives et surtout procédurales notamment la notification des accords de la commission des marchés ou encore, le blocage de certains projets dont les promoteurs et  autres  haut responsables  à l’image de ceux du port  d’Oran ,d’Arzew et  de Bethioua, et sans compter ceux de l’habitat tout type confondu LPA, AADL, LSP et autres sociales, suivis de ceux de la restauration du patrimoine culturel, mais le plus important est bien  celui  du château neuf dont une enveloppe supplémentaire de 07 milliards de dinars avait été consacrée par la wilaya pour la réhabilitation du siège de la mairie d’Oran et du quartier Sidi El Houari. Ce dysfonctionnement dans le calendrier de la mise en œuvre des projets inscrits au programme de soutien à la croissance économique, est bien réel, et ce, en dépit de la disponibilité des financements et d’importantes ressources humaines, celle de l’hôtel Châteauneuf, nous aurons du mal à trouver les bonnes expressions pour diagnostiquer sa situation. Six ans après avoir été vidé de tous les services, les travaux de réhabilitation de l’Hôtel de ville n’ont toujours pas démarré. Ni la décision du wali d’Oran, ni les appels lancés par le syndicat, les travailleurs et certains élus ne semblent avoir eu d’effets. « La prestigieuse bâtisse s’est transformée au fil des mois en dépôt où l’on a entreposé toutes sortes d’objets et de matériaux. Cette situation qui semble s’inscrire dans le temps, accentue davantage la dégradation de l’infrastructure», affirme un travailleur de la commune. Annoncés en grande pompe en 2012, ces travaux devaient permettre de réhabiliter une des plus belles structures héritées de l’ère coloniale et qui faisait office de siège de la commune d’Oran. Le premier responsable de la wilaya a, en outre, annoncé l’installation d’une entreprise italienne spécialisée en matière de restauration. Cette décision du premier responsable de la wilaya, qui a été favorablement accueillie par les travailleurs, n’a pas été suivie d’effet, puisque le chantier est toujours à l’arrêt. Outre l’Hôtel de ville, un autre projet tout aussi important n’a toujours pas démarré. Il s’agit du projet de reconversion de l’hôtel Châteauneuf en futur siège de l’APC. «Pour le moment, c’est une APC sans domicile fixe, SDF» ironise un ex-cadre de la commune. L’Hôtel de ville, une fois réhabilité, devait accueillir uniquement le bureau du maire et le secrétariat général. Les autres services devaient faire l’objet d’un transfert vers l’hôtel Châteauneuf reconverti en siège de la commune. Medjadji H

The post Des projets structurants au ralenti à Oran : À quand la réception du nouveau siège de l’APC? appeared first on .

Sidi Lakhdar sise à 60 km du chef-lieu de la wilaya de Mostaganem, connue par son mausolée de Sidi Lakhdar Benkhlouf, est une ville côtière, surplombant une large bande du littoral mostaganémois. Elle est l’une des plus importantes villes touristiques de la wilaya de Mostaganem, accueillant chaque année des milliers d’estivants, aussi bien locaux qu’étrangers. Alors qu’elle doit se préparer pour accueillir ses visiteurs, cette ville s’est trouvée complètement marginalisée par ses responsables, dérobée de toutes les infrastructures qui pourraient faire d’elle la première destination à visiter. En effet, malgré les instructions de Mr le wali de la wilaya de Mostaganem aux chefs des Daïra et APC, concernant le réaménagement de toutes les infrastructures et les espaces verts pour donner une bonne image aux villes touristiques de la wilaya, rien de cela  n’aurait été  appliqué dans la ville de Sidi Lakhdar, laissant un grand point d’interrogation sur les causes de cette négligence. A l’entrée principale  de la ville,  un rond point complètement dégradé vous accueille,  avec des plantes mortes sans pelouse envahies par de l’herbe sauvage, et autour duquel vont passer prochainement des milliers de touristes. De cet état de fait, des dizaines de jeunes du chef lieu de la ville se sont mobilisés à lancer des appels à travers les réseaux sociaux adressés directement au premier chef de la wilaya pour intervenir auprès de la commune, notamment à l’approche de la saison estivale. D’après l’un  de ces jeunes, les élus locaux de la commune et depuis leur installation à la tête de l’assemblée populaire    au mois de novembre passé,  n’ont rien apporté de nouveau pour lancer un plan de développement récréatif  avantageux qui donnera un nouveau souffle à la ville  dans tous  les domaines  et  à travers tout son territoire. il y a parmi eux qui sont allés loin en demandant l’ouverture d’une enquête sur des dépassements et des détournements commis par certains responsables locaux, et que selon eux  auraient été  derrière la dégradation  de l’état de cette ville prometteuse et touristique. A savoir que sa limitrophe ville de Sidi Ali s’est vue préparé la saison estivale bien comme il faut avec la coopération de toutes  les autorités locales et citoyens, et ce, en organisant des campagnes de sensibilisation pour la protection de l’environnement ainsi que des campagnes de nettoyage des plages, espaces verts… sous le slogan de ‘’coopérant ensemble pour une ville de Sidi Ali belle et  propre’’. Alors pourquoi pas  autant faire pour Sidi Lakhdar ?  D’ailleurs c’est  ce qui a poussé ses habitants à sortir de leur silence, déplorant l’état de cette jolie ville qui va vraiment décevoir ses amateurs. Amina L

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Returned migrants have something to eat and fill out papers for IOM at Yaounde Nsimalen Airport in Cameroon. Credit: Mbom Sixtus/IPS

By Mbom Sixtus
YAOUNDE, Cameroon, Jun 7 2018 (IPS)

“Sometimes when I’m alone, I still get flashes of the grisly images I saw in the desert. I feared I was going to die out there. The people transporting us were ready to get rid of any of us where necessary,” Njoya Danialo recalled as he narrated the ordeal he endured traveling through the Sahara in search of greener pastures.

He told IPS that when the desert winds get too wild, the smugglers take refuge inside and under their vehicles, while passengers perched on luggage in overloaded pickup trucks are left at the mercy of the deadly, dust-filled wind.

Njoya is one of over 1,300 returnees that IOM, the UN Migration Agency, has repatriated to Cameroon since it started its operation in sub-Saharan Africa in June 2017. Boubacar Seybou, IOM Chief of Mission in Cameroon, told IPS the European Union has set aside 3 million Euros for its migrant reintegration operation in this country.

The operation is carried out in collaboration with officials of the EU Delegation in Cameroon, Cameroon’s ministry of external relations, the ministry of public health, ministry of social affairs and ministry of youth and civic education.

The program was planned to run for three years, facilitating the socioeconomic reintegration of 850 returnees at a cost of 3 million euros. Now Seybou said the program needs to be reviewed as more than 1,000 returnees were registered barely six months after the operation began.

Workers with IOM register returned migrants at Yaounde Nsimalen Airport in Cameroon. Credit: Mbom Sixtus/IPS

Njoya graduated from the Francoise Xavier Vogt football school in Yaounde but never played in a professional club. He claims one is obliged to know someone or pay a bribe to be recruited into a good football club. “That is why I decided to try my luck abroad, especially as a strange illness had attacked my father, causing our family business to crumble. I had to make it on my own,” he said.

Like many of the one million sub-Saharan Africans who have migrated to Europe since 2010, he had a map and a plan. He had high hopes as he navigated his way from Cameroon through Chad, Niger and Benin, until the night he curled up on a street corner in Algeria to sleep. Only then did he realise illegal migrants were not welcome. Like many others, he was forced to leave the country.

“The police arrested many of us and dropped us off at the border in the desert. Many people who walked with us died as I walked on.”

Dubious agents

“Along the trajectory from Niger to Morocco are agents called ‘passeurs’. They offer three possibilities. They can help you get to the Mediterranean where you cross into Spain. They can take you to a detention facility and call your parents for ransom. Or [they will] rob you and abandon you in the forest,” Njoya told IPS.

He was fortunate to get passeurs who helped him travel. He met another migrant from Burkina Faso whowas Spain-bound before being forced to make a U-turn in Algeria. They both struggled to make it to Niamey where the IOM help them return to their various home countries.

But Ramanou Abdou, who was also heading to Spain from Cameroon, told IPS he was not as lucky. The agents, always heavily armed and noted for raping women, drove them into a Savanah forest, robbed them and zoomed off. They all had to struggle to find their way to Niamey where they could get help from IOM, he said.

Like Njoya and others who returned to Cameroon with the help of IOM, Ramanou was offered a package that would facilitate his reintegration. He chose to return to school. He currently studies geography in the University of Dschang.

“I am grateful for the help they offered. I wish they could continue until I obtain my bachelors degree. I also wish they could help me get medical care for the protracted skin disease and stomach problems I returned with. I am still suffering,” he said.

Besides illnesses, Ramanou says many people have a negative impression of those who return from abroad. “Most of my classmates think I am thief. Some think that all returnees are hoodlums or something. Few of them treat me well.”

Like Ramanou, Njoya equally thinks the assistance provided returnees should be stepped up. He was given about 800 euros to start a business which crumbled within a couple of months. He now loads vehicles at a motor park for a living.

“I am saving money to travel abroad through the right track. My dream is still alive and I will make it the right way. I pity those who have left again to follow the same road to perdition in the name of traveling to Europe by land,” he said.

Besides Njoya and Ramanou, another returnee used his seed capital from IOM to start a small business is Ekani Awono. He opened up a coffee shop, but now tells IPS the money was too little to keep his business alive.

The beneficiaries who spoke to IPS say their peers who left the IOM office in Niamey and returned to the Ivory Coast claim to have been given as much as 3,000 euros to start sustainable businesses.

“But in Cameroon, we are constrained to submit business plans for funding limited to FCFA 500,000,” said one of them who preferred not to be named.

But Boubacar Seybou of OIM says the business plans are approved by a steering committee consisting of the funder and government ministries. He told IPS that IOM makes sure reintegration packages are sustainable. He also pointed out that there are many returnees whose businesses are doing well.

Apart from financial aid, IOM and the government provide medical check-ups and psychosocial assistance to returnees when they arrive home, according to Edimo Mbappe of the ministry of social affairs.

“Some women who were raped in the forest, deserts and camps and get here pregnant. Alongside traumatised boys and girls, they are given psychosocial support before we let them move into the community,” she told IPS.

IOM and the government has organised a series of activities, including radio and TV shows, photo exhibitions and musical concerts to dissuade would-be migrants from attempting to travel abroad illegally. They are equally trying to educate the public to absorb returnees and reject the stereotypes that make them feel uncomfortable.

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L’Algérie a été élue, mardi, à l’unanimité des 193 Etats membres des Nations Unies vice-présidente de la 73 session de l’Assemblée générale de l’ONU qui va débuter septembre prochain.  L’Algérie a été élue pour le compte du groupe des Etats d’Afrique. Cette élection qui consacre les efforts et le rôle de la diplomatie algérienne, vient conforter la place qui est la sienne dans le concert des Nations. Elle traduit la confiance de la communauté internationale après la série de réalisations et la participation dynamique de l’Algérie aux différents événements diplomatiques de grands envergures à l’instar de sa présidence en 2017 de la première commission en charge du désarmement et la facilitation de l’adoption de la réforme du système de développement des Nations Unies. L’adoption de cette profonde réforme le 31 mai dernier a constitué une marque d’appréciation et de reconnaissance unanime des efforts de l’Algérie qui a facilité l’aboutissement de cet important processus. Salim

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ALGER- Le ministre des Affaires religieuses et des wakfs, Mohamed Aissa, a appelé les associations religieuses activant en Algérie à respecter les lois fixant les conditions et règles d’exercice des cultes autres que musulman, affirmant que la liberté du culte est garantie par la Constitution algérienne.

« En Algérie, la liberté de l’exercice du culte est garantie par la Constitution et les lois de la République et elle est soutenue et protégée par l’Etat, cependant tout un chacun, y compris des associations religieuses activant en Algérie, doivent de se conformer à ces lois », a indiqué le ministre en marge de la 15e édition du Prix international d’Alger de récitation du Saint Coran.

« Depuis la promulgation de la loi de 2006 fixant les conditions et règles d’exercice des cultes autres que musulman, l’Etat n’a de cesse appelé les associations religieuses activant en Algérie à se conformer aux lois de la République », a-t-il rappelé, ajoutant que « bon nombre de ces associations, notamment catholiques, ont répondu à ces appels ».

A une question sur la fermeture de certaines églises, M. Aissa a précisé que « ce qui a été fermé se sont des établissements éducatifs, des logements ou des locaux commerciaux transformés, unilatéralement par certaines associations, en lieux de culte et non pas des églises au sens de la loi, et ce, parallèlement à une recrudescence du courant évangéliste et des prolongements extérieurs sans respect des lois de la République ».

Soulignant que la loi s’applique à tous et que « celui qui refuse de s’y soumettre ouvre la voie au recours à la force publique pour l’imposer », le ministre a indiqué que la loi définit les conditions d’ouverture d’églises et que l’Algérie « est souveraine de ses décisions en dépit des critiques ».

« Lorsqu’un « poulailler » est transformé en lieu de culte, cela relève de ce qui à été reproché aux Ahmadis et aux groupes extrémistes et aussi aux dépassements des certains musulmans ici et là puisque la loi s’applique à tous », a affirmé le ministre des Affaires religieuses.

« L’attention était focalisée sur la lutte contre l’extrémisme et le terrorisme au nom de la religion et l’Algérie pu vaincre le terrorisme et assécher ses sources et œuvre aujourd’hui à s’en prémunir », a conclut M. Aissa.

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NEW YORK- Les flux d’investissement direct étranger (IDE) à destination de l’Algérie se sont établis à 1,2 milliard de dollars en 2017 mais restent diversifiés, soutenus par les investissements des groupes asiatiques, a indiqué mercredi la Cnuced.

En 2017,  » la diversification de l’investissement direct étranger (en Algérie) a été soutenu par les IDE » consentis par le groupe de télécoms chinois Huawei et le sud-coréen Samsung qui a ouvert sa première usine de montage de smartphones dans le pays, précise la Conférence des Nations Unies pour le commerce et l’investissement dans son rapport 2018 sur l’investissement dans le monde publié par les Nations Unies.

La Cnuced relève que si les IDE captés par l’Algérie en 2017 sont en baisse de 26% par rapport au 1,63 milliard de dollars enregistrés en 2016, ils devraient cependant rebondir à la faveur de la prochaine révision de la loi sur les hydrocarbures.

« Les amendements proposés à la loi sur les hydrocarbures pourraient faire augmenter considérablement la participation étrangère dans le secteur pétrolier du pays à l’avenir », souligne l’organisation onusienne, qui relève par ailleurs que les IDE en Algérie dépendent fortement de l’investissement dans le secteur pétro-gazier.

Durant le même exercice le flux d’IDE sortant a baissé à -4 millions de dollars contre 46 millions de dollars en 2016, selon les mêmes données.

Pour rappel, que le fort rebond des IDE en 2016 est intervenu après des flux négatifs enregistrés en 2015 à -584 millions de dollars.

Le recul des IDE en Algérie a été, par ailleurs, enregistrée dans le sillage d’une baisse généralisée de l’investissement direct étranger en Afrique.

Selon le rapport, les flux captés par le continent ont chuté à 42 milliards de dollars en 2017, soit une baisse de 21% par rapport à 2016.

« La faiblesse des prix du pétrole et les conséquences négatives de la récession du secteur des matières premières sur le plan macroéconomique ont contribué ? la contraction des flux dans les principales économies africaines », explique la Cnuced.

Selon James Zhan, directeur de la division investissement entreprises de la Cnuced, « Les débuts d’un rétablissement des prix des produits de base, ainsi que les progrès en matière de coopération interrégionale consécutifs à la signature de l’accord de libre-échange continental africain pourraient favoriser des flux d’IDE plus importants vers l’Afrique en 2018, pour autant que le contexte mondial reste favorable « .

Les flux d’IDE vers l’Afrique du Nord ont diminué de 4% pour atteindre 13 milliards de dollars. Si les investissements en Egypte étaient en baisse, le pays est resté le principal bénéficiaire des IDE en Afrique. Les IDE en Tunisie restent également faibles à 0,9 milliard de dollars.

En Afrique subsaharienne, les effets persistants de la récession du secteur de matières premières ont pesé sur les IDE, les entrées ayant diminué de 28% pour atteindre 28,5 milliards de dollars.

Les firmes multinationales d’économies développées (telles que les Etats-Unis, le Royaume-Uni et la France) détiennent toujours les stocks d’IDE les plus importants d’Afrique.

Cependant, les investisseurs d’économies en développement, notamment de Chine et d’Afrique du Sud, suivis par ceux de Singapour, d’Inde et de Hong Kong (Chine), figurent parmi les 10 premiers investisseurs dans le continent.

La Cnuced prévoit que les flux à destination de l’Afrique progressent d’environ 20% en 2018 pour atteindre 50 milliards de dollars.

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Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also announces the liberalisation of parts of the economy.