Combat Aircraft 2018-09.pdf

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TOPGUN
SUPPLEMENT
AMERICA’S BEST SELLING MILITARY AVIATION MAGAZINE
Volume
19
• Number 9
TOPGUN
COMBAT AIRCRAFT
FLIES WITH THE ‘BEST OF THE BEST’
F-35 IN
THE UK
WHAT
NEXT?
INCLUDING
TOPGUN’S TOMCATS
SEPTEMBER 2018
UK £4.70
PLUS
RUSSIAN NAVY EXERCISE ACTION
•
FRENCH AIR FORCE COMBAT OPS
COMBAT HERCULES OF ‘OTIS’
•
‘RED FLAG — ALASKA’
•
MIRAGE 2000N FAREWELL
IN THE NEWS
6 HEADLINE NEWS
8 US NEWS
RAF 100 ypast, Russia orders rst
Su-57s and F-16 order update
Boeing sets out KC-46 delivery plans,
COD Osprey ordered and all the latest
unit and deployment news
News from Europe and around the
globe including the new F/A-259 from
Aero Vodochody and all the latest
military losses
82
SAHEL WARRIORS
The French Air Force remains committed to
Operation ‘Barkhane’ in the Sahel region of
Africa. Fréderic Lért visits the Base Aérienne
Projetée in Niamey, Niger
INSIDE
SEPTEMBER 2018 • Vol 19 • No 9
102
CONSTANT ENDEAVOR
90
DANCING WITH THE ‘LADY’
In the second of a series of fascinating
features, former U-2 pilot Lt Col (ret’d) Rick
Bishop tells the story of how he trained to y
the demanding ‘Dragon Lady’
Croatia has reached initial operational
capability with its OH-58D Kiowa Warriors
less than a year after receiving them.
Dirk Jan de Ridder and Menso van
Westrhenen found out how this
was achieved
The US Marine Corps’ VMGR-252 ‘Otis’ holds
the distinction of being the service’s oldest
continually active squadron. It is also one of
its busiest, having aircraft consistently
deployed since 2005, as James DeBoer and
Scott Youmans explain
110
CUTTING EDGE
18 WORLD NEWS
98
CROATIAN WARRIORS
Combat Aircraft’s
monthly column reporting
from the front line of aerospace technology,
by David Axe
Our regular feature looking at highlights of
the recent past — this month it’s ‘Gunsmoke’
at Nellis AFB
112
FLASHBACK
14
SPECIAL REPORT:
A STORM BREWING
The UK has been setting out its future
combat air power plans with a series of
announcements and statements of
intent. Jamie Hunter assesses whether the
reality matches the ambition
Amit Agronov, Erik Bruijns and Mark De
Greeuw head out to ‘Red Flag — Alaska’ and
nd an exercise that has grown in stature,
attracting participants from around
the globe
In the second of a two-part review of strike
aircraft in Russian service, Piotr Butowski
details the impressive Su-34 ‘Fullback’, a
multi-role heavy-hitter
24
ALASKAN AIR BATTLES
32
FEARSOME ‘FULLBACK’
Combat Aircraft’s
guide to the world’s most
famous fighter school at 50
TOPGUN SUPPLEMENT
60
FABULOUS FALLON
36
FIGHTING FOR CANADA
48
TOPGUN: THE EARLY DAYS
Delays in the decision-making process for a
new ghter are hampering Canada’s drive to
replace its aging CF-188 force. James
Careless examines the reasons for this and
evaluates options for the way ahead
The arrival of the rst F-35Bs for No 617
Squadron ‘Dambusters’ in June was the rst
step in the plan to establish an impressive
new expeditionary air power capability for
the UK, as Jamie Hunter details
The Mirage 2000N has been retired by the
French Air Force as the specialist nuclear
strike role passes to the Rafale B. Fréderic
Lért reports from Istres with exclusive
photos by Anthony Pecchi
The Russian Navy held a large-scale exercise
in June. Dmitriy Pichugin was there to see
the various elements of the force’s air power
capabilities in a competitive scenario
In 2019, the Navy Fighter Weapons School
— better known as TOPGUN — celebrates
its 50th anniversary. Brad Elward details the
origins of the school
Inextricably linked to the NFWS thanks to the
hit movie
Top Gun,
Tony Holmes tells the story
of how the F-14 Tomcat came to symbolize the
very best of US naval ghter aviation
Jamie Hunter visits TOPGUN at the Naval
Aviation War ghting Development Center
at NAS Fallon and nds out how the unit
operates today
TOPGUN has always own striking adversary
aircraft for the instructors to simulate enemy
ghters. We look at some of the school’s
present-day markings
40
BRITAIN’S NEW AIR POWER FOCUS
50
TOMCATS OF TOPGUN
68
TOPGUN ‘BANDITS’
72
AU REVOIR 2000N
ON THE COVER
| PAGE 47
With a new
Top Gun
movie in
preparation, what better time
to look at the real Naval Fighter
Weapons School with our free
TOPGUN supplement in this
issue? This is one of the unit’s
adversary F-16Bs.
Jamie Hunter
SAVE
Subscribe to
Combat
Aircraft Monthly
and
make great savings on
cover price.
See pages
44 and 45 for details.
SUBSCRIBE AND
78
‘MARINE ACE’
COMBAT EDGE
//
FIND US ON
An F-15C Eagle of the
493rd Fighter Squadron
‘Grim Reapers’ on its way
to the Royal International
Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford
in July.
Rich Cooper
M
04
AINTAINING CONTROL
OF the skies is
quite rightly at the
forefront of any air
force commander’s
requirement list. At
the Farnborough International Air
Show in July the UK demonstrated
its commitment to this need,
revealing a concept for a new sixth-
generation ghter. While this is an
ambitious project, and one that
will require collaboration across
Europe and probably further a eld, it
demonstrated a clear intent and a sea
change away from a world that, just
a few years ago, predicted that the
F-35 would be the last manned ghter
in the west.
With regard to manned air combat
tactics and techniques, look no further
than TOPGUN, the topic of our special
24-page supplement in this issue.
AIR SUPERIORITY
The instructors there dedicate their
lives to retaining the high-end skills
required to defend the eet from any
range of threats that could be met.
Interestingly, as the UK aims for a
50:50 blend of live versus synthetic
training in this environment, the likes
of TOPGUN place a huge emphasis on
live ying and the physiological e ects
of fast jet operations.
Pilots of today’s high-end ghters,
such as the F-15C pictured here, are
only getting the rst taste of the
kind of capabilities likely to be found
in future platforms. BAE Systems
says it wants to move away from
traditional cockpit arrangements, to
increased use of helmet-mounted
displays and synthetics, and software
rather than hardware-driven piloting
environments — the ‘virtual’ cockpit.
This approach may assist with the
drive to make upgrades seamless, and
to embrace the need for rapid updates
and recon gurations.
The air superiority ghter world is
on the verge of a revolution. Never
has there been a more exciting time
of change and innovation, all geared
towards maintaining control of the air,
as fundamental now as it was at the
dawn of military air power.
To keep track of the latest breaking
news and analysis in the world of
military air power you can visit our
social media sites and our website:
www.combataircraft.net.
You can also sign up for our free
e-mail newsletter by going to
www.combataircraft.net to register.
Jamie Hunter,
Editor
E-mail: jamie.hunter@keypublishing.com
September 2018
// www.combataircraft.net
FRÉDERIC LÉRT
CONTRIBUTOR OF THE MONTH
A
s a child, Fréderic Lért
dreamed of becoming
a pilot. Unfortunately,
he says, he had to swap
this dream for a ‘thick pair of
glasses’. Becoming a leading
aviation photojournalist was
a strong second choice that
he says he has never regretted.
In this issue he writes about
deployed operations by the
French Air Force and the
retirement of the Mirage
2000N, which he says makes
him feel old as so many popular
types end their service.
www.combataircraft.net //
September 2018
05

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