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The Australian Parliament’s Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade has just released a transcript of a Feb. 7, 2012 hearing during which it took evidence on the F-35 program by noted opponents of the program, representing the Air Power Australia think-tank and a private computer simulation firm, RepSim Pty Ltd. Part of the hearing describes the outcome of a famous – but disputed – simulation of F-18E and F-35 fighters engaging in combat against Chinese air force fighters carried out by the Rand Corporation. The outcome is even more disastrous for the Western fighters than previously reported. http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/verbatim/4/133273/f_35-fares-worse-in-rand-wargame.html

Boeing has announced that it has completed delivery of 257 F/A-18E/F Super Hornet strike fighters and EA-18G Growler electronic attack aircraft to the U.S. Navy. Each aircraft was delivered ahead of schedule and within the contract budget. The aircraft were delivered to the Navy from 2007 through 2011 under a multi-year procurement (MYP) contract awarded to Boeing on Dec. 29, 2003. The Navy purchased the aircraft during fiscal years 2005-2009. Multi-year procurement contracts provide a stable production environment that enables manufacturers and suppliers to reduce cost through bulk purchasing and productivity enhancements. "Super Hornets and Growlers provide unmatched, proven and...

$200m refit to give fighter jets growl THE Federal Government will spend more than $200 million to transform six air force fighter jets into hi-tech electronic warfare planes. The RAAF purchased 24 Boeing Super Hornet fighters under a $6 billion deal with the US Navy to fill the gap between the retirement of the F-111 fighter bomber and the expected delivery of the first batch of 14 Joint Strike Fighter stealth jets later this decade. Defence Minister Stephen Smith will announce the decision to upgrade the jet fighters early next month to EA-18G models known as "Growlers" to plug an...

Aussies’ modest proposal: Sell us F-22s, mate For F-35 proponents, every sunrise brings new reasons for unease about the future of the program. It regularly gets bad headlines in the U.S. The Brits now say they’ll wait until 2015 before committing to buy any more jets. And as we’ve talked about before, there are rumblings Down Under that suggest the Australians may be losing their patience. But proponents in the U.S. and Australia can take heart about one thing — these are the guys they’re up against: Some of the most vehement critics of Australia’s involvement in the Joint Strike...

RAAF fighter-bombers to become 'Growlers' by: Brendan Nicholson, Defence Editor From:The Australian October 18, 2011 THE RAAF may soon have 12 of its Super Hornet fighter-bombers equipped as "Growlers", the US aircraft packed with electronic equipment that paralysed the Libyan regime's communications and missile systems. Because of the aircraft's spectacular success in the Libyan conflict, the Gillard government is considering soon spending more than $300 million having half of the 24-strong Super Hornet fleet fitted out for electronic warfare. The Growler would be much more potent than anything in the region and would be capable of paralysing the communications and...

Australia may opt for Super Hornets next year ROD McGUIRK, Associated Press Updated 03:53 a.m., Wednesday, August 17, 2011 CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia has set a deadline of next year to decide whether it will buy Boeing Co. Super Hornet fighter bombers to maintain the nation's air combat strength or wait for the troubled F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to be delivered. Defense Minister Stephen Smith announced the deadline on Wednesday, telling Parliament that his government will not allow the repeated schedule delays of the Lockheed Martin Corp. JSF program to compromise Australia's air force capabilities. "I'm not proposing to...

Officers feared purchase of Super Hornets a ploy to cut JSF orders # Mark Dodd # From: The Australian FEARING orders for the Joint Strike Fighter aircraft would be cut, Senior Royal Australian Air Force officers assured the Howard government the ageing fleet of F-111 bombers could fly until mid 2013. Launched this week, Air Force, by News Limited journalist Ian McPhedran, details the claims made by former Defence Minister Brenadan Nelson that the government's surprise decision to buy 24 Super Hornets prompted the air force officers' fears that future JSF orders would be cut. Dr Nelson said it became...

RAAF Hornet fighters to be armed with Joint Air to Surface Stand-off Missile Mark Dodd From:The Australian August 03, 2011 THE fleet of RAAF Hornet fighters will soon be armed with a potent new weapon following a successful test firing last week at the Woomera test range. The Joint Air to Surface Stand-off Missile has a range of more than 200 kilometres and was selected in 2006 by the former Howard government to equip the F/A-18 Hornet fleet pending the retirement of the F-111 fleet. The JASSM has been listed on the federal government's "projects of concern" watch list, but...

Aussies losing patience on F-35? By Philip Ewing Tuesday, July 26th, 2011 10:00 am Another defense blog might lead off with a wisecrack about how Australian support for the F-35 Lightning II may have boomeranged — but that’s not our style here at Buzz. Instead we’ll play it straight: Australian defence minister Stephen Smith, in town for meetings with Secretary Panetta, is displeased with the state of the F-35 program, and implied the Aussies may not go beyond their initial commitment to buy 14 jets, well short of their onetime goal of 100. Here’s how Australia’s ABC News laid out...

Trade and defence: our China line Greg Sheridan, Foreign editor From:The Australian June 25, 201112:00AM AUSTRALIA is running a comprehensive military hedging strategy against China, although you'll never hear a government minister say so publicly. But that is what the Defence Force Posture Review, announced by Defence Minister Stephen Smith this week, is all about. Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd has been Labor's central figure on China policy. Smith has also been vital, and overall the government has run an extremely good policy. China is the strategic shadow that looms over everything today. There is a China dimension behind US President...

RAAF facing more delays for new stealth fighter, report warns Mark Dodd From: The Australian May 13, 2011 11:13AM THE RAAF will have to wait seven years before the long-delayed Joint Strike Fighter enters service, a key national defence think tank has warned. First deliveries of the troubled US-built stealth fighter were originally promised to start next year. In its latest report on the project, the government-backed Australian Strategic Policy Institute said further delays, and not cost blowouts, pose the biggest risk to the program. Canberra has placed a tentative order for 100 of the so-called fifth generation JSFs to...

Air force eyes 18 more Super Hornets as delays dog our new fighter EXCLUSIVE Brendan Nicholson, Defence editor DEVELOPMENT of the revolutionary Joint Strike Fighter, intended to provide Australia's air defence through this century, is running well behind schedule and the RAAF may need to buy 18 more Super Hornets for $1.5 billion to fill the gap. Australian defence officials head for the US this week for an update from Lockheed Martin Corporation, which is developing the stealthy, multi-role JSF, now named the F-35 Lightning II. The Australian understands they will raise serious concerns about delays in the project and...

How Australia Is Networking Its Forces By David A. Fulghum Canberra and Washington Australia is integrating three new operational elements into its advanced, network-centric military—a squadron of Wedge­tail aircraft, the first two squadrons of F/A-18F Super Hornets and the Vigi­lare theater surveillance integration system. All are designed as the backbone of a small, highly responsive force. The country is refashioning its armed services as the core of an international force—integrating a variety of foreign participants—that will be capable of responding to military emergencies or natural disasters. However, this cutting-edge organization was envisioned somewhat differently only five years ago. The Boeing...

The appearance comes as developments in China have prompted renewed calls to restore production of the top-of-the-line US fighter after it was axed by Defence Secretary Robert Gates in 2009. The decision, which capped F-22 production at 187 aircraft, has been called into question by the public emergence of China's J-20 and a co-operative program between Russia and China to build a similar aircraft. For the moment, however, the single-seat, twin-engine Raptor remains the world's only operational fifth-generation fighter. It boasts stealth technology, speed, agility and long-range capabilities ahead of the Joint Strike Fighter. Australia at one stage considered acquiring...

“Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) aircraft including both C-17 Globemaster’s (heavy transport aircraft) and C-130 Hercules are on standby to fly north to cyclone-affected areas and the Australian army based in Townsville is preparing Blackhawk and Chinook aircraft to assist in emergency operations,” an ADF member (Australian Defence Force) said yesterday. On Wednesday ADF helicopters, eight Blackhawk’s, three Chinooks and three NH90s had flown from Townsville to Mackay Airport due to Tropical Cyclone Yasi emergency, but the aircraft soon came back to Townsville yesterday to go and assist in disaster recovery operations in North Queensland. “There are approximately 4000 defence...

Australia is integrating three new operational elements into its advanced, network-centric military — a squadron of Wedgetail command and control aircraft, the first two squadrons of F/A-18F Super Hornets and the Vigilare theater surveillance integration system — all designed as the backbone of a small, highly responsive force. However, this cutting-edge force was envisioned somewhat differently only five years ago. The Wedgetail had a 2006 delivery date and F-35 Joint Strike Fighters were slated to replace the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF) classic F-18 Hornets as soon as they were available. Instead, the Wedgetail’s radar was set back by a...

Wedgetail's Radar -- What Was Wrong and What Fixed It Posted by David A. Fulghum at 2/2/2011 3:01 AM CST Australia’s new airborne early warning and control aircraft has arrived, but it is at least four years late. The Australian military was stunned in 2006 to discover that the Wedgetail’s large, futuristic, long-range radar still had both hardware and software problems. The first problem involved the “end-fire” portion of the radar that provides the fore and aft segment of its 360 degree coverage. A long, hollow chamber atop the radar had been carefully shaped to deflect a portion of the...

Veteran Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F-111 aircrews are drawing on their strike experience to create the first squadrons of the nation’s F/A-18F Super Hornet fleet. Among them is Wing Commander Terence Deeth, the skipper of Australia’s No. 6 Sqdn., which takes on operational training duties for the fleet. The F-model Super Hornet has a two-person crew, like the now-retired F-111, and a portion of the latter’s navigator-bombardiers are being retrained as weapon systems officer (WSO) cadres and aircrews for the F/A-18F. WSOs will be a subspecialty within the larger RAAF category of air combat officer (ACO), which was instituted...

Australia's Super Hornet Training Accelerates Posted by David A. Fulghum at 1/27/2011 9:14 AM CST Australia’s long-serving F-111s were retired late last year, but some of their veteran aircrews are turning their strike experience to creating the first two squadrons of the 24-aircraft, F/A-18F Super Hornet force. The F-model Super Hornet has a two-person crew, like the F-111, and a portion of the latter’s navigator-bombardiers are being retrained as weapons systems officer (WSO) cadres and aircrews for the F/A-18F. WSOs will be a sub-specialty within the larger, RAAF category of Air Combat Officer which was instituted about five years ago....

An Airbus Military aerial refueling tanker for the Royal Australian Air Force lost part of its refueling boom during a training flight Wednesday. The incident involved Airbus Military employees refueling a Portuguese Air Force F-16 fighter with a new A330 Multi-Role Tanker Transport. "The incident resulted in the detachment and partial loss of the refuelling boom ... which fell into the sea," the Australian Defense said in a statement. "Both aircraft suffered some damage but returned safely to their home airfields." Airbus Military and European military airworthiness authorities will lead the investigation in to the incident, with the participation of...