Thursday, February 02, 2012

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: U.S. DoD Awarded Contract To Boeing Ten C-17 Transport Aircrafts For Indian Air Force

DTN News - DEFENSE NEWS: U.S. DoD Awarded Contract To Boeing Ten C-17 Transport Aircrafts For Indian Air Force
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources  DTN News & U.S. DoD February 2, 2012
 (NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - February 2, 2012: The Boeing Co., Long Beach, Calif., is being awarded a $1,781,413,723 firm-fixed-price contract for a modification is a Foreign Military Sales requirement for the Indian Air Force.  

Ten C-17 aircraft will be procured for the IAF.  The location of the performance is Long Beach, Calif.  

Work is expected to be completed by Jul. 28, 2014.  ASC/WLMK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8614-06-D-2006, DO 0009).


Boeing C-17 Globemaster III Military Transport Aircraft

C-17  (Neg#: c17index)December 9 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 214th C-17 Globemaster III during a ceremony at its Long Beach, Calif. final assembly facility. The latest advanced airlifter is assigned to Joint Base Charleston, S.C.
November 9 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 213th C-17, which now operates out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
October 6 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 212th C-17 Globemaster III during a ceremony at its Long Beach, Calif. final assembly facility. The latest advanced airlifter is assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.
September 26 - Boeing announced the delivery the United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence's forth C-17 Globemaster III. Two additional C-17s will be delivered to the UAE in 2012.
September 23 - During the arrival ceremony for the Royal Australian Air Force's fifth C-17 Globemaster III, the government of Australia announced its intent to procure a sixth C-17.
September 15 - Boeing on Sept. 15 marked the 20th anniversary of the first flight of the C-17 airlifter. Former test aircraft T-1 flew by the Boeing Long Beach, Calif., site in a re-creation of its milestone flight.
September 14 - Boeing delivered the Royal Australian Air Force's fifth C-17 Globemaster III. Australia's Minister of Defence, Stephen Smith, accepted delivery of the country's latest C-17 during a ceremony at Boeing's C-17 final assembly facility in Long Beach, Calif.
August 8 - Boeing joined the U.S. Air National Guard (ANGB) at Stewart Air National Guard Base to commemorate the base's transition to the Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlifter. Stewart ANGB, home of the 105th Airlift Wing, previously flew the C-5A Galaxy and is the latest Air National Guard unit to transition to a fleet of C-17 aircraft.
July 29 - Boeing delivered a third C-17 Globemaster III airlifter to the United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence at the C-17 program's final assembly facility in Long Beach. To modernize its airlift capabilities, the UAE will take delivery of one more C-17 this year and two in 2012.
July 26 - Boeing joined the U.S. Air Force at Joint-Base Lewis-McChord to help dedicate a C-17 Globemaster III airlifter to the members of the U.S. armed forces who have received the Medal of Honor.
July 9 - Boeing, US Air Force Reserve welcome C-17s to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Wright-Patterson, home of the 445th Airlift Wing, previously flew the C-5A Galaxy and is the latest Air Force Reserve Command unit to transition to a fleet of C-17 aircraft.
July 7 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 211th C-17 Globemaster III during a ceremony at its Long Beach final assembly facility. P-211 is now assigned to the 62nd and 446th Airlift Wings at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
June 15 - Boeing announced that India's Ministry of Defence has signed an agreement with the U.S. government to acquire 10 Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlifters. The Foreign Military Sale establishes India as the C-17's largest international customer.
June 10 - Boeing delivered a second C-17 Globemaster III airlifter to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Air Force and Air Defence today at the C-17 program's final assembly facility in Long Beach. The company is contracted to deliver a total of six C-17s to its UAE customer -- four this year and two in 2012.
May 12 - A U.S. Air Force C-17 transport plane delivered the heat shield, back shell and cruise stage of the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft to NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The heat shield and back shell together form the aeroshell, which will encapsulate the mission's rover and descent stage.
May 10 - Boeing delivered the first of six C-17 Globemaster III airlifters to the United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence during a ceremony at the company's final assembly facility in Long Beach. The UAE will take delivery of three more C-17s this year and two in 2012 as it modernizes its airlift capabilities.
April 18 - Boeing announced that the Commonwealth of Australia has signed an agreement with the U.S. government to acquire a fifth C-17. The Foreign Military Sale allows the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) to expand its C-17 fleet as it faces an increased demand for humanitarian and disaster relief missions.
April 14 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 210th C-17, which now operates out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
March 25 - Royal Australian Air Force C-17 providing support to relief efforts in Japan under Operation PACIFIC ASSIST returned home following nearly two weeks of humanitarian assistance to earthquake and tsunami affected regions. During 12 days of operations, RAAF C-17s made a total of 31 landings at Japanese airfields to deliver over one million pounds of cargo including pumps to douse the Fukishima nuclear power plant, food and water, vehicles, and personnel and equipment to assist with the disaster relief effort.
March 23 - USAF C-17s continue to support recovery efforts in Japan. To date, The USAF have completed more than 225 missions, transporting more than 2,800 passengers and 4.2 million pounds of cargo in support of Operation Tomodachi.
March 22 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 209th C-17. P-209 is now assigned to the 62nd Airlift Wing at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington.
March 12 - C-17s from the U.S. Air Force and Royal Australian Air Force responded to Honshu island, Japan, to support search and rescue efforts following an 8.9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami on March 11 that killed more than 10,000 people and left tens of thousands of residents homeless. The C-17s delivered search and rescue teams and generators.
February 28 - Due to ongoing political unrest in Libya, a Canadian Forces C-17 ferried a load of evacuees from Tripoli to Malta.
February 28 - Australian Defense Minister Stephen Smith announced that the Royal Australian Air Force is considering adding a fifth Boeing-built C-17 Globemaster III to its fleet. Smith cited the recent earthquake in Christchurch and flooding in Queensland as examples of why C-17s remain an essential part of Australia's capacity to respond to natural and regional disasters.
February 25 - Boeing delivered the U.S. Air Force's 208th C-17 Globemaster III during a ceremony at its Long Beach final assembly facility. The advanced airlifter is assigned to the 315th Airlift Wing at Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina.
February 9 - The C-17 Globemaster III was recently certified for unlimited usage of hydroprocessed blended biofuels known as Hydrotreated Renewable Jet fuels (HRJ). The certification makes the C-17 the Air Force's first platform to be fully certified using an HRJ blend.
February 3 - Boeing delivered the US. Air Force's 207th C-17 Globemaster III during a ceremony at its Long Beach, Calif., final assembly facility. The advanced airlifter is assigned to Joint Base Charleston, South Carolina.
February 2 - A 535th Airlift Squadron aircrew from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, and the U.S. Navy Special Warfare Unit One from Guam teamed up to drop a boat out of the back of a C-17 using the Maritime Craft Aerial Delivery System recently.
February 2 - Royal Australian Air Force C-17s supported the evacuation of residents and hospital patients in Queensland in advance of Cyclone Yasi. They also ferried food and household supplies on behalf of supermarkets to flood-stricken areas in Queensland.
Go to the C-17 Tutorial (clicking on this link will open a new browser window)

A high-wing, 4-engine, T-tailed military-transport aircraft, the multi-service C-17 can carry large equipment, supplies and troops directly to small airfields in harsh terrain anywhere in the world day or night. The massive, sturdy, long-haul aircraft tackles distance, destination and heavy, oversized payloads in unpredictable conditions. It has delivered cargo in every worldwide operation since the 1990s.

The C-17's ability to fly long distances and land in remote airfields in rough, land-locked regions make it a premier transporter for military, humanitarian and peacekeeping missions. It can:
  • Take off from a 7,600-ft. airfield, carry a payload of 160,000 pounds, fly 2,400 nautical miles, refuel while in flight and land in 3,000 ft. or less on a small unpaved or paved airfield in day or night.
  • Carry a cargo of wheeled U.S. Army vehicles in two side-by-side rows, including the U.S. Army's main battle tank, the M-1. Three Bradley infantry-fighting vehicles comprise one load.
  • Drop a single 60,000-lb. payload, with sequential load drops of 110,000 lb.
  • Back up a two-percent slope.
  • Seat 54 on the sidewall and 48 in the centerline.

If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader for reading PDF files, it is available for free from Adobe.
For more information, read the C-17 Globemaster III overview (pdf). If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader for reading PDF files, it is available for free from Adobe.
If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader for reading PDF files, it is available for free from Adobe.

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources DTN News & U.S. DoD February 2, 2012
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS


DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated February 2, 2012


DTN News: U.S. Department of Defense Contracts Dated February 2, 2012
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - February 2, 2012: U.S. Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs) Contracts issued  February  2, 2012 are undermentioned;


CONTRACTS
AIR FORCE
            The Boeing Co., Long Beach, Calif., is being awarded a $1,781,413,723 firm-fixed-price contract for a modification is a Foreign Military Sales requirement for the Indian Air Force.  Ten C-17 aircraft will be procured for the IAF.  The location of the performance is Long Beach, Calif.  Work is expected to be completed by Jul. 28, 2014.  ASC/WLMK, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8614-06-D-2006, DO 0009).

            Decypher Technologies, Ltd., San Antonio, Texas (FA8053-12-D-0001); Booz Allen Hamilton, Inc., McLean, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0002); Longview CIO Group, L.L.C., Rockville, Md. (FA8053-12-D-0003); Ellumen, Inc., Arlington, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0004); ERP Scientific Partners, Gambrills, Md. (FA8053-12-D-0005); Technology, Automation & Management, Inc., Falls Church, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0006); ASM Research, Fairfax, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0007); TASC, Inc., Andover, Maine (FA8053-12-D-0008); Serco, Inc., Reston, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0009); Evolvent Technologies, Inc., Falls Church, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0010); Deloitte Consulting, L.L.P., McLean, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0011); Lockheed Martin Corp., Orlando, Fla. (FA8053-12-D-0012); and CACI-ISS, Inc., Chantilly, Va. (FA8053-12-D-0013) are being awarded a $985,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite quantity, firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for advisory and assistance services to include management and professional support services; engineering and technical services; and studies, analyses and evaluations for the Air Force Medical Service.  The locations of the performance include Laurel, Md.; Rockville, Md.; San Antonio, Texas; Arlington, Va.; Falls Church, Va.; McLean, Va.; Orlando, Fla.; Reston, Va.; Andover, Maine; Chantilly, Va.; and Fairfax, Va.  Work is expected to be completed Feb. 1, 2018.  773 ESS/PKJ is the contracting activity.  The contract numbers are as follows:

            Raytheon Co., El Segundo, Calif., is being awarded a $76,619,379 cost-plus-incentive-fee, cost reimbursement contract for the dismount detection radar (DDR) effort will provide for the development, design, build, test, integration, certification, and delivery of four DDR systems.  The location of the performance is El Segundo, Calif.  Work is expected to be completed by March 30, 2015.  ESC/HBGK, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (FA8730-12-C-0004).

            SRI International, Menlo Park, Calif., is being awarded a $13,200,000 cost-plus-award-fee, firm-fixed-price contract for the acquisition of a five-year research and development program.  The Digital Video Laboratory (DVL) provides highly specialized hardware/software for data /video transmission, video compression, video data manipulation, image sensors, data/video storage, data/video retrieval and data/video searches.  Past work on the DVL system has included design, development, test, modification, installation, training and/or transition support.  This contract will be used to acquire hardware, software, prototype systems, spiral software enhancements, installation and training support to support the 46 Test Wing’s requirement to improve and modernize potential capabilities using digital data.  The location of the performance is on an as required basis by delivery order.   Work is expected to be completed by Mar. 12, 2014.  AAC/PKET, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., is the contracting activity (FA9200-07-D-0045, P00010).

NAVY
            Rolls-Royce Corp., Indianapolis, Ind., is being awarded a $55,406,826 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00019-10-C-0020) to exercise an option for maintenance services in support of the V-22 AE1107C turboshaft engines. Work will be performed in Oakland, Calif. (70 percent), and Indianapolis, Ind. (30 percent), and is expected to be completed in November 2012.  Contract funds in the amount of $55,406,826 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

            Titan Maritime, L.L.C., Pompano Beach, Fla., is being awarded a $43,000,000 ceiling-priced indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-award-fee contract for salvage, salvage-related towing, harbor clearance, ocean engineering, and point-to-point towing services to support the Director of Ocean Engineering, Supervisor of Salvage and Diving.  The primary purpose of this contract is to provide services to assist in the performance of salvage of ships, craft, cargo, and other items as tasked.  This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $215,000,000.  Work will be performed in the vicinity of the West Coast of the Untied States (80 percent), Hawaii (10 percent), and the Eastern Pacific (10 percent).  Work is expected to be completed by February 2013.  Contract funds in the amount of $50,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was competitively procured via Federal Business Opportunities website, with one proposal received.  The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-12-D-4119). 

            SMIT Singapore PTE, Ltd., Singapore, is being awarded a $43,000,000 ceiling-priced, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-award-fee contract for salvage, salvage-related towing, harbor clearance, ocean engineering and point-to-point towing services to support the Director of Ocean Engineering, Supervisor of Salvage and Diving.  The primary purpose of this contract is to provide services to assist in the performance of salvage of ships, craft, cargo, and other items as tasked.  This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $215,000,000.  Work will be performed in the vicinity of the Western Pacific Ocean, and is expected to be completed by February 2013.  Contract funds in the amount of $50,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was competitively procured via Federal Business Opportunities, with one proposal received.  The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00024-12-D-4120). 

            PKL Services, Inc.*, Poway, Calif., is being awarded a $16,186,509 modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed-price contract (N00421-09-C-0023) to exercise an option for reset organizational level maintenance on the following Marine Corps aircraft platforms:  AH-1W, UH-1N, CH-53D/E, and CH-46E.  Work will be performed in Camp Pendleton, San Diego, Calif. (30 percent); Jacksonville, Fla. (25 percent); Iraq/Afghanistan (22 percent); San Diego, Calif. (18 percent); and Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii (5 percent).  Work is expected to be completed in August 2012.  Contract funds in the amount of $16,186,509 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.

            Stemnion, Inc.*, Pittsburgh, Pa., is being awarded an $8,346,994 cost-reimbursement contract to provide research and development services in support the Naval Medical Research Center’s cellular combat wound initiative.  Work will be performed in Pittsburgh, Pa., and is expected to be completed in August 2013.  Contract funds in the amount of $8,346,994 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This contract was not competitively procured.  The Naval Medical Logistics Command, Fort Detrick, Md., is the contracting activity (N62645-12-C-4009).

             General Electric Aviation, Lynn, Mass., is being awarded a $7,473,489 modification under a previously awarded performance-based logistics requirements contract (N00383-11-D-002M) for repair replacement consumables support and program support for 879 F414 engine (F/A-18 E, F and EA-18G aircraft).   Work will be performed at Lynn, Mass. (90 percent), and Jacksonville, Fla. (10 percent), and is expected to be completed Dec. 31, 2012.  The applicable Navy Working Capital funds on this effort will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year.  This was a sole source requirement.  NAVSUP Weapon Systems Support, Philadelphia, Pa., is the contracting activity.

*Small business

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources U.S. DoD issued No. 075-12 February 2, 2012
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS

DTN News - SINGAPORE DEFENSE NEWS: Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Steps Up Deterrent Capabilities

DTN News - SINGAPORE DEFENSE NEWS: Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Steps Up Deterrent Capabilities
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Flight International
 (NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - February 2, 2012: This month's Singapore air show falls on the 70th anniversary of the fall of Singapore to Japan in the Second World War. While Asia is an unimaginably different place now, Singapore's leaders have never forgotten the speed with which Singapore fell - or the three years of brutal occupation that followed.
Memories of the war have played no small part in the development of Singapore's world-class military, backed with what is unquestionably southeast Asia's most powerful air force. While Singapore will never have the strategic depth of a larger nation, its advanced military will create a "poison shrimp" dynamic to give any aggressor pause.
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is unique in southeast Asia. Apart from being the region's largest, it is also the best trained, led, and equipped. It places a high priority on maintaining its equipment to ensure both readiness and safety. While political concerns are inevitably a part of acquisition decisions, it chooses aircraft and weapons systems based mainly on their utility in combat - something that is not always the primary consideration in other countries.
rsaf f-16 & ah-64d, billypix
 © Billypix
Tim Huxley is an analyst at the International Institute of Strategic Studies, and has written a book about Singapore's armed forces. "Over the last forty years, Singapore's air force has evolved incrementally toward having an extremely powerful capability by regional standards," he says.
"This is not just in terms of modernity and weapons, but in the way equipment integrates to form an overall air capability. It is an integrated and well-balanced force, and careful thought has been given to logistics."
For the time being, Singapore appears content with its fighter fleet. The RSAF has yet to reveal its future fighter procurement plans, and there is no major competition under way to obtain new fighters. Indeed, the last of Singapore's Boeing F-15SGs - a variant of the F-15E - have yet to be delivered. Nonetheless, Singapore will eventually need to make decisions about its future force structure.
Analysts and industry experts interviewed for this article are all but unanimous that Singapore will one day obtain Lockheed Martin's F-35. Like Israel, Singapore is a tier four "security co-operation participant" in the programme. While it cannot influence the design of the aircraft, it has access to programme information and can request special studies. Sources say Singapore could also be interested in the F-35B, the type's short take-off and vertical landing variant.
Huxley says Singapore's tier four status is appropriate because the eventual size of any Singapore F-35 buy would not have justified the country being a founding partner in the programme. "In all military areas Singapore tries, where possible, to acquire a qualitative edge over possible contenders, and other countries feel that only the F-35 offers this qualitative edge in the future. There is no other similar equipment in the pipeline, and it's effectively the only potential in terms of a new airframe."
Richard Bitzinger, senior fellow of the Military Transformations programme at Singapore's Rajaratnam School of International Studies, thinks Singapore could eventually buy up to 100 F-35s. "Delays in the F-35 programme are not a problem for Singapore because they probably won't place an order for several more years anyway," he says. "In 2015, I could see them upgrading some of their [Lockheed Martin] F-16s, and also ordering 40-odd F-35s, with an additional F-35 order perhaps in 2020."
Given Singapore's long history with the F-16. it is a leading candidate to upgrade these aircraft. In this it would follow Taiwan and South Korea, which in 2011 disclosed plans to upgrade their F-16 fleets. The salient element of these upgrades is the addition of an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar. The contenders are Northrop Grumman's Scalable Agile Beam Radar and Raytheon's Advanced Combat Radar. Industry sources say the first AESA to win an order will be all but assured to hold the entire F-16 AESA upgrade market and, by default, ascertain the eventual radar modification for Singapore's F-16s.
Bitzinger says an F-16 upgrade could also see Singapore retire the last of its venerable Northrop F-5s, which have been in service since the 1970s.
A likely beneficiary of any RSAF F-16 upgrade programme would be domestic maintenance, repair and overhaul provider ST Aerospace. The company has an intimate relationship with the air force, which includes dispatching technicians in RSAF uniform to provide support for aircraft on overseas deployments. It also has a long history of complex upgrades, including a programme in the 1980s to install a non-afterburning version of the General Electric F404 engine on the McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawk, which resulted in a lighter aircraft with 500lb (2.2kN) more thrust. The company also routinely performs upgrades to Lockheed C-130 transports, a niche in which it claims to be "a centre of excellence".
rsaf kc-135 tanker, airteamimages.com
 © AirTeamImages.com
Nonetheless, ST Aerospace president Chang Cheow Teck is tight-lipped about the prospect of upgrading RSAF F-16s. He will only say that, historically, the company's military upgrade capabilities have been driven by the air force's needs.
Eventually, Singapore will also need to replace its Fokker 50s. The decision facing the RSAF is whether to acquire a newer aircraft of similar capability, such as the Ruag DO228NG, which will be attending the Singapore air show for the first time, or a larger platform, such as surplus US Navy Lockheed P-3C Orions or even a variant of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon.
In 2010, Lockheed revealed Singapore had issued a letter of request to look at the P-3. Mark Jarvis, Lockheed's director, design and production for P-3 programmes, says Singapore's interest could be for about four or five aircraft, possibly drawing on the configuration of the 12 secondhand Orions due to be delivered to Taiwan starting this year.
Given Singapore's limited economic exclusion zone, and that the majority of its patrols take place close to home, experts feel the P-8A is an unlikely choice.
"If they really think they will conduct long-range maritime patrol as a permanent mission they might [buy the P-8A], but on the other hand they might just keep flying around the region," says Bitzinger. He adds that while Singapore has a strong tendency to buy new aircraft, in some circumstances, such as with the Boeing KC-135 tanker, it will buy used equipment. "The most important thing with maritime patrol is not the airframe, but what goes into it," he adds.
Huxley says for long-range patrols Singapore already has a resource in place with its six Formidable-class frigates. The Republic of Singapore Navy has openly stated that these large warships were obtained to defend the nation's sea lines of communications. A major element of the reach of these ships is their Sikorsky S-70B Seahawk shipborne helicopters.
Another area for potential new aircraft is in the tanker role, in which Singapore operates ex-US Air Force KC-135s. These aircraft provide air-to-air refuelling for both the RSAF and its allies, but suffer similar obsolescence issues to USAF KC-135s. During the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition in Malaysia in December 2011, an RSAF contingent visited the Royal Australian Air Force's Airbus Military A330-based KC-30A mutli-role tanker/transports, on static display. A source said the delegation was interested to learn about the aircraft's capabilities, which also includes the ability to carry passengers and cargo.
As with its fighters, Singapore also appears to be in no rush to replace its key tactical platforms, namely Eurocopter Super Puma and Cougar helicopters and C-130H Hercules. Helicopter suppliers have heard nothing about a Super Puma/Cougar replacement, with industry observers believing Singapore is happy to stay with these types for another decade.
Ultimately, it is difficult to obtain a clear picture of the RSAF's acquisition plans and the future roles this envisages. Bitzinger feels this aids the all-important deterrent role of the Singapore armed forces. "This ambiguity lets the other guy project his concerns and fears," he says.
"The last thing the Singaporeans want is to fight last-ditch battles on Singaporean soil," he adds. "A lot of this goes back to the fall of Singapore in 1942. That history is very poignant to them - the idea that once the Japanese crossed the straits of Johore, it was all over. They never want to have this happen again. They will take the war to the enemy."

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Flight International
*Speaking Image - Creation of DTN News ~ Defense Technology News 
*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
©COPYRIGHT (C) DTN NEWS DEFENSE-TECHNOLOGY NEWS