Andrew Chuter/LONDON
THE ROYAL AIR FORCE has outlined a vision of the future where bombs do not go bang, and pilots fly combat aircraft without ever leaving the ground.
UK defence officials say that, in some areas, work is starting to get under way which may include unconventional solutions to equip the RAF early next century.
The increasing role of the air force in peacekeeping missions such as those in Bosnia has caused the UK Ministry of Defence to rethink its weapons requirements. Work is in progress on so-called "peace-support weapons" which can take out military targets while minimising collateral damage.
The sort of weapons being examined include laser-guided bombs with no warheads, which rely on kinetic energy to destroy a target, and increased use of electronic warfare. More high-precision weapons are also being considered as defence officials admit that air force stocks of dumb bombs are now virtually useless.
The most likely option is to follow the US example and upgrade the bombs with a guidance system and motor to give range and accuracy. McDonnell Douglas is already contracted to supply its Joint Direct Attack Munition to upgrade the US stocks of bombs.
Texas Instruments Paveway III laser-guided bombs, are coming into service and the air force is to select a contractor, to supply a high-precision stand-off weapon, with a range close to 600 km (320nm), to form the core of its attack capability, from Panavia Tornado GR4s, British Aerospace Harrier GR7s and Eurofighter EF2000s.
Unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) are also figuring increasingly in RAF thinking, as US developments on stealthy 24h-endurance UAVs such as the Tier III Plus open up new possibilities.
Defence chiefs admit that UAVs will be considered among the options to fill the Astor battlefield-surveillance role, although a large business jet, such as the Canadair Global Express, is emerging as the favoured solution. A decision on the Astor is expected in 1997, for an in-service date of 2003.
Officials say that they may prefer to wait and let highly expensive UAV technology mature a little before entering the market.
Replacement of the English Electric Canberra PR9 photographic reconnaissance aircraft - now being upgraded - is the most likely target for entry into service of a long-range UAV, possibly followed by the replacement of BAe Nimrod R electronic-intelligence aircraft in ten to 12 years' time.
The technological advance of UAVs and improvements of digital datalinks, along with planned introduction of fully integrated mobile air-command and control systems means there is even an option of using the vehicles for the Forward Offensive Aircraft (FOA) replacement for the Tornado GR4 around 2015-18. An unmanned aircraft where the pilot sits in a virtual cockpit on the ground - perhaps as a first-day weapon - will be under consideration, say officials.
The FOA requirement and issues, such as whether it should, have long-range fighter or suppression of enemy air-defence components, are now being defined by the RAF and its European counterparts. It is likely, however, that the aircraft will emerge from either a new UK/French/German development, a version of the US/UK Joint Strike Fighter or a technological evolution of the EF2000.
In the short term, moves to increase RAF operational capabilities, include an upgrade to the GR7, involving a forward-looking infra-red enhancement; ground-proximity-warning receiver; fully integrated global-positioning system and smart weapons; introduction of LOR/OP photographic reconnaissance pods on Tornados in 1998, possibly followed by the same on EF2000s; and improvements to the BAe Alarm anti-radiation missile
Source: Flight International
