Tim Ripley
The future of Europe's military aircraft manufacturing capability depends on the UK's Future Offensive Air System (FOAS), say British Aerospace executives.
"Without something new, the current capacity in our industry is threatened," says Martin Blaze, BAe's FOAS project director. "FOAS is one thing that will allow us to maintain that capability."
The UK Ministry of Defence has already spent £35 million ($56 million) on research into the FOAS and British companies have spent more than a $100 million on related studies.
Current plans call for the FOAS to replace the RAF's 4 Tornado strike aircraft in 2015-18. The government is due to decide in 2000 on a staff requirement.
Since 1997, BAe has been carrying out studies for the MoD into a number of FOAS options, including manned aircraft, unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) and conventionally armed cruise missiles launched from converted passenger or transport aircraft.
A mix of types of air vehicles is likely for any FOAS solution, says Blaze.
He says the emphasis of the FOAS studies has been technology driven rather than working around a specific air vehicle shape.
BAe has already formed a number of alliances with UK and French companies to establish industrial working groups to develop the 650 technologies required for FOAS to allow "affordable performance", said Blaze.
Technology areas being studied include radar, structures, flight systems, propulsion, avionics, weapons, manufacturing and airframe design, he says.
It is expected that BAe and France's Dassault Aviation will announce the launch of a formal joint venture at Farnborough this week to develop FOAS technology.
The project will be a lead programme for the Labour Government's "smart" procurement concepts and BAe is in discussion to delay the decision of the staff requirement to prevent the programme being over taken by technological advances.
"We want to make the technological decisions near the in-service date, which is some 17 years down the road," says Blaze.
"We are always falling foul of making early decisions - people change and requirements change. We want to ensure the Ministry of Defence makes a robust decision as soon as possible."
Low observables technology will play a key part in the programme and could lead to the UK developing is first truly stealth aircraft. A flying demonstrator could be built in the 2003 timeframe, says Blaze.
"We are focused on a European system- to harmonise and consolidate European industrial integration," says Blaze.
FOAS research is currently running in parallel with UK studies into the new future aircraft carrier (CVF) and future carrier borne aircraft (FCBA), for which the US-led Joint Strike Fighter is a leading contender.
The cost of these programmes may lead to their being merged or harmonised, say industry sources.
Source: Flight Daily News
