http://www.dsti.net/Information/News/70085
英國空軍直升機數量未來將超過戰鬥機
2011-08-29
[據法國《航宇防務》網站2011年8月24日報導]英國的聯合政府於去年開始實施的一些防務方面的決定已被證實是不明智的、起負面作用的，甚至是瘋狂的，如建造兩艘航母的決定。這兩艘航母一艘隨機被封存，而另一艘則在未來幾年內都無法搭載高速的噴氣戰鬥機。
此外，另外還有很多類似的愚蠢的決定，包括過早退役皇家海軍現有的航母及“鷂”式戰鬥機，退役新交付的“哨兵”偵察機，保留“獵迷”海上巡邏及偵察機，使海軍產生能力空白，這顯示軍方內部存在著嚴重的分歧。
但是，這些決策中，沒有哪個能比投資10億英鎊採購14架CH-47直升機更加浪費國家資金。空軍目前已經有56架“支奴幹”正在服役，是歐洲目前最大的“支奴幹”機隊。值得慶倖的是，這已經比工党政府原先決定的22架採購量少了一些。
國防部的聲明中稱，首批3架機將於2015年年初部署，全部14架機將於2017年初達到完全作戰能力。而這已經是英軍撤出阿富汗地區的武裝力量的很久以後了。
因此，到2017年，皇家空軍將擁有60架“支奴幹”直升機，全部駐紮在英國本土。其機隊中還包括28架“美洲豹”Mk.2，歐直公司目前正在對這批直升機目前執行“美洲豹”延壽專案，該專案耗資3億美元。
此外，皇家空軍還有28架AW101(原編號為EH101)“灰背隼”HC3/HC3a大型直升機，其直升機機隊總數為116架大/中型直升機。
皇家海軍則擁有42架“灰背隼”以及13架“海王”Mk.7，以及62架老式的“海王”，後者將在2020年前退役。英軍在2015年左右時大/中型直升機數量將達到233架，這還不包括在小戰場上使用的“山貓”/“野貓”，以及WAH-64“阿帕奇”直升機。
在英國政府最近大幅削減軍費的時候，很難想像他們為什麼能夠認為耗資10億英鎊採購一批沒有作戰需求的直升機是合理的。
如果英國像大多數觀察家預測的那樣，不採購全部3批“颱風”戰鬥機的話，到2020年時，英國空軍的大型直升機數量（200架）將超過戰鬥機數量（190架）。
到2015年，英國陸軍將裁撤9萬常規部隊，而一些並應和空軍基地也將關閉以節省開支，而到那時也不太可能進行遠征，不知道英國政府將如何處理這些昂貴的、規模極大的直升機機隊。（中國航空工業發展研究中心 李昊）
http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/128195/raf-ready-for-further-action-over-tripoli.html
RAF Ready for Further Action Over Tripoli
(Source: U.K Ministry of Defence; issued August 23, 2011)
As street fighting continues in Tripoli between Free Libya Forces and members of Colonel Gaddafi's former regime, British and NATO military aircraft are maintaining a presence in the air.
In the lead up to Free Libya Forces entering Tripoli this weekend the RAF continued to strike at key Colonel Gaddafi targets within the city as part of NATO's Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR.
On Sunday morning RAF Tornado and Typhoon aircraft mounted a precision strike before dawn on the military intelligence operations room in Tripoli, close to the Baroni intelligence facility which the RAF had successfully bombed 24 hours previously.
Nine Paveway guided bombs were delivered with great accuracy to the target.
Later in the day, an armed reconnaissance patrol identified and destroyed one of Gaddafi's main battle tanks positioned on the outskirts of the city.
At sea, HMS Liverpool was conducting surveillance off Tripoli when she sighted a small Maltese-registered vessel which had been damaged by hostile fire while leaving Tripoli port, apparently with evacuees embarked.
The vessel was under way but her manoeuvrability was impaired. HMS Liverpool passed a line to the vessel and towed her to open water where she was able to proceed safely. Liverpool alerted the Maltese authorities to the vessel's condition, and was then able to return to her duties off the coast.
In the early hours of Saturday morning, RAF Tornado GR4s conducted a precision strike on a key communications facility in south west Tripoli, used by the former regime intelligence organisations headed by Abdullah Senussi, concealed in a building known as the Baroni Centre.
Major General Nick Pope, the Chief of the Defence Staff's Communications Officer, said:
"As ever, with a target in the heart of the city, extreme care was taken in planning the mission to ensure any risk of civilian casualties was avoided.
"Five precision-guided Paveway bombs made direct hits on the building.
"Heading south from Tripoli, the RAF aircraft then detected one of Gaddafi's main battle tanks on the outskirts of the city and destroyed it with a further Paveway weapon."
"As ever, with a target in the heart of the city, extreme care was taken in planning the mission to ensure any risk of civilian casualties was avoided."
Major General Nick Pope
During the course of Saturday afternoon, an RAF patrol successfully engaged an artillery piece on the western edge of Tripoli, and attacked a nearby command and control facility.
Around midnight, Tornado and Typhoon aircraft destroyed another command and control facility, located in south west Tripoli, then proceeded east to Sirte, 240 miles (386km) away, to destroy a third such installation.
In the early hours of Friday morning, three formations of RAF aircraft mounted a co-ordinated strike on a group of warehouses at the site of the Central Organisation for Electronic Research (COER) in Tripoli.
The main buildings of the COER, a long-standing cover organisation for Libyan intelligence activities, including the development of weapons of mass destruction prior to 2003, were destroyed by an RAF attack on 24 July.
However, NATO surveillance demonstrated that the adjoining warehouses remained in use as an intelligence command and control node. One main battle tank, spotted by our aircraft in the vicinity of Tripoli, was also targeted successfully.
On Friday evening, two more formations of RAF Tornado and Typhoon aircraft returned to Tripoli. Their target was the main operations room for the Ministry of Interior's security forces, which NATO intelligence had identified as located in a compound in the Abu Salim district. Eight Paveway guided bombs scored direct hits.
On Thursday morning, RAF patrols successfully attacked two staging areas used by Gaddafi's forces at Zlitan, as well as a mobile radar system positioned nearby at Al Khums.
In the course of the afternoon, further armed reconnaissance patrols conducted precision strikes on a total of three locations in and around Az Zawiyah.
Fleet Air Arm Sea Kings from HMS Ocean, equipped with the very capable Searchwater radar, supplemented NATO's fixed wing surveillance capabilities.
Major General Pope added:
"The strike missions flown by the RAF and other allied fast jets were only made possible by the large fleet of combat support aircraft mustered by NATO, including Royal Air Force VC10 and TriStar tankers, plus Sentry, Sentinel and Fleet Air Arm Sea King surveillance platforms."
Since the start of military operations on 19 March, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Army Air Corps strikes have damaged or destroyed over 890 former regime targets which posed a threat to the Libyan people, ranging from secret police and intelligence headquarters to several hundred tanks, artillery pieces and armed vehicles.
UK missions over Libya are undertaken as part of NATO's Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 and protect Libyan civilians at risk of attack.
UK forces currently deployed on this operation include:
-- RAF Tornado and Typhoon aircraft based at Gioia del Colle in Italy
-- RAF VC10 and TriStar air-to-air refuelling tankers based in Sicily and the UK
-- RAF Sentry and Sentinel surveillance aircraft based in Sicily and Cyprus
-- HMS Ocean (helicopter carrier)
-- HMS Liverpool (Type 42 destroyer)
-- HMS Bangor (Sandown Class minehunter)
-- Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Fort Rosalie
-- British Army Apache attack helicopters
-- Fleet Air Arm Sea King helicopters (Airborne Surveillance and Area Control role)
-- RAF air transport aircraft providing extensive logistic support to the deployed bases in Italy, Sicily and the Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus.
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