Tritons, Peregrines and Falcons

AUSTRALIA

Australia’s new MC-55 Peregrine electronic surveillance aircraft will be based on the Gulfstream G550 and may look like this artist impression.
Gulfstream

THE AUSTRALIAN government made two further airpower capability announcements in March, in the form of confirmation of a second Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton unmanned maritime surveillance platform and the formal acknowledgment that the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) will acquire four Gulfstream MC-55A Peregrine electronic surveillance platforms.

Also making news during March was the flight of the first Dassault 7X business jet from the factory in France to the Dassault delivery centre in Little Rock, Arkansas. This aircraft is the first of a reported three Falcons for the RAAF’s Special Purpose Aircraft (SPA) squadron in Canberra, but their acquisition has not yet been announced by the Australian government.

Second Triton confirmed

Australia’s Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne announced the acquisition of a second MQ- 4C Triton on March 27, 2019, following earlier approval in June 2018 for the purchase of at least six aircraft, in a deal valued at AUD 1.4 billion.

The initial announcement included the purchase of an initial Triton, with others to be added as the US Navy’s entry into service programme for the aircraft progresses. Although the initial approval is for six aircraft, to be acquired under Project Air 7000 Phase 1B, there is scope in the 2016 Defence White Paper for a seventh Triton to be acquired as an attrition reserve in the future.

The first Australian Triton is expected to arrive in mid-2023 and all six will be operational by the end of 2025.

Minister Pyne said: “The Triton, which will complement our manned P-8A Poseidon aircraft, will significantly enhance our anti-submarine warfare and maritime strike capability as well as our ability to monitor and secure Australia’s maritime approaches.” He added: “The Tritons will also be able to undertake enhanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance tasks to support whole of government operations.”

The Australian government has also recently entered into a co-operative development programme with the US Navy to further develop the multiintelligence version of the Triton, which both services are acquiring.

In RAAF service, the Tritons will be operated by a yet to be decided squadron within 92 Wing and the main operating base will be RAAF Edinburgh, but the aircraft will also be operated from a forward operating base at Tindal in the Northern Territory and other locations around the country.

Peregrine acquisition

More than two years after the first contracts were signed, the Australian government formally announced the acquisition of four Grumman MC-55A Peregrine electronic surveillance aircraft on March 18, 2019.

Defence Minister Christopher Pyne said the AUD 2.46 billion acquisition programme will enable Defence to: “Actively strengthen electronic warfare support to naval, air and land forces for operations in complex electromagnetic environments.”

It is understood that the four MC-55As, which are based on the commercial Gulfstream 550 business jet, will replace two Lockheed AP-3C(EW) Orions in service with the Royal Australian Air Force. After more than two decades of operations, the existence of the two electronic intelligence (ELINT) Orions was only acknowledged at the end of 2018.

The Gulfstreams are being acquired under Project Air 555 Phase 1 and are being modified for the ELINT role by L3 in Greenville Texas. Project Air 555 has a requirement for up to five MC-55A Peregrine aircraft, raising the possibility of a further purchase at some point in the future.

Minister Pyne said: “The Peregrine is a new airborne electronic warfare capability that will be integrated into Defence’s joint warfighting networks, providing a critical link between platforms, including the F-35A Lightning II, E-7A Wedgetail, EA-18G Growler, Navy’s surface combatants and amphibious assault ships and ground assets to support the warfighter.”

Falcon 7X: bound for the RAAF’s Canberrabased Special Purpose Aircraft unit.
Dassault Aviation

In an acquisition programme not yet announced by the Australian government, the RAAF is expected to take delivery of three Dassault 7X business jets.

He added: “The aircraft will be based at RAAF Edinburgh in South Australia – yet another piece in the broader ISR precinct being developed at the super base, which is already home to our Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. RAAF Base Edinburgh will also serve as the headquarters for our Tritons and armed (GA-ASI MQ-9) Reaper variant.”

Minister Pyne said that AUD 445 million will be spent with Australian defence companies during the acquisition phase of the project, including AUD 257 million to be spent on the construction of new facilities at Edinburgh. He said that over the 25-year life of type of the MC-55A, an estimated two billion Australian dollars of opportunity for Australian industry is projected.

The 2019-2020 Defence Portfolio Budget Statement, released on April 2, 2019, projects that the first aircraft is expected to fly 300 hours during the 2022- 2023 financial year – the first year of operations.

VIP Falcons

In an acquisition programme not yet announced by the Australian government, the RAAF is expected to take delivery of three Dassault Falcon 7X business jets in the near future, to replace a similar number of Bombardier CL604 Challengers with 34 Squadron.

The first aircraft, serial number A56-001 departed Dassault’s production facility in Bordeaux on March 30, 2019, en-route to Little Rock, where it will have its VIP interior installed.

The Falcons are leased from a civilian managing contractor and will supplement two Boeing 737-BBJs (A36-001 and -002), which have been in service since 2002, but will be reconfigured for domestic and regional roles.

The RAAF is also acquiring a seventh Airbus KC-30A multi-role tanker transport and this aircraft (A39-007) is currently undergoing completion in Europe after having a VIP cabin installed in the forward part of the fuselage. The KC-30A will retain a full air-to-air refuelling capability but will also shoulder the long-haul VIP flying currently undertaken by the two BBJs.

The three Challengers are now considered to have inadequate range for some of the longer domestic and regional South East Asia routes, particularly when departing from some regional Australian airports, which do not have long runways. It is understood that the Falcon 7X was chosen because of its relatively good short field performance, while still capable of meeting most range requirements.

Australia is facing a federal election in May and neither of the two main political parties wishes to announce it is spending millions of dollars on the lease of VIP aircraft. Interestingly, the recently released Defence Portfolio Budget Statement makes no mention of the Falcon 7X in its forward estimates of flying hours and the document claims that CL604 budgeted utilisation will remain constant at 2,403 flying hours per year through to the 2022-23 financial year.