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DATE:17/06/08
SOURCE:Flightglobal.com
RAF Tornados to replace Harriers in Afghanistan
By Craig Hoyle

The UK Royal Air Force’s Panavia Tornado GR4s are to assume a new mission from early next year, with the type to replace a detachment of BAE Systems Harrier GR7/9 ground-attack aircraft which has been based at Afghanistan’s Kandahar airfield since November 2004.

Announcing the move on 16 June, UK defence secretary Des Browne described Joint Force Harrier’s provision of close air support services in Afghanistan (below) as "Amongst the most potent of all our capabilities in deterring and denying the insurgency.”


© Crown Copyright


But noting: “I am very mindful of the strain that this extended deployment has put upon the crews, their families and the wider roles of Joint Force Harrier,” Browne said: “I have therefore decided to withdraw the Harrier force by spring 2009 and to replace them with an equivalent force of Tornado GR4s.”


© Craig Hoyle/Flight International


The decision to deploy Tornados in the place of the Harrier confirms a move away from an earlier proposal to send the RAF’s new Eurofighter Typhoons to Kandahar. It also places added pressure on the service’s GR4 community (617 Sqn aircraft pictured above), which is currently manning a long-running commitment to support coalition operations in Iraq from Qatar’s Al Udeid air base.

See next week’s Flight International for an update on the Typhoon’s preparation for multirole operations
http://www.rbiforms.co.uk/fgnewsletters_reg.html?cp=BAC-FGAMN-bnr_fg


Lo there do I see my father.
Lo there do I see my mother.
Lo there do I see my brothers and my sisters.
Lo there do I see the line of my people back to the beginning.
Lo they do call to me;
they bid me take my place among them in the Halls of Valhalla,
where the brave may live forever.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
There were 481 occasions were Typhoons were cannibalised last year in the RAF to keep the rest of the fleet running... Jwcook <<<<<<<<<
AVE-C EUROPEAN FIRST INSTABLE STEALTH UAV.
FIRST FLIGHT 7 November 2002.

Not Typhoon that shown great A2G capability in the US.

I can see Tumbleweed cheering now...

Quote: I can see Tumbleweed cheering now...

Well i believe he have some very good reasons to wish Typhoon not to deploy now and BTW he isn't the only one from this community...


Lo there do I see my father.
Lo there do I see my mother.
Lo there do I see my brothers and my sisters.
Lo there do I see the line of my people back to the beginning.
Lo they do call to me;
they bid me take my place among them in the Halls of Valhalla,
where the brave may live forever.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
There were 481 occasions were Typhoons were cannibalised last year in the RAF to keep the rest of the fleet running... Jwcook <<<<<<<<<
AVE-C EUROPEAN FIRST INSTABLE STEALTH UAV.
FIRST FLIGHT 7 November 2002.

I have no concerns as to the Typhoons ability to do a great job when it does go out, but as I’ve said for a while I don’t think it should go until it can support the whole detachment on it’s own. I’m not a fan of mixing formations for the sake of getting some nice piccies or claiming that a piece of kit is now combat proven. Once 6 sqn is up and running then the Tiffie fleet can hold the detachment, but until then let the GR4s fill the gap. Who said giving up production and OCU slots wouldn’t have some effect on the front line??

There maybe a case for some Typhoons to go out and support the Tornados if the GR4s warload is found too little for high intensity ops. This would allow the overall formation to carry more weapons, but that on an ‘as required’ basis.

I think the real pity is that the best aircraft for the job in Afghanistan is the one coming home.

Nothing to add to that!


Lo there do I see my father.
Lo there do I see my mother.
Lo there do I see my brothers and my sisters.
Lo there do I see the line of my people back to the beginning.
Lo they do call to me;
they bid me take my place among them in the Halls of Valhalla,
where the brave may live forever.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
There were 481 occasions were Typhoons were cannibalised last year in the RAF to keep the rest of the fleet running... Jwcook <<<<<<<<<
AVE-C EUROPEAN FIRST INSTABLE STEALTH UAV.
FIRST FLIGHT 7 November 2002.