Gambar selepas link.

Tepat jam 2.15 petang, pesawat A400M bernombor siri M54-01 telahpun bersedia di tarmac dan Menteri Pertahanan serta para tetamu jemputan mula melangkah masuk ke dalam perut pesawat. Beliau kemudiannya diberikan penerangan tentang pesawat dan kemudiannya krew pesawat mula melakukan persiapan untuk berlepas. Sebaik sahaja juruterbang menerima kebenaran untuk berlepas, pesawat mula bergerak perlahan menuju ke landasan. Berbeza dengan ketika menaiki pesawat penumpang komersil, pesawat pengangkut tentera tidak dilengkapi dengan keupayaan kedap bunyi yang tinggi. Jadi keadaan menjadi sedikit bising dan sedikit beralun- alun sama seperti ketika menaiki tren LRT. Akan tetapi keadaan menjadi lancar sebaik sahaja pesawat bergerak laju di landasan untuk berlepas.

Penerbangan A400M mengambil masa lebih kurang 35 minit dan terbang di sekitar ruang udara Pelabuhan Klang. Semasa penerbangan, D.S Hishamuddin Hussein telah melawat bahagian kokpit untuk melihat sendiri bagaimana krew mengendalikan pesawat. Jika dibandingkan dengan pesawat C-130H yang digunakan oleh TUDM sejak tahun 1970an, pesawat A400M bukan sahaja lebih besar dan lebih berkapasiti tinggi, ia juga dilengkapi dengan pelbagai sistem terkini seperti sistem pengendalian kargo berkomputer manakala kokpItnya pula menggunakan sistem glass cockpit sepenuhnya setanding dengan sistem glass cockpit yang digunakan oleh pesawat penumpang komersil keluaran firma Airbus yang lain. Tidak ketinggalan adalah sistem pertahanan pasif dan elektronik pesawat yang tiada pada pesawat C-130H. Disamping itu, terdapat inovasi-  inovasi yang mungkin kelihatan kecil tetapi tidak kurang pentingnya seperti kamera di bahagian kargo yang membolehkan krew di kokpit untuk memantau keadaan dan seterusnya meningkatkan situational awareness krew di sepanjang penerbangan.

Pesawat A400M yang membawa D.S Hishamuddin Hussein bersama para jemputan dan wakil- wakil media selamat mendarat di pangkalan udara Subang pada jam 3:40 petang dan dibawa terus ke hadapan hangar yang dibina khas untuk menempatkan pesawat A400M kendalian No.22 Skuadron  TUDM. Pesawat yang bakal dirasmikan iaitu pesawat A400M bernombor siri M54-02 telahpun gah berada di dalam hangar, menantikan ketibaan Menteri Pertahanan dan para jemputan. Dalam ucapan perasmian beliau, D.S Hishamuddin Hussein mengumumkan bahawa dua lagi pesawat A400M dijangka akan tiba di tanah air pada bulan April dan November 2016.
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Tim RENTAKA mengucapkan setinggi- tinggi perhargaan kepada pihak TUDM kerana menjemput kami ke upacara yang gilang-gemilang ini. Kami berharap agar TUDM terus akan dimantapkan lagi keupayaannya sejajar dengan fungsinya sebagai salah satu benteng pertahanan utama negara, insyaAllah.

Malaysian officials have been talking about a new multi-role combat aircraft (MRCA) for the past five years. The first priority of the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) was supposedly to replace the MiG-29s that were acquired 20 years ago. Based at Kuantan on the country’s east coast, 18 aircraft served in two squadrons originally, but two crashed and half of the remaining fleet has been grounded and cannibalized to keep the remainder flying.

The RMAF also operates one squadron of eight Boeing F/A-18D Hornets acquired in 1997, a squadron of 18 Sukhoi Su-30MKMs acquired in 2007 and a squadron of 18 BAE Hawks that have a primary combat, rather than training, role. A squadron of elderly Northrop F-5E/Fs has been retired.

In March 2013, at considerable expense, the air forces of France, Sweden and the UK all dispatched operational versions of their respective Euro-canards to the LIMA show–the Rafale, Gripen and Typhoon. Boeing sponsored the appearance of two U.S. Navy F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, and presumably also the cost of getting them there by refuelling from an Omega Air KDC-10 tanker. Moscow sent the Russian Knights aerobatic team of five Su-27 Flankers, eyeing the possibility that the RMAF might opt to buy more Su-30s to meet the MRCA requirement.

All this made for a great airshow on an otherwise sleepy island that was developed for tourism by Malaysia’s energetic former Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohammed. But no choice of a new fighter was forthcoming.

The federal government in Kuala Lumpur allocates funding for big-ticket items in five-year development plans, and the MRCA was not in the current plan. Moreover, some informed observers–and at least one senior RMAFofficer that spoke to AIN–believe that the air force should prioritize spending on an airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft and more maritime patrol aircraft (MPA). Besides, just how many different fighter types should a country like Malaysia seek to operate?

Crowded Field at LIMA 2015

Despite this, and attracted by a Malaysian request for information on possible lease options for the MRCA rather than a purchase, the fighter marketing circus returned to LIMA in March 2015. The French air force sent two Rafales from their now-permanent deployment at Al Dhafra airbase in the UAE. One of the French jets flew each day during the show.

Meanwhile, Saab arranged for the Thai air force to send one of its Gripens for the static park. The U.S. Navy flew in Boeing two Super Hornets from its nearby aircraft carrier for static display. Eurofighter did not bring hardware, but the full-scale model was shipped in and reassembled in a prime position just outside the entrance to LIMA’s big exhibition hall. The Russians also didn’t send jets this time, but an RMAF Sukhoi Su-30 pilot put on a great display.

Top brass and government officials supported the marketers from the aerospace companies. For instance, theUK sent defense procurement minister Philip Dunne, Royal Air Force Air Chief Marshall Sir Andrew Pulford and Sir Glenn Torpy, one of Pulford’s predecessors as RAF chief and now the senior military advisor to BAE Systems. The British company has the lead on marketing the four-nation Eurofighter in Malaysia.

French air force chief General Denis Mercier was also present. Pulford, Mercier and other senior visiting airmen were obliged to sit through a long opening session of the Air Chiefs Conference put on by the show organizers.

Meanwhile, Malaysian defence minister Hishammuddin Hussein and RMAF commander General Roslan Saad toured the show, but made no commitments about the MRCA. In his public comments, Hishammuddin stressed the threat to Malaysia from terrorism and piracy–hardly the prime mission areas for a new combat aircraft.

Options Aplenty

Unlike his predecessor General Rodzali, General Roslan did not seem so insistent that the MiG-29s must be replaced. He told AIN that they were still flying in one squadron and that, although spares were expensive, no out-of-service date had been fixed.

“We’re talking to RAC MiG about that,” Roslan added. Indeed, the MiG company had a stand at LIMA 2015 where it was displaying a proposed service-life extension and upgrade to the RMAF’s MiG-29s.

To give them credit, Hishammuddin, Roslan and other top Malaysian officers and government officials spent the whole week at the show, even the public days, and must have made contact with most of the exhibitors. Regarding the MRCA, they would not have lacked for advice.

“It’s important that air forces understand the cost of their desires,” Knut Ovrebo, Saab’s chief engineer for future air systems, told attendees at the Air Chiefs Conference. The Swedish company is proposing a package that would include the EriEye AEW/MPA system on a Saab 2000 turboprop twin, as well as the Gripen, thus meeting three RMAF requirements.

“We provided a similar package to Thailand, and they are very happy with it,” a Saab manager told AIN at LIMA. “That package included tactical datalinks and naval and land-based C4I, so the Thais now have some sophisticated data fusion. Not many nations have that,” he added.

“A new fighter is an acquisition for the next 30 years, and over that period sustainment will be 70 percent of the total outlay,” a Boeing official told AIN. He claimed that Boeing had a significant advantage here, with the F-18D already in the RMAF inventory. “There’s a common network of suppliers between the Hornet and the Super Hornet, common support equipment, as well as aircrew, training and maintenance synergies,” he added.

Sir Glenn Torpy described the Typhoon’s combat record over Libya and its role as the defender of British airspace. He was also keen to stress the importance of factoring in the operating costs. “The RAF has achieved a 15-percent reduction with the Tornado through collaboration with industry, and we’re now seeing the same on Typhoon,” he added.

Dassault Aviation was handing out a glossy six-page brochure that had been entirely translated into the Malay language by Rafale International, the marketing entity that also includes Snecma and Thales. Complete with a long personal message from Dassault chief Eric Trappier, the brochure touted the Rafale’s sovereignty and maintainability, as well as its combat-proven record. As in other campaigns, such as Brazil, Rafale International also created a dedicated website that locals could access for data and photos of the French jet and videos that it produced at the LIMA show.

One of the EDA’s biggest concerns about the competition for exports between the European fighters is the stimulus that it generates for the giving-away of precious technology and production work as offsets. And there was no shortage of such offers at LIMA.

Rafale International promised “a key role” for several Malaysian aviation and defense companies, in partnerships that “will go beyond the Rafale program by offering other high-technology cooperation.” BAE Systems said that “industrial partnerships form an important part of our strategy” and announced a new contract for Hawk pylons with local company SME Aerospace.

Education Is Key

Education is another key battleground. Both Rafale International and Saab have organized technology seminars open to hundred of students at Malaysian higher education institutes or universities. BAE Systems sponsors one-year engineering masters’ degree scholarships for Malaysian students at British universities. Boeing’s regional vice-president made a careers presentation at LIMA on “the importance of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics for Boeing and the aerospace industry.”

Since the LIMA show, the French have secured orders for the Rafale from Egypt and Qatar, and a renewed commitment from India. The Rafales from LIMA 2015 flew on to Jakarta for demonstration to the Indonesian air force.

But it’s not clear how much capacity remains in France to build more jets for a fourth or fifth customer. However, at his pre-Paris Air Show press conference two years ago, Dassault Aviation boss Eric Trappier said that Malaysia could have its own production line, if it wanted.

Meanwhile, Saab has progressed its big partnership with Brazil for the Gripen, and confirmed the Swedish order for the new-generation Gripen E/F. It could be that Boeing and Eurofighter are most in need of new export business right now. Without it, both the Typhoon and the Super Hornet will be out of production by the end of the decade. Perhaps the sponsors of these jets had better reserve their exhibition space for LIMA 2017.

Or perhaps not. Two weeks ago, RMAF commander Gen Rosland told the Malaysian media that the MiG-29N fleet would be upgraded after all. He said, “Initially there were plans to phase out the aircraft and replace them with another multi-role combat aircraft. However, we have decided to upgrade the aircraft to ensure it has similar capabilities with fighter jets owned by other countries.” (Ainonline)

By: Selex ES (www.selex-es.com)

This is the first time that the SAGE Electronic Support Measure (ESM) has been chosen for a fixed-wing maritime patrol requirement. It will be used by the Indonesian Air Force for maritime patrol missions. 

 SAGE can identify and geolocate RF emitters, from a single platform providing situational awareness and intellingence. 

 The system will be integrated onto an Indonesian Air Force CN-235 aircraft. 

 SAGE has been developed for easy integration on any platform types including helicopters and Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems. 

Finmeccanica – Selex ES has signed a contract with US-based prime contractor Integrated Surveillance and Defense Inc. (ISD) to provide a SAGE 600 digital Electronic Support Measure (ESM) system for the Indonesian Air Force. The system will be delivered in September for integration onto a maritime patrol mission system for an Indonesian Air Force Airbus CN-235 aircraft. 

SAGE is an electronic warfare system for RF intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. It passively collects emitter data from RF sources at a tactically significant range, compares them with an emitter library and then identifies and geolocates any threats. 

This is the first selection of SAGE for a fixed-wing maritime patrol requirement. The system has been designed with flexibility in mind, allowing ease of integration onto a wide range of aerial vehicles- from fixed to rotary wing, up to unmanned aerial systems- and has previously flown on a number of other platform types including the Schiebel CAMCOPTER® S-100 remotely-piloted air system. SAGE is in use with the UK MoD and has been provided to the Republic of Korea as part of a package of electronic warfare equipment for the country’s Maritime Operational Helicopter (MOH) programme. 

SAGE is part of Selex ES’s portfolio of advanced electronic warfare capabilities that range from individual sensors to fully integrated defensive aid suites, all backed up by the company’s dedicated Electronic Warfare Operational Support (EWOS) facility. (Selex-ES)

Oleh: Kompas (www.kompas.com)

Panglima TNI Jenderal Moeldoko mengatakan, rencana pembelian helikopter CH-48 atau lebih dikenal dengan nama Chinook baru terlaksana pada 2016.

"Anggarannya bukan tahun ini, tahun 2016," ujar Moeldoko di Solo, Kamis (11/6/2015) malam.

Moeldoko mengatakan, rencananya Chinook akan diserahkan untuk TNI Angkatan Darat sebagai bagian alat utama sistem persenjataan (alutsista). Selain itu, juga dapat difungsikan sebagai alat angkut.

"Untuk alat angkut berat, karena itu mobilitas sangat tinggi dan daya angkut personelnya baik. Satu peleton bisa itu," kata dia.

Moeldoko mengaku telah melihat kehebatan helikopter buatan Amerika Serikat itu seperti ketika beberapa bencana alam di Indonesia. Saat itu, sejumlah negara membawa bantuan menggunakan Chinook.

"Waktu tsunami Aceh, kita dapat bantuan dari Singapura dan Tiongkok memakai Chinook. Itu sangat luar biasa, cepat, dan mengangkut banyak orang," ujar dia.

Rencana pembelian helikopter dengan mesin ganda tersebut pertama kali diungkapkan oleh Menteri Pertahanan Ryamizard Ryacudu. Dia mengatakan, Chinook bakal melengkapi alutsista TNI. Harga helikopter Chinook ini ditaksir mencapai 30 juta dollar AS.

"Beli Chinook memang mahal, tetapi nyawa orang lebih mahal," ucap Moeldoko di kantornya, Rabu (3/6/2015) lalu. (Kompas)

Oleh: Utusan (www.utusan.com.my)

Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia (TUDM) masih menilai tawaran syarikat penerbangan Sweden, SAAB berhubung pembelian 16 buah pesawat pejuang Gripen NG sebagai aset tambahan kepada unit pertahanan udara negara.

Timbalan Presiden SAAB, Thomas Lindén berkata, perkembangan kerjasama masih di peringkat awal dan TUDM sedang menilai tawaran bersama-sama DRB-Hicom, selaku rakan kongsi tempatan.

“Dengan perkembangan semasa Malaysia berhubung pembentangan Rancangan Malaysia Ke-11 (RMK-11), kami berharap urusan jual beli antara SAAB dengan TUDM dapat direalisasikan melalui peruntukan dalam aset ketenteraan bagi Kementerian Pertahanan.

“Pesawat pejuang Gripen NG yang sebelum ini pernah mengambil bahagian dalam Pameran Udara dan Maritim Antarabangsa Langkawi (LIMA) telah menerima maklum balas positif dan mewujudkan minat di semua peringkat,” katanya kepada selepas menghadiri seminar Sistem Pertempuran Udara di sini hari ini.

Seminar yang berlangsung selama dua jam tersebut disampaikan Ketua Jurutera dan Pengurus Produk SAAB, Knut Övrebö di Dewan Bestari, Universiti Pertahanan Nasional Malaysia (UPNM) itu turut dihadiri Naib Canselor UPNM, Jeneral Tan Sri Zulkifli Zainal Abidin.

Gripen NG dilengkapi sistem pertempuran dan pelancar peluru yang canggih dan boleh ditempah mengikut spesifikasi dikehendaki serta merupakan antara pesawat terawal yang memberi fokus kepada pertempuran di medan udara.

Sementara itu, Duta Sweden ke Malaysia, Bengt Carlsson berkata, syarikat Sweden telah banyak menyumbang kepada pertumbuhan ekonomi Malaysia dan berharap kerjasama dengan negara ini dapat ditingkatkan dalam bidang pertahanan pula pada masa akan datang. (Utusan)

By: Ridzwan Rahmat (www.janes.com)


French shipyard Constructions Mécaniques de Normandie (CMN) has introduced a new 95 m missile corvette design to the Asia-Pacific market.

A model of the corvette, known as the C Sword 90, was unveiled at the IMDEX 2015 exhibition in Singapore. The company is marketing it to navies that operate in littoral waters, especially in the Southeast Asian region.

According to CMN, the corvette has a maximum speed of 28 kt and can attain a standard range of 7,000 n miles at 12 kt. It can carry a crew of 65 with additional berths for 20. The vessel is powered by two propulsion diesel engines and two controlled pitch propellers.

The vessel features a hull design with reduced radar cross-section and has a flight deck that can accommodate a helicopter weighing up to 10 tonnes. The ship can also carry up to two rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs) with dedicated davits and can be equipped to deploy unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).

The C Sword 90 can be equipped with either a 57 mm or 76 mm gun as a primary weapon and up to two 20 mm or 30 mm cannons as secondary armaments. The vessel has space for a 16-cell vertical launch system for surface-to-air missiles and can also accommodate up to eight surface-to-surface missiles.

The corvette can also be armed with one hull mounted sonar, a towed array module, and up to two triple-tube torpedo launchers for submarine prosecution.

"The main selling point of the C Sword 90 is that an operator can fit such a vast array of equipment on a compact platform that measures just 95 m," Cherif Rdissi, CMN's naval and civil commercial director, told IHS Jane's on 21 May. "The corvette has also been designed with a round bilge hull shape to reduce fuel consumption and operational costs," he said.

According to Rdissi, CMN is targeting countries including Malaysia and Vietnam, both of which have articulated a requirement for corvettes in the near- to medium-term. "Other than that we are looking to market to it to the Middle East to countries such as Oman," he said. (IHS Jane's Navy International)

Indonesia’s defence budget will increase by 17 percent in 2015, from IDR83.3 trillion ($6.3 billion) to IDR97.4 trillion ($7.4 billion) and is expected to grow 14 percent a year until the end of the decade (average annual growth). IHS Aerospace, Defence & Security forecasts that the Indonesian Defence expenditure will pass IDR180 trillion ($14.3 billion) annually by 2020.

“Growth of this scale is certainly exceptional and the Indonesian government appears committed to raising defence spending significantly” said Craig Caffrey, principal budget analyst for IHS Aerospace, Defence & Security. “The economic outlook for Indonesia remains strong and President Widodo’s removal of the fuel subsidy will free up additional money for defence.”

For the next five years, Indonesia is likely to see a consistent level of growth. “Achieving sustainable high growth rates seems entirely possible given the strong political backing defence appears to have,” Caffrey said.

Indonesia was the world’s 15th largest importer of equipment in 2014, according to IHS data, importing $1.8 billion worth of equipment. The single largest supplier of equipment to Indonesia last year was South Korea ($450 million).

Asia Pacific Driving Global Growth in Defence Spending 
Growth elsewhere in Asia Pacific is also expected to be robust over the remainder of the decade averaging 4.7 percent in real terms. “Asia Pacific is really expected to be the driver behind global defence spending increases over the next five years,” Caffrey said “By the end of the decade, regional spending is expected to reach around $550 billion, or around a third of all global expenditure.” (IHS)

By: Lockheed Martin (www.lockheedmartin.com)

The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) and Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) recently selected Lockheed Martin’s (NYSE: LMT) Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod (ATP) for their F-16 fleets, becoming the 18th and 19th international customers to receive this advanced sensor capability.

Lockheed Martin will integrate and field Sniper ATPs on existing RoAF and RTAF aircraft and provide initial sustainment support. Pod deliveries began in early 2015 to meet operational need requirements.

“Sniper ATP will provide the RoAF and the RTAF with precision targeting capability to locate targets using high-resolution imagery,” said Rich Lovette, Sniper ATP international program director at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. “Sniper ATP’s proven performance and low life-cycle costs are key differentiators for these air forces and other allies abroad.”

Sniper ATP offers pilots high-resolution imagery for precision targeting and non-traditional intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. It detects, identifies, automatically tracks and laser-designates small tactical targets at long ranges and supports employment of laser- and GPS-guided weapons against multiple fixed and moving targets.

Sniper ATP’s interoperability also enables coalition air forces to use the pod across multiple platforms, including U.S. Air Force and multinational F-15, F-16, F-18, A-10, B-1 and B-52 aircraft. (Lockheed Martin)

"Yes, (we) grounded ours till we know more," Hishammuddin said in his Twitter reply to a Bernama.      

According to the Reuters news agency, an A400M military transport plane crashed outside Seville during the weekend, killing four members of the test crew and seriously injuring two others. 

The incident prompted Malaysia, Germany, Britain and Turkey to ground their fleets of the new troop and cargo carrier.


Based on local media reports, Malaysia has ordered four A400Ms, and has received delivery of the first aircraft on March 9, after they were purchased in 2005.

Malaysia is expected to receive two more of the aircraft by the end of this year and the last one next year. (BERNAMA)