Nope, but those that need to know, know.
Royal Australian Air Force [RAAF] News, Discussions and Updates
t68
Well-Known Member
Appears by online reports that another RAAF aircraft had engine trouble, does anyone know what the problem seems to be and is it possibly related to the loss of a Growler a while ago?
'The ground shook': RAAF jet dumps fuel tank after malfunction
Edit
By this article the aircraft nation is unknown,
Pitch Black: Fuel tank ejected from plane over Darwin during international air force exercise - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
'The ground shook': RAAF jet dumps fuel tank after malfunction
Edit
By this article the aircraft nation is unknown,
Pitch Black: Fuel tank ejected from plane over Darwin during international air force exercise - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)
SpazSinbad
Active Member
"Drop tank" did not split? I find that an incredible outcome IF there was fuel in it. Perhaps the drop tank was empty? That makes sense to me - been there - done that. Meanwhile a long story at USNI about the SINKEX x2 RIMPAC & Harpponies & Mk.48s in which our P-8 did fire an HARPOON. Found the penultimate para most interesting.
I'd bet that the radio station read this in the ABC coverage....
....and assumed that there was no damage to the tank, rather than to anything on the ground as intended by the RAAF spokesperson.
Darwin being Darwin, I'd sure he was pissed it didn't hit another ute!
SpazSinbad
Active Member
AND... no crocodiles were hurt. :-( This is front page stuff indeed.
The earlier one sure did some damage to the ute.
Good thing to. Because they are protected image the paperwork that would have to be filled out. Be horrendous & we know how much you flyboys just love filling out non aviation related paperwork.
SpazSinbad
Active Member
I don't understand the need for coyness. IF it was an fuel tank empty or not 'they' should say whether it had fuel or not, to stop useless speculation by numnuts otherwise - "large piece of aircraft" pigsbum!
Search crews scour thick bushland in Wishart looking for large piece of a Pitch Black aircraft seen falling from the sky 31 Jul 2018 NATASHA EMECK
Search crews scour thick bushland in Wishart looking for large piece of a Pitch Black aircraft seen falling from the sky 31 Jul 2018 NATASHA EMECK
Air Force Takes Virtual Exercise to New Heights
(Source: Royal Australian Air Force; issued July 27, 2018)
Exercise Virtual Pitch Black 2018 (VPB18) has taken virtual training to a new level for the Royal Australian Air Force even before the "live" exercise launched on 27 Jul 18.
VPB18 was conceived as a work-up to Exercise Pitch Black 2018 as a highly-complex, multi-national large force exercise that provided integration and training opportunities for the Air Force to work with key coalition and regional partners.
The main training audiences for VPB18 came from 41 Wing who provided ground-based Command and Control (C2) of air assets, Number 2 Squadron who provided airborne C2 with their E-7A Virtual Wedgetail and Number 37 Squadron operating in the low-level tactical environment using their C-130J full-motion cockpit simulator.
Wing Commander Mick Tully, VPB18 Exercise Director, said the exercise was about taking the highly complex Pitch Black live environment into the virtual space.
"This is to provide training opportunities and exposure to environments ahead of time for the aircrew and operators to experience on Exercise Pitch Black 18," Wing Commander Tully said.
“A highly experienced team was contracted through MilSkil in order to develop a set of scenarios that would adequately prepare the training audience for the “live” Pitch Black exercise.
“This MilSkil team filled key white-force roles to ensure maximum realism for briefing, planning and execution - the exercise was able to fully meet intent.”
VPB18 was enabled by the Air Warfare Centre’s – Distributed Training Centre (AWC-DTC) at RAAF Base Williamtown, a system developed by the Defence Science and Technology Group.
Simulator sites across Air Force are networked using the Defence Training and Experimentation Network (DTEN), with the AWC-DTC enabling exercise control as well as blue and red force injects.
Beyond the ability to connect remote simulators for mission execution, VPB18 provided the opportunity for Air Battle Managers, ground and air, to actively plan with fighter aircraft (MilSkil) and C-130J Hercules aircrew as it will be done in the live Pitch Black exercise.
“VPB18 was a perfect introduction for junior C-130 crews. Scenarios facilitated the airlift role nicely and allowed crews the opportunity to practice establishing contracts with the Offensive Counter Air, Strike and Command and Control packages” said VPB18 C-130J Hercules Lead Planner, Flight Lieutenant Chris Bennie.
The AWC-DTC will continue to expand the networked virtual capabilities for Air Force, with these types of exercises becoming more and more common. The future intent of the AWC-DTC is to provide a standing capability within Air Force to conduct distributed training in the virtual environment on demand, rather than as discreet activities.
“We are merging simulators that have existed separately, but not together as one. We are creating a training system that is integrated and enables a level of complexity, density, scale and fidelity that can work for all,” Wing Commander Tully said.
“Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) activities allow Air Force to integrate and exercise our advanced capabilities and tactics in a safe and secure environment without the necessity and cost of getting them airborne.
“Exercises like Virtual Pitch Black demonstrate the value of virtual training while enabling the continual development and expansion of Air Force’s distributed training capabilities.”
(Source: Royal Australian Air Force; issued July 27, 2018)
Exercise Virtual Pitch Black 2018 (VPB18) has taken virtual training to a new level for the Royal Australian Air Force even before the "live" exercise launched on 27 Jul 18.
VPB18 was conceived as a work-up to Exercise Pitch Black 2018 as a highly-complex, multi-national large force exercise that provided integration and training opportunities for the Air Force to work with key coalition and regional partners.
The main training audiences for VPB18 came from 41 Wing who provided ground-based Command and Control (C2) of air assets, Number 2 Squadron who provided airborne C2 with their E-7A Virtual Wedgetail and Number 37 Squadron operating in the low-level tactical environment using their C-130J full-motion cockpit simulator.
Wing Commander Mick Tully, VPB18 Exercise Director, said the exercise was about taking the highly complex Pitch Black live environment into the virtual space.
"This is to provide training opportunities and exposure to environments ahead of time for the aircrew and operators to experience on Exercise Pitch Black 18," Wing Commander Tully said.
“A highly experienced team was contracted through MilSkil in order to develop a set of scenarios that would adequately prepare the training audience for the “live” Pitch Black exercise.
“This MilSkil team filled key white-force roles to ensure maximum realism for briefing, planning and execution - the exercise was able to fully meet intent.”
VPB18 was enabled by the Air Warfare Centre’s – Distributed Training Centre (AWC-DTC) at RAAF Base Williamtown, a system developed by the Defence Science and Technology Group.
Simulator sites across Air Force are networked using the Defence Training and Experimentation Network (DTEN), with the AWC-DTC enabling exercise control as well as blue and red force injects.
Beyond the ability to connect remote simulators for mission execution, VPB18 provided the opportunity for Air Battle Managers, ground and air, to actively plan with fighter aircraft (MilSkil) and C-130J Hercules aircrew as it will be done in the live Pitch Black exercise.
“VPB18 was a perfect introduction for junior C-130 crews. Scenarios facilitated the airlift role nicely and allowed crews the opportunity to practice establishing contracts with the Offensive Counter Air, Strike and Command and Control packages” said VPB18 C-130J Hercules Lead Planner, Flight Lieutenant Chris Bennie.
The AWC-DTC will continue to expand the networked virtual capabilities for Air Force, with these types of exercises becoming more and more common. The future intent of the AWC-DTC is to provide a standing capability within Air Force to conduct distributed training in the virtual environment on demand, rather than as discreet activities.
“We are merging simulators that have existed separately, but not together as one. We are creating a training system that is integrated and enables a level of complexity, density, scale and fidelity that can work for all,” Wing Commander Tully said.
“Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) activities allow Air Force to integrate and exercise our advanced capabilities and tactics in a safe and secure environment without the necessity and cost of getting them airborne.
“Exercises like Virtual Pitch Black demonstrate the value of virtual training while enabling the continual development and expansion of Air Force’s distributed training capabilities.”
SpazSinbad
Active Member
Not necessarily. Drop tanks if used often or not are left on because there is usually negligible performance loss if they are empty and left on. I guess one can look at an F-16 Dash One flight manual (if we know the size of the centerline drop tank) to work it out. The F-16 may take off with tank empty to then take on fuel from a tanker as part of the mission. Who knows. However making a claim that the tank is near full is fraught methinks. From experience an empty tank may survive with severe dents but intact. Whereas a tank of fuel dropping even as the aircraft lifts off (which happened to an A4G at Nowra - bad connection) the tank will burst into small bits of metal. So now we need to know the state of this tank (frankly 'I don't give a damn' but hey it must be a slow news day).
Subsequent reporting on the incident states that the tank was full, it did destroy itself and a fuel cleanup ensued.Not necessarily. Drop tanks if used often or not are left on because there is usually negligible performance loss if they are empty and left on. I guess one can look at an F-16 Dash One flight manual (if we know the size of the centerline drop tank) to work it out. The F-16 may take off with tank empty to then take on fuel from a tanker as part of the mission. Who knows. However making a claim that the tank is near full is fraught methinks. From experience an empty tank may survive with severe dents but intact. Whereas a tank of fuel dropping even as the aircraft lifts off (which happened to an A4G at Nowra - bad connection) the tank will burst into small bits of metal. So now we need to know the state of this tank (frankly 'I don't give a damn' but hey it must be a slow news day).
SpazSinbad
Active Member
Ahah. Thanks. I guess the 'contamination vehicle team' gave it away but it was a LARGE PIECE of the AIRCRAFT.
40 deg south
Well-Known Member
A different beast – the RAAF's C-27J Spartan - Australian Aviation
Interesting piece on the C-27J from Australian Aviation magazine.
Sounds a handy wee unit, but surprised to learn that it has a similar takeoff distance to a C-130.
Interesting piece on the C-27J from Australian Aviation magazine.
Sounds a handy wee unit, but surprised to learn that it has a similar takeoff distance to a C-130.
John Fedup
The Bunker Group
The article does point out that the C-27J can access 1900 available landing fields in Australia compared to 500 for the C-130J, an important consideration. A shame this aircraft wasn't selected for Canada's FWSAR program.
You could say the same about us Kiwis. We do have an internationally certified USAR (Urban SAR) team. Having said that, maybe Indonesia hasn't asked for international help.
Maybe so. I heard Julie Bishop interviewed two days ago saying that we were ready to provide assistance and waiting for advice on what Indonesia wanted.
oldsig
Redlands18
Well-Known Member
Australia and New Zealand are never slow in offering help in these disasters but have to be invited in first, can't do anything until Indonesia gives the go ahead.
FORBIN
Member
For it look here F-18 fleet The Royal Australian Air Force
Except OCU ( 20 F-18s ) in general 15 birds by Sqn so x 3 + OCU do 65 remains about 7
I add now all the F-18 from 3 Sqn are with 77 Sqn wich have 31 F-18s, 3 Sqn have only F-35A six
BTW considering F-18E have only 8 years if RAAF buy saying in 2025 -30 28 new F-35A for a total of 100 seems logic keep young F-18E with especialy China ramp up … have more fighters and a new Sqn stand up ?
Even if the fleet is very modern and no direct threats around Australia 110 combattants with EA-18G is a number a little just.
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