19 Feb 15. Xi Jinping visit reveals H-6 bomber details. On 17 February a visit by Chinese Communist Party and People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leader Xi Jinping to a bomber unit of the PLA Air Force (PLAAF) revealed new details of its latest Xian Aircraft Corporation (XAC) H-6K bomber. As did his predecessors, Xi makes frequent visits to PLA units that are well covered by the Chinese media to stress the Party’s control over the PLA. This visit occurred on the eve of the official Chinese New Year. Xi visited a bomber unit outside the city of Xi’an operating three variants of the H-6 that have been in production since the late 1990s. They included the H-6H, which entered service in the late 1990s and is armed with two optically guided YJ-63/KD-63 land-attack cruise missiles (LACMs). Also seen was the H-6M, which entered service in 2007 equipped with four wing pylons plus new electronic warfare and missile approach warning systems. The H-6M is armed with two KD-20/K-AKD-20 1,500-2,500 km range LACMs. Most noteworthy, however, was Chinese media coverage of Xi’s cockpit tour, which for the first time provided a wide view of the cockpit of the most recent H-6K variant. This confirmed that the H-6K uses a ‘glass’ cockpit with five or more multifunction displays (MFDs) and is the first H-6 to use ejection seats for its three or four crew members. Making Xi’s visit easier was the H-6K’s first use of a stair-accessible side-entry door. Emerging in prototype form in 2007, the H-6K is the most radically modified variant, replacing its glass nose with a large solid nose housing a large radar and new electro-optical targeting pod. Its use of two Russian-made 12-ton thrust D-30-KP2 turbofans and lighter-weight composites have reportedly extended its range by 30% to a combat radius of 3,500 km. The H-6K carries six KD-20 LACMs on wing pylons plus one or more in its bomb bay. It can also carry a wide range of new precision-guided munitions available from four Chinese weapon manufacturers. (Source: IHS Jane’s)
19 Feb 15. BAE Systems scans skies for Eurofighter Typhoon orders. It became known as the Rafale curse. Several times in the past 15 years France’s Dassault Aviation came close to securing the first export order for its Rafale fighter jet, only to fail at the final hurdle. On Monday the curse appeared to be lifted when Egypt signed for 24 aircraft at an estimated value of €5.2bn. Now investors are beginning to question whether the curse has been transferred to Eurofighter Typhoon, the European combat aircraft programme 33 per cent owned by BAE Systems. BAE, which on Thursday signalled signs of a recovery in US defence spending as it reported a 12 per cent drop in underlying earnings, warned that it could start closing production lines if new Typhoon orders did not materialise this year. Ian King, chief executive, said he was confident that the Typhoon would attract a meaningful order in 2015. Nonetheless, “we flagged it up because it is a dependency”, he said. The group has said profits growth this year hinges on either new Typhoon orders or a successful conclusion to negotiations over new shipbuilding work for the Australian government. Though the Typhoon has won two export customers — Saudi Arabia with 72 aircraft in 2007 and Oman with 12 in 2012 — it has lost out to rivals in recent years for multibillion orders in the United Arab Emirates, Singapore and India. Meanwhile, a long-awaited supplementary order from the Saudis has yet to materialise. “Rafale has been a basket case and Typhoon has been unable to benefit,” said Francis Tusa, editor of Defence Analysis. “If I was BAE I would be really worried that Dassault, after Egypt, could get another Rafale deal and suddenly Typhoon is behind.” Time is pressing for the UK defence company and its consortium partners Airbus and Finmeccanica. With current production due to peter out by 2018, BAE and the others may have to start cutting jobs and closing facilities next year unless anothe