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November 13, 2008: The U.S. Navy istraining four of its personnel (three P-3 pilots and one civilian) to operateRQ-4 Global Hawk UAVs. The navy has two RQ-4s on order, and intends to replaceits aging fleet of P-3 maritime reconnaissance aircraft with a mix of new P-8Amanned aircraft and RQ-4s equipped with sensors optimized for maritimeoperations. The four navy trainees are in an accelerated course (four monthsinstead of five) and will be made available to help fly U.S. Air Force RQ-4s.The air force can use the help, as the RQ-4s have been in the air for 20,000hours over the last decade. The rate of use is accelerating. Although the Boeing 737 based P-8A is atwo engine jet, compared to the four engine turboprop P-3, it is a more capableplane. The P-8A has 23 percent more floor space than the P-3, and is larger(118 foot wingspan, versus 100 foot) and heavier (83 tons versus 61). Mostother characteristics are the same. Both can stay in the air about ten hoursper sortie. Speed is different. Cruise speed for the 737 is 910 kilometers anhour, versus 590 for the propeller driven P-3. This makes it possible for theP-8A to get to a patrol area faster, which is a major advantage when chasingdown subs spotted by sonar arrays or satellites. However, the P-3 can carrymore weapons (9 tons, versus 5.6.) This is less of a factor as the weapons(torpedoes, missiles, mines, sonobouys) are, pound for pound, more effective todayand that trend continues. Both carry the same size crew, of 10-11 pilots andequipment operators. Both aircraft carry search radar and various othersensors. The 737 has, like the P-3. beenequipped with bomb hard points on the wings for torpedoes or missiles. TheB-737 is a more modern design, and has been used successfully since the 1960sby commercial aviation. Navy aviators are confident that it will be as reliableas the P-3 (which was based on the Electra civilian airliner that first flew in1954, although only 170 were built, plus 600 P-3s. About 40 Electras are stillin service). The Boeing 737 first flew in 1965, and over 5,000 have been built.The P-8A will be the first 737 designed with a bomb bay and four wing racks forweapons. Meanwhile, the U.S. Air Force and Navyare buying the B version of the RQ-4 Global Hawk UAVs, at a cost of $58 millioneach. This version is larger (wingspan is 15 feet larger, at 131 feet, and it'sfour feet longer at 48 feet) than the A model, and can carry more equipment. Tosupport that, there's a new generator that produces 150 percent more electricalpower. The RQ-4 has a range of over 22,000 kilometers and a cruising speed of650 kilometers an hour. The first three RQ-4Bs entered servicein 2006. At 13 tons, the Global Hawk is the size of a commuter airliner (likethe Embraer ERJ 145), but costs nearly twice as much. Global Hawk can beequipped with much more powerful, and expensive, sensors. These more the doublethe cost of the aircraft. These "spy satellite quality" sensors(especially AESA radar) are usually worth the expense, because they enable theUAV, flying at over 60,000 feet, to get a sharp picture of all the territory itcan see from that altitude. The B version is supposed to be a lot more reliable.Early A models tended to fail and crash at the rate of once every thousandflight hours. The maritime RQ-4 is seen as theultimate replacement for all manned maritime patrol aircraft. The P-8A willprobably be the last manned naval search aircraft. Some countries are usingsatellite communications to put the sensor operators who staff manned patrolaircraft, on the ground. Some nations propose sending aircraft like the P-3 orP-8 aloft with just their flight crews, having all the other gear operated fromthe ground. This enables the aircraft to stay in the air longer, and carry moregear. | 
Post time 15-11-2008 10:59 PM
But anyway semuanya bermula dari angan-anan kan?
