Defense Technology International - March 2008 - (Page 47)

30 American, British and Dutch helicopters, plus Predator UAVs, close air support and jamming aircraft overhead, and artillery providing indirect ﬁre support. In one swift move, we delivered almost 500 troops from the 82nd Airborne onto Musa Qala, a Taliban stronghold in Helmand province. Can you describe the importance of rotary-wing aviation to operations in Afghanistan? Because there is practically no road infrastructure and the terrain is often inhospitable, it is impossible to move forces and supplies quickly around the country except by air. There is also a security issue, with road convoys always facing the danger of IEDs or Taliban ambushes. We’re using Chinooks to resupply outlying camps, observation posts and patrols. Medical evacuation, as well, can only be done by helicopter. It easily takes a whole day for a casualty to reach a ﬁeld hospital if transported by road. For a medevac helo, this normally takes less than an hour. The Apaches are essential not just for precision ﬁre support, but perhaps more so for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. Their high-resolution daylight TV and thermal-imaging cameras with zoom provide vital information, for example, during convoy escort operations. We have even been able to pick out male Taliban ﬁghters disguised as women. To claim that NATO can prevail in Afghanistan by airpower alone is nonsense—it is essential to have su cient boots on the ground. But without air support, ISAF would need many more soldiers and would almost certainly su er many more casualties. How do you assess multinational cooperation in Kandahar? I think it is going quite well. I’ve personally seen missions with Gurkha troops carried in Dutch Chinooks escorted by U.S. Apaches, or other combinations like this. In terms of helicopter aviation, there are just three main players in southern Afghanistan: the Americans, the British and the Dutch. A major contributing factor is that all three have the right types of helicopters: Chinooks and Apaches. The Chinook is a powerful machine; it hardly su ers from problems experienced by the other types in the AviationWeek.com/dti theater. The Chinook o ers a good cargo-lifting capability, not just at ground level but also, crucially, in hot and high conditions. On the ground it can lift a 10-ton load but in hot temperatures on the tops of those ridges, it can still carry 6-7 tons. That means a Chinook can lift more than 30 combat-loaded Gurkhas to the top of a mountain, which we have done. No other transport can do this. The Apache is just as powerful and provides a tremendous mix of sensors, weapons and sturdiness. We’re ﬂying the aircraft with an extra internal fuel tank to THEO TEN HAAF Commander, Defense Helicopter Command, RNLAF Age: 48 Birthplace: Zwolle, the Netherlands Background: Joined RNLAF in 1979; completed helicopter pilot training in 1980. Served as leader of the Grasshoppers helicopter display team, ﬂight instructor and air liaison officer with Dutch army. As first commander of 301 Sqdn., he laid the foundation for AH-64 Apache attack helicopter operations. Deployed to Bosnia (1994), Albania/Macedonia (1999) and Afghanistan (2007-08). Commander of Soesterberg air base from 2002-05; served as head of investment plans in the Netherlands Defense Staff, 2005-07. Will command the new Defense Helicopter Command when ofﬁcially established (expected in April). Married, with three children. AIR COMMODORE single, 2,300-strong organization with 85-plus helicopters. The DHC is headquartered at Gilze-Rijen air base and will have an operating facility for naval helicopters at De Kooy naval air station outside the naval base at Den Helder. We’re centralizing maintenance at Gilze-Rijen to save on overhead. I don’t want to be pinned down on this, but I would hope for a helicopter availability improvement of at least 10%. In the second half of the year, our Chinooks, plus the Cougar Mk 2 squadron and the remaining ﬂight of Alouette 3 helicopters, are moving to GilzeRijen from Soesterberg, which is to close by the end of the year. So far, we’ve invested more than €200 million ($292 million) in infrastructure at Gilze-Rijen. Later this year, the runway at Gilze-Rijen, which also houses the Apache fleet, will be strengthened to support the largest strategic lift aircraft. That will allow us to ﬂy assets directly to Afghanistan or other deployments. The main di culty is that we are implementing this major reorganization as operations in Afghanistan are ongoing. What does the future have in store for the Netherlands’ helicopter operations? Defense planners and politicians are convinced that rotary-wing aviation is vital to 21st-century operations. Key decisions have been made, such as the order for six Chinooks placed with Boeing. These will be the latest F model, and we’re expecting that the in-service D-model Chinooks will also be upgraded. An earlier plan to sell ﬁve of our 29 Apaches was canceled. We’ve worked with industry to modify our order for 20 NH Industries NH90s, so we will get 12 NFH90 naval helicopters plus eight conﬁgured as maritime tactical transport helicopters. We’re also working hard to bring more crews on board. For the Apache and Chinook, we’re aiming to increase the aircraft-to-crew ratio to 1.5 from 1.2. However, personnel retention is an issue. We hope to convince our experienced operators to stay, but the 2009-10 timeframe is going to be critical, as we will see contract expirations peak. I To watch videos of helicopter operations in Afghanistan, go to DTI’s homepage, AviationWeek.com/dti, and click on ‘Extras for this issue’ under ‘DTI Interactive.’ 47 give us a 2-hr. 45-min. endurance. The 30mm. chain gun is extremely precise. We’re using rockets with ﬂechettes or with multipurpose warheads for area targets, and Hellﬁre missiles against buildings, bunkers and other point targets. We’re pleased to have Terma’s Amase (Apache modular aircraft survivability equipment system) and ISPS (integrated self-protection system) on our Apaches and Chinooks, respectively. This gives us more ﬂexibility in choosing tactics because we can ﬂy at higher altitudes without worrying about shoulder-launched missiles. Why was the Defense Helicopter Command (DHC) created? The objective is to increase e ectiveness and e ciency by amalgamating multiple squadrons in three locations into a MARCH 2008 DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL http://www.aviationweek.com/dti http://www.aviationweek.com/dti

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Defense Technology International - March 2008 Contents Sweden Cancels SEP; Israel Launches Imaging Satellite; Geotextiles Secure Ammo Dump U.S. Navy Taps Neural Architecture Software to Assure Job Satisfaction Shrapnel-Like Pieces of Reactive Materials Increase Explosive Force of Bombs Technology is Rapidly Closing the Gap Between Sensors and Shooters Italian Army Program Aims to Develop a Fully Networked Land Force Political and Military Uncertainties Plague U.S. Defense Budget Democrats Put Pentagon on Notice Over Spending and Policy at DTAR Conference Russian Combat Vehicle Protects Tank Formations from Anti-Armor Weapons European Battlelabs Use Simulation to Verify Technologies and Stretch Defense Funds Malaysia Accelerates Fleet Modernization to meet Long-Term Goals U.S. Navy Says Composite Raiding Boat May Reduce Injuries From Wave Shocks Seeing Isn’t Believing When it Comes to Deciphering Funds for Secret Projects Advances in Sensors and Propulsion Make Torpedoes Ever More Lethal FAA is in No Rush to Approve Rules that Let UAVs Fly in Civil Airspace USS Truman Carrier Strike Group Patrols a Rough Neighborhood 24/7 U.S. says Sino-Russian Space Disarmament Plan is Riddled with Pitfalls Hyperspeed Projectile; “Sound Cloak” Hides Subs; Improving Nuclear Forensics Dutch Air Commodore Theo ten Haaf Analyzes the Impact of Rotary-Wing Operations One Soldier’s War is a Behind-the-Headlines Look at Russia’s Campaigns in Chechnya Black Budgets are Huge and Growing, and Often Conceal Amazing Failures

Defense Technology International - March 2008

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