The quest for a low-cost, low-tech, irregular warfare aircraft to provide ground pounders with long loitering, on-call recon and strike got a big boost recently when Joint Forces Command's Gen. James Mattis threw his support behind the Navy and Air Force "Imminent Fury" effort.
Mattis told the Senate Armed Services Committee last week that he was taking a personal interest in the classified project, being run chiefly out of the Navy's Irregular Warfare Office, that is looking at small turboprop aircraft for ground support. The sought after design falls somewhere between the Vietnam era OV-10 Bronco and A-1 Skyraider. It must stay aloft for a long time for surveillance needs but also have the punch to provide precise fire support when needed; a true "over the shoulder" aircraft for small ground units doing distributed operations in remote locations.
Mattis thinks using top-line fighter jets for close air support to troops patrolling rural villages in Afghanistan is overkill. As he diplomatically puts it: "Today's approach of loitering multi-million dollar aircraft and using a system of systems procedure for the approval and employment of airpower is not the most effective use of aviation fires in this irregular fight," he told the SASC...
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PD I am not gold plating and in fact the OV-10D as described is the base line consideration. The addition of a CDD and laser to the FLIR in the nose, a flare dispenser and MIL-STD 1760 databus to take advantage of the new GPS guided munitions, along with a low band datalink (which can easily be back fitted to TACAN box), is essential for all weather CAIRS, and is allmission essential equipment.
As both OV-10Ds were lost to heat seeking missiles in the 1991 Gulf War a flare dispenser is necessary in the event of MANPADS.
To reduce the effectiveness of friendly airpower and artillery, insurgents 'hug' the more modern force so that its artillery and air launched munitions are within lethal area. Low collateral damage GPS guided munitions do this 24/7 and without a 24/7 ability, CAIRS is a waste of money.
All weather avionics mean availability so more time on station for the folks on the ground.
If the OV-10 is out go for a cheap IW aircraft like the Hawk trainer, the modern day equivalent of the of Strikemaster which was devastating in Oman in the early 1970s. Speak to people who have used the Super Tucanos and they have their problems too - the lack of armour plating and ordnance delivery being the obvious ones - insurgents have heavy machine guns too. If you want one that will work at night, off rough air strips, in a weather you have to pay for it.
We both agree that an upgraded OV-10D meets it and it would not need to be expensive. The GPS and low-band data link can be fitted via a MIL-STD 1760 data bus and there would be plenty of flare dispensers, lasers and FLIR systems suitable for a slow mover already in the equipment chain.
We are both talking the same language. The biggest issue in providing CAIRS is target identification which a simple system like teh above enables. Two sets of eyes and operators work better than one when fog, dust, dawn and dusk come into play.
Zhou,
What you said about the dilemma for upgrades & additions to the aircraft is precisely why the mil. is pursuing such lightweight IW aircraft in the first place. The conditions in Afghanistan is calling a low end aircraft in a CAS role that doesn't require loads of gold plating to perform the role, which translates to having the aircraft being easy to maintain, easily available when needed, and has a sustainable presence. Tucano is a great option and so is the OV-10, as both are currently being used in COIN environments where AA is a suppressed or minimal threat, and Afghanistan is no exception.
The primary goal here is cheap, sustainable CAS, not a heavy handed strike.
Time to drag out the quadruple 12.7 x 108mm 14.5 x 114mm heavy machine gun mounts Abdul. Those cheap manportable SAMs available from China, via our friends in Iran, will help too.
The reason that these lightweight type strike aircraft went out of service is mentioned in the first paragraph. And forget the Tucano type aircraft as they are not big enough, nor have the armour plate, redundant systems, targetting equipment, or good dirt strip undercarriage required. The big air cooled indestructable radial is the best type engine for propellor driven CAIRS aircraft such as the magnificent A-1 Skyraider. Unfortunately it uses AVGAS, which would make it unique for refuelling and becomes a logistics nightmare.
One issue that will raise its ugly head is the space and weight needed for the avionics, comms, self-defence and targetting fit out and you need electrical power and space to cool it all. A bare minumum would be a secure radio fit, a turret mounted FLIR/CCD/Laser targetting pack, MIL-STD databus, GPS based inertial nav/attack system, chaff/flare dispenser and extra cooling along with the armour you quickly bulk out the Super Tucanos of the world. I haven't even included the weapons fit or upgraded undercarriage.
Taking advantage of two crew, COTS and in-service equipment solution, the answer is an OV-10D plus. An upgraded OV-10D Bronco along the avionics fit above would fit the bill nicely, armed with same type of mini-PGMs as used on the Predator and Reaper UAVs. Stand off and survive is the key in anything but a permissive threat environment but modern lightweight armour would assist. Its 20mm three-barrel gatling should suppress and knock out any light target it would be likely to come across.