Mon, Dec 05, 2011
Aircraft To Be Deployed In Darwin, Queensland, And South
Australia
The final production Tiger helicopter ordered by the Australian
Defense Force was delivered by Australian Aerospace Thursday. The
two-crew helicopter, many of which are now entering into service
with armed forces around the world including operational use by
French Army in Afghanistan Tiger ARH022 was accepted by Defence at
local defence manufacturer Australian Aerospace's Final Assembly
plant on Brisbane Airport.
File Photo
The formal hand-over ceremony was
attended by representatives of the Commonwealth, aviation and
aerospace industry executives, senior officers of the Australian
Defence Force, and senior management of Australian Aerospace
Limited and its parent Eurocopter.
Acquired under Project Air 87, the Tiger replaces Defence's
existing rotary-wing force comprising Bell 206B-1 (Kiowa)
reconnaissance and UH1-H (Iroquois) gunship helicopters. The Tigers
have been deployed with the Army's 1st Aviation Regiment in Darwin,
the Army Aviation Training Center at Oakey in Queensland and at
RAAF Edinburgh, in South Australia.
“The Tiger ARH has been a complex and demanding program
and one not without its fair share of challenges," said Dr Jens
Goennemann Chief Executive Officer Australian Aerospace. "But
extensive collaboration and a cooperative approach by Australian
Aerospace, our industry partners and the various ADF branches
involved has been a significant contributor to where we proudly
stand today.”
Dr. Goennemann said delivery of ARH022 did not signify an end to
Australian Aerospace's Tiger relationship with the ADF.
“Australian Aerospace will continue to work with Army to
support, maintain and bring this important new platform to maturity
within the ADF.”
Under Project AIR 87, as well as assembly of the Tigers and
delivery of ground crew training systems, Australian Aerospace is
also responsible for the overall program management and
Through-Life-Support (TLS) of the helicopters throughout their
service life. The Tiger ARH is an advanced armed reconnaissance
helicopter, comprising a streamlined design incorporating
cutting-edge technologies. The largely composite airframe makes the
Tiger lighter, faster and more agile than its competitors and
reduces the helicopter's radar cross-section. Equipped to carry a
30mm turreted-cannon in the nose, 70mm rockets and Hellfire
air-to-ground missiles, the Tiger can detect and engage targets at
long distances. The French Defence Force has operated its Tigers in
Afghanistan since 2009 and in Libya in 2011 with great success.
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