FRA Falcons

[Snoop 95]

Not strictly military but near enough I think. Was looking at some very nice pics of aircraft involved in an ACME exercise in 2003 viewtopic.php?f=18&t=141581 and all of the military aircraft types shown have since been retired. However, one of the pictures shows an FRA Falcon, which another contributor says was built in 1967 and I was wondering if FRA have plans to replace them and if so with what.

[sherriff]

Thanks for bringing this topic up. I was wondering myself what the future was for these assets, given the age of the fleet.
Maybe some well-informed chap could verify the following...
1. Is it true that the FA20 has a Mystere wing, therefore having hardpoints.
2. When is the current contract due to expire
for FRA.
Also - below is worth a look.
http://www.drakenintl.com/

[Stroudy]

Wouldn't it be good to see some MiG-21's and Skyhawks in place of the Falcons! Not that I wish them losing the contract.

[Bushpilot]

Do I remember some talk of Textron Scorpions being touted as a replacement?

[MRTT]

Deleted, incorrect information.

[Vulcan7]

Do I remember some talk of Textron Scorpions being touted as a replacement?

You're right, that particular bid is with Textron, QinetiQ and Thales.

https://www.qinetiq.com/m/content.aspx? ... -thumb.jpg

[garyscott]

Sheriff - Although having a very similar mold line to the Mystere wing, the hardpoint mounted wings are not from the Mystere, it is just a structural modification - http://rgl.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guida ... on%20pylon .

[sherriff]

Many thanks.

[Chough]

A FRA Falcon pilot at an airshow indicated to me that the Falcons will be taken out of service around 2019/20. Can't vouch for the accuracy of this info but they have been worked fairly hard over a period of many years.

[Supra]

FRA Falcons require a minimum of two & usually three aircrew + they run two engines, so probably expensive?
Scorpions would be economic on fuel & maintenance, probably two aircrew required, so probably cheaper?
A long-term A4 Detachment at Culdrose (w/x challenged?) or sunny Fightertown Yeovilton, priceless!
Just saying....

[Snoop 95]

Glad I brought this up. So the new contract has three competitors at the moment and is due to be awarded next year with an in-service date of 2020. Keeping the Falcons in the air until then will take some doing.

[Vulcan7]

So the new contract has three competitors at the moment

If you're referring to the three companies I listed above, they are a joint bid of all three combining their specialisms and resources to fulfil the ASDOT bid together. I'm not sure how many or what other companies are competing with the joint QinetiQ/Thales/Textron bid.

[flat cap]

Is this something within Hawker Hunter Aviation's scope?

[Supra]

Is this something within Hawker Hunter Aviation's scope?

Probably? Utilising two-seat Hunters, Buccaneer & F4....in my dreams! A multi-type fleet of gas-guzzlers will always be economical to operate.
Equally, for the Scorpion, TA-4, L-159, MB-339 & others, the RIO/Wizzo/whatever will have to do Nav', comm's, lookout, systems operation....just like the good ol' days!
Plus, the end of any chance I never had for jollies!