Gareth Jennings, London
- IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
23 June 2017
The United Arab Emirates
(UAE) is in the final stage of negotiations with IOMAX for the sale of 12
Archangel Block 2 Border Patrol Aircraft (BPA) with the option of 12 more,
Jane's was told on 22 June.
The direct commercial
sale (DCS) will see the UAE Air Force and Air Defence (UAE AF & AD) receive
the additional aircraft to augment the 24 Block 1 Archangels it began receiving
in 2015. These original 24 Archangels were procured to replace the UAE's 24
IOMAX AT-802s that have since largely been donated to allied countries.
"Using self-funded
[research] and customer input over the past seven years, IOMAX is set to
produce the Block 2 Archangel, which will allow the UAE AF & AD to further
expand its mission scope," IOMAX told Jane's .
This Block 2 enhancement
encompasses the integration of the IOMAX Archangel Armament Control System
(ACS). In addition to the IOMAX Archangel Armament Control System (ACS), there
are approximately 30 upgrades to the aircraft's performance, avionics, radios,
weapons, and mission planning systems, including an upgraded
electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) system to replace the Wescam MX-15. There is
also an in-flight pilot egress system.
It is understood that
the UAE's existing Block 1 Archangels will be upgraded to the Block 2 standard.
As noted by IOMAX, these
negotiations follow on the back of a number of recent milestones for both its
AT-802 and Archangel BPA in the Middle East. The North Carolina-based company
has over recent weeks been contracted to upgrade AT-802s that the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) has donated to regional allies so as to harmonise their
configuration with the Archangels being flown by and to be delivered to the
UAE.
Source: janes.com
IOMAX S2R-660 Archangel (AT-802)-OA-8
Longsword: Details
No comments:
Post a Comment