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troy
 
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2010-05-18 GMT-5 hours 
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I was reading an article at www.defenseindustrydaily.com. It stated that the U.K. was considering purchasing 3 RC-135u/v to replace some elint gathering nimrods. Anybody else heard anything?
Troy |
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jderden777
See my 980 Photos
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2010-05-20 GMT-5 hours 
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Yep the Nimrod R1s will be retired in March of 2011 apparently in favor of some RC-135s.
More here: http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/03/22/339763/uk-approves-rivet-joint-purchase.html http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2008/07/25/226076/l-3-boss-rivet-joints-to-replace-uks-nimrod-r1s.html My soul is in the sky. |
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N74JW
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2010-05-24 GMT-5 hours 
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Kind of nuts IMHO. Despite the electronic capability, How old will these aircraft be? Despite how well the RAF or whomever will maintain them, wouldn't the money best be spent on a platform with some longevity? RC-767V ?
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troy
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2010-06-16 GMT-5 hours
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The c-135 airframe is strong. The planes going to the U.K. are intended to be in service for another 30 years. This isn't the same acft that had the j-57 engines or for that matter the TF-33's that I worked on in the early 80's. Look at all the airframe changes to the RC-135. How much testing on the aerodynamics would it take to adapt to a differnt airframe. There will be many parts for the airframe and poweplants that will be interchangeable with the E-3 AWACS now in UK serice. It would have made more sense to have purchased E-3's and the RC-135 in the 1980's instead of the Nimrods in the first place
Troy |
| Author | Message |
SnowJ
See my 666 Photos
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2010-06-18 GMT-5 hours
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While I agree with what you say about the C-135 being strong and having a lot of life left in them Troy, there are actually very few components which are common between the C-135 (717-100) and E-3 (707-300) airframes...very few. Even the landing gear on the E-3 is strengthened to take the added weight of the heavier airframe, so you would actually be very hard pressed to find much in the way of interchangeable parts between the two. In fact, if memory serves me, about the only thing common between the two is the wing box itself. Granted early 707s had a similar wing shape to the C-135 (take John Travolta's plane for example), but the E-3 is of the later model, with much less commonality.
On the comment of purchasing the RC-135 over the Nimrod, you have to remember who you're talking to here. The British are very capable aircraft designers, and as such they have taken their own design and adapted it for their requirements, much like we did with the C-135. At the time, they were not anticipating that the C-135 would outlive the Nimrod, let alone eventually replace it, even if on a temporary basis. I like Jason's idea about a modified 767...but when the E-10A program got canceled, pretty much any chance of that happening went with it. Jaysen F. Snow - Sterling Aerospace Photography |
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troy
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2010-06-18 GMT-5 hours
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Thanks Jaysen about the info about tha airframe. The engines are the same. The cfm-56 is a great engine.
Troy |
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troy
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2011-02-18 GMT-5 hours
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I just read a press release from the public affairs office at Offut AFB,NE. They started training RAF flight crews for the RC-135 on Jan.11. Depending on position, training will last 3-5 months and then begin flying with the 55 Wing. The RAF RC's are scheduled to be delivered in 2014.
Troy |
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