Australia, Britain, Canada, and possibly Japan would likely exhaust the potential list. The sensitivity of its technologies are such that only a very few countries would even be considered for a sale. Once its 3 planes are deployed, Britain will become the only Rivet Joint operator in the world outside of the United States. Each Rivet Joint has a standard crew of 24: 2 pilots, 1 navigator, 4 airborne systems engineers, and 17 specialists to operate its electronic snooping gear. The USAF’s fleet went from 14 to 15 in 1999 with the addition of a converted C-135B, and currently stands at 17. Their extended “thimble” noses and cheek fairings are very recognizable, and have given them the nickname “hogs”. The USA operates 15 of these in-demand aircraft, which have been used in both Iraq wars, and can also be found over missions like Bosnia, Haiti, et al. That, too, became final, and the R1s will now leave service in 2011 – to be replaced by a joint RAF/USAF “Airseeker” program centered on the RC-135W Rivet Joint. The first sign of trouble for the Nimrod R1s was an October 2008 DSCA request, conveying Britain’s official $1+ billion request to field 3 RC-135V/W Rivet Joint ELINT/SIGINT aircraft. The Nimrod MR2 fleet was retired in 2010, with several almost-complete MRA4s scrapped, leaving Britain with no long-range maritime surveillance aircraft. The other effort, named Project HELIX, sought to keep its related Nimrod R1 electronic and signals intelligence/ relay aircraft fleet flying until 2025.īoth failed. One multi-billion pound program sought to upgrade 12 of its unique Nimrod Mk2 maritime patrol aircraft to Nimrod MRA4 status. To keep its capabilities, Great Britain launched a parallel set of efforts to update its Nimrod fleet. Land and sea surveillance, and electronic surveillance, are missions no government can ignore. Work will take place at Raytheon’s facilities in Marlborough, Massachusetts and Largo, Florida, and is expected to be completed by August 2023. Boeing RC-135 is a four engine, medium weight reconnaissance aircraft designed and manufactured by Boeing Defence and Integrated Systems for the USAF. Decades later the aircraft is still integral in this role. With the Cold War in full swing, the bomber became an integral part of the US’ nuclear deterrent as a part of the Nuclear Triad, alongside intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear-armed submarines. The B-52 Stratofortress entered into service in the 1950s. There have long been concerns that the B-52 lacks the capability to penetrate modern air defenses to deliver a nuclear strike with gravity bombs. According to the US Air Force’s latest strategic bomber guidance document, the B-52H Stratofortress are no longer approved to carry nuclear gravity bombs. The contract provides for the design, development, testing, integration, and logistical support of a FET system that will transition the B-52 and RC-135 hardened communication terminals from the Military Strategic Tactical Relay satellite communications satellite constellation to the Advanced Extremely High Frequency satellite constellation. January 20/20: FET Development Effort Raytheon won a $442.3 million deal for the force element terminal (FET) development effort.
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