Ireland funds procurement of aircraft and armoured vehicles
Equipment procurement in 2020 includes replacements for two CASA CN235s, which are reaching the end of their service lives. Irish media reports indicate that Airbus is a contender to offer two C-295s for EUR60 million.
Five Cessna 172H Skyhawks, used by the Irish Air Corps in a utility role, were taken out of service in September 2019; they will be replaced by three Pilatus PC-12NGs in 2020 for EUR32 million.
Irish Air Corps Stand Down Reims Rocket Fleet After 47 Years
These aircraft will be replaced by three state-of-the-art multi-role 'Pilatus PC-12NG Spectre' aircraft equipped with sophisticated surveillance equipment and also capable of carrying out air ambulance and logistics flights. The aircraft is specifically designed to integrate and work seamlessly with the Army, Naval service and other government agencies.
It was a significant day for us in #CasementAirbase as the Minister with Responsibility for Defence Mr. Paul Kehoe T.D., accompanied by General Officer Commanding the Air Corps, Brigadier General Sean Clancy, signed a contract for the provision of three new fixed-wing utility aircraft.
The Pilatus #PC12 is a single-engine turboprop passenger and cargo aircraft manufactured by Pilatus Aircraft Ltd of Switzerland.
These aircraft are being purchased in line with the 2015 White Paper on Defence which specified that “The existing five Cessnas, which are currently due for replacement, will be replaced with three larger aircraft suitably equipped for ISTAR tasks.”
The first aircraft is scheduled for delivery in early 2019. The second aircraft will follow later in 2019, with the third to be delivered in 2020.
Eindrücklich ist die Kostenentwicklung: Die Skyhawks haben im 1972 £ 20'000 pro Stück gekostet. Für die PC-12NG Spectre bezahlt Irland nun mehr € 10'000'000 pro Stück, also fast das 500-fache!.
Allerdings: Bei der Überwachung macht man damit den Schritt in die Moderne und das Einsatzspektrum des IAC wird allgemein stark erweitert, keine Frage.
Unexpectedly, the Irish Air Corps (IAC) purchased a fourth PC-12!
The aircraft was first seen on 1 April 2020 (not a joke) with Pilatus test registration HB-FXT (construction number 1898), IAC serial 280 and carried proudly the Irish Tricolour on its tail.
On 2 April 2020, the PC-12 departed without test serial birthing grounds Stans-Buochs (Switzerland) for Ireland. This PC-12 will be used for VIP transport, training flights and for medical assistance / ambulance missions.
The fourth PC-12 for the IAC was once ordered by a Chinese client but that order was cancelled, afterwards Pilatus offered the aircraft to Ireland. The aircraft will be added to the three PC-12NG Spectres that were already bought in December 2017. These three aircraft are currently in the States (in Denver Colorado) for conversions and will be used, besides ferrying troops and equipment, for intelligence gathering, targeting and reconnaissance tasks too.
DSEI 2021: Ireland adopts SitaWare C2 software for ISTAR aircraft
Command-and-control (C2) software house Systematic has announced Defence Forces Ireland has installed its SitaWare C2 software on its fleet of four Plilatus PC-12NG aircraft, operated by 104 Squadron of the Irish Air Corps.
The complete SitaWare suite consists of three interoperable and scalable segments: SitaWare Headquarters (HQ), designed for use in command posts (CPs) and HQs; SitaWare Frontline, a tactical-level battle management system; and SitaWare Edge for the dismounted user.
One of the PC-12NGs is configured for a utility role while the remaining three are known as ‘Spectre' platforms and provide an advanced intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISTAR) capability to the Defence Forces. Janes understands that these three aircraft are equipped with an electro-optic/infrared (EO/IR) sensor suite controlled by a tactical flight officer from a mission station in the cabin.
The SitaWare HQ and SitaWare Frontline segments both feature on the PC-12NG, with HQ used for overall mission management and Frontline used to interface with ground and naval components, according to Captain Paul Shorte, CIS Officer at the Defence Forces Training Centre.
The C2 software can draw on data from the multimission sensors aboard the ‘Spectre' platforms as well as information from external sources.
“Onboard the PC-12s SitaWare is intended for a range of military and non-military roles,” said Capt Shorte. “For example, the software was recently used to help tackle wildfires, where it was linked to crews operating on the ground.”
