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for some reason ‘interceptors’makes me go all Gerry Anderson.....
I'm occasionally that way myself...
for some reason ‘interceptors’makes me go all Gerry Anderson.....
Of course if we were to talk about supersonic interceptors, then South Korea and the wildcard of Taiwan are possible suppliers.
I don't see China being allowed to tender.
Though a variant of the US-Swedish trainer is the strongest potential option.
Northern Ireland has no long range radar stations.... None since the cold war ended... There used to be 2 Rotor stations- one at killard point (beside what was RAF Bishopscourt- which is now a race track at which I do motorcycle track days) and one at fair head on the north coast. We have only a minimal RAF base at Aldergrove which is the main civilian airport (Belfast International)I don’t know, ships, Northern Ireland? Space?
Purely for entertainment.
Ireland's last fast jet (as used in "On Her Majestys Secret Service' as a Swiss Mirage)
And two aircraft mentioned as possible replacements
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Well what about the Argentinian IA-63 Pampa
I could carry two 7,62 mm gun pods plus 125 kg freefall bombs
I would say the South Korean T50 Golden Eagle ought to be reasonable.Well what about the Argentinian IA-63 Pampa
I could carry two 7,62 mm gun pods plus 125 kg freefall bombs
Are you planning to bomb another plane?
The notional mission is air policing, which is a strictly air-to-air effort. That means any solution needs radar (or maybe a pretty advanced IRST) and air-to-air missiles. Arguably Ireland might actually want to actively omit air-to-ground weapons entirely.
The F-20 would have been nearly ideal, decades ago. Today, Gripen would be almost the only credible option. (C/D models with IRIS-T and Meteor only, to minimize the dependence on US suppliers?)
Why not Hawk then? Since the supplier is literally next door.
Gripen would reinforce the non-aligned status. I think Sweden has been pretty flexible in 'loaners', and would probably allow them to buy another sqn of the newer Gripen.I suppose there is the option of renting Gripen....but are there available aircraft to rent and is it worth the ongoing cost?
Good luck with that.....Gripen would reinforce the non-aligned status. I think Sweden has been pretty flexible in 'loaners', and would probably allow them to buy another sqn of the newer Gripen.I suppose there is the option of renting Gripen....but are there available aircraft to rent and is it worth the ongoing cost?
And they could operate them off the M50.......
On a tangent:
Putin’s subs have exposed Ireland’s shameless hypocrisy
Ireland is richer than Norway - why is it reliant on Norwegian planes to defend it?www.telegraph.co.uk
The response online to this latest incursion is instructive.
Ignoring those who said the Nato patrol aircraft should be shot down for being in Irish airspace – needless to say, Ireland is incapable of doing so – two themes emerge.
First “we don’t need to spend money on this as Russia will never attack Ireland” second, “we don’t need to spend money on this as the UK has it covered”. The word ‘freeloading’ features regularly.
To the first group I would say, what do you think Russian submarines are doing in the vicinity of your CUI – making it more resilient?
To the second group, some dependence on allies is fine and to a large degree is the bedrock of our security infrastructure. Overreliance, however, is not, especially as discussed earlier, when those allies are overstretched themselves.