Interceptors for Ireland

[Grey Havoc]

for some reason ‘interceptors’makes me go all Gerry Anderson.....

I'm occasionally that way myself...

 

[uk 75]

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
.

 

[Fluff]

 

[zen]

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.

 

[TomS]

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.

Not supersonic...

 

[Nigelhg]

I don’t know, ships, Northern Ireland? Space?

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)

 

[Archibald]

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
.

I wouldn't call the Fouga Magister a "fast" jet.

 

[NoBarrelRolls]

Well... What about the Argentinian IA-63 Pampa?

I could carry two 7,62 mm gun pods plus 125 kg freefall bombs

 

[TomS]

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?)

 

[archipeppe]

Why not the M-346FA?

 

[uk 75]

Bishop Brennan aka "Len": So we have no way of stopping them flying over Ireland.
Father Dougal: Well, Northern Ireland's out but that still leaves Ships and Space.
Father Jack: Gerls with purple hair...

 

[zen]

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?)

I would say the South Korean T50 Golden Eagle ought to be reasonable.
And Taiwan has the trainer variant of the Ching Kuo and might build more....if you are prepared annoy China.
And as mad as it sounds the Tejas might make it four reasonable options for new aircraft.
Of which only one is the Gripen.

 

[zen]

Why not the M-346FA?

View attachment 636225

Why not Hawk then? Since the supplier is literally next door.

 

[Archibald]

One of the last generation trainers - M-346 or T-50 - would get my vote. It can complement or even replace the PC-9M. Anything larger or faster or more sophisticated will bust any budget. 1 billion is a paltry, as far as combat aircraft go...

 

[zen]

I suppose there is the option of renting Gripen....but are there available aircraft to rent and is it worth the ongoing cost?

 

[Fluff]

I suppose there is the option of renting Gripen....but are there available aircraft to rent and is it worth the ongoing cost?

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.

And they could operate them off the M50.......

 

[kaiserd]

I suppose there is the option of renting Gripen....but are there available aircraft to rent and is it worth the ongoing cost?

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.

And they could operate them off the M50.......

Good luck with that.....

 

[TomS]

Why not the M-346FA?

View attachment 636225

I'd say radar missiles (AMRAAM, Meteor, etc.) are desirable. Not so much for range as warhead size. Remember, the potential targets here include multi-engine bombers and, sadly, hijacked airliners.

The Czech Republic and Hungary both leased a single squadron of 14 Gripen for 10 years at a bit less than 1 billion Euro each. That's minus actual running costs and armament, however.

 

[uk 75]

To paraphrase an Aussie of Irish extraction:
That's not an Interceptor. This is an Interceptor.

Clavework Graphics

 

[RavenOne]

I attended RIAT last month and saw their Swallows Display Team made up of Pilatus PC-9 with instructors from the Central Flying School. Also on static there was one of the new Piltus PC-12 Spectres.

So here are my photos below :

Herr are my two euros of thoguht , since the retirement of the Magister- kinda makes sense (as with the Kiwis and their T-6 Texans) to keep up basic skill sets of formation flying, aerobatics, air to ground rocketery et al because you never know when you will need it again.

Cheers

 

[publiusr]

I can just see a clown-nose propeller mount radome.
“Pennywise”

 

[RavenOne]

I saw the Spectre again last weekend in my other neck of the woods at Airpower Zeltweg in Austria.

cheers

 

[RavenOne]

And adding to their defense the new Airbus Defense C295 took off maiden flight today.

Cheers

 

[Grey Havoc]

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.