AAF Air-to-Ground Attack
Limited air-to-ground attack capabilities were being delivered by seven of the 11 Mi-35 helicopters. The operational life of the remaining four had expired. This air-to-ground capability will transition in the future to the much more capable and modern Light Air Support (LAS) aircraft, then in its early acquisition phase. The LAS will provide a highly capable western air-interdiction platform.
Since 2013, the United States Air Force has procured 20 A-29 aircraft for training and operational use by the Afghan Air Force. Training for these aircraft is conducted at Moody Air Force Base per a June 2014 strategic basing decision. To support the training mission, the 81st Fighter Squadron was established in October 2014 and students began training in February 2015. The training plan was designed to produce 30 pilots and 90 maintainers through December 2018. To date, 17 pilots and 48 maintainers have been trained and have returned to Afghanistan.
Beginning in the fourth quarter 2015, the first of 20 A-29 Super Tucanos, a light attack aircraft for counterinsurgency, close air support, and aerial reconnaissance, would be deployed to Afghanistan following the training in the United States, beginning in February 2015, of pilots and the initial maintenance cadre. Four Super Tucanos would be delivered each year in 2015, 2016, and 2017; and eight in 2018. The planes were intended to replace aging Mi-35 aircraft. The AAF had one Mi-35 which was nearing the end of its service life as the late 2015 reporting period ended.
The AAF will use the A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft to provide critical air support, such as aerial fires, to ground forces. Twelve A-29s have been delivered to Moody Air Force Base, Georgia as of October 1, 2015. The first class of AAF pilots and maintenance personnel are on schedule to graduate in December 2015. The first four A-29s, along with their Afghan pilots and maintainers, are forecasted to arrive in Afghanistan in January 2016. The remainder of the aircraft will continue to be delivered to Moody Air Force Base in support of Afghan training through May 2016 before being delivered to Afghanistan with subsequent graduating classes of pilots and maintenance personnel. The current schedule builds the AAF A-29 fleet to 8 by the 2016 fighting season and to 12 by the 2017 fighting season to achieve a fully operational capability of 20 airframes, 30 pilots, and 90 maintenance personnel by the end of 2018.
Afghanistan received four A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft from the United States, the country’s Defense Ministry spokesman said 15 January 2016. The turboprop aircraft can fire guided rockets, Dawlat Waziri told the Pajhwok Afghan News agency. The aircraft would help bolster the Afghan Air Force, he added.
"The A-29 program has been an integral part of the U.S. government's overall 'Building Partnership Capacity' efforts around the world and immediately supports the development of an indigenous air force in Afghanistan," said Brig. Gen. Christopher Craige, formally acting commanding general at Train, Advise, Assist Command-Air (TAAC-Air). "This rapidly developed program for Afghanistan is unique for the A-29 development because this is the first time USAF pilots and maintainers have been trained as instructors to conduct training for Afghan students in the United States."
Designed to operate in high temperatures and in extremely rugged terrain, the A-29 is a highly maneuverable fourth-generation weapons system capable of delivering precision guided munitions. The aircraft is being used by the Afghan air force (AFF) for close-air attack, air interdiction, escort and armed reconnaissance.
Since March 22, 2018, the Afghan Air Force has both introduced and increased the use of precision guided munitions in southern Afghanistan. “The recent addition of laser-guided bomb strike capability is huge for the Afghan Air Force,” said Lt. Col. Justin Williams, 438th Air Expeditionary Advisor Squadron commander. “Afghanistan did not have it last fighting season, and we are already seeing the crippling psychological effect it is having on the enemies of Afghanistan this season.”
Since the implementation of Laser Guided Bombs, nearly 96 percent of strikes have been successful and have led to a 30 percent increase in ground force commander desired effects on the battlefield and a greater overall mission success. The capability, which consists of conventional bombs enabled with laser guidance kits, is almost entirely Afghan. “The bombs are built by Afghan ammunitions specialists and loaded onto Afghan planes by Afghan maintainers,” Williams said. “This is one example of how the Afghan Air Force is assuming ownership across the board.”
As of May 11, 2018, A-29 Super Tucano pilots had supported approximately 30 Afghan ground missions with this technology, successfully dropping over 50 laser guided bombs on enemy targets.
A-29s are assigned to the Kabul Air Wing with a detachment at Mazar-e-Sharif that will transition to squadron status based on the AAF reorganization. Instructor Pilot (IP) Upgrade training is an important step in creating a training program that can be transitioned to the AAF. The focus by advisors this winter has been certifying AAF IPs for day precision-guided munitions operations (PGM), basic night air interdiction, and introduction of night PGM use. During this reporting period, A-29s flew 609 missions and executed strikes on 109 of those missions, enabling key ANDSF tactical and operational successes. The A-29 pilots continue to show disciplined restraint in not dropping munitions on targets with ambiguous parameters or the possibility of civilian casualties.
Fifteen maintainers (officers) graduated from A-29 maintenance on January 12, 2018. Seven maintainers are in training at Moody AFB, and an additional seven are in training developing their English Language skills. As aviation maintenance training continues, the AAF will require CLS and supporting training contracts to maintain combat capability in these airframes over the midterm.
On 04 September 2018 Sierra Nevada Corp., Centennial, Colorado, was awarded a ceiling $1,808,000,000 indefinite-delivery / indefinite quantity contract for potential procurement, sustainment, modifications, ferry, and related equipment for the A-29. Work will be performed at Moody Air Force Base, Georgia; and Kabul, Kandahar, and Mazari Sharif Air Bases, Afghanistan. Work is expected to be completed by Dec. 31, 2024. This contract involves foreign military sales to Afghanistan. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. This contract is funded by appropriated Afghanistan Security Forces funds. Funds in the amount of $115,478 are being obligated at the time of award on delivery order 0001 for a site survey in Afghanistan. The contracting activity is the US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio (FA8637-18-D-6003). The Defense Department projected the Afghan Air Force would receive 25 A-29s in total.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
