Deal to buy Saab 2000 ERIEYE AEW&C for PAF approved

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Abbas Ali
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Deal to buy Saab 2000 ERIEYE AEW&C for PAF approved

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Saab 2000 ERIEYE AEW&C - Copyright SAAB

Important order secured

In October 2005 Saab signed a contract to supply an airborne Surveillance System for Pakistan to the value of 8.3 billion SEK. The last outstanding conditions have now been finalized and the contract has become effective.

6/22/2006 |
“This is a very important order for Saab and it confirms our strong position on the world market regarding airborne surveillance systems. For a number of years we have been engaged in negotiations with Pakistan for an airborne surveillance system. The system will be used for surveillance, command and control in order to counter the effects of future crises and catastrophes,” says Saab CEO Åke Svensson.

“The effectivity of this contract is a vitally important step in establishing Saabs credentials in the Airborne Surveillance Market,” says Ian McNamee, Group Senior Vice President, International Relations and Business Improvement. “There are great market opportunities for these systems around the world and this contract will act as a springboard to many of them. The combination of the Saab 2000 and the EYRIE radar system offers a cost effective solution for border security, air policing and disaster relief.” McNamee continues.

The airborne surveillance system includes Saab 2000 turboprop aircraft equipped with Ericsson Microwave Systems airborne radar system ERIEYEâ„¢. Two third of the order value is for Saab and one third for Ericsson Microwave Systems, witch is, after the Saab acquisition, expected to be a part of Saab in September 2006.

Cost effective platform
Based on Swedish defense technology, Saab Surveillance System is the most modern tactical surveillance system of today. It enables integration with any existing environment, offering great operational flexibility aiming at Superior Situation Awareness.

The Saab 2000 ERIEYEâ„¢ AEW&C combines a modern turboprop aircraft with an advanced technology sensor system to provide a highly capable yet cost effective surveillance platform. The primary role of the Saab 2000 ERIEYEâ„¢ AEW&C is to detect and track targets. The Saab 2000 aircraft is able to in incorporate high speed dash with low speed loitering capability, with inherent fuel effi ciency that meets demanding AEW&C requirements for performing a 180 degree turn in less than 30 seconds with an endurance of more than 9 hours.

The Saab Surveillance System solves both national and international interoperability issues, such as search & rescue operations, surveillance and control of national borders and economic zones and detection of illegal activities.

Saab Surveillance System, the most modern surveillance system of today:
* Provides Superior Situation Awareness.
* Provides great Tactical Mobility and Short Reaction Times.
* The most suitable platform with excellent Hot and High performance and 180 degree turn capability in less than 30 seconds.
* Integrates with the Existing Systems and improves Decision Support.
* Includes comprehensive selectable logistics support.
* Offers the most cost effective Surveillance System on the market today.

Source: SAAB
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Abbas Ali
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Post by Abbas Ali »

$1.1bn AWACS deal finalised

By Shakil Shaikh

ISLAMABAD:
Swedish aerospace and defence company SAAB has finalised a $1.14 billion deal to supply an airborne radar system, the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS), to Pakistan.

Experts believe the supply of airborne surveillance system will help strengthen national security, as the federal cabinet had already given the green light last May to purchase the system.

The approval of the cabinet and finalisation of the deal by SAAB AB was done following negotiations with Sweden SAAB and Erisson Microwave, the joint manufacturers of the aircraft-mounted airborne radar system. “This a very important order for SAAB and it confirms our strong position in the world regarding airborne surveillance systems, “SAAB Chief Executive Ake Svensson said on Thursday in a statement.

The SAAB-Ericsson AWACS deal with Pakistan was first announced in October last, but has been finalised now. The system includes SAAB 2000 turboprop aircraft equipped with airborne radars from Ericsson Microwave Systems. Sweden SAAB bought Ericsson Microwave Systems from wireless equipment make LM Ericsson earlier this month. The air surveillance system can be used for both military and civilian purposes, such as helping coordinated relief flights after natural disasters.

Many see this deal as a bid to match a deal by India in 2004 to buy three Phalcon airborne early warning radar systems from Israel and Russia worth $1.1 billion. The Pakistan Air Force has needed the system to make up for the existing gap in air surveillance capability, as Pakistan currently relies mostly on a ground-based radar system.

The deal is a reflection on how Pakistan has been able to offset the heavy losses caused by last year’s earthquake, which had forced it to temporarily postpone the long-awaited purchase of around US-built F-16 fighters.

Pakistan, however, agreed in April to purchase a scaled-down package of F-16s. This year, Pakistan has allocated more than Rs250 billion of the total of Rs1.3 trillion federal budget. The airborne surveillance system together with existing round-based radars is expected to provide a more detailed picture, enabling PAF to detect multifarious threats.

The system, which is used as a platform alone, would have cost between $60-70 million and the price tag would have increased considerably after adding the surveillance system. In the Erieye system, SAAB provides that plane while Ericsson provides the surveillance equipment.

Source: The News
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flyingsystem
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Post by flyingsystem »

Is it only one aircraft?
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AP-BFU
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Post by AP-BFU »

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Abbas Ali
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Post by Abbas Ali »

Picture of PAF SAAB 2000 would be great!! We look forward to see it.

Thank you AP-BFU.
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AP-BGL
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Post by AP-BGL »

So it means they have ordered 7 Saab planes?
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Post by chevron »

SAAB 2000 & ERIEYE AWE&C system
Article by S. M. Hali Pakistan Observer, July 18, 2004

The Pakistan Air Force spokesman’s confirmation that talks were underway with Sweden over the purchase of an Airborne Early Warning System, and the Swedish Embassy spokesman’s corroboration that the matter came up for discussion when Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf visited Stockholm last week and a Swedish Parliamentary Commission, which handles Defence-related deals, had approved the sale of the radar system has evoked the interest of defence analysts on both sides of the divide. Pakistan is opting for the acquisition of 14 SAAB 2000s, 7 for the PAF and 7 to replace the aging F-27 Fokker Friendship fleet of PIA. For the benefit of the readers, some details about the SAAB 2000 and ERIEYE AWE&C system are provided here.

The SAAB 2000 is a Swedish stretched 50 seat, faster development of its predecessor, the SAAB 340. The SAAB 2000, with a cruise speed of over 665km/h (360kt), is one of the fastest turboprop airliners developed. It combines near jet speeds, including near jet climb and descent rates, with turboprop economy. The initial SAAB 2000 development plan would have seen the 2000 in service in the second half of 1993, but delays pushed this back until the second half of 1994. The SAAB 2000’s first flight took place on March 26 1992, and certification from Europe’s Joint Airworthiness Authorities and the USA’s FAA was granted in March and April 1994 respectively. While retaining the same cross section as the SAAB 340, the 2000 is 7.55m (24ft 9in) longer (seating 15 more passengers), while the same wing section was retained but the 2000’s wing span is 15% greater than the 340’s, and the engines are positioned further outboard.

The SAAB 2000 was the first civil application of the advanced Allison (now Rolls-Royce) AE-2100 turboshaft (derived from the military T406 developed for the revolutionary V-22 Osprey tiltrotor), driving slow turning six blade props. The flightdeck features a Collins Pro Line 4 EFIS avionics suite with six colour CRT displays. Cabin noise is reduced by an active noise control system comprising 72 microphones and 36 speakers which generate anti phase noise. Several European aerospace firms participated in the SAAB 2000 manufacturing programme including CASA which designed and built the wing, Westland, which manufactured the rear fuselage, and Valmet of Finland which built the tail.

Erieye has been developed by Ericsson Microwave Systems. It is the first long-range, high-performance AWE&C system that can be installed in relatively small commercial and military turboprop aircraft. The system comprises an active, phased-array pulse-Doppler radar including integrated secondary surveillance radar and identification friend or foe (SSR/IFF), a comprehensive, modular command-and-control system, electronic support measures (ESM), communications and data links.

Rather than conventional rotodome antenna system, ERIEYE has a fixed, dual-sided and electronically scanned antenna mounted on top of the fuselage. This places much less demand on aircraft size and is designed for mounting on commuter-type aircraft. The ERIEYE is capable of 360° detection and tracking of air and sea targets over the horizon. The instrumented range is 450km and a typical detection range against a fighter aircraft size target is in excess of 350km.

The system uses advanced solid-state electronics, open-system architecture and ruggedized commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware, including general-purpose programmable workstations and full-colour LCD displays. The ERIEYE radar is already in service with the Swedish Air Force and is in series production for Brazil and other customers. The Ericsson PS-890 Erieye radar uses an active array with 200 solid state modules. The range of the S-band, 3 GHz, and side looking radar is 300 km. The 1,985-lb (900-kg) dorsal antenna is housed in a 29-ft 6.3-in (9-m) long box radome mounted atop the fuselage. Utilizing adaptive side lobe suppression, the look angle on each side is about 160 degrees. From its standard operational altitude of 6000 metres (19,685 feet, or FL200) the radar has a maximum range of 450 km (279 miles). Against a fighter-sized target effective range is approximately 330 km (205 miles). Seaborne targets can be detected at 320 km (1998 miles), though this is a function of the aircraft’s cruising height. The electronically scanned antenna can scan sectors of interest frequently while others are monitored, and a single sector can be scanned in different modes at the same time.

The price of the US Air Force’s E-3 airborne warning and control system (AWACS) aircraft and newer systems such as the Wedgetail3 or Phalcon4 is simply too high for most countries. The combination of a radar and a commuter-type aircraft, however, has brought down the price.

India, in its recent allocation of 770 billion Indian rupees ($16.8 billion) for high value acquisitions comprising the $1.1 billion Phalcon AEWCS, 126 Mirage fighters worth $30m each and $1.7 billion worth 66 Hawk trainers, $1.5 billion Russian aircraft carrier requiring a $670m refit to outfitted with between 18 to 20 MiG 29 fighters, which will cost in excess of one billion and the Arrow anti-Ballistic Missile system from Israel had upset the balance in the region. Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Masood Khan had warned that the unprecedented hike in the Indian defence budget would result in an inadvertent arms race, despite the peace talks. Pakistan’s endeavours to acquire the Gripen Fighters from Sweden met with no success because of the Swedish Government’s policy of not entertaining arms deals for offensive weapons with countries likely to engage in armed conflicts because of the Indo-Pak stand-off. However, the SAAB 2000 is a commercial air liner while the ERIEYE AWE&C is a defensive system. Ever since Pakistan lost the opportunity to acquire the SAAB Draken Fighter aircraft and the assembly plant for SAAB Viggen in 1970 despite the advanced stage of acquisition, because of the Swedish act of Parliament cancelling the deal owing to the East Pakistan crisis, Pakistan has been examining the Swedish aircraft and weapon system with interest. Pakistan already manufactures the SAAB SAFARI under license known as Mushshak at the Aircraft Manufacturing Factory at Kamra and is fully conversant with Swedish aviation technology.

E-3 AWACS Airborne Warning and Control System has been a long-standing wish-list item for Pakistan Air Force. It first indicated its desire to acquire this force multiplier during the Afghan War (1979-89) to plug the gaps in its Air Defence Ground Environment (ADGE) and stop the hit and run missions of the Soviet and Afghan pilots along our western border. The Rules of Engagement (RoE) then did not permit hot pursuit into Afghan territory. In fact to shoot down an intruder, also it was necessary to ensure that the debris would fall into Pakistani territory. Many an intercepting PAF pilot was deprived of his kill owing to the stringent RoE. The hilly terrain in NWFP made Radar coverage poor and the Soviets, being cognizant of this PAF shortcoming, made full use of the gaps in the lobe pattern due to ground clutter. Pakistan made it abundantly clear to the US authorities that the E-3 AWACS Airborne Warning and Control System was the only answer to the Soviet hide and seek game. PAF had to bear the brunt of this weakness as not only the Pakistani villages and camps faced the wrath of the Soviet/Afghan Air Power but also PAF had to mount round the clock Combat Air Patrol (CAP) missions to deter the aggressors. All Pakistan got for its efforts was a nod to get the Grumman E-2 Hawkeye, the United States Navy all-weather, aircraft carrier based tactical warning and control system with limited capabilities. With the war in Afghanistan being over, US interests in Pakistan waned and what to talk of fresh acquisitions, the existing ones also got frozen, thanks to the infamous Pressler Amendment.

Pakistan’s need for an Airborne Warning and Control System did not diminish but became more pressing. The Kargil crisis again exposed this weakness of the conventional ground based radars on hilly terrain. Various cheaper options like balloon borne Aero Stat radars were also examined, but their vulnerability and limited range were not the solution PAF has been vying for. 9/11 changed Pakistan’s status, as it once again became a front-line State, and it was hoped that USA would provide the E-3 AWACS to its major ally in the war against terrorism. However, the dream did not materialize. The situation became even more desperate with the Indo-Israeli deal to mount Phalcon radar systems on Russian-madeIL-76 aircraft to enable the Indian Air Force to pry deep into Pakistani airspace.

The SAAB 2000 aircraft for the PAF equipped with ERIEYE AWE&C system is not only an economical option but with this acquisition, Pakistan will be able to manage airborne early warning; intercept communication; airspace management; surveillance and control borders; detect illegal shipment of weapons and drugs; and coordinate search and rescue operations. Besides, plugging the gap in Pakistan’s Air Defence System, it will also boost Pakistan’s efforts to combat terrorism. It will be two years before the PAF receives its first AWE&C system. The visit of President Pervez Musharraf to Sweden appears to have convinced his Swede counterparts to assist Pakistan in its quest for defensive technology and aid Pakistan in its war against terrorism. It will take at least two years for the PAF to receive its first AWE&C system. In the bargain PIA too will get an adequate replacement for the Fokker, with a common maintenance facility as the PAF at a reasonable price tag.

The author is a retired Group Captain of Pakistan Air Force and now a Defence Analyst for Pakistan Observer.
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Valkyrie
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Post by Valkyrie »

PAF is going for 6 Saab 2000 with Erieye AEW&C and 1 trainer. PIA is no longer part of that deal.

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Abbas Ali
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Post by Abbas Ali »

AP-BFU wrote:1 of the aircraft on monday i think its Saab 2000 (s/n036)
Yes, c/n 036 is possibly one of the seven aircraft going to PAF.

Currently c/n 036 is with SAAB Aircraft Leasing (www.saabaircraftleasing.com) and is registered as SE-036. It was manufactured in 1996 and delivered to Crossair of Switzerland as HB-IZT in April 1996. In June 2003, it was returned to SAAB Aircraft Leasing.

Interestingly SE-036 is the same aircraft that was sent by SAAB to Pakistan to fly evaluation flights for PIA. Here's its photo:
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MAY 02, 2004 - GILGIT AIRPORT, PAKISTAN: PIA pilots with SAAB 2000 aircraft (registration SE-036). (seen left to right) Capt. Mehmud Zaki, Capt. K.T. Khan and First Officer Chakar Ali Shah - Copyright M. Ali
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Post by Usman »

AP-BGL wrote:So it means they have ordered 7 Saab planes?
Yes, 7 aircraft in total. Six complete systems and one as simulator.
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