World Air Forces 2014

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Ad_RUAG Aviation_MRO_197x267.indd 1 08.11.13 11:47 Flightglobal Insight | 3 wORld aiR FORces 2014 AnAlysIs 4 Worldwide top 10 active aircraft types 5 Worldwide active fleet per region 6-7 Fleet size for leading countries by role 6-7 WORlD AIR FORCEs World Air Forces directory 9 cOntents to fInd out more about flIghtglobal InsIght and report sponsorshIp opportunItIes, contact: Flightglobal Insight Tel: + 44 208 652 3859 Email: insight@flightglobal.com Website: www.flightglobal.com/insight wORld aiR FORces 2014 4 | Flightglobal Insight4 | Flightglobal Insight Flightglobal Insight | 5 flightglobal.com24 | Flight International | 10-16 December 2013 DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES CRAIG HOYLE LONDON DATA COMPILED BY SANDRA LEWIS-RICE, JOHN MALONEY & MARC-ANTONY PAYNE FLIGHTGLOBAL ASCEND ONLINE FLEETS & MILICAS LONDON US budget cuts and Middle Eastern conflict hurt air force fleet growth, but Asia, the Americas and Russia show net gains, with the F-35 taking the limelight in 2013 YEAR OF UPS AND DOWNS Afghan air force’s tactical transport capabili- ties, however, with a recently-introduced fleet of Alenia North America-prepared C-27As having been parked, and some of their duties assumed by a pair of ex-US Air Force Lockheed Martin C-130Hs. In the USA itself, Congressionally-mandat- ed budget cuts imposed via sequestration con- tinue to threaten long-term damage, with the air force having aired the possibility of retir- ing entire aircraft types as one means of mak- ing savings. One potential victim of such a step could be the service’s Fairchild-Republic A-10 ground-attack aircraft, as their utility could be judged as being of diminished value away from the Afghan operation. Following on from its receipt of a last Lockheed Martin F-22 fighter in 2012, the In di an a ir fo rc e T he ability of air forces around the globe to react to the unexpected was highlighted afresh in 2013, with re-quirements having ranged from pro- viding multinational support for France’s combat intervention in Mali, to flying human- itarian relief sorties to help in typhoon-devas- tated parts of the Philippines. Just one full week of the year had passed when Paris took the decision to launch its Operation Serval campaign, responding to a request from the embattled government in Bamako. French aircraft already based in Af- rica were reinforced within four days by as- sets including several of its air force’s Das- sault Rafales, some of which completed a more than 9h 30min strike mission in the process of deploying to the region. Vital support came from allocations of tactical and strategic transport, tanker and airborne surveillance services from several European nations, and from the USA. While the Islamist militants which had been threatening to take power in Mali were quickly tackled, the process of maintaining the security situation in the nation is continu- ing. French assets and personnel remain in place, while the task of handing responsibility to African and UN peacekeepers gathers pace. The collaboration between France and its allies for the Serval activity is well practiced, with many of the same nations having worked together during the Libya campaign two years earlier, and also still involved in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. Despite an agreed timetable to end all combat involvement in that nation by the end of 2014, several major current contributors are likely to continue to offer services to support the Kabul government in the transition that will follow the end of their International Security Assistance Force duty. Work to prepare the Afghan military to as- sume full control for security continues to make mixed progress, from the aviation per- spective. A controversial light air support re- quirement for 20 armed turboprops is ad- vancing, with a Sierra Nevada-Embraer team’s offer of the latter’s EMB-314 Super Tucano having won a US Air Force-led con- test for the second time in February 2013. Equipment uncertainty has surrounded the ❯❯India’s military modernisation drive has seen it introduce C-17 strategic transports FIN_101213_024-028.indd 24 05/12/2013 13:24 10-16 December 2013 | Flight International | 25flightglobal.com DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES F-16s and F-18s account for a combined 22% of the global combat aircraft fleet Co m m on w ea lth o f A us tra lia WORLDWIDE TOP 10 ACTIVE AIRCRAFT TYPES COMBAT AIRCRAFT Type Active fleet Share 1 F-16 2,281 15% 2 F-18 1,008 7% 3 F-15 865 6% 4 MiG-29 857 6% 5 Su-27/30/33/35 845 6% 6 MiG-21 698 5% 7 Su-25 507 3% 8 F-5 492 3% 9 F-7 460 3% 10 Su-24 423 3% Other 6,352 43% TOTAL 14,788 100% TRANSPORT Type Active fleet Share 1 C-130/L-100 900 21% 2 King Air 270 6% 3 C-17 257 6% 4 C295/CN235 231 6% 5 An-24/26 180 4% 6 Il-76 172 4% 7 An-30/32 134 3% 8 C160 123 3% 9 Cessna 208 120 3% 10 Y-8 101 2% Other 1,712 41% TOTAL 4,200 100% COMBAT HELICOPTERS Type Active fleet Share 1 S-70/SH/UH-60 3,325 18% 2 Mi-8/17/171/172 2,160 11% 3 UH-1 1,508 8% 4 AH-64 1,008 5% 5 CH-47 939 5% 6 Mi-24/25/35 868 5% 7 OH-58 758 4% 8 MD500 681 4% 9 Bell 212/412 675 4% 10 SA341/342 556 3% Other 6,348 34% TOTAL 18,826 100% FIN_101213_024-028.indd 25 05/12/2013 13:35 4 | Flightglobal Insight4 | Flightglobal Insight Flightglobal Insight | 5 wORld aiR FORces 2014 flightglobal.com24 | Flight International | 10-16 December 2013 DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES CRAIG HOYLE LONDON DATA COMPILED BY SANDRA LEWIS-RICE, JOHN MALONEY & MARC-ANTONY PAYNE FLIGHTGLOBAL ASCEND ONLINE FLEETS & MILICAS LONDON US budget cuts and Middle Eastern conflict hurt air force fleet growth, but Asia, the Americas and Russia show net gains, with the F-35 taking the limelight in 2013 YEAR OF UPS AND DOWNS Afghan air force’s tactical transport capabili- ties, however, with a recently-introduced fleet of Alenia North America-prepared C-27As having been parked, and some of their duties assumed by a pair of ex-US Air Force Lockheed Martin C-130Hs. In the USA itself, Congressionally-mandat- ed budget cuts imposed via sequestration con- tinue to threaten long-term damage, with the air force having aired the possibility of retir- ing entire aircraft types as one means of mak- ing savings. One potential victim of such a step could be the service’s Fairchild-Republic A-10 ground-attack aircraft, as their utility could be judged as being of diminished value away from the Afghan operation. Following on from its receipt of a last Lockheed Martin F-22 fighter in 2012, the In di an a ir fo rc e T he ability of air forces around the globe to react to the unexpected was highlighted afresh in 2013, with re-quirements having ranged from pro- viding multinational support for France’s combat intervention in Mali, to flying human- itarian relief sorties to help in typhoon-devas- tated parts of the Philippines. Just one full week of the year had passed when Paris took the decision to launch its Operation Serval campaign, responding to a request from the embattled government in Bamako. French aircraft already based in Af- rica were reinforced within four days by as- sets including several of its air force’s Das- sault Rafales, some of which completed a more than 9h 30min strike mission in the process of deploying to the region. Vital support came from allocations of tactical and strategic transport, tanker and airborne surveillance services from several European nations, and from the USA. While the Islamist militants which had been threatening to take power in Mali were quickly tackled, the process of maintaining the security situation in the nation is continu- ing. French assets and personnel remain in place, while the task of handing responsibility to African and UN peacekeepers gathers pace. The collaboration between France and its allies for the Serval activity is well practiced, with many of the same nations having worked together during the Libya campaign two years earlier, and also still involved in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. Despite an agreed timetable to end all combat involvement in that nation by the end of 2014, several major current contributors are likely to continue to offer services to support the Kabul government in the transition that will follow the end of their International Security Assistance Force duty. Work to prepare the Afghan military to as- sume full control for security continues to make mixed progress, from the aviation per- spective. A controversial light air support re- quirement for 20 armed turboprops is ad- vancing, with a Sierra Nevada-Embraer team’s offer of the latter’s EMB-314 Super Tucano having won a US Air Force-led con- test for the second time in February 2013. Equipment uncertainty has surrounded the ❯❯India’s military modernisation drive has seen it introduce C-17 strategic transports FIN_101213_024-028.indd 24 05/12/2013 13:24 10-16 December 2013 | Flight International | 25flightglobal.com DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES F-16s and F-18s account for a combined 22% of the global combat aircraft fleet Co m m on w ea lth o f A us tra lia WORLDWIDE TOP 10 ACTIVE AIRCRAFT TYPES COMBAT AIRCRAFT Type Active fleet Share 1 F-16 2,281 15% 2 F-18 1,008 7% 3 F-15 865 6% 4 MiG-29 857 6% 5 Su-27/30/33/35 845 6% 6 MiG-21 698 5% 7 Su-25 507 3% 8 F-5 492 3% 9 F-7 460 3% 10 Su-24 423 3% Other 6,352 43% TOTAL 14,788 100% TRANSPORT Type Active fleet Share 1 C-130/L-100 900 21% 2 King Air 270 6% 3 C-17 257 6% 4 C295/CN235 231 6% 5 An-24/26 180 4% 6 Il-76 172 4% 7 An-30/32 134 3% 8 C160 123 3% 9 Cessna 208 120 3% 10 Y-8 101 2% Other 1,712 41% TOTAL 4,200 100% COMBAT HELICOPTERS Type Active fleet Share 1 S-70/SH/UH-60 3,325 18% 2 Mi-8/17/171/172 2,160 11% 3 UH-1 1,508 8% 4 AH-64 1,008 5% 5 CH-47 939 5% 6 Mi-24/25/35 868 5% 7 OH-58 758 4% 8 MD500 681 4% 9 Bell 212/412 675 4% 10 SA341/342 556 3% Other 6,348 34% TOTAL 18,826 100% FIN_101213_024-028.indd 25 05/12/2013 13:35 wORld aiR FORces 2014 6 | Flightglobal Insight6 | Flightglobal Insight Flightglobal Insight | 7 flightglobal.com26 | Flight International | 10-16 December 2013 DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES Copyright © Free Vector Maps.com For more coverage of the defence sector, visit flightglobal.com/defence FLEET SIZE FOR LEADING COUNTRIES BY ROLE SPECIAL MISSION Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 871 46% 2 Japan 154 8% 3 Russia 79 4% 4 China 51 3% 5 Brazil 46 2% 6 France 41 2% 7 Indonesia 40 2% 8 Germany 39 2% 9 Israel 34 2% 10 UK 30 2% Other 522 27% TOTAL 1,907 100% COMBAT AIRCRAFT Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 2,740 19% 2 China 1,453 10% 3 Russia 1,438 10% 4 India 768 5% 5 North Korea 574 4% 6 Egypt 414 3% 7 South Korea 409 3% 8 Pakistan 377 3% 9 Japan 291 2% 10 Taiwan 286 2% Other 6,038 41% TOTAL 14,788 100% TANKER Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 595 78% 2 Russia 23 3% 3 Saudi Arabia 17 2% 4 France 14 2% 5 Israel 12 2% 6 UK 9 1% 7 SINGAPORE 9 1% 8 India 7 1% 9 Turkey 7 1% 10 Spain 7 1% Other 63 8% TOTAL 763 100% ❯❯ USAF this year received its final exam- ples of the Boeing C-17 strategic transport. Boeing, which also transferred its first five of 10 examples for new operator the Indian air force, will end production of the type at its Long Beach site in California in 2015. Despite its self-imposed funding woes, Washington can still claim a sizeable numeri- cal advantage over any potential adversary, as illustrated in the data section of our World Air Forces directory. Compiled using information contained within Flightglobal’s Ascend On- line Fleets and MiliCAS databases, the prod- uct details the active air inventories and procurement plans of 160 nations. In all, the 2014 version includes listings for almost 63,000 individual military aircraft. This total includes more than 50,700 combat, special mission, tanker and transport aircraft, combat helicopters and training assets record- ed as being in current active use. Nearly 5,300 are the subject of firm orders, while 6,800- plus airframes are contained within pending orders, or the subject of letters of intent from potential operators. The North America region – of which the US armed forces takes more than a 97% share in our report – retains the largest share of the total in-service fleet, with almost 14,100 air- craft. As with previous versions, Washing- ton’s military machine also comfortably tops the tables in terms of volume share in all six of our equipment categories. However, the Asia- Pacific nations are slowly closing the gap, with their combined fleets lagging the USA’s fleet total by only about 800 units. Asia-Pacific nations are closing the gap, with combined fleets lagging the USA’s by only 800 units EUROPE Combat aircraft 2,320 Special mission 237 Tanker 51 Transport 690 Combat helicopter 3,432 Training aircraft/helicopters 2,016 NORTH AMERICA Combat aircraft 2,804 Special mission 897 Tanker 601 Transport 1,102 Combat helicopter 5,810 Training aircraft/helicopters 2,881 LATIN AMERICA Combat aircraft 629 Special mission 145 Tanker 9 Transport 480 Combat helicopter 1,210 Training aircraft/helicopters 7213% Year-on-year fleet change -3% Year-on-year fleet change -7% Year-on-year fleet change -2% Year-on-year fleet change 2% Year-on-year fleet change WORLDWIDE ACTIVE FLEET PER REGION NOTE: CIS countries include Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belrarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan SOURCE: Flightglobal’s Ascend Online Fleets and MiliCAS FIN_101213_024-028.indd 26 05/12/2013 13:36 6 | Flightglobal Insight6 | Flightglobal Insight Flightglobal Insight | 7 wORld aiR FORces 2014 10-16 December 2013 | Flight International | 27flightglobal.com DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES Copyright © Free Vector Maps.com COMBAT HELICOPTERS Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 5,674 30% 2 Russia 918 5% 3 China 751 4% 4 South Korea 659 4% 5 Japan 653 3% 6 India 529 3% 7 France 521 3% 8 Turkey 396 2% 9 Germany 387 2% 10 Italy 362 2% Other 7,976 42% TOTAL 18,826 100% TRANSPORT Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 1,062 25% 2 Russia 329 8% 3 India 222 5% 4 CHINA 200 5% 5 Brazil 136 3% 6 France 133 3% 7 Iran 114 3% 8 Turkey 80 2% 9 Germany 72 2% 10 Thailand 70 2% Other 1,782 42% TOTAL 4,200 100% TRAINING AIRCRAFT/HELICOPTERS Country Active fleet Share 1 USA 2,747 27% 2 Japan 423 4% 3 Egypt 388 4% 4 China 382 4% 5 UK 296 3% 6 Russia 294 3% 7 South Korea 261 3% 8 Israel 245 2% 9 Turkey 245 2% 10 India 234 2% Other 4,746 46% TOTAL 10,261 100% While budget pressures continue to be felt by many nations, the global in-service fleet has remained steady over the last 12 months, with a net decrease of only around 75 air- frames against the figure reported in our pre- vious directory. However, as illustrated by our global fleet share graphic, regional strengths have fluctuated notably within the same timeframe. Overall growth has been seen in the Asia-Pacific, Latin America and North America regions, as well as within the Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States grouping. By contrast, slight reductions have oc- curred in Africa, Europe and the Middle East. Retirements in Europe included the German air force’s McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom interceptors, Spain’s Dassault Mirage F1s and two of the UK’s air transport stalwarts: the Lockheed C-130K and Vickers VC10. The effects of internal conflict have contrib- uted significantly to the Middle East’s report- ed 7% contraction within the year, with Syr- ia’s air force inventory estimated as having been reduced from 715 units to 473. Our data also records a net reduction in Egypt, which continued to experience instability in 2013, including the military ouster of its elected president Mohamed Morsi. Cairo’s drop can, however, be largely attributed to the recorded removal from use of its long-obsolete fleets of a combined 105 Chinese-built Shenyang F-6 and Chengdu F-7 fighters. A related factor which could see the region- al orders total pick up involves Israel, which has called various air force assets and un- manned air vehicles into action to monitor the movement of militants in Egypt’s Sinai re- gion. The service has also intervened to strike suspected weapons transfer activity being conducted within Syria’s borders, while offi- cials have expressed concern over improved relations between the US and Iranian govern- ments. Already on contract to field a first batch of Lockheed F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, ❯❯ Analyse the aviation market with instant access to real-time, premium quality aircraft and industry data flightglobal.com/ascend ASIA-PACIFIC Combat aircraft 4,931 Special mission 425 Tanker 35 Transport 894 Combat helicopter 4,576 Training aircraft/helicopters 2,435 RUSSIA & CIS Combat aircraft 1,852 Special mission 80 Tanker 23 Transport 357 Combat helicopter 1,216 Training aircraft/helicopters 368 MIDDLE EAST Combat aircraft 1,250 Special mission 77 Tanker 37 Transport 281 Combat helicopter 1,247 Training aircraft/helicopters 904 AFRICA Combat aircraft 1,002 Special mission 46 Tanker 7 Transport 393 Combat helicopter 1,335 Training aircraft/helicopters 936 1% Year-on-year fleet change -7% Year-on-year fleet change -2% Year-on-year fleet change 5% Year-on-year fleet change FIN_101213_024-028.indd 27 05/12/2013 13:41 wORld aiR FORces 2014 8 | Flightglobal Insight8 | Flightglobal Insight Flightglobal Insight | 9 flightglobal.com28 | Flight International | 11-17 December 2012 DIRECTORY WORLD AIR FORCES To download more of Flightglobal’s special reports, visit flightglobal.com/insight EXPLANATORY NOTES Flight International’s annual World Air Forces directory uses fleet data compiled for Flightglobal’s Ascend Online Fleets and MiliCAS databases by Sandra Lewis- Rice, John Maloney and Marc-Antony Payne, and abridged by defence editor Craig Hoyle. Published as premium products, our databases provide subscribers with detailed fleet and orders information, in the majority of cases down to serial-number level. Fleet analysis is provided by Antoine Fafard, from Flightglobal Insight. This produces a wide range of free sponsored reports, covering military, air transport and business aviation topics, through to more specialist studies on the maintenance or aircraft finance sectors. To find out more, and to download other special reports, visit flightglobal.com/insight Fleet information is divided into these categories: Active: Aircraft in day-to-day use. For some Soviet-era types where only summary information is available, this also includes some non-operational platforms. Ordered: Aircraft on firm order. Others which are pending purchase approval or contract signature are marked with an asterisk. This category includes current planned order totals, which may be subject to future revision. Abbreviations AEW airborne early warning; Comms communications; ELINT electronic intelligence; EW electronic warfare; MPA maritime patrol aircraft; Recce reconnaissance; SAR search and resc