Paris Air Show 2015: France keeps investing in Tiger attack helicopters, launches new missile progra

[Zarvan]

France is looking to soon find a replacement for the Hellfire missile and add a guided rocket to its Tiger attack helicopters' armament. Tiger HAD development aircraft pictured carrying eight Spike-ER missiles during trials. Source: Airbus Helicopters
France is continuing to invest in the development of its Tiger attack helicopters, and is expected to soon launch a programme for a new long-range missile, known as FAST-M, to replace the AGM-114 Hellfire anti-tank missile.

The FAST-M programme could be launched as early as this year, for an entry into service soon after 2020.

Speaking to IHS Jane's, an officer in the French Army's Light Aviation (ALAT) stated, "I can't imagine having the Tiger Standard 3 entering service around 2023 without an associated missile."

France is also set to speed up its laser-guided rocket programme for the Tiger, following amendments to the 2014-19 military programme law (LPM) to accelerate the project. This should give the ALAT the ability to bring forward the entry into service by six years to 2020. There is little doubt that TDA (a subsidiary of Thales), which already equips the French Tigers with their 68 mm unguided rockets and last year conducted two successful test firings of a guided version known as RPM, will be the supplier for this programme. France is expected to retain the 68 mm calibre rocket, although the latest Tiger Support and Destruction Helicopter (Hélicoptère d'Appui Destruction: HAD) version is also qualified to fire 70 mm rockets.

Another development concerns the 30 mm shell fired by the Tiger's Nexter 30M781 30 mm cannon. Although the current Obus Semi-Perforant Explosif Incendiaire (OSPEI) shell was satisfactory in Afghanistan, it is said to be less successful in sandy terrain in Mali, where the shells bury themselves before exploding. As a result, the ALAT is now seeking new ammunition with less penetration and more explosive power.

As of the start of June, the ALAT had received 40 Tiger Support and Escort Helicopter (Hélicoptère d'Appui Protection: HAP) and 11 Tiger HAD models. One HAD is flying with the ALAT experimentation unit (GAMSTAT), two with the Franco-German Tiger school in Le Luc en Provence, and the remaining eight with the Phalsbourg-based 1st Combat Helicopter Regiment (1er Régiment d'Hélicoptères de Combat: 1er RHC). The 1er RHC should receive three more HADs before the year's end, bringing the total to 54 Tigers delivered to the French forces.

Ultimately, the Tiger force will be made out of 24 HADs and 36 HAPs retrofitted into HADs. According to these figures, five more new HADs will be delivered in 2016 and the last ones the following year. Once the HAD's delivery is completed, Airbus Helicopters will start the retrofit process with the HAPs.

However, the possibility to order seven extra HADs and bring the total force to 67 aircraft, as stated in the recent LPM update, will change the timetable and could delay the start of the retrofitting work on the HAPs. The six first HADs were Block 1 aircraft, lacking only minor capabilities compared with a fully capable HAD. On the other hand, Block 1 HADs were deemed combat capable and sent to the Central African Republic in November 2014 for Operation 'Sangaris'. The HADs now being delivered to the 1er RHC are Block 2 aircraft, offering a slightly improved accuracy with their rockets, improved capabilities with the Hellfire missile in mountain operation (when the firing involves a vertical drop), an enlarged flight envelope, secure radios, and an IFF slaved to the Strix sight. The first Block 1 aircraft will be soon retrofitted into Block 2s.

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Paris Air Show 2015: France keeps investing in Tiger attack helicopters, launches new missile programme - IHS Jane's 360