- Yes
- No
Hello, I’m suggesting a short-lived upgrade to the CF-116 known as AUP. This was an upgrade that was meant to support/train for the Hornets depending on what variant you’re talking about(as both the As and Ds got the upgrade).
History:
The F-5 would begin in 1954 when Northrop examined the NBMR-1 and the needs of SEATO. However, the design wouldn’t really begin until General Electric came out with its J35 turbojet engine. One of the biggest parts of its design was Welko Gasich’s life cycle cost philosophy which led to its low cost and long life. In 1962 the aircraft would be selected as a low-cost export fighter where it would gain the name F-5A.
In 1964 the Royal Canada Air Force began looking for an aircraft to replace both the CF-104 and the CF-101. This started with a proposal to jointly produce the F-4 with the UK, this was however rejected due to it being too costly. This would lead to Jean Victor Allard to evaluating 4 aircraft, those being the F-5, A-6, A-4 and A-7. Out of those aircraft the Royal Canadian Navy wanted the A-4 Skyhawk as a replacement for its F2H Banshees to continue carrier operations. Although the aircraft that was most recommended was the A-7 Corsair for the RCAF needs. Out of all the aircraft looked at the only one that was considered not suitable for Canada’s needs. Despite the promising look of other aircraft the outcome of the choice would change when Pauk Hellyer would get involved. He would proceed to question the RCAF’s role and preoccupation with fighters. Due to this he would continue changing the requirements of the RCAFs new aircraft until only the F-5 could be picked. This action was highly likely influenced by Paul Hellyar’s close relationship with T.V. Jones who was President of the Northrop Corporation, as he would later call the F-5 “little more than a trainer with guns hung on it”. In Canada, as a whole, it was an unpopular decision due to the mature aerospace industry, as the aircraft was far less sophisticated than most aircraft they worked to to the point it seemed like sabotage. Tho this wasn’t the case as a big part of why Northrop won the contract was the fact that they permitted the Canadian government to be able to sell the aircraft to third parties. This side of the deal would be quickly reinforced when the Royal Netherlands Air Force ordered some under a production-sharing agreement with Canada. This would lead to the NF-5 which would receive some more modifications on top of the base ones done to the CF-116s.
Due to the needs of Canada, the CF-116 would receive a bunch of modifications. These would include, a two-position nose landing gear; which when compressed it operated like the original landing gear but when extended it would raise the nose which would increase the angle of attack and increase lift. These changes ended up reducing takeoff distance by nearly 20%. The CF-116 would also receive a midair refuelling probe and would use Orenda-built General Electric J85-15 engines. The aircraft would also receive a more sophisticated navigation system. The nose of the aircraft was also interchangeable with a specially designed reconnaissance st that had four cameras in it.
In 1988, the CF-116 would start a major upgrade in which 23 CF-116As and 33 CF-116Ds would receive. This was a Life Extension Program(SLEP) which would have much of the aircraft parts replaced, to extend their service life. Done by British Aerospace Ltd. they would see the replacement of the wings, fins, control surfaces and undercarriage. This would be in large with structural upgrades/repairs which would include, the already mentioned repair and overhaul but also re-skinning of the wings and vertical fin, it would also have a steel dorsal longeron substitute the original aluminum unit. Other things replaced would be rear fuselage formers, landing gear, tailplanes, windshield, fuel tanks, flexible hydraulic hoses and the brake chute springs and cables, as well as the tunnel brackets receiving reinforcement. When these were complete the aircraft would be completely rewired and repainted along with being given provisions for a MIL STD 1553B digital databus and having a radar altimeter installed. All this would lead to the hope it would extend the service life by another 4000 hours, and even to the year 2005 and beyond.
This would be followed up with a second phase in 1990 that would be known as Avionics Upgrade Program or well AUP. This would have 11 CF-116As and 33 CF-116Ds take part. The devices installed in the upgrade would be: A GEC-Ferranti 4510 HUD, A Litton LN-93 laser inertial navigation system, a GEC Avionics air data computer, HOTAS controls, a Honeywell radar altimeter, and a Magnavox AN/ARC-164 VHF radio. There would also be a Ferranti video camera that could view through the HUD. All the equipment was to be able to communicate via the MIL STD 1553B Digital databus.
Despite all these upgrades, the life in service of the CF-116 would soon end later when the Department of National Defence announced a cut in fighter strength in 1995. Well, the original plan was to put a number of the CF-188s in storage, to prevent this the Canadian Armed Forces agreed to eliminate all its active CF-116s from inventory. when this happened Bristol had finished work on 37 upgrades when the program was suspended and stopped. By the end of it all but two which were given to Bristol ended up in storage.
Specs:
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 47 ft 2 in (14.38 m)
- Wingspan: 25 ft 10 in (7.87 m)
- Height: 13 ft 2 in (4.01 m)
- Wing area: 186 sq ft (17.28 m2)
- Empty weight: 8,681 lb (3,938 kg)
- Max takeoff weight: 20,390 lb (9,249 kg)
- Powerplant: 2 × Orenda-built GE J85-15 turbojet, 2,925 lbf (13.01 kN) thrust each dry, 4,300 lbf (19 kN) with afterburner
Performance
- Maximum speed: 978 mph (1,575 km/h, 850 kn)
- Maximum speed: Mach 1.3
- Range: 875 mi (1,400 km, 760 nmi)
- Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,000 m)
- Rate of climb: 34,400 ft/min (175 m/s)
Armament
- Guns: 2× 20 mm (0.787 in)Pontiac M39A2 cannons in the nose, 280 rounds/gun
- Hardpoints: 5 with a capacity of 7,000 lb (3,200 kg), with provisions to carry combinations of:
- Rockets: 2× CRV7 rocket pods
or 2× LAU-10 rocket pods with 4× Zuni 127 mm rockets each
or 2× Matra rocket pods with 18× 68 mm SNEB rockets each - Bombs: A variety of air-to-ground ordnance, such as the Mark 80 series of unguided iron bombs (including 3 kg and 14 kg practice bombs), U.S. CBU-24/49/52/58 and British BL755 cluster bomb munitions, M129 Leaflet bomb
- Other: Drop tanksfor extended range
- Rockets: 2× CRV7 rocket pods
- Missiles: Provisions for 2× AIM-9L/M Sidewinder air-to-air missiles
Sources
Canadian Warplanes 6: Canadair CF-116 Freedom Fighter
Canadair CF-5 - Wikipedia
Cold War Air Power Choices For The RCAF: Paul Hellyer and the Selection of the CF5 Freedom Fighter - Canadian Military Journal
Northrop F-5 - Wikipedia
https://ingeniumcanada.org/aviation/artifact/canadair-cf-116-cf-5a
Information archivée dans le Web | Information Archived on the Web
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMhr85csmg8
Canadair CF-5
Canadair CF-5 Freedom Fighter In Canadian Service by Anthony L. Stachiw and Andrew Tattersall
