BAE Hawk

The Hawk is an advanced jet trainer manufactured by BAE SYSTEMS and used by the Royal Air Force and other countries.

Table of contents

1 History 2 Variants 3 Notes 4 Characteristics 5 External Links

History

In 1964 the Royal Air Force specified a requirement for a new initial jet trainer to replace the Folland Gnat. The SEPECAT Jaguar was originally intended for this role, but it was soon realised that it would be too complex an aircraft for initial jet training. Accordingly, in 1968 Hawker Siddeley Aviation began the design of a much simpler strictly subsonic trainer, the HS.1182. It was to have tandem seating and would be capable of carrying armaments, which would enable it to be used as a weapons trainer and in light combat roles.

The Hawk proper first flew in 1974. It entered RAF service in April 1976, replacing the Gnat and Hawker Hunter in the advanced training and weapons training roles respectively. The most famous RAF operator is the Red Arrows aerobatic team, which adopted the plane in 1979.

The Hawk gained an additional role from January 1983, when modification of 88 RAF aircraft to carry Sidewinder missiles commenced. The resulting T.Mk 1A variant was intended for emergency use as a point-defence fighter. Hawks are no longer used in this role

The Hawk subsequently replaced the English Electric Canberra in the target towing role. The Royal Navy acquired a dozen Hawk T.Mk 1/1As from the RAF, for use as aerial targets for the training of ships gunners and radar operators.

Variants

• The Hawk T1 is the original version used by the RAF.
• The Hawk 50 was the original export trainer version, from which the T-45 Goshawk was derived.
• The Hawk 60 is the current export version, replacing the Hawk 50, and is intended for conversion and weapons training. It is a two-seater, has Rolls Royce Ardour 861 engines and is capable of Mach 1.2.
• The Hawk 100 is a two-seat advanced weapons trainer with additional avionics, including forward looking infrared.
• The Hawk 128 includes modern CRT displays instead of conventional instrumentation, and allows preparation for flying modern fighter aircraft. It has Rolls Royce Ardour 951 engines.
• The Hawk 200 is a single seat, lightweight multi-role combat aircraft for air defence and ground attack missions. It has Rolls Royce Ardour 871 engines.

A fully carrier-capable version of the Hawk was developed for the United States Navy for use in training. This version is known as the T-45 Goshawk. It first flew in 1989 and became operational in 1991. Several modifications were required by the Navy for carrier operations, including improvements to the low-speed handling characteristics and a reduction in the approach speed. The Goshawk was manufactured originally by McDonnell Douglas and later by Boeing.

Notes

The stepped cockpit, allowing the instructor in the rear seat a good forward view, was an innovation subsequently adopted by many other training aircraft.

Characteristics

• Role: advanced jet trainer, ground attack and light fighter aircraft
• Powerplant: One Rolls-Royce/Turbomeca Adour Mk 151 turbofan rated at 5,200lb
• Size:
  • Length: 39ft 2in (11.96m)
  • Height: 13ft 1 in
  • Wingspan: 30ft 9.75in (9.39m)
  • Wing area: m²
• Weight:
  • Empty: kg
  • Normal Takeoff: kg
  • Maximum: kg
• Speed: 622mph (1,000km/h) at sea level.
• Ceiling: about 18 km
• Range:
  • Air Combat (10 minute loiter): km
  • Air Combat (3 hour CAP): km
  • Ground attack (hi-lo-hi): km
  • Ground attack (lo-lo-lo): km
  • Ferry: more than km
• Wing Loading: kg/m² at normal takeoff weight
• Thrust/weight ratio: at normal takeoff weight
• Armament:
  • ? AAMs with a mix of ?
  • air-to-ground weapons include:

• Cost: ~ $18m US (Hawk 155 as sold to India 2003)
• First flight: 1974
• In service date: 1976
• Users: Royal Air Force, Australia, Abu Dhabi, Finland, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Switzerland, the United States Navy (Goshawk) and others

External Links

• The RAF Hawk page
• http://www.vectorsite.net/avhawk.html
• Australian Airforce Hawk
• http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/types/uk/bae_systems/hawk/hawk1.htm
• The Red Arrows
• Global Security on the Goshawk