German Air Force Press and Information Center Press Release - Cologne, 02 June 2008 No. 5/2008 Deactivation of the F-4F Phantom II at Fighter Wing 74 at Neuburg a. d. Donau -Media Day with Eurofighter QRA Presentation on 12 June 2008- Within the setting of a military parade on 12 June 2008, the Commander of the German Air Force Command (GAFCOM), Lieutenant General Aarne Kreuzinger-Janik, will recognize the longtime flight operations of Fighter Wing 74 with the F-4F Phantom II aircraft type in the presence of invited guests. With this event, the in-service phase of the weapon system in this unit will be officially terminated. Since 1974, the F-4F Phantom II combat aircraft type has been operated in the air defense role in Fighter Wing 74 and will now after 34 years be replaced by the Eurofighter aircraft. This special occasion is emphasized by an aircraft with special coating. The F-4F Phantom II will be transferred to Fighter Wing 71 'R' at Wittmund/East Friesland. Only for the period of the 2008 European Soccer Championship, the national quick reaction alert (QRA) element to be provided at the request of the organizing countries, Switzerland and Austria, will still use the F-4F Phantom II and be based at Neuburg a. d. Donau. This quick reaction alert element contributes to securing the airspace above the Federal Republic of Germany and is only operated above German territory. For this reason, flight operations are to be expected at weekends and/or during night hours in June. Since the first landing of a Eurofighter at the air base at Neuburg a. d. Donau on 25 July 2006, flight operations have increasingly been performed using this modern aircraft. Presse- und Informationszentrum der Luftwaffe (German Air Force Press Information Center), Luftwaffenkaserne Wahn (Wahn Air Force Barracks) 501/16, Postfach (P.O. Box) 906110, 51127 Köln (Cologne) Tel.: (02203) 908-5055, Fax: (02203) 908-2010, E-Mail: PIZLwPresse@bundeswehr.org
Since January 2008, the trials and test phase for the commencement of the quick reaction alert (QRA) has been initiated. On 03 June 2008, NATO will for the first time be notified of the adoption of the NATO QRA task using the Eurofighter weapon system. This constitutes another milestone in the complex process of introducing the new weapon system into the German Air Force. Presse- und Informationszentrum der Luftwaffe (German Air Force Press Information Center), Luftwaffenkaserne Wahn (Wahn Air Force Barracks) 501/16, Postfach (P.O. Box) 906110, 51127 Köln (Cologne) Tel.: (02203) 908-5055, Fax: (02203) 908-2010, E-Mail: PIZLwPresse@bundeswehr.org
German Air Force Command Commander Lieutenant General Aarne Kreuzinger-Janik Commander German Air Force Command GL Kreuzinger-Janik was born on 13 April 1950 in Lübeck. Upon completion of his high school education, he joined the Bundeswehr in 1969 and underwent pilot training. In addition to his duties as fighter bomber pilot he served for several years as intelligence officer and later as flight operations staff officer with Fighter Bomber Wing 31 based in Kerpen. From 1981 to 1983, Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik attended the 26th Air Force Command and General Staff Officer Course held at the Bundeswehr Command and Staff College in Hamburg. Subsequently he stayed there for another two years as planning staff officer. From 1985 to 1988 he was employed as squadron commander in Fighter Bomber Wing 34 based in Memmingen, Bavaria. After a one-year stint as section chief in HQ 3 Air Division in Kalkar he transferred to the Bundeswehr Office for Studies and Exercises where he worked as a study project officer. In 1990, Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik returned to Memmingen for two years as commander of the flying group of Fighter Bomber Wing 34. At the beginning of 1992 he was transferred to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium, where he served as G3 staff officer until 1994. In 1996, after a two-year assignment as assistant branch chief responsible for basic politico-military concepts in the Armed Forces Staff at the Federal Ministry of Defense in Bonn, he was posted to Kropp, Schleswig- Holstein, as commander of Reconnaissance Wing 51. In the course of this tour of duty he was appointed commander of German Air Force Operational Wing 1 in Piacenza, Italy. From 1997 until 31 March 1999 he acted as branch chief in the Bundeswehr Operations Center, in which capacity he was responsible for worldwide joint operational command and control of Bundeswehr contingents. This was followed by an assignment as Deputy National Territorial Commander, Military District II, and Commissioner for Reservist Affairs in Lower Saxony and Bremen. From October 2000, Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik served as Deputy Chief of Staff Concepts, Operations and Doctrine (Air Staff Division III) at the Federal Ministry of Defence. From Oktober 2002, Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik has been holding the position of the Commander 3 rd German Air Division. Since June 2006 Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik became Commander German Air Force Command ( COMGAFCOM ) Lieutenant General Kreuzinger-Janik is married.
F-4F PHANTOM II Description Mission/Use The F-4F Phantom II weapon system is a version derived from the F-4E for the fighter and fighter bomber roles. In the German Air Force, the F-4F is used for air defense. Procurement/History The US forces had used the F-4F Phantom II since 1961. From 1973 to 1975, the German Air Force received a total of 175 F-4F Phantom II aircraft. Since 2004, the Phantom is being replaced by the Eurofighter. According to current planning, the last F-4F will leave the German Air Force when Fighter Wing 71 'Richthofen' converts to the Eurofighter. Technical Data Aircrew: 2 (pilot and weapon system operator) Height: 5.01 m Length: 19.18 m Wingspan: 11.78 m Weight: 14 122 kg (empty weight) 26 300 kg (max. takeoff mass) approx. 7 000 kg weapons load Fuel load: max. 11 800 l Engine: 2 x General Electric J79-GE-17, each rated at 79.7 kn Max. speed: 2.2 Mach (at altitude) 1.2 Mach (at sea level) Landing distance: 900 m/2 950 ft Takeoff distance: 900 m/2 950 ft Range: 2 200 km/1 200 nm Max. altitude: g-load: 18 300 m +8 g/-3 g Equipment From 1991 to 1996, the German Air Force jets were upgraded. A total of 40 aircraft were fitted for air attack (LA version) with improved air data computers and navigation systems for the fighter bomber role. Another 110 Phantom II aircraft were fitted for air defense (LV version) with a new mission computer, the AN/APG-65 airborne radar known from the F-18 Hornet and the radar-controlled AMRAAM air-to-air guided weapon. At present, only the LV version remains in use.
Armament 9 external stores stations for tanks, jamming pods or weapons Nose gun for 20 x 102 mm ammunition with a rate of fire of 4 000 to 6 000 rounds per minute AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile) tactical medium-range air-to-air guided missile AIM-9L SIDEWINDER short-range air-to-air guided missile Various types of weapons / bombs Units Fighter Wing 71 'Richthofen', Wittmund (FW 71 'R')
Factsheet EUROFIGHTER Description Mission/Use The EUROFIGHTER weapon system is a high-performance 4th generation combat aircraft that is capable of network-enabled operations and can be used both in the air defense (LV) role and in the air attack (LA) role. The EUROFIGHTER ensures protection of the own population and also serves for the protection of own forces and assets during peacekeeping/peacemaking missions. Due to its capability of performing network-enabled operations, it can be employed along with the partners' air and ground forces and, on the whole, increases the enforcing capability of composite air operations at day and at night as well as in adverse weather conditions. Procurement/History The EUROFIGHTER is manufactured by the EUROFIGHTER Jagdflugzeug GmbH in Hallbergmoos near Munich. This consortium of BAE Systems, EADS, Alenia and EADS Casa was founded as a joint company by Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany in 1986 to develop and produce the entire weapon system. On 27 March 1994, the prototype took off for its first flight in Manching. On 30 April 2004, the fly-in was performed at Fighter Wing 73 'S'. Since 25 July 2006, the EUROFIGHTER is being introduced at Fighter Wing 74. Technical Data Length: 15.96 m Height: 5.28 m Wingspan: 10.95 m Wing area: 50 m 2 Weight: 11 000 kg (empty weight) 23 500 kg (max. takeoff mass) Max. load: 7 500 kg Tank capacity: 6 125 l without external tanks Engine: 2 x turbojet engine Eurojet EJ 200 with afterburner Thrust without afterburner: 60 kn Thrust with afterburner: 90 kn
Max. speed: Max. altitude: g-load: Takeoff distance: Landing distance: Mach 2 (supercruise supersonic capable without use of afterburner) 55 000 ft +9 g/-3 g < 700 m < 600 m Equipment Due to the delta-canard wings, the EUROFIGHTER has a very good maneuverability. What should be specially stressed is its capability of flying 9 g maneuvers in the supersonic range as well. The EUROFIGHTER is controlled by a digital fly-by-wire system that picks up the movements carried out by the pilot with the control stick by means of sensors. The four computers available process the sensor data and pass on the control signals. The flight control system (FCS) ensures the so-called carefree handling (CFH). This prevents the pilot from overloading his aircraft with flight maneuvers. The individual cockpit functions are controlled by means of switches and 24 finger-tip pressure control functions on the control stick and on the throttle. This hands-on-throttle-and-stick configuration allows the pilot to control the essential aircraft functions without releasing the control stick or the throttle. The pilot can also enter spoken commands into the system by using the Direct Voice Input device. Armament The EUROFIGHTER is fitted with an IRST (Infrared Search & Tracking) system that allows it to detect and track hostile aircraft at a distance of up to 50 kilometers under favorable weather conditions without attracting attention by its own airborne radar. The IRIS-T short-range air-to-air missiles, the Captor radar and the future Meteor long-range air-toair missiles turn the EUROFIGHTER into a high-performance interceptor. For air-toground operations, it will additionally be equipped with the new TAURUS air-to-surface missiles. - Mauser 27 mm gun - AIM-120 AMRAAM - MBDA Meteor - AIM-9L Sidewinder - IRIS-T - TAURUS Units Fighter Wing 73 'S', Laage (FW 73 'S') Fighter Wing 74, Neuburg a.d. Donau (FW 74) Fighter Wing 71 'R', Wittmund (FW 71 'R') (planned) Fighter Bomber Wing 31 'B', Növernich (FBW 31 'B') (planned) Fighter Bomber Wing 33, Büchel (FBW 33) (planned)
Air Policing Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) On principle, the responsibility for air policing has been transferred to NATO already in peace within the scope of NATO Integrated Air Defense. Under certain conditions, this responsibility will be retransferred to the respective nation. As a rule, the related decision criterion is a "Special Occurrence in the Airspace". Organization The responsibility for the surveillance of the airspace and the command and control of the required measures to be taken by NATO has been assigned to the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC). In Germany, CAOC 2 at Kalkar and CAOC 4 at Meßstetten are operated for this purpose. The respective CAOC Commanders are responsible for the initiation of air sovereignty measures against aircraft which also means measures in the airspace of the Federal Republic of Germany. To this end, they are supported by the operations centers of the German Air Force Tactical Air Command and Control Service (TACCS) in Germany (currently Tactical Air Command and Control (TACC) Group 1 at Meßstetten, TACC Group 2 at Erndtebrück, TACC Group 3 at Holzdorf, and TACC Group 4 at Aurich). Measures The measures to be taken comprise the following: Identification It is a routine task to identify each aircraft in the airspace of the Federal Republic of Germany. This task is performed, among other things, by correlating radar data with flight plans which are sent from the air traffic services area to the operations centers of the air defense system, and by decoding so-called secondary data that are transmitted by the aircraft and can provide information on the role of the aircraft or on the air traffic control unit. If an aircraft cannot be identified or otherwise shows unusual behavior (for instance interruption of radio contact with the air traffic control unit, leaving the authorized flight route), it can be visually identified. ALPHA Scramble For this purpose, two armed Phantom F-4F/Eurofighter fighter aircraft of Fighter Wing 71 'Richthofen', Wittmund/East Friesland, and of Fighter Wing 74, Neuburg/Danube, are kept on a permanent 15-minute alert (24 hours/7 days a week) as a so-called Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) element. In the case of an occurrence, this alert period can be reduced down to two minutes. If required, the CAOC can order a scramble (ALPHA Scramble; the state of alert indicates the period of time in which the aircraft must be airborne) with the task of visual identification.
Visual Identification As a rule, the scramble order includes the order to perform a visual identification of the aircraft. To this end, the fighter aircraft are vectored by radio to the affected aircraft by an operations center of the TACCS. Based on tactical aspects, the aircrews take up position near the aircraft identifying the registration number of the intercepted target and transmitting it to the ground station. There, personnel will verify whether it is the aircraft specified in the flight plan (type, registration, airline, route, altitude, etc.). Further measures are dependent on the identification result and on further information available in the air defense system. If it is a military aircraft, the responsibility for the coordination of further measures remains with NATO; if it is a civilian aircraft and if suspicious circumstances indicate that this aircraft might be abused for a terrorist attack, the responsibility will be transferred to the national level and will be assumed by the National Air Security Center (NASC). Procedure Initial Information As a rule, initial information on a "Special Occurrence in the Airspace" is provided by the Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS)(German air navigation services) to the National Air Security Center (NASC). The NASC is manned by personnel of the Federal Ministry of Defense, the National Air Policing Center (NAPC) and by personnel of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, of the Situation Center of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Airspace Security Branch, working on 24-hour shift duty. All information relevant to airspace security are received here. The information provided by the DFS is simultaneously transmitted to all agencies of the air defense network, the operations centers and wings, by the operations senior officer on duty (German Duty Controller GE DC) via existing communication links shared with NATO. The Airspace Security Branch transmits information on an ALPHA Scramble and all following information to the Situation Center of the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Berlin and to the Federal States (Länder) affected at the relevant point in time. Initial Measures As a rule, the initial measures are initiated by NATO. Due to the colocation and on the basis of the air situation picture shared with NATO, the NASC at any point in time has the same information as NATO has. The spectrum of initial measures comprises the potential increase of the state of alert of the QRA elements, the scramble and the decision to visually identify an aircraft. The responsibility is transferred in consideration of the situation; this is depending on the situation and the existing information. The transfer of responsibility includes the disengagement from the NATO structure of those forces assigned to NATO already in peace that are required to tackle the current situation. These forces are subordinated to the National Air Policing Center and controlled from there.
Further Measures Following completion of the visual identification, a decision on further measures will have to be made. There is no automatic sequence of actions for this. The measures depend on the situation in the air and on the information available in the NASC. This information is primarily furnished by the Situation Center of the Federal Ministry of the Interior and, among other things, comprises the following: Leads from the security agencies; these are general safety and hazard inputs as far as they are (or can be) relevant to air security Information from the area of the intelligence services with equal relevance, Situation estimates by the Federal Foreign Office Leads from the situation centers of the Federal States (Länder) Leads from aerodromes Leads from the operations centers of the airlines Information from the neighboring countries Depending on the situation, the German Air Defense Commander (GE ADCOM) will be briefed on the situation and kept informed constantly, not later than by the time a scramble of the QRA element is initiated. He will, again dependent on the situation, contact the Federal Minister of Defense. Furthermore, additional information is obtained from other sources, again depending on the situation. This also includes establishing the operator, especially of light aircraft, and the inquiry for findings on operators. The overall objective of the NASC is to provide the military and the political decision maker with comprehensive information and/or involve that information in the process of decision preparation. Decisions on follow-up measures can thus be made on the broadest possible basis. Coordination The transfer of information from the NASC to the area of the Federal Ministry of the Interior, including the Federal States (Länder), is coordinated by the Airspace Security Branch. Planning of further proceedings is coordinated between the GE DC and the CAOC if under NATO command and between the GE DC and the DFS if under national command. The pure conduct of flight operations of the QRA element is coordinated between the operations center controlling the fighter aircraft and the responsible unit of the DFS according to standard procedures.