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French Navy / Marine Nationale Breguet Br.1150 Atlantique Dassault-Breguet Atlantique 2 (ATL 2) |
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The Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic is a
long-range maritime patrol aircraft designed and manufactured by
French aircraft manufacturer Breguet Aviation. Designed in response to a 1958 NATO specification as a replacement for the Lockheed P2V Neptune, Breguet's submission was declared the winner over several competing bids. To produce the Atlantic, a multinational consortium, Société d'Étude et de Construction de Breguet Atlantic (SECBAT), was established. During 1963, an initial order for 60 Atlantics - 40 for France and 20 for Germany – was received. Follow-on orders from export customers followed shortly thereafter. It was first introduced to operational service during 1965. The Atlantic is also capable of carrying air-to-ground munitions to perform ground-attack missions. An updated version, the Atlantique 2 or ATL2, was produced by Dassault Aviation for the French Navy in the 1980s. A further improved model, the Atlantique 3, was proposed during the 1990s but ultimately unbuilt. Development: In 1958, NATO produced a specification for a long-range maritime patrol aircraft to replace the Lockheed P2V Neptune, with Breguet's design, the Br 1150, chosen as the winner of the competition at the end of the year. A multinational consortium, Société d'Étude et de Construction de Breguet Atlantic (SECBAT) was set up to develop and build the Atlantic. The first prototype made its maiden flight at Toulouse on 21 October 1961, with the second prototype flying on 25 February 1962, followed by two preproduction aircraft with a longer fuselage in February 1963 and September 1964. An initial order for 60 Atlantics - 40 for France and 20 for Germany - was placed in 1963, with deliveries starting in 1965 and continuing to 1968. The production line had shut down by the time the Netherlands placed an order for nine Atlantics and Italy ordered eighteen. Aircraft from this second production batch were delivered from 1972 to 1974. In 1978, the French Government authorised development of a new, updated version of the Atlantic, the Atlantic Nouvelle Génération (later known as the Atlantique 2 when orders from other nations did not occur). While the airframe and engines of the new aircraft changed little, equipment and avionics were considerably revised; these included new radar, a new sonar processor, a replacement tactical computer, and a forward-looking infrared camera turret installed under the nose. The ability to carry Exocet missiles was also added. Two prototype Atlantique 2s were produced by converting existing Atlantics; the first of these made its maiden flight on 8 May 1981. Production of the Atlantique 2 was authorised on 24 May 1984. Deliveries started in 1989 with 28 eventually built, from an original requirement for 42. By 2012, the Atlantique 2 had been rebranded as the ATL2, at which point France had a total of 22 in service. In 2012, 18 French Atlantiques were undergoing a series of upgrades to increase the type's effectiveness in two stages, Phase I addressing obsolescence issues and Phase II adding new capabilities. Also in 2012, a separate project was conducted to integrate the MU90 Impact torpedo. Aircraft that received these upgrades shall have an extended service life as well, enabling Atlantique operations to be extended to around 2032. Design: The Breguet Br.1150 Atlantic is a twin-engined, mid-winged monoplane with a "double-bubble" fuselage; the upper lobe comprising a pressurised crew compartment, and the lower lobe housing a 9 m (27 ft 6 in) long weapons bay, with sonobuoy tubes aft of the weapons bay. A radar scanner is housed in a retractable underfuselage radome, while a magnetic anomaly detector is housed in a tail boom. It is powered by a pair of Rolls-Royce Tyne turboprop engines. An all-aluminium structure is used throughout the Atlantic's airframe; corrosion is alleged to be a considerable problem due to environmental factors imposed by the maritime environment. The Atlantic was designed for its purpose, instead of refitting or modifying existing designs. Though the primary mission of the Atlantic is anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, its secondary roles include search and rescue, mine laying and detection and long-range maritime surveillance. The Atlantic can carry either eight guided ASW torpedoes such as Mk 46 Torpedo, or 12 depth charges, or two AM.39 Exocet anti-ship missiles in its internal bomb bay. German Atlantics usually carried Mk 46s only and flew unarmed during the last years of their service. Italian Atlantics have been periodically armed with NATO-provided nuclear bombs. In French service, 18 modernised Atlantique ATL2 are being equipped with various new avionics and onboard sensors. Such systems include the Searchmaster derived from RBE2-AA active electronically scanned array radar developed for Dassault Rafale, new digital acoustic processing systems, a Thales-manufactured identification friend or foe system, and DCNS-developed LOTI (Logiciel Opérationnel de Traitement de l'Information) combat mission software. Variants: Br.1150 Atlantic Long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft (1965-1996): The series' first operators became the French and German navies who contracted for 40 and 20 Atlantics respectively through an initial batch order from Breguet in 1963. These airframes were delivered to customers beginning in 1965 and ended in 1968. A follow up order involved supply of the aircraft to the Netherlands and Italy shortly thereafter, these being delivered into 1974. Production was undertaken by a European consortium under the "Societe d'Etude et de Construction de Breguet Atlantic" (otherwise recognized as "SECBAT") name led by Breguet itself. Beyond these European powers, Pakistan received three ex-French Navy Atlantics in the 1970s. As an anti-ship, anti-submarine maritime warfare mount, the Atlantic series could be properly outfitted through torpedoes (up to 8 x Mk 46 / 7 x Murene series), depth charges, naval mines and conventional drop bombs as required - these held in the unpressurized internal bomb bay. Additionally the aircraft was cleared to drop specialized mission equipment for shipwreck. Atlantique 2 - Updated variant, also known as the Atlantique Nouvelle Génération or ATL2 (1989- ) It is the direct descendant of the Bréguet Atlantic Power for the Atlantique 2 was served through 2 x Rolls-Royce Tyne RTy.20 Mk 21 series turboprop engines (twin shaft) developing 6,100 horsepower each - maximum speed of 400 miles per hour - cruising speed of 200 miles per hour - ferry range of 5,635 miles - mission endurance time of up to 18 hours - operations at altitudes from 100 feet up to 30,000 feet through use of a pressurized cabin and flight deck. - Rate-of-climb at 2,900 feet per minute. - 2 x Exocet AM-39 missile were added to armament. - 6 x MU90 Impact torpedo since July 2014. The ATL2 has been in service for twenty or so years, and has undergone several retrofits. A renovation operation is in progress (2019-25); 18 out of the 22 ATL2 Standard 5 operated by the French Navy are upgraded to the new version called 'Standard 6'. The upgrade is comprehensive and should allow the aircraft to operate until 2030. It includes the development of a new combat system called 'Logiciel de traitement de l'information operationelle nouvelle génération' (LOTI-NG). The system is used to establish a tactical picture based on data gathered by the aircraft's various sensors. New digital operator stations have replaced the original analogic equipment. Another major improvement is the upgrade of the acoustic treatment subsystem called 'Sous-système de traitement acoustique numérique' (STAN). This system is able to operate more sonobuoys than its predecessor and scan a broader range of frequencies. The system can also operate the most recent US sonobuoys including in the multistatic mode. The Wescam MX-20 electro-optical (EO) turret has also been integrated (the same one used on board the Boeing P-8A Poseidon). This system had already been mounted on some ATL2s. The ATL2 is frequently used in Africa where it serves as backup to ground forces. The last major element of the Standard 6 upgrade is: New radar Thales Searchmaster Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. According to Thales, this multirole surveillance radar offers the highest level of operational performance to detect stationary and moving maritime targets, including in high sea states, at ranges up to 200 nautical miles (air-to-sea). The French Navy will also receive a new mission preparation tool and simulator. New Thales acoustic subsystem to gather and process signals from the latest generation air-dropped sonobuoys for submarine detection. New navigation console designed by Dassault Aviation New consoles for the tactical display subsystem developed by the French army, "SIAé". The Wescam MX-20 electro-optical (EO) turret integrated into the combat system. With the Standard 6 upgrade, various operators are able to simultaneously access the images provided by the MX-20. The French procurement agency Direction générale de l'armement (DGA) has authorised the transfer of the first two upgraded Dassault Atlantique 2 (ATL2) maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) to the French Navy, the French ministry for armed forces announced on 24 October. Specifications (Atlantique 2): Crew: 12 Capacity: 12 passengers or relief crew Length: 31.62 m (103 ft 9 in) Wingspan: 37.42 m (122 ft 9 in) including wingtip pods Height: 10.89 m (35 ft 9 in) Wing area: 120.34 m2 (1,295.3 sq ft) Empty weight: 25,700 kg (56,659 lb) Gross weight: 45,000 kg (99,208 lb) Max takeoff weight: 46,200 kg (101,854 lb) Powerplant: 2 x Rolls-Royce Tyne RTy.20 Mk 21 2-spool turboprop engines, 4,500 kW (6,100 shp) each (equivalent) Maximum speed: 648 km/h (403 mph, 350 kn) Cruise speed: 315 km/h (196 mph, 170 kn) patrol speed Endurance: 18 hours Service ceiling: 9,145 m (30,003 ft) Armament: Up to 3,500 kg (7,700 lb), including: torpedoes, depth charges, mines, anti-ship missiles, bombs and/or buoys source:wikipedia |
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                                                                    Br.1150 Atlantique           |
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