In a series of articles "Romanian frigates in the 21st century" I just mentioned in passing that each of the frigates is based on one deck-mounted Puma Naval helicopter of Romanian production. In this article I will try to display in chronological order the history of the creation and development of the Romanian carrier-based aviation.
In open sources, both about the Romanian helicopter carriers and about the helicopters that were based on their decks, there is very little official data, but there is a lot of enthusiastic jingoistic patriotism. In this regard, I turned to the manufacturer for information: the aircraft company “Industria Aeronautică Română”. I threw off links to previously published materials about Romanian frigates and asked for historical data related to deck helicopters, the names of specialists who took part in the development, curious facts from their biographies. But there was no answer. Perhaps they didn't like the tone of my articles on the Romanian Navy.
The commander of the helicopter group did not respond to my request for help either: apparently, there were reasons for that. Therefore, I decided to the best of my ability to collect as much information as possible and share with you. Perhaps I was wrong somewhere, somewhere fantasized. But I am sure that I have correctly reflected the essence of the question. I hope you learn something new and enjoy reading this material. I would be grateful for additional information and comments.
Best regards, Mikhail Zadunaisky.
Background
In the summer of 1985, the aircraft-carrying ship Muntenia, designed and built in Romania (Mangalia), was commissioned into the Romanian Navy.
Ceausescu personally classified this ship as a helicopter light cruiser.
Since 2004, after several renaming and reclassifications, the ship is called the Marasesti frigate. I would like to note that long before the development of the Muntenia cruiser began in Romania, serial production of helicopters had already been launched under a license from the French company Aerospatiale-France (later Eurocopter France, now Airbus Helicopters).
It is common knowledge that Romania was a member state of the Warsaw Pact. And thanks to the obstinate nature of its leader, Nicolae Ceausescu was almost the only country from the socialist camp * that could afford to make purchases in countries from the capitalist camp.
Including weapons. (* Yugoslavia also bought weapons from the West.)
Thus, Romania entered into an agreement with France for the licensed production of Aerospatial helicopters. Their production was carried out in the city of Brasov by the aircraft manufacturing company Industria Aeronautică Română (abbreviated as IAR). There, starting in 1971, they began to produce light multipurpose helicopters IAR-316 Alouette. And in 1974 the production of medium multipurpose helicopters IAR 330 Puma was launched.
Therefore, even at the design stage of the Muntenia cruiser, it was planned to place a helicopter group of three helicopters on it: two light IAR-316B Alouette III (Skylark) and one medium IAR 330L Puma.
Hand of Moscow
In the mid-80s, it was decided to revise the composition of the helicopter group of the Romanian cruiser. The reason for this was the signing of agreements between Romania and the USSR for the production of Kamov OKB helicopters in Romania. In 1984 a contract was signed for the production of light multipurpose helicopters "Ka-26" (NATO designation Hoodlum: "Hooligan") with two piston engines.
A year later, in 1985, the countries signed a protocol for the production of an improved modification of the Ka-26: the Ka-126 (with one gas turbine engine and an improved gearbox). The production of helicopters of the Ka brand was decided to be launched at the same enterprise where Alouette and Puma were already produced under a French license. The Kamov design bureau's machines, produced in Romania, received the designation “IAR Ka-126”.
By the way, back in 1971, the Hungarian Air Force adopted 21 Ka-26 helicopters (until then, a civilian helicopter). The police of the GDR and FRG also used Kamov's helicopters for their own purposes.
Looking back at the Hungarians and Germans, the Romanian military decided to equip their ship with Kamov's machines, having previously equipped them for anti-submarine operations. Considering the small size of Soviet helicopters, the hangar of the cruiser "Muntenia" could accommodate 3 IAR Ka-126 helicopters.
Soviet specialists helped to organize the production of Kamov helicopters at the IAR plant in Brasov. The first flight of the Romanian-made Ka-126 took place on December 31, 1988. During the year, it was possible to assemble a batch of 15 serial helicopters (some sources indicate 10 or 12 machines).
This consignment, apparently, was transported to the USSR.
And exactly one year after the first flight of the Ka-126, a revolution took place in Romania (December 1989). The Ceausescu government was overthrown, a mess reigned in the country for a long time and the production of helicopters (like many others) ceased. In the same period, the collapse of the Soviet Union began, so the Ka-126 helicopter was not produced in the USSR.
A further development of the Soviet Ka-126 was the Russian Ka-226 helicopter with two gas turbine engines, which first flew in the fall of 1997. Well, years later, the Romanian Navy again thought about deck modifications of IAR helicopters, which were produced in the country under a French license.
The first helicopter on the deck of a Romanian ship
In 1998, NATO forces and their partners, Strong Resolve 98, held an exercise. The exercise started in the Bay of Biscay and was deployed in the Atlantic Ocean. The Romanian ship, the frigate Marasesti (F 111), also took part in them. From a series of articles about Romanian ships, you know that this is the former helicopter-carrying cruiser "Muntenia". A helicopter was based on the deck of the frigate Marasesti.
For the Romanian Navy, these exercises and the presence of a helicopter on board the ship were of historical importance. After all, the F 111 is the first Romanian warship that, after World War II, sailed into the Mediterranean Sea, and then into the Atlantic Ocean. And the first ship in the history of the Romanian Navy, which carried a helicopter on board.
Also during the 98th exercise, the first flight of a Romanian helicopter over the Mediterranean Sea took place. This helicopter was the light IAR-316B Alouette (Naval). Apparently, Alouette Naval is the first attempt to use a helicopter for the needs of the Navy.
At that time, in Romania, there was no such kind of troops as the aviation of the Navy, no carrier-based helicopters, or pilots of naval aviation. At first, they used a land-based version of the Alouette helicopter with minimal modifications, and army pilots piloted the car without special training. At that time, the foundation of the Romanian naval aviation was being created: technical requirements for deck helicopters were drawn up, and the pilots developed specific skills.
The Aerospatial company produced Aluette deck modifications. Among other differences, their rotors are foldable. Such modifications were for example in service with the Belgian Navy. The author could not find out: the Romanians originally produced the IAR-316B Alouette with folding propellers, or bought one deck helicopter on the side. There is no description on the manufacturer's website, only a PDF document from the performance characteristics of the machine.
Be that as it may, the first Romanian deck Alouette with hull number 39, unlike the others (in camouflage), was entirely painted in a dark color.
On one of the Romanian forums, they wrote about the Olympia'99 exercises. As if the F 111 participated there with a helicopter on board. And supposedly to Greece, the IAR-316B helicopter was delivered by the C-130 Hercules transporter. I searched for data on the Olympia teachings in 1999, but did not find any official data.
Another helicopter on the deck of a Romanian ship
After a NATO exercise called Strong Resolve in 98, the Romanians came to the conclusion that the Alouette light helicopter was not quite suitable for solving anti-submarine defense missions. For example, the light Ka-27 of the Russian Navy operate in pairs: the first vehicle (with search equipment on board) detects an enemy submarine, and the second vehicle, with weapons, strikes the detected target.
We saw the Romanian military sailors and the actions of the Lynx deck helicopters of their future NATO partners. We came to the conclusion that for the aviation of the Romanian Navy, a vehicle of a different class is needed: one medium is better than two light helicopters. It didn't take long to look, because in Romania since 1977, the medium multipurpose Puma helicopter was produced and was in service.
The first-generation Puma Naval deck modification began to be developed on the basis of the anti-tank version of the IAR 330L Puma helicopter.
At that time, his weapons included:
- Rocket:
4x launchers for 57mm NAR S-5 (64 missiles);
4x ATGM Baby on side guides (only for testing).
- Cannon:
2x 23 mm NR-23 cannons in bow gondolas;
- Shooting:
1 or 2 DShKM 12, 7 in the openings of sliding doors.
- Bomb:
4x bombs with caliber 50 or 100 kg (only for testing).
While writing this article, I consulted with Bongo (Sergey Linnik).
Regarding the 12, 7-mm DShK machine gun, he spoke like this:
I fired from DShKM. It is very unsuitable for use as an aircraft machine gun and the choice of the Romanians is strange. In any case, this is a very unsuitable sample for use in aviation.
Puma Naval 1st generation
The first Romanian carrier-based helicopter differed little from its "land brothers": it got the same equipment and weapons.
It should be noted that this machine was used only for practicing landings on the deck of the frigate "Marasesti" (F 111). Therefore, the helicopter was extremely poorly equipped for operations at sea, and it was not suitable for anti-submarine operations at all.
First, it was equipped with ballonets for an emergency splashdown. Then they developed a four-axle landing gear for landing the car on deck in adverse weather conditions on a rough sea, but it turned out to be unsuccessful and was abandoned. Over time, unnecessary launchers for unguided missiles and cannon armament, which only made the vehicle heavier, were dismantled from the helicopter. Judging by the photographs, the machine guns were also dismantled.
I believe that the number of built Puma Naval deck helicopters has always corresponded to the number of aircraft carriers in the Romanian Navy. That is, before the purchase of British frigates, the Romanians had only one deck helicopter, which was gradually refined, and after the resource was exhausted, it was written off and replaced with a newer one.
Given the absence of the 1st generation of anti-submarine weapons on the Puma Naval helicopter, among the tasks performed by the machine were: observation, search and rescue, transport logistics. And if the vehicle had the appropriate equipment, then reconnaissance and transfer of the tactical situation to the ship.
Formation of the Air Force of the Romanian Navy
In 2003, Romania bought two decommissioned Type 22 frigates (Type 22) from the UK. These were HMS Coventry (F98) and HMS London (F95). Read more in the article series “Romanian frigates in the 21st century”.
In the fall of 2004, the ships were tested and were commissioned into the Romanian Navy as Regele Ferdinand (F-221) Regina Maria (F-222).
A flotilla of frigates was formed. And in June 2005 the most experienced pilot Tudorel Duce made the first successful landing of the Puma helicopter on the deck of the frigate “Reggele Ferdinand”. It was the IAR 330 Puma: the most massive helicopter in the Romanian Armed Forces.
In November 2005, a new structure was formed at the General Staff of the Romanian Naval Forces: the Aviation Control Center. Around the same time, an order was placed at an aircraft manufacturer in Brasov for the first carrier-based helicopter. It was an adaptation of the latest modification of the IAR 330 LRo Puma for the needs of the Navy.
What exactly was the adaptation is unknown. In the article of the specialized edition “Marina Română” it is said briefly: modernized to meet the requirements for operation on board the frigate. The same article notes that no one had ever tried to land a Puma helicopter on the deck of a ship before. Like, some said that the car was too heavy, too high, etc.
Further - translations of excerpts from the same article. The commander of the helicopter group Tudorel Duce answers the journalist's questions.
In December 2005, the first group of 8 naval officers became cadets of the Aurel Vlaiku flight school. In parallel, training of aviation personnel was carried out. The selection of candidates was carried out among naval officers and foremen. The Center clarified the requirements and procedures for certification, supplemented the criteria and security measures.
The first stage of testing was destined to pass in December 2006 to the aviation personnel and the frigate's infrastructure in connection with the arrival of the deck helicopter. Therefore, 2006 is considered the year of foundation of the carrier-based aviation of the Romanian Navy.
Question: Is one year enough to turn officers into naval helicopter pilots? How is it a structured training course, how many hours are allocated for flight and when do they start flying?
Answer: Under the existing training system in Romania, a military pilot is formed within 5 years. But the future Romanian pilots received a serious academic education and have a high technical culture. Therefore, thanks to the knowledge already acquired, they can move much faster from theory to practice and special training.
In March 2006, the cadets passed the theory exams (a passing score in aviation of 7 out of 10) and began flying. Each cadet is provided with 170 hours of practical initial flight training.
Question: What will be the system of education and training for seafarers' pilots after this course?
Answer: At the school, young pilots will get a ticket to the sky, but they will really begin their career as naval pilots by sitting in the cockpit of a deck helicopter. They will take a course of initial flight training on the ground and on a frigate, then a basic training course. After - basic and then basic tactical training.
After completing the courses at the flight school, naval officers arrived at the frigate and began flight training. The preparation process, which depended on financial and material factors, took about 3-4 years.
