behind the popularity of the super toucan
2024-09-23
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recently, the portuguese defense minister revealed that they are advancing the plan to purchase the embraer a-29 "super tucano" light attack aircraft. this means that portugal will become the first customer of the a-29n attack aircraft that meets nato standards.
it has been more than 20 years since the a-29 super tucano light attack aircraft successfully completed its prototype test flight. its capabilities in performing advanced flight training, aerial reconnaissance and air support missions have been recognized by the military of many countries, and it has even been called "one of the most popular advanced trainer and light attack aircraft in the world."
today, when jet power has replaced propeller propulsion, the a-29 "super tucano" light attack aircraft is still favored by air forces of many countries, and has even led the trend of the revival of propeller fighters in some areas.
why can the a-29 super tucano light attack aircraft gain a firm foothold in the world's military procurement arena? what trends and characteristics does its development and use present? in this issue, let us find out.
behind the popularity of the super toucan
■ wu chuangzhi, cheng chunlei, and xi ningyu
"super tucano" light attack aircraft. file photo
effectively fill the "blank area" of air combat power
in the late 1970s, embraer developed a primary trainer aircraft, the tucano, for the brazilian air force. after colombia improved it, it achieved great success in intercepting drug smuggling aircraft and combating anti-government armed guerrillas.
this made embraer see the huge potential and market of the tucano, and they hoped to design a light attack aircraft suitable for performing multiple missions based on it. in the 1990s, after several years of research, the first a-29 super tucano light attack aircraft prototype successfully flew.
it can be said that compared with the "toucan", the "super toucan" is indeed worthy of its name. after transforming into an attack aircraft, its close-range support combat capability has been greatly improved. with advantages such as long hovering time, good flight performance, and multiple weapons, it can not only coordinate air-to-ground combat, but also directly engage in ground attack operations, and easily perform tasks such as border patrols, counter-terrorism and violence control, anti-tank, and combating ground armed forces.
the super tucano is relatively low-cost, costing only over 10 million u.s. dollars per aircraft and about 500 u.s. dollars per hour to fly, making it very suitable for countries with limited financial resources to meet their diverse defense needs. as soon as the super tucano was launched, it was sought after by many latin american and african countries. in addition to brazil, it was also purchased in large quantities by the air forces of colombia, chile, burkina faso and mali.
as a propeller fighter, the super tucano fills the "blank spot" in combat power between traditional jet fighters and armed helicopters in terms of firepower and flight speed.
when performing counter-terrorism and ground attack missions, jet fighters fly too fast, and pilots have limited time to react, aim and drop bombs, so they can easily miss their targets. gunships fly at a slower speed and fly at a lower altitude when conducting ground attacks, so they are at greater risk of being shot down. the "super tucano" is right in the "middle ground", with a maximum flight speed of more than 500 kilometers per hour and a stall speed of only 148 kilometers per hour, allowing pilots to search and identify targets at ease. its flight time is more than 7 hours, which means it can hover over the battlefield for a long time. at the same time, its operation is relatively simple, and pilot training is less difficult, which meets the needs of the air forces of some small and medium-sized countries.
as time goes by, this "samba eagle" that flew out of the south american jungle has been sought after by more countries.
in the 21st century, after the us military launched the war in afghanistan, guerrilla warfare and harassment operations were the main combat forms that the us military needed to deal with. when performing air-to-ground support combat missions, the us military stationed in afghanistan found that the "super tucano" showed high reliability in plateau environments. its airborne system design is simple and durable, and it can withstand harsh environments such as extreme high temperatures. the advantages of large fuel loading capacity and long range make its long-term flight deployment relatively less economically stressful, and it can provide fire support in low-threat low-altitude airspace and cruise for a long time. for this reason, the "super tucano" quickly became one of the main combat aircraft of the us military stationed in afghanistan.
behind the "beautiful mouth" lies a sharp blade
faced with the rapid development of jet power, it is generally believed that propeller aircraft are outdated.
the super tucano is equipped with a 1,600-horsepower pratt & whitney pt6a-68/3 turboprop engine, a stepped two-seat layout and a bubble canopy. its empty weight is not much heavier than an ordinary car, and it seems a bit "fragile". however, in terms of the weapons it is equipped with, this "big bird" hides a sharp blade behind its "beautiful beak".
although the super tucano has a low empty weight, it can carry 1.5 tons of weapons and equipment, which is comparable to some mid-level jet trainers. in order to enhance its close-range fire support capability, it is equipped with two 12.7mm belgian imported heavy machine guns. the machine guns can engage light armored vehicles and suppress threats on the ground and in the air. there are four external attachment points under the wings and one on the belly, which can carry ordinary bombs, cluster bombs, anti-tank missiles and even infrared combat missiles.
although it uses a slightly backward turboprop engine, the avionics system of the super tucano is on par with that of advanced jet fighters. the aircraft uses a mil-std-1553 data bus and is equipped with a full glass cockpit that is fully compatible with night vision goggles, allowing pilots to have a good aerial view. the aircraft is equipped with advanced avionics, an automated flight control system with embedded mission planning capabilities, an advanced laser inertial navigation and attack system, a global positioning system, and a traffic warning and collision avoidance system.
in addition, the bottom of the fuselage is equipped with a forward infrared thermal imaging system, which can be used for target positioning navigation and target tracking, allowing the aircraft to perform night monitoring and attack missions. in the eyes of many military fans, the "super tucano" can be said to be the "pinnacle" of propeller fighters.
due to its light body and strong structure, the "super tucano" can easily take off and land on dirt runways, gravel runways, grass runways and even ice and snow fields, with a taxiing distance of only more than 300 meters. supported by advanced equipment of the fighter, the "super tucano" has excellent aerial "predation" capabilities. it can accurately attack targets such as ground armor and artillery positions, and can also strafe armed personnel on the ground, making terrorists and scattered armed elements hiding in the mountains and jungles turn pale.
after all, the super tucano was designed and manufactured under specific mission requirements. if it accidentally encounters an advanced enemy fighter head-on, its battlefield combat capability and survivability will be worrying. however, there has never been a unified paradigm or unified "rules of the game" on the battlefield, just as some birds cannot fly into the airspace of eagles, but are good predators in the mountains, forests, and water plants. this is also the foundation and way of survival for light fighters such as the super tucano.
find the "golden key" to open the military trade market
when it comes to modern fighters, many people think of jet fighters, bombers, tankers, and early warning aircraft. the a-29 super tucano, a propeller-driven light attack aircraft, is favored by many countries and even leads the trend of the partial revival of propeller fighters because it has found the "golden key" to open the world's military trade market. for a specific country, the most advanced weapons may not be the best choice. the best weapons are those that meet actual needs.
at present, with the increase in diversified medium and low-intensity battles in local areas, light fighters have become a powerful supplement to advanced jet fighters in some combat contexts.
this "light and heavy combination" pattern can not only carry out rapid and accurate strikes on enemy targets, but also effectively reduce combat costs and improve combat efficiency.
facts have proved that the super tucano has performed well in actual combat when working with advanced fighter jets. on december 24, 2019, a military base in northern burkina faso was attacked by terrorists, killing and wounding many soldiers. the country's air force dispatched the super tucano attack aircraft to cooperate with the french mirage 2000 fighter jets stationed in mali and successfully completed the combat mission.
faced with the ever-changing battlefield situation, the "super tucano" did not "lie down", but instead continued to expand its capabilities in response to combat needs.
in april 2023, embraer revealed that they would launch a nato-compliant version of the a-29, the a-29n, with "n" standing for nato's initials. the a-29n is equipped with a new data link and an augmented reality system, which can be used for training with nato joint terminal attack controllers (jtacs). it is against this background that portugal is negotiating to purchase the a-29 attack aircraft and is about to become the first customer of the a-29n attack aircraft that meets nato standards.
embraer has also developed an advanced training and support system suite for the super tucano, called the training operations support system (toss), which is a comprehensive computing tool consisting of four systems, including an aviation mission planning station, a mission debriefing station, and a flight simulator, which allows trainees to practice missions in computer simulations and use 3d visualization technology to perform planned missions.
to date, the super tucano has received more than 300 orders and has flown more than 550,000 hours, including 60,000 hours in combat operations.
the success of the "super tucano" is by no means accidental. its value lies in protecting the skies of small and medium-sized countries and playing a role in some specific regions and battlefields. in the future, there may be light fighters with more advanced performance. however, with the rapid development of unmanned control technology and intelligent technology, the ultimate trend may not be manned light fighters like the "super tucano", but unmanned and intelligent light fighters that are currently developing in a blowout manner. the winners in their competition will also copy the successful experience of the "super tucano", that is, whoever can grasp the needs of users will have the "golden key" to open the world military trade market.
(source: china military network-liberation army daily)
