IAI Lavi
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The IAI Lavi (Hebrew: לביא, "Young Lion") was a multi-billion dollar fighter aircraft project that was disbanded under pressure from the U.S. Government. Only one of the Lavi prototypes remains and is on display at the Israeli Air Force (IAF) museum.
| Lavi | |
|---|---|
| Lavi B-2 prototype | |
| Type | Multirole fighter |
| Manufacturer | Israeli Aircraft Industries |
| Maiden flight | 1986-12-31 |
| Status | Cancelled 1987-08-30 |
| Number built | 3 prototypes |
Contents |
[edit] History
The Lavi project began in February 1980, when the Israeli government authorized the IAF to present it with a list of technical specifications for the development of the IAF's future fighter. The development stage began in October 1982, with the choice of a Pratt & Whitney engine already having been made.
One of the Lavi's most distinct advantages is its functional features, especially its cockpit, custom-built entirely using input from active IAF fighter pilots. Drawing on their operational experience, the design was geared to let the pilot handle the tactical aspects of the battle, without having to worry about monitoring and controlling the various subsystems. The avionics of the Lavi were considered to be innovative and groundbreaking, and included self-analysis equipment to make maintenance easier.
On December 31 1986, the first prototype of the Lavi took off on its maiden flight. The test pilot, Menachem Shimol, head of IAI's Air Operations section, took off at 13:21 and stayed in the air for 26 minutes, during which he checked the engine and controls.
About three months later, a second Lavi prototype took to the air. In its maiden flight, the engine systems, flight control, electrical system, hydraulics and air conditioning were evaluated. The second prototype had some improvements over the first, with a belly-mounted fuel tank, a special midair refuelling pipe and several avionic systems that were not employed in the first prototype.
The IAI had produced three prototypes out of the originally planned five when the Israeli government decided to cancel the project because of budget problems and bickering among various economic and political pressure groups. The total cost for the development and production of the Lavi was US$6.4 billion in 1983, of which around 60% was funded by the United States and 40% by the Israeli government. The project was canceled in part because the U.S. was not prepared to finance an aircraft that would compete in the export market with the F-16C/D and the F/A-18C/D, and also because a dispute arose as to the final cost. The Israeli government was unable to finance the project alone and canceled it on August 30 1987. [1] The decision to cancel was approved with a majority of only one vote.
Throughout the project's lifetime, Likud minister Moshe Arens, himself an IAI veteran, was the Lavi's main advocate. Some community welfare organizations in Israel blasted the spending associated with the Lavi as a bottomless pit, and contrasted it with dwindling expenditure on health and education. Rabbi Yerachmiel Cohen of the Ohr Yerushalayim Yeshiva, who was part of the design team of the Lavi, takes his students every year to the air force museum to see the jet and to explain the necessity of a strong Israeli defense establishment.[citation needed]
[edit] Fate of prototype aircraft
When the IAI Lavi was cancelled on August 30 1987, a total of five airframes had been built. Prototypes #1 and #2 were completed prototypes, while #3, #4, and #5 were incomplete. Parts from unit #1 and #2 were pulled to complete unit #3 for a private-venture technology demonstrator (TD) aircraft. The gutted unit #2 was put in the Israeli Air Force museum at Beersheba for static display, and the rest (#1, #4, & #5) were melted down for scrap. [2] Some analysts have speculated that unit #3 was shown to representatives from the People's Republic of China, which eventually influenced their design of the Chengdu J-10.
[edit] Specifications (Lavi)
General characteristics<h3>
- Crew: One
- Length: 14.57 m (47 ft 10 in)
- Wingspan: 8.78 m (28 ft 10 in)
- Height: 4.78 m (15 ft 8 in)
- Wing area: 33.0 m² (355 ft²)
- Empty weight: 7,031 kg (15,500 lb)
- Loaded weight: 9,991 kg (22,025 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 19,277 kg (42,500 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× Pratt & Whitney PW1120 afterburning turbofan, 91.5 kN (20,600 lbf)
<h3>Performance<h3>
- Maximum speed: 1,965 km/h (1,220 mph)
- Range: 3,700 km (2,300 mi)
- Service ceiling: 15,240 m (50,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 254 m/s (50,000 ft/min)
- Wing loading: 303.2 kg/m² (62.0 lb/ft²)
- Thrust/weight: 0.94
<h3>Armament<h3>
- 1x 30 mm DEFA cannon
- 7,260 kg (16,000 lb) of stores
[edit] References
- "The United States and the LAVI" by Lt Col James P. DeLoughry, USAF, Federation of American Scientists
- "Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Lavi" by Ruud Deurenberg, Jewish Virtual Library
