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In Detail —— Denmark's Arctic Assets & Canada's Response ——

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Canada's Arctic Sovereignty  –  Denmark's Claims in the Arctic  –  April 2005 Denmark's  Arctic  Assets  and  Canada's  Response  –  Sovereignty and Strategic Resources of the High Arctic Part 2  –  In Detail  Survey  –  Danish Arctic Assets  –  Air Force Capabilities The Royal Danish Air Force in Greenland  –  Top Cover  for the Top of the World In supplying and securing its semi-autonomous Greenland territory, Denmark faces many of the same challenges that Canada has encountered.  Like Canada, Denmark has modestly-sized armed forces which are responsible for far-flung territories – in Denmark's case, the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea ,  the Færoe Islands in the North Atlantic (between Norway and Iceland), and, furthest of all, Greenland itself. The  Danish  armed forces' approach to securing Greenland and  protecting  the fisheries and other economic assets has been creative – nowhere more so than in the surveillance and patrol aircraft of the Flyvevåbnet, or Royal Danish Air Force. There are lessons to be learned here for Canada's air force. Other than Yellowknife-based CC-138 Twin Otter utility transports, CF aircraft only rarely make forays into Canada's high arctic. [1]  By contrast, the Danes rotate both surveillance and tactical transport aircraft – one of each type operates in Greenland at all times. The current Danish surveillance/patrol aircraft is the Bombardier CL-604 Challenger (above), the tactical transport is the Lockheed C-130J Hercules (below). The Flyvevåbnet makes a point of  phasing in a new aircraft type.  The C-130Js provide an example.  ESK 721, the sole Flyvevåbnet transport squadron, took four C-130Hs into service in 1975. Although these aircraft are younger than most Canadian Hercs, the Danes have begun replacing them with new, stretched  C-130J-30s.  As each new  'J model arrives, training begins preparing crew and aircraft for active squadron service. The older ' H model Hercules is retired only when its replacement ' J is fully operational. The same approach has been taken to the surveillance/patrol aircraft. Using biz-jets for maritime patrol is not new but the Danes took the concept further when, in 1982, they bought 3 Gulfsteam GIIIs [2]. Timed to match the establishment of new 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zones around Denmark and its possessions, the GIII was responsible for EEZ and fisheries protection, environmental and ice patrol, search-and-rescue, and quick-converted for medevac or personnel transport. After two decades of hard service, the Challenger was chosen to replace the GIIIs. A Challenge from Grønland  –  No Drones for Danish Patrols in the High Arctic While Canada mused over UAVs for northern patrols and upgrading its fleet of 25- year old CP-140 Aurora anti-submarine aircraft, the Danes were shopping for a new patrol aircraft. They chose the latest Canadian-made CL-604 - the Challenger MMA (Multi- Mission Aircraft). The MMA, ironically,  is an outgrowth of the cancelled CP-144 project – a maritime patrol variant of the CF's  CC-144  Challenger.  [3] Update Danish Challengers now doing familiarization flights over Canada's Arctic. Today, all CF CC-144s serve in the transport role. These Danish Challengers show what is possible. Like the GIIIs before them, Flyvevåbnet MMAs make use of their long range and high cruising speed for rotation transits from Denmark and for their surveillance missions. As can be seen in the images above, the Challenger MMAs are festooned with communications antennae.  Not visible is a  remotely-controlled and retractable electro-optical imaging turret which tucks away in the rear fuselage. Another irony is the sophisticated radar fitted to the MMAs. This APS-143 radar (mounted in the 3.6m-long belly radome visible in the MMA sideview, above) is the same set being installed in Canada's Aurora fleet as a part of their  Incremental Modernization Program. The difference is that Danish MMAs are already flying in the high arctic while Canada is unsure whether it can afford to fly Northern Patrols. Operations in Greenland  –  "A circle is the longest distance to the same point." Greenland's geography and  infrastructure provides the Danes with no great operational advantage. The airstrips are scattered along  the coastline.  Most are short gravel strips (like Kulusuk, at left), only Søndre Strømfjord  –  a paved-strip civilian airport where the Flyvevåbnet bases its aircraft – has a longer runway than Iqaluit. [4] Flyvevåbnet aircraft often operate from rough gravel strips because they must – just the cost of doing business in Greenland. Danes and Greenlanders have demonstrated great flexibility and creativity in unconventional operations. In many parts of the world, aircraft fly off of gravel strips, beaches, and even glaciers. But where else do large transport aircraft take off  from groomed sea-ice runways ? [1] Of course, we have excluded the weekly CC-130 supply flight to CFS Alert. It is worth noting that these Herc flights are routed through Thule AFB  on  Greenland. [2] The correct designation is Gulfstream SMA-3 (Special Missions Aircraft-3) but most sources make no distinction between the SMA-3 and the civilian GIII biz jets. [3] The CF CP-144 was based on an earlier version of the Canadair Challenger, the CL-601. The Danish MMA is based on the more advanced CL-604 model.  CL-604s also serve in the CF as CC-144 VIP transports. These aircraft caused something of  a stir when Bombardier was awarded an untendered contract for these two CL-604s valued at more than $101M. Denmark bought two of its MMAs from Bombardier at roughly the same time.  The cost for the two Multi-Mission Aircraft came to $44M. [4] Iqaluit has the only paved runway in Nunavut.  See: Arctic Airstrips  Sidebar. Next in this In Detail Survey  –  Ice Resistant Year Round:  Danish Naval Assets