yeah, looks like a dumb execution of a good concept
probably expensive too
and those rotors aren’t a very efficient way of flying

what you want is something like this

hang a grenade on it and fly it towards the enemy
it’s faster, cheaper and has better endurance

also you’d want a UAV that can drop the grenade, so you can reuse the UAV
a small UAV flying at any decent altitude and speed would be quick enough to avoid enemy fire

You said it all ?

Divide it for the number of the F/A-18 involved i.e. SIX, please. Result is less than one in three days each.

Repeat: sortie means every time a single plane take off for a mission.

Yes, you are perfectly right but we need to understand that they brought in 6 planes for the largest effort (a strike etc…). Most of the mission involves armed persistence above the Theatre of Op. Hence not all mission involves a maximum number of sorties (see the number of daily strikes irrelevant with the number of assets).

How I read those number is that 2 planes are launched Every Day in support of the coalition. The rest is not used or on maintenance. Given the 1.95, it means that those two planes are available everyday on average, what constitute a good performance given that it is a deployment half the globe around.

A comparison with other air forces will surely underline this (and let’s be clear, if the Au Mod had to shy from those numbers there won’t probably have not been such clear publication, perhaps).

The first thing, I would say, is that it has to be really cheap. AERO Vodochi failed that market despite a lower manpower cost. On the other side of the equation, there is also some cheap fighters easily (?) available like the Jf 17 and the Teja. So acquisition cost is the key as modern design like the Scorpion have already set the bar high (low in fact) in term of operating costs.

Would it make sense to operate such attack Hawk derivative b/w a fleet of Tejas?

Yes you are right. It was more pretext for some nice pics and nose arts. But the above detailed pack looks impressive enough if the engine can back all the added weight.

Interestingly, the reduced weight and increased lethality of modern weapons have made this kind of refit a credible niche. When the hawk200 was rolled out, those were factor detrimental to its success.

With no backseat pilot, install an ammo drum and a 25mm Gatling gun in the nose. Call it the Hoghawk.
Damn, wish one of our artist here would make a frankenplane pic out of it!

It’s the first time I see Raf for Rafale…

1Saludo

It’s a very personal abbreviation, obviously. You are then totally excused if you’d accept my apologies for having induced you in error 😉

Lebanon Army Commander Jean Kahwaji as saying:Lebanon’s armed forces would receive six A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft “soon”.

Saudi Arabia cancels $4bn aid package for Lebanon’s security forces

Surprisingly, there are still no reactions from the Fr gov. Interestingly also, this cancellation happens before any of the bulk of shipping had been made (essentially Milan’ missiles so far) and at a moment when SA forces start been engaged in the theater of operation.

Dès le début du contrat, « la crainte de voir ses armements tomber aux mains » du mouvement armé chiite libanais avait été prise très au sérieux confiait un industriel concerné.

Mais l’Arabie saoudite souhaite aussi revoir sa politique d’achat d’armement avec la France en se débarrassant de certains intermédiaires.

Translation (Google_Mod):
From the beginning of the contract, “the fear of those arms falling into the hands” of the Lebanese Shiite armed movement had been taken very seriously said an industrial concerned by the deal.

But Saudi Arabia also wants to review its arms procurement policy with France and get rid of some of its intermediates.

Edit:
It is rumored today in DefenseNews.com that the six A29 deal (US) is not affected. Other weapon package delivery from US as well.

Source:
Rfi.fr
Defensenews.com