F-22 news

F-22 completes round of static tests

3 January 2001

http://defence-data.com/storypic/f22stresstest.jpg [not image]

The F-22 Raptor programme has completed all ground-based static tests required to before the next-generation air dominance fighter can enter production.

This latest achievement satisfies the eighth of 11 criteria the Defense Acquisition Board (DAB) will use to decide that the F-22 programme can enter low-rate initial production for the first ten aircraft. The programme will complete the remaining three criteria in the next few days. The DAB is scheduled to meet today to review criteria completion and make a production decision.

The last test necessary to satisfy the DAB criteria, designed to test the forward fuselage inlet duct, was carried out on one of two non-flying aircraft airframes specifically built for this kind of testing. The loads applied during this test were based on pressures the F-22 could experience during operational usage.

"This test achievement is really significant," said Brig. Gen. Jay Jabour, F-22 System Programme Director. "It is a testament to the strength of the aircraft, and now clears the Raptor for complete scheduled flight envelope limits for 2001 flight tests. "

The full-scale ultimate static test programme consists of 19 "Air Vehicle" level conditions and a set of "local" level conditions. The Air Vehicle level tests were the first phase of the test programme and were designed to test the strength of the primary components of the aircraft with the forces and pressures it could experience in actual flight. Limit load tests, completed in 1999, tested the aircraft to 100 percent of simulated flight conditions, according to David Bushroe, F-22 System Programme Office strength and static test lead.

One of the DAB criteria established for the year 2000 was to complete the static testing necessary to support envelope expansion of the flight test aircraft at Edwards Air Force Base. All the Air Vehicle level conditions and nine of the local level conditions were defined to support this criterion. The latest test completed was the final local level test condition required for the DAB criteria. Once analysis of the test results is complete, the "clean wing" (without extra fuel tanks or munitions) aircraft configuration will be allowed to fly above current flight limitations, Bushroe said.

The second phase of the test programme consists of the remaining local level tests and is designed to exercise the localised structure of the aircraft to ultimate load levels. This test phase will be completed in April 2001.


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Solid-state video recorder integrated with F-22 displays

3 January 2001

Video data from the F-22's analogue Head-Up Display and digital Block 3 Secondary Multifunction Display has been recorded on solid-state memory in compressed format for the first time. The Data Transfer Equipment with Mass Memory and Video Recorder (DMVR) manufactured by Fairchild Defense, a part of Smiths Aerospace, recorded the data from the displays to its solid-state data transfer cartridge. The DMVR is being developed under an EMD contract valued at more than $13million with Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company.

The cockpit mounted DMVR combines data transfer and video recorder functionality into a single unit eliminating the need for trouble-prone videotape recorders. It records four channels of video and uses the same lightweight, removable, solid-state data transfer cartridge as Fairchild Defense's Airborne Video Solid-state Recorder (AVSR) and AVSR-Precision Attack (AVSR-PA). The AVSR records four channels of video and is a drop-in replacement for single and triple-deck recorders. It is designed to survive the severe environment experienced by fighter aircraft. Lockheed Martin recently selected the AVSR - PA for use in the LANTIRN pod for Bomb Impact Assessment.

Playback of the recorded video data is done with a personal computer. The solid-state media used in the data transfer cartridge eliminates rewinding and fast-forwarding and video from multiple displays and multiple aircraft is automatically synchronised. Other features, including event marking, allow significant improvements in the methods used by pilots to debrief a mission.


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DSD

US GAO slates F-22 flight testing delays

16 March 2001

In a report issued yesterday the US GAO said the US Air Force was "...significantly behind in flight-testing, due to continuing assembly and manufacturing delays, and it is behind schedule in completing non-flying tests that assess the structural integrity of the aircraft."

According to the GAO the delays meant that the Air Force would have to extend the test programme past the planned completion date or proceed to the next stages of the program without completing all flight-tests. In addition the programme was not likely to remain within the congressional mandated budget

The report pointed out that Director, Operational Test and Evaluation had also indicated that operational testing, could not be started as scheduled without clearly unacceptable risks and would probably be delayed almost a year.

Because the Air Force was unlikely to complete F-22 development within the current cost limitation, the GAO recommended that the Air Force, in order to reduce '...risks and preclude manufacture and delivery of F-22 aircraft that have not been fully tested, limit low-rate initial production to no more than 10 aircraft a year until initial operational test and evaluation is completed."


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DSD

F-22 funding keeps ticking over

2 July 2001

Lockheed Martin has been awarded two contracts by the US Air Force to keep the F-22 Raptor programme ticking along until Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld makes a decision on the future of the aircraft.

The first $320 million contract is to provide for three months (July-September) advance procurement in support of low rate initial production of 10 F-22 aircraft and associated equipment (Lot I).

The second contract, for $120.5 million is for advance procurement supporting low rate initial production of 13 F-22 aircraft and associated equipment (Lot II).

The future of the F-22 is included in the 'root and branch' review of defence requirements ordered by the Bush Administration which is coming to fruition over the next few months.


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DSD

Thursday June 13, 10:54 am Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company
F-22 Raptor Team Successfully Completes Key Phase of Logistics Testing Ahead Of Schedule
MARIETTA, Ga., June 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — The Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT - News)-led F-22 Raptor air dominance fighter team successfully completed a key phase of logistics testing and evaluation (LT&E) here this week — several days ahead of schedule. This is a major achievement in preparing for the U.S. Air Force to begin Dedicated Initial Operational Test & Evaluation (DIOT&E) next year.

Conducting the tests at Lockheed Martin's Marietta facility instead of the originally planned location of Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., will save the program approximately $500,000.

Since mid-April of this year, Raptor 4009, the last Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) flight-test aircraft to be built during the program's EMD phase, has been subjected to a series of tests designed to validate how easy the F-22 is to maintain and repair. Bob Rearden, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. vice president and F-22 general program manager, said the tests results indicate the F-22 will be easier to maintain than America's current generation of fighter aircraft.

"During the tests, hundreds of aircraft parts were removed and re- installed to ensure the aircraft's maintenance instructions meet the Air Force's requirements," Rearden said. "The test team has also verified the user-friendliness of the Raptor's support equipment and determined that all necessary human factors and environmental safety factors have been considered in the F-22's design and production."

The logistics tests were conducted by a team of U.S. Air Force personnel — including the service's first group of F-22 maintenance instructors — supported by contractor personnel at Lockheed Martin's facility in Marietta, Ga. "This testing was to have been accomplished at the program's Combined Test Facility at Edwards Air Force Base in California," Rearden said. "But the cost savings generated from conducting these tests at Marietta convinced us that doing this here was the smartest path to take."

With logistics testin complete, Raptor 09 is being readied for its first flight and ferry to Edwards AFB, two events expected to occur later this summer. Once at Edwards, Raptor 09 will join the six other Raptors there now, currently conducting developmental flight-test activities.

[ слишком длинный топик - автонарезка ]

The F-22 Raptor air dominance fighter is built by Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in partnership with Boeing, powered by Pratt and Whitney engines, and made from parts and subsystems provided by approximately 1,200 subcontractors and suppliers in 46 states. Principal production activities take place at LM Aero facilities in Marietta, Ga., and Fort Worth, Texas, as well as at Boeing's plant in Seattle, Wash. Final assembly and initial flight-testing of the Raptor occurs at the Marietta factory, headquarters for the F-22 program's contractor team.

The Raptor will replace the venerable F-15 Eagle as America's premier front-line fighter jet starting in 2005. The F-22's transformational yet balanced design of stealth, supercruise speed, and super-agility, along with its advanced integrated avionics and overall user-friendliness, will allow the F-22 to help the Pentagon shorten future wars and save American and allied lives.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., a business unit of Lockheed Martin Corp., is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, and is a leader in the design, development, systems integration, production, and support of advanced military aircraft and related technologies. Its customers include the military services of the United States and allied countries throughout the world. Products include the F-16, F-22, Joint Strike Fighter, F-117, C-5, C-27J, C-130, C-130J, P-3, S-3 and U-2.

Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin Corp. is a global enterprise principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, and integration of advanced technology systems, products, and services. Employing about 125,000 people worldwide, Lockheed Martin had 2001 sales of $24 billion.

For information on Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., visit:

For information on Lockheed Martin Corp., visit: http://www.lmaeronautics.com

SOURCE: Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company