Newer, more capable fifth-generation aircraft platforms and systems are outgrowing even the largest U.S. Air Force training ranges – and the service believes modern simulators and virtual reality may be the answer.
The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (CCAM), a non-profit consortium based in Prince George County, Virginia, uses a 3D visualization lab to expand beyond the walls of its 62,000-square-foot brick and mortar facility and deliver a collaborative development for researchers in industry, academia, and government.
This month, during an ongoing review of military training for rotary-wing aircraft, the GAO published a report highlighting gaps in the Department of Defense’s approach for collecting, reporting, and analyzing aviation mishap data to inform aviation risk-management decisions.
US Army officials and engineers continue work to modernize the defense organization’s fleet of Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with a more modern digital cockpit, conducting a Limited User Test with two prototype aircraft at Redstone Arsenal, Ala. They selected for a Limited User Evaluation (LUE) a Crew Mission Station (CMS) aligned with The Open Group Future Airborne Capability Environment (FACE) technical standard that combines Core Avionics & Industrial Inc.’s (CoreAVI’s) compositor and graphics suite, Avalex smart display, Intel hardware, Wind River operating system, and Presagis server.
UAV Turbines, Inc. has developed a new microturbine, turboprop engine designed for defense and commercial Group 3 and 4 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or “drone” applications. UAV Turbines’ Monarch RP is designed to operate reliably, quietly, and powerfully on various qualities of heavy fuel and outperform conventional reciprocating engines.
While the pandemic continues, aerospace companies are rising to embrace new and emerging challenges at a time when there’s so much innovation. This innovation can be seen in the emergence of urban air mobility (UAM), the rebirth of supersonic flight, the drive towards a “zero emission” aircraft, and the continued use of autonomous drones for delivery, freight, search & rescue, and defense. There are exciting new developments in space as companies are developing products for commercial exploration and space tourism, and new ways to launch satellites. A new generation of engineering is also emerging in the defense sector and its development of not only aircraft, but also ships, tankers, and even flight trainers.
With a customer-focused strategy and aftersales division, Navistar International’s Vision 2025 is a fresh, collaborative effort to further enhance service operations.
“Laddering up” of the range of tooling options requires assessing at each plateau whether greater upfront investment in tooling will pay off with a relatively quick return on investment. Since tooling plays such a key role in this equation, it also means working closely with OEMs willing to evaluate the best available tooling options at any time as production requirements increase.
While GE Aviation’s T700 turboshaft engine has powered the U.S. Army’s Apache and Sikorsky helicopters for more than 46 years, the U.S. Army will replace the T700 with GE Aviation’s fully modular T901-GE-900 engine as part of the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the U.S. Army’s Improved Turbine Engine Program.
Lockheed Martin's Auto-GCAS uses terrain mapping, geolocation, and automation to detect and avoid potential ground collisions in case of pilot spatial disorientation. The technology was initially fielded on the F-16 Fighting Falcon, but will now save an estimated 26 crashes over the course of F-35 service life.
Airshow China is the country’s go-to event for debuting the their latest military and aerospace hardware. One those aircraft debuts – which might look familiar to engineers at Northrop Grumman – is the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) Cai Hong 7 unmanned combat air vehicle (UCAV).
Bell Helicopter will partner with Rolls-Royce to develop an optimized propulsion system for the Bell V-280 Valor and unmanned V-247 Vigilant vertical lift tiltrotor aircraft – the company’s candidate platforms for the U.S. Army’s Future Vertical Lift (FVL) program.
The long-range, “high subsonic” aircraft is part of AFRL’s Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology (LCAAT) portfolio, which was established to break the escalating cost trajectory of tactically relevant aircraft and provide an unmanned escort or wingmate aircraft for Lockheed Martin F-35 Lighting II and Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor fifth-generation fighter aircraft.
The ability to control unmanned systems from the cockpit of a manned tactical aircraft is coming closer to reality. Textron Systems and Textron Aviation have demonstrated manned-unmanned teaming – specifically the command and control (C2) of multiple unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), commonly referred to as drones, from a single manned military aircraft.
Bell Helicopter is partnering with Subaru to collaborate on a commercial enhancement of the Bell 412 EPI twin-engine utility helicopter, which was type-certified this month as the 412 EPX, in support of the Japan UH-X program.
Today, Stratasys Ltd. unveiled the spin-off of its Selective Toner Electrophotographic Process (STEP) technology and forming of Evolve Additive Solutions.
While there are no currently available specifications or requirements that would provide insight into what an “operational” M-345 would look like, Paramount Group’s main contribution to the M-345 is the Smart Weapons Integration on Fast-Jet Trainers (SWIFT) mission system.
Sikorsky tested a new full-authority, fly-by-wire flight control technology kit for the first time on a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk medium-lift utility helicopter. The flight marked the beginning of the flight test program for the soon-to-be optionally piloted rotorcraft.
The Sikorsky-Boeing SB-1 Defiant (stylized as “SB>1 DEFIANT”) compound helicopter flew for the first time at Sikorsky’s West Palm Beach, Florida facility. Unlike current rotorcraft, the SB-1 Defiant’s propulsion system includes a rear-mounted pusher propulsor in addition to two coaxial main rotors. This unique setup allows the Defiant to reach speeds and a service range far beyond that of modern helicopters.