| By RICHARD R. BURGESS, Managing Editor
Bell-Boeing's MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor transport has set an
unofficial load-carrying world record for rotorcraft by carrying a 10,000-pound external
load at a speed of 220 knots. The load was attached to the Osprey's aft cargo hook by a
Marine helicopter support team, using procedures developed during 15 prior hookups.
During a series of 20 flights in 10 days,
the Osprey eventually had reached the required speed of 220 knots while carrying a load of
6,000 pounds. The 10,000-pound load was carried on a later flight.
"It was basically transparent that
there was an external load once the V-22 was airborne from the hookup, into forward
flight, and during the transition into the airplane mode," said Bill Leonard, a
developmental test pilot. "The V-22 was remarkably easy to operate and handled the
6,000-pound load extremely well."
"The demonstration of the V-22's
ability to carry external loads at very high speeds is a significant accomplishment,"
said John Buyers, Bell-Boeing's V-22 program director at Naval Air Station Patuxent River,
Md. "This is the fastest airspeed any rotorcraft has carried an external load, no
matter what the weight."
"What is significant about the V-22
external loads testing is not so much the weight ... [the tiltrotor] is carrying but the
coupling of the weight and the speed," said Steve Grohsmeyer, Boeing's senior V-22
experimental test pilot. "Helicopters have lifted much heavier external loads but
have not reached speeds of 220 knots while carrying these loads." The external
load-carrying capability of the MV-22B is considered critical to the amphibious-lift
requirements postulated by the Marine Corps for the 21st century.
In a later test flight, Osprey No.
8 carried a 6,500-pound HMMWV (high-mobility multiwheeled vehicle, or "Humvee")
in an inverted V-sling at 120 knots and at a 60-degree engine nacelle angle. "The
aircraft was very stable in the hover and forward flight," said Grohsmeyer, who flew
the test mission with Maj. Bill Witzig. "It was well-damped following
acroservoelastic and flying qualities excitations--both the aircraft and the load flew
very well. We should feel very confident about taking this load faster if we want
to."
"Like previous external load tests,
this test went without a hitch and is a testament to the professionalism and efficiency of
all those involved," said Phil Dunford, Bell-Boeing's director of flight test for the
V-22 program.
Further tests will involve carrying--at
220 knots--15,000 pounds suspended from the forward and aft cargo hooks.
The first time a tiltrotor was used
to carry external loads occurred earlier in the decade when an FSD (full-scale
development) V-22A carried 4,000 pounds while reaching a speed of 174 knots.
First Firing for ESSM
The first test firing of the
Evolved SeaSparrow Missile (ESSM) has been conducted at the Desert Ship facility at the
White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The test shot was successful, Navy officials
said.
After the ESSM successfully
departed its Mk29 launcher, its motor was started by a laser arm-and-fire device. The
missile achieved stable flight, the Navy said, "and properly performed all of its
pre-programmed maneuvers."
The ESSM--a ship self-defense missile
designed to defeat current and future missile threats--is a follow-on to the RIM-7P
SeaSparrow missile currently in service on ships of the U.S. Navy and other navies. The
ESSM features a new rocket motor and new tail-control technology, and is fitted with a
modified RIM-7P guidance section.
The ESSM program is an international
cooperative development program managed by the Naval Sea Systems Command. The program's
costs and development are being shared by 10 of the 13 members of the NATO SeaSparrow
consortium.
Ingalls to Build Two U.S. Cruise Ships for AMCV
Ingalls Shipbuilding has been
selected by American Classic Voyages (AMCV) to build the two largest U.S. cruise ships
ever built, and the first large cruise ships built in the United States in more than 40
years; AMCV plans to use them for interisland service in Hawaii. The first vessel is
anticipated to enter service in 2002.
The two 71,000-ton ships--Ingalls
has options, under the letter of intent, to build up to four additional ships--are
expected to cost $400 million each; the first is scheduled to enter service in late 2002.
The 840-foot-long ships will be among the largest ships able to transit the Panama Canal.
Each of the ships will be designed to host 1,900 passengers.
The agreement between Ingalls and
AMCV--made possible by the result of the U.S.-Flag Cruise Ship Project Statute passed by
Congress last year to revitalize the U.S.-flag cruise fleet--is expected to create more
than 5,000 jobs and will help to sustain the U.S. naval industrial base.
"Ingalls built the last two
U.S.-produced cruise ships," said Jerry St. Pé, president of Ingalls Shipbuilding.
"Because of our unique experience in designing and building sophisticated, highly
detailed vessels, producing cruise ships like these for AMCV is ideally suited to our
facilities and to the skills of our employees."
"We are very excited to work with
Ingalls Shipbuilding in a partnership which will revitalize America's commercial
shipbuilding industry and dramatically and profitably improve our Hawaii business,"
said Philip C. Calian, president and CEO of AMCV. "These state-of-the-art ships will
prove the tremendous capability of U.S. shipyards to construct large cruise ships and they
will provide us with modern vessels for the Hawaiian cruise market."
DTB Monitor Tested On Board
USS Rainier
The Navy is deploying a preemptive
maintenance system on board one of its fast combat support ships (AOEs) to evaluate the
system's potential. The Intrinsic Health Monitor System (IHMS), designed by Dayton T.
Brown Inc. (DTB), is installed on the Supply-class AOE USS Rainier.
The IHMS is designed to warn a
ship's crew of impending machine failure before performance declines, thereby avoiding
costly downtime and correlative damage. The system's microprocessors use multiple sensor
inputs from a variety of monitored machines to determine the status of the ship's rotating
propulsion and auxiliary systems. The ship's systems are monitored at a central
workstation, at which a failure potential index (FPI) for each monitored machine is
displayed.
The systems being monitored on the Rainier
include lube-oil purifiers and pumps, and high-pressure air compressors. Unlike systems
that rely on predefined math models--those installed on the Aegis cruiser USS Yorktown,
for example, under the "Smart Ship" program--IHMS uses statistical evaluations
"learned on-site" to establish normal modes of operation and to predict
failures. This condition-based monitoring is used to schedule maintenance on the
equipment.
Use of IHMS has the potential of reducing
shipboard manpower requirements significantly, according to DTB officials.
"Knowing the future health of
machines gives commanders the ability to set priorities and dedicate manpower to the areas
that need repair most," said Ken Morrelly, general manager of DTB's Engineering &
Test Division.
Defense Industry Notes
- The government of Greece has
requested that six airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) systems be
included as part of a purchase of either E-2C Hawkeye or C-130J Hercules aircraft,
along with spares, repair parts, support equipment, training services and equipment, and
contractor support. Prime contractor for the $380 million sale, if approved by the U.S.
Department of Defense, would be Northrop Grumman (builder of the E-2C) or Lockheed Martin
Aeronautical Systems (builder of the C-130J).
- GE Marine Engines has
received an order from Empresa Nacional Bazan of Madrid, Spain, for eight LM2500
aeroderivative gas turbine engines, which will be installed on four F100-class
frigates being built for the Spanish Navy. The first two engines will be
delivered before the end of 1998; the others will be delivered from 2000 through 2002. The
four frigates are expected to be commissioned in the 20022005 time frame.
- Vice Adm. John B. LaPlante, USN (Ret.),
has joined McDermott International as director of its mobile offshore base (MOB)
development program. LaPlante was an amphibious task force commander during Operation
Desert Storm--and earlier, as the U.S. Pacific Fleet's deputy chief of staff for
logistics, was responsible for the management of the Navy's entire Pacific logistics
structure, including supply depots, naval magazines, and naval bases.
- Sanders, a Lockheed Martin company,
has completed acceptance testing of the Integrated Defensive Electronic Countermeasures
(IDECM) Radio Frequency Countermeasures (RFCM) system and has delivered the first four
EMD (engineering and manufacturing development) systems for testing on board aircraft. The
IDECM/RFCM--designed to be a cost-effective countermeasure against radar-guided missile
threats--will be deployed, with a fiber-optic towed decoy (FOTD) included, on Navy
F/A-18E/F Super Hornet strike fighters and Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers.
- AlliedSignal Technical Services has
been awarded a 10-year $435 million contract to keep Marine Corps warfighting and
support equipment prepositioned on board Maritime Prepositioning Force (MPF) ships.
The 13 MPF ships, loaded with combat-ready gear and supplies, are located strategically
throughout the world to be available for rapid deployment.
- Boeing has been awarded a
$236.7 million Naval Air Systems Command contract modification for four F/A-18C and
four F/A-18D Hornet strike fighters for the Marine Corps. The Marine Corps purchased
the aircraft, built for Thailand with fiscal year 1997 funds, after Thailand's recent
fiscal crisis. The aircraft are being converted to be compatible with Marine Corps
requirements.
- Analysis & Technology Inc. has
been awarded a contract--worth $46.9 million with options--from the Naval Undersea
Warfare Center Division Newport (R.I.) to provide engineering support for submarine
periscope and low-frequency communications systems.
- Sanders, a Lockheed Martin
company, has been awarded a $12.9 million contract to provide 33 USQ-113(V)2
communications jamming systems for EA-6B electronic attack aircraft. The contract also
calls for the upgrade of 30 existing USQ-113 systems. The USQ-113 provides signal
detection, analysis, and identification, and has the ability to jam or interrupt enemy
communications.
- The RQ-4A Global Hawk high-altitude
long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has completed its fifth test flight--and
first night flight--at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The aircraft built by Teledyne
Ryan Aeronautical climbed to a 58,800-foot cruising altitude during the test. When one
of its two integrated mission management computers (IMMCs) failed, the other took control
"seamlessly," company officials said. The UAV's differential global positioning
system data guided the aircraft to a touchdown within inches of the runway centerline.
- Israel's ElectroOptics Industries
(ELOP) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Northrop Grumman Electronic
Sensors and Systems Sector to consider teaming together to provide an advanced
reconnaissance pod for the F/A-18 strike fighter.
- Raytheon Systems Company has
received an $11 million Navy contract to provide technology support to the Naval Air
Warfare Center Weapons Division in China Lake, Calif. The company will apply its commercial
NightSight uncooled infrared technology in support of the Direct Attack Munition
Affordable Seeker (DAMASK) program, part of the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM)
program.
- Ceanic Hard Suits of North Vancouver,
Canada, a subsidiary of Stolt Comex Seaway, has completed a 2,000-foot manned dive
of the HARDSUIT 2000 atmospheric diving system (ADS). The test--conducted at the Navy
Experimental Diving Unit's Ocean Simulation Facility in Panama City, Fla.--was successful,
company officials said, and the Navy has now ordered three more HARDSUIT 2000 ADSs.
The OSF is the world's largest and most sophisticated hyperbaric chamber complex and the
only hyperbaric facility in the United States that can certify manned systems.
- DRS Technologies has been
awarded a $3.7 million contract--worth $20 million, with options--from Lockheed Martin
Federal Systems to design and manufacture acoustic data recorders (ADRs) for the
Navy's P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft. The lightweight ADRs will incorporate
commercial-off-the-shelf technology to record sonobuoy data and interface with other data
analysis systems.
- TASC, a division of Litton
Industries, has been awarded a one-year Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) contract with
four one-year options totaling $10.8 million to support the Trident ballistic missile
system. TASC will provide "an array of engineering and analytic services"
for the SSP, company officials said.
- GE Engine Services has been
awarded a $14 million Navy contract to repair engine components for the T700 turboshaft
engines used on H-60, SH-2G, and AH-1W helicopters. The contract, if all options are
exercised, is potentially worth $56.2 million.
- McDermott Technology has been
selected by the Office of Naval Research and the Naval Sea Systems Command to help
develop a new form of power generation for shipboard applications. The new
form--ship-service fuel cells (SSFCs)--uses hydrogen to produce electricity by an
electrochemical reaction during which almost no pollutants are released. The $3 million
12-month Phase I contract calls for the development of a 2.5-megawatt SSFC demonstrator
power plant. Teamed with MTI are BWX Technologies, Ballard Power Systems, and Gibbs
& Cox, a naval
architect firm.
- BARCO Display Systems has
been selected by Marconi Electronic Systems to supply 45 MPRD 9651 multipurpose
rugged color liquid-crystal displays for the upgrade to the central tactical systems
on 24 Royal Air Force Nimrod MR Mk2 maritime patrol aircraft.
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