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F35 C first deck landing

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F35 C first deck landing

Old 14th Nov 2014, 02:10
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U.S. Navy F-35 jet makes first night flight

Go read for yourselfs - if youse can... Eat plenty of carrots. :-)

U.S. Navy F-35 jet makes first night flight as sea tests near end 13 Nov

U.S. Navy F-35 jet makes first night flight as sea tests near end
______________________

From elsewhere... (use your carrots luke)
"...Of 102 tail hook landings through Wednesday, the majority had hit the third of four wires stretched across the Nimitz flight deck, according to several Navy representatives. Known in Navy flying circles as the “three wire,” it is considered the bulls-eye for carrier pilots. “We are beating up the three wire,” Wilson told reporters.

None of the landings has used the first wire, which would mean the pilot tried to land too close to the beginning of the flight deck, officials said. They wouldn't disclose raw data on the landings, saying that a full report is forthcoming.

There was one “bolter” – a term for when a pilot hits the deck in the wrong place and has to slam on the gas to quickly takeoff again. The plane didn't have its tailhook extended, so the pilot hadn't intended to land, but he still struck the deck far long of a landing position, according to people familiar with the incident. Officials attributed that one to high winds across the deck at 40 knots and deck officers still learning how to work with the F-35...."

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 14th Nov 2014 at 02:36. Reason: more text
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 11:47
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SpazSinbad, Keep 'em coming! If Rhinopower doesn't want to see he can turn away.

For those of us who are interested, the videos and stills you have posted are essential for understanding the dynamics of the F35C arrestor landing. Unless LM can get the arrester hook to work repeatedly without fail, in all conditions within the spec requirement, the F35C is a pointless aeroplane.

The F35C evidently poses challenges on deck landing not faced by any current or recent carrier aircraft, so ensuring these can be overcome without compromising the aircraft's unique selling points is vital to the programme.

I should think any arrester landing data from the Sea Vampire you mentioned earlier, and possibly the F7U Cutlass as well, would have been of interest to the F35C team.
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 12:25
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Someone upset because someone else is posting too much about F-35C deck landings in a thread dedicated to F-35C deck landings? How peculiar.

Thank you Spaz and keep it up.
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 15:01
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From the ariticle spaz quoted in the post a few above:

"By midday Thursday, the jets had carried out over 101 catapult launches from the carrier, 214 planned "touch and go" landings, and 104 arrested landings...."

If find that pretty impressive for a week or so of work. Just the 2 airframes and 4 pilots correct? I'm sure they have a bevy of support staff and spares aboard, but seems to indicate no major down time.
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 15:16
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Suspect it's like a Carquals serial but with only two cabs. May not even have shut down between bunches of recoveries and shots, so less opportunity for the gremlins to work.....
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 16:07
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only 8 years since first flight................
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 16:28
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Are they still having to check out the engine for excessive wear every three hours, or is the USN doing this testing at risk?
Does anyone know if the ALICE system has gone out to the Nimitz as well?
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 16:30
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Originally Posted by Heathrow Harry
"only 8 years since first flight................"
??? Four and a half years according to this:
Originally Posted by Flight Global 9 Jun 2010
...The 55-minute flight on 6 June by CF-1 — the first carrier variant — may seem a minor event in the history of the F-35 program.. But, in the sweep of naval history, CF-1′s airborne debut will be remembered as a “very historic day”, Burbage says.

Designing and flying an aircraft that must takeoff and land from a postage-stamp, moving runway in open water and possibly under attack has never been easy. It was hard enough in the era of straight-wing aircraft powered by turboprop engines. Adding swept-wings and jet engines in the 1950s inserted a new level of complexity.

Last year’s discovery that the F-35C requires a keel redesign to survive repeated carrier landings may indicate the scale of the learning curve, even though the company is no stranger to carrier-based aviation with the S-3 Viking...
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 16:35
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only 4.5 years since first flight................

Only joking!
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 16:53
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CATAPULT INFO

I'm not likely to start a thread about F-35C catapults so here is some info:

Navy's F-35C Takes Historic Step Forward Following Budgetary Turmoil 14 Nov 2014 Kris Osborn
"...The testing is also assessing how the F-35C catapults off the deck. The steam catapult on board the Nimitz is thrusting the aircraft off the deck at a range of speeds in order to test the slowest and fastest potential takeoff speeds, said Lt. Eric Ryziu, catapult arresting gear officer.

Aircraft are able to reach speeds up to 160 knots in about 2.5 seconds as a result of being thrust forward by the steam catapult, which stretches about 300 feet. The steam catapult generates 520 PSI (pounds per square inch) of pressure pushing pistons forward. The pistons push cylinders connected to a shuttle attached to a launch bar, which pulls the aircraft forward, Ryziu explained."
Navy's F-35C Takes Historic Step Forward Following Budgetary Turmoil | Military.com

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 14th Nov 2014 at 16:54. Reason: space
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Old 14th Nov 2014, 22:27
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I'm a redesigned HOOK and I'm OK....

:-) For those interested - for those others - LOOK AWAY - NOW! SECRET NavAv Bidness :-)

Amid a Year of Challenges, F-35C Sea Trials Progressing Well 14 Nov 2014 Valerie Insinna
"...Another positive finding was the performance of the F-35C’s new tail hook. During the original hook’s initial tests at Naval Air Engineering Station Lakehurst in New Jersey, service officials found the hook did not engage with the cable, said Thomas Briggs, head of the air vehicle engineering department at Patuxent River.

Lockheed Martin then redesigned the tail hook with the input of Atlantic Test Range personnel, he said.[?]

It passed structural demonstrations earlier this year at Patuxent River, but critics like Michael Gilmore, the Pentagon’s director of test and evaluation, cautioned that the increased weight and sharpness of the new equipment could cause damage to the flight deck.

However, the gear has been catching the wires on the carrier deck without gouging or otherwise damaging the surface, Wilson said...."
Amid a Year of Challenges, F-35C Sea Trials Progressing Well - Blog

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 14th Nov 2014 at 22:28. Reason: spaces are killin' me in Win8.1
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 00:13
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Carrier Suitablity Testing Minimises Risk

Over page 'PhilipG' asked: http://www.pprune.org/military-aviat...ml#post8742518
"Are they still having to check out the engine for excessive wear every three hours, or is the USN doing this testing at risk?..."
I cannot speak for the USN however from my experience your inference that the USN would carry out testing with known 'risk' is ludicrous [& of course there is risk in any undertaking]. There are a series of videos from TAILHOOK 2014 'HOOK14' that adequately demonstrate to what lengths the USN will go to test their aircraft before going to sea. Links to follow - some portions of video segments are repeated for the context. Meanwhile during the long gestation of the many mooted fixes for the Engine Problem it became clear that the test aircraft were a priority to 'get fixed'. And they have been according to this:
"...By December, all 19 test airplanes will have undergone either the “rub in” or “pre-trenching” method and can return to normal testing under their full flight envelope, he [Gen.Bogdan] said...."
F-35 Engine Problems Could Impact Marine Corps IOC (UPDATED) - Blog

One may imagine that CF-03 and CF-05 were first inline for the engine fix.

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 15th Nov 2014 at 00:15. Reason: spaces
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 01:50
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Actually, it is more the case that the specific serial# engines installed in those aircraft are ones that have already been run the prerequisite hours to be properly "rubed-in".

It is not the aircraft but the engine - the one that failed was nearly new - ones with higher hours have already "worn-in" sufficiently to be safe to fly in all regimes.

The flight restrictions are for the "rub-in" period only - I suspect that they might just start running them a lot more hours at P&W before they are shipped to be installed in aircraft.
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 01:58
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'GK121' it is complicated. I recall Gen. Bogdan bewailing that the CF aircraft may not have been ready in time; however I concede that may have been NOT connected to engine trubs. Whatever. The info is out there. Meanwhile (no pic because it was dark) here is some news:
"SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- The F-35C Lightning II carrier variant Joint Strike Fighter conducted its first carrier-based night flight operations aboard an aircraft carrier off the coast of San Diego Nov. 13.

Navy test pilot Lt. Cmdr. Ted "Dutch" Dyckman piloted F-35C test aircraft CF-03 for the inaugural night flight, taking off from USS Nimitz (CVN 68). At 6:01 p.m. Dyckman conducted a series of planned touch and goes before making an arrested landing at 6:40 pm....

...Through Nov. 13, two test F-35C aircraft have completed 28 flights for a combined 34.5 flight hours and accomplished more than 75 percent of threshold test requirements. The aircraft also performed 108 catapult launches, 215 planned touch-and-go landings, two long touch and go landings, 110 arrested landings and zero bolters....

...The F-35C has proven its ability to operate in the carrier environment and has consistently caught the optimal three-wire during arrested landings. The test team successfully landed during every attempt, with zero hook-down bolters, or failures to catch an arresting cable on the flight deck...."
http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=84456

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 15th Nov 2014 at 02:34. Reason: xtra txt for emphasis
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 08:44
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MAGIC CARPET for Supers Analagous to Delta Flight Path for F-35C (& others)

Feet Wet 17 Nov 2014 Amy Butler Fort Worth and Guy Norris aboard the USS Nimitz
"...This flight control system mode, called Delta Path, is unique to the F-35 though it is nearly identical in functionality to the Magic Carpet system recently flight tested by F/A-18E/F pilots, says Eric Van Camp, director of domestic F-35 business development for Lockheed Martin. "The way we used to do it was this choreography between your right and left hand. Delta Path and Magic Carpet eliminate that." Magic Carpet is due to be tested at sea on the Super Hornet in early 2015...."
Aviation Week and Space Technology 17 November 2014

Best to view the 'Magic' HOOK14 videos in order shown but YMMV

Last edited by SpazSinbad; 15th Nov 2014 at 08:44. Reason: space
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 09:58
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Thanks for the explanation GreenKnight121, what you say makes sense assuming of course that the engines in these test vehicles have not been swapped out for whatever appropriate reasons.
Keeping slightly on the engines theme, there seems to have been some silence recently about new aircraft leaving Fort Worth, am I correct in thinking that with the Titanium sourcing problems and new design being worked on that no new engines are being shipped to the Fort Worth Assembly lines? A simple answer would suffice.
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 11:22
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THE HOOKIE MONSTER

"A close-up of the open bay containing the modified tail hook. Credit: Guy Norris/AW&ST"
http://aviationweek.com/site-files/a...ges/Nike15.jpg

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Old 15th Nov 2014, 18:07
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VIDEO: F-35C Conducts First Night Flight Ops 13 Nov 2014

TGI Wasn't F: - See the variable A/B in action in the real colour segment off the catapult.

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Old 15th Nov 2014, 19:53
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I like the way they lose interest in the burning on the deck. Maybe that's why we don't build ships out of wood anymore!
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Old 15th Nov 2014, 19:59
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Yes - I noticed that when making a clip of the variable A/B. Is it a fuel fire fart? Dunno. I will attempt to find out more - being restricted to 'public media only' makes that problematic.

Video clip of it: http://www.f-16.net/forum/download/file.php?id=19735 (1Mb .WMV)

Oh - BTW did you see the fireworks when Ol' Sparky the Hookie Muncher hits the deck? Gee Gosh Golly.


Last edited by SpazSinbad; 15th Nov 2014 at 20:20. Reason: add link to fuelfirefart .wmv clip & screemie
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