Buff upgrade
While the driver and the command system got beaten up for the event, it is interesting to note that the spoiler response was being saturated quite early in the left turn that Holland entered. The speed and the bank resulted in exceeding the authority of the spoiler system, and the rudder, well, we have just commented on the rudder's authority. Occasionally, limits are there for very good reasons, bank limits on the Buff were rational, and needed to be respected.
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somewhere on here there's a thread about that crash
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Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/roll...ts-by-year-end
Rolls-Royce on track for B-52 engine tests by year end
Rolls-Royce is finalising initial testing of the F130 engine for the United States Air Force B-52J Stratofortress by the conclusion of this year.
Rolls-Royce on track for B-52 engine tests by year end
Rolls-Royce is finalising initial testing of the F130 engine for the United States Air Force B-52J Stratofortress by the conclusion of this year.
Was chatting to one of the B52 crew at RIAT about the upgrade - he said that apart from the reliability & endurance benefits, the engine pods would throw off a lot more electrical power which could have all manner of benefits (EW, comms, etc).
yes which why they are going to be able to power an F-18 radar thats getting installed
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
A recent Office of the Under Secretary of Defense solicitation provides the best insight yet into range requirements from the USAF's high-speed Cruise Missile dev. efforts. According to the notice, USAF is looking at the Air-Breathing Cruise Missile to exceed 1000 miles.
As per the notice, AF Global Strike Command is developing a new conventional High Speed, ABCM capable of range >1K miles to be carried by the B52 that is expected to exceed the capacity of the existing conventional W pylon & Heavy Stores Adapter Beam thus requiring a redesign.
One option the Air Force is considering is repurposing the existing SUU-67/A Aircraft Pylon for conventional use. The SUU-67/A is currently used to carry the AGM-86/B Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM).
The success criteria for this effort as per the solicitation will be the delivery of an modified SUU-67/A prototype. The modified SUU-67/A prototype will be delivered as an ready-to-integrate & ready-to-flight demonstrate asset as per the notice.
https://www.sbir.gov/node/2479843
Potential conflicts in the Pacific region will need dozens of cruise missiles in mass attacks against hostile forces. B-52 would carry 8 missiles internal and 12 on external underwing pylons. Without the modified pylon, capacity would see a 60% reduction as per the notice.
As per the notice, AF Global Strike Command is developing a new conventional High Speed, ABCM capable of range >1K miles to be carried by the B52 that is expected to exceed the capacity of the existing conventional W pylon & Heavy Stores Adapter Beam thus requiring a redesign.
One option the Air Force is considering is repurposing the existing SUU-67/A Aircraft Pylon for conventional use. The SUU-67/A is currently used to carry the AGM-86/B Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM).
The success criteria for this effort as per the solicitation will be the delivery of an modified SUU-67/A prototype. The modified SUU-67/A prototype will be delivered as an ready-to-integrate & ready-to-flight demonstrate asset as per the notice.
https://www.sbir.gov/node/2479843
Potential conflicts in the Pacific region will need dozens of cruise missiles in mass attacks against hostile forces. B-52 would carry 8 missiles internal and 12 on external underwing pylons. Without the modified pylon, capacity would see a 60% reduction as per the notice.
Holland was a hotdog pilot who exceeded the limits and should justifiably be blamed for the crash. I well remember this event - this was not an aircraft issue, it was a driver issue. Watching video of that crash all I can think is how did the pilot imagine any lift would be generated at that bank angle; at his altitude there was no escape. This was not a crop duster; spoiler response did not cause this crash.
No argument that the. Fairchild event was directly caused by violation of the Dash 1. However, command had repeatedly failed to act in response to deliberate violations. The comment on the lateral direction stability is that the assumption that exceeding limits is merely a violation of a boiler plate standard limit is not always the case. Many aircraft can exceed the envelope of the certification without a catastrophic consequence. Some cannot. The loss of control had occurred well before the nose starts to drop at Fairchild, The attitude limits on the Buff are not just empty words, exceeding them can lead to loss of control. Holland routinely breached the Dash 1, command looked the other way, and some good people died needlessly due to the whole sorry disregard of regulations, obligation and common sense.
Most tragically, and IIRC, the poor chap in the right seat was there that day with the express purpose of pulling Holland from flying duties. It still is a shocking video to watch all these years later. The last 15 seconds or so must have been absolutely terrifying. Did/does the B52 carry a CVR?
It did not have a CVR at that time.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
7 years to integrate a proven commercial engine onto a proven jet that’s been in service for over 60 years…..
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2024...ngines-tested/
Tinker Air Force base readies for B-52 upgrades as engines tested
The Air Force expects to finish qualification testing of the new engines planned for the B-52 Stratofortress by the end of 2024.
And the service plans to make a Milestone B decision on the Commercial Engine Replacement Program by the end of the summer, which would allow it to move into its engineering and manufacturing development phase, officials said in an interview with Defense News.….
The Air Force knows the F130 engine works, Cleaver said, since a version of it has powered the Gulfstream G650 business jet for years. But the F130s will be mounted differently on the B-52, and the Air Force needs to make sure there aren’t any surprises with the bomber’s twin-pod, under-wing configuration.
Rolls-Royce last year completed much of the initial twin-pod testing of the F130 engines at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, Cleaver said, and the last six-week test cycle there is expected to start in early March. Those tests will involve exposing the engine pods to cross-wind blowers, and seeing what happens if one engine in the pod has to operate at reduced power or is even inoperative.
More tests will follow, Foreman said. In April, the F130 will start sea-level performance testing on a stand at a Rolls-Royce facility in Indianapolis. Another engine will undergo durability testing through 2025, Cleaver said. And this fall, F130 testing will move to the Arnold Engineering Development Complex in Tennessee, where it will be subjected to simulated altitudes to produce more data on how it might behave in flight.
Once that round is done, they said, the F130 will have finished its qualification testing that ensures it would be safe to fly, and pave the way for test modifications to begin.
The first two test B-52s will be modified at Boeing’s San Antonio, Texas facility beginning in 2026. It will take a few years to upgrade these bombers for the first time, Cleaver said, and ground and flight tests will go from late 2028 to 2031.
After this year’s testing, Boeing will set up four systems integration laboratories to ensure adding the new engines onto the B-52 will go smoothly, Cleaver said. Three will be in Oklahoma City, near Tinker Air Force Base, and the fourth — focusing on the engines’ electrical systems — will be at a Boeing facility near Seattle.
“We have a mix of simulated functions and hardware … functions to make sure that our systems are working with each other, and that we’re not using the test aircraft as our place to find problems,” Cleaver said. The labs “will really prove out the design before we even cut into a jet.”….
https://www.defensenews.com/air/2024...ngines-tested/
Tinker Air Force base readies for B-52 upgrades as engines tested
The Air Force expects to finish qualification testing of the new engines planned for the B-52 Stratofortress by the end of 2024.
And the service plans to make a Milestone B decision on the Commercial Engine Replacement Program by the end of the summer, which would allow it to move into its engineering and manufacturing development phase, officials said in an interview with Defense News.….
The Air Force knows the F130 engine works, Cleaver said, since a version of it has powered the Gulfstream G650 business jet for years. But the F130s will be mounted differently on the B-52, and the Air Force needs to make sure there aren’t any surprises with the bomber’s twin-pod, under-wing configuration.
Rolls-Royce last year completed much of the initial twin-pod testing of the F130 engines at NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, Cleaver said, and the last six-week test cycle there is expected to start in early March. Those tests will involve exposing the engine pods to cross-wind blowers, and seeing what happens if one engine in the pod has to operate at reduced power or is even inoperative.
More tests will follow, Foreman said. In April, the F130 will start sea-level performance testing on a stand at a Rolls-Royce facility in Indianapolis. Another engine will undergo durability testing through 2025, Cleaver said. And this fall, F130 testing will move to the Arnold Engineering Development Complex in Tennessee, where it will be subjected to simulated altitudes to produce more data on how it might behave in flight.
Once that round is done, they said, the F130 will have finished its qualification testing that ensures it would be safe to fly, and pave the way for test modifications to begin.
The first two test B-52s will be modified at Boeing’s San Antonio, Texas facility beginning in 2026. It will take a few years to upgrade these bombers for the first time, Cleaver said, and ground and flight tests will go from late 2028 to 2031.
After this year’s testing, Boeing will set up four systems integration laboratories to ensure adding the new engines onto the B-52 will go smoothly, Cleaver said. Three will be in Oklahoma City, near Tinker Air Force Base, and the fourth — focusing on the engines’ electrical systems — will be at a Boeing facility near Seattle.
“We have a mix of simulated functions and hardware … functions to make sure that our systems are working with each other, and that we’re not using the test aircraft as our place to find problems,” Cleaver said. The labs “will really prove out the design before we even cut into a jet.”….
