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Aviation History
1987
1987 - 0507.PDF
BUSINESS AVIATION Schweizer markets civil SA 2-37A LEESBURG Schweizer Aircraft has given a public airing to a special- purpose aircraft previously sold only for secret military applications, reports Julian Moxon. Schweizer is now marketing the SA 2-37A for "law enforcement, border surveil lance, and specialised military applications" and has begun a comprehensive tour of poten tial US civil and military customers. It is promoting the SA 2-37A fitted with the Hughes AN/AAQ-16 forward- looking infrared (Flir) night vision system. For Flight's demonstration the SA 2-37A was flown out of Leesburg Airport, about 40 miles from Washington D.C., by Les Schweizer, one of three brothers who annually rotate the Schweizer presidency. The flight lasted about 40min, and provided an opportunity to examine this unusual aircraft/sensor combination. The AN/AAQ-16 is a sophi sticated sensor system small enough to fit into an aircraft like the SA 2-37A. It already has several military applica tions (including the Bell/ Boeing V-22 tilt-rotor), and is now available commercially. The Flir sensor is mounted in a turret below the fuselage, and can be rotated through 210° in azimuth and from 85°-180° in elevation. It is operated using a hand-held control unit, which requires some skill before full use can be made of the Flir's capabili ties. Simple tracking tasks can be carried out by the uninitiated almost immedi ately, however. After a short warm-up, the Flir image appears on the mission operator's multifunc tion display (MFD) on the left-hand side of the panel. Navigation symbology from a Litton inertial navigation system is presented around the edge of the MFD. As the SA 2-37A needs only 52 h.p. to maintain altitude, its six-cylinder 235 h.p. Lyco ming 10-540 engine felt relaxed throughout. At 70kt, in "quiet mission mode", the three-bladed McCauley pro peller rotates at only 1,200 r.p.m., resulting in a low noise signature. After Flight's demonstration the SA 2-37A FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL, 23 May 1987 Left Schweizer Aircraft is promoting its 2-37A light surveillance aircraft fitted with the Hughes AN/AAQ-16 forward-looking infrared night vision system. Below The system's sensor is mounted in a turret below the fuselage on the centreline just forward of the wing trailing edge was flown over Leesburg field at 1,300ft. In the presence of ordinary background noise, and with the navigation lights switched off, it was virtually impossible to locate the air craft from the ground. The secret lies in the use of a very-high-aspect-ratio wing, coupled with advanced lead ing-edge technology to pro vide a lift-to-drag ratio double that of an ordinary light aircraft. The leading edges are extended at mid- and three- quarter span by two "cuffs", each measuring around a foot in length, which are essen tially small, fixed-position leading edge slats. These interact with the ailerons to provide very good low-speed performance without an asso ciated drag penalty. An inter esting feature is a pair of dive brakes on each wing, provid ing a safe 14,000ft/min descent. The long, thin wings yield more response in pitch than in roll and yaw, but without any detriment to overall control lability. Les Schweizer demonstrated the SA 2-37A's low-speed handling qualities by stalling the aircraft power- on, and maintaining control in all three axes while the aircraft was "mushing". Even tually, the right wing dropped, but was recovered immedi ately and without difficulty. Our flight took place at between 1,000ft and 3,000ft, in gathering dusk. Flir images could be enhanced using a six- times magnification capabil ity built into the hand-held control unit. Sheep and cows were easily picked out, and warm spots where cars had been parked could be distinguished. With skill, the system can be made to track moving targets automatically, images being returned to base by a microwave data link. Schweizer will provide special night cockpit lighting compatible with night vision goggles for the pilot if required, along with a flat black anti-glare interior if the mission dictates. Standard equipment on the SA 2-37A includes a 100A alternator, which was enough to run the equipment on the demonstrator aircraft. Schweizer quotes a 300A generator as one of the options, including air condi tioning. The basic SA 2-37A comes equipped with a King avionics package that includes ADF and Nav/Com with VOR/ ILS. There is plenty of spare room on the console for installing additional systems, such as Loran. Besides the Litton INS, the demonstrator aircraft was fitted with a King KNS 80 RNav system and King KRA 10A radar alti meter. Price of the basic aircraft is between $350,000-$400,000, depending on options. Addi tion of the Hughes Flir almost doubles the price (Hughes will not disclose the exact figure). Low light TV, or more power ful Flir, are easily accommo dated in the SA 2-37A's payload bay, according to Schweizer. n
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