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Aviation History
1999
1999 - 0879.PDF
LID J'JAV/ L~J\£U£ French target added to USN supersonic competition RAMON LOPEZ/WASHINGTON DC ANEW AIR TARGET being developed by Aerospatiale Missiles has been bid in the US Navy's Supersonic Sea-Skimming Target (SSST) competition. The bid was made after the USN extended its deadline by one month, to 14 April. Bids are expect ed from Allied Signal Aerospace, an Orbital Sciences/Raytheon team and Boeing. The USN is buying Zvezda- Strela-built MA-31s through Boeing as an interim SSST solu tion, and Boeing is expected to offer an extended range version of the MA-31. The USN says there is no problem with availability of the MA-31, but it is reported that Russia has blocked MA-31 ship ments to Boeing. The USN intends to procure up to 2 0 MA-31 s from Boeing in fiscal year 1999, which began on 1 October, but the contract has yet to be signed. A Boeing spokesman would say only that "we are on track in negotiations with the Russians for further AIA-31 buys." Orbital Sciences may propose to convert surplus SRAM missiles with Terrier boosters into super sonic air targets needed to test shipboard defences against the Raguda 3M-80 (SS-N-22 Sunburn) anti-ship missile. AlliedSignal Target Systems had provided the USN with Vandal tar gets converted from excess Talos missiles, but the USN ran out of Talos airframes and boosters. AlliedSignal is proposingdie Sea Snake, an improved Vandal manu factured from new. As an alterna tive, die company has teamed with Aerospatiale to offer the in-devel- opment Marauder, which is designed to yield a new supersonic anti-ship weapon and an advanced tactical nuclear delivery* system for the French military. The Marauder would be powered by an Aerospatiale ramjet engine, with solid rocket booster from Pratt & Whitney Chemical Systems. The winning contractor can expect to supply up to 40 targets annually for four years. 3 Boeing JSF improvements will meet payload shortfall lour times over' THE BOEING Joint Strike Fighter QSF) programme team claims to have identified a range of installed thrust improve ment and weight reduction options for the US Marine Corps and Royal Navy version of the X-32 demonstrator. The team says the improvements more than address the projected payload performance shortfall in the aircraft, being built in competition with a rival Lockheed Martin design. Boeing JSF weapon system director Dennis Muilenburg said at this year's US Navy League Sea- Air-Space Exposition in Washing ton on 29-31 March, that the company has found enough areas in which to either cut weight or improve powerplant efficiency to bridge the gap four times over. He declined to quantify the shortfall. Boeing says that its current pre ferred weapon system concept (PWSC) design configuration meets 95 % of the requirement laid down by the latest joint interim requirements document, JIRD 3, issued by the US Department of Defense. The short take-off/verti cal landing (STOVL) version, however, does not yet meet the 1,810kg (4,0001b) bringback load requirement. The list of remedies encompass es improvements to the PWSC's Pratt & Whitney Fl 19 power plants inlet and lift performance and/or airframe and system weight reductions. Muilenburg says sav ings could be achieved in the JSF landing gear, flight control sys tems, and enhanced integrated avionics suite, where there are major weight opportunities. These STOVL performance refinements, along with the selec tion of a gun, will need to be settled by the time Boeing submits its final PWSC design in 2000. The JSF programme office is due to release a draft joint operation requirement document in April, and a final ver sion by the end of the year. JIRD 3 stipulates a fixed internal gun for the US air force's conven tional take-off and landing version and study of a missionised gun module for the other aircraft carri er and STOVL derivatives. Boeing says that it is leaning towards the Mauser 27mm system installed in die aircraft's forebody and is look ing at a range of internal weapon bay and external hardpoint mount ing options for the naval and Marine versions. Boeing meanwhile claims to be ahead of schedule and 50% below its targeted cost reduction for die construction of twoJSFX-32A/B concept demonstrators. Boeing's St Louis-based Phantom works has delivered its first X-32 A forebody to Palmdale, where it was sched uled to have been mated with die midbody by die end of last week. • Proposals requested for F/A-18E/F active array BOEING HAS issued a draft request for proposals for an active-array radar for the F/A-18E/FSuper Hornet. It is awaiting the US Navy's go-ahead to launch a competition between Raytheon and Northrop Grumman to develop the active electronically scanned array (AESA). A winner is expected to be named in the fourth quarter. The USN has yet to secure funding for the AESA radar, so Boeing and the selected supplier will begin work widi company funds. Because of delays in launching the competition, the AESA radar will not be incorporated in produc tion E/Fs before 2005-6, says Boeing F/A-18 programme gener al manager Pat Finneran. The navy is pushing for money- saving multivear procurement of the E/F, beginning with the start of full-rate production in fiscal year 2000. Approval requires a stable configuration. The AESA radar will not be incorporated in production E/Fs before 2005-6 To achieve this, Boeing is plan ning upgrades of the third batch of low-rate initial production (LRIP) aircraft. "We will have a stable con figuration with LRIP 3," says Finneran. Because the radar supplier will not be decided until later this year, Finneran says Boeing is designing in "worst case" provisions for the AESA, in terms of wiring, cooling and power. Boeing says it will deliver a "fully spec-compliant" aircraft for opera tional evaluation (Opeval), which will begin in May, but Finneran expects the lack of an AESA to be marked up as a deficiency. Approval for full-rate produc tion depend on a successful Opeval, but Congress will have to to appro priate funds for multiyear procure ment before testing is complete. The navy estimates multiyear pro curement of 222 E/Fs over five years will save $706 million. • FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 7 - 13 April 1999 23
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