Smiths Industries' latest flight management computer (FMC) has been selected as part of a Boeing-proposed cockpit upgrade for the US Navy's E-6 Mercury command and control aircraft.
The upgrade would see the cockpit from Boeing's Next Generation 737 installed in the E-6, including the flat-panel displays. A Navy decision on whether to proceed with the upgrade is expected within a month. If it goes ahead, the upgrade could be expanded later to include US Air Force E-3 Sentry airborne early warning aircraft.
Smiths' FMC, which is standard on the 737NG family, has been selected for other military programmes, including a Spanish air force Lockheed Martin C-130 update and the UK Royal Air Force's British Aerospace Nimrod 2000 upgrade.
Smiths, meanwhile, has begun supplying its latest FMC for retrofit into "classic" 737s. Customers include Southwest Airlines, which has purchased systems for 208 737-300s and -500s. The new FMC is smaller and lighter than the unit it replaces. It offers a mean time between failures of 18,000h, compared with 4,000-6,000h for the previous generation FMC, the company says.
A new colour flat-panel control display unit will be introduced as standard on the 737NG later this year and will be offered for retrofit. The display offers increased reliability as well as the capacity for increased functionality that comes with colour, says Smiths.
Source: Flight International