17 décembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial

Cobham’s Aerial Refueling Buddy Store Mounted During MQ-25 Test Flight

Posted on December 16, 2020 by Seapower Staff

DAVENPORT, Iowa — Cobham Mission Systems' underwing mounted refueling buddy store was carried for the first time during a successful test flight of Boeing's MQ-25 test asset, known as T1, Cobham said in a Dec. 16 release. The test helped to validate the unmanned aircraft's aerodynamics when carrying existing refueling equipment. The flight marks a significant milestone in the development of MQ-25, the first operational, carrier-based unmanned aerial refueler for the U.S. Navy. The Navy's F/A-18 fleet currently operates the same Cobham 31-301 buddy store, when fulfilling this key aerial refueling role.

“This marks a significant milestone for the development of unmanned aerial refueling and we are proud that Boeing's MQ-25 test aircraft carried Cobham's underwing mounted equipment on this test flight,” said Jason Apelquist, senior vice president for business development and strategy for Cobham Mission Systems. “It is encouraging to see how proven solutions are being leveraged to further new mission capability. We look forward to supporting next-generation technology and continue to work with our customers as a key partner to deliver the aerial refueling solution of the future.”

The 2.5-hour flight was conducted by Boeing test pilots operating from a ground control station at MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in Mascoutah, Illinois, on December 9, 2020. Future flights will continue to test the aerodynamics of the aircraft and the 31-301 Series Buddy Store at various points of the flight envelope. Insights from the tests will inform the eventual progression to the extension and retraction of the hose and drogue used in refueling.

https://seapowermagazine.org/cobhams-aerial-refueling-buddy-store-mounted-during-mq-25-test-flight

Sur le même sujet

  • Pentagon is bullish on health of defense industrial base, even as COVID-19 cases mount

    19 novembre 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

    Pentagon is bullish on health of defense industrial base, even as COVID-19 cases mount

    By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — Despite increasing coronavirus cases in the U.S., the Pentagon's top weapons buyer on Wednesday sounded a note of confidence that defense companies would remain open throughout the winter and keep weapons production on track. “I am concerned about that — as we see within [the Defense Department] — the number of [COVID-19 positive] individuals still are increasing in industry,” Ellen Lord, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said during the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics' Ascend conference. However, she added she doesn't anticipate another wave of facility closures. “We're very hopeful that all of the steps that industry took during the pandemic — to space out [production] lines, to do telework, to find ways to comply with all the CDC regulations — that those have really prevented severe cases and the need to shut down,” she said, using an acronym for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “So I'm optimistic that although cases are going up, industry is going to continue to be very resilient. And we will continue at pretty impressive productivity rates,” she added. At the height of the pandemic earlier this year, almost 700 defense companies shut down operations in the hopes of quelling the spread of the virus. By June, that number had decreased to 33 businesses, according to data from the Defense Logistics Agency and the Defense Contracts Management Agency Currently, only one of those companies remains closed, Lord said. However, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has been trending upward in the country since the end of September, with a high of almost 195,000 new cases reported Nov. 12, according to CDC data. But there is cause for hope: On Wednesday morning, Pfizer announced that phase 3 trials of its vaccine showed it was 95 percent effective in preventing the virus, and the company could seek emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration within days, CNN reported. During the conference, Lord was asked whether defense contractors would get priority access to COVID-19 vaccines, given the defense industry's status as an “essential” business sector during the pandemic. “I don't have the answer to that,” she said. “That's being sorted out right now in the White House.” https://www.defensenews.com/2020/11/18/the-pentagon-is-bullish-on-health-of-defense-industrial-base-even-as-covid-19-cases-mount/

  • Lockheed Martin eyes Patriot interceptor production in Spain

    22 avril 2024 | International, Terrestre

    Lockheed Martin eyes Patriot interceptor production in Spain

    Spain's Grupo Oesia is to make parts of the PAC-3 MSE interceptor missile for Lockheed, expanding the two companies' partnership first announced last year.

  • Biden defense budget, coming Friday, is under pressure from both sides

    25 mai 2021 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

    Biden defense budget, coming Friday, is under pressure from both sides

    Details of President Joe Biden’s first defense budget won’t be out until Friday, but lawmakers on the left and right have already drawn out their lines for the battle ahead.

Toutes les nouvelles