26 septembre 2018 | International, Aérospatial

US Air Force turns to data analytics to solve B-1, C-5 maintenance challenges

By:

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Air Force is making changes to the way it sustains the B-1B Lancer bomber and C-5 Super Galaxy cargo plane, moving to a maintenance approach that will allow it to use data analytics to predict problems, the acting head of Air Force Materiel Command said.

Both the B-1 and C-5 fleets transitioned to a conditions-based maintenance model last month, Lt. Gen. Robert McMurry, commander of the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, told Defense News in a Sept. 18 interview.

“Given the aging fleet situation that we have, we probably need to be using data better to take care of it — which is a drive toward what most everyone right now is saying is the right way to manage fleet sustainment, which is through condition-based maintenance and data analytics,” he said. “So we're trying to bring that on.”

The approach — which involves using algorithms to predict the need for repairs rather than waiting for a part to break — is a standard practice in the commercial airline industry to help reduce maintenance-related delays or cancellations, but has been less common in the Air Force.

AFMC determined it needed to make a greater push toward conditions-based maintenance as a result of servicewide reviews triggered by rising concerns about the number of aviation-related mishaps.

The first review, directed by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Dave Goldfein, involved a one-day standdown that would give flying and maintenance units a chance to communicate potential safety concerns up the chain of command. Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski, then the head of AFMC, also directed the organizations under her command, like the Air Force Sustaiment Center, to evaluate its own data.

The reviews have since concluded, with the Air Force finding “two systems ... where high risk was accepted,” said McMurry, noting that “operational security does not allow us to identify them.”

“Our process is dealing with those responsibly,” he added.

The B-1 and C-5 were chosen as pilot programs for the conditions-based maintenance approach because they are sustained by airmen and have older, relatively small inventories, making for a more manageable data set.

But the planes have something else in common — a recent history of well-publicized mishaps. The C-5 has sustained a number of nose landing gear malfunctions that led to a standdown and maintenance assessment in 2017. But despite a fix being put in place, there have still been problems with the gear, such as a March 2018 event where one C-5 landed on its nose at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.

Meanwhile, the B-1 fleet was temporarily grounded in June after a safety investigation board found problems with ejection seat components while investigating a May 1 emergency landingwhere the ejection seats did not deploy.

Full article: https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/air-force-association/2018/09/25/air-force-looks-to-data-analytics-to-help-solve-b-1-c-5-maintenance-challenges/

Sur le même sujet

  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - February 4, 2019

    5 février 2019 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité, Autre défense

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - February 4, 2019

    DEFENSE COMMISSARY AGENCY Coast Produce Co., Los Angeles, California, is being awarded an indefinite-delivery, requirements type contract to provide fresh fruits and vegetable products for commissaries located in the west areas of the continental U.S. The award amount is estimated at $153,648,855 for the base year. Actual obligations using resale stock activity group, defense capital funds, will occur upon issuance of delivery orders during the period of performance. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The contract is for a 24-month base period beginning Feb. 25, 2019, through Feb. 21, 2021. The contract includes three one-year option periods. If all three option periods are exercised, the contract will be completed Feb. 21, 2024. The Defense Commissary Agency, Fort Lee, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HDEC02-19-D-0002). NAVY General Dynamics Bath Iron Works (BIW), Bath, Maine, was awarded a $126,171,106 cost-plus-award-fee contract for DDG 51 class integrated planning yard services. BIW will provide expert design, planning and material support services for both maintenance and modernization. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $719,178,832. Work will be performed in Bath, Maine, and is expected to be completed by January 2024. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Navy); and fiscal 2019 other procurement (Navy) funding in the amount of $21,022,460 was obligated at time of award, and $4,549,434 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured, in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1) - only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity (N00024-19-C-4452). (Awarded Jan. 30, 2019) Swiftships LLC,* Morgan City, Louisiana, is awarded a $26,683,722 modification to previously awarded fixed-price incentive contract N00024-18-C-2401 to exercise an option for construction of Landing Craft, Utility (LCU) 1701 and 1702. LCU 1700 will replace the existing LCU 1610 class of amphibious landing craft on a one for one basis. LCU 1700 will be a similarly rugged steel craft which will recapitalize the LCU 1610 capabilities and have a design life of 30 years. LCU 1700 craft will be a highly reliable and fuel efficient heavy lift platform whose capability will be complementary to the faster air cushion landing craft which have a significantly shorter range, smaller payload capacity, no habitability, and operating hour limitations. Work will be performed in Morgan City, Louisiana, and is expected to be completed by May 2021. Fiscal 2019 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $26,683,722 will be obligated at time of award, and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity. Kingfisher Systems Inc., Falls Church, Virginia, is awarded a $14,236,278 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for advanced cyber support services in support of the Marine Corps Cyberspace Operations Group. This one-year contract includes four one-year option periods which, if exercised, would bring the potential value of this contract to an estimated $73,344,685. Work will be performed in Quantico, Virginia. The period of performance of the base period is from Feb. 4, 2019, through Feb. 3, 2020. If all options are exercised, the period of performance would extend through Feb. 3, 2024. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $5,500,000 will be obligated on this award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via request for proposal N66001-18-R-0011 which was published on the Federal Business Opportunities website and the Space and Naval Warfare e-Commerce Central website, with five offers received and one selected for award. The Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N66001-19-C-3406). Northrop Grumman Systems Corp., Military Aircraft Systems, Melbourne, Florida, is awarded $11,654,051 for modification P00068 to a previously awarded cost-plus-incentive-fee contract (N00019-13-C-9999). This modification provides for non-recurring engineering to incorporate the Multifunctional Information Distribution System/Joint Tactical Radio System into the E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft in support of the government of Japan. Work will be performed in Melbourne, Florida (75.15 percent); Norfolk, Virginia (8.98 percent); Ronkonkoma, New York (8.42 percent); St. Augustine, Florida (6.34 percent); Misawa, Japan (.32); and various locations within the continental U.S. (.79 percent), and is expected to be completed in June 2020. Foreign Military Sales funds in the amount of $11,654,051 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity. Canadian Commercial Corp., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, is awarded an $11,382,478 firm-fixed-price, cost-reimbursable indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. This contract provides services in support of Navy ship and weapons systems test events such as target presentations, planning and conducting of test, and analysis and evaluation of the assigned surface weapons systems during test events as well as systems engineering and program management support. Work will be performed at Point Mugu, California (85 percent); Ridgecrest, California (6 percent); Las Cruces, New Mexico (3 percent); Kauai, Hawaii (2 percent); Salt Lake City, Utah (2 percent); Lompoc, California (1 percent); and various locations outside the continental U.S. (1 percent), and is expected to be completed in February 2024. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funds will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was not competitively procured pursuant to 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(1). The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, California, is the contracting activity (N68936-19-D-0008). UPDATE: The contract deductive modification awarded to Gilbane Federal, Concord, California (N39430-15-D-1634) on Jan. 16, 2019, to decrease the value of the contract for the cleaning, inspection and repair of Fuel Storage Tanks 305, 307, and 308 at Defense Fuel Support Point, Tsurumi, Japan, was not signed on that actual date. The modification for $10,966,383 will now be executed Feb. 4, 2019. Work on Tanks 305, 307, and 308 is being removed from the contract by mutual agreement of the parties. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Beacon Point & Associates LLC,** Cape Coral, Florida, has been awarded a maximum $49,000,000 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for hospital equipment and accessories. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. This was a competitive acquisition with 71 responses received. Location of performance is Florida, with a Feb. 3, 2024, performance completion date. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DH-19-D-0010). AIR FORCE Akima Logistics Services LLC, Herndon, Virginia, has been awarded a $13,536,602 firm-fixed-price contract for fuels and supply services. This contract provides for services to support all management, personnel and equipment to perform fuels and supply services. Work will be performed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by Feb. 29, 2020. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and five offers were received. Fiscal 2019 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $6,768,301 are being obligated at the time of award. The 11th Contracting Squadron, Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, is the contracting activity (FA2860-19-C-0004). DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY General Dynamics Mission Systems Inc., San Antonio, Texas, has been awarded an $11,816,042 modification (P00037) to previously awarded contract HR0011-16-C-0001 for classified information technology services. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $116,832,430 from $105,016,388. Work will be performed in Arlington, Virginia, with an expected completion date of February 2020. Fiscal 2019 research and development funds in the amount of $5,430,798 are being obligated at time of award. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity. *Small Business **Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business https://dod.defense.gov/News/Contracts/Contract-View/Article/1747970/

  • Contracts for July 1, 2021

    5 juillet 2021 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

    Contracts for July 1, 2021

    Today

  • As Army’s Shadow to fade from view, Textron looks to a successor

    9 octobre 2018 | International, Aérospatial

    As Army’s Shadow to fade from view, Textron looks to a successor

    By: Valerie Insinna WASHINGTON — In the crowded exhibit halls of the U.S. Army's largest conference, a strange-looking drone — a small, flat, tailless, triangular aircraft with four flexible rotors — is suspended above a room full of giant wheeled vehicles and static helicopter displays. That aircraft, Textron's X5-55 demonstrator, hasn't been built for a customer or a particular mission, but the company believes that some of the technologies it plans to mature on the X5-55 could be spun off for future U.S. military requirements like a replacement to Textron's own RQ-7 Shadow. The goal is not to come to the services with a family of new products it can adopt, said David Phillips, Textron's senior vice president and general manager for unmanned systems. Instead, it plans to use the X5-55 as a test bed to mature new propulsion, rotor assembly and fuel cell technologies. “We're not going to say, ‘here's your product,' but we'll listen to them and we'll be ready,” he told Defense News in a Oct. 8 interview. “We know what our deployed customers want. Everything is about smaller, smaller, smaller, and doing more and [being] easier to operate and more agile and more flexible and quieter.” What sets the X5-55 apart from other drones is its vector thrust technology that allows it to take off vertically, hover, transition to normal flight and land vertically using the four electric rotors, whereas other drones that vertically take off but fly like an airplane — like the company's Aerosonde hybrid quad unmanned aircraft system — use electric-powered rotors for vertical flight and a heavy fuel engine to power their propeller during horizontal flight. “The logic allows the system, basically, literally to eliminate what we call flight control surfaces. So you won't see ailerons. You won't see flaps, you won't see servos and those things that control the elevation, climb and descend in normal flight,” he said. “That's all done with the vector thrust. We change how those electric motors and the props work in tandem to be able to climb or descend.” Textron unveiled the X5-55 this May at the Association for Unmanned Vehicles International Xponential conference, but the version shown this week at the Association of the U.S. Army's annual conference has already been modified with new propulsion pods and rotor assemblies that help enable vector thrust, as well as landing gear that protects the underside of the drone as it touches down. The demonstrator flies every several weeks at Textron's schoolhouse at Blackstone, Virginia. And over the next few months, the company plans to continue testing the drone's ability to move from hover to standard flight, as well as eventually work up to endurance flights that prove how long the UAS can remain airborne. Although the Army does not have a formal requirement for a Shadow replacement, officials have expressed interest in fielding one soon. Earlier this year, Brig. Gen. Wally Rugen, who runs the Army's Future Vertical Lift program, called a Shadow replacement an area where there is “potential, anyway, for a quick win,” and said that it should take a few years — not a full decade — to be able to field a new, runway-independent drone for the service. “We are talking much, much shorter, so when I'm talking ‘soon,' I'm talking just several years, not distant future,” he said. https://www.defensenews.com/digital-show-dailies/ausa/2018/10/08/as-armys-shadow-to-fade-from-view-textron-looks-to-a-successor

Toutes les nouvelles