Overview of F-35 test flights

energo wrote:Flight test update

August summary:

F-35A: 22 of 9 planned
F-35B: 26 of 28 planned
F-35C: 0 of 0 planned (CF-1 in final finishes, heading to NAS PAX ca. October)

As of Sept. 3:
Year to date flights (CY 2010): 239 to 202 planned
Year to date test points: 2410 to 1943 planned
Total flights: 376


B. Bolsøy
Oslo

Any Detail ?

energo wrote:Flight test update

August summary:

F-35A: 22 of 9 planned
F-35B: 26 of 28 planned
F-35C: 0 of 0 planned (CF-1 in final finishes, heading to NAS PAX ca. October)

As of Sept. 3:
Year to date flights (CY 2010): 239 to 202 planned
Year to date test points: 2410 to 1943 planned
Total flights: 376

B. Bolsøy
Oslo

Hope you will tell me the "final finishes" were the beautiful "B.A." Blue and Gold trim!

Go Navy!

Lockheed CEO: F-35B 'Rephasing' Possible

By Amy Butler@AviationWeek

........By year-end, 251 Stovl flights are expected. At the end of August, 122 were executed of 153 that should have been conducted by that time, says Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president for F-35 program integration. “Where we are short is in some specific testing, mostly in Stovl vertical landing unique test points.”.....Officials at the training center at Eglin AFB, Fla., say they expect their first Block II aircraft to arrive in spring 2012.....Much of this ongoing delay is a result of parts reliability problems for BF-01, the only Stovl test aircraft instrumented to conduct vertical landing trials. BF-01 is needed to clear the envelope for vertical landing, after which other Stovl aircraft can contribute to more flight testing. Five vertical landings were executed in August. Ten have been done since the first one in March. Also, last month 26 Stovl flights were conducted, the most in any month to date, Burbage says.......Contributing to the lackluster results are many small components such as electrical connectors or engine lubrication pumps. Cooling fans required for vertical lift have also been an issue......Each of the aircraft’s components must pass initial qualification testing as well as a full qualification for the aircraft’s expected life. “In many cases [they] don’t pass those tests and have to be redesigned,” Burbage says.

About 80% of the parts on the aircraft have completed qualification requirements. Of those, 100% passed for safety-of-flight; half were deemed suitable for the life of the aircraft. The remainder must be redesigned.

The target-sortie-generation rate for each test aircraft is 13 flights per month. Last month, each aircraft averaged six, Burbage says.....
Of 394 flights planned for the three variants for the year, 233 had been flown by the end of August. Burbage says 2,361 test points were complete by that time; a total of 3,772 are expected by the end of the year.

More than 290 flights have been executed on the Combined Avionics Testbed aircraft, which is vetting Block I of the JSF software, he adds.....

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/ ... calreports

Semper Fi, Can Do!

It's good to see Block 1 in the CATB.

Does anyone know when it was released to CATB as according to this slide it's about a year behind schedule (depending on when it was put into CATB).

Spud, no answer to your question - however lengthy CATB article at Code One recently: "CATBird is currently being used to test the Block 1 avionics hardware and software.":

http://www.codeonemagazine.com/article.html?item_id=50

Yeah, I saw that. The earliest ref that I could find about CATB and Blk1 was when they tested the EOTS aboard CATB in mid August.

http://www.lockheedmartin.com/news/pres ... 5EOTS.html

During the current Block 1.0 software system test, EOTS operated in an integrated mode and collected aircraft navigation data for sensor alignment.

The past 12-18 months have been real sparse when it comes to detailed F-35 info. I am having PPT withdraws

I got my hopes up when they released the FOIA info. I am surprised that there has not been any new info considering that the page says:

All agencies are required by statute to make certain records created as of November 1, 1996, available online or in another magnetic, optical or other electronic media. The Electronic Reading Room contains records such as (1) final opinions and orders; (2) final statements of policy that have not been published in the Federal Register; (3) certain administrative manuals; and (4) frequently requested records that are of general public interest or are likely to be the subject of repeated requests.

Do we need to start a campaign of monthly FOIA requests?

SpudmanWP wrote: Do we need to start a campaign of monthly FOIA requests?

I would prefer not to FOIA the effort but, news is rather sparse and even though the "Bee" is falling behind schedule, these are SDD aircraft.

The occaisional "Good News" is great but we wish to know the progress of the published schedules and test point numbers to assure us that the program is advancing. We have enough "Chicken Littles" out here to cause doubt and our concern is real. Public, routine, periodic progress reports are a norm that should be expected. It's better to provide them, than to have them required.

F-35's Unequal Progress Posted by Graham Warwick at 9/12/2010

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blogs/de ... d=blogDest
Lockheed Martin has begun engine runs on the first production F-35 as the Joint Strike Fighter program continues its Jekyll and Hyde progress. AF-6, one of two F-35A CTOL jets in the first low-rate initial production lot, completed high-power runs last week [Sep. 8].

Thanks to the performance of the F-35A development jets, the JSF test program is running well ahead of plan for the year - 233 flights by the end of August against a plan of 196. But that disguises the fact that STOVL testing is well behind schedule, because of reliability issues with the F-35B test jets, with 122 flights by the end of August against a plan of 153 (and a target of 251 by year-end).

You can read Amy Butler's story on STOVL testing here: (seen above in this thread page)
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/ ... calreports

If you factor in the 14 flights completed by the first F-35C carrier variant (against a plan of just 4), that means the two F-35As now at Edwards AFB have logged 97 flights this year against a plan of 39 - almost 2.5 times the scheduled rate. The smooth-running As are definitely "Jekylls" to the balky F-35B "Hydes".

The imbalance wasn't quite so bad in August, as availability of the STOVL jets improved. The two As at Edwards logged 22 flights against a plan of 9, while the four Bs at Pax logged 26 flights against a plan of 28 - the highest monthly totals yet. But even that rate will not get the STOVL program back on schedule by year-end.

A critical measure is how quickly the first F-35B - aircraft BF-1 - is expanding the vertical landing envelope so the rest of the test fleet can be cleared for STOVL operations. That will require about 50 vertical landings - of which only 10 have been accomplished so far. Missing the target for fleet clearance by year-end could delay the first at-sea STOVL tests, planned for May 2011.

Inside Defense reports that STOVL testing faces challenges getting back on schedule because of operating limitations that prevent the aircraft flying in "common weather conditions such as steady wind, wet tarmac and nearby lightning" I sense the ultra-cautious hand of Naval Air Systems Command in those restrictions.

Meanwhile, the remaining JSF test jets are getting closer to flying. AF-3 is in final finishes and scheduled to fly in October; AF-4 is being prepared for engine runs and BF-5 for display checks, and both are planned to fly in the fourth quarter."

spazsinbad wrote:Meanwhile, the remaining JSF test jets are getting closer to flying. AF-3 is in final finishes and scheduled to fly in October; AF-4 is being prepared for engine runs and BF-5 for display checks, and both are planned to fly in the fourth quarter."

anything about CF-2 and CF-3?

AF-6 Completed high power runs- Meaning full power engine runs?

While AF-4 is being prepped for engine runs?

When are they going to get the sequence straight?

Further F-35 Stovl ''Rephasing'' Possible Sep 14, 2010 By Amy Butler - Washington

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/ ... ne=Further F-35 Stovl ''Rephasing'' Possible

The likelihood that ongoing delays of short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (Stovl) F-35 testing will force slippage in the 2012 in-service date for the U.S. Marine Corps is growing as Lockheed Martin continues to struggle with some parts reliability issues affecting the Harrier replacement.

By year-end, 251 Stovl flights are expected. At the end of August, 122 were executed of 153 that should have been conducted by that time, says Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president for F-35 program integration. “Where we are short is in some specific testing, mostly in Stovl vertical landing unique test points.”

The bottleneck prompted Lockheed Martin CEO Robert Stevens to acknowledge a potential “re-phasing” for the Stovl flight-test plan, during a teleconference this month with investors. Acknowledging the restructuring to the program announced this year, Stevens adds that “the early corrective actions . . . are showing some beneficial outcomes [but] my sense is that it is not going to be enough.” The multinational Joint Strike Fighter will eventually comprise the lion’s share of the company’s profits.

The Marine Corps, however, stands by its plans to declare initial operational capability (IOC) with a Block II F-35 in 2012. “The Marine Corps is not changing its current IOC date,” says Maj. Carl Redding, a service spokesman. The U.S. Air Force and Navy are expecting to declare their aircraft operational in 2016.

Further delays in Stovl testing could have a dangerous ripple effect on the program, however. There is little margin to ensure that enough of the flight-testing envelope and software work will be ready to allow pilots to begin training in time for a 2012 IOC. Officials at the training center at Eglin AFB, Fla., say they expect their first Block II aircraft to arrive in spring 2012.

Much of this ongoing delay is a result of parts reliability problems for BF-01, the only Stovl test aircraft instrumented to conduct vertical landing trials. BF-01 is needed to clear the envelope for vertical landing, after which other Stovl aircraft can contribute to more flight testing. Five vertical landings were executed in August. Ten have been done since the first one in March. Also, last month 26 Stovl flights were conducted, the most in any month to date, Burbage says.

He points out that while the company is seeing improvement in BF-01’s performance, the company is “not quite over that hurdle” for reliability yet. Contributing to the lackluster results are many small components such as electrical connectors or engine lubrication pumps. Cooling fans required for vertical lift have also been an issue.

Each of the aircraft’s components must pass initial qualification testing as well as a full qualification for the aircraft’s expected life. “In many cases [they] don’t pass those tests and have to be redesigned,” Burbage says.

About 80% of the parts on the aircraft have completed qualification requirements. Of those, 100% passed for safety-of-flight; half were deemed suitable for the life of the aircraft. The remainder must be redesigned.

The target-sortie-generation rate for each test aircraft is 13 flights per month. Last month, each aircraft averaged six, Burbage says.

While each parts supplier is responsible for designing parts to withstand the stresses of vertical flight for the life of the aircraft, it is the prime contractor’s responsibility to ensure that the aircraft as a whole meets its requirements. There are “some parts that just fail when you get them on the aircraft until you understand the root cause,” Burbage says, noting that experts are still characterizing the thermal and acoustic environment for these specific items during vertical landings.

Meanwhile, government officials are conducting a thorough independent technical baseline review for the entire program, which includes the conventional-takeoff-and-landing and carrier variant aircraft. This is due to the Pentagon’s Defense Acquisition Board in November.

Burbage says it is likely to include alternate paths for the program depending upon varying levels of funding. Government officials are also building the first cost estimate for the aircraft, including the operating price.

Of 394 flights planned for the three variants for the year, 233 had been flown by the end of August. Burbage says 2,361 test points were complete by that time; a total of 3,772 are expected by the end of the year.

More than 290 flights have been executed on the Combined Avionics Testbed aircraft, which is vetting Block I of the JSF software, he adds.

As a result of the restructuring earlier this year, Lockheed Martin is required to stand up an additional facility for testing software to ensure this portion of the program stays on schedule. Burbage says the equipment for this laboratory will be delivered in mid 2011 and be ready to conduct testing by fourth-quarter 2011.

Lockheed Martin has also brought in a new chief engineer and production manager. The company is also bringing in some fresh management to the program. Ron Bessire is the new chief engineer as well as a vice president on the program. The new vice president of production is Frank Dougherty."

F-35 Flight Test Update 2

Posted 14 September 2010

The previous installment of the F-35 Flight Test Update ended with the first vertical landing of an F-35B. Since then, US Marine Corps and Lockheed Martin pilots flying the short takeoff/vertical landing version of the F-35 have gone on to complete an additional nine vertical landings. More than sixty flights have been completed in BF-1, the first F-35B. The F-35B fleet has accumulated more than 200 hours of flight time in more than 160 flights.

The first carrier-capable version of the F-35, the F-35C, was flown for the first time on 6 June 2010. After completing thirteen more flights, the aircraft, called CF-1, was pulled from the flight schedule for ground vibration testing. It is expected to be in the air again in October.

For the conventional takeoff and landing versions, F-35A AF-2 completed its first flight and was ferried with AF-1 to Edwards AFB, California. AF-3, which is equipped with mission systems, also completed its first flight and will soon join the F-35A fleet in California.

Overall, twelve company and military pilots are currently qualified to fly the F-35. Fourteen total F-35 pilots have flown more than 500 hours on more than 360 flights (as of 26 August 2010) in the current System Development and Demonstration phase of the program. The F-35 flight envelope has been expanded to 39,000 feet and Mach 1.2.

F-35 mission systems continue to be refined in ground-based laboratories and on the Cooperative Avionics Test Bed, a converted 737 that acts as an airborne laboratory. The CATBird, as the unique aircraft is called, has completed more than 130 flights, most of which have been in direct support of mission system testing for the F-35. The flights include deployments for testing at Edwards AFB, California, and Eglin AFB, Florida. (For more on this test asset, please see CATBird—The Flying Avionics Test Bed, also in this issue.)

1 April 2010: AF-1 New Paint
AF-1, the first optimized Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II conventional takeoff and landing test aircraft, rolls out of the F-35 Final Finishes Facility sporting a new fin flash paint scheme on its vertical stabilizers. While at the facility, the aircraft also received highly accurate robot-applied coatings. AF-1 was flown twice in 2009 before entering an intensive period of ground testing.

7 April 2010: BF-4 First Flight
The first F-35 equipped with mission systems, BF-4, is flown for the first time. During the flight from Fort Worth, Texas, Lockheed Martin test pilot David Nelson climbed to 15,500 feet, verified engine response at varying throttle settings, performed a series of flight-qualities maneuvers, and checked the operation of the aircraft’s mission systems. The F-35’s avionics, or mission systems, process, apply, and transfer data from an array of off-board sensors providing increased situational awareness to the pilot as well as to other air and surface forces.

20 April 2010: AF-2 First Flight
Lockheed Martin test pilot Jeff Knowles is at the controls for the first flight of AF-2. Taking off from NAS Fort Worth JRB, Knowles flies the aircraft to 15,000 feet and performs a series of test points during the one-hour mission, including throttle transients, landing gear cycles, speed brake cycles, and autopilot checks.

20 April 2010: AF-1 Completes Two Flights In One Day
Lockheed Martin test pilot David Nelson flies AF-1 for its third flight. He follows the 1.4-hour morning flight with a 1.5-hour flight in the afternoon. The second flight of the day is the fourth for the aircraft.

23 April 2010: F-35 ITF Director Completes First F-35 Flight
US Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Hank Griffiths, director of the F-35 Integrated Test Force at Edwards AFB, California, completes his first flight in the F-35. Griffiths performs several test points on the 1.6-hour flight in AF-2 at Fort Worth, Texas.

27 April 2010: AF-1 Aerial Refuels
Lockheed Martin test pilot Jon Beesley completes a 2.5-hour air refueling qualification mission on the eighth flight of AF-1. The mission includes flying quality checks in formation with a KC-135 tanker at 20,000 feet. Beesley performs boom tracking, simulated emergency separations, precision contacts, and disconnects. The boom operator transfers 4,300 pounds of fuel to AF-1 during the flight.

4 May 2010: F-35B Flies With Internal Weapons
BF-2 is flown with an AIM-120 and GBU-12 during its twenty-fourth test flight. This flight is the first time an F-35B has flown with weapons in its internal weapon bay.

5 May 2010: 200th Test Flight
The F-35 program logs its 200th test flight when Lockheed Martin lead STOVL pilot Graham Tomlinson takes off in a short takeoff/vertical landing F-35B and flies for forty-four minutes near NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. Tomlinson evaluates airframe loads during powered approach with the landing gear down and cycles the landing gear at different speeds and g loads.

11 May 2010: AF-1 And AF-2 Fly Together
F-35A AF-1 and AF-2 are flown in tandem during aerial refueling testing in preparation for a ferry flight to Edwards AFB, California.

16 May 2010: More Refueling Tests
Lockheed Martin test pilot David Nelson takes AF-2 through a series of additional aerial refueling tests during its sixteenth flight. The aircraft makes contact with the KC-135 tanker four times. The flight lasts 1.3 hours, and the tanker transfers 3,600 pounds of fuel to AF-2.

17 May 2010: AF-1 And AF-2 Arrive At Edwards
F-35A AF-1 and AF-2 are flown nonstop from Fort Worth, Texas, to Edwards AFB, California, signaling an expansion of F-35 flight test operations. The arrival is the first in a series that will increase the Edwards F-35 test fleet to at least eight aircraft. US Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Hank Griffiths and Lockheed Martin test pilot Jon Beesley fly the jets for this first multiship, long-range F-35 flight. While assigned to Edwards, the F-35s will undergo ground and flight test activities, including propulsion tests, aerial refueling, logistical support, weapons integration, and envelope expansion.

28 May 2010: CF-1 Completes First Taxi Test
Lockheed Martin test pilot Jeff Knowles takes the first F-35C, called CF-1, on its first taxi test in Fort Worth, Texas.

6 June 2010: F-35C First Flight
Lockheed Martin test pilot Jeff Knowles is at the controls for the first flight of CF-1 from NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas. He takes the first F-35C to 12,000 feet and performs a set of maneuvers to evaluate handling characteristics and throttle transients to evaluate engine performance. At 10,000 feet, Knowles cycles the gear and extends the arresting hook. The aircraft is flown in formation with chase aircraft from 10,000 feet down to 5,000 feet. Knowles flies a simulated approach and waveoff before landing the aircraft.

7 June 2010: BF-4 Arrives At Pax River
The first F-35 equipped with mission systems joins the fleet at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. Piloted by Lockheed Martin test pilot David Nelson, BF-4 becomes the fourth F-35 to arrive and begin testing at the Naval Air Systems Command site.

10 June 2010: F-35B Goes Supersonic
The F-35B is flown faster than the speed of sound for the first time. The supersonic milestone is achieved on the thirtieth flight of BF-2 as US Marine Corps pilot Lt. Col. Matt Kelly climbs to 30,000 feet and accelerates to Mach 1.07 near NAS Patuxent River, Maryland.

22 June 2010: AF-3 Completes Taxi Testing
Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti performs the last in a series of taxi tests in AF-3 in preparation for its first flight.

25 June 2010: BF-1 Completes Fiftieth Test Flight
Lockheed Martin lead STOVL pilot Graham Tomlinson completes the fiftieth test flight of BF-1. The flight, from NAS Patuxent River in Maryland, involves several conversions to hover mode.

30 June 2010: BF-1 Completes Second Vertical Landing
Lockheed Martin lead STOVL pilot Graham Tomlinson performs a ninety-knot short takeoff in BF-1 on its fifty-first flight and completes the second vertical landing.

6 July 2010: AF-3 First Flight
The third conventional takeoff and landing variant, AF-3, completes its first flight. Piloted by Lockheed Martin test pilot Bill Gigliotti, AF-3 takes off from NAS Fort Worth JRB, Texas. AF-3 is the ninth F-35 to fly and the second test jet to fly with the avionics package that is used in all operational F-35s.

17 July 2010: CF-1 Completes Airworthiness Testing
The first F-35C completes a series of fourteen airworthiness flights and enters a planned downtime for ground vibration tests.

20 July 2010: 300 F-35 Flights
The F-35 flight test program marks the 300th test flight. US Marine Corps pilot Lt. Col. Matt Kelly completes the 2.7-hour flight in BF-4 from NAS Patuxent River, Maryland.

29 July 2010: AF-2 Begins Wet Runway Tests
AF-2, with Lockheed Martin test pilot Jeff Knowles as the pilot, begins a series of wet runway tests at Edwards AFB, California.

30 July 2010: Two Vertical Landings In Same Day
US Marine Corps pilot Lt. Col. Fred Schenk completes two sorties on BF-1’s fifty-seventh test flight (Note: A single test flight can have multiple takeoffs and landings). The flight includes two short takeoffs, one at eighty knots and another at ninety knots, and two vertical landings.

30 July 2010: CATBird Ferries To Edwards
The Cooperative Avionics Test Bed, known as CATBird, is ferried to Edwards AFB, California, for two weeks of mission system testing. The aircraft completes some of its longest flights (more than four hours) at Edwards.

21 August 2010: 100th Pax River Flight
Lockheed Martin test pilot David Nelson flies BF-3 on the 100th F-35 test flight out of NAS Patuxent River, Maryland.

27 August 2010: AF-1 Completes Fifty Flights
US Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Hank Griffiths completes the fiftieth test flight for AF-1. The one-hour flight, from Edwards AFB in California, is used to evaluate flying qualities.

smarshal, thanks. Interesting info re short takeoffs (minus 20-30 knots for an SRVL perhaps? - already we know that an SRVL is slated for 60 Knots into wind): [edit] before first vertical landing there were several 60-80 Knots rolling vertical landings down the main runway AFAIK.

"30 June 2010: BF-1 Completes Second Vertical Landing
Lockheed Martin lead STOVL pilot Graham Tomlinson performs a ninety-knot short takeoff in BF-1 on its fifty-first flight and completes the second vertical landing.

30 July 2010: Two Vertical Landings In Same Day
US Marine Corps pilot Lt. Col. Fred Schenk completes two sorties on BF-1’s fifty-seventh test flight (Note: A single test flight can have multiple takeoffs and landings). The flight includes two short takeoffs, one at eighty knots and another at ninety knots, and two vertical landings."

SpudmanWP wrote:Do we need to start a campaign of monthly FOIA requests?

I contacted the same agency that released the MARS reports earlier this year and they have several more FOIA requests that they are working on for the more recent MARS reports (post Nov 2009).

I will keep you updated.

AF-01 Completes 50
US Air Force pilot Lt. Col. Hank Griffiths completes the fiftieth test flight for AF-1. The one-hour flight, from Edwards AFB in California, is used to evaluate flying qualities.

Posted 27 August 2010

http://www.codeonemagazine.com/news_ite ... tem_id=172