Go Back  Airline Pilot Central Forums > Career Builder > Military
Military procurement strikes again... >

Military procurement strikes again...

Notices
Military Military Aviation

Military procurement strikes again...

Old 03-25-2021, 08:03 AM
  #1  
Perennial Reserve
Thread Starter
 
Excargodog's Avatar
 
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 11,409
Default Military procurement strikes again...

https://www.military.com/daily-news/...et-cannon.html

An excerpt:



An F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, based out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., performs a vertical landing as part of required flying field carrier landing practices (FCLP) at the station’s auxiliary landing field, Monday, April 27, 2015. (Travis Gershaneck/U.S. Marine Corps)
24 Mar 2021
Military.com | By Oriana PawlykAn ammunition round that exploded following its discharge from a Marine Corps F-35B Joint Strike Fighter at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, earlier this month caused damage to the stealth fighter's fuselage, according to the service.

The F-35B, capable of short takeoff and vertical landings, was conducting a nighttime close air support mission on March 12 on the Yuma Range Complex when a PGU-32/U Semi-Armor Piercing High Explosive Incendiary-Tracer (SAPHEI-T) 25mm round exploded after leaving the fighter's cannon, Marine Corps spokesman Capt. Andrew Wood confirmed to Military.com on Tuesday
Excargodog is offline  
Old 03-25-2021, 09:05 AM
  #2  
Prime Minister/Moderator
 
rickair7777's Avatar
 
Joined APC: Jan 2006
Position: Engines Turn Or People Swim
Posts: 39,100
Default

At least it left the barrel first.
rickair7777 is offline  
Old 03-25-2021, 11:03 AM
  #3  
Perennial Reserve
Thread Starter
 
Excargodog's Avatar
 
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 11,409
Default

Originally Posted by rickair7777 View Post
At least it left the barrel first.
Yeah. The USAF internal version might be FUBAR in design, with the mounts inadequately stabilizing it and causing inaccuracy issues. Well, that and it it can take 0.5 seconds for the radar absorbent door covering it to open from when you trigger it so it can actually fire. Oh, and in later models they changed the manufacturing process so it’s cracking the RAM skin around it anyway so they don’t want you to use it except in an emergency which if you ever get to gun range it pretty much is by definition...


https://www.defenceconnect.com.au/st...due-to-gun-use

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...a-year-earlier

https://www.airforcemag.com/dod-exte...e-to-pandemic/


And of course, you only have 182 rounds which at 3300 RPM is only about 3.3 seconds of ammo...

Last edited by Excargodog; 03-25-2021 at 11:21 AM.
Excargodog is offline  
Old 03-26-2021, 06:35 AM
  #4  
Perennial Reserve
Thread Starter
 
Excargodog's Avatar
 
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 11,409
Default

https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-b...-unsalvageable

Filler.....
Excargodog is offline  
Old 04-05-2021, 05:15 AM
  #5  
Gets Weekends Off
 
Joined APC: Apr 2010
Posts: 291
Default

Originally Posted by Excargodog View Post
. Well, that and it it can take 0.5 seconds for the radar absorbent door covering it to open from when you trigger it so it can actually fire. ...
.5 seconds?
In that time I’ve already safed switches and running the hung gun checklist
BFMthisA10 is offline  
Old 04-05-2021, 06:28 AM
  #6  
Perennial Reserve
Thread Starter
 
Excargodog's Avatar
 
Joined APC: Jan 2018
Posts: 11,409
Default

From Defense news::

WASHINGTON — An issue that risks damage to the F-35’s tail section if the aircraft needs to maintain supersonic speeds is not worth fixing and will instead be addressed by changing the operating parameters, the F-35 Joint Program Office told Defense News in a statement Friday.

The deficiency, first reported by Defense News in 2019, means that at extremely high altitudes, the U.S. Navy’s and Marine Corps’ versions of the F-35 jet can only fly at supersonic speeds for short bursts of time before there is a risk of structural damage and loss of stealth capability.

The problem may make it impossible for the Navy’s F-35C to conduct supersonic intercepts.

“This issue was closed on December 17, 2019 with no further actions and concurrence from the U.S. services,” the F-35 JPO statement read. “The [deficiency report] was closed under the category of ‘no plan to correct,’ which is used by the F-35 team when the operator value provided by a complete fix does not justify the estimated cost of that fix.

“In this case, the solution would require a lengthy development and flight testing of a material coating that can tolerate the flight environment for unlimited time while satisfying the weight and other requirements of a control surface. Instead, the issue is being addressed procedurally by imposing a time limit on high-speed flight.”The carrier-launched "C" variant and the short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing "B" version will both be able to carry out all their missions without correcting the deficiency, the JPO said.

The potential damage from sustained high speeds would influence not only the F-35’s airframe and the low-observable coating that keeps it stealthy, but also the myriad antennas located on the back of the plane that are currently vulnerable to damage, according to documents exclusively obtained by Defense News.The JPO had classified the issues for the "B" and "C" models as separate category 1 deficiencies, indicating in one document that the problem presents a challenge to accomplishing one of the key missions of the fighter jet. In this scale, category 1 represents the most serious type of deficiency.

While it may seem dire that an aircraft procured for flying at supersonic speeds will be unable to do so for extended periods, the F-35 may not need to do it that often.

For the F-35, as opposed to the F-22 where supersonic flight is baked into its tactics, the ability to fly supersonic is more of a “break glass in case of emergency” feature, said Bryan Clark, an analyst with the Hudson Institute and a retired naval officer.


Excargodog is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
lph1235
Pilot Health
6
11-06-2017 01:38 PM
Sqwk1200
Major
68
07-14-2017 05:37 PM
iPilot88
Career Questions
43
11-21-2013 09:52 AM
QuagmireGiggity
Major
73
09-10-2011 08:29 PM
MoHoney
Flight Schools and Training
19
05-09-2006 03:50 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread
Your Privacy Choices