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Showing results for tags 'Flight Test'.
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F-4E s/n 66-0289 is an ex-Thunderbird and served as a test support aircraft at Edwards AFB, 1978 through 1991. Operated by the 6512th Test Squadron, throughout the early 1980s is was part of the Air Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) chase flight, hence the white upper wings with the camouflage schemes. Safety chase proficiency mission, August 1984. That's a deer silhouette in grey on the left intake vari-ramp. In January 1984 we took '289 to Eglin AFB. On landing we took a deer down the left side damaging the external tank and the main gear door. We left the jet for repairs and when we came back ten days later, the Eglin maintenance troops had applied the deer kill marking and the legend "DEER SLAYER" in 2-inch block letters on the cannon fairing - barely visible in the image above, beneath the air conditioning ram air scoop. Practice weapon delivery, rolled inverted and pulling to the desired dive angle. Formation final approach to Runway 22 Taxiing in after a few fly-bys at the Edwards Open House, October 1989 July 1990 The deer kill marking. That's me in a posed "hero" shot for the squadron album in 1984. '289 is now on display in thunderbird colors at the Castle Air Museum. Thanks for looking, Sven
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F-15B, 77-0166, modified as the test bed for the Integrated Flight and Fire Control (IFFC) system. The IFFC tied the fire control system to the flight controls. In theory the system would automatically maneuver the aircraft to an "optimum" weapon employment position on a locked radar or targeting pod bogey (the pilots loved that idea😧) or it would provide steering cues in the HUD for the pilot to follow. The targeting pod used was an ATLIS pod. The system made news when '166 made a guns kill on a PQM-102 drone in what was essentially a head on engagement. A tracking camera caught a photo of '177 and the flaming drone in the same frame passing each other. Anyway, I got to do a formation proficiency flight with this jet in June 1983... The orange fixture over the missile launcher is the suspension rig for the ATLIS pod On a similar mission in 1985 The IFFC project emblem ... and some McAir images of the same jet Thanks for looking, Sven
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F-4D 66-7483 operated by the 6512th Test Squadron at Edwards AFB during a formation proficiency mission in February 1985. Thanks for looking, Sven
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USAF s/n 65-0713 is the prototype for the F-4E Phantom II. It was used for flight test evaluations of the E model configuration and then used as a development test bird through the 1970s and finally as a test support aircraft at Edwards AFB through the 1980s. The aircraft started out as an F-4D on the McAir production line and modified to represent the E. It is essentially an F-4E from the rear cockpit bulkhead forward and a D model fuselage from that bulkhead aft. Fitted with the J79-GE-17 engines. Here she is in the early 1970s testing development cluster bomb dispensers. She has store separation cameras under the outer wing panels, a flight test nose boom, and the early short cannon fairing. Note that she also has a Boron composite construction rudder for a long-term durability evaluation. Late 1970s in the test support mission, here used as a tow target tractor with RMK-19 target suspension/towing equipment. Note the shark mouth and the long cannon muzzle fairing. Because the shark mouth was not officially authorized by the USAF, every time she went to Hill AFB for Programmed Depot Maintenance, she cam back to Edwards without the shark mouth. The Edwards maintenance personnel would eventually replace the shark mouth each time - here with fewer and larger teeth than the earlier version. Here she is in September 1981 after being put on static display for the Edwards Open House. December 1983 April 1984, returning to Edwards from Hill AFB after a practice B61 delivery profile mission. The store is an instrumented B61 Flight Test Vehicle. because she had no external tanks, we flew the delivery profile on the Utah test and Training Range and then landed at nearby Hill AFB to refuel before heading back to Edwards. Blow up of the B61 FTV We were a little fast on the rejoin, so we barrel rolled over '713 so's not to over-shoot her. May 1985 on the Edwards main ramp January 1989 January 1990 over Edwards November 1991 (I know the copyright notice says 1981, I have to fix that), shortly before being retired as a display aircraft for the Flight Test Center Museum at Edwards. Serial number on the tail is smaller than the previous years. Thanks for looking, Sven
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78-0064 of the F-16 Combined Test Force, 6510th Test Wing, Air Force Flight Test Center. Digital Electronic Engine Control testing, February 1983 August 1983 Penguin integration testing, 1987. Non-standard location of the AFFTC shield on the tail where the AF Systems Command shield should be located. No longer a test jet and relegated to test support with the 6512th Test Squadron, November 1991. September 1992, AF Systems Command is no more and the AFFTC is now part of AF Materiel Command, hence the change in tail shield. Thanks for looking, Sven
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Most of these are USAF images recovered during the A-10 Combined Test Force shut down Wish I had dates for the USAF images. Apparently you can build this jet with production or modified vertical tails... Those pods (below) are precursors to the LANTIRN system used on the F-16 and F-15E... Those pods again... Taller tails... The museum piece on display at the 1988 Edwards Open House. No seats, no engines. Waiting for the Flight Test Museum to be built... Thanks for looking, Sven
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Some time ago, I posted images of the flight test C-17 at Edwards in 1991. At that time, I also said that I would post some images of the same aircraft as it arrived for display at the National Museum of the USAF at Wright-Patterson AFB. The aircraft is now on display, but these images show it in the restoration yard in May 2012, waiting for a crew from Edwards to remove flight test equipment for shipment back to Edwards. Its pseudo-Euro One scheme replaced with the current operational Air Mobility scheme. "Mission" symbols next to the crew door. Due to its proximity to Hollywood, Edwards was often 'loaned' to production companies. The C-17 showing its participation in a number of action films... Detail at the lower right of the crew door. That's right, there is actually a panel on each side of the jet and an emergency escape slides inside for the cockpit crew to escape quickly Though the escape slide concept assumes that g-forces in an out of control aircraft would be such that it would keep the crew members on the slide and propel them back and out through the jettisoned panel. Hmmmm.... Aft fuselage. Thats part of the XC-99 carcass in the background. The part that intrigued me as an ex stability and control flight test engineer, the installation of the stall recovery parachute. When doing high angle of attack flight test, the tail cone was removed at the vertical panel line and the reefed parachute exposed, looking sort of like a puckered... er... well you get the idea. The explosive warning triangle reads "STALL RECOVERY CHUTE". A USAF image showing the bobbed tail cone during a LAPES drop on the Rogers Dry Lake at Edwards. Nose gear, only because I failed to take a picture of it 20 years earlier. Thanks for looking, Sven
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F-16C, USAF s/n 83-1120, the third of a trio of F-16As modified on the production line to be the first Block 30 configured jets. 83-1118, '119, and '120 all went to the F-16 Combined Test Force at Edwards as flight test jets, testing Block 30 software and radar upgrades as well as variations in ECM/ESM fit. '120 was unique in being fitted with the GE F110 engine and high angle-of-attack mission equipment. January 1989 May 1989 Over the Trona Gap in the Mojave Desert June 1991 Thanks for looking, Sven
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The only images I have of this jet is with the J79 engine modification. In the late 1970s, President Carter wanted to hold back on the technology being exported from the US to some countries, encouraging development of "export" weapon systems. One of the results of that policy was the F-20 Tigershark, another was the J79-powered F-16. Needless to say, the policy was a non-starter and was quickly reversed when President Reagan came into office. Several changes were required to put a J79 into an F-16 airframe, most noticeable were the modified intake and the longer engine exhaust fairing. The new intake was designed to accommodate decreased airflow requirement of the GE J79 compared to the P&W F100. It also improved pressure recovery allowing better J79 performance compared to using the standard F100 compatible intake. Here is 75-0752 at Edwards in March 1980. As a General Dynamics initiative, the test program was accomplished by company test pilots. Like her sister, '751, she retained the Stencel ejection seats. I ran across '752 again in 1983, the export policy had been reversed but GD and Northrop were still trying to recover some of their investment by marketing the aircraft for the adversary mission. Here she is at the NAS Miramar air show in 1983, in Navy Fighter Weapons School markings for demonstrations to the Navy. The new intake with the extended fixed compression ramp J79 exhaust fairing NFWS emblem. At one time it also carried the XF tail code of VX-4, the US Navy operational test squadron at Point Mugu. A bit of GD marketing in 1980 '752 went on to be a workhorse demonstrator aircraft for GD and, later, Lockheed-Martin Fort Worth. The intake reverted back to its original configuration and the aircraft used for Close Air Support, P&W F100-220, and new technology demonstrations. '752 is now on display in the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Texas. Thanks for looking, Sven
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A-7D, s/n 69-6217, was a support jet with the 6512th Test Squadron at Edwards AFB. It was primarily used as a trainer for the USAF Test Pilot School (TPS) and as a support aircraft for other aircraft test flights, usually F-15s or F-16s. October 1983, loaded up for an open house static display August 1984 safety chase proficiency mission. I'm in the RCP of an F-4. During the mission we trade off providing chase coverage for each other. July 1989 during a weapons delivery proficiency mission. The trapezoid markings on top of the wing are for optical tracking during TPS spin training/evaluation missions, making it easier to identify the top of the aircraft with ground-based cameras. TPS would spin the A-7 both upright and inverted. On the run-in to the target Just released a BDU-33 practice bomb January 1989 September 1992 - all will be gone in 1993 Thanks for looking, Sven
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Just a few images from a proficiency mission in September 1984. Her designation would be changed to NRF-4C to indicate permanent test modifications in 1986. Thanks for looking, Sven
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Pretty sure 78-0085 came to Edwards from Luke AFB. 78-0085 carried the name FIREBIRD on the inside of the nose gear door when it arrived and the name remained when she was repainted. December 1991, we are on a solo mission in F-16D s/n 83-1176, and were called to join up with '085, also on a solo mission, because they had an unsafe gear indication in the cockpit. Nose and left gear up and locked, right gear indicating still in transition. Here, we've come aboard. Note the gear doors aren't completely closed The gear is up, but the right main gear door is still open Selecting gear down and checking the gear extension The gear looks good. Don't remember if they had a down and locked, i.e. "three green", indication or not. Elected to return to base. On our wing over Rogers Dry Lake on straight-in final for landing. Note that we had a wing tip launcher from one of the Bozo Fleet jets and '085 had two grey launchers. Giving them the lead to land while we continue our mission. Saw them through to safe landing and then we continued into the operating area for our mission. Thanks for looking, Sven
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USAF s/n 78-0088, taxiing in to the 6516th Test Squadron ramp, August 1989. That's a General Dynamics crew chief. Crew showing hands clear in the cockpit while chocks are put in place. On the 6512TS support fleet ramp, July 1990. She carries the name MISS PIGGY inside the nose gear door With tanks, October 1991... ... and the name's been changed to "CRAZY EIGHT". Thanks for looking, Sven- 1 reply
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NC-135A, USAF s/n 60-0371, of the 4950th Test Wing, Aeronautical Systems Division, Air Force Systems Command. October 1983, taking off from Edwards AFB Runway 22 with the Integration Facility for Avionics Systems Test (IFAST) in the background. Making a pass over the runway. Smoke generator running between the main gear wells? Optical resolution patterns on the forward fuselage. Sensor aperture in the raised panel? Aeronautical Systems Center shield below the cockpit windows - Systems Command shield is on the opposite side.. Thanks for looking, Sven
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May 1985: Just a little off the beaten path... a USAF F-16 with a parabrake housing. 75-0746 was a Full-Scale Development airframe built to the original Norwegian AF specification - hence the tail fairing. It was also used for a lot of structures testing, so the airframe took a beating. All of those g's took their toll on the airframe. They were always replacing panels and patching fuel leaks. Gotta love the putty job on the back. They are tough to see, but there are wedge shaped blocks on top of the noses of the external tanks with wiring running back into the pylons - those are accelerometer housings used to measure the frequency and amplitude of the tank motion (wing deformation) during maneuvers. Refueling from NKC-135E, s/n 55-3135 April 1983, testing Penguins Things under wings: In 1983, '746 was used to evaluate what was called an MPP (Your guess what it stood for is as good as mine). The MPP was an attempt to increase the weapons carriage of the F-16. The MPP didn't catch on. Don't know what this suspension unit was, but it may have been a competitor with the MPP. Looks like an ancestor of the BRU-61 Small Diameter Bomb rack. Thanks for looking, Sven
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KC-135R, s/n 61-0315, at Edwards in January 1985. Came to Edwards to participate in Minimum Interval Take-Off (MITO) tests with the 6510th Test Wing prototype KC-135R. Of course, once they were in the air they had to make themselves useful... Refueling NF-4D 66-7483 of the 6512th Test Squadron. The prototype KC-135R, 61-0293, ready for the Edwards Open House in October 1982. Wonder why they referred to her as Pinocchio? Thanks for looking, Sven
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May 1984 and F-111E, s/n 68-0058, from the 3246th Test Wing out of Eglin AFB was visiting Test Ops at Edwards. I don't remember what they were there for, but I was able to finagle the back seat in an T-38 as a safety chase for one of their missions in the R-2508 operating area over the Mojave desert. Here she is on an earlier visit in 1982. Note she doesn't have any formation ("slime") lights and the reference marks on the rear fuselage are white on the green portion of the camouflage and red on the tan area. The 3246th tail band is white with a series of red-orange diamonds running across. 1984 and she has slime lights now. The reference marks on the left side are all red-orange (or is it orange-red?). At this time, the 3246th came under the Armament Division of AF Systems Command, hence the AD tail code. A few years later, Armament Division would become the Munitions Systems Division and the AD would change to ET for Eglin Test. Moving close aboard to check her over. Those orange fairings ahead of the cockpit on the sides and lower centerline house cameras to record weapons separations. Reference marks are two-toned on this side. Over the Boron mines. Separation cameras under the tail fairings as well. Power Approach configuration with everything hanging. Landing on Eddie's runway 22. We were in pretty good position to get the touchdown. I never liked carrying the zoom lens in the cockpit, so the 50mm had to do. Here she is in 1993, retired to the USAF Armament Museum outside of Eglin. Not sure why she has the AF Material Command shield on the tail, I thought she retired before Systems Command and Logistics Command merged to form Material Command. That's the 3246th Test Wing shield ahead of the star and bar. By the end of 1993, the USAF had got rid of most of the 4-digit unit designations and the 3246th became the 46th. Thanks for looking, Sven
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C-135C, USAF s/n 61-2669, of the 4950th Test Wing Detachment 1, Andrews AFB. These images taken at Edwards AFB in January 1982. The aircraft was known as Speckled Trout, accomplishing test missions for advanced communications and navigation systems. It was also the primary transport for the Chief of Staff of the USAF. The Trout often executed testing while performing VIP transport flights. Highly polished fuselage sides and fan sections of the engine nacelles. Infra-Red countermeasures units on each of the engine pylons... It's not obvious in the images above but the serial presentation on the tail and the United States Air Force legend on the fuselage are in medium blue with black shadowing... Thanks for looking, Sven
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I had previously submitted some F-16XL images to Pappy's Skunk Models F-16XL WIP Unfortunately, with the Photobucket third party posting debacle, all of those image links have been broken. Anton K55 asked if I would repost them for reference in his build. Here is my best guess of what was posted earlier - I'm still working on cleaning up my XL slides for a more coherent posting. I had been posted as a flight test engineer to the F-16XL Combined Test Force after graduating from the USAF Test Pilot School. Made a right pest of myself with my camera from mid-1982 to early 1984... T-lug suspension in the stores pylons, hence no sway braces Underside of XL-1 showing shadows of pylon locations. That's a spin recovery parachute quadrapod and canister mounted above the exhaust nozzle XL-1 with BDU-38s. Note the brackets fore and aft of the mid-body fins of the AMRAAM shapes. The ARAAM dummies were bolted to the airframe as there was no missile suspension/launcher equipment installed in the airframe. XL-1 with CBU-58s. Most of the CBU store load outs used what were then call Tactical Munitions Dispensers, later became the CBU-87 series of canisters, which were painted gloss OD . XL-2 tucking in with the T-38 safety chase XL-2 aerial refueling Belly shot of XL-2 in Heater-Ferris scheme Some detail shots XL-1 inlet antennas XL-2 UHF antenna relocated near the tail hook Total Temp probe and raked cooling inlet - this intake is vertical on stock F-16s Two left-side AOA probes on the XLs This shot was after the aircraft was repainted in overall camo, the shadow of the blue spine remaiins Thanks for looking Sven
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Another test support fleet phantom with the 6512th Test Squadron at Edwards AFB. April 1985, aerial refueling from NKC-135E, s/n 55-3135, from the 4950th Test Wing, Aeronautical Systems Division out of Wright-Patterson. In the pre-contact position waiting for the boom operator to clear him in. On the boom, in the green, and taking fuel May 1985 and she's been misbehaving... roped off and getting maintenance on the Eddie ramp. That notice taped ahead of the forward formation slime light says the aircraft is impounded. Jump to 1988 and, like the rest of the Rhinos, she's gone albino and her designation has been formally changed to NF-4. This image from June 1990. September 1990, retired and waiting to go to AMARC. She is one of the fortunate ones, going to the National Museum of the Air Force inventory, eventually ending up on display at Tyndall AFB in Florida. At Tyndall, she's in Southeast Asia camouflage and has an Air Combat Command shield on the tail even though she spent her entire operational life with Air Force Systems Command. Thanks for looking, Sven
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Some images of s/n 87-0128 of the 6518th Test Squadron, Spec Ops Combined Test Force at Edwards AFB in 1991. I assume that's some kind of IR suppressor above and behind the engine exhaust. In the end they went with this, seen on 89--0510 which joined the CTF a year later Thanks for looking, Sven
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This is a highly modified Convair C-131 Samaritan, the Total In-Flight Simulator. The aircraft is a variable stability research platform for investigating flight control designs with the test cockpit in the forward drooping nose and the safety cockpit in the production cockpit. But the aircraft is also capable of doing sensors research via a modular nose unit that replaces the test cockpit with a large bulbous radome nose. The aircraft was assigned to the Air Force Flight Dynamics Laboratory at Wright-Patterson AFB, but was operated and maintained by the Calspan Corporation out of Buffalo New York. These images were taken on the Edwards AFB Transient Ramp in November 1984. Just a few reinforcing straps behind the cockpit sides and atop the fuselage... And one from the damaged slides box taken at Wright-Patt in 1979... Thanks for looking, Sven
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Shortly after arrival at Edwards with the 6516th Test Squadron, February 1990. Moved to the 6512th TS, Test Ops, as a dedicated test support jet, October 1991. Someone forgot the Flight Test Center tail band. On static display October 1992, Systems Command is no more and the AF Materiel Command shield is now on the tail. Safety chase training mission, December 1992. That's the AF Flight Test Center shield behind the canopy on this side. The 6510th Test Wing shield is on the opposite side. Over the Sierra Nevada foothills. Over the Boron mines, a prominent rejoin landmark just north of Edwards. He's now on our wing. Aero-braking on Runway 22 Hasegawa released a 1/72nd scale F-16B in these markings back in 1999, but I don't think anyone else has bothered with it. I think I read somewhere that all of the white/red test support Vipers are now gone. '688 went to AMARC in 1995 according to Baugher. Thanks for looking, Sven
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Images of the MC-130H Combat Talon during flight test at Edwards. Many of the test organizations experienced name changes during my second tour at Edwards between 1988 and 1993. In the case of the Special Operations C-130s, they started out as the Special Operations Combined Test Force, or SpecOps CTF. Around 1989, a squadron structure was added to the CTFs. in the case of SpecOps, this was the 6518th Test Squadron. The 6518TS identified the Air Fore Systems Command contingent in the CTF working beside AFOTEC (operational test contingent), and the Lockheed/Raytheon (or was it still Hughs back then?) contractor test contingent. In July 1992, Systems Command was merged with Logistics Command to form AF Materiel Command and all the unit numbers changed. The 6518TS became the 418th Flight Test Squadron, the parent 6510th Test Wing became the 412th Test Wing. USAF s/n 84-0475, 1988... Not usually a fan of showing my air show pictures. You never know what's going to show up on the ramp in California - and I'm not referring to the aircraft. But these show the best nose detail from the images I have. What are those kids doing inside the ropes? 1989 and I got to fly in a safety chase for one of their test missions Opus was the call sign for the MC-130H at Edwards, a reference to its "beak" and the similarity to the penguin (?) character in the comic strip Bloom County. to complete the reference, the control room for MC-130 missions used the call sign "Bloom County". Normally, mission control rooms used the aircraft call sign and the word control, e.g. Zoom Control for an F-16 mission, so it imparted a bit of whimsy when you herd Bloom County over the air. 1990 saw the addition of a second test bird, 83-1212. Here is '475 moving into pre-contact position from the tanker '1212 front right quarter '475 front right quarter '475 rear quarter '1212 rear quarter '475 making a pass down the Rogers lakebed tower fly-by line. Tower fly-bys were used to calibrate the pitot static system at lower altitudes. There was a sighting grid in the tower used to determine the actual altitude above the lakebed and those numbers were compared to what was indicated in the cockpit. 1991, '475 Thanks for looking, Sven
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Tactical Air Warfare Center Detachment 5 was stationed at George AFB operating three F-4G Wild Weasels alongside the 37th Tactical Fighter Wing and, later, the 35th TFW. The Det 5 mission was operational testing and tactics development for the Wild Weasels. S/n 69-7235, the test team flagship, 1992 Note the pod in the right forward missile well. In 1990 with shading on the tail characters and a 'deep' ALQ-131 in the left forward missile well. S/n 69-7206, 1992 In 1990, here with the AGM-88 carriage adapter and the pod under the intake appears to be grey and black rather than white and black 69-0277, 1992, without tail codes No clue what that fixture is in the rear cockpit, it covers the area behind the seat and extends forward to the front canopy frame Two days later and the fixture in the rear cockpit is gone In 1990, with tail codes Checkers on the fin tip fairing Det 5 emblem on left intake TAWC shield on the right intake and the pod. This one has the Set 5 Weasel on it instead of the checkerboard The Det 5 weasel Another pod. To my eyes this one does not look as blunt as the one with the weasel motif. The pod nose one showing the slant of the pylon and off-set of the carriage assembly allowing clearance from the nose gear door. I'm guessing the forward fairing houses the umbilicals. AGM-88 training round Thanks for looking Sven
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