Photo: F-35′s first in-flight weapon release (of a huge 2,000 pound GBU-31 JDAM) October 17, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 1 comment so farOn Oct. 16, a conventional take off and landing (CTOL) version of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, completed the first weapon drop, releasing a huge 2,000 pound GBU-31 BLU-109 warhead Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM).
Flown by U.S. Air Force Maj. Matthew Phillips, the F-35A AF-1, dropped the bomb over the China Lake test range from the left internal weapons bay.
The F-35A is designed to carry a payload of up to 18,000 pounds using 10 weapon stations, four of those are internal to maximize the aircraft’s stealthiness (obviously, anything carried on the six underwing pylons make the aircraft a bit less radar evading…).
Image credit: Lockheed Martin photo by Matt Short
Related Articles
- Alaska’s F-22 stealth fighter jets became the first operational Raptors to drop GBU-39 small diameter bombs (theaviationist.com)
- Camp Bastion attack could be U.S. Marine Corps Harrier fleet’s ground zero (theaviationist.com)
- There was a time when the F-14 Tomcat was better at bombing Iraqi ground targets than the F-15E Strike Eagle (theaviationist.com)
- Photo: Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft with space shuttle Endeavour taxies by an F-35A at Edwards AFB (theaviationist.com)
- Photo: An F-35A test aircraft flies over Space Shuttle Endeavour at Edwards Air Force Base (theaviationist.com)
There was a time when the F-14 Tomcat was better at bombing Iraqi ground targets than the F-15E Strike Eagle September 8, 2012
Posted by Dario Leone in : Aircraft Carriers, Military Aviation , 6commentsOn Sept. 22, 2006 after 36 years of service, the last F-14 Tomcat was retired by its main operator, the US Navy, at NAS Oceana. Although six years have passed since then, there are many unknown facts to be told or simply to be remembered about the last Grumman’s (now Northrop-Grumman) fighter.
One of these often untold stories dates back to Apr. 2003 when, in the midst of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), the Tomcats of the VF-154 Black Knights were embarked aboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63).
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) ordered to VF-154 to detach five of its F-14A (BuNos 158620, 161296, 161288, 161292 and 158624) and five of its crews to Al Udeid air base, in Qatar. This was the first time in history that US Navy aircraft were tasked to fight a war from both ashore and at sea at the same time.
The five Black Knights’ Tomcats were dedicated to provide Forward Air Controller (Airborne) or FAC(A) and Strike Coordination and Reconnaissance (SCAR) for Coalition fast jets (such as USAF F-16CGs and F-16CJs, RAAF F/A-18As and RAF Tornado GR-4s) deployed to Al Udeid.
The VF-154 Tomcats crews also had to train USAF F-15E crews to conduct FAC(A) and SCAR missions.
During this shore-based period a VF-154 F-14A (BuNo 158620 callsign “Nite 104”) crashed because he suffered a single engine and fuel transfer system failure forcing the crew to eject.
However during this special period the five Black Knights’ crews were able to accomplish more than 300 combat hours dropping more than 50,000 lbs of ordnance.
These results were possible even if the Tomcat had some disadvantages when compared directly to some of the attack planes mentioned above: for example, the Strike Eagle has a maximum payload far superior than the one of the Tomcat and the F-14A could only employ Laser Guided Bombs (LGB) and it was not able to use Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) due to a lack of a digital databus (the Bs and Ds-models Tomcat could use JDAMs).
Still, the F-14 had also some advantages: the AN/AAQ-25 LANTIRN (Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting, Infrared, for Night) pod used by Tomcat crews was more capable than the USAF’s AN/AAQ-14 and also than the first AN/AAQ-28s Litening II. In fact the AN/AAQ-25 provided the Tomcat with the capability to point the pod to chosen waypoints without the employment of radar, an ability that the F-15E didn’t have. The F-14s were also equipped with a Programmable Tactical Information Display System (PTIDS) and 20 cm X 20cm screen that provided the Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) with a better display than the Weapons System Officer (WSO) in the F-15E.
All these features made the F-14 a really impressive attack platform- as a Tomcat driver once explained: “With the Strike Eagle you can put the bomb on the building. With the Tomcat you’ re putting the bomb into the third window from the left, from miles away”.
Dario Leone for The Aviationist.com
Image credit: U.S. Navy
Related Articles
- Tony Scott, Hank Kleeman, Kara Hultgreen and the F-14 Tomcat: three (tragic) stories and a legendary plane (theaviationist.com)
- This photo of an F-15E Strike Eagle generating a condensation cloud at low altitude is simply stunning (theaviationist.com)
- A possible blue print for an Israeli attack on Iran. Including special munitions, radar evading tech, ballistic missiles (theaviationist.com)
- Alaska’s F-22 stealth fighter jets became the first operational Raptors to drop GBU-39 small diameter bombs (theaviationist.com)
Photo: F-35 Completes first airborne weapons separation August 9, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : F-35 , 1 comment so farTraveling at 400 knots at an altitude of 4,200 ft, F-35 BF-3, a STOVL (short take-off and vertical landing) JSF variant, released an inert 1,000 lb GBU-32 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) separation weapon over water in an Atlantic test range.
Here is the text of the NAVAIR and the Joint Program Office press release:
“While this weapons separation test is just one event in a series of hundreds of flights and thousands of test points that we are executing this year, it does represent a significant entry into a new phase of testing for the F-35 program,” said Navy Capt. Erik Etz, director of test for F-35 naval variants. “Today’s release of a JDAM was the result of extraordinary effort by our team of maintainers, engineers, pilots and others that are consistently working long hours to deliver F-35 warfighting capability to the U.S. services and our international partners.”
The release was the first time for any version of the F-35 to conduct an airborne weapon separation, as well as the first from an internal weapons bay for a fighter aircraft designated for the U.S. Marine Corps, the United Kingdom and Italy.
The milestone marks the start of validating the F-35’s capability to employ precision weapons and allow pilots to engage the enemy on the ground and in the air.
“[Using an internal weapons bay] speaks to how much capability the JSF is going to bring to the troops,” said Dan Levin, Lockheed Martin test pilot for the mission. “Stealth, fifth generation avionics, and precision weapons … coupled with the flexible mission capability of the short take-off and vertical landing F-3 5B is going to be huge for our warfighters.”
An aerial weapons separation test checks for proper release of the weapon from its carriage system and trajectory away from the aircraft. It is the culmination of a significant number of prerequisite tests, including ground fit checks, ground pit drops and aerial captive carriage and environment flights to ensure the system is working properly before expanding the test envelope in the air.
Aircraft and land-based test monitoring systems collected data from the successful separation which is in review at the F-35 integrated test force at Naval Air Station Patuxent River.
Image credit: Lockheed Martin Photo by Layne Laughter
Image credit: Lockheed Martin Photo by Andy Wolfe
Related Articles
- Photo: F-35B Joint Strike Fighter test aircraft doing aileron roll with asymmetric weapons load (theaviationist.com)
- Video: U.S. Navy initial flight (and heavy landing) of the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstrator. (theaviationist.com)
Photo: F-35A completes first aerial refueling with inert AIM-9X, JDAM and AMRAAM weapons. April 24, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : F-35 , 1 comment so farOn Saturday, Apr. 21, an F-35A Lightning II CTOL (conventional takeoff and landing aircraft) operating from Edwards AFB, achieved the first in-flight refueling mission from an Air Force’s KC-10 while configured with external weapons.
Piloted by U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. George Schwartz, the test aircraft, known as AF-4, flew with two external inert AIM-9X weapons and four external stores. Even if they are not visible in the picture, internally, the jet was carrying two Joint Direct Attack Munitions and two Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles.
During the 2-hour mission tested the flying qualities of the aircraft while maneuvering with external weapons. Weapons separation testing will begin later this year.
Image credit: Lockheed Martin
Related articles
- Photo: Lockheed Martin F-35′s first mission with external weapons (theaviationist.com)
- First image of F-35B with an AIM-120C5 missile in the weapon bay (theaviationist.com)
- Photo: F-35 completes first night air-to-air refueling (theaviationist.com)
- Breaking: never seen before F-35′s centerline gun pod unveiled (theaviationist.com)
- Video: F-35A night refueling (theaviationist.com)
- It’s better to replenish the stock before going to war with Iran (or Syria). U.S Air Force Orders 5,000 JDAM bomb kits. (theaviationist.com)
- Photo: F-35B with weapons bay doors open (theaviationist.com)
- F-35 progress report. The year so far in review. (theaviationist.com)
[Updated] New image of F-35B with an AIM-120C5 missile in the weapon bay March 28, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : F-35 , 5commentsUpdate Mar. 29, 2012 20.30 GMT
Mar. 22, 2012 not only marked the first night air-to-air refueling: although not widely advertised, on the same day, the F-35B BF-4, during its 100th flight, piloted by RAF Sqdn. Ldr. Jim Schofield, flew with the open weapon bay door for an environmental testing with an (inert) AIM-120C5.
After showing some images of air-to-ground weapons inside the weapon bay, this is the second time a photograph shows an AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile) carried by the 5th generation JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) in the Short Take Off Vertical Landing (STOVL) variant.
The F-35 will be able to carry one AIM-120D (AIM-120C8), an improved version of the BVR (Beyond Visual Range) missile, and a 1,000-lb JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) or LGB in each weapon bay or two AIM-120Ds for each weapon bay (using a trapeze plus ejector to lower the inner missile into the airstream before launch).
Image credit: Andy Wolfe via Lockheed Martin
Related articles
- Photo: Lockheed Martin F-35′s first mission with external weapons (theaviationist.com)
- Photo: F-35B with weapons bay doors open (theaviationist.com)
- Breaking: never seen before F-35′s centerline gun pod unveiled (theaviationist.com)
- RAF’s weapon of choice in Libya to be upgraded as export opportunities emerge (theaviationist.com)
- F-35 progress report. The year so far in review. (theaviationist.com)
