Category: Military

Rolls-Royce North America selected to power the B-52 Commercial Engine Replacement Program

Rolls-Royce North America has been selected to provide the powerplant for the B-52 Stratofortress under the Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP), further extending a long history of powering the United States Air Force.

The decision means the American-made Rolls-Royce F-130 engine will power the B-52 for the next 30 years. The Air Force made the announcement after a vigorous multi-year competition.

The F130 and its commercial family of engines have accumulated more than 27 million engine flight hours. The F130 is the perfect fit for the B-52 with proven reliability, superb life cycle cost, and low integration risk. A variant of the Rolls-Royce engine selected to power the iconic B-52 is already in service with the USAF around the world, powering both the C-37 and E-11 BACN aircraft.

Tom Bell, Chairman & CEO, Rolls-Royce North America, and President – Defense, said, “We are proud to join a truly iconic U.S. Air Force program and provide world-class, American-made engines that will power its missions for the next 30 years. The F130 is a proven, efficient, modern engine that is the perfect fit for the B-52.”

The F130 offers outstanding reliability with high mission readiness and low maintenance demands. Once installed, the F130 can stay on wing for the entire planned B-52 lifetime. In addition, the F130 engine will provide vastly greater fuel efficiency, increased range, and reduced tanker aircraft requirements. As importantly, the engine is ready for integration using Rolls-Royce state-of-the-art Digital Engineering tools.

Rolls-Royce will build and test the F130 engines at its Indianapolis, Indiana, facility following the recent completion of a $600 million investment to revitalize the advanced manufacturing campus — providing some of the most technologically advanced state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities anywhere in the world. The B-52 CERP win creates demand for 650 engines to be produced at the site and will bring 150 new high-tech, high-skilled jobs for the state of Indiana.

Craig McVay, SVP Strategic Campaigns, Rolls-Royce Defense said: “This is a major win for Rolls-Royce. We’ve been planning and preparing for this outcome and are ready to hit the ground running to prove that we are the best choice for the Air Force and the B-52. Our employees stand prepared to deliver once again for the men and women who protect our freedoms every day.”

Rolls-Royce has a long and successful history providing the power to protect for U.S. military customers, having delivered thousands of engines to the U.S. Air Force for more than 70 years. Rolls-Royce powers C-130H, C-130J, CV-22 Osprey and Global Hawk in the USAF fleet – all engines designed and manufactured in Indianapolis.

“We couldn’t have reached this outcome on our own,” stated Tom. “Rolls-Royce is deeply appreciative of the strong support we have received from partners at the federal, state and city level. Thank you for all you’ve done to support our bid. This is a truly great day for Rolls-Royce, the State of Indiana, City of Indianapolis and the future of the B-52 program.”

Aerospace Maintenance Competition Back on in April 2022

The Aerospace Maintenance Competition Presented by Snap-on is back on for 2022.

“We’re very happy to be back hosting the AMC and hope that teams from around the world can join us in showcasing their maintenance and troubleshooting skills next April in Dallas,” said Ken MacTiernan, chairman, Aerospace Maintenance Competition.

The AMC coincides with the MRO Americas 2022 Convention, April 25-28, at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas. The annual competition for aircraft maintenance professionals and aspiring students has been cancelled for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Team registration opens Oct. 1 at:

https://www.aerospacecompetition.com/

MacTiernan said excitement of the AMC’s return is growing within the maintenance community, as several airlines, MROs and schools have already verbally committed to fielding a team in next year’s competition.

“The AMC is a great venue for everyone to reconnect and stand proud again for our craft,” MacTiernan said. “Although the travel industry certainly slumped over the past year, we’ve never really left. Mechanics were still fixing airplanes. Students were still in school. Manufacturers were still building aircraft. The AMC is back, but collectively as a maintenance community, we never really left.”

Over the past several years, the Aerospace Maintenance Competition Presented by Snap-on has grown to become a widely attended international aviation experience for both technicians and fans. The venue provides certified AMTs from major airlines, MROs and OEMs, as well as military personnel and students in FAA Part 147 schools, the chance to test their skills against their peers.

Participants compete in more than 20 events, including challenges such as airframe damage inspection, cable rigging, fiber optics, engine fan blade removal and many others that test their knowledge, skill and team work.

The team earning the overall best score takes home the grand prize in aviation maintenance – the William F. “Bill” O’Brien Award for Excellence in Aircraft Maintenance. Presented by Snap-on, the coveted award signifies the highest standard of excellence in aviation maintenance. The O’Brien Award is a traveling trophy that debuted at the 2013 competition. The winning team receives the honor of displaying the 5-foot-tall trophy in their facility for a year. In addition to the trophy, Snap-on is awarding more than $75,000 in tools and equipment as prizes to the top finishers in the competition. In 2019, the five-member team from United Airlines Team Cleveland won the O’Brien Award for the third straight year. 

For information on the 2022 Aerospace Maintenance Competition Presented by Snap-on, visit:

https://www.aerospacecompetition.com/

AMETEK MRO North America Announces Enhanced Focus on Military and Defense Capabilities

AMETEK MRO has been supporting military programs for decades. AMETEK MRO has just announced its enhanced focus to expand into more capabilities and platforms throughout the military market.

AMETEK and the AMETEK MRO division have been in the military and defense market for many years. “With this enhanced focus, AMETEK MRO has expanded its offerings, and we’ve elevated our teams to better support our military customers and their specialized needs,” said Brian Hoffmann, vice president and general manager of the AMETEK MRO division.

The AMETEK MRO team has extensive capabilities in avionics, fire & oxygen, fuel, heat transfers, hydraulics, pneumatics, and power across a variety of fixed- and rotary-wing aircrafts. These capabilities are offered by AMETEK MRO businesses including Ameron, Drake Air, Southern Aeroparts, and B&S Aircraft. Some examples include, but are not limited to:

-Heat Exchangers for C-130, C-5, HH-65, KC-135, and MH-60R
-Engine Fire Suppression for C-17, F-16, V-22, AH-1Z, and UH-1Y
-Starter Generators for AH-1, Bell 212, Bell 412, CN-235/HC-144, Ranger, T-6, and UH-1

“The AMETEK MRO division provides world class support, quality, and turnaround times. We pride ourselves on being a nimble and responsive partner to the MRO markets. Equally as important, AMETEK MRO offers lower costs and quick-to-market OEM product developers,” continued Hoffmann. “Our customers receive a competitive advantage as we reduce their total cost of ownership while providing best-in-market customer support.”

Repair and Overhaul Capabilities
AMETEK MRO has comprehensive test, repair, and overhaul capabilities across multiple military airframes and powerplants as a third-party repair facility. The company’s expanding portfolio of source approved parts (SAP) as well as source approved repairs (SAR), maximizes the value you’ll receive by reducing procurement costs, improving asset availability, and reducing repair turnaround time.

Design and Manufacturing Capabilities
AMETEK MRO has multiple active component manufacturing programs across a variety of platforms. Its in-house, vertically integrated engineering and manufacturing capabilities allow its teams to design and manufacture new parts including build-to-print. AMETEK MRO has additional capabilities to reverse engineer parts to resolve obsolescence. Its teams focus on design to cost, manufacturability, and repairability to reduce customers’ total cost of ownership from development to production and sustainment of the program.

The company’s facilities are FAA/EASA, AS9110, and AS9100 approved and are on track to achieve NADCAP certification on several processes.

W. L. Gore & Associates Offers Ultra-Low-Loss 12G-SDI Coaxial Video Cable for Defense Applications

W. L. Gore & Associates (Gore) announced the expansion of its Coaxial Cables line for defense land system applications. The new product is smaller and lighter than previous offerings, yet capable of transmitting ultra-high-definition (UHD) 4K video with excellent shielding from radio frequency interference.

The cable meets a variety of internationally recognized civil and military specifications, including the latest Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) 12G-SDI standard. Published in March 2015, 12G-SDI defines a 12 gigabit per second transmission of uncompressed, latency-free UHD 4K video at 60 frames per second on a single wire. Gore is committed to delivering this performance at operating temperatures ranging from -55 to 200 degrees Celsius.

“Military vehicles today include multiple sensors that generate critical video during missions,” said Andrea Menconi, product manager for land systems. “GORE Coaxial Cables can transmit this UHD video reliably and securely, even in the harshest environments.”

Designed for use with remote-controlled turret cameras, local situation awareness, and other video-generating sensor systems, GORE Coaxial Cables are engineered with a specialized fluoropolymer insulation. This provides superior resistance to weather, abrasion and other hazards associated with extreme weather, rough usage and confined routing space.

“Vehicle and system engineers no longer need to compromise,” Menconi added. “Our Coaxial Cables are smaller, lighter and more flexible, while also providing unequalled video resolution performances, high durability and standards compliance to reduce long-term operating costs.”

GORE Coaxial Cables are available in a standard size via distributors. Visit gore.com/cable-distributors for more info.

StandardAero Wins Cloud Based Predictive Engine Maintenance Contract To Support the USAF’s B-52 Aircraft and TF33 Engine Program

The U.S. Air Force has awarded StandardAero a contract to apply Predictive Maintenance, Readiness and Reliability tools to the TF33 engine program. The contract deliverables will provide the USAF the capability to optimize the readiness, reliability and costs associated with the maintenance performed on these engines, driven by advanced machine learning integration and utilizing government cloud hosting. Most urgently, the contract will deliver supporting tools that provide a near term boost in asset availability, while also providing long-term supply chain predictive analytics. For this contract, StandardAero is leading a team network that includes IBM, Isobar Public Sector and Reliability Concepts International. 

StandardAero’s  Engineering Services team has successfully developed multiple diagnostic and predictive maintenance tools for a number of engine fleets, including the C-130’s T56 engine, the T-38’s J85 engine, the C-5’s TF39 engine, as well as the F100-220 engines used on the F-15 and F-16 fleets. The requirement to establish the predictive maintenance capability in a cloud-based platform makes this contract unique compared to previous StandardAero on premises support.

“We are excited to adapt our tools to this critical military platform,” stated Marc Drobny, president of StandardAero’s Military & Energy division. “The Air Force has been on the leading edge of Predictive Maintenance philosophy and implementation and StandardAero is proud to play a leading role in their development team.”

StandardAero’s predictive maintenance methodologies and reliability centered maintenance practices have been proven to improve reliability while reducing life cycles support costs in aircraft engines, and these concepts can be applied to other mechanical systems as well.

Netherlands F135 Engine Heavy Maintenance Facility Achieves Initial Depot Capability

StandardAero announced today that it has successfully achieved all Initial Depot Capability (IDC) requirements for the repair and overhaul of the Pratt & Whitney F135 engine, which powers all three variants of the 5th Generation F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft. With this achievement, StandardAero’s F135 Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul and Upgrade (MRO&U) facility, or depot, in the Netherlands becomes the first fully operational F135 engine depot outside of the United States.

The IDC milestone was reached following the qualification of StandardAero’s assembly and disassembly capability for the F135’s fan and power modules as well as engine test operations at its state-of-the-art 30,000 square foot facility in the Netherlands, located at the Logistics Center Woensdrecht (LCW) of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. This facility features the first purpose-built international test cell for the F135 engine that was designed and constructed from the ground up to support F135 aftermarket test operations.

“Since our acquisition of DutchAero Services in March of 2015, we have been purposefully driving toward standing up our capabilities at LCW and operationalizing our F135 engine MRO services,” said Marc Drobny, President of Military & Energy for StandardAero. “We are proud to achieve the IDC milestone status and grateful for the collaborative efforts of all of our partners.”

The U.S. Department of Defense selected the Netherlands as one of the F135 MRO&U European regional depots in late 2014. Since that time, the Netherlands Ministry of Defence, the F-35 Joint Program Office, StandardAero, and Pratt & Whitney have worked collaboratively over the past six years to standup this regional MRO&U capability which will support the Royal Netherlands Air Force as well as other F-35 operators in the region under the F-35’s Global Support System.

“Congratulations to the joint industry and government team on achieving IDC for the Netherlands F135 depot,” said O Sung Kwon, vice president, Pratt & Whitney Military Engines Sustainment Operations. “This critical sustainment milestone is the culmination of years of planning, construction, deployments, training and qualification. I’m exceptionally proud of how this team navigated the various challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic to standup this F135 MRO&U capability on-time for the customer.”

With the declaration of IDC, the Netherlands depot will immediately begin supporting fan and power module repairs for the F135 engine fleet, providing increased capacity to the global F135 MRO&U network. Modules will be disassembled, repaired, and reassembled by StandardAero personnel with technical assistance from Pratt & Whitney, followed by testing and return-to-service of the module for use by global operators of the F135 engine.

“This is a significant event for the Netherlands, for our industrial partners StandardAero and Pratt & Whitney and for the F-35 partnership”, according to Air Commodore Richard Laurijssen, commander of the Logistic Center Woensdrecht. “The fact that this capability now comes online must be very welcome, given the increasing demand for repairs of F135 engine modules the F-35 partnership is currently facing in order to meet the required availability of serviceable F135 engines. The Netherlands team is more than ready to support the growing demand of the F-35 fleet. Hitting this milestone was only possible because of the strong partnership between Pratt & Whitney, StandardAero and the Royal Netherlands Air Force and the supervision of the F-35 Joint Program Office. As a team, these four parties stood tall to overcome the issues and setbacks that came up along the way. I’d like to pass on my compliments to all involved in supporting this remarkable achievement and specifically I’d like to say thank you to the on-site crew members who have worked days and many nights to get to this point.”

This F135 MRO&U capability brings significant benefits to the Dutch workforce and industry, from high quality jobs to the technical expertise and know-how gained from the maintenance and repair of the most advanced fighter engine in the world. 

“The dedicated and highly skilled team at LCW stands ready to provide the global F-35 fleet with world-class engine maintenance and mission readiness, and we look forward to a long, successful and productive future,” Drobny concluded. 

“For decades, StandardAero has been an excellent provider of MRO&U services across both our military and commercial franchises,” added Kwon. “This includes more than 40 years of experience on our F100 engine, with over 3,000 overhauls. We are proud to expand on this partnership with the F135 engine, which will power the F-35 fighter for the next 50 years.”

Parker Hannifin to Acquire Meggitt

The boards of directors of Parker-Hannifin Corporation (Parker) and Meggitt PLC (Meggitt) announced that they have reached agreement on the terms of a recommended cash acquisition of Meggitt by Parker.

Parker says they believe Meggitt is very well aligned with their goals and Parker’s global business system, representing a unified strategic vision for its team members worldwide. Parker says the acquisition would be “strategically and culturally compelling, and enhance the future prospects of the Combined Group within global aerospace and defense industries.”

Parker highlights these key reasons for the acquisition: Meggitt is an international group headquartered in the UK; Meggitt, like Parker, has a rich heritage in the aerospace and defence segments; Meggitt has a global brand, a complementary business mix, an impressive international base of blue-chip customers.

Parker says Meggitt has been transforming its business over the last four years through its focused strategy, streamlining its portfolio, investing in new technologies, and growing through its customer-aligned divisions. The two companies says they are complementary across diverse portfolios of products. The acquisition of Meggitt will nearly double the size of Parker’s Aerospace Systems segment.

Parker also believes the combined group will be able to provide a stronger value proposition and the two together are positioned for “strong growth, supported by the commercial aerospace recovery, and will be able to maximize its potential by building on a combined product portfolio and geographic footprint and by sharing operational and functional best practices.”

Commenting on the announcement, Tom Williams, chairman and chief executive officer of Parker said, “The combination of Parker and Meggitt is an exciting opportunity for both companies’ team members, customers, shareholders and communities. We strongly believe Parker is the right home for Meggitt. Together, we can better serve our customers through innovation, accelerated R&D and a complementary portfolio of aerospace and defense technologies.”“We are committed to being a responsible steward of Meggitt and are pleased our acquisition has the full support of Meggitt’s Board. We fully understand these responsibilities and are making a number of strong commitments that reflect them. During our longstanding presence in the UK we have built great respect for Meggitt, its heritage, and its place in British industry. Our own journey over more than 100 years has taught us the importance of a strong culture and reputation.”

Collins Aerospace Invests $30M to Expand Global Repair Facility in Monroe, N.C.

Collins Aerospace has completed an approximately $30 million expansion of its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Monroe, North Carolina.

Opened in 2004, Collins‘ Monroe facility focuses on repairs to a number of commercial and military aircraft systems, including actuation, cargo, rescue hoists and winches, landing gear, air management, potable water and lighting, along with 24/7 aircraft-on-ground spare services. The recent expansion increased the site’s footprint more than 25 percent, including a new two-story office building, added shop floor space and an enlarged loading dock.

“The ongoing growth of our Monroe facility represents our commitment to our customers and the community,“ said Mary DeStaffan, general manager of the Monroe site for Collins Aerospace. “This current expansion will allow us to better support our airline customers as they transition their fleets to more modern, next-generation aircraft. And we’re proud to undertake this journey with support from Union County and the City of Monroe as we continue to contribute to the region‘s growing aerospace cluster.”

In addition to its recent Monroe expansion, Collins is deliberating plans to invest another $30 million over the next three years to increase additive manufacturing and rescue hoist and winch repair capabilities. The company’s decision to further grow its operations is contingent on approval by both the Monroe City Council and Union County Board of Commissioners of a new economic development program recently introduced by both entities. The new MAGNET100 program is intended to encourage continued capital investment by companies over a 10-year period. To qualify, companies must meet investment thresholds of $30 million in the first three years and $50 million in the first seven years. The grant recognizes capital investment up to $100 million.

“Collins Aerospace is one of the crown jewels of North Carolina’s aerospace industry, which is among the fastest-growing in the U.S.,” said Christopher Chung, CEO of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. “That Collins Aerospace continues to deepen its footprint in our state with ongoing investment is a strong validation of our business climate and attractiveness to aerospace and aviation companies.”

“In 2004, Collins Aerospace located operations in Monroe, helping to create North Carolina’s largest geographic cluster of aerospace companies,” said Chris Platé, executive director for Monroe-Union County Economic Development. “The company’s desire for sustained investment in our community further demonstrates the strength of Union County’s aerospace cluster and the commitment our local leaders have to support its continued growth.”

AEM Limited Achieves JOSCAR Accreditation

AEM Limited, a business unit of AMETEK MRO, has successfully renewed its JOSCAR accreditation. JOSCAR (the Joint Supply Chain Accreditation Register) is a collaborative tool used by the aerospace, defense, and security industry to act as a single repository for pre-qualification and compliance information. Using JOSCAR can determine if a supplier is fit for business.

“We are thrilled that AEM has once again satisfied the requirements to become fully compliant on the JOSCAR supplier accreditation register,” said Andy Wheeler, Divisional Vice President and Managing Director of AEM. “The accreditation is a testament to our commitment in the aerospace, defense, and security industries.”

AEM has been Europe’s leading independent overhaul and repair facility for over 60 years. The company has built a solid reputation in the aerospace industry, providing a broad range of services to international and regional airlines, helicopter operators, airframe manufacturers and military organizations. Conducting business from three sites in the United Kingdom, AEM is proud to receive the accreditation, which shows the company has gone through the process required to demonstrate its commitment and credentials to the industry.

Zetec Webinar Shows How to Increase Effectiveness of Bolt-Hole Eddy Current Inspections

Zetec Inc. has published its latest on-demand webinar detailing a more effective approach to one of the most common and critical nondestructive testing applications in aerospace MRO (maintenance, repair and operations): inspections of bolt holes in multi-layer materials.

The 40-minute webinar will discuss and demonstrate how using high-resolution C-scans and dedicated analysis displays for rotating-probe and eddy current array data can increase both eddy current inspection productivity and probability of detection.

“Rotating eddy current probes and traditional impedance and sweep displays lack the resolution to identify the individual layer where a defect resides. This can make it challenging to determine whether repairs are necessary,” said Nicholas Cardillo, Eddy Current Sales Engineering director for Zetec. “This webinar will show how to use readily available eddy current technology to better recognize signals of interest, understand flaw morphology and identify layers where bolt-hole flaws are located without the use of encoders or secondary manual measurement methods.”

The webinar features:

• An introduction to eddy current inspections of bolt holes and the specific inspection challenges related to probability of detection (POD) in multi-layer materials.
• The principles and application of examination techniques, including those outlined in U.S. Federal Aviation Administration Airworthiness Directive 2020-24-05 for the wing spar inspections of certain Piper Aircraft and the canopy sill longeron failures on F-15 fighter jets.
• A detailed look at examination results including how C-scan displays, advanced filters and data-review mode can increase user performance, POD and confidence in the eddy current inspection of bolt holes.

Zetec says their on-demand webinar is intended for inspection service providers, NDT technicians and aerospace MRO professionals. It is now available for viewing.