Category: Military

Boeing Receives $265 Million Chinook Helicopter Order from U.S. Army Special Operations

Boeing recently signed a $265 million contract for nine more MH-47G Block II Chinook helicopters that employees in its Philadelphia plant will assemble for the U.S. Army Special Operations Aviation Command (USASOAC).

Boeing is now on contract for 24 of the next-generation Chinooks. The MH-47G Block II Chinook features an improved structure and weight reduction initiatives like new lighter weight fuel pods that increase performance, efficiency, and commonality across the fleet. The new Chinooks will give the Army significantly more capability for extremely challenging missions.

“The G-Model is a critical asset for the Army, our nation, and the defense industrial base,” says Andy Builta, vice president and H-47 program manager. “We’re honored that the Army’s special operators trust us to deliver it.”

Boeing has more than 4,600 Boeing employees in Pennsylvania supporting H-47 Chinook, V-22 Osprey, MH-139A Grey Wolf and a number of services and engineering efforts. Boeing’s presence, including suppliers and vendors, supports an estimated 16,000 total jobs in Pennsylvania.

AEM Limited Achieves JOSCAR Accreditation

AEM Limited announced it has achieved 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”.

AEM Limited has been an 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 commitment and credentials to the industry.

“We are thrilled that AEM has satisfied all of the requirements to become fully compliant to join the JOSCAR register,” says Andy Wheeler, AEM’s commercial director. “The accreditation is valued by some of the largest purchasers in the defence community. This certification is testament to our commitment to the aerospace, defence, and security industries.”

 

Kaman Named Sikorsky Elite Supplier

Kaman Corporation announced that Kaman Composite – Vermont, Inc. has recently been named the Rotary and Mission Systems Elite Supplier by Sikorsky. The award comes after a partnership with Sikorsky on the design and development of their MH-60R radome program.

“The program provided us with a unique opportunity to partner with an industry leader on their radome design,” said Alexander Gamble, general manager at Kaman Composite –Vermont, Inc. “We were able to take a customer need, leverage our expertise to design, conduct in-house testing and analysis, and take the program into full production, while maintaining stellar performance.”

Kaman Composite Vermont started working with Lockheed/Sikorsky on the program in 2002 and KCV continues the production of the MMR Radome with over 200 delivered. Kaman expanded their design services and established the Radome Center of Excellence at the Vermont facility which employs a full staff of design engineers and technicians.

“Our composites businesses continue to deliver the complex composite structures that meet the highest standards of its Aerospace customers. This award additionally demonstrates the exemplary relationship the KCV team has developed with Sikorsky,” stated Mark Withrow, president and general manager – U.S. Composites.

 

Free Webinar on Safety Performance Monitoring and Measurement

TACG is holding a free Webinar entitled, “Safety Performance Monitoring and Measurement” on Thursday, August 6th at 0900 EDT (GMT-4). The Webinar is approximately one hour in duration and covers critical elements of  Safety Management Systems (SMS). This Webinar will be delivered live (not pre-recorded) by TACG company president Dr. Bob Baron. To register for the webinar go to: http://www.tacgworldwide.com/Safety-performance-monitoring-and-measurement

Kaman Measuring Highlights SMT-9700 Position/Displacement System Ideal for Analytical and OEM Applications

The Measuring Division of Kaman Precision Products highlights the availability of its SMT 9700 position/displacement system, which provides high resolution non-contact position/displacement feedback of virtually any electrically conductive target.

Kaman says its flexible SMT 9700 features “easy, cost-effective performance customization that provides an excellent fit for customer applications – and at significant cost savings for volume applications.” The SMT 9700 system can be used for optics positioning in photolithography equipment, XYZ stage positioning in atomic force microscopy, and spindle position in precision grinding of bearing races.
The SMT 9700 uses Kaman’s eddy current sensor technology and provides nanometer to sub-nanometer resolution in a small package size. Available with 13 standard sensor options, the SMT 9700 system also enables users to customize sensor type and configuration, cable length, calibration range and offset, as well as performance attributes, linearity, bandwidth, and temperature.

The SMT 9700 is available in 1, 2 and 3 channel configurations. With the 3-channel option, all channels can work off the same frequency and be tuned together. Users can achieve considerable cost savings by reducing mounting costs and saving on machine space and tuning all 3 channels together.

 

8tree Awarded Innovation Prize

8tree has been recognized for continuous innovations in its design of user-centric technologies that enhance quality and efficiency. The company’s dentCHECK tool – now a standard for damage-mapping within the aviation sector – was awarded the VR-Innovation prize. This was the 20th consecutive year in which the Baden-Württemberg Volksbank & Raiffeisenbanken awarded the prize.

dentCHECK is a handheld optical 3D surface inspection tool that was purpose-built for the aviation industry. It measures and documents structural damage on aircraft, with speed and accuracy. Every feature and capability of the tool is the result of direct input from aircraft technicians, mechanics and engineers. “In essence, dentCHECK was defined by aviation professionals for use by aviation professionals,” the company says.

Why do speed and accuracy matter when determining if an aircraft is airworthy. Taking too long to inspect the damage costs the airline money, as the aircraft stays grounded. However, producing uncertain measurement results can compromise safety and cost lives. 8tree says dentCHECK was designed to help on both fronts, by creating an end-to-end digitized workflow. In doing so, dentCHECK produces consistently accurate measurement reports while delivering time-savings of up to 90 percent.

The product works by pointing and clicking to get results – “just like a camera,” 8tree says. Leveraging integrated augmented-reality (AR), the answers, or measurement results, are visually superimposed on the damaged aircraft surface, using an intuitive color scheme and numerical annotations. Furthermore, the measurement analytics are directly accessible via the cloud for further reporting and auditing purposes.
Dozens of well-known aviation and aerospace industry brands, including Airbus, Lufthansa-Technik, Delta Air Lines and Gulfstream, have embraced dentCHECK – an innovation that is made in Constance, Germany.

Honeywell Opens New T55 Engine Maintenance Center In Phoenix

Honeywell has secured approval from the U.S. Army through a product verification audit and opened a state-of-the-art T55 Repair and Overhaul Center of Excellence facility near its Honeywell Aerospace headquarters in Phoenix.

Honeywell’s new Center of Excellence for T55 helicopter engine maintenance optimizes operations and enhances support for the U.S. Army and international customers. By co-locating the T55 engine’s engineering, production, repair and overhaul, Honeywell has significantly improved operating efficiencies and performance for many of its customers.

“Honeywell has expanded its world-class maintenance and repair organization in Phoenix to include T55 repair and overhaul,” says Dave Marinick, president, Engines and Power Systems, Honeywell Aerospace. “Our global Center of Excellence for the T55 engine allows us to grow our throughput to be two to three times our previous capacity to better support the U.S. Army and CH-47 Chinook helicopter fleets worldwide. Our organization is always focused on improving our support for today’s warfighters, and we are proud to roll out this transition as part of that commitment to the U.S. Army.”

Honeywell says this new facility benefits T55 customers by aligning the repair and overhaul activities for the engine with new engine production. This move creates a larger pool of Honeywell’s highly trained technicians who can share their knowledge to improve repair and overhaul turn times. Having these technicians co-located with the engineering team also allows for enhanced troubleshooting and direct feedback to help inform future product upgrades. Honeywell has also launched a supplier improvement initiative to ensure on-time delivery of materials to support the expanded capacity.

Honeywell’s T55 engine has supported the CH-47 Chinook helicopter for nearly 60 years. During that time, Honeywell has produced more than 6,000 T55 engines, which have logged about 12 million hours of operation.

There are over 900 CH-47 Chinook helicopters being operated today by various international and domestic military organizations, making the efficient and fast maintenance of the T55 engine a priority. The new location allows Honeywell to improve current support for T55 engines while preparing for surge capacity to ensure quick and flexible reactions to the needs of the U.S. Army and international customers.

Trive Capital Partners with Field Aerospace, Inc. Through Structured Capital Investment

Dallas-based private equity firm Trive Capital announced the recent partnership with Field Aerospace. Field operates out of three facilities located in the U. S. and Canada, specializing in aircraft integration, engineering, modification, and support services for government, aerospace, and defense customers. The Company has a 70+ year operating history in aircraft modification and parts manufacturing with a focus on special-mission aircraft including the DHC-8, Challenger, and Gulfstream platforms. As part of the transaction, Trive provided a structured capital solution to buy out minority shareholder and former Chairman, Dan Magarian, and to support future growth initiatives of the business.

“The directors and shareholders of Field are delighted to welcome Trive” says John Mactaggart, Field president and CEO. “When we purchased Field Aviation in 2012 and ASES in 2015, we planned further acquisitions to enhance the organic growth of Field. Trive not only adds welcome expertise to the leadership of the Company but will bring a fresh perspective to Company growth and open further acquisition opportunities. The remaining original shareholders see this as a logical step in the growth of Field.”

Former Chairman Magarian notes, “Field is a differentiated business with highly specialized engineering services that has experienced significant growth over that past decade.  I am proud of the Company’s accomplishments during this time and am eager to watch its continued success and expansion with Trive’s involvement.  The shareholder group chose to partner with Trive based on the team’s experience in the sector, flexible capital solution, and ability to transact in challenging economic conditions.”

“Trive has deep experience investing into aerospace and defense businesses and was fortunate to have developed a relationship with the Field ownership team over several years.  Field has built an impressive set of capabilities that position it to capitalize on increased spending for modified, special mission aircraft used in ISR data collection,” says David Stinnett, Partner at Trive Capital. “Moreover, our ability to facilitate an innovative structured capital solution and quickly close this complex transaction in the middle of challenging macro-economic conditions, demonstrates Trive’s ability to creatively deploy capital in the current market.”

The transaction also represents Trive’s most recent investment for its Structured Capital Strategy. Trive is actively seeking additional Structured Capital investment opportunities where the firm can tailor bespoke debt and equity structures for strategically viable, middle market companies through a collaborative and operational approach. Trive’s Structured Capital Strategy targets opportunities across a variety of situations including growth capital, management buyouts, minority recaps, special situations, and acquisition financing.

The Av8 Group Announces New Facility Expansion

The Av8 Group has completed a 10,000 sq. ft. expansion at their Houston location. This will provide additional space for their specialized service of landing gear and other component overhauls.

The original facility occupied 20,000 square feet of space, and now with the added square feet will have a combined total of 30,000 sq. ft. to service the growing requests for landing gear and component overhauls. The construction started last fall and final touches were completed in March 2020 with the capacity to accept additional projects.

“This additional space will allow us to expand our capabilities even further, which we are excited about and we will be announcing further details to the industry in the near future,” said Yoel Arnoni, CEO, The Av8 Group.  

The Av8 Group specializes in landing gear overhaul as well as hydraulic, mechanical and electrical components and more. By utilizing in-house engineering, DER and PMA part manufacturing capabilities when possible, the Av8 Group delivers unprecedented value to component overhaul customers.

EnduroSharp Wants to Help with The New Aviation Sustainability Needs

EnduroSharp Aircraft Maintenance Tools want to help with the goal of sustainability in the aviation industry. Lowering the aviation carbon footprint is necessary the company says, and they are making it their goal to help reflect a zero-waste philosophy.

The EnduroSharp Product line is used to repair and maintain aircraft structures. The product line consists of non-metallic removal tools that will not cause damage your aircraft during the sealant, adhesives, and coating removal process. The EnduroSharp nonmarring aircraft maintenance tools are made from Torlon, a high-performance plastic that creates a durable tool that will hold a superior edge. Creating an effective tool for aircraft maintainers that will not damage aircraft structures, like aluminum and composite is their aim, which will “allow your aircraft structures to last longer.”

“For decades, aircraft maintainers have searched for a non-metallic sealant and coatings scraper that would hold an effective edge, but not pose a threat to aircraft structures, like aluminum and composite. They’ve tried sharpened acrylic, polycarbonate, phenolic, and fiber reinforced plastics of all kinds. Nothing has really worked, and often maintainers have resorted to sharpened putty knives, scribes, and utility blades. Finally, a non-metallic blade system comes along that actually works. The Torlon scraper system is like “The Holy Grail” of non-metallic scraper blades. No toolbox for working with removal of coatings from composites and sensitive structures should be without them,” says an aerospace repair developer client.