T 7a Aircraft - Boeing says that the high-tech method of designing and building the T-7A Red Hawk, shown here in a test flight, saves time, simplifies the process, improves quality and reduces costs. (Courtesy of Boeing)
St. LOUIS, Missouri - At a factory in St. Louis, which helped launch the US space program, is developing the Air Force's next training aircraft.
T 7a Aircraft
Boeing's T-7A Red Hawk is still several years away from achieving initial capability. But during a tour Wednesday of the new plane's factory, Boeing officials are confident about its future potential -- not just as a trainer to teach new pilots, but as a model for future aircraft construction.
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Boeing's high-tech approach to designing and building the T-7 is saving time, simplifying the process, improving quality and cutting defects, company officials said. to the press.
"Everything is in 3D, everything is digital," said Boeing vice president and T-7 program manager Paul Niewald. "It's an authoritative source of information. So our technical manuals, our flight manuals, our service manuals, they all use the same data that the engineers, the mechanics of the airplanes use.
In 1960, when St. Louis led by Boeing's former McDonnell Aircraft, engineers in white coats and hard hats assemble Mercury capsules in a clean room here. And more than half a century later, this company produced large numbers of F-4 Phantoms for the military to fight in Vietnam, reaching a production peak of 72 per month in June 1967.
But now, Boeing sees a more digital future for aircraft design and production unfolding here, with the T-7 paving the way. And the manufacturing lessons learned from the T-7 have already helped build the Air Force's new F-15EX and Next Generation Air Dominance stealth fighters, said Matt Giese, chief pilot officer. Boeing on the F-15EX.
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A T-7A Red Hawk aircraft in state at Boeing's St. Louis production house. (Courtesy of Boeing)
The Air Force in 2018 awarded Boeing a $9.2 billion contract to build 351 trainers to replace the aging T-38 Talon.
Boeing used engineering tools based on models and advanced manufacturing techniques from the concept of what could be the T-7's first flight in three years, Niewald said.
Advances in high-speed computing allow Boeing to perform computational fluid dynamics analysis and capture the aerodynamic characteristics of aircraft designers earlier than usual, he said. This cuts seven to nine months off the normal process, where wind tunnel models would have to be used to gather this information.
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It's not the first time that model-based engineering and 3D tools have been used to design airplanes, but Boeing has used them more than ever. The digital design process means that Boeing knows how to fit and match the parts and where all the holes should go. This means that the supplier can drill all the holes to be ready for delivery to the Boeing factory - meaning that the T-7 line does not have to be drilled.
Boeing says this approach allows it to improve its build quality and reduce defects such as foreign object damage cases - a problem that plagued the company's KC-46 production in 2019 and led to by temporarily suspending transmission and landing. of the Pegasus in the Boeing production line.
Without drilling into the line, Niewald said, there is little risk of metal shavings or other debris that would have to be removed later and cause problems otherwise. Concerns about FOD are universal, with signs urging mechanics to beware of waste placed around the house.
"By having a fastener-ready design, we eliminate the multi-touch work and associated errors," Niewald said. "Assembly drilling is the number one defect you see most often in conventional lines."
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Pre-drilling parts before they arrive at the Boeing facility also offers an advantage: A more relaxed work environment. When Boeing built the first two T-X planes for competition, Niewald said, the hangar was so quiet that for the first time the mechanics could request music to be played over the speakers.
The factory was also relatively quiet on the day of the press visit, except for the chatter and noise of the machines as the mechanics worked on the T-7, MQ-25 and other aircraft. At the end of the tour, someone plays "Back in Black" by AC / DC, which echoes throughout the company.
The accuracy of the model-based design also allowed the T-7's advanced aircraft division, built in St. Louis, which can be quickly and easily integrated into the rear section built by Saab in Sweden, Niewald said - faster than usual. then built.
Saab has moved production of the T-7 aft fuselage to a newly opened facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, for shipment to St. Swedish house Saab has three more fuselages to build, after which it will send the remaining parts to India.
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The precision manufacturing of the parts also means the T-7 can be assembled without the need for shims, the thin materials inserted to fill gaps in the panel, Niewald said. .
"The first two airplanes we built [were] the most similar airplanes we've ever built," Niewald said. “And this will continue in a less brilliant form; everything will be the same."
He said that he is not only paid for repairs, but also for maintenance. As the T-7 needs maintenance or modification in the coming years, he said, maintainers will find that all parts of the plane are the same, so it's easy to fit into the bag.-o without adjustments. Niewald said Boeing brought the mechanics that would build the T-7 and the maintainers that would keep it in the clean design process.
That paid off with simple, but effective, ergonomic changes to the way mechanics and maintainers operate the T-7's avionics, Niewald said. Older aircraft often have door panels covering the avionics, forcing operators to bend over to make repairs or modifications.
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But the organizer asked the T-7 designer if the avionics door could slide, making it easier to enter and provide its back.
Boeing mechanics also used touch-screen panels to guide them as they built the T-7, so they had operational instructions and descriptions at the touch of a finger. That way they can easily see, for example, the size of the clamp needed for the pipe instead of going to look at a plan on the desk.
The simulators used to teach pilots how to fly the T-7 were built using the same engineering data as the aircraft, as well as running the same flight control program. This means in the future, when the aircraft receives a software update, the simulator software will be updated with one click, Niewald said. Some flight training equipment often receives updated software a year or two after flying, creating a gap between what pilots learn and what they fly.
As with other defense industries, supply chain problems caused by the pandemic have complicated and delayed T-7 production, Niewald said. This is especially difficult because the program depends on new supply chains that are just beginning to emerge from the pandemic.
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Niewald said the program was delayed by about seven months due to a variety of supply issues, including a shortage of microchips needed for the T-7's avionics. The global travel shutdown also created problems, he said, because experts couldn't travel to other countries abroad to help engineer, inspect or process needed parts. In addition, some workers may have to work overtime to cover people in quarantine, which complicates the supply problem, he said.
"We're still seeing residual effects of the pandemic," Neiwald said. "But this is an amazing team, and they're going to push back and try to be as fast as they can, from a control point of view."
There has been damage to the T-7 schedule. A shortage of parts related to COVID was one of the factors this summer that led the Air Force to announce that it is delaying the C phase of the T-7, or a decision that has withdrawn the aircraft will not go into full production. , for over a year. The Air Force said at the time that the milestone could come as late as 2023.
Niewald said Boeing believes the T-7 will reach milestone C in July 2023, slightly earlier than the Air Force predicted earlier this year. He also said that the first announcement of operational capabilities could come in 2024.
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And Boeing is confident that the T-7 can be adapted to the Air Combat Command's desire for an Advanced Tactical Trainer, which it wants to better train new fighter pilots in combat aviation. .
"We built this thing by growing up," Niewald said. “The whole digital concept [of the T-7] is that it's easily upgradeable [so] we can continue, whatever the requirements are, or what future training needs.
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