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An F/A-18F Super Hornet crashed in Death Valley National Park, California, at approximately 3 p.m. (PDT), October 4. The pilot was treated for minor injuries at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, and released later that night. The aircraft was assigned to Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 9 based at Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS) China…
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The Navy’s Naval Aviation Training Systems and Ranges program office’s (PMA-205) Tactical Combat Training System Increment II (TCTS Inc. II) and Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX)-21 teams conducted their first Live-Virtual-Constructive (LVC) demonstration in an operational environment last month. As part of the Navy’s broader initiative to enhance capability, the event displayed early LVC capability for the TCTS Inc. II…
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Fleet Readiness Center East (FRCE) artisans recently completed work on the first UH-1N “Huey” helicopter to undergo service at the depot’s facility in Kinston’s North Carolina Global TransPark. Logistical improvements brought about by the new location helped the team complete service on the aircraft more than 40 days ahead of the average turnaround times the H-1 line posted while based…
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The Navy’s Specialized and Proven Aircraft program office (PMA-226) recently delivered the first F-5N aircraft to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. to begin ground and flight test of the F-5 block upgrade prototype project. Aligned with the Navy’s strategic imperative of increasing capability and enhancing lethality, the newly redesigned tactical fighters will include features found on modern aircraft that…
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The Department of Defense (DOD) will provide rare access to its supercomputers for a NAWCAD engines project that could change the future of naval aviation testing. The NAWCAD project selected for inclusion in this year’s High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP) Frontier Project portfolio uses computer simulation to test naval aviation engines before physical tests are conducted in a lab.…
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When facing emergency landing conditions, aviators and aircrew have long relied on time-tested training, procedures, and equipment to make perilous moments as safe as possible. As the Navy adapts to the CMV-22B Osprey as its carrier onboard delivery (COD) platform, many new procedures need to be created and approved from the ground up. Unlike previous V‑22 variants, there were no…
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September 17, 2021 – The Naval Air Systems Command recognized an impressive production streak this week with the 100th on-time delivery of the AH-1Z Viper, the Marine’s attack helicopter. “Of all of the domestic AH-1Zs delivered to date, 91 percent of them have been on time,” said Col Vasilios Pappas, PMA-276 program manager. “This is a feat only possible through…
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The Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Aviation (PMA-268) program completed its first aerial refueling of an F-35C Lightning II aircraft by the Boeing-owned MQ-25 test asset, known as T1, as part of the Navy’s broader initiative to field unmanned systems that transform and enhance the fleet’s capability, capacity and lethality. The integrated Navy and Boeing MQ-25 team, in coordination with the F-35…
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Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group (VINCSG) and their embarked Air Wing of the Future, Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2, are operating in the South China Sea in order to uphold the free and open use of Indo-Pacific waters in support of security and stability in the region. This marks the first time that a carrier strike group is operating in…
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