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planes

The first Japanese MV-22 OSPREY crew chief is Sgt. 1st Class Midsru Miyazaki

by Till Daisd July 19, 2021

Miyazaki studied the ground service and knowledge portion of the Osprey in order to learn about the mindset necessary to become a crew commander

Currently conducting training with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMMT) 204 at Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) New River, Sgt. 1st Class Midsru Miyazaki is poised to become the first person from Japan to command an MV-22.

“It feels great to be out here on his first flight, it’s a momentous occasion,” said Marine Staff Sgt. Andrew Davison, a crew chief assigned to VMMT-204. “I’ve heard great things about what Miyazaki [has] done during the classroom portion. I think he is going to have a lot to offer the MV-22 community.”

Miyazaki entered the military in 2002 to serve his country, as stated by Lance Cpl. Justin Roux in his article, “First Japanese MV-22 Osprey Crew Chief.“

Sgt. 1st CLASS MIDSRU MIYAZAKI WILL BE FIRST JAPANESE MV-22 OSPREY CREW CHIEF

“I’m so excited; I’m very honored to be here on the flight as the first Japanese crew chief,” pointed out Miyazaki.

Miyazaki studied the ground service and knowledge portion of the Osprey in order to learn about the mindset required to become a crew commander.

Miyazaki was the crew chief for the CH-47 Chinook in the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force prior to this assignment.

“From what I understand with his history and his background, he is a prior crew member on another platform for the Japanese military,” pointed out Davison. “Having that experience and bringing it over to what he is learning to the MV-22 is going to be a great help for him as he moves on with the rest of his career and moving on to possibly be an instructor for the MV-22 on the Japanese military.”

To enable more training possibilities, Miyazaki emphasized the need of cooperation between the United States and Japan.

A statement was confirmed also by Davison who claims “I think it’s highly important to have a good relationship with other military branches. I think this is going to show the Japanese government what the MV-22 has to offer and I think this is going to work out really well.”

According to Miyazaki, there are not many differences between Japanese education and that of the Marine Corps.

“I want to bring back the experience, the spirit, and the knowledge for my education program,” he said.

Photo by Cpl. Jason Jimenez, Lance Cpl. Justin Roux Lance and Cpl. Miranda Faughn / U.S. Marine Corps

July 19, 2021 0 comment

Military

USAF will extend the F-16’s operational life to 2048

by Till Daisd July 19, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The F-16 Block 42-52 aircraft’s planned service life has been extended by the USAF to 12,000 equivalent flight hours

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) allowed Lockheed Martin to extend the F-16 Block 42-52 aircraft’s planned service life to 12,000 equivalent flight hours on April 12, 2017.

The aircraft’s initial design service life was 8,000 hours, therefore this adds another 4,000 hours to it.

The F-16 Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) structural upgrades, according to the company press release, will enable each aircraft to continue flying until 2048 and beyond.

The Block 40-52 fleet’s estimated service life costs were also decreased by the Air Force and Lockheed Martin, setting the way for decades of safe and economical F-16 flight operations.

“This accomplishment is the result of more than seven years of test, development, design, analysis, and partnership between the U.S. Air Force and Lockheed Martin,” explained Susan Ouzts, vice president of Lockheed Martin’s F-16 program. “Combined with F-16 avionics modernization programs like the F-16V, SLEP modifications demonstrate that the Fighting Falcon remains a highly capable and affordable 4th Generation option for the U.S. Air Force and international F-16 customers.”

The SLEP goal of extending the service life of up to 300 F-16C/D Block 40-52 aircraft is directly aided by the validation of the increased flying hour restriction. In fact, when U.S. and ally combat air fleets recapitalize with F-35 Lightning IIs through SLEP and related avionics improvements, USAF F-16C/D fleet may safely and efficiently reinforce the current fighter force structure.

In the upcoming months, a Military Type Certificate (MTC) will be submitted to the Air Force’s Technical Airworthiness Authority and sought as part of the F-16 SLEP’s Part II airworthiness process. This extra stage aims to confirm that the operating life of the F-16 can be further extended based on the results of the extended durability testing.

With 28 customers worldwide, the F-16 continues to establish itself as the most effective, combat-tested multi-role fighter aircraft in the world, according to Lockheed Martin. Actually, the F-16 Block 70/72, the newest and most advanced F-16 production configuration, combines capability and structural upgrades to create the most advanced F-16 production aircraft ever offered. The F-16V, the latest F-16 avionics upgrade configuration, includes numerous enhancements designed to keep the F-16 at the forefront of international security.

Photo by Senior Master Sgt. John P. Rohrer / U.S. Air National Guard and Senior Airman Chris Drzazgowski / U.S. Air Force

July 19, 2021 0 comment

Accidents and equipments

The F-15 “Franken Eagle” of the Israeli Air Force

by Till Daisd July 15, 2021

written by Till Daisd

The F-15’s central and rear parts were damaged beyond repair, according to the first accident report

A badly damaged Israeli Air Force (IAF) dual-seater F-15 Baz (Falcon, as the F-15 Eagle is dubbed by IAF) fighter jet returned to service with parts coming from a single-seater F-15.

The aircraft, which belonged to the “Edge of the Spear” Squadron, took off from Tel-Nof AFB in June 2011 and was hit by a flock of pelicans when it reached 3,000 feet. Its crew immediately attempted an emergency landing, severely damaging the aircraft’s rear area.

The F-15’s middle and back sections were destroyed beyond repair as a result of the engine burning, according to the first accident report.

According to Iaf.org.il, the Aerial Maintenance Unit (AMU) employees who have worked on the plane since 2014 discovered a solution to get it back in the air by removing the damaged twin-forward seater’s fuselage section and connecting it to a single-seat F-15 that has been in storage for 20 years. “A single-seater F-15 jet, tail number 314, was in storage at Ovda AFB. We removed its cockpit and connected the cockpit of the two-seater to the fuselage of the older F-15. The cockpit of the two-seater is more advanced and includes all of the upgrades performed in the IAF’s new jets,” said Lt. Col. Maxim Orgad, Commander of the AMU’s Engineering Department. Despite the fact that they are both F-15s, the aircraft are not identical, making the connection between them unclear, as Orgad pointed out. “It was a borderline impossible job; we had to map every wire and understand where they fit and which system they belong to.”

In August 2016, the fully rebuilt Baz completed its final series of tests in the AMU before being transferred to the IAF Flight Test Center (FTC), where the F-15 completed its first test flight, as shown in the photo in this post. Lt. Col. Rotem, who was also the mishap pilot during the bird attack, piloted the plane.

The jet returned to service after the flying testing was finished.

The restoration of the F-15, according to Lt. Col. Orgad, was a difficult yet rewarding task. “This is a challenging project engineering-wise. We studied the jet’s systems and structure and figured out the correct solution. In addition, this project gives the engineers pride and motivation. They built a jet from scratch.”

It’s worth noting that this wasn’t the only “Frankenstein conversion”: on September 21, 2009, the Finnish Air Force presented an F-18D Hornet, serially NH-468, which was built from a single-seat F-18C seriously damaged in a mid-air collision.

The “FrankenHornet” was tragically lost during flight testing on January 21, 2010.

Photo by Adar Yahalom via Israeli Air Force website

July 15, 2021 0 comment

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