United States Department of Defense - C-130 Hercules

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft and the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide. Over 40 models and variants of the Hercules serve with more than 50 nations. In December 2006, the C-130 became the fourth aircraft – after the English Electric Canberra in May 2001, the B-52 Stratofortress in January 2005 and the Tupolev Tu-95 in January 2006 – to mark 50 years of continuous use with its original primary customer, in this case the United States Air Force. The C-130 remains in production as the updated C-130J Super Hercules.

Capable of short takeoffs and landings from unprepared runways, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation and cargo transport aircraft. The versatile airframe has found uses in a variety of other roles, including as a gunship, and for airborne assault, search and rescue, scientific research support, weather reconnaissance, aerial refuelling and aerial firefighting. The Hercules family has the longest continuous production run of any military aircraft in history. During more than 50 years of service the family has participated in military, civilian and humanitarian aid operations.

The Korean War, which began in June, 1950, showed that World War II-era transports—C-119 Flying Boxcars, C-47 Skytrains and C-46 Commandos—were inadequate for modern warfare. Thus, on February 2, 1951, the United States Air Force issued a General Operating Requirement (GOR) for a new transport to Boeing, Douglas, Fairchild, Lockheed, Martin, Chase Aircraft, North American Northrop, and Airlifts Inc. The new transport would have a capacity for 92 passengers, 72 combat troops or 64 paratroopers, a range of 1,100 nautical miles (2,000 km), takeoff capability from short and unprepared strips, and the ability to fly with one engine shut down.

Fairchild, North American, Martin and Northrop declined to participate. The remaining five companies tendered a total of ten designs: Lockheed two, Boeing one, Chase three, Douglas three, Airlifts Inc one. The contest was a close affair between the lighter of the two Lockheed (preliminary project designation L-206) proposals and a four-turboprop Douglas design. The Lockheed design team was led by Willis Hawkins starting with a 130 page proposal for the Lockheed L-206 and another two-turboprop and heavier one.Hall Hibbard, Lockheed vice president and chief engineer, saw the proposal and directed it to Kelly Johnson, who remarked when he saw the proposal, "If you sign that letter, you will destroy the Lockheed Company." Both Hibbard and Johnson signed the proposal and the company won the contract for the now-designated Model 82 on July 2, 1951.

United States Department of Defense - Boeing VC-25 "Air Force One"

Air Force One

The Boeing VC-25 is the designation of a United States Air Force passenger transportation aircraft, a military version of the Boeing 747.

The VC-25 is most famous for its role as Air Force One, the callsign of any U.S. Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. The two aircraft currently in U.S. service are highly modified versions of Boeing's 747-200B, with tail numbers 28000 and 29000. Although the Air Force One designation technically applies to the planes only while the President is aboard, the term is commonly applied to the VC-25As more generally. They often operate in conjunction with Marine One, the helicopter which ferries the President to airports in circumstances where a vehicle motorcade would be inappropriate.

United States Department of Defense - C-17 Globemaster III

The Boeing (formerly McDonnell Douglas) C-17 Globemaster III is an American strategic airlifter manufactured by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems, and operated by the United States Air Force, British Royal Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force, and the Canadian Forces Air Command. NATO also has plans to acquire the airlifter.

The C-17 Globemaster III is capable of rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo to main operating bases or directly to forward bases in the deployment area. It is also capable of performing tactical airlift, medical evacuation and airdrop missions. The C-17 takes its name from two previous United States cargo aircraft, the C-74 Globemaster and the C-124 Globemaster II.

In the 1970s, the US Air Force began looking for a replacement for the C-130 Hercules tactical airlifter. The Advanced Medium STOL Transport (AMST) competition was held, with Boeing proposing the YC-14, and McDonnell Douglas proposing the YC-15. Despite both entrants exceeding specified requirements, the AMST competition was canceled before a winner had been selected.

By the early 1980s, the USAF found itself with a large fleet of aging C-141 Starlifter cargo aircraft. Some of the C-141s had major structural problems due to heavy use. Compounding matters, USAF historically never possessed sufficient strategic airlift capabilities to fulfill its airlift requirements. In response, McDonnell Douglas elected to develop a new aircraft using the YC-15 as the basis. McDonnell Douglas was awarded a contract to build its proposed aircraft, by then designated the C-17A Globemaster III, on August 28, 1981. The new aircraft differed in having swept wings, increased size, and more powerful engines. This would allow it to perform all work performed by the C-141, but to also fulfill some of the duties of the C-5 Galaxy, freeing the C-5 fleet for larger outsize cargo.

Development continued until December 1985 when a full-scale production contract was signed for 210 aircraft. Development problems and limited funding caused delays in the late 1980s. Questions were also raised about more cost-effective alternatives during this time. In April 1990, Defense Secretary Richard Cheney reduced the order from 210 to 120 aircraft. The C-17's maiden flight was on September 15, 1991 from the McDonnell Douglas west coast plant in Long Beach, California, about a year behind schedule. This aircraft (T-1) and five more production models (P1-P5) participated in extensive flight testing and evaluation at Edwards AFB. In late 1993, the DoD gave the contractor two years to solve production and cost overrun problems or face termination of the contract after the delivery of the fortieth aircraft. By accepting the 1993 terms, McDonnell Douglas incurred a loss of nearly US$1.5 billion on the development phase of the program.

In April 1994, the C-17 program was still experiencing cost overruns, and did not meet weight, fuel burn, payload and range specifications. Airflow issues caused problems with parachutes and there were various other technical problems with mission software, landing gear, etc.A July 1994 GAO document revealed that to justify investing in the C-17 rather than in the C-5, Air Force and DoD studies from 1986 and 1991 had claimed that the C-17 could use 6,400 more runways (outside the US) than the C-5. It was later discovered that this study had only considered the runway dimensions, but not their strength or Load Classification Numbers (LCN). The C-5 has a lower LCN than the C-17, although the US Air Force places both in the same broad Load Classification Group (LCG). When considering runway dimensions and their load ratings, the C-17's worldwide runway advantage over the C-5 shrank from 6,400 to 911 airfields.However, the C-17's ability to use lower quality, austere airfields was not considered.

A January 1995 GAO report revealed that while the original C-17 budget was US$41.8 billion for 210 aircraft, the 120 aircraft already ordered at that point had already cost US$39.5 billion. In March 1994, the U.S. Army had decided it no longer needed the 60,000 lb (27,000 kg) Low Altitude Parachute Extraction System (LAPES) delivery that the C-17 was supposed to provide, feeling that the 42,000 lb (19,000 kg) capability of the C-130 Hercules was sufficient. It was decided not to conduct C-17 LAPES training beyond the testing of a 42,000 lb (19,000 kg) LAPES delivery. There were still airflow problems making it impossible for the C-17 to meet its original airdrop requirements. A February 1997 GAO Report revealed that a C-17 with a full payload could not land on 3,000 feet (900 m) wet runways, for simulations suggested 5,000 ft (1,500 m) was required.

By the mid-1990s, most of the problems had been resolved. The first C-17 squadron was declared operational by the U.S. Air Force in January 1995. In 1996, DoD ordered another 80 aircraft for a total of 120. In 1997 McDonnell Douglas merged with its former competitor, Boeing. In 1998, the order was increased to 134 units and in August 2002 to 180.

In July 2006, C-17A production was planned to end in 2009 unless Boeing received a follow-on order in sufficient time to allow the production pipeline to remain in operation. If such an order is placed, Boeing would begin C-17B production in 2010. The proposed C-17B would be capable of landing on sandy beaches and other areas off-limits to the C-17A.

On August 18, 2006 Boeing announced it was telling suppliers to stop work on parts for uncommitted C-17s. This move is the first step in shutting down production if no new plane orders were received from the US Government. However, just one month later on September 21, a House and Senate conference committee approved a US$447 billion defense bill for 2007, that includes US$2.1 billion for 10 additional C-17s – which is seven more planes than either chamber originally approved in separate versions of their funding language. The additional purchase follows intense lobbying by Boeing, as well as by California state leaders (where the plane is manufactured), and Missouri leaders, where Boeing's defense business is based. However, this extends the life of the program for only one additional year, to 2010.

On March 2, 2007, Boeing announced the C-17 production line may end in mid-2009 due to the lack of additional US government and international orders.
A total of 190 C-17s are contracted for delivery to the USAF as of October 24, 2007. Efforts are underway to add a further 10 C-17s to a funding/supplemental bill so that production may be extended to 2010 and to allow for further potential FMS purchases to take effect.

United States Department of Defense - C-5 Galaxy

The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is an American military transport aircraft built by Lockheed. It was designed to provide strategic heavy airlift over intercontinental distances and to carry outsize and oversize cargo. The C-5 Galaxy has been operated by the United States Air Force since 1969 and is one of the largest military aircraft in the world.
In 1961, several aircraft companies began studying heavy jet transport designs that would replace the C-133 transport and complement C-141 Starlifters. In addition to higher overall performance, the US Army wanted a transport with a larger cargo bay than the C-141, whose interior was too small to carry a variety of their outsized equipment. These studies led to the "CX-4" design concept, but in 1962 the proposed six-engine design was rejected, because it was not viewed as a significant advance over the C-141.

By late 1963, the next conceptual design was named CX-X. It was equipped with four engines, instead of six engines in the earlier CX-4 concept. The CX-X had a gross weight of 550,000 pounds (249,000 kg), a maximum payload of 180,000 pounds (81,600 kg) and a speed of Mach 0.75 (500 mph/805 km/h). The cargo compartment was 17.2 feet (5.24 m) wide by 13.5 feet (4.11 m) high and 100 feet (30.5 m) long with front and rear access doors. In order to provide the required power and range with only four engines, a new engine with dramatically improved fuel economy would be needed.

The criteria were finalized and an official Request for Proposal was sent out in April 1964 for the "Heavy Logistics System" (CX-HLS) (previously CX-X). In May 1964, proposals for aircraft were received from Boeing, Douglas, General Dynamics, Lockheed, and Martin Marietta. Proposals for engines were received from General Electric, Curtiss-Wright Corporation, and Pratt & Whitney. After a downselect, Boeing, Douglas and Lockheed were given additional study contracts for the airframe, along with General Electric and Pratt and Whitney for the engines.

All three of the designs shared a number of features. In particular, all three placed the cockpit well above the cargo area so that in a crash the cargo would not crush the crew as it moved forward. The Boeing and Douglas designs used a "pod" on the top of the fuselage containing the the cockpit, while the Lockheed design extended the cockpit line the length of the fuselage, giving it an egg-shaped cross section. All of the designs featured swept wings, T-tails, and front and rear cargo doors allowing simultaneous loading and unloading.

In 1965 Lockheed's aircraft design and General Electric's engine design were selected for the new transport.

United States Department of Defense - B-52 Stratofortress

The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered, strategic bomber flown by the United States Air Force (USAF) since 1955.

Beginning with the successful contract bid on 5 June 1946, the B-52 went through several designs, from a straight wing aircraft powered by six turboprop engines, to the final prototype, YB-52 (with 8 engines), which first flew on 15 April 1952 by "Tex" Johnston.

Built to carry nuclear weapons for Cold War-era deterrence missions, the B-52 Stratofortress replaced the Convair B-36. Although a veteran of a number of wars, the Stratofortress has dropped only conventional munitions in actual combat. With the longest unrefuelled range of any contemporary bomber, the B-52 carries up to 70,000 pounds of weapons.

The USAF has had B-52s in active service since 1955 with Strategic Air Command and were later absorbed into Air Combat Command in 1992. Superior performance at high subsonic speeds and relatively low operating costs have kept the B-52 in service despite proposals to replace it with the Mach 3 XB-70 Valkyrie, supersonic B-1B Lancer and stealthy B-2 Spirit. In January 2005, the B-52 became the second aircraft, after the English Electric Canberra, to mark 50 years of continuous service with its original primary operator.

On 23 November 1945, Air Materiel Command (AMC) issued desired performance characteristics for a new strategic bomber "capable of carrying out the strategic mission without dependence upon advanced and intermediate bases controlled by other countries".The aircraft was to have a crew of five plus turret gunners, and a six-man relief crew. It had to cruise at 300 Miles per hour (240 kn, 480 km/h) at 34,000 feet (10,400 m) with a combat radius of 5,000 statute miles (4,300 nmi, 8,000 km). The armament was to consist of an unspecified number of 20 mm cannon and 10,000 pounds (4,500 kg) of bombs. On 13 February 1946, the Air Force issued bid invitations for these specifications, with Boeing, Consolidated Aircraft, and Glenn L. Martin Company submitting proposals.


On 5 June 1946, Boeing's Model 462, a straight-wing aircraft powered by six Wright T-35 turboprops with a gross weight of 360,000 pounds (160,000 kg) and combat radius of 3,110 statute miles (2,700 nmi, 5,010 km), was declared the winner.On 28 June 1946, Boeing was issued a letter of contract for US$1.7 million (1946 dollars) to build a full-scale mock-up of the new XB-52 and do preliminary engineering and testing. However, by October 1946, the Air Force began to express concern about the sheer size of the new aircraft and its inability to meet the specified design requirements. In response, Boeing produced Model 464, a smaller four-engine version with a 230,000 pound (105,000 kg) gross weight, which was briefly deemed acceptable.

Then, in November 1946, the Deputy Chief of Air Staff for Research and Development Curtis LeMay expressed the desire for a cruise speed of 400 miles per hour (345 kn, 645 km/h), to which Boeing responded with a 300,000 pound (140,000 kg) aircraft. In December 1946, Boeing was asked to change their design to a four-engine bomber with a top speed of 400 miles per hour, range of 12,000 statute miles (10,000 nmi, 19,000 km), and the ability to carry a nuclear weapon. The aircraft could weigh up to 480,000 pounds (220,000 kg). Boeing responded with two models powered by the T-35 turboprops. The Model 464-16 was a "nuclear-only" bomber with a 10,000 pound payload, while the Model 464-17 was a general purpose bomber with a 90,000 pound (40,000 kg) payload. Due to the cost associated with purchasing two specialized aircraft, the Air Force selected Model 464-17 with the understanding that it could be adapted for nuclear strikes.

In June 1947 the military requirements were updated and the Model 464-17 met all of them except for the range. It was becoming obvious to the Air Force that, even with the updated performance, the XB-52 would be obsolete by the time it entered production and would offer little improvement over the Convair B-36. As the result, the entire project was put on hold for six months. During this time, Boeing continued to perfect the design which resulted in the Model 464-29 with a top speed of 455 miles per hour (395 kn, 730 km/h) and a 5,000-mile range. In September 1947, the Heavy Bombardment Committee was convened to ascertain performance requirements for a nuclear bomber. Formalized on 8 December 1947, these called for a top speed of 500 miles per hour (440 kn, 800 km/h) and an 8,000 statute mile (7,000 nmi, 13,000 km) range, far beyond the capabilities of 464-29.

The outright cancellation of the Boeing contract on 11 December 1947 was staved off by a plea from its president William McPherson Allen, and in January 1948 Boeing was instructed to thoroughly explore recent technological innovations, including aerial refueling and the flying wing. Noting stability and control problems Northrop was experiencing with their YB-35 and YB-49 flying wing bombers, Boeing insisted on a conventional aircraft, and in April 1948 presented a US$30 million (1948 dollars) proposal for design, construction, and testing of two Model 464-35 prototypes. Further revisions of specifications during 1948 resulted in an aircraft with a top speed of 513 miles per hour (445 kn, 825 km/h) at 35,000 feet (10,700 m), a range of 6,909 statute miles (6,005 nmi, 11,125 km), and a 280,000 pounds (125,000 kg) gross weight which included 10,000 pounds of bombs and 19,875 US gallons (75,225 L) of fuel.

United States Department of Defense - B-2 Spirit

The Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit is a multi-role stealth heavy bomber, capable of deploying both conventional and nuclear weapons. It is operated exclusively by the United States Air Force. Its development was a milestone in the modernization program of the U.S. Department of Defense. The B-2's stealth technology is intended to aid the aircraft's penetration role in order to survive extremely dense anti-aircraft defenses otherwise considered impenetrable by combat aircraft.

The B-2 started life as a black project known as the High Altitude Penetrating Bomber (HAPB), then became the Advanced Technology Bomber (ATB), which became the B-2 Spirit. The bomber's design was changed in the mid-1980s when its mission profile was changed from high-altitude to low-altitude, terrain following. The redesign delayed the B-2's first flight by two years and added about $1 billion to the program's cost.[4] An estimated US$23 billion was secretly spent for research and development on the B-2 in the 1980s.[citation needed]

The first B-2 was publicly displayed on 22 November 1988, when it was rolled out of its hangar at Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, California, where it was built. Its first public flight was on 17 July 1989. The B-2 Combined Test Force, Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, California, is responsible for flight testing the engineering, manufacturing and development aircraft.


The original procurement of 132 aircraft was later reduced to 75 in the late 1980s. In his 1992 State of the Union Address, President George H.W. Bush announced total B-2 production would be limited to 20 aircraft, with a total inventory of 21 by upgrading the first test aircraft to B-2A Block 30 standard.This reduction was largely a result of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, which effectively rendered void the Spirit's primary mission.

The cost of the B-2 program in 1994 dollars was reported at $737 million per plane; however, the total cost of the program with development, spares, and facilities averaged over $2.1 billion per plane as of 1997 according to the B-2 program office.

Northrop made a proposal to the USAF in the late 1990s to build additional aircraft for ~$550M each. This more accurately reflects the per aircraft cost if the full order had been manufactured. The high development costs included: another stealth prototype (now at the USAF museum), security costs which included inefficiencies of separating design teams, the development of a computer aided design system which requires no paper (it was the first aircraft so designed), a totally computerized manufacturing control system (the first of its kind), and a computerized maintenance system to help crew chiefs with the most complex aircraft yet made.

Armament

* 2 internal bays for 50,000 lb (22,700 kg) of ordnance.[25]
o 80× 500 lb class bombs (Mk-82) mounted on Bomb Rack Assembly (BRA)
o 36× 750 lb CBU class bombs on BRA
o 16× 2000 lb class weapons (Mk-84, JDAM-84, JDAM-102) mounted on Rotary Launcher Assembly (RLA)
o 16× B61 or B83 nuclear weapons on RLA

United States Department of Defense - B-1 Lancer

The B-1 Lancer is an American supersonic strategic bomber with variable-sweep wings. Its origins began in the 1960s as a supersonic bomber with sufficient range and payload to replace the B-52 Stratofortress. The B-1B production version has been in service with the United States Air Force (USAF) since 1986. The Lancer serves as the supersonic-capable component of the USAF's long-range bomber force, with the subsonic B-52 and B-2 Spirit. As with several official popular names, the Lancer is commonly called the "Bone" (originally from "B-One") within the USAF. With the retirement of the EF-111 Raven in 1998 and the F-14 Tomcat in 2006, the B-1B is the last variable-sweep wing aircraft remaining in U.S. military inventory.

Variants

B-1A/B

The B-1A was original B-1 design with variable engine intakes and Mach 2.2 top speed. Four prototypes were built.

The B-1B is the improved B-1 design with reduced radar signature and a top speed of Mach 1.25. A total of 100 B-1B were produced.

B-1R

The B-1R is a proposed replacement for the B-1B fleet. Boeing's director of global strike integration, Rich Parke, was first quoted about the "B-1R" bomber in Air Force Magazine. Parke said the B-1R (R stands for "regional") would be a Lancer with advanced radars, air-to-air missiles, and Pratt & Whitney F119 engines (originally developed for the F-22 Raptor). Its new top speed of Mach 2.2 would be purchased at the price of a 20% reduction of the B-1B's combat range. This proposal would involve modifying existing aircraft. The FB-22 and YF-23-based design are alternative proposals.


Boeing's proposal appears to modify the B-1B into a design able to serve these two purposes. For the bomb-truck role Boeing proposes the modification of existing external hardpoints to allow them to carry multiple conventional warheads, dramatically improving overall warload. For the air-to-air role, both defensive and offensive, they propose to add active electronically-scanned array radar and allow some of the hardpoints to carry AA missiles. Even with its somewhat reduced range as compared to the original B-1B, its fuel capacity remains quite large. This would allow it to escape from unfavorable air-to-air encounters by simply running away; there are few enough aircraft capable of Mach 2.2 performance in general, and those that are deployed can maintain these speeds for only very short periods of time.

In general terms the B-1R most closely resembles the original F-111 concept, as opposed to a pure bomber role. However it would be able to carry out these missions at ranges even greater than the F-111.