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Marines' new Sea Stallion won't have to borrow spares
[DoD Buzz] FARNBOROUGH, England -- Under the hood of the much-anticipated CH-53K King Stallion helicopter is a slew of smart systems that will help maintainers keep it flying faster and safer, the Navy’s program executive officer for air, anti-submarine warfare, assault and special mission programs said this week.Speaking at the Farnborough International Airshow on Tuesday, Rear Adm. Dean Peters said the King Stallion, built by the Lockheed Martin Corp.-owned Sikorsky and set to hit the Marine Corps fleet in 2019, would come with native health usage and monitoring systems and enhanced logistics tracking capability that would allow the aircraft to tell the crew when a part was failing or needed maintenance well ahead of a crisis point. This advanced tech, he said, would allow maintainers to request parts further in advance. "It’s similar to the technology that’s used in commercial department stores, so we understand when components are failing or about to fail and we have the part ready and we don’t have to rob that from another aircraft and create more maintenance," Peters said. The aircraft will also come equipped with a high-durability gearbox that are expected to keep the aircraft out of maintenance for longer periods, a key concern now as the Marine Corps grapples with a fleet of heavy-lift helicopters that is largely unfit to fly. These are just a few ways of many that the King Stallion is expected to save the Marines’ aging CH-53 Echo Super Stallion fleet. Posted by: Besoeker 2016-07-15 |
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