INDUSTRY NEWS
Boeing Delivers First F/A-18 Service Life Modification Jet to U.S. Navy
— The first Service Life Modification (SLM) F/A-18E/F Super Hornet rolled off the
production line in St. Louis, marking a major milestone for the U.S. Navy.
After undergoing Department of Defense operational readiness review
inspections, the jet was released to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 106 on
January 21, fully mission capable, and successfully completed a functional
flight check within just three business days of arrival. The first SLM jet
underwent various inspections, modifications, and repairs before being restored
to mission capable status. These modifications extended the service life for
this jet to 7,500 flight hours. Currently, 15 aircraft have been inducted into
SLM with another two inductions scheduled in the month of February. Prior to
undergoing SLM, Super Hornets’ service life is 6,000 flight hours. As SLM ramps up over the next two years,
the mission capable rates will hold steady with delivery on new Block III
aircraft from the production line. In March 2019, the Navy awarded Boeing a
multi-year contract to build 78 new F/A-18E/F Block III Super Hornets fit to
fly for 10,000 service hours, which provides the fleet with the latest advances
while SLM continues to mature.
NASA Funds Demonstration of Assembly and Manufacturing in Space
— NASA has awarded a $142 million contract to Maxar Technologies of Westminster,
Colorado, to robotically assemble a communications antenna and manufacture a
spacecraft beam in orbit. The technology demonstration is slated to take place
on NASA’s Restore-L spacecraft, designed to service and refuel a satellite in low-Earth
orbit. The Restore-L spacecraft will be modified to accommodate a payload
called Space Infrastructure Dexterous Robot (SPIDER). The payload includes a
lightweight 16-foot robotic arm. Previously known as Dragonfly during the
ground demonstration phase of the NASA Tipping Point partnership, SPIDER will
assemble seven elements to form a functional 9-foot (3-meter) communications
antenna. The robotically assembled antenna will demonstrate Ka-band
transmission with a ground station. The payload also will manufacture a 32-foot
lightweight composite beam using technology developed by Tethers Unlimited of
Bothell, Washington. The manufacturing element of the demonstration will verify
the capability to construct large spacecraft structures in orbit. The SPIDER
payload team includes Maxar, Tethers Unlimited, West Virginia Robotic
Technology Center in Morgantown, and NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.
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