X-46, wasn't mentioned but who needs an excuse?
Posted on 11/30/2003 7:33:52 PM PST by BenLurkin
In celebration of the past, the Air Force chief of staff got an eyeful of the present and future of flight at the world's premier flight test facility. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper visited Edwards Air Force Base on Nov. 22 as part of a Centennial of Flight celebration. The event featured aerial demonstrations and static displays of many of the current and future aircraft in the Air Force arsenal, and hosted members of the Eagles, distinguished aviators who have advanced the world of aerospace.
"What we have here is the trace of history, a bloodline of modern aviation," Jumper said.
"Edwards Air Force Base has a long history in the U.S. Air Force," he said. "What goes on here is extremely important."
Among those taking part in the recent weekend celebration was legendary pilot Chuck Yeager, who first broke the sound barrier in the skies above Edwards more than 50 years ago.
"I'm an ordinary guy," the World War II ace and famed test pilot said. "We didn't plan on breaking the sound barrier that day. We just did it."
"Everybody's got a duty to do and you do it."
Among the technologies on display included the F/A-22 Raptor, F-15 Strike Eagle, Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance vehicle, B-1B Lancer bomber and the experimental X-45 Joint Unmanned Combat Air System.
The displays, on the ground and in the air, "show the future of the Air Force, the potential for what the Air Force will be like in years ahead," said Maj. Gen. Doug Pearson, commander of the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards.
Although the war on terrorism and the threats posed with it may be different than those of the Cold War, the armed forces' preparations must still be far-reaching.
"The reality is we have to be able to deal with the spectrum of enemies," Jumper said, from the sophisticated technology devised by the former Soviet Union to the less advanced methods used by fighters in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq. Although the Soviet Union is more than a decade in the past, the other former superpower provided much of the dense and sophisticated "Triple-A" anti-aircraft artillery systems and their radar defenses, which are spread from the Middle East to the Balkans and Southwest Asia.
"History tells us we have to be ready to deal with the entire spectrum," he said.
That preparation involves not only the systems that deliver weaponry, but reconnaissance vehicles such as the Predator and even humanitarian missions performed by aircraft such as the C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft, which can deliver tons of food and medical supplies into remote regions in the developing world that have been stricken by famine or war.
As the world's premier flight test facility, Edwards will continue to play a role in the future Air Force, even as the service undergoes changes to meet future challenges.
Among the emerging technologies that will play a role in the Air Force of the future are unmanned systems, such as those under development at Edwards in the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System program.
That's to say UCAVs are the flying robots that can reduce the risk to combat pilots.
"I think there's a lot we have to learn" before such systems are commonplace, Jumper said. For example, the systems will first have to be able to provide their own defenses and perform aerial refueling.
The unmanned systems are seen as valuable for their ability to deliver weapons in ways manned vehicles cannot.
"The thing we really cherish most about our UAVs is the ability to stay in the air for a long time," Jumper said.
In the more traditional realm of fighters, the F/A-22 is nearing operational status, to glowing reviews by those pilots who have flown it, although some critics question the need for the expensive aircraft, some calling it a relic of Cold War thinking.
But the plane's performance embodies the characteristics needed to sustain dominance of the air war environment.
Combat veterans "are absolutely astounded" by the Raptor, Jumper said. "They've never seen anything like it before."
The F/A-22 demonstrated some of its attributes during the day's aerial performance.
"They don't show you more because I won't let them," Jumper said following the demonstration. "If they did, it would really be eye-watering."
Other upcoming additions to the Air Force going through their paces at Edwards are the CV-22 tilt-rotor aircraft and the Airborne Laser.
Tilt-rotor is that still developing, cutting-edge technology of combining the flight envelope of a cargo and troop carrying airplane with the hovering abilities of a helicopter.
The Airborne Laser is being developed to further the development of being able to attack targets in space, ranging from satellites to, perhaps, incoming missiles.
"These are things that are all very exciting," Jumper said.
The service's emphasis on space is also growing, not only with new hardware, but in replacing aging systems that have been in orbit as long as 40 years.
Jumper also addressed the upcoming round of the Base Realignment and Closure process, scheduled for 2005. Specific guidelines directing the process are expected to be released by the end of the year.
"There's no doubt there will be some reductions," Jumper said. "We need to make reductions" in order to make better use of resources, he said.
Many of the day's honored guests arrived on a C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft from the Long Beach facility where the hulking aircraft are built. A morning tour of the Boeing plant and meeting with the employees there kicked off the day's activities.
X-46, wasn't mentioned but who needs an excuse?
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