Gotta love it.... What a novel concept!!
Posted on 04/16/2010 8:08:29 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
Israeli-designed helmet-mounted display unit has been included in the first mission systems-equipped flight of the Joint Strike Fighter. Lockheed Martin has used the Israeli-designed HMDS in a test flight on April 7 of the F-35 stealth fighter. L-M said the helmet-mounted display system, designed by Israel's Elbit Systems, marked the first time an F-35 was flown with mission systems.
"Today's flight initiates a level of avionics capability that no fighter has ever achieved," L-M's F-35 deputy program manager Eric Branyan said. "The F-35's next-generation sensor suite enables a new capability for multi-role aircraft, collecting vast amounts of data and fusing the information into a single, highly comprehensible display that will enable the pilot to make faster and more effective tactical decisions."
The 45-minute flight contained F-35 avionics as well as an array of off-board sensors. L-M said one of the systems was HMDS by Vision Systems International, a subsidiary of Elbit.
"Helmet with integrated, virtual head-up display, targeting information, look-shoot capability and video/night vision projected onto the helmet visor," L-M said.
L-M said HMDS and other mission systems demonstrated nearly 100 percent commonality. Executives said the helmet-mounted unit would be tested for the F-35 BF-4 short takeoff/vertical landing aircraft.
"High avionics commonality is an enabler of rapid training, interoperability, and lower production and support costs," L-M said. "F-35 software has demonstrated remarkable stability, and sensors have met or exceeded performance predictions."
In March 2010, the General Accountability Office, the watchdog agency of Congress, said HMDS was encountering problems of commonality. The excised report did not elaborate.
But L-M did not cite any problems with HMDS. The company said the display system was operating smoothly on the basis of advanced software developed for JSF.
(Excerpt) Read more at geostrategy-direct.com ...
Gotta love it.... What a novel concept!!
Waayyy off topic, but I’ve often thought that it was only a matter of time before some of the top-end motorcycles came with matching helmets that had HUDs built in to them.
Lockheed Martin has used the Israeli-designed HMDS in a test flight on April 7 of the F-35 stealth fighter. L-M said the helmet-mounted display system, designed by Israel's Elbit Systems, marked the first time an F-35 was flown with mission systems. "Today's flight initiates a level of avionics capability that no fighter has ever achieved," L-M's F-35 deputy program manager Eric Branyan said.Thanks sonofstrangelove.
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