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Posted on 06/21/2006 8:45:38 PM PDT by Paleo Conservative
As far as I understand, the only things to be changed at RERP are the motors, and yes, they have to go through AMP first (actually they have to go through EPSU - Emergency Power Supply Upgrade, before AMP, but that's separate,) in order to accommodate the digital controls. Any legacy systems that are changed during EPSU/AMP/RERP are changed as they show up failing. In fact, 84-0059 (the crashed C-5 at Dover) had just undergone AMP at Robins AFB (the C-5 depot since 1999) and while at AMP, it received a mini-depot inspection/overhaul, in which both APUs and all landing gears received extra care.
I can't believe I forgot to include that one. Also, the F-15 jet fuel starter as it shuts down when engines are started...that "whoot" sounds as it goes down an octave or more, is unmistakable.
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That's it, RBA - you think they'd be interested in me after I'd been off the platform for 12 years?? My hands still remember how to do the job.
Smart A$$.
But cool beans nonetheless.
A lot better plane than the A380, eh?
Er, yes, but ....
Are they building NEW airplanes (doesn't sound like it - especially from your description!) or re-building OLD ones to a "new" model number, but the same old body?
My son is on them at Travis now.
Probably in the same hanger. 8<)
So does my son.
Nope...no more C-5s are being built. In fact, some of the oldest A models are being sent to the Boneyard in Arizona, to have spare parts for the newer ones. All remaining C-5s (111 or so, of a total buy of 126, including the 6 that have been destroyed,) will be brought up to the M configuration...I wonder how they will re-designate the 2 C models, since they are mostly different from the rest.
Quite feasibly!
Flew in an old one in 1995 from Ramstein to Dover. Smoothest flight I have ever made. across the Atlantic and I have made more than a hundred.
That was my favorite Star Trek movie (The Journey Home) ... the idea of jumping into the future like the cetacean scientists did with her whales (George and Gracie) gets to me.
I wish I could address that. I can tell you, the C-17 is a direct descendant of the YC-15 of the 1970's. I am not an aeronautical engineer (disclaimer) but as I understand, the canards on the C-17's wingtips help create more lift, helping it handle short, tactical airfields; and would be quite difficult to retrofit to a C-5...nevermind that the C-5 isn't meant to hit those airfields.
On a separate note, a Boeing engineer on the C-17 I recently met told me the reason the engines on the C-17 stick out so far in front of the wing (compared to the C-5,) is to allow it to land on unimproved landing strips, like the C-130. The engines' position keeps them clear of any rocks that may be thrown up by the main landing gear tires. Also, the exhaust gets sooo hot, the flaps have to be reinforced with a titanium plate to prevent them from burning when deploying.
I flew on an 87 model from Moron Air Base, Spain, all the way to Travis Air Force Base, California, non-stop, without air refueling. Longest and smoothest flight I have had.
I would have never guessed that based on the engine noise of the TF-39's. I bet the CF6-80C2's will be much quieter both inside and outside the plane.
The first 11 planes off the assembly line were retired along with 3 that were picked based on statistical analysis of their maintenance records. Apparently the first few copies were not entirely standardized besides having the highest number of hours. Still the highest time C-5A's had less than 20,000 hours, and supposedly have 80% of their service life left. One of the 14 aircraft that was retired has been torn down and is being subjected to all sorts of laboratory testing to determine how much life is left in the remaining fleet. Prior to the beginning of studies on that aircraft, the Air Force was considering putting just the C-5B's and a few selected C-5A's through the AMP and RERP. From what I have read on another discussion website, the C-5's have lots of life left in them. The Air Force planned on converting 112 to the new C-5M standard (50 B, 60 A, and 2 C). Due to a crash of a C-5B with the AMP back in April, there will now only be 111 planes going through this process. The Air Force will buy 500 new engines so there will be plenty of spares for the fleet, and the engines are guranteed to have an on wing time of at least 10,000 hours.
The C-5s have a lot of life left in them, thanks to the replacement of the wing box that the A models received in the 80's, and due to the low age of the B models. Add to that the fact that they've never really engaged in the kind of tactical flying the old C-141s had to endure, and you get airframes with lots of service life left. The main NMC (non-mission capable) driver for the C-5 is the usual for the Air Force...parts availability.
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