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USAF depot keeps T-38s in the air |
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Wednesday, 22 October 2008 |
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USAF engineers are developing a new aileron actuator lever for the T-38 Talon.
A US Air Force (USAF) squadron is working to develop a new part for the T-38 Talon training aircraft.
Members of the 573rd Commodities Maintenance Squadron at Robins Air Force Base (AFB) in Georgia are making a new aileron actuator lever for the T-38, which is used to train pilots.
In April a T-38 crashed killing the instructor and a student and a faulty aileron lever was declared as a factor in the crash.
All aircraft in the fleet would have needed to be grounded as a result but the Air Force Material Command has tasked three of its depots with developing a replacement lever.
The squadron at the Robins AFB has been designated the task of producing 250 left-hand and 250 right-hand levers and is currently doing so at a rate of 50 per week.
The levers control the ailerons - the hinged control surfaces which are located on the rear of each wing and are used to turn the plane.
Last week, the USAF Office of Scientific Research announced that it will award $12.1 million (£7.4 million) in funding grants to 39 scientists and engineers who submitted winning study proposals to its Young Investigator research programme. |
