Air Force officials say test pilots and engineers at Edwards AFB, Calif., have completed testing that posed significant risk—shutting down one engine while taking off in a T-38 aircraft. Officials say the last time the USAF test crew ran single engine takeoff speed (called SETOS) testing on the trainer was 1966, well before modifications to the propulsion system. The tests, which lasted more than a year, simulated loss of one of the T-38’s two engines at about 130 knots, immediately after the initial takeoff roll. As modification manager for T-38s, the Ogden Air Logistics Center, Hill AFB, Utah, worked closely with Edwards to develop new safety procedures for the enhanced trainer.
The Air Force has selected Collins Aerospace and Shield AI to develop the software Collaborative Combat Aircraft will use to fly missions alongside manned fighters, the service revealed Feb. 12—and drone-maker General Atomics was quick to announce it has already flown its YFQ-42A aircraft with Collins’ system.
