The Navy successfully test launched three Trident ballistic missiles with a 3-D printed part fabricated by Lockheed Martin engineers March 14-16. The digital process used to make the piece—an inch-long aluminum alloy “connector backshell” that protects cable connectors inside the missile—allowed the engineers to design and fabricate the part in less than half the time it would have taken using older methods, according to a Lockheed release. The Navy launched the unarmed Trident II D5 Fleet ballistic missiles from a submarine submerged in the Atlantic Ocean. Air Force Materiel Command chief Gen. Ellen Pawlikowski considers 3-D printing to be one of the biggest “game changers” in the coming decade because the technology enables engineers to quickly produce previously unavailable replacement parts. Last year, the Air Force tested 3-D printed “micro-drones.”
The six-week government shutdown did not affect the hours flown by Air Force pilots, a service spokesperson told Air & Space Forces Magazine—avoiding what could have been a major blow at a time when flying hours are already lower than they have been in decades.
