News>Teamwork leads to record-setting engine test at Arnold
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This F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter F135 engine undergoing ground testing set a record for the longest duration test ever at the test center for logging 52 consecutive hours at the in Arnold Engineering Development Center's J-2 test cell in Tennessee. (U.S. Air Force photo/Rick Goodfriend)
by Janae' Daniels
Arnold Engineering Development Center Public Affairs
11/6/2009 - ARNOLD AIR FORCE BASE, Tenn. (AFNS) -- Members of the J-2 test team here completed all of the customer's mission objectives and set a new record for the longest continuous engine test period while testing the F135-PW-100 engine, which were critical to the qualification of the engine for the new F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter.
The team of Arnold Engineering Development Center engineers, craftsmen, data analysis engineers and investment experts conducted both an altitude performance and qualification test on an F135 engine, and it ran continuously for 52.5 hours.
More than approximately 50 hours of required mission objectives remained as the engine entered the final week of testing for the entire J-2 test team including officials from the 717th Test Squadron, Joint Strike Fighter Joint Programs Office, Aerospace Testing Alliance and Pratt & Whitney, said Jeremy Morris, of ATA and the J-2 F135 lead project engineer.
"There were concerns that some of the objectives would be postponed or dropped due to test window constraints presented by the scheduled TEDAC facility outage," Mr. Morris said. "The entire test team did a fantastic job of identifying the highest priority objectives, coordinating support, developing a plan, which maximized test efficiency and executing that plan with an amazing level of precision.
John Kelly, the Air Force manager for the project, said this test was important when looking at the acquisition road map of the whole JSF program.
"This test was not just on a specific engine, per se, or just the F135 program, but this qualification test affects the whole JSF program," Mr. Kelly said.
This particular test was in support of the Air Force and Navy version of the F135 conventional takeoff and landing variant and carrier variant initial service release qualification for the JSF program.
