AF nominates combined test force for Collier Trophy

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Brooke Davis
  • Air Force Flight Test Center Public Affairs
EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. (AFPN) --  Air Force officials nominated the Global Reach Combined Test Force here for the National Aeronautic Association’s 2004 Robert J. Collier Trophy.

Task force workers were cited for accomplishing test projects that increased aircraft performance, safety and efficiency, said Lt. Col. Kelly Latimer, Global Reach CTF director and 418th Flight Test Squadron commander. The task force has active test programs on the C-5 Galaxy, C-17 Globemaster III, C-130 Hercules, C-130J, CV-22, HH-60G Pave Hawk and KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft along with associated aircrew survival equipment.

One of their projects was the CV-22 terrain-following radar test that resulted in the first terrain-following radar capability for a tiltrotor aircraft and the first fully integrated flight testing of the CV-22 defensive systems

They also tested the C-17 large aircraft infrared countermeasures that was the first test of laser-based defensive systems on large aircraft now being used.

Another test was on the WC-130J joint-collaboration "hurricane hunter" that took the team into Hurricane Ivan four times and provided real-time data to the National Hurricane Center while testing new software.

The Global Reach CTF comprises more than 500 military, government civilian and contracted testers based at various locations throughout the country and representing multiple Air Force commands.

"The real strength of the CTF is its diversity in that we team up developmental and operational testing using command testers with contractors to rapidly field warfighting capabilities," said Lt. Col. Mike Brignola, the team leader for the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center’s Detachment 5.

The CTF includes: the 418th Flight Test Squadron; the center’s Det. 5; Dets. 1 and 3 of the 18th FTS; Det. 1 of the 33rd FTS; and various commercial contractors.

The winner of the trophy will be announced later this month.

The trophy was established in 1911 and is awarded annually by the association for the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America.