Posted on 03/16/2006 3:07:21 PM PST by Grzegorz 246
Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] announces successful completion of the maiden flight of the first Polish F-16 aircraft. The flight took place in Ft. Worth, Texas, USA and marks a key milestone in the success of the Peace Sky program. The F-16 flown yesterday is part of a 48-aircraft order by the Government of Poland and is planned for delivery to the Polish Air Force later this year.
The pilot for the first flight was Paul Hattendorf, a company test pilot for Lockheed Martin. He performed numerous system checks, including engine throttle transients at various altitudes and radar checks using a photo chase F-16 as a simulated target. Hattendorf also took the aircraft to supersonic speeds and performed high-g maneuvers during the flight, which lasted just over an hour. After several additional check flights by both company and U.S. Air Force test pilots, this first Polish F-16 is scheduled to be ferried to Edwards AFB, Calif., in April for more system-specific testing.
“The Poland Peace Sky program continues to progress right on schedule,” said Irma Sippel, director of the Poland F-16 program. “First flight is a significant milestone and the first of several leading to the planned arrival of the aircraft in Poland later this year. We continue to be excited about our progress and about meeting our customer’s expectations.”
The F-16, selected by 24 countries, is the multi-role fighter of choice. It has more than 12 million flight hours among more than 4,300 aircraft produced.
“The record number of customer reorders reinforces the value of this incredible fighter, which shares technological enhancements with the 5TH Generation F-22 and F-35 Joint Strike Fighter,” said June Shrewsbury, vice president of F-16 programs. “Today’s F-16 is the most advanced fighter in international service. It is the most combat-tested multi-role aircraft, carrying the most up-to-date weapons and having lowest possible acquisition, operation and support costs.”
When delivered, Polish F-16s will be the most advanced in NATO. Features of the Block 52+ include an AN/APG-68(V) 9 radar fire control system and a Sniper Extended Range pod, which is an advanced targeting pod designed with an infrared pointer, laser, day TV, forward looking infrared, laser spot tracker and advanced algorithms. The pod delivers superior tracking performance and reliability. Additionally, the multi-role fighter developed for Poland is equipped with a helmet-mounted cueing system used for directing precision guided munitions and off-boresight missiles as well as for increasing pilot situational awareness. The aircraft is designed to be fully interoperable with NATO and European Union missions.
Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., Lockheed Martin employs about 135,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services. The corporation reported 2005 sales of $37.2 billion.
Sleep well tonight ..your Polish Air Force is on Duty...!!!
Dzien Dobry.
To see a photo of this plane on its test flight, go here (biiig download, for that reason please don't hotlink it to thread, folks, or dialup users will take forever to load the thread):
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/data/assets/12190.jpg
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
For your freedom and ours! God Bless free Poland.
Just in time for the Poles to help drive the Muzzies out of Europe...again.
Great picture, but it almost looks like the pilot is reading an instruction manual.
Yep, its going to come down to the ones that believe in god to save Europes ass once again.
Or maybe he is relaxing with a good novel .....seems like a peaceful place to do some light reading. LOL.
That's almost exactly what it is.
It's probably the operational plan for the test flight that lists the data points that must be recorded, manuevers performed, what configuration they must be performed under, etc.
Considering what an hour of flight costs, it's paramount that the plan be carefully developed and written down.
and make sure when the start attacking the muslim hordes, they strap lots of pork Keilbasa to the bombs as well.
Well, he's working off a test card. A test flight is a very, very choreographed thing. He has to do specific actions and record any results on the card (I'm sure that they have some kind of datalogging equipment aboard, too, but the pilot's impressions are important).
And if you saw what they did on this flight -- low speed and high speed maneuvers and some high-G work -- in what, an hour and change, the pilot was a busy cat during this little hop. Not a lot of time to admire the Texas scrubland.
Meanwhile, back on the field, a handful of flight test engineers are chewing pencils nervously waiting for their data.
This plane is pretty similar to the 52+s delivered to Greece last year, so they probably aren't expecting any drama, but there are enough differences, and the plane has enough new features, that there will probably be a squawk or two.
The pilot's earned his big bucks, now it's the engineers' turn. (And kids, if you want either of those lucrative, chance-to-change-the-world jobs, learn all the math and physics that your little heads will hold).
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
I moved on from GD, about Block 30. AF raised me as an Eagle Keeper, but I enjoyed working the Falcon, as well.
/johnny
He's reading a joke book... "It takes HOW MANY Polish F-16s to shoot down a MiG?"
Sorry, couldn't resist.
let me guess, does it fly backwards? or upside down? or?
bttt
Getting ready to be stationed at a Polish submarine base?
Sorry, couldn't resist!
Very nice pic of a beautiful plane in #3.
On the test card, I can just make out “Miss April.”
;-)
That is one kick-ass airplane and the Poles have the boots to kick butt too. They've been shoved around for too long. They are great allies.
ping
This is the story of Polish involvement in this greatest air battle in history...
Polish-marked Spitfire
In that picture it looks like the pilot is reading the manual. Did he not know how to fly it when he took off? :-)
If you are a MiG driver, you do not want one of these on your ass.
No, that is the Germans. Didn't you ever see Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines?. "A Cherman Officer can do ANYzing! ... As long as he has ze manual."
Much hilarity ensues, especially when the Colonel loses the manual overboard.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
I have real soft spot for Poland, as they stood so strongly against their Communist oppressors. I hope we remain close friends with them.
Great news! Thanks for posting.
It could be worse... that's where they built the B-58s. I understand those things were loud. Every guy I ever knew that has been aircrew on 'em was deaf as a post, and the ground guys must have been just as badly off.
If you ever get to meet Col. Paul Tibbets of Enola Gay fame, you'll find his wife of fifty-whatever years interprets for him. In a reversal of the usual "selective male relationship deafness" we all get accused of, Col. T can't understand anyone but his wife!
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
You know, your post reminds me that I bought a book on 303 Squadron (Polish) in 2004 and never read it. Where did I put that damn thing?
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
They stand shoulder to shoulder to us in the war on terrorists as well. Remember, these are the grandsons of the guys who had the stones to take on tanks on horseback in 1939. And their technical people are the ones who broke the German Enigma codes and gave the break to the British.
d.o.l.
Criminal Number 18F
'AEROGRAPH 4 CONVAIR B-58' by Jay Miller
/johnny
Which is why, after 18 years out... I'm back in, after 9/11. I spent the first anniversary of 9/11 on the ground in Korea (my first deployment), in uniform, for the first time in 18 years, for the Koreans to honor us with a country-wide moment of silence.
I am honored to be allowed back into my USAF.
THAT is the sound of FREEDOM!!!!! God bless the men that fly and fight.
/johnny
Question: Will the Polish pilots have to learn English, for the instrumentation, or do they get their own in Polish?Do you happen to know? Same question for the other countries which buy our planes.
I am afraid I missed that movie but from what you say I am sorry I did. :-)
Bullshit - and you know it.
Your Army was rebuild and equipped with german and european help.
The polish detachment in the WOT is approx 1000 heads strong thats 1/7 th of the german detachment - add to that the police forces training and rebuilding afghan drug squads and the GSG-9 forces performing bodyguard services in Baghdad.
Your just using this forum to spread lies and hate. Thats disgusting.
You got me wrong - maybe I should have made it clearer.
People in Poland are pulling a big carriage today and they need not hide behind germany.
I just don't tolerate blind bashing of Europe and Germany (well and sometimes I even talk pro french - but I am only doing it when I get provoked badly ;-)
So opposed to a stupid cliche - we in germany stand close to western civilisation, human rights, israel, the struggle against hate imams and all that.
My message is: "Poland should be interested in continuedly good relations to it's western neighbour and should contribute to the process of building europe - if it was for me then you'd do that by standing up against over regulations and freedom of inner european trade."
Certainly that would be an advantage for germany - like it allready is , that the iron curtain fell - what is lost sometimes in Freep discussions is: Winning doesn't meen somebody has to loose.
I hope my position appears to be a bit smarter now
So please don't be like my wife. "It's only good for me if it's bad for that bitch ;-)
This posting is certainly unrelated to your F16 pictures.
Couldn't you buy typhoons ?
Sure he did. He just didn't know how to land.
If you look closly at the pilot in that picture, it looks like he's reading the instruction manual.
read the posts before posting dumbass.
for example the israeli spike is a german design to 70% (israel has quite a lot of military cooperation with german companies)
and the MI24 schrott is from the former NVA.
.. again I am not posting this to hear a thank you for our left overs...
it's just because your so proud of your 'german s***t' and hate germany that much I though you ought to know.
And the tank you showed is an utterly polish construction and based on a soviet tank ? Ok, costs of Invest against efficiency must be good.
The Beryl design reminds me on a weapon I thought I have seen allready... hmmm can't be a common design.
Ahh and you build Tanks from Lego ? That's a masterpiece.
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