UPGRADES REJUVENATING B-52S MISSIONS TEST NEW ELECTRONICS, SOFTWARE FOR AGING PLANES.Byline: Daily News EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. - B-52 test missions flew over the Arctic and the equator as part of a program testing new aviation electronics gear and software for keeping the bombers flying to almost age 80. The B-52H Avionics Mid-life Improvement project missions tested the new hardware and software's ability to continue navigation without a global positioning system Global Positioning System: see navigation satellite. Global Positioning System (GPS) Precise satellite-based navigation and location system originally developed for U.S. military use. over the different poles of the earth (Geog.) the two opposite points on the earth's surface through which its axis passes. See also: Pole , the international dateline and other places in the world that have different magnetic readings. ``The purpose of these two sorties was to ensure that the B-52 AMI system is ready to go when the first phase dedicated operational test hits this September,'' said Lt. Col. Shawn Fleming, Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center Located at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, the Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center is a direct reporting unit of Headquarters, United States Air Force. Employing approximately 1,100 military, civilian and contractor personnel divided into six detachments among AMI operational test director. The first test was April 22. The 419th Flight Test Squadron launched a 16-hour B-52 AMI test mission at 75 degrees north latitude - close to the North Pole North Pole, northern end of the earth's axis, lat. 90°N. It is distinguished from the north magnetic pole. U.S. explorer Robert E. Peary is traditionally credited as being the first to reach (1909) the North Pole. In 1926, Richard E. . The purpose was to verify proper operation of the equipment where the magnetic variation from true north and magnetic north is greatest and conditions are not normal. ``Flying at high latitudes places unique stresses on navigational systems since the meridians of longitude longitude (lŏn`jĭt  d'), angular distance on the earth's surface measured along any latitude line such as the equator east or west of the prime meridian. are much closer together,'' said Fleming. ``The purpose of this sortie was to ensure that the AMI system properly handled flight at these high latitudes.'' The second mission was a 22-hour test May 1 over the equator west of Hawaii. The sortie was flown to the equator and international dateline with the primary purpose of ensuring that the AMI navigation system A GPS-based electronic system in a car or truck that provides a real time map of the vehicle's current location as well as step-by-step directions to a programmed destination. See GPS and vehicle tracking. properly handled multiple crossings of the equator - flying from all different directions with multiple crossings of the international dateline and equator. ``These unique cases are challenging for any navigational system and are very difficult to simulate on the ground,'' said Fleming. With both missions proving the upgrades will work properly, the developmental tests were considered successful, and the AMI program is continuing as planned. The Air Force's remaining B-52s were built in 1961 and 1962. The new gear is intended to keep them flying until 2040. AMI flight testing is scheduled to continue through December 2004. The AMI program upgrades the B-52H Offensive Avionics System, replacing the inertial navigation system Noun 1. inertial navigation system - a system to control a plane or spacecraft; uses inertial forces inertial guidance system robot pilot, automatic pilot, autopilot - a navigational device that automatically keeps ships or planes or spacecraft on a steady , the avionics control unit, the data transfer system and all associated hardware and software. ``We are moving away from Commodore One of the first personal computer companies. In 1977, Commodore Business Machines, West Chester, PA, introduced the PET computer and launched the personal computer industry along with Apple and Radio Shack. In 1982, it introduced the Commodore 64 (64K RAM) and later the Commodore 128. 64 technology and upgrading to Pentium III-class processors of the late '90s,'' said Maj. Merrice Spencer, AMI project navigator and chief of B-52 avionics and weapons integration. ``This will allow the B-52 to operate with the newest technology, weapons and then some. Without this avionics upgrade, there is no way weapons coming on line today or in the future will be able to operate with the B-52 as their platform.'' All Air Force B-52s are scheduled to receive the upgrade by 2007. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) A B-52 flying a test mission out of Edwards Air Force Base is refueled over Alaska. |
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