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First splice of forward and aft sections follows digital path
Quality and production time improved
In one historic moment, the front fuselage of the first Boeing [NYSE: BA]-Saab T-7A Red Hawk advanced trainer was joined perfectly with its aft section in less than 30 minutes a testament to the digital heritage of the U.S. Air Force’s first “eSeries” aircraft and witness to the benefits of model-based engineering and 3D design.
The digital splice was completed in 95% less time than traditional splices and with substantial quality improvements.
“This moment marks a key stage in the evolution of the T-7A Red Hawk,” said Chuck Dabundo, vice president and program manager of Boeing T-7 programs. “Employing digitally advanced manufacturing and build techniques developed by Boeing over the past two decades, we are bringing this trainer to future pilots sooner than ever before possible and with greater quality.”
First Boeing-Saab Red Hawk spliced together airinternational.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from airinternational.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
AVweb
Image: Boeing
Boeing announced on Thursday that it successfully joined the front and aft fuselage sections of its first T-7A Red Hawk advanced military trainer in less than 30 minutes. The trainer was developed by Boeing and Saab using 3D model-based definition and data management systems with the aft fuselage being built at Saab’s facility in Linköping, Sweden, and shipped to Boeing in St. Louis for assembly. According to Boeing, the digital splice was accomplished in 95-percent less time than traditional splices.
“What we’re seeing in this new evolution of digitally designed, engineered and manufactured aircraft is a 50% improvement in overall production quality and as much as a 98% reduction in drilling defects,” said Boeing T-7A Red Hawk production director Andrew Stark. “It’s a new way of producing airplanes with improved quality throughout the whole journey.”
Randy Jackson/Boeing
Boeing has spliced together the fore and aft sections of the first Boeing-Saab T-7A Red Hawk prototype advanced jet trainer in record time. Despite the two sections being built 4,500 miles (7,200 km) apart, they were perfectly matched and joined in under 30 minutes.
The assembly of the first T-7A is a major milestone in the quest to build a replacement fleet of training jets for the US Air Force that is capable of simulating the characteristics of a fifth generation fighter plane. It s also an example of the Air Force s new eSeries approach to aircraft design.
Instead of relying on the traditional method of building models and test aircraft as the primary means of development, the eSeries approach relies more on creating digital twins and using 3D printing as a way of speeding up development and assembly by as much as 80 percent.