F22 fleet grounded (ouch)

[Skud]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/05/05/rap...ex.html?hpt=T2

There are about 165 Raptors in the fleet. Since January, the aircraft already had been kept at altitudes under 25,000 feet during an ongoing investigation into a November crash. Flying above that altitude could cause a pilot to black out from lack of oxygen and lose control.

One should expect a little better performance for a plane that runs a few hundred million buckaroos.

[Trooper110]

Gotta love lowest contractor

[Skud]

Gotta love lowest contractor

Prolly the highest, in this case.

[Rand{CLR}]

At least it's for something mundane and not a problem with the stealth coatings or supercruise or something really hard to fix.

-Rand

[K PhaNTOM]

Give em an oxygen tank. Where's my check?

[Skud]

At least it's for something mundane and not a problem with the stealth coatings or supercruise or something really hard to fix.

-Rand

Blacking out and losing control of the plane kind of limits the effectiveness of stealthitude, hence, not so mundane. And if they've been having to fly them below 25,000 feet since January (which would, I'm guessing, also severely limit the plane's supposed capabilities), to avoid this happening, it seems that the fix for this is a not so simple.

[Rand{CLR}]

Blacking out and losing control of the plane kind of limits the effectiveness of stealthitude, hence, not so mundane. And if they've been having to fly them below 25,000 feet since January (which would, I'm guessing, also severely limit the plane's supposed capabilities), to avoid this happening, it seems that the fix for this is a not so simple.

Simple vs. costly and time consuming. First up is identifying which component or element of the system is causing the problem. Then you have to crack the airframe open and yank out those parts (and maybe all air flow mechanisms) and replace them.

Multiply by what, 165, and factor in a relatively low manpower availability (how many people do we have certified in HVAC for the F-22?), and you begin to see that it just takes time. My guess is they're replacing the systems now, and that's why they're all grounded at the same time--best way to do it is to run the active squadrons through an assembly line repair shop all at once.

-Rand

[Duke{CLR}]

An oxygen system malfunction can be easily replaced when compared to some sort of aerodynamic design flaw.

[Skud]

I suppose it might be simple...but it seems that for the price this would have been a finished (more importantly, safe) product before sending them out. Or perhaps the engis were so awed by the new technology that they didn't want to deal with boring things like oxygen systems.

[Duke{CLR}]

I suppose it might be simple...but it seems that for the price this would have been a finished (more importantly, safe) product before sending them out. Or perhaps the engis were so awed by the new technology that they didn't want to deal with boring things like oxygen systems.

Hhhmmm I bet union labor is to blame...

[tigershilone]

[QUOTE=Duke{CLR};Hhhmmm I bet union labor is to blame... [/QUOTE]

Knock it off, no U.S. certified airframe mechanic will ever jeopardize airworthiness of an A/C! And most are in a union as a condition of employment for most airlines.

I've got 22 years in airframe maintenance and you should see all the crap that has to be fixed "again" from a bird that was just "overhauled" by a foreign heavy maintenance base where their "mechanics" cant even read the maintenance manual because it is in english. Pray very hard next time you are at 39000' altitude that everything has been done correctly----no place to pull over in the middle of the sky!

Aviation used to be one the USA's crown jewels of tech and trade. Due to corporate greed, espionage and congressional incompetence, we are losing that advantage. Yet another stunning example of outsourcing (and in the process giving away technology for no gain) and it's affects on our country.

Tiger_Shilone