C-141B Stretch Program

in the mid-1970s the US Air Force stressed the urgent need to improve our nation's strategic airlift capability definite objectives were set and a series of alternatives investigated of the several approaches examined including additional news c-141s or other aircraft a stretched version of the c-141 a star lifter into a c-141 B with air refueling capability was determined to be the most cost-effective and two to three times less expensive the result of fly before by prototype first flew in March 1977 followed by a production first article y c-141 B verification airplane in February 1979 On February 14 1979 a c-141 a scheduled to be the first c-141 b production aircraft arrived at Lockheed Georgia major configuration changes included a 23 and 1/3 foot fuselage stretch and installation of aerial refueling capability after receipt inspections and washing and stripping of paint from the areas where the fuselage would be parted the first stretch production aircraft was moved immediately into the vast production area of Air Force plant number six parting of the first production model took place April 23rd 1979 the operation is a series of carefully calculated moves first the nose section is separated and then pulled forward from the stationary center fuselage section to open the area for the 160 inch forward plug when the nose section is free the aft fuselage section is separated and pulled back to open the area for the 120 inch act club the commander of Warner Robins air logistics command and other Air Force dignitaries witnessed the first production parting in order to install the two prefabricated plugs the three aircraft sections rigged in a fixture as one unit are moved to the next forward position to facilitate positioning of the prefabricated barrel section plugs forward and aft of the wings a specially designed crane held jig fixture is used when complete the added fuselage sections contain all of the same equipment that is in the present c-141 a configuration the center fuselage is also reinforced due to the higher bending loads created by the additional length after installation of both plugs and the aerial refueling receptacle structure on the upper fuselage just aft of the flight deck the aircraft is moved on to an air pad system this air pad technique permits sideways movement across the production floor to the final portion of the production line the functional systems that have been removed from the stretch work can then be reinstalled and checked out for proper operation the smooth movement of the aircraft across the production floor is due entirely to a cushion of air and amazingly enough the air pressure required to float the 70-ton star lifter is only about 25 psi this technique reduces manhandling to a minimum and contributes a significant savings in production time the second production unit to be modified after the prototype became a static loads test article this aircraft received proof load tests which simulated flight conditions up to 100% of those expected in operation while production continued to move on schedule at Lockheed Georgia flight tests of the prototype continued at Edwards Air Force Base the aerial refueling capability of the c-141 B was demonstrated by well over 300 contacts with the kc-135 tanker during testing of the B prototype airplane the aerial refueling system on the stretched star lifter provides a means of refueling any or all of the 10 wing fuel tanks of the c-141 B from a tanker the maximum fuel flow rate into the aerial refueling receptacle is 6000 pounds per minute at a delivery pressure of 55 pounds per square inch aerial refueling of the c-141 bee reduces dependence on overseas airfields from its longer distance non-stop flights and shortens closure times for both resupply and deployment operations extensive nighttime refueling exercises were included in the flight test program at Edwards Air Force Base like the a model the c-141 be proved to be an excellent platform for the para drop of both men and materials para drop tests including live static line jumps were successfully accomplished time and again the c-141 be like the a permits jumpers to exit simultaneously from both sides of the aircraft thus allowing large numbers of troops to be delivered to pinpointed areas for combat or humanitarian aid airdrop tests of palletized loads were also accomplished with no problems meanwhile at Lockheed Georgia the production line reached its peak rate 10 aircraft per month being received and delivered during peak production approximately 32 aircraft are in various stages of modification the last of the 270 B model star lifters is scheduled to be delivered by the third quarter of 1982 the third production aircraft to be modified was the first article delivered to the military airlift command it rolled out September 17 1979 and was readied for flyaway first flight of this aircraft occurred on November 5th 1979 as expected all systems checked out and airplane performance was excellent the flying qualities of the c-141 B are generally improved over those of the c-141 a it's trim elevator and rudder are more effective and will appear to be more sensitive due to the longer tail length longitudinal and directional stability are also improved as is the natural dampening of oscillations in these axes the flight lasted 4 hours and 36 minutes with the aircraft landing at dusk on December 4th 1979 the Air Force took delivery of their first production c-141 B star lifter the occasion brought numerous dignitaries including secretary of the Air Force Hans mark general Heiser commander-in-chief of the military airlift command and Lieutenant General Merkley vice commander of the Air Force logistics command ahead of schedule and below cost the c-141 stretch modification program it's hailed as a significant event for the military airlift command truly an airlift enhancement program that will enable the nation to better fulfill its national objectives after presentation of the ceremonial key the aircraft was turned over to mat commander-in-chief general heisman with the general at the control therefore his days on route to Charleston Air Force Base where it's been a few days prior to departing for altas Air Force Base Oklahoma where operational crews received flight training excellent c-141 bee program is evidenced at the altas training center by c-141 a as well as other aircraft crew members making a relatively easy transition to the new c-141 bee Starlifter configuration of the various bee model changes the flight deck simulator navigational instrumentation and in-flight refueling techniques received major emphasis meanwhile since the delivery of the first production c-141 bee to Charleston Air Force Base Lockheed is now delivering additional stretched versions of the big star lifter at the rate of 10 per month and the Air Force is putting them back to work as soon as they're received in the fall of 1980 as part of Operation reporter to see 141 bees flew nonstop from the u.s. to Germany accomplished their airdrop mission refueled in flight and returned home without touching foreign soil other non-stop operational flights have also been made to Japan and back on European missions the c-141 bee has a 26 to 31 percent average payload improvement over the a model in the Pacific the average payload improvement is approximately 34% as airlift requirements become more and more demanding the c-141 bees with their increased volume capabilities are answering the almost daily calls for routine as well as special cargo airlift missions the extra twenty three point three feet in the stretch star lifter increases the available pallet positions from 10 to 13 a gain of 30 percent or a weight carrying advantage averaging about 14,000 pounds per flight most importantly where the a is averaged only 58 percent utilization of their maximum payload weight capacity the B models utilize 85 percent since overall military cargo is usually of low density the c-141 bees with the added volume are substantially more efficient in airlift potential besides meeting the demands for palletized cargo transport the c-141 b star lifter offers added capability for the movement of US army and marine equipment and supplies with the stretched c-141 beyond the job the Air Force is now assured of improved combat deployment capabilities and mission flexibility and is much less dependent on in route bases the movement of increased numbers of troops and/or paratroops also results from the added capabilities of the B model as those already in service quickly prove their Worth and readiness to do the job better faster and cheaper than the old A's thus on every count u.s. airlift response such as that previously required in Israel's AI year and other rapid deployment crises is now greatly enhanced already a veteran of many humanitarian missions the star lifter with its new length and in-flight refueling capability can be expected to do much more in the future the new B model like VA is proving to be a relatively maintenance free airplane and like the A's it's quick turnaround capability means it can move out on time for any type of mission when the c-141 stretch program is completed it will have added airlift capacity equivalent to 90 additional c-141s meanwhile as each new B model takes to the air it underscores the essence of the entire c-141 modification program a very cost effective method of getting planes quickly planes that will carry more and fly further to bolster u.s. airlift capability well into the next century

Channel: Rick Lippincott

Views: 22,698

Rating: 4.9490447 out of 5

Keywords: C-141, C-141B, C-141A, Lockheed, Lockheed Martin, Starlifter, USAF, MAC, Military Airlift Command, US Air Force, United States Air Force, airlift, transport, airplane, jet, Lockheed Georgia, Marietta, Georgia, aircraft

Id: ZlioNCStAQ8

Length: 12min 11sec (731 seconds)

Published: Tue Mar 01 2016