Story ID: 626cmc
Turkish Trainer Cockpits Delivered
By: Gregory Polek
Caption: 
Word Count: 480
Esterline CMC Electronics (Booth T87) has finished delivering its integrated Cockpit 4000 avionics suite to Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) for the Turkish Air Force’s 40-aircraft KT-1T trainer program.

The core avionics supplied by CMC for the KT-1T comprise two open-architecture mission computers, a wide field-of-view SparrowHawk head-up display (HUD), an up-front control panel (UFCP) and a standalone rear UFCP, along with four multifunction displays. CMC also supplied the HUD camera, air data computer and data transfer unit.

The KT-1T traces its design lineage to the KT-1 turboprop trainer, 100 of which have been delivered to the Republic of Korea Air Force.

Meanwhile, in the field of helicopters, Esterline CMC’s TacView portable mission display will appear in U.S. Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphins under a new contract with L-3 Communications. The TacView system will interface with the aircraft tactical radios and GPS receiver to support L-3 Communications’ Joint Range Extension (JRE) data link gateway and digital map application, displaying real-time situational awareness and digital command and control of the aircrew.

The TacView system flies on the U.S. National Guard C130H, as part of the real-time information in the cockpit (RTIC) program. A number of platforms, including the C130H and C-130T, the international C-130J and USAF C17 all use TacView systems.

TacView has proven itself in a variety of rotorcraft applications, from search-and-rescue, close-air-support, firefighting and police operations to medical and offshore oil and gas transport. The system facilitates airborne mission effectiveness and increases crew efficiency by reducing pilot workload, according to CMC. It provides access to moving maps, live weather, approach plates, checklists, flight and maintenance manuals, frequency and call sign lists, passenger and cargo manifests as well as customer created Windows-based applications, software and documents.

500th SureSight

Finally, Esterline CMC announced here in Singapore that it has achieved a production milestone with the recent shipment of its 500th SureSight enhanced-vision-system (EVS) sensor. The SureSight family–comprised of the CMA-2600 and CMA-2700–meet demanding video performance, reliability and quality standards and stand as the leading choice for airframe manufacturers and prime contractors. They offer enhanced situational awareness in adverse visual conditions and enable operators to take advantage of regulations expanding the operational capabilities of aircraft equipped with and EVS.

Under such regulations, when the runway environment cannot be acquired visually at the decision altitude or minimum decision altitude using natural vision, the pilot of an aircraft equipped with a HUD presenting the EVS imagery can continue the descent down to 100 feet above touchdown zone elevation, provided the requirements for a visual approach are met using the EVS. From that point onward in the descent, the pilot must be able to see the visual references without the use of the EVS system to land the aircraft.