The new "Beast" of the Marine's CH-53K is becoming alive.

[Sparkplug]

Navy Awards Sikorsky $1.13B for Next 12 CH-53K Heavy-Lift Helicopters

https://news.usni.org/2019/05/17/navy-awards-sikorsky-1-13b-for-next-12-ch-53k-heavy-lift-helicopters

[Sparkplug]

Marines: FVL Intriguing, BUT CH-53K Is Essential

https://breakingdefense.com/2019/05/marines-fvl-intriguing-but-ch-53k-is-essential/

[Harald]

CH-53K Propaganda Vids...

CH-53K Chronicles: Through the Eyes of a Sikorsky Test Pilot

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUTMoAhAomI

[Harald]

Pentagon orders review to see whether CH-53K can be replaced by CH-47   
( King Stallion programma in zwaar weer... als er wel een echte maritieme Chinook komt dan zullen er meer geïnteresseerde landen zich melden en zeker Duitsland in zijn CH-53G vervangingsprogramma. Een zeker voor NL ook een zeer aantrekkelijke optie ) 

A team from the Pentagon's independent cost analysis and program assessment group visited Boeing last month to review data on how the CH-47 could be adapted for the U.S. Marine Corps.

The Department of Defense is assessing whether the Chinook can replace the CH-53K that the Marines intend to purchase. The assessment for an alternative came from a request from Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman James Inhofe, who is monitoring the troubled program.

.....

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-05-06/pentagon-review-pits-boeing-vs-lockheed-for-marine-helicopters

[Sparkplug]

Pentagon seeks alternate gearbox to mitigate CH-53K production risk

https://www.janes.com/article/88004/pentagon-seeks-alternate-gearbox-to-mitigate-ch-53k-production-risk

[Sparkplug]

Marine Corps, Lockheed Martin to Sign CH-53K Helo Production Contract in 'Weeks'

https://news.usni.org/2019/04/10/marine-corps-lockheed-martin-to-sign-ch-53k-helo-production-contract-in-weeks

[Sparkplug]

Update: CH-53K IOC to be delayed as 'major schedule revision' planned to correct faults

https://www.janes.com/article/86135/update-ch-53k-ioc-to-be-delayed-as-major-schedule-revision-planned-to-correct-faults

[Harald]

King Stallion faults hinder flight tests

Discovery of CH-53K King Stallion technical issues and the 'inadequate' speed of their disclosure, has led to a flight test efficiency rate below projections originally set by the US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), Shephard has learnt.

Of those issues, the service identified exhaust gas re-ingestion as an ongoing problem, set for resolution this year, having first been discovered in 2018. Other specific technical issues were not disclosed by neither NAVAIR nor OEM Sikorsky, but such findings could delay future operational milestones. 

The US DoD has earmarked initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) to begin in Q4 FY2019, with IOC set for Q1 FY2020.

'A goal of the development test phase is to identify design challenges and address them prior to initial operational test and evaluation,' a NAVAIR spokesperson said, in a statement. 'The engineering challenges of the programme are solvable; the helicopter delivered to the operational forces will be capable, reliable and safe.'

Sikorsky has assigned a 'dedicated team' of engineers to solve the exhaust gas-ingestion issue, alongside completion of prototype designs and identification of suppliers for rapid prototyping, according to Bill Falk, CH-53K programme director at Sikorsky.

'We anticipate a demonstrated solution in 2019 that will be incorporated into the production aircraft build,' Falk told Shephard in a statement.

Developments concerning technical issues of the King Stallion were also relayed to Germany's federal ministry of defence in December 2018, as the aircraft is in the running for the country's heavy-lift CH-53G replacement programme.

'We will take all necessary risks of each possible proposed system into consideration in the context of the planned open tender,' a German MoD spokesperson stated. 

As well as resolving the exhaust gas re-ingestion issue and correcting 'technical deficiencies' NAVAIR will expand the aircraft's flight envelope ahead of IOC, with programme objectives for 2019 including 'shakedown' propulsion, handling qualities and flight control testing.   

Airworthiness testing for propulsion, avionics and aeromechanical stability and subsystem testing will also be conducted before year end, according to the spokesperson.

Similarly, 'capabilities envelope expansion' will mean internal/external loads, operating temperature envelope and shipboard integration tests are executed in the future, with shipboard and cold weather testing additionally planned.

'Logistics demonstration will also continue through 2019; personnel with Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 are leveraging a delivered CH-53K asset to test the supportability aspects of the weapon system, conducting a logistical assessment on the maintenance, sustainment and overall logistics support of the CH-53K,' the spokesperson added.

As the USMC's incoming heavy-lift helicopter, 200 King Stallion's are due to be included in a programme of record that will see the service prepare to stand up eight active duty squadrons, one training squadron and one reserve squadron. A first initial deployment is scheduled for 2023/2024 with FOC planned for 2029.

To date, the programme has covered over 1,200 flight hours, demonstrated a 16,000kg external load lift, executed high density altitude testing and hot ambient/DVE testing, according to NAVAIR.

In October 2018, the USMC received a second aircraft of the planned 200, for ballistics testing in China Lake, California.

https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/defence-helicopter/king-stallion-faults-hinder-flight-tests/

[Harald]

CH-53K Degraded Visual Environment Testing, Yuma, Arizona 2018

[Sparkplug]

The Corps just received its first CH-53K King Stallion

https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/05/16/the-corps-just-received-its-first-ch-53-king-stallion/

[Harald]

Demo van de CN-53K in Berlijn, niet de officiële van op de opendag zelf  (deze is mooier ivm niet in tegenlicht gefilmd)

[Sparkplug]

Marine Corps poised to take delivery of first operational CH-53K

https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/marine-corps-poised-to-take-delivery-of-first-operat-448542/

[Harald]

CH-53K Heads to ILA Berlin | Time-Lapse

[Harald]

CH-53K flies in Germany

13th April 2018 - 16:30 GMT | by The Shephard News Team 

Sikorsky's CH-53K heavy lift helicopter has flown outside of the US for the first time at Holzdorf Air Base in Germany, the company announced on 12 April.

The helicopter arrived in Holzdorf earlier this month ahead of its international debut at the ILA Berlin Air Show 2018. The helicopter will demonstrate its flight capabilities, manoeuvrability and advanced fly-by-wire technology at the air show.

Germany is seeking a new heavy-lift helicopter under the German Heavy Transport (STH) helicopter programme.


The CH-53K King Stallion is being developed for the US Marine Corps, as a replacement for the CH-53E. The helicopter is designed to support missions including troop transport, casualty evacuation, humanitarian aid, support of special operations forces and combat SAR.

https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/defence-helicopter/sikorskys-ch-53k-makes-first-flight-germany/

[Harald]

USMC says CH-53K 'not a zero risk proposition'

Despite Pentagon reports of development and testing challenges, the CH-53K King Stallion helicopter is on track to meet initial operational capability in 2019, according to the US Marine Corps and Sikorsky.

But if there is a delay, officials say there is room to absorb the blow.

During a 9 April programme update at the Sea-Air-Space conference, H-53 program manager USMC Col Hank Vanderborght addressed recent Pentagon reports about aircraft development challenges.

Vanderborght explained that 'current metrics' show that an initial operational test and evaluation date is on track for the end of 2019.

'We do have some things we need to complete between now and then,' he added. 'So there's some deficiencies we've found with the aircraft that we'll be correcting. Most of those are well under way of being corrected.'

There is a several month lag time between testing activities, when the report is written and when it is published, Vanderborght said before adding that probably about '50-plus percent' of the problems have been addressed.

'We still have some work to do, some flight tests to finish and things like that,' he explained. 'Because of that, it's not a zero risk proposition, there is some risk left in the programme in meeting that timeline.'

If there are delays there is a buffer since the aircraft isn't set for deployment until the 2023-2024 timeframe, Vanderborght said but noted that 'at this point I don't think it's needed'.

In a 2017 Director of Operational Test and Evaluation (DOT&E) report, the office cited some CH-53K programme challenges including that the aircraft might not meet 'the survivability key performance parameter without mitigations' and that the design is not finalised.

'Sikorsky is working on but has not yet resolved multiple problems discovered during testing,' DOT&E wrote.

'These include airspeed indication anomalies, main rotor gearbox low reliability, hot gas impingement on aircraft structures, tail boom and tail rotor structural problems, main rotor dampers overheating, fuel system anomalies, high temperatures in the  number two engine bay, and hot gas ingestion by the number two engine reducing available power.'

Additionally, DOT&E noted that as of September 2017, the original test flight schedule was only 10% complete and continued 'to slip due to technical problems discovered during testing'.

Included in a laundry list of recommendations, DOT&E said the USMC should explore re-baselining the programme 'to an event-based schedule instead of fixed calendar dates'.

The CH-53K has triple the lift capability of its predecessor, the CH-53E Super Stallion, and has an increased payload capacity for internally loading 463L cargo pallets, high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicles or a European Fennek armoured personnel carrier.

Additionally, the aircraft's external hook system allows for lifting three independent external loads simultaneously.

Last year, the US Naval Air Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin a $304 million Low Rate Initial Production Lot 1 contract for the CH-53K King Stallion helicopters. Under the contract, Sikorsky will deliver two aircraft to the USMC in 2020 along with spares and logistical support.

'The CH-53K King Stallion is designed to address these concerns and support marine air-ground task force heavy-lift requirements in the 21st century joint environment, and is the only heavy-lift platform that can lift the marine air-ground task force ashore,' the service says in Fiscal Year 209 budget documents.

'The CH-53K provides significant improvements in range and payload, performance, cargo handling, turn-around times, reliability and maintainability, interoperability and survivability.'

Meanwhile, as Germany prepares to select an aircraft for its heavy-lift programme, Lockheed Martin is pitching the CH-53K while Boeing is offering up its CH-47 Chinook.

https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/defence-helicopter/sea-air-space-2018-usmc-says-ch-53k-not-zero-risk-/