B-2 Stores Management System (SMS) Test Program Initiative (Air Force)
Abstract
The B-2 is the nation’s leading “knock down the door” first-strike combat delivery vehicle, possessing the ability to deliver 80 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAMS) against targets with pinpoint lethality. SMS anomalies, involving a highly complex federated avionics architecture linked to individual weapons through established Military Standards (MIL-STD) 1760 interfaces, jeopardize the B-2 fleet’s ability to support its primary mission: “Bombs on Target”! At any given time, there are a maximum of 16 aircraft available to support global mission taskings. The need for SMS diagnostic test capabilities to help ensure all assigned aircraft can achieve their basic mission, irrespective of geographic location is clear. An off-station SMS anomaly that cannot be corrected in a timely manner could require deploying a replacement aircraft to an alternate global location. This is an expensive/burdensome solution which fails to mitigate the core impediment: B-2 SMS maintenance support capabilities required to be in place to maintain mission integrity.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Accomplishment
- Publication Date
- Oct 01, 2011
- Source ID
- 26ad26fbfd74f94d289a512bda84fb40