KC-135 Cockpit Modernization Study. Phase 1. Equipment Evaluation

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KC-135 Cockpit Modernization Study. Phase 1. Equipment Evaluation

J. E. Ehrhart / T. C. Hughes

Future KC-135 missions will require significant increases in aircraft flexibility to respond to the Air Force vision of 'Global Reach, Global Power.' Such flexibility typically translates into advanced avionics systems and system and capabilities; however, a large percentage of the avionics systems currently installed on the KC-135 are late 1950s and 1960s technology which has degraded the efficiency, reliability, maintainability and safety of the KC-135 mission. Strategic Air Command (SAC), now Air Mobility Command (AMC) issued a statement of need (SON, 1987) addressing the need to modernize the KC-135 cockpit avionics to attend to these problems. This report documents the evaluation of the Phase 1 modification plan as proposed by HQ/AMC. The evaluation of the reduced crew consisted of a comparison of crew workload and performance across three missions - Minot, Castle and McChord. Based on crew workload, safety of flight issues and crew interviews, study results did not support the two-person (No Nav) cockpit, given the Phase 1 modifications. Based on these results, the CSEF recommended that the feasibility of the Phase 1 modification plan be re-assessed prior to installation into the KC-135. Recommendations are based upon using the final design, identical in system capabilities, as evaluated at the Crew Station Evaluation Facility. KC-135, Crew workload, Crew reduction, Phase 1 cockpit.