Rockwell's Radical Flight Controls To Go Operational

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In 2008, Rockwell demonstrated that ASAC could recover a scale model of an F/A-18 Hornet after 60 per cent of one wing was blown off in flight. In more recent tests unveiled today, the same kind of model landed safely after losing both part of the wing and 30 per cent of the right-hand empennage, and landed - raggedly but intact - with 80 per cent of one wing gone.



David Vos, senior director of Rockwell Collins Control Technologies, says that the company is not able to identify its operational application but said that "all of you will know it when you see it, and it is a program of record." As with the Hornet model tests, extensive simulation work will be followed by subscale tests in which pieces will be removed from the aircraft.

Related video 1

Related video 2 (also embebed below)