ACRA CONTROL
Knowledge Base
US Coast Guard Extend Service Life of HC-130H
The modularity of the KAM-500 DAU allows us to quickly reconfigure and reuse the units across multiple aircraft programs and has even been used for instrumenting experiments in our lab when high data rate acquisition was needed
James M. Greer, Jr.
U.S. Air Force Contractor, Center for Aircraft Structural Life Extension (CAStLE) at USAFA
U.S. Air Force Contractor, Center for Aircraft Structural Life Extension (CAStLE) at USAFA
The Program
The United States Air Force Academy teams up with the Coast Guard to forecast the Safe Operational Service Life of the HC-130H by monitoring the Center Wing Box(CWB).
The System
To determine the severity of the flying environment of the HC-130H, an aircraft was instrumented with an ACRA CONTROL KAM-500 Data Acquisition Unit connected to accelerometers, strain gages, and pressure, temperature, and humidity sensors. The KAM-500 also monitored aircraft parameters, such as airspeed, altitude, gear and flap position, and ramp door position.
The Results
- Aircraft life extended by 20% for 16 of the Coast Guard’s 26 HC-130H aircraft.
- An 11% reduction in fleet age, resulting in approximately three additional operational years gained until CWB life limits reduce the unrestricted fleet to 16 aircraft.
- Additional environmental data collected for future C-130 corrosion studies.