UPGRADED 757 FIRST FLIGHT

[SEAN]

[Dave Homewood]

Fantastic, Well done to all the team who have worked on the upgrade!

[corsair67]

Yes, well done to everyone involved.

This is a wonderful boost in capability for the NZDF, and they will not regret spending the money on this project.

Thanks for posting the article, Sean.

[beagle]

yay.................. a project that is more or less on time and budget...
pretty rare these days.

[beagle]

I wish there were some better images. I was wanting to see what she looks like with no windows on the l/h side of the fuselage, well, forward of the wing anyway.

[vgp]

Air Force Boeing completes test flights
bigger photo: img.scoop.co.nz/stories/images/0806/0fb7448ed49d71f4dd89.jpeg

The Royal New Zealand Air Force has undertaken a number of successful test flights of one of its Boeing 757 aircraft, which is currently undertaking a significant upgrade in the United States state of Alabama, Defence Minister Phil Goff said today.


“The successful test flights represent a key milestone before the aircraft can be accepted by the Ministry of Defence and RNZAF and returned to New Zealand for operational testing and evaluation,” Phil Goff said.

“The RNZAF’s two modified 757s are designed to provide much greater flexibility than previously, including additional strategic airlift capability to deploy New Zealand troops to overseas missions and evacuate New Zealand citizens.

“They have greater range and payload capacity than the 727s they replaced and allow the Air Force to rapidly alter the aircraft configuration between standard passenger configuration, a freight-passenger combination, full freight, Aero Medical Evacuation (AME) and for VIP transport.

“The RNZAF expects to have the first aircraft signed over to the Ministry of Defence and then returned to New Zealand within the next two months, and the second aircraft about two months later. Both modified aircraft are expected to be fully operational from early 2009,” Mr Goff said.

The Ministry of Defence purchased the two B757-200 aircraft as replacement aircraft for the RNZAF’s two ageing Boeing 727-100 QC airframes.

The budget for the aircraft purchase and modification was NZ$221 million, with the modification phase at NZ$112.3 million. The aircraft were introduced to service with the RNZAF in early May 2003.

The life extension upgrade and modification is taking place at Mobile Aerospace Engineering in Mobile. Modifications include increasing freight capability, engine enhancements and upgraded communications and navigation equipment.

ENDS
www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0806/S00446.htm


Air Force Boeing 757 Fit To Fly
New Zealand Defence Force
Te Ope Kaatua O Aotearoa

Media Release

June 26 2008

AIR FORCE BOEING 757 FIT TO FLY

In what is a significant milestone for the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s Boeing 757 modification and upgrade programme, the first of two aircraft (NZ7571) has completed successful test flights at Mobile Aerospace Engineering in Mobile, Alabama.

The Boeing has had significant structural modification and we are delighted with how the aircraft performed and handled, said RNZAF 757 test pilot, Squadron Leader Richard Beaton

“Even though we have been flying and operating the Boeing for five years now there is always a certain amount of excitement and anticipation when you first take control of an aircraft that has had as much work done on it as 7571.

“Of particular interest to us was how the aircraft handled with the changes having been made to the aircraft fuselage combined with the increase in thrust from the engines.

“All going well from this point, we hope to have the aircraft signed over to the Ministry of Defence and then returned to New Zealand in the next two months,” Squadron Leader Beaton said.

Two RNZAF Boeing 757 aircraft are currently undergoing a modification programme at Mobile Aerospace Engineering in Mobile, Alabama, and Boeing Integrated Defence Systems in Wichita, Kansas. The programme includes extensive airframe and avionics (navigation/communication) modifications.

The modified 757 will provide the RNZAF with the ability to rapidly change the role of the aircraft to any given task, converting from standard passenger configuration to a combination freight/passenger, full freight, Aero Medical Evacuation (AME) and VIP set up.

The $221 million dollar acquisition and modification project commenced in May 2003 when the RNZAF replaced its aging Boeing 727 aircraft.

The second RNZAF 757 is expected to return later in the year with both modified 757 aircraft expected to be fully operational and available from early 2009.

ENDS


BACKGROUND
Test Flight Information

The first RNZAF Boeing 757 test flight was conducted in a little over four hours proving the operation of normal systems and equipment on the aircraft. The test flight also certified the functionality of safety and backup systems.


This comprehensive test flight followed a series of thorough ground tests after more than a year of modifications on the ground in the United States. It has realised significant structural and avionic upgrades on the Boeing 757 making it one of the most extensively modified 757 aircraft to date.


During the test flight the aircraft was flown close to the limits of its normal operating envelope to verify the safety margins that will be used for everyday operations. This test flight is the same as the first flight that would normally be conducted by Boeing when a newly manufactured aircraft is released from the factory.

The flight included operating the aircraft at its maximum and minimum speeds and verifying the airborne characteristics during specific manoeuvres. It also confirmed the correct function of warning systems for the landing gear, flaps and the navigation approach systems.


Overall six test flights will be completed during the Acceptance, Test and Evaluation programme.
www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0806/S00345.htm

[beagle]

would be great to see, if any, images of the internal areas which got modified but I take it, these would be classified.

[30sqnatc]

Jun 25, 2008 14:49:03 GMT 12 beagle said:

yay.................. a project that is more or less on time and budget...
pretty rare these days.

Thats a pretty liberal application of 'on time' It was originally scheduled to occur in 2003-4. A 3 Mar 03 press release stated
Mark Burton is welcoming the purchase of the 757s, the first of which is due to arrive, ready for immediate service, in mid-April. Modifications to this aircraft are scheduled to begin later this year. The second 757 is due to arrive mid-year.

Anyway late or not they will be very welcome.

Paul

[beagle]

it was along line of modifications which started back here then with the change of toilet paper

[30sqnatc]

Jul 3, 2008 21:15:03 GMT 12 beagle said:

it was along line of modifications which started back here then with the change of toilet paper

Thats a lot of toilet paper that must have been changed before they got to the door and cockpit mods

Paul

[vgp]

ST Engineering's Aerospace Arm Redelivers First Converted 757-200 to RNZAF
Monday, Aug 04, 2008

Singapore, 4 August 2008 - Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd (ST Engineering) today announced that its aerospace arm, Singapore Technologies Aerospace Ltd (ST Aerospace), redelivered the first of two 757-200 aircraft to the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF).
In November 2005, ST Aerospace announced it won a US$38m (about S$52m) contract from the New Zealand Ministry of Defence that involved design, development and conversion to multi-role configurations, including a passenger to freighter conversion, an avionics upgrade programme and other modifications to enhance the capability of the two RNZAF 757-200 aircraft in military and remote operating environments.

Conversion work on the aircraft was carried out at ST Aerospace's US facility, ST Mobile Aerospace Engineering (MAE), where MAE converted the aircraft from an all passenger arrangement to a multi-role configuration that allows the carriage of passenger, freight, mixed passenger-freight, Very-Important-Persons (VIP) and Aero-Medical Evacuation.

Aircraft NZ7571 was inducted at MAE in Mobile on 16 April 2007 for the modification. With data licensed from Boeing, the engineering design and development conversion was undertaken at ST Aerospace to allow for the multiple-role configuration. The prototype aircraft made its first flight out of the Brookley Field in Mobile on 22 June 2008, completing a four-hour test flight to check the basic aircraft systems and begin its flight test programme. Since then, the aircraft has also completed flight tests on the other modifications including cabin noise measurement and military navigation and communication systems. The flight test programme was successfully completed on 23 July 2008, after a total of 5 sorties, 19 hours and 36 minutes of flight time. Work on the second aircraft is in progress and it is expected to be completed end 2008.

"The Ministry of Defence and Royal New Zealand Air Force are delighted to accept the Boeing 757 back from ST Aerospace after a significant upgrade and modification project. The ST Aerospace team has faced many challenges meeting this passenger-to-combi conversion programme, and we have no doubt that this product will enhance the RNZAF's strategic airlift capabilities." ~ Air Vice-Marshal Graham Lintott, Chief of Royal New Zealand Air Force

"The RNZAF programme is a complex and interesting one, and today's redelivery is only possible through the teamwork from RNZAF, Boeing and our staff. The accomplishments on this aircraft to enable it to be used flexibly to meet the different needs of the Royal New Zealand Air Force is a reflection of the complex operational requirements and the engineering efforts put in. We are pleased to deliver a quality product that would support RNZAF's operational needs for the next couple of decades." ~ TAY Kok Khiang, President, ST Aerospace

ST Aerospace is the aerospace arm of ST Engineering. Operating a global MRO network with facilities in the Americas, Asia Pacific and Europe, it is the world's largest airframe MRO provider with a global customer base that includes many of the world's leading airlines, airfreight operators and military operators. ST Aerospace provides a full spectrum of maintenance and engineering services through its two business segments: Aircraft Maintenance & Modification (AMM) and Component & Engine Total Support (CETS). Its services include airframe, engine and component maintenance, repair and overhaul; engineering design and technical services; and aviation materials and management services, including Total Aviation Support. ST Aerospace has a global staff strength of more than 7,000 engineers and technical specialists. Please visit www.staero.aero.

ST Engineering is an integrated engineering group providing solutions and services in the aerospace, electronics, land systems and marine sectors. Headquartered in Singapore, the Group reported revenue of $5.05b in FY2007 and ranks among the largest companies listed on the Singapore Exchange. ST Engineering has more than 18,000 employees worldwide, and over 100 subsidiaries and associated companies in 21 countries and 35 cities. Please visit www.stengg.com.


www.yourdefencenews.com/news_item.php?newsID=8657

[beagle]

does this mean it is now parked outside 40 sqn hangar

[30sqnatc]

So SATS on Monday Revised timetable with only two minute stop overs - 1 minute to push the disembarking passengers and bags out the side door and 1 minute to grab the next lot in then off into the blue ;D

Paul

[vgp]

more Articles:

additional Photo's included with article:


ST_AERO Photo

Interior - air force one or Exec Combi up front - cheap seats at the rear:
www.flightglobal.com/AIRSPACE/photos/st_aero/images/18362/st-aero.jpg

Exterior:
www.flightglobal.com/AIRSPACE/photos/st_aero/images/18363/st-aero.jpg

ST Aero completes 757 conversion for Royal New Zealand Air Force

Singapore Technologies Aerospace (ST Aero) re-delivered yesterday the first of two Boeing 757-200 multi-mission convertible aircraft to the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

RNZAF in 2005 selected ST Aero’s US facility, ST Mobile Aerospace Engineering (MAE), to convert two ex-Transavia 757s RNZAF acquired in 2003.

The first aircraft was delivered to MAE in April 2007 and has since undergone a complex customised conversion.

RNZAF initially used the aircraft to transport troops and VIPs but wanted the aircraft to take on a multi-mission role.

To meet the RNZAF requirement, MAE has reconfigured the cabin and installed a cargo door, crew access ladder as well as a military avionics suite.

MAE president Joseph Ng says the RNZAF will be able to operate the aircraft in an all-passenger configuration with 142 economy and 18 business class seats or in an all-cargo configuration with 11 pallet positions. The interior picture here shows the business class seats.

Ng says the 757 can also now be operated in a variety of mixed configurations, including a 138 seat and 2 pallet combination. The aircraft is also now equipped to handle aeromedical evacuations.

ST Aero president Tay Kok Khiang says MAE is now halfway done with converting RNZAF’s second 757. This aircraft is scheduled to be-redelivered in the fourth quarter of this year.

ST Aero was originally contracted to re-deliver the first 757 to RNZAF in the second quarter of 2007. Tay says the re-delivery was first pushed back to January 2008 due to contract changes and a redefinition of the programme which resulted in a postponement in the induction of the first aircraft.

He says a second delay in the re-delivery from January 2008 to August 2008 was “mutually agreed” to by ST Aero and RNZAF after the aircraft arrived at MAE. Tay explains this delay was needed to address “numerous challenges” that arose from this “complex” conversion.

Yesterday’s redelivery marks the start of a new chapter in ST Aero’s 757 cargo conversion programme. ST Aero along with partner Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) initially converted 34 757s for DHL early this decade as part of a Boeing-led cargo conversion programme.

ST Aero re-launched the programme as a prime contractor in 2005 after securing a two-aircraft order from RNZAF. Early last year it also secured an order for 87 757-200 passenger-to-freighter conversions from FedEx. Tay says the first two of these aircraft were recently re-delivered to FedEx.

ST Aero in April secured from the US FAA a supplemental type certificate for the 757-200SF. Boeing held the STC for the original DHL programme.

Tay says Boeing’s support of ST Aero’s STC application helped ST Aero receive its own STC only five days after the last test flight involving the FedEx 757-200SF prototype.

He says for the RNZAF aircraft a STC was not required and would have been costly to pursue for only two aircraft, but all the work was done to FAA STC standards.

www.flightglobal.com/articles/2008/08/05/310454/pictures-st-aero-completes-757-conversion-for-royal-new-zealand-air-force.html


ST Aero Touts Strong 757 Conversion Market



The market for Boeing 757 conversions is strong and growing, according to Singapore Technologies Aerospace president Tay Kok Khiang, who led the Aug. 4 redelivery of a converted multi-role 757-200 to the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Tay said his firm expects the number of the aircraft available for conversions to open up once deliveries of next generation aircraft begin--particularly the 787.

The RNZAF plans to use its multi-role 757-200 freighters for longer range strategic operations, due to improved fuel economy over the 727-200s they replace, said Air Commodore Dick Newlands. The air force's five C-130 aircraft, which also are being upgraded and modified, will be used for more economical, technical support future missions, he said.

This aircraft, the first of two the RNZAF is to receive under a $38 million contract signed in November 2005, combines several possible cabin installations with avionics upgrades. It allows for full freighter, full passenger, passenger-freighter combi, VIP and air medevac configurations, said Joseph Ng, president of ST Mobile Aerospace Engineering, where the conversion took place. The aircraft further received an upgrade to Rolls-Royce RB211-E4B engines for a 7.5% thrust increase, a full suite of new cabin items--including a new smoke detection system--and extensive relocation of its lavatories and galleys, said Ng. Special features of its cargo handling system also should allow it to operate in remote settings. Ng could not add much detail on the military avionics upgrades the 757-200 received, but said that these "will allow the aircraft to operate in a global environment."

Delivery of the first converted 757-200 had been scheduled for January of this year, but Ng said the complexity of integrating its systems and support equipment made negotiating a later delivery necessary. The second RNZAF 757-200 is midway through conversion in Mobile, and is receiving avionics and interior work. It is slated for redelivery in the fourth quarter of this year.

ST Aero president Tay said his firm has received queries from other air forces interested in "combi" freighter configurations not identical but similar to the layout the RNZAF requested. Like the New Zealand air force, these potential customers would plan to acquire used aircraft (RNZAF got theirs in 2003 from Transavia) for special conversion projects.

Standard-body aircraft, including the Boeing 757 and 737 and Airbus A320/A321, have the largest potential for conversion, with 1,270 converted and 20 new production aircraft of the category in service, according to a recent Boeing survey.


www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=mro&id=news/STae8058.xml&headline=ST%20Aero%20Touts%20Strong%20757%20Conversion%20Market

[Bruce]

If no STC was raised for the work (due to being a military aircraft) they wont be able to sell the aircraft for civilian ops if the RNZAF ever decides to replace them - saves money now I guess, but may cost in resale value later.

[beagle]

will have it for another 30 years and by then nobody would want to buy it anyway.

[sniff]

Aug 6, 2008 9:47:05 GMT 12 Bruce said:

If no STC was raised for the work (due to being a military aircraft) they wont be able to sell the aircraft for civilian ops if the RNZAF ever decides to replace them - saves money now I guess, but may cost in resale value later.

Interesting observation, there could be other implications then too?

[beagle]

Ok, she is suppossed to be back. anybody greet her at WP on friday and take some photos

[vgp]

RNZAF modernisation reaches first milestone with 757 re-delivery
By Brendan Sobie

The Royal New Zealand Air Force received on 4 August the first of two newly modified Boeing 757-200 multi-mission aircraft, marking a new chapter in its long-standing six-tier modernisation programme.

New Zealand officials say the modernisation programme will reach other key milestones late this year and early next year when the air force receives the first of five upgraded Lockheed Martin C-130H transports and the first of eight new NH Industries NH90 medium utility helicopters, respectively.

The RNZAF embarked on an extensive modernisation programme early this decade when it identified plans to upgrade three existing platforms and acquire three new platforms while dropping its combat capability. Its fleet of 757s, C-130Hs and Lockheed Martin P-3K maritime patrol aircraft are now in the process of being upgraded while eight NH90s and five new AgustaWestland A109 training and light utility helicopters are being acquired.

The launch of the sixth and final element of the programme, advanced fixed-wing trainers, has been delayed several times and is finally expected to move forward with a tender by the end of September.

The A109s are scheduled to be delivered from 2010 while the first NH90 is to be handed over to the RNZAF in the first quarter of 2009, according to assistant secretary of defence Kevin McHamon. But McHamon says "it will likely be a few years" before any NH90 is flying in New Zealand because the first units will initially stay in Europe, where they will be used for flight testing and training.

McHamon expects the first of six upgraded P-3Ks to be redelivered by the end of next year. The first P-3K, which is being outfitted with new mission, communications and navigation systems at L-3 Communications Integrated Systems in Texas, was originally to be redelivered early this year.

McHamon says the first C-130H, which was also supposed to be redelivered early this year, is now scheduled to be handed over in the fourth quarter. He says two of the air force's five C-130s are now at L-3 Communications Spar Aerospace's facility in Canada, where they are undergoing life-extension modifications and receiving electronic warfare self-protection suites.

The RNZAF expects its second C-130H to be redelivered by Spar in the first quarter of next year. McHamon says the air force plans to deliver the third aircraft to New Zealand's Safe Air, which will perform the remaining three C-130 and five P-3 upgrades in-country, in the fourth quarter of this year.

Meanwhile, ST Aero is halfway through converting the RNZAF's second 757 and plans to redeliver the aircraft late this year. This programme, which involves installing a cargo door, a crew access ladder, airstairs unit and military avionics, is also running more than one year behind its original schedule. RNZAF deputy chief Air Commodore Dick Newlands says the air force "has been able to get around the shortfall" caused by the delays to the 757 and C-130 upgrade programmes by using more commercial charters.

The RNZAF will now be able to operate the aircraft in an all-passenger configuration with 142 economy and 18 business-class seats or in an all-cargo configuration with 11 pallet positions. It can now also be operated in a variety of mixed configurations, including 138 seats plus two pallets, and be used for aeromedical evacuations.

Newlands says the modified 757 will give the air force the ability to fly larger payloads into remote places such as the Solomon Islands. He says the aircraft will also be able to take on additional missions. This is the general theme of the service's modernisation programme as the P-3 and C-130 will be able to take on additional missions following redelivery. "It gives us much more of a multi-role capability," Newlands says. "It's certainly moving the air force forward."
www.flightglobal.com/articles/2008/08/08/310532/rnzaf-modernisation-reaches-first-milestone-with-757.html

[vgp]

Fri 08 August 2008
Royal NZ Air Force Boeing 757 NZ7571 arrived at Whenuapai from Samoa as "Kiwi 332" following its visit to Mobile, Alabama where it has undergone a major rework of its interior, addition of a cargo door and revamped flight deck.
mrcaviation.blogspot.com/2008/08/thursday-07-august-saturday-09-august.html