Saab shipped on September 10 (Friday) another rear section of the fuselage of the T-7A Red Hawk, the new US Air Force training jet. The part was shipped from the Swedish manufacturer's facilities in Linköping to Boeing at Boeing in St. Louis, US state of Missouri.
This is yet another milestone in Saab's contribution to the Engineering and Production Development (EMD) phase. Upon completion of EMD, Saab's new facility in West Lafayette, Indiana will take over Saab's production of rear fuselage sections for the T-7A program. The second section was delivered to Boeing in July.
“This delivery shows that we are committed to our plan and the solid progress made towards meeting our EMD schedule. This fuselage will be part of the first T-7A to fly and is another step towards the start of production at our new state-of-the-art facility in West Lafayette, Indiana.” said Jonas Hjelm, Saab's senior vice president and head of aeronautics business.
Boeing merged Saab's rear section with the front section. This is followed by the assembly of the wings, vertical stabilizers and the tail to become a complete test aircraft for use in the EMD flight test program. The aft section with installed subsystems – hydraulics, fuel and secondary power system – extends from behind the cockpit to the end of the aircraft.
In April 2021, Saab delivered its first T-7A Red Hawk aft fuselage section followed by the second delivery in July 2021. Upon arrival at Boeing in St. Louis. Louis, the rear section of the Saab was seamlessly ed to the forward fuselage in less than 30 minutes. This achievement is a testament to the use of digital design and engineering, which delivers precision, efficiency and enhanced quality throughout the design and delivery of the T-7A Red Hawk.
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