Sources cited by the report said the relationship improved when the Pentagon chipped in to fund some of the needed additional tests, but those sources expected that good will to deteriorate again as Boeing is required to pay for future tests. There have also been difficulties perfecting the T-7’s digital flight control system, finalizing training simulators, and producing a clear accounting of sustainment requirements. The biggest source of the delays? Tests show the Red Hawk’s ejection seat handling crash test dummies lower in the weight range roughly. Boeing’s K-46 Tanker Aircraft Can't Catch a Break.Like the more seriously troubled KC-46 Pegasus tanker, the T-7 is a Boeing project that initially seemed like a slam dunk, but has accumulated significant costs and delays due to unanticipated problems with subcomponents. The report notes Boeing and the Air Force have differing interpretations of the former’s contractual obligations, and characterized their relationship as “tenuous.” The company has run up over $1.1 billion in losses trying to correct problems. ![]() ![]() A recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the government’s top watchdog agency, suggests the Pentagon and Boeing may be in need of something akin to marriage counseling over the year-long delays in finalizing the company’s T-7A Red Hawk trainer that could cost the Air Force billions. Unfortunately, that last remark can’t be extended to the T-7’s development process as a whole, as it has fallen well behind schedule. Everything operated as designed and expected.” ![]() In a press release, Boeing’s chief test pilot Steve Schmidt stated that “the flight controls and commands to the fly-by-wire system were crisp and the aircraft maneuvered exceptionally well.
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