The 757 aircraft which will be modified into Excaliber (tail number G-POWH 3 upon arrival, now G-FTAI), lands at 2Exel's facility in Lasham, Hampshire.
RAF FAIRFORD, England—Plans to develop a flying testbed for the sensor technologies for the crewed fighter being developed for the Italian, Japanese and UK Global Combat Air Program (GCAP) have moved into a new phase.
Leonardo has been awarded a €134 million ($151 million) contract that will enable aerospace engineering company 2Excel Aviation to begin modifying the Boeing 757 airliner—named Excalibur—that will enable the flight test of the sensors that make up the GCAP’s Integrated Sensing and Non-Kinetic Effect (Isanke) system.
That Isanke system is set to include the Multi-Function Radio Frequency System (MFRS) radar, infrared search and track, defensive aids and other electronically scanned arrays. To test the sensors, the 757 will need to be modified with a new nose to house the radar and large, hamster-cheek fairings to give some of the sensors a broader field of regard.
Over the last 18 months, 2Excel and Leonardo have been refining the design of the modifications for the 757 and deciding what sensors will be tested onboard.
“The 757 will enable the airborne demonstration of sixth-generation sensing,” said Andrew Howard, director of Future Combat Air at Leonardo, speaking at the Royal International Air Tattoo here on July 14. “It is a necessary step to prove sensor integration and sensor fusion.”
As well as supporting sensor development, the aircraft will also be used to put new antennas, data management systems and algorithms into an airborne test environment.
Howard noted that other national fighter development programs have used airliners for development, including the Boeing 737 Catbird used on the F-35 program.
The funding paves the way for initial flight testing of early elements of Isanke to begin in 2026 through to 2028, and while a final decision has not yet been made as to how long Excalibur will support sensor testing, Leonardo’s ambition for the aircraft is that it could support what is expected to be a period of intense spiral upgrades after the GCAP’s initial entry into service in 2035.
As previously reported, 2Excel acquired two 757s to support the project. The first, a former Tui Airways aircraft, has been cut up and used for testing to support the certification of the second aircraft, which will be modified to flight test aircraft standard. The new contract covers the physical modification of the 757, as well as flight tests, certification and the work required to secure approval from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
The 757 was chosen because of its size, weight and electrical power capabilities.
2Excel Aviation will perform the modifications at its Lasham, facilities near London.
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