Boeing on June 22 launched Phase II flight testing of the company-owned T-7A prototype in St. Louis.
The three flights logged by the future U.S. Air Force jet trainer were the first in several months. By last fall, the first two prototype aircraft had completed 246 sorties before entering a scheduled modification period.
Boeing engineers had loaded a software fix on June 17 for a wing drop problem identified last week by the Air Force.
Boeing did not directly comment on the performance of the software fix, but a spokesman relayed a quote from test pilot Steve Schmidt.
“The aircraft performed wonderfully and as expected,” Schmidt said.
The Air Force now expects the production phase of the T-7A to begin 7-9 months late in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023.
The milestone was delayed by the impact of COVID-19 disruptions on the Boeing supply chain, according to program officials.
Developing a software fix for the wing drop problem was not a factor in the schedule delay, Boeing said.
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