Aeronautical Systems Center engaged a small business vendor, ITCN, Inc., in Centerville, Ohio, to help develop a better means for B-2 bomber maintainers to identify avionics problems—it worked. The prototype databus will help B-2 technicians isolate wiring cable problems to within six to 12 inches, which means they can find “performance discrepancies with pinpoint accuracy,” improving B-2 mission readiness, reports ASC’s Bruce Long. ASC expects to field the prototype unit at Whiteman AFB, Mo., sometime this month for further testing.
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.