The 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron: The cutting edge of airpower

A 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron F-22 Raptor takes off from Nellis AFB, Nevada. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Kevin J. Gruenwald)

Before any new piece of hardware or software is accepted into service with the United States Air Force (USAF), it must first survive the rigors of operational testing at Nellis Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada, located just outside of Las Vegas. The unit responsible for carrying out this vital task is the elite 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron (422nd TES). Known as the “Green Bats”, the squadron is a component of the USAF Warfare Center.

“The 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron does operational testing of all fighter aircraft and munitions entering the combat air forces (CAF)”, says Lt. Col. Michael “Fangs” Kensick, an Assistant Director of Operations at the squadron. Kensick adds that this includes “new aircraft like the F-22, any sort of new software or hardware modifications, or even something like new life support equipment”. Kensick, who has been flying with the 422nd TES since 2004, explains that the mission of the squadron is to test new equipment “in an operational environment”.

After a new system completes Developmental Testing (DT) at either Edwards AFB, California, or at Eglin AFB, Florida, Kensick said it is up to the pilots and maintainers at the 422nd TES to thoroughly vet the new equipment “in a combat representative environment”. This task is essential, as the lives of pilots and other aircrew will depend upon the performance of any new system during actual combat operations.

A 422nd TES F-16C Fighting Falcon flies along side a F-22 Raptor from the same squadron. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Kevin J. Gruenwald)

Kensick explains that new equipment is judged based on two criteria, effectiveness and suitability. The first, effectiveness, is a measure of if a new piece of hardware or software performs up to the requirements set forth by the USAF in the system’s Operational Requirements Documents (ORD). Essentially, this criterion “makes sure the equipment does what the USAF paid for”, Kensick said.

The suitability criterion, meanwhile, is a measure of a new system’s reliability. Kensick explains that any new equipment “needs to be maintainable by an average combat air forces unit”. If a new system meets the standards set forth by the USAF, “we will enter it as ‘recommended for fielding’”, Kensick said.

Occasionally, the 422nd TES discovers that a new weapons system does not meet the requirements to be fielded to operational CAF units. The system will either fail to demonstrate that it is effective in a combat representative environment, or it will prove not to be suitable for fielding due to “sustainability” issues, Kensick explained. In such cases, “we will enter ‘not recommended for fielding’”, Kensick said, with a grade of ‘not effective’ or ‘not suitable’ depending upon the particulars of the case. However, Kensick adds, equipment not recommended for fielding may be redesigned and retested.

A trio of A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft from the 422nd TES prepare for a sortie at Eglin AFB, Florida. The Thunderbolt is affectionately known as the Warthog by those who fly and maintain these machines.  (US Air Force photo/ Airman 1st Class Anthony Jennings) 

In addition to its operational testing mission, the 422nd TES is also responsible for the development and testing of new tactics for the USAF, Kensick said. The squadron develops new tactics to employ weapons systems in combat as part of its operational testing role. Additionally, the unit also works on developing new tactics to counter emerging threat weapons systems as intelligence becomes available. When developing new tactics, the 422nd TES works “side by side with the Weapons School. We talk to representatives from the Weapons School and we get their input”, Kensick said. However, ultimately, the 422nd TES is responsible for the development and testing of all new tactics for every CAF fighter Mission Design Series (MDS), Kensick emphasized. Other mission areas include foreign materiel exploitation and field visits to instruct operational aircrews on new systems and tactics, Kensick added.

The 422nd TES “is one of the largest squadrons is terms of manpower”, Kensick said. All of the aircrew selected for assignment to the squadron are handpicked by senior unit officers and are, at a minimum, instructor pilots in their respective major weapons systems. Approximately half of the unit’s pilots are required to be graduates of the elite USAF Weapons School, Kensick said. He added that the unit also includes USAF Test Pilot School (TPS) graduates. “A couple of test pilots are assigned for each MDS, they have a unique perspective on systems engineering issues”, Kensick says.

Once a new pilot is selected for assignment at the 422nd TES, he or she has to become “Test qualified”. “The aircraft we operate are different from the planes flown by the combat air forces”, Kensick explained, “Our aircraft are instrumented and have the latest hardware and software modifications”. The “test qualification”, Kensick said, involves familiarizing new pilots with the various unfamiliar displays found in the squadron’s test aircraft. In addition, incoming pilots are also familiarized with the formal testing procedures of the 59th TES, which is the primary organization responsible for managing operational flight test activities. “In our building there are many 59th TES aircrew, flight test engineers, and analysts working side by side with us”, Kensick said.

A pair of 422nd TES F-15E Strike Eagles over Nevada. (USAF Photo by Paul Ridgway)

The squadron currently has an eclectic mix of aircraft assigned to it, Kensick said, including the A/OA-10 Thunderbolt II, F-15C Eagle, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16C Fighting Falcon, and the F-22A Raptor. Currently, the newest aircraft assigned to the 422nd TES are the unit’s F-22 Raptors, which Kensick said, are shared with the 433rd Weapons Squadron, a division of the USAF Weapons School. In the future, Kensick said, “there will be some drawdown” of the test fleet with the impending retirement of some of the unit’s legacy fourth generation fighters such as the F-15C and the F-16. In 2012, however, Kensick said the 422nd TES will start to receive new F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters.

To illustrate the process of operational testing, Kensick used his own experience flying the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor as an example. Kensick, who is a former F-15C Eagle pilot and Weapons School graduate, was chosen along with seven others officers to be part of the initial cadre of operational test pilots for the Raptor program at Nellis AFB, Nevada, in 2003. When Kensick started flying the Raptor, the aircraft was encountering numerous teething problems. “Early on, we were finding numerous bugs in the system”, Kensick said.

These early aircraft, which were Production Representative Test Vehicles (PRTV), “had some pretty significant issues”, Kensick said. He added that ground aborts were common, especially on hot days when avionics systems overheated. At other times, computers would have to be rebooted in the air and there were numerous avionics stability issues, he said.

This 422nd TES Raptor is the tenth example of the F-22 built for the USAF. (Lockheed Martin Photo)

Kensick explained that one of his fellow follow-on operational test and evaluation (FOT&E) pilots was not only a TPS graduate, but was also familiar with the systems engineering issues of the F-22. This familiarity with the Raptor’s systems engineering allowed the TPS graduate to act as an intermediary between the other operational test pilots and the F-22 System Program Office (SPO) and contractor. This arrangement helped to resolve some of the plane’s avionics problems.

Despite the numerous avionics stability issues, the F-22 proved to be a stellar performer. The jet’s speed and stealth, combined with its exceptionally powerful avionics systems, allowed the Raptor to obliterate most aerial opposition with incredible ease. Operational testing, at this time, focused primarily on the counter-air and destruction of enemy air defenses (DEAD) missions, Kensick said. While the jet proved to be overwhelmingly effective, suitability issues remained.

By the time the Raptor approached initial operational capability (IOC) in 2005, most of the earlier problems had been fixed. “Numerous changes to the hardware and software” had to be made, Kensick said, but by the time the F-22 reached IOC, the difference “was almost like night and day”. These days, Kensick says, “The Raptor is exponentially more reliable”.

A brand new F-22 Raptor from the 422nd TES fires an AMRAAM air-to-air missile at a recent Combat Archer exercise.  (U.S. Air Force Photo/ Tech Sgt. Jason Wilkerson)

Currently, the 422nd TES operates a small fleet of Raptors in three hardware configurations. There are Block 10, 20, and 30 versions of the F-22 in service with the squadron operating with the current Increment 2 package. Some of the 422nd TES Block 20 planes are modified Block 10s, which are the oldest Raptors in the Air Force fleet, Kensick said. “We won’t upgrade all of our planes, we need to be representative of the combat air forces. It’s important for operational testing to have a little of everything”, Kensick explained.

Maintaining multiple different configurations of the same aircraft causes some problems, Kensick said, “It’s a challenge for the schedulers. We may only have two Block 20s, for example. And it’s also a challenge for the maintainers; they have to make sure we have those aircraft available because we need that configuration for the test. We can’t always switch to a spare jet like in other squadrons”.

Next year, the 422nd TES is gearing up for the operational testing of the F-22’s new Increment 3.1 hardware and software upgrade, Kensick said. Increment 3.1 adds a number of new features to the Raptor, including synthetic aperture radar, electronic attack, and the capability to drop the new Small Diameter Bomb. It also includes a significantly improved pilot vehicle interface (PVI), Kensick said.

An Edwards AFB Raptor over the California desert. (Lockheed Martin Photo) 

“Increment 3.1 is currently in developmental testing”, he said, adding that developmental testing for the new upgrade is actually being carried out at Edwards AFB on aircraft on loan from the 422nd TES. The squadron has also deployed pilots to Edwards AFB, not only to familiarize themselves with the modified hardware and software, but also to provide the developmental test personnel “an operational perspective, which they may not necessarily have considered”, Kensick said.

Once the Increment 3.1 upgrade arrives at the 422nd TES, the squadron will perform the Follow-on Operational Test and Evaluation (FOT&E) for the upgrade as mandated by the independent Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC). “The whole point of the FOT&E is to provide a completely objective perspective”, Kensick explained. “We have more say in the FDE (Force Development Evaluation)”, he said, explaining that the FDE is a follow-on Air Combat Command evaluation designed in large part to refine tactics. “We have quite a bit of testing ahead of us because Increment 3.1 is such a significant change,” Kensick said. He added that between the major Increment changeovers, which includes both hardware and software modifications, there are also software updates that will need to be tested.

A 422nd TES Raptor climbs using its afterburners. (Lockheed Martin Photo)

While the Increment 3.1 upgrade adds significant air-to-ground strike potential to the Raptor’s capabilities, Kensick said he doesn’t expect any decline in the air-to-air skills of operational pilots because of any reduced air-to-air training time. The Raptor already scores lopsided air-to-air victories against legacy 4th generation machines with it’s combination stealth, speed, and sensors. Even close in, “we find that we can typically get to a merge against a 4th generation threat undetected, negating their high off-boresight weapons”, Kensick said, referring to the Raptor’s current inability to employ the AIM-9X high off boresight missile system.

Additionally, for the ground attack role, “new smart weapons don’t require nearly as much training to employ”, Kensick said. He emphasized that the vast majority of an operational Raptor pilot’s training time will be spent on the counter-air and destruction of enemy air defenses mission sets. However, Kensick acknowledged, “3.1 is going to take some additional training”.

A prototype F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter over Texas. The F-35 is scheduled to arrive at Nellis AFB in 2012. (Lockheed Martin)

With the impending arrival of the F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) at the 422nd TES in 2012, Kensick said the squadron has already begun to make preparations. “JSF core pilots are assigned to each division”, Kensick said, explaining that these pilots are assigned to gather relevant data on the tactics and mission employment of current aircraft which can be applied to the Lightning II. “They’re fully briefed on the JSF and have flown the F-35 simulator”, Kensick said. The 422nd TES will the ready when the F-35 arrives at Nellis.