...For Col. Moussez, the big change for the Rafale, compared to other combat aircraft in the AdlA fleet, has been the elimination of scheduled maintenance: "The aircraft has an on-the-way maintenance concept. Theres no more scheduled maintenance on the airframe which makes for a lot of savings."
The removal of scheduled maintenance was a requirement for the Rafale programme from the outset. "It was the French government which imposed the maintenance concept for the Rafale, the first combat aircraft in the world which had both operational and support requirements," according to Yves Robins, Dassault Aviation director of communications. The use of computer-aided design (CAD) tools helped. "We used different tools such as CATIA modelling software," Robins explains. "During the design phase we were able to rehearse the maintenance, removal and installation of equipment on the aircraft to determine what would be the most convenient way. We were able to influence the design of the components so that they could be easily removed and installed... we were able to perform virtual maintenance and even before the first designs were made, locate where the problems were to solve them virtually."
To reduce the Rafales maintenance burden, Dassault has embedded sensors throughout the airframe to record details of the aircrafts behavior. This data is recorded and downloaded into two data cartridges, one of which contains flight operational data and the other maintenance data. These are accessed by the groundcrew on a computer, which can pinpoint the precise cause of a problem and rectify it with line replaceable units (LRUs). "As soon as you have flown, you have the results," remarks Robins. "It tells you very precisely what is happening in different zones."
Rafales predecessor, the Mirage 2000, had embedded sensors in the aircraft to record the behavior of the aircrafts mission systems. "The aircraft is its own test bench. You dont need a lot of systems besides the aircraft for troubleshooting. You have just one test bench for all the aircrafts systems, which use shop replaceable units," Moussez says
Modular design is an important element of reducing the aircrafts maintenance burden. "The engine has 21 modules," Moussez continues, "so even without moving the engine you can repair it. You can move the engine from the aircraft with a crane and that takes you roughly one hour." The aircraft also makes light use of ground support equipment (GSE). For example, the same GSE can be used for the Thales RBE2 radar and frontal electro-optical package. "We tried to reduce the specific GSE to make the aircraft easy to deploy overseas," he notes. The innovations that Dassault has built into the Rafale reduce the necessary groundcrew to eight personnel 25 percent less than the Mirage 2000 and again, this is to ease deployment.
Space on the Charles de Gualle, Frances solitary aircraft carrier, is at a premium and the savings on GSE and manpower is an important feature. "The French government imposed commonality on the two Rafale types. What is interesting is that on the aircraft carrier, all maintenance has to be done within the shade of the aircraft, so to speak," says Robins. Moreover, the naval deployment has given Dassault and the AdlA a good idea of the maintenance burden on the aircraft when it is deployed in harsh conditions. The Kandahar deployment will deepen that knowledge further giving an idea of how the aircraft holds up in the dusty, hot terrain. Word on the street from the AdlA is "so far, so good." By Thomas Withington
