US FEDERAL AVIATION Administration flight-testing of the Lockheed Martin C-130J Hercules 2 has begun in anticipation of civil certification in May. The company is developing the C-130J as a private venture and will use civil certification, rather than military qualification, as proof of the aircraft's airworthiness. Certification testing began in late December 1996 with an FAA flight over the Atlantic Ocean to validate calibration of the C-130J's air-data system. The next series of FAAflights will cover the propulsion system. The C-130J is powered by digitally controlled Rolls-Royce AllisonAE2100 turboprops driving Dowty six-blade propellers. Four C-130Js had been flown by the end of 1996 - two USAir Force "standard-body" aircraft and two Royal Air Force stretched C-130J-30s.
Source: Flight International
