Advanced Fighter Technology Integration (AFTI)/F-16 Automated Maneuvering Attack System Final Flight Test Results

Developmental and demonstration flight testing of the advanced fighter technology integration (AFTI)/F-16 automated maneuvering attack system (AMAS) was accomplished at Edwards Air Force Base, California, from July 1984 to April 1987, with 237 sorties totaling 347.3 flight hours. The flight tests were conducted by the AFTI/F-16 Joint Test Force, which was composed of Air Force Flight Test Center, NASA Ames-Dryden Flight Research Facility, and General Dynamics personnel. The purpose of the AFTI/F-16 program was to provide a test bed for advanced flight control, avionics, and cockpit display systems. The overall thrust of this phase of the flight test program was to develop automated guidance and control systems for air-to-ground and air-to-air weapon delivery. The test bed was an NF-16A aircraft that had been modified with a digital flight control system, dual avionics multiplex buses, an advanced forward-looking infrared sensor with laser ranger, integrated flight and fire control software, advanced cockpit displays and controls, and modified core multinational stage improvement program (MSIP) avionics. This paper presents a summary of final flight test results of the AMAS air-to-ground system and the associated advanced avionics systems.