Japanese CCV T-2

In Japan, the CCV approach that was taken involved modification of a Mitsubishi T-2 jet training aircraft. Horizontal canards were fitted to reduce static stability, and an all-movable vertical surface was added to the forward fuselage to enable direct side force control investiga­tions. The existing wing-mounted flaps were modified to enable direct lift control and maneuver load control studies. A triply redundant dig­ital fly-by-wire flight control system was installed with quadruplex pilot force sensors used to sense stick and rudder pedal forces and air­craft motion sensors. Aircraft motion sensors (such as pitch, roll, and yaw rate gyros, and vertical and lateral acceleration sensors) were also quadruplex. The original mechanical flight control system was retained as a backup mode. Three identical digital computers processed sensor signals, and the resultant command signals were used to con­trol the horizontal stabilizer, leading and trailing edge flaps, rudder, and vertical canard. Electrohydraulic actuators converted electrical
signals into mechanical inputs for the control surface actuators. The CCV T-2 first flew in August 1983. After 24 flights by Mitsubishi, the aircraft was delivered to the Japanese Technical Research Development Institute (TRDI) at Gifu Air Base in March 1984 for government flight­testing, which was completed in March 1986.[1220]

These research programs (along with the Soviet Projekt 100LDU testbed discussed earlier) provided invaluable hands-on experience with state – of-the-art flight control technologies. Data from the Jaguar ACT and the CCV F-104G supported the Experimental Aircraft Program (EAP) and contributed to the technology base for the Anglo-German-Italian – Spanish Eurofighter multirole fighter, now known as the Typhoon. Many other advanced aircraft development programs, including the French Rafale, the Mitsubishi F-2 fighter, the Russian Su-27 family of fighters and attack aircraft, and the entire family of Airbus airliners, were the beneficiaries of these research efforts. In addition, the importance of the infusion of technology made possible by open dissemination of NASA technical publications should not be underestimated.