Special devices Flight 'STRETCH'es training capability Published April 17, 2009 By Airman 1st Class Veronica McMahon 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- The 17 personnel assigned to Tyndall's 53rd Weapons Evaluations Group, 53 Test Support Squadron Special Devices Flight design, create, build and test their own products which they develop for the Air Force test agencies. Their efforts have resulted in many huge projects throughout the years. The most recent project, the Self-Towing Reusable Engagement Target Coverage Haft Pod for towing the aerial gunnery target practice banner, completed its first successful test flight Feb. 25 here. This was the first time the F-15 towed the banner for aerial gunnery training and is the start to get this capability out to the Combat Air Forces. "The STRETCH Pod is a perfect example of the unique capabilities Special Devices Flight brings to the table," said Capt. William Hope, 325th Special Devices flight commander. "We're talking about a system which required extensive machining and sheet metal work, along with an onboard central processing unit programmed in-house." The STRETCH Pod is designed to tow the TDU-32 banner; the banner is 8 feet by 40 feet and is towed 2,000 feet in trail the F-15. This spacing in trail provides a safety margin when conducting aerial gunnery training. "Around 1996, the Air Force's F-15 stopped practicing aerial gunnery training at home station," said Lt. Col. Terry 'Stretch' Scott, 53 Weapons Evaluation Group Deputy Commander and master-mind behind the new product. "In 2002 the Air-to-Air Gunnery Program was reinvigorated by starting the Combat Banner program. The object of the STRETCH Pod is so fighter units can self-tow the banner for their Ready Aircrew training requirements." Colonel Scott has been working the Banner program since 1999 and was proud of the final banner's test flight. "The test flight was uneventful," said the colonel. "It was as good as any test flight could get. It worked like a champ and did exactly what I thought it would." After an extensive engineering assessment and successful flight test, the STRETCH Pod earned a flight recommendation from the Air Force Seek Eagle office at Eglin AFB and is currently awaiting formal flight clearance authorization for local use of the pod at Tyndall. "This is a complete in-house project," said Tech. Sgt. Paul Noblit, 53 TSS Special Devices Flight chief. "Everything on it was done at the fabrications shop." The fabrications shop is only one of the three areas which binds the Special Devices Flight together; engineers and avionics specialists also play a key role in production of many of the flight's projects. Along with creating the STRETCH Pod, some of their projects include modifying an out-of-service pod to carry Luneburg Lenses, as well as engineering an electro-optical pod adapter for the F-35 program. "With such an experienced and technically diversified staff, this flight is unmatched in its ability to rapidly design, engineer and fabricate test prototypes and transition them to the 'Proof of Concept' phase," Captain Hope said. "Our team runs the gamut capability-wise - from metal fabrication, to circuit card manufacturing and even software design, the guys here in Special D can do it all. I think our flight motto really sums it up best, 'Any Tasking for the Asking.'" The flight's mission is to provide professional engineering, design and manufacture capability in aircraft related system technologies, enabling rapid transition from concept to certified operational demonstration. "The Special Devices Flight is like MacGyver on steroids," said Colonel Scott. "They can build anything." Any organization here seeking Special Devices Flight assistance is encouraged to contact the flight at 283-2135.