Saab delivers first Red Hawk airframe section

Saab announced on 20 April that it had delivered the first aft airframe section for the T-7A Red Hawk advanced trainer aircraft to its programme partner Boeing.

The 15 April shipment to the Boeing facility in St. Louis was a ‘key delivery’ in the Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase of the T-7A programme for the USAF, Saab added.

‘On completion of the EMD production phase, Saab’s brand new facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA will undertake Saab’s production of the aft sections for the T-7A programme,’ the Swedish company stated.

Saab designed and built the aft fuselage under the T-7A partnership with Boeing, which will splice the aft section to the forward fuselage.

Boeing will then add wings, fins and a tail assembly to create a complete static airframe for structural ground tests.

The USAF wants an initial 351 Red Hawks to replace the T-38C Talon. Shephard Defence Insight notes that the initial EMD contract is worth $813 million for the Boeing-Saab team to make the first five aircraft and seven simulators, with scheduled deliveries by 2023.  

Boeing announced on 23 February that T-7A full-rate production is underway at its St. Louis facility.

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