STRUCTURAL LATCH MECHANISM CONCEPTS WILL BE DEVELOPED TO BE USED ON FUTURE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT FOR INTERFACING THE CREW ESCAPE CAPSULE WITH THE AIRFRAME.

STRUCTURAL LATCH MECHANISM CONCEPTS WILL BE DEVELOPED TO BE USED ON FUTURE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT FOR INTERFACING THE CREW ESCAPE CAPSULE WITH THE AIRFRAME. THE F-111 ESCAPE CAPSULE DESIGN WILL AID IN THE GENERATION AND VALIDATION OF PRELIMINARY DESIGN REQUIREMENTS. THREE PHILOSOPHIES WILL BE CONSIDERED IN DEVELOPING THE DESIGN CONCEPTS. ONE WILL MAXIMIZE THE LOAD DISTRIBUTION BETWEEN THE TWO STRUCTURES. ANOTHER WILL CONSIDER THE CAPSULE AND AIRFRAME AS INDEPENDENT STRUCTURES AND LIMIT THE LOAD DISTRIBUTION TO THREE PIN JOINTS. THE THIRD PHILOSOPHY WILL ATTEMPT TO INCORPORATE THE POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES OF THE OTHER TWO CASES. EVALUATION OF CONCEPTS THROUGH TRADE STUDY ANALYSIS WILL BE CONDUCTED, LEADING TO IDENTIFICATION AND REFINEMENT OF THE PREFERRED CONCEPTUAL DESIGNS. A FEASIBILITY STUDY WILL BE PERFORMED ON THE INDIVIDUAL MECHANISMS, AS WELL AS THEIR INTEGRATION INTO A CREW ESCAPE MECHANISM SYSTEM. THE FINAL REPORT WILL INCLUDE LATCH MECHANISM TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS, ENGINEERING LAYOUTS, ANALYSES, AND FEASIBILITY STUDY AND RATIONALE.