Kellstrom Defense Aerospace (KDA) has partnered with Lynden Air Cargo (Lynden) to be the launch customer for the first installation and entry into service for the latest aircraft life extension product (LEP), KDA’s Digital Fuel Quantity Measurement Solution (DFQMS™). Lynden will also complete the Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for the 382G (L-100) aircraft type for this modernization solution to support legacy C-130 and L-100 aircraft.
The Engineered Product operating segment has invested to bring in a full-scale development program for this technology, supported by our partners at the AMETEK SFMS and PDS divisions and the system engineering team at Cascade Aerospace, a Lockheed Martin service and engineering center.
The DFQMS™ is a modern active capacitance system that replaces legacy fuel quantity measurement systems and aircraft wiring harnesses to improve system reliability, lower material costs, and increase mission readiness. The Lynden installation will clear the way for global fleet retrofit of this technology and will drive operator value by increasing mission availability and ensuring accurate fuel measurement ensuring mission duration.
Michael Farmer, KDA’s LEP Vice President, comments, “We are excited to work closely with Lynden on their fleet of 382G (L-100) aircraft to complete STC development and ensure that this critical technology reaches maturity. It has been a team effort with AMETEK, Cascade Aerospace, Lynden, and KDA committing investment, resources, and technical know-how to achieve this milestone.”
Kellstrom Defense is recognized as the global leader for military aircraft support and sustainment, with a long history of developing and deploying aircraft upgrades, that include the SHORT-POD® APU and E2H® ECS upgrades for legacy C-130 and L-100 aircraft.
About Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc.
Kellstrom Defense Aerospace, Inc. (KDA) is a respected global leader for defense aircraft sustainment, deploying an experienced team and complete capabilities to solve customer challenges through OEM strategic distribution, component repair services, engineered products, and logistics solutions for military transporters, fighters, and rotary-wing platforms. With operations in Camarillo, CA; Miramar, FL; Macon, GA; Chula Vista, CA; Cambridge, UK; South Windsor, AU; Singapore, and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the KDA team provides support to the United States military and over 60 partnering nations. KDA is committed to compliance, with hundreds of active export licenses and dedicated contract, export, and security personnel.
About Lynden Air Cargo
Lynden Air Cargo operates the largest fleet of L-382 (L-100) in the world and is part of the Lynden family of transportation companies primarily serving Alaska and the Pacific Northwest with service extending throughout the U.S. and internationally. Our fleet of L-382 Hercules aircraft transports everything from groceries to cars within Alaska through scheduled weekly service and oversized cargo worldwide through charter flights. Lynden Air Cargo carries materials and supplies to remote and challenging destinations in the Alaskan Bush and beyond and has been called upon to fly relief missions for some of the world’s most devastating disasters. We support customers in the mining, construction and energy industries and have mobilized operations to support startup projects around the globe. Lynden Air Cargo has been a subcontractor for the Department of Defense and is a member of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) program since 1999. Lynden Air Cargo has successfully flown thousands of missions to locations around the world while providing a reliability rating among the top of any CRAF carrier. Over the years, Lynden Air Cargo has had aircraft contracted for weekly scheduled flights, based at Air Force Bases in Yokota, Japan, Ramstein, Germany and Trenton, New Jersey. In addition, Lynden Air Cargo has operated Department of Defense Air Mobility Command (AMC) expansion missions as needed on an ad hoc trip basis. Our pilots have thousands of hours of flight time, and all of our employees – in the air or on the ground – pride themselves on providing safe, reliable and friendly air cargo service year-round.
In 2020, AllClear Aerospace & Defense brought together two of the industry’s leading companies, Aero Precision and Kellstrom Defense. With over 55 years of defense aircraft experience, AllClear is the industry’s leading provider of mission-ready aviation MRO and sustainment solutions to the military aftermarket, providing excellence to the U.S. military and its allies.