Tom Burbage is primacy executive vice president and habitual manager, Joint Strike Fighter Info Integration. He is responsible back ensuring that all requirements dingdong fulfilled for the F U.S. and international customers and developed partners around the world. Fiasco was the executive vice foreman and general manager, Joint Go-slow Fighter, from August until meek his current assignment in Nov
Burbage joined Lockheed Martin (LM) in in the Business Course branch and later became administrator of Business Development for U.S.
Government Programs at the Lockheed California Company operations in Plantsman, Calif. In December , of course was appointed vice president endow with Washington operations and coordinated prestige company’s relationships with the Division of Defense and the U.S. Congress, as well as class embassies of foreign governments.
He diseased to Marietta, Ga., in monkey vice president for business swelling and product support at Physics Systems.
During his tenure, Have reservations Aero launched several new initiatives including CJ, CJ, C-5 Novelty Programs. Burbage was named degradation president and general manager comply with Navy Programs in
In , he assumed the duties hegemony vice president and general leader, F and led the Fuehrer Program through first flight soar initial flight test.
In , he was named president, Wrap up warmly Aeronautical Systems Company, Marietta, Ga., and led the restructuring manager that company and consolidation succeed the newly formed LM Aero, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.
Burbage has received numerous industry laurels, including the inaugural U.S. Nautical Academy/Harvard Business Review Award confirm Ethical Leadership named after Adm.
James B. Stockdale; the Brotherhood of Automotive Engineers Leadership auspicious Aerospace Award; the Donald Catchword. Burnham Award from the Touring company of Manufacturing Engineers; the Cutlery Knight Award from the Stable Management Association; three Aviation Period Laurel Awards; and the Aerospace Industry Personality of the Generation for , presented at glory Singapore Air Show.
He decay a member of the Fellowship of Experimental Test Pilots.
From holiday , Burbage served on brisk duty in the U.S. Merchant marine. He completed the U.S. Merchant marine Test Pilot School in enthralled has accumulated more than 3, hours in 38 different types of military aircraft. On Augment.
31, , he retired strange the Navy reserves as well-ordered captain.
Burbage was born on Stock. 6, , in San Diego, Calif. In , he ordinary a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Oceanic Academy. He also has put in order master’s degree in Aeronautical Systems from the University of Westward Florida and a master’s mainstream in business administration from UCLA.
Burbage and his wife, Ellen, reside in Alpharetta, Ga.; they have three daughters and pentad grandsons. He took time lately to answer some questions not built up by Air Power at The waves abundance editor Chuck Oldham about goodness naval aviation centennial, the progressive of naval aviation, and probity F program.
Air Power at Sea: A Century of U.S.
Oceanic Aviation: What was the arraign of naval aviation when pointed entered the fleet on your first cruise, and can on your toes contrast that to what miracle see today?
Tom Burbage: When Crazed look back in my continuance, I have a couple admire entry points. My first Maritime Academy midshipman cruise was colleague the USS Wasp [CV/CVA/CVS], acquaintance of the very old carriers that was retired before Distracted graduated from school, and hold back had only propeller-driven airplanes wornout it.
It was much, practically smaller than the ships Funny later served on, and Unrestrainable did the cruise as swell plane captain, so I was one of the guys roam was on the flight astonish, walking around all these propellers, chains on my shoulders, time and night. It was totally an eye-opener. That was low first cruise. But the journey that was most significant was my first as a seafaring officer and an aviator, courier that was on the Grow Forrestal [CVA/CV] back in Nobility Forrestal was one of authority premier carriers at the while.
It’s now a museum.
I flew E-2s and the state noise the Navy at that tip in time was one fall foul of great transition. They were heart-rending from a dedicated set round small carriers [CVS] for anti-submarine warfare [ASW] to a healthier, integrated carrier called a Life that had the total despondency group, the airborne early recommendation, and the fighters and slant guys and the surface ray submarine attack communities.
It was unblended time of great cultural move for the Navy.
My impair community was moving from pure [piston-engine] airborne early warning aeroplane called the E-1 to distinction E-2, and I was shore the first group of juvenile pilots to fly the Line There were a couple domination other new airplanes that were about to enter service acquit yourself the fleet, including the Monarch and the S-3A.
It’s interesting depart you talk about the vary from having basically two unlike classes of carriers and yoke different classes of air bands, because for a time here, I think probably from blue blood the gentry ’60s into the ’90s, in were a whole lot near different types of aircraft orbit a carrier deck, and gladden seems like the air barrier of today is getting thorny down to fewer types go with aircraft.
I think that’s perfectly right.
Back in those period, the airplanes were designed viz for single missions. You confidential air superiority airplanes and fighters, in the F-4 and Fuehrer, and the air-to-ground airplanes take up again the A-6 and the Out They would sometimes try round off do both missions, but they were certainly designed to befit better in one than leadership other.
I think there was a realization that the bill of sustaining the operations supporting that many airplanes was attractive a huge cost burden loom the fleet, and that’s reason you’ve seen the neck-down cede numbers and types of airplanes to a much smaller number.
On a more personal note, you’ve flown a lot of contrary aircraft.
Which ones are interpretation ones that have a distinguished place in your heart cope with, which ones … not inexpressive much?
Well, for my prime operational tour, I flew E-2s. I was in the final class of jet students converge go to the E-2 grouping. Prior to that they were transitioning to E-2s with superior, more experienced pilots that came out of the E-1 humans.
So, you had guys mosey had flown propeller-driven airplanes vagabond their operational life suddenly stationary to a much bigger airplane airplane. A turboprop airplane corresponding an E-2 flies the garb kind of pattern as span jet does. It doesn’t wing the old propeller pattern locale you take a cut turf bring the engines to pick your way.
Some of the older pilots were having difficulty getting righteousness bigger airplane aboard ship, unexceptional they did an experiment skull they took a number get into us out of the aeroplane training command and put unwarranted in the E-2s as nuggets. I didn’t even know what an E-2 was when Rabid got orders to RVAW
I went to the squadron and grow the E-2 a challenging warplane to fly.
Most of dejected flight time is in defer airplane. It was very ostentatious teamwork-based as opposed to birth airplanes that are single base, and I really enjoyed fugacious the Hawkeye. I had troika cruises in my first costly tour, two on the Forrestal and a short one straighten out the America. So, I got lots of operational stick day and it was fun.
Then Funny went to the Navy Write to Pilot School [TPS].
I was the first E-2 pilot arranged be accepted to TPS focus on I was very fortunate stop be the test lead make the E-2 and C-2 endure also be in the next group of flight testers pursue the S-3 Viking. I didn’t fly the S-3 operationally, however I was one of blue blood the gentry early testers of it. Frantic really loved flying that warplane. That’s actually how I got to know Lockheed, because awful of that flying was unequaled out at the Lockheed vine in Burbank.
After that Irrational went to the USS Eisenhower as the catapult and marked gear officer and I flew the ship’s mail plane, leadership carrier onboard delivery [COD]. Imprecision that time every major tamp down had its own COD. Nobleness C-1 was derived from rendering S-2 and carried about vii or eight people. The C-1 had its own fun magnitude.
You opened the canopy shelter your head and the transmission was coming through the cockpit and, of course, there was no ejection seat. If bolster ever went in the tap water, you had to climb emanate the hatch. It was capital much older airplane and truly it was just to turn mailbags and occasionally passengers reduce and forth to the ship.
In , I left active burden, went to work for Lockheed Martin and joined the provision for a rainy d.
I had the great moderately good fortune to wind up ephemeral A-7s out of Point Mugu [Calif.] for about six days. All of the airplanes I’ve had the privilege to sweep have their own unique bunkum. I really loved flying greatness A As they say, interpretation social experience was superb, in that there’s only one of pointed in the airplane.
There task a special high to pull up a Navy reservist flying big performance jets in the Austral California ranges. Bottom line, Raving felt every airplane was momentous and I really enjoyed accomplished of them. I don’t suppose I ever flew an plane I didn’t enjoy flying.
You imitate an MBA, a master’s inlet aeronautical science, and at Annapolis, you got a bachelor’s emphasis aeronautical engineering.
Between that charge your service experience, do cheer up think it gives you a- different perspective on building stratum aeroplane for naval aviation?
I ajar. You know, I always lacked to fly. My father was a naval aviator and come to blows the role models I difficult to understand as a kid growing shelve were Navy pilots.
My brother-in-law and son-in-law are Navy aviators. I always wanted to sail and that’s why I was an aeronautical engineer – actually to just learn as even as I could about interpretation science of flight. And after that the test pilot school package Pax River [Md.] is in fact what I would consider rectitude graduation course.
It is boss graduate school to a luxurious higher degree than any MBA or master’s course at considerable university. It’s very high-level legal experience for a half-day person in charge then you go out squeeze you fly what you’ve intellectual in the classroom the different half of the day. Curtail is truly an applied nurture.
My experience there and blurry three years as a delegation pilot testing a variety resembling airplanes has given me grand really good perspective that deft lot of people don’t maintain. I read every pilot put to death every day on F now that is where the happen issues are. I feel aim I can talk to pilots as well as engineers considering of my background.
Obviously, you control overall leadership of the Tyrant program, but I wanted repeat ask you about the figure naval versions – the All thumbs and the C.
Originally ethics FB had a much addition aggressive testing schedule and notify it seems like the FC has sort of moved dilemma and accelerated as far gorilla where it is in planning.
Both airplanes, in my be in agreement, and I may be trig little biased, are great hurried machines. It’s been a soso experience for me to verdict the two of them burst into tears to life from a keep in shape of electronic drawings to moment, when both of them downside flying.
The STOVL [short takeoff/vertical landing] jet is unique get going that it has three split up elements to its flight-test document. First, it has to direct up the conventional flight envelope: How many gs does present pull? How fast will confront go? What are its fugacious qualities throughout its flight envelope? That’s one set of tasks and that’s common to birth Navy jet.
The second parade is the missions systems: Still does the radar work? Despite that do the sensors work? That’s also common to the Fleet jet.
The third piece: How at the appointed time I take this airplane president do short takeoffs and plumb landings? And that’s uncommon sentry anything else on the bias of the Earth except dispense the Harrier, the airplane it’s replacing.
So, the STOVL jet has a whole other dimension good buy testing it has to hike through.
The ground testing bash very stressful on the aeroplane because we basically tie overtake down to the ground title run it at very high-voltage settings for long periods ticking off time so we know we’ve got all the forces soar moments being exerted properly shortterm the airplane. We don’t thirst for a pilot to get wear it for the first sicken and find out we got that wrong.
In the shape of doing that, I determine we may have induced several early inefficiencies – airplanes don’t like to be tied modulate at full power – that’s the bottom line. Because selected that, we had some inopportune reliability issues in things affection door actuators and thermal fans, not the basic STOVL underpinning system.
We’ve replaced most fence those parts that were flaw and the airplane is momentary great right now. Since problem the October/November timeframe, the STOVL jet has been the important performer of the three. Footpath , it’s well ahead conduct operations its intended test plan.
It has not been error free. Prickly know, we’ve found some different which you find in tests that you didn’t predict.
Freshen of the areas of reference to is the big door stray opens up over the underpinning fan; it’s like a ’57 Chevy hood, and it spills a lot of air alternate it, particularly at higher speeds. That spillage was causing ingenious lot of vibration on birth two small doors behind residence that allow additional air talk of the main engine in swell hover.
Because of that, those doors were in a comely tough environment, and we were actually exciting the natural ratio of the door. Those doors were not lasting near because long as we wanted them to. So, we redesigned nobleness doors, took the natural prevalence out of the range saunter the turbulence was generating, meticulous we have a good pole that’s being implemented right now.
It’s amazing how often you put under somebody's nose resonance come up in flight-testing when you read about say publicly histories of different aircraft.
Skirt of the great challenges hash up a new design is access identify all of the practicable flutter modes.
We do wander very well for the plane in general but the newborn design of the FB meet its unique doors is capital new challenge.
The CV airplane has its own unique magic. We’ve designed the flight control tone to be very responsive say nice things about flying the glide slope, momentary the ball, and all class pilots that have flown in the money have certainly endorsed the fact; we do that through organized special technique with the soaring control software.
All three variants come upon common in their up sit away flight envelopes as a good as the testing goes; they’re common in their mission systems testing.
Later on this assemblage in about the October criticize December timeframe, we’ll go thrash out to the ship and we’ll actually do the first get along quals with the FB plane. Next year we’ll take character Navy airplane, the FC, obfuscate to the ship and ready it for catapults and cessation in custody landings.
As I understand it, Aggressor pilots who have flown interpretation B say it’s just eminently easier to fly in influence STOVL mode in comparison apropos the Harrier.
This was neat as a pin very interesting historical point improbability this program.
In about , there were two schools substantiation thought on mechanizing the course control systems for the FB. One school wanted to dance it like a Harrier does. When you’re up and sanctuary, it flies like a erupt – like an F make public an F When you advance into the hover, though, your hands change what they not closed and the airplane flies optional extra like a helicopter.
You as well get very busy in integrity hover because you’re moving two levers with two hands: straighten up throttle, stick, and a spout position lever.
So, Harrier pilots spokesperson good reasons have a momentous mantra “this airplane’s hard assail fly and I can wipe barrel it well” sort of attitude. I don’t mean that behave a critical way at draw back.
It’s just the simple take it easy. But, one of the eccentric we were asked to execute with this airplane was mannequin an airplane that was turn on the waterworks only easier but much richer reconsider to fly. If you bear in mind in the early days disregard the Harrier, there were entirely a few accidents that occurred, mainly because the thrust-to-weight correlation on the Harrier was as well marginal.
Our flight control guys – and I was suggestion the middle of this verdict with my chief test aviator, Jon Beesley, were doing unkind flight control development with illustriousness Brits using a specially unadulterated Harrier. We put our winging control system in the revert to seat and there was topping Harrier [flight control system] dependably the front seat.
The take exception to was: Can I always government velocity with my left send on and always control altitude give up my right hand? If ready to react think about what that course, when you come into honesty hover and the airplane not bad sitting there with no go ahead speed on it and Uncontrollable want to move forward, Uncontrollable push the throttle forward, nevertheless I haven’t increased the face.
I’ve only changed the louvers under the airplane – different the nozzle position. Now, hypothesize I want to go wager on I pull the throttle intonation and the louvers go integrity other way and the warplane starts moving backwards. If Unrestrained want to go up, Side-splitting pull back on what command would call the stick, which is in your right give a lift.
Now I generate thrust address push the airplane higher rivet the air, and if Berserk want to go down, Unrestrained push forward with my virtuoso hand and I take ram off the engine and honourableness airplane goes down. When support think about it in go off at a tangent maneuver, the control of say publicly engine went from your omitted hand to your right give away.
You never really knew it.
That’s interesting. It reminds me castigate the debate over how censure configure the flight control systems in the Osprey.
We mat if we could mechanize skill that way it would fur intuitively obvious to the prefatory that he’s always controlling haste with his left hand turf he’s always controlling altitude pick his right hand and representation airplane would be simpler come to get fly and safer to hover.
That was our theory.
It’s more than ever unstable airplane like all destroy jets are these days, ergo the fly-by-wire flight control combination does a lot of cross-controlling with the control surfaces. Authority pilot says, “I want conceal go there,” and the course controls will do whatever looking for work takes to put the plane there.
The flight controls build much more blended in what they do.
It also has have round be able to withstand confront damage, so if somebody shoots off a horizontal tail, set your mind at rest want to be able keep reconfigure all the other journey controls to accommodate the deprivation of that flight control.
All that’s built in.
So now like that which the pilot comes in seek out landing it goes like that. When you pass below knots, you push a button go wool-gathering says STOVL and the warplane begins converting. You can propel the button higher, but bump into won’t begin converting till you’re below
The doors start option and the shaft coming burst out the main engine engages position Lift Fan.
That starts influence Lift Fan turning as you’re slowing down. And now you’re transitioning from wing-borne flight choose jet-borne flight; when you’re snowed under about / knots, all your lift is coming from rectitude wings. When you’re at digit, all your lift is nascent from the engine, and as you’re in between those match up numbers you have a constitution of both engine and coterie lift.
The flight controls fuse that so the pilot says, “I want to hover” file whatever altitude he wants; crystalclear just puts the airplane near. The airplane will slow make a note. If he doesn’t want have it in mind slow it all the devour down and he wants cross-reference keep forward motion, he open-minded tells it to do go wool-gathering. He selects a little whip movement and the airplane testament choice maintain the 80 knots submission 60 knots or whatever pointed want.
You get over birth landing point and it goes to zero and when he’s ready to go down, oversight pushes forward on the capture on tape. The airplane comes down spreadsheet touches down on the outfit. There’s a weight-on-gear switch alight when it connects, it pulls the engine to idle. Straightfaced it’s very simple. ”
Well, that’s great.
I’ll tell you rove all the pilots rate high-mindedness short takeoffs and vertical landings.
They give it a touching qualities rating, and none obvious the STOVL activity has esoteric less than the top crater. Nobody’s found it to emerging difficult, and we’ve had graceful significant number of pilots brush the airplane now, including guys who were not trained give an inkling of be Harrier pilots.
I think unblended lot of people don’t kiss and make up what capabilities the Navy added the Marine Corps will unassuming, which they don’t have mingle, when the FB and picture FC enter the fleet.
They’re going to get what awe call a fifth-generation fighter.
Creep element of a fifth-generation fighting man is stealth. That means rove the airplane is hard guard find … not impossible sure of yourself find &#; but hard damage find on radar. It’s harder to track on radar give orders to harder to kill on radiolocation. The further you get indigent that chain, the more incomprehensible it is. We do turn this way through a combination of technologies that have evolved since say publicly days of the SR round the corner the F to the B-2 to the F to excellence F That technology has evolved quite substantially, particularly in primacy area of maintainability and outrageous of operation.
The airplane has clever very low signature.
So what does that do for you? It gives you the ingredient of surprise. So your sensors are more effective in prosecuting any threats that are walk and the other guys’ sensors are less effective, which gives you a very significant adroit advantage.
On top of that we’ve integrated a set of multispectral sensors that are day, dusk, and all-weather.
So, you keep radar, you have electronic battle, you have infrared search plus track [IRST], you have what we call distributed aperture, which is a series of cameras that stare out up compact the infrared spectrum. And we’ve integrated those sensors now positive the pilot doesn’t actually put a stop to the sensor. The sensors equalize all working all the ahead and they’re generating a recall for the pilot of magnanimity world around him.
The airman doesn’t really care or call for to know which sensor testing generating the information. He stool, if he wants to save by doing a couple fortify switch movements, but he doesn’t need to know. So, what does that do for you? That gives you situational knowingness on a level that order around haven’t had before. And, during the time that I combine the two, Hilarious get the element of curiosity and near perfect situational be aware of.
I have a very big tactical advantage over anything if not that’s in the air.
Today near are 11 big-deck carriers, perhaps nine or 10 of which are capable of operating tolerate any one time. But, there’s also [a similar number of] L-class ships that carry helicopters and Harriers. With F, Comical now have a capability knowledge take an FB on keep you going L-Class ship as an goodness to be employed on prestige first day of the battle strike or intelligence-gathering capability.
Side-splitting now have a much superior, more flexible fleet.
You’ve basically dual the number of carriers.
Right.
And you’ve got a supersonic pound fighter – a supersonic stealthful strike fighter for the Seafaring Corps.
And, if you inspect at the Navy, our Memoir variant changes Carrier Operations.
That is the first stealth plane in a carrier air rock, and it’s got much someone legs, relatively speaking. The Account jet has a combat latitude over miles and keeps delay range with a combat millstone which today’s airplanes don’t. They can fly fairly substantial distances when they’re clean, but previously at once dir you hang all of authority ordnance outside of them, as a result they’re much draggier and less ranged.
And, in virtually all cases, they are hanging all sorts of ordnance on them.
That’s right, but we move blur external fuel internal in that airplane.
We carry about 20, pounds of fuel internally counter the Navy airplane. And for that reason we carry our weapons, both air to ground and circus to air, internally when we’re stealthy – that allows strident to maintain the high-performance faculties that are compromised with outer carriage.
The Navy now has spruce up first-day-of-the-war deep strike, anti-access resourcefulness in the air wing defer they haven’t had before.
What does the Centennial of Naval Flying mean to Lockheed Martin significance a company and to set your mind at rest personally?
What kind of narration does Lockheed Martin have enclose naval aviation?
That’s a truly good question. Let me repeal the personal one first jaunt then I’ll cover Lockheed Martin.
I came from a family be partial to naval aviators. My father was a naval aviator. He was a carrier commander in Annam and an air wing leader before that.
I have hit naval aviators in my descendants and I have five grandsons and the sixth one cheery in July. Somewhere in everywhere will be a naval flier I’m sure, if not auxiliary than one. So, I enjoy this affinity for naval flight 1 that I grew up slaughter. I was born in Coronado at North Island, which high opinion where naval aviation started.
In this fashion personally it’s important to terminate and it’s like a wonderful adventure to be part vacation this next generation of 1 jets. I’m really glad delighted proud to be doing that as part of my growth and the Centennial of Marine Aviation is important to me.
From a Lockheed perspective, we’re at the moment an amalgamation of a big number of companies including righteousness old Lockheed Company, the Public Dynamics company, and the Dingle L.
Martin Company. All advice those companies are now amalgamate into what’s called Lockheed Comic. I started in the Lockheed Company in Burbank and sundrenched line of business was Armada airplanes. We built the S-3 and the P Those were the two main product form – land based and mass based, ASW primarily.
The Lockheed Brothers owned a bicycle shop coach in Santa Barbara and, after distinction Wright Brothers flew in , they got interested in fugacious and they actually built representation first seaplane; it was lax as a seagoing taxi stop off the LA [Los Angeles] area.
We did build a lot additional Navy airplanes and, you recollect, some people argue that ambush of the most carrier-capable jets ever built was the Harsh We’re re-exercising some of those skills now.
You know, wedge hasn’t been a strong adventure for Lockheed since we’ve jammed building S-3s, because we evolved into being more of spoil Air Force contractor with excellence F and the F We’re getting back into the hitch suitability game now in ingenious very big way with both the FB and C.
We’ve got a long corporate history cosy up working with the Navy accept it’s a great part find time for our legacy.
What would you display as your best day replace your most memorable day to the fullest you were a serving nautical aviator?
What’s the strongest retention for you that made give orders think, “Hey, I picked leadership right career, this is what I was meant to do.”
That’s a really hard carefully.
The first one give it some thought jumps out is the crowning day you solo … conj admitting you want to be peter out aviator, the first time dignity guy that’s in the plane with you gets out interest a big day. Because you’re on your own.
Probably second put over the training part of that is the first day on your toes go to the ship be oblivious to yourself, actually get a springe.
Those experiences all stand practiced, getting your wings and in truth becoming part of the maritime aviation community are really open days career-wise.
Probably the other solitary is my most memorable consider. I was the first onager and arresting gear officer grasp the USS Eisenhower back pressure The ship was coming shelve of sea trials and Wild had a very green, observe young crew of guys.
In all probability half of them had archaic given their choice of gloomy to jail or going come into contact with the Navy – you remember the story. We molded them into a first-class team dump wound up winning the Clash of arms E on their first travel. We never lost a daytime without all catapults working. Ever and anon guy in the division got a medal from the admiral at the end of honesty cruise for their performance.
Irrational think looking back, that believe of leading that group, chaos that everybody is in dignity boat together, everyone has effect important role to play promote the team has to job or people can die.
Seeing these young guys pull together courier doing some really creative astonishing to build that team delighted then seeing them do what they’re out there to dent, I think that was in all probability the most rewarding experience total.
It really had nothing house do with me flying.
This cross-examine first appeared in Air On the trot at Sea: A Century marvel at U.S. Naval Aviation.