Building on the success of a recently demonstrated IFDIS use applied to the F/A-18 GCU, the USN awarded a 3-year, multi-million dollar contract for the procurement of two additional Intermittent Fault Detection and Isolation Systems (IFDIS) to support the readiness of the F/A-18 fleet by filling a gap in maintenance capabilities in repairing the Generator Converter Unit (GCU) – the top fleet degrader. The IFDIS test capability was key in pinpointing the location of intermittent connectivity in GCU chassis circuit paths. These intermittent faults were found to be the major contributor to the high level of legacy ATE Can Not Duplicate (CND) and Re-Test OK (RTOK) test rates. The high No Fault Found (NFF) rate of the GCU has been contributing to a significant percentage of the F/A-18 fleet readiness shortfall and contributing to higher maintenance workload and associated O&M costs. Additionally under the JIT contract, Test Program Sets (TPSs) for the RADAR are also planned to be procured to help return those assets to higher availability and operational reliability rate.
