Man-Rating of the Navy/Air Force Oxygen Generating System (NAOGS)

The Navy/Air Force Oxygen Generating System (NAOGS) program is a joint effort between the Air Force and the Naval Air Development Center to develop a 2-man onboard oxygen generator for tactical aircraft. One of the proposed systems is based upon reversible sorption of oxygen from aircraft engine bleed air using fluomine, a cobalt chelate. The NAOGS fluomine system was manufactured by Garrett/AiResearch Division, Torrance, California. The USAF School of Aerospace Medicine performed man-rating of the NAOGS-fluomine unit prior to flight test by the U.S. Navy. The experimental protocol at USAFSAM consisted of both unmanned and manned testing, during which the product oxygen was monitored for quantity, purity, and trace contaminant content. Man-rating consisted of actual flight simulations with 2 test subjects at four different altitudes for periods up to 2 hours while breathing the product oxygen. The NAOGS, for the most part, performed adequately during both manned and unmanned testing. The exceptions were a lower than specification oxygen production rate and a short-term drop in oxygen purity during each bed switching cycle. These shortcomings are discussed in the context of the forthcoming flight test program. (Author)