United States military aircraft have specific designations given by the Department of Defense, known as MDS (Mission Design Series) designations that identify their design and purpose. This joint designation system was introduced by the Department of Defense in 1962, which replaced the separate systems of the United States Air Force, the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, the United States Army. United States and the United States Coast Guard. This article will explain what those designations mean and how to read them.
Steps
Step 1. Understand what the MDS designations say about the vehicle
The system consists of six different designations that identify:
- The type of the aircraft
- The basic mission of the aircraft
- The modified mission of the aircraft
- The designation number
- Serial letter
- The state prefix
Step 2. Familiarize yourself with the format
Actually, the order in which the designation is presented is (6) (3) (2) (1) - (4) (5).
Step 3. Read from the script to the left
Then read everything after the dash to the right.
Step 4. Verify the aircraft type
If it is anything but an airplane (for example: heavier than an airship or atmospheric craft), you will see one of the following symbols immediately to the left of the dash. Otherwise, skip to the next step.
- D: UAS (Nameless Air System) control segment, these are not the UAV vehicles themselves, but the control of manned aircraft and the "D" is used because they are airships)
- G: glider (includes motorized gliders used for flight without force, fixed wings, uses air currents to fly, may have a motor)
- H: helicopter (any aircraft with rotary wings)
- Q: UAS (Nameless Air System, this is the vehicle itself)
- S: space plane (can operate outside and inside the atmosphere, see tips below)
- V: VTO (vertical take-off and landing) or STOL (short-range take-off and landing)
- Z - lighter than air (ex: weather balloons, spy balloons, think of old zeppelins to remember the Z designation)
Step 5. Determine the basic mission
The letter immediately to the left of the dash (when the type designation is not present) indicates the purpose of the basic mission of that aircraft. Sometimes the basic mission designation is left out if the type and modified mission (see next step) are included (for example: MQ-9A).
- A: ground attack ("A" is for attack)
- B: bomber
- C: transportation ("C" is by freight carrier)
- E: special electronic installation ("E" is for the addition of extensive electronic equipment)
- F: fighter (aerial fighter, think "F" in the English voice fighter)
- H: search and rescue (think of the "H" for hospital, flying hospital ships, and also the common fate for those rescued)
- K - Tanker (think "K" for kerosene, loads and transfers jet fuel, usually a kerosene mixture, in flight to other aircraft.
- L - Equipped with lasers (laser weapons against air and ground targets, a new designation)
- M: multiple mission (a large variety of possible missions)
- O: observation (observation of the enemy or potential enemy positions)
- P: "P" for maritime patrol (over the sea)
- R: reconnaissance (aerial reconnaissance of enemy forces, territory and facilities)
- S: anti-submarine ("S" for searching, locating and attacking enemy submarines, see tips below)
- T: training
- U: utility (base support aircraft)
- X: Special Research ("X" for experimental design and pure development research programs, with no planned or possible operational mission)
NOTE: Prior to the "modern" designations of 1962, "P" was commonly used for the "fighter" aircraft of World War I, World War II, and the Korean War, the first combat interceptor aircraft
Step 6. Find the modified mission
The letter to the left of the basic mission designation indicates that, optionally, the mission of a particular aircraft has been modified for a different mission than it was designed for. There should only be one letter for the modified mission designation, but there are some exceptions (such as: EKA-3B). These symbols are similar to the basic mission symbols, but contain some additional descriptions.
- A: ground attack
- C: transport (cargo)
- D: unmanned detector (modification of unmanned aerial vehicles such as remote control)
- E: special electronic installation (addition of extensive electronic equipment)
- F: fighter (air fighter)
- K: tanker (loads and transfers aviation fuel in flight to other aircraft)
- L: cold weather operations (Arctic or Antarctic environments)
- M: multiple mission (covers all categories)
- O: observation (observation of the enemy or potential enemy positions)
- P: maritime patrol
- Q: UAV or unmanned
- R: recon (aerial reconnaissance of enemy forces, territory and facilities)
- S: anti-submarine (search, locate and attack enemy submarines)
- T: training
- U: utility (base support aircraft)
- V: VIP, transportation for the presidential team (comfortable accommodation)
- W: weather recognition (weather monitoring and air sampling)
Step 7. Check for a state prefix
If this symbol is present, it will be located further to the left and is only needed if an aircraft is not in normal operational service.
- C: captive. Rockets or missiles unable to launch.
- D: training vehicles. Rockets and flightless missiles, usually used for ground training.
- G: permanently grounded. Usually for crew ground training and support. Rare.
- J: special, temporary tests. Aircraft with equipment temporarily installed for testing purposes.
- N: special tests, permanent. Aircraft with equipment installed for testing purposes and that can no longer be returned to its original configuration.
- X: experimental. Aircraft that has not yet been completed or its service has not yet been accepted.
- Y: prototype. This is the final model of an aircraft that is intended to be used for mass productions.
- Z: planning phase. In the pre-planning or development phase. Not for an aircraft itself.
Step 8. Find the design number to the right of the dash
The first number after the dash is the aircraft designation. The rule, although sometimes violated, says that normal aircraft are designated with a strict numerical series according to their basic mission. The easiest example is found in the fighter class of the United States aircraft: F-14, then F-15, F-16 and so on. However, there are some exceptions. For example, the X-35, which was a research aircraft, was later renamed the F-35 when it became a fighter, even when the next number in the sequence of fighters was the F-24.
Step 9. Check the serial letter
A suffix designates variants of a basic aircraft, with the first model as "A", the following letters of the alphabet are assigned as the subsequent letters in the series (omitting the "I" and "O" to avoid confusion with the numbers " 1 "and" 0 "). Like other symbols, there are exceptions with out-of-the-box suffixes (such as when designating a specific customer, in the case of the "N" in the F-16N designation that refers to "Navy").
Step 10. Make a note of any additional items
There are three additional symbols that you can find that are optional. For example: F-15E- 51-MC Eagle, EA-6B- 40-GR Prowler.
- Popular name assigned. In the given examples we have "Eagle" and "Prowler".
- Block number. Distinguish between minor sub-variants of a specific variety of aircraft. We have "51" and "40" in the examples above. Sometimes the hyphen before the block number is replaced by the word "block" (for example: B-2A Block 30).
- Manufacturer's letter code. Identify the manufacturer's plant. (See the sources and citations section below for a list of abbreviations.)
Step 11. Practice
Read the following MDS designations and try to figure them out. The answers are in the tips section. Some of the designations can get very complicated, but if you start from the script and read to the left, you will be able to understand any designation of aircraft in the United States.
- AH-12
- F-16
- SR-71
Advice
- Answers.
- AH-12. From the script outward, it reads Basic Attack Design Helicopter, twelfth in the series.
- F-16. It is an airplane, so the first (and only) letter to the left of the script indicates its mission basic designed like an airplane fighter. The 16 means that it is the sixteenth design of the family.
- SR-71. The designation read from the script indicates that it was originally designated as a reconnaissance aircraft (part of the reconnaissance aircraft family, since it was replacing the A-12 as a spy plane) with modified capability to be a space plane.
- The only two designations that use S as anti-submarines are the S-2 and S-3. In the particular case of the SR-71, as described above, the "S" designation is used as a modified mission indicator.
- Most of the symbols used have a corresponding letter in their description to help you remember them all. (A - land attack; P - maritime patrol). Try to remember them and this process will be much easier.
- The tail codes located on the stabilizers of the aircraft indicate unit and / or base, year of manufacture and the last digits of the aircraft serial number.
- Some confusion can be generated by the fact that the designations for type and basic mission have the symbol "S". Interestingly, the "S" designation for spacecraft has been used only once when designating the SR-71 reconnaissance spacecraft, originally correctly named RS-71. When President Lyndon Johnson referred to the incredibly fast airplane ever created, he made a verbal mistake. As part of a national television speech, he commuted the letters "R" and "S", so the designation remained that way. The military and designation personnel then adjusted the abbreviations. The reconnaissance aircraft that flew to the edge of outer space "RS" became the reconnaissance aircraft "SR".
Warnings
- As in any system or set of rules, there are exceptions to these designations.
- Sometimes an aircraft with basic and dual roles may use a '/' designation between the roles, as is the case with the F / A-18 (fighter / attack aircraft).
- This article does not constitute, in any way, a complete or extremely accurate guide to United States military aircraft designations.