Book 23, Question 125
How Are New Airplanes Tested Before They Carry People?
New airplanes face years of tough tests. Engineers push them harder than real flights will. Only then may they carry people! Testing can take years.
More fun facts
- Before a new airplane design can be certified, its builder must finish the needed ground inspections and tests.
- The plane's structure must hold the biggest loads expected in service, called limit loads, without being permanently bent out of shape.
- Engineers multiply those limit loads by a safety factor of 1.5 to get the ultimate loads.
- In strength tests, the structure must hold ultimate loads for at least 3 seconds without breaking.
- Big tests may load a nearly complete airframe to check that it is as strong as computer predictions say.
- The builder's test pilot must fly the plane and report the results to the FAA, which can order more flight tests.
- Most new aircraft need at least 150 hours of reliability flying, or 300 hours if they use a brand new type of jet engine.
Questions kids ask
Why test the real structure if computers can predict it?
FAA guidance says computer models of complex structures are trusted only when full scale ground or flight tests back them up.