SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT & FLIGHT TEST

Develop the system.
Verify the result.

Aircraft development needs clear interfaces and a credible route to verification. My support spans system architecture, integration and flight testing, drawing on experience with electric and hydrogen propulsion and autonomous or optionally piloted aircraft, including MALE UAVs.

Air-data instrumentation

System integration

Measurement data in flight

System architecture & integration

The intended operation defines the functions, requirements and interfaces. Mechanical, electrical and software contributions are brought together in an integration plan that accounts for their dependencies.

Requirements and interface definition
Integration planning and configuration management
Functional verification and technical documentation

Autonomous & optionally piloted systems

Uncrewed and optionally piloted aircraft require coordinated mission functions, operating modes and fallback behaviour. Experience with MALE UAVs informs the definition and verification of these interfaces.

Sensor, actuator and mission-system interfaces
Operating modes, supervision and fallback behaviour
Progressive verification on test rigs, on the ground and in flight

Electric & hydrogen propulsion

Electric, hybrid-electric and hydrogen-based propulsion place new demands on aircraft integration. Development support addresses the interfaces between propulsion, energy storage, power electronics and the aircraft.

Propulsion, energy storage and power-electronics interfaces
Hydrogen-system integration and functional dependencies
Test concepts for normal operation and fault conditions

Flight testing

A flight test programme needs clear objectives, suitable test points and an evaluation strategy. The scope covers aircraft performance, flying qualities and system behaviour.

Aircraft performance measurement and data reduction
Stability, control and flying-qualities assessment
Test plans, briefings, execution support and reporting

Flight test instrumentation

Useful test data starts with the measurement chain. Sensor selection, installation, synchronisation and evaluation follow the engineering question and the required measurement accuracy.

Sensor selection, calibration and installation
Data acquisition, synchronisation and signal quality
Data processing, uncertainty assessment and evaluation

Composites, structures & simulation

Material selection, structural analysis and manufacturing need to be considered together. Composite and sandwich structures are developed with attention to load paths, joints and test requirements.