PPRuNe Forums - View Single Post - Typhoon pre-delivery test flights
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Old 1st Apr 2016, 18:19
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Genghis the Engineer
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I have no specific knowledge - last time I had anything to do with Typhoon, it was still a 1/18th scale model in a wind tunnel.

Generally however, you can expect individual aeroplanes - of any type - tested at a factory - to have a set of systems ground tests, probably with various test sets connected. You can then expect a flight test that checks performance of engines and aircraft overall against scheduled data at a few cardinal points (climb, max level, possibly acceleration), with the assumption that if those points are met, so will the rest of the envelope. You can expect representative manoeuvres to be checked against standard handling knowns, and the radar to be checked against some standard features - more likely convenient mountains / islands - airborne targets have been checked at the prototype stage and then simulated using ground test equipment.

No, I'd not expect live firing of weapons before delivery to the squadrons, but I would expect very strenuous checks against ground test equipment.

Where specific faults have been found on previous aircraft in flight, the odds are that these will be checked in flight test. No, I've no idea what those are.

Somehow I doubt that you'll get a straight answer from anybody who actually works on Typhoon - but good luck.

G
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