Test flt program
 

I am trying to find materials that will help me put together a generic post maintenance test flts programs for an organization.
It should cover both fixed and rotary wings.
Any help/guidance will be appreciated.

I am not really sure you could make a generic test profile as it will make a massive difference for each type and this will vary even more with the complexity of the aircraft and the level of maintenance.

You might have to be a bit more specific on the aircraft types.

Depends exactly what you mean by programme?

If you mean the schedule - that which the aeroplane/helicopter is tested to, I have reservations about any non-simple aircraft being tested to a standard schedule, and can't see a common schedule for fixed and rotary wing being even faintly viable. The best person to put such a schedule together would be an FTE with good type knowledge, who is talking to both maintenance technicians and pilots with better type knowledge.

However, if you are talking about a programme of what/when, then it really wants to (once you have schedules) integrate into your maintenance programme as per the old UK LAMS, or the current UK PtF system. A pretty straightforward approach is annually, after whatever is the main annual maintenance check/inspection to conduct an air test between that the return to service.

G

Another question - is this post-maintenance for a normal operating fleet i.e. commercial? or is it for test aircraft? If it's the latter, remember that some test aircraft have extremely low utilisation rates such that, if you use the standard periodic checks, no maintenance would be carried out. We derate the time between checks by about 100:1 ( a 4000 hour check would be only 40 hours on our prototypes).

Maintenance test Flight Checklist
 

Tournesol, you might try this:

Make a list of your aircraft and then contact the Chief Production Test Pilot at each of the manufacturers, asking him/her for a copy of their Production Flight Test Procedure for that model aircraft.

After you receive these documents, it should be easy to edit them so as to enumerate what specific flight test has to be done for a specific post maintenance situation.

Thanks,
John Dixson

Thank you all for taking the time to reply. Forgive me for not writing clearly, as English is not my first language. As JD says, I will contact the manufactures test pilots.

What I would like is to have basic procedures and guidelilnes for conducting test flights. The legal requirements, pilots level of experience, some sort of guideline on weather conditions, etc...

I beleive there must be some sort of formal training/briefing before any non test pilot (line pilots) perform a test flight.
The specific test flt schedule is not enough. Am I been too cautious here?

We operate airplanes with 4 eng, twins and helis.
Each test flt is unique depending on why do you do it in the first place. But the basic guidelines should be the same. Recently the UK CAA has published a booklet for check flights, which I find very helpful. But it is written as a CAA document. I have not found a booklet written by or for the operator point of view.

Rgards to all

Maintenance Test Flight Procedures
 

Tournesol, you are not being too cautious at all.

A thought: while you are in discourse with the manufacturers Production Pilot staff, see if they will get you a copy of their Standard Operating Procedure, which should include the various ways that they control their production test flights. Once again, if you get a few of these documents, you can selectively choose the elements that fit your situation.

A wise thought to create a systemic methodology for conducting these types of flights. It will save you headaches and maybe going to an unnecessary funeral in the future.

John Dixson

I agree - you certainly aren't being over-cautious.

To some extent, you are constrained in pilot experience by who you have available. The best pilots for the job are likely to be amongst your most experienced, but ideally those with some reasonable technical literacy - any ex-maintainers or science graduates in that lot? It's unlikely that any "normal" pilot will automatically know how to fly a test schedule and some training will be needed - you might do worse than bring in an experienced flight tester to help you put a training course together. Once up and running, you may hopefully be able to do most required ongoing training in-house with the expertise you will then be building up.

It is worth also thinking in terms of not relying solely upon your pilot for the air test, particulary since you're apparently looking at fairly complex multi-seat aircraft. If you involve some of your most experienced maintenance crew-chiefs and pair them with the pilots being used, flying them together this may work much better for the air tests than normal flight deck crew only (if you still have flight engineers on any of your aircraft on the other hand - they're probably the best people in this role.)

Weather conditions is something that you need to decide locally, but it's likely that you won't wish to do the main part of any air tests in IMC; day-VMC conditions are pretty much a global normal for most test flying, and would be a sensible starting point since you are then not absolutely reliant upon many of the avionics which may well be at the core of your air test, and also aircrew capacity (otherwise used otherwise in instrument flying) is freed up to concentrate upon the air test.


A few additional thoughts. Absolutely create standardised procedures, and whilst you can't standardise the test schedule you would be well advised to standardise the format and ensure formal document control, making life much easier for everybody in the process to keep tabs on what they're being asked to do for any test. Again, this standardisation reduces the risk of anything being missed, and also frees up everybody's mental capacity to concentrate their skills and intellect upon the air test. If you have a small number of home operating bases, again define "usual" test areas, well known to the crews, for exactly the same reasons. That said - don't write the procedures too tightly - give yourselves some reasonable operating flexibility or your entirely sensible desire to improve the organisation's safety may inadvertently ramp on costs and complexity, to the detrement of the main operations.

Best of luck.

G

This applies mainly to C of A type airtests but the general procedures might be helpful.

http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/1455/Check...bruary2009.pdf

Post Maintenance Check Flight Procedures
 

Gents... The original query is for 'Post Maintenance'.
EASA Part 145 requirements are as follows:

Post Maintenance test flight that you refer to is called a "Maintenance Check Flight" (Or Category 4 as per the recent EASA NPA).

An appropriately type rated B1, B2 or C licensed engineer responsible for the release to service of an aircraft from either Base or Line maintenance is solely responsible for deciding if a 'Maintenance Check Flight' is required or not.

The licensed Engineer must stipulate and brief precisely how, why what and where the test is to be conducted. The above CAA hand book provides excellent general guidance to the Certification Engineer and Pilot for this but the certification engineer is the one qualified and responsible for any technical requirements / procedures and detail of that specific test accordingly.

Under Part 145 requirements this detail is now transferred to the 'Flight Test' box on the 'Tech Log'. He / she will normally act as Flight Test Engineer and supervise the check flight to his / her satisfaction. He or she may at their discretion brief and delegate the test duties to the pilot and rely upon the pilots report at the post Maintenance Check Flight debrief. :confused:

There is currently no specific qualification or requirements laid down for the flight test engineer or pilot. However, EASA seem to be addressing this and have produced a NPA of which is currently subject to consultation. :D

http://hub.easa.europa.eu/crt/docs/viewnpa/id_53