Flight Test Perspectives In A Model Driven Design Scenario: A Case Study

Edmar Thomaz da Silva – MSc, Flight Test Engineer, Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica – Embraer
Celso Braga de Mendonça – PhD, Flight Test Engineer, Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica – Embraer

Abstract

Why Embraer Flight Test Division (EFTD) is not able to sustain a hundred flight hours per mount per prototype? This question was arrised by program managers at the beginning of this decade during EMB 170/190 family certification proccess. After that, a diagnostic study demonstrated that the total time spent by Embraer since go ahead until certification were very competitive however, time spent since first flight until certification was always out of schedule. Embraer development process was clearly centered in flight test as a main resource to develop and to show compliance with requirements. A change was neded since flight test is the most expensive and time consuming means of development. With this motivation, in 2005 a set of technological development project was started with the goal of obtain a reduction in flight test cycle and in the level of corrections after aircraft release to test and release to field. The core of this integrated project was the domain of key technologies associated with flight by wire and systems integration based in a modeling and simulation strategy.

The EFTD started also one project with the main goal of optimize the flight test campaing by the transfer of development effort from flight test to ground test and modeling and simulation. In addition, in 2008 Embraer launched programs with high level of complex and integrated systems that represent a great step in terms of technological evolutionand, once again, the risk of flight test phase go out of schedule was rised. This new challenge forced a new strategy for the development process and a Kaizen with focus on flight test in the context of the development was made. In this paper, all the EFTD efforts and results to change the development process in order to allow a better balance between flight test, ground test and modeling and simulation is presented. As a conclusion, the systems evolution - that means continuos increase in complexity - necessary to assure product competitivity forces the EFTD to develop a continual improvement philosophy to keep commitment with schedule, costs and quality in a new aircraft development.