S.K. Campbell, P.C. Conor, M.W. Stevens

In the military environment it is relatively common for the service usage of some aircraft types to differ from the design requirements that were defined during the aircraft design and development. The structural life management tools used to maintain these aircraft are generally based on the approach specified by the primary operator. The approaches are based on standards such as MIL-STD-1530A or Def Stan 00-970 that typically make assumptions based on the statistical properties of large fleets, but they are difficult to apply to numerically small fleets because small sample statistics can force structural management actions that are economically unfeasible for operators of small fleets. This paper will present four case studies highlighting the structural life management challenges faced and lessons learned by the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), an operator of small fleets of military aircraft. The case studies will highlight how RNZAF usage profiles have differed from the design assumptions and the consequences of applying large fleet management tools to small fleets. The case studies show instances where structural life management tools developed for large fleets failed to accurately assess the remaining structural life of the New Zealand fleet. In some cases the results were overly conservative; in others the tools were unconservative. Development of prognostic and predictive usage (and condition) monitoring technologies specific to small fleets will be critical for their effective structural life management in the future.

23rd ICAF Symposium of the international Committee on Aeronautical Fatique, 2005, Hamburg

Conference Poster

englisch

A5, 15 Seiten

DGLR-Bericht, 2005, 2005-03, 23rd ICAF Symposium of the international Committee on Aeronautical Fatique - Proceedings; S.569-583; 2005; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Luft- und Raumfahrt - Lilienthal-Oberth e.V., Bonn

NA

Bestellbar

2005