Aircraft Service Research Articles

Magnetic Hysteresis Analysis for Non-Destructive Evaluation of Aircraft Structural Steels

ABSTRACT This paper introduces non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques centered on measuring magnetic properties, offering insight into evaluating structural steels throughout aircraft production and service life. It highlights the method’s utility in quality control of steel components, particularly in detecting variations in microstructure affecting mechanical properties. The NDT method correlates material structural state with magnetic properties, utilizing parameters such as coercive force, remanence, and hysteresis loop area. Developed instruments, like the MA-05 Magnetic Analyzer and KRM-Ts coercive force meter, enable precise measurements in both closed and open magnetic circuits. Applications range from assessing heat treatment quality to monitoring materials degradation in challenging conditions. A set of 12 gas containers that have been in service in aircraft for more than 40 years are tested as a case study, demonstrating the method's efficacy in evaluating damage accumulation. Future prospects include other potential applications in testing aircraft landing gear components.

PELAYANAN SAFETY RISK MANAJEMEN PESAWAT UDARA TANPA AWAK (PUTA) OLEH PERUM LEMBAGA PENYELENGGARA PELAYANAN NAVIGASI PENERBANGAN INDONESIA (LPPNPI) AIRNAV INDONESIA CABANG PEMBANTU PADANG

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (PUTA) or drones have increasingly dominated various sectors, from surveillance mapping to sending goods from one place to another. The sustainability and operational security of PUTA requires effective and efficient safety assessment services. This research aims to evaluate the safety assessment service for unmanned aircraft or drones at Perum LPPNPI AirNav Indonesia Padang Sub-Branch. The research methodology involves analysis of operational data, interviews with related parties and evaluation of compliance with safety standards. The research results show that safety risk management services for unmanned aerial vehicles or drones at the Padang Sub-Branch have experienced significant development, however there are still challenges in managing PUTA operational safety risks as a whole. In implementing the Safety Risk Management Service, several aspects were found that needed further attention, including the development of a monitoring system and increased involvement of related parties, as well as understanding the operational characteristics of PUTA in the Padang Sub-Branch work area. It is hoped that the results of this research can provide an important contribution in improving the safety of unmanned aircraft operations at the Padang sub-branch and provide a basis for developing better safety assessment services in the future.

Evaluating water ingress in glass fiber plastic/Nomex honeycomb panels under varying panel orientation

The paper presents the results of experimental and numerical investigations on water ingress trapped in aircraft honeycomb panels. The ingress of atmospheric water during aircraft service may cause minor or major damages of airplane crucial components. The percentage of water/ice filling honeycomb cells is an important factor related to possible cell damage. This study is focused on the analysis of the following inspection parameters: 1) influence of panel orientation (horizontal, vertical and Inclined at 30, 45 and 60°) on the efficiency of water detection, 2) efficiency and optimization of a heating technique in evaluating water ingress, 3) influence of water/ice phase transformation on detectability of water ingress. The numerical analysis was conducted by using the ThermoCalc-3D software in order to evaluate the detectability of water ingress in the cases where a test panel is placed in different spatial orientations. The samples with water and ice were tested and analysed by using several data processing algorithms available in the ThermoFit software to enhance water detection performance. The signal-to-noise ratio concept was used to compare efficiency of image processing algorithms in the inspection of water ingress in honeycomb panels with varying water content, spatial orientation and water/ice phase transformation.

АНАЛІЗ ШЛЯХІВ МОДЕРНІЗАЦІЇ ЛІТАКІВ АН-2 З УРАХУВАННЯМ ВИМОГ EASA ЩОДО CS 23 LEVEL 4 ТА ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ ПЕРЕВЕЗЕННЯ 10–19 ПАСАЖИРІВ

The article is devoted to the actual problem of modernization of the An-2 aircraft taking into account the EASA requirements for CS23 Level 4 to ensure the possibility of transporting 10–19 passengers. An overview of options for the modernization of the An-2 aircraft with replacement of engines and changing the design of the airframe has been carried out. An option to modernize the fleet of An-2 aircraft with the installation of a power plant that meets the requirements of the CS 23 Level 4 is proposed to ensure the possibility of transporting the number of passengers corresponding to the carrying capacity of the aircraft and the safety of passenger transportation. Options for the modernization of the An-2 type aircraft without or with minimal modification of the airframe, as well as options for the modification of the aircraft with the installation of a turboprop engines with a change of the airframe, have been considered. The advantages of using the modernization of the aircraft with its minimal modification have been characterized: they decrease the cost of maintenance of the power plant and fuel costs, engine maintenance in the field, as well as warm-up and start-up of the power plant are facilitated, and the aircraft dragin flight is reduced. It was established that the passengers capacity limits the transportation of passengers in new planes. Some completed improvement projects are listed: options for the modernization of the An-2 aircraft, options for modifying the airframe of the aircraft into a braced monoplane, options for a two-engine aircraft based on the An-2 airframe with one propeller, and options for the configuration of two engines under the cowling. Various schemes for installing two engines under the cowling: horizontally in a row, horizontally with downward displacement relative to the axis of the propeller, vertically in the plane of symmetry of the aircraft. Conclusions have been made about expediency of installing two turboprop engine with a single propeller drive instead of the existing power plant with a single piston engine to upgrade the An-2 type aircraft in service, and that it will allow to ensure the efficiency of passenger transportation in accordance with the existing requirements of the EASA CS 23 Level 4 and the maximum utilization of the aircraft

Repair tolerance assessment for aircraft composite structures using Bayesian updating

Detection and repair of composite damage is crucial to ensure the safety and reliability of aircraft structures. A novel approach to quantitatively evaluate the repair tolerance of composite structures in civil aircraft based on Bayesian updating is presented. The method incorporates historical damage inspection data to determine the prior distribution of damage size, which is then updated with newly collected damage size data using Bayesian theory. Monte Carlo simulation is employed to investigate the probability of failure and estimate maintenance costs, considering various factors such as the frequency and timing of damage events, damage detection, structural strength, gust loads, and maintenance expenses throughout the lifecycle of composite structures. Safety and economic factors are considered to establish a lower threshold for repairs and an upper threshold for maintenance based on the occurrence of accidental impact damage. Verification of the effectiveness and feasibility of a quantitative assessment method for repair tolerance is conducted using damage statistics data from civil aircraft routes utilizing the structural skin panels of composite outer wing. The results demonstrate that the method proposed in conjunction with extensive simulations and full utilization of field damage inspection data can effectively simulate unexpected impact damage situations that may occur during civil aircraft service and evaluate the reliability and economic feasibility of the repair of structure. The research findings hold significant theoretical and practical value for the preparation of documents for continued airworthiness of composite structures, including structural repair manuals and maintenance programs.

Locating Electrified Aircraft Service to Reduce Urban Congestion

The relentless expansion of urban populations and the surge in e-commerce have increased the demand for rapid delivery services, leading to an increase in truck traffic that contributes to urban congestion, environmental pollution, and economic inefficiencies. The critical challenge this poses is not only in managing urban spaces efficiently but also in aligning with global sustainability goals. This study addresses the pressing need for innovative solutions to reduce reliance on truck transportation in congested urban areas without compromising the efficiency of freight delivery systems. This study contributes a novel approach that leverages electrified and autonomous aircraft (EAA) cargo shuttles to shift the bulk of air transportable freight from road to air, specifically targeting underutilized airports and establishing vertiports in remote locations. By applying data mining techniques to analyze freight flow data, this research identifies key commodity categories and metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) where the implementation of EAA services could significantly mitigate truck-induced congestion. The findings reveal that targeting a select few commodities and MSAs can potentially decrease truck traffic, with electronics emerging as the dominant commodity category, and cities like Los Angeles and Chicago as prime candidates for initial EAA service deployment. Stakeholders in urban planning, transportation logistics, and environmental policy will find this study’s insights beneficial. This work lays a foundation for future innovations in sustainable urban mobility and logistics.

A System of Systems Framework for Strategic Cargo Airlift Using Agent-Based Modelling

The effective transport of cargo across the globe by aircraft, termed strategic airlift, is foundational to the success of humanitarian aid/disaster relief (HA/DR) missions and even military operations. Due to the variable extremity of these events, it is essential for aircraft and operations to be designed with a high resilience, factoring in performance in a plethora is scenarios. This work aims to provide a framework that enables the coupling of aircraft, fleet and concepts of operations (CONOPS) design to a mission effectiveness in a strategic cargo airlift. Through agent-based modelling, the complex interaction and emergent behaviors of the different systems in the dynamic airlift environment is better captured and evaluated. Unexpected events, such as cargo requirement reformulation, aircraft servicing and changing airbase accessibility, are employed to emulate the dynamic and spontaneous nature of rapid cargo airlift missions. The impact of these events is stochastically modelled, promoting an analysis of a variety of scenarios. By creating a theoretical disaster relief mission, a trade-space exploration is conducted so that aircraft designs and operational objectives can be evaluated for their mission effect. The framework demonstrates the ability to evaluate aircraft and operational performance holistically, enabling a more robust design procedure for a variety of potential design scenarios and metrics.

A whole service time SHM damage quantification model hierarchical evolution mechanism

Accurate damage quantification for an individual aircraft by using structural health monitoring (SHM) technology poses a persistent challenge in practical engineering. Existing damage quantification models typically rely on prior data acquired from ground design and tests. However, an individual aircraft is subject to diverse uncertainties throughout its whole service time, such as time-varying environmental and operational conditions, different flight missions, and different damage morphologies. Consequently, employing a prior trained model for damage quantification inevitably introduces errors, thereby limiting the engineering applicability of SHM. To improve the damage quantification accuracy for individual aircraft under the influence of uncertainty, a new whole lifetime data-based damage quantification model hierarchical evolution mechanism is proposed in this paper. Multi-source data from the design, service, and maintenance stages of individual aircraft are adopted to continuously evolve the probabilistic damage diagnosis model, enabling it to characterize the specific data distribution and track the damage propagation. The proposed method is validated through fatigue tests of a landing gear beam structure, which is an important aircraft load-carrying component, with guided wave monitoring based hidden Markov model quantifying its crack propagation. The validation result demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method in ensuring the long-term reliability of the model and achieving more accurate damage quantification for an individual aircraft.

Blockchain Systems in the Component Supply Chain for Civil Aircraft and after-Sales Service

Blockchain Systems in the Component Supply Chain for Civil Aircraft and after-Sales Service

ОБНАРУЖЕНИЕ И ДЕМОДУЛЯЦИЯ СИГНАЛОВ С КОЭФФИЦИЕНТАМИ МОДУЛЯЦИИ БОЛЕЕ ЕДИНИЦЫ В ЗАДАЧАХ РАДИОМОНИТОРИНГА АВИАЦИОННЫХ ЛИНИЙ СВЯЗИ

Communication between an aircraft and ground services is the main means of organizing air traffic control and providing the safety and regularity of air transportation. In order to maintain the operability of radio communication channels is to perform radio monitoring. This article considers a radio monitoring algorithm. It makes possible to classify amplitude-modulated signals by modulation depth, to show the possibility of detection of overmodulated oscillations and to restore the initial information message with sufficient accuracy for its perception.

Detection of cracks in aircraft structures using digital image processing technology

Full-scale aircraft structural fatigue testing exposes structural weaknesses by simulating the use of the aircraft in service and monitoring the development and expansion of fatigue cracks to guide the optimisation of aircraft structural design, the determination of service life and the development of maintenance and repair programmes. If crack damage is not detected in time, the uncontrolled expansion of the crack may lead to structural damage and prolong the test cycle. Therefore, it is crucial to achieve accurate detection of early cracks in fatigue testing of aircraft structures. Digital image technology is a new technology supported by a number of technical and theoretical achievements. In practical application, it relies on the support of computer functions, by converting image information into two-dimensional digital signals, thus realising various operations. In this paper, digital image processing techniques are used to deepen the backbone feature extraction network structure and improve the prediction scale of small targets, thus improving the performance of the model in terms of feature extraction and small defect detection. Experimental results show that the method can achieve accurate detection of small cracks, providing an effective technical approach for the automatic detection of cracks in aircraft structural fatigue tests. The technique of detecting cracks in aircraft structures using digital image processing also provides a new idea for research into improving aircraft endurance testing, which can be further developed with the aid of image technology.

Vibration errors compensation method based on self-feature registration for the 3-D dynamic measurement of metallic sealing ring forming surface

The formed surface quality of metallic sealing ring of aero-engine affects the aircraft service performance directly. However, existing inspection methods, such as the final destructive inspection and the line laser scanner section profile measurement, only evaluate the formed quality from a 2-D view, that is, single or multiple radial formed section profiles. The lack of geometric information of 3-D surface is not conducive to the comprehensive monitoring of forming quality and process planning. Therefore, based on the line laser scanners, this paper mainly proposes a vibration errors compensation method based on self-feature registration. Aiming at the problem of rigid transformation of the measurement profile caused by random vibration during the rotary motion of metallic sealing ring, the feature of measurement profile in stationary scene (MPSS), that is, the medial axis, is used as the reference for the correct pose of measurement profile. The principle of finding the correct pose of measurement profile in rotary motion scene (MPRMS) is to minimize the distance between the medial axes. Next, based on the rotary motion information of metallic sealing ring and the geometric information of measurement system, a 3-D reconstruction matrix is built, so as to convert each measurement profile to the base coordinate system in turn, and finally a 3-D dynamic measurement method for the metallic sealing ring forming surface is built. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified through simulation experiment and real measurement.

Electrical Distribution System LCA for Future Regional Aircraft—Preliminary Definition of Methodology

The Hybrid Electric Regional Aircraft Distribution Technologies (HECATE) Clean Aviation project will mature and develop breakthrough technologies and perform scalability and impact analysis to ensure safe and power-dense technologies that will enable Entry Into Service (EIS) of hybrid-electric regional aircraft by 2035. Along the project, a circular economy approach in future aircraft will be ensured through the use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), performing this type of assessment on the overall electrical system and primary/secondary distribution and conversion technologies, helping to be in line with long-term environmental roadmaps such as Flightpath 2050. This communication includes a description of the HECATE activities and how LCA will be applied to the future Regional Aircraft Electrical Distribution System.

Analisis Korelasi Usia Pesawat Airbus A320-200 Terhadap Jumlah Korosi Yang Timbul Menggunakan Metode Korelasi Pearson Product Moment

Corrosion is the destruction of materials caused by the environment, where metals separate from their metal atoms and form compounds from water or gas, resulting in oxidation until the metal atoms disappear. Corrosion can also be referred to as material that is damaged by the environment and is mostly caused by natural impacts that increase as the age of the aircraft increases. Failure to maintain the strength of the main structure is caused by excessive stress that occurs in the corrosion area resulting in cracks in the structure. Due to the frequent occurrence of corrosion in the aircraft, observations, data analysis and further literature studies were carried out. This study aims to determine the relationship between aircraft aging and the amount of corrosion found during periodic "c-check" servicing of Airbus A320-200 aircraft at the study site. The research method that used in the discussion of this thesis is to use pearson product moment correlation analysis on age data and the amount of corrosion that occurs on each aircraft. The conclusion of the results is analysis using the Pearson product moment method on 30 sample aircraft, the correlation 0.922 is categorized as having a very strong relationship. Each aircraft section does not have a strong correlation between corrosion and age, but as a whole has a strong correlation with age. From the results of the analysis using the linear regression equation, it can be identified and estimated the amount of corrosion that occurs at a certain age on the Airbus A320-200 aircraft. The results of the linear regression equation show that the aircraft is 23 years old, the amount of corrosion that will arise is estimated at 39 points, it can be concluded that aircraft with XU-029 registration are known to have a total corrosion rate of 42 points with poor corrosion conditions, then when compared to aircraft with registration XU-030 which is 23 years old is also known to have a corrosion rate of 30, so it can be concluded that the corrosion conditions on this aircraft are better than expected.

Automated Identification of Hidden Corrosion Based on the D-Sight Technique: A Case Study on a Military Helicopter.

Hidden corrosion remains a significant problem during aircraft service, primarily because of difficulties in its detection and assessment. The non-destructive D-Sight testing technique is characterized by high sensitivity to this type of damage and is an effective sensing tool for qualitative assessments of hidden corrosion in aircraft structures used by numerous ground service entities. In this paper, the authors demonstrated a new approach to the automatic quantification of hidden corrosion based on image processing D-Sight images during periodic inspections. The performance of the developed processing algorithm was demonstrated based on the results of the inspection of a Mi family military helicopter. The nondimensional quantitative measurement introduced in this study confirmed the effectiveness of this evaluation of corrosion progression, which was in agreement with the results of qualitative analysis of D-Sight images made by inspectors. This allows for the automation of the inspection process and supports inspectors in evaluating the extent and progression of hidden corrosion.

Split-demand multi-trip vehicle routing problem with simultaneous pickup and delivery in airport baggage transit

In this study, we focus on the routing and scheduling of multi-carriage transit trains for airport baggage transit. It is modeled as a vehicle routing problem with cross-route dependencies caused by side constraints, including split demand, multiple trips per vehicle, and simultaneous pickup and delivery. Besides, some other practical constraints such as time windows, baggage release time, baggage waiting time, and priority of unloading are taken into account in the implementation. The joint consideration of these characteristics brings a unique challenge to determine the start time of each service for aircraft due to the interdependencies across vehicle routes. Thus, we adopt topological sort to construct the directed acyclic graph and then derive the flight service time. Based on that, we develop an Adaptive Large Neighborhood Search (ALNS) algorithm. Moreover, in order to examine the moves quickly, a two-stage solution evaluation method is proposed, where the single tour is checked based on the segment-based evaluation method in the first stage, and the complete solution is checked using the topological sort in the second stage. The results demonstrate the superiority of our algorithm in computational time and solution quality. In addition, some insightful conclusions are drawn through detailed analyses.

Optimizing Emergency Plane Selection in Civil Aviation Using Extended Dombi Hybrid Operators

Airports located in densely populated areas often face challenges due to asymmetrical traffic patterns. Efficient management and careful planning are required to handle the disproportionate flow of passengers, aircraft, and ground services. The significance of symmetry and asymmetry in civil aviation extends to international regulations and agreements. By harmonizing standards and practices among different nations, it is possible to achieve symmetry in safety measures and operational procedures, thereby promoting a unified and secure global aviation system. Conversely, asymmetry in regulations, infrastructure development, or technological advancements among countries can create obstacles in establishing a cohesive and equitable international aviation framework. This article discusses the weaknesses of the existing score function in handling the MADM problem in an Interval-Valued Pythagorean Fuzzy (IVPF) environment. To tackle this issue, an enhanced score function is developed as a solution. The article proposes the IVPF Dombi hybrid arithmetic and IVPF Dombi hybrid geometric operators based on IVPF information. Furthermore, the article proves some fundamental properties of these operators. In the context of recently introduced techniques using IVPF settings, an effective method is developed for selecting the best airline. Additionally, a comparative investigation is carried out to demonstrate the legitimacy and viability of this unique strategy in comparison to earlier approaches.

Joby Completes Submission of Stage Three Certification Plans to the FAA

On July 06, 2023, Joby Aviation, Inc., a company developing electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for commercial passenger service, announced it had submitted all of its Certification Plans to the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”), marking further progress toward completing the third of five stages required to certify its aircraft for commercial use.

Detection and Characterization of Artificial Porosity and Impact Damage in Aerospace Carbon Fiber Composites by Pulsed and Line Scan Thermography

Nondestructive testing (NDT) of composite materials is of paramount importance to the aerospace industry. Several NDT methods have been adopted for the inspection of components during production and all through the aircraft service life, with infrared thermography (IRT) techniques, such as line scan thermography (LST) and pulsed thermography (PT), gaining popularity thanks to their rapidity and versatility. On one hand, LST is an attractive solution for the fast inspection of large and complex geometry composite parts during production. On the other hand, PT can be employed for the characterization of composite materials, e.g., the determination of thermal diffusivity and defect depth estimation. In this study, the use of LST with an uncooled microbolometer camera is explored for the identification of artificially produced porosity and barely visible impact damage (BVID) on academic samples. The performance of LST is quantitatively assessed with respect to PT (considered the gold standard in this case) using a high-definition cooled camera through the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) criterium. It is concluded that, although in most cases the measured CNR values were higher for PT than for LST (as expected since a high-definition camera and longer acquisition times were used), the majority of the defects were clearly detected (CNR ≥ 2.5) by LST without the need of advanced signal processing, proving the suitability of LST for the inspection of aerospace composite components. Furthermore, the deepest defect investigated herein (z ≈ 3 mm) was detected solely by LST combined with signal processing and spatial filtering (CNR = 3.6) and not by PT (since pulse heating was not long enough for this depth). In addition, PT was used for the determination of the thermal diffusivity of all samples and the subsequent depth estimation of porosity and damaged areas by pulsed phase thermography (PPT).

The impact of operating fluids used to service aircraft on the durability of airfield concrete pavements

The manuscript intends to demonstrate the impact of aircraft operating fluids on the parameters of airfield hardened concrete. In the studies conducted over the longer term than provided for in the applicable standards, the impact of these operating fluids on the durability of C 30/37 concrete composed with the use of basalt and granite aggregate was determined. The tests showed that the discussed operating fluids have a destructive effect on airfield runway concrete to a varying degree. The currently applied agents that protect runway pavement against its deterioration fulfil their function only in a limited scope.