Title: Development of post maintenance flight test procedures for a short range cargo aircraft

Authors: H. Arzu Inan; Cevdet Aygün

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Gazi University, Maltepe 06570, Ankara Turkey ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Gazi University, Maltepe 06570, Ankara Turkey

Abstract: In this paper, a comprehensive set of flight test procedures for CN-235 transport aircraft is developed to apply after the different levels of maintenance in an all-inclusive template form. The validity of these procedures are checked and verified by a series of actual flight tests. At first, a thorough literature search on the flight test documents and flight test operations manuals of the world's similar cargo aircraft is carried out. The purpose of this study is to embody the procedures of the post maintenance flight tests of the CN-235 cargo aircraft into a solid set of instructions within a definitive flowchart. Before this study, these procedures were vague and indefinite in their contents, formats and sequences. In order to achieve this purpose, all suitable flight test procedures are reviewed, equations of flight mechanics and the resulting aircraft stability and situations corresponding to each flight state are evaluated. Subsequently, these procedures are adapted into a comprehensive set of post maintenance flight tests of the CN-235 aircraft. Nevertheless, this paper constitutes an academic work and as such, it is not a legally binding publication issued by an aviation authority.

Keywords: post maintenance flight tests; transport aircraft; flight test procedures; longitudinal flight controls; lateral flight controls; short range cargo aircraft; flowcharts; flight mechanics; aircraft stability.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSA.2016.078656

International Journal of Sustainable Aviation, 2016 Vol.2 No.2, pp.149 - 158

Received: 24 Oct 2015
Accepted: 27 Feb 2016

Published online: 30 Aug 2016 *

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