Airbus 300-600 Derivative Team Project

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Airbus 300-600 DerivativeTeam Project

• Dr. Daniel P. Schrage
• Course Instructor

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Presentation Outline

• Description of the Crash of American Airlines
  587, an Airbus A300-600
• Description of Resulting Certification Issues
• Description of the key disciplines and their
  interactions that were involved with the accident
• Some Key References
• Project Approach

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Description of the Crash of American Airlines
Flight 587, an Airbus A300-600

• On Nov. 12, 2001, at about 917 a.m. American
  Airlines Flight 587, an Airbus A300-600, N14053,
  crashed in Belle Harbor, NY, several minutes from
  Kennedy International Airport. The plane was on a
  scheduled flight to Santo Domingo, Dominican
  Republic. All 251 passengers and nine crewmembers
  aboard the plane died, as did 5 on the ground
  (making it the second worst aviation disaster in
  U.S. history)
• While the Composite Vertical Tail snapped off
  during a series of full, opposite rudder
  deflections, the cause of the large rudder
  deflections resulted from a number of extenuating
  circumstances
• Two wake encounters from a JAL 747 aircraft
  which took off approximately 1 minute and 45
  seconds before Flight 587
• The pilot applied pedal inputs at a high speed
  flight condition (250kts), where pedal inputs
  are usually not used
• A rudder system design which produces identical
  percentages of deflection with different inputs
  (different from the Boeing wide-bodies). On an
  A300-600, full available rudder travel of 9.3
  degrees at 250 knots requires about 32 lbs of
  force on the pedal (the breakout force is 22 lbs)
  required, NTSB said. But full travel available on
  the ground, which is 30 degrees because its not
  restricted by a rudder limiter, requires 65 lbs
  of force

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Description of Resulting Certification Issues

• Analysis showed that Flight 587s tail
  experienced forces well beyond ultimate load
  the limit of an airframes bend-but-dont- break
  range that, even under the most extreme
  circumstances, is rarely approached
• The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB)
  investigators on the accident question how can
  the aviation system be improved to prevent
  similar occurrences and are looking closely at
  whether certifications are adequate
• The NTSB said it is noteworthy that
  certification rules dont require manufacturers
  to prove their designs can withstand certain,
  extreme combinations of rudder movements, such as
  the ones that the AA 587 jet experienced just
  before its tail snapped off
• NTSB also expressed concern about variances in
  rudder system design
• Airline pilots are perturbed by NTSB
  recommendations which state flight crews must be
  made aware that aggressive rudder input can
  induce structural damage or failure but do not
  define ways to recognize or prevent disaster
  Pilots want clear-cut definitions, and quickly

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Description of the key disciplines and their
interactions that were involved with the accident

• Aerodynamics to understand the air wakes and
  air loads on the vertical tail
• Structures to understand the structural loads
  and structural integrity of the vertical tail
• Flight Mechanics Controls to understand the
  flight path encountered and the flight control
  functions applied, both manually and
  automatically
• Human Factors to understand the pilot actions
  in responding before and after the air wake
  encounters
• System Safety and Reliability to understand and
  be able to model the complex interactions between
  hardware, software and live-ware (human
  interaction)

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Some Key References

• Numerous Aviation Week articles
  http//www.aviationnow.com
• NTSB-American Airlines Flight 587
  http//www.ntsb.gov/events/2001/AA587/default.htm
• NTSB Safety Recommendation, Feb. 8, 2002
• NTSB Human Performance Report, Aug. 16, 2002
• NTSB Systems Group Chairmans Factual Report of
  Investigation, Oct 9, 2002, Docket No. SA-522
• A310/A300-600 FCOM Bulletin, March 2002, Subject
  No. 40 Use of Rudder on Transport Category
  Airplanes
• Raymond, E.T., Aircraft Flight Control Actuation
  System Design, SAE, 1993
• NRC Study Aviation Safety and Pilot Control
  Understanding and Preventing Unfavorable
  Pilot-Vehicle Interactions, National Academy
  Press, Washington, D.C. 1997.

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Project Approach

• Follow the approach outlined in the AE6362 Team
  Project, including meeting all deliverables
• Concentrate on modeling and evaluating the rudder
  and its control system, to include hardware,
  software, and human design assessment
• Identify deficiencies and shortcomings in the
  current FAR 25 Certification requirements
• Recommend a derivative change to the A300-600 to
  insure better system safety and reliability
• Develop a supplemental type certicate (STC) plan
  for incorporating the changes to the A300-600
  Derivative

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