Why shoot a 4-pound bird at a SATCOM radome from a compressed air cannon going 607 feet/second? It's all about showing safety. According to Federal Aviation Administration 14 CFR Part 25.571(e)(1), airplanes must be capable of successfully completing a flight even if it experiences structural damage, like a bird strike at cruising speed. That's why L2 Aviation conducted bird strike testing using a fuselage section removed from a scrapped 767 to support our STC project. Our field modification team installed a structural modification kit, radome, and antenna mockup, as they would eventually on the prototype aircraft. Combined with a structural substantiation report, our testing showed that the radome and structural design were airworthy for continued safe flight and landing. After on-aircraft testing, the STC was awarded. So, does anyone need a once-used JetWave radome? :) #Safety #birdstrike #mockpit #aviation #SATCOM
Hi Luis Gomez, I agree and let's chat, again. A side value of acquiring scrapped aircraft sections is to allow our field mod teams to install the prototype design and mock installation kit without the schedule pressure of an out-of-service aircraft. This extra practice step leads to significant improvements in design, kitting, and engineering/assembly orders, all above the constraints of just meeting FAR compliance. If solely looking at regulations as the measure of success, technicians, the end user, rightfully get frustrated for why someone would make something so difficult to do or maintain. The mock-ups help our teams to develop better designs. We also have an aircraft Mockpit(TM) saved from the scrap yard!
Ok, wait a minute. A bird would not be wearing a pillow case. I call shenanigans. LOL.
Ok, but don't forget there are SATCOM antennas that are less than an inch high -- the bird would not even hit it. That is even safer :-) Of course you get less bandwidth out of those. Of course. Yet they still get you FANS and SATVOICE certified globally.
Every person on here with military background (myself included) seeing this and wanting to ask if you thawed the bird. XD
Bird strike at cruising speed? 90 percent of the reported bird strikes occur at or below 3,000 feet AGL. And why test it on a SATCOM antenna...? Most bird strikes hit the nose radome, wings leading edge or engine air intake. Just wondering... Cool video though!
I assume the antennae, and housing, are NOT part of the primary structure of the aircraft, so why do you shoot the antennae cover at all? Are you afraid that a damaged antennae or cover could do more damage at the tail of the aircraft? Or is the antennae essential for safe operation of the aircraft? thx
Wow what a test, I see forward of radome getting ripped coming off the screws. Will the radome still stay as a whole at approx speed of 660 km/hrs or part of it get torn and ripped off like recent case of fan cowls coming off the engine. May be if at early stage after take of it would air turnback or will induce unnecessary drag and not sure whether antenna will remain locked to a desired satellite beam, just a guess
And the birds are frozen, then thawed and bagged (edited) - see Mark's post below for details.
It's worth noting that the Advisory Circular on reporting bird strikes indicates that this test should not be done with frozen birds.
President and CEO @ L2 Aviation | Professional Engineer
1moThis video shows a single component of a comprehensive analysis process. It combines computer modeling, rigorous physical testing, and in-depth engineering evaluations to ensure the aircraft's ability to maintain safe flight and achieve a normal landing even after sustaining bird strike damage. This specific test configuration focused on simulating worst-case scenarios involving structural damage to the fuselage or antenna equipment caused by a bird strike. The simulation considered a critical situation with the metal antenna array fixed and the antenna corner pointed forward.