Airworthiness Decision Factors in the U.S. Air Force
Abstract
There are multiple airworthiness (AW) certification paths for aircraft platforms and their modifications. Specifically, military commercial derivative aircraft (MCDA) have a unique opportunity to pursue either FAA certification, military certification or a combination of both known as the AW seam. Policy tells MCDA to pursue FAA certification to the max extent possible, but lacks clarity of where that extent ends. Therefore, this research conducted a comparative case study analysis through interviews, of two MCDA and one military specific aircraft (MSA) with the same military requirement. The data set is small, but representative of many common platform requirements. This insight provided continuity and lessons learned from their decision factors to be documented as guidance for future programs to take into consideration when pursuing certification. Program managers lack of AW experience also motivated the guidance to provide the necessary prerequisite knowledge before making AW decisions. Two major decision factors in choosing a safe carriage FAA certification versus a limited FAA certification (more military involvement versus less along the AW seam) are cost and schedule, but the findings show the paths are relatively equal and therefore programs should not let a time or cost constraint dictate their decision. The primary decision factor should be the technical integration of the modification with the existing platform when choosing the AW certification path.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 24, 2022
- Accession Number
- AD1173743
Entities
People
- Derek N Dennis
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology