Eurocopter, October 13, 1999 - Marignane, France - The Tiger PT3 underwent its hot weather campaign on the Al Bateen air base in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates) from September 6 to 22, 1999.
The tests were conducted at ground temperatures between 38 and 45 °C with a degree of humidity varying from 20 to 80%.
This hot weather campaign was intended to assess the operation of the helicopter, its equipment, its ventilation and air conditioning systems in real operating conditions at high temperatures in order to keep extrapolations in the qualification files to a minimum.
The other objective was to measure the performance in hover flight, in OEI and AEO climb, in level flight, in the takeoff and landing transient phases and in cross winds. These measurements were intended to consolidate the theoretical models used to calculate the performance values given in the Flight Manual.
In order to reproduce the most critical operating conditions, before each flight to test the cooler, the helicopter was left in the sun on the apron for several hours, then the temperatures of the different components were stabilized in hover in ground effect at the maximum weight.
Real time monitoring of the temperatures was ensured by a telemetry truck equipped with control screens to guarantee safety and guide the crew in conducting the test.
In the main, the ventilation systems functioned correctly, in particular those for the avionics. After it had been upgraded, the air conditioning system proved to be highly effective, to the satisfaction of the crews and for correct operation of the cockpit equipment.
The PT3 Tiger Helicopter was operated by a Eurocopter Flight Test crew and by crews from the French and German government agencies on a fifty-fifty basis, as is the general practice for the Tiger program qualification flights.
The tests were conducted at ground temperatures between 38 and 45 °C with a degree of humidity varying from 20 to 80%.
This hot weather campaign was intended to assess the operation of the helicopter, its equipment, its ventilation and air conditioning systems in real operating conditions at high temperatures in order to keep extrapolations in the qualification files to a minimum.
The other objective was to measure the performance in hover flight, in OEI and AEO climb, in level flight, in the takeoff and landing transient phases and in cross winds. These measurements were intended to consolidate the theoretical models used to calculate the performance values given in the Flight Manual.
In order to reproduce the most critical operating conditions, before each flight to test the cooler, the helicopter was left in the sun on the apron for several hours, then the temperatures of the different components were stabilized in hover in ground effect at the maximum weight.
Real time monitoring of the temperatures was ensured by a telemetry truck equipped with control screens to guarantee safety and guide the crew in conducting the test.
In the main, the ventilation systems functioned correctly, in particular those for the avionics. After it had been upgraded, the air conditioning system proved to be highly effective, to the satisfaction of the crews and for correct operation of the cockpit equipment.
The PT3 Tiger Helicopter was operated by a Eurocopter Flight Test crew and by crews from the French and German government agencies on a fifty-fifty basis, as is the general practice for the Tiger program qualification flights.
See also |
Eurocopter Tiger / Tigre
