Helicopter Reliability Testing

The increased emphasis placed on improved life cycle costs for new helicopter systems has drawn considerable attention to the relationship of development and early operational testing to reliability achievement. Central to this relationship is the concept of “reliability growth” which indicates that reliability improvement is a function of accumulated test time. However, precise structuring of a total helicopter system development test program involves many complex and interrelated variables, most of which can only be treated empirically. This paper addresses the many technical and management issues related to helicopter reliability development testing. Attention is drawn to the impact of reliability on life cycle cost, and how issues such as fleet size, program schedule, and test technique effectiveness contribute to decisions regarding development test requirements. Experience gained in prior helicopter and selected non aircraft development programs are presented to demonstrate the range and impact of each significant parameter. The risk of errors in judgments is also addressed.