Non-destructive inspection of aircraft landing gear during residual strength testing

Abstract

The different kinds of fatigue tests are necessary to continue the life of ageing aircraft. The features of landing gear tests of medium-range aircraft are discussed in this article. Firstly, the fatigue testing with cyclic loading by loads, which act during standard-type flight, was done. Then different residual strength tests with stepped static loading were carried out: axle beam torsion, braking during landing and running with landing weight. Acoustic emission (AE) and ultrasonic methods were used to check fatigue crack initiation and development. Then they were compared with the results of fracture analysis. High effectiveness of AE methods for the analysis of initiation and early development of fatigue failures in the process of cyclic loading and residual strength tests is shown.