Advanced Aeroelastic Testing at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and Future Challenges

Abstract

Aeroelastic tests are and will be essential within the development process of new high performance air vehicles. In addition future aeroelastic tests will not only focus on the classical interactions of aerodynamic-,elastic-,and inertial forces of the flying system, but also on their interaction with all modern active systems like flight- and manoeuvre control and load alleviation systems, etc. The paper addresses advanced aeroelastic test philosophies ranging from sophisticated ground tests on prototypes to complex wind tunnel tests with scaled models. Design and optimisation of high quality aeroelastic tests with respect to time and costs as well as computer aided test preparation are important issues for efficient testing. As future challenges of aeroelastic testing will be discussed: -Aeroelastic testing and qualification by analysis and –High fidelity numerical simulations and experimental response surfaces.