Dutch company SP Aerospace and Vehicle Systems is to begin testing the use of composites in civil landing gear following the successful first flight of a similar system being developed for use on combat aircraft.
The test of a composite drag brace on the landing gear of a Royal Netherlands Air Force Lockheed Martin F-16C/D earlier this year has demonstrated the feasibility of using composite materials in structural gear components.
The flight was the culmination of an eight year technology programme undertaken by Geldrop-based SP in co-operation with Dutch industry and research institutes, including the National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR).
Flight trials on an F-16 will continue later this year, as the parallel civil programme is established. SP's marketing manager Beelaerts van Blokland says while there is a high demand for innovation in the military sector, the benefits of composites application in landing gears can equally be realised for civil aircraft. Their use could produce big savings on large aircraft.
Results on the military gear have exceeded the targeted 20% weight reduction by 12%. A 15% price cut has not yet been achieved, however, largely attributed to the high price of the carbon fibre used.
But van Blokland says the theoretical cost savings have been proven when longer life and lower maintenance costs have been factored in. "Our civil research programme is intended to prove that we have a good product to bring to the market," he says.
SP Aerospace and Vehicle Systems was the special products division of truck manufacturer DAF until the latter's bankruptcy in 1993.
It has been involved for years in the manufacture of conventional landing-gear components for the F-16 multirole fighter, the Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter, and for the Embraer regional aircraft family.
Source: Flight International
