Aerospace Structural Accidents
What We Can Learn From Them
WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE
There are no prerequisites for this course, and it will involve very few mathematical calculations. Design engineers, scientists, college professors, structural engineers, maintenance personnel, airline logistics and liaison engineers, and materials science personnel will benefit. This course is also suited to engineers, technicians, and managers in airlines, aircraft modification centers, aircraft and component manufactures, and defense installations, as well as airworthiness agencies like the FAA.
KEY TOPICS
- What can we learn from accident investigation reports?
- Commercial jet structural accidents: Airbus, Boeing, and Douglas aircraft accident investigation reports.
- Assessments of accidents by the National Transportation Safety Board.
- Failure analysis reports from Norway, Australia, Canada, England, and U.S.
HOW YOU WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS COURSE
- Gain a thorough understanding of the frequent causes of structural accidents fatigue, stress corrosion, corrosion fatigue, wear, etc., and the design features or maintenance repair events that lead to them.
- Learn how to use metallurgic laboratory reports to make simple calculations related to the accident, like crack growth rates in the structure, stress corrosion thresholds, residual strengths, and critical crack sizes.
COURSE OUTLINE
Day 1
Introduction
- The role of aircraft structural accident reports in fostering aviation safety
- Fundamental failure mode contribution to a typical aerospace structural deficiency
- Elementary concepts of crack propagation calculations, fatigue analysis, residual strength estimations, and stress corrosion thresholds
Day 2
- Striation data usefulness and pitfalls--relevant to aluminum alloys, steel, and titanium
- Types of corrosion in aerospace structures--Case studies
Day 3
- Example problems - Relating to Aircraft Structural Accidents
- Review questions
Commercial Jet Turboprop, and Small Plane Structure Related Accidents
- The structural failure relating to the Wright Flyer
- The Comet catastrophes
- Airbus accidents
Day 4
- The Aloha mishap
- Sioux City crash, 1989
- JAL jumbo jet accident
Day 5
- General aviation accidents
- Turboprop crashes
- USAIR flight 427 findings
- Review questions and case studies
Tel: +1 (916) 933-3360
1 (800) 34-CRACK
FATIGUE CONCEPTS
FAX: +1 (916) 933-3361
1 (800) 342-7225
Last updated: G3E (14 Mar 1996)