Calculating The Error In Baro-Altimetry Through A C212-200 FTI

A. Corrales Sierra, Aerial Platform for Research, INTA, Spain
N. Seoane-Vieira, Aerial Platform for Research, INTA, Spain
R. Gonzales Armengod, Flight Test, INTA, Spain
B. Marqués, Directorate for Certification and Experimentation, INTA, Spain

Abstract

INTA (Insituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial - National Institute for Aerospace Technology), is the Public Research Organization specialized in aerospace research and technology development. INTA has two C212-200 as Airborne Research Platform since 1994. An Airborne Research Platform (PAI- which stands for Plataformas Aéreas de Investigación) is an aircraft modified to support the installation of a scientific implementation that performs campaigns flights to conduct scientific experiments and testing of equipment from the earth’s atmosphere. One of the C212 (S/N 270), is dedicated to remote sensing activities, the other one (C212 S/N 301) mainly to atmospheric research and to teach pilots and engineers through the Spanish Flight Test Master Course.

The C212-301 dedicated to atmospheric studies is instrumented with FTI. The probes for research are integrally joined to the aircraft, so the air entrance is influenced by the attitude of the aircraft. With the objective of analyze the atmospheric parameters independently of the parameters as pitch, roll, yaw, angular speeds or acceleration, FTI instrumentation is used in research campaign.

Also de C212-301 instrumented is involved in the Spanish Flight Test Master Course giving support to the coach’s team doing different flight test during the academic year.

The INTA C212-301 was manufactured in the 80's, but with only around 8,000 flight hours. That means that the C212 is close to the 30% of its life cycle. This aircraft was full instrumented.

Both C212 was certified under FAR25 rule and according to that everything is working under operational limits, but taking into account that the FTI is strong enough during several flights INTA flight test team has study the total error in the cockpit presentation of the baro-altimetry instrumentation because during the last years the crew has detected some differences between the altitude reading in both indicators and the real value of it. This study has been possible to do today because the C212 has a very powerful FTI.