The Importance of Altitude Testing for Aircraft and Space Vehicles: Part 2

Posted: Jul 13, 2018

Altitude testing demonstrates a product’s ability to survive air transport or show that the product can remain a functional piece of an aircraft’s overall assembly. Components used in aircraft and aerospace equipment must be able to withstand extreme cold temperatures while at altitude, but they must also be able to endure the rapid temperature changes equipment undergoes during takeoff and landing. Altitude testing helps aircraft and aerospace parts manufacturers ensure that their components can compensate for these changes. 

Benefits of Product Testing in an Altitude Chamber

All equipment, particularly flight critical components, must meet high aerospace requirements. Altitude testing ensures that these components meet the highest standards imposed by industry professionals and regulating bodies. These standards include Mil-STD-810 and RTCA-DO-160, which regulate aviation components and equipment subjected to rapid decompression.  

Testing of components in an altitude chamber helps space vehicle and aircraft manufacturers maintain compliance with these regulations and deliver reliable products for use in the aerospace industries. Altitude testing is beneficial in other applications as well. Many purchasers see this additional testing as an assurance of superior quality and reliable performance in any atmospheric or environmental condition.  

Altitude testing can ensure that spacecraft or aircraft equipment meets commercial, military and international standards, both on the ground and in the air. This type of testing can ensure that aircraft and space vehicles will deliver the performance required of them at all times. Altitude chambers are used to test parts to military standards which can help set a product apart in a crowded marketplace. 

Tenney Environmental supplies altitude chambers that replicate the pressure and gas conditions found at various altitudes with the purpose of evaluating a component’s response to these environmental changes. The Tenney Environmental Strat Altitude Chamber simulates altitudes up to 200,000 feet and features an overall temperature range of -70°C to +177°C with humidity capabilities of 20% to 98% RH. An efficient airflow system maintains temperature for uniform testing and the automatically controlled vacuum and vent valves provide precise altitude conditions to meet the customer’s requirements. 

Check back next month for our next blog series! For more information on Tenney Environmental altitude chambers visit our website. For more information like the above, be sure to follow TPS on both Facebook and LinkedIn