Windshield Flight Environment Simulator

Abstract

Owing to the inadequacy of conventional laboratory windshield qualification testing methods, it is not unusual for unforeseen problems to develop in the real world of flight service. Aircraft windshields are normally subjected to static, material, environmental, and, in some instances, to limited service condition testing before being incorporated into prototype hardware. In‐service monitoring is used to compare the prototype to previous designs. Determining the relative effectiveness of corrective “fixes” or design improvements by in‐service testing can take months or even years of calendar time. To overcome these prob‐lems, Sierracin has developed and constructed an advanced Windshield Flight Environment Simulator (WFES), that duplicates the total operating environment of electrically‐heated, pressurized windshields, on a highly compressed time scale.