One of Airbus Military Ways of Defeating Murphy´s Law in Military Systems Flight Testing (MSFT)

Jesualdo Martinez Rodenas, Flight Test Operations, Airbus Military, Sevilla, Spain

Abstract

Airbus Military Flight Operations & Test is one of the world leader flight test organizations, which continuously learns and safely prepares for the unknown and unexpected that always awaits us when flight testing military systems.

Smart Military Systems Flight Testing (SMSFT) is the core (in the author´s personal view), of the one way for defeating Murphy´s Law in MSFT presented through this paper. It is a key practice, with the ultimate objective of extracting meaningful information as efficiently as possible, performed: by “mechanizing new concepts” and by applying “good practices”.

Mechanization of simultaneous military (mission) systems & air vehicle flight testing concept during the last ten years has produced better military capabilities, causing better military effects worldwide, together with 13 (Murphy´s loved number?) “good practices” which allow increasing military systems flight testing “rigor”.

The paper is descriptive in its content, gives general overviews and seeks to outline these good practices, drawing on the author’s personal observations, achieved together with a number of dedicated and capable professionals, for the benefit of the international flight test engineering community.

It will be presented what is simultaneous military (mission) systems flight testing, the four logically sequenced requirements that must be met for a “valid” military system flight test, its five mandatory components, the threats, focusing mainly in the “Ability to relate results to Operations” and the 13 practices to counter those threats, and totally defeat Murphy´s Law.

The 13 practices are not exhaustive; the presentation order does not denote priority and the only purpose is to increase military systems flight test rigor.

Good Airbus Military practices involving the mechanics of agency organization, planning and reporting flight test are critically important to the success, but will not be included.

The one way of defeating Murphy´s Law and views expressed in this technical paper are those of the author and are not endorsed by nor represent an official Airbus Military position.