Jabiru J450 Constructors Manual
Testing>Flight testing
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
325 of 343
Airfield selection
Airfield selection will play a very important role in your testing and you should approach your
choice of airfield with considerable care. The nearest flat piece of land may not necessarily be
the best or safest place and you may have to consider transporting your new Jabiru by road to
a suitable airfield for the flight testing sequence.
The ideal airfield would be at or near sea level with a runway of at least 1000 metres length
(for every 1000 feet increase in elevation add 200 metres to the length required) in an area
that is relatively flat with few obstructions near the airfield. Ideally there should not be many
buildings surrounding the airfield and there should be enough open space around the airfield
to allow for the possibility of an out landing.
The test pilot should familiarise himself with the surrounding area from the air with particular
regard to suitable landing areas for emergency use before starting the testing sequence.
Emergency plans and equipment
Before any testing can begin you must have a plan in place to deal with emergency situations.
You must address what actions to take if it all goes badly and an accident happens and know
the local emergency telephone numbers.
A support crew of 2 suitably experienced people will be required to support the flight testing
sequences and assist the test pilot with refuelling and checking the aircraft.
The following details the bare minimum requirements, to which you may wish to add your
own items:
The GROUND emergency plan
All crew (pilot and ground crew) should know how to:
Open the cabin doors
Release the pilots harness/seat belt
Locate and turn off the fuel valve
Locate and turn off the Master switch and the magneto switches
Remove the cowling and disconnect the battery for fire fighting purposes
The IN-FLIGHT emergency plan
The pilot will need to consider his response to the following:
Complete or partial engine failure, particularly shortly after takeoff
Flight control problems including severe out of rig conditions
Fire in the engine compartment or cockpit
Equipment
The pilot should carry a CO2 detector in the cockpit at all times during all flight testing.
The crew should have access to a dry powder fire extinguisher.
There should be 2-way radio communication between the pilot and the support crew at all
times as well as any radio communication required by local regulations. Most Jabiru aircraft
will have a VHF radio installed, and if the support crew have a hand-held VHF radio then a
discreet frequency can be used to communicate during the test flight sequence.