Course detail
Fatigue of Aircraft Structures
FSI-OUZ-A Acad. year: 2025/2026 Summer semester
The course is concerned with the following topics: Safe-life and damage tolerance design concepts as two elementary approaches to provide the integrity of structure during its service life. Measurement of service loads, load spectra processing. Calculation of safe-life. Definition of typical flight profiles, S-N curve selection, fatigue damage accumulation hypotheses. Determination of safe-life based on fatigue tests of components and complete structure. Airworthiness requirements for damage tolerance aircraft structures, development of inspection program based on crack growth curves. Non-destructive testing techniques for aeronautical applications.
Language of instruction
English
Number of ECTS credits
4
Supervisor
Department
Entry knowledge
Fundamentals of structural properties and limit states of materials. Basic knowledge of strength of materials. Overview of airframe structural design. Calculation of loading acting on airplane, stress and deformation of thin-walled airframe structures.
Rules for evaluation and completion of the course
Graded course-unit requirements: The main criterion of evaluation is the result of a written test focused on understanding the fundamental topics of the course. Elaborated exercises and active participation in the seminars are also required.
Presence in the seminars is required. Missed seminars are compensated by elaboration of individual tasks.
Aims
The main goal of this course is for students to understand specific approaches to the solution of aircraft fatigue related issues with regard to the knowledge acquired in previous courses.
Practical calculation of safe life of aircraft structure considering principal loads, load spectra treatment, selection of S-N curve. Overview of other topics concerning aircraft fatigue including experiences from fatigue tests carried out at the Laboratory of Institute of Aerospace Engineering.
The study programmes with the given course
Programme N-AST-A: Aerospace Technology, Master's, compulsory
Type of course unit
Lecture
26 hours, optionally
Syllabus
1. Fatigue design philosophies of aircraft structures.
2. Airworthiness requirements related to fatigue issues.
3. Phases of fatigue life. Fractographic reconstitution of fatigue crack growth.
4. Safe-life approach.
5. Typical flight profiles. Measurement and processing of load spectra. Gust, manoeuvre and ground loads spectra. Ground-air-ground cycle.
6. Fatigue curves of aircraft structures. Fatigue damage accumulation hypotheses.
7. Fatigue life prediction based on nominal and local approaches (NSA, LESA, LPSA). Multiaxial fatigue.
8. Fatigue tests and their evaluation. Constant-amplitude, program, variable-amplitude and flight-simulation fatigue tests. Fatigue testing machines.
9. Estimation of safe life by means of calculation and fatigue tests. Aircraft life monitoring systems.
10. Damage tolerance approach. Development of inspection program.
11. Overall review of NDT techniques. Requirements of JSSG-2006 and MIL-A-83444 standards.
12. Fundamentals of fracture mechanics. Residual strength analysis.
13. Crack growth under constant and variable-amplitude loading.
Exercise
13 hours, compulsory
Syllabus
1. – 4. Safe-life evaluation of training aircraft according to the FAA AC23-13A methodology.
5. – 9. Calculation of safe-life of transport aircraft.
10. – 13. Calculation of propagation of fatigue crack in the wing panel skin.