Standard Specification for Indirect Flight Controls

1.1 This specification covers requirements for Indirect Flight Controls (IFC) equipment in light sport category aircraft. It recognizes there are three fundamental pilot functions of aviate, navigate, and communicate. This specification addresses the aviate function, which is the function of maintaining control of the aircraft while flying a desired flight path. This international industry-consensus specification addresses the design of indirect control systems (for example, “fly-by-wire” systems) that provide aircraft trajectory control. It must also be understood that this specification is intentionally created in the context of the larger ASTM F37 library. As a result, application of this specification must appropriately include application of all related ASTM F37 standards. The scope of this specification is a system standard. It provides requirements end-to-end as applicable from the flight control inceptor sensor(s)/encoder(s) to the flight control effector(s). The flight controls the pilot physically touches (upstream of the inceptor sensor(s)/encoder(s)), and the aircraft level handling requirements (downstream of the outside the flight control effector(s)) are outside the scope of this specification.

1.2 Integration standards may include additional requirements for specific aircraft types or aircraft used in specific types of operations, or both.

1.3 Units—The values given in this standard are in SI units and are to be regarded as standard. The values given in parentheses are mathematical conversions to inch-pound (or other) units that are provided for information only and are not considered standard. The values stated in each system may not be exact equivalents. Where it may not be clear, some equations provide the units of the result directly following the equation.

1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety, health, and environmental practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.5 This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles for the Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.