Case: The Flight Department

Abstract

The case in this chapter illustrates the use of the preceding theory, particularly the black box approach and both qualitative and quantitative reasoning. It is a case that was analysed in real life (except for the simulation part). The data are the real data present at that time. However, a series of extra complications have been skipped. Readers that are interested in learning more about this case will find a complete description in (in ‘t Veld and Muller 1966). We selected this case from the practical experiences of in ‘t Veld as an example, because the actual results of the analysis can be shown for a period of nearly three years. At the time, the complete analysis took about three months. The part that is offered here as an exercise took from two to three weeks. If the preceding theory is applied, however, this can be shortened significantly, but this theory was unknown at the time. No technical knowledge is required to solve this case. Although the example presents a situation from the 1960s, it still is very relevant to our times in terms of testing other types of airplanes.