HALT for Avionics Industries

Commercial and Defense Avionics are some of the earliest adaptors and innovators of Accelerated Stress Testing. Product flaws and poor reliability can result in fatal and catastrophic and mission altering consequences as well as financial penalties for contractual violations. To have greater insurance against disaster from product flaws, the Commercial Aircraft Manufacturers and the World’s defense agencies have come to rely on HALT and HASS to the point of requiring these accelerated reliability tests from Avionics Original Equipment Manufacturers. The Boeing 777 was the first wide scale deployment of HALT/HASS as a requirement for Avionics and electronic system suppliers. Surpassing what had been possible on previous jetliner introductions, HALT and HASS were part of the new design and testing initiatives that provided the highest possible levels of reliability on the first 777. At the time of its introduction into service in 1995, it had the shortest development and time to market cycle of any commercial aircraft manufactured to date. Today’s 777 operators enjoy a better than 99 percent dispatch reliability rate, which is unmatched in the industry. At present, HALT and HASS are required on Avionics OEM’s for the remaining 737, 777, and 787 production. In 2001, AIRBUS announced a “Maturity at the Entry into Service” Program for all A380 partners. The goal of 99% reliability at Entry into Service had clearly fallen short for the A320 and A340. The A380 required futuristic design and the highest possible reliability at EIS that only HALT and HASS could verify. With significant improvements at service entry for the A380, the Avionics OEM’s have retroactively applied HALT and HASS programs to the A320 and the A330 and accelerated reliability of these aircraft. The U.S. defense agencies have set high goals for increased reliability for electronics systems, goals which are not necessarily obtainable using outdated testing techniques outlined in MIL-STD-810F and NAVMAT P9492. HALT and HASS have delivered both increased reliability and cost efficiencies to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) Joint Strike Fighter (JSF or J-35 Lighting II) program - “the focal point for defining affordable next penetration strike aircraft weapon systems”. HALT and HASS have contributed ruggedness and dependability to virtually all avionic components including missile and aircraft warning systems, pilot vision, missile fire control and targeting systems, communications, navigation and identification, multi-functional displays, radar equipment, propulsion and lift systems, and cockpit arrays. Read the Avionics Success Story >