Portable airborne data acquisition for Flight Tests

This paper describes the design and implementation of a Flight Test Data System (FTDS) used to acquire information about key flight parameters during Terminal Instrument Procedures (TERPS). The data system is comprised of a truth system based on a differential pair of survey-grade GPS receivers with L1/L2 capabilities, and a separate system that acquires both digital and analog signals from the aircraft buses. The accuracy of the system data has been demonstrated and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has approved the system for use in its flight-testing.