DO-160 Testing

DO-160 testing is the environmental conditions and test procedures for airborne equipment. The purpose of DO-160 testing is to provide a controlled (laboratory) means of assuring the performance characteristics of airborne equipment in environmental conditions similar of those which may be encountered in airborne operation of the equipment.

Essentially, DO-160 mandates tests which prove the equipment will continue to operate as desired in worst-case environmental conditions which could potentially occur in an aircraft. The purpose of which is safety, whereas commercial aspects are not important to DO-160 per se. Some people fondly call DO-160 the “Shake And Bake” test regimen, because early DO-160 testing was based upon subjecting the hardware to extreme vibration and temperature conditions. But DO-160 has always been more than “shake and bake” and the most recent versions introduce many additional forms of testing including pressure, salt, water, RF, magnetism, lightning, and many more environmental conditions.

Our knowledgeable staff is capable of digesting design and qualification requirements to help customers determine the appropriate testing that is required for specific products and systems. 

In addition to servicing customers with help through their testing requirements, Kawak manages its own projects by creating useful and realistic testing parameters and matching DO-160 testing standards to real world applications.

Once these testing parameters and requirements have been set, we continue the process by developing the test plans and managing the test process either with in-house testing or by working with out-sourced testing houses when it is not cost-effective to be done in-house.   During testing, Kawak test engineers work closely with technicians to be sure tests are carried out properly and that the money spent testing is not wasted on unsatisfactory tests.

Following completed testing, Kawak closes the loop by reviewing the results and consequently generating the required reports for submission to appropriate approval agencies. Kawak maintains strong relationships with the FAA and with a close-knit group of FAA DER’s which allows us to move projects through FAA certification quickly and efficiently so that time to market is minimized and ROI is achieved sooner.