![]() ![]() Prior to this, the standard timeframe for battery operation was 200 hours. Per the Instructions for Continued Airworthiness, (ICA), the battery is approved to be operated for 1,800 hours in flight before requiring maintenance as a result of a testing program aboard WestJet Encore’s Bombardier Q400 NextGen fleet. The innovative product design reduces airplane operational costs due to battery upkeep by extending the standard flight hour maintenance interval by more than nine times compared to previous options. Saft, the world’s leading designer and manufacturer of advanced technology batteries for industry, continues to enable lower-cost power options for aircraft with the all-new Saft 435CH6 ULM Battery. Consider whether or not these taxiway requirements, as applied to the Q400, are truly integral to the safe operation of this aircraft.ULM battery offers drop-in replacement and lowers costs for WestJet Encore.In particular, the FAA should consider characterizing the Q400 within its TDGs New, or clarified, guidance from the FAA and Transport Canada on taxiway dimensions may be warranted.Factor the unique attributes of the Q400 aircraft into future airport master planning.Here are several suggestions for airport operators, airport designers and regulatory agencies to consider: Airport design considerations for the Bombardier Q400Īirport engineers designing taxiways where Q400 may be present should be aware that although there may be much larger aircraft operating at the airport, the Q400 will often be amongst the most demanding aircraft for taxiway design. Indeed, Bombardier operated the Q400 safely on 50-foot (15m) taxiways during their flight test program-narrower than Transport Canada current guidance. I reached out to Bombardier on this issue and they point to the Q400’s short cockpit to main gear length, narrow body and low ground stance, all of which provide the pilot with exceptional pilot eye to taxiway edge view. Meanwhile, the FAA currently does not characterize the Q400, as it falls outside any of its Taxiway Design Groups (TDGs). The requirement is at odds with the current width of the taxiways in many smaller airports, particularly in Canada, where the Q400 operates. This would require a Q400 to use taxiways with a minimum width of 75 ft (23m). Transport Canada’s TP 312 classifies the Q400 as an Aircraft Group Number IV in a taxiway environment. The new versions of FAA AC 150/5300-13A and Transport Canada’s TP 312 5th edition create taxiway design guidelines that now take an aircraft’s main gear width into consideration. The aircraft’s undercarriage dimensions were not taken into account. Previously, taxiway design mirrored runway design and was based on aircraft approach speeds, wingspan, and tail heights. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transport Canada’s recent revisions to their respective design guidelines changed the criteria for taxiway design. ![]() This means that the Q400’s main gear width of 31 feet (9.5m) is actually wider than larger jet aircraft such as the Boeing 757 or an Airbus A320. The Q400, as with previous versions of the Dash 8, instead places the landing gear further out on the wings, beneath the engine nacelles. With most commercial passenger aircraft, the landing gear is placed beneath the fuselage.
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