Validating Uncertain Aircraft Simulation Models Using Flight Test Data

Reliability validation of safety-critical flight control systems requires accurate simula-tion models of aircraft. This paper proposes a simple approach to validate such models efficiently using flight data. A statistical model validation analysis is shown to be equiv-alent to a robust control analysis for simple linear systems. The analysis is extended to nonlinear systems in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulations to validate an uncertain air-craft simulation model. This approach is demonstrated using the University of Minnesota Unmanned Aerial Vehicle flight test platform. I