Post by NLR - Netherlands Aerospace Centre

**Shortening aircraft inspection time using Laser Ultrasonic Testing** The safety and reliability of aircraft and their components is of crucial importance, both for commercial and military aviation. Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) of aircraft components is essential to guarantee safety. Labour extension, fleet deployability, and commercial interests put pressure on inspection time. NLR is conducting research into rapid NDI methods to shorten inspection time.   A fast inspection method suitable for both composite and metal components is Laser Ultrasonic Testing (LUT). This involves generating and/or detecting ultrasonic waves using lasers. Unlike conventional ultrasonic testing, laser ultrasonics is contactless and does not require a coupling medium, and the technique is also faster. At NLR, we are actively developing LUT. Within the Nationaal Groeifonds (Growth Fund) NXTGEN Hightech Aviation project, laser ultrasonics is being further developed to quickly and automatically inspect curved composites by combining LUT with 3D-scanning. After a system upgrade completed at the end of 2025, ultrasonic plate waves can now also be measured. The use of these waves creates new possibilities for quality control and in-service inspections. In the Luchtvaart in Transitie (Aviation in Transition) programme, this type of waves is being used for the development of a rapid inspection method for thermoplastics. The research focuses on the detectability of different types of defects, such as porosity and delaminations, optimised by using different ultrasonic waves that the LUT system can now generate and detect. The operation and results of our new ultrasonic inspection on two reference panels are shown in the video below, including the detection of delaminations, corrosion, and foreign objects such as tape residues. Read and watch more about our LUT research: https://lnkd.in/epMP8ggh #laserultrasonic #testing #NDI

Video Content