Experimental Modal Analysis of an Aircraft Fuselage Panel

Hypersonic aircraft structures must operate in complex loading conditions and very high temperatures, making the design of a robust and reusable platform very challenging. An analytical and experimental test program was developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and industry. The objective of the program is to review the design process of a thin skinned aircraft panel subjected to combined thermal-acoustic-mechanical loading, through a series of laboratory experiments at the AFRL’s Structural Dynamics Laboratory.