WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61

The Bundeswehr Technical Center for Aircraft and Aeronautical Equipment (WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61) plays a crucial role in ensuring that all aircraft in service are safe and comply with their performance parameters.

WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 is tasked with conducting ground and flight tests of equipment developed by the defense industry on behalf of the Bundeswehr. This includes the qualification and technical evaluation of all newly developed flying systems of the Bundeswehr and of modifications carried out on aircraft already in service. The data is evaluated in terms of the aircraft’s performance, its properties as well as its fitness to participate in general air traffic (traffic safety, airworthiness).

To fulfill this mission, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 represents Bundeswehr interests in all national and international programs involving military, manned and unmanned aviation. On both a national and international level, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 maintains close connections with other technical and military centers, test centers, companies, research institutes and universities and program offices. 

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Unique characteristics of WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61

Infrastructure for test flights

Its own flight operations play a key role in maintaining both the agency’s required independence from manufacturers and the necessary independent assessment and advisory capability of the Bundeswehr regarding procurement of aircraft. For this reason, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 operates its own test air base including all required test facilities. It also has its own flight-restricted area where even unmanned systems can be operated safely.

Test flights place high demands on WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61’s infrastructure. The most important features of Manching air base are:

Instrumented test aircraft

To perform its tasks successfully, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 must operate its own instrumented test aircraft. All aircraft types to be evaluated are available as test vehicles at WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61, especially those that are used in deployment areas. They come equipped with state-of-the-art aircraft instrumentation systems, or they are prepared and fitted with the required measuring equipment by WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 depending on the trials task in question.
At WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 these test aircraft are used to test flight characteristics and flight performance as well as all subsystems including armament and armament control systems.

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At WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 the following test aircraft are available:

• Eurofighter and Tornado combat aircraft
• A400M transport aircraft
• Tiger support helicopter, CH-53 transport helicopter, light support helicopter LUH SOFLight Utility Helicopter – Special Operation Forces and LUH SARSearch and Rescue

Metrological Installations and Measuring Devices for Flight Tests

Modern metrological installations and measuring methods as well as real time data evaluation are basic requirements for the different tests and evaluations conducted at WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61.

The laboratories and test rigs at WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 are often equipped with complex state-of-the-art metrological equipment. They are used for data collection as well as for data transfer, preparation and processing.

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TD 61 does not only have onboard and ground-based measuring devices at its disposal, but also various types of optical and electronic measuring equipment that allow high-precision flight path and position tracking. These include, for instance, cinetheodolites and a GPSGlobal Positioning System tracking system with multiple-target detection and DGPSDifferential Global Positioning System capability. 

Personnel for test flights

WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61’s own personnel with completed special flight test training participates in the agency’s flight tests and campaigns. The personnel generally includes:

• Flight test engineers
• Specialized engineers
• Technicians
• Test pilots
• Weapons system officers
• Test load masters
• Flight engineers

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Intensive flight preparation is required during test phases. Naturally, all participants cooperate closely. The campaigns that take place at regular intervals and are often several weeks long are especially time-consuming and labor-intensive.

Test and evaluation of aircraft armaments

A major part of procurement and development is to demonstrate compliance with contractual provisions when integrating aircraft armaments and effectors.

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It is therefore necessary to test the performance of the overall system, and thus to render support during the preparation of the approval for service use. This applies to all airborne weapon systems of the Bundeswehr (i.e., (manned and unmanned) rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft) until they are decommissioned following the end of their in-service life. The required compliance tests regularly take place on or over foreign test sites due to space constraints and national restrictions in Germany.

National Center of Expertise for UASUnmanned Aerial System

WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 is expanding its competencies in the field of unmanned aerial systems in order to improve and broaden its testing and evaluation capabilities even further.

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The newly established National Center of Expertise for UASUnmanned Aerial System acts as a central point of contact for technical matters related to unmanned aerial systems in the Bundeswehr. The focus of its own technical expertise lies on the overall system level of unmanned aircraft and the integration of individual systems into the overall system. To accomplish these tasks, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 maintains close connections with other experts in the field of UASUnmanned Aerial System-related aspects in the Bundeswehr and actively seeks to strengthen these relationships. Furthermore, the Center of Expertise for UASUnmanned Aerial System is meant to play a central role with regard to Bundeswehr R&T activities in connection with UASUnmanned Aerial System-specific projects.

The National Center of Expertise for UASUnmanned Aerial System also supports the establishment of the “Drone Innovation Hub” (DIHDrone Innovation Hub), which will initially fall into WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61’s area of responsibility. As an important link between the Bundeswehr and start-up companies with particular focus on drones, the DIHDrone Innovation Hub is supposed to quickly implement innovative drone-related developments on behalf of the Bundeswehr.

WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61’s main task is testing and evaluating Bundeswehr aircraft and aeronautical equipment. This includes the implementation of demanding and complex flight test projects on the ground and in flight as well as the evaluation of the collected data from an engineering standpoint. From this, the following task areas are derived:

WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 is organized into a staff element, four divisions, an engineering and operational services element and an economic and administrative services element. In addition to that and with a view to implementing European standardization requirements, WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 is creating a “Continuing Airworthiness Management Organisation” (CAMOContinuing Airworthiness Management Organisation) in accordance with the new requirements of the “German Military Airworthiness Regulations” (DEMARGerman Airworthiness Requirements), and it is establishing the implementation organization for the aeronautical engineering development organization. 

The staff element includes essential economic control elements of an agency, for instance task planning as well as cost and performance responsibility. Infrastructure, flight safety and standardization also fall into the staff element’s area of responsibility.

The operational branches of the agency are included in the four divisions “Airfield Operations”, “Flight Tests”, “Overall Systems and Propulsion Systems” and “Mission Systems and Avionics”. The technical and trial-specific tasks as well as research & technology projects are mainly conducted in these divisions.

Maintenance and repairs of all WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61 aircraft as well as vocational training, operational services and quality assurance are some of the core elements of the Engineering and Operational Services element, but its tasks also include ITInformationstechnik services, logistics and materiel management. The Economic and Administrative Services element is responsible for the agency’s administrative elements.

The Bundeswehr Technical Center for Aircraft and Aeronautical Equipment (WTDWehrtechnische Dienststelle 61) is located in the vicinity of Manching, a town of about 10,000 inhabitants in Upper Bavaria, about 10 km to the south-east of Ingolstadt and about 70 km to the north of Munich.