Although Arnold Engineering Development Center (AEDC) uses some of the most sophisticated technologies in the world to test aerospace systems before flight, it's been using one system for 24 years that's about as simple as instant mashed potatoes and Stovetop Stuffing.
"It's about as low-tech as you can get," said Randal Watt, a project manager at the Arnold Air Force Base, Tenn., test center's Bird Impact Test Facility. "Most people who tour AEDC are surprised we haven't developed a more sophisticated test technique. But it's really common sense, a very simple thing. If you are trying to simulate a bird hitting the windshield of an aircraft, the easiest and best way to do it is to catch a bird, accelerate it to the desired speed, and have an aircraft windshield in its path."
I had to post this old news about the chicken gun at Arnold AFB...
now to find video...
