Welcome to the Research altitude test facility

[Rhythmic instrumental music plays as a narrator on-screen begins speaking in a clear, steady male voice.]

[On-screen text: Dan Fuleki, Aerospace engineer, National Research Council Canada]

Welcome to the National Research Council of Canada's Research Altitude Test Facility, what we call RATFac.

This facility is designed to test aircraft engines, their subsystems, as well as other aircraft components and R&D test articles in a simulated flight condition.

This includes performance under various altitudes and speeds.

And in addition to steady state flight conditions, the test can simulate transient characteristics, including when an engine is executing a rapid acceleration or deceleration while maintaining a constant forward flight speed, or those of an engine experienced climb or descent.

The RATFac also uniquely simulates ice crystal icing environments. This is an icing threat that occurs through the formation of ice particles

during thunderstorms, where large amounts of moisture are drawn upwards and freeze.

This can lead to ice concentrations exceeding twice those observed in supercooled liquid water environments.

To make the situation worse, these solid ice particles are also invisible to aircraft radar.

This work is crucial for aviation safety, helping prevent incidents linked to ice crystal icing, where RATFac is the only facility capable of replicating in flight, and engine compressor ice crystal icing effects.

It's also used to support the industry by providing data on engine performance, alternate fuels, and electric propulsion.

For more information, visit our website or contact us directly.

[The background music fades to silence.]

[On screen: Government of Canada Wordmark appears on a black background.]