Uploaded August 2025 | Updated September 2026, 29 minutes ago

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Audio Source: youtube.com/watch?v=irTizOVM-3U
1) Failed Brake Test
Thanks to @CVRATC_CNAADA

One of the tests to be undertaken for the certification of a new aircraft is the accelerate-stop with “maximum energy braking” test. This was undertaken for the A340-500/600 on February 12, 2002 in Istres using MSN360, the prototype aircraft.
This test, which is based on brakes already close to their wear limit, is always one of the last to be performed and it is not unusual for unexpected events to occur.

The test is in general a destructive test for the brakes, wheels and tyres, with occasionally some risk of local damage to the airplane.

In this particular instance the test proceded normally, with the target braking distance and brake energy levels being obtained during the deceleration.
However, several minutes after the aircraft had come to a stand, damage occurred to a number of wheels.

The cause of the wheel damage, which is consistent across affected wheels, has been identified as an insufficient margin in the design of the wheels to withstand the extreme heat transfer from the brakes and the associated increase in tyre pressure after the aircraft had stopped.

The results were reviewed with the component manufacturer and modifications defined. They consist in local reinforcement of the wheels and modifications to the thermal shield between the brake assembly and the wheel.