Flight recorder
Bright orange recorder aiding aviation accident investigation.
A flight recorder is an electronic device installed on an aircraft to help investigators understand what happened during an accident or incident. Though often called a "black box," this nickname is misleading—modern recorders are actually painted bright orange so they can be found more easily after a crash. There are two main types: the flight data recorder (FDR), which logs dozens of flight parameters many times per second, and the cockpit voice recorder (CVR), which captures sounds and pilot conversations in the cockpit. These two devices can also be combined into one unit.
The International Civil Aviation Organization requires both recorders to survive the extreme conditions of a severe crash. According to the EUROCAE ED-112 standard, they must withstand an impact of 3400 g and temperatures above 1,000 °C (1,830 °F). In the United States, they have been mandatory on commercial aircraft since 1967. Following the 2014 disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, some experts have suggested streaming flight data live to the ground and extending the battery life of underwater locator beacons.
Early designs date back to 1939, when François Hussenot and Paul Beaudouin in France created the "type HB" recorder at the Marignane flight test center. It used a scrolling photographic film 8 meters long and 88 millimeters wide, with a light beam reflected by a mirror to record data like altitude and speed. A pre-production run of 25 units was ordered in 1941, and these film-based recorders were still used in French test centers into the 1970s. In 1947, Hussenot founded the Société Française des Instruments de Mesure with Beaudouin and another partner to market the device, also called a "hussenograph." That company later became part of the Safran group and remains a flight recorder supplier. The film technology offered a durable, visual record that needed no playback device, but it could not be erased or reused, so it was reserved for one-time use during planned test flights—not for routine commercial flights. Cockpit conversations were not recorded.
During World War II, a different recorder was developed in the UK by Len Harrison and Vic Husband. Their unit could survive a crash and fire, using copper foil as the recording medium.
- Impact resistance
- 3400 g
- Temperature resistance
- over 1,000 °C (1,830 °F)
- Standard specification
- EUROCAE ED-112
- Mandatory in us commercial aircraft sinc
- 1967
- First combined fdr cvr prototype built
- 1958
- Inventor of first combined fdr cvr proto
- David Warren
Lore & Background
One of the earliest proven attempts at a flight recorder was made by François Hussenot and Paul Beaudouin in 1939 in France, with their "type HB" flight recorder, which used photographic film. A pre-production run of 25 HB recorders was ordered in 1941, and they remained in use in French flight test centers into the 1970s. In 1947, Hussenot founded the Société Française des Instruments de Mesure to market his invention, also known as the "hussenograph". Another form of flight data recorder was developed in the UK during World War II by Len Harrison and Vic Husband, using copper foil as the recording medium. The first modern flight data recorder, called "Mata-Hari", was created in 1942 by Finnish aviation engineer Veijo Hietala.
In 1953, Australian research scientist David Warren conceived a device that would record both instrument readings and cockpit voices. He built a prototype FDR called "The ARL Flight Memory Unit" in 1956, and in 1958 built the first combined FDR/CVR prototype. The ARL system, made by the British firm S. Davall & Sons Ltd, was named the "Red Egg" because of its shape and bright red color. The units were redesigned in 1965 and relocated at the rear of aircraft to increase the probability of successful data retrieval after a crash. In the United States, a flight recorder was invented and patented by James J. Ryan, and a "Cockpit Sound Recorder" was independently invented and patented by Edmund A. Boniface Jr. at Lockheed Aircraft Corporation.
Reader's Guide
The flight recorder is significant primarily for its role in facilitating the investigation of aviation accidents and incidents. The two recorders—the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder—together document the aircraft's flight history, which may assist in any later investigation. The devices are required by the International Civil Aviation Organization to be capable of surviving conditions likely to be encountered in a severe aircraft accident, specified to withstand an impact of 3400 g and temperatures over 1,000 °C by EUROCAE ED-112. They have been a mandatory requirement in commercial aircraft in the United States since 1967. Carriage of data recording equipment became mandatory in UK-registered aircraft in two phases, starting in 1965. After the unexplained disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in 2014, commentators have called for live streaming of data to the ground, as well as extending the battery life of the underwater locator beacons. The legacy of the flight recorder includes its evolution from early photographic and foil-based designs to modern combined units, and its adoption as a standard safety device in aviation worldwide.
Did You Know?
- Flight recorders are required to be painted bright orange, not black, to aid recovery after accidents.
- The first combined flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder prototype was built by David Warren in 1958.
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