Flashover and breakdown investigations of aircraft wiring in low pressure environment

The flashover and breakdown characteristics of (a) electrical wiring and (b) areas between traces of printed circuit (PC) boards used in aircraft are a function of the environment in which these systems operate. As the altitude of an aircraft increases, the pressure decreases and the flashover and breakdown characteristics change. This change, combined with the trend to apply higher voltages (270 VDC), and the possibility of spikes superimposed on the 270 VDC supply voltage due to power-electronic-based controllers, makes it imperative that the standards used to manufacture and test these wiring components be revisited and updated as appropriate.