The GPATE system

The GPATE System is the maintenance solution at level two (ML2) for the avionics units of Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft. GPATE program main target is the development and production of a general purpose ATE (GPATE CORE) and a collection of TPS whose outstanding features are its reduced footprint, portability, rapid deployment capability and obsolescence mitigation design. The paper outlines the most challenging requirements of the program and describes the design approaches that addressed them during the development phase. It describes also the GPATE CORE ATE as an innovative solution in the field of transportable general purpose ATEs. The paper shows how the technical issues were solved and tested, and the problems encountered. Finally it outlines the present status of GPATE program, with nine COREs and 48 TPS in production, and the next future applications forecasted.