Deutsche Aircraft is moving ahead with testing of the landing gear for its D328eco regional aircraft, completing another important stage of a development program that is now advancing toward certification.
The German aircraft manufacturer has completed both low-speed and high-speed taxi testing of the new landing gear system and has now moved into flight testing. A legacy D328 is serving as a dedicated flying testbed, allowing engineers to evaluate the system before it is incorporated into the broader D328eco certification campaign.
The test aircraft has completed its first five development flights, with Deutsche Aircraft reporting that all planned objectives were achieved. Flight testing began on August 5, 2026, and the aircraft has accumulated more than 15 hours of combined ground and flight test time with the new landing gear.
For Deutsche Aircraft, the milestone is about more than proving that the landing gear works in flight. The company is also using the program to change how it manages one of the most important systems on the aircraft, with greater control over its design, supply chain and long-term support.
D328eco Landing Gear Moves From Taxiway to Flight
Taxi testing is an important part of any landing gear development program because it allows engineers to examine the system progressively before exposing it to the full demands of flight operations.
The low-speed taxi campaign provided an opportunity to assess basic ground behavior, while high-speed taxi testing introduced more demanding conditions. With those stages completed, Deutsche Aircraft has been able to move the test program into flight operations.
The use of a dedicated D328 flying testbed gives the manufacturer a practical way to gather data without waiting for every element of the D328eco development aircraft to reach the same stage.
That approach is particularly useful for a component such as landing gear, which has to perform across several different areas of aircraft operation. It must support the aircraft during takeoff and landing, absorb significant loads, provide effective braking, allow the aircraft to be steered on the ground and withstand repeated cycles throughout its service life.
The first five flights have given Deutsche Aircraft an initial set of flight-test data and cleared the way for a wider campaign.
Nico Neumann, CEO of Deutsche Aircraft, said the completion of the ground and taxi testing, followed by the first flights of the landing gear testbed, represents an important achievement for the program.
The results, he said, have provided validation of the system and allowed the company to proceed with the next phase of flight testing as it continues toward certification.
Why Deutsche Aircraft Wants More Control
The landing gear program also reflects a broader change in Deutsche Aircraft’s approach to product support.
Regional aircraft manufacturers can face particular challenges when critical components depend heavily on external suppliers. A relatively small fleet may not generate the same parts demand as a large commercial jet fleet, while specialized components can still have long lead times and limited sources.
For an operator, that can become a problem when an aircraft is grounded waiting for a part.
Deutsche Aircraft has responded by moving to a new landing gear supplier and securing full intellectual property rights for the system. That gives the company direct engineering authority over the architecture and opens the door to greater control over future development.
The company says this will help it improve reliability, strengthen supply-chain resilience and provide better long-term support to operators.
The strategy could also give Deutsche Aircraft more flexibility when upgrades or design changes become necessary. Instead of depending entirely on an external supplier to control the evolution of the system, the manufacturer will have greater involvement in decisions affecting the landing gear throughout its lifecycle.
That may not be as visible to passengers as a new cabin or more efficient engine, but it can be important to airlines and other aircraft operators when they are evaluating the long-term economics of a fleet.
Existing D328 Operators Could Benefit Too
One of the more interesting aspects of the program is that the landing gear initiative is not limited to the future D328eco.
Deutsche Aircraft intends to harmonize the landing gear architecture across the D328 family, creating greater commonality between the current aircraft and its next-generation successor.
For existing D328 operators, that could translate into practical benefits. A more standardized architecture can simplify aspects of maintenance and potentially make it easier to manage spare parts.
Deutsche Aircraft also expects the strategy to improve parts availability and make lead times more predictable.
That matters in regional aviation, where aircraft utilization can be closely tied to the availability of individual aircraft. If a critical component takes an extended period to source, the impact can be felt quickly across a small fleet.
By taking greater control of the landing gear system now, Deutsche Aircraft is attempting to address some of those challenges before the D328eco enters commercial service.
It also gives the company an opportunity to strengthen support for the existing D328 fleet at the same time.
More Demanding Tests Are Ahead
The first five flights are only the beginning of the flight-test campaign.
Deutsche Aircraft plans to continue testing the landing gear using the dedicated D328 testbed. The next stages are expected to examine how the system performs under a range of operating conditions, including braking, stopping-distance and steering evaluations.
Crosswind testing will provide another important assessment of the system’s ground-handling characteristics. Unpaved runway testing is also planned, an area that is particularly relevant to regional aircraft expected to serve airports with less-developed infrastructure.
The company will also carry out structural and certification-related assessments.
These include high-load testing, along with evaluations of stress, durability and reliability. Such work is designed to establish how the landing gear performs not only during individual operations but also over the repeated loads and cycles expected throughout its service life.
The data generated from the campaign will feed into the D328eco certification effort and help Deutsche Aircraft continue refining the system.
D328eco Program Gains Momentum
The landing gear milestone comes as Deutsche Aircraft works to mature the D328eco, a new-generation regional aircraft intended to build on the capabilities of the D328 family.
The aircraft’s development involves much more than introducing a new airframe. Certification requires the manufacturer to demonstrate that individual systems meet demanding requirements before the aircraft can enter service.
Landing gear is one of those systems, making the latest testing an important part of the overall program.
Aaron Tsang, Head of Design Organisation and Vice President of Engineering at Deutsche Aircraft, said the decision to use a legacy D328 as a dedicated flying testbed has allowed the company to evaluate the landing gear across different stages of development.
The test campaign has progressed from structural ground work and taxi operations into flight testing, providing engineers with data from increasingly demanding environments.
That staged approach should help Deutsche Aircraft identify and address potential issues before the system reaches the later stages of the D328eco certification process.
The Bigger Commercial Picture
The immediate headline is that the D328eco landing gear has moved successfully into flight testing. The more important story, however, may be what Deutsche Aircraft is doing behind the scenes.
By securing intellectual property rights and taking greater control of the landing gear system, the manufacturer is trying to address an issue that can become particularly painful once an aircraft enters service: keeping critical parts available for years after the initial delivery.
That makes the current testing relevant to both the D328eco and the existing D328 fleet.
For prospective D328eco operators, the value of a regional aircraft will ultimately depend on more than its performance figures. Dispatch reliability, maintenance requirements, spare-parts availability and manufacturer support will all influence the economics of operating the aircraft.
Deutsche Aircraft’s landing gear strategy is aimed squarely at those concerns.
The company still has further testing and certification work ahead, and the latest five flights do not mark the end of that process. They do, however, show that the new landing gear has progressed beyond ground testing and into the flight-test phase.
As the next round of testing gets underway, Deutsche Aircraft will turn its attention to braking, steering, crosswind operations, unpaved runways and structural performance.
For the D328eco program, the significance is straightforward: another critical system is being put through its paces, while Deutsche Aircraft is simultaneously building greater control over the parts and support infrastructure that operators will depend on once the aircraft begins flying commercially.
For more on similar developments, see: Deutsche Aircraft Rolls Out First D328eco Test Jet, Advancing Europe’s Green Aviation Goals see:
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