NAME:

September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Wing Planform

The wing planform is the silhouette of the wing when viewed from above or
below.

The shape of the wing, when viewed from above looking down onto the wing,
is called a planform. In this figure, the planform is a rectangle. For a
rectangular wing, the chord length at every location along the span is the
same. For most other planforms, the chord length varies along the span.

Types of Wing Planforms:

 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Advantages and disadvantages of each planform:

Elliptical Planform

Elliptical Aerodynamically, the elliptical planform is the most efficient as

elliptical spanwise lift distribution has the lowest possible induced drag (as
given by thin airfoil theory). However, the most important disadvantage of the
elliptical wing is that its manufacturability is poor.

Rectangular Planform

Rectangular Arguably the simplest wing planform from a manufacturing point

of view, the rectangular wing is a straight, untapered wing. A good example
would be the light general aircraft like Piper PA 38. The main disadvantage of
this wing is that it is aerodynamically inefficient.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Tapered Wing Planform

Tapered Wing this is a modification of the rectangular wing where the chord is
varied across the span to approximate the elliptical lift distribution. While not
as efficient as the elliptical lift distribution, it offers a compromise between
manufacturability and efficiency.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Constant Chord with Tapered Outer

Constant Chord with Tapered Outer this is midway between the rectangular
and the tapered wing, with the inner part having constant chord and the outer
part having a taper.

Delta Wing Planform

Delta is a very low aspect ratio wing used in supersonic aircraft, most notably
in the European designs. The main advantages of the delta wing is that is
efficient in all the flight regimes (subsonic, transonic and supersonic). Also, the
wing offers a large wing area for the shape, reducing wing loading and
improving maneuverability.

The delta wing design is also very strong structurally, offering large volume for
internal fuel. The delta wings are also quite simple to build and maintain.

The main disadvantages are that they have high induced drag due to low
aspect ratio and also that they should have high angle of attack at low speeds
(takeoff and landing), mainly due to fact that at these speeds, lift is generated
by vortices. To compensate for this, they have high stall angles.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Trapezoidal Wing Planform

The trapezoidal wing is a high performance configuration such that the leading
edge sweeps back and the trailing edge sweeps forward. This is mostly found
in combat aircraft from the US.

This wing configuration offers efficient supersonic flight and has very good
stealth characteristics. However, the wing loading is quite high, resulting in
reduced maneuverability, especially instantaneous turn rate.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Swept Back Wing Planform

The leading edges of these wings are swept back. This is done order to
reduce drag in transonic speeds, which is determined by the velocity normal to
the wing.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

Aspect Ratio

The aspect ratio is the span divided by the mean or average chord. It is a
measure of how long and slender the wing appears when seen from above or
below.

Low Aspect Ratio

Short and stubby wing. More efficient structurally and higher instantaneous roll
rate.They tend to be used by fighter aircraft.

Low Aspect Ratio aircrafts has short wings which gives them more turn and
roll advantages, while creating more induced drag because of the planform
design.

This Aspect Ratio gives the aircraft more maneuverability because of the
shortness of the wings. The aircraft can move into tight turns and rolls.

But gives it more induced drag, because of limited bending capabilities of the
wings.

High Aspect Ratio

Long and slender wing. More efficient aerodynamically, having less induced
drag. They tend to be used by high-altitude subsonic aircraft.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2

High aspect ratio wings have one major advantage: because the wingtip has
less area, there is less vortex induced downwash, which means a lot less
induced drag.

One of the most significant reasons is a structural one. The longer your wing
is, the stronger it needs to be. That's because the air load is placed across the
entire span, which creates more of a bending moment.

Another major factor of aspect ratio is maneuverability. Simply put, the longer
your wing is, the less maneuverable it is. That's because longer wings have a
higher moment of inertia. So a longer wing generally has less roll rate, and a
shorter wing has more roll rate.

High aspect ratio wings have a major advantage of creating less induced drag,
but when it comes to wing design, that's only part of the story. Wing strength,
maneuverability, and design practicality all play a part in the shape of your
wing.
 NAME:
September 1, 2016
Ilagan, Dan Mico M.
Course/Year/Section:
Wing Planform & Aspect Ratio
BSAMT 4-2