Aerodynamics 3

Training Manual
Jet
Aircraft
Maintenance
Fundamentals
AERODYNAMICS
JAR-66
Lufthansa Issue: July 2000

Technical Training GmbH For Training Purposes Only
Book No: JAMF AERODYNAMICS Lufthansa Base Hamburg Lufthansa 1995
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AERODYNAMICS
1
AERODYNAMICS FUNDAMENTALS
PHYSICS FOR AERODYNAMICS
Aerodynamics Lesson 1
1.1.3. Time
1. Physics for Aerodynamics
The unit of measurement for time is seconds, denoted by s. Originally this was
The laws of physics that affect the aircraft in flight and on the ground are de- based on the length of a day. However not all days are exactly the same dura-
scribed using the international SI system.The SI system is based on the metric tion so the second is now defined as the time it takes for a certain number of
system and must be used by law throughout the world. energy changes to occur in the caesium atom.
Lufthansa Technical Training

You need to use conversion tables for the English or American systems. You
can find conversion tables in the appendix of most technical documentation. 1.1.4. Temperature
The laws of physics are described by fundamental units and basic quanti-
The unit of measurement for temperature is kelvin, denoted by K. Zero kelvin is
ties.The fundamental units can not be defined in other quantities.The basic
called absolute zero because it is the lowest temperature possible.
quantities are defined in fundamental units.
Speed, for example, is a basic quantity. It is defined by the fundamental units The kelvin scale starts at zero and only has positive numbers.
distance and time. One kelvin is the same size as one degree Celsius.
Speed, denoted by V is distance, denoted by m over time, denoted by s.
There are seven fundamental units in physics -- mass, length, time, tempera-
ture, current, mol number and the intensity of light.
The fundamental units used in aerodynamics are mass, length, time and tem-
perature.
1.1. Fundamental units

1.1.1. Mass
The unit of measurement for mass is kilograms, denoted by kg. The mass of
one kilogram is defined by a piece of platinum alloy at the office of weights and
measurements in Paris.
The mass of one kilogram is also the volume of one liter of pure water at a
temperature of four degrees Celsius.
Mass is not the same as weight. The astronauts flying around in their space
labs have no weight but their bodies have a mass.
1.1.2. Length
The unit of measurement for length is meters, denoted by m.
The meter was established as a standard unit of length by a commission set up
by the French government in 1790.
A meter is more precisely defined as a certain number of wavelengths of a par-
ticular colour of light.
For Training Purposes Only

HAM US/F ro/ka March 1998 Page 2

Figure 1
1.2. Speed and acceleration

1.2.1. Speed and velocity
Speed is the distance that a moving object covers in a unit of time. For exam-

ple, we can say that an aircraft has a speed of 500 kilometers per hour.
Speed is denoted by V.
Velocity is the distance that a moving object covers in a given direction in a unit
of time. We can say that an aircraft has a velocity of 500 kilometers per hour
northward.
Velocity is also denoted by V.
1.2.2. Acceleration
Acceleration is the change in velocity divided by the time during which the
change takes place.
You can see that the velocity changes from 100 m/s to 150 m/s during this ten
second period.
In this example the acceleration is 50 m/s per ten seconds. This is equal to five
meters per second per one second which is 5 m/s2. Acceleration is measured
in meters per square second ( m/s2 ).
Acceleration is denoted by a.


Figure 2
1.2.3. Acceleration due to gravity 1.3. Force and weight

A special form of acceleration is acceleration due to gravity. An object, such as We begin our look at force with an experiment. You can see that our friend is
this ball, which falls freely under the force of gravity has uniform acceleration if standing on a weighing scale in an elevator and observing his weight ( Fig. be-
there is no air resistance. low, left ).
Acceleration which is due to gravity is denoted by g. There is no change in weight if a body stays at rest or if it moves with uniform

The value of this acceleration varies across the earths surface but on average velocity.
it is nine point eight meters per square second. For ease of calculation ten me- But what happens to the weight if the elevator accelerates as it moves upward?
ters per square second is often used.
As the elevator accelerates there is an additional force which increases the
weight
Force is measured in Newtons. The term deca--Newton is used in all technical
manuals for force and for weight.
Weight is one kind of force. It is mass multiplied by the acceleration due to
gravity. You know that gravity is the attraction exerted on any material towards
the center of the earth.
Weight is also measured in Newtons ( Fig. below, right ).


Figure 3
1.4. Work and Power

1.4.1. Work
Work is done when an object is moved over a distance. It is force multiplied by

distance. Work = N x m.
Work is denoted by joule and is measured in Newton meters.
You can see that the object with a force of six hundred Newton is moved a dis-
tance of thirty meters.
The work is six hundred Newton multiplied by thirty meters which is eighteen
thousand Newton meters.

1.4.2. Power
Power is work over time or more specifically force multiplied by distance over
time.
Power is measured in Watts which is Newton meters per second.
You probably know the term horse power. When steam engines were first used

their power was compared to the power of horses because they were used for
work which was previously done by horses. Now the international SI system
uses watts and kilowatts instead of horsepower.
You can see that the object with a force of 600 N is moved a distance of 30 m
in 10 seconds.
The power is six hundred Newton multiplied by thirty meters divided by ten se-
conds which is 1800 watts or 1.8 kilowats.

1.5. Pressure
1.5.1. Static pressure
Pressure is the force acting on a unit of area.

It is denoted by Pascal ( Pa ) and measured in Newtons per square meter
( N/m2 ). The STATIC PRESSURE for technical systems e. g. for AIR-
Static pressure acts equally in all directions. It is denoted by a small p and CRAFT HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS is denotet by
measured in Newtons per square meter ( N/m2 ).
Static pressure is calculated as height multiplied by density multiplied by grav- bar
ity. Pstat. = h x r x g.
and has the unit
1.5.2. Dynamic pressure
Dynamic pressure acts only in the direction of the flow. daN
It is denoted by a small q and sometimes called q pressure and, like static cm 2
pressure, measured in Newtons per square meter ( N/m2 ).
Dynamic pressure is calculated as half the density multiplied by the velocity
squared. q = x r x v2 .
1 bar = 1 daN2
The static pressure for aircraft technical systems is denoted by bar and mea- 1 cm
sured in decaNewtons per square centimeter ( daN/cm2 ).
One bar is equal to one hundred thousand PASCAL. 1 bar = 100 000 Pa


r r
p=hxr xg q = x r x v2

Figure 4
1.6. Sound waves

Now you know that the speed of sound depends on the temperature. For ex-
Sound waves are the same as pressure waves. ample if the temperature on a Summer day is 15_ C, which is 288 K, then we
The speed of sound is the speed of the small pressure waves which occur calculate the speed of sound to be 339.4 m/s.
when you ring the bell. If the temperature decreases in Winter to - 50_ C, which is 223 K, then the

The speed of sound is denoted by a. speed of sound is 298.6 m/s.
In the formula for the speed of sound, the number twenty is an approximation The speed of sound is less at high altitudes because the temperature is lower.
of the total of all the relevant constant values and T for temperature repre-
sents the only variable value.
Note that the temperature must be expressed in Kelvin!


a = 20 223 = 298.6 m
s

Figure 5
1.6.1. Speed of sound

Now lets see what happens if the source of the sound moves, for example if
we have an aircraft flying. First we see an aircraft flying at a speed which is
below the speed of sound.
You can see that the pressure wave moves ahead of the aircraft and also be-

hind it.
Next we see an aircraft flying at the same speed as the speed of sound.
The pressure wave cannot escape at the front of the aircraft and we get a big
pressure wave forming. This pressure wave is known as a shock wave.
Finally we see an aircraft flying at a speed which is above the speed of sound.
In this case the pressure waves increase behind the aircraft and shock waves
form outside the periphery of the pressure waves.
Now you know that different aircraft speeds affect the sound waves.
Below the speed of sound At the speed of sound Above the speed of sound
V<1M V =1 M V >1 M

1.6.2. Mach number

The pilot must know the relationship between the speed of the aircraft and the At this higher altitude the temperature is lower and the speed of sound de-
speed of sound. creases to 300 m/s.
On most aircraft the pilot must make sure that the speed of the aircraft is less Now the aircraft is flying at the speed of sound and you can see that shock
than the speed of sound. waves are produced.

Now lets see what happens when an aircraft flies at a constant speed but in A special indication known as the Mach number, M is used to keep the pilot
different temperatures. In this example the aircraft is flying at a low altitude with informed of the relationship between the speed of the aircraft and the speed of
a speed of 300 m/s. sound.
You can see that the aircraft speed is below the speed of sound at this altitude. The Mach number is the speed of the aircraft divided by the speed of sound.
We assume the speed of sound is 330 m/s. In our example the aircraft flying at an altitude of 10 km has a Mach number of
Now the same aircraft is flying at an altitude of 10 km. The aircraft continues to one ( M = 1 ). A Mach number of one indicates that the aircraft is flying at the
fly with a speed of 300 m/s. speed of sound.
300 M
S

1.6.3. Sound regions

These graphics illustrate the three sound regions which are defined by the
Mach numbers. In the subsonic region all speeds around the aircraft are below
the speed of sound. This is the region up to the critical Mach number.
In the transonic region some speeds around the aircraft are below the speed of

sound and some are higher than the speed of sound. This is the region be-
tween the critical Mach number and 1.3 Mach.
Finally we have the supersonic region. Here all speeds around the aircraft are
higher than the speed of sound. This is the region at Mach numbers higher
than 1.3 Mach.
Thats all we have to say about the speed of sound in this segment. You will
see more on this subject in the chapter for high speed flight.


V < Mcrit Mcrit < V < 1.3 M V > 1.3 M
Subsonic Transonic Supersonic

Figure 6
1.7. Atmosphere
To understand aerodynamics we need to know something about the atmo-
sphere where flying happens.
The atmosphere is the whole mass of air extending upwards from the surface
of the earth.

Air is a mixture of several gases. Pure, dry air has approximately 78% nitrogen,
21% oxygen and one percent other gases such as argon and carbon dioxide.
For practical purposes it is sufficient to say that air is a mixture of four fifths
nitrogen and one fifth oxygen.
The atmosphere has many layers.
The troposphere is the lowest of these layers. In the troposphere we have TROPOSPHERE
clouds and rain and many different weather conditions.
There are no rain clouds in the stratosphere and the temperature does not
change as the altitude increases.
The tropopause is the name given to the boundary between the troposphere
and the stratosphere. The tropopause has different heights around the earth. It
is approximately eight kilometers over the north and south poles and sixteen
kilometers over the equator.
21% Oxygen
78% Nitrogen

1.7.1. ICAO Standard Atmosphere ( ISA )

You know from watching the weather forecast that temperature, pressure and
density vary quite a lot in the troposphere.
These variations must be reduced to a standard so that we have a basis for
comparing aircraft performance in different parts of the world and under varying

atmospheric conditions.
In order to have a reference for all aerodynamic computations, the International
Civil Aviation Organisation ( ICAO ) has agreed upon a standard atmosphere
called ISA ( ICAO standard atmosphere). The pressure, temperature and den-
sity in the standard atmosphere serve as a reference only. When all aerody-
namic computations are related to this standard, a meaningful comparison of
flight test data between aircraft can be made
Now lets take a look at the temperature, pressure and density of the ISA at
sea level and at high altitudes.
You can see the standard sea level values for temperature, density and pres-
sure. Note that the standard altitude for the tropopause is eleven kilometers.
Under standard conditions temperature decreases with altitude at a rate of
6,5_ C per 1000m, or 2_ C ( 3.5_ F ) per 1000 foot.
This gives a standard temperature of -56,5_ C at the tropopause.
There is no change in temperature in the stratosphere.
The density and pressure decrease gradually with altitude.
The graph shows the basic tendencies for temperature, pressure and density.
You can find more precise information in the standard atmosphere tables which
you can usually find in the appendix of technical documentations.
These are the ISA conditions for sea level:
Temperature T : 288 K = 15_ C

Density r : 1,225 kg/m3
Pressure P : 1013,25 hPa

BASIC AERODYNAMICS
2. Basic Aerodynamics
In this chapter we look at some of the basic principles of aerodynamics in the The area of the cross--section at point A2 is five square centimeters and the
subsonic region. velocity of the airflow at this point is 40 m/s.
In the subsonic region the speed is so slow that a flying body does not com- The continuity equation states that the velocity of the airflow is inversely

press the air. We say that the air is incompressible in the subsonic region. proportional to the area of the cross section of the tube as long as den-
sity remains constant !
2.1. Continuity equation For example if the area of the cross section is halved then the velocity of the
Now lets have a closer look at the behaviour of the air streamlines. airflow is doubled or if the area is four times smaller then the velocity is four
You can see that the streamlines are parallel to each other if there is no distur- times greater.
bance. We use the term defuser outlet when the diameter increases and the velocity
The airflow between the streamlines is similar to the flow in a closed tube. You decreases and the term jet outlet when the diameter decreases and the veloc-
will see later that we use the term stream tube. ity increases.
Here you see the flow pattern in a tube with different diameters.
You can see that as the diameter gets smaller the streamlines move closer to
each other.
At the lower picture we isolate the stream tube and identify two cross--sections,
A1 and A2. Assume that the area of the cross--section at point A1 is twenty
square centimeters and the velocity of the airflow at this point is 10 m/s.

HAM US/F ro/ka MARCH 1998 Page 20
BASIC AERODYNAMICS
DENSITY IS CONSTANT !

r1 = r2
A2 = 5 cm2

Figure 7
BASIC AERODYNAMICS
2.2. Bernoulli s principle

The Bernoulli equation states that total pressure is always the sum of
In this segment we look at another important equation used in aerodynamics, static pressure and dynamic pressure or in short hand notation: P tot
Bernoullis equation. Here we will see, how speed effects pressure. equals p plus q !

We will describe this equation using a tube with a valve. The total pressure remains constant.
You can see that the valve is closed and that the tube is filled with fluid on the
left side of the valve.
Ptot = p + q = const.
Valve closed p = pstat; q = r V2
The fluid inside the tube has a static pressure. The static pressure is repre-
sented by the arrows in the tube and by a line on the graph at the bottom of the
picture.
This static pressure acts in all directions. VALVE CLOSED
The total pressure is represented by the circle in the tube and by another line
on the graph at the bottom of the picture.
You can see on the graph that the total pressure is equal to the static pressure
when the valve is closed.
At the next steps, the valve will be opened slightly.
Valve half open
When the valve is moved to the half open position the fluid begins to flow.
You can see that the static pressure decreases and a new pressure, the dy-
namic pressure, is introduced. Remember that the dynamic pressure only acts
in the direction of the flow.
The dynamic pressure is represented by the horizontal arrows in the tube and a
line on the graph. The graph shows the amount of static pressure, dynamic
pressure and total pressure in the half open position.
Valve full open

Finally the valve is moved to the fully open position.
Did you notice that the total pressure remained constant in all valve positions?
The static pressure decreased every time the valve was opened more and the
dynamic pressure increased as the valve opened.
What you have seen is the physical law known as Bernoullis principle.

BASIC AERODYNAMICS
VALVE HALF OPEN VALVE FULL OPEN

Figure 8
BASIC AERODYNAMICS
2.2.1. Pressure measuring

Now lets see how pressure is measured. You know that the airflow around the
surface of this object has static pressure and dynamic pressure.
At the point of stagnation the velocity of the airflow falls to zero and the static
pressure equals the total pressure. You know that there is no dynamic pressure

if there is no flow.
At the picture below you can see how we measure the static and dynamic pres-
sure when there is a velocity.
The actual static pressure is sensed directly at the static port.
The static pressure line and the total pressure line are attached to a differential
pressure gauge.
The net pressure indicated on the gauge is the dynamic pressure. As you know
the dynamic pressure is the total pressure minus the static pressure.
The dynamic pressure varies directly with changes in density and with the
square of the change in velocity.
If the density is constant, the dynamic pressure increases sixteen times if the
velocity increases four times.
The dynamic pressure is the indicated air speed.

BASIC AERODYNAMICS

q = r V2

Figure 9
BASIC AERODYNAMICS
2.3. Lift production

Now lets replace the upper surface of the venturi tube with a straight line and
In this segment we see how lift is produced. We begin by looking at a special see what happens to the airflow.
design of tube known as a venturi tube.
As you can see this doesnt change things very much. The streamlines are still
You can see that the inlet and the outlet of the venturi tube are the same size. closer to each other in the center and the static pressure decreases in this area

The velocity of the airflow increases until it reaches the narrowest point in the
tube.
You know that as the velocity increases the static pressure decreases and the
dynamic pressure increases.
The velocity decreases again after the narrowest point and returns to the inlet
level by the time the airflow reaches the outlet.
During this phase the static pressure increases again and the dynamic pres-
sure decreases.

BASIC AERODYNAMICS
If we remove the upper surface we find that the streamlines themselves pro- The next step is to change the lower surface of the venturi tube into a profile
vide the upper boundary. and to add some streamlines below it.
Now we have a surface with an area of low static pressure above it and area of
unchanged static pressure below it.
This difference in static pressure acts on the surface to create the force which

we call lift.

BASIC AERODYNAMICS
2.4. Magnus Effect and Circulation

This mechanically induced circulation is called the Magnus effect.
Here you see the side view of a cylinder in an airstream.
You can see that the circulatory flow produces what we call an up--wash im-
The static pressure on the upper surface of the cylinder is the same as the mediately in front of the cylinder and a down--wash immediately behind the cyl-

static pressure on the lower surface. inder.
You can also see that the fore and aft neutral streamlines are lowered.
If there is no differential pressure, there is no lift !

Lets see what happens if we rotate the cylinder.
When the cylinder rotates the circulatory flow causes an increase in local veloc-
ity on the upper surface of the cylinder and a decrease in local velocity on the
lower surface.
This generates lift.

BASIC AERODYNAMICS
Circulation around a profile
If the cylinder in the flow will be replaced by a profile, we will get the same ef-
fect as for the cylinder with circulation.
There is no lift without circulation !
A velocity difference between the upper and lower profile surface will be ob-
tained and lift will be created.

This lift will be normal to the direction of flow, as for the Cylinder.
This profile also generates a circulation which produces an up--wash and a

down--wash.

PROFILE AND WING GEOMETRY
3. Profile and wing geometry

In this chapter we look at the geometry of a wing and a profile. This is impor-
Cord line, Leading edge, Trailing edge
tant for our understanding of lift and drag.
The profile has a leading edge and a trailing edge.
In the first segment we look at profile geometry and in the second segment we

look at wing geometry.
3.1. Geometry of a profile
As you can see a profile is a cross section of a wing.
It is sometimes called an airfoil.
The cord line is a straight line connecting the leading edge and the trailing
edge.

Camber of a Profile Thickness of a Profile
The mean camber line is a line drawn half way between the upper and the The maximum thickness of a profile is defined as a fraction or a percentage of
lower surfaces of the profile. the cord.
The shape of the mean camber line is very important in determining the aero- The maximum thickness as a fraction is also known as the fineness ratio.
dynamic characteristics of a profile. The location of the maximum thickness is also defined as a percentage of the

The end points of the mean camber line are the same as the end points of the cord.
cord line. For example a typical low speed profile might have a maximum thickness of
18 % located 30 % aft of the leading edge.
Camber
Thickness
0% 100% 0% 100%
The camber of the profile is the displacement of the mean camber line from the
cord line.
The maximum camber and the location of the maximum camber help to define
the shape of the mean camber line.
These quantities are expressed as a fraction or a percentage of the basic cord
dimension.
A typical low speed profile might have a maximum camber of 5 % located 45 %
aft of the leading edge.

Relative wind
The flight path velocity is the speed of the aircraft in a certain direction through
Angle of attack
the air.
The angle of attack is the angle between the cord line of the profile and the rel-
The relative wind is the speed and direction of the air acting on the aircraft
ative wind. It is denoted by the greec letter ( alpha ).
which is passing through it.

You can see that the relative wind is opposite in direction to the flight path ve-
locity.
The relative wind depends on the flight path and is therefore not always hori-
zontal.
Angle of incidence
The angle of incidence is the angle between the cord line of the profile and the
longitudinal axis of the aircraft. It is denoted by the greec letter gamma.

3.2. Wing geometry

Wing area S On this more realistic tapered wing we have different wing cords. You can see
In this segment we look at wing geometry. The wing area is the plan surface that the root cord Cr, is the cord at the wing centerline and the tip cord Ct, is the
area of the wings. cord at the wing tip.

It includes the area of the fuselage which is between the wings.
On this simplified graphic the wing area S, is the wing span b, multiplied by the
cord of the wing c.
Taper ratio
The taper ratio ( lambda ), is the ratio of the tip cord to the root cord.
l = Ct/Cr
The wing area is the average cord multiplied by the wing span.
The average cord C, is the geometric average of all the cords and the wing
span b, is measured from tip to tip.

Aspect ratio L
The aspect ratio is the wing span b, divided by the average cord C.
Typical aspects ratios vary from 35 for a high performance sail--plane, to 3.5 for
a jet fighter plane.
You can see, that the aspect ratio can also be expressed as the wing span

squared divided by the wing area.
= b
C
2
= b
S

Sweep angle Dihedral

The sweep angle is the angle between the quarter cord, or the 25 % line and The dihedral of the wing is the angle formed between the wing and the horizon-
the pitch axis. tal plane passing through the root of the wing.
We have a positive dihedral when the tip of the wing is above the horizontal

Positive sweep = Backwards !
plane and a negative dihedral when the tip of the wing is below the horizontal
Negative sweep = Forewards ! plane.

LIFT AND DRAG
The air velocity decreases and the static pressure increases after this point.
4. Lift and drag In the dark area at the trailing edge the static pressure is higher than the ambi-
In this Chapter we look in more detail at the factors affecting the lift -- first the ent static pressure.
angle of attack and then the shape of the profile. This is caused by low velocity turbulent air in this area.
After that we will have a look at the factors affecting the drag.

At the end we will see how lift and drag are represented in the polar diagram
You know that the main function of a profile is to provide lift so that the aircraft
can overcome the force of gravity and rise into the air.
You will see that the design of the profile is very important.
4.1. Introduction
Here you see the distribution of static pressure on a profile. The dark area in
front of the leading edge, is where the static pressure is higher than the ambi-
ent static pressure.
This is because the velocity of the air approaching the leading edge, slows to
less than the flight path velocity. The static pressure is highest at the point of
stagnation where the air comes to a stop.
The aerodynamic force is the resultant of all forces on a profile in an airflow
acting on the center of pressure.
The aerodynamic force has two components -- lift which is perpendicular to the
relative wind and drag which is parallel to the relative wind. Here the center of
pressure is identified. This is the point on which all pressures and all forces act.
This point is located where the cord of a profile intersects with the resultant of
the aerodynamic forces lift and drag.
Aerodynamic Force
In the lighter areas above and below the profile, the static pressure is lower
than the ambient static pressure. This is because the air speeds up again as it
passes above and below the profile so that the local air velocity is greater than
the flight path velocity.
We have maximum air velocity and minimum static pressure at a point near the
maximum thickness of the profile.

LIFT AND DRAG
The aerodynamic forces of lift and drag depend on the combined effect of In this example we assume that the air density is 1,225 kg/m3 and the air ve-
many variables -- the dynamic pressure the surface area of the profile the locity is 28 m/s and the surface area of the profile is 0,05 m2 and we get a
shape of the profile and the angle of attack. theoretical lift of 24 N.

Aerodynamic Force r = 1,225 kg/m3
V = 28 m/s
A = 0,05 m2
Theoretical Lift = x 1,225 x 282 x 0,05 = 24 N
Now we look at how to calculate the lift. You might think that this is simple -- all
we need to know about is the surface and the pressure.
However its not as easy as you might think. In reality a profile has different
pressures because of different angles of attack.
First lets look at the simple calculation of theoretical lift.
The theoretical lift is the dynamic pressure multiplied by the surface area. You
know from an earlier lesson that the dynamic pressure is half the air density
multiplied by the velocity squared.
Theoretical Lift = x r x V2 x A

LIFT AND DRAG
It is not possible to calculate the actual lift. We have to measure it using a wind
tunnel.
You can see that a universal joint provides the bearing for this construction.
There are two scales attached to the support arm -- a horizontal scale to mea-
sure the drag and a vertical scale to measure the lift.

Now lets see what happens when we switch on the wind tunnel.

LIFT AND DRAG
4.1.1. Lift Equation 4.1.2. Drag Equation

You can see that the measured lift is only 8,4 N. This is much less than the For the same reasons a coefficient of drag CD, is introduced to the drag equa-
theoretical lift of 24 N. tion to account for the difference between measured drag and theoretical drag.
The theoretical lift must therefore be adjusted. The coefficient of drag is the measured drag divided by the theoretical drag.
A coefficient of lift CL, is introduced to the lift equation to account for the differ- The drag equation becomes the coefficient of drag multiplied by the dynamic

ence between the measured lift and the theoretical lift. pressure multiplied by the surface area.
The coefficient of lift is the measured lift divided by the theoretical lift. In our
example it is 0,34.
The lift equation is now the coefficient of lift multiplied by the dynamic pressure
multiplied by the surface area. Drag = C d 1 V 2 S
2
Dynamic Pressure q
Lift = C l 1 V 2 S
2
Dynamic Pressure q
Measured Drag
Coefficient of Drag =
Theoretical Drag
Coefficient of Lift = Measured Lift

Theoretical Lift
V
V

LIFT AND DRAG
4.2. Factors Affecting Lift

4.2.1. Angle of Attack ( AOA ) a a = 8_
You know that the coefficient of lift is the ratio of the measured lift to the

theoretical lift.
The coefficient of lift is a function of the angle of attack and of the shape of the
profile.
We look at the effect of the angle of attack in this segment.
In this wind tunnel experiment you will see that each angle of attack produces a
different measured lift and therefore a different coefficient of lift.
The vertical scale will show the coefficient of lift as the angle of attack changes.
The relationship between the angle of attack and the coefficient of lift will be
plotted on the graph.
Now you can see what will hapen, when the angle of attack varies between
8_ to 20_ .
Remember to observe the coefficient of lift on the scale and the relationship
between the angle of attack and the coefficient of lift on the graph.
You can see on the graph that the coefficient of lift increases up to the maxi-
mum coefficient of lift, CL max, and then decreases again.
The maximum coefficient of lift corresponds to the maximum angle of attack,
max. a = 0_
If the angle of attack increases above a max, the airflow cannot follow the upper
surface of the profile and an airflow separation, known as stall occurs.

LIFT AND DRAG
a = 8_

a = 20_
a = 16_

LIFT AND DRAG
4.2.2. Shape of a Profile Change of the Profile Camber

Next we look at the other main influence on the coefficient of lift. Now lets see the coefficient of lift curve for a profile with the same thickness as
the basic profile but with a higher camber.
The shape of the profile is the second influence on the coefficient of lift.
You can see that the profile with the higher camber has a much higher coeffi-
A profile can have different thickness and different camber and its shape may
cient of lift at the zero angle of attack.
be influenced by disturbances such as ice on the leading edge.

This profile has a higher maximum coefficient of lift but a lower alpha max than
The cross section of the profile is the same, we used in the wind tunnel experi-
the basic profile.
ment and the graph showing the associated coefficient of lift curve.
Change of the Profile Thickness

Now lets see the coefficient of lift curve for a profile with the same camber but
with greater thickness.
You can see that the thicker profile has the same coefficient of lift at lower
angles of attack but a higher coefficient of lift when the angle of attack in-
creases above approximately ten degrees.
The thicker profile has a higher maximum coefficient of lift and a higher max.
An advantage of a high maximum lift coefficient is that the aircraft can fly
slowly.
The disadvantages are that the thickness and camber necessary for profiles
with a high maximum lift coefficient may produce high drag and low critical
Mach number.
In other words, a high maximum lift coefficient is just one of many features de-
sired in a profile. Next we look at the factors affecting the coefficient of drag.

LIFT AND DRAG
4.3. Factors affecting Drag

There are three different types of drag:
- induced drag
- parasite drag and

- compressible drag
You will learn more about these different kinds of drag in the next chapters.
Earlier in this chapter you saw that the drag equation is similar to the lift equa-
tion except that we use the coefficient of drag instead of the coefficient of lift.
You know that the coefficient of drag is the ratio of the measured drag to the
theoretical drag.
The coefficient of drag is a function of the angle of attack and of the shape of
the profile.
Drag = C d 1 V 2 S
2
Dynamic Pressure q
Measured Drag
Coefficient of Drag =
Theoretical Drag

LIFT AND DRAG
4.3.1. Relation between and the Drag Coefficient CD

a = 8_
We use the wind tunnel experiment again to show that each angle of attack
produces a different measured drag and therefore a different coefficient of

drag.
The horizontal scale will show the coefficient of drag as the angle of attack
changes.
The relationship between the angle of attack and the coefficient of drag will be
plotted on the graph.
You can see the coefficient of drag at angles of attack from 8_ to 20_ .
You can see on the graph that at lower angles of attack the coefficient of drag
is low and small changes in the angle of attack produce only slight changes in
the coefficient of drag.
At higher angles of attack the coefficient of drag is much greater and small
changes in the angle of attack produce significant changes in the coefficient of
drag.
You can see that a stall produces a large increase in drag.
a = 0_

LIFT AND DRAG

a = 20_ a = > 20_

Figure 10
LIFT AND DRAG
4.4. Polar Diagram

In this segment we see how the lift and drag coefficients can be combined to
give us information about the performance of profiles.

Now were going to plot the polar diagram. This shows the coefficient of lift
plotted against the coefficient of drag for each angle of attack.
The lift drag ratio diagram is a variation of the polar diagram.
The ratio of the lift to the drag is plotted against the angle of attack.
You can see that the ratio of the lift to the drag is the same as the ratio of the
lift coefficient to the drag coefficient.
The lift drag ratio diagram shows the maximum lift drag ratio.
This point represents the most efficient operation of the profile. It is the point
where we get the most lift for the least drag.
It is not possible to calculate aerodynamic forces without wind tunnel experi-
ments.
Thousands of tests are performed to get information on the most efficient pro-
files under various flight conditions.
The results of these tests are collected by a U.S. government agency, the Na-
tional Advisory Committee for Aeronautics or NACA and given an identification.
These profiles are called NACA profiles.
You can find more detailed informations about all these profiles in special pro-
file catalogs.

LIFT AND DRAG
Polar Diagram Lift = C l q S

Drag Cd q S

Lift = C l
Drag Cd
q = Dynamic Pressure
S = surface area
Lift/Drag Diagram

Figure 11
CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5. Categories of Drag
5.1. Introduction
Drag is caused by any aircraft surface that deflects or interferes with the

smooth airflow around the airplane.
In this Chapter we look in more detail at the 5 different types of drag:
1. Induced Drag
2. Form Drag
3. Friction Drag
4. Interference Drag
5. Compressible Drag
We will see how the different types of drag are combined to give the total drag.
The total aircraft drag is the sum of the induced drag, the parasite drag and the
compressible drag.
Drag is the aerodynamic force which acts in opposition to the direction of flight,
opposes the foreward - acting force of thrust, and limits the forward speed of
the airplane.
The induced drag is the drag on the wing which is caused by the lift.
The parasite drag is not related to the lift.
It can be form drag which is drag caused by the distribution of pressure, or fric-
tion drag which is drag caused by skin friction, or interference drag which is
drag caused by aerodynamic interference.
Compressible drag is caused by the shock waves on an aircraft approaching
the speed of sound. Sometimes the compressible drag is called Wave Drag .

HAM US/F ro/ka March 1998 48
CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.2. Induced Drag

If an aircraft wing had an infinite span the air would flow directly from the lead-
ing edge to the trailing edge. Here you can see that on a wing with an infinite span, the lift distribution is al-
ways the same and on a wing with a finite span we get a loss of lift near the
In reality, of course, an aircraft wing has a finite span -- it has ends which are wing tips.
called wing tips.

The induced drag is lower if the finite wing has an elliptical lift distribution such
The air with higher pressure under the wing spills over the wing tips into the as the one you see here.
air with lower pressure above the wing.
You will learn more about the lift distribution over the wing in the next chapter.
This turbulence at the wing tips causes the streamlines to form wing tip vor-
tices.
The streamlines below the wing bend towards the wing tips and the streamlines Lift Distribution
above the wing bend towards the center.
The turbulence absorbs energy and increases the drag. This type of drag is
called induced drag.
Wing Tip Vortices

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
You know from an earlier chapter, that there is a circulation around the profile. On a finite wing span we have the bound vortex and we also have the wing tip
If the wing span is infinite the circulation around the profile causes an upwash vortices.
on the leading edge and a downwash on the trailing edge. The graph shows that the total of the bound vortex and the wing tip vortices
This circulation is called the bound vortex. creates the upwash and the downwash on the wing.

Infinite Wing Finite Wing
The design of the gutter above the entry doors on the Boeing 747 reflects the
upwash and the downwash caused by the vortices.
You can see that the gutters are in line with the flow pattern of the airstream
around the wing.
They are sloped upwards to reflect the upwash forward of the wing and down-
wards to reflect the downwash aft of the wing.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
Induced Drag Affection by the Aspect Ratio
The induced drag is affected by the aspect ratio, the wing tip design and the
aircraft speed. Smaller Aircraft
You can see that the wing tip vortex and therefore the induced drag is less on
the aircraft with the high aspect ratio.

A - 310
B - 747 - 400
Induced Drag Affection by the Aircraft Speed

During low speed flight the aircraft has a high angle of attack and therefore a
high lift coefficient.
There is a high pressure difference between the lower and the upper surface of
the wing and this creates large wing tip vortices and therefore high induced
drag.
During high speed flight the aircraft has a low angle of attack and therefore a
low lift coefficient. There is a low pressure difference between the lower and
the upper surface of the wing and this creates small wing tip vortices and there-
fore low induced drag.
Induced Drag Affection by the Wing Tip Design

The wing tips can be designed to reduce the induced drag.
On smaller aircraft we have a special wing tip form.
On larger aircraft we have wing tip fences such as on this Airbus 310, or wing-
lets such as on this Boeing 747.
These designs reduce the energy of the wing tip vortices.
There are many examples of different wing tip designs from nature.
A heavy bird spreads its feathers like winglets to reduce the drag and a fast
flying bird has a high aspect ratio and sharp wing tips.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.3. Parasite Drag On the next graphic we see a real airflow around the cylinder with friction.
You can see that we dont have a symmetrical flow pattern any more and that
the pressure in front of the cylinder is not the same as the pressure behind the
5.3.1. Form Drag cylinder.
You know that form drag is a parasite drag and that it is caused by the pres- This difference in pressure causes form drag.

sure distribution on a body. Form drag depends on the frontal area of a body and also on the speed of the
Take a look at this cylinder in an airstream. There is no friction in the airstream airflow.
and we have a perfectly symmetrical flow pattern.
You can see on the right that the pressure in front of the cylinder is the same
as the pressure aft of the cylinder.
In this situation there is no drag.
Real Situation With Friction
Ideal Situation Without Friction
Flow Separation
AIRFLOW
AIRFLOW
PRESSURE
DISTRIBUTION
PRESSURE
DISTRIBUTION

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
Ways to Reduce Form Drag

Here you see three different bodies -- a disc, a disc with a bullet shaped nose
and a disc with a bullet shaped nose and a streamline tail.
The disc has very high form drag.

If we add a bullet shaped nose the drag decreases to twenty percent and if we
then add a streamline tail the drag goes down to less than ten percent.
Form drag is reduced by streamlining.
One obvious way of streamlining an aircraft is to have retractable landing gear.
Before we move on to the next segment you should note that sometimes form
drag on the wing is distinguished from form drag on other parts of the aircraft.
Form drag on the wing is called wing drag or profile drag.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.3.2. Friction Drag

Here you see ten different profiles. You can see that they all have the same
height or diameter D, and different length L.

The length to diameter ratio is shown on the left side of the profiles. This ratio
ranges from one at the top to ten at the bottom.
The profile with the length to diameter ratio of one has the highest form drag.
There is a relationship between form drag and friction drag.
A profile with a low form drag has a high friction drag and a profile with a high
form drag has a low friction drag.
You can see on the graph that the profiles with the length to diameter ratios of
two, three and four produce the lowest combination of form and friction drag.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
Boundary Layer Now we take a closer look at the different types of boundary layer.
Now lets see what causes friction drag. First we assume that the surface of There a two basic types of boundary layer -- the turbulent boundary layer and
the aircraft is perfectly smooth. the laminar boundary layer.
You can see that the airflow immediately above the surface is the same as the The laminar boundary layer is immediately downstream of the leading edge.
freestream velocity. This is indicated by the length of the arrows. The air particles in the laminar boundary layer do not move from one layer to

another. This is known as laminar flow.
The turbulent boundary layer is downstream of the laminar boundary layer.

In reality the surface of the aircraft is quite rough and the velocity of some
The laminar flow breaks down and we get turbulent flow.
trapped air particles is reduced to zero. This means that the airflow immedi-
ately above the surface is retarded. The air particles in the turbulent boundary layer travel from one layer to another
and this produces an energy exchange.
The retarded layer of air at the surface slows down the layer immediately
above it and this layer in turn slows down the next layer and so on until the The turbulent boundary layer is much thicker than the laminar boundary layer
freestream velocity is restored. and produces about three times more friction drag.
The retarded air is called the boundary layer. The turbulent boundary layer also produces higher kinetic energy next to the
surface and this reduces the tendency for a flow separation.
Small disturbances inside the laminar boundary layer bring it into the turbulent
boundary layer or produce a flow separation.
Freestream
Velocity Because of this it is important that the area of the profile corresponding to the
laminar boundary layer is kept clean and smooth.
Turbulent Boundary Layer

Surface of Aircraft
Boundary Layer

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
The behaviour of an air particle around a profile is similar to the behaviour of a The laminar boundary layer is between the leading edge and the point of maxi-
ball rolling into a valley. mum thickness which is also the point of lowest static pressure.
You already know that an air particle around a profile moves from a high pres- An air particle moves smoothly and with acceleration in the laminar boundary
sure area to a low pressure area and then back to a high pressure area again. layer just like the ball as it accelerates from the top of the hill to the bottom of
The area where the ball enters the valley corresponds to the high pressure the valley.

area where the air particle meets the leading edge of the profile. The lowest You can imagine that the ball decelerates as it rolls up the other side of the
point of the valley corresponds to the lowest pressure point along the profile. valley and stops before it reaches its former elevation.
You know that this is the point of maximum thickness. In the same way the air particle loses energy due to the friction it encounters as
it enters the turbulent boundary layer after the point of maximum thickness.
The air particle is unable to reach the area of high static pressure at the trailing
edge and we get a flow separation where the air particle stops moving.
Flow Separation

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
Now you can give the ball some additional energy with this billiard cue. Take a look at these two profiles with the same thickness.
A slot in the profile assists the air particle to reach the high pressure area at the The lower profile has lower friction drag than the upper profile.
trailing edge in the same way that the billiard cue assists the ball to reach its This is because the low drag laminar region is greater on the lower profile than
former elevation. on the upper profile.
The slot transfers air with high energy from the lower side to the upper side of The transition to the turbulent boundary layer takes place at 45% of the cord of

the profile and this gives the stationery air particle the energy it needs to move the lower profile, compared to 30% of the cord of the upper profile.
to the high pressure area at the trailing edge.
The lower profile is known as a laminar profile.
The slot prevents a flow separation.
You will see more about boundary layer control in the chapters on flaps and
slats.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.3.3. Interference Drag

In this segment we use an example to illustrate interference drag. You can see
that we have three separate aircraft components:

1. A wing which creates a drag of 700 daN.
2. A strut which creates a drag of 50 daN.
3. An engine which creates a drag of 150 daN.
The sum of the drag on each of these separate components is 900 daN.
But do you know what happens to the total drag when these components are
fitted together?
The total drag of the wing with the strut and the engine attached is greater than
the sum of the drag on the individual components.
This difference is the interference drag !
Interference drag is the turbulence in the airflow caused by the sharp corners
which result when components are joined together or placed in close proximity.
Interference drag can be reduced by fairings.
Now you know something about each of the three different types of parasite
drag.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
Interference Drag

Figure 12
CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.4. Compressible Drag

The compressible drag only occurs in transonic and supersonic flight.
Here you can see a close up view of the boundary layer in front of, and behind
It is caused by the shock waves on an aircraft approaching the speed of sound. the shock wave.
Sometimes it is called wave drag. You can see that the boundary layer thickens as it passes through the shock

In subsonic flight the local velocities on a profile are greater than the free wave.
stream velocity but, by definition, less than the speed of sound. A flow separation is caused by the thickening of the boundary layer and the
In transonic flight we get a mix of subsonic and supersonic airflow and we en- existence of an adverse pressure gradient across the shock wave.
counter shock waves. This flow separation causes additional drag which is called compressible drag.
You will learn more about shock waves in the chapter on high speed flight. For
now we concentrate on how the shock waves create drag.

CATEGORIES OF DRAG
5.5. Total Drag

In this segment we look at how induced drag and parasite drag combine to give
the total drag.
The curve of the induced drag shows that the induced drag is high at low
speeds and decreases as the speed increases.

The parasite drag increases with increases in speed.
The third curve represents the total drag. It is the sum of the induced drag and
the parasite drag.
You can see that the total drag is very high at low speeds because of the high
induced drag.
It then decreases to a minimum at an intermediate speed and then increases
again because of the increasing parasite drag.
DRAG
Total Drag
Induced Drag Parasite Drag
SPEED
DRAG VERSUS SPEED

LIFT DISTRIBUTION
The constant downwash gives a constant local angle of attack and therefore a
6. Lift Distribution constant flow separation across the span of the wing.
The entire wing stalls at the same time.
6.1. Introduction
In this Chapter we look at the lift distribution. 6.2.2. Rectangular Wing

We will see how different wing designs affect the lift distribution and how the The rectangular wing has a large tip vortex and therefore a larger downwash at
wash out helps to prevent a stall on the wing tip. the tip than at the root.
Then we look at stall conditions and boundary layer control. We have a higher downwash and a lower angle of attack at the tip of the rect-
Now take a look at these three lift distributions. angular wing.
You allready know that an elliptical lift distribution produces the lowest drag. This means that the tip sections are the last to stall.
6.2.3. Tapered Wing

On the tapered wing the downwash increases towards the root and the tip
stalls before the root.
6.2.4. Swept Wing

A swept wing also tends to stall at the tip section first.
Swept wings are used on most aircraft.
6.2. Wing Design High Down Wash Low Local Angle of Attack
Next we look at how different shapes of wing produce different lift distributions. Low Down Wash High Local Angle of Attack
You see four different shapes of wing.
Before we look at the lift distribution and stall characteristics of each of these
wing shapes, you should know that the downwash behind the wing changes the
local angle of attack.
A high downwash produces a low local angle of attack and a low downwash
produces a high local angle of attack.
Now lets see the lift distribution, the downwash and the stall characteristics of
the four wings.
6.2.1. Elliptical Wing

The elliptical wing produces an elliptical lift distribution and has a constant
downwash behind the wing.

HAM US/F ro/ka MARCH 1998 62
LIFT DISTRIBUTION
6.3. Wing Twist, Washing Out

6.3.2. Aerodynamically Twisted Wing
A tendency to stall at the tip section first has dangerous implications for the
lateral control and stability of the aircraft. On an aerodynamically twisted wing, the camber of the profile at the root is
greater than the camber at the tip and the angle of incidence is constant across

Next we look at how the wing can be designed to prevent or delay these stal- the wing span. You can see that the cordlines are parallel.
ling characteristics.
When the aircraft approaches the stall angle there is a flow separation at the
The wing can be designed so that the root stalls before the tip and the aircraft root before the tip.
remains controllable.
In reality most aircraft wings are tapered and swept and use a combination of
This is achieved by geometrically twisting the wing, or by aerodynamically geometric wash out and aerodynamic wash out.
twisting the wing.
6.3.1. Geometrically Twisted Wing Wing Tip ( Small Camber )

On a geometrically twisted wing the camber of the profile is constant across the
span of the wing but the angle of incidence is greater at the root than at the tip.
You can see that the cord lines are not parallel.
When the aircraft approaches the stall angle there is a flow separation on the
root before the tip.
Wing Tip ( Small Angle of Incidence )
Wing Root ( Big Camber )
Wing Root ( High Angle of Incidence )

LIFT DISTRIBUTION
6.4. Stall Conditions

The total weight of the aircraft acts on the center of gravity.
The total wing lift is the resultant of the lift distribution. It is represented by the
two large arrows on the lower graphic. The aircraft rotates around its center of gravity.
The total wing lift acts on the center of lift. When the position of the center of lift is the same as the position of the center
of gravity we have no aircraft rotation. The aircraft is in level flight.

The cord line through the center of lift is known as the mean aerodynamic cord,
or MAC for short. When the position of the center of lift moves forward of the position of the cen-
ter of gravity we have a nose up reaction and when the position of the center of
The position of the center of lift can be described in percentage terms. lift moves aft of the position of the center of gravity we have a nose down reac-
The leading edge corresponds to 0 % and the trailing edge to 100 % so in this tion.
example we can say that the center of lift is located at approximately 30 %
MAC.
0%
100 %

LIFT DISTRIBUTION
Wing Root Stall Wing Tip Stall
Here we have a stall at the root of the wing. A flow separation at the tip of the wing is much more dangerous. The center of
You can see the loss of lift that results from the flow separation in the area of lift moves towards the root and also forward of the center of gravity.
the root. The aircraft rotates to the nose up position.
When we have a flow separation at the root of the wing, the center of lift moves The angle of attack increases and the stall condition gets worse. Pilot input is

towards the tip and also behind the center of gravity. required to keep the aircraft under control.
The aircraft rotates to the nose down position.
The aircraft loses altitude rapidly, the airspeed increases and the angle of at-
tack decreases.
The aircraft recovers from the stall without pilot input.
CG
A stall strip is a knife edge like device, which is used on smaller aircraft to pre-
vent the wing tip from stalling first.
Here the stall strip is mounted at the leading edge of the wing root.
The disadvantage of this device is that it disturbs the lift.

LIFT DISTRIBUTION
6.5. Boundary Layer Control

Slats are used to prevent wing tip stall on some larger aircraft.
As air particles flow over this swept wing they are split in two directions.
On aircrafts such as the Boeing 737 or the DC 10, the slats automatically ex-
tend if the angle of attack is too high. One flow direction right angular to the leading edge and the other follows the
leading edge. This produces a spanwise flow.
The slats are located at the leading edge of the wing tips.

The spanwise flow has the effect of thickening the boundary layer towards the
When the slat is extended a slot opens and the boundary layer receives more wing tip -- especially during low speed flight with a high angle of attack.
energy. As you know this prevents a flow separation at the wing tip.
This increases the possibility of a flow separation.
6.5.1. Wing Fences and Saw Tooth Leading Edge

Wing fences reduce the effects of the spanwise flow. They are placed at sev-
eral locations on the wing.
They tend to keep the air particles going in a straight line direction.
Wing fences are also called boundary layer fences.
A saw tooth leading edge has the same effect as wing fences.

LIFT DISTRIBUTION
6.5.2. Vortex Generators

A vortex generator is another device which is used to improve boundary layer
control.
It is a small, low aspect ratio wing which is placed vertically on the surface of a
large wing.

The vortex generator produces lift and has an associated tip vortex which is
comparable to induced drag.
The vortex is large relative to the generator because the aspect ratio is small.
A vortex generator takes relatively high energy air from outside the boundary
layer and mixes it with low energy air in the boundary layer.
The generator must be the right size and in the right location to go through the
boundary layer.
The number of vortex generators and their location depends on flight test in-
vestigation.

THEORY OF FLIGHT
Moments are caused by forces on a lever that do not act through the point of
7. Theory of Flight rotation.
The value of a moment is equal to the force multiplied by the moment arm.
7.1. Introduction The moment arm is the shortest distance between the point of rotation and the
In the first segment we identify the forces acting on an aircraft. line of action of the force.

Next we see what happens during a turn. Earlier we assumed that all forces acted through the center of gravity. In reality
Then we look at different designs of control surfaces, lift devices and drag however, it is a requirement for stable flight that the center of lift is aft of the
devices. center of gravity ( See picture right below ).
The distance between the center of gravity and the center of lift creates the
7.2. Forces Acting on an Aircraft rotating effect known as a moment.
The four forces acting on an aircraft are:
1. Lift
2. Weight
3. Thrust
4. Drag
Thrust is the force which moves the aircraft forward through the air.
Thrust is provided by jet engines or by a propeller.
Drag is the aerodynamic force which is parallel to the flight path.
You can see that drag acts towards the rear of the aircraft.
Lift is the aerodynamic force which is ninety degrees to the flight path.
You can see that lift acts toward the top of the aircraft.
Weight is the force of gravity.
It always acts towards the center of the earth.
In theory, lift, thrust, weight and drag all act through the aircrafts center of grav-
ity.
The center of gravity can be thought of as a center of balance.
An equilibrium exists when the aircraft is in steady, level flight.
The aircraft is trimmed so that the lift is equal to the weight, or in other words
the sum of the vertical forces is zero and the power plant is set so that the
thrust is equal to the drag, or in other words the sum of the horizontal forces is
equal to zero ( See picture left below ).
A third condition for equilibrium is that the clockwise rotation of the aircraft is
equal to the anti clockwise rotation or in other words the sum of the moments is
equal to zero.

THEORY OF FLIGHT

Steady Level Flight:
Lift = Weight ! Stable Flight Requirements:
Thrust = Drag ! Center of Lift must be aft of CG !

Figure 13
THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.2.1. Steady Flight Conditions

The lift force acts with the moment arm L 1 to produce an anti clockwise rota-
tion and a downward force on the aircraft nose.
Steady Flight Conditions:
This must be balanced with a clockwise rotation which gives an upward force
on the aircraft nose. S Horizontal Forces = 0 !

The stabilizer force acts with the moment arm L 2 to produce a clockwise rota- Thrust = Drag
tion and an upward force on the aircraft nose.
The lift on the wing now has to carry the weight of the aircraft and the down- S Vertical Forces = 0 !
ward acting stabilizer force. Lift = Weight + Stabilizer Lift
But what about the thrust and the drag ?
In reality the thrust line is below the drag line.
S Moments = 0 !
The thrust force acts with the moment arm L 3 to produce a clockwise rotation
and an upward force on the aircraft nose and the drag force acts with the mo- ML = MR
ment arm L 4, also to produce a clockwise rotation and an upward force on the Lift x L1 = Thrust x L3 + Drag x L4 + Stab. Lift x L2
aircraft nose.
The sum of the moments is zero.
ML MR
The anti clockwise rotation ( M L ) is equal to the clockwise rotation ( MR ) or
the lift force multiplied by the moment arm L 1, is equal to the sum of the thrust
force multiplied by the moment arm L 3, the drag force multiplied by the mo-
ment arm L 4 and the stabilizer force multiplied by the moment arm L 2.
Here all conditions for steady flight are satisfied.
The sum of the horizontal forces is zero, the sum of the vertical forces is zero ML
and the sum of the moments is zero.
MR

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.3. Theory of Turn A higher bank angle gives a higher load factor.
On the turn with a 45_ bank angle the resultant force is 1,41 times the weight,
In this segment we look at the theory of turn. so the load factor n is 1,41.
When an aircraft is in constant altitude, wings level flight, you know that the lift On the turn with a 60_ bank angle, the resultant force is twice the weight, so
is equal to the weight of the aircraft. the load factor n is 2.

When the aircraft is in a turn this equilibrium is lost to produce the acceleration The structural strength of the aircraft and consideration for passenger comfort
which is required for the turn. limit the maximum load factor and therefore the maximum bank angle during a
The centrifugal force is the additional force which acts on an aircraft during a turn.
steady, co--ordinated turn. For example the load factor on military or acrobatic aircraft is much higher than
You can see that the centrifugal force acts horizontally. on passenger aircraft.
If the aircraft is to maintain altitude during a turn, the lift in the turn must be
equal to the resultant of the centrifugal force and the weight.
When this happens you can see that the vertical lift and the vertical weight re-
main the same as in level flight. Resultant Force
______________
Load Factor n =
The load factor n is also called the g--load. Weight
In the example with a bank angle of 45_ , the load factor n is 1,41.
1
___
n = cos

1,41
1,41
Load Factor = 1,41 Load Factor = 1,41

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.3.1. Aditional Lift for a Turn

You know that we need additional lift during the turn to compensate for the ex- When the aircraft is in low speed flight the coefficient of lift is at, or close to the
tra weight brought about by the resultant of the centrifugal force and the maximum.

weight. The pilot must increase the speed to create the additional lift required for the
You can see from the lift equation that the extra lift can be generated by in- turn.
creasing the coefficient of lift or by increasing the speed. The stall speed during a turn divided by the stall speed during level flight is
First lets see what happens when the aircraft is in cruise flight. equal to the square root of the load factor.
You can see that the coefficient of lift is much less than the maximum coeffi-
cient of lift.
The pilot can increase the coefficient of lift up to the maximum during a turn.
Lift = CL Minimal 1 V 2 S [N]

Lift = CL Minimal 1 V 2 S [ N ] 2
2

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.4. Control Surfaces

In this segment we look at different designs of control surface.
The surface forward of the hinge moves into the wind during deflection and the
The control surface is the hinged, pivoted part of the trailing edge of the profile. airload assists the deflection.
The control surface can change the camber of the profile to increase or de-

crease the lift.
Small, light aircraft use a simple control surface such as this one.
Horn Balance
7.4.1. Horn Balance and Insert Hinge

On larger aircraft the pilot needs assistance to operate the control surface.
This assistance is provided by aerodynamic balance. The aerodynamic balance
reduces the force required to operate the controls during flight. Next you will Insert Hinge
see that this balance comes in different forms.
On the picture on the right you see a very simple aerodynamic balance, known
as a horn balance.
The horn is the part of the surface which is located forward of the hinge line.
The horn moves into the wind during deflection and the airload assists the
deflection.
A second form of aerodynamic balance is the insert hinge.
You can see that the insert hinge on this surface is located behind the leading
edge.

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.4.2. Balance Tab 7.4.3. Balance Panel

Some control surfaces have tabs. The balance panel is a plate connected to the leading edge of the control sur-
The tabs are small surfaces at the trailing edge of the control surface. face.
There are different types of tabs. It divides the space in front of the control surface into two chambers -- an upper
chamber and a lower chamber.
First we look at a balance tab. You can see that the balance tab is connected

to the wing via a tab rod. It is assisted by seals to make sure, that the two chambers are completely sep-
arated.
The balance tab is controlled by the tab rod.
The static pressure from outside is allowed into the chambers via the slots.
Now lets see what happens when the control surface is deflected.
The static pressure in the upper chamber is less than the static pressure in the
You can see that the balance tab deflects in the opposite direction to the con-
lower chamber during a downward deflection of the control surface.
trol surface.
This difference in pressure produces a force on the balance panel which as-
The balance tab changes the camber of the control surface and the acceler-
sists the deflection.
ated air produces a low static pressure area at the trailing edge.
This assists the deflection of the control surface.
The disadvantage of the balance tab is that it reduces the efficiency of the con-
trol surface.

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.4.4. Anti - Balance Tab 7.4.5. Control Tab

The anti--balance tab is connected to the wing via a tab rod. You can see that The control tab is operated directly by the pilot.
the connection to the wing is on the opposite side from the tab rod for the bal- The pilot operates the tab and the tab operates the control surface and controls
ance tab. the aircraft.
The anti--balance tab is controlled by the tab rod. This tab increases the effec- The pilot feels the airload on the tab and not on the surface.

tiveness of the control surface.
You will learn more about how the pilot is assisted to control the surfaces of
Lets see what happens when the control surface is deflected. large aircraft in the chapter on flight controls.
The anti--balance tab deflects in the same direction as the control surface.
The deflection of the anti--balance tab is greater than the deflection of the con-
trol surface.
The anti--balance tab increases the efficiency of the control surface but the dis-
advantage is that the pilot needs more effort to deflect the control surface.

THEORY OF FLIGHT
7.4.6. Trim Tab 7.5. Lift Devices

The trim tab is used to compensate the imbalance of an aircraft. The main lift devices are the flaps. A wing flap is a hinged, pivoted or sliding
It is operated from the cockpit via a cable system, a screw jack and a trim rod. profile near the trailing edge of the wing.
When the trim tab is deflected the control surface is repositioned to a new neu- It is designed to increase the lift and/or the drag when extended.
tral position, the trim position.

The wing flaps are mainly used for landing but they are also used for take--off
on large aircraft.
You know that a high coefficient of lift is required to produce the necessary lift
at reduced landing speeds.
This is achieved by extending the flaps to change the camber of the wing.
Here you can see some of the basic types of lift devices.
The approximate increase in lift compared to the basic profile is shown in the
column on the right.
Plain Flap
The plain flap looks like a contol surface. The flaps on the two wings are linked
so that they move downwards together.
You can see that the plain flap increases the lift by approximately 55 %.
Split Edge Flap

The split edge flap is housed flush with the lower surface of the wing.
It is a flat metal plate which is hinged along its forward edge.
You can see that the split edge flap increases the lift by approximately 65 %.
Slotted Flap
Slotted flaps have slots near the trailing edge of the wing when extended.
The slots allow air from the lower side of the wing, to flow to the upper side. As
you know this helps to prevent an early flow separation.
You can see that the slotted flap increases the lift by approximately 70 %.
Fowler Flap
The fowler flap rolls back on a track when it is extended.
This increases the effective area of the wing and also lowers the trailing edge.
The fowler flap fits into the lower contour of the trailing edge of the wing when it
is retracted.
You can see that the fowler flap increases the lift by more than the other types

of lift devices.

THEORY OF FLIGHT
Slats 7.6. Drag Devices
A slat is a moveable leading edge of the wing.
In the next segment we look at two types of drag devices.
When it is extended it forms a slot and when it is retracted it falls within the
contour of the wing. The main drag devices are spoilers and airbrakes.
You can see that the slat increases the lift by less than the other types of lift As you can see the spoilers are located on the upper surface of the wing close

devices. to the trailing edge.
The function of the spoilers is to increase the drag and also to reduce the lift.
When the spoilers are extended the lift is disturbed and the drag is increased
by the turbulence.
Air brakes are located in areas where the aircraft structure is strong enough to
withstand heavy airloads.
On some civil aircraft the tail cone can be separated to increase the total drag
without affecting the lift.
On some military aircraft, such as the one on the right, the airbrakes are lo-
cated on the lower surface of the aircraft.
On other aircraft the airbrakes are located on the left and right sidewalls.
Spoiler
Air Brakes

STABILITY AND CONTROL
8. Stability
8.1. Introduction
In this chapter we look at aircraft stability.

We look at directional stability, lateral stability, lateral directional interactions
and longitudinal stability.
When we talk about stability we refer to, how the aircraft is able to follow a
planned straight and level course without pilot action.
There are two types of stability -- static stability and dynamic stability.
8.1.1. Static Stability

First you see a ball on a concave surface. Lets see what happens when you
move the ball to the left or the right.
This is an example of positive static stability.
When the ball is displaced from the center it returns to its original position of
equilibrium.
At second you see a ball on a convex surface. Again you can move the ball to
the left or the right.
This is an example of negative static stability.
When the ball is displaced from the center it moves away from its original posi-
tion of equilibrium.
Finally you see a ball on a flat surface. Again you can move the ball to the left
or the right.
This is an example of neutral static stability.
When the ball is displaced from the center it shows no tendency to roll back to
or away from its original position of equilibrium.

8.1.2. Dynamic Stability Here you see an example of negative dynamic stability.
Dynamic stability refers to how the continuous motion of a body varies over We assume that there is another force acting on the ball which is stronger than
time. the friction -- for example a wind which blows the ball in the direction of the mo-
tion. The ball departs further and further from its equilibrium position. When we
Dynamic stability only applies if we have positive static stability.
have divergent oscillation like this, the ball is dynamically unstable.
The graph shows an example of neutral dynamic stability.

Here we assume that there are no friction forces acting between the ball and
the surface. The ball theoretically oscillates forever after the initial displace-
ment. We have undamped oscillation.
Here you see another example to illustrate stability. The center of gravity of this
ruler is located at hole number four.
We assume that there is friction between the ball and the surface. The motion
of the ball tends to damp out after the initial displacement. When we have If the pivot point and the center of gravity are in the same place ( at the hole
damped oscillation the ball is dynamically stable. number four), then we have a neutral static stability. There is no tendency to
move back to the original position from the displaced position.
Here the graph shows an example of positive dynamic stability.
If the ruler is tilted to the left it stays in this position and if it is tilted to the right it
stays in this position.
Ruler, pivoted at
hole 4

If the pivot point is below the center of gravity we have a negative static stabil- The distance between the pivot point and the center of gravity influences the
ity. stability.
When we have a displacement out of the vertical position the weight and the The longer the distance the greater the stability.
moment arm L1 move the ruler away from the original equilibrium position. If the pivot point is in hole 1 the large moment arm gives a high tendency for
the ruler to return to the equilibrium position after displacement.

If the pivot point is in hole three, the relatively small moment arm L2 gives a
lower tendency for the ruler to return to the equilibrium position after displace-
ment.
You will see how this is relevant to aircraft stability in the segment on longitudi-
nal stability.
If the pivot point is above the center of gravity we have a positive static stabil-
ity.
When we have a displacement out of the vertical position the weight and the
moment arm L2 bring the ruler back to the original equilibrium position.

Here you see three aircraft encountering a disturbance. 8.1.3. Aircraft Axes
The aircraft in the middle has positive dynamic stability after the disturbance. The three aircraft axes are the longitudinal axis, the vertical axis and the lateral
Positive dynamic stability is usually required in aircraft design. It prevents con- axis.
tinuous oscillations of the aircraft around its axes. These axes are perpendicular to each other and intersect at the center of grav-
ity.

Lateral stability refers to the roll movement around the longitudinal axis.
Directional stability refers to the yaw movement around the vertical axis and
longitudinal stability refers to the pitch movement around the lateral axis.
The aircraft has positive static stability when the sum of all the forces and all
the moments are equal to zero. You should remember this from an earlier
chapter.

8.2. Directional Stability Some aircraft increase the surface area behind the center of gravity to improve
the directional stability.
The directional or weathercock stability of an aircraft is the stability around the One method of doing this is with a dorsal fin and another, used on some mili-
vertical axis. tary aircraft and on the old Boeing 707, is a keel surface. Both of these fea-
The directional stability depends on the fin of the aircraft which is also called tures increase the side forces to produce positive directional stability.
the vertical stabilizer and on the sweepback of the wing. First we look at the

The sweepback of a wing also improves directional stability.
effect of the fin.
When the aircraft is deflected from its original flight path the forward going wing
Here you see an aircraft which has been deflected from its flight path. presents a larger frontal area to the airflow than the other wing.
This results in a pressure along the surface of one side of the aircraft, in this The drag on the forward going wing is therefore greater than on the other wing
example the right side. and this produces a yawing moment which returns the aircraft to its original
If the turning moment behind the center of gravity is greater than the turning flight path. You will realise that the forward going wing also produces higher lift.
moment in front of the center of gravity, the aircraft turns back to its original
flight path. The aircraft is directionally stable.

8.3. Lateral Stability

Lateral stability is the stability of the aircraft around the longitudinal axis.
It is mainly determined by the wing or more specifically by the angle of attack,

the dihedral angle and the sweepback angle.
First we look at the effect of the angle of attack.
You know that during level flight the lift is equal to the weight.
Now lets see what happens when we have a gust of wind under the right wing.
The gust moves the right wing upward and the left wing downward and the air-
craft rotates around the longitudinal axis.
You know that the angle of attack is the angle between the flight velocity and
the cord line.
Now lets take a closer look at what happens to the down going wing.
When the gust forces the aircraft to rotate, we have an additional velocity -- the
down going wing velocity.
The resultant of the flight velocity and the down going wing velocity is used to
determine the angle of attack.
The effective angle of attack is now the angle between the resultant velocity
and the cord line.
You can see that this new angle of attack is higher than the previous angle of
attack and produces more lift.
As you can imagine there is a similar but opposite effect on the up going wing.
This wing gets an decrease in lift.
The increase in lift on the down going wing and the decrease in lift on the up
going wing stops the roll motion but does not bring the aircraft back to the level
flight position.

Now lets see how the dihedral angles help to restore level flight. The lift is al- In the previous segment you saw how the sweep back angle affects directional
ways at right angles to the lateral axis. In level flight the lift is vertically straight stability. Next we look at how it affects lateral stability.
up but as you can see here in disturbed flight the lift is inclined in the direction Here you see an aircraft flying with a sideslip.
of the lower wing.
The sideslip angle is the angle between the aircraft centerline and the sideslip
In this situation the lift and the weight create a resultant force. direction.

The resultant force causes a sideslip which means that the aircraft glides to You know that the relative wind is opposite to the sideslip direction.
one side without changing flight direction.
The wing into the sideslip direction, the right wing, produces more lift than the
The sideslip causes a flow of air in the opposite direction to the relative wind. other wing.
Because of the dihedral angle the relative wind strikes the down going wing at This wing has a longer effective leading edge and a thicker effective profile
a greater angle than the up going wing. than the left wing.
This increases the lift on the down going wing and decreases the lift on the up The difference in lift on the wings brings the aircraft back to level flight.
going wing.
You will see more about the interaction between lateral and directional stability
This difference in lift turns the aircraft back to its original flight position and the in the next segment.
sideslip motion is stopped.
The relative wind also strikes the vertical stabilizer and this also assists the turn
back motion.
Lateral stability affects directional stability and vice versa.

8.4. Lateral Directional Interactions 8.4.1. Spiral Dive

In the previous segments we have separated the lateral and the directional ef- The tendency for spiral dive exists, when there is a greater effect on the direc-
fects of the swept wing during a disturbance. tional stability than on the lateral stability.
You saw that the lateral response and the directional response both produce a When this aircraft with a large vertical stabilizer is disturbed from level flight, it
sideslip because of different effective lift on the wings. begins a slow spiral which gradually increases to a spiral dive.

In reality when an aircraft in free flight is placed in a sideslip, the lateral re- When we have a sideslip, the strong directional stability effect tends to turn the
sponse and the directional response happen together and the sideslip pro- nose of the aircraft into the wind and the relatively weak dihedral effect cannot
duces a rolling moment and a yawing moment. restore the aircraft laterally.
The complex interaction of the rolling moment and the yawing moment pro- The rate of divergence in the spiral motion is usually so gradual, that the pilot
duces two main types of aircraft reaction, the spiral dive and the dutch roll ef- can control the tendency without difficulty.
fect.

8.4.2. Dutch Roll

Dutch roll is a lateral -- directional oscillation.
The tendency for dutch roll exists when there is a greater effect on the lateral

stability than on the directional stability.
When the aircraft is disturbed from its directional equilibrium the forward wing
produces more lift and more drag than the other wing.
When the effect of the lift is greater than the effect of the drag, we get a side-
slip in the opposite direction and the dutch roll cycle is repeated.
This yaw and roll motion of the aircraft is like the motion of someone waltzing
on skates. In fact the term dutch roll comes from ice skating.
The dutch roll problem is found on all aircraft with swept wings. You will see
why aircraft need swept wings in the next chapters.
The dutch roll problem can be partially overcome by reducing the sweep angle
of the wings and by improving the directional stability.
The directional stability can be improved by increasing the size of the vertical
stabilizer but this has weight and drag disadvantages.
Most aircraft use a yaw damping system to improve directional stability. This is
an automatic system which deflects the control surface on the vertical stabi-
lizer, called the rudder, to give the necessary directional stability.
Sharp Gust

8.5. Longitudinal Stability

Lets see what happens, if a gust hits the lower front part of the aircraft.
Longitudinal stability is the stability of the aircraft around the lateral axis.
When a gust hits the lower front part of the aircraft we get a nose up rotation.
It is positive if the aircraft tends to return to equilibrium, or the trim angle of at-
The horizontal stabilizer changes the angle of attack and the stabilizer force is

tack, after it is displaced by a gust.
reduced to allow the aircraft back to equilibrium.
The longitudinal stability depends on the angle of attack and the pitching mo-
ment effects of the horizontal stabilizer and the wing.
The horizontal stabilizer produces downward forces during level flight.
These forces act with a long moment arm around the center of gravity.

Now lets look at how a tail--less aircraft or a flying wing can fly with a positive
Now lets see what happens if we have a gust from above the aircraft. longitudinal stability.
When a gust hits the upper front part of the aircraft, we get a nose down rota- You know that the center of gravity is the resultant of all aircraft weights and
tion. that the center or lift or aerodynamic center is the resultant of all lift forces in-
cluding the downward forces of the horizontal stabilizer.
The horizontal stabilizer changes the angle of attack, the stabilizer force is in-

creased and the aircraft returns to equilibrium. In general positive longitudinal stability is achieved by restoring moments.
To assist your understanding we remove the wings and the horizontal stabilizer
from this aircraft.
Positive longitudinal stability is achieved by changes in the lift aft of the center
of gravity.
Lets see what happens when we have a gust from below the front of the air-
craft.
The nose up rotation produces additional lift.
The moment of the additional lift and the lever arm L 1 returns the aircraft to
the previous position.

Now lets see what happens when we have a gust from above the front of the Here you see two possible centers of gravity, P 1 and P 2.
aircraft. The distance between the center of gravity and the aerodynamic center is re-
The nose down rotation reduces the lift. sponsible for the longitudinal stability.
The moment of the reduced lift and the lever arm L 1 returns the aircraft to the If this distance is great, then the longitudinal stability is high. If this distance is

previous position. small, then the longitudinal stability is low.
Remember that the center of gravity must be forward of the aerodynamic cen-
ter.

TRANSSONIC
9. Transonic Flight
9.1. Introduction
At high speed or supersonic flight the aerodynamics is more complicated.
In this chapter we look at transonic flight. You will learn something about the
The air is compressible and we get compression effects.

critical Mach number and about wave drag.
Here we show the effect of the swept wing, we look at transonic profiles and at At high speed flight we have large pressure changes and also changes in den-
control surfaces in the transonic range. sity.
You were introduced to the three speed ranges in the first Aerodynamics chap- The speed of sound is a very important factor in the study of supersonic air-
ter. You probably remember that in the subsonic range we have subsonic airflow.
flow on all parts of the aircraft, in the transonic range we have some subsonic The speed of sound is the rate at which small pressure disturbances move
airflow and some supersonic airflow on the aircraft . through the air.
In the supersonic range we have supersonic airflow on all parts of the aircraft. The speed of this movement depends on the air temperature.
You know that at low speed or subsonic flight the air is incompressible. The speed of sound decreases as altitude increases.
We get small changes in pressure and almost no change in density. The air This is because the temperature decreases with an increase in altitude.
pressure can change without changes in air density.

TRANSSONIC
We can compare the flow patterns of subsonic and supersonic airflow. If the 9.2. Critical Mach Number
object is travelling at low speed
the sound waves move ahead of the object and the airflow immediately ahead Here you see a Mach indicator.
of the object is influenced by the forward moving pressure field. Mach is the aircraft speed divided by the speed of sound.
This pressure field acts as a pressure warning to the leading edge

and we have a change of flow direction ahead of the leading edge.
If the object is travelling above the speed of sound M= V
a
the airflow ahead of the object is not influenced by the pressure field. This is
because the sound waves cannot move ahead of the object. For example if the indicator shows a Mach number of 0.6, this means that the
As the flight speed approaches the speed of sound a compression wave, more aircraft flies at 60% of the speed of sound. A Mach number of 1 indicates that
commonly called a shock wave, forms at the leading edge. the aircraft flies at the speed of sound.
All changes in velocity, pressure and density take place suddenly and sharply. The local Mach number on a control surface is greater than the flight Mach
The airflow ahead of the object receives no pressure warning because the air number.
particles are suddenly forced out of the way by the shock wave. This is because the acceleration of the airstream is greater on a profile than on
We also get expansion waves. You will see more about shock waves and ex- other parts of the aircraft.
pansion waves in the next chapter.

TRANSSONIC
In this example the Mach indicator shows that the aircraft flies with a Mach Now we will accelerate the aircraft further.
number of zero point six but the local Mach number on the profile is zero point When the critical Mach number is exceeded, an area of supersonic airflow is
eight. created.
You can see that all the airflow around the profile is subsonic. You know that the sound waves are pressure waves. They build up a pressure
concentration which we call a shock wave.

Mach = 0.6 Mach = 0.85
Now we increase the aircraft speed.

You can imagine what happens when we accelerate the aircraft to Mach 0.8. This is a normal shock wave. It takes place at Mach 1.2.
When the aircraft speed is increased to Mach 0.8, the local Mach number in- You know that a normal shock wave leads to a large increase in static pressure
creases to M=1. The local Mach number is equal to the speed of sound. behind the wave.
This is the critical Mach number ( Mach crit ). If we have a strong shock wave, such as this one, the boundary layer doesnt
The critical Mach number is a very important point of reference. It is the highest have enough kinetic energy to withstand the large increase in static pressure
Mach number we can have without supersonic flow. and a flow separation occurs. The flow separation reduces the lift in this area.
It is the boundary between subsonic flight and transonic flight.
Mach = 0.8 Mach = 0.85
Local Mach Number

TRANSSONIC
Now the aircraft is accelerated to Mach 0.9. Now lets see what happens when the Mach number exceeds the speed of
When the airspeed is increased to Mach 0.9, we have an increase in the super- sound.
sonic area on the upper surface of the profile and a stronger normal shock A bow wave forms at the leading edge when the flight speed exceeds the
wave. speed of sound.
Now an additional area of supersonic flow and a normal shock wave on the The bow wave has a detached normal shock wave region with an area of sub-

lower surface is originated. The flow separation also increases. sonic flow behind the wave and oblique shock wave regions, outside the nor-
mal shock wave region, with supersonic flow behind the wave.
If the speed is increased to a higher supersonic value all the oblique portions of
the waves will incline further and the detached normal shock portion of the bow
Mach = 0.9 wave will move closer to the leading edge.
You will learn more about supersonic profiles later in this chapter.
Mach > 1
On the next picture the aircraft is accelerated to Mach 0.95.

As the flight Mach number approaches one, that is the speed of sound, the
areas of supersonic flow increase and the shock waves move closer to the
trailing edge.
The boundary layer continues to have a flow separation.
Mach = 0.95

TRANSSONIC
9.3. Wave Drag 9.3.1. Wave Drag Reduction by Vortex Generators

Wave drag is the portion of total drag which is due to the shock waves. You already know that the vortex generators produce a vortex which transfers
energy from the free airstream to the boundary layer.
You can see on the graph how the total drag increases at speeds above the
critical Mach number. The higher energy in the boundary layer reduces the flow separation.
The Vortex Generators also produce an oblique shock wave inside the super-

As you know the shock waves turn useful energy into heat energy. If we want
to increase the speed above the critical Mach number we need additional en- sonic airflow.
gine thrust to compensate for this lost energy. The reduced airspeed behind the oblique shock wave produce a smaller nor-
There are two ways to reduce the wave drag. mal shock wave compared to the normal shock wave without a vortex genera-
tor.
One is to use vortex generators and the other is to apply the area rule.
The smaller normal shock wave and the smaller flow separation reduce the
First you can find out more about how vortex generators can reduce the wave wave drag.
drag.
The disadvantage of the vortex generators is, that they increase the parasite
drag slightly.

TRANSSONIC
9.3.2. Wave Drag Reduction by Area Rule

Now you can find out more about how the area rule can reduce the wave drag.
Here you see a symmetrical body.
The cross--section areas are plotted against the body length to show a very
smooth curve on the area diagram.

Wind tunnel tests show that this type of body produces only a small increase in
drag in the transonic region.
Here you see an aircraft with a waist fuselage.

When we add the areas of fuselage, wing, vertical stabilizer and horizontal sta-
bilizer, we have a smooth curve on the area diagram.
This aircraft nearly fulfils the area rule!
On the next picture you see an old military aircraft.

When the cross--section areas are plotted against the body length, we do not
get a smooth curve on the area diagram.
There is a large increase in wave drag in the transonic region.
When you compare this example to the symmetrical body its easy to see why
aircraft designers try to build aircraft that realize a smooth curve in the area

diagram. Thats what we mean by the area rule.

TRANSSONIC
9.4. Swept Wing Effect Its not possible to build very thin wings because the wings must be strong
enough to carry the weight and they must also house the fuel tanks.
The critical Mach number must be high for high speed flight without shock As you will see, aircraft designers have thought of a way of making a thick pro-
waves. file a thin profile.
Wing Thickness Here you see a part of a wing with a profile drawn in.

Here you see two profiles with different thickness. The profile thickness for aerodynamics purposes is the actual thickness divided
When the speed is increased to Mach 0.9 we get a large shock wave with a by the cord length.
high wave drag on the thick profile and a small shock wave on the thin profile. If the profile is 1.5 m thick and the cord length is 10 m, then the thickness is
Now you know why aircraft that fly in transonic and supersonic regions have 0.15 or 15%.
thin profiles. For example the wing root of an Airbus A - 320 has a thickness of 18%.

TRANSSONIC
Swept Wing The velocity Vt presents a problem with swept wings.
Now lets see how a swept wing affects thickness. The flow direction to the wing tip increases the height of the boundary layer in
For aerodynamic purposes the swept wing has a longer cord length and there- this area and we get a flow separation at the wing tip called a tip stall.
fore a reduced thickness. You saw in the chapter on lift distribution, that wing fences and a saw tooth
The wings on most modern jet aircraft have a sweep angle of approximately wing reduce the flow to the wing tip.

30_
This reduces the thickness and increases the critical Mach number.
Saw Tooth Wing
Here you see the speed vectors on a swept wing. V represents the speed and
direction of the airflow.
V is made up of the normal vector Vn at right angles to the leading edge and
the tip vector Vt parallel to the leading edge.
The fact that V is greater than Vn also explains why the swept wing has a
higher critical Mach number.
This wing can improve performance during low speed and high speed flight.
During low speed flight we have no sweep angle and during high speed flight
we have a high sweep angle.
You can see this design on some military aircraft and on this Boeing design for
a projected supersonic transport aircraft.

TRANSSONIC
9.5. Transonic Profiles

Different profiles are used in the different speed ranges. In previous chapters
youve seen conventional subsonic profiles.
You know that the conventional subsonic profile becomes inefficient when the
airflow is above the critical Mach number.

We refer to the airflow above the critical Mach number as the supercritical air-
flow.
Profiles which perform well within the transonic range used to be called super-
critical profiles and are now mostly called transonic profiles. The term tran-
sonic is easier on the passengers ear than the term supercritical!!
Here a conventional subsonic profile, is compared to a transonic profile.
You can see that the transonic profile has a flatter upper surface, a more
curved leading edge and a thinner trailing edge.
With the subsonic profile we have a large build up of supersonic airflow and a
large shock wave.
The flow separation behind the shock wave increases the drag.
With the transonic profile the airflow immediately accelerates to supersonic be-
cause of the rounded leading edge.
The supersonic airflow decelerates because of the flat upper surface and this We can compare the conventional and the transonic profile on the graph at the
gives a much smaller shock wave. top of the picture.
There is no flow separation behind the shock wave. This area can be used to On the horizontal axis we have the thickness to cord ratio and on the vertical
generate lift. axis we have the cruise Mach number.
You can see that the aft lower surface on the transonic profile has a negative First we assume that the conventional profile and the transonic profile have the
camber. same thickness to cord ratio of point one two.
The local velocity in this area is reduced because of the defuser effect. In this case the wind tunnel data shows, that the cruise Mach number for the
When the velocity of the airflow is reduced the static pressure increases. transonic profile is 15% higher than it is for the conventional profile.
The higher static pressure on the lower surface of the transonic profile in- In reality most aircraft fly with a cruise Mach number of approximately 0.8.
creases the lift in this region. At this cruise Mach number you can see that the thickness to cord ratio for the
A wing with a transonic profile is also called a rear loaded wing. transonic profile is 42% higher than it is for the conventional profile.
This difference is shown by the wind tunnel data and by the flight data of an
experimental aircraft.
The higher thickness of the transonic profile means that the total weight of the
wing is reduced if the wing span is unchanged.

TRANSSONIC
There are other advantages of a wing with a transonic profile. Greater lift
means that the wing can be smaller than the conventional wing and higher
Mach numbers means that the sweepback angle can be reduced.
This reduction in the sweepback angle and the rounded leading edge improves
the low speed characteristics of the wing and allows simpler lift devices to be
used.

The transonic profile also has its disadvantages
You can see that in the range from well below the critical Mach number to just
above it , the drag on the transonic profile is greater than on the conventional
profile.
Here you can see that the conventional profile needs thick material to withstand
As you know the great advantage of the transonic profile is in the transonic re-
the bending moment on the root of the wing and the thicker transonic profile
gion.
needs less material to withstand the same bending moment.
The greater thickness also gives greater fuel capacity.
We can also increase the wing span of a wing with a transonic profile and keep
the weight unchanged.
This has the advantage of reducing the drag.

TRANSSONIC
9.6. Control Surfaces in Transonic Region

In this segment we see what happens with some of the control surfaces in the
transonic range.

The shock wave appears on the wing root first because this is the thickest part
of the wing.
The aircraft reaction is the same as a stall due to a high angle of attack. Here
the angle of attack is in the normal range and the shock wave causes a flow
separation.
This flow separation is called a shock stall or a high speed stall.
When we have a shock stall the center of lift moves towards the tip of the wing
and, because of the sweepback, towards the rear of the aircraft.
The aircraft has a nose down reaction after passing the critical Mach number.
This reaction is known as the tuck under effect.
The horizontal stabilizer is used to correct the tuck under effect. This system
works automatically and is known as the Mach trim system.
The horizontal stabilizer must increase the downward acting force to compen-
sate the tuck under effect.

TRANSSONIC
The control surface on the horizontal stabilizer is called the elevator. It is dan-
gerous to operate the elevator to compensate the tuck under effect.
Lets see why.
The deflection of the elevator in subsonic flight increases the downward forces
because of the higher acceleration of the airstream on the lower side of the

horizontal stabilizer.
The deflection of the elevator in transonic flight has a different effect.
The airspeed accelerates above the speed of sound and a shock wave ap-
pears.
The flow separation behind the shock wave reduces the horizontal stabilizer
forces and the aircraft reaction is the opposite of the normal reaction.
The nose down reaction increases dramatically and the aircraft goes out of
control. The nose down reaction increases dramatically and the aircraft goes
out of control !
Some aircraft are equipped with an elevator lock to prevent this dangerous situ-
ation.
This lock operates automatically at high Mach numbers.
You will learn more about this in the chapter on elevators in Primary Flight Con-
trols.
Shock Wave origination due to the increased

camber when the elevator is deflected.

SUPERSONIC
10. Supersonic Flight

We begin with a segment on shock waves and expansion waves.
Then we look at supersonic profiles and at supersonic engine inlets.
Here we look briefly at aerodynamic heating.

10.1. Shock- and Expansion Waves
Before we look at the development of supersonic lift we see what happens to
the density, the pressure, the temperature and the velocity in supersonic flight.
When a supersonic airflow passes through a shock wave we have sudden
changes in density, pressure, temperature and velocity.
We also have sudden changes in flow direction.
When a supersonic airflow passes through a shock wave the density increases,
the pressure increases, the temperature increases and the velocity decreases.
A shock wave wastes energy.
Some of the useful energy, indicated by the sum of static and dynamic pres-
sure is turned into unavailable heat energy.
Supersonic Airflow Supersonic Airflow
Supersonic Airflow Supersonic Airflow

SUPERSONIC
Two main types of waves are formed in supersonic flow:
1. Shock Waves
2. Expansion Waves

Oblique Shock Waves
An oblique shock wave consumes less energy than a normal shock wave.
Here you see a sharp--nosed object placed in a supersonic airstream. The
shock wave touches the leading edge.
An oblique shock wave is formed where the supersonic airstream turns into a
new flow direction.
You can see in this example that we also have an oblique shock wave at the
10.1.1. Shock Waves trailing edge.
There are two types of shock waves: When a supersonic airstream passes through an oblique shock wave there is a
S Normal Shock Waves change in the airflow direction, the velocity of the airflow decreases but it is still
S Oblique Shock Waves supersonic, the static pressure and the density and temperature of the air all
increase but not by as much as with a normal shock wave and the useful en-
Normal Shock Waves ergy or total pressure is reduced, again not by as much as with a normal shock
First we look at normal shock waves. wave.
Here you see a blunt--nosed object placed in a supersonic airstream.
The shock wave is detached from the leading edge and forms a right angle to
the airstream.
Note that a normal shock wave is only formed in front of this object.
Oblique shock waves are formed above and below the object.
When a supersonic airstream passes through a normal shock wave there is no
change in the airflow direction.
The velocity of the airflow is slowed to subsonic.
The static pressure, the density and the temperature of the air increase by
large amounts and the useful energy, or the total pressure is greatly reduced.

SUPERSONIC
Expansion Wave
An expansion wave is formed where the supersonic airstream turns away from
the preceding flow direction.
Unlike a shock wave, this flow around a corner doesnt cause sharp or sudden
changes in the airflow.

When a supersonic airstream passes through an expansion wave, the airflow
direction follows the surface as long as there is no flow separation.
The velocity of the airflow increases, the static pressure, the density and the-
temperature of the air decrease and there is no change in the useful energy or
in total pressure.
Here you can see the pressure distribution on a thin flat plate in a supersonic
airflow. The airflow over the upper surface passes through an expansion wave
at the leading edge and this gives a uniform suction pressure on the upper
side.
The airflow under the plate passes through an oblique shock wave at the lead-
ing edge and this gives a uniform positive pressure on the lower side.
In this example the center of lift is at fifty percent of the cord because of the
constant pressure distribution.
The net lift is produced by the distribution of pressure on a surface.
You know that the profile lift is the force from the perpendicular to the free air-
stream.
10.2. Supersonic Profiles The inclination of the net lift from the profile lift produces drag.
In this segment we look at the aerodynamic characteristics of different types of
profile in supersonic flight.
First we see a thin flat plate at a positive angle of attack.
The airstream above and below the surface passes through expansion waves
and oblique shock waves.
Here you can see the wave pattern on a thin flat plate in a supersonic airflow.
The airflow over the upper surface passes through an expansion wave at the
leading edge and then an oblique shock wave at the trailing edge.
The airflow under the plate passes through an oblique shock wave at the lead-
ing edge and then an expansion wave at the trailing edge.

SUPERSONIC
In reality a wing is not a flat plate -- it must have a profile. There are two typical
profiles, the double wedge profile and the circular arc profile. = 3_
Double Wedge Prfile
Here you can see the wave pattern on a double wedge profile at zero angle of
attack.

You can see the airflow over the surface passes though an oblique shock wave
at the leading edge, an expansion wave and then another oblique shock wave
at the trailing edge.
The wave pattern on the double wedge profile produces an increase in pres-
sure on the forward half of the cord and a decrease in pressure on the aft half
of the cord.
This means we have no net lift. Circular Arc Profile
Here you see the wave pattern for the circular arc profile in supersonic flight.
You can see from the graphic at the left, why it is called the circular arc profile.
= 0_ The airflow passes an oblique shock wave at the leading edge then undergoes
a gradual and continuous expansion until it passes through another oblique
shock wave at the trailing edge.
In general if the flow on a profile is supersonic the center of lift is located at
approximately 50% cord position.
This contrasts strongly with the situation if the flow on a profile is subsonic. In
this case the center of lift is located at approximately 25% cord position.
You can imagine that the position of the center of lift in supersonic flight has an
effect on the aerodynamic trim and stability. Aircraft stability increases during
supersonic flight because the distance between the center of gravity and the
center of lift is reduced.
This is the wave pattern and the resulting pressure distribution for the double
wedge profile at a small positive angle of attack.
You can see that the pressure distribution produces an inclined net lift and that
the inclination of the net lift from the profile lift produces drag.

SUPERSONIC
10.3. Supersonic Engine Inlets Here you see a single oblique shock inlet.
This design employs an external oblique shock wave to slow the supersonic
The air entering the compressor section of a jet engine must be slowed to sub- airflow before the normal shock occurs.
sonic velocity.
The slowing down of the air must be accomplished with the least possible
waste of energy.

Oblique Shock Inlet
At flight speeds just above the speed of sound we only need slight modifica-
tions to the ordinary subsonic inlet design to produce satisfactory performance.
At higher supersonic speeds the required modifications are more complicated.
The inlet design must slow the air with the weakest possible series or combina-
tion of shock waves in order to minimize the energy losses caused by tempera-
ture increases.
On the next picture you see one of the least complicated engine inlet designs,
a normal shock diffuser inlet.
A more complicated variation of the single oblique shock inlet is the multiple
You can see that this type of inlet employs a single normal shock wave at the oblique shock inlet.
inlet to slow the air to subsonic velocity.
This design employs a series of very weak oblique shock waves to gradually
This type of inlet is suitable for low supersonic speeds where the normal shock slow the supersonic airflow before the normal shock occurs. The normal shock
wave is not too strong. wave doesnt have to be very strong.
It is not suitable at higher supersonic speeds because the normal shock wave This combination of weak shock waves leads to the least waste of energy and
is very strong and causes a great reduction in the total pressure recovered by the highest pressure recovery.
the inlet.
The optimum shape of supersonic inlets varies with the inlet flow direction and
with the Mach number.
In other words to derive the highest efficiency and stability of operation the ge-
ometry of the inlet would be different at different angles of attack and at differ-
ent speeds.
Normal Shock Inlet
Multiple Oblique Shock Inlet

SUPERSONIC
Here you see and example of an inlet which can be varied to suit different Variable Area Inlet
conditions.
You can see that it is equipped with actuator operated panels.
At flight speeds below Mach one the engine inlet is fully open and the aircraft

flies with a high angle of attack.
At flight speeds just above Mach one the actuators change the position of the
panels slightly and the inlet employs a single normal shock wave.
This is similar to the normal shock diffuser inlet.
At high Mach numbers the actuators operate the panels so that they employ
three oblique shock waves and then a normal shock.
This is similar to the multiple oblique shock inlet.
Mach > 1

SUPERSONIC
10.4. Aerodynamic Heating With subsonic flight the increase in temperature is very small but with super-
sonic flight the increases in temperature can affect the aircraft structure.
Next we have a short segment on aerodynamic heating. This graph shows the effect of speed and altitude on aerodynamic heating.
You probably know that ceramic tiles are used to protect the body of space You can see that the temperature increases rapidly as the Mach number in-
shuttles against the temperature increases which they experience on returning creases.
to the earths atmosphere.

The graph on the right shows the approximate effect of temperature on mate-
These temperature increases are caused by friction between the surface of the rial strength.
space shuttle and the high velocity of the free airstream.
The graph shows that aluminum alloy loses approximately 80% of its strength
When air flows over an aerodynamic surface we have a reduction in velocity if the temperature increases to 250_ C.
and a corresponding increase in temperature.
Because of this, parts of Concorde and some military aircraft are made from
The greatest reduction in velocity and increase in temperature occurs at the titanium alloy.
various stagnation points on the aircraft.

SUPERSONIC

THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ATA AERODYNAMICS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1.6.3. Sound regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
1.7. Atmosphere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
1. Physics for Aerodynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.7.1. ICAO Standard Atmosphere ( ISA ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.1. Fundamental units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

2. Basic Aerodynamics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.1.1. Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.1.2. Length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2.1. Continuity equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.1.3. Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.1.4. Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2.2. Bernoulli s principle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2.2.1. Pressure measuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
1.2. Speed and acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2.1. Speed and velocity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 2.3. Lift production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
1.2.2. Acceleration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2.3. Acceleration due to gravity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 2.4. Magnus Effect and Circulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
1.3. Force and weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

3. Profile and wing geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
1.4. Work and Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3.1. Geometry of a profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
1.4.1. Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
1.4.2. Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 3.2. Wing geometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
1.5. Pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4. Lift and drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
1.5.1. Static pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
1.5.2. Dynamic pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
1.6. Sound waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 4.1.1. Lift Equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
1.6.1. Speed of sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 4.1.2. Drag Equation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
1.6.2. Mach number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

4.2. Factors Affecting Lift . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Page i
TABLE OF CONTENTS
4.2.1. Angle of Attack ( AOA ) a . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 6.2.2. Rectangular Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
4.2.2. Shape of a Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 6.2.3. Tapered Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
6.2.4. Swept Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
4.3. Factors affecting Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.3.1. Relation between a and the Drag Coefficient CD . . . . 44 6.3. Wing Twist, Washing Out . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
6.3.1. Geometrically Twisted Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
4.4. Polar Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 6.3.2. Aerodynamically Twisted Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
5. Categories of Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 6.4. Stall Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
5.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 6.5. Boundary Layer Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

6.5.1. Wing Fences and Saw Tooth Leading Edge . . . . . . . . 66
5.2. Induced Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 6.5.2. Vortex Generators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
5.3. Parasite Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 7. Theory of Flight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

5.3.1. Form Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.3.2. Friction Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 7.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
5.3.3. Interference Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
7.2. Forces Acting on an Aircraft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
5.4. Compressible Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 7.2.1. Steady Flight Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
5.5. Total Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 7.3. Theory of Turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

7.3.1. Aditional Lift for a Turn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
6. Lift Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
7.4. Control Surfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
6.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 7.4.1. Horn Balance and Insert Hinge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
7.4.2. Balance Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
6.2. Wing Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 7.4.3. Balance Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
6.2.1. Elliptical Wing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 7.4.4. Anti - Balance Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Page ii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
7.4.5. Control Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 9.3. Wave Drag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
7.4.6. Trim Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 9.3.1. Wave Drag Reduction by Vortex Generators . . . . . . . 94
9.3.2. Wave Drag Reduction by Area Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
7.5. Lift Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
9.4. Swept Wing Effect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
7.6. Drag Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
9.5. Transonic Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
8. Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
9.6. Control Surfaces in Transonic Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
8.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
8.1.1. Static Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 10. Supersonic Flight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
8.1.2. Dynamic Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
8.1.3. Aircraft Axes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 10.1. Shock- and Expansion Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
10.1.1. Shock Waves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
8.2. Directional Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
10.2. Supersonic Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
8.3. Lateral Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
10.3. Supersonic Engine Inlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
8.4. Lateral Directional Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
8.4.1. Spiral Dive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 10.4. Aerodynamic Heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
8.4.2. Dutch Roll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
8.5. Longitudinal Stability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
9. Transonic Flight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
9.1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
9.2. Critical Mach Number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Page iii
TABLE OF FIGURES
Figure 1 ................................................. 3
Figure 2 ................................................. 5
Figure 3 ................................................. 7
Figure 4 ................................................. 11
Figure 5 ................................................. 13
Figure 6 ................................................. 17
Figure 7 ................................................. 21
Figure 8 ................................................. 23
Figure 9 ................................................. 25
Figure 10 ................................................ 45
Figure 11 ................................................ 47
Figure 12 ................................................ 59
Figure 13 ................................................ 69
Page iv

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Aerodynamics 3

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Training Manual

Lufthansa Issue: July 2000

Lufthansa Technical Training GmbH

Lufthansa Base Frankfurt

Lufthansa Base Hamburg

Lufthansa Technical Training

1.1. Fundamental units

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1.2. Speed and acceleration

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1.2.3. Acceleration due to gravity 1.3. Force and weight

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1.4. Work and Power

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1.6. Sound waves

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1.6.1. Speed of sound

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1.6.2. Mach number

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1.6.3. Sound regions

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Subsonic Transonic Supersonic

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1.7.1. ICAO Standard Atmosphere ( ISA )

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These are the ISA conditions for sea level:

Temperature T : 288 K = 15_ C

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2.2. Bernoulli s principle

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Valve full open

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VALVE HALF OPEN VALVE FULL OPEN

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2.2.1. Pressure measuring

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