AE1631 OBJECTIVES

MECHANICS OF FLIGHTS

To introduce the basic concept of aeronautical engineering and the current development in the field. UNIT I CONFIGURATION OF AIRPLANE AND ITS COMPONENTS

How an Airplane flies - components of an airplane and their functions - motions of a plane Pitching, Rolling and Yawing-Banking, skidding and slipping - starting, taxying - Take-off - landing - stalling, spinning, spirals - cross wind take-offs and landings. Different types of flight vehicles.
UNIT II PROPULSION Aircraft propulsion, Rocket propulsion, power plant classification, principles of operation, and Areas of their application. UNIT III AERODYNAMICS Airfoils and streamline bodies - forces acting on an airplane - lift and drag - speed and power physical properties and structure of atmosphere - theory of flight. UNIT IV STABILITY AND CONTROL Introduction to stability and control, Concepts of static and dynamic stability and control, Dynamic instability and control, V-n diagram, Range and endurance. UNIT V. AIRCRAFT STRUCTURES Introduction to Aircraft structures - Loads - Types of construction - Design feature Aircraft materials. TEXT BOOKS 1.Kermode, A.C, Mechanics of Flight English Book Store, New Delhi, 1992 2.John.D.Anderson, Jr., Introduction to flight TATA McGraw-Hill, 2006

UNIT I

CONFIGURATION OF AIRPLANE AND ITS COMPONENTS

COMPONENTS OF AN AIRPLANE AND THEIR FUNCTIONS:

Figure 1.1 shows the main components of a high-winged airplane.The airframe consists of the fuselage, which is the main component of the airplane, the wings, and the empennage. The empennage (sometimes called the tail feathers) is the tail assembly consisting of the horizontal stabilizer, the elevators, the vertical stabilizer, and the rudder. The elevators are used to adjust, or control, the pitch (nose up/down attitude) of the airplane. The elevators are connected to thecontrol wheel or stick of the airplane and are moved by the forwardand backward motion of the control.

On some airplanes the entirehorizontal stabilizer is the elevator, as shown in Figure 1.2. This iscalled a stabilator. The rudder is used to make small directionalchanges and in turns. Two pedals on the floor operate the rudder,used to provide directional control.Most airplanes have small hinged sections on the trailing edge ofthe elevators and sometimes on the rudder called trim tabs as shown in Fig.1.2

These tabs move in the opposite direction to the controlsurface. The purpose of the trim tabs is to reduce the necessary forceon the control wheel, called a yoke, for the pilot to maintain a desiredflight attitude.Most modern airplanes have single wings mounted either above orbelow the fuselage. Most but not all high-winged airplanes have wingsthat are supported by struts. Struts allow for a lighter wing but at theexpense of more drag (resistance to motion through the air).The movable surfaces on the outer trailing edge of the wings are theailerons, which are used for roll control (rotation around the axis ofthe fuselage). They are operated by the rotation of the control wheelor by the left-right movement of the stick. The ailerons arecoupled so that when one swings up the other swings down.Control surfaces are discussed in detail below.The hinged portions on the inboard part of the trailing edgeof the wings are the flaps. These are used to produce greater lift at lowspeeds and to provide increased drag on landing. This increased draghelps to reduce the speed of the airplane and to steepen the landingapproach angle. Flaps are discussed in detail in the chapter on wings. Small airplanes have two configurations of landing gear. Tricycle landing gear has the main landing gear just behind the center ofbalance of the airplane and a steerable nose gear up forward. The tail dragger has the main landing gear forward of the center of balance anda small steerable wheel at the tail. The nose gear and the tail wheel aresteered with the rudder pedals.

MOTIONS OF A PLANE:

An airplane moves in three dimensions called roll, pitch, and yaw, illustrated in Figure 1.3. Roll is rotation about the longitudinal axis thatgoes down the center of the fuselage. The ailerons control rotationabout the roll axis. Pitch is rotation about the lateral axis of rotation,which is an axis parallel to the long dimension of the wings. The elevatorscontrol the pitch of the airplane. By controlling the pitch of theairplane, the elevators also control the angle of attack of the wing. Toincrease the angle of attack, the entire airplane is rotated up. As wewill see, this control or the angle of attack is key in the adjustment ofthe lift of the wings. Finally, yaw, which is controlled by the rudder, isrotation about the vertical axis, which is a line that goes vertically through the center of the wing. It is important to note that all three axes go through the center of gravity (often abbreviated c.g.) of the airplane. The center of gravity is the balance point of the airplane. Or, equivalently, all of the weight of the airplane can be considered to be at that one point.

Figure 1.3 Axis of rotation of an airplane.

Take-off: The take-off of an airplane is a case of accelerated motion. Fromthe instant the airplane begins its take-off roll to the time it begins its climbout after Leaving the ground, it is under continuous acceleration. The total takeoff distance needed may be considered to consist of three parts: (1)the ground-roll distance, (2)the transition distance, and (3) the climbout distance over, say, a 15 to 25-m (50-ft) obstacle.

Landing: Landing an airplane consists of touching down at the lowest possible vertical and horizontal velocities. The approach phase and its associated techniques to a landing will not be considered, but only the two terminal phases, namely, the touchdown and ground rollout. Under touchdown conditions it is assumed that the vertical velocity is near zero. Spinning: The result from one wing stalling before the other, giving large rolling moment and increased yawing moment due to increased drag.Complicated spiral flight match with mixture of roll & yaw.Spin can be flat or steep with flat spin especially difficult to recover from - involves reattachment of separated flow using rudders/elevators

Spiral Mode: Involve complicated mixture of side forces and moments in rolling and yawing senses.Initial sideslip produces yawing and rolling due to forces on fin and sweepback.Resultant rolling motion may be dynamically unstable, producing slowly divergent non-oscillatory spiral path

Banking(turn): Not all motions of an airplane are in a straight line. There are ample cases of curved flight paths. These cases include the climbing and descending turns, maneuvers in combat and aerobatics. One of the basic maneuvers required to change the flight-path heading is the constant altitude banked turn.

Crosswind Takeoffs:
Lets take a look at crosswind takeoffs and how they differ from a normal takeoff. Well assume in this situation that we are taking off from runway 11 and the crosswind is from the northeast at about 10 mph. Thus, we have a crosswind blowing from left to right. The airplane used in this example will be a Piper J-3 Cub, a tail wheel airplane. With our pre-takeoff checklist complete, we are ready to make our first crosswind takeoff. First, taxi onto the runway and align the airplane with the centerline of the runway. Pull the control stick all the way back to the stop. This places our elevator in a full up position allowing for the relative wind to put a downward force on the tail. Remember, our only means of directional control at this point is with the steerable tail wheel. Next, move the control stick all the way to the left into the direction from which the crosswind is coming. This will position our ailerons properly to compensate for the wind. The left aileron is in the up position while the right aileron is in the down position. We do this to help overcome the crosswind, as the Windward (left) wing, will generate more lift than the leeward (right)wing due to the fact that the leeward wing is partially blanked out by the fuselage. At low speeds though, the ailerons will be ineffective until the plane picks up speed. Now its time to give some thought to the rudder and rudder pedals and how well use them during a crosswind takeoff. We can anticipate that the left-to-right crosswind will strike the vertical fin and rudder. In doing so, the wind will try to push the tail to the right forcing the nose to go left. Right rudder pressure will be needed. During the takeoff right rudder will also be needed to compensate for engine torque and propeller , which try to push the nose to the left as well.

With a crosswind from the left, the left aileron is in the full up position and the right aileron is in the down position. Slight right rudder is applied.

After aligning the airplane with the centerline smoothly begin applying power. As the airplane begins picking up speed the aileron, elevator, and rudder controls begin becoming affective. With increasing ground speed right rudder will be needed for maintaining a straight track down the runway. Simultaneously ease the control stick slightly forward and remove about one-half of the left aileron correction. Remember, the faster were moving, the more effective the controls, so it wont take as much aileron to keep the left wing from flying before the right wing. As we ease the control stick forward the tail wheel will lift from the runway. Under normal wind conditions we would want to keep the airplane in a tail low attitude, but in a crosswind we want to bring the tail up to a near level flight attitude. Just as we reach liftoff speed, apply very slight backpressure on the control stick and move the ailerons to a neutral position. There, weve just lifted off the runway and were now airborne. But our takeoff procedures are not yet quite done. After lifting off, relax the backpressure on the control stick and relax the rudder pressure you have been holding during the takeoff roll. This will allow the airplane to seek its own crab angle. The airplanes nose will actually move several degrees to the left. Once weve completed this step, ease back on the control stick and establish the normal 60 mph climb out speed. Youve now executed a good crosswind takeoff!

Once comfortably airborne, relax the control pressures and allow the airplane to seek its own crab angle. Then continue a normal climb out.

The procedure for a crosswind takeoff in a tricycle gear aircraft is somewhat similar. After aligning the airplane with the runway centerline, turn the control yoke to the full left position, but leave the elevator in the neutral position. As you smoothly apply power, be prepared to apply right rudder pressure to maintain the straight track down the runway. While the groundspeed increases, about one-half of the aileron correction can be taken out. Hold the airplane on the runway until reaching liftoff speed. Then apply light backpressure on the yoke while returning the ailerons to neutral. Again, when airborne, let the airplane seek its own wind correction or crab angle. Follow this up with backpressure to establish the desired climb out speed.

Crosswind Landing:
There are two types of crosswind landings the wing down and the crab method. The wing down method consists of keeping the airplanes longitudinal axis aligned with the flight path and the runway by lowering the windward wing while applying opposite rudder. The crab method is done by keeping the airplane aligned with the centerline by establishing a crab angle. Then after crossing the

runway threshold, rudder is applied to align the airplane with the centerline while simultaneously lowering the windward wing. Beginning with the wing down method, the procedure to follow is this. Again, well assume we are landing on Runway 11 and the crosswind is from the northeast at 10 mph. After turning the airplane onto the final approach, lower the windward or left wing. Then apply right rudder to keep the airplane aligned with the centerline of the runway. Use only the amount of wing down needed to stop the drift of the airplane from left to right. Apply only enough right rudder to keep the airplane aligned with the centerline. Continue these control inputs right into the flare and touch down. Depending on the crosswind velocity you may find yourself landing on the left main wheel and tail wheel. The right main wheel will remain off the ground for a few more seconds while the airplane continues to slow.

Without applying correct wing down and opposite rudder application, the airplane will drift to the side of the runway. Continue moving the control stick all the way to the full left position as well, which will prevent the wind from picking up the left wing. Use whatever rudder inputs necessary to keep the airplane tracking down the centerline of the runway. You may find during your approach to land that the crosswind will vary in velocity as you descend. This will require adjusting the left aileron and right rudder almost continuously during the approach. When employing the crab technique, you will need to establish a crab angle on final approach to keep the airplane correctly aligned with the centerline of the runway. As you near the runway, prepare yourself to kick the airplane out of the crab and into the wing down attitude by applying right rudder and left aileron.

Flight Vehicle Classification: Flight Vehicle is a type of transportation device which capable of traveling in the air/atmosphere or to the outer space. In simple words, all transportation devices that flies are considered flight vehicle. It includes the simple hot air balloon, the conventional airliner, fighter aircraft, rockets, and even the sophisticated space shuttle. Flight Vehicle Classification based on Its Main Source of Lifting Force Lighter than air aerostats: Aerostats use buoyancy to float in the air in much the same way that ships float on the water. They are characterized by one or more large gasbags or canopies, filled with a relatively low-density gas such as helium, hydrogen, or hot air, which is less dense than the surrounding air. When the weight of this is added to the weight of the aircraft structure, it adds up to the same weight as the air that the craft displaces. Heavier than air aerodynes: Heavier-than-air aircraft must find some way to push air or gas downwards, so that a reaction occurs (by Newton's laws of motion) to push the aircraft upwards. This dynamic movement through the air is the origin of the term aerodyne. There are two ways to produce dynamic upthrust: aerodynamic lift, and powered lift in the form of engine thrust. Aerodynamic lift involving wings is the most common, with fixed-wing aircraft being kept in the air by the forward movement of wings, and rotorcraft by spinning wing-shaped rotors sometimes called rotary wings. A wing is a flat, horizontal surface, usually shaped in cross-section as an aerofoil. To fly, air must flow over the wing and generate lift.
(i)Fixed Wing Airplane: Fixed wing airplane is an airplane with one or more pairs wing commonly attached symmetrically to the left and right side of its fuselage permanently, thus not allowing wing any relative movement to the fuselage. In order to generate its lift, fixed wing airplane generate wings relative movement to the wind by moving the whole airplane forward. As the consequence, a fixed wing airplane must keep moving forward with a minimum velocity called stall speed so that the airplanes wing can generate enough lift force to counteract aircrafts weight and fly. (ii) Rotary Wing Airplane: Rotary wing airplaneis an airplane with a pair of wing and its wing axis commonly attached to the upper section of its fuselage, thus allowing the wing to rotate

around its axes and move relative to the fuselage. These rotating wing is commonly called rotor. By rotating its rotor, rotary wing airplane is capable of generating wings relative movement to the wind without the needs to move the whole airplane. Consequently, rotary wing airplane is capable of vertical take-off and hovering in the air. (iii)Mixed Fixed-Rotary Airplane: Mixed fixed-rotary airplane is an airplane with certain configuration that allows it to act as fixed wing airplane or rotary wing airplane at certain condition. Rocket (propulsion-lifted craft) is a type of aircraft that uses reaction force from its propulsion system as its lifting forces. A rocket is characterized by its long cylindrical shaped body with a conical shape at its front end and a nozzle at its rear end that exerts very hot fluids at extreme speed. As the reaction of the hot fluids exertion, the rockets experience forward reaction force (as stated in the third law of Newton) which is used to lifting force that counteracts rockets weight and flies the rocket itself.

Flight Vehicle Classification based on Its Operator 1. Manned Aerial Vehicle Manned aerial vehicle is a type of flight vehicle that is operated by humans (pilots and/or crews) inside the aerial vehicle itself.

2. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Unmanned aerial vehicle is a type of flight vehicle that is operated automatically by artificial intellegences inside the aerial vehicle or remotely by humans outside the aerial vehicle.