Airspeed Envelop for Air Transport Airplanes

Jet transports cruise near MCRIT,

Pilot must control airspeed within specified limits
MCRITMach number where airflow on the airframe first reaches Mach
1 (beginning of transonic flight regime)
Force Divergence Mach numberabout 5% above MCRIT
o transonic aerodynamic effects begin
o nose tuck due to aft movement of Mach wave on the wing
o high speed stallboundary layer detaches aft of the Mach wave
Must not allow airspeed to reach MCRIT in an air transport aircraft
Definitions
VS1 G stall speed
VMOmax operating airspeed to prevent ram-air damage
VS and VMO in KEAS are invariant with altitude
MMOmax operating Mach number to avoid approaching MCRIT
VMMOairspeed corresponding to MMO
o decreases as altitude increase in SA because speed of sound
decreases while MMO is constant
o plotted in Figure 3.11, but conventionally labeled MMO
MDFmaximum demonstrated Mach number: Mach number at which
aircraft has been tested and shown to be controllable
MDF > MMO because MMO has a built-in airspeed safety margin

Figure 3.11 Airspeed Envelop for Boeing 767 at 1 G and 300,000# Gross

Figure 3.13
VS(156 KEAS) minimum airspeed to avoid stalling the wing (typically
not VS in performance manuals, which provide a safety margin above
the 1 G stall speed) INVARIANT WITH ALTITUDE
VMO (390 KEAS) maximum airspeed to avoid ram air damage (also
provides a safety margin) INVARIANT WITH ALTITUDE
VMMO (KEAS; labeled MMO)maximum airspeed to avoid close
approach to transonic flight (monitored on the Mach meter)
DECREASES AS ALTITUDE INCREASES
MMO (not specified in figure) INVARIANT WITH ALTITUDE
Crossover altitude (20,000)altitude where VMO = VMMO
o Below crossover altitude, airspeed limited by VMO
o Above crossover altitude, airspeed limited by MMO / VMMO
Coffin Corner (60,000)altitude where VS = VMMO (near the coffin
corner, it is difficult to distinguish a high speed stall from a low speed
stall)
Allowable Airspeed RangeairspeedMAX - airspeedMIN
o Below crossover altitude: VMO - VS
o Above crossover altitude: VMMO - VS
o At 20,000, 390 156 = 234 KEAS.
o At 30,000, 325 156 = 169 KEAS.
o At 40,000, 260 156 = 104 KEAS

Figure 3.12: Airspeed Envelop for Boeing 767 at 2 G and 300,000# Gross
G force affects stall speed: 1 G VS = 156 KEAS
2 G V2 = VS G = 156 2 221 KEAS

Figure 3.12
VS = 221 (2 G stall speed)
VMO = 390 KEAS,
Crossover altitude = 20,000
o VMO = airspeed corresponding to MMO = 390 KEAS
o Below 20,000, airspeed limited by VMO
o Above 20,000, airspeed limited by MMO / VMMO
Allowable airspeed range
o At 20,000, 390 221 = 169 KEAS.
o At 30,000, 325 221= 104 KEAS.
o At 40,000, 260 221= 39 KEAS
Coffin corner = 45,000
o Airspeed corresponding to MMO =VS
o Allowable airspeed range = 221 221= 0.

Figure 3.13. Maximum and Minimum B737 Airspeeds by Gross Weight

Pilots use a performance table to determine airspeeds operating range
105,000# and FL300: VMAX = 311 KIAS; VMIN = 196 KIAS; Allowable
airspeed range = 311- 196 = 115 KIAS
130,000# and FL340: VMAX = 259 KIAS; VMIN = 241 KIAS; Allowable
airspeed range = 259- 241 = 18 KIAS

Weight W affect stall speed VS and VMMO but not VMO or MMO
= V1 (W2/W1)]
Allowable airspeed range gets smaller as
o weight increases: VS W
o altitude increases
larger safety margins desirable
compressibility causes IAS to read higher than EAS

[V2