Rocket Team

José Ferreyra
Pedro Rodriguez
Emanuel Cárdenas
Rafael Kim
V-tail
configuration
 “
╺ V-tail is the arrangement of aircraft
tail control surfaces. V-tail replaces
the traditional fin and horizontal
surfaces with two surfaces which
forms a V-shape configuration. The
aircraft has the same stabilizing
forces like conventional tail system.
 Pros
╺ 1. Lighter: V-tail designed aircraft is lighter compared to conventional tail configuration of other aircraft
designs. The under-sized surfaces used in designing the V-tail makes it lighter and faster.
╺ 2. Surface area: V-tail design have a less wetted surface area as it has only two control surfaces compared to
conventional aircraft which have three.
╺ 3. Reduced drag: Reducing intersection surfaces from three to two leads to the reduction in drag as it eliminates
interference drag.
╺ 4. Reduces wear: To avoid placing the vertical stabilizer in the engine exhaust, a V-tail configuration is used.
5. Increase stealth: The canted surfaces of V-tail configuration reflect radar away from the source leading to
increased stealth.
╺ 6. Reduce infrared signature: V-tail design allows the engine to be mounted above the fuselage. This helps
reduce infrared signature from below.
╺ 7. Improve safety: Placing the engine above the fuselage, it not only reduce infrared signature but also improve
the safety of the aircraft and reduce cabin noise.
╺ 8. Better span: A properly sized V-tail have the same wetted area like conventional tail systems. It leads to better
span since the area is spread over two surfaces instead of three.
╺ 9. Optimize fuselage: V-tail allows you to optimize the aircraft fuselage and put the aircraft mass lower than T-
tail. This makes the aircraft more damage resistance.
╺ 10. Different options: V-tails are either all-flying or removable allowing you to choose one based on your
preferences.
 Cons
╺ 1. Cause Snaking: To prevent snaking/yawing, V-tail aircraft need to have a longer rear fuselage compared to
the conventional empennages.
╺ 2. Induced drag: Making some certain movements during the landing of the aircraft, may cause some induced
drag. The right rudder aircraft can yaw right and vice versa,
╺ 3. Complex control system: V-tail aircraft configurations require complex control system since the two surfaces
of the design have to move together and this can be a bit challenging to pilots used to flying conventional aircraft.
╺ 4. Increased load: More load is required to design a robust aircraft compared to designing a conventional
system.
╺ 5. Require more control forces: V-tail aircraft system requires a lot of control forces in order to effective operate
the aircraft. This makes it difficult for the aircraft to be flown by just any pilot. V-tail designs need a lot of control.
╺ 6. Constant fiddling: When using radar in a thermal turn, sometimes the V-tail keep on stalling and you have to
keep fiddling it to have the right differential. If not fixed, it can cause some “up’ elevator effect.
╺ 7. Not full flying: V-tails are not full-flying if you’re looking for decalage.
╺ 8. Unstable: If the V-tail has the same size of stab + elevator at the top view and the same size in the side view
with fin + rudder, then this causes an undersized V-tail and poor stability.
╺ 9. Failure tolerance: In V-tail design, it is difficult to maneuver the aircraft if one of the lifting surfaces has issues
or malfunctions.
╺ 10. Less control surface: In V-tail, there is no control surface which is directly proportional to the desired force
vector used in pitching.
Inverted
sweep angle
wing
 “
╺ A forward-swept wing is
an aircraft wing
configuration in which
the quarter-chord line of
the wing has a forward
sweep. Typically, the
leading edge also
sweeps forward.
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 Pros
* They gather streamlines unlike the swept wings that dispese them at low
speeds. This enables them to operate better at low speeds than swept
wings.
* Generally both types of swept wings are pointy, as a result of which a lot
of lift is generated at the tips of wings. At moderate speeds the rear swept
wing stalls at the tips (because of dispersion) and can suddenly fall out of
the sky. The forward swept wing begins to stall ar wing root first making it
safer.
* At high angle of attack due to multiple reasons it generate more lift per
wing area, is more stable and more manoeverable.
* With proper computer control the quicker and sharper response to pilots
turn around commands due to canard like configuration is seen favourble
for fighter aircraft.Think of the difference between a frontwheel drive car
and a regular one.
* It offers a theoritical mechanism to generate compression lift under and
around the main fuselage and feed ramjet engines better at supersonic
speeds.
 Cons
- Very high tip drag
- Canard effect—this makes it more unstable than swept
wings which have a stabilizing effect like an elevator.
-It is more susceptible to twisting forces.
- When it yaws it can roll out of control.
- Despite the favourable features of this design at low
speeds and high angles of attack( see point 3 below), it
requires carefully designed wing twist and very advanced
expensive material to ensure that it does not behave
unpredictably.
Canard
configuration
 “
╺ A canard is a small wing that
is located in front of the main
wing of the aircraft. This is
similar to the elevator, but is
located in front of the wing,
instead of behind it. The
configuration, and in some
cases, the aircraft itself may
be called a canard.
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 Pros

• The force to effect flight path changes works the right way, so pitch response
times of canards are slightly better than those of a conventional configuration.
• The wing can be further aft, so in short business jets the cabin might not
interfere with the wing spar.
• It can improve aircraft control, which you often see on combat aircraft.
• It can contribute to lift, replacing the horizontal stabilizer and reducing overall
drag.
 Cons
• The induced drag at off-design points is higher than that of a
comparable conventional configuration.
• A canard will need more wing area.
• Control surface deflections will add to the already high lift coefficient of
the canard plane, increasing lift demands on the surface with the
smallest margins.
• The highest lift coefficient is needed at the surface with the smaller
Reynolds number. Normally, the reverse would be better.
• A statically stable canard will have a lower cruise Mach number than a
comparable conventional configuration.
• The landing gear must be made to retract into the fuselage, because the
wing is too far behind the center of gravity to allow the gear to retract
into the wing.
No tail
configuration
 “
╺ A tailless aircraft has no tail
assembly and no other horizontal
surface besides its main wing. The
aerodynamic control and
stabilization functions in both pitch
and roll are incorporated into the
main wing. A tailless type may still
have a conventional vertical fin
(vertical stabilizer) and rudder.
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 Pros

• Tailless aircraft are lighter because they don’t have a tail and because they
need less weight up front without a tail
• Tailless aircraft have smaller profiles, which decrease the amount of drag
produced by the aircraft and create a smaller radar cross-section for more
stealth.
• Since the tailless aircraft have a lower aspect ratio but also a lower friction co-
efficient due to its larger chord, we always get smaller relative wetted area.
This provides a substantial improvement in aerodynamic performance by
increasing the lift-to-drag ratio of tailless aircraft in cruise to about 20-25% as
compared to the conventional aircrafts.
 Cons

• Tailless airplanes are less stable because they don’t have horizontal and
vertical stabilizers. Also yaw control is more difficult.
• Many tailless airplanes, like the Blended Wing Body, use many control
surfaces to stabilize the aircraft. These surfaces increase cost and the
number of failure points.
Landing gear Shock struts
Landing gear in all aircraft are required to meet
Shock struts are devices used in order to absorb any
regulation standards in terms of passing various
shock forces that manifest during takeoff, landing,
landing scenarios with different loads and situations
and taxing that could be transmitted to the airframe.
(such as side impacts and loss of nose landing gear).
They generally use hydraulic fluid and compressed air
They are also required to dampen impact forces on
to absorb shocks.
the airframe, allow the aircraft to taxi in uneven
ground, and provide effective braking systems (with
varying loads and slopes).

Shock strut
Landing gear
Aerobatic
Aerobatic aircraft feature fixed landing gear as it is simple and cheap to install
and maintain. Furthermore, the use of retractable landing gear adds weight due
to them weighing more as well as additional requirement of internal space.
Because of the speeds at which aerobatic aircraft usually perform, drag is a
negligible factor compared to the benefits. In most cases manufacturers
streamline the landing gear itself to improve aerodynamic performance.
Civil
Smaller civil aircraft will usually have a fixed landing gear for the same reasons as
aerobatic aircraft while larger cargo airplanes or commercial airliners will have
retractable landing gear to improve aerodynamics and reduce drag when
cruising.
 Military
Military cargo planes usually
feature higher wings since (thus higher engines)
and shorter landing gears since it grants them
better ground clearance. Otherwise they behave
the same way as civilian aircraft landing gear.
Small fast military aircraft (fighter jets) will utilize
retractable landing gear due to the effects of
drag at their elevated cruising speeds.
Different types of
structures in airplanes
╺ There are so many different types of structures used in
airplanes, Most of the aircraft operating today are made with
lightweight but strong aluminum, with most newer aircraft
being made of advanced composites. Note the Cirrus SR-22
and Boeing Dreamliner 787 as examples of the newest
modern aircraft developed at this time.It has only been very
recently that mainstream automobiles are starting to switch to
lighter materials like aluminum.There are several categories of
aircraft:
╺ Fixed-wing
╺ AirplaneRotorcraft
╺ Glider
╺ Lighter-than-air vehicles
╺ The major components of the Aircraft Structures can
be broadly combined into:
╺ The Fuselage
╺ The Wings
╺ The Empennage
╺ The aircraft is made up of an airframe, specifically fuselage,
booms, nacelles, cowlings, fairings, airfoil surfaces, and landing
gear. There are also accessories and controls that go with these
structures. A notable fact is that the rotors of a helicopter serve
the same purpose as the wings of a plane, so are considered part
of the helicopter's airframe, unlike the propeller of an
airframe.Structural member of the aircraft fuselage include
╺ Stringers
╺ Longerons
╺ Ribs
╺ Bulkheads
╺ Frames and Formers. (But the main structural member of the wing
is the wing spar.)
Aircraft structures
Airframe structural components are constructed from a
wide variety of materials. The earliest aircraft were
constructed primarily of wood. Steel tubing and the most
common material, aluminum, followed.
Many newly certified aircraft are built from molded
composite materials, such as carbon fiber. Structural
members of an aircraft’s fuselage include stringers,
longerons, ribs, bulkheads, and more. The main
structural member in a wing is called the wing spar.
 Fuselage
The fuselage is the main part of the
aircraft, located centrally to the entire
aircraft. It's the area where the
passengers and baggage are typically
held and the part of the plane to which
the wings and empennage are
attached. It's basically a large, hollow
tube that tapers at the back.
 Wings
The wings are attached to the fuselage on either side.
The wings are the source of lift for the aircraft.
The wing is held together and supported by metal
spars, ribs, and stringers and covered by a fabric,
aluminum, or composite shell. On the rear part of the
wing (the trailing edge), you can find the aileron and
flaps, which change the shape of the wing to create
more or less lift for different phases of flight.

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 Wings
Aileron: The aileron is found near the tip of the wing on the trailing
edge. It's a rectangular-shaped airfoil that rises to disturb the
airflow over the wing. Ailerons are used to turn the airplane. They
work by disrupting the airflow over the wing, which creates more
lift on one wing than the other.
Flaps: Flaps are smaller airfoils found on the rear part of the wing
nearest to the fuselage. Flaps can be extended to increase the
wing surface area, creating more lift for takeoff and landing. There
are different types of flaps; designs vary by aircraft. Some types
include plain flap, slotted flap, split flap, Fowler flap, and the
slotted Fowler flap.

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 Empennage
The empennage consists of the vertical stabilizer (the "tail" of the airplane) and the
horizontal stabilizer or stabilator.
* Rudder: The rudder is a movable piece of the vertical stabilizer that allows the
airplane to turn left or right about the airplane's vertical axis when activated. The
rudder is connected to the foot pedals in the cockpit of the airplane.
* Elevator: The elevator is located on the rear part of the horizontal stabilizer. It
moves up and down in order to make the airplane's nose move up or down. The
elevator is connected to the yoke. If you were to pull back on the yoke in the
cockpit, the elevator would be moved upward, forcing the horizontal stabilizer to go
down and the aircraft's nose to go up.
* Stabilator: A stabilator is similar to a horizontal stabilizer but doesn't include an
elevator. The stabilator is one large piece of material with an anti-servo tab that
doubles as a trim tab.
* Trim Tab: Trim tabs are small rectangle-shaped pieces of material on the trailing
edge of the horizontal stabilizer. They're meant to be moved gradually, as set by
the pilot, to ease control pressure and make the aircraft easier to handle.
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 Powerplant

The powerplant consists of the engine and all

engine components, the propeller, and electrical
system. It can be located on the front of the
aircraft fuselage or toward the rear of the airplane.
In multi-engine aircraft, the engines are typically
located under the wings on each side.

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 Landing gear
The landing gear on most aircraft consists of wheels and struts.
Some aircraft have skis or floats in order to land on snow or water,
respectively. A typical single-engine land airplane will have either
tricycle landing gear or conventional landing gear. Tricycle gear
means that there are two main wheels with a nose wheel in front.
On aircraft with conventional gear, there are two main wheels with
a single wheel in back, under the tail. Aircraft with conventional
type gear are often called tailwheel airplanes or taildraggers.

Most airplanes are also steered on the ground with the use of a
tricycle type landing gear configuration
Force in aircraft
structures
 “
╺ The primary factors to
consider in aircraft structures
are strength, weight, and
reliability. These factors
determine the requirements to
be met by any material used
to construct or repair the
aircraft.
Tension
Tension is the stress that resists a force that
tends to pull something apart. The engine
pulls the aircraft forward, but air resistance
tries to hold it back. The result is tension,
which stretches the aircraft. The tensile
strength of a material is measured in pounds
per square inch (psi) and is calculated by
dividing the load (in pounds) required to pull
the material apart by its cross-sectional area
(in square inches).
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Compression

Compression is the stress that resists a

crushing force. The compressive
strength of a material is also measured
in psi. Compression is the stress that
tends to shorten or squeeze aircraft
parts.

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Torsion

Torsion is the stress that produces

twisting.While moving the aircraft
forward, the engine also tends to twist it
to one side, but other aircraft
components hold it on course. Thus,
torsion is created. The torsion strength
of a material is its resistance to twisting
or torque.
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 Shear

Shear is the stress that resists the force

tending to cause one layer of a material to
slide over an adjacent layer. Two riveted
plates in tension subject the rivets to a
shearing force. Usually, the shearing strength
of a material is either equal to or less than its
tensile or compressive strength. Aircraft parts,
especially screws, bolts, and rivets, are often
subject to a shearing force.
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 Bending

Bending stress is a combination of

compression and tension. It has been
shortened (compressed) on the inside of the
bend and stretched on the outside of the
bend.

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 Bibliography
 https://www.boldmethod.com/learn-to-fly/aircraft-systems/canards/
 https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/15316/what-are-the-pros-
and-cons-of-having-canard-control-surfaces-versus-a-horizontal
 https://www.ukessays.com/essays/engineering/the-tailless-aircraft-
engineering-essay.php
 https://howthingsfly.si.edu/ask-an-explainer/how-efficient-tailless-
airplane-better-tail-plane
 http://www.sweethaven02.com/Aviation/MaintHandbook/ama_Ch01.pdf
 http://home.iitk.ac.in/~mohite/Basic_construction.pdf
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