1

Introduction

In the previous report,an estimation of the minimum wing loading of the

Phoenix Jet was performed and the maximum (T/W) value was also ascertained. It was also decided that the powerplant for the Phoenix Jet would
be Rolls Royce BR710C4-11.
The following values were obtained,
W/S=3056.41 N/m

(W/S) take-o equivalent=3137.4 N/m

Max. T/W=0.387
In this report,a new estimate of the aircrafts take o gross weight is performed
factoring into account the wing loading value obtained. The geometric sizing
of the wing,tail and control surfaces is also performed.

Third Weight Estimate

In second weight estimate,take-o weight of the aircraft has been estimated

using basic empirical relations and historical data.
In the current weight estimate a more rigorous set of relations are used
to obtain the take o gross weight in an iterative manner. The new relations
factor into account the wing loading value obtained in the previous report.

2.1

Empty Weight Fraction Estimate

The empty weight to the gross weight ratio (WE /W0 )is estimated using an
empirical but improved statistical relation. The expression is given by

T
W
WE
c5
= (a + b Woc1 + ARc2 + ( )c3 + ( )c4 + Mmax
) Kvs
W0
W
S
From reference [2],for a typical business jet,we have,
a=0.32

T/W0 =0.387

b=0.66

W0 /S=3137.4 N/m

c1=-0.13

Mmax =0.87

c2=0.30

AR=7.5

c3=0.06

Kvs =1.00 (for xed sweep)

[2] ,

(2.1)

c4=-0.05
c5=0.05
By substituting the above values we get,

WE
= (0.32 + 0.7576 W00.130 )
W0
2.2

(2.2)

Fuel weight fraction estimate

The amount of fuel required during a mission depends on the mission prole.

The fuel fraction can be estimated based on approximations of fuel

consumption and aerodynamics.

Figure 2.1: Mission Prole of Phoenix Jet

[8]

*Figure obtained from reference [8]

For analysis,the mission prole shown in gure 2.1 is segmented into various phases. These phases are (1) Engine start,warm up; (2) Taxi; (3) Takeo; (4) Climb; (5) Cruise; (6) Loiter; (7) Reserved cruise and (8) Descent and
Land.  Wi  denotes weight of the aircraft at the end of phase  i e.g.  W1 
denotes weight of aircraft at the end of Engine start and warm up phase.

2.2.1 Phase 1: Engine start,warm up

The weight ratios at the end of phases Engine start,warm up,Taxi,Take-o
and Climb are chosen by following the standards given in Reference [5].

W1
= 0.999
W0

(2.3)

W2
= 0.995
W1

(2.4)

W3
= 0.995
W2

(2.5)

2.2.2 Phase 2: Taxi

2.2.3 Phase 3: Take O

2.2.4 Phase 4: Climb

An empirical relation for the climbing and acceleration segment weight fraction by relating it to the Mach number is given by

W4
= 1.0065 0.0325M
W3

[2] ,

(2.6)

M is the Mach number for a subsonic jet accelerating to a Mach number

of 0.87 (cruise Mach number).
Using the value of Mach number we get,

W4
= 0.978
W3

(2.7)

2.2.5 Phase 5: Cruise

For a cruising aircraft,the fuel weight fraction can be determined quite well
using the Breguet range equation. For a jet,the range can be calculated by

R=(

L V
W5
)( ) ln(
)
D C
W4

[2] ,

(2.8)

which gives,
RC
W5
L
= eV(D)
W4

(2.9)

Where R is the required design range which is 12000km for the specied
mission of the Phoenix Jet,C is the specic fuel consumption (SFC) of the
aircraft.

-1[5] .

The typical C value for business jet is found to be 0.5hours

The cruise speed of Phoenix jet is taken to be 0.87 Mach number (approx.
258m/s (923.94 Km/hr) over 12,192 m (40000 Ft.)
ratio is calculated by using the following equation

L
)cruise =
D

[2] ,

altitude).

The (L/D)

1
qCDo
W
S

(2.10)

W
S

qARe

Actual wing loading at cruise is taken i.e. W/S = 3056.41 Nm

-2

CDo =0.015 and Density(at 40,000 ft)= 0.30229 kg m-2.

AR=7.5 and e=0.8

L
)cruise = 15.35
D

(2.11)

This gives the value of W5 /W4 as follows,

W5
= 0.6134
W4

(2.12)

2.2.6 Phase 6: Loiter

While loitering the aircraft ies at maximum L/D ratio.The expression for

[2] :

obtaining maximum L/D is as follows

( L )cruise
L
L
)loiter = ( )max = D
= 17.725
D
D
0.866

(2.13)

The weight ratio at the end of loiter phase is calculated using the Endurance equation,

E=(

L 1
W6
)( ) ln(
)
D C
W5

(2.14)

which gives the following expression for the weight ratio,

EC
W6
L
=e D
W5

(2.15)

E,the time taken for loiter,is 20 minutes for Phoenix jet and the value of

-1

C is found to be 0.4hours

from reference [2]. This gives ,

W6
= 0.9925
W5
4

(2.16)

2.2.7 Phase 7: Reserved cruise (Alternate)

It is assumed that the alternate airport is located within the radius of 150 Km
from previously destined airport. Due to the short distance,aircraft cannot
cruise in the normal cruise speed. Assuming the acceptable time taken for
reaching alternate airport is 15 minutes,implies that the required cruising
speed should be 600 Km/hr. Therefore,R = 150 Km,V = 600 Km/hr. Using
Breguet range equation we get,

W7
= 0.9941
W6

(2.17)

2.2.8 Phase 8: Descent and Landing

The weight ratio at the end of this phase is chosen by following the standards
given in reference [2].

W8
= 0.995
W7

(2.18)

Having calculated the weight fractions for the various phases,the cascade
of the fractions is shown below,

W8 W7 W6 W5 W4 W3 W2 W1
W8
=
= 0.5824
W0
W7 W6 W5 W4 W3 W2 W1 W0

(2.19)

Typically a 6% is allowed for reserved and trapped fuel. The fuel fraction
is estimated using equation from reference [2] given by,

WF
W8
= 1.06(1
) = 0.4426
W0
W0

(2.20)

Wcrew + Wpayload = 1740kg

F
W0 = Wcrew + Wpayload + W
W0 +
W0

WE
W0
W0
The resultant of the above two equations is used to obtain a recursive
relation which is iteratively solved. The equation is as follows,

W0(new) = 1740 + 0.4426 W0 + (0.32 + 0.7576 W00.130 ) W0

TM

An iterative process was executed in MATLAB

(2.21)

for an initial guess W0

= 25,000kg. Design take-o weight i.e the above third weight estimate after

iterations was found to be W0 = 38,380kg,which is 3055kg (8.6%) greater

than the value obtained from the second weight estimate(W0(old) =35,325kg).
Substituting this W0 value in equations (2.20) and (2.2) respectively gave fuel
weight WF = 16,986kg and Empty weight WE =19,654kg. The Figure(2.2)
shows the graph between W0 and number of iterations.

Figure 2.2: Plot of W0 vs Iterations

Geometry Sizing

3.1

Fuselage

Fuselage is the central body of an aircraft,to which the wings and tail assem-

[1] .The

bly are attached and which accommodates the crew passengers and cargo

sizing of the fuselage involves determining the geometry of the fuselage using
design parameters,historical data and statistical data.
1. Fuselage Width: It is set by the number of seats abreast,seat width and

the aisle width. The depth is set to accommodate the cargo containers
below the oor and the head room above the aisle.
For the Phoenix Jet,2 seats abreast conguration is chosen to provide
maximize comfort. A typical executive seat is 0.7 m wide. Providing a
generous 0.8 m aisle width,the cabin internal width would be 2.2m.
Since a pressurized cabin is used a circular section is preferred for the
fuselage. This is because it resists the internal pressure loads by hoop
stress most eectively in this conguration. Giving a 0.2 m allowance
for the pressure cabin structure the total cabin width becomes 2.4m

CabinW idth = (0.7 2 + 0.8 + 0.2)m = 2.4m

(3.1)

Since the fuselage has a circular cross section the total cabin width can
be taken as diameter of the cross section.
2. Fuselage Length: The empirical relation giving the fuselage length as
a function of gross weight is given by the following relation,

F.L. = aW0c

(3.2)

(F.L.=Fuselage Length)
From the fuselage length data obtained from similar airplanes,a graph
between ln(F.L.) vs ln(W0 ) was plotted and the values of a and c were
obtained using a linear curve t.

[9]

Table 3.1:Fuselage length and W0 of similar aircrafts

Name

F.L.(m)

W0 (kg)

Dassault Falcon 7X

23.19

31,752

Gulfstream G500

29.28

38600

Gulfstream G550

29.38

41,277

Bombardier Global 5000

29.5

42,071

Bombardier Global Express XRS

30.3

44,500

Gulfstream G650

30.4

45,177

Bombardier Global 8000

33.71

47,536

The equation used is given by

ln(F.L.) = ln(a) + c ln(Wo )

7

(3.3)

The plot is given in Figure (3.1). From the graph the value of c=0.809
and a=5.374*10

-3

are obtained.

Figure 3.1: Plot of ln(F.L.) vs ln(W0 )

Using the values of a and c obtained from the plot and the W0 value
obtained in the third weight estimate we get the fuselage length value
to be 27.47 m.
The length of the cabin is determined by the seat pitch. The seat pitch
is taken as 1.8m which is the eective length of a reclining luxury seat.
The number of passengers in Phoenix Jet is 10(including air-hostess).
Since 2 seats abreast conguration was chosen,the length of the cabin

[3] .

is 9 m

The length of the service module consisting of catering and

restrooms is taken to be 4 m

[4] .

The fuselage length is the sum of cabin

length,service module length and the front & rear prole shaping(non
cabin length).

The front accommodates the ight deck and the rear

provides attachment for the tail surfaces . The value of the non cabin
length is chosen as 15 m in comparison to the values obtained from
similar aircraft.
The total fuselage length is hence obtained as (9+4+15)=28 m. This

Table 3.2 : Non cabin length of similar aircrafts

[9]

Name

Non Cabin Length(m)

Dassault Falcon 7X

11.29

Gulfstream G500

16

Gulfstream G550

16

Bombardier Global 5000

16.56

Bombardier Global Express XRS

15.57

Gulfstream G650

16.13

Bombardier Global 8000

15.54

value obtained is found to comparable to the fuselage length value

obtained using the empirical relation.

3.2

Wing

3.2.1 Aspect Ratio

Aspect ratio is dened as the ratio of the square of wing span to that of the
wing area. For a typical business jet the aspect ratio is expected to be 7.5

[2] .

3.2.2 Wing Area and Wing Span

The expression for obtaining wing area is as follows,

S=
W0 =38,380kg

(W/S)take

We obtain S=119.88 m

W0
W
( S )takeof f
o =

(3.4)

3137.4 N/m (From Previous Report).

We use the following formula for obtaining the wing span(b),(From denition of aspect ratio)

b=

(S AR)

(3.5)

This gives wing span as b=29.985 m.

Table (3.3) gives the wing area and wing span for similar aircraft.
From the Table (3.3) we observe that the wing span and area of the
Phoenix Jet is comparable to the wing span and area of similar aircraft.

[9]
2
Area(m )

Table 3.3: Wing span and Wing Area for Similar Aircrafts
Aircraft

Wing Span(m)

Wing

Dassault Falcon 7x

26.21

70.7

Gulfstream G500

28.49

105.6

Bombardier Global 5000

28.65

94.94

Gulfstream G650

30.41

119.2

3.2.3 Taper Ratio

The ratio of the chord length of the airfoil section at the wing tip to that of
the airfoil section at the wing root is dened as taper ratio. The selection of
the taper ratio involves many considerations.

A constant chord rectangular wing is easier and cheaper to manufacture

but is aerodynamically less ecient.

An elliptical wing is the most aerodynamically ecient but not easy to

manufacture.

Taper ratios of order 0.2-0.5 are found to be slightly less ecient than
elliptical wing congurations.

Moreover,an increased taper leads to reduction in the root bending

moment as the centre of lift moves inboard as taper is increased.

This decreases the structural weight of the wing considerably. Therefore we go with a taper ratio() of 0.2

3.2.4 Sweep Angle

Sweepback is mainly used to reduce drag from local ow velocities at or
near to supersonic speeds. Sweeping the wing planform (usually backwards)
allows thicker wing sections to be used and delays the onset of critical Mach
number.
be

0
33

For Phoenix Jet,the sweep angle (leading edge

LE )

is taken to

from the graph taken from reference [2],(see Figure 3.2) and for a

Mach number of 0.87. The quarter chord sweep angle(C/4 ) is given by the
equation

[2] ,

tan LE = tan C/4 +

10

1
AR(1 + )

(3.6)

Figure 3.2: Leading Edge Sweep vs Maximum Mach No.

AR= Aspect Ratio and

C/4 = 29.270

=Taper

[2]

Ratio.

3.2.5 Root and Tip Chord Length

[2]

Figure 3.3: Illustration of Root and Tip Chord length

The root chord length is given by the equation:

11

Croot =

2S
(1 + )b

(3.7)

where S is the wing area,b is the wing span and

Substituting S=119.88

2
m ,b=29.985

m and

=0.2

is the taper ratio.

,the Croot =6.663 m.

The tip chord length is given by the equation :

Ctip = Croot

(3.8)

Hence the value of Ctip =1.3326 m.

3.3

Tail

The tail assembly of the aircraft is also called the empennage. The tail is
essentially a device that provides stability and control to the aircraft. The
eectiveness of the tail,which is mostly used for trimming the aircraft,depends
on the lift produced by the tail and the distance of the tail from the centre
of gravity of the airplane.

Figure 3.4: The conventional tail assembly of an aircraft.

[6]

*Figure obtained from Reference [6]

The front of the horizontal portion of the tail is the horizontal stabilizer.
It provides pitch stability to the aircraft.

12

The rear section is called the

Figure 3.5: Rear View of the T-Tail.

[6]

*Figure obtained from Reference [6]

elevator and is usually hinged to the horizontal stabilizer. The elevator is a
movable airfoil that controls the up-and-down motion of the aircraft's nose.
The vertical structure consists of the vertical stabilizer,which constitutes the
front portion and provides yaw stability to the aircraft and the rudder,which
attached at the rear of vertical stabilizer and provides directional control.
A T-tail layout has been chosen for the Phoenix Jet aircraft which is shown

[6]

in Figure 3.5

The T-tail has been chosen based on data available from similar airplanes
(all possess a T-Tail) and also certain advantages of the T-tail.
In a T-tail conguration the horizontal stabilizer is mounted on top of the
n(vertical portion of tail).

Owing to this design layout,the tail is kept

out of the inuence of engine wake.

This provides smoother ow over the

tail,predictable design characteristics and better pitch control.

The T-tail

also provides a better glide ratio and experiences lesser fatigue because of the
nullied eect of downwash on the tail. The ns of T-tails should be stronger
to withstand the forces acting on the horizontal section,as a result,the T-tails
are generally heavier than the conventional tails. The T-tail also accounts
for a smaller vertical tail because of the end plate eect.
The typical aspect ratio of the horizontal tail is taken as 5 and that of the
vertical tail is taken as 1.2

[7] .

The taper ratios for the horizontal tail (H )is

taken as 0.5 and that of the vertical tail section

13

(V )

[7] .

is taken as 0.9

The leading edge sweep of the horizontal tail is set to be 5

that of wing

[2] .

greater than

This is done to ensure that the tail stalls after the wing and

also ensures that the critical Mach number of tail is greater than that of the

wing. Hence the sweep of the horizontal tail is taken as 38 . The vertical

tail sweep is taken 35 (slightly greater than the wing sweep angle).
Additionally the horizontal tail is 10% thinner than that of the wing to
increase the critical Mach number of the tail.
The primary purpose of the wing is to counter the moments due to the wing.
Hence the tail size is expected to be partially dependent of the wing size.
The tail volume coecient is a parameter which gives an estimate of the size
of the tail using the wing size. The expression for the tail volume coecient
is given by the following formula

[2] ,

cvt =

Lvt Svt
Sw bw

(3.9)

cht =

Lht Sht
Cw Sw

(3.10)

[2]

Figure 3.6: Pictorial Representation of moment arm

Lht and Lvt are the moment arms measured from the tail quarter chord to the
wing quarter chord.
bw and Sw are the wing span and wing area respectively.
14

Cw is the wing mean chord length.

cvt and cht are the vertical and horizontal tail volume coecients respectively.
Svt and Sht are the vertical and horizontal tail areas respectively .

[2] .

The typical values of cvt and cht for a jet aircraft is 0.0855 and 0.95 respectively
The tail arm is dened as the distance between the wing quarter chord point
and the tail.
The Phoenix Jet has aft-mounted engines (taken by comparing with similar
aircrafts) and hence the tail arm(for both horizontal and vertical tail) is taken

[2] .

as 45% of fuselage length

The moment arm then is calculated as 12.6 m.

b=29.985 m and Wing area=119.88 m

By rearranging Equations (3.9) and (3.10) we obtain tail areas as :

Svt = 24.249 m

Sht =36.13 m

ARvt =1.2 and ARht =5.

Using the aspect ratio values and wing areas we obtain the span of the
tails as,
bvt = 5.39 m

bht =13.44 m. (bvt and bht are spans of vertical tail

and horizontal tail respectively).

By using Equation (3.7) and (3.8) an estimation of the tail root and
tip chord length is done and the values are as follows,(the corresponding
area,span and taper ratios are used to obtain the chord length).
Croot(vt) =4.735 m

Ctip(vt) =4.26 m

Croot(ht) =3.584 m

Ctip(ht) =1.79 m

3.4

Control Surfaces

An aircraft possesses 3 main control surfaces- rudder( for directional (nose)

control) ,elevator (for pitch control) and the ailerons (for roll control).

[2] .

The aileron chord is assumed to be 20% of wing chord

The rudder and

[2] .

tail are assumed to have 35% of the corresponding tail chord

The chord

length for the rudder and elevator are chosen as above to partially nullify the
eect of control ineectiveness of T-tail at very high angle of attack.
The elevator and rudder have 90% of the corresponding tail span beginning
from the fuselage

[2] .

The aileron span is taken as 0.4 using the chord ratio of

0.2 from Figure 3.7

15

[2]

Figure 3.7: Graph of Aileron-wing span ratio vs chord ratio

The following dimensions were obtained for dierent control surfaces,

Aileron:
b=11.994 m

C=0.7995 m

Rudder:
b=4.851 m

C=1.52 m

Elevator:
b=12.096 m

C=0.932 m

* b and C represent the span and chord length respectively. C is calculated

using the mean chord length of the corresponding surface.

Conclusion

The third weight estimate of the Phoenix Jet was performed and the gross
take o weight was obtained using an iterative method. The values obtained
are as follows,
W0 =38,380 kg. (Take o Gross Weight )
WF =16,986 kg. (Fuel Weight at take o )

16

WE =19,654 kg. (Empty weight of Phoenix Jet)

The fuselage length was calculated and is found to be 28m. The geometry
sizing of the wing,tail and control surfaces was performed.Some important
geometric parameters are listed below,
Wing:
S=119.88 m

Tail:

(wing area) and b=29.985 m (wing span) AR=7.5

Svt = 24.249 m

Sht =36.13 m

ARvt =1.2 and ARht =5.

bvt = 5.39 m

bht =13.44 m. (where ht and vt represent horizontal

and vertical stabilizers respectively.)

17

References
[1] www.thefreedictionary.com
[2] D.P Raymer(1995),Aircraft Design: A Conceptual Approach,Publisher
- AIAA Education Series.
[3] www.google.com
[4] Lloyd.R.Jenkinson-(2003),Aircraft Design Projects for Engineering Students,Butterworth Heinemann Publications
[5] Dr. Roskam-(1985),Aircraft Design,Publisher-Roskam Aviation and Engineering Corporation.
[6] www.wikipedia.org
[7] http://adg.stanford.edu/aa241/stability/taildesign.html
[8] Santosh Ballal Amarnath, Ngugen Thanh Tue, Rui Tang-21st century
Business Jet-Aircraft Design Project-Departmental of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Adelaide
[9] www.planes.ndthebest.com

18