8.

4 FLIGHT STABILITY AND DYNAMICS

www.part66.blogspot.com

AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT
Aircraft is completely free to move in any direction Manoeuvre dive, climb, turn and roll, or perform

combinations of these.
Whenever an aircraft changes its attitude in flight, it must turn about one or all of these axes. Axes imaginary lines passing through the centre of the aircraft.

AXES ON AIRCRAFT

AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT

AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT

Longitudinal Axis
o Lengthwise from nose to tail through center of gravity o Rotation about this axis is called roll o Rolling is produced by movement of ailerons

AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT

Lateral Axis
o Spanwise from wingtip to wingtip through center of gravity o Rotation about this axis is called pitch (nose up or nose down) o Pitching is produced by movement of the elevators
AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT

Normal or Vertical Axis

o Passes from top to bottom of the aircraft through center of gravity o Right angle to longitudinal and lateral axis o Rotation about this axis is called yaw o Yawing is produced by movement of the rudder
AXES OF AN AIRCRAFT

STABILITY
o Aircraft characteristic to fly (hands off) in a straight and level flight path o To maintain a uniform flight path and recover from the various upsetting forces, such as, local air gusts or air density changes that cause deflections from the intended flight path o Aircraft ability to return to original position after being disturbed from its flight path o Changes are corrected automatically relieving the pilot from the task of correcting these deviations
STABILITY

Longitudinal Stability
Stability about lateral axis motion in pitch Longitudinally stable aircraft does not tend to put its nose down and dive or lift its nose and stall The aircraft has a tendency to keep a constant angle of attack Longitudinal Stability maintained by the horizontal stabilizer By correcting nose up or down moment will return the aircraft to level flight.

STABILITY

Lateral Stability
Stability about longitudinal axis rolling motion Laterally stable aircraft tend to return to the original attitude from rolling motion Lateral stability is maintained by the wing (design)
a. Dihedral the upward inclination of the wings from their point of attachment b. Sweepback wing leading edges are inclined backwards from their points of attachment
STABILITY

Lateral Stability

Dihedral

Sweepback

STABILITY

Directional Stability
Stability about the vertical axis Directionally stable aircraft tends to remain on its course in straight and level flight Directional stability is maintained by keel surface of the vertical stabilizer Sweptback wings also aid in directional stability (frontal area)
STABILITY

Directional Stability

STABILITY

Types of stability and motion

Stability Longitudinal Lateral Directional

Axes Lateral Longitudinal Normal

Motion about the Axis Pitch Roll Yaw

CONTROL IN FLIGHT
Different control surfaces used to provide aircraft control about each of the three axes Movement of the control surface will change the airflow over the aircrafts surface disturbed the balanced forces Aircraft controls are designed to be instinctive

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Control surfaces movement

Lateral Control
Controlling the aircraft about its longitudinal axis (rolling motion) Provided by the ailerons Rolling motion produce by increasing lift on one wing and reduce lift on the opposite wing Ailerons Hinged to the trailing edge towards the wingtips and form part of a wing Operated from the cockpit by mean of a control wheel or control stick or joystick

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Lateral Control
Sideways movement of the pilots control stick will cause the aileron on one wing to move upwards and, simultaneously, the aileron on the other wing to move downwards The unequal wing lift on each side of the aircraft produces a roll

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Lateral Control
For aircraft to roll one aileron deflected upward and one downward Lowered aileron lift increase + drag also increase (aileron drag or adverse yaw) The increased drag tries to turn the aircraft in the direction opposite to that desired Frise aileron or differential ailerons travel system used to overcome the problem of aileron drag

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Aileron Drag/Adverse Yaw

Differential ailerons travel

Frise aileron

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Longitudinal Control
Controlling the aircraft about the lateral axis (pitching motion) Provided by elevators Elevators are hinged to the trailing edge of the horizontal stabilizer Pitching motion
Forward control column elevators moves down giving the tailplane a positive camber thereby increasing its lift on the tail nose pitch down (dive) Backward control column elevators moves up giving the tailplane a reverse camber, producing negative lift on the tail nose pitch up (climb)
CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Longitudinal Control

CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Directional Control
Involves rotation about the normal axis (yawing motion) Controlled by rudder which is hinged to the trailing edge of the vertical stabilizer (Fin) Movement of rudder is by a pair of rudder pedals located in the cockpit Yawing motion
Yaw to the left move the left pedal forward, rudder is moved to the left and the nose will turn to the left about normal axis. The opposite effect is obtained from the forward movement of the pilots right foot.
CONTROL IN FLIGHT

Directional Control

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Movable airfoils designed to change the attitude of the aircraft about its three axes during flight Divided into three groups:i. primary group ii. secondary group iii. auxiliary group
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Primary Group
i. Ailerons hinged horizontally at the outboard trailing edge of each wing ii. Elevators hinged horizontally at the rear of each horizontal stabiliser iii. Rudder hinged vertically at the rear of the vertical stabiliser The ailerons and elevators are operated from the cockpit by a control stick or by a control wheel or by a joy stick. The rudder is operated by foot pedals.
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Secondary Group
Tabs small auxiliary control surfaces hinged at the trailing edge of a main flying control surfaces Various types of tab and fitted for various reasons
i. ii. iii. iv. Trim tab Balance tab Servo tab Spring tab
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Trim Tabs System

To trim out any unbalanced condition exist during flight, without applying any pressure on the primary controls Each trim tab is hinged to its parent primary control surface, but is operated by an independent control Trim Tab can be sub divided into two types:
i. Fixed trim tabs Only adjustable on ground before flight ii. Controllable trim tabs Can be controlled in flight by pilots (control by mechanical linkage or electric motor)

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Trim Tabs System

Fixed trim tab Controllable trim tab

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

 Trim tab(aileron, rudder, elevator) can be controlled manually or electrically Manual control knob or wheel located on the centre console Electrical by a thumb switch located on the control column for aileron and elevator rudder trim switch located on the centre console adjacent to the rudder trim wheel During operation, the tabs will always moved in the opposite direction from the primary control surfaces
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Trim Control

Elevator Trim

Rudder Trim

Aileron Trim
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Manual Control
To lower the right wing of the airplane and raise the left, the aileron tab control wheel is moved to the right and the reverse direction is used to lower the left wing. To trim the nose up, the elevator tab control wheel is moved

rearward, and to lower the nose, the wheel is moved forward.

To yaw to the left, the rudder tab control wheel is moved to the left and to yaw to the right, the control wheel is moved to the right.
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Electrical Trim Controls

Electrically operated systems are controlled by switches located at the top of the control column. These switches are moved forward or aft, to move the elevator tab and moving the switch to the left or right will move the aileron tab..

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Aileron Trim Controls

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Elevator Trim Controls

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Rudder Trim Controls

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Balance Tabs System

Assist pilot in moving the control surface (reduce pilots effort large control surface) Control rod cause the tab to move in the opposite direction to the movement of the primary control surface aerodynamic forces acting on the tab, assist in moving the main control surface

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

 Help in moving large primary control surfaces (similar to balance tab but differs in operation) Pilot input from the cockpit moves the tab, and the tab in turn develops forces which move the primary control surface A movement of the tab down will cause theFLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES control surface to move

Servo Tabs System

Spring Tabs System

At high speed , the control surfaces become increasingly difficult to move due to aerodynamic loads The spring tab helps to overcome this problem At low speed the spring tab remains in a neutral position, inline with the control surface. Only at high speed, where the aerodynamic load is great, the tab functions as an aid in moving the primary control surface.
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Auxiliary Group
This group of flight control surfaces include:i. ii. iii. iv. v. wing flaps spoilers speed brakes leading edge flaps slots and slats

May be divided into two sub-groups; Those whose primary purpose is lift augmenting e.g. flaps, slots and slats those whose primary purpose is lift decreasing e.g. speed brakes and spoilers
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Flaps
High lift device hinged on the inboard trailing edge of the wing Controlled from the cockpit, and when not in use fits smoothly into the lower surface of each wing Flaps increases the camber of a wing and therefore the lift of the wing, making it possible for the speed of the aircraft to be decreased without stalling Flaps are primarily used during take-off and landing
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Flaps

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES

Plain flaps
Retracted to form a complete section of the wing trailing edge

When in use it is hinged downwards

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Split flap
This flap is hinged at the lower part of the wing trailing edge. When lowered, the wing top surface is unchanged, thus eliminating the airflow break-away like what occurring over the top of the plain flap when lowering
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Zap Flap
Similar to the split flap except that the flap hinge travels rearward when lowered Increases wing effective area as well as its camber without changing the shape of the top surface Like the split flap there is little risk of flow separation on top of the wing
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Fowler Flap
The fowler is similar to the split flap but, when in use, it is moved rearwards and downwards on tracks. This action will increase the wing camber and also the wing area to give additional lift.
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slotted Flap
A gap or slot formed between the flap and the wing structure Air will flow from the wing lower surface, through the gap and over the top of the flap This airflow will maintain lift by speeding up as it passes through the slot and remaining in contact with the flat top surface, even at large flap angles Without the slot the upper surface airflow would break away
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slotted Flap

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slotted Fowler Flap

A Fowler flap with slot Multi-slotted on improved design Increase camber and area The breakaway of the airflow from the flap upper surface can be delayed until even greater angles of flap depression by providing two or more slots
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slotted Fowler Flap

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Leading edge flap

Referred as Kruegers Flap To increase lift at low speed Increase camber increase lift Leading and trailing edge flaps are normally coupled to operate together May be lowered automatically when the aircrafts speed falls to near the stalling speed
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slats
For low speed operation other than take-off or landing A small, highly-cambered airfoils fitted to the wing leading edges May be fixed open, or controlled to operate alone or jointly with the flaps Some aircraft have slats which open automatically when the wing angle of attack exceeds a predetermined value
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slats

FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Slot
Is a series of suitably shaped apertures built into the wing structure near the wing tips It increase the stalling angle by guiding and accelerating air from below the wing and discharging it over the upper surface in the normal way
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Airbrakes/Speed brakes
Movable panels forming part of the contour of the wings or fuselage Deflected into the airflow by hydraulic actuators to give a rapid reduction in speed when is required. Used to control speed during descent and landing approach Installed on the strongest airframe structure able to accept the braking loads and also where the braking drag does not effect the aircraft stability
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

Spoilers
Are plates fitted to the upper surface of the wing and usually deflected upward by hydraulic actuators The purpose is to disturb the smooth airflow across the top of the wing, thereby increasing drag and decreased lift on that aircraft
FLIGHT CONTROL SURFACES [Auxiliary Group]

DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

The design of some aircraft makes it impossible to mount the conventional aileron, elevator and rudder control surfaces in their normal positions. An example of this is a delta wing type aircraft. This has no separate tailplane, and the elevators have to be mounted on the wing trailing edges. This presents a space problem because the wings already house the ailerons and flaps. The solution in this case is to use one set of control surfaces to perform the function of both.
DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

Elevons
o Use to perform the function of both elevators and ailerons

o The surfaces are moved

in the same direction to

serve as elevators and

in opposite directions to
DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

o Prevent hot exhaust gases from the turbo-jet engine playing on the tail unit surfaces, and for other design considerations, some light aircraft have tailplanes with very pronounced dihedral angles o V tailplane with its hinged aft control surfaces provides DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS

Ruddervators

o On some high speed aircraft it is often necessary to have flaps which occupy the entire trailing edges of the wings, leaving no space for the ailerons. o Controllable tailplane move separately. o Pitch angling both sides either up, or down, together o Roll angling one side up and, simultaneously, the other side down DUAL PURPOSE CONTROLS o Roll regulate lift on

Tailerons