Ac Design Notes Unit 1&2

Sathyabama university Department of Aeronautical Engineering
SATHYABAMA UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING
SAEX 1025- AIRCRAFT DESIGN CLASS NOTES
SYLLABUS
UNIT I REVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS IN AVIATION 10 hrs.
Categories and types of aircrafts – various configurations – Layouts and their relative merits –
strength, stiffness, fail safe and fatigue requirements – Maneuvering load factors – Gust and
maneuverability envelopes – Balancing and maneuvering loads on tail planes.
UNIT II POWER PLANT TYPES AND CHARACTERISTICS 10 hrs.
Characteristics of different types of power plants – Propeller characteristics and selection –

Relative merits of location of power plant.
UNIT III PRELIMINARY DESIGN 10 hrs.
Selection of geometric and aerodynamic parameters – Weight estimation and balance diagram –
Drag estimation of complete aircraft – Level flight, climb, take – off and landing calculations –
range and endurance – static and dynamic stability estimates – control requirements.
UNIT IV SPECIAL PROBLEMS 10 hrs.
Layout peculiarities of subsonic and supersonic aircraft – optimization – of wing loading to

achieve desired performance – loads on undercarriages and design requirements.
UNIT V STRUCTURAL DESIGN 10 hrs.
Estimation of loads on complete aircraft and components – Structural design of fuselage, wings
and undercarriages, controls, connections and joints. Materials for modern aircraft – Methods of
analysis, testing and fabrication.
TEXT BOOKS
1. D.P. Raymer, “Aircraft Conceptual design”, AIAA Series, 1988.
2. G. Corning, “Supersonic & Subsonic Airplane Design”, II Edition, Edwards Brothers Inc.,
Michigan, 1953.
3. E.F. Bruhn, “Analysis and Design of Flight Vehicle Structures”, Tristate Offset Co., U.S.A.,
1980.
Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

REFERENCES
1. E. Torenbeek, “Synthesis of Subsonic Airplane Design”, Delft University Press, London,

1976.
2. H.N.Kota, Integrated design approach to Design fly by wire” Lecture notes Interline Pub.
Bangalore, 1992.
3. A.A. Lebedenski, “Notes on airplane design”, Part-I, I.I.Sc., Bangalore
UNIVERSITY EXAM QUESTION PAPER PATTERN
Max. Marks: 80 Exam Duration: 3 hrs.
PART A : 2 Questions from each unit, each carrying 2 marks20 marks
PART B : 2 Questions from each unit with internal choice, each carrying 12 marks60 marks
(70% Theory and 30% Problems may be asked)

UNIT-I
Introduction
Purpose and scope of airplane design: The process of design in general involves use of
knowledge in diverse fields to arrive at a product. Airplane design involves synthesizing
knowledge in areas like aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, systems and manufacturing
techniques, to arrive at the configuration of an airplane that will satisfy requirements regarding

functional aspects, operational safety and cost . The design of an airplane is a complex
engineering task. It generally involves the following.
i) Obtaining the specifications and determining the geometric parameters.

ii) Selection of power plant.
iii) Structural design and working out details of construction.
iv) Fabrication of prototype.
v) Testing of prototypes
vi) Determination of airplane performance, stability, loads and structural integrity from flight
tests.
Stages in Airplane Design:
The design process can be divided into the following three stages.
a) Project feasibility study.
b) Preliminary Design.
c) Design Project
A) Project Feasibility Studies:
The aim of this study is to evolve a complete set of specifications. It involves the following.
1) Comprehensive market survey to assess the number of airplanes needed.

2) Study of the operating conditions for the proposed airplane. These conditions include landing
field length, type of landing field, weather conditions in flight and near landing sites and
visibility.
3) Study of relevant design requirements as laid down by civil and military regulating agencies.
4) Evaluation of existing designs of similar airplanes and possibility of incorporating new
concepts.
5) Collection of data on relevant power plants.
6) Laying down preliminary specifications which may consist of the following.
a) Performance: Maximum velocity, maximum rate of climb, range, endurance, rate of turn,
radius of turn, take-off and landing distances. b) pay load operating conditions.
B) Preliminary Design.

This stage of design process aims at producing a brochure containing preliminary drawings and
stating operational capabilities of the airplane for approval by the manufacturer or the customer.
It includes the following items.
i) Selection of geometrical parameters of main components based on design criteria.
ii) Arrangement of equipment, and control systems.
iii) Selection of power plant.
iv) Aerodynamic and stability calculations.
v) Preliminary structural design of main components.
vi) Weight estimation and c.g. travel.
vii) Preparation of 3-view drawing.
viii) Performance estimation.ix) Preparation of brochure.
C) Design Project:
After the preliminary design has been approved by the manufacture / customer , the detailed
design studies are carried out. These include the following.
1) Complete wind tunnel testing.
2) Construction of Mock-up: This is a full scale model of the airplane or its important sections.
This helps in
(a) efficient lay-out of structural components and equipments .(b) checking the clearances, firing
angles of guns, visibility etc. Currently this stage can be avoided by the use of CAD packages.
3)Complete wind tunnel testing of the approved configuration. Currently CFD
(Computational Fluid Dynamics) plays an important role in reducing the number of test to be
carried out.
4) Preparation of detailed design drawings.
5) Structural layout of all individual units and parts and their stress analysis.
6) structural and functional testing
7) supplying key and assembly diagrams.
8) Final selection of power plant, c.g. calculations, performance & stability calculations.
9) Fabrication of prototypes. Generally six prototypes are constructed . Some of them are
used for verifying structural integrity and functioning of various systems. Others are used for
flight testing to evaluate performance and stability.

10) Pre-production manufacture and flight testing to ensure that the defects in the prototype (s)
have been corrected .
11)Series production and flight testing to meet specified operational and airworthiness
requirements.
12)Obtaining type certificate :It is a legal document, issued by regulating agency like Federal
Aviation Agency (FAA) in USA, allowing the manufacturer to offer the item (e.g. aircraft ) for
sale.
Categories and types of aircrafts
Aircrafts are classified based on the a)purpose b) configuration
AIRCRAFTS
BASED ON PURPOSE BASED ON CONFIGURATION
Civil aircrafts Military aircrafts By shape,number and position of

wings
Passenger a/c Fighter a/c By type of fuselage
Cargo a/c Bomber a/c By location of horizontal tail
Agricultural a/c Interceptor a/c By type engines
Sports a/c Reconnaissance a/c By no of Engines
Ambulance a/c Troop carriers By location of power plants
Rescue a/c By type and location of landing gear
Classification Based on shape and position of wings
 Braced biplane
 Braced sesquiplane
 Semi cantilever monoplane(pushpak,piper cub)
 Semi- cantilever parasol monoplane(Baby Ace)
 Cantilever low wing monoplane(DC-3,HJT-16,H-18)
 Cantilever high wing monoplane(An-22,Breguet 941,Fokker friendship)
 Cantilever mid wing monoplane(Hunter,Canberra)
 Straight wing(F-104A)
 Swept wing monoplane(HF-24,Mig-21)
 Delta monoplane(Avro-707,B-58 Hustler,Avro Vulcan)

Classification by type of fuselage
 Conventional single fuselage design(ex: HT-2,Boeing 707)

 Twin fuselage design
 Pod and boom construction(packet,Vampire
Classification by the location of horizontal tail
 Horizontal tail located behind the wing(Avro 748)

 Tailless design with no horizontal tail(B-58,Mirage IV,Concorde)
 Canard design with horizontal tail located ahead of the wing(XB-70A)
Classification by types of landing gear
 Retractable landing gear(Dc 9,SAAB-35)

 Non retractable landing gear(Pushpak,An-14,fuji KM-2)
 Tail wheel landing gear(HT-2,Dakotacessna 185)
 Nose wheel landing gear(Avro-748, Tu-134)
 By cycle landing gear(Yak-25,HS-P,1127,U-2)
Classification by no of engines

 Single engine aircraft(HJT-16,Hunter,DH Chipmunk)

 Twin engine aircraft(HF-24,Dc-3,Canberra)
 Multi engine aircraft(An-22,Boeing 707)
Types of engines
 Piston engines
 Jet engines
 Ram jet engines
 Rockets
Location of power plants
 Engine located in fuselage nose(HT-2,Yak-9,A-109)

 Pusher engine located in the rear of fuselage(Bede XBD-2)
 Engines submerged in the wing-a) at the root (Tu-104,Tu-16) b) Along the span(U-2,YF-
12A)
 Engines in nacelles suspended under the wing(Boeing 707,DC-8Convair880)
 Engines(jet) located at the rear of the fuselage(VC-10,11-62)
 Engines located within the fuselage(HF-24,Lightning,MIG-19)
Primary requirements for Civil Aircraft
Passenger Cargo
1. High Safety level 1. High pay load carrying
capacity
2. High payload carrying capacity 2. Economy in operation
3. Economy in operation 3. Ability to fly in any weather
4. Comforts 4. Suitable for civil aerodromes
5. Ability to fly in any Weather
(All-weather flying)
aerodromes
6. Ability to use aerodromes of respective classes
Primary requirements for Military Aircraft

Strategic Tactical
1.Long range (over 6000 km) 1. Long range 3000-5000 km)
2. High load carrying capa city - 2. High load carrying capacity (2000-4000
kg)
(above 6000 kg)
3. High speed 3. High speed
4. High endurance 4. High ceiling
5. High ceiling 5. High endurance
6. Adequate fire protection 6. All-weather flying
7. Ability to use field aerodromes
Primary requirements for Military Aircraft - FIGHTERS

Tactical Interceptor
1. High speed (300-400 1. High rate of climb
kmph- more than contem-
porary bomber speeds)
2. High ceiling (2-4 km than 2. High ceiling (3-4 km
contemporary bomber more than contempo rary bomber ceilings) ceilings
3. Maneuverability 3. High speed (500-600 kmph

more than
contemporary bomber speeds
4. Sufficient endurance 4. High Maneuverability
(1 to 1.5 hrs)
5. High rate of climb 5. All-weather flying
6. Ability to launch repeated attacks 6. Ability to fire powerful single
volley at target
7. All-weather flying 7. Ease of dismantling and
assembling
8. Ability to use field aerodromes
9. Ease of dismantling and assembling
Primary requirements of bomber
 long range,
 high load carrying capacity,
 high speed ,
 high endurance,
 high ceiling and
 adequate fire protection.
Primary requirements of interceptor
 high rate of climb,

 high ceiling (3 to 4 km above contemporary
bombers),
 high speed ,
 high maneuverability,
 ability to fly in any weather and
 appropriate armament.
Tailless and Flying Wing Design
A flying wing is a tailless fixed-wing aircraft which has no definite fuselage, with most of the
crew, payload and equipment being housed inside the main wing structure
Advantages of tailless and flying wing design

 Small drag-reduction of the number of non lifting surfaces and minimizing the
interference effects lead to much lower CD.
 Smaller structural weight. In this design the horizontal tail and that part of the fuselage
carrying the tail is eliminated.The bending moment is less
 Large thickness at the root of the wing .The structure can therefore be made lighter due to
the increasedrigidity of the wing section
Disadvantages
 Restricted c.g travel due to the absence of horizontal stabilizer

 The wing tips are wash-out. This causes a negative lift at wing tips and hence a larger
wing area is required to develop the same overall lift.
 Poor directional stability
 Use of high lift devices results in large diving moments.
 Reversal of panel stresses at wing tips-Due to the negative lift at the tips of flying wing
some of the wing panels have to be designed for both tensile and compressive loads
Canard design
In this special type of design the horizontal tail surfaces are located ahead of the main plane. In
the major part of the flight the canard tail assists the wing in sharing the weight. The horizontal
tail is effective as it is not in the downwash of the wing surface.
Advantages
 The forces acting on the horizontal tail is upwards and supplements the lift developed by
the wing. Hence for the same CL the wing area is reduced, and there is a decrease in drag.
 The wing weight is lesser than the conventional aircraft wing
 At low speeds the horizontal tail stalls first, and automatically sets the airplane to a
smaller angle of attack. Wing stall is difficult.
 After reaching the critical mach number the lifting stabilizer permits compensation of the
growing wing diving moment
 When the mach number increases, the static stability of the canard also increases.
Disadvantages
 Shock stall may occur on the horizontal stabilizer before occurs in the wing
 At supersonic speeds the longitudinal stability is more difficult in the canard the canard
type than conventional airplane.
 The elevator power required for landing is very high.
 The landing characteristics are very poor.
The advantages of high wing design

 Increased lateral stability

 The possibility of engine failure due to suction of hard particles from the ground is 4
times less than in a low wing design.
 In passenger aircraft there is passenger comfort. The down view of the passenger is
undisturbed by the wing
 In cargo aircraft , loading and unloading are easier, on account of the lower position of
fuselage.
 The interference drag is lower as compared to low wing airplane.
Disadvantages of high wing design
 The area of the vertical stabilizer is 20-22% of the wing area as compared to 10-12 % in
low wing design. This increases weight and drag.
 The weight of the fuselage is increased as lower fuselage is to be reinforced for
protection in emergency landing.
 The weight of the fuselage structure is increased by the heavy frames needed for the
attachment of the landing gear to the fuselage.Landing gear weight also very high.
 If the bogies are attached to the fuselage the treads are narrow, which leads to poor
stability on the ground.
 Maintenance and inspection of engines are difficult
Location of engines
 Engine under pylons

 Inside the root portion of the wing
 Outside the rear fuselage
Advantages in engine under pylon
 The weight of wing structure decreases by 15-20 %as the wing is relieved by the weight
of the engines
 The space inside the wing is utilized for fuel storage,maintenance,inspection and
replacements are facilitated
 The wing structure is free from the heat from the engines, and better fire safty can be
achieved.
Disadvantages
 Failure of outboard engine create a large yawing moment. This moment has to be counted
by rudder deflection which results in higher drag.
 Smaller ground clearance increases the possibility of foreign particles entering the
engines.

 The noise level in the cabin is 5 db higher as compared to airplanes having engines on the
rear fuselage.
Engines located in the wing root
Advantages
 There is very little increase in frontal area due to installation of power plants.
 Almost the entire wing span can be used for ailerons and high lift devices
Disadvantages.
 The weight of the wing is high due to the cut portion in the wing spars to accommodate
engine
 The weight of the power plant is high due to the long air ducts.
 The intake is located at a place where the air flow is not clear.
 The space in the root cannot be used for fuel accommodation
Engine located on the rear fuselage
Advantages
 There is less noise in the cabin and the fuselage

 The entire wing can be used for fuel storage
 The whole wing space can be used for high lift devices and ailerons
 Fire hazard is minimum.
 The actual wing does not deviate from the design profile and the wing is clean.
Disadvantages
 The fuel is located far from the engines, therefore the length of the pipe line is increased
and special fuel pumps should be provided.
 Due to power plant weight at the tail, longer fuselage is provided ahead of the wing
which requires larger vertical and horizontal stabilizers.
STRUCTURE REQUIREMENTS
(in FAR – 25)
LOADS – Loads are critically affected by MANOEUVERS, stability of the airplane, and
also a wide range of structural temperature (particularly in SST). Loads must be determined
under all specified conditions.

FACTORS OF SAFETY –Ultimate strength/Limit load
LIMIT LOAD – (Unfactored Load) – The largest load likely to occur in the operational
conditions – Not a static load – Generally represents some DYNAMIC MANOEUVRING
CONDITION (V-n diagram).
PROOF LOAD – Limit Load x (1 to 1.33)
The structure must withstand the Proof Load without DETRIMENTAL DISTORTION.
TESTING – The primary method for proof of structure, (static and fatigue), due to the
complexities and uncertainties. Static tests to ultimate strength levels for both NORMAL
and FAIL-SAFE conditions must be the primary method of PROOF of original and residual
static strength
Strength Criterion
The problems associated with the strength of Aircraft structures are three-fold:
(i) The selection of maneuvering and other conditions appropriate to the intended use of
the aircraft and the specifications of these in terms of the design cases.
(ii) The estimation of the loading systems acting on the aircraft structures arising from
these design cases. (This is under the domain of both Aerodynamics and Aircraft Structures)
(iii) The estimation of the stresses and therefore the overall strength of the aircraft
structure under the applied loading system (This is purely under Aircraft Sructures)
The selection of maneuvering conditions to be used for design purposes is largely the
concern of the airworthiness authorities whose task is to prepare the handbooks of official
requirements (e.g., F.A.R; B.C.A.R; etc;)
ADDITIONAL ASPECTS FOR STRUCTURE
FITTING FACTORS IN DESIGN –
 FITTING MARGIN OF SAFETY MUST BE INCORPORATED
 IT CAN BE TAKEN AS ABOUT 15% FOR MILITARY AIRCRAFT AND ABOUT

20% FOR COMMERCIAL AIRCRAFT.
 SPECIAL FITTING FACTORS ARE NECESSARY FOR REPEATED LOADS,

VIBRATION AND IMPACT LOADS.
IMPORTANT FACTORS IN STRUCTURAL DESIGN
  ult /  y.p.

 Ductility of material and resilience of the component
 Effective S.C.F. (Fatigue)
 Load Paths – Fatigue – Fail Safe
 Load spectrum – Random loading
 Reliability of stress analysis – Systems approach
 Scatter in local stress values – Environment
 Lubrication of contact surfaces
Grade of workmanship – Production processes – Human efforts
Flight envelope (V-n diagram)
Airplane can develop load factors in flight(Aero dynamic forces) and during landing and take off
(ground reactions)- Flight loads and ground loads- These loads can act in any direction.
As flight loads are more important and also lift causes major load factors, all flight load factors
in vertical direction , are generally prescribed within a “flight envelop”. The flight envelope is a
plot of vertical load factor against speed of the aircraft, hence it is also called V-n diagram. As
vertical load factor (lift) can vary with w and ρ also in adition to v, any V-n diagram refers to
specified w and ρ (gross weight and altitude)
At low speeds, the maximum lift is limited by c Lmax usually with flap retracted. From simple
relationship
L=½ ρv2cLSw = nw can be obtained for different speeds, if cLis known. For c Lmax, the curve is a
parabola.-OA
Note : When n =1, V= Vstall

As V increases, n will increase very rapidly (α v2) and in order to have a practical design for
structure and other components, an upper limit for n is fixed. Evidently this limit depends upon
the type and role of aircraft i.e. the limit should not be too low as to impose undue restrictions on
the role or utility of the aircraft. From experience and flight data, the order of n max for transport
aircraft, n max- 3to 4: trainer aircraft or aerobatic planes n max 6to 7; fighter airplanes 8-10. A
horizontal line AB representing n max gives the upper boundary of flight envelope.
Similarly on the speed axis, it is desirable to have a limiting speed, called limit diving speed or
never exceed speed etc. VD is fixed on similar considerations as nmax and is generally related
to Vmax level or V cruise. VD generally is limited either by power limitation or by controlin
Gust loads
Aircraft can also experience loads?load factors if a gust strikes on the wing, tail or body. A
vertical gust(up or down) can have appreciable effect on the wing lift, as it can substantially
change the direction of relative wind.
DIA
Assume an aircraft is flying steady level at incidence α( i.e n=1) effect of up gust of velocity U
will be to change the direction of relative wind , the effect of incidence α is changed to α+ǿ.
tanǿ=U/V or ǿ=V/U
The new lift(L+ΔL) produced corresponds to incidence α+ǿ. The increase in the lift ΔL is given
by
ΔL=½ρv2SΔcL =½ρv2Sm ǿ where m=dcL/dα
=½ρV2Sm U/V = ½ρSmUV
Δn=ΔL/W =½ρSmUV/W
n gust = 1±Δn
The above formula assumes a sudden gust of full intensity or sharp edge gust. Sometimes, gust
may gradually build up from low velocity to high speed, in which case the effect is not so
serious. To account for this gradualness as also the flexibility effect of wing, a ‘sharp edged gust’
of U max is assumed and a factor K, alleviating factor is applied in the formula i.e. KU max is used
in place of U. K is generally a function of W or W/S or sometimes arbitrarily specified.
A gust envelop can now be drawn, if the relevant gust speed U max and V are known.

Note: Since n α V,the from n=1
Civil aircraft specified : e.g
U max=66ft/sec at VB(intersection of CL max and 66’/sec)
= 50ft/sec at VC
= 25ft/sec at VD
Military planes
U max=50ft/sec at 0.9 VM with K
=25 ft/sec at 0.9 VD with K=1
Gust load factor depends on also the weight of the airplane. Unlike the manouring case,
in gust cases, the empty weight(lower w) cases give higher laod factor.
It may be noted, when both gust envelope may reveal some areas outside the maneuvering
envelope.The limitations of speed and load factors both maneuvering and gust, are opf great
importance to all concerned. To the designer V-n diagram is the starting point for the structural
design. To the pilot, V-n diagram is the warning notice during flight. For this reason, V-n
diagram is always included in all documents- Design manual, flight manual, operation manual
etc.
Design-configuration criteria
Before the design of any component can be commenced it is necessary to divide the criterion for
design of particular component.
Strength Design
Strong enough to carry all the loads likely to occur- the parameter for comparison is stress. If the
actual stress on the member is not more than the maximum allowable stress or failure stress. A
good design involves proper selection of material, size, shape, location and assembly.
Stiffness Design
Stiff enough to meet the requirement of design e.g.wing skin deflection should be small, so that
aerodynamic shape of an aerofoil is reasonably met.
Other criterion : Fatigue, aeroelastic, temperature resistance , electrical requirements,optical

requirement.
Generally strength design is initially followed and where stiffness or other criterion is
called for, additional checks are made and redesigned where necessary.

Engineering diagnosis: Next stage in the design will be to identify the nature of behavior of
each member under load in
compression- cloumn
Bending- beam
Shear - web-thin sheet
Torsion - Closed cell or parallel webs
Combined loads - Combination of above.
1. What is the primary function of the McDonnell Douglas F-15C?
a) Light bomber
b) Reconnaissance
c) Heavy bomber
d) Air-to-air interceptor
The correct answer is d) Air-to-air interceptor
2. What is the primary function of the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird?
a) Search-and-rescue
b) Heavy bomber
c) Reconnaissance
d) Close air support
The correct answer is c) Reconnaissance
3. What is the primary function of the McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle?
a) Heavy bomber
b) Air-to-ground attack aircraft
c) Tactical fighter
d) Interceptor
The correct answer is b) Air-to-ground attack aircraft
4. What is the primary function of the Lockheed F-16 Fighting Falcon?
a) Multirole fighter
b) Interceptor

c) Heavy bomber
d) Air-to-ground attack aircraft
The correct answer is a) Multirole fighter
5. What is the primary function of the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-25P Foxbat-A?
a) Interceptor
b) Bomber
c) Air superiority fighter
The correct answer is a) Interceptor
6. What is the primary function of the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 Fishbed?
a) Heavy bomber
b) Fighter/interceptor
c) Close air support
The correct answer is b) Fighter/interceptor
7. What is the primary function of the Boeing F/A-18C Hornet?
a) Multirole attack/fighter
b) Interceptor
c) Long-range bomber
d) Trainer
The correct answer is a) Multirole attack/fighter
8. What is the primary function of the Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker?
a) Multirole fighter
b) Interceptor
c) Strategic bomber
d) Close air support
The correct answer is a) Multirole fighter
9. What is the primary function of the Fairchild A-10 Thunderbolt II?
a) Search-and-rescue
b) Fighter/attack

c) Close air support

d) Heavy bomber
The correct answer is c) Close air support
10. What is the primary function of the Boeing B-1B Lancer?
a) Air-to-ground attack aircraft

b) Heavy bomber
c) Interceptor
d) Search-and-rescue
The correct answer is b) Heavy bomber
1. The Panavia Tornado was a consortium between which three countries?
a) Great Britain, Italy and Germany

b) Germany, Sweden and France
c) Great Britain, Germany and Sweden
d) France, Italy and Great Britain
The correct answer is a) Great Britain, Italy and Germany
2. On what date did the prototype of the Dassault-Breguet Mirage III fly?
a) 13th February 1960

b) 13th November 1956
c) 17th November 1956
d) 13th February 1957
The correct answer is c) 17th November 1956
3. The Dassault-Breguet Mirage 2000B has how many seats?
a) One
b) Four
c) Three
d) Two
The correct answer is d) Two
4. What is the NATO code name for the MIG 21 jet fighter?
a) Fishbed
b) Flogger

c) Fishfood
d) Foxbat
The correct answer is a) Fishbed
5. What is the NATO code name for the Sukhoi Su-15 jet fighter?
a) Flagon
b) Falcon
c) Fiddler
d) Force
The correct answer is a) Flagon
6. The Tupolev Tu-128 "Fiddler" has how many engines?
a) Four
b) One
c) Two
d) Three
The correct answer is c) Two
7. The JA37 Viggen is manufactured by whom?
a) Panavia
b) Saab
c) Ford
d) Cadillac
The correct answer is b) Saab
8. The McDonnell Douglas F-15 is known as the what?
a) Beagle
b) Eagle
c) Legal
d) Devil
The correct answer is b) Eagle
9. The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom could achieve a top speed in excess of Mach 2.
a) True
b) False

The correct answer is a) True
10. Which country produces the IAI Kfir?
a) USA
b) Israel
c) UK
d) Russia
The correct answer is b) Israel
http://www.jagranjosh.com/articles/general-awareness-grand-slam-quiz-1329121803-1
Weight Control
Weight is a major factor in airplane construction and operation, and it demands respect from all
pilots and particular diligence by all AMTs. Excessive weight reduces the efficiency of an
aircraft and the safety margin available if an emergency condition should arise. When an
aircraft is designed, it is made as light as the required structural strength will allow, and the
wings or rotors are designed to support the maximum allowable gross weight. When the weight
of an aircraft is increased, the wings or rotors must produce additional lift and the structure must
support not only the additional static loads, but also the dynamic loads imposed by flight
maneuvers.
For example, the wings of a 3,000-pound airplane must support 3,000 pounds in level flight, but
when the airplane
is turned smoothly and sharply using a bank angle of 60°,the dynamic load requires the wings to
support twice this, or 6,000 pounds. Severe uncoordinated maneuvers or flight into turbulence
can impose dynamic loads on the structure great enough to cause failure. The structure of a
normal category airplane must be strong enough to sustain a load factor of 3.8 times its weight;
that is, every pound of weight added to an aircraft requires that the structure be strong enough to
support an additional 3.8 pounds. An aircraft operating in the utility category must sustain a load
factor of 4.4, and acrobatic category aircraft must be strong enough to withstand 6.0 times their
weight.
The lift produced by a wing is determined by its airfoil shape, angle of attack, speed through the
air, and the air density. When an aircraft takes off from an airport with a high density altitude, it
must accelerate to a speed faster than would be required at sea level to produce enough lift to
allow takeoff; therefore, a longer takeoff run is necessary. The distance needed may be longer
than the available runway. When operating from a high density altitude airport, the Pilot’s
Operating Handbook (POH) or Airplane Flight Manual
(AFM)must be consulted to determine the maximum weight allowed for the aircraft under the
conditions of altitude,
temperature, wind, and runway conditions.
Effects of Weight
Most modern aircraft are so designed that if all seats are occupied, all baggage allowed by the
baggage compartment structure is carried, and all of the fuel tanks are full, the aircraft will be

grossly overloaded. This type of design gives the pilot a great deal of latitude in loading the
aircraft for a particular flight. If maximum range is required, occupants or baggage must be left
behind, or if the maximum load must be carried, the range, dictated by the amount of fuel on
board, must be reduced.
Some of the problems caused by overloading an aircraft are:
• The aircraft will need a higher takeoff speed, which results in a longer takeoff run.
• Both the rate and angle of climb will be reduced.
• The service ceiling will be lowered.
• The cruising speed will be reduced.
• The cruising range will be shortened.
• Maneuverability will be decreased.
• A longer landing roll will be required because the landing
speed will be higher.
• Excessive loads will be imposed on the structure, especially the landing gear.
The POH or AFM includes tables or charts that give the pilot an indication of the performance
expected for any gross weight. An important part of careful preflight planning includes a check
of these charts to determine the aircraft is loaded so the proposed flight can be safely made.
Static load: The load imposed on an aircraft structure due to the weight of the aircraft and its
contents.
Dynamic load: The actual weight of the aircraft multiplied by the load factor, or the increase in
weight caused by acceleration.
Load factor: The ratio of the maximum load an aircraft can sustain to the total weight of the
aircraft. Normal category aircraft must have a load factor of at least 3.8, utility category aircraft
4.4, and acrobatic category aircraft, 6.0.
Density altitude: Pressure altitude corrected for nonstandard temperature.
High Density Altitude Airport Operations
Consult the POH or AFM to determine the maximum weight allowed for the aircraft under the
conditions of altitude, temperature, wind, and runway conditions.
Your preflight planning must include a careful check of gross weight performance charts to
determine the aircraft is loaded properly and the proposed flight can be safely made.
Pilot’s Operating Handbook (POH):
An FAA-approved document published by the airframe manufacturer that lists the operating
conditions for a particular model of aircraft and its engines.
Airplane Flight Manual (AFM): An FAA-approved document, prepared by the holder of a
Type Certificate for an airplane or rotorcraft, that specifies the operating limitations and contains
the required markings and placards and other information applicable to the regulations under
which the aircraft was certificated.
Weight Changes
The maximum allowable gross weight for an aircraft is determined by design considerations.
However, the
maximum operational weight may be less than the maximum allowable due to such
considerations as high density altitude or high-drag field conditions caused by wet grass or water
on the runway. The maximum gross weight may also be limited by the departure or arrival
airport’s runway length.

One important preflight consideration is the distribution of the load in the aircraft. Loading an
aircraft so the gross weight is less than the maximum allowable is not enough. This weight
must be distributed to keep the CG within the limits specified in the POH or AFM.
If the CG is too far forward, a heavy passenger can be moved to one of the rear seats or baggage
can be shifted from a forward baggage compartment to a rear compartment. If the CG is too far
aft, passenger weight or baggage can be shifted forward. The fuel load should be balanced
laterally: the pilot should pay special attention to the POH or AFM regarding the operation of
the fuel system, in order to keep the aircraft balanced in flight.
Weight and balance of a helicopter is far more critical than for an airplane. A helicopter may be
properly loaded for takeoff, but near the end of a long flight when the fuel tanks are almost
empty, the CG may have shifted enough for the helicopter to be out of balance laterally or
longitudinally.
Before making any long flight, the CG with the fuel available for landing must be checked to
ensure it will be within the allowable range.
Airplanes with tandem seating normally have a limitation requiring solo flight to be made from
the front seat in some airplanes or the rear seat in others. Some of the smaller helicopters also
require solo flight be made from a specific seat, either the right or the left. These seating
limitations will be noted by a placard, usually on the instrument panel, and they should be strictly
adhered to.
As an aircraft ages, its weight usually increases due to trash and dirt collecting in hard-to-reach
locations, and moisture absorbed in the cabin insulation. This growth in weight is normally
small, but it can only be determined by accurately weighing the aircraft.
Changes of fixed equipment may have a major effect upon the weight of the aircraft. Many
aircraft are overloaded by the installation of extra radios or instruments. Fortunately, the
replacement of older, heavy electronic equipment with newer, lighter types results in a weight
reductionchange, however helpful, will probably cause the CG to shift and this must be
computed and annotated in the weight and balance data.
Repairs and alterations are the major sources of weight changes, and it is the responsibility of the
AMT making any repair or alteration to know the weight and location of these changes, and to
compute the new CG and record the new empty weight and EWCG in the aircraft weight and
balance data.
The AMT conducting an annual or 100-hour inspection must ensure the weight and balance data
in the aircraft records is current and accurate. It is the responsibility of the pilot in command to
use the most current weight and balance data when operating the aircraft.
Service ceiling: The highest altitude at which an aircraft can maintain a steady rate of climb of
100 feet per minute.
Has the Aircraft Gained Weight?

As an aircraft ages, its weight usually increases. Repairs and alterations are the major sources of
weight change.
AMTs conducting an annual or 100-hour inspection must ensure the weight and balance data in
the aircraft records is current and accurate.The pilot in command’s responsibility is to use the
most current weight and balance data when planning a flight.
Balanced laterally: Balanced in such a way that the wings tend to remain level.

Stability and Balance Control

Balance control refers to the location of the CG of an aircraft. This is of primary importance to
aircraft stability, which determines safety in flight.
The CG is the point at which the total weight of the aircraft is assumed to be concentrated,
and the CG must be located within specific limits for safe flight. Both lateral and
longitudinal balance are important, but the prime concern is longitudinal balance; that is, the
location of the CG along the longitudinal or lengthwise axis.
An airplane is designed to have stability that allows it to be trimmed so it will maintain straight
and level flight with hands off of the controls. Longitudinal stability is maintained by ensuring
the CG is slightly ahead of the center of lift. This produces a fixed nose-down force independent
of the airspeed. This is balanced by a variable nose-up force, which is produced by a downward
aerodynamic force on the horizontal tail surfaces that varies directly with airspeed.
As long as the CG is maintained within the allowable limits for its weight, the airplane will have
adequate longitudinal stability and control. If the CG is too far aft, it will be too near the center
of lift and the airplane will be unstable, and difficult to recover from a stall. If the unstable
airplane should ever enter a spin, the spin could become flat and recovery would be difficult or
impossible.
If a rising air current should cause the nose to pitch up, the airplane will slow down and the
downward force on the tail will decrease. The weight concentrated at the CG will pull the nose
back down. If the nose should drop in flight, the airspeed will increase and the increased
downward tail load will bring the nose back up to level flight.
If the CG is too far forward, the downward tail load will have to be increased to maintain level
flight. This increased tail load has the same effect as carrying additional weight — the aircraft
will have to fly at a higher angle of attack, and drag will increase.
A more serious problem caused by the CG being too far forward is the lack of sufficient elevator
authority. At slow takeoff speeds, the elevator might not produce enough noseup force to rotate
and on landing there may not be enough elevator force to flare the airplane. [Figure 1-3] Both
takeoff and landing runs will be lengthened if the CG is too far forward.
Center of lift: The location along the chord line of an airfoil at which all the lift forces produced
by the airfoil are considered to be concentrated.
Longitudinal balance: Balance around the pitch, or lateral, axis.
Longitudinal axis: An imaginary line through an aircraft from nose to tail, passing through its
center of gravity.
The efficiency of some modern high-performance military fighter airplanes is increased by

giving them neutral longitudinal stability. This is normally a very dangerous situation; but these
aircraft are flown by autopilots which react far faster than a human pilot, and they are safe for
their special operations.
The basic aircraft design assumes that lateral symmetry exists. For each item of weight added to
the left of the centerline of the aircraft (also known as buttock line zero, or BL-0), there is
generally an equal weight at a corresponding location on the right.
The lateral balance can be upset by uneven fuel loading or burnoff. The position of the lateral
CG is not normally computed for an airplane, but the pilot must be aware of the adverse effects
that will result from a laterally unbalanced condition. This is corrected by using the aileron trim
tab until enough fuel has been used from the tank on the heavy side to balance the airplane. The

deflected trim tab deflects the aileron to produce additional lift on the heavy side, but it also
produces additional drag, and the airplane flies inefficiently.
Helicopters are affected by lateral imbalance more than airplanes. If a helicopter is loaded with
heavy occupants and fuel on the same side, it could be enough out of balance to make it unsafe to
fly. It is also possible that if external loads are carried in such a position to require large lateral
displacement of the cyclic control to maintain level flight, the fore-and-aft cyclic control
effectiveness will be limited.
Lateral balance: Balance around the roll, or longitudinal, axis. Sweptwing airplanes are more
critical due to fuel imbalance because as the fuel is used from the outboard tanks the CG shifts
forward, and as it is used from the inboard tanks the CG shifts aft. For this reason, fuel-use
scheduling in high-speed jet aircraft operation is critical.
Aircraft can perform safely and achieve their designed efficiency only when they are operated
and maintained in the way their designers intended. This safety and efficiency is determined to a
large degree by holding the aircraft’s weight and balance parameters within the limits specified
for its design. The remainder of this book describes the way in which this is done.
Butt (or buttock) line zero: A line through the symmetrical center of an aircraft from nose to
tail. It serves as the datum for measuring the arms used
to find the lateral CG. Lateral moments that cause the aircraft to rotate clockwise are positive (+),
and those that cause it to rotate counterclockwise are negative (–).

Unit II
Powerplant
• Powerplant characteristics
– thrust, specific thrust, efficiency, specific fuel consumption
• Powerplant types
– piston engines, gas turbines (turbojet, turbofan, turboprop, turboshaft, propfan)
– afterburning, thrust reversers, supersonic engines
Powerplant Characteristics
Thrust (T)

• May be simply represented as:

T  m V j  Vo 
where: = mass flow rate through engine;
Vj = jet velocity; Vo = aircraft speed.
• Infinite number of combinations of mass flow and velocity increment possible, reflected in
various powerplant types available.
Thrust varies with Vo and altitude, as depends upon air density (ρ).
Specific Thrust (Tsp)

• Useful for comparing different types of engines:
Tsp  T / m  V j  Vo 
• For static condition (Vo = 0), Tsp = Vj
Overall Efficiency (o)
• Product of propulsive (or Froude) efficiency (p), thermal efficiency of gas generator (th) and
mechanical transmission efficiency (mech).
   pth mech
i.e. o (3)
Propulsive Efficiency (p)

Defined as:
useful propulsive energy
useful propulsive energy + unused jet kinetic energy
(4a)
Or
2
p 
 Vj 
1  Vo 
 (4b)
• Note that maximum p (100%) occurs with no unused jet kinetic energy (Vj = Vo) but then no
thrust developed - eq. (1)!
Propulsive Efficiency (p) Observations
• From eq. (4), high p obtained with low (Vj – Vo) term.
• From eq. (2), this also means a low value of Tsp.
• Also, for a given thrust, this equates to a high value for
• This is the operating principle behind turbofan (bypass ratio) engines.
– high , low Tsp high p
– Also reduced noise – varies with Vj8.
– but results in large engine diameter, increased weight & drag
–
Powerplant Types

• Two main classes used on aircraft, both air-breathers:

– piston engines
– gas turbines
• Rockets only used for guided weapons (GW) and vehicles operating outside atmosphere
(also possibly boost motors on aircraft).
• Similarly, ramjets not suitable for aircraft as develop no thrust at rest – only GW
applications.
Piston Engines
• Combined with propeller (piston-prop) to provide propulsion for first 40+ years of flight.
• Individual units of up to 2 MW power output developed using large number of cylinders,
arranged radially or in line of flight.
• Nowadays limited to small low-speed general a/c using engines up to about 400 kW.
Main disadvantages compared with gas turbines:

– low power/weight ratio
– power output does not increase with forward speed (unlike gas turbines).
• Piston engines are normally air-cooled (liquid-cooled if noise is a major design consideration but
then heavier).
• Most use gasoline
– very occasionally diesel.
Gas Turbines
Used on vast majority of modern aircraft – only exception is small general aviation class, using
piston-prop engines.
• Common features are:
– air compressor
– fuel injector
– combustion chamber
– turbine

• Power extracted by:

– turbine mechanically driving shaft
– expanding exhaust nozzles in nozzle
Turbojets - Basic Operating Features

• Five basic components:
– intake: captures air and efficiently delivers it to compressor.
– compressor: increases air pressure and temperature.
– combustor: adds kerosene to the air and burns the mixture to increase the temperature
and energy levels further.
– turbine: extracts energy from the gases to drive the compressor via a shaft.
– nozzle: accelerates the gases further.
Turbofans
• Compromise between turbojet and turboprop with propeller now a fan enclosed within
the engine.
• Two air streams passing through engine, one of which bypasses internal core.
Turbofans - Basic Operating Features

• Similar to turbojet but turbine split into two or more separate parts with low pressure
turbine used to drive separate fan ahead of compressor via multiple-shaft arrangement
– hence more complex than turbojet.
• Bypass effect increases the available mass flow rate and thus reduces the jet velocity
needed for a given amount of thrust (improves propulsive efficiency and also reduces
noise).
Bypass Engine

Bypass engine is engine with BPR of between 0.35 to 1.0 – used on most high performance combat a/c
and guided weapons (GW).
Turbofans
• True turbofan is development of bypass engine, whereby first compressor stage is substantially
increased in diameter to become a ducted fan.
• Most thrust is provided by fan – gas generator’s primary function is to provide gases to drive fan
through its separate shaft/turbine unit.
• Bypass ratio from 4 to 8 typically, or up to 10 with geared fan system.
• Overall pressure ratio of up to 35.
• High pressure turbine entry temperature of up to 1400oC – blade cooling issues.
Turboprop/Turboshaft
• Turbine split into two stages:
• First (high pressure stage) drives compressor.
• Second (low pressure stage) drives:
o propeller (on turboprop)
o shaft (on turboshaft)
• Low velocity exhaust gases also provide small residual thrust contribution.
• On turboprop, propellers rotate at between 1000 and 2000 rpm - since LP turbine rotates at
over 10000 rpm, reduction gear required.
• On turboshaft (e.g. helicopters), drive speed reduction achieved remotely.
Main advantages & disadvantages v turbofan:
• more fuel efficient at low speeds.
• speed limitation (about Mach 0.7)
Main advantages v piston-prop:
• high power/weight ratio
• power output increases with forward speed
Propfan (Unducted Fan Engine)
• Attempt to bridge gap between turbofan and turboprop.

• Uses advanced gas turbine to drive 8+ bladed propeller unit.

• Blades rotate very quickly (mostly supersonic) so are very thin, sharp-edged and swept at tips.
• Usually two sets of contra-rotating blades, e.g. GE/Snecma UDF (used on MD-80 testbed).
• Offers useful fuel efficiency up to Mach 0.8.
Problems include complexity, mass, structural integrity and noise
Afterburning/Reheat
• Exhaust gases are augmented by injecting and burning additional fuel between turbines and
nozzle.
• Used on both basic turbojet and bypass engines.
• Thrust may be increased by up to 120% but at expense of up to 4x increase in sfc.
• used when performance requirements dictate need for short duration high thrust:
• transonic acceleration
• supersonic dash
• Requires use of variable geometry nozzle.
• Extra tailpipe length produces more weight & friction losses when not in use.
Thrust Reversers
• Act by deflecting gas flow.
• Several different types acting on hot or cold gases (mainly bucket, cascade or clam-shell
variants).
• Used after touch-down to brake a/c and reduce landing distance – also eases ground
manoeuvres.
• Deactivated as speed falls to around 20 m/s to alleviate possible hot gas ingestion problems.
Ramjets
• Many applications for supersonic GW.
• Only three operating components:
– intake (diffuser);
– burner (combustion chamber);
– nozzle.
Ramjets - Basic Operating Features

• Air decelerated in intake (diffuser) and pressure rises due to ram effect.
• Known as ram pressure and significant at supersonic speeds.
• A ramjet therefore needs neither a compressor nor a turbine, simplifying the design and
reducing the cost.
• Greatest disadvantage is that it has to be accelerated up to typically M = 2.0 before it produces
any useful thrust.
• Also complicated supersonic intake required to avoid shock losses - could be nose, side or
ventral mounted.

Supersonic A/C Engines

• Many design difficulties as completely different conditions for take-off and supersonic flight.
• Most engines therefore have variable geometry in inlet and nozzle
– F-16’s P&W F100-229 is exception with fixed geometry inlet.
• Most used to be basic turbojet, e.g. RR/Snecma Olympus (Concorde).
• Nowadays nearly all low bypass type, e.g. P&W F100-229 on F-15, F-16, etc with BPR = 0.36.
Powerplant Flight Regimes
• Internal thermal & mechanical efficiencies of all a/c air-breathing engines are similar, to a first
degree.
• This means that a reasonable first order comparison of the use of various powerplants can be
determined through propulsive efficiency (p).
• Choice primarily determined by operating Mach number (MN), though may also be influenced by
operating altitude, rate of climb, range, noise, cost, politics, etc.
•
Flight Regimes – Propeller Engines

• Propeller thrust is derived by addition of small velocity change to large mass of air so that p
increases rapidly with forward speed.

• At higher speeds p suffers due to compressibility effects on pressure distributions on the

blades.
• Limit for modern wide-chord props with variable sweep and slow rotation is about MN = 0.7.
– A400M has maximum MN of 0.72.
• For lower technology propellers, MN limit is about 0.65.
• Blade pitch adjustment enables high efficiencies over range of speeds.
• Usual preferred choice:
– piston-prop for up to MN = 0.4.
– turbo-prop for 0.4 < MN< 0.7.
Flight Regimes – Turbofans
• Obvious choice when normal flight speed is high subsonic (0.7 < MN< 0.9).
• Bypass ratio depends on application, compromise between:
– engine diameter & mass (low bpr)
– fuel economy (high bpr).
• Typical bpr of 4 to 8 on long-range transport a/c.
• Also used on a/c with 0.5 < MN< 0.7 – relatively small size enables more compact a/c design, e.g.
on executive jet class.
Flight Regimes – Low Bypass Engines
• For MN> 0.9, low bypass ratio (0.35 to 1.1) engines generally used.
• Mostly military applications (Concorde exception).
• Exhaust velocities up to 700 m/s (1100 m/s with afterburning).
Powerplant PerformanceRepresentation
• Require accurate representations of variations of
– thrust (T) and specific fuel consumption (sfc)
with
– flight speed, altitude & engine conditions.
• If available, if data and characteristics of known powerplant.
If unavailable may use following expressions.
Thrust Representation – Turbojet & Bypass Engines
Flight Speed Effect

• Conveniently considered as one of three ranges:
– low subsonic (MN< 0.4)
– high subsonic (0.4 < MN< 0.9)
– transonic & supersonic (MN> 0.9)
Altitude Effect
• Up to 11 km altitude (i.e. in tropopause):
T s
where
= ρ / ρo = ρ / 1.225
s = 0.6 (high bypass ratio) to 0.85 (turbojet)
• Abovetropopause:
T  (i.e. s = 1)
Effect of Engine Operating Conditions

• Includes use of reheat (afterburning), operation at off-design conditions, non-optimum intake

and nozzle geometry, etc.
• Other ‘installation’ losses considered separately .
• All related to datum case (To)
– sea-level ISA, static, dry (i.e. without reheat).
• For any given condition, may use:
T   To
where:  = factor based on flight speed, operating conditions, bypass ratio.
• For 0 < MN< 0.9
  F  K1  K 2 BPR   K 3  K 4 BPR  M N   s
• For MN> 0.9
  F  K1  K 2 BPR   K 3  K 4 BPR  M N  0.9    s
• F is reheat factor
• For dry case (no reheat), F = 1
• For reheat:
F    / 1.32  0.062BPR 
To  
Tw

where TW/To = ratio of wet/dry sea-level ISA static thrust
sfc Representation Turbojet & Bypass Engines

• Same factors affect sfc as for thrust, i.e. speed, altitude, operating conditions and bypass ratio.
• Following representation may be used for dry cases:
sfc  sfc' 1  0.15 BPR 0.65  
1  0.28 1  0.063BPR  M N  
2
 0.08
•
where:
– sfc relates to particular design condition;
– sfc’ is factor determined from known design condition.
Thrust/Weight Ratio
• Generally defined as: T/Wo or T/(Mog)
– ratio of thrust (based on sea-level, static, dry value) to weight (design take-off value).
• Along with wing loading (Wo/S or Mog/S), it is the most important parameter affecting aircraft
performance.
• Optimisation of T/Wo and Wo/S forms a major part of aircraft design synthesis procedure.
• True T/W is clearly not constant:
– a/c weight varies during flight
– engine thrust varies with velocity, altitude and operating conditions.
• For prop-driven a/c, data is often presented as power/weight (P/W) ratio instead, though may
be converted to equivalent T/W since P = T x V.
• T/W & W/S are interconnected for many performance calculations, e.g. take-off distance
(frequently critical design driver)
• Short take-off distance possible with:
– large wing (low W/S), small engine (low T/W)
– small wing (high W/S), big engine (high T/W)

• Usual procedure is to estimate T/W from historical data and then calculate W/S from it for
critical design requirements, e.g. stall speed during landing approach, engine-out rate of climb,
etc.
Different Types of Jet Engines
Jet Engines - Introduction to Turbojets
Turbojet Engine
The basic idea of the turbojet engine is simple. Air taken in from an opening in the front of the
engine is compressed to 3 to 12 times its original pressure in compressor. Fuel is added to the air
and burned in a combustion chamber to raise the temperature of the fluid mixture to about
1,100°F to 1,300° F. The resulting hot air is passed through a turbine, which drives the
compressor. If the turbine and compressor are efficient, the pressure at the turbine discharge will
be nearly twice the atmospheric pressure, and this excess pressure is sent to the nozzle to
produce a high-velocity stream of gas which produces a thrust. Substantial increases in thrust can
be obtained by employing an afterburner. It is a second combustion chamber positioned after the
turbine and before the nozzle. The afterburner increases the temperature of the gas ahead of the
nozzle. The result of this increase in temperature is an increase of about 40 percent in thrust at
takeoff and a much larger percentage at high speeds once the plane is in the air.
The turbojet engine is a reaction engine. In a reaction engine, expanding gases push hard against
the front of the engine. The turbojet sucks in air and compresses or squeezes it. The gases flow
through the turbine and make it spin. These gases bounce back and shoot out of the rear of the
exhaust, pushing the plane forward.
Turboprop Jet Engine

A turboprop engine is a jet engine attached to a propellor. The turbine at the back is turned by the
hot gases, and this turns a shaft that drives the propellor. Some small airliners and transport
aircraft are powered by turboprops.
Like the turbojet, the turboprop engine consists of a compressor, combustion chamber, and
turbine, the air and gas pressure is used to run the turbine, which then creates power to drive the
compressor. Compared with a turbojet engine, the turboprop has better propulsion efficiency at
flight speeds below about 500 miles per hour. Modern turboprop engines are equipped with
propellers that have a smaller diameter but a larger number of blades for efficient operation at
much higher flight speeds. To accommodate the higher flight speeds, the blades are scimitar-
shaped with swept-back leading edges at the blade tips. Engines featuring such propellers are
called propfans.
Hungarian, Gyorgy Jendrassik who worked for the Ganz wagon works in Budapest designed the
very first working turboprop engine in 1938. Called the Cs-1, Jendrassik's engine was first tested
in August of 1940; the Cs-1 was abandoned in 1941 without going into production due to the
War. Max Mueller designed the first turboprop engine that went into production in 1942.
Turbofan Jet Engine
A turbofan engine has a large fan at the front, which sucks in air. Most of the air flows around
the outside of the engine, making it quieter and giving more thrust at low speeds. Most of today's
airliners are powered by turbofans. In a turbojet all the air entering the intake passes through the
gas generator, which is composed of the compressor, combustion chamber, and turbine. In a
turbofan engine only a portion of the incoming air goes into the combustion chamber. The
remainder passes through a fan, or low-pressure compressor, and is ejected directly as a "cold"
jet or mixed with the gas-generator exhaust to produce a "hot" jet. The objective of this sort of
bypass system is to increase thrust without increasing fuel consumption. It achieves this by
increasing the total air-mass flow and reducing the velocity within the same total energy supply.

Turboshaft Engines
This is another form of gas-turbine engine that operates much like a turboprop system. It does
not drive a propellor. Instead, it provides power for a helicopter rotor. The turboshaft engine is
designed so that the speed of the helicopter rotor is independent of the rotating speed of the gas
generator. This permits the rotor speed to be kept constant even when the speed of the generator
is varied to modulate the amount of power produced.
Ramjets
Ramjet Engine
The most simple jet engine has no moving parts. The speed of the jet "rams" or forces air into the
engine. It is essentially a turbojet in which rotating machinery has been omitted. Its application is
restricted by the fact that its compression ratio depends wholly on forward speed. The ramjet
develops no static thrust and very little thrust in general below the speed of sound. As a
consequence, a ramjet vehicle requires some form of assisted takeoff, such as another aircraft. It
has been used primarily in guided-missile systems. Space vehicles use this type of jet.
Jet Engines
That which separates an airplane from a glider is the presence of some sort of engine or motor.
Before the invention of powered flight by the Wright brothers, gliders and balloons were the only
way to fly. The Wright brothers took the idea of a glider and added an engine to it. They riggd
the engine up to turn a propeller and the prop. pulled the airplane into the air. From that time on,
until the advent of W.W.II, the propeller was the only way known of providing thrust for an
airplane. When W.W.II broke out, both sides rushed to design the best aircraft possible. During

the developement process of designing faster fighter aircraft, German engineers developed a new
type of engine capable of propelling an airplane at immense speeds and has since become the
only known for getting an airplane up to, and beyond, the speed of sound. There are a number of
different types of jet engine, these are:
 Ramjet: Ramjets work by having air pushed in to a chamber where it is compressed. In this chamber
the air, which was heated by compression, is mixed with fuel. The fuel is ignited by the heated air and
creates hot expanded gas is forced out of the exhaust. The ramjet cannot start by itself its needs to gain
speed to compress the air, so it must be started out. The ramjet is generally not used in planes because
it runs at a high steady speed. Although the it is used in such things as cruise missiles.
 Turbojet: In a turbojet the air is

sucked into the intake and pushed
into the compression chamber by a series
of compression fans. It is then mixed
with fuel that is added through fuel
injectors. Then the high temperature of the hot air ignites the fuel which creates hot gas which rapidly
expands and pushes

towards the exhaust. This gas is pushed past a turbine, the turbine is what turns the compression fans.
After that the remaining gas is forced out of the exhaust and creates the thrust of the jet. A jet can
create anywhere from 2,500 to 30,000 pounds of force.
 Pulse Jet:The pules jet was one of the earliest forms of jet propulsion. It was used by the Germans
during W.W.II in their V-1 rockets. The theory it works on is very simple. It has inlet valves that let in air.
These valves are spring loaded in the open position. The valves let in air that is heated by burning fuel.
These burning gases expand and force the inlet valve closed and the gases are then pushed out the
outlet duct to produce thrust. In the absence of burning gas the inlet valves open and let in more air and
the cycle repeats. This charge then fire procedure give it a pulse of thrust and then a short stop thus its
name the pulse jet.
 Turbofan:Another commonly used kind of jet propulsion is the turbofan. This kind of jet is used on
most large jet liners such as the 747, 727, 767, and 737. This engine is basically the same as the turbo jet
except the central fan axle is also connected to a large fan in front of the engine. This fan pushes air into
the jet but it also pushes air around the jet creating more thrust.
Jet engines
move the airplane
forward
with a great force
that is produced by
a tremendous thrust and causes the plane to fly very fast.

All jet engines, which are also called gas turbines, work on the same principle. The engine sucks
air in at the front with a fan. A compressor raises the pressure of the air. The compressor is made
up of fans with many blades and attached to a shaft. The blades compress the air. The
compressed air is then sprayed with fuel and an electric spark lights the mixture. The burning
gases expand and blast out through the nozzle, at the back of the engine. As the jets of gas shoot
backward, the engine and the aircraft are thrust forward.
The image below shows how the air flows through the engine. The air goes through the core of
the engine as well as around the core. This causes some of the air to be very hot and some to be
cooler. The cooler air then mixes with the hot air at the engine exit area.
This is a picture of how the air flows through an engine
What is Thrust?
Thrust is the forward force that pushes the engine and, therefore, the airplane forward. Sir Isaac
Newton discovered that for "every action there is an equal and opposite reaction." An engine
uses this principle. The engine takes in a large volume of air. The air is heated and compressed
and slowed down. The air is forced through many spinning blades. By mixing this air with jet
fuel, the temperature of the air can be as high as three thousand degrees. The power of the air is
used to turn the turbine. Finally, when the air leaves, it pushes backward out of the engine. This
causes the plane to move forward.

Parts of a Jet Engine
Fan - The fan is the first component in a turbofan. The large spinning fan sucks in large
quantities of air. Most blades of the fan are made of titanium. It then speeds this air up and splits
it into two parts. One part continues through the "core" or center of the engine, where it is acted
upon by the other engine components.
The second part "bypasses" the core of the engine. It goes through a duct that surrounds the core
to the back of the engine where it produces much of the force that propels the airplane forward.
This cooler air helps to quiet the engine as well as adding thrust to the engine.
Compressor - The compressor is the first component in the engine core. The compressor is
made up of fans with many blades and attached to a shaft. The compressor squeezes the air that
enters it into progressively smaller areas, resulting in an increase in the air pressure. This results
in an increase in the energy potential of the air. The squashed air is forced into the combustion
chamber.
Combustor - In the combustor the air is mixed with fuel and then ignited. There are as many as
20 nozzles to spray fuel into the airstream. The mixture of air and fuel catches fire. This provides
a high temperature, high-energy airflow. The fuel burns with the oxygen in the compressed air,
producing hot expanding gases. The inside of the combustor is often made of ceramic materials
to provide a heat-resistant chamber. The heat can reach 2700°.
Turbine - The high-energy airflow coming out of the combustor goes into the turbine, causing
the turbine blades to rotate. The turbines are linked by a shaft to turn the blades in the
compressor and to spin the intake fan at the front. This rotation takes some energy from the high-
energy flow that is used to drive the fan and the compressor. The gases produced in the
combustion chamber move through the turbine and spin its blades. The turbines of the jet spin
around thousands of times. They are fixed on shafts which have several sets of ball-bearing in
between them.
Nozzle - The nozzle is the exhaust duct of the engine. This is the engine part which actually
produces the thrust for the plane. The energy depleted airflow that passed the turbine, in addition
to the colder air that bypassed the engine core, produces a force when exiting the nozzle that acts
to propel the engine, and therefore the airplane, forward. The combination of the hot air and cold
air are expelled and produce an exhaust, which causes a forward thrust. The nozzle may be
preceded by a mixer, which combines the high temperature air coming from the engine core with

the lower temperature air that was bypassed in the fan. The mixer helps to make the engine
quieter.
The First Jet Engine - A Short History of Early Engines
Sir Isaac Newton in the 18th century was the first to theorize that a rearward-channeled
explosion could propel a machine forward at a great rate of speed. This theory was based on his
third law of motion. As the hot air blasts backwards through the nozzle the plane moves forward.
Henri Giffard built an airship which was powered by the first aircraft engine, a three-horse
power steam engine. It was very heavy, too heavy to fly.
In 1874, Felix de Temple, built a monoplane that flew just a short hop down a hill with the help
of a coal fired steam engine.
Otto Daimler, in the late 1800's invented the first gasoline engine.
In 1894, American Hiram Maxim tried to power his triple biplane with two coal fired steam
engines. It only flew for a few seconds.
The early steam engines were powered by heated coal and were generally much too heavy for
flight.
American Samuel Langley made a model airplanes that were powered by steam engines. In
1896, he was successful in flying an unmanned airplane with a steam-powered engine, called the
Aerodrome. It flew about 1 mile before it ran out of steam. He then tried to build a full sized
plane, the Aerodrome A, with a gas powered engine. In 1903, it crashed immediately after being
launched from a house boat.
In 1903, the Wright Brothers flew, The Flyer, with a 12 horse power gas powered engine.
From 1903, the year of the Wright Brothers first flight, to the late 1930s the gas powered
reciprocating internal-combustion engine with a propeller was the sole means used to propel
aircraft.
It was Frank Whittle, a British pilot, who designed the first turbo jet engine in 1930. The first
Whittle engine successfully flew in April, 1937. This engine featured a multistage compressor,
and a combustion chamber, a single stage turbine and a nozzle.
The first jet airplane to successfully use this type of engine was the German Heinkel He 178. It
was the world's first turbojet powered flight. General Electric for the US Army Air Force built
the first American jet plane. It was the XP-59A experimental aircraft.

Types of Jet Engines
Turbojets
The basic idea of the turbojet engine is simple. Air taken in from an opening in the front of the
engine is compressed to 3 to 12 times its original pressure in compressor. Fuel is added to the air
and burned in a combustion chamber to raise the temperature of the fluid mixture to about
1,100°F to 1,300° F. The resulting hot air is passed through a turbine, which drives the
compressor. If the turbine and compressor are efficient, the pressure at the turbine discharge will
be nearly twice the atmospheric pressure, and this excess pressure is sent to the nozzle to
produce a high-velocity stream of gas which produces a thrust. Substantial increases in thrust can
be obtained by employing an afterburner. It is a second combustion chamber positioned after the
turbine and before the nozzle. The afterburner increases the temperature of the gas ahead of the
nozzle. The result of this increase in temperature is an increase of about 40 percent in thrust at
takeoff and a much larger percentage at high speeds once the plane is in the air.
The turbojet engine is a reaction engine. In a reaction engine, expanding gases push hard against
the front of the engine. The turbojet sucks in air and compresses or squeezes it. The gases flow
through the turbine and make it spin. These gases bounce back and shoot out of the rear of the
exhaust, pushing the plane forward.
Picture of Turbojet Engine
Turboprops
A turboprop engine is a jet engine attached to a propeller. The turbine at the back is turned by the
hot gases, and this turns a shaft that drives the propeller. Some small airliners and transport
aircraft are powered by turboprops.

Like the turbojet, the turboprop engine consists of a compressor, combustion chamber, and
turbine, the air and gas pressure is used to run the turbine, which then creates power to drive the
compressor. Compared with a turbojet engine, the turboprop has better propulsion efficiency at
flight speeds below about 500 miles per hour. Modern turboprop engines are equipped with
propellers that have a smaller diameter but a larger number of blades for efficient operation at
much higher flight speeds. To accommodate the higher flight speeds, the blades are scimitar-
shaped with swept-back leading edges at the blade tips. Engines featuring such propellers are
called propfans.
Picture of turboprop engine
Turbofans
A turbofan engine has a large fan at the front, which sucks in air. Most of the air flows around
the outside of the engine, making it quieter and giving more thrust at low speeds. Most of today's
airliners are powered by turbofans. In a turbojet all the air entering the intake passes through the
gas generator, which is composed of the compressor, combustion chamber, and turbine. In a
turbofan engine only a portion of the incoming air goes into the combustion chamber. The
remainder passes through a fan, or low-pressure compressor, and is ejected directly as a "cold"
jet or mixed with the gas-generator exhaust to produce a "hot" jet. The objective of this sort of
bypass system is to increase thrust without increasing fuel consumption. It achieves this by
increasing the total air-mass flow and reducing the velocity within the same total energy supply.
Picture of Turbofan Engine
Turboshafts
This is another form of gas-turbine engine that operates much like a turboprop system. It does
not drive a propellor. Instead, it provides power for a helicopter rotor. The turboshaft engine is
designed so that the speed of the helicopter rotor is independent of the rotating speed of the gas

generator. This permits the rotor speed to be kept constant even when the speed of the generator
is varied to modulate the amount of power produced.
Picture of Turboshaft Engine
Ramjets
The most simple jet engine has no moving parts. The speed of the jet "rams" or forces air into the
engine. It is essentially a turbojet in which rotating machinery has been omitted. Its application is
restricted by the fact that its compression ratio depends wholly on forward speed. The ramjet
develops no static thrust and very little thrust in general below the speed of sound. As a
consequence, a ramjet vehicle requires some form of assisted takeoff, such as another aircraft. It
has been used primarily in guided-missile systems. Space vehicles use this type of jet.
Picture of Ramjet Engine
What's a Scramjet?
One thing has always been true about rockets: The farther and faster you want to go, the bigger
your rocket needs to be.
Why? Rockets combine a liquid fuel with liquid oxygen to create thrust. Take away the need for
liquid oxygen and your spacecraft can be smaller or carry more payload.
That's the idea behind a different propulsion system called "scramjet," or Supersonic Combustion
Ramjet: The oxygen needed by the engine to combust is taken from the atmosphere passing
through the vehicle, instead of from a tank onboard. The
craft becomes smaller, lighter and faster.
How fast? Researchers predict scramjet speeds could

reach 15 times the speed of sound. An 18-hour trip to

Tokyo from New York City becomes a 2-hour flight.
A look at one of NASA's developmental scramjets, the X-43A, undergoing ground testing.
On August 16, 2002, the University of Queensland in Australia completed the first successful
flight of a scramjet vehicle, reaching speeds of Mach 7, or seven times the speed of sound.
NASA's Hyper-X program is working to develop scramjets into a practical technology. The X-
43A, a 12-foot long scramjet-powered research vehicle, was constructed by MicroCraft, Inc.,
now known as Alliant Techsystems, Inc. The company fabricated three X-43A aircraft for
NASA, to be flown aboard modified Pegasus rockets developed by the Orbital Sciences
Corporation. The Pegasus is dropped by a B-52 aircraft and launched to an altitude of over
90,000 feet, where the X-43A is released and flown under its own power.
Each of the three vehicles appear identical but have

slightly different oxygen intake designs, based on what
speed their test flights are planned to accomplish. The
first test flight of the X-43A, which took place on June 2,
2001, failed due to a stabilization problem with the
booster rocket's directional fins.
An artist's conception of the X-43A in flight. The vehicle

will be tested at speeds up to Mach 10.
The Hyper-X program is a joint project between the

Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. and Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif.
The next developmental flight of this system is scheduled for no earlier than February 21, 2004.

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Sathyabama university Department of Aeronautical Engineering

DEPARTMENT OF AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING

SAEX 1025- AIRCRAFT DESIGN CLASS NOTES

UNIT I REVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS IN AVIATION 10 hrs.

UNIT II POWER PLANT TYPES AND CHARACTERISTICS 10 hrs.

Characteristics of different types of power plants – Propeller characteristics and selection –

UNIT III PRELIMINARY DESIGN 10 hrs.

UNIT IV SPECIAL PROBLEMS 10 hrs.

Layout peculiarities of subsonic and supersonic aircraft – optimization – of wing loading to

UNIT V STRUCTURAL DESIGN 10 hrs.

1. D.P. Raymer, “Aircraft Conceptual design”, AIAA Series, 1988.

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

1. E. Torenbeek, “Synthesis of Subsonic Airplane Design”, Delft University Press, London,

3. A.A. Lebedenski, “Notes on airplane design”, Part-I, I.I.Sc., Bangalore

UNIVERSITY EXAM QUESTION PAPER PATTERN

Max. Marks: 80 Exam Duration: 3 hrs.

PART A : 2 Questions from each unit, each carrying 2 marks20 marks

(70% Theory and 30% Problems may be asked)

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

i) Obtaining the specifications and determining the geometric parameters.

A) Project Feasibility Studies:

1) Comprehensive market survey to assess the number of airplanes needed.

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

Aircrafts are classified based on the a)purpose b) configuration

Civil aircrafts Military aircrafts By shape,number and position of

Classification Based on shape and position of wings

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

Classification by type of fuselage

 Conventional single fuselage design(ex: HT-2,Boeing 707)

Classification by the location of horizontal tail

 Horizontal tail located behind the wing(Avro 748)

Classification by types of landing gear

 Retractable landing gear(Dc 9,SAAB-35)

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

 Single engine aircraft(HJT-16,Hunter,DH Chipmunk)

Location of power plants

 Engine located in fuselage nose(HT-2,Yak-9,A-109)

Primary requirements for Military Aircraft

Primary requirements for Military Aircraft - FIGHTERS

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

3. Maneuverability 3. High speed (500-600 kmph

Primary requirements of bomber

 high rate of climb,

Tailless and Flying Wing Design

Advantages of tailless and flying wing design

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

 Restricted c.g travel due to the absence of horizontal stabilizer

The advantages of high wing design

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

 Increased lateral stability

Disadvantages of high wing design

 Engine under pylons

Advantages in engine under pylon

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

Engines located in the wing root

 The space in the root cannot be used for fuel accommodation

Engine located on the rear fuselage

 There is less noise in the cabin and the fuselage

(in FAR – 25)

Prepared by Elphej Churchil.S.J 2013-14

FACTORS OF SAFETY –Ultimate strength/Limit load

Ac Design Notes Unit 1&2

Ac Design Notes Unit 1&2