‘Aerodynamic Considerations’ (U2)

(A) Drag The drag of the entire configuration must be as small as possible. This requires (a) thin wings, (b) slender fuselage,
(c) smooth surface conditions, and (d) proper values of aspect ratio (A) and sweep (Λ). Skin friction drag on a complete
aircraft configuration is generally much greater than that on the wing alone, because the wetted area, Swet, is greater.
Wetted area of an aircraft is all the surface area over which air flows, and therefore to which the flowing air imparts shear
stress. Pressure drag for the complete aircraft includes drag due to separation of the airflow around the aircraft fuselage,
control surfaces, etc. (B) Lift The airplane must be able to develop sufficient lift under various flight conditions including
maneuvers. The maximum lift coefficient also decides the landing speed. These considerations require proper choice of (a)
aerofoil, (b) means to prevent flow separation and (c) high lift devices. (C) Interference effects In aerodynamics the flows
past various components like the wing, the fuselage and the tail are usually studied individually. However, in an airplane
these components are in proximity of each other and the flow past one component affects the flow past the
others(components). The changes in aerodynamic forces and moments due to this proximity are called interference effects.
The lay-out of the airplane should be such that increase in drag and decrease in lift due to interference effects are
minimized. These can be achieved in subsonic airplanes by proper fillets at the joints between (a) Wing and fuselage, (b)
Tail and fuselage and (c) Wing and engine pods.

structural members of fuselage ? How the loads are carried. (U2)

Structural members of an aircraft’s fuselage include stringers, longerons, ribs, bulkheads, and more. The main structural
member in a wing is called the wing spar.
The structure of an aircraft is required to support two distinct classes of load: the first, termed ground loads- includes all
loads encountered by the aircraft during movement or transportation on the ground such as taxiing and landing loads,
towing, and hoisting loads, and the second, air loads- comprises loads imposed on the structure during flight by
manoeuvres and gusts. The two classes of loads may be further divided into surface forces- which act upon the surface of
the structure, such as aerodynamic and hydrostatic pressure, and body forces- which act over the volume of the structure
and are produced by gravitational and inertial effects. Basically, all air loads are the results of the pressure distribution over
the surfaces of the skin produced by steady flight, manoeuvre, or gust conditions. Generally, these results cause  direct
loads  bending  shear and  torsion in all parts of the structure in addition to local, normal pressure loads imposed on
the skin. Conventional aircraft usually consist of fuselage, wings, and tail plane. The fuselage contains crew and payload,
the latter being passengers, cargo, weapons, plus fuel, depending on the type of aircraft and its function; the wings provide
the lift, and the tail plane is the main contributor to directional control. In addition, ailerons, elevators, and the rudder
enable the pilot to manoeuvre the aircraft and maintain its stability in flight, while wing flaps provide the necessary
increase of lift for takeoff and landing
weight and strength considerations in detail. (U2)
There are five major stresses to which all aircraft are subjected:

1. Tension
2. Compression
3. Torsion
4. Shear
5. Bending
Tension is the stress that resists a force that tends to pull something apart. The engine pulls the aircraft forward, but air
resistance tries to hold it back. The result isTension, which stretches the aircraft. The tensile strength of a material is
measured in pounds Per square inch (psi) and is calculated by dividing the load (in pounds) required to pull theMaterial
apart by its cross-sectional area (in square inches).
Finding a safe compromise between low weight and high strength is critical when creating an aircraft. Aircraft structures
must be light yet strong and stiff enough to resist the various forces acting on an airplane during flight. They must also be
durable enough to withstand these forces over the airplane’s entire life span. Any aircraft design is a carefully planned
compromise in which many competing factors are traded against one another: payload capacity, cost, range, speed, fuel
economy, durability, noise levels, required runway length, and many others. The function of an aircraft—whether an
airliner or a fighter, a business jet or a private airplane—is the major influence in balancing these factors. The best design
typically provides maximum performance at the lowest weight.
Overview of design process of an aircraft & different phases of aircraft design (U1)
Those involved in design can never quite agree as to just where the design process begins. The designer thinks it starts with
a new airplane concept. The sizing specialist knows that nothing can begin until an initial estimate of the weight is made.
The customer, civilian or military, feels that the design begins with requirements.
They are all correct. Actually, design is an iterative effort, as shown in the “Design Wheel” of Fig. Requirements are set by
prior design trade studies. Concepts are developed to meet requirements. Design analysis frequently points toward new
concepts and technologies, which can initiate a whole new design effort. However a particular design is begun, all of these
activities arc equally important in producing a good aircraft concept.
PHASES OF AIRCRAFT DESIGN
Conceptual Design
Aircraft design can be broken into three major phases, as depicted in Fig. 2.2. Conceptual design is the primary focus of this
book. It is in conceptual design that the basic questions of configuration arrangement, size and weight, and performance
arc answered.
The first question is, “Can an affordable aircraft be built that meets the requirements?” If not, the customer may wish to
relax the requirements.
Conceptual design is a very fluid process. New ideas and problems emerge as a design is investigated In ever-increasing
detail. Each time the latest design Is analyzed and sized, it must be redrawn to reflect the new gross weight, fuel weight,
wing size, engine size, and other changes. Early wind-tunnel tests often reveal problems requiring some changes to the
configuration. The steps of conceptual design arc described later in more detail.
Preliminary Design
Preliminary design can be said to begin when the major changes are over. The big questions such as whether to use a
canard or an aft tail have been resolved. The configuration arrangement can be expected to remain about as shown on
current drawings, although minor revisions may occur. At some point late in preliminary design, even minor changes are
stopped when a decision is made to freeze the configuration.

During preliminary design the specialists in areas such as structures, landing gear, and control systems will design and
analyze their portion of the aircraft. Testing is initiated in areas such as aerodynamics, propulsion, structures, and stability
and control. A mockup may be constructed at this point.
A key activity during preliminary design Is “lofting.” Lofting Is the mathematical modeling of the outside skin of the aircraft
with sufficient accuracy to insure proper fit between its different parts, even If they are designed by different designers and
possibly fabricated in different locations. Lofting originated in shipyards and was originally done with long flexible rulers
called “splines.” This work was done in a loft over the shipyard; hence the name.
The ultimate objective during preliminary design Is to ready the company for the detail design stage, also called full-scale
development. Thus, the end of preliminary design usually involves a full-scale development proposal. In today’s
environment, this can result in a situation jokingly refcrred to as “you-bet.your-company.” The possible loss on an overrun
contract or from lack of sales can exceed the net worth of the company! Preliminary design must establish confidence that
the airplane can be built on time and at the estimated cost.
Detail Design
Assuming a favorable decision for entering full-scale development, the detail design phase begins in which the actual pieces
to be fabricated are designed. For example, during conceptual and preliminary design the wing box will be designed and
analyzed as a whole. During detail design, that whole will be broken down into individual ribs, spars, and skins, each of
which must be separately designed and analyzed.
Another important part of detail design is called production design. Specialists determine how the airplane will be
fabricated, starting with the smallest and simplest subassemblies and building up to the final assembly process. Production
designers frequently wish to modify the design for ease of manufacture; that can have a major impact on performance or
weight. Compromises are inevitable, but the design must still meet (tie original requirements.
It is interesting to note that in the Soviet Union, the production design is done by a completely different design bureau than
the conceptual and preliminary design, resulting in superior producibility at some expense in performance and weight.
During detail design, the testing effort intensifies. Actual structure of the aircraft is fabricated and tested. Control laws for
the flight control system arc tested on an “iron.bird” simulator, a detailed working model of the actuators and flight control
surfaces. Flight simulators are developed and flown by both company and customer test-pilots.
Detail design ends with fabrication of the aircraft. Frequently the fabrication begins on part of the aircraft before the entire
detail-design effort is completed. Hopefully, changes to already-fabricated pieces can be avoided.

canard and conventional tail configurations (U1)

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 s 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 mg area is reduce and there is a decrease in drag.
• The wing weight is lesser than the conventional aircraft wing
• At low speeds the horizontal tail gaits 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.
Disadvantage
• Stock stall may occur on the horizontal stabilizer he1ire occurs in the wing.
• At supersonic speeds the horizontal stability is more difficult in the canard the canard type than conventional airplane.
• The elevator power required for landing is very high.
• The landing characteristic are very poor.

Classification of aircrafts. (U1)

the differences between Passenger and cargo airplanes (U1)

Primary requirements for Civil Aircraft

• Passenger Aircraft
• High Safely level
• High payload carrying capacity
• Economy in operation
• Comforts
• Ability to fly in any Weather (MI-weather flying) acrodromcs
• Ability to use aerodromes of respective classes
Cargo Aircraft
• High payload carrying capacity
• Economy in operation
• Ability to fly in any Weather
• Suitable for civil aerodromes

conceptual Approach process a vital phase of aircraft design. (U1)

Aircraft conceptual design involves sketching a variety of possible configurations that meet the required design
specifications. By drawing a set of configurations, designers seek to reach the design configuration that satisfactory meets
all requirements as well as go hand in hand with Factors such as aerodynamics. propulsion, flight performance, structural
and control systems. This is called design optimization.
Fundamental aspects such as fuselage shape, wing configuration and location, engine size and type are all determined at
this stage.
Much of the work in the conceptual study phase can be streamlined through a good market study to identify a product line
within a company’s capabilities
In this phase findings of the mar)et study are developed with candidate configurations the technology to be adopted is
firmed up arid inc economic viability is finalized.
This is accomplished through aircraft sizing. engine matching. preliminary weight estimation, and evolution of a family of
aircraft with payload and range combinations (I e, aircraft performance) for all configurations.
Planning portfolios with budgetary provisions, manpower requirements. Progress milestones, potential subcontract /risk-
sharing partners’ Inputs, and so forth are include us the starting point of the design process
In general, at the end of this phase. management decision for a go-ahead is expected with a final configuration selected
from the candidate configurations offered .
Continuous interaction with potential customers (I e. operators arid subcontractors) occurs during this phase, with the
objective of arriving at a family of aircraft as the most satisfying design with compromises rather than an "optimum'
solution
Management may request a level of detail (e.g., risk analysis) that could extend the study phase or flow Into the next
phase, thereby delaying the go-ahead decision to the early part of Phase 2. This is likely if the candidate aircraft
configurations are shott4isted Instead of finalized .
For those designers who have planned ahead, Phase 1 should finish early — especially if they are well versed in the product
type and have other successful designs in their experience
The final product is a conceptual layout of the aircraft configuration on paper or computer screen, to be reviewed by
engineers and other designers.
the purpose and scope of airplane design (U1)
The process of design of a device or a vehicle, in general involves the use of knowledge in diverse fields to arrive at a
product that will
 satisfy requirements regarding functional aspects,
 operational safety and cost.

The design of an airplane, which Is being dealt In this course, involves synthesizing knowledge In areas like
 aerodynamics,
 structures,
 propulsion.
 systems
 manufacturing techniques.
The aim is to arrive at the configuration of an airplane, which with satisfy aforesaid requirements.
The design of an airplane Is a complex engineering task. It generally involves the following.
a) Obtaining the specifications of the airplane, selecting the type and determining the geometric parameters.
b) Selection of the power plant.
C) Structural design and working out details of construction.
d) Fabrication of prototype,
e) Determination of airplane performance, stability, and structural integrity from flight tests.
The completion of the design of an airplane in a reasonable period of time requires a large body of competent engineers
specialized in various areas.
Help is also needed from research laboratories to try out and give new ideas and for testing of different components. For
example,
• Laboratories of NASA (Natlonal Aeronautlcs and Space Administration) in USA;
• ARC(Aeronautical Research Council) In UK;
• ONERA (Office National d'Eludes et de Researches Aerospatiales) In France;
• DFVLR (Deutsche Forschongs and Versuchsanstalt turt.uft-und Raumfahrt, now DLR) In Germany;
• NAL (National AerospaceLaborato’les) In India, are some of the agencies carrying out Aerospace research.
However, the work of all these must be coordinated by the deslgnbureau. The final design Is a compromise between
conflicting requirements so that optimum results are obtained from the point of view of design criteria.

Factors affecting the configuration (U1)

The configuration of an airplane is finalized after giving consideration to the following factors. (I) Aerodynamics (II) Low
structural weight (III) Lay-out peculiarities (IV) Manufacturing procedures (V) Cost and operational economics (VI)
Interaction between various features

“LOFTING” (U1)
“Lofting” is the process of defining thc external geometry of (lie aircraft. “Production lofting.” the most detailed form of
lofting, provides an exact. mathematical definition of the entire aircraft including such minor details as the intake and
exhaust ducts for the air conditioning.
A production-loft definition is expected to be accurate to within a few hundredths of an inch (or less) over the entire
aircraft. This allows the different parts of the aircraft to he designed and fabricated at different plant sites yet lit together
perfectly during final assembly.
For an initial layout it is not necessary to go into as much detail. However, the overall lofting of the fuselage. wing. tails. and
nacelles must be defined sufficiently to show that these major components will properly enclose the required internal
components and fuel tanks while providing a smooth aerodynamic contour.
To provide a smooth longitudinal contour. points taken from the desired cross- sections were connected longitudinally on
the drawing by flexible “splines.” long, thin wood or plastic rulers held down at certain points by lead “ducks”.
This technique was used for early aircraft lofting, but suffers from two disadvantages.
First. it requires a lot of trial and error to achieve a smooth surface both in cross section and longitudinally.
Second. and perhaps more important this method does not provide a unique mathematical definition of the surface. To
create a new cross section requires tremendous amount of drafting effort, In addition to the time involved this method is
prone to mismatch errors.
 eight Estimation (general).(U3)
A good estimate of weight is necessary for further design. In the procedure given in Ref.1.11, the weight
estimation is carried out by calculating the weight of the fuel required for the mission (W f) and using the formulae
for empty weight (We) based on analysis of similar airplanes. The stages involved are given below.
We Write Wg= Wcrew + Wpayload +Wf+ We
Wcrew & Wpayload are known as they are given in the design specifications. Wf & We depend on gross weight (Wg). Hence

Ref.1.11, gives the trends of W e/W o for different types of airplanes. Note the log scale on abscissa. These curves can be

approximated by an equation of the type:

parameters on which wing loading and thrust loading is selected. (U3)
It is felt that the approach of Ref.1.6 though presented about 50 years ago, is still relevant. It was presented by
Pro f. A.A. Lebedinski of Moscow Aviation Institute, in his lectures on ‘Airplane
design‘ at Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, India during 1963-64. The salient features of the is approach are as
follows.
(i) Derive simplified relations between the chosen performance parameter and the wing loading.
(ii) Obtain the wing loading which satisfies/optimizes the chosen parameter e.g. landing distance, thrust required for
Vp, fuel required for range.
(iii) Examine the influence of allowing small variations in wing loading from the optimum value and obtain a band of
wing loadings. This would give an estimate of the compromise involved when (W/S) is non-optimum.
(iv) After all important cases are examined, choose the final wing loading as the best compromise.
(v) With the chosen wing loading, obtain (T/W) or (W/P) which satisfy requirements of Vmax, (R/C)max,
ceiling (Hmax), take-off field length (S to ) and maximum turn rate (ψ). If the requirements of engine output in these
cases are widely different, then examine possible compromise in specification. After deciding the (T/W) or (W/P)
obtain the engine output required. Choose the number of engine(s) and arrive at the rating per engine. Finally choose an
engine from the engines available from different engine manufacturers. Remark: A novel feature of the procedure of
Ref.1.6 is as follows. During the process of optimizing the wing loading, a reasonable assumption is to ignore the changes
in weight of the airplane (W0). However, when W0 is constant but W/S changes, the wing area and in turn, the drag polar
would change. This is taken into account by an alternate representation of the drag polar.