Text Book Reference Book

Contents
• Static Stability and Control
• Stability Criteria
• Stability Contributions
• Control
• Dynamic Stability and Control
• Equation of Motion
• Solutions and Modes
• Flying Qualities
• Standards
• Evaluation
 Definition of Stability
Stability

Static Stability Dynamic Stability

about the initial tendency concerned with the

of a body to return to its time history of the
equilibrium state after motion after being
being disturbed disturbed.
 Static Stability
Equilibrium: A body is in equilibrium when it is at rest or in
uniform motion (has constant linear and angular
momenta).
Stability: A property of an equilibrium state. The
equilibrium is stable if, when the body is slightly disturbed
in any of its DOF, it returns ultimately to its initial state.

stable in y direction

stable unstable neutrally

stable

unstable in x direction
 Dynamic Stability
Static stability deals Amplitude decreasing
with the tendency of (convergent)
an airplane, when Dynamically stable Amplitude constant
disturbed, to return
to its original flight
state.
Dynamic stability Dynamically neutral stable
deals with how the Amplitude increasing
motion caused by a (divergent)
disturbance changes
with time.

Dynamically unstable
 Axes and Notation
x axis L: rolling moment M: pitching moment
p: rate of roll q: rate of pitch
Roll y axis
Pitch

Yaw
N: yawing moment
r: rate of yaw

z axis

[X, Y, Z] = resultant aerodynamic force

[u, v, w] = velocity of C relative to atmosphere
Longitudinal, Lateral and Directional
Axial

3 in translation Vertical

Side
6 DoF
Roll

3 in rotation Pitch
Yaw

Longitudinal: axial, vertical, pitch

Lateral: roll
Directional: side, yaw
 Wing camber

• , positive camber

• , negative camber

• , symmetric
 Aerodynamic Angles
x V xa  y yi
xi 
 ya
0

Angle of attack Angle of sideslip

angle between wing angle between the

MAC and direction of z velocity vector and the
za zi
relative wind. airplane’s plane of
x w 1
symmetry. y
 tan ，    
u
w x v


u
v 1 
 sin ，   
z V 2 2
 1. Static Stability
• Static Stability Criteria
• Longitudinal Stability
• Stability Contribution
• Control
• Stability in Maneuvering Flight
• Directional Stability
• Stability Contribution
• Control
• Lateral Stability
• Stability Contribution
• Control
Longitudinal Static Stability

When the airplane is

disturbed in AOA, if the
induced pitching moment
tends to restore the b) Unstable
airplane to its original state,
it’s longitudinally stable.
−∆ 𝑀

c) Neutrally stable

+∆ 𝛼

a) Stable
 Criterion for Longitudinal Stability
For a longitudinally stable aircraft, a positive AOA
induces a restoring (negative) pitching moment.
   M
The criterion for longitudinally stability
dM dC m
0 or 0
d d 1.0
Nose Up
0.8
Cm  M / qSc unstable
Pitching Moment Coefficient, C m
0.6

0.4

dCm / d  0 stable 0.2

0.0

neutrally stable
dCm / d  0 unstable -0.2

-0.4

dCm / d 0 neutrally stable -0.6

-0.8
stable
Nose Down
-1.0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Angle of Attack / deg
Lateral Static Stability

Once banked, the airplane develops

a sideslip in the direction of the
bank because of a spanwise
component of the weight . If the
sideslip results in a restoring rolling
moment, the airplane is laterally
stable.
 Criterion for Lateral Stability
For a laterally stable aircraft, a positive sideslip
induces a restoring (negative) rolling moment.
   L
The criterion for laterally stability
L dCl
L   0 or Cl   0
 d 1.0

L 0.8

Cl  unstable

Cl
0.6
qSb 0.4

dCl / d  0 stable 0.2

0.0
-6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8
-0.2  / deg
dCl / d  0 unstable -0.4

-0.6

dCl / d 0
-0.8

neutrally stable -1.0

stable
Directional Static Stability
If the airplane is disturbed in sideslip, and if the
airplane has the ability to realign itself along the
direction of the resultant wind so that the disturbance
in sideslip is effectively eliminated, it’s directionally
stable.
+𝑁
𝑉𝑤

𝛽
𝑉𝑅
 Criterion of Directional Stability
For a directionally stable aircraft, a positive sideslip
induces a positive yawing moment.
  N
Criterion for directional stability
N dC
N   0 or Cn  n  0
 d
N 1.0

Cn  0.8

qSb stable

Cn
0.6

0.4

0.2

dCn / d  0 stable -6 -4 -2
0.0
0 2 4 6 8
-0.2  / deg

dCn / d  0 unstable -0.4

-0.6

dCn / d 0
-0.8

neutrally stable -1.0

unstable
 Stability Contributions -- Assumptions
• Has a vertical plane of symmetry (geometry and mass
distribution)
• Deflection of longitudinal controls do not generate
side force, rolling or yawing moments.
• Deflection of lateral-directional controls do not
produce lift or pitching moments.
• Aerodynamic forces and moments vary linearly with
aerodynamic/control variables.
• Total forces/moments acting on the whole airplane
equal to the sum of forces/moments on individual
components.
 1.1 Longitudinal Stability
f: fuselage
w: wing
t: horizontal tail
c.g.

a.c.

According to the assumptions

M cg  M f  M ac ,w  Lw xa  M ac ,t  Lt lt
Fuselage Wing Tail
contribution contribution contribution
 Aerodynamic Center
The wing pitching-moment coefficient can be expressed as:
Cm Cm 0   CL • : pitching-moment coefficient at
• : empirical constant

The sign of depends on the moment reference point:

𝝃 <𝟎 𝝃 >𝟎

There must be some point on the chordline, where so that

the incremental pitch moment caused by AOA is 0.
This point is called Aerodynamic Center.
with a.c. as moment reference point is denoted by .
 Contributions of
Static Longitudinal Stability
As longitudinal static stability, assume that of the
airplane is the sum of individual contributions caused
by wing, fuselage, and tail.

• Wing
• Fuselage
• Horizontal Tail
 Contribution — Wing
The nature of wing contribution depends on the relative
distance between the wing a.c. and c.g.
• if a.c is ahead of c.g. ()
— wing contribution is destabilizing
• If a.c. is aft of c.g. ()
— wing contribution is stabilizing
Contribution -- Fuselage

Fuselage contribution is quite complex.

Empirical Equation:
k2  k1 lf
 f  0 w  icl ,B dx
2
Cm 0, f  b
 Cm  36.5Sc 0
Typically
Cm , f Cm 0, f   
   f  Cm   lf    positive
  


 f 2 Sc

0
b2f  1+ u  dx
  

Destabilizing!
 Downwash and upwash
All lifting surfaces affect the flow aft of those surfaces. This
effect is referred to as downwash.
Ahead of a wing in
subsonic flow, the AOA decrease
flow is deflected -- downwash
upward relative to
free-stream flow
-- upwash
Contribution —Tail
The local AOA of H-tail is affected by the wing downwash.
Wing and H-tail AOA
 w   iw
 t   it  
d t d
1 
daw d

ε is the downwash
angle at tail a.c.,
induced by wing-
trailing vortices.
Downwash depends on the wing planform, aspect ratio, and
distance between a.c. of wing and H-tail.
Downwash caused by fuselage can be ignored.
Tail lift Lt qt St CL ,t
CL,t at ( w  iw  it   ) For symmetric airfoil
assume
• CL ≈ awαw
• tail lift coefficient is small in comparison with wing lift
coefficient at 1/aw

dCL,t  dCL,t   d t   d w  at  d 
     a  1  d 
dCL  d t   d w   dCL  w  
1 − dε/dα
at is the H-tail lift-curve slope in the presence of fuselage.

If bt/d is high enough, the aft fuselage interference can be

ignored. bt ： span of H-tail
d ： body diameter
Horizontal tail contribution to pitching moment
M t M ac ,t  Lt lt
zero-lift PM of H-tail
can be ignored

M t  Lt lt
Non-dimensional

qt St lt
Cm ,t  CL ,t  CL,tV1t  at ( w  iw  it   )tV1
q Sc
differentiating with
respect to CL

dC m , t at  d 
  1   tV1
dC L aw  d 
St lt qt
V1  H-tail volume ratio t  dynamic pressure ratio at H-tail
Sc q
 Contribution — Effect of Power
• The effect of propulsive unit on longitudinal stability and trim
can be both significant and difficult to evaluate.
• These effects also depend on the mode of propulsion
turbo props, piston props, turbo fans, turbo jet

For propeller-driven aircraft, effect of power on SLS :

• Direct Effect, caused by propulsion force
• Indirect Effect, caused by propeller slipstream

Direct Effect
Indirect Effects
The indirect effects arise because of the influence of propeller
slipstream passing over wing and tail surfaces.

Wing Sections exposed to

slipstream experience a
higher dynamic pressure,
hence develop higher local
slipstream area lift and drag force.
For jet aircraft
Direct effects caused by thrust and intake normal force are
similar to those of propeller aircraft.

Indirect effects due to jet-

induced flow field may
affect horizontal tail.

In the following analysis, we ignore the contribution of

power effects.
Stability Contributions:
CLw
Wing Horizontal tail
CLt

Cmac,w Fuselage
CG Cmf
W

Wing contribution: depends on the positions of a.c. and c.g.

• c.g. ahead of a.c. stabilizing
• c.g. after of a.c. destabilizing

Fuselage contribution: destabilizing

Tail contribution: stabilizing
 Total Longitudinal Stability
Assume the thrust vector passes through CG.
The total pitching moment coefficient:
Cmcg Cmw  Cmf  Cmt CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf  CL ,ttV1

drop the suffix cg

Cm CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf  CL ,ttV1

differentiate with CL

dCm  dCm  at  d 
 xa      1   V1t
dCL  dCL  f aw  d 
xa  xcg  xac
dCm  dCm  at  d 
 xcg  xac    f 1   V1t
dCL  dCL  aw  d 
 Neutral Point
Movement of CG due to loading changes has a strong influence
on the longitudinal static stability of the airplane.

CG moves forward CG location where CG moves aft

↓ ，↓ =0(Neutral stable) ↑ ，↑
More stable —Neutral Point Less stable

 dC  a  d 
0 N 0  xac   m  f  t  1   V1t
 dCL  aw  d 

 dC m  at  d 
N 0  xac    f  1  V1t
 dC L  aw  d  
The static longitudinal
stability at any CG location
can be expressed as
dC m
 xcg  N 0
dC L
• The incremental wing lift due to a change in AOA
acts at the wing aerodynamic center.
• The incremental lift of the complete airplane due to
a change in AOA acts through the neutral point.
• The neutral point is, in essence, the a.c. of the
complete aircraft.

The static margin, describe the level of stick-fixed

longitudinal static stability of the airplane
 dC 
H n N 0  xcg   m 
 dCL  fix
Positive stable
 Tail Lift for Trim
Equilibrium condition = trim condition
For pitch trim, the net pitch moment about CG is 0

Cm CL ,w xa  Cmac ,w  Cmf  CL ,ttV1 0

For conventional airplane, the tail lift for pitch trim (Cm = 0) or
equilibrium is
CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf
C L ,t 
V1t

Flyable airplane should be capable of trimming at all values of

permissible.
Necessary and Sufficient conditions of a stable
pitch trim:
dC m
Cm 0  0 and 0
d
 CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf
C L ,t 
V1t
C L,w  0  0 positive camber

Cmac ,w  0 symmetric
Cmf  0  0 negative camber


Trim tail lift depends on CG location

Lw W + Lt Lw W  Lt
 For modern high-speed aircraft (long slender fuselages,
highly swept-back wings),

CL ,w xa  Cmac ,w  Cmf
C L ,t 
V1t
trim tail load may be
downward

Lw W  Lt

Trim drag associated with the downward tail load can be

approximately determined as:
1
D  V 2 S CD
2
CD k (CL2, w  CL2 ) ΔD: trim drag penalty
 Longitudinal Control
Aircraft should be capable of flying at any desired AOA within
its aerodynamic limits.

The expression for equilibrium lift coefficient

Larger CL
 Cmac ,w  Cmf  CLtV1t
CL  Larger nz
xcg  xac
Higher maneuverability

From this equation, options for longitudinal control

• Control of wing camber
• Center of gravity shift
• Tail/Canard Control
Control of wing camber

Cmac,w is a function of wing camber, can be altered by deploying

either leading- or trailing-edge flap.

Cmac ,w 0
Symmetric camber

Cmac ,w  0 Flap deflect downward

Positive camber

Cmac ,w  0 Flap deflect upward

Negative camber
This type of control usually used on tailless aircraft or close-
coupled canard aircraft.
For aircraft with H-tails, flap deflection alters the downwash
field at H-tail, i.e., the longitudinal stability level.
 Control of c.g.
 Cmac , w  Cmf  at ( w  iw  it   )V1t
CL 
xcg  xac
The equilibrium lift coefficient decreases and the level of static
stability increases as c.g. moves forward, and vice versa.

lower CL , lower nz
lower maneuverability

“Concorde” uses this method to partially offset the rearward

movement of c.p. in transonic/supersonic region.
subsonic  supersonic
1 1
xac  c xac  c
4 2

supersonic  subsonic

This method is mechanically

complex and will affects the
pilot’s feel of the airplane.
Tail/Canard Control
Most powerful and widely used longitudinal control method .

• Elevator
• All-movable horizontal tail
• Canard
Elevator control
Elevator is a small flap attached at the trailing edge of
horizontal tail.

Deflection of elevator
alters the pressure
distribution and _
changes the tail lift.
+

Within the permissible range:

• Elevator deflect downward, CLt ↑, nose down
• Elevator deflect upward, CLt ↓, nose up
Pitching moment equation
Cm CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf  CL ,tV1t

effect of elevator deflection on the tail-lift coefficient

CL,t at t at ( w  iw  it     e )

d t elevator effectiveness, change in tail AOA per unit


d e deflection of elevator

dC m , t at  d  Tail contribution
 1   V1t doesn’t change.
dC L aw  d 
Elevator deflection does not affect the stick-fixed static
stability level.
Elevator Angle to Trim
Trim condition:
CL mg / qS
Cm 0

Cm CL ,w xa  Cmac ,w  Cmf  CL ,ttV1 0

CL ,t at ( w  iw  it     1 e ) , elevator effectiveness, change in tail

AOA per unit deflection of the
elevator.

elevator deflection for longitudinal trim

CL , w xa  Cmac , w  Cmf  at ( w  iw  it   )V1t
e 
Cm e
Cm e  atV1t 1 elevator control power
 variation of elevator deflection with equilibrium or trim-lift
coefficient   dC
 m 
d e xcg  N 0
 dCL  fix
 
dC L Cm e Cm e
for a statically stable airplane
d e / dC L  0

variation of the elevator deflection with trim-lift coefficient

 dC m 
 
d e d C
 L  fix xcg  N 0
 e  e,0  CL  e  e,0  CL  e  e,0  CL
dC L Cm e Cm e

Cmac , w  Cmf ,0  at ( w,0 L  iw  it )V1t  w,0 L wing zero-lift AOA

 e,0 
 Cm e it tail setting angle
 xcg  N 0
 e  e,0  CL
Cm e

The elevator deflection

required to trim a given
lift coefficient directly
depends on the level of
stick-fixed static stability.

δe,min corresponds to one xcg,f

Most forward location of c.g. xcg,f: c.g. location for which the
maximum upward elevator deflection is just capable of
trimming the maximum lift coefficient in level flight.
d e  xcg  N 0 
 e  e,0  CL  e ,0    CL
dCL  Cm e 

Cm e
xcg , f  N 0  ( e ,max   e,0 )
CL ,max

δe,min: maximum permissible

upward elevator deflection
 Permissible Center of Gravity Travel
• From a stability point of view, c.g. should be located as much
forward of the neutral point N0 as possible.
• From the longitudinal control point of view, c.g. should be
located as much aft of xcg,f as possible.
• To satisfy both these requirements, c.g. must always lie within
these two limits.

x
x N 0  xcg , f 
c
stick-fixed permissible
c.g. travel, in terms of
the MAC
Ground Effect
At takeoff and landing, the presence of ground modifies the
flow past the airplane significantly, so that large changes can
take place in the trim and stability.

Upwash/downwash
with ground effect
Upwash/downwash
in free flight

The presence of ground imposes a boundary condition that

inhibits the downward flow of air normally associated with the
lifting action of the wing and tail.
Main effects of the reduced downwash:

• A reduction in the downwash angle at

increase tail
the tail. effectiveness
• An increase in the tail lift slope.
• An increase in the wing-body lift slope. increase wing lift
Higher tail effectiveness makes the aircraft more stable.
Leading to a requirement that xcg,f with ground effect lie aft of
that in free flight.

The demand on elevator to trim CLmax becomes more severe.

Control Force
Control devices in cockpit
Mechanical Control System

Force/Displacement

Moment/Angle

Control Surfaces are connected to the control

stick/pedal through some kind of a linkage.
(levers, rods, pulleys, cables, etc.)
Hinge moment
If elevator is mounted on a frictionless hinge, it can float freely
under the action of aerodynamic forces.
The moment caused by forces acting on the elevator about its
hingeline is called hinge moment.

Hinge moment depends on

• Aerodynamic forces acting on
the elevator
• distance between hingeline
and c.p.
Elevator trailing edge goes up  Negative
Elevator will either float
up or down depends on
location of the hingeline Elevator trailing edge goes down  Positive
relative to its c.p.
Stick force
The force applied by pilot on control stick/column to deflect
elevator.

Stick force depends on

Fs > 0
s>0 hinge-moment
δe > 0
Fs s  M h  e 0 (rad)

Fs  G1 M h  G1Ch qt Se ce
Fs < 0
e
s<0 δe < 0 G1 
s
Ch Ch  s  Ch , e e
Aerodynamic Balancing
Stick force depends on the hinge-moment.
The value of hinge-moment
• Too low would make the control highly sensitive to
small disturbances
• Too high would make the controls sluggish to operate.

A careful design of hinge-moment parameters Chα and Chδ,e is

necessary to achieve a proper balance between these two
conflicting requirements.
The control of hinge-moment parameters is called
aerodynamic balancing.
 Set-back hingeline Horn balance

Internal balance Beveled trailing edge

Modification of set-back Alters the pressure distribution

Tab
Stick-Free Neutral Point
Pitching moment of the whole airplane

Cm CL xa  Cmac , w  Cmf  CL ,tV1t

Effects of floating elevator on the tail contribution

 Ch 
C L ,t at ( s   ef ) at  s  1   
 Ch ,e 

Differentiating with respect to CL

 dCm   dCm  at  d   Ch 

   x a     V 
1 t  1    1   
 dCL  free  dCL  f aw  d   Ch ,e 
  dCm   dCm  at  d 
  fix  xa    f 1  V1t , xa  xcg  xac ,w
dC
 L dC
 L a w  d  

 dC m   dCm  Cm Ch  d 

      1  
 L  free  L  fix aw Ch ,e
dC dC  d  

Neutral point dCm /dCL 0

 dC m  at  d   Ch 
  V1t  1    1  
'
N  xac , w
0  
dC
 L f a w  d   C h , e 

stick-free neutral point

 dCm  at  d 
N 0  xac ,w    f  1  V1t
 dCL  aw  d 
Stick-free Margin
' '  dC m 
H  N  xcg  
n 0 
dC
 L  free
For a stick-free stable airplane, is positive.

With stick-free, the permissible c.g. travel is modified.

Stick- Stick
free fixed
 Stick Force in Steady Level Flight
Expression for stick force in level flight
Positive Negative
Fs  G1 M h
 G1Ch qt Se ce

G1, gearing ratio constant of proportionality between hinge

moment and stick force, N/Nm or rad/m
Mh, hinge moment

Se, elevator area

, mac of elevator
After a series of derivation
Fs K 'V 2 ( K 2  Ch ,t  t )  K ''

1 '' Ch ,e W  dCm 

K   K1
'
K  K1  
2 Cm S  dC L  free

K1  G1 Se cet K 2 Ch 0  Ch ( w,oL  iw  it )  Ch ,e e ,0

The stick force gradient

dFs
2 K 'V ( K 2  Ch ,t  t )
dV
Tab deflection for stick force trim ()
1  K '' 
 t ,trim   ' 2  K2 
Ch ,t  K Vtrim 
When stick force is trimmed by tab, stick force and gradient at
any other speed can be expressed
2
W Ch ,e  dCm    V  
Fs K1      1
S Cm  dCL  free   Vtrim  


dFs W Ch ,e  dCm  V

2 K1   2
dV S Cm  dCL  free Vtrim

For proper operation by pilot, airplane designer has to ensure

dFs
0
dV
Stability in Maneuvering Flights
The class of flight paths when the load factor exceeds unity is
called Maneuvers. L
ratio of lift to weight n 
W
• Pull-up from a dive in a vertical plane
• Coordinated turn in a horizontal plane

R
 In this section, we investigate the elevator angle and control
force required to hold the airplane in a steady pull-up with
load factor n.

net normal force O

q
L  W ( n  1)W

Equilibrium of Forces
R
V2
m mq 2 R mqV (n  1)mg
R an=(n1)g
L(nW)
The angular velocity about the
center of semicircular path
( n  1) g V W
q
V
Two assumptions:
• During the maneuver, a change in the forward speed is
small and ignored.
• The airplane is disturbed only in AOA and load factor,
and these disturbances are small.
• When the airplane is in straight horizontal flight at the
same speed and altitude, the elevator angle and control
force to trim are and , respectively.
• When in the pull-up, these are changed to , and .

We are going to derive

• : elevator angle per g
• : control force per g
These two quantities provide a measure of maneuverability.
Smaller value, higher maneuverability .
Elevator angle per g
We assume that q and the increments between level flight
and curved flight conditions are small, so
CL CL   CLq qˆ  CL e  e
Cm Cm   Cmq qˆ  Cm e  e
gc CW
qˆ qc / 2V ( n  1)  ( n  1)
2V 2 2
W 1W 2m
CW  1  ,  
2
V 2
S q S  Sc
CLq CL / qˆ
Cmq Cm / qˆ

L ( n  1)W
C L  1  ( n  1)CW
2
V S
2 1
2
V S
2
The curved flight condition is also assumed to be steady, i.e.,
without angular acceleration, so
CW
( n  1)CW CL   CLq (n  1)  CL e  e
2
CW
0 Cm   Cmq (n  1)  Cm e  e
2
 e C  1 
 W  Cm  (CLqCm  CL Cmq ) 
n 1 det  2 
det CL Cm e  CL e Cm

The point where is called the control-fixed maneuver point,

and is denoted by M0.
1
Cm  (CLqCm  CL Cmq ) 0
2
 Cm CL ( xcg  N 0 )

 e C  1 
 W  CL ( xcg  N 0 )  (C LqC L ( xcg  N 0 )  C L Cmq ) 
n 1 det  2 

 e CW CL  1 
  ( xcg  N 0 )  (CLq ( xcg  N 0 )  Cmq ) 
n 1 det  2 
 e ( n  1) 0
1
( xcg  N 0 )   CLq ( xcg  N 0 )  Cmq  0
2
Cmq
M 0 N 0 
2   CLq

2   CLq  0, Cmq  0
Cmq
M 0 N 0 
M0 is aft of N0. 2
  e CW CL (2   CLq )
 ( xcg  M 0 )
n 1 2  det

W  e
 , CW  ,  Maneuverability ↓
S n 1

 e
xcg  , xcg  M 0  ,  Maneuverability ↑
n 1

Type Wing loading (N/m2)

Glider 200
General aviation 600
Jet fighter 3500 How to increase maneuverability
of fighters?
Jet transport 5000
Relaxed static stability.
Control Force per g

Fs  G1qt SeceCh Fs  G1qt Sece Ch

Ch Ch   Chq qˆ  b2  e

 e
...
n 1

C h CW  e  CL eCh 
 [(2   CLq )Ch  ChqCL ]   b2  
n  1 2 CL n  1 C L 

Control-free maneuver point Fs / ( n  1) 0

' det  Ch Chq 

M M 0 
0   
a ' b2  CL 2   CLq 
Fs W  a ' b2
G1   S c
 t e e (2   C Lq )( x cg  M '
0)
n 1  S  2  det
Higher W/S, smaller (higher stability), higher
Lower maneuverability.
 1.2 Static Directional Stability
Static directional stability is a measure of the aircraft’s ability
to realign itself along the direction of the resultant wind so
that the disturbance in sideslip is effectively eliminated.

𝑉𝑤

𝑉𝑅
𝛽

A disturbance in sideslip could be caused by horizontal

gust, wind turbulence, or momentary rudder deflection.
 Contributions of SDS
As longitudinal static stability, assume that of the
airplane is the sum of individual contributions caused
by fuselage, wing, and tail surfaces.

• Wing contribution
• Effect of wing dihedral dihedral
• Effect of sweep
• Fuselage contribution
• Tail contribution
• Horizontal tail
• Vertical tail

(Cn )W (Cn ) ,W  (Cn )  ,W

 Wing contribution
The wing contribution to directional stability depends on its
dihedral and leading-edge sweep.
The magnitude of wing contribution to static directional
stability is small. If the wing has no dihedral and not much
sweep, its contribution can be ignored.

For a swept wing with dihedral, the wing contribution can be

assumed

(Cn )W (Cn ) ,W  (Cn )  ,W

dihedral swept
Effect of wing dihedral
For an unswept, high AR rectangular wing with +
a constant dihedral angle operating at an AOA
and sideslip at a forward velocity . ↓ ↑

↓ ↑

↓ ↑

Change local AOA

Stable
Total component of velocity normal to the plane of wings
VN V0 (sin   sin )
are small

VN V0 ( )

Chordwise component of velocity Spanwise does not affect

dynamic pressure
Vc V0 cos  V0

Local AOA and dynamic pressure

V 1 1
 l  N   ql   VN2  VC2   V02
Vc 2 

Different AOA Same dynamic

pressure
for positive sideslip

dynamic pressure on AOA of leading wing is

both wings is equal larger than port wing

lift and drag of the leading

wing is larger than port wing

roll moment (lift imbalance)

yaw moment (drag imbalance)
 Effect of sweep
Consider a swept-back wing of high AR and zero
+
dihedral, operating at AOA and sideslip ,
moving at a forward velocity .
↓ ↑

↓ ↑

↓ ↑

+
Change local
dynamic
pressure Stable
 Velocity components in spanwise, chordwise and normal
directions

Vs V0 (sin  cos   cos  )


Vc V0 (cos  cos   sin  )
V V sin 
 N 0

Upper sign refers

,  to right wing
are small Vs V0 cos  (tan   )

Vc V0 cos  (1  tan  ) Chordwise velocity
V V  on left and right
 N 0 wings are different
VN 1
 l   sec (1  tan  ) ql  V02 cos2 (1  tan  ) 2
Vc 2
𝛼 𝑅 < 𝛼 𝐿 𝑞𝑅> 𝑞𝐿
q 1   tan 
R R
 >1
 L qL 1   tan 
 Fuselage Contribution
The fuselage contribution to static directional stability is
generally destabilizing and is influenced by wing geometry
and wing placement with respect to the fuselage.
Empirical relation KN empirical wing-body
 SB,S   l f  interference factor
(Cn ) B(W) =  K N K RI     / deg
 S  b  K RI empirical factor, function of the
fuselage Reynolds number
 Horizontal tail
Tail Contribution Tail
Vertical tail

Contribution of horizontal tail depends on dihedral and sweep.

Because of the small size, its contribution to SDS can be
ignored.

Vertical tail is the single largest

contributor to SDS.
Its contribution depends on the
moment arm, surface area, AR,
sweep, aft fuselage geometry, and
the fuselage sidewash.
For subsonic speeds, side force developed by vertical tail when
the rudder is held in neutral position

YV  kqv av (    ) Sv

in coefficient
form
 Sv 
C y ,V  kav (    )v  
 S 
differentiate
with     Sv 
C y  ,V  kav  1 
  v  S 
   

YV side force on vertical tail

k empirical parameter
 Vertical tail contribution to static direction stability with
rudder fixed

( NV )fix -YV lv kqv av (    ) Sv lv

in coefficient

(Cn ,V )fix kav (    )vV2

differentiate
with
  
(Cn ,V )fix kav  1   vV2
  
S v lv
lv distance between c.g. V2 
Sb
and vertical tail a.c.
vertical tail volume ratio
 Effect of Power

Direct effect
• thrust developed by propulsion unit
• side force acting on propulsion unit because of sideslip
• destabilizing for propeller airplane, stabilizing for pusher
airplane
Indirect effect
cause by propeller slipstream passing on wing or tail surface
Direct Effect
sideslip
propeller pusher
airplane airplane
side force on
propulsion unit

yawing moment

Indirect Effect

+ Drag negative
increase on yawing destabilizing
left wing moment
slipstream

slipstream effects
 Rudder-Fixed Directional Stability
Ignoring the power effects, the rudder-fixed directional
stability of the airplane is
(Cn )fix (Cn ) W  (Cn ) B (W )  (Cn ,V )fix
For static directional stability, must be positive over desired
AOA and speed range (flight envelope)

A value of between 0.001 and 0.0025 would be

considered satisfactory. Fighters
• decrease rapidly as AOA and M increase.
• An upper limit on the value of may arise from
directional control requirements.
 Directional Control
Rudder is the primary directional control.
Rudder effectiveness is measured by , yawing-moment
coefficient per unit rudder deflection.

A positive rudder
deflection produces
a positive side force
and a negative
yawing moment.

is usually negative.
The yawing moment caused by a positive rudder
deflection:
N  kqv Sv av ( 2 r   )lv
v t
N
Cn  
qSb 2  Change in sideslip
 r
angle of vertical tail
Cn  kvV2 av ( 2 r   ) per unit deflection of
the rudder
Cn
Cn r 
 r

Cn r  kvV2 av 2

The rudder deflection to generate a sideslip

(Cn )fix   Cn r r 0

(Cn )fix 
 r 
Cn r

The higher the level of static directional

stability, the higher the rudder deflection to
generate a given sideslip will be.

An upper limit on the value of arises from directional control

requirements.
Unconventional directional control surfaces

Split Drag Rudder

 Requirements for Rudder Design
Crosswind TO/LD
The rudder should be designed to
provide sufficient control authority
under the following critical
circumstances.

Adverse yaw
Asymmetric power Spin Recovery
 1.3 Static Lateral Stability
Disturbance in bank

Roll

Spanwise Weight
Component

Sideslip

Restoring
Rolling Moment

Go back to the
initial state
 Dihedral effect
The generation of a rolling moment due to sideslip is also called
dihedral effect.
An airplane develops a restoring rolling moment because of
sideslip is said to have a positive or stable dihedral effect.

A laterally stable airplane has a positive dihedral effect.

Dihedral effect is different from the dihedral angle.

 Evaluation of Lateral Stability
Lateral stability of airplane is equal to the sum of individual
contributions. Effects of power are generally small and ignored.

• Fuselage contribution
• direct contribution is negligible,
• indirect contribution is significant, wing-fuselage
interference
• Wing contribution
• Wing-fuselage interference
• dihedral angle
• leading-edge sweep angle
Wing-fuselage interference
• high wing -- stable contribution
• low wing -- unstable contribution

high wing in

right wing inboard section

experiences a local upwash

local AOA ↑

𝐿 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 > 𝐿𝑙𝑒𝑓𝑡

- Rolling Moment L  0
 Effect of wing dihedral
Wing dihedral has a stabilizing effect on lateral stability.
Local AOA and dynamic pressure

 l  
upper sign applies to the right
1 wing when sideslip is positive
ql  V02
2

According to strip theory, rolling moment due to the right

and left wing are
1 b/2
LR  V0  c( y )a0 ( y )(  ) ydy
2

2 0

1 b/2
LL  V0  c( y )a0 ( y )(  ) ydy
2

2 0
Total rolling moment
b/2
L  V   c( y )a0 ( y ) ydy
0
2
0
coefficient
form
2  b / 2
Cl 
Sb 0
c( y )a0 ( y ) ydy
differentiate
with

2 b / 2
Cl  
Sb 
0
c( y )a0 ( y ) ydy

For rectangular wing with constant chord and section lift-

curve slope
a0 
Cl  
4
 Effect of wing sweep
Sweep-back has a stabilizing effect.
The effective AOA and dynamic pressure

 upper sign applies to the right
cos  (1  tan  ) wing when sideslip is positive
1
ql  V02 cos2 (1  tan  )2
2
According to strip theory
b
1 sec 
LR  V0 cos  (1   tan  )  a 0c( y h ) y hdy h
2 2 2
2 0

b
1 sec 
LL  V0 cos  (1   tan  )  a 0c( y h ) y hdy h
2 2 2
2 0
 Total rolling moment
b
sec 
L  V02 cos2  tan   2
a0 c( yh ) yh dyh
0
coefficient
form

2 cos  sin  b2 sec 

Cl 
Sb 0
a0 c ( y h ) y h d y h
differentiate
with

2 cos  sin  b2 sec 

Cl  
Sb 0
a0 c ( y h ) y h d y h
Lift for a swept wing in level flight with no sideslip
b
sec  1
Lift V02 cos 2   2
a0 sec c( yh )dy h  V02SC L
0 2

2cos 2  b2 sec 
CL 
S 0
a0 sec c( y h )dy h a0 cos 

b
2sin CL sec 
Cl  
Sb  0
2
c ( y h ) y hdy h

The stabilizing effect on static laterally stability depends

on the wing leading-edge sweep angle and lift
coefficient (or AOA).
Wing Position Wing Dihedral Wing Sweep
High, stabilizing a 2sin CL b
sec 
Cl   0
Low, destabilizing 4
Cl  
Sb 
0
2
c( y h ) y h dy h
 Tail Contribution
Contribution of horizontal tail to laterally stability is usually
small and can be ignored.
The vertical tail contribution to lateral stability

 z
(Cl  )V C y  ,V  
 b
z zv cos   lv sin 

Depends on AOA
  zv cos   lv sin  
(Cl  )V C y  ,V  
 b 
For subsonic speeds
    Sv 
C y  ,V  kav  1 
  v  S 
   

    Sv   zv cos   lv sin  
(Cl  )V  kav  1 
  v  S   b 
    

Usually, , , so that .
Therefore, contribution of vertical tail to lateral stability is
generally stabilizing.
 Total Static Lateral Stability
The total static lateral stability of the airplane

Cl  [(Cl  )W or (Cl  )W ( B ) ]  (Cl  )V

For an airplane to be laterally stable, over the desired M,

, and range (fight envelope).

• increase rapidly as AOA increase.

• An upper limit on the value of may arise from
directional dynamic stability.

1<
| | 𝐶𝑙 𝛽
𝐶𝑛 𝛽
<3


 Lateral Control
On most aircraft, ailerons are usually the primary roll
control devices.

Ailerons are small

flaps located
outboard on each
wing and deflects
differentially to
obtain roll control.
 positive
right aileron ↓
left aileron ↑

LiftL LiftR gives a

- rolling moment
The aileron effectiveness is measured by the rolling moment
coefficient per unit deflection of the ailerons.

Using strip theory, the net rolling moment is

yo
LRM  2q  aw a  a ca ( y ) ydy
yi
coefficient
form

2aw a  a yo
Cl 
Sb  c ( y ) ydy
yi
a
differentiate
with

2a  yo
Cl a  w a
Sb  c ( y ) ydy
yi
a
Unconventional lateral control surfaces
Elevon Spoiler

Spoiler-Slot Deflector
 2. Equation of Motion
About the initial Concerned with
tendency of a Stability the time history of
body to return to the motion after
its equilibrium being disturbed.
state after Static Stability Dynamic Stability
disturbance.

To study the airplane as a dynamic system, we have to

build the equations of motion first.
• Axes Systems
• Axes Transformation
• Equation of Motion
• Small Disturbance Theory
 2.1 Axes System
Why do we need so many axes systems?
Because we don’t have a single axes
system suitable for specifying all Head Up Display
these quantities.
Parameters the aircraft measures:
• Position, GPS, INS, radio
• Velocity, Pitot tube
• Acceleration, accelerometer
• Rates, gyroscope
• …
Most commonly used axes systems
• Inertial Axes System ()
• Earth-Fixed Axes System ()
• Navigational System ()
• Body Axes System ()
• Stability axes system ()
• Wind axes system ()
 Inertial Axes System ()
It is necessary to specify an inertial frame of reference, because
Newton’s Laws of Motion are valid only when the acceleration is
measured with respect to an inertial frame.
For most of the flight dynamic problems, a
non-rotating reference system is a
reasonably good approximation for an
inertial system of reference.

Non-rotating reference system,

placed at the center of the
Earth.
Earth-Fixed Axes System ()
Fixed at the center of the Earth, and rotate
with Earth along the
or axis

How to define the position and velocity with

respect to the launch point?

Navigational System ()
Origin is located on the surface of
the Earth.
• axis is directed to the center of the spherical Earth
• axis points towards the local north
• axis points towards the local east to form a right-hand
system
How to specify the forces and moments acting on the vehicle?

Body Axes System ()

Any set of axes system fixed to the vehicle and moving with it is
called the body axes system.
• CG is chosen as the origin of
the axes system.
• axis usually lies along the
longitudinal centerline or
zero-lift line and points to
the direction of motion.
• axis is perpendicular to the
plane and towards the right
side.
• axis lies in the plane of
symmetry and points
downward to form a right-
hand system.
Stability Axes System ()
Stability axes system is a special case of body axes system.
axis lies in the plane of symmetry
• If , points in the opposite direction to the relative wind
• If, coincide with the projection of the relative velocity in
the plane of symmetry

axis is normal to the plane

of symmetry and points to
the right side.

axis points downward to form a right-hand

system.
Angle between Oxb and Oxs or that between Ozb and Ozs axes
usually equals to AOA.
If , the drag is directed opposite to the Oxs axis and lift is
directed opposite to the Ozx axis.
Wind axes system ()
Wind axes system is another special case of body axes system.

axis points in the direction

opposite to the relative wind

axis lies in the plane of

symmetry

axis is normal to the plane and points towards the right side of
the vehicle
 2.2 Axes Transformation
If we want to express a vector in another axes system,
we have to do axes transformation.
• Euler angles
The orientation of a given reference frame relative to
another reference system is specified by three angles and
which are called Euler angles.
• Direction Cosine Matrices (DCM)
• Quaternions (the Euler four parameter method)
 Euler Angles Axes transformation
y
y1
x x1
y
(x,y)
x1 y1


x

(x,y,z)

 x1   cos  sin    x 
 y    sin 
z1 z
 1  cos    y 
 x1   1 0 0   x
 y   0 cos  sin    y 
 1   
 z1   0  sin  cos    z 
 Frame transformation
1 0 0 
about x axis L1 ( )  0 cos  sin  
 
 0  sin  cos  
 cos  0  sin  
about y axis L2 ( )  0 1 0 

 sin  0 cos  
 cos  sin  0
about z axis L3 ( )   sin  cos  0
 
 0 0 1

Sequence: z  y  x i.e. L1L2 L3

The order of rotations is extremely important because any
other order would normally result in a different orientation.
How to specify the attitude of the vehicle?

Euler Angles between body system and Earth-fixed system

V ertical
P lan e
yg
x
y 

S ym m etrical
 0
P lan e
xg

R ig h t
zg W in g
z , azimuth angle
, pitch angle
, bank angle
 Earth-Fixed System yg
x
 Body system q
y

Involves all 3 Euler angles , , and  y 0

xg
TEb  L1 ( ) L2 ( ) L3 ( )

1 0 0   cos  0  sin    cos sin 0 zg

z
 0 cos  sin    0 1 0    sin cos 0
   
 0  sin  cos    sin  0 cos    0 0 1 
 cos  0  sin    cos sin 0
 sin  sin  cos  sin  cos     sin cos 0
  
 cos  sin   sin  cos  cos    0 0 1 
 cos  cos cos  sin   sin  
  cos  sin   sin  sin  cos cos  cos  sin  sin  sin  sin  cos  
 
 sin  sin   cos  sin  cos  sin  cos  cos  sin  sin  cos  cos  
 Wind System
x V y yi
 Body system a
xa b
xi
Involves =−, =, and  b ya
of any given value. 0
Twb L1 ( ) L2 ( ) L3 (   )

When =0
Twb  L2 ( ) L3 (   ) a
 cos  0  sin    cos   sin  0 z za zi
 0 1 0   sin  cos  0
  
 sin  0 cos    0 0 1 
 cos  cos   cos  sin   sin  
 sin  cos  0 
 
 sin  cos   sin  sin  cos  
 2.3 Equation of Motion
The basis for analysis, computation, or simulation of the flight
vehicle motions is the mathematical model.

Airplane in flight is a very complicated dynamic system.

• Aeroelastic
• gyroscopic effect of spinning rotors
• external forces

In order to build the Equation of Motion

• The vehicle is treated as a single rigid body with 6DOF.
• The Earth is treated as flat and stationary in inertial space.
The equations governing the aircraft motion are
based on Newton’s laws of motion.

Force Equation
 dV 
F m  
 dt i
Moment Equation Inertial Frame
 dH 
M  
 dt i
H I • , Angular momentum
• , moment of inertia
• , body angular velocity with
 dI   d   respect to an inertial system
M     I  
dt
 i  dt i
Force Equation
Ignore the Earth’s rotation,
(
(  dV 0 
F m  
 dt  e

According to the moving axes theorem

(
 dV 0   dV 0  ( b
      e,b V 0
 dt  e  dt  b
(
V 0 iˆbu  ˆjb v  kˆb w
( b b
 e,b  i ,b iˆb p  ˆjb q  kˆb r
 (
 dV 0  ˆ
  iˆbu ˆjbv  kb w
 dt  b
iˆb ˆjb kˆb
b 
e,b V0  p q r
u v w

with (
F iˆb Fx  ˆjb Fy  kˆb Fz

We have Fx m(u  wq  vr )
Fy m( v  ur  wp )
Fz m( w  vp  uq)
Moment Equation
 dH 
M  
 dt i
The angular momentum the particle P (mass ) with respect to
the inertial space is  
hi  Ri mVi
 
Vi Ri ( Ro  rb )

d (hi )    
 Ri mVi  Ri mVi
dt  
⃗
˙ 𝑖 =𝑉⃗  Ri mVi
𝑅 𝑖


Ri  Fi

 Gi
Summing over the entire body
  
Gi  Gi  Ri  Fi

d  d 
 (hi )   hi
dt dt

dH i

dt

 dH i
Gi 
  dt
H i   hi
 d
 Ri  Fi  dt   hi
   d  
 ( Ro  rb ) Fi  dt  Ri mVi
 …

  d
 rb  Fi  dt  rb  mVi

  dH 
Gb  b


 dt  i


 dH b   dH b  b 
     i ,b H b
 dt i  dt b

  dH b  b 
Gb    i ,b H b

 dt b
We have

 dH b 
  iˆb H xb  ˆjb H yb  kˆb H zb
 dt 
 b
H xb  p I x  q I yx  rI xz

H yb q I y  rI yz  p I yx

H zb rI z  p I zx  q I zy

iˆb ˆjb kˆb

b 
i ,b H b  p q r
H xb H yb H zb

iˆb (qH zb  rH yb )  ˆjb (rH xb  pH zb )  kˆb ( pH yb  qH xb )

 In airplane terminology

Gb iˆb L  ˆjb M  kˆb N

 x  qI yx  rI xz  qr ( I z  I y )  pqI zx  (r 2  q 2 ) I yz  prI yx

L  pI

M q I y  rI yz  p I yx  rp ( I x  I z )  qrI xy  ( p 2  r 2 ) I zx  pqI zy

&z  pI
N rI &zx  qI
&zy  pq ( I y  I x )  rpI yz  (q 2  p 2 ) I xy  qrI xz

For an aircraft with vertical plane of symmetry, 0

 x  qr ( I z  I y )  I xz ( pq  r )
L  pI
 y  rp ( I x  I z )  I zx ( p 2  r 2 )
M qI
 z  pq( I y  I x )  I xz ( p  qr )
N rI
Angular Velocity Equation

Euler angle rate are not directly measured.

Body axes components of angular velocity with respect to
inertial axes are availed from rate gyros.
We are given in a body-fixed system to find the Euler angle
rate .

 0  0   
r  b  L1 ( ) L2 ( )  0  q b  L1 ( )  i   
p b  0 
   
 i   0   0
 
 p   cos  0  sin    0   1 0 0   0    
 q   sin  sin   
cos  sin  cos    0    0 cos  sin        0 
       
 r   cos  sin   sin  cos  cos      0  sin  cos    0   0 

 p  1 0  sin     
 q   0 cos  sin  cos     
    
 r   0  sin  cos  cos    

p    sin  Only when both pitch

q  cos   sin  cos  angle and bank angle are
close to 0, , and are
r  cos  cos    sin  true.
 p   
1 0  sin  
 q  L   
     L  0 cos  sin  cos  
 
 r     0  sin  cos  cos  
 

    p
  1    1 

   L  q L1  adj( L )

   r    ( L) 
 

( L) cos 2  cos   sin 2  cos  cos 

 cos  sin  sin  cos  sin  

adj( L )  0 cos  cos   sin  cos  
 
 0 sin  cos  
  1 tan  sin  cos  sin  
1  1  0 
L   adj( L )  cos   sin 
  ( L) 
  
 0 sec  sin  sec cos  

    p   1 tan  sin  cos  sin    p 

  1   0   q

   L   q  cos   sin 
  
   r   0 sec  sin  sec  cos    r 
 

  p  tan  ( q sin   r cos  )

 q cos   r sin 
 sec  ( q sin   r cos  )
Velocity Equation
 xb   xE   xE   xb   u
 y  T b  y   y  T e  y  T e  v 
 b e  E  E b  b b  

 zb   z E   zE   zb   w

 cos  cos cos  sin  sin  

Teb   cos  sin  sin  sin  cos cos  cos  sin  sin  sin sin  cos  
 
 sin  sin  cos  sin  cos  sin  cos  cos  sin  sin cos  cos  

x E u cos  cos  v (sin  sin  cos  cos  sin )

 w(cos  sin  cos  sin  sin )
y E u cos  sin  v (sin  sin  sin  cos  cos )
 w(cos  sin  sin  sin  cos )
z E  u sin  v sin  cos   w cos  cos 
Full Equations of Motion
Force Angular Velocity
X  mg sin  m(u  qw  rv )   p  tan  ( q sin   r cos  )
Y  mg cos  sin  m( v  ru  pw)  q cos   r sin 
Z  mg cos  cos  m( w  pv  qu )  sec  ( q sin   r cos  )

Moment L  I x p  I zx ( r  pq )  ( I y  I z )qr

M  I y q  I zx ( r 2  p 2 )  ( I z  I x )rp
N  I z r  I zx ( p  qr )  ( I x  I y ) pq

Velocity x E u cos  cos  v (sin  sin  cos  cos  sin )

 w(cos  sin  cos  sin  sin )
y E u cos  sin  v (sin  sin  sin  cos  cos )
 w(cos  sin  sin  sin  cos )
z E  u sin  v sin  cos   w cos  cos 
Equations [ p , q , r ]  f ( L, M , N , p, q, r )
12 Equations [u , v , w ]  f ( X , Y , Z , p, q, r, u, v, w)

[ ,  , ]  f ( p, q, r,  ,  )
[ x E , y E , z E ]  f (u, v, w,  ,  , )

Parameters
Fx , Fy , Fz L, M , N
18 Parameters
u, v , w p , q, r
xE , y E , z E  ,  ,

don’t affect the Equations of Motion, corresponding equations

and parameters can be eliminated
9 Equations and 15 Parameters Infinite number of solutions
Add Equations of Forces and Moments:
Force and Moments
Add 6 Equations  Fx , Fy , Fz  f (u, v, w, p, q, r,
   ,  , z,  ,  ,  ,  )
 L, M , N  e a r p

Parameters
Add 4 Parameters
Fx , Fy , Fz L, M , N
u, v , w p , q, r
zg , ,  e ,a ,r , p

15 Equations ， 19 Parameters

Still an infinite number of solutions

If control vector is given, the equations is solvable.
T
c   a  e  r  p 

Force and Moments

15 Equations  Fx , Fy , Fz  f (u, v, w, p, q, r,
   ,  , z,  ,  ,  ,  )
 L, M , N  e a r p

Parameters
Fx , Fy , Fz L, M , N
15 Parameters
u, v , w p , q, r
zg , ,
How to solve these time-variant equations?
new time step
Last time step
u, v, w p p
p, q, r M o m ent Eq .
in F B q  q
C o ntro l m o m ents r r

 , u u
u, v, w F o rc e Eq .
p, q, r in F B v  v
C o ntro l fo rc es w w

 
 ,
K inem atic s   
p, q, r  

u, v, w x E xE
K inem atic s y E  yE
, , z E zE

Numerical simulation
Euler, Runge-Kutta
 3.4 Small-Disturbance Theory
Equations of motion are frequently linearized for use in
stability and control analysis. It is assumed that the airplane
motion consists of small deviations from a reference
condition of steady flight.
– Small disturbance Theory

• The use of the small-disturbance theory has been found in

practice to give good results. It predicts with satisfactory
precision and sufficient accuracy for engineering purposes.
• It is not suitable for solutions of problems in which large
disturbance angles occur.
When the small-disturbance notation is introduced, only the
first-order terms in disturbance quantities are kept, then the
following linear equations are obtained.
Force X 0  X  mg (sin  0   cos  0 ) mu
Y0  Y  mg cos  0 m(v  u0r )
Z 0  Z  mg (cos  0   sin  0 ) m( w  u0q )
Moment Angular Velocity
L0  L  I x p  I zx r  q
M 0  M  I y q   p  r tan  0
N 0  N  I zx p  I z r  r sec  0

Velocity x E (u0  u ) cos  0  u0 sin  0  w sin  0

y E u0 cos  0  v
z E  (u0  u )sin  0  u0  cos  0  w cos  0
Estimation of Aerodynamic Forces and Moments
Assumptions:
• The instantaneous aerodynamic forces & moments depend
on the instantaneous values of the motion values;
• The aerodynamic forces & moments vary linearly with
motion variables;
• Longitudinal aerodynamic forces & moments (, , ) are
influenced only by longitudinal variables ( and );
• Lateral-directional aerodynamic forces & moments (, , ) are
influenced only by lateral-directional variables ( and );

These assumptions are usually valid for small .

At high , the aerodynamic forces & moments vary
nonlinearly with .
We can use the Taylor series expansion to obtain the forces &
moments in disturbed state:
C x C x Cx Cx Cx Cx Cx
C x  u      
  q   e   t  
u    q  e  t
C z C C C C C C
C z  u  z   z   z   z q  z  e  z t  
u    q  e  t
Cm C C C C C C
C m  u  m   m   m   m q  m  e  m t  
u    q  e  t
C y C y  C y C y C y C y C y
C y        p  r   a   r  
   p r  
a r

Cl C C C C C C
Cl    l   l   l p  l r  l  a  l  r  
   p r  a  r
C C C C C C C
Cn  n   n   n   n p  n r  n  a  n  r  
   p r  a  r

Stability derivatives control derivatives

Evaluated at equilibrium flight condition.
It is customary to use short-hand notation to denote these derivatives:
C x C x Cm
C xu  C x  Cm 
u  
C y C C
C y  Cl   l Cn  n
  
Partial derivatives with respect to angular rates () are:
CL Cm
CL  Cm 
( 2Uc0 ) ( 2Uc0 )
CL Cm
CLq  Cmq 
( 2qcU0 ) ( 2qcU0 )
C y Cl Cn
C y    Cl   Cn  
( 2Ub0 ) ( 2Ub0 ) ( 2Ub0 )
C y Cl Cn
C yp  Clp  Cnp 
( 2pb
U0
) ( 2pb
U0
) ( 2pb
U0
)
C y Cl Cn
C yr  Clr  Cnr 
( 2rbU0 ) ( 2rbU0 ) ( 2rUb0 )
The Derivative
The derivatives describe the changes of the forces and moments
when AOA is increased.

For small AOA

C x CT  CL x  CD
C z  (CL  CD x )
CT T / qS

C x CT C C D
  CL   x L 
   

 C   C  Subscript 0 indicates that the

C x  x  C L 0   D  derivative is evaluated when
   0    0 disturbance quantities are 0.
  CD  2CL 0
CD CD 0  C /  Ae
2
L    CL
   0  Ae

C z (C z /  )0
Neutral point
C z  C D 
  CL  CD   x 
   
Cm CL ( h  hn )

C z  (CL  CD 0 )

CD 0  CL Similar mechanism for β

derivatives
C z  CL
The Derivative
The derivatives give the effect on forces/moments of an
increase in , while other parameters are fixed.
The non-dimensional coefficients are functions of and , Effect
of M number must be included.
Thrust effect shows up in two different ways:
• One from the derivative of thrust with speed;
• One from the propulsion/airframe interaction.

Static aeroelastic effect, dynamic pressure

 C   C M   C x qc   C x CT 
C xu  x   x     
 uˆ  0  M uˆ  0  qc uˆ  0  CT uˆ  0 Similarly for
 C   C   C  and .
M 0  x    u02  x   CTu  x 
 M  0  pd  0  CT  0
The Derivative
These derivatives are caused by the fact that the pressure
distribution on tail does not adjust itself instantaneously to its
equilibrium value when AOA is suddenly changed.
lt
Downwash time lag: t 
u0
  lt
  
t     t
  u0
 lt 
CLt at  t at (C z )tail  (CL )tail  2atVH
 u0 
C z 1.1(C z )tail

 lt Cm l 
Cmt  VH CLt  at VH  atVH t
 u0  u0 
u0 Cm
(Cm )tail 2 Cm 1.1(Cm )tail
c 
The Derivative
These derivatives represent the aerodynamic effects that
accompany rotation of the airplane about y axis while remains
zero.
Motion with zero but varying

Motion with zero , but varying

The main effect of q on tail is to increase its AOA
qlt
 t 
u0
The change in tail lift coefficient caused by the rotation q
qlt
CLt at  t at
u0
The corresponding change in airplane lift coefficient
St S ql CL S l
C L  CLt  t at t at t t
S S u0 q S u0

2u0 CL
Czq 
tail
 CLq 
tail

c q
C zq 1.1C zq 
tail

The increment in pitching moment

2u0  Cm  lt
Cm  VH CLt Cmq  tail

c  q  0
 a V
t H
c
Cmq 1.1Cmq 
tail
Similar mechanism for effects of and

changes AOAs on left/right changes the AOA on

wing/horizontal tail vertical tail and fuselage

Change sideforce
Lright ≠Lleft Dright ≠Dleft

Yawing moment Rolling moment

Rolling Yawing Moment arm in Moment arm in
moment moment direction direction

Clp Cnp Cnr Clr

 Linear forces and moments are:

X  X u u  X w w   X c
Y Yv v  Y p p  Yr r  Yc
Z Z u u  Z w w  Z w w  Z q q  Z c
longitudinal L  Lv v  Lp p  Lr r  Lc
M  M u u  M w w  M w w  M q q  M c
N  N v v  N p p  N r r  N c
The equations can be divided into two groups, termed
longitudinal and lateral.
Longitudinal Equations
 Xu Xw 
 0  g cos  0 
m m
 u    u
Zu Zw Z q  mu0  mg sin  0   
 w    w
   m  Z w m  Zw m  Zw m  Zw   
 q    q 
    1  M  M wZ u  1  M wZw  1  M w ( Z q  mu0 )  M mg sin  0   
    I  u ( m  Z )  M 
 w (m  Z )  M
 q   w 
Iy Iy ( m  Z w )  I y (m  Z w )   
 y w   w   
 0 0 1 0 
 X c 
 m 
 
  Z c 
 m  Z w 

  M M w  Z


x E u cos  0  w sin  0  u0  sin  0
c
 c
 Iy I y (m  Z w )  z E  u sin  0  w cos  0  u0  cos  0
 
 0 
Lateral Equations

 Yv Yp  Yr  
  u0 g cos 0   Yc 
 m m  
 m   v m
 v    Lv

    Lc

 p    Lp   Lr  
0   p
'
 '  I '
N
zx v   '  I '
N p   '  I '
N
zx r 
 I N
  zx
 ' zx c

  xI  I
 x   xI       Ix 
 r     r  '
Np   ' N c 
 
   I zx' Lv  N v   '
I L  I N 
Nr 
0   

   I L 
 zx p '   zx v '  I z' 
zx c
 I x'   I z   I z 
  
   0 
 0 1 tan  0 0 

 r sec 0
y E u0 cos  0  v
I x' ( I x I z  I zx2 ) / I z
I z' ( I x I z  I zx2 ) / I x
I zx' I zx /( I x I z  I zx2 )
 Both lateral and longitudinal equations are in the desired
first-order form, written in state vector form
Control
System matrix effectiveness
matrix
x  A x  B u
State vector Control vector

Longitudinal system x [ u w q  ]T
Lateral system x [v p r  ]T
 Problem
A general aviation airplane
2
U 0 54 m / s  1.225 kg/m3
S 16.7225 m 2 I x 1420.897 kg m
m 1247 kg I y 4067.454 kg m 2
b = 10.1803 m 2 I z 4786.038 kg m 2
c 1.7374 m I xy  I yz  I zx 0 kg m 2

CL 0.41 CD 0.05 CLq CDq 0

CL 4.44 CD 0.33 Cm  0.683
CL CD 0 Cma  4.36 Cmq  9.96
CL e 0.355 CD e 0 Cm e  0.923
CLu CDu Cmu CLM CDM CmM 0

• Determine the short period damping ratio and natural frequency.

• Using simulink to simulate the time response of unit step.
To be continued.
 Clue

C xu  2CD  CDu Cx  CD Cz  CL

C x CL  CD Cxq  CDq 0 Czq  CLq 0
C x  CL cos Cz  CL  CD Cx e  CD e
C z  CL sin  Czu  2CL  CLu Cz e  CL e

 C xu  1Czu C x  1Cz C xq  1 ( m1  C zq c1 ) C x  1Cz   C x e  1C z e 

   
m1 m1 m1 m1 m1
 u     u  
    C zu C z m1  C zq c1 Cz    C z e 
      
 m1  C zc1 m1  C z c1 m1  C z c1 m1  C z c1      m1  C z c1  e
 q   C  C   q  
  Cm  2C z Cmq c1  2 (m1  C zq c1 ) 2Cz C   2C z e
   mu 2 zu
     m e 
 I y1 I y1 I y1 I y1   I y1 
   
 0 0 1 0   0 
2m c Iy C x c1 Cm c1
m1  c1  I y1  1 1  2 
U 0 S 2U 0
2
 U 02 Sc m1  C z c1 m1  C z c1
 3. Dynamic stability
When an airplane is disturbed,
• Static stability deals with the
tendency to return to its original
state;
• Dynamic stability deals with how
the motion changes with time.

• Solution of Small-Disturbance
Equation
• Longitudinal Modes
• Lateral/Directional Modes
 Relationships between Static stability and Dynamic Stability
• Can be SS but not DS
• To be DS, must be SS
• SS is a necessary, but not sufficient condition for DS

Statically stable
Statically stable

Dynamically stable
Dynamically unstable
 3.1 Solutions of Small-Disturbance
Equations
The longitudinal and lateral/directional small-disturbance
equations of motions are both of the form
: system matrix
: state variable
x  Ax  Bu : input matrix
: control input

• Free response, with a given set of initial conditions and

zero input, indicative of the dynamic stability
• Forced response, with zero initial conditions and a given
input time history
For free response,

x  Ax

The solution can be obtained in the usual way by assuming

x  x0 e  t

x  x0  e t

x0  e t  Ax0 e t 0
1 
( I  A) x0 e t 0  1 
I  
 1 
 
 1 
For nontrivial solutions  I  A 0
  a11  a12  a13  a14
Expand  a21   a22  a23  a24
0
 a31  a32   a33  a34
 a41  a42  a43   a44

Expand
A  4  B  3  C  2  D   E 0
Characteristic equation

The roots (4) of the Characteristic equation are also called

eigenvalues.
x (t )  x0i e
 it

w(t ) a1e 1t  a2 e2t 

Real roots When the roots are real, there is no
period, and the only parameter is the
time to double or half.

Positive real root

Zero root

Negative real root

Complex roots constant amplitude oscillation
if n = 0
1, 2 n i
a1e1t  a2e2t
a1e( n i ) t  a2e( n  i ) t

2e nt ( a cos t  b sin t )

2 a 2  b2 e nt cos(t   )

damped oscillation divergent oscillation

if n<0 if n >0
When the modes are oscillatory, it
is the envelope ordinate that
doubles or halves.

2 a 2  b2 e nt cos(t   )

Time to double or half

ln 2 0.693
T2 T1 / 2  
|n | |n |
For a conventional, statically stable airplane (<0), the
longitudinal characteristic equation usually has a pair of
complex conjugate roots:
1,2  r1  js1
3,4  r2  js2
The eigenvalues can be determined by solving the 4th-order
characteristic equation, or using matrix algebra.
a1e1t  a2e2t  a3e 3t  a4e 4t

2 a12  b12 e r1t cos( s1t  1 )  2 a22  b22 e r2t cos( s2t  2 )
Stability Criteria – Routh’s Criterion
Exam the dynamic stability of the airplane without actually
solving the roots (or eigenvalues)
The characteristic equation for the general aviation airplane:
0.3739 4  1.9002 3  4.9935 2  0.1642  0.2296 0
Routh’s array:
s 4 : 0.3739 4.9935 0.2296
s 3 : 1.9002 0.1642 0
All elements of the 1st column of
2
s : 4.9612 0.2296 Routh’s array are positive or have
s1 : 0.0763 the same sign, the sufficiency
s 0 : 0.2296 condition is satisfied, and the given
system is stable.
 Hurwitz’s Criterion
( ) a0n  a1n  1    an  1  an 0
Necessary and
 sufficient condition
1 a1 a0 0 0 0 0 0
for negative real part:
 2 a3 a2 a1 a0 0 0  0
 a0  0
 3 a5 a4 a3 a2 a1 a0 0
a7 a6 a5 a4 a3 a2  0 1 a1  0
         a1 a0
2  0
        a3 a2
n
0  0 0 0 an an  1 an  2 
0  0 0 0 0 0 an n  0
For conventional aircraft, longitudinal and lateral/directional
characteristic equations are both 4th order
a1 a0 0 0 a0  0 1 a1  0
a3 a 2 a1 a0
a1 a0
0 a4 a3 a 2 2  a1a2  a0a3  0
a3 a2
0 0 0 a4
a1 a0 0
 3  a3 a 2 a1 a1a2a3  a12a4  a0a32  0
0 a4 a3
 4   3a 4  0
Routh-Hurwitz Theorem
a0 , a1 , a2 , a3 , a4  0
R  3 a1a2a3  a12a4  a0a32  0
 Review of Transfer function
Transfer function is the ratio of output to input (in Laplace
transform) of the given system.
1 Fr ( s )
s  2n s    Fr ( s )
2 2
n
G( s)  2
k k ( s  2n s  n2 )
Zeros and poles
• Zeros (o): Points in the s-plane where equals to 0
• Poles (X): Points where approaches ∞
Im
o
k ( s  z1 )( s  z2 ) X
G( s) 
( s  p1 )( s  p2 )( s  p3 )
X o
Zeros: s  z1 , s  z2 Re

X
Poles: s  p1 , s  p2 , s  p3
o
Frequency and damping ratio

Standard form of the characteristic equation of a 2nd-order

system is
 2  2n   n2 0

Transfer function of the 2nd-order system

n2
G( s)  2
s  2n s  n2

2 important parameters that characterize a 2nd-order system

• , natural frequency of the system
• , damping ratio of the system
Response to a unit-step input
Oscillatory response ()

Response of 2nd-order systems

Underdamped response ()
Critically damped response ()

Overdamped response ()
Characteristics of 2nd order system response

Peak time Overshoot Settling time

    ln(0.02 1   2 )
Tp  1  2 Ts 
n 1   2 Os e 100 n
 3.2 Longitudinal Modes
A general aviation airplane

  0.0453 0.0363 0  0.1859 

  0.3717  2.0354 0.9723 0  1,2  2.5118  j 2.5706
A  
 0.3398  7.0301  2.9767 0  3,4  0.0169  j 0.2174
 
 0 0 1 0 

There are two pairs of complex roots. Each pair of which

describes a longitudinal stability mode.
Both the complex roots have negative real parts, the free
response of this airplane is of stable nature.
The two decaying oscillatory motions are superposed one on
another.
The airplane is dynamically stable.
For this general aviation airplane, we get:
1,2  2.5118  j 2.5706
3,4  0.0169  j 0.2174

 1,2 0.6989, 1,2 3.5941

 3,4 0.0775, 3,4 0.2181

The motion corresponds to is heavily damped and is of

higher frequency or shorter period
– short-period mode

The motion corresponds to is lightly damped and is of

lower frequency or longer period
– phugoid (or long-period) mode
• Short-period mode is fast and heavily damped.
The pilot does not have to take any action to kill this mode.
The main motion parameters are AOA and pitch rate/angle.
• Phugoid mode is very lightly damped and persists for a long
time.
Pilot can easily operate the longitudinal control and kill the
phugoid mode. The main motion parameters are pitch
angle and velocity.

The longitudinal response of statically stable airplanes

consist of two distinct oscillatory motion.
Short period mode
Short-Period Approximation
Only lasts a few seconds, AOA, pitch angle, pitch rate vary rapidly,
the forward speed nearly remains constant.
We can assume during short-period oscillation:
 C z m1  C zq c1 Cz   C z e 
 m C c  
 1 z 1 m1  Cz c1 m1  Cz c1   m1  C z c1 
      
 q   Cm  2Cz Cmq c1  2 ( m1  Czq c1 ) 2 Cz     Cm e  2Cz e 
 
   q      e
  I y1 I y1 I y1      I y1 
  
 0 1 0   
0 
   
   
 0 0
Cz  CL sin  0 C z 0
 C z m1  C zq c1   C z e 
 m C c   
   m1  Cz c1      m1  Cz c1  
 
1 z 1
 q  
   Cm  2Cz Cmq c1  2 ( m1  Czq c1 )   q   Cm e  2 Cz e  e
   
 I y1 I y1   I y1 
  C z   C z e 
C zq C z 0  1   
   m1     m1
      
 q   Cm  2Cz Cmq c1  2 m1   q   Cm e  2Cz e  e
 
   
 I y1 I y1   I y1 
C c 
  z  1 ( Cmq Cm ) 
C z c1Cmq Cm  m1 I y1



n    
m1 I y1 I y1 C cC
2 z 1 mq  Cm
m1 I y1 I y1

2m c Iy C x c1 Cm c1
m1  c1  I y1  1 1  2 
U 0 S 2U 0
2
 U 02 Sc m1  C z c1 m1  C z c1

depends directly on , as decreases, increases.

depends directly on and , higher tail volume ratio, higher .

Phugoid Approximation
The disturbance in AOA quickly decays to 0 during the short-period
oscillation and subsequently remains close to 0.
We can assume for the phugoid motion.
Furthermore, we assume that the pitching motion is quite slow, so
that pitching acceleration can be ignored, i.e. .

 C xu  3C zu C x  3C z   C x e  3C z e 

  u  
 u  
m1 m1
  
m1  
   
    C zu C z       C z e  e
 m C c  
 1 zq 1 m1  C zq c1   m1  C zq c1 

C xq c1
3 
m1  C zq c1
 C z 0 C xu C C
2    x 2 zu 0
m1 m1

1 C xu C xu  2CD  CDu
n  C x C zu  
m1 2m1n C x  CL cos  0
C zu  2CL  C Lu

For low subsonic speeds CDu CLu 0

For level flight 0 0

2g
CL 2W / U S
2 n 
C xu  2CD 0
U0
C x  CL 1  CD  1
Czu  2CL
    
2  CL  2E

The damping of phugoid mode is inversely proportional to the

aerodynamic efficiency E. The period of phugoid mode
increases with forward speed.
Approximate Solution
( S ) 5.64 S 4  13.14 S 3  20.65S 2  0.163S  0.061 0

Short-period mode (keep high order terms):

( S ) 5.64 S 4  13.14 S 3  20.65S 2 0

( S ) 5.64 S 2  13.14 S  20.65 0

sp  1.165 1.518i sp  1.162 1.515i

Phugoid mode (keep low order terms):

( S ) 20.65S 2  0.163S  0.061 0
 p  0.0039 0.0542i  p  0.00302 0.0544i
Accuracy of Short-Period and Phugoid Approximation
  0.0453 0.0363 0  0.1859  0 
  0.3717  2.0354 0.9723   0.0028
0 
A   B  
 0.3398  7.0301  2.9767 0    0.2071
   
 0 0 1 0   0 
-2.5118 ± 2.5706i
-0.0169 ± 0.2174i

  2.0354 0.9723    0.0028

Asp   Bsp   -2.5061 ± 2.5717i
  7.0301  2.9767    0.2071

  0.0453  0.183  0 
Aph  B ph   -0.0226 ± 0.2635i
 0.3823 0   0.0029 

Simulink results
• The short-period approximation is quite satisfactory
for the prediction of free response of the general
aviation aircraft.
• The damping and frequency of phugoid motion are in
error.
• For forced response, the short-period agrees well with
that of the complete 4th-order system initially, but the
steady-state values differ.
• The step responses based on phugoid approximation,
both the transient and steady-state values, differ
considerably from that for the complete system.
AOA , , Nose down
disturbance

, makes nose down amplitude

smaller

Inertia makes it continue nose down

until +M() makes q>0

, makes nose up amplitude

smaller

Inertia makes it continue nose up

until -M() makes q<0

, makes nose down amplitude

smaller
Mechanism of phugoid mode

Drop in V amounts to a
decrease in lift and Begin to lose altitude, θ
flattening of θ. goes negative, V
increases.

AOA remains
constant

Pitch angle θ increases, θ is nearly 0, V is at its

airplane gains altitude, maximum, the cycle
loses V. repeats once again.
 3.3 Lateral-Directional Modes
The lateral-directional equations of motion:
 1 

    C y   C y   b1C yp p  ( m1  b1C yr )r  C ya  a  C yr  r 
 m1  b1C  
 y 

1
p 
I x1

Cl    b1Cl   b1  b1Clp p  b1Clr r  I xz1r  Cla  a  Clr  r 
1
r  
I z1
Cn   b1Cn  b1  b1Cnp p  b1Cnr r  I xz1 p  Cna  a  Cnr  r 
b Ix Iz I xz
b1  I x1  1 I z1  1 I xz1  1
2U 0  U 02 Sb U 02 Sb U 02 Sb
2 2 2

 x1  rI xz1
Cl  pI p I z' 1Cl  I xz' 1 Cn
 z1  pI xz1
Cn rI r I xz' 1Cl  I x' 1 Cn
I x1 I z1 I xz1
I x' 1  I z' 1  I xz' 1 
I x1 I z1  I xz2 1 I x1 I z1  I xz2 1 I x1 I z1  I xz2 1
Standard state-space form:
    a11 a12 a13 a14 a15      b11 b12 
    a a22 a23 a24 a25      b21 b22 
   21       a 
 p   a31 a32 a33 a34 a35   p    b31 b32   
         r 
     a41 a42 a43 a44 a45      b41 b42 
 r   a51 a52 a53 a54 a55   r   b51 b52 

The lateral-directional characteristic equation

A ,lat  5  A ,lat  4  A ,lat  3  A ,lat  2  E ,lat  0

1 zero root – neutral stability in yaw

1 large, negative real root – roll subsidence mode – rapid, p
1 small real root – spiral mode – slow,
A pair of complex conjugate roots
– Dutch-roll mode – medium,
 For a general aircraft

  0.2557 0.1820 0 0  1.0000   0 0.0712 

 0 0 1.000 0 0   0 0 
   
A   16.1572 0  8.4481 0 2.2048  B  29.3013 2.5764 
   
 0 0 0 0 1.0000   0 0 
 4.5440 0  0.3517 0  0.7647    0.2243  4.6477 

1 0
2 -0.0087
 d 0.2043
3,4 -0.4897  2.3468i 
d 2.3973
5 -8.4804
 Roll-subsidence Mode
As the plane rolls
• The wing going down has an
increased AOA
• Opposite effect for other wing

Unbalanced wing lift

A moment tends to restore

the equilibrium

The roll rate builds up

exponentially, and a steady
roll is established.
Roll-subsidence approximation
The motion immediately following a lateral-directional
disturbance is the heavily damped roll subsidence mode, during
which the airplane motion is predominantly rolling about the x-
body axis, other variables vary very slowly.
So we can assume   r r 0
side force and yawing moment equations can be ignored.
I x1 p  Clp b1 p Cl a  a  Cl r  r

For free response  a  r 0

Clp b1
I x1 p  Clp b1 p 0 r 
I x1

For AOA below stall , is real with a large negative value.

Response to aileron pulse input
 Dutch-roll Mode

Positive sideslip
  0

L  0 N  0
Left roll Right yaw

Left sideslip by Left

gravity component sideslip

Left sideslip
  0
Dutch-roll approximation
The oscillatory motion following roll subsidence mode is Dutch
roll, involves mainly sideslip and yawing motions.
If the rolling motion is small and can
be neglected , we can ignore the
rolling moment equation.
Equations in state-space form:
    a11 a12      b11 b12    a 
   
 r   a21 a22   r   b21 b22    r 
  

1
n  [C y Cnr b1  Cn (m1  b1C yr )]
m1 I z1
 1   C y  b1Cnr 
     
 2n   m1 I z1 
Response to rudder step input
 Spiral Mode

Small roll Small Positive yaw

Disturbance angle sideslip angle moment

Positive yaw rate

Makes things worse. Positive roll

moment

Increase Increase
sideslip angle roll angle
Spiral mode development
Spiral mode Approximation
During the slow spiral motion:
• The sideslip varies very slowly, so that . Hence, the side
force equation can be ignored.
• The roll rate is practically zero during spiral motion so
that the net rolling moment must be zero.

The rolling and yawing moment can be reduced to

Cl    Clr b1r  Cl a  a  Cl r  r 0
I z1r Cn   Cnr b1 r  Cn a  a  Cn r  r

For free response  a  r 0

(  Cn Clr  Cnr Cl  )b1r

r 
I z1Cl 
 b1 (Cnr Cl   Cn Clr )
s 
I z1Cl 
Usually,

Cl   0 Stable dihedral effect Cl  Cnr  0

Cnr  0 Positive damping in yaw
Cn   0 Directionally stable Cn Clr  0
Clr  0 Positive roll due to positive yaw

When Cl  Cnr  Clr Cn , the spiral mode will be stable.

Accuracy of Lateral-Directional Approximations
• The accuracy depends on the type of airplane.
• The roll subsidence and Dutch-roll approximations are
satisfactory.
• The spiral approximation is in poor agreement with the
complete 5th-order lateral-directional system.
• The transient behaviors are in fair agreement, but the
steady-state values differ considerably.

Mode Approximation Complete System Comment

Roll subsidence -8.4481 -8.4804 Excellent
Dutch roll Good
Spiral -0.1446 -0.0087 Poor
 4. Flying/Handling Qualities
The flying and handling qualities refer to those qualities or
characteristics of an aircraft that govern the ease and precision
with which a pilot is able to perform the tasks required in
support of an aircraft role.
Handling qualities

Response Mission
Pilot Aircraft
task

Flight
Control
System

Flying qualities
 There are 3 levels to describe the flying qualities:

Level I. clearly adequate

Level II. Adequate to accomplish the mission flight
phase when some increase in pilot workload or
degradation in mission effectiveness exist or both.
Level III. Mission can be controlled safely, but pilot
workload is excessive or mission effectiveness is
inadequate or both.
Non-terminal flight phases
Category A. Non-terminal flight phases that require rapid
maneuvering, precision tracking, or precise flight-path control.
Including air-to-air combat, ground attack, weapon
delivery/launch, aerial recovery, etc.
Category B. Non-terminal flight phases that are normally
accomplished using gradual maneuvers and without precision
tracking. Including climb, cruise, loiter, etc.
Terminal flight phases
Category C. Terminal flight phases are normally accomplished
using gradual maneuvers and usually require accurate flight-
path control. Including takeoff, approach, go-around and
landing.
Flight phase category Flight phase
Air-to-air combat 空战
Ground attack 对地攻击
Weapon delivery/launch 武器投掷或发射
Reconnaissance 侦查
A In-flight refuel (receiver) 空中加油 ( 受油机 )
Terrain following 地形跟踪
Maritime search 反潜搜索
Aerobatics 特技飞行
Close formation flying 密集编队
Climb 爬升
Cruise 巡航
Loiter 待机
B
In-flight refuel (tanker) 空中加油 ( 加油机 )
Descent 下降
Aerial delivery 空投
Takeoff 起飞
Approach 进场
C
Overshoot 复飞
Landing 着陆
The aircraft are classified as follows.
Class I. Small, light airplanes, such as light utility, primary
trainer, and light observation craft.
Class II. Medium-weight, low-to-medium maneuverability
airplanes, such as light or medium transport,
reconnaissance, tactical bomber, heavy attack, and trainer
for class II.
Class III. Large, heavy, low-to-medium maneuverability
airplanes, such as heavy transport, heavy bomber, and
trainer for class III.
Class IV. High-maneuverability airplanes, such as fighter,
attack, tactical reconnaissance, observation, and trainer
for class IV.
Pilot Opinion Rating

Pilot opinion rating scales have been in use for a long time and
provide a formal procedure for the qualitative assessment of
aircraft flying qualities by experimental means.
Since qualitative flying qualities assessment is very subjective,
the development of a formal method for the interpretation of
pilot opinion has turned into a useful tool which is routinely
used in flight test program.
The current pilot opinion rating scale was developed by Cooper
and Harper (1969) and is universally known as the Cooper–
Harper rating scale.
Level 1

Level 2

Level 3
 Longitudinal Flying Qualities
Relationships Short-period mode
between Cooper- Damping ratios for short-period mode
Harper flying Cat A and C Cat A and C Cat B Cat B
qualities and physical
parameters like the Level I 0.35 1.3 0.3 2.0
frequency and Level II 0.25 2.0 0.2 2.0
damping ratio. Level III 0.15 ---- 0.15 ----

Limits on (CAP)
Phugoid mode
Cat A, Cat A, Cat B, Cat B, Cat C, Cat C,
Level I =   0.04 min max min max min max
Level I 0.28 3.6 0.085 3.6 0.16 3.6
Level II =  0 Level II 0.16 10.0 0.038 10.0 0.096 10.0
Level III = T2  55s Level III 0.16 ---- 0.038 ---- 0.096 ----
Lateral-Directional Flying Qualities
Time constants for roll subsidence mode
Class Category Level I Level II Level III
I, IV A 1.0 1.4 10.0
II, III A 1.4 3.0 10.0
All B 1.4 3.0 10.0
I, IV C 1.0 1.4 10.0
II, III C 1.4 3.0 10.0

Time to double amplitude for spiral mode

Class Category Level I Level II Level III
I, IV A 12s 8s 4s
I, IV B, C 20s 12s 4s
II, III All 20s 12s 4s
 Dutch-roll flying qualities
Min Min ,
Level Category Class Min rad/s rad/s
I A I, IV 0.19 0.35 1.0
I A II, III 0.19 0.35 0.4
I B All 0.08 0.15 1.0
I C I, II-C,b 0.08 0.15 1.0
IV
I C II-L,b III 0.08 0.15 0.4
II All All 0.02 0.05 0.4
III All All 0.02 ---- 0.4

C denote carrier-based
L denote land-based
Example 2
The lateral system matrix of an aircraft is given below

  0.0558 0  774 32.2 

  0.00387  0.4342 0.4136 0 
A  
 0.0011  0.0061  0.1458 0 
 
 0 1 0 0 

1. Determine the lateral eigenvalues;

2. Evaluate the lateral flying qualities.