PES UNIVERSITY

Ring Road Campus, Bengaluru

PESU I/O SLOT 7

Final Assignment
Academic Year 2019-2020
on

Reverse Thrust
By
SRN: PES1201900671
Name: Shubhanga.A
 Reverse Thrust

Introduction
Reverse Thrust, also called Thrust reversal, is the temporary diversion of an aircraft
engine's thrust so that it acts against the forward travel of the aircraft, providing deceleration.
Thrust reverser systems are featured on many jet aircraft to help slow down just after touch-
down, reducing wear on the brakes and enabling shorter landing distances. Such devices affect
the aircraft significantly and are considered important for safe operations by airlines.
Reverse thrust is also available on many propeller-driven aircraft through reversing
the controllable-pitch propellers to a negative angle.
A simple and effective method is to reverse the direction of the exhaust stream of the jet engine
and use the power of the engine itself to decelerate. Ideally, the reversed exhaust stream would
be directed straight forward. However, for aerodynamic reasons, this is not possible, and a 135°
angle is taken, resulting in less effectiveness than would otherwise be possible.
Types of reverse thrust
1. Target Type
2. Clam-shell Type
3. Cold Stream Type
Operation
Reverse thrust is typically applied immediately after touchdown, often along with spoilers, to
improve deceleration early in the landing roll when residual aerodynamic lift and high-speed
limit the effectiveness of the brakes located on the landing gear.
Once the aircraft's speed has slowed, reverse thrust is shut down to prevent the reversed airflow
from throwing debris in front of the engine intakes where it can be ingested, causing foreign
object damage.
Reverse thrust is always selected manually, either using levers attached to the thrust levers or
moving the thrust levers into a reverse thrust 'gate'.
The early deceleration provided by reverse thrust can reduce landing roll by a quarter or more.
Regulations dictate however, an aircraft must be able to land on a runway without the use of
thrust reversal in order to be certified to land there as part of scheduled airline service.
In Flight Operation
Some aircraft are able to safely use reverse thrust in flight, though the majority of these are
propeller-driven. Many commercial aircraft, however, cannot. In-flight use of reverse thrust
has several advantages. It allows for rapid deceleration, enabling quick changes of speed. It
also prevents the speed build-up normally associated with steep dives, allowing for rapid loss
of altitude, which can be especially useful in hostile environments such as combat zones, and
when making steep approaches to land.
Effectiveness
The amount of thrust and power generated are proportional to the speed of the aircraft, making
reverse thrust more effective at high speeds. For maximum effectiveness, it should be applied
quickly after touchdown. If activated at low speeds, foreign object damage is possible.
Reverse thrust mode is used only for a fraction of aircraft operating time but affects it greatly
in terms of design, weight, maintenance, performance, and cost. Penalties are significant but
necessary since it provides stopping force for added safety margins, directional control during
landing rolls, and aids in rejected take-offs and ground operations on contaminated runways
where normal braking effectiveness is diminished.
Purpose
1. Reduce speed
2. Stabilize aircraft roll out
3. Reduce usage of breaks

Summary
Reverse thrust is used to change the direction of thrust of an aircraft causing deceleration thus
slowing down the plane maximum reverse is achieved at a higher forward. Reverse thrust is
not used in-flight on a commercial airline as it causes lot of turbulences thus altering the lift
generated in its wings but it is used on military jets in-flight as it has many advantages.

References
[1] https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-540-73619-6_8
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thrust_reversal
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfFZ2-Am-Zk