AIRCRAFT FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM

A control system is a collection of mechanical and electronic equipment that allows an aircraft to
be flown with exceptional precision and reliability.
A control system consists of cockpit controls, sensors, actuators (hydraulic, mechanical or
electrical) and computers

A conventional fixed-wing aircraft flight control system consists of flight control surfaces, the
respective cockpit controls, connecting linkages, and the necessary operating mechanisms to
control an aircraft's direction in flight. Aircraft engine controls are also considered as flight
controls as they change speed.

Fig.1.1 Basic Control System

A) Aileron, B) Control stick, C) Elevator, D) Rudder.

FLIGHT CONTROLS
Aircraft flight control systems consist of primary and secondary systems. The ailerons, elevator
(or stabilator), and rudder constitute the primary control system and are required to control an
aircraft safely during flight. Wing flaps, leading edge devices, spoilers, and trim systems
constitute the secondary control system and improve the performance characteristics of the
airplane or relieve the pilot of excessive control forces.
Primary Flight Controls
Movement of any of the three primaries flight control surfaces (ailerons, elevator or stabilator, or
rudder), changes the airflow and pressure distribution over and around the airfoil. These changes
affect the lift and drag produced by the airfoil/control surface combination, and allows a pilot to
control the aircraft about its three axes of rotation.

AILERONS
Ailerons control roll about the longitudinal axis. The ailerons are attached to the outboard
trailing edge of each wing and move in the opposite direction from each other. Ailerons are
connected by cables, bell cranks, pulleys and/or push-pull tubes to a control wheel or control
stick.

Moving the control wheel or control stick to the right causes the right aileron to deflect upward
and the left aileron to deflect downward. The upward deflection of the right aileron decreases the
camber resulting in decreased lift on the right wing. The corresponding downward deflection of
the left aileron increases the camber resulting in increased lift on the left wing. Thus, the
increased lift on the left wing and the decreased lift on the right wing cause the airplane to roll to
the right.

ELEVATOR
The elevator controls pitch about the lateral axis. Like the ailerons on small aircraft, the elevator
is connected to the control column in the flight deck by a series of mechanical linkages. Aft
movement of the control column deflects the trailing edge of the elevator surface up. This is
usually referred to as up “elevator.

The up-elevator position decreases the camber of the elevator and creates a downward
aerodynamic force, which is greater than the normal tail-down force that exists in straight-and-
level flight. The overall effect causes the tail of the aircraft to move down and the nose to pitch
up. The pitching moment occurs about the center of gravity (CG). The strength of the pitching
moment is determined by the distance between the CG and the horizontal tail surface, as well as
by the aerodynamic effectiveness of the horizontal tail surface. Moving the control column
forward has the opposite effect. In this case, elevator camber increases, creating more lift (less
tail-down force) on the horizontal stabilizer/elevator. This moves the tail upward and pitches the
nose down. Again, the pitching moment occurs about the CG.
FIG. The Elevator is the primary control for changing the pitch attitude of an airplane.

RUDDER
The rudder controls movement of the aircraft about its vertical axis. This motion is called yaw.
Like the other primary control surfaces, the rudder is a movable surface hinged to a fixed
surface, in this case to the vertical stabilizer, or fin. Moving the left or right rudder pedal controls
the rudder.

When the rudder is deflected into the airflow, a horizontal force is exerted in the opposite
direction. By pushing the left pedal, the rudder moves left. This alters the airflow around the
vertical stabilizer/rudder, and creates a sideward lift that moves the tail to the right and yaws the
nose of the airplane to the left. Rudder effectiveness increases with speed; therefore, large
deflections at low speeds and small deflections at high speeds may be required to provide the
desired reaction. In propeller-driven aircraft, any slipstream flowing over the rudder increases its
effectiveness.

When both rudder and elevator controls are moved by the pilot, a control mixing mechanism
moves each surface the appropriate amount. The control system for the V-tail is more complex
than that required for a conventional tail. In addition, the V-tail design is more susceptible to
Dutch roll tendencies than a conventional tail, and total reduction in drag is minimal.
Fig The effect of left rudder pressure.

Secondary Flight Controls

Secondary flight control systems may consist of wing flaps, leading edge devices, spoilers, and
trim systems.

Flaps
Flaps are the most common high-lift devices used on aircraft. These surfaces, which are attached
to the trailing edge of the wing, increase both lift and induced drag for any given AOA. Flaps
allow a compromise between high cruising speed and low landing speed, because they may be
extended when needed, and retracted into the wing’s structure when not needed. There are four
common types of flaps: plain, split, slotted, and Fowler flaps. The plain flap is the simplest of the
four types. It increases the airfoil camber, resulting in a significant increase in the coefficient of
lift (CL) at a given AOA. At the same time, it greatly increases drag and moves the center of
pressure (CP) aft on the airfoil, resulting in a nose-down pitching moment.

The split flap is deflected from the lower surface of the airfoil and produces a slightly greater
increase in lift than the plain flap. More drag is created because of the turbulent air pattern
produced behind the airfoil. When fully extended, both plain and split flaps produce high drag
with little additional lift.

The most popular flap on aircraft today is the slotted flap. Variations of this design are used for
small aircraft, as well as for large ones. Slotted flaps increase the lift coefficient significantly
more than plain or split flaps. On small aircraft, the hinge is located below the lower surface of
the flap, and when the flap is lowered, a duct forms between the flap well in the wing and the
leading edge of the flap. When the slotted flap is lowered, high energy air from the lower surface
is ducted to the flap’s upper surface. The high energy air from the slot accelerates the upper
surface boundary layer and delays airflow separation, providing a higher CL. Thus, the slotted
flap produces much greater increases in maximum coefficient of lift (CL-MAX) than the plain or
split flap. While there are many types of slotted flaps, large aircraft often have double- and even
triple-slotted flaps. These allow the maximum increase in drag without the airflow over the flaps
separating and destroying the lift they produce.

Spoilers
Found on many gliders and some aircraft, high drag devices called spoilers are deployed from
the wings to spoil the smooth airflow, reducing lift and increasing drag. On gliders, spoilers are
most often used to control rate of descent for accurate landings. On other aircraft, spoilers are
often used for roll control, an advantage of which is the elimination of adverse yaw. To turn
right, for example, the spoiler on the right wing is raised, destroying some of the lift and creating
more drag on the right. The right wing drops, and the aircraft banks and yaws to the right.
Deploying spoilers on both wings at the same time allows the aircraft to descend without gaining
speed. Spoilers are also deployed to help reduce ground roll after landing. By destroying lift,
they transfer weight to the wheels, improving braking effectiveness.
Fig Spoilers reduce lift and increase drag during descent and landing.

Trim Systems
Although an aircraft can be operated throughout a wide range of attitudes, airspeeds, and power
settings, it can be designed to fly hands-off within only a very limited combination of these
variables. Trim systems are used to relieve the pilot of the need to maintain constant pressure on
the flight controls, and usually consist of flight deck controls and small hinged devices attached
to the trailing edge of one or more of the primary flight control surfaces. Designed to help
minimize a pilot’s workload, trim systems aerodynamically assist movement and position of the
flight control surface to which they are attached. Common types of trim systems include trim
tabs, balance tabs, antiservo tabs, ground adjustable tabs, and an adjustable stabilizer.

Trim Tabs
The most common installation on small aircraft is a single trim tab attached to the trailing edge
of the elevator. Most trim tabs are manually operated by a small, vertically mounted control
wheel. However, a trim crank may be found in some aircraft. The flight deck control includes a
trim tab position indicator. Placing the trim control in the full nose-down position moves the trim
tab to its full up position. With the trim tab up and into the airstream, the airflow over the
horizontal tail surface tends to force the trailing edge of the elevator down. This causes the tail of
the airplane to move up, and the nose to move down.

If the trim tab is set to the full nose-up position, the tab moves to its full down position. In this
case, the air flowing under the horizontal tail surface hits the tab and forces the trailing edge of
the elevator up, reducing the elevator’s AOA. This causes the tail of the airplane to move down,
and the nose to move up.
In spite of the opposing directional movement of the trim tab and the elevator, control of trim is
natural to a pilot. If the pilot needs to exert constant back pressure on a control column, the need
for nose-up trim is indicated. The normal trim procedure is to continue trimming until the aircraft
is balanced and the nose-heavy condition is no longer apparent. Pilots normally establish the
desired power, pitch attitude and configuration first, and then trim the aircraft to relieve control
pressures that may exist for that flight condition. Any time power, pitch attitude, or configuration
is changed; expect that retrimming will be necessary to relieve the control pressures for the new
flight condition.

Autopilot
Autopilot is an automatic flight control system that keeps an aircraft in level flight or on a set
course. It can be directed by the pilot, or it may be coupled to a radio navigation signal.
Autopilot reduces the physical and mental demands on a pilot and increases safety. The common
features available on an autopilot are altitude and heading hold.

The simplest systems use gyroscopic attitude indicators and magnetic compasses to control
servos connected to the flight control system. The number and location of these servos depends
on the complexity of the system. For example, a single-axis autopilot controls the aircraft about
the longitudinal axis and a servo actuates the ailerons. A three-axis autopilot controls the aircraft
about the longitudinal, lateral, and vertical axes. Three different servos actuate ailerons, elevator,
and rudder. More advanced systems often include a vertical speed and/or indicated airspeed hold
mode. Advanced autopilot systems are coupled to navigational aids through a flight director.

The autopilot system also incorporates a disconnect safety feature to disengage the system
automatically or manually. These autopilots work with inertial navigation systems, global
positioning systems (GPS), and flight computers to control the aircraft. In fly-by-wire systems,
the autopilot is an integrated component.

Additionally, autopilots can be manually overridden. Because autopilot systems differ widely in
their operation, refer to the autopilot operating instructions in the Airplane Flight Manual (AFM)
or the Pilot’s Operating Handbook (POH).

Fig AUTO PILOT

Conventional Flight Control System Components

Push Pull Rods

Fig PUSH PULL ROD

Turnbuckles

A turnbuckle, stretching screw or bottle screw is a device for adjusting the tension or length of
ropes, cables, tie rods and other tensioning systems.

Fig TURNBUCKLES

Torque Tube
A tube in an aircraft control system that transmits a tensional force from the operating control to
the control surface. Torque tubes are often used to actuate ailerons and flaps.
Fig TORQUE TUBE

Bell Crank
A double lever in an aircraft control system used to change the direction of motion. Bell cranks
are normally used in aileron controls and in the steering system of nose wheels

Fig BELL CRANK

Fairleads
A fairlead is a device to guide a line, rope or cable around an object, out of the way or to stop it
from moving laterally. Typically a fairlead will be a ring or hook. The fairlead may be a separate
piece of hardware, or it could be a hole in the structure.
Fig FAIRLEADS

Mechanical Flight Control System

It uses a collection of mechanical parts such as rods, tension cables, pulleys, counterweights, and
sometimes chains to transmit the forces applied from the cockpit controls directly to the control
surfaces.

Fig
Direct mechanical control
As mentioned in the introduction, the linkage from cabin to control surface can be fully
mechanical if the aircraft size and its flight envelop allow; in this case the hinge moment
generated by the surface deflection is low enough to be easily contrasted by the muscular effort
of the pilot.
Two types of mechanical systems are used: push-pull rods and cable-pulley.
In the first case a sequence of rods link the control surface to the cabin input. Bell-crank levers
are used to change the direction of the rod routings: sketches the push-pull control rod system
between the elevator and the cabin control column; the bell-crank lever is here necessary to alter
the direction of the transmission and to obtain the conventional coupling between stick
movement and elevator deflection (column fwd. = down deflection of surface and pitch down
control).
From this simplified description the main requirements of a push-pull rod system are clear. First
of all the linkage must be stiff, to avoid any unwanted deflection during flight and due to
fuselage elasticity. Second, axial instability during compression must be excluded; the instability
load P for a rod is given by:

𝝅𝟐 𝑬𝑰
𝑷=
𝛌
Where:
E = Young modulus;
I = cross-section moment of inertia;
λ = reference length.

Fig Push Pull rod for elevator control

The reference length is linked to the real length of the rod, meaning that to increase the
instability load the length must be decreased, or the rods must be frequently constrained by slide
guides, or the routing must be interrupted with bell-cranks.
Finally a modal analysis of the system layout is sometimes necessary, because vibrations of the
rods can introduce oscillating deflections of the surface; this problem is particularly important on
helicopters, because vibrations generated by the main rotor can induce a dramatic resonance of
the flight control rods.
The same operation described before can be done by a cable-pulley system, where couples of
cables are used in place of the rods. In this case pulleys are used to alter the direction of the lines,
equipped with idlers to reduce any slack due to structure elasticity, cable strands relaxation or
thermal expansion. Often the cable-pulley solution is preferred, because is more flexible and
allows reaching more remote areas of the airplane. An example is sketched in figure, where the
cabin column is linked via a rod to a quadrant.

Fig Cables and pulleys system for elevator control

Hydraulic control
When the pilot’s action is not directly sufficient for a the control, the main option is a powered
system that assists the pilot.
A few control surfaces on board are operated by electrical motors: as already discussed in a
previous chapter, the hydraulic system has demonstrated to be a more suitable solution for
actuation in terms of reliability, safety, weight per unit power and flexibility, with respect to the
electrical system, then becoming the common tendency on most modern airplanes: the pilot, via
the cabin components, sends a signal, or demand, to a valve that opens ports through which high
pressure hydraulic fluid flows and operates one or more actuators.
The valve, that is located near the actuators, can be signalled in two different ways: mechanically
or electrically; mechanical signalling is obtained by push-pull rods, or more commonly by cables
and pulleys; electrical signalling is a solution of more modern and sophisticated vehicles and will
be later on discussed.
The basic principle of the hydraulic control is simple, but two aspects must be noticed when a
powered control is introduced:
1. the system must control the surface in a proportional way, i.e. the surface response (deflection)
must be function to the pilot’s demand (stick deflection, for instance);
2. the pilot that with little effort acts on a control valve must have a feedback on the maneuver
intensity.

The first problem is solved by using (hydraulic) servo-mechanisms, where the components are
linked in such a way to introduce an actuator stroke proportional to the pilot’s demand; many
examples can be made, two of them are sketched in fig. 6.4, the second one including also the
hydraulic circuit necessary for a correct operation.
In both cases the control valve housing is solid with the cylinder and the cabin column has a
mechanical linkage to drive the valve spool.

Fig. Classic hydraulic servomechanisms

In the first case, the cylinder is hinged to the aircraft and, due to valve spool displacement and
ports opening, the piston is moved in one direction or the other; the piston rod is also linked to
the valve spool stick, in such a way that the piston movement brings the spool back towards its
neutral position; when this is reached, the actuator stops, then obtaining a deflection that is
proportional to the demand.
In the second case the piston is constrained to the aircraft; the cabin column controls the valve
spool stick; this will result in a movement of the cylinder, and this brings the valve housing again
towards the valve neutral position, then resulting in a stroke proportional to the pilot’s demand.
The hydraulic circuit also includes an emergency valve on the delivery segment to the control
valve; if the delivery pressure drops, due for instance to a pump or engine failure, the emergency
valve switches to the other position and links all the control valve inlets to the tank; this
operation hydraulically unlocks the system, allowing the pilot for manual actuation of the
cylinder.
It is clear now that the pilot, in normal hydraulic operating conditions, is requested for a very low
effort, necessary to contrast the mechanical frictions of the linkage and the movement of the
control valve: the pilot is then no more aware of the load condition being imposed to the aircraft.
For this reason an artificial feel is introduced in powered systems, acting directly on the cabin
control stick or pedals. The simplest solution is a spring system, then responding to the pilot’s
demand with a force proportional to the stick deflection; this solution has of course the limit to
be not sensitive to the actual flight conditions. A more sophisticated artificial feel is the so-called
Q feel. This system receives data from the pitot-static probes, reading the dynamic pressure, or
the difference between total (pt) and static (ps) pressure, that is proportional to the aircraft speed
v through the air density ρ:
𝟏
𝑷𝒕 − 𝑷𝒔 = 𝝆𝒗𝟐
𝟐

This signal is used to modulate a hydraulic cylinder that increases the stiffness in the artificial
feel system, in such a way that the pilot is given a contrast force in the pedals or stick that is also
proportional to the aircraft speed.

Servo Tabs

•In large aircrafts the control surfaces are operated by power operated hydraulic actuators
controlled by valves moved by control yoke and rudder pedals. An artificial feel system gives the
pilot resistance that is proportional to the flight loads on the surfaces.

•In the event of hydraulic system failure, the control surfaces are controlled by servo tabs in a
process known as manual reversion.

•In the manual mode the flight control column moves the tab on the c/surface and the
aerodynamic forces caused by the deflected tab moves the main control surface
Fig
Flight Control Surfaces On An Modern Advanced Aircraft

Fig

Fly –By –Wire System (FBW)

•The term "fly-by-wire" implies a purely electrically-signaled control system

• It is a computer-configured control, where a computer system is interposed between the

operator and the final control actuators or surfaces

•It modifies the manual inputs of the pilot in accordance with control parameters

•These are carefully developed and validated in order to produce maximum operational effect
without compromising safety
FBW – Introduction

•The FBW architecture was developed in 1970’s

•Initially starting as an analogue technique and later on transformed into digital.

•It was first developed for military aviation, where it is now a common solution

•The supersonic Concorde can be considered a first and isolated civil aircraft equipped with a
(analogue) fly-by-wire system

•In the 80’s the digital technique was imported from military into civil aviation by Airbus, first
with the A320, then followed by A319, A321, A330, A340, Boeing 777 and A380 (scheduled for
2005).

•This architecture is based on computer signal processing

A fly-by-wire (FBW) system replaces manual flight control of an aircraft with an electronic
interface. The movements of flight controls are converted to electronic signals transmitted by
wires (hence the fly-by-wire term), and flight control computers determine how to move
the actuators at each control surface to provide the expected response. Commands from the
computers are also input without the pilot's knowledge to stabilize the aircraft and perform other
tasks. Electronics for aircraft flight control systems are part of the field known as avionics.

Fly-by-optics, also known as fly-by-light, is a further development using fiber optic cables.

OPERATION

•The pilot’s demand is first of all transduced into electrical signal in the cabin and sent to a group
of independent computers (Airbus architecture substitute the cabin control column with a side
stick)

•The computers sample also data concerning the flight conditions and servo-valves and actuators
positions
•The pilot’s demand is then processed and sent to the actuator, properly tailored to the actual
flight status.

•The flight data used by the system mainly depend on the aircraft category; in general the
following data are sampled and processed:
– Pitch, roll, yaw rate and linear accelerations
– Angle of attack and sideslip
– Airspeed/Mach number, Pressure, Altitude and radio altimeter indications
–Stick and pedal demands
–Other cabin commands such as landing gear condition, thrust lever position, etc.

•The full system has high redundancy to restore the level of reliability of a mechanical or
hydraulic system, in the form of multiple (triplex or quadruplex) parallel and independent lanes
to generate and transmit the signals, and independent computers that process them

Fig FLY BY WIRE SYSTEM

FBW – Basic Operation

•When a pilot moves the control, a signal is sent to a computer, this is analogous to moving a
game controller, the signal is sent through multiple wires (channels) to ensure that the signal
reaches the computer.

•When there are three channels being used this is known as 'Triplex'.

•The computer receives the signals, performs a calculation (adds the signal voltages and divides
by the number of signals received to find the mean average voltage) and adds another channel.

•These four 'Quadruplex' signals are then sent to the control surface actuator and the surface
begins to move.

• Potentiometers in the actuator send a signal back to the computer (usually a negative voltage)
reporting the position of the actuator.

•When the actuator reaches the desired position the two signals (incoming and outgoing) cancel
each other out and the actuator stops moving (completing a feedback loop).

Fig FLY BY WIRE BASIC OPERATION

FBW – Stability

•Three gyroscopes fitted with sensors are fitted in the aircraft to sense movement changes in the
pitch roll and yaw axes.

•Any movement (from straight and level flight for example) results in signals being sent to the
computer which again moves the relevant control actuators, however, the input is done without
the pilot's knowledge; the cockpit controls do not move

FBW – Safety and Redundancy

Aircraft systems may be quadruplexed (four independent channels) in order to prevent loss of
signals in the case of failure of one or even two channels. High performance aircraft that have
FBW controls (also called CCVs or Control-Configured Vehicles) may be deliberately designed
to have low or even negative aerodynamic stability in some flight regimes, the rapid-reacting
CCV controls compensating for the lack of natural stability

Pre-flight safety checks of a fly-by-wire system are often performed using Built-In Test
Equipment (BITE). On programming the system, either by the pilot or ground crew, a number of
control movement steps are automatically performed. Any failure will be indicated to the crews.

FBW – Advantages

•Flight envelope protection (the computers will reject and tune pilot’s demands that might
exceed the airframe load factors)

•Increase of stability and handling qualities across the full flight envelope, including the
possibility of flying unstable vehicles

• Turbulence suppression and consequent decrease of fatigue loads and increase of passenger
comfort. Use of thrust vectoring to augment or replace lift aerodynamic control, then extending
the aircraft flight envelope. Drag reduction by an optimized trim setting

•Higher stability during release of tanks and weapons Easier interfacing to auto-pilot and other
automatic flight control systems

•Weight reduction (mechanical linkages are substituted by wirings).

•Maintenance reduction and reduction of airlines’ pilot training costs (flight handling becomes
very similar in a whole aircraft family)
Digital Fly-By-Wire (DFBW)

•A digital fly-by-wire flight control system is similar to analog system. However, the signal
processing is done by digital computers and the pilots literally can "fly-via-computer".

• Increases in flexibility of the flight control system, since the digital computers can receive input
from any aircraft sensor (such as the altimeters and the pitot tubes).

• Increase in electronic stability - system is less dependent on the values of critical electrical
components in an analog controller

•The computers "read" position and force inputs from the pilot's controls and aircraft sensors.

•They solve differential equations to determine the appropriate command signals that move the
flight controls in order to carry out the intentions of the pilot

•The programming of the digital computers enables flight envelope protection.

Aircraft designers precisely tailor an aircraft's handling characteristics, to stay within the overall
limits of what is possible given the aerodynamics and structure of the aircraft.

•Flight-control computers continuously "fly" the aircraft; pilot's workloads can be reduced

•In military and naval applications, it is now possible to fly military aircraft that have relaxed
stability.

Better maneuverability during combat and training flights and “carefree handling" because
stalling, spinning. And other undesirable performances are prevented automatically by the
computers

•Enable inherently unstable combat aircraft, such as the F-117 Nighthawk and the B-2 Spirit
flying wing to fly in usable and safe manners

DFBW - Redundancy

•If one of the flight-control computers crashes - or is damaged in combat; or suffers from
"insanity" caused by electromagnetic pulses - the others overrule the faulty one (or even two of
them), they continue flying the aircraft safely, and they can either turn off or re-boot the faulty
computers.

•Any flight-control computer whose results disagree with the others is ruled to be faulty, and it is
either ignored or re-booted.

•Most of the early digital fly-by-wire aircraft also had an analog electrical, a mechanical, or a
hydraulic back-up flight control system
• The Space Shuttle has, in addition to its redundant set of four digital computers running its
primary flight-control software, a fifth back-up computer running a separately developed,
reduced-function, software flight-control system - one that can be commanded to take over in the
event that a fault ever affects all of the computers in the other four.

This back-up system serves to reduce the risk of total flight-control-system failure ever
happening because of a general-purpose flight software fault has escaped notice in the other four
computers.

•For airliners, flight-control redundancy improves their safety

• Fly-by-wire control systems also improve economy in flight because they are lighter, and they
eliminate the need for many mechanical, and heavy, flight-control mechanisms

Most modern airliners have computerized systems that control their jet engine throttles, air inlets,
fuel storage and distribution system, in such a way to minimize their consumption of jet fuel.
Thus, digital control systems do their best to reduce the cost of flights

Fig A340 FLY-BY-WIRE LAYOUT, INCLUDING HYDRAULIC SYSTEM INDICATION

FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS

FLY-BY-OPTICS
Fly-by-optics is sometimes used instead of fly-by-wire because it can transfer data at higher
speeds, and it is immune to electromagnetic interference. In most cases, the cables are just
changed from electrical to optical fiber cables. Sometimes it is referred to as "fly-by-light" due to
its use of fiber optics. The data generated by the software and interpreted by the controller
remain the same.
POWER-BY-WIRE
Having eliminated the mechanical transmission circuits in fly-by-wire flight control systems, the
next step is to eliminate the bulky and heavy hydraulic circuits. The hydraulic circuit is replaced
by an electrical power circuit. The power circuits power electrical or self-contained electro
hydraulic actuators that are controlled by the digital flight control computers. All benefits of
digital fly-by-wire are retained.

The biggest benefits are weight savings, the possibility of redundant power circuits and tighter
integration between the aircraft flight control systems and its avionics systems. The absence of
hydraulics greatly reduces maintenance costs. This system is used in the Lockheed Martin F-35
Lightning II and in Airbus A380 backup flight controls. The Boeing 787 will also incorporate
some electrically operated flight controls (spoilers and horizontal stabilizer), which will remain
operational with either a total hydraulics failure and/or flight control computer failure.

FLY-BY-WIRELESS
Wiring adds a considerable amount of weight to an aircraft; therefore, researchers are exploring
implementing fly-by-wireless solutions. Fly-by-wireless systems are very similar to fly-by-wire
systems; however, instead of using a wired protocol for the physical layer a wireless protocol is
employed.

In addition to reducing weight, implementing a wireless solution has the potential to reduce costs
throughout an aircraft's life cycle. For example, many key failure points associated with wire and
connectors will be eliminated thus hours spent troubleshooting wires and connectors will be
reduced. Furthermore, engineering costs could potentially decrease because less time would be
spent on designing wiring installations; late changes in an aircraft's design would be easier to
manage, etc.
INTELLIGENT FLIGHT CONTROL SYSTEM
A newer flight control system, called Intelligent Flight Control System (IFCS), is an extension of
modern digital fly-by-wire flight control systems. The aim is to intelligently compensate for
aircraft damage and failure during flight, such as automatically using engine thrust and other
avionics to compensate for severe failures such as loss of hydraulics, loss of rudder, loss of
ailerons, loss of an engine, etc. Several demonstrations were made on a flight simulator where
a Cessna-trained small-aircraft pilot successfully landed a heavily damaged full-size concept jet,
without prior experience with large-body jet aircraft. This development is being spearheaded
by NASA Dryden Flight Research Center. It is reported that enhancements are mostly software
upgrades to existing fully computerized digital fly-by-wire flight control systems.
REFERENCES:
1. www.google.com
2. Aircraft Control system
3. Flight Control System by PHAK