Theory of

Flight
 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE

Theory of Flight

Topic 3 – Lecture 10

Principles of Aeronautical Science

Lesson Recall
i. Main Features of the Aerofoil
ii. Lift
iii. Drag

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Contents
i. Pitching Moment
ii. Angle of Attack
iii. Stalling Angle
iv. Total Drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
Pitching Moment
• The torque or turning effect due to out of balance forces
• An aerofoil has a well-defined Centre of Gravity (CG)
• Total reaction acts at the Centre of Pressure (CP)
• No moment results if CG coincides with CP
• When 2 centre do not coincide, a moment results which creates the pitch
up or down moment

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Angle of Attack (AoA)

• Defined as the angle between the relative wind and chord line

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Angle of Attack – for a flat plate

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Angle of Attack – for a flat plate with positive angle of attack

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Lift and AoA

• Lift varies linearly with AoA

from -4˚ to between 12˚ to
16˚
• Thereafter it decreases
considerably with further
increase in AoA
• the AoA for maximum lift is
called stalling angle

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Drag and AoA

• Increases as AoA increases

• Represents the sum of the
various drag
• At AoA greater than stalling
angle, drag increases steeply

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
Lift/Drag Ratio

• Shows that AoA for max lift

and min drag are not the
same
• AoA for max lift is a large
angle
• AoA for min drag is a small
angle
• The AoA that gives the best
lift/drag ratio is the most
efficient AoA

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Parasite Drag
• Drag forces resulting not associated from the production of lift
• Comprises:
1. Skin friction
2. Form drag
3. Interference drag

Induced Drag
• A by-product to the production of lift
• Closely related to AoA
• Also known as trailing vortex drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Skin friction
• The friction forces between object and air through which it is moving
• depends on:
1. Surface area of aircraft  also known as surface drag
2. Boundary layer airflow  if turbulent = more drag
3. Surface roughness  e.g.. ice accretion
4. Airspeed  IAS increase = increase drag
5. Aerofoil thickness  increase = increased drag
6. AoA  increase = increased drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
Form Drag
• When airflow separates from aerofoil surface, eddies are formed and
streamline flow disturbed
• This turbulent wake is form drag
• Different from skin friction as illustrated below

E.g. a flat plate at zero AoA produces all skin friction

Principles of Aeronautical Science
 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

E.g. flat plate at right angles to relative airflow produces only form drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Size of wake turbulent flow behind aerofoil/aircraft is an indicator of

the magnitude of the form drag, which is a large part of total drag.

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight

Interference Drag
• Due to flow interference at junctions of various surfaces e.g.
wing/fuselage, tail/fuselage, wing/engine nacelle
• i.e. between the streamlined bodies of 2 different shapes
• Airflow from various surfaces meet and form wake behind the aircraft

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
Induced Drag
• As air flows rearwards it will leak or `spill’ around the wingtip from high
static pressure area (underwing) to low static pressure (overwing)

• This causes spanwise flow

component of air outwards
away from fuselage on the lower
surface

• Inwards component towards

fuselage on upper surface

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
Vortex – is
• A whirling or twisting flow of air at the trailing edge where upper and
lower airflows meet – both moving rearwards but with opposite
spanwise (lateral) components, a sheet of vortices is formed

• Strongest vortices form at wingtip

• Can occur at low speed but high AoA

• In moist air, large jets have
twisting vortices that appear as
vapour especially during approach
and landing

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
How is Induced drag caused?
• due to direction of rotation of the vortices, the upward flow is
induced beyond the wingtip, while the downwash flow is behind and
within the wing’s trailing edge creating a downwash

Principles of Aeronautical Science

 PRINCIPLES OF AERONAUTICAL SCIENCE
Theory of Flight
• The downwash over the wing at the wingtip has the effect of bending
the lift vector backwards, tending it towards the drag direction
• This is undesirable but unavoidable in the process of generating lift
 which is known as induced drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science

Lesson Summary
i. Pitching Moment
ii. Angle of Attack
iii. Stalling Angle
iv. Total Drag

Principles of Aeronautical Science