The main effects of Mach number will be to

decrease the maximum angle of attack, and to decrease also the

maximum lift coefficient. If we draw the evolution
of CL max with Mach number, we see that on a supersonic
airplane with a thick wing, CL max will drastically declined
to zero when approaching Mach one. On supersonic aeroplanes
with a thinner foil and a sharp leading edge CL max decreases
in the vicinity of Mach one before recovering normal values
in the supersonic domain, typically above Mach 1.1. For
that reason, among others, it is not interesting to stay in this transonic
region that must be quickly crossed. If we consider now the full lift
equation we have n m g on the left, that's for the general case but for
stiddy level flight we can take n equals 1, equals half rho V2 the dynamic pressure
multiplied by SCL where CL is a functional angle of attack and
Mach number. Note that CL Max is only
a function of Mach number. Here, we may express
the dynamic pressure is a form, 0.7 Ps M2 where Ps is a static pressure
directly linked to the pressure altitude. If now we divide both terms
of the equation by Ps and we concentrate on the maximum lift for our wind we see
that the maximum
possible value of nmg over Ps on the left is equal to
an expression that only depends on Mach number. We can draw n m g over Ps
as a function of Mach number. And we can see that for
a supersonic airplane, we start, for low Mach numbers, for which CL max is
constant, with a branch of parabola, driven by the dynamic pressure term 0.7 M2,
while at high Mach number, the fall of CL max overcomes, the increasing
dynamic pressure, to result in a dramating decrease of n m g over Ps. In between
for a Mach number
called the optimum Mach number, the curve reaches maximum. This means that for a
given weight,
m g, and in a steady level flight N equals 1, there is a minimum static pressure
Ps, below which the wing cannot produce
enough lift to balance the weight. This minimum pressure corresponds
to the maximum altitude at which our airplane can fly. This maximum altitude is
called
the Lift Ceiling of the airplane. Whatever the structure of our engines, we cannot
maintain level
flight above the lift ceiling. It's a question of lift, not stressed. Of course,
the ceiling depends on weight and during the cruise it increases
as fuel is burned and the aircraft becomes lighter. [SOUND]