Aircraft Load

• Loads are the foundation of airplane design.

• Aircraft designers must be aware of aircraft loads
early enough to make a design because the
aircraft structure must be strong enough at every
point to withstand the pressure field around the
aircraft, along with the inertial loads generated
by flight maneuvers..
• Loads are the external forces applied to an
aircraft – whether static or dynamic.
• The loads acting on the airframe are divided into
two main groups .They are flight loads and
ground loads.
 In-flight loads
• In-flight loads are due to symmetrical flight, unsymmetrical flight,
or atmospheric gusts from any direction. Three types of air loads.

Air loads Inertia loads Power plant loads

Maneuver Acceleration Thrust
Gust Rotation Torque
Control deflection Dynamic Gyroscopic
Component Interaction Flutter Vibration
Buffet Duct Pressure

• Buffet :At the initial development phase of stall airflow over the
wing becomes unsteady; the separation line over the wing keeps
fluctuating.
• The interaction between aerodynamic forces and structural
stiffness is the source of flutter.
 On-ground loads
• On-ground loads result from ground handling and field
performance (e.g., takeoff and landing).
• Loads on the ground are taken up by the undercarriage
and then transmitted to the aircraft main structure.
• Landing-gear loads depend on sink speed rate at landing
and its load factor.
Landing Take off Taxi
Impact, Spring back Catapult Bumps
Arrest, Braking, Spin up Aborted Turning
Other loads
Bird Strike Tire Burst Crash
 Design loads are based on load factors

• Limit load is defined as the maximum load that an aircraft can be subjected to in its life
cycle. A flight load exceeding the limit load could affect the structural integrity with
permanent deformation.
• Under the limit load, any deformation recovers to its original shape and would not affect
structural integrity.
• To ensure safety, a margin (factor) of 50% increase (civil aviation) is enforced through
regulations as a factor of safety to extend the limit load to the ultimate load.
• ultimate load = factor of safety × limit load --the highest load the structure is designed to
withstand without breaking.
• Fos is the multiplier used on limit load to determine the design load or ultimate load.
• Proof load -- withstand without deterimental distortion. (1.33)
 Aircraft Load - Operating loads
• In-flight loads are due to symmetrical flight, unsymmetrical flight, or
atmospheric gusts from any direction.
• on-ground loads result from ground handling and field performance
(e.g., takeoff and landing).
Operating loads consist of random cycles
Limits - Load Vs. Speed
 Theory and Definitions
• In steady-level flight, an aircraft is in equilibrium; that is, the
lift, L, equals the aircraft weight, W, and the thrust, T, equals
drag, D.
– for steady-level flight: L= W and T = D

» Equilibrium flight
 Load Factor, n
Newton’s law states that change from an equilibrium state
requires an additional applied force; this is associated with
some form of acceleration a.
When applied in the pitch plane, the force appears as an
increment in lift ΔL, and it would overcome the weight W, to
an increased altitude initiated by rotation of the aircraft
• From Newton’s law:
ΔL= centrifugal acceleration × mass = a ×W/g
• The resultant force equilibrium gives:
L+ Δ L= W + a × W/g = W(1 + a/g)
• where L is the steady-state lift equaling weight W load
factor n, is defined as:
n = (1 + a/g) = L/W + Δ L/W = 1 + Δ L/W
• The load factor, n, indicates the increase in force
contributed by the centrifugal acceleration, a.
• The load factor, n = 2, indicates a twofold increase in
weight; that is, a 90-kg person would experience a 180-
kg weight. The load factor, n, is loosely termed as the g-
load; in this example, it is the 2-g-load.
• A high g-load damages the human body
• For a fighter pilot, the limit (i.e., continuous) is taken as
9 g; for the civil aerobatic category, it is 6 g.
• Fighter pilots use pressure suits to control blood flow
(i.e., delay blood starvation) to the brain to prevent
“blackouts.”
 Limits – Load and Speeds
• Limit load is defined as the maximum load that an aircraft
can be subjected to in its life cycle.
• Under the limit load, any deformation recovers to its
original shape and would not affect structural integrity.
• A flight load exceeding the limit load but within the
ultimate load should not cause structural failure but could
affect integrity with permanent deformation.
• For example, an aerobatic aircraft with a 6-g-limit load will
have an ultimate load of 9 g. If an in-flight load exceeds 6 g
(but is below 9 g), the aircraft may experience permanent
deformation but should not experience structural failure.
Above 9 g, the aircraft would most likely experience
structural failure.
• Aircraft are equipped with g-meters to monitor the load
factor
 Ultimate Load
• Ultimate Load = Factor of Safety × Limit Load
– To ensure safety, a margin (factor) of 50% increase (civil
aviation) is enforced through regulations as a factor of
safety to extend the limit load to the ultimate load.
• Ex 9g = 1.5 X 6g
 Speed Limits
• VS: Stalling speed at normal level flight
• VA: Stalling speed at limit load.
• VB: Stalling speed at maximum gust velocity. It is
the design speed for maximum gust intensity VB
and is higher than VA.
• VC: Maximum level speed.
• VD: Maximum permissible speed (occurs in a dive;
also called the placard
• speed).