Loads implications of gust-alleviation systems

Author / Creator

Phillips, William H., author

Available as

Online

Summary

A review is presented of the factors effecting gust loads and the methods or devices which reduce these loads. Aerodynamic devices which reduce the lift-curve slope include spoiler-deflector contro...

A review is presented of the factors effecting gust loads and the methods or devices which reduce these loads. Aerodynamic devices which reduce the lift-curve slope include spoiler-deflector controls, for which some data are presented in the Mach number range from 0.4 to 1.1. Systems are also considered in which a sensing device is used to operate gust-alleviation controls. Two basically different types of sensing devices are possible, the load-sensing type and the angle-of-attack sensing type. These devices are compared and their limitations discussed. Some preliminary flight measurements of wing-root bending turbulence are presented for a gust-alleviation system installed in a small twin-engine transport airplane. This system increased the wing-root bending moments as compared with those of the basic airplane. This increase resulted from the fact that the system as tested was adjusted to reduce acceleration and, as a result, over-compensated for the wing-root bending moments due to gusts. Some flight measurements of the effects of a yaw damper on the tail loads of a bomber airplane are also presented.

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