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Aircraft design - civilian aircraft

A Benefit Analysis for Nitrogen Inerting of Aircraft Fuel Tanks Against Ground Fire Explosion : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/73, by Ray Cherry and Kevin Warren, dated December 1999. The report describes an analysis of the potential benefits, in terms of reducing fatalities and injuries, resulting from three methods of aircraft fuel tank inerting. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

A CFD / CSD Interaction Methodology for Aircraft Wings

This web page provides access to a Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering PhD dissertation, by Manoj K. Bhardwaj, dated 15 September 1997. The thesis describes the development of an aeroelastic coupling procedure which will perform static aeroelastic analysis using any computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and computational structural dynamics (CSD) code. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The full text of the document is accessible online in PDF format [1.85 Mb]. This title is part of Virginia Tech's Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection (VT ETD).

A Description and Analysis of the FAA Onboard Oxygen Analysis System

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA AR-TN 03/52, by Michael Burns and William Cavage, dated July 2003. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is planning a series of ground and flight tests with Airbus to prove the concept of a simplified fuel tank inerting system, which has been developed by the FAA. The FAA has also developed an onboard oxygen analysis system to measure the oxygen concentration in the aircraft fuel tank during the testing. To help ensure smooth integration and the safety of the testing, the FAA has documented the system description, interfaces, operation, and has performed a failure mode effects criticality analysis. This analysis attempts to identify the failure modes of each system component and assess the effects of these failures on the component, system, and aircraft. The analysis also applies a hazard category to each hazard as well as some hazard probability when it was deemed necessary by the author. Hazard controls are also listed. All relevant system information has been summarized to allow for the system to be properly integrated into the proposed flight test aircraft. The results of the analysis indicated that most failure modes had no effect on the aircraft or other secondary systems. The few hazards with potential aircraft effects have significant controls in place to reduce the likelihood of the hazard and mitigate any potential hazard exposure. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

A Methodology to Predict the Empennage In-Flight Loads of a General Aviation Aircraft Using Backpropagation Neural Networks : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-00/50, by David Kim and Maciej Marciniak, dated February 2001. The purpose of this research was to develop a methodology for the prediction of strains in the tail section of a general aviation aircraft that would not require installation of strain gages and to determine the minimum set of sensors necessary for a prediction suitable for small aircraft. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

A Study of the Flammability of Commercial Transport Airplane Wing Fuel Tanks

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-08/8) was published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Aviation Research and Development in February 2008 and was written by William M. Cavage and Steven Summer. The Fire Safety Team of the Airport and Aircraft Safety Research and Development Division performed tests at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) William J. Hughes Technical Center using the environmental chamber and the air induction facility (wind tunnel) to examine individual effects that contribute to commercial transport wing fuel tank flammability. Additionally, previously acquired wing tank flammability measurements taken during flight tests were compared with the results from the FAA Fuel Air Ratio Calculator in an effort to see if the calculations agreed with existing flight test data. The results of the scale fuel tank testing in the environmental chamber showed that (1) fuel height in the tank had little or no effect on the flammability, (2) increasing the amount of heat on the top surface and a higher ambient temperature caused increased flammability, and (3) lower fuel flash point increased flammability greatly. Wind tunnel tests conducted with a section of a Boeing 727 wing tank showed that, under dynamic airflow conditions, change in ullage temperature was the primary mechanism affecting ullage flammability, not fuel temperature, as observed in environmental chamber tests. Other wind tunnel tests showed that the angle of attack of the fuel tank played little role in reducing fuel tank flammability, but that a cross-venting condition of the fuel tank would lead to a very rapid decrease in hydrocarbon concentration. An input temperature algorithm could be used with the FAA Fuel Air Ratio Calculator to significantly improve predictions of wing tank ullage flammability, based on tests that showed in-flight changes of ullage flammability in a wing tank are driven largely by the ullage temperature. This is very different from what had been shown with a center wing fuel tank, in which fuel temperature continues to be the main driver of flammability even during flight. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Access-to-Egress : A Meta-Analysis of the Factors That Control Emergency Evacuation Through the Transport Airplane Type-III Overwing Exit : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Office of Aviation Medicine report, DOT/FAA/AM-01/2, by Garnet A. McLean, dated January 2001. The results of the analytical review of studies conducted to address access to the Type-III exit presented in this report, suggest that human factors effects related to passengers present the biggest challenge to the execution of successful evacuations. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the FAA's Office of Aviation Research, Civil Aeromedical Institute (CAMI) web site.

Active Control of Sound in a Small Single Engine Aircraft Cabin with Virtual Error Sensors

This web site provides access to an Adelaide University Department of Mechanical Engineering PhD dissertation, by Colin D. Kestell, dated 24 August 2000. It describes the basis of a theoretical and experimental project, directed at the design and evaluation of a practical active noise control (ANC) system suitable for a single engine light aircraft. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The title page, contents and the full text of the document are accessible online in PDF format. This title is part of the Australian Digital Theses (ADT) Programme.

Aero Magazine

This is an in-house journal produced by The Boeing Company, which contains articles and features on Boeing and Douglas aircraft and their operation. These are full reprints of items that appear in the printed version of the magazine. The web site provides search and browse options, and an archive of past issues. Aero Magazine was produced quarterly, and the contents can be accessed online in both HTML and PDF formats. Please note that publication of Aero Magazine was suspended with the July 2003 edition. It is possible to access the archive of past issues.

Aerodynamic interference

This is Research and Technology Organization (RTO) AGARD-CP-71, dated January 1971. The purpose of this Specialist Meeting was t o survey a number of the more important aspects relating t o aerodynamic interference and thereby to provide an understanding of the basic sciences involved, the techniques presently employed and the results of the most recent work in NATO countries. The three-day meeting was arranged as follows with each Session chaired by a member of the Programme Committee: 1. Classical aspects of interference, configuration studies of lift, drag, and high angle of attack characteristics. session I: Wing-Body, and Session 11: Wing-Body-Tail. 2. Airframe-propulsion interference for both commercial and military high performance aircraft. Session 111: Military, and Session IV: Commercial Transport. 3. Aerodynamics dealing with the properties and characteristics of forces and moments exerted on objects in motion and in the vicinity of other shapes. Airframe Stores. This discussion was a very valuable exercise in surveying some of the results presented in this meeting and follows the papers presented in this publication. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. A table of contents and the full text (85.5MB) of the document can be accessed online in PDF format. The document is contained in the RTO's Full Text Publication Library.

AeroSite

This is a personal interest web site concerned with civil aviation. The site contains sections covering airline logos, models, discussion forums, and links to other sites. There is a section on airline information which includes listings of airline codes, airports codes, and civil registration prefix codes. The aircraft section contains three view images and brief specification details.

Aerospace 2020 - Vol 1

This is Research and Technology Organization (RTO) AGARD Advisory Report, AGARD-AR-360-01, dated April 1997. Volume 1, the summary volume, of the report of the NATO Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development (AGARD) study: 'Aerospace 2020'. This study explores the most advanced technologies, relevant to aerospace, being researched and developed in laboratories today. The study focuses on the most promising current technologies and the organizational and tactical consequences they will have at the field and system levels, over the course of the next 25 years. Topics include: a discussion of the impact of proliferation, human-machine interaction, synthetic environments, directed-energy weapons, information technologies, unmanned tactical aircraft, suborbital launchers, hypersonic missiles, and a discussion of affordability issues. Technologies are assessed from the viewpoints of both potential capabilities and threats. Observations and recommendations are presented. Bibliographic details and an abstract are available in HTML format and the full text (3 Mb)is available in PDF format from the RTO's web site.

Aerospaceweb

This site was created and is maintained by a group of aerospace engineers and enthusiasts. It provides information on a range of fields - including aircraft and spacecraft design in the form of a series of detailed articles relating to the development of aerospace technologies. The 'aircraft museum' is a virtual museum giving data on a pictures of a wide variety of military and civil aircraft from around the world. Facilities for computing aerodynamic and atmospheric properties are also available.

Aircraft Design Services, Inc.

Aircraft Design Services, Inc (ADSI) is involved primarily in the design, analysis, and certification of major modifications to small and transport category aircraft. The site provides a company profile and description of the services provided by ADSI under the following headings: mechanical systems and equipment design and analysis, electrical systems and equipment design and analysis, propulsion design and analysis, structural design, aero/performance analysis, structural integrity, certification, project management, and litigation support. There is also a list of projects in which the company has been involved, press releases and contact details.

Aircraft Designs, Inc

Aircraft Designs, Inc comprises a group of aircraft scientists and engineers, including Martin Hollmann, who is the author of a number of books on aircraft design. The site includes brief overviews of conceptual design, flutter analysis, stress analysis, vibration and fatigue analysis, and manufacturing. There are descriptions of projects in which the company has been involved, as well as details of the gyroplanes which the company produces and sells. The site also provides information on other company products including books, software, and short courses.

Aircraft Fire Detection : Requirements, Qualification, and Certification Aspects

This is a conference paper by K.Schmoetzer of EADS Airbus GmbH, Bremen, Germany. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The paper focuses on fire detection aspects applicable to pressurized areas of transport aircraft where passengers and cargo are located. The text of the paper is available in PDF format from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection.

Aircraft Hardening Research Programme Final Overview Report

The is the PDF version of UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Paper 2001/9, compiled by the Structures and Materials Department, Design and Production Standards Division of the CAA's Safety Regulation Group, published December 2001. The paper presents the results of research undertaken by the CAA and the Department of Transport, into means of mitigating the effects of explosions on civil transport aircraft. The research was carried out under a CAA contract by the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency, now QinetiQ. The mitigation measures studied include extrinsic means such as the use of hardened baggage containers and protective liners for the fuselage skin or spacing materials for the cargo hold. Means to restrict baggage momentum or to distribute baggage are also discussed. Measures to improve the aircraft structure itself including local reinforcement of skin and frames, improved attachment of fuselage stringers and selective placement of systems equipment are also reviewed.

Aircraft Interiors International

This is a quarterly magazine published by UK and International Press which covers the latest trends and developments in aircraft interior design, cabin brand development and completion. Those involved in the aerospace sector are able to register to receive free copies of the journal.

Aircraft Multidisciplinary Design Optimization using Design of Experiments Theory and Response Surface Modeling Methods

This web site provides access to a Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering PhD dissertation, by Anthony A. Giunta, dated 1 May 1997. The dissertation describes the development of a procedure to create two types of noise-free mathematical models for use in aircraft optimisation methods. This is applied to the modeling of the subsonic and supersonic aerodynamic performance of high-speed civil transport (HSCT) aircraft configurations. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The full text of the document is accessible online in PDF format [1.75 Mb]. This title is part of Virginia Tech’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection (VT ETD).

An Application of Anti-Optimization in the Process of Validating Aerodynamic Codes

This is a Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering PhD dissertation, by Juan R. Cruz, dated April 4, 2003. The primary objectives of the work performed for this dissertation were to develop an approach using anti-optimization in the process of validating aerodynamic analyses through experiments, and to evaluate the effectiveness of this approach. Since this is an applied study, a suitable aerodynamic analysis needing validation and an appropriate corresponding experiment were selected to serve as a testbed for the approach being developed. A combination of two aerodynamic codes integrated into an analysis to predict the maximum lift coefficient of a wing and a related wind tunnel experiment were chosen to exercise and evaluate the proposed approach. An interesting flight domain for the validation of this analysis is the combination of Mach and Reynolds numbers encountered by airplanes operating within the atmosphere of Mars. Thus, secondary objectives of the dissertation were assist in the validation of an analysis in the flight regime used by airplanes designed to fly in the Martian atmosphere, and to generate an aerodynamics database in this flight regime. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The full text of the document is accessible online in PDF format [4.86 Mb]. This title is part of Virginia Tech’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection (VT ETD)

Aviation Week : Aerospace Source Book

This provides brief company profiles of aviation and aerospace companies grouped under the following headings: Prime Contractors; Major Airlines; Regional Airlines; and Cargo Airlines. The profiles can be viewed online in PDF format. The Aerospace Sourcebook also provides access to a series of articles which examine various market sectors including fighters, bombers, commercial and military transports, air freight, UAVs, trainers, rotorcraft, spacecraft, missiles, and avionics. The information is drawn from Aviation Week & Space Technology.

Benefit Analysis for Aircraft 16-g Dynamic Seats : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-00/13, by Ray Cherry, Kevin Warren, and Aaron Chan, dated April 2000. The objective of this study was to assess the number of serious injuries and fatalities that might have been avoided from the use of 16-g dynamic seats during the period of 1984 to 1998 for survivable accidents involving transport category aircraft operating under 14 CFR Part 121. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Blended Wing Body : Design Challenges for the 21st Century

This provides access to the text and slides of a presentation made by Al Bowers, who is a Senior Aerodynamicist at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center. The presentation was prepared for a The Wing is The Thing (TWITT) meeting, held at Dryden on September 16th 2000. The text is available in HTML format and the slides actual slides (jpgs) range in size from 49k to 104k, the average being about 60k. This presentation available from The Wing is The Thing web site.

Boeing Company : Airport Technology Services

The site proves access to a range of product information relating to Boeing and McDonnell Douglas commercial aircraft which is intended to assist the planning, engineering and evaluation of airport facilities and their functions. The site includes aircraft planning and product manuals (pdf format) which provide, in an industry standardized format, aircraft characteristics data for general airport planning. Sections within each document include: Aicraft Description, Aircraft Performance, Ground Maneuvering, Terminal Servicing, Operating Conditions, and Pavement Data. There are also downloadable three-view aircraft drawings (plan, side and front views) in AutoCAD format (.dxf) for airport planning purposes. Note, these files have been compressed in .zip format. Airplane Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) information for Boeing and McDonnel Douglas aiurcraft is presented in English or Russian. The site also has sections which describe other related services offered by Boeing including Runway Length Analysis, Airport Safety and Operational Assessment, Runway / Pavement Analysis, Airport Facility Planning / Engineering, and Ground Maneuvering and Gate Planning, and airline foreign object damage (FOD) audits.

Boeing Company : Cabin Air Quality

This area of the Boeing web site presents the company's perspective on the issues surrounding aircraft cabin air quality. The site presents an overview of how cabin air systems operate, and highlights a number of "myths" and "facts". Access is provided to two full text papers (PDF) entitled, "Commercial airliner environmental control system : engineering aspects of cabin air quality" and "The airplane cabin environment : issues pertaining to flight attendant comfort". There is also a series of tips given for air passenger comfort.

Boeing-727.com

This is a personal interest web site concerned with the tri-jet transport. Although not an official Boeing site, it does focus on technical information. This is arranged under the following headings: Airframe, Engine, Avionics, Aircraft Systems, Checklists, Fluids and Fuel, and "727 Odds" (items that do not fit into the other sections). There is also a set of revision questions relating to the technical information.

Build A Plane

Build A Plane is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting aviation and aerospace careers by giving young people the opportunity to build real airplanes. Aircraft construction projects provide an exciting opportunity to motivate kids to learn virtually any facet of science, technology, engineering and mathematics applied to the program.The site includes information on the current projects and photo gallery as well.

CAP 455: Airworthiness Notices - cancellation and tranfer to CAP 747

This provides access to a UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) publication dated September 2009. Cancellation of CAP 455. All Airworthiness Notices (ANs), previously published in CAP 455, cancelled or transferred to CAP 747 (Mandatory Requirements for CAP 562 (Civil Aircraft Airworthiness Information and Procedures). therefore, now been withdrawn.A List of Cancelled and Relocated ANs has been published to clarify transferred ANs. This should be retained for future reference. [Taken from abstract]. The full text of this CAP is available in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat software is required in order to read it.

CAP 697 : Civil Aviation Authority JAR-FCL Examinations: Flight Planning Manual

This provides access to a UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)publication CAP 697 dated September 2006. CAP 697 is produced to support training and examinations for JAR-FCL Subject 033 - Flight Planning and Monitoring for Aeroplanes. It contains specimen data for three generic aeroplanes. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat software is required in order to read it.

CAP 698 : Civil Aviation Authority JAR-FCL Examinations: Aeroplane Performance Manual

This provides access to a UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) publication CAP 698 dated September 2006. CAP 698 is produced to support training and examinations for JAR-FCL Subject 032 - Performance for Aeroplanes. It contains specimen data for three generic aeroplanes. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

CAP 747 : Mandatory Requirements for Airworthiness

This provides access to a UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) document, Civil Aviation Paper CAP 747 Issue 3 including amendments to November, 2009. The primary document recording the Continued Airworthiness Requirements that must be complied with by UK registered aircraft. CAP 476 continues to provide the mandatory requirements, established prior to September 2004, that must be complied with by UK registered aircraft, but CAP 476 is no longer amended. Later mandatory requirements and the cancellation of mandatory requirements recorded in CAP 476 are now notified through revisions to CAP 747. CAPs 473, 474 and 480 have been withdrawn. Airworthiness Directives issued by the States where products were designed must be obtained from those States (or from EASA in the case of EU products). [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat software is required in order to read it.

Cargo Fire Monitoring System (CFMS) for the Visualisation of Fire Events in Aircraft Cargo Holds

This is a conference paper by T. Wittkopp, C. Hecker, and D. Opitz, VIDAIR-AG, Monchengladbach, Germany. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The text of the paper is available in PDF format (399 K) from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection.

Commercial Aircraft Design Characteristics : Trends and Growth Projections

This is the fifth revision of a document produced by the International Industry Working Group (IIWG), dated December 2003, and is sponsored by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and others. It is intended to provide information on the trends in conventional takeoff and landing aircraft (CTOL) design characteristics that may influence general long-term airport planning and design. Aircraft size, weight, and other characteristics reflect the potential trends through the year 2010. This version of the document is hosted by the Boeing Airport Technology Group, and is available in PDF format (1.63 Mb)

Commercial Supersonic Technology : The Way Ahead

This provides access to a report prepared by the National Research Council, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board's Committee on Breakthrough Technology for Commercial Supersonic Aircraft, National Academy Press, 2002. The report documents the results of a study requested by NASA which aims to identify approaches for achieving breakthroughs in supersonic research and technology. It identifies five areas for new focused research to enable industry production by the year 2025 of an environmentally acceptable, economically viable commercial aircraft capable of sustained supersonic flight, including flight over land, at speeds less than approximately Mach 2. The text is available in Open Book and HTML formats.

Competitive Assessment of the U.S. Large Civil Aircraft Aerostructures Industry

On April 14, 2000, at the request of the House Committee on Ways and Means, the United States International Trade Commission instituted investigation No. 332-414, Competitive Assessment of the U.S. Large Civil Aircraft Aerostructures Industry, under section 332(g) of the Tariff Act of 1930, for the purpose of exploring recent developments in the global large civil aircraft (LCA1) aerostructures industry. The Commission’s report (2001) includes a description of the composition of the LCA aerostructures industry and recent trends; a description of the process of new aerostructures development; a review of the means and trends in government support for research and development needs; and an evaluation of the relative strengths and weaknesses of the aerostructures industries in the United States, Europe, Canada, and Asia. This site provides the full text of this investigation in PDF format.

Concept To Reality : Contributions of the NASA Langley Research Center to U.S. Civil Aircraft of the 1990s

This is a NASA special publication, NASA SP-2003-4529, by Joseph R. Chambers, dated 2002. It highlights significant Langley contributions to safety, cruise performance, takeoff and landing capabilities, structural integrity, crashworthiness, flight deck technologies, pilot-vehicle interfaces, flight characteristics, stall and spin behaviour, computational design methods, and other challenging technical areas for civil aviation. The contents of this volume include descriptions of some of the more important applications of Langley research to current civil fixed-wing aircraft (rotary-wing aircraft are not included), including commercial airliners, business aircraft, and small personal-owner aircraft. In addition to discussions of specific aircraft applications, the document also covers contributions of Langley research to the operation of civil aircraft, which includes operating problems. This document is organized according to disciplinary technologies, for example, aerodynamics, structures, materials, and flight systems. Within each discussion, examples are cited where industry applied Langley technologies to specific aircraft that were in operational service during the 1990s and the early years of the new millennium. This document is intended to serve as a key reference for national policy makers, internal NASA policy makers, Congressional committees, the media, and the general public. Therefore, it has been written for a broad general audience and does not presume any significant technical expertise. An extensive bibliography is provided for technical specialists and others who desire a more in-depth discussion of the contributions. The full text of the document is available in HTML format.

Concorde/Designing modern Britain - Design Museum

One of the best-loved engineering design projects of the 20th century, CONCORDE (1976-2003) is a rare example of successful international collaboration. Its Anglo-French designers produced the world’s first supersonic commercial passenger aircraft which at its fastest flew from New York to London in less than three hours.

Concorde

This is a personal site created by Gordon Roxburgh which provides a lot of detailed information about the 20 Concordes that were built. The site includes photographs and fleet details, information about the work undertaken to get Concorde flying again after the crash, technical specifications (weights, performance, dimensions, accomodation, powerplant, cockpit systems, fuel system, droop nose, the delta wing, landing gear, flight systems and modifications) and an FAQ.

Cool Web Sites for Aircraft Designers

This web page is provided by a recognised authority on aerospace vehicle design, Daniel P. Raymer, and brings together a collection of links to aircraft design Web sites under the following headings: Aircraft Images, Museums, & Links; Technical & Professional Societies; Aerospace & CAD Companies; Government Organizations; Universities With Aircraft Design; Resources for Designers; and Misc. & Other Stuff.

Dan Raymer's Aircraft Design and RDS Site

This web site has been produced by Daniel P. Raymer, a recognised authority in aerospace vehicle design and configuration layout. He is also President of the design and consulting company, Conceptual Research Corporation. The web site provides information on the company, the RDS suite of aircraft design software, and a selection of recommended reading for aircraft design. There is a collection of conceptual design layout drawings, sketches, and model photos of examples of the earliest stages of aircraft design. The site also provides information on short courses, as well as a selection of materials aimed specifically at students including aerospace acronyms and abbreviations and downloadable programs for aircraft design and sizing.

Decadal Survey of Civil Aeronautics : Foundation for the Future

This is a full text book made available by National Academies Press written by Steering Committee for the Decadal Survey of Civil Aeronautics, National Research Council and dated 2006. The U.S. air transportation system is very important for our economic well-being and national security. The nation is also the global leader in civil and military aeronautics, a position that needs to be maintained to help assure a strong future for the domestic and international air transportation system. Strong action is needed, however, to ensure that leadership role continues. To that end, the Congress and NASA requested the NRC to undertake a decadal survey of civil aeronautics research and technology (R&T) priorities that would help NASA fulfill its responsibility to preserve U.S. leadership in aeronautics technology. This report presents a set of strategic objectives for the next decade of R&T. It provides a set of high-priority R&T challenges -characterized by five common themes -for both NASA and non-NASA researchers, and an analysis of key barriers that must be overcome to reach the strategic objectives. The report also notes the importance of synergies between civil aeronautics R&T objectives and those of national security. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available to read online in open book format.

Design and Testing of a Composite Bird Strike Resistant Leading Edge

This technical report (NLR-TP-2003-054) was published by NLR (the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2003 and was written by L.C. Ubels, A.F. Johnson, J.P. Gallard and M. Sunaric. The paper describes several innovative designs for a bird strike resistant, composite leading edge for a Horizontal Tail Plane of a transport aircraft. These designs are based on a novel application of composite materials with high energy-absorbing characteristics: the tensor-skin concept. This paper describes the development of this energy-absorbing concept and its application to an impact resistant aircraft structure. The design philosophy, the fabrication and test of the first prototypes are discussed. Three improved leading edge structures with different energy-absorbing tensor concepts were manufactured. Bird-strike tests on these leading edges with a 4 lb synthetic bird at impact velocities around 100 m/s were performed. Finite element models were developed to simulate the unfolding of the tensor ply. Before each test was carried out, pre-test bird impact simulations were used to determine the impact test parameters and to predict the dynamic behaviour and failure mode of the structure. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available as a PDF file.

Design Loads for Future Aircraft

This site provides access to a Research and Technology Organization (RTO) Technical Report, RTO-TR-045, published in February 2002. The report addresses the requirements for design loads on the structure of future NATO aircraft imposed by regular flight and manoeuvring. Load critical flight manoeuvres and external loads such as those caused by turbulence are considered, as are aspects such as metal and composite structures and operational aspects. Some actual failure cases are analysed. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. A table of contents, and the full text of the document (4.21 Mbytes) can be accessed online in PDF format. The document is contained in the RTO's Full Text Publication Library. Last updated: 02/07/2002.

Desktop Aeronautics, Inc

The company offers a range of educational software products and consulatancy services for aerodynamic analysis and design. The site provides a brief overview of the company. There are short descriptions of the software products including PASS (Program for Aircraft Synthesis Studies) an aircraft preliminary design tool, RAGE (Rapid Geometry Modeler) an aircraft geometry modeler for a wide range of computational aerodynamic analyses, LinAir 4, and (Multiple nonplanar lifting surface analysis program), and PANDA (Program for Analysis and Design of Airfoils). The site also includes, online demonstrations of software, manuals, an archive of Oblique Wing Data and Resources, and a link to an Applied Aerodynamics textbook. This electronic textbook on aerodynamics designed for university students is read using a web browser. It includes a number of java applets, video clips, and color pictures. Access to the textbook is charged with a preferential rate for academic customers. The Textbook is provided as a compressed (ZIP) image, with a download link made available at time of purchase.

Development and Performance of an Adiabatic Expansion Nozzle for Improved Fire Extinguishers

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-TN01/60) was produced by the Fire Safety Branch of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in December 2001 and was written by Robert Z. Filipczak. A new fire extinguisher concept, the adiabatic expansion nozzle, extends the usefulness of fire extinguishing compounds by lowering the temperature and discharge pressure of the agent. This allows total flood type halon replacements to be used in hand- held applications and, in the instance of carbon dioxide, produces a low-pressure dry ice snow. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Development and Validation of a Finite Element Simulation of a Vertical Drop Test of an ATR 42 Regional Transport Airplane

This provides access to a Federal Avaition Administration report DOT/FAA/AR-08/19 written by Karen Jackson and Edwin Fasanella dated June 2008. This report documents a multiyear research project to develop a finite element model of a high-wing turboprop regional transport airplane, the ATR 42-300, to perform impact simulations using LS-DYNA®; to validate the simulations through correlation with test data obtained during a 30-feet per second (ft/sec) vertical drop test of the airplane; and to make modifications to the model to improve the level of correlation. A 30-ft/sec drop test of the ATR 42 airplane was performed on a concrete impact surface at the Federal Aviation Administration William J. Hughes Technical Center. The purpose of the test was to evaluate the structural response when subjected to a severe, but survivable, impact. The airplane was configured with crew and passenger seats, anthropomorphic test dummies, forward and aft luggage, instrumentation, and other ballast. The fuel tanks in the wing were filled with approximately 8700 pounds (lb) of water to represent the inertial properties of the fuel. The airplane weighed a total of 33,200 lb. The finite element model was developed from direct measurements of the airframe geometry. The seats, dummies, luggage, fuel, and other ballast were represented using concentrated masses. Comparisons were made of the structural deformation and failure of the airframe, as well as selected acceleration time history responses. Following the initial correlation studies, several modifications were made to improve the model including mesh refinement in areas that experience high loading, particularly the fuselage frames supporting the wing. For each of these modifications, test analysis correlations were performed to determine the influence on model accuracy. [Taken from abstract]. The full texct is available in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat software is required in order to read it.

Development of a Crashworthy Composite Fuselage Concept for a Commuter Aircraft

This technical report (NLR-TP-2001-108) was published by NLR (the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2001 and was written by J. F. M. Wiggenraad, D. Santoro, F. Lepage, C. Kindervater and H. Climent Manez. Within the framework of Brite-Euram programme CRASURV "Commercial Aircraft - Design for Crash Survivability", technology was developed for the design of composite air frames with respect to crashworthiness. The ultimate goal of the project was to develop computer codes for the simulation of the crash behaviour of composite fuselage structures. A significant part of the project consisted of the design, fabrication and droptesting of two representative composite fuselage sections, to generate the experimental data needed for the validation of the new code developments. The present paper gives an overview of the development, test and numerical analysis of one of the fuselage sections, a one-bay section representative of a commuter aircraft like the ATR-42/72. The fuselage section consists of the sub-floor structure, which is the major area that will be crushed during a potentially survivable crash. The structure failed in a mode which was not predicted. The deficiencies of the model were repaired and a post-test analysis gave satisfactory results. The project has resulted in improved simulation capabilities. However, it cannot be concluded that the state-of-the-art is such, that the behaviour of new composite structures can be predicted accurately in the near future. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Development of a standardized fire source for aircraft cargo compartment fire detection systems

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-06/21) was published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Aviation Research in 2006 and was written by David Blake. This report documents the development and testing of a standardized fire source for cargo compartment fire detection systems. Note that currently, these fire sources cannot be used in actual certification flight tests. The intent of this work was to define a fire source in terms of heat release rate, mass loss rate, and smoke and gas species production rates, and then devise a safe method to simulate whichever aspect of the fire signature that the particular detection system was designed to respond to in the certification tests. This could be done singly or in some combination with smoke generators, heat guns, and the controlled release of actual or surrogate gas species. This report discusses how this fire source is used in a computational fluid dynamics model to predict the transport of smoke, gases, and heat throughout a cargo compartment. The testing concluded that the fire source used in a simulated smoldering fire mode does not produce a fire signature that would be useful in developing multicriteria fire detectors with a better capability to resist false alarms. This report also documents the amount of smoke that would be detectable in various size cargo compartments and the resultant responses of currently in-use aircraft smoke detectors from the simulated smoldering and flaming fires. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Development of Approximations for HSCT Wing Bending Material Weight using Response Surface Methodology

This web site provides access to a Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering PhD dissertation, by Vladimir O. Balabanov, dated September 1997. The thesis describes a procedure for generating a customized weight function for wing bending material weight of a High Speed Civil Transport(HSCT). Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The full text of the document is accessible online in PDF format [1.31 Mb]. This title is part of Virginia Tech’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection (VT ETD).

Enhancing Aircraft Survivability: A Vulnerability Perspective Conference

The site contains full-text papers and presentations from a conference sponsored by the National Defense Industrial Association, dated October 21 - 23 1997, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, CA. The various contributions cover a range of military and commercial topics related to vulnerability and survivability. These include for example, fire safety, structural design issues, aviation security, and orbital debris penetration. Access to the conference presentations is provided by the US Defence Technical Information Center. The files are in Adobe Acrobat 3.0 format.

European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) : Certification Specifications

On 28 September 2003, the Agency took over responsibility for the airworthiness and environmental certification of all aeronautical products, parts, and appliances designed, manufactured, maintained or used by persons under the regulatory oversight of EU Member States. The Agency is currently consulting interested parties on the contents of Certification Specifications. The consultation process is being carried out in co-operation with the Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA). For details of which texts are open to consultation and an indicative timetable, please refer to the JAA website. Completed texts shall be posted on the EASA site as and when they are ready for publication. Certification Standards currently available include CS-25 (Large Aeroplanes), CS-34 (Aircraft Engine Emissions and Fuel Venting), CS-36 (Aircraft Noise), CS-APU (Auxiliary Power Units), CS-AWO (All Weather Operations), CS-P (Propellers), CS-E (Engines), CS-ETSO (European Technical Standard Orders), CS-Definitions (Definitions & abbreviations), AMC-20 (General acceptable means of compliance for airworthiness of products, parts and appliances), CS-22 (sailplanes & powered sailplanes), CS-23 (normal, utility, aerobatic & commuter aeroplanes), CS-27 (small rotorcraft), CS-29 (Large rotorcraft), CS-VLR (Very Light Rotorcraft), and CS-VLA (Very Light Aeroplanes). The site contains the Executive Director's Decision, Explanatory Notes, and Comment Response Documents (pdf formats).

Evaluation of Fuel Tank Flammability and the FAA Inerting System on the NASA 747 SCA

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-04/41) was produced by the Fire Safety Branch of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in December 2004 and was written by Michael Burns, William M. Cavage, Robert Morrison and Steven Summer. Extensive development and analysis has illustrated that fuel tank inerting could, potentially, be cost-effective if air separation modules, based on hollow-fiber membrane technology, could be packaged and used in an efficient way. To illustrate this, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has developed a prototype onboard inert gas generation system that uses aircraft bleed air to generate nitrogen-enriched air (NEA) at varying flows and purities during a commercial airplane flight cycle. A series of ground and flight tests were performed, in conjunction with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) aircraft operations personnel, designed to evaluate the FAA inerting system used in conjunction with a compartmentalized center wing tank (CWT). Additionally, the flammability of both the CWT and one inboard wing fuel tank was measured. The system was mounted on a Boeing 747, operated by NASA, and used to inert the aircraft CWT during testing. The inerting system, CWT, and the number 2 main wing tanks were instrumented to analyze the system performance, fuel tank inerting, and flammability. The results of the testing indicated that the FAA prototype inerting system operated as expected. Using a variable-flow methodology allowed a greater amount of NEA to be generated on descent when compared to the simple dual-flow methodology, but it had no measurable effect on the resulting average ullage oxygen concentration after each test, while improving inert gas distribution by decreasing the worst bay oxygen concentration when three similar tests were compared. The highest average ullage oxygen concentration observed on any flight test correlates directly with the worst bay oxygen concentration, illustrating the importance of maintaining a low average ullage oxygen concentration in good inert gas distribution. Oxygen diffusion between the bays of the tank was relatively rapid, and overnight dispersion of the ullage oxygen concentration was measured to be very small. Flammability measurements showed trends very similar to what was expected based on both experimental and computer model data. The equilibrium data agreed favorably with data from both the Fuel Air Ratio Calculator and the Condensation Model, while transient data trends matched closely with the Condensation Model with some discrepancies in total hydrocarbon concentration magnitude at altitude. [Taken from abstract.] This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

FAA Debris Mitigation Impact Test Report : Data Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/54, approved by Andy Cobb, dated July 1999. The objective of the report is to provide airframe engineers with the information required to design for damage mitigation and improved safety. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Fiber-Reinforced Structures for Turbine Engine Rotor Fragment Containment : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/6, by John Pepin, dated September 1999. The report describes the development of lightweight, fiber-reinforced structures to contain turbine engine rotor failures. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Financing and Program Alternatives for Advanced High-Speed Aircraft

This background paper was produced by the U.S. Congress Office of Technology Assessment in August 1982. It was published as part of a long term study of the economic, environmental, energy, societal, and safety impacts of advances in the technology of high-speed aircraft, commuter aircraft, and air cargo. Part 4 examines the potential financial and managerial barriers to a future high-speed, long-range commercial air transport. It is specifically intended to supplement the Part 1 report: Advanced High-Speed Aircraft. The report is made available as part of the OTA Online Archive. The full text is accessible online in PDF format (520K). Alternatively, the front matter, table of contents and individual chapters are available as separate PDF files.

Flight Load Validation

This is a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) No 02/2005 consultation document. The deadline for comments on this document was 15 March 2005. It sets forth an acceptable means, but not the only means, of demonstrating compliance with the provisions of CS-25 related to the validation, by flight load measurements, of the methods used for determination of flight load intensities and distributions, for large aeroplanes. This NPA is made up of four different parts: Explanatory Note - descibes the development process and explains the contents of the proposal; Proposals - the actual proposed amendments; the original Joint Airworthiness Authorities Original JAA NPA 25C-343 proposals justification; and the JAA NPA 25C-343 Comment-Response Document Comment-Response Document which summarises the comments made on the original JAA NPA and the responses to those comments. The text of the document is available in PDF format from the EASA web site.

Flight-Testing of the FAA Onboard Inert Gas Generation System on an Airbus A320

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-03/58) was produced by the Fire Safety Branch of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in June 2004 and was written by Michael Burns, William M. Cavage, Richard Hill and Robert Morrison. Extensive development and analysis has illustrated that fuel tank inerting could potentially be cost-effective if air separation modules (ASM), based on hollow-fiber membrane technology, could be used in an efficient way. To illustrate this, the Federal Aviation Administration has developed an onboard inert gas generation system that uses aircraft bleed air to generate nitrogen-enriched air (NEA) at varying flow and purity (oxygen concentration) during a commercial airplane flight cycle. A series of ground and flight tests were performed, in conjunction with Airbus, designed to prove the simplified inerting concept. The system was mounted in the cargo bay of an A320 operated by Airbus for the purposes of research and development and used to inert the aircraft center wing fuel tank during testing. The system and center wing fuel tank were instrumented to allow for the analysis of the system performance and inerting capability. The results of the tests indicated that the concept of the simplified inerting system is valid and that the air separation module dynamic characteristics were as expected. ASM pressure had the expected effect on flow rate and purity; however, bleed air consumption was greater than expected during cruise. The fuel tank inerting results illustrated that no stratification or heterogeneous oxygen concentrations occurred in the tank. The measured average tank ullage oxygen concentration data agreed well with a simple analytical model applied to the flight test data. The measured effect of the high-flow mode was significant, allowing the single-membrane configuration to maintain an inert ullage during the entire flight cycle, even with the very high rate of descent employed for the flight tests. Fuel had virtually no effect on the resulting oxygen concentrations observed in all the tests. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Fluid Dynamics Research on Supersonic Aircraft

This web page provides access to a Research and Technology Organization (RTO) educational note, RTO-EN-004, dated November 1998. The publication contains lecture notes from a RTO Applied Vehicle Technology Panel (AVT) Special Course on "Fluid Dynamics Research on Supersonic Aircraft", held at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics (VKI) in Rhode-Saint-Genese, Belgium, 25-29 May 1998. A number of topics are covered including: history and economics of supersonic transports; supersonic aerodynamics; sonic boom theory and minimization; multi-point design challenges; vortex plume interactions; and propulsion system design. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. A table of contents, and the full text of the document (52.8 Mbytes) can be accessed online in PDF format. The document is contained in the RTO's Full Text Publication Library.

Full-Scale Tests of Lightweight Fragment Barriers on Commercial Aircraft : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/71, by Donald A. Shockey, David C. Elrich, and Jeffrey W. Simmons, dated November 1999. The report is part of an investigation of the ballistic effectiveness of fabric structures. It describes a series of tests to determine the effects of polymer material, number of plies, location of the fabric within the fuselage wall, and gripping arrangements. The results confirmed that high-strength polymer fabrics offer an extremely effective, low-weight solution for mitigating the effects of uncontained turbine engine fragments on commercial aircraft. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

GARTEUR (AD) AG-26: Navier-Stokes Computations of 3D Transonic Flow for a Wing/Fuselage Configuration

This technical report (NLR-TP-2003-191) was published by NLR (the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2004 and was written by F. J. Brandsma. In this paper the work carried out within the GARTEUR Action Group (AD) AG-26 on the validation of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods for transonic flow around transport type of aircraft is presented. The participants of AG-26 are Aerospatiale (AS), BAE SYSTEMS (BAe), EADS (DASA), NLR, ONERA and Saab. They simulated the flow around the AS28G wing/body configuration of Aerospatiale for a transonic design and an transonic off-design condition with their CFD methods based on the Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes equations using a common computational grid that made available by BAe. Various turbulence models have been employed. A code-to-code comparisons has been made on the basis of computed aerodynamic force and moment coefficients, pressure distributions, skin friction coefficients, and boundary layer profiles. The pressure distributions have been compared with the experimental data obtained in the ONERA S1-Modane wind tunnel. Agreement between the computational and experimental pressure distributions is generally good except for the shock position and the region close to the wing trailing edge. There is a significant variation in computed aerodynamic force coefficients (attributed to variation in predicted shock position and separation locations) which could not systematically be related to the numerical method and turbulence models employed for this study. Even though it was expected that the off-design would be a more difficult case to predict, the variation in the computational results is more or less the same for both test cases. It is concluded among other things that the common computational grid did not allow to distinguish between discretisation error and modelling errors and it is recommended for future CFD validation studies to adopt a grid convergence approach rather than a common grid strategy. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available as a PDF file.

GlobalPlaneSearch.com

This site provides a service for those wishing to find all types of aircraft for sale, lease, or charter worldwide. It does this by by centralising and categorising all the world's aircraft advertisements published openly to the public. The site can be used in several ways - it can be browsed by aircraft manufacturer or by aircraft type, for example airliners, helicopters and cargo/freighter. In addition, it can be searched by manufacturer, model, location, year, GPS categories, or last modified/new, with results sorted by location, price or year.

Ground and Flight Testing of a Boeing 737 Center Wing Fuel Tank Inerted With Nitrogen-Enriched Air

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/63, by Michael Burns and William M. Cavage, dated August 2001. The report describes the results of a series of flight and ground tests to evaluate the effectiveness of ground-based inerting (GBI) as a means of reducing the flammability of fuel tanks in the commercial transport fleet. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Gulf Aircraft Partnership

This website showcases the Kestral JP 100, a high speed, single engine turboprop aircraft. The site includes sections describing the planes performance, comfort and specification. There is also a small image gallery.

Heat Release and Flammability Testing of Surrogate Panels

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-TN01/112) was produced by the Fire Safety Branch of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in December 2001 and was written by Timothy Marker. A task group assembled under the auspices of the International Aircraft Materials Fire Test Working Group examined issues involving fire test approval of previously qualified interior material systems following renovation or alteration. A major problem associated with the alteration of interior system components is the difficulty in conducting certification tests that would determine if the altered interior component is still compliant with the heat release, smoke, and flammability certification requirements. [Taken from abstract] This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Identifying and Mitigating the Risks of Cockpit Automation

The site provides access to an Air University Air Command and Staff College Research Report, by Major Wesley A. Olson, USAF, AU/ACSC/138/2000-04, dated April 2000. This paper provides a brief summary of the direct costs associated with automation. It is intended to provide a framework for designers, managers, and pilots in implementing measures to mitigate these costs. The focus is on automation issues arising from studies of transport aircraft. The text of the paper can be accessed in PDF format, and is one of the Student Research Studies available from Air University's Research Web.

Impact of New Large Aircraft on Airport Design

This final report (DOT/FAA/AR-97/26) was published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in March 1998. It identifies several key design and operational characteristics of proposed new large aircraft (NLA) that will need to be taken into consideration before the aircraft are introduced into the current airport environment. In addition, a 20-year projection of NLA development and a qualitative cost and compatibility assessment of introducing NLA's at a sample airport that currently serves the Boeing 747 are included in this report [extracted from author abstract]. This is a PDF file so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Impact of the Termination of NASA’s High Speed Research Program and The Redirection of NASA’s Advanced Subsonic Technology

This provides access to the text of a report to Congress prepared by the United States Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), December 2000. The purpose of the review was to assess the impact of the termination of NASA's High Speed Research (HSR) program and the redirection of the Advanced Subsonic Technology (AST) program on aviation safety, NASA Centre core competencies, and on the US aviation industry. The text of the report is available in PDF format.

Improved Methodology for the Prediction of the Empennage Maneuver In-Flight Loads of a General Aviation Aircraft Using Neural Networks : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/80, by David Kim and Laure Pechaud, dated December 2001. This research presents and documents an improved methodology for the prediction of empennage maneuver loads of a general aviation aircraft. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Improvement and Verification of Low-Speed Aerodynamic Characteristics of a Supersonic Civil Transport Aircraft

This technical report (NLR/TP/2005-514) was published by NLR (the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2005. For supersonic civil transport aircraft, the low-speed aerodynamic characteristics form an important factor in its operational capabilities and in its economic viability. Low drag is a prerequisite to meet the present and future noise and emissions requirements. Innovative concepts for leading-edge devices aiming at the improvement of low-speed aerodynamic efficiency are investigated. From computational analysis of a series of leading-edge flap designs, the two most promising devices are selected for experimental verification, viz. a double-hinge leading-edge flap and a deep-hinge leading edge flap design. In the course of comparing experimental and computational results, discrepancies are observed that are satisfactorily dealt with by adding the wind tunnel struts and the strut-wing connections in the computational analysis. Reynolds number extrapolations from wind tunnel scale to full-scale are obtained using CFD. It is concluded that the design approach based on CFD has significantly contributed to the success of configuration development, meeting the target efficiency improvement. Furthermore, the influences of geometrical details that differ in the design phase and the validation phase have been assessed. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Inerting a Boeing 747SP Center Wing Tank Scale Model With Nitrogen-Enriched Air : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-02/51, by William M. Cavage and Ole Kils, dated May 2002. Tests were performed in a 0.24 scale model of a Boeing 747SP center wing tank to validate the existing assumptions for inerting complex geometric spaces, which were developed from previous experiments, and to facilitate design of an efficient, cost-effective inerting gas deposit system for full-scale, ground-based inerting testing. The model was equipped with a variable nitrogen-enriched air distribution system, thermocouples, and oxygen analyzers that were monitored and recorded continuously by a data acquisition system during each test. The model was inerted in different configurations with different flow rates and bay distributions. The collected data was nondimensionalized in terms flow rate and tank size to allow for comparisons between tests. Experiments in the tank verified that the volumetric tank exchange established from research with a simple box-style tank can be achieved in a more complex compartmentalized tank. It also indicated that the same volumetric tank exchange could be obtained with less gas distribution (less complex distribution system) and that modification of the venting configuration to eliminate cross-venting would improve the efficiency of the inerting process. Tests showed that the most efficient method of inerting the tank was to deposit all the nitrogen-enriched air in a single location, allowing for a lightweight, easily installed deposit system for an operational aircraft. Data from full-scale testing compared well with scale tank data illustrating that low cost, small-scale test articles can be an effective tool for developing inert gas distribution systems. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Inerting of a Vented Aircraft Fuel Tank Test Article With Nitrogen-Enriched Air : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/6, by Michael Burns and William M. Cavage, dated April 2001. This report documents a series of experiments designed to determine the quantity and purity of nitrogen-enriched air (NEA) required to inert a vented aircraft fuel tank. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Initial Development of Improved Aircraft Cargo Compartment Fire Detection Certification Criteria

This is a conference paper by David Blake and others. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The text of the paper is available in PDF format (312 K) from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection

Integrated Airframe Design Technology

This is Research and Technology Organization (RTO) AGARD Report, AGARD-R-814, dated October 1996. It was sponsored by the Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development. The report explains; Integrated airframe design embraces the concept of bringing together all of the aspects of airframe design, including various disciplines such as structures, materials, aerodynamics, propulsion, systems, controls, and manufacturing from conceptual design all the way through to the final product and its repair and maintenance. The results of this AGARD Workshop on Integrated Airframe Design emphasized that the recent and future advances in high-performance computer hardware and software systems provide the opportunity to create a process that will allow these disciplines to rapidly interact with one another. For individual titles, see N97-15843 through N97-15856. Bibliographic details and an abstract are available in HTML format and the full text (65 Mb) is available in PDF format from the RTO's web site.

Integrated vehicle management systems

This is Research and Technology Organization (RTO) AGARD Advisory Report, AGARD-AR-343, dated April 1996. It was sponsored by the Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development. Major trends in technology, weapon system performance goals and affordability for aerospace systems are occurring simultaneously. For avionic systems this performance and affordability can be achieved by functional and physical integration. 'Functionally' integrated subsystems to achieve higher performance has been greatly aided by advances in computer technology. The desire to minimize costs for these systems has been accomplished through a 'physical' integration concept based upon common modules tied through a high speed backplane. The concept, called integrated avionics, has been used on new aircraft such as the US Air Force F-22 fighter and the Boeing 777 commercial transport. Vehicle management systems provide the management of crucial flight functions and systems for advanced aerospace vehicles. These systems must have high integrity, safety, and overall fault tolerance. Low cost modular avionics are unproven for such fault tolerant systems. This becomes a key issue for investigation. This report deals with the key problems in fault tolerance for modular computer based systems. New techniques, only recently applied, provide exciting possibilities to reduce avionics costs and maintain high integrity and safety. These techniques and more are discussed in this report sponsored by the Mission Systems Panel of the AGARD. Bibliographic details and an abstract are available in HTML format and the full text (21.3 Mb) is available in PDF format from the RTO's web site.

Integrating Automated Multi-Disciplinary Optimization in Preliminary Design of Non-Traditional Aircraft

The site provides access to an Air University Air Force Institute of Technology MSc Thesis, by First Lieutenant Mehmet Fidanci, TUAF, AFIT/GSE/ENY/00M-1, dated March 2000. The thesis describes the development of a parametrically driven conceptual model for the analysis and optimisation of non-traditional designs such as blended wing aircraft. It focuses on a single parametric design model for transforming a conventional transport into a blended wing design. Citation details and an abstract are available in HTML format. The full text can be accessed in PDF format (2,112,676 bytes). The document is part of the Air University Research Database.

Intelligent Systems for Aeronautics

This web site provides access to a Research and Technology Organization (RTO) Educational Note, RTO-EN-022, Paris, January 2003. The material in this publication was assembled to support a RTO/VKI Special Course under the sponsorship of the Applied Vehicle Technology Panel (AVT) and the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics (VKI) presented on 13-17 May 2002, in Rhode-Saint-Genese, Belgium. These lecture notes cover techniques and application with emphasis on aeronautical and space applications. The techniques reviewed include decision strategy tools based on game theory, neural network techniques for fault identification, genetic algorithms and multi-agent theory. The application areas reviewed include air combat tactics, control of unmanned air vehicles, air combat simulation, space exploration, missile design, airfoil design, and analysis of rocket plume data for condition monitoring. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. A table of contents, and the full text of the document (14.2 Mbytes) can be accessed online in PDF format. The document is contained in the RTO's Full Text Publication Library.

Investigation of Adhesive Behavior in Aircraft Applications : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/57, by Charles Yang and John S. Tomblin, dated September 2001. There are two parts included in this report. The first part evaluates the most commonly used test method for adhesive properties, ADTM D 5656. The second part of this report provides (1) an analytical model for predicting stress distributions within an adhesive-bonded composite joint using ASTM D 3165 test specimen dimensions and (2) a method for predicting joint strength under the adherend failure mode. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Longitudinal Acceleration Test of Overhead Luggage Bins and Auxiliary Fuel Tank in a Transport Airplane Airframe Section, Part II : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/4,II by Robert McGuire, dated October 2000. The report describes the testing of overhead stowage bin calibrations and longitudinal impact testing of a 10-foot transport airframe section. The purpose of the tests was to measure the structural response and interaction between the fuselage, overhead stowage bins, and the auxiliary fuel tank under simulated, potentially survivable, crash conditions. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Mass Loading Effects on Fuel Vapor Concentrations in an Aircraft Fuel Tank Ullage

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) technical note, DOT/FAA/AR-TN99/65, by Steven M. Summer, dated September 1999. The note describes experiments performed within a simulated fuel tank approximately 1/20 the size of a typical Boeing B-747 center wing fuel tanl (CWT). The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Modeling of a Commuter Category Aircraft Seat

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report DOT/FAA/AR-04/34 by Hampton C. Gabler, David Bowen, and Christopher Molnar dated September 2004. This report describes the development of a nonlinear finite element model of a commuter category aircraft seat designed to explore the issue of energy absorption in severe, but survivable, crashes. The research program used a Beechcraft 1900C passenger seat as a reference commuter category aircraft seat. The report presents a description of the model and the results of finite element modeling of the reference seat at increasingly severe impact velocities. The report also presents the results of a parallel experimental program, conducted to validate the model, in which an instrumented crash dummy was drop tested in the reference seat at the same impact velocities as the simulation. Experimental results are reported for passenger lower lumbar loading, peak pelvic acceleration, and seat structural loading. [Taken from abstract]. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Multi-Attribute Value Assessment Method for the Early Product Development Phase With Application to the Business Airplane Industry

Thjis gives access to a Ph.D. disseration written by Troy Downen and submitted to the Engineering Systems Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology in February 2005. The early phase of product development, sometimes referred to as the fuzzy front-end, is critical to the success of enterprises and plays a dominant role in the formation and execution of corporate strategy. In addition, it has been argued that the concept of consumer value is central to effective product development. In this research, a new product value assessment method is established for the fuzzy front-end of business airplane development. Existing value assessment techniques used in the business aviation industry are found to poorly balance the theoretical rigor of the method with the ease of use and accuracy required by practitioners in early product development. A recently-developed multi-attribute value method, based on Taguchi’s loss function approach to quality assessment, is modified and extended in this study and applied for the first time to the domain of business aviation. A comprehensive 40-year historical product database is developed for use in testing and evaluating the method, referred to as the Relative Value Index (RVI), enabling the scope of value method appraisal to be expanded to an industrywide examination over a significant time span. A top-down approach is developed for calibrating value models to empirical market data via attribute weighting factors. Sensitivity analyses and Monte Carlo simulations are developed to test the RVI method’s robustness and the reliability of the results, enabling a rigorous definition of the determinants of product competition in this industry. This methodology is a useful advance in the methods to extract objective findings from historical industry market activities. The RVI approach is used to develop evidence in support of a ratio theory of product price and value differentiation in the business airplane market. The method is also used to extract quantitative evidence indicating the existence of enterprise-related attributes for consumer value in products. Marking the first independent review of the loss function-based value method, this study finds that the Relative Value Index is superior to existing value methods at retaining simplicity of implementation and minimal data requirements while maintaining a firm grounding in economics and consumer choice theory. The method is shown to be useful for estimation, though robustness of the results is not certain when used in this manner, and may also be extended to the analysis of large-scale engineering systems and their value to society. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is availabkle in PDF format so Adobe Acrobat is required in order to read it.

Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of a Strut-Braced Wing Transonic Transport

This is the full text of a paper (AIAA 2000-0420) presented at the 38th Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, held on 10th - 13th January 2000 in Reno, Nevada. It is written by a team of authors from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and the University of Florida. The paper published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) suggests an alternative wing configuration for a transonic airliner. It is in PDF format.

NASA : Hypersonic X-43A Takes Flight

The X-43A is a hypersonic, scramjet-powered research aircraft designed to fly at speeds up to Mach 10. This is a NASA mission web site which brings together the latest news, features and supporting resources. There are a number of high resolution images, as well as video clips, including that of the historic flight of November 16 2004 during which the X-43A's scramjet air breathing engine pushed the aircraft to nearly Mach 9.8, or 7,000 mph, as it flew at about 110,000 feet. The site also provides access to a PDF format X-43A Fact Sheet.

NASA : Improving Flight

This site is part of the larger 'Life on Earth' NASA site which aims to show how NASA is contributing to research to understand and protect the planet. The improving flight part of the site provides more information on work being undertaken to advance military and civilian aircraft.

New Approaches to Aircraft Fire Protection

This is a conference paper by A. Freiling of EADS Airbus GmbH, Bremen, Germany. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The paper provides an overview of currently fire protected areas in Airbus aircraft. It also discusses the potential of new fire detection technologies, and highlights the need to have modified integration tests for use with these technologies. The text of the paper is available in PDF format (399 K) from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection.

Nonplanar Wing Concepts For Increased Aircraft Efficiency

This report is part of VKI lecture series on Innovative Configurations and Advanced Concepts for Future Civil Aircraft, created in June 6-10, 2005 by I. Kroo Stanford University, U.S.A. This report deals with nonplanar wings which offer the possibility of reduced drag compared with planar wings of the same span and lift. However, aircraft are not compared on the basis of drag with fixed span and lift, making the integration and assessment of nonplanar wing concepts complex. This paper deals with some of these issues. A brief review of several concepts from winglets to ring wings is followed by a more detailed look at recent ideas and their application to future transport aircraft. Results suggest that potential efficiency gains may be significant, although non-aerodynamic and off-design characteristics are critical in determining the utility of these concepts for transport aircraft.

Parametric Estimating Handbook

The International Society of Parametric Analysis (ISPA) was one of the contributors to the third edition of the Parametric Estimating Initiative (PEI) Parametric Estimating Handbook. The third edition was sponsored by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) and Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA). This page provides links to the final version of the third edition of the Handbook

Parametric Study of Crashworthiness Bulkhead Designs

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA AR-02/103, by H. Lankarani, M. Mirza, dated December 2002. This study investigated the head injury criteria (HIC) compliance for front-row seating in transport class aircraft. Energy absorbing bulkheads were designed using the analysis code MADYMO and simple static tests. The first of these designs used a simple aluminum sheet and the second used an aluminum honeycomb panel with fiberglass facesheets. Both designs satisfied the HIC requirement during 16-g dynamic sled tests. The investigation also established that foam pads are not effective HIC attenuators as the only means of energy absorption on a rigid bulkhead. The HIC value for a specific design was found to be sensitive to the following parameters: head impact velocity, head impact angle, seat setback distance, belt properties, and the panel stiffness and strength. The studies also showed that a minimum of 2-4 in. of bulkhead crush is required to attenuate the HIC values to levels below 1000 during 16-g dynamic sled tests. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Playing catch-up: No room for delays of the Airbus A350 Xtra Wide Body

Article from Flight International's flightglobal.com June 2007 about the latest technical details of the A350 extra wide body (XWB) design including a materials breakdown, the design of a hybrid dropped hinge flap configuration and a comparison of the A330/A340 cabin to the A350.

Preliminary Design of a Blended Wing Body Configuration using the Design Tool PrADO

This conference paper was written by C. Osterheld, W. Heinze and P. Horst from the Institute of Aircraft Design and Lightweight Structures (IFL) at the Technical University Carolo-Wilhelmina at Brunswick. It was given at the CEAS Conference on Multidisciplinary Aircraft Design and Optimisation, held at Köln on 25th-26th June 2001. New, unconventional aircraft configuations liked the blended wing body (BWB) are expected to significantly improve the economic efficiency of future air transport. In order to investigate potential improvements and to predict major design challenges of this new class of aircraft, the modelling and analysis capabilities of the in-house aircraft design tool of IFL, PrADO, have been adapted to the BWB requirements. Therefore a parametric geometry model was defined and implemented for geometric sizing and to supply input for physics-based analyses methods (FEM, aerodynamic panel method, drag and weight prediction). In this paper the methods used and the modelling and analysis capabilities of the improved, BWB-specific PrADO system are described. This paper is provided in PDF format.

Progress Through Partnership : 12 - Defence and Aerospace

This web site provides access to one of a series of reports published as part of the first UK Technology Foresight programme, in March 1995. The Defence and Aerospace Panel report describes the strategic issues and priorities which emerged from an extensive programme of analysis and consultation. The report presents a series of furture market scenarios, along with a set of key technical priorities and recommendations. The sectors covered in the report include: defence, civil aerospace, and space. The full text is available in HTML format.

Quest for Performance : The Evolution of Modern Aircraft

This provides access to a NASA History Office publication, NASA SP-468, by Laurence K. Loftin, Jr, NASA Scientific and Technical Information Branch, Washington, D.C. 1985. It traces the technical development of the airplane since World War I. It describes significant aircraft that incorporated important technical innovations and served to shape the future course of aeronautical development, as well as aircraft that represented the state of the art of aeronautical technology in a particular time frame or that were very popular and produced in great numbers. Primary emphasis has been placed on aircraft originating in the United States. The discussion is related primarily to aircraft configuration evolution and associated aerodynamic characteristics and, to a lesser extent, to developments in aircraft construction and propulsion. The material is presented in a manner designed to appeal to the nontechnical reader who is interested in the evolution of the airplane, as well as to students of aeronautical engineering or others with an aeronautical background. The full text is available in HTML format.

Redirecting R&D in the Commercial Aircraft Supply Chain

This provides access to RAND issues paper IP-212-OSTP, prepared by Lance Sherry and Liam Sarsfield, dated 2002. The paper describes changes in the commercial aircraft industry that have lead to an increased role of the supply chain in the R&D of aircraft components. It evaluates the allocation of federal R&D funding to the supply chain relative to the increased role of the supply chain in performing R&D. It also examines the roles that federal R&D agencies can play in overcoming inefficiencies in R&D that are inherent to a distributed supply chain. A description of the paper is available in HTML, while the full text of the document is available for browsing online and downloading in PDF format.

Rugged LED-Based Sensor for Fire Detection

This is a conference paper by Jeffrey S. Goldmeer, South West Sciences, Inc. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The paper describes the development of a novel optical absorption technique for fire detection. The text of the paper is available in PDF format (180 K) from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection.

Saab Group

The Saab Group is an international company specialising in aviation, space and defence. The site describes the companies business units, and provides investor information, key financial statistics, details of job opportunities. A searchable database of all products produced by the Saab Group is available. This includes the Gripen fighter, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), and the Saab 340 and 2000 family of commercial aircraft. There is also a publications database which provides access to the annual report, brochures and the in-house magazine. Documents are available in PDF format. In addition, there is a history of the Saab company, contact details, information on the press releases, as well as an image and a movie bank.

Sensing Systems for Active Control of Sound Transmission into Cavities

This web site provides access to an Adelaide University Department of Mechanical Engineering PhD dissertation, by Ben S. Cazzolato, submitted 24 August 2000, and awarded 29 March 1999. Driven by the need to reduce the sound transmitted into aircraft cabins from the power plant, this thesis investigates the active control of sound transmitted through a structure into coupled enclosures. In particular, it examines alternatives to conventional microphone and accelerometer error sensors. Bibliographic and abstract details are available in HTML format. The title page, contents and the full text of the document are accessible online in PDF format. This title is part of the Australian Digital Theses (ADT) Programme.

Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation

Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, is involved in the design and manufacture of advanced helicopters for commercial, industrial and military uses. The web site includes background information about the company and a brief history, which provides a link to the Igor Sikorsky Historical Archives. The product range of helicopters is described. The publications section of the site contains a selection of product brochures which contain summaries of perfomance specifications. These include for example the S-70A International Black Hawk, the S-70B International Seahawk, and the S-92. The publications section also contains details of the company's Interactive Electronic Technical Manuals, online technical directives (access restricted to owners and operators), and online Safety Advisories. There is also a news section which contains press releases and an inhouse journal, Sikorsky Lifeline. The site also contains information on the Company's community activities, aircraft sales, job opportunities, and an image gallery.

Software Service History Handbook : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/116, by Uma D. Ferrell and Thomas K. Ferrell, dated January 2002. This handbook is intended to aid industry and the Federal Aviation Administration in the formulation and evaluation of product service history data for certification credit. It provides a discussion of the major issues associated with product service history and provides an approach for methodically evaluating service history data. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Software Service History Report : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-01/125, by Uma D. Ferrell and Thomas K. Ferrell, dated January 2002. This report represents the results of research for use by the Federal Aviation Administration in formulating new guidance and prioritizing future research work in the area of product service history. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Speedbirds - By Concorde fans FOR Concorde fans

Concorde - to-date the world’s only supersonic commercial aircraft, is both a work of art and a triumph of engineering. Concorde’s unique style incorporating its marriage of aesthetics and sophisticated engineering, its reputation for comfort and unfaltering efficiency, have assured its landmark status. Indeed its unprecedented ability to sustain a cruising speed of mach 2 for up to three hours remains unchallenged.

Statistical Loads Data For Bombardier CRJ100 Aircraft In Commercial Operations

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA AR-03/44, by John Rustenburg, Donald A. Skinn, and Daniel O. Tipps, dated June 2003. The University of Dayton is supporting Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) research on the structural integrity requirements for the U.S. commercial transport airplane fleet. The primary objective of this research is to develop new and improved methods and criteria for processing and presenting commercial transport airplane flight and ground loads usage data. Presented herein are Bombardier CRJ100 aircraft operational usage data collected from 467 flights, representing 607.2 flight hours, as recorded by a single airline operator. Statistical data are presented on the aircraft’s usage, flight and ground loads data, and systems operational data. The data presented in this report will provide the user with information about the accelerations, speeds, altitudes, flight duration and distance, thrust reverser usage, and gust velocities encountered by the Bombardier CRJ100 during actual operational usage. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Subsonic Transport Aircraft - New Challenges and Opportunities for Aerodynamic Research. The 36th Lanchester Lecture

This technical report (NLR-TP-2002-376) was published by NLR (the National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2002 and was written by J. W. Slooff. This report contains the written version of the 36th Lanchester lecture which was presented at the Royal Aeronautical Society in London in May 1996. Due to circumstances beyond his control the author was not in a position to produce a written version at or shortly after the time of the lecture. The written version presented here ( 6 years late!) is offered with some retrospective remarks added. The lecture addresses requirements for aerodynamic research for subsonic transport aircraft from the point of view that 'market pull' is, and should be, the driving factor in aerodynamic rearch and that new technological developments that the aerodynamics and associated communities have to offer ('technology push') should be assessed against the requirements of 'the market'. After a description of market pull factors and of current (i.e. 1996) developments in aerodynamic and related technologies a list is offered of topics for aerodynamic research that have the best prospest for contributing to the market position of subsonic transport aircraft in the next, say twenty (or fifteen) years. [Taken from abstract]. The full text is available as a PDF file.

Super70s - The Concorde

Truly faster than a speeding bullet, the Concorde was both extremely elegant and incredibly expensive. It had an equally interesting history involving environmentalists, an economic crisis, and espionage. The battle began in 1962, the year French President Charles de Gaulle called on Anglo-Franco cooperation in building aircraft to curtail what he termed the "American colonization of the skies." The Boeing 707 had not only taken the lead in the jet age, but was starting to dominate (along with the American Douglas DC-8) and Boeing's short-haul versions (the 720 and 727) were giving the Americans a family of aircraft to sell to the world. If the Europeans had lost this round, perhaps they could win the next one. It was believed that the future belonged to supersonic transport (SST) aircraft and the Europeans wanted to ensure they would dominate - or at least compete in - the SST market. Neither France nor Britain had the resources to develop such an advanced plane if the other did too and crowded the market. By cooperating, they believed they could beat the Americans in the SST race.

Survey of Aviation Maintenance Technical Manuals Phase 3 Report : Final Report and Recommendations

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-02/123, by Alex Chaparro and Loren S. Groff, dated December 2002. This report contains the results from the final phase of a three-phase research effort. Phase 1 of this research effort surveyed the procedures used by five aircraft manufacturers to develop maintenance documentation. In Phase 2, a written survey was used to solicit information about user perception of errors in current manuals, manual usage rates, and general manual quality. In this report, a series of recommendations are outlined to address problem areas identified in Phases 1 and 2. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Survey of Aviation Technical Manuals Phase 2 Report: User Evaluation of Maintenance Documents : Interim Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-02/34, by Alex Chaparro, Loren S. Groff, Barbara S. Chaparro, and Deborah Scarlett, dated May 2002. This report contains the results from Phase 2 of a 3-phase research effort. Phase 1 (Human Factors Survey of Aviation Technical Manuals Phase 1 Report: Manual Development Procedures) of this research effort surveyed the procedures used by five manufacturers to develop maintenance documentation. Several potential human factors issues were identified in the development processes employed by these manufacturers. They included the reactive rather than proactive use of user evaluations, the limited use of user input and procedure validation, no systematic attempts to track error, and the lack of standards for measuring document quality. In Phase 2, a written survey was used to solicit information about user perception of errors in current manuals, manual usage rates, and general manual quality. On-site interviews of technicians were also conducted to gather feedback about the types of problems encountered with manuals, the associated impact, and suggestions for improving manuals. Feedback was obtained from technicians responsible for maintenance on a wide variety of Federal Aviation Regulations, Part 25 aircraft. Survey results revealed that, although user evaluations of the accuracy and quality of technical manuals are generally good, they rate manuals as having poor usability. Comparing the results of Phase 1 to the Phase 2 results supports the need for a higher level of user involvement during the document development process. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Tactile Displays for Orientation, Navigation and Communication in Air, Sea and Land Environments

This is a Research and Technology Organization (RTO) Technical Report RTO-TR-HFM-122, dated August 2008. This report describes the state-of-the-art of touch-based displays in military environments: neurophysiology, psychophysics, perceptual and human factors issues, hardware and integration issues and lessons learned, and future directions. The document gives an overview of NATO activities and is useful for both end users and designers. A table of contents, and the full text of the document can be accessed online in HTML format. The document is contained in the RTO's Full Text Publication Library.

The Air Cargo System

This report was produced by the U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment in January 1982. It was published as part of a long term study of the economic, environmental, energy, societal, and safety impacts of advances in the technology of transport aircraft. Part 2 deals with the air cargo system, and focuses on the principal factors that could influence the future evolution of air cargo transport. The report is made available as part of the OTA Online Archive. The full text is accessible online in PDF format (923K). Alternatively, the front matter, table of contents and individual chapters are available as separate PDF files.

The Boeing 737 Technical Site

This is a personal interest web site created by Chris Brady. It is written by and for 737 pilots and engineers. The site includes: a contents and what's new listing, a site map, news stories, orders and deliveries, questions and answers, accidents and incidents, and related links. A section of the site covers the aircraft systems in detail. There are also sections containing pilot notes, technical photographs, FAA AD's, NTSB press releases, and stories and articles written by other 737 pilots.

The Concorde project - Restoring Concorde G-BBGD at Brooklands Museum

After British Airways retired their Concorde fleet on October 24th 2003, Brooklands Museum in Weybridge, Surrey, made an unsuccessful bid to acquire one of the seven retired BA Concordes. More than 30% of each of the 20 Concorde airframes were manufactured by the British Aircraft Corporation at Brooklands during the 60s and 70s and the site's unique historical association with the type was the prime reason for the museum's ambition to acquire an example for its aviation collection. Soon after their failed bid, however, it was announced that they were in negotiations with BA to have Concorde G-BBDG (c/n 202) loaned to the museum instead.

The Design, Qualification and Maintenance of Vibration-Free Landing Gear

This is Research and Technology Organization (RTO) AGARD Report, AGARD-R-800, dated March 1996. It was sponsored by the Structures and Materials Panel of AGARD. The focus is on the various vibrational and stability problems (e.g. shimmy, antiskid ind uced vibrations) that must be considered in the early design phase of landing gear systems, especially problems which are related to vibrations of the combined structural system formed by the landing gear, its tires and the flexible aircraft structure. The intention was to indicate the impact of (combined) landing gear/aircraft vibration problems on aircraft design and to discuss the state-of-the- art technology in this area and to define possible future steps of development. For individual titles, see N96-25148 through N96-25156. Bibliographic details and an abstract are available in HTML format and the full text is available in PDF format (43.3 Mb)from the RTO's web site.

The Fire Safety Hazard of the Use of Flameless Ration Heaters Onboard Commercial Aircraft

This is a technical note that examines the potential hazard associated with the use of Ready-to-Eat Meals and flameless ration heaters that are used for the flameless heating of these Meals. Meals, Ready-to-Eat are used extensively in the military as a method of providing meals to soldiers while in the field. They are also finding their way into use by others, such as campers, boaters, and disaster response teams. This technical note is provided in pdf format and in 18 pages.

The Multidisciplinary Design Optimization of a Distributed Propulsion Blended-Wing-Body Aircraft

This web site provides access to a Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Department of Aerospace and Ocean Engineering PhD dissertation, by Yan-Yee Andy Ko, dated April 14 2003. The thesis examines the multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) of a distributed propulsion blended-wing-body (BWB) aircraft. The BWB is a hybrid shape resembling a flying wing, placing the payload in the inboard sections of the wing. The distributed propulsion concept involves replacing a small number of large engines with many smaller engines. An MDO framework was developed, integrating all the distributed propulsion effects modeled. Using a gradient based optimization algorithm, the distributed propulsion BWB aircraft was optimized and compared with a similarly optimized conventional BWB design. Both designs are for an 800 passenger, 0.85 cruise Mach number and 7000 nmi mission. The full text of the document is accessible online in PDF format [22.45 Mb]. This title is part of Virginia Tech’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Collection (VT ETD).

The Status of Lean Thinking in UK Lean Aerospace Initiative (UK-LAI) Supply Chains : a Survey

This study was carried out as part of the UK Lean Aerospace Initative (UK-LAI) programme by Alan Harrison, Jane Pavitt and Jennifer Alexander of Cranfield University's School of Management, in January 2002. It presents some of the results of a survey, undertaken in the summer of 2001, to ascertain the types of supply chain practices and behaviours in the UK aerospace industry, while at the same time identifying the link between supply chain strategy and corporate strategy of individual organisations. It also aims to identify where the UK aerospace industry sits in terms of development of lean supply chains. The text is available in PDF format.

The U.S. Jet Transport Industry : Competition, Regulation, and Global Market Factors Affecting U.S. Producers

This report to Congress was prepared by the U.S. Department of Commerce, International Trade Administration, in March 2005. The report presents a study of the airline and jet transport aircraft manufacturing industries and the impact of U.S. and European government policies and regulations on the global competitive position of U.S. aerospace manufacturers. Specifically, the report offers a detailed look at aerospace-related trade agreements; government support; aircraft certification and regulations; and policies related to aircraft operations, business operations and security. These policies are viewed in the context of airline and manufacturing industries currently undergoing fundamental structural change. Based on a detailed comparison of U.S. and European Union government policies and regulations, the report offers several conclusions as to which policies are likely to have the most significant future impact on open and fair trade in the civil aircraft manufacturing sector. The full text of this report is available on the International Trade Administration’s Internet site in PDF format.

The Wing Company

The Wing Company (WingCo) specialises in the manufacture of composite wings for the homebuilt aircraft kit sector. It is currently developing the Atlantica Blended Wing Body (BWB) design for the General Aviation market. The web site provides an overview of the company and its expertise. There are detailed descriptions of the Atlantica including specifications, performance, construction and cost information. The site also provides further information on some of the Atlantica's underlying design concepts such as blended wings. The site also has a downloadable trial version of a software programme called X-Plane, a developent tool used on the Atlantica design.

The Wing Is The Thing (TWITT)

This is the web site of a membership organisation which promotes the research and development of flying wings and other types of tailless aircraft by providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and experiences on an international basis. The site includes news items, references and related links. The main content of the site comprises a series of features covering specific interest topics. These include for example: Horten, Schapel, and Satre flying wings. There is also a feature on Blended Wing Body (BWB) concepts, which provides access to an article by Joe Mizrahi titled: Flight to the future: Which way the world's next generation airliner, a look at the past, the present, and the possible (reprinted from Wings, April 1999, Vol. 29, No. 2, with kind permission of Sentry Magazines). There is a link to designs based on birds. FAQs are also available.

Three Large LCD Cockpit Concept for Retrofit Applications

This technical report (NLR-TP-2005-065) was published by NLR (the Natonal Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands) in 2005 and was written by A. J. C. de Reus, N. de Gelder and L. Lacoste. Nowadays glass cockpits for commercial aircraft usually feature six display units. When one or two units are lost due to failures, continued safe flight is guaranteed using the remaining units. In this paper a cockpit concept is proposed with only three display units, and at least the same safety level. This Three Large LCD Cockpit can reduce costs for the airlines, while at the same time it provides built-in growth potential for emerging functions. Innovative display technology based upon the "fail safe concept" and a reconfigurable interface between pilots and the avionics system allow these seemingly incompatible goals. The paper describes an example application of the new cockpit concept for retrofit applications in Airbus single aisle aircraft. The system architecture is explained, both on the cockpit level and on the level of the individual display units. Handling of detected and undetected display unit failures was the key issue in the human-machine interface development. The display reconfiguration principles are presented and the integration of back-up displays and new functions is explained. Both the reconfigurations and the new functions benefit from the availability of cursor-control devices. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

TRACON Controller Weather Information Needs : Literature Review

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA CT-TN 03/18 by Ulf Ahlstrom, dated June 2003. This report is the first in a series on the use of weather information by Terminal Radar Approach Control (TRACON) controllers and weather displays for the cockpit. The document provides a literature review with an emphasis on research relating to the specification of weather information needs for these controllers. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Two Dimentional Multi Detection Fire Sensor, System Architecture and Performances

This is a conference paper by G. Boucourt. It was presented at the 12th International Conference on Automatic Fire Detection "AUBE '01", held at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, March 25-28, 2001. The text of the paper is available in PDF format (187 K) from the Building and Fire Research Laboratory (BFRL) publications online collection.

Validation for CFD Predication of Mass Transport in an Aircraft Passenger Cabin

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AM-06/27) was published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Aerospace Medicine in November 2006 and was written by A. J. Baker, S. C. Ericson, J. A. Orzechowski, K. L. Wong and R. P. Garner. A joint project was established to validate computational fluid dynamics (CFD) as a quantitative methodology for prediction of the distribution of pathogens released into the environmental control system (ECS)-generated ventilation flowfield of an aircraft passenger cabin. Acquisition of the requisite experimental databases for three-dimensional velocity and contaminant distributions was accomplished in the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute’s (CAMI’s) Aircraft Environmental Research Facility (AERF). The associated CFD simulations were conducted by the University of Tennessee CFD Laboratory staff, on the resident Beowulf PC cluster and/or the University of Tennessee Innovative Computing Laboratory SiNRG Cluster, using both commercial and proprietary CFD computer codes. The results of this CFD validation project are reported herein. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

Vertical Drop Test of a Narrow-Body Transport Fuselage Section With a Conformable Auxiliary Fuel Tank Onboard : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-00/56, by Allan Abromowitz, Timothy G. Smith, and Tong Vu, dated September 2000. The report describes a test to determine the interaction between a typical airplane fuselage, particularly its floor structure, and a conformable auxiliary fuel tank, under severe, but survivable, impact conditions. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Vertical Drop Test of a Shorts 3-30 Airplane : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-99/87, by Allan Abramowitz, Philip A. Ingraham, and Robert McGuire, dated November 1999. The objective of the test was to determine the impact response of the fuselage, seat tracks, seats, and anthropomorphic test dummies on a high-wing commuter type airplane. The full text of the report is available in PDF format from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Video Landing Parameter Survey - Honolulu International Airport : Final Report

This provides access to a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report, DOT/FAA/AR-00/72, by Terence Barnes, Thomas DeFiore and Richard Micklos, dated May 2001. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) William J. Hughes Technical Center is conducting a series of video landing parameter surveys at high-activity commercial airports to acquire a better understanding of typical landing contact conditions for a wide variety of aircraft and airports as they relate to current aircraft design criteria and practices. This is the third of a series of landing parameter surveys. The full text of the report is available in PDF format, from the online catalogue of the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center Library.

Video Landing Parameter Survey - London Heathrow Airport

This technical report (DOT/FAA/AR-07/53) was published by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Office of Aviation Research and Development in November 2007 and was written by Thomas DeFiore and Richard Micklos. Researchers from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) William J. Hughes Technical Center have been conducting a series of video landing parameter surveys at high-activity commercial airports to acquire a better understanding of typical landing contact conditions for a wide variety of aircraft and airports as they relate to current aircraft design criteria and practices. This is the sixth of a series of landing parameter surveys. This report documents the results from a survey at London Heathrow Airport (LHR) performed in July 2001. Previous surveys were conducted first at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in June 1994 and later at Washington National Airport (DCA) performed in June 1995. Additional surveys were performed at Honolulu International (HNL), April 1996, London City Airport in July 1997, and Philadelphia International Airport in July 1999. At LHR, six video cameras were temporarily installed along the north side of runway 27R. Video images of 495 wide-body and 468 narrow-body transports were captured and analyzed, and the results are presented herein. Landing parameters presented include sink rate; approach speed; touchdown pitch, roll, and yaw angles and rates; off-center distance; and the touchdown distance from the runway threshold. Wind and weather conditions were also recorded, and landing weights were available for most landings. Since this program is only concerned with overall statistical usage information, all data were processed and are presented without regard to the airline or flight number. This survey has reinforced the findings from the JFK and HNL surveys concerning the landing impact parameters of heavy, wide-body aircraft. The results from the LHR survey and the prior FAA video landing parameter surveys at JFK, HNL, and DCA differ substantially from aircraft sink speeds reported 45 years ago during landing parameter surveys conducted by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). No other efforts to collect operational landing data were performed by either the FAA or NASA in the interim. The authors recommend that aircraft manufacturers use the landing parameter data contained in the recent FAA reports in lieu of the data in the older NASA reports. [Taken from abstract]. This is a PDF file, so Adobe Acrobat software will be required in order to read it.

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