ATPL/PPL

COURSE
Riga 2015 Oct.
1
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Introduction to Aeronautical Structures

2. Fuselage, Wings and Stabilizers
3. Hydraulic Systems
4. Flying Controls
5. Landing Gear
6. Pneumatic Systems
7. Cabin Heating, Cooling and Pressurisation Systems
8. Fuel Systems
9. Ice and Rain Protection
10. Emergency Equipments
INTRODUCTION

Wings
The goal is to know the components that produce
aerodynamic forces on the aircraft:

• Wings

• Stabilizers

In particular, we want to know their function and understand

why they have a certain type of structure.
The wings and stabilizers are similar with regard to its function -
to create an aerodynamic force.

It is expected that this similarity will also be found in the

structural part.

We will start by studying the wings, and later we will apply that
knowledge to the stabilizers.
• Function

The wing is the component

responsible for creating the force
that lifts the aircraft,
counterbalancing the weight - Lift.

The function of the wing dictates the

shape and, in turn, form guides the
structural design.
• Shape

The wing shape is determined mainly by aerodynamic

considerations.

However, secondary functions, like supporting components or

systems, and structural limitations, for operational reasons or
construction, may lead to minor changes.

In this section:

• Wing geometry

• Influence of various geometrical parameters

• Wing Geometry

A wing’s geometry is defined by:

• Planform

• Section

• Twist (washout)

• Dihedral
• Geometry of the Wing
Planform
• Geometry of the Wing
Planform

Pilatus PC-6 Turbo Porter Supermarine Spitfire

Falcon 50 F-16 Fighting Falcon

• Geometry of the Wing •ct tip chord
Planform • cr root chord
ct • CAV average chord
• b wing span
b • S gross wing area.

cr
Aspect Ratio

S Taper Ratio

= ct / c r
• Geometry of the Wing
Planform

The sweep angle, Λ, usually refers to the angle between the

perpendicular to the root chord of the wing and the 25% chord
line. It can also be measured relative to the leading edge.
• Geometry of the Wing
Section
• Geometry of the Wing
Twist
• Geometry of the Wing
Dihedral

TB-30 Epsilon
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices

To understand the influence of the geometry of the wing on its

aerodynamic behavior it is necessary to first look at a

phenomenon that arises at the tip of the wings - wingtip vortices.

• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices
The released vortices induce a field of velocities downward along

the wing, making the emergence of a resistance component

called induced resistance.

• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Wing Tip Vortices
The released vortices induce a field of velocities downward along

the wing, making the emergence of a resistance component

called induced resistance.

• Influence of Geometric Parameters

The choice of the geometry of the wing is based on several

factors, but the main considerations are related to:

• Aerodynamics - maximize efficiency (reduction of

induced resistance/drag)

• Stability / Maneuverability
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Planform
The planform directly affects the wingtip vortices influence along

the span of the wing which, in turn, determines:

• Induced Drag

• Stall Characteristics

In terms of induced drag, and

considering plain wings, the

elliptical shape is most efficient.

• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Planform

A problem associated with the elliptical shape is that the wing stalls
at all sections almost simultaneously.
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Planform
Given the wing planform, it is possible alter how the stall

propagates through the wing:

• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Sweepback

The main reasons to design a wing with positive sweepback are:

• To delay to higher Mach numbers the

effects of compressibility

• Increase the longitudinal, directional and

lateral stability
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Sweepback

• Effect of Compressibility

The pressure distribution along the

wing is determine by the airflow

perpendicular to the leading edge.

The wing reacts like it is flying at a

lower airspeed.
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Sweepback
• Longitudinal Stability

The typical nose down moment that a main wing produces at zero

AoA, implies the need of a tailplane.

A flying wings eliminate the

need for a tailplane, using

special profiles coupled with

a positive sweep.
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Sweepback
• Directional and Lateral Stability
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Non-Plain Wings
The introduction of dihedral and winglets reduce the negative

effects produced by the wingtip vortices and can even use them

favorably.

Thus, non-planar wings may

have a higher efficiency than that

of the elliptical wing.

On the other hand, it also can

contribute positively to lateral

stability
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Non-Plain Wings
• Dihedral

The dihedral angle is used primarily for reasons of lateral

stability.
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Non-Plain Wings
• Winglets

Small vertical aerofoils which form part of the wing tip

The use of this type of structure in the wing tips can be very
beneficial to the performance of the aircraft.
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Non-Plain Wings
• Winglets

Winglets partly block the air flowing

from the bottom to the top surface

of the wing, reducing the strength
of the tip vortex.

Shaped and angled to the induced

airflow, they generate a small

forward force (i.e. “negative drag”,

or thrust).
• Influence of Geometric Parameters
Non-Plain Wings
• Winglets

Disadvantages:

- Generation of additional drag outside the optimal conditions.

- Increase weight.

- Increase the wing load, imposing additional structural

reinforcements.

Overall, the advantages overcome the disadvantages.

• Wing Attachment and Position
Regarding the type of attachment to the fuselage, the most common
types of construction are:

• Bi-Plane
• Wing Attachment and Position
Regarding the type of attachment to the fuselage, the most common
types of construction are:

• Braced Monoplane
• Wing Attachment and Position
Regarding the type of attachment to the fuselage, the most common
types of construction are:

• Cantilever

Out of these three, most common nowadays are the Braced

Monocoque and the Cantilever
• Wing Attachment and Position
• Braced Monoplane

The wing is supported externally by bars

• Used on small, low speed, aircraft;


• Provides stiffness to the wing without large penalties weight

• Large drag

What are the loads the

bar suffers?
• Wing Attachment and Position
• Cantilever

No external supports, the wing is recessed in the fuselage

• Requires a more rigid wing structure - heavier


• Produces less drag

• Preferred in faster aircrafts
• Wing Attachment and Position

• Low-wing

• Lower C.G. position

• Less lateral stability


• Shorter landing gear
• Propeller diameter limited to
 the ground distance (for wing-
mounted engines)
• Wing Attachment and Position

• High-wing

•
 Good ground visibility

•
 Easier loading and unloading

•
 Increase lateral stability

•
 The wing may be built as a
single piece
• Wing Attachment and Position

Mid-wing

• Less interference drag

• Spars passing through the center

of the fuselage

• Solution is not acceptable in

modern transport aircraft
• Wing Attachment and Position

• Roll Stability
• Loads

The wing is, as the fuselage, a component quite requested.

The stresses on the wing result primarily from:

 Aerodynamic loads
 Inertia loads, distributed or concentrated

The most important, and the ones that dictate

the basic structure are the aerodynamic.
• Loads
Typical loads on a wing

Level flight – loads along the wingspan

• Loads
Typical loads on a wing

Level flight – loads along the chord

• Loads
Typical loads on a wing

Turning flight – loads along the wingspan

• Loads
Typical loads on a wing

Ground Load – loads along the wingspan

• Loads
Structural Requirements

The aerodynamic loads are distributed along two different directions:

Along the wingspan Along the chord

Shear and Bending Torsion and Shear

Beam along the wingspan Torsion box

It is also necessary to give shape to the wing.

• Loads
Maximum Zero Fuel Weight (MZFW)

Regarding the distribution of lift along the wing, which causes its

upward bending, there is the definition of MZFW.

MZFW is the maximum weight allowed before usable fuel is

loaded in defined sections of the aircraft.

Any weight above this limit must be in the form of fuel in the wings
tanks.
• Loads
Maximum Zero Fuel Weight (MZFW)

More Weight

More wing lift The fuel mass in the wings

helps do lower these loads

Higher bending loads

• Structure
Basic wing structure

The basic components of the structure of a conventional wing are:

- Skin

- Spars

- Ribs

- Stringers/Stiffners
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Spars

- Its function is to resist to bending and shear stresses

- The flanges give good resistance to bending and the web resist to
shear.
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Spars

- Small planes have one spar

- Average-sized planes have two

- Large planes have three

• Structure
Basic wing structure

Spars

On wings with three spars:

- The front spar resists bending backwards.

- The main spar is the main structural

element of a conventional wing.

- The rear spar supports the control

surfaces and the loads they transmit to the
wing.
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Skin

- Forms an impervious surface to

resist the pressure distribution

- Supports the bending and

shear stresses

- The ribs and stringers give it

strength, stiffness and form
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Ribs

- Elements that shape the wing - they make the wing to have the
desired section, which is largely responsible for its aerodynamic
characteristics.

- Transmit the stresses along

the chord to the main spar

- Support the skin and stringers

• Structure
Basic wing structure

Ribs

- The distribution of ribs along the wingspan is determined by:

• Stabilization of the assembly skin - stringers

• Support the control surfaces
• Support the engines and landing
gears

• Provide the limit walls for the wing

tanks
• Pylons
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Ribs

Alignment can be with the direction of flight or the direction

normal to the leading edge:
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Stringers

- span-wise members giving the wing rigidity by stiffening the skin

in compression

- The connection to aluminum alloy skins is done by rivets.

• Structure
Basic wing structure

Torsion box

Not a structural element in it self.

Structure formed between the

wing spars, skin and ribs to resist

bending and twisting loads.

The torsion box is essential to

provide torsional rigidity to the

wing, preventing that it twist,

increasing or decreasing the angle

of attack.
• Structure
Basic wing structure

Different types of construction

• Wing Mounted Components

The wing is used to support different components, among which:

• Landing gear

• Engines

• Control surfaces

This components will produce concentrated loads on the wing and,

in the case of the landing gear, holes in the skin and internal

structures, which require additional structural reinforcement.

• Wing Mounted Components
• Landing gear

In light fixed landing gear

aircraft, its structure is directly

linked to the main spar.

In the case of retractable

landing gear, there is an

additional structural element

that connects to the spars.

• Wing Mounted Components
• Engines
• Wing Mounted Components
• Control surfaces

The hinges are attached to the rear spar.

• Wing Mounted Components
• Fuel tanks

Although there are external tanks mounted in wings, usually it is

chosen to use the available space inside the wing structure.

• Wing Mounted Components
• Fuel tanks

Another possible solution is to mount wingtip tanks - in addition to

relieving stress on the wing due to bending stresses generated by
lift, it serves as a winglet.
• Wing Mounted Components

Despite the need for structural

reinforcements, installing

equipment in the wing structure

may be beneficial - it helps to

alleviate the bending stress

resulting from the distribution

of support.

The fuel in the wing tanks is

the last to be used.
• Aeroelasticity Effects
And when high aerodynamic loads are able to deform the structure?

If the deformations are such that the angle of attack

is affected, the results could be catastrophic!

Aeroelastic Phenomena

• Divergence


• Control reversibility

• Flutter
• Aeroelasticity Effects
Divergence

Divergence occurs when, by the action of an aerodynamic force, the

wing twists, leading to a change in angle of attack that promotes an
increased on the aerodynamic force.

The increased in the force

will make the wing twist
even further, amplifying
the effect until a structural
failure.

It occurs above a certain

airspeed
• Aeroelasticity Effects
Control reversibility

The force created by the deflection of a control surface may be such

that it provokes a deformation of the fixed surface to which it is
attached.

This deformation may cause the opposite effect of the desired

motion

The most common example

is the aileron reversal.

It occurs above a certain

airspeed
• Aeroelasticity Effects
Flutter
Unlike the two previous cases, this is a dynamic effect
involving
oscillations.
These oscillations arise from a coupling between the bending and
twisting loads of the wing - a movement excites the other.

Above a certain speed,

the oscillations cease to
be damped, which can
lead to structural failure.
• Aeroelasticity Effects
Flutter
• Aeroelasticity Effects
Flutter
You can relegate this phenomenon for higher speeds:

• Increasing the torsional stiffness of the wing

• Installing the wing components ahead of the bending axis

• Placing the center of gravity of the fuel tanks within the wing
ahead of the bending axis
• Exercises
In flight, a cantilever wing of an aeroplane containing fuel is subjected to vertical loads that produce
a bending moment, which is:
A. highest at the wing root.
B. lowest at the wing root.
C. equal to half the weight of the aircraft multiplied by the semi-
span. D. equal to the zero-fuel weight multiplied by the span.

The wing of an aircraft in flight, powered by engines located under the wing, is subjected to a
bending
moment which causes its leading edge, from the wing root to the wing tip, to operate in:
A. compression.
B. compression, and then tension.
C. tension.
D. tension, and then compression.
• Exercises
On a non-stressed skin type wing, the wing structure elements which take up the vertical
bending moments Mx are:
A. the webs.

B. the spars.
C. the ribs.
D. the skin.

Torsion in a wing can be caused

by:
A. Dihedral
B. Wing tip vortex
C. Positive sweep
D. Propwash
• Exercises
Significant torsion effects in a wing during flight can be caused
by:
A. propwash.
B. wing tip vortices.
C. aileron
deflection. D. wing
dihedral.
The wing of an aircraft in flight, powered by engines located under the wing, is subjected to a
bending
moment due to thrust and drag. The loading on the front spar of the torsion box from the wing root
to the wing tip is:
A. tension.
B. compression, and then tension.
C. tension, and then compression.
D. compression.
• Exercises
The two deformation modes that cause wing flutter
are: and elongation.
A. bending
B. torsion and shearing.
C. torsion and bending.
D. shearing and
elongation.
The bending loads on a cantilever wing due to lift are carried by the:; 1. upper skin surface.;
2.lower
skin surface.; 3. wing root fairing.; 4. spar or spars.; The combination that regroups all of the
correct statements is:
A. 1, 3, 4.
B. 2, 3.
C. 3, 4
D. 1, 2, 4.
• Exercises
When the wing skin is not able to carry loads, the structural elements of the wing, which carry
the bending moment, are:
A. the spars.
B. the ribs.
C. the rivets.
D. the webs.

One function of a rib is:

A. to maintain the aerodynamic shape of the
wing.
B. to stabilise the fuselage skin against buckling.
C. to be the primary structural member to carry
wings loads.
D. to carry tensile load of the fuselage pressure hull.
• Exercises
The function of ribs in a wing is
to:the wing the desired aerodynamic shape.
A. give
B. allow installation of fuel cells in the
wing.
C. withstand the torsional loads.
D. withstand all the structural loads.
Which of these statements about the wing structure is correct?
A. A semi-monocoque structure consists of the skin and
frames.
B. The slats are a part of the torsion box.
C. A torsion box is formed by wing spars, ribs and wing skin
reinforced by stringers.
D. A wing main spar consists of a web with stringers.
• Exercises
A cantilever wing
is: planform other than rectangular.
A. a wing
B. a wing attached to the fuselage at the wing root
only.
C. a low wing configuration.
D. a high wing configuration.
A non-cantilever wing is:
A. a wing supported by braces or a strut connected to the
fuselage.
B. a low wing configuration.
C. a high wing configuration.
D. a wing planform other than rectangular.
• Exercises
A wing spar typically consists
of: and webs.
A. frames
B. a web and girders.
C. ribs and frames.
D. ribs and
stiffeners.
Whilst stationary on the ground in a hangar the most important loads on a cantilever wing
are:
A. compression in both the upper and the lower surfaces.
B. compression in the upper surface, tension in the lower
surface.
C. tension in both the upper and the lower surfaces.
D. tension in the upper surface, compression in the lower surface.
• Exercises
What is the load in the upper respectively lower girder of a spar of a cantilever wing during
straight and level flight?
A. Tension in lower- and upper girder.
B. Tension in the upper girder and compression in the lower
girder.
C. Torsion in the lower- and upper girder.
D. Compression in the upper girder and tension in the lower
girder.
In straight and level flight the most important loads on a cantilever wing
are:
A. tension in the upper surface, compression in the lower
surface.
B. compression in both the upper and the lower surfaces.
C. tension in both the upper and the lower surfaces.
D. compression in the upper surface, tension in the lower surface.
–

Any questions?