9/7/2009

SUBMITTEDBY |DEBASISHDEVKUMARPADHY
A
REPORT
ON
AEROMODELINGANDAERODYNAMICS

INTR0B0CTI0N
Asakidwehavealwaysdreamedofflyinglikeabirdorbecomingapilotandflyinganairplane.The
thoughtofflighthasalwaysthrilledhumanrace.Therearealotofinstancesthatprovethatmanwas
tryinghardtogetwingsandsoaroutintheskyjustlikebirds.UltimatelytheWrightbrotherscameup
withtherealbreakthrough,theirWrightFlyer.
Therewerethousandsofattemptsbeforetherealflyercameintoaction.Variousconceptsanddesigns
cameintocontrastbeforetheWrightBrothersFlyer.LangleyandDaVinciwereamongthefewlegends
whogavethepreliminaryideaaboutflight.Asamatteroffact,themoderndayhelicopterstillworkson
thesameprincipleasgivenbyDaVinci.
Alotofcompaniescameintoactionandtherequirementforresearchinganddevelopingapractical
commercialplanecameup.AndthatswhenAEROMODELINGcameintoexistence.

WHATEXACTLYISAEROMODELING??
InthepastAeromodelingwasintroducedforrapidR&Dandprototypedevelopment.Lateritwasmade
availabletothepublicforhobbypurpose.AtpresentAeromodelingisstillinitsoriginalform.Itisstill
usedinR&Dandprototyping. Prototype is an original type, form, or instance of something serving as a
typical example, basis, or standard for the things of the same category. Or say prototyping, in a greater
extent, practical attempt to simulate the final design, aesthetics, materials and functionality of the
intended design. The functional prototype is generally reduced in size (scaled down) in order to reduce
costs. The construction of a final and working full-scale prototype and the ultimate test of concept is the
engineers' final check for flaws in design and allows last-minute improvements to be made before actual
production units are ordered.

AtlanticaplugtheprototypedevelopedbyNASA(Source:NASA)
This whole iepoit is uiviueu into S
mouules.
ThereportisfocusedonanintroducingtoAeromodelingandultimately
designinganAeromodel.

Moduleone:
Introductiontogeneralaerodynamicand
Aeromodelingterms
Moduletwo:
Classificationofairplanes
Modulethree:
DesigninganAeromodel
Modulefour:
Constructionphase
Modulefive:
FlyingoftheAeromodel

Nouule one: Intiouuction to aeiouynamic

anu Aeiomoueling teims
Beforewestartoffwithclassificationordesigningofairplanes,wehavetohave
ideasofsomebasicaerodynamictheoryandsomebasictermscommonlyusedin
thefieldofaviationandaeromodeling.
Butfirstwewillbestudyingabouttheairframe.

Fuselage:
Itisthemainbodyofanaircraftoverwhicheverythingisassembledtomakean
airplane.Inmoregeneralizedway,itisthemainbodyofanaircraftwhichholds
wings,horizontalstabilizers,verticalstabilizers,crew,etc

Leadingedge
Trailingedge
Wing:
Itisthemainliftingsurfaceoftheairplane,itsthesurfacewheremostofthelift
generatedactsanditsdesignisthemostcrucialpartofaairplane,todecideits
characteristics.
Leadingedge:
Thefrontendsofthewingwhichisincidenttothewind,i.e.whichseparatesthe
windintwosection.
Trailingedge:
Itisthebackendofthewingwherethewindafterseparationmeetsagain.Itis
theplacewhereaileronsarelocated.
Chord:
Chordistheshortestdistancebetweenleadingedgeandtrailingedge.
Airfoil:
Itisthecrosssectionalviewofawing.Itsshapeisresponsibleforthelifting
actiononvariousliftingsurfaces,
Horizontalstabilizer:
Atailplane,alsoknownashorizontalstabilizer,isasmallliftingsurfacelocated
behindthemainliftingsurfacesofafixedwingaircraftaswellasothernonfixed
wingaircraftsuchashelicoptersandgyroplanes.Thetailplaneservesthree
purposes:equilibrium,stabilityandcontrol.
Note:Inshortthemovementoffuselageupanddownalonganaxisiscalledpitching
controlledbytheelevatorattachedtothetailplane,moredetaillaterinthetext

Verticalstabilizer:
Theworkofverticalstabilizerissameastheworkofhorizontalstabilizer,but
insteadofcontrollingpitchingitcontrolstheyawmomentoftheairplanewith
thehelpofrudder.
Theimagebelowwillshowhowthesethingsare

Rudder:
Itsmainworkistocontrolthealignmentofairframewithrespecttorunwayor
wind.Itcontrolstheyawmovementoftheairplane.Ithelpstoadjusttheheading
oftheairplaneincaseofgustanddrifts.
Elevator:
Justasthenamesaysithelpsanairplanetoelevateupanddownandhence
controlthealtitudeofanaircraft.Itislocatedjustbehindthetailplane.
Angleofattack:
Theangle,withwhich,thewingpenetratestheair.Astheangleofattack
increases,liftalsoincreasesuptoamaximumpoint(alongwithdrag).

Nowletsjumpintobasicaerodynamicsandflighttheory
Herewewillbelookinghowliftisgeneratedandhowanairplaneflies.
Intodaysdateweallknowabouttheprincipleonwhichanairplaneflies.ItisThe
Bernoullisprinciple,whichinsimplewordsstatesIncreaseinvelocityoffluid
resultsindecreaseinpressure.Anddecreaseinpressurewillresultindecrease
ingravitationalpotentialenergy.
Prexxure
Denx|ty
+
(Fe|uc|ty)
2
2
+ g(he|ght) = cunxtant

Imaginethisway.Youareinaverynarrowstreetsandthenumberofpeople
movingontheroadisverylarge.Youwillobservethepeoplewillmoveslowly
andpusheachother.Thatmeansthatthepressureishigh.Butwhenthenumber
ofpeopleisless,youwillobservethatthepeoplewillmovefast.Therewillbeno
pushing,meaningthepressureisless.
Ifweassumethepeoplemovinginthestreetasafluid,thenthestatement
becomes,Athighspeedpressureislowandatlowspeedpressureishigh.

Nowwiththatwecaneasilyunderstandthetheorybehindtheliftingofanaero
plane.
Alltheliftingsurfacespresentinanaircrafthaveauniquecrosssectionalshape,
calledanaerofoil,whosecharacteristicisthat,airflowingabovethewingisfaster
thanairflowingbelowthewing.

Aerofoilofthewing

Nowwhenthewingisincidenttowind,theairflowingabovethewinghasto
covermoredistancethantheairflowingbelowthewing.Thiscompelstheair
abovethewingtomovefasterthanairbelowthewing.HereBernoullisprinciple
comesinactionhighspeed=lowpressure;lowspeed=highpressure.Sincethe
transitionofenergyisfromhightolow,thewinggeneratesalift.Whenthespeed
oftheairplaneisenoughtogenerateliftequivalentormorethanitsweightthe
airplaneliftsofffromtheground.










Nowthatwehaveunderstoodhowliftisgenerated,wecangoonwithother
controlsurfacesandhowtheywork.
Anairplaneinstableandstraightflightisatdynamicequilibrium,i.e.everyforce
actingonthebodyofanaircraftiscancelingeachotherout.Theonlyforcethat
existsistheforwardforcebywhichtheaircraftmovesforward.Nowwhenever
thereisanydisturbanceintheequilibriumtheairplanerespondstoit.Anyone
flyinganairplaneusesthesedisturbancestocontrolallthemovementofthe
airplane,rightfromtakeofftolanding.
Forexample,foraltitudecontrol,thedisturbanceismadeatthepitchofthe
aircraft,whentheelevatorisraisedupthewindflowingonthetailplanetriesto
pushitdownasaresultthetailgoesdownandthenoseriseup,whennoseisup
thethrustduetoenginepullstheairplanehighintheair.

Elevator
movement
Forbankinganddirectioncontroluseofaileroncomesinaction,aileronsare
presentinboththewinghalvessowhenoneaileronisraisedandtheotheris
lowered,thewindflowingabovetheraisedaileronsidetriestopushthatsideof
thewingdownandtheothersidewheretheaileronisloweredthewindbelow
thewingtriestopushitupwardresultisaforcecouple,andtheplanebanksto
theraisedaileronside.Theimagebelowillustratesit.

Othercontrolarerudderandthrottlewhichaidsinskidandspeedcontrolofthe
airplane.
Anotheraerodynamictermweshouldbelookingforwardisthedihedralofan
airplane.Whatisexactlydihedralis?
Dihedral
Thedihedralangleistheanglethateachwingmakeswiththehorizontal.The
purposeofdihedralistoimprovelateralstability.Ifadisturbancecausesone
wingtodrop,theunbalancedforceproducesasideslipinthedirectionofthe
downgoingwing.Thiswill,ineffect,causeaflowofairintheoppositedirectionto
theslip.Thisflowofairwillstrikethelowerwingatagreaterangleofattackthan
itstrikestheupperwing.Thelowerwingwillthusreceivemoreliftandthe
airplanewillrollbackintoitsproperposition.
Sincedihedralinclinesthewingtothehorizontal,sotoowilltheliftreactionof
thewingbeinclinedfromthevertical.Henceanexcessiveamountofdihedral
will,ineffect,reducetheliftforceopposingweight.
Somemodernairplaneshaveameasureofnegativedihedraloranhedral,onthe
wingsand/orstabilizer.Theincorporationofthisfeatureprovidessome
advantagesinoveralldesignincertaintypeofairplanes.However,itdoeshavean
effect,probablyadverse,onlateralstability.
AlsoDuringthedesignofafixedwingaircraft(oranyaircraftwithhorizontal
surfaces),changingDihedralAngleisusuallyarelativelysimplewaytoadjustthe
overallDihedralEffect.Thisistocompensateforotherdesignelements'influence
onDihedralEffect.Theseotherelements(suchaswingsweep,verticalmount
pointofthewing,etc.)maybemoredifficulttochangethanDihedralAngle.Asa
result,differingamountsofDihedralAnglecanbefoundondifferenttypesof
fixedwingaircraft.Forexample,theDihedralAngleisusuallygreateronlowwing
aircraftthanonotherwisesimilarhighwingaircraft.Thisisbecause"highness"of
awing(or"lowness"ofverticalcenterofgravitycomparedtothewing)creates
naturallymoreDihedralEffectitself.ThisleaveslessDihedralAngleneededto
supplementDihedralEffectandgettheamountofDihedralEffectneeded.
Howtocalculatedihedral?
Wellforaeromodelerstheanswertothisquestionisitdepends,Itdependson
thecharacteristicsofairplanewewanttodesign,wethertheairplaneishighly
stableoritismoderatelystable,highstablemodelislessmaneuverableandlow
stablemodelishighlymaneuverablesoitistherequirementwhichhelpsus
calculatingthedihedralofaairplane.Withmyexperienceadihedralof7
8degreesismorethanenough

N0B0LE TW0

Thissectiondealswiththegeneralclassificationofairplaneandairframesbasedonvarious
distinguishingfactors,heretheclassificationsarebasedonthepowerhouse,wingstyle,
alignment,purposeetc

____________________________________

Classification baseu on wing styles

Classificationbasedonwinglocations
Classificationbasedonwingdihedral
Classificationbasedonpowerhouse

Classification: wing styles

Therearevariousaircraftavailableallovertheworldandweneedtoclassifytheminordertomake
designingphaseeasyandmorefeasible.The1
st
categoriesisbasedonthewingstyle,Thatiswhether
thewingisforwardsweptorbackwardswept,thegeometryofthewingetc.
Soletsstartwithaforwardsweptwing:
Aforwardsweptwingisanaircraftconfigurationinwhichthequarterchordlineofthewinghasaforwardsweep.
TheconfigurationwasfirstproposedbysomeGermanaircraftdesigners
Aircraftwithforwardsweptwingsarehighlymaneuverableattransonicspeedsbecauseairflowsovera
forwardsweptwingandtowardthefuselage,ratherthanawayfromit.
Anexampleofaforwardsweptwingconcept

AIRPLANEShavingthistypeofwingsarecalledcanardairplanes.Thesearethe3
rd
generationorsay
futurestyleairplanes.Forthetimebeingitsnotinmuchpracticalusage

Thesecondstyleofwingisbacksweptwings:
Thewinganglesbackwardsfromtheroot.Thisreducesdragattransonicspeeds,butcanhandlebadlyinorneara
stall,andrequireshighstiffnesstoavoidaeroelasticityathighspeeds.Commonforhighsubsonicandsupersonic
designs.
Asanaircraftentersthetransonicspeedsjustbelowthespeedofsound,aneffectknownaswavedragstartsto
appear.Usingconservationofmomentumprinciplesinthedirectionnormaltosurfacecurvature,airflow
acceleratesaroundcurvedsurfaces,andnearthespeedofsoundtheaccelerationcancausetheairflowtoreach
supersonicspeeds.Whenthisoccurs,anobliqueshockwaveisgeneratedatthepointwheretheflowgoes
supersonic.Sincethisoccursoncurvedareas,theyarenormallyassociatedwiththeuppersurfacesofthewing,
thecockpitcanopy,andthenoseconeoftheaircraft,areaswiththehighestlocalcurvature.Usingbackswept
wingreducesthisproblem.
Thesearethepresentgenerationairplaneslikethemig21,commercialpassengerairplanesandsomemilitary
bombers

Otherwingconfigurationsare
Straight - extends at right angles to the line of flight. The most efficient structurally, and common
for low-speed designs.
M-wing - the inner wing section sweeps forward, and the outer section sweeps backwards. The idea
has been studied from time to time, but no example has ever been built.

W-wing - the inner wing section sweeps back, and the outer section sweeps forwards. The reverse of
the M-wing. The idea has been studied even less than the M-wing and no example has ever been
built.
Crescent - wing outer section is swept less sharply than the inner section.

Swing-wing - also called "variable sweep wing". The left and right hand wings vary their sweep
together, usually backwards. Seen in a few types of combat aircraft

Thesestyleswereimportantforclassificationanddesigningpointofview.
NowmovingontothenextsectionofclassificationI.Eclassificationbasedonthelocationofthewing
whichwillbecarriedoutinthenextpage

CLASSIFICATI0N : WINu L0CATI0N

Thelocationofwingwithrespecttothemainairframeisalsoadecidingfactorforthemaneuverability
ofanaircraft.Typicallytherearefourtypeoflocationpossible.
Highwing
Lowwing
Shoulderwing
AndTheparasolwing

Highwing:
Inthisconfigurationtheairframeliesbelowthewing,thatistheweightofthewholeairframeis
suspendedbelowthewing.Thisconfigurationissuitableforstableairplanesliketrainersandlow
powerairplanes.Sincetheweightoftheairplaneissuspendedbelowthewingithelpsintheauto
correction(forlevelflight).itfindsapplicationinUAVs(unmannedaerialvehicle)andother
autonomousairplanes,passengerairplanesandcargoplanes.
AtypicalUAV.

Atypicalhighwingconfigurationairplaneusedinmilitaryanddefenceservices.

Lowwingconfiguration:
Inthisconfigurationtheairframeliesabove(overtheairframe)theairframe,heretheweightofthe
airplaneiskeptoverthewingandhencemakeabitunstablebutmoremaneuverable.Thesewing
configurationfindsapplicationwherehighmaneuverabilityisrequired,thattheaircraftisableto
performprecisionaerobatics,Andwethinkthatyouhaveguessedtheprobablefieldsofapplication
ofthese,Yesyouareright,itsthedefensewherefighteraircraftsareused.

Example:offewcombatairplanes.(lowwingconfiguration).

Thenextwingconfigurationisashoulderwingairplane
Shoulderwingairplane:
Thisstyleofwingisacombinationofhighwingandlowwing,Thatmeanssomepartoftheweightis
abovethewingandsomepartissuspendedbelowthewing,meaningafussionofstabilityand
maneuverability.Itfindsapplicationinthefieldsofdefenseandcombat.

Thefifthtypeofwingconfigurationisparasolstyle:
Herethewingismountedabovetheairplanebodyandisheldinplacebywingstrutsanddowels,its
likeaparachute.Thisconfigurationissimilartohighwingconfiguration.

CLASSIFICATI0N: WINu BIBEBRAL
ASyoualreadyknowthemeaningandphysicalsignificanceofdihedral,theclassificationof
airplanescanbedoneaccordingtotherecharacteristicsdihedral.
Thecharactericticdihedralareofthreetypes
POSITIVEDIHEDRAL
NEGATIVEDIHEDRALorANHEDRAL
NODIHEDRAL

Positivedihedral:
Whenthewingtipsofawingareraisedtoformananglebetweenthetwohalvesofthewing,its
positivedihedral.Itaddstheselfcorrectingabilityandstabilitytotheairplane,itisthemost
essentialpartofastableairplanewithpredictablebehavior.

Negativedihedral:
ItstheoppositeofPositivedihedral,thewingtipsaredippedtowardstheground,toobtain
anhedral,itaddstomaneuverabilityandreducesstability.Itfindsapplicationincombatairplanes.

NODihedral:
Asthenamesays,thereisnodihedralpresentoranhedralpresent,theanglebetweenthewing
halvesiszerodegreebutstillkeepstheairplanepredictableandabitstable.Itsmostwidelyused
configuration.Forsomepreviousjetaircraftsandforsomeveryrecentairplanes.

Classification: Powei house

Bysayingpowerhousewemeantosaytheengineusedforaviation.
Commerciallyairplaneusesturbojet,pulsejet,ramjet,etctopowerthemselves,
InAEROMODELINGweuse
hereICenginesarebasicallyofthreetypesi.eglow,petrol,&diesel.Themaindifferencebetween
theseenginesisthefueltheyusei.emixtureofcastorandmethanol,petrol,andmixtureof
kerosenecastorandether.Apartfromallthesethedifferenceisthewaytheignitionoccurs,for
petrolandglowtheignitionisinitiatedwithasparkgivenoutbythesparkplugorglowplug
respectively,whileinthecaseofdieselenginethefuelairmixtureisignitedbysubjectingthemto
veryhighpressureinthecompressionchamberwhilethecompressionstrokeoccurs.

MovingofftheICenginesthereisanotherpowerhouseanditscalledelectricmotors,whichareof
basicallyoftwotypes,1
st
brushedelectricmotorsandsecondisbrushlesselectricmotors.Themain
differencebetweenbrushedmotorandbrushlesselectricmotoristhatbrushmotorsarelesscostly
andbrushlessmotorismorecostly,apartfromitthebrushedmotorsarelessefficientandnoisy,
causesmorewearandtear.Sowhiledesigningwehavetochosewisely,wetheretochoseANIC
engineoramotor.
Failingtodosowillresultinpoorairplanedesign.

N0B0LE S: BESIuNINu AN AE0PLANE

Intheupcomingpageswewillbedesigninganairplane,doingsome
calculationsanddrawingsomeplans.Forthisreportwewillbe
designingAHighwingTraineraircraft.Poweredbya.25sizeglow
enginewewillnotbefocusingonhowtheformulawasderivedwewill
beusingformulasandwherevernecessarywewillbegivingoutthe
derivationsbehindeachformula,Inthissectionwemightbetalking
aboutsomeadvancedaerodynamicswhichwerenotdiscussedearlier.
Thedesigningprocesswillcompriseoffollowingsteps

Layingoutspecifications.
Analysisofrequirementsandsolutions.
Calculatingtherequiredparameters.
Drawingtheapproxplan.

LAYINGOUTTHESPECIFICATIONS

A specificat ion allows you t o t ake a vague concept and t urn it int o
specifically what you want . I t should det ail everyt hing t hat is
import ant t o include and exclude from your design.
Since we are designing an aircraft which is supposed t o be a
t rainer we will be looking on t he following point s.

Purpose of t he model
St yle Modern, Old Timer, Scale, Sleek, et c.
Powerplant class
Flight t ime
St abilit y Should t he model be self- st abilizing, neut rally st able or somewhere in
bet ween?
Airspeed
Vert ical performance: moderat e
Cont rol response: predict able
St all charact erist ics: high speed st alls should be avoided
Const ruct ion met hods Tradit ional wood, composit e, et c.
Cont rol syst em
Landing gear syst em: t ricycle
Break- down for t ransport at ion


Thepurposeoftheairplaneistobehavelikeatrainersuchthata
noviceorabeginnercanlearnhowtoflyaairplane,stylelike
modern,oldtimeretcisnotofthatimportancebutthepointisthata
verystableaircraftgenerallyisahighwingairplane,beingahighwing
modeladdstheeasewithwhichitcanbeconstructed,Otheradvantage
ofhighwingconfigurationare
Ahighwingaircrafthasashorterlandingdistancethanalowwing
aircraftbecausethewingstaysoutofthegroundeffect.
Andmostimportantlyithelpsintheselfcorrectingabilityofan
airplaneduetothependulumstability.
Pendulumstability
Nowalsosincethewingstayshighabovethegroundthe
probabilityofwreakingthewingishighlyreducedaddingthe
crashresistanceeffect

Nowthatwehavedecidedthewinglocationwecanproceedto
othersectionofstabilityandselfcorrectingability,foratrainer
airplanetheselfcorrectingabilityisamustforthatwemusthave
dihedralonourwings.Thehighertheanglehigheristheself
correctingabilitytoanextentsoforourpurposewewillgowitha5*
ofdihedral.(formoredetailsondihedralseetextsabove)
Movingtopowerplantsection,thechoiceofusingaicengineora
electricmotordependslargelyonthewayofconstructionadopted,
likeadelicateconstructionwillhavetouseelectricmotorsdespiteof
that,purposeoftheaircraftisalsoadecidingfactor,itthemodelhas
tobemadenoisefree,thenalsowehavetouseelectricmotors.But
inthiscasethepriorityisahighstrengthtrainerairplane,so
choosingaIcenginepowerhousewillnotharmanything,also
electricmotorshavetheirowndisadvantagelikewewillhavelimited
flighttimeandtheRPMofthemotordecreasesasthebatterydrains
alsowehavetocarrymanybatterypacksifweintendtohavesome
longdayofflying.

Theenginesandmotorsrotatesdifferentpropellersatdifferent
rpms
Like
GenerallytheRPMrangeofatypicalglowengineisfromfew
thousandto16,000ormore.Thepropellerwhichanengineis
capabletoswungforbestperformanceisprovidedbytheengine
manufacturer.
Wewillbeusinga.25cuinglowplugengineforourairplane
swinginga9x6sizepropellerthatmeansapropellerof9diameter
andofthepitch6thatmeansifthispropellerisrotatedinasolid
mediumof9inchthenitwillmove6forward,itsuggeststhatthe
totalweightofourairplaneshudbesomewherebetween700gms
to1.4kgs,letsfixitto1kg.

Welltheansweristhisformula:
LetssayDistheenginesizeandWistheweightoftheaircraftitcan
pullhappilythen
Dx12=W;orD=W/12
Theresultcomesinlbsthenconvertsittokgs,
Forourpurposetheengineweareusingisa.25cuinhencethe
formulais
.25(D)x12=3lbs
1lb=0.4535924kg
Hence3lbs=1.4(approx)kg
Wekeepamarginof400gm(approx)tocompensatetheweight
resultingduetorepairsandcrashes.

Tillnowwhatwehavedecidedis

Ahighwingstyleairplane
Dihedralof5*initially(canbechangedlatter)
Anengineof.25cuin
Totalweightof700gmsto1kgs(max)upperlimitis1.4kgs

Beforewegofurtherwehavetoleapbackintoaerofoilsectionagain
becauseafterthisiscoveredwewillbedesigningwing,whichwill
decideotherparametersoftheaircraft.

Back to aiifoil

The various terms related to airfoils are defined below:

The mean camber line is a line drawn midway between the upper and lower
surfaces.
The chord line is a straight line connecting the leading and trailing edges of the
airfoil, at the ends of the mean camber line.
The chord is the length of the chord line and is the characteristic dimension of the
airfoil section.
The maximum thickness and the location of maximum thickness are expressed as a
percentage of the chord.
For symmetrical airfoils both mean camber line and chord line pass from centre of
gravity of the airfoil and they touch at leading and trailing edge of the airfoil.
The aerodynamic center is the chord wise length about which the pitching moment is
independent of the lift coefficient and the angle of attack.
The center of pressure is the chord wise location about which the pitching moment is
zero.

Camber is one we need to cover. To an aero engineer, an airfoil is cambered

or uncambered, and perhaps reflex. Camber is determined by the mean
camber line which is a line halfway between the top and surfaces of the airfoil.
Let's say you have a drawing of an airfoil. At several different places, locate
the spot which is halfway between the top and bottom surface of the airfoil
and make a dot. After you have several dots, connect them up. This is the
mean camber line.
Ifweseeairfoilsinverybroadcategorytherearethreetypesofairfoil,
1.flatbottom
2.semisymitrical.
3.Symitrical.

FLAT BOTTOM AIRFOILS: This is the airfoil you normally see on a

trainer. When you look at a trainer wing, one side of the airfoil is flat.
You may think this is a thin airfoil, but if you double the thickness, you
would have the corresponding symmetrical airfoil which would be pretty
thick. Flat bottom airfoils tend to be very speed sensitive. When you add
power and increase speed, they create a lot more lift, making the plane
climb. A symmetrical airfoil which is equally curved on both sides, on the
other hand, generates very extra lift with a power and speed change.
The main characteristics of this type of airfoil are
At Low speed high lift possible ideal for trainer planes
Very bad aerobatics characteristics



Semi-symmetrical airfoils are seem on many "second plane" designs.
These are sport planes designed for easy flying or for a person's next
plane after a trainer. Most scale planes have semi-symmetrical airfoils
because most full size planes have this type airfoil. The semi-
symmetrical airfoil is much better that the average modeler thinks. They
are thinner than most corresponding fully symmetrical airfoils and have
less drag, and their inverted performance is not all that bad. We rarely
fly the tightest outside loop possible, so the average flier should never
notice the difference in inverted flight.
Moderate lift at high speed
Good maneuverability
Good aerobatic capability

Symmetrical airfoils are the most popular for RC modelers. We fly

inverted infinitely more than any full scale pilot. Even the top level
competition pilots do not fly inverted for minutes at a time. We also do
more outside maneuvers than any except maybe the competition pilots.
For these reasons alone, inverted flight and outside performance,
symmetrical are the most popular once a person graduates from a
trainer. Another reason to select a plane with a symmetrical airfoil, an a
compelling one, is the plane tends to maintain its attitude with a change
in speed. A symmetrical airfoil is generally thicker, and therefore
stronger, from a bending or "g" force direction.
High speed low lift
Highly maneuverable
Less fatigue to the G effect and more thicker in size
Best aerobatic capabilities

Forcommerciallyavailabledatabaseofaerofoilisover1500,the
bestwaytofindthebestaerofoilistousepersonalexperience
andpeoplesreviews,forourpurposetheclarkyflatbottom
aerofoilisbestasithavebeeninpracticesincethe1
st
airplane
appearedandiswidelyusedintrainerandotherhighwingstable
airplanes.
These are t he decisions I make before select ing a specific airfoil:
1. Specify desired flight charact erist ics ( airspeed envelope,
aerobat ic capabilit ies, et c. ) .
2. Specify t he wing- loading and power loading ranges. Be
disciplined about designing t o t hose goals.
3. Decide on a wing planform ( chord( s) , span, t aper and
sweep) .
4. Det ermine t he most appropriat e airfoil family.
Because all designs represent numerous compr omi ses you' ll
have t o use t he above t o decide which charact erist ics are more
import ant t han ot hers. Select a specific airfoil using what ever
informat ion you have.
Almost nobody who designs model airplanes would have a clue
how t o pick an airfoil for t heir design based on real airfoil dat a.
We learn from experience knowing t hat t he subt let ies bet ween
one airfoil and anot her close t o t he same shape will make a very
small difference one t hat would only be not iced by an expert
pilot . These behaviors are not different enough t o cause any
problems in your design unless you do somet hing like change a
round leading edge t o one t hat is razor sharp.
One of t he main concerns of fledgling model airplane designers is
how t o avoid choosing an airfoil having w i ck ed st al l
char act er i st i cs. All airfoils have a st al l angl e. This is t he
angle of t he chord line of t he wing t o t he direct ion of flight .
When t his angle is at or beyond t he st all angle t he air breaks
away from t he wing and t he wing st ops producing lift . I n ot her
words, t he aircraft isn' t flying any more. I t ' s falling from t he sky.
The l eadi ng edge r adi us t akes t he lead role in st all
charact erist ics. A sharp ( small radius) leading edge t ypically has
a shallow st all angle. That means it will st all sooner t han a blunt
leading edge.
A t ip st all occurs when a wing t ip st alls before t he wing root . I n
most cases t his causes t he aircraft t o roll over. I f t he plane is
close t o t he ground it ' s usually a t ot al loss.
There are several ways t o avoid or delay t ip st alls.
Build t he wing wit h w ashout .
Washout simply means t he wing is built wit h a t wist so t hat
t he wing t ips are at a lower angle of incidence t han t he wing
root . Washout also limit s aerobat ic capabilit ies.
Sand t he leading edge such t hat it becomes more blunt
t oward t he t ip.
Avoid high aspect rat io wings having a high t aper r at i o. ( will
be discussed lat t er)
Taper r at i o is t he lengt h of t he t ip chord divided by t he
lengt h of t he root chord. Aspect r at i o is t he wing span
divided by average wing chord. High aspect rat io wings,
such as sailplanes, wit h high t aper rat ios t end t o be more
prone t o t ip st alls t han low aspect rat io wings, such as
delt as.
AirfoilThickness
Airfoil t hickness is simply t he per cent age of t he w i ng
chor d t hat t he airfoil is deep at it ' s t hickest point . For example a
wing having a chord of 15" t hat has a 10% t hick airfoil will be 1-
1/ 2" ( 1. 5") t hick.
How t hick should t he airfoil be? I find t hat wing t hickness is a
compromise bet ween speed and lift . A t hicker wing has more
drag but more lift and is capable of slower flight . Thicker wings
also t end t o "bounce" around more in t he air because t hey can' t
cut t hrough it as easily.
A t hinner wing has less lift but is fast er. The shape of t he leading
edge plays a part in t his as well.
One ot her t hing t o not e is t hat as wings get t hicker t hey also
become st ronger. I f a wing is t hick it is easy t o build it st rong
using convent ional const ruct ion t echniques. I f t he wing is t hin
t hen more exot ic t echniques are required t o prevent t he wing
from breaking in flight .
Of course t here are limit s t o everyt hing. I ' ve seen airfoil list ings
t hat are t hicker t han 30%. The t hickest wing I have built was
about 20% and I didn' t like anyt hing about it in flight .
From as far back as I can remember t hrough t he 1980' s, most
sport designs had airfoils in t he range of 14% t o 16% t hick.
These airfoils have proven t o be safe wit h few or no bad habit s at
reasonable wing loadings and can slow down nicely t o land. I
normally use airfoils from 12% t o 18% depending on t he
airplane. For an ext remely fast model I may use an airfoil around
10% t hick.
I n t he past several t hings happened t hat changed t he way we
design model airplanes. Pilot s came t o desire aerobat ic models
t hat fly at speeds below Mach 1, four- st roke engines became
widely available.
A t hin airfoil simply isn' t going t o slow down when t he airplane is
diving t oward t he ground even wit h t he engine at idle. More drag
was needed, but it had t o be smoot h, clean ( non- t urbulent )
drag. I n ot her words, airfoil shaped. The easiest way t o creat e
t his drag was t o build a t hicker wing which also creat es more lift
at slower speeds. These models also had t o revert t o old- t ime,
light weight const ruct ion t echniques because light er planes
maneuver bet t er and fly slower.
Drag increases exponent ially wit h airspeed. Front al area, drag
and airspeed are inseparable so you need t o have a feel for how
t hey work t oget her t o decide how t hick t he wing should be. This
is an area where I really can' t speak scient ifically. I have a good
feel for how it works and do pret t y well wit h t hat knowledge.
Carefully mat ch t he power plant and propeller t o t he airframe
inst ead of mat ching t he propeller t o t he power plant alone. All
airplanes have a maximum airspeed at which t hey will fly
smoot hly. I f t he engine has more power available aft er t his
speed is reached you won' t see more speed, but t he model will
begin t o buffet or worse - somet hing might flut t er off.
Airplane Engine
Propeller
Pitch
Top
Speed
Airfoil FlightCharacteristics
AverageweightStik .45 6"7" 80MPH
15%
symmetrical
Smoothflying,mediumtolarge
aerobatics,reasonablelandingspeed.
Highlyaerobatic .45 4"5" 50MPH
18%
symmetrical
Slowflight,aerobaticsinsmallarea,
veryslowlandingspeed,buffetingat
highspeedsandsusceptibletogusts
atlowspeeds.
LightweightFloating
style
.40 4"5" 45MPH
16%semi
symmetrical
Hoversinsteadywinds,verylow
flightspeeds,minimalaerobatics,
difficultorimpossibleinvertedflight,
landingatacrawl.
SportAerobaticBiplane .60 6"7" 65MPH
13%semi
symmetrical
Veryaerobaticinasmallerarea.
Tumbleswell.Requiresmore"down"
forinvertedflight.
Highspeedairplane
.40

8"9"
100+
MPH
<12%
symmetrical
Fliesfast,landsfast,extremelylarge
aerobatics.

Nowkeepingthesedatasinmindwecannowpredictwhichtype
ofaerofoiltouse,tobeonthesafesidewewillbeusingaclarky
aerofoilorsimilarairfoilanduseit,weknowhigherthethickness
themoreisdragandhencelowflyingspeeds(weneedthatfor
ourtrainerplane)alsobeingaflatbottomairfoilitwillbehaving
lowspeedhighliftcharacteristics,

Buthowtoplottheairfoil,usetheordinatesoftheairfoiland
plotitonthepaper,
Sohowtousetheseordinates,wellanswerisunderstandwhat
actuallyordinatesareandthenfollowthestepswhichweare
goingtotell,

Airfoil ordinat es are simply point s t hat define t he shape of t he airfoil. The
numbers are given in percent age of t he wing chord. There is more t han one
st andard, but t hey are all easy t o figure out .
The st andards I know of are as follows:
1. St at ions from 0% t o 100% chord. I n t his case, mult iply t he chord of
t he airfoil you are plot t ing t imes percent of t he st at ion/ ordinat e pairs
in percent . I n ot her words, if t he number given is 1. 25 t hen mult iply
t imes 1. 25%. I f your calculat or does not have a percent key, t hen
mult iply t imes 1. 25 and t hen divide by 100.
Ordinat es of t his t ype are present ed in t wo set s of ordinat e pairs - one for
t he upper port ion of t he airfoil and one for t he lower.
2. St at ions from 0 t o 1. I n t his case it is st raight mult iplicat ion of t he
chord t imes each of t he st at ion/ ordinat e pairs. This st andard also
different iat es bet ween t he t op and t he bot t om of t he airfoil.
3. The last example is t he st yle used for comput er programs. This is
list ing of ordinat e pairs wit h no different iat ion bet ween t he t op and
bot t om of t he airfoil. Numbers are from 0 t o 1. The list ing st art s at
t he t railing edge of t he airfoil and moves forward defining t he
underside of t he airfoil and t hen t he leading edge, t he t op of t he wing
and back t o t he t railing edge again.
I t sounds more complicat ed t han it is - again, it is simple mult iplicat ion.

CalculatingtheOrdinatestobePlotted
For t his example I will be plot t ing a NACA 2412 airfoil. The
NACA 2412 is a semi- symmet rical airfoil ( cambered) t hat is st able
and somewhat fast alt hough it would not be t he best choice for
an ext reme speed aircraft . I t would be a good choice for a one-
design club racer because it has no bad habit s and will not get t o
speeds t hat t he average pilot can' t handle.
The first t able below is t he set of ordinat es for t he NACA 2412.
The list ing uses st andard ( 1) above.
I will be calculat ing ordinat es for and plot t ing an airfoil having a
9" chord. Mult iply all st at ions and ordinat es by t he chord. Again,
t he numbers given in t he ordinat e list ing are per cent ages. That
means you mult iply t he chord by t he st at ion or ordinat e in
percent .
To find t he second st at ion for example, mult iply 9" x 1. 25%.
The leading edge ( L. E. ) radius is also mult iplied by t he chord t o
get t he act ual radius. This is also a percent age.
The second t able cont ains t he result ing numbers aft er mult iplying
t hem by t he wing chord. All numbers are in inches for t his
example. Calculat ing and plot t ing works t he same regardless of
your number syst em.
NACA2412Ordinates
Upper sur f ace Low er sur f ace
St at i on Or di nat e St at i on
Ordinate
0 0 0 0
1.25 2.15 1.25 1.65
2.5 2.99 2.5 2.27
5.0 4.13 5.0 3.01
7.5 4.96 7.5 3.46
10 5.63 10 3.75
15 6.61 15 4.10
20 7.26 20 4.23
25 7.67 25 4.22
30 7.88 30 4.12
40 7.80 40 3.80
50 7.24 50 3.34
60 6.36 60 2.76
70 5.18 70 2.14
80 3.75 80 1.50
90 2.08 90 0.82
95 1.14 95 0.48
100 0 100 0
L. E. radius: 1. 58
Slope of radius t hrough L. E. : 0. 10

NACA2412(9"Chord)
Upper sur f ace Low er sur f ace
St at i on Or di nat e St at i on
Ordinate
0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
0.113 0.194 0.113 0.149
0.225 0.269 0.225 0.204
0.450 0.372 0.450 0.271
0.675 0.446 0.675 0.311
0.900 0.507 0.900 0.338
1.350 0.595 1.350 0.369
1.800 0.653 1.800 0.381
2.250 0.690 2.250 0.380
2.700 0.709 2.700 0.371
3.600 0.702 3.600 0.342
4.500 0.652 4.500 0.301
5.400 0.570 5.400 0.248
6.300 0.466 6.300 0.193
7.200 0.338 7.200 0.135
8.100 0.187 8.100 0.074
8.550 0.103 8.550 0.043
9.000 0.000 9.000 0.000
L.E.Radius=0.142

This part icular airfoil has st at ions t hat are ident ical for bot h t he
upper and lower surfaces but t hat is not always t rue. Be sure t o
pay at t ent ion t o what you are doing. I have made t he mist ake of
assuming t he st at ions were t he same when t hey weren' t which
result ed in some st range airfoil plot s.
Now t hat you have t he numbers t hey need t o be plot t ed on
paper. The ordinat e/ st at ion pairs are simply ( x, y) coordinat es.
The St at ion is X and t he Ordinat e is Y.

Nowthatwehaveknowthewayhowtocalculatetheco
ordinatesofanaerofoilwewillbeusingthisinformationand
otherrequirementstofinalizeourwingdesign.

An airfoil can be drawn wit h a minimum of dr af t i ng

i nst r ument s.
You will need a sharp pencil, accur at e scal e ( ruler) , and a good
curve. I use shi p cur ves because t hey bet t er mat ch t he shape
of an airfoil. French curves are more common, but t end t o have
curves t hat are t oo sharp.
I f you do not want t o buy ship curves t hen an adj ust able curve
might work. I ' ve t ried few different t ypes of adj ust able curves
and none of t hem were sat isfact ory t o me. Your result s may
vary.
I f you must use French Curves, t ry t o find one t hat is at least
t wice t he lengt h of t he airfoil you are drawing. You can also bend
a st ick of wood which is surprisingly accurat e. I use a piece of
1/ 8" x 1/ 4" spruce t o draw long curves, such as fuselages, when I
draw plans.
The ca
calcula

Draw a
Draw
rear o
The ch
spaced

Make t
l ocat i
The in
for t hi
Some
I f you
alculat or
at or will
a cent er
lines t o r
f t he t r a
hord of t
d.
t i ck ma
ons.
t ersect io
s ordinat
ordinat e
aren' t s
only nee
work.
r l i ne slig
represen
ai l i ng ed
his airfoi
r k s alon
on of t he
t e st and
e st andar
ure what
eds t o be
ght ly lon
nt t he fro
dge.
il is 9" so
ng t he ce
e leading
ard.
rds have
t st anda
e able t o
ger t han
ont of t he
o t hat is
ent erline
edge an
e t he t rai
rd you' re
o mul t i p

n t he ai r
e l eadi n
t he dist a

t o indica
nd cent e
ling edg
e using,
pl y , so an
f oi l cho
ng edge
ance t he
at e t he s
rline is p
e as poin
j ust plot
ny
or d.
and t he
e lines ar
st at i on
point ( 0,
nt ( 0, 0)
t t he

re
0)
.
point s
airfoil
I f you
Eit her

Draw v
previo
I f t he
t he air
Then d

Tick of
The t r
will sh
fudge
. I f you
will poin
plot t he
way you
ver t i cal
ous st ep.
st at ions
rfoil t hen
draw t he
ff t he or
ailing ed
heet t his
t he airfo
are usin
nt t o t he
e point s b
u end up
st at i on

are diffe
n you sho
e lines. R
r di nat e l
dge of t h
wing wit
oil somew
ng t he sa
left .
backward
p wit h t he
n l i nes t h
erent for
ould pro
Repeat fo
l ocat i on
is airfoil
t h 1/ 16"
what t o a
ame st an
ds, t he a
e same a
hrough t
r t he upp
bably ma
or t he un
ns at eac
t apers t
balsa. T
account
ndard as
airfoil wil
airfoil.

t he t icks
per and l
ake t icks
nderside

ch st at ion
t o 0" t hic
That me
for t he s
I am he
l point t o
you mad
ower por
s for one
of t he a
n.
ckness.
ans I wil
sheet ing.
ere, t he
o t he rig
de in t he
rt ions of
e side.
airfoil.
However
ll have t o
.
ht .
e
f
r, I
o

The ne
I negle

Draw t
Slope
is 0. 1.
To dra
along
( y) . D
marke
The ce
t he sl o
t o t he
For ex
measu
cent er
circle.
Using
Norma
best m
The ai
ext imag
ect ed t o
t he sl op
= Ri se o

aw t he sl
t he ai r f o
Draw a li
ed.
ent er of t
ope l i ne
radius o
xample, i
ure back
r of t he c

curves t
ally I use
mat ches t
rfoil is t a
ge act ual
scan t he
pe of r ad
ov er Ru
ope line,
oi l cent e
ne t hrou
t he circle
e by mea
of t he lea
if t he di a
1/ 2" ( ra
circle t ha
t hat mat c
e several
t he airfo
angent
ly repres
e drawin
di us t hro
un = y di
, st art at
er l i ne a
ugh point
e represe
asuring f
ading ed
amet er
adius) alo
at repres
ch t he po
l differen
oil in any
t o t he le
sent s t w
g bet we
ough t he
ivided by
t point ( 0
nd from
t ( 0, 0) a
ent ing t h
from poin
ge.
of t he le
ong t he
sent s t he
oint best
nt curves
given se
eading ed

o st eps c
en st eps
e leading
y x. I n t
0, 0) . M
t here m
and t he p
he leadin
nt ( 0, 0)
eading ed
slope lin
e leading
t , draw t
s by sele
ect ion.
dge.
combine
s.
edge.
t his case
Measure b
measure u
point you
ng edge i
t o a dist
dge is 1"
e. That
edge. D
t he airfoi
ct ing t he
d int o on
t he Slop
back 1" (
up . 1 inc
u j ust
is found
t ance eq
, t hen
is t he
Draw t he
il out line
e curve t
ne.
pe
( x)
ch
on
qual
e
e.
t hat


Now tha
I know
above, w
Charact
The NAC

Our req
no extre
this trai
learning
aerofoil
the air c



Lets re

A
D
A
T
A

Next we

at we have
you will b
well in this
teristic of t
CA 2412 is a
quirement i
eme stall ch
ner should
g phase he
l is a add a
craft out of
eview the th
Ahighwin
Dihedralo
Anengine
Totalweig
A stable and
e will be st
e An aerofo
e thinking
s example
the airfoil w
a semi- sym
is to have a
haracterist
d be a little
can learn s
id for the i
f some very
hings we h
ngstylea
of5*initi
eof.25cu
ghtof700
d fitting to
tarting the
oil we will
why the h
you saw th
which I me
met rical air
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tics , also I
more futu
simple aer
instructor w
y tight and
have figure
irplane
ally(can
uin
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o applicatio
design of
be using t
hell I dint u
hen NACA
entioned be
rfoil ( cambe
which is st
wanted th
ure proof , t
obatic man
which will
d scary situ
ed out till n
bechang
1kgs
on aerofoil
the wing,

this aerofoi
used the cla
A 2412 airf
efore was
red) t hat is
table and p
hat the pers
that means
neuvers too
be comfor
uations.
now.
gedlatter
design.(N
il in our m
ark y aerof
foil
st able and
predictable
son or the m
s after he fi
o, designin
rtable for h
)
NACA 2412
model airpla
foil as state
somewhat f
e, that mean
man flying
finishes the
ng this type
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ane.
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e out

AER0F0IL SECTI0NS ANB LIFT

C0EFFICIENTS

Theefficiencyofawingisinfluencedgreatlybyitsaerofoilsection
orprofile,whichhassomedegreeandtypeofchamberandsome
thicknessform.Fuselagesandothersimilarshapedcomponents
ofamodelalsoproducesomeliftforce,dependingagainontheir
shapeandangleofattack.Reentryvehiclesforspaceflighthave
beendesignedas"LIFTINGBODIES"withoutwings,butforall
practicalpurposesinAeromodeling,theliftcontributionofa
fuselagemaybeignored.Apoorlydesignedandconstructed
fuselageinterfereswiththeverticalandhorizontalstabilityofan
airplane.ForConvenience,aerodynamicistsadoptaconvenction
whichallowsallverycomplexfactorsofwingtrimandshapetobe
summedupinonefigure,THECOEFFICIENTOFLIFT.Thistellshow
themodelasawhole,oranyparttakenseparately,isworkingas
aliftproducer.AliftcoefficientorClof1.3indicatesmorelifting
thancl=1.0or0.6clhasnodimentions,sinceitisanabstract
figureforcomparisonpurposeandcalculations.

Forlevelflight,thetotalliftforcegeneratedbyamodelmustbe
equaltoitsweightsoitiscorrecttoright
TOTALLIFT=TOTALWEIGHT,ORL=W(ACTION=REACTION)

Thiswillnotapplyexactlyifthemodelisdescendingorclimbing.
figurebellowshows,thefactorsaffectingliftforceatmodelsize
orarea,speedofflight,airmassdensityandtheaerofoilplustrim
factor,Clineverycase,anincreaseinoneofthesefactors,greater

aiea, moie speeu, incieaseu uensity oi highei lift coefficient, will
piouuce a laigei lift foice.
mathematicaly

L = 12(p x v^2 x S x CL)




Besigning: Wing
Nowthatwehavetheaerofoilwithuswecancalculatetheother
wingdimensions.

CalculatingtheAspectRatioofaWingorFlyingSurface
The Aspect Rat i o is t he rat io of w i ngspan t o aver age
w i ng chor d.
Average wing chord for a t apered wing is t he root chord
plus t he t ip chord divided by t wo. For a const ant chord
wing, t he average chord is t he chord anywhere along t he
wing panel.
WhyAspectRatioisImportant
The Aspect Rat io of a wing is an indicat or of t he
aircraft ' s r ol l r esponse.
All else being equal, high aspect rat io wings ( narrow
chord t o span) will have a slower roll response t han
a low aspect rat io wing.
The Aspect Rat io of a flying surface largely
det ermines t he l i f t t o dr ag r at i o of t he surface.
High aspect rat io wings, such as on sai l pl anes, are
more efficient and have a higher l i f t t o dr ag r at i o.
High aspect rat io wings are more easily broken and
are less t olerant of poor engineering, poor building
and flight out side design paramet ers.

A wing area of 600 sq in , wit h an aspect rat io of 5: 1 will
will have a span of 55 inches and having a 9 inch chord

Theaspectratioofasailplaneliesbetween6andabove
Theaspectratioofagoodtrainerliesbetween4:16:1
Aspectratioofagoodsportflyerliesbetween4:13:1
Aspectratioofa3dandfunflymodelsliesb/wlessthan3
CalculatingtheWingAreaforConstantChord,Taperedand
DeltaWings
I n order t o det ermine t he w i ng l oadi ng, you must know
t he w i ng ar ea. Wing area for model aircraft is always
given in squar e i nches( in
2
) w
WhyWingAreaisImportant
Taken on it s own, wing area is not import ant .
However, t he wing area must be calculat ed t o
det ermine wing loading which is very import ant .
Cal cul at i ng Wi ng Ar ea of Mul t i - Wi ng Ai r cr af t
Calculat e t he wing area for each wing individually.
Add t hese areas t oget her t o find t he t ot al wing area.

The area of a simple rect angular, const ant chor d

w i ng is found by mult iplying t he w i dt h x t he hei ght . I n
aircraft t erms t hat is:
Wing Area = Wing Span x Wing Chord

To find t he area of a t apered wing, use t he formula for

a Tr apezoi d. Find t he aver age chor d and mult iply it
t imes t he w i ng span:
Aver age Chor d = ( Root Chor d + Ti p Chor d ) 2
Wing Area = Wing Span x Average Chord

Not e: I t does not mat t er if a wing sweeps or not .

The formula for a t apered wing is used wit h no
regard for t he sweep.

The w i ng l oadi ng of an aircraft is t he measur e of

w ei ght carried by each given unit of area.
For model aircraft , wing loading is expressed as ounces
per squar e f oot ( oz. / ft
2
) . Experience wit h different
models will make t his figure more meaningful t o you.
WhyWingLoadingisImportant
Wing loading is t he only indicat or of how "heavy" an
aircraft is. The act ual weight of an aircraft is
meaningless.
A 50 lb model having as many square feet of wing
area is a light weight . A 6 lb model having 2 square
feet of wing is very heavy and will fly like a
sledgehammer ( or maybe not quit e t hat well) .
The light er t he wing loading, t he slower t he aircraft
can t ake- off, fly and land. I t will also have a bet t er
climb.
A larger model can have a higher wing loading and
fly comparably t o a smaller aircraft having a lower
wing loading due t o differences in t he aerodynamics
of different size aircraft .
For example, let ' s say we have t wo aircraft t hat are
absolut ely ident ical except for physical size. The
smaller model has a 36" wing span while t he larger
aircraft has a 108" wing span.
The smaller model may have a wing loading of 8
oz. / ft
2
and t he larger aircraft may have a wing
loading of 35 oz. / ft
2
. Bot h of t hese aircraft may
perform nearly ident ically at subst ant ially different
wing loadings due t o t he difference in size. Not e
t hat t hese figures are off t he t op of my head and not
meant t o be t aken lit erally.
I t is a good idea t o inform t he person who is t est flying
your model as t o t he wing loading so t hey have an idea
of how long of a t ake off run it will need t o build air
speed. This is somet hing t hat comes wit h experience
because t here are no st all warning indicat ors in model
aircraft as t here are in full- scale aircraft .

NOTE: t he weight of a model, neglect ing small changes
caused by fuel consumpt ion, is const ant during one flight .
The speed at a given t rim ( angle of at t ack) will depend
ent irely on t he wing loading

W/ S = L/ S = 1/ 2 X P x V^ 2 x Cl
Wit h above formula we can have t he required value of cl
and t hen we can select a corresponding airfoil wit h t hat
value
HowtoCalculateWingLoading
I n t his example, we will use an aircraft weighing 5- 1/ 2
lbs ( 5 lbs 8 oz. ) wit h 600 square inches of wing area.
Calculat ing t he wing loading requires t hat t he wing area
be convert ed t o square feet ( ft
2
) and pounds t o ounces.
1) Convert t he area t o square feet . There are 144 ( 12 x
12) square inches in a square foot .
600 in
2
144 = 4. 17 ft
2

2) Convert t he t ot al empt y weight ( ready- t o- fly wit h no
fuel) t o ounces. There are 16 ounces in a pound.
5. 5 lbs x 16 = 88 oz.
3) Divide t he weight by t he area:
88 oz. 4. 17 ft
2
= 21. 1 oz. / ft
2

Using round numbers, t his gives t he aircraft a wing-
loading of 21 oz. / ft
2
or
You can perform t he ent ire calculat ion in one shot using
simple subst it ut ion:
( Wei ght x 2304) Wi ng Ar ea
Where weight is in pounds and wing area is in square
inches
Plugging t he numbers from t his example int o t he above
formula gives us t his:
( 5. 5 x 2304 ) 600 = 21. 1 oz. / ft
2

That means . 6kg/ ft 2
For mult i- wing aircraft , divide t he overall weight of t he
aircraft by t he t ot al wing area for all wings.
At t his point t he we have following wing specificat ions
Wing area : 600 sq in
Chord : 9 in
Span: 55 in

Wearenotdesigningaforwardsweptwingorasomeotherfancy
styles,causebeingatrainermodelweshouldkeepinmindthat
latterwhenmodelisinfinalstageandsomeotherpersonwants
tomakeamodelwhoisaabsolutebeginner,makingaforward
sweptwingortaperedwingwillbeahectictask,alsoconstant
chordorrectangularwingaddstoeasenesswithwhichthewing
canbecompleted,alsowhenacrashoccurs,makingseparateribs
orairfoilsofataperedorotherstylewingisahectictask.Soto
avoidallthesedifficultiesweusedtherectanglestylewing.

Nowafterdesigningthewingwecanmoveontodesigninga
fuselagewhichisnotatoughtask.

CONCLUSION:Abovetextgivesanideaonhowtoselectanairfoil
andhowtodesignasimplewing,layingoutthefoundationfor
moreadvancedmodelsifwewishtodesigninnearfuture.

##forpersonseekingformulasbehindthesecalculations
Meanchords
Ausefulparameter,thestandardmeanchordorthe
geometricmeanchord,is
denotedbyE,definedbyE=SG/borSNIb.Itshouldbestated
whetherSGorSNisused.Thisdefinitionmayalsobewrittenas
whereyisdistancemeasuredfromthecentre
linetowardsthestarboard(righthand
tothepilot)tip.Thisstandardmeanchordisoftenabbreviatedto
SMC.
Anothermeanchordistheaerodynamicmeanchord(AMC),
denotedbyEAorE;
andisdefinedby

WHERETheplanareaofthewingincludingthecontinuation
withinthefuselageisthegross
wingarea,SG.TheunqualifiedtermwingareaSisusually
intendedtomeanthis
grosswingarea.Theplanareaoftheexposedwing,i.e.excluding
thecontinuationwithinthefuselage,isthenetwingarea,SN.

Chords
ThetwolengthsCTandcoarethetipandrootchords
respectively;withthealter
nativeconvention,therootchordisthedistancebetweenthe
intersectionswiththe
fuselagecentrelineoftheleadingandtrailingedgesproduced.
Theratioct/c0isthe
taperratioA.Sometimesthereciprocalofthis,namelyco/ct,is
takenasthetaper
ratio.FormostwingsCT/C0<1.
Forsquarewingthetaperingratiois

ThenondimensionalquantityF/(pV2S)whereFisanaerodynamic
forceandSisanareaissimilartothetypeoftendevelopedand
usedinaerodynamics.Itisnot,however,usedinpreciselythis
form.InplaceofpV2itisconventionalforincompressibleflowto
useipVz,thedynamicpressureofthefreestreamflow.The
actualphysicalareaofthebody,suchastheplanformareaofthe
wing,orthemaximumcrosssectionalareaofafuselageis
usuallyusedforS.Thusaerodynamicforcecoefficientisusually
definedasfollows:

Thetwomostimportantforcecoefficientsaretheliftanddrag
coefficients,definedby:

Theimpressionissometimesformedthatliftanddragcoefficients
cannotexceedunity.Thisisnottrue;withmodern
developmentssomewingscanproduceliftcoefficientsbasedon
theirplanareaof10ormore.Aerodynamicmomentsalsocan
beexpressedintheformofnondimensionalcoefficients.
Sinceamomentistheproductofaforceandalengthitfollows
thatanondimensionalformforamomentisQ/pV2Sl,where
Qisanyaerodynamicmomentand1isareferencelength.Here
againitisconventionaltoreplacepV2by.5pV2.Inthecaseofthe
pitchingmomentofawingtheareaistheplanareaSandthe
lengthisthewingchordCorc'A(cbar)(seeSection1.3.1).
ThenthepitchingmomentcoefficientCmisdefinedby

Thesearethefewparameterswhichareusedinmorecomplex
formulaetocalculatevariouscharacteristicvaluestodesignan
aircraft.
Butstillthefactremainsstillthesame,likemostthingin
aerodynamicworld,valuesdepends.Dependsonwhatwewant
andhowwewant.
Takingdiscussiononotherwingstylesandformulasarebeyond
thescopeofthisreport.

Besigning a fuselage.

Fuselageingeneraldoesnothaveanyrealsignificanceinlifting
andthereisnoruletodesignafuselageinaeromodeling,except
infewcaseswheretheshapeoffuselagealsoactsasaliftingin
somemodelslikegeebee,

Ingeneralthefuselageisshapedasstreamlinedpossibleto
reducetheoveralldragofanairplane.Itshouldbespaciouswhich
canaccommodatehandsofeverysize,whensettingupand
fittinguptheservo,repairingthemodelintheeventofacrash.

Likewhenwearedesigningamodelforhighspeedwewantthat
thedragcreatedbythewholemodeltobeminimal,andalsoby
thefusetobeminimumhencethestructureofthefuselage
shouldbeasclosetostreamlinedsymmetricalairfoilaspossible

butthefuselagespecificationwhichwillbeenoughforourtrainer
airplanewillbecommontomostoftheairplanes,thefuseshould
besturdyenoughtoresistthevibrationsproducedbytheengine
fewminorcrashes,itshouldbestreamlinnedinordertoreduce
overalldrag.Itshouldbehavinggoodtensilestrengthandmust
mebuiltlight.
Athumbruleforfuselageconstructionisthatlongerthefuse
morestabletheairplaneis,forgeneralsportsflyerandtrainer
thefuselage will be 75% of t he wingspan of t he model and our formula will
be 75% of 55 or .75 X 55= 41. 2

Nowthatwehaveafuselagelengthwehavetohaveotherdetails
oftailplane,ailerons,fin,rudderandelevator.

ForkeepingthingseasyIwillgiveoutfollowingformulasusing
whichIwillbecalculatingtheabovementioneddimentions,
1.ailerons=10%ofwingarea=(10/100)x600=60sqinch.
2.Horizont al St abilizer t o be in a range from 20% t o 30% of t he area of t he
wing. I generally use 22 t o 23% in my designs. Please not e t hat Delt as and
flying wings are different designs and require different considerat ions

So horizont al st abilizer = 22% of wing area= 132 sq in
we will assume it t o be a span of 3 t imes t he cord or 3C. Well round t hese
numbers off and use j ust a lit t le mat h, t hus our cord will be 132/ 3= 44 and
t he squar e r oot of 44 equals our cord of 6.633 . The span of t he st abilize will
be 3C or 6.633 X C = 18. 99 . Our St abilizer now has t he diment ions
of 18. 99 X 6.633 .

4. Vert ical fin t o be in a range of about 1/ 3 t he t he area of t he horizont al St ab. I
generally assume t his t o be from t he t op of t he horizont al st ab t o t he t op of
t he vert ical fin. So, again wit h j ust a lit t le mat h we can arrive at some basic
designs so fin area = ( 1/ 3) x 132= 44 sq inch
5. Elevat or area= 25% of st ab area = . 25 x 132= 33 sq inch from above t he
lengt h of t ail plane is 18. 99 so is t he elevat or lengt h now chord of t he
elevat or is 33/ 18. 99= 1. 7 inches
6. Rudder area= 25% of vert st ab . 25 of 132 = 33 now t he lengt h of t he rudder is
6 t hen t he chord will be of 5. 5
7. Thismeansarectangleof6.63willbetheverticalstabilizer,itwillbe
uglylookingandaerodynamicallylessefficientsotoovercomeboth
ofthemwecanaddadorsalfinandreducethesizeofthestabilizer.
Calculatingcgisatiresomejob,itisbasedonhitandtrialmethodso
butstillwecanapproximateinfollowingway
The following formula determines the "CG" location expressed in percent of
the Mean Aerodynamic Chord as measured from the M.A.C.s leading
edge:
CG = [0.17 + 0.3 x ((TMA) x (SH) x HTE))] x 100
CG = [0.17 + 0.3 x ((MAC) x (SW
Definitions:
CG: Aft most center of gravity with adequate stability margin.
T.M.A.: The Mean Aerodynamic Chord
S.H.: The area of the horizonal stabilizer.
S.W.: Wing area including the portion of the wing under or over the
fuselage.
H.T.E.: Horizontal Tail Efficiency. Value ranges from 0.5 for a flat tail
located in its normal position in the down wash of the wing to 0.9 for a
"T-Tail" at the top of the vertical stabilizer. Before we start banging
numbers into the calculator, we need to determine 2 critical factors in
the formula. They are the M.A.C. and the T.M.A. We will start with the
M.A.C. because we need it to determine the T.M.A.

There are two ways I know to find the M.A.C. The first is mathmatical,
the second is graphic. The graphic method has the advantage of not
only determining the M.A.C., but also indicates its location on the
wing. If you have a straight rectangular wing, the M.A.C. is the actual
wing chord.
Lets go over the mathmatical method first. To use the following
formula, you need to know only two things: the wings chord at the
root (Cr) and the tip (Ct). Plug these numbers into the formula below.

M.A.C.= 2/3 [Cr + (Ct -((Cr x Ct)
M.A.C.= 2/3 [Cr + (Ct -(((Cr + CT)))]

Using the example of a wing with a 15" root chord (Cr) and a tip
chord (Ct) of 10", the formula cranks out a M.A.C. of 12.7". This is
very close to being the average chord of the wing.
Now. lets take a look at a graphic method. If you have either full size
or scale drawing of your wing, the hard part is already done as the
first step is to make a scale drawing of "your" wing. Figure 1 is a
scale computer drawing of the wing in the above example. On your
drawing, draw two lines; the first extends forward (perpendicular to
the wing span) from the leading edge at the tip and its length is equal
to the length of the root chord (Cr) on your drawing. Next, draw a line
extending back (again perpendicular to the wingspan) from the
trailing edge at the root that is as long as the tip chord (Cr) on your
drawing.

Actually, you can reverse the direction of these lines and the results
will be the same but one must go forward and the other back. From
the forward end of the line at the tip, draw a line that connects to the
aft end of the line at the root. This line will cut diagonally across the
wing.
The next step is to draw a line that connects the midpoint of the root
chord (Cr) to the midpoint of the tip chord (Ct). The location of the
M.A.C. is at the intersection of the lines drawn in these two steps.
The length of the M.A.C. is the chord of the wing at that point.
Measure your scale or full size drawing.
Now, that we know what the M.A.C. is, we can determine the T.M.A.
To do this, measure the distance from a point at the root that is 25%
of the M.A.C. to the midpoint of the horizonal stab root chord. You
can do this either on the model itself, the full size plans or your scale
drawing.
At this point, we now know the M.A.C. (12.7") and the T.M.A. (33").
Now, we need to know the areas of the wing and the horizonal
stabilizer. For non-rectangular surfaces, the easiest way to calculate
the area is to divide the wing into rectangles and triangles. The area
of a triangle is equal to 1/2 the length times the width. For example,
the wing area is 875 sq." (SW) and the horizontal stab area (SH) is
165 sq.".

HTE (Horizontal Tail Efficiency)
For the horizontal tail efficiency, lets pick a number...well assume
that the tail is in the normal location, so well use 0.5 in our formula.
Heres what our formula will look like.
Formula :
CG = [ 0.17 + (0.30 x (( TMA ) x ( SH ) x HTE ))] x 100
CG = [ 0.17 + (0.30 x (( MAC SW
Formula with example values :
CG = [ 0.17 + (0.30 x (( 33 ) x ( 165 ) x 0.5 ))] x 100
CG = [ 0.17 + (0.30 x (( 12 ) x ( 875
Formula results :
CG = 24.35% of the M.A.C. or 3.09"
It is important to remember that this is measured from the leading
edge at the M.A.C., not at the wing root...or event worse, at the wing
tip.
For those incline to utilize "T" tail designs, lets look at what happens
when you change to that configuration HTE will now be 0.9 instead of
0.5. All the variables appear below. We have changed the desired
location of the CG by almost 1" just by making changes to the tail
feathers.
Remember, this formula
FACTOR Old Value New Value Old CG New CG
H.T.E. 0.5 0.9 24.3% (3.1") 30.2% (3.8")
SH 165. sq." 200.sq. " 24.3% (3.1") 25.9% (3.3")
T.M.A. 33" 25" 24.3% (3.1") 22.6% (2.9")

We will be using the 25% for our cg calculation of wing chord i.e 25% of 9 =
2.25 inch
Nose length is 8.82 in tail length is 23.10
Name span chord
Wing span 55 inch 9 inch
Ailerons 55 inch 1 inch
Tail plane 18inch 6 inch
rudder 6 5inch
Elevator 18 2 inch
Fuse nose 8.82inch
Tail 23.10inch

Finalverticalstabdesign

3.21
8.02
9.22
N0BEL C0NSTR0CTI0N ANB PLAN LAY
00T

Beforewecanstartwiththeconstructionofthemodel,wewillbe
layingouttheplanforourmodelwhichwillformthemostbasic
foundationforourmodelairplaneconstruction.Itwillbeourguidein
mostofthebuildingprocessandshouldbehandledwithcare.

Butbeforehandwewillbehavingalookonthetoolsandstuffs
necessaryformodelairplanebuilding.
1. Paperpins:toholddelicatepartswhilejoining.
2. CA:commonlyknownasfeviquick.
3. Cellotape:forholdingsomepartstemporarily.
4. Rubberbands:sameascellotape.
5. Sandpaper:forsandingwoodsinordertogiveshapetothem
6. Saw:forcuttingwoodsandotherstiffthings
7. Nosepliers:forholdingandtighteningscrewsandcuttingspoke
wire
8. WoodScrews.
9. Metallicscaleandmeasuringtape
10. Etc
11. Plywoods
12. Drillanddrillbitts
13. Screwdriverset
Therearebasically4typesofconstructiontechniquesavailable.
1. UsingBALSA.(Traditional)
2. Usingplastics.(Traditional)
3. Usingfiberglassclothing(new)
4. Usingcarbonfiber.

InthisconstructionwewillbeusingBalsaconstructionmethodfor
makingourmodel,sincethisisatrainermodelthepersonmakingthis
modelshouldhaveroomforcorrectingerrors,sincebalsaisasoft
woodandiseasytoworkuponit,wedecidedthatwewillbeusing
balsa.Besidebalsaplasticsisalsoagoodoptionbutmajor
disadvantageofthismaterialisthatitishardtoworkonandhaveno
roomforerrors,alsoitgiveslessaccurateoutput.
Useoffiberglassclothingandcarbonfiberbothrequirehighdegreeof
precessionandcraftsmanship,althoughtheoutputmodelisrugged
andtoughitisnotsuggestedtostartairplaneconstructionwiththis
materials.
Onemorethingthegluesusedinthisconstructionandothertoolsare:
1. Epoxy
2. CA
3. Dendrite
4. Balsacement
5. Balsaknife(tool)

Beforewecanstartwithconstructionweshouldlayoutthebasicplan
ofthemodelairplanewhichwillserveasaguideinfuturebuilds.
Tostartwithtakewhitesheetof30anddrawarectangleof
27.5x9toformonehalfofthewing.
Thendrawanotherrectangleof40x5
Thenoselengthisof8.82X5inchesmarkit
Nexttaketheairfoildiagramwemadeearlyandplaceitoverthe
fuselage,withtheleadingedgeoftheairfoilatthemarkedplace
Nowdrawanoutlineoftheairfoil,(Thechordoftheairfoilwillbe
9)
Nextdrawanotherrectanglecontinuingfromthetrailingedgeof
theairfoilwhoselengthis23.10
Nowwithfreehandconnectthegappsandgivefuseaniceshape.
Nowerasetheleftoverarea.Hereisthesideviewofthefuselage,
withtopandsideviewofthewing.
Hereisadepiction

Taketheprojectionsofthesideviewofthefuselageanddrawa
straightline.
Thisisthecenterlinewherethetaperingofthefuselagehappens
Herewewillbedrawingbottomview
Thendrawastraightline2.5aboveandbelowtheline,thisisthe
maxthicknessofthefuselage
Attherearmostendoftheprojectionmark.5aboveandbelow
thecenterline.
Nowdrawtheprojectionofthewingonthebottomviewofthe
fuselage.Thesewillactasbasicformersectiontemplateforthe
overalldesign.

Nowjointhelinesasshownbythefigure.

Nowwehaveasideviewandatopviewofthefuselage,thenextthing
wehavetofindoutthenumberofairfoilssections(Ribs)tobeusedin
ordertogivewingauniformandstrongstructure,sobyapproximation
wewillberequiringatotalof22ribsat2.5distancetoeachotherfor
thewholewingmeaning11ribsatonesideofthewing.
Wehaveenoughinforightnowtostartdesigningourfuselage,Iwillbe
showingyouthefusionoftwostyles,thesheetconstructionandtruss
constructionstyle,

Cutasheetof3mmbalsawoodasshown,fromf1tof2
Light ly sand t he sheet t o remove fuzz. I f doublers ( a half copy of
t he fuselage side st ick t oget her wit h t he fuselage inside t o make
fuselage st ronger ) need t o be added before t he sides are built go
ahead and add t hem.
Join t he fuselage sides using double- st ick Scot ch t ape. Sand t he
sides t o an exact mat ch. Take your t ime aligning t he sides so
t hat you don' t remove any more mat erial t han necessary.
Not e t hat t he right side may be short er t han t he left side due t o
right t hrust . I f t his is t he case wit h your model t hen t ake t hat
int o account when sanding.
As always, remember t o build a left and a right side. I find t hat
placing t hem next t o each ot her as a mirror image helps prevent
building t wo of t he same side.

There is normally a l onger on t hat runs t he full lengt h of t he

fuselage from nose t o t ail. There is also one t hat will st art behind
t he wing saddle.
Glue t hese longerons in place while clamping t he assemblies
against a good st r ai ght edge.
I n t his image you can see t wo st rong magnet s at t he rear of
t he wing saddle t hat are applying cl ampi ng pr essur e t o t he
lower longeron. The magnet s are set up t o at t ract t o each ot her.
I j umped t he gun and glued t he small plywood gusset s you can
see in t his phot o. I chiseled t hem back off because t hey would
have impeded const ruct ion lat er.

Place w ax ed paper over t he plan t o prevent t he plan from
becoming a permanent part of t he st ruct ure.
Align st r ai ght edges over t he plan out lines t o guarant ee t hat t he
out lines of t he st ruct ure are st raight .
I set up t he fuselage so t hat t he out side is down. That ensures
t hat t he longerons, upright s and diagonals will be flush.
I f eit her t he t op or bot t om longeron is curved t hen you will have
t o bend it t o mat ch t he plan and pin it in place


A t russ based model is fairly good in st rengt h and very light in
weight
Thismodelusesbothsheetandtrussmakingconcept.
The most di f f i cul t part of building a t russ is cut t ing pr oper
angl es on t he ends of t he braces while ending up at t he correct
lengt h. I n fact t his is one aspect of const ruct ion t hat I found
ext remely frust rat ing unt il I found a nearly foolproof met hod.
At t empt ing t o cut angles on st icks using a razor, hobby knife or
razor saw will oft en lead t o unsat isfact ory result s. At t empt ing t o
hold t he part in hand while sanding isn' t any bet t er.
The di agonal br aci ng is even more difficult because it
has t wo doubl e- bev el s t hat not only must be t he correct angle,
but t hat angle must be at t he correct angle t o t he cent erline of
t he brace.

MakingtheBraces
Not e: Always make t he longest braces first and work your way
t o t he short est . There are t wo very good reasons for t his:
1. I f you make t he short braces first you may end up wit h a
bunch of short scraps t hat aren' t long enough for t he longer
braces.
2. I f you have t o rej ect a brace because it ended up t oo short ,
you can use it for a short er brace.

I skipped anot her st ep. You may t hink t hat you see upright s in
t his phot o but you act ually don' t . You' re eit her imagining t hings
or maybe you can see int o t he fut ure.
What you should see is a pl y w ood sandi ng t empl at e. Cut a
piece of scrap plywood t hat aligns perfect ly on all sides. Take
measurement s from t he plan t o ensure t he angles are correct .
Take care making t he t emplat e because it will det ermine how well
t he j oint s of t he upright s and diagonal bracing will fit .

Make a sanding block having faces t hat are all square t o each
ot her. I used 3/ 4" square pine. Use spray glue or dendrit e t o
at t ach medium ( 220) sandpaper t o one side and fine ( 400) paper
t o t he ot her.
Not e: This sanding block will come in handy for all kinds of
purposes, so don' t t hink of it as a limit ed use it em. Place
t he upr i ght br ace against t he side of t he t emplat e and gent ly
sand t he one end. Balsa sands away at a much fast er rat e t han
plywood so t he t emplat e should easily last t hrough t he proj ect . I f
you happen t o sand t oo much of t he t emplat e away, correct it
before sanding any more braces.

Fit t he sanded end of t he upright t o ensure t he angle is correct .
Light ly mark t he ot her end wit h asi ngl e- edge r azor bl ade. Use
t he t emplat e t o sand t he end of t he brace t o fit . Be conservat ive
and leave t he brace over- lengt h at first . Sand a lit t le away at a
t ime. Fit oft en. The bracing should be a good fit not t oo snug
and definit ely not loose.

Here you can see several upright braces glued int o place.

The t empl at e you made will make short work of t his t ask and for
a change, t he diagonal braces will act ually f i t pr oper l y . Cut t he
piece over- lengt h as shown. Lay t he brace over t he fuselage side
aligning it wit h t he plan. I normally ignore t he plan and inst ead
align t he brace so t hat it cent ers on t he corners made by t he
upright and longeron.
Carefully align t he razor over t he longeron and exist ing upright
and use it t o light ly mark t he bevels. You do not have t o mark
direct ly above t he j oint . I n fact , it ' s best t o mark slight ly over-
size. I t is import ant t hat t he angle of t he cut lines exact ly mat ch
t he corner in relat ion t o t he cent erline of t he diagonal piece.
Read t hat a few t imes unt il it makes sense
Place t he diagonal brace over t he cor r ect cor ner of t he
t empl at e ensuring t hat t he marked lines are aligned properly
wit h t he t emplat e and t hat t he end of t he brace is cent ered over
t he t emplat e corner. .


Sand t he end t o shape. Alt hough I didn' t do it , a piece of
sandpaper spray glued t o t he t emplat e would have helped
prevent t he diagonals from sliding around while I was sanding.


At t his point only one end is sanded t o shape but look at bot h
ends. The opposit e end should be t oo long but
should cent er over t he exist ing j oint . I f t he ot her end isn' t
cent ered properly t hen not e which way t he diagonal must rot at e.
Take t he diagonal back t o t he t emplat e t o correct it . When you are
sat isfied wit h t he first end, mark it wit h pencil so t hat you know
which side is up and which end is which. I t ' s easy t o flip t he part
around when adding glue or what ever. Once glue is on t he ends,
it is more difficult t o t ell which end is which.


Repeat t he above st eps for t he ot her end. Not e t hat if t he fuselage
has st raight out lines, but also t apers, t hen t he angle on t he ends
will always be t he same on braces t hat are aligned in t he same
direct ion. However, t he diagonal braces are not parallel t o each
ot her and t herefore t he angle on t he end will not be at t he same
angle t o t he cent erline of t he brace.
I know t hat sounds confusing, but once you st art making t hese
pieces you' ll underst and what I mean. My point is t hat you can' t
st ack up all t he diagonals and cut t hem at once. They won' t fit if
you do t hat .

I f t he diagonal is st ill t oo long t hen you can make adj ust ment s
while sanding away t he excess. Always use t he t emplat e.
I f t he lengt h of t he diagonal is correct , but one end or t he ot her
doesn' t fit properly t hen t here' s not much you can do. Your
choices are t o live wit h it or t ry again wit h a new part .
This was my first t ime using a t emplat e and I only had t o discard
t wo part s. I have a higher rej ect rat io using a disk sander and a
much higher rej ect rat io making braces when cut t ing and sanding
by hand.


This is how t he diagonal should fit . The diagonal slips in place
easily but is not t oo loose and not t oo snug.
Do not f or ce a t i ght br ace i nt o posi t i on. I t will creat e
undesirable int ernal st resses and may weaken t he longeron by
crushing t he wood fibers. I t will also be forcing t he glue j oint
apart of t he upright braces.


Doubl e- gl ue t he ends of t he braces using car pent er ' s gl ue.
Put some glue on each end and set t he part aside for a minut e.
Put some glue in t he exist ing j oint as well.
Aft er giving t he glue some t ime t o soak int o t he end grain, add a
lit t le more glue and put t he part in place. Ensure everyt hing is
flat on t he board while t he glue dries.
Make a scooper from a t oot hpi ck or bamboo sk ew er by cut t ing
a long bevel on t he end. Use it t o scoop up all t he glue t hat
oozes out .
Your work will look especially neat now t hat you have
made per f ect f i t t i ng j oi nt s using ni cel y sanded pi eces and
t here is no v i si bl e gl ue.

The aft end of t he fuselage is usually filled wit h balsa wood rat her
t han diagonal pieces. The fill reinforces t he t ail and it allows you
t o cut pushrod exit s. I f you didn' t have sheet wood surrounding
t he exit s, you would have t o cut holes in unsupport ed covering.
The covering would event ually begin t o t ear away. You can
use t hi nner w ood here if you arrange t he grain v er t i cal l y t o act
as a web. A lot of planes t urn out t ai l heav y . Do everyt hing you
can t o make t he t ail st rong while using as lit t le mat erial as
possible.



Most of t he hard work is done. When t his assembly is dry,
remove it from t he board and build t he ot her side. I t is best if you
can build t he second side direct ly over t he first . Put a piece of
wax paper bet ween t he t wo sides and line t he part s of t he second
side up carefully. You can pin direct ly t hrough bot h sides int o your
building surface or set up st raight edges t hat are higher so t hat
t hey enclose t he out lines of bot h sides. Besuretoplacetheoutsidesof
thefuselagesidestogether!I f you put an inside against an out side you
will build t wo left or t wo right sides which will not make you
happy when you realize you have t o t hrow a lot of work away and
build a new side.


Block sand t he i nsi de of t he fuselage sides now. Keep sanding
unt il all j oint s are flush. Go ahead and finish sand because t his is
your last opport unit y t o do it .
Thisstepisveryimportant!
Remove t he sanding dust and t hen apply st rat egically
placed doubl e- st i ck t ape t o one fuselage side. Carefully align t he
ot her side direct ly over t he first . Check t o ensure t he sides are
aligned as well as t hey can be part icularly t he wing saddles,
firewall and t ail. Pull t he fuselage sides apart and st ick t hem
back t oget her unt il t hey' re right .Using a long sanding block, sand
t he sides t o an exact mat ch t o include t he wing saddles if
needed. Check your work carefully because t his st ep will save you
from all kinds of al i gnment pr obl ems lat er.

Take measurement s from t he plans and use landmarks in t he
const ruct ion t o draw t he locat ions of all t he formers and ot her
it ems i nsi de one fuselage side while t he sides are st ill t aped
t oget her. Use a good squar e t o t ransfer t he lines t o t he out side
edge. Use t hese lines t o locat e and draw former locat ions inside
t he ot her fuselage side.
I f t he firewall has r i ght t hr ust be sure t o locat e t he lines
properly on each fuselage side because t hey will be in different
locat ions.


Separat e t he t wo sides and t hen block sand t he out side t o
remove excess glue and t o bring everyt hing flush. The out sides
can be rough sanded because t hey will need addit ional sanding as
you progress wit h building t he fuselage.


Many designs and kit s leave out gusset s. However, I st rongly
urge you t o use t hem. They weigh pract ically not hing but great ly
increase t he st rengt h of t he brace j oint s. I f you choose not t o use
gusset s t hen t he only t hing prevent ing t he braces from poppi ng
l oose in a hard j olt is t ension from t he covering. Not e t hat
gusset s are glued t o t he i nsi de of t he fuselage sides. The not ch
will capt ure t he cross- braces. I make gusset s from 1/ 64" plywood
which can be easily cut wit h scissors. Be sure t o clean glue ooze
from around t he gusset and especially from inside t he not ch
where t he cross- braces go. Blobs of glue will int erfere wit h t he fit
of cross- braces inst alled lat er.



Cl amp t he gusset s while t he glue dries t o ensure t he st r ongest
possi bl e gl ue j oi nt .


When t he glue has dried place bot h sides on t he board as a
mirror image. Take care aligning t hem. I put a st op at t he front
and t he t ail post t o keep t he sides from moving.


Glue t he gusset s on t he second side aligning t hem wit h t he
gusset s on t he first side.
This will ensure t hat t he cross- braces are exact ly perpendicular t o
t he fuselage cent erline in t op view.

Flip t he sides around and repeat t he above st eps. Do not leave
t he sides t oget her while t he glue dries. The sides will end up
glued t oget her by t he glue t hat oozed out . Don' t forget t o clamp
t he gusset s while t hey dry.


This ends up wit h preparat ion of fuselage sides.


Now for making t he whole fuselage, use t he plans t op or bot t om
view and cut braces of different lengt h and glue t hem
perpendicular t o t he sides of t he fuselage


above model is design of nit in you can see t he complet e former
bracing on t he model along wit h t he plan prepared

Anotherviewofaexampleplan

Ifyouhavefollowedallstepscorrectlythefuselageisready.

Wing constiuction

Constructionofwingissimilartoasthatofconstructionofatruss
fuselage,
AwingcomprisesofL.E(leadingedge),ribs,trailingedge,sparsand
ailerons,inthissectionwewillbemakingawingandthenusinghinges
wewillbeattachingtheaileronstothewings.

WeKnowthattheestimatedcgofourmodelwhichwecalculated
earlierwasat2530%ofthechord,suppose25%isthecglocationthen
addsparstothewingsat25%ofthemainchord,thatmeansfora9
chordsparwillbelocatedat2.25
inch

Technicalysayingsparisastickwhichrunsspanwiseinawingto
providestrengthandholdthewindstructuresandribs,
Ribisnothingbuttheairfoilwithgapscutsuchthatspar,leadingedge
andtrailingedgecanfitthemselfinslotssothattheycanformthe
skeletonofthewing.
Nowyoutaketheribwhichweplotedandcuta8mmfromtheleading
edgeofthatairfoilnextcut.5inchfromthetrailingedgeoftheaerofoil
,cuttwosquareof6mmontopandbottomoftheairfoilat2.5inch
fromtheleadingedge.

Youwillgetsomethingsimilartothis
Cut22ribswhilecuttingmakesuretosandtheribstoexactsizewith
noroughnessandoddnessexisting,11foronesideand11forother,
nowthatyouhaveribscut4sparof6mmx6mmx27.5,
2foreachside.Placeasparonthetableandmarklinesatadistanceof
2.5,afterthatcarefullyplacetheriboverit,suchthatthebottomspar
slotgetsfixedwiththespar,aftermakingsurethetheribisplaced
straightquicklyapplyCA,similarlyfixotherribstothespar,afterthis
carefullyplacethetopsparoverthetopsparslot,andapplyCA,repeat
thiswiththeotherwingtoo,nowthatyourtwowinghalfsisready,its
timetomakewingbraceorthedihedralbrace.
Nowcuttheleadingedge(sparof8mmx8mmx27.5)andtrailing
edge(sheetingof4mmx.5x.27.5),twoinnumberandgluethemin
thereplacesandsandthemtomatchtheairfoilpattern.
Cuttwoplywoodoflengthof5andheightoftheribatthepoint
wherethetwosparsarelocated.
Weagreedwiththedihedralangleof5*so,cutthedihedralbracesuch
thatoneofthetipsofthedihedralbracemakes5*withthetable,now
placethedihedralbraceinonewingbycuttingjustbehindthelocation
ofthespar,putthedihedralbraceinotherwingbutthistimeatjust
oppositeside.Cutsaremadeinbothwingsuchthatthedihedral
bracesareadjustedbetweenthewingandthereisnogapbetweenthe
twowinghalves.Nowapplyepoxytoeveryjoininthewingtobe
doublesure.
Thisisthefinalstep,aftertheepoxyhascured,coverthefirsttreeribs
oftheskeletonwith2mmor1mmbalsaandsanditatleadingedgeand
trailingedge.Wearedonenow.
Afterthisusedendriteandmonokotetocoverthewing,1
st
coverthe
bottomandthencoverthetop,youwillnoticemanywrinklesand
spotsonthewing,whichlooksuglyanddoesntgivesgoodflowofair,
sotomakeittightstrongandmoreaerodynamicallyusableuseIron
andironthewing,heatguncanalsobeused,astheplasticwillshrink
thewingwillbecomestrongerandmoreefficient.
Nowthatthewingisfinishedwewilladdaileronstothewings,
previouslywecalculatedtheareaforailerontobe60sqinmakingit55
wideand1.Usea4mmlightweightbalsasheetforthisandsanditto
aperfecttriangeinshape,afterthatusepinsandcatoplacehingein
place.thefigureillustratratesit

Thisiswhatafinishedwingwilllooklike

Anexampleofwingconstruction.
Nowthatwehaveconstructedthewing,weshouldjumpbackto
fuselage,usethesamecoveringmethodtocoverthefuselage,but
beforewewillbeinstallingaservotrayinsidethefuselageandwillbe
installingfirewallandcontrollinkagesbeforewecanfinishupwith
fuselage.
Taketwospokewireandinsertitinthefuselagemakesurethe
threadedpartofthespokeisoutsideandthenonthreadedpartis
insideandisvisibleandaccessiblefromtheplacewherethewinghold
downwillbelocatedi.efromtheplacewherewingislocated.Nowadd
thefirewall(atypeofveryhardformerusedformakingthefoundation
forenginemount)(use4mmplywood)atthefrontoftheairplaneand
useepoxytofixit,aftertheepoxyhasdriedandthefirewallisinplace,
drillholesaccordingtotheenginemountanddrillholesinthemount
accordingtotheengine.Withthat,drillholesinthemiddleofthe
firewallforthefuletubingscomingfromthefuletanklocatedjust
behindthefirewall.
Whenthisisdone,purchasea.25sizenoselegandattachittothe
enginemountandaddcollecttosecureit.Whenthisisdoneadda
nosearmandaddittothenoseleg,nowinsertaspokewireconnecting
thenosearmintothefuselagesuchthatitdoesnotblockthefueltank
placementschem.
Whendoneaddaplywoodof4mmwiththewidthoftheformeronthe
lowermostpartofthewingbayofthefuselageanduseepoxytoglue
it.Buyaundercarriageandscrewitontheplywoodsuchthatthe
wheellineoftheundercarriageliesjustbelowthecgofthe
airplane.Nowcoverwholebodyoftheairplanewithmonocoteanddo
sameasdonewiththewingi.eironitThisfinisheswiththefuselage.
Nowwewillbemakingtailplaneandverticalstabilizers,aswehave
seenandcalculatedthearea
s

Elevatorparametersare:
Chord1.7or2runningspanwiseofthetailplane
Rudderparametersare
tip2"
root5.18
area=32sqinches
aftermakingelevatorandrudderandthemainplanehingeelevator
withthetailplaneandhingerudderwiththefin.Afterthatgluethetail
planeandfinarrangementinthefuselagesuchthatthetailplaneis
paralleltogroundandthefinandtailplanareperfectlyperpendicular
toeachother,Nowwehaveafuselagereadyandwingready.
Weareallsetforflyinginjustfewmoresteps.

Finishedairplane.

SET0P: seivo anu onboaiu electionics

Themodelwedesignedhasfourcontrols,tosuccessfullyflythismodelwehave
tousea4channel(transmitterandreceiverwith4servos),eachchannelforeach
control.likechanneloneforailerons,twoforthrottle,3forelevator,4forrudder.
Addcontrolhornstothecontrolsurfaces,andattachthemtothespokesnext,
addtwobalsasticksinthefuselagejustbelowthewingcompartmentsuchthat
theseparationbetweenthesticksisjustlargeenoughtoaccommodate3servoin
it,nextattachtheservohornwiththespoke(calledpushrods)
Oneservowithelevatorpushrod,oneservowiththrottlepushrod,andone
servoforbothrudderandnoseleg.
Afterthisisdone,connecteachservototheirrespectivechannel,thefourth
servogoesonthewingtop,drillaholeonthetopofthewingatthecenterofthe
wingsuchthatitcanaccommodateabalsaknifeandcutthetoplayerbalsato
accommodatetheservo,makeaholeinthebottomofthewingjustbellowthe
servolocatedinthewingandguidetheservowirethroughthatholeandconnect
ittoitschannel.Weareallsetforflyingoncetheengineismounted.
Beforewemounttheenginewehavetocheckwetherethereisanybendinthe
fuselageornot,ifthereisabentanditissignificantenoughthenwehaveto
changetheenginethrustlineforit,butfornowweassumethefuseisjustright,
thenmounttheengineandconnectthepipefromthefueltanktoitsfuelfeed
andanotherpipefromfueltanktopressurefeed.
Atypicalfueltankofanairplanecontainstwopipesonforsuckingfueland
pouringfuelandtheotherforpressurefeed,whichenabletheconstantflowof
fuelintheengineinloopsandrolls
Nowtakeouta9x6propellerandaspinner,andtightenallofthesetotheengine
suchthat,thedeadcenteroftheenginemakes7:35whenseenfromthefrontof
theenginewithapropellerscrewed.

Beforeyoucanfly,youshouldhavethesetoolswithyouallthetime
1. Plierset
2. Screwdriverset
3. 4waywrench
4. Celotapeandca
5. Electricstarterorachickenstick
6. Hotshotorglowigniterifusingaglowengine
7. Fuelpump
8. 12vbatteryforthestarter
9. Sparepropellersandsparespinners
10. 30minepoxyifavailable
11. Andlotsofpatience
Afteraccuiringthesestuffs,therearefewprecautionspeopleshouldtakewhile
flying.
1. Neverflyalone.
2. IfyouareinexperiencedornoviceorabeginnerNEVERFLYwithwithouta
trainerorexperiencedflyer.
3. Neverflyintothecrowdasmodelhits8070mphwhichcanbefatalifit
hitssomeone.
4. Neverflyinclosedarea.
5. Neverflynearhighpowerline.
Radioinstallation
Always check your radio inst allat ion against t he plans before
building anyt hing. I f you need t o plug precut holes or cut
new holes, it is a lot easier t o do before t he component is
built . Make sure you writ e not es and good measurement s
on t he plans so you remember what you were doing lat er.
Most R/ C models have a removable wing t hat covers t he
radio compart ment . The fuselage has a "U" shape t hrough
t his compart ment and is inherent ly weaker and more flexible
t han t he rest of t he fuselage. This arrangement has been
proven t o work sat isfact orily. However t here is no reason
not t o improve it .

cut a former t hat split s t he radio compart ment int o t wo part s.

The aft sect ion is t he servo compart ment and t he forward sect ion
is t her ecei v er / bat t er y compart ment . Measure t he lengt h of t he
bat t ery and receiver. Add 1" t o t he longer measurement and t hat
is how far back from t he LE t he new former should go. You want
enough room t o surround t he receiver and bat t ery pack wit h
foam wit hout it being able t o shift around.
Mount t he sw i t ch and t he char ge j ack in t he servo
compart ment so t he wires coming from t hem do not have t he
receiver or bat t ery pushed up against t hem. Be sure t o cut a
1/ 2" or larger hole in t he former t o pass t he servo leads t o t he
receiver and also drill a hole for t he t hrot t lepushr od housing.
I n t he above image, t he charge j ack is mount ed in t he wrong
compart ment due t o poor planning on my part . I t is in t he way
and I have t o be careful not t o st ress t he wires t oo much when
working around it . A wire can break causing int ermit t ent cont act
and result in bad t hings happening t o my model.
Unfort unat ely in t his case t here wasn' t a lot of room in t he servo
compart ment t o mount t he j ack. I n ret rospect , t he former could
have been moved slight ly forward t o make t he servo
compart ment larger.
Pl ease use foam rubber t o wrap your receiver in. I have
seen several planes at t he field t hat were simply st uck inside
t he airframe using st icky- back Velcro. When you are holding
your plane and you can feel t he vibrat ion coursing t hrough
it , t he receiver is feeling t he same t hing and it is not good
for it at all.
The elect ronics we put in our models are delicat e and should
be t reat ed as such. Some people seem t o t hink t hese t hings
were designed t o wit hst and anyt hing, but t hey are wrong.
I used t o inst all t he radio aft er t he basic st ruct ure was
complet e. What usually ended up happening was I had a lot
of binding t o t ake care of and it was hard t o get everyt hing
lined up properly. I t also t ook a lot of t ime for a less t han
sat isfact ory result .
Now I do t he servo inst allat ion before I even begin framing up
t he fuselage. I t seems t edious, but t he act ual fact is I save a lot
of t ime by doing it in t he beginning. There are a couple
measurement s you need t o have.
First , I put t he grommet s and eyelet s in t he servos and t hen I
measure from t he bot t om of t he grommet t o t he cent er of servo
arm ( servo in side view) . This t ells me where t he servo rails
need t o be from t he pushrods. Now it is an easy t ask t o glue rails
int o t he fuselage sides before I j oin t hem and also cut t he
pushrod exit s.
The only ot her measurement I need is how from t he t ail t he
pushrod exit should be. Just draw a line on t he plan from where
t he servo will be mount ed ( you will need t o know what servo arm
you are going t o use) t o t he cont rol horn. The hole goes where
t he line int ersect s t he fuselage side.
When inst alling servos, one of t he biggest mist akes I see made is
t o crank down t he screws unt il t hey squeeze t he life out of t he
rubber grommet s. Those grommet s are t here t o absorb vibrat ion
which t hey will not do if t hey are t oo t ight .
The idea here is t o t ight en t he screws only t o t he point where t he
grommet s st art t o bulge and t hen st op. Aft er all t he screws are
in, t ry t o wiggle t he servo. I f it is solid, t hen t he j ob is done.

FINALcheck.
Beforeyoutakeoffyoushouldcheckyourtx/rxforglitchesandinterferences,ifit
existsdoublecheckandmakesurethewiresinsidethefuselageisnottouching
anymetallicparts,checkforcutsonthereceiverwireandcheckwhetherthe
antennaofthereceiveriffullyextendedornot.
Ifthereisnoglitchyoucanproceedwithyourflying.

Extias : foimula anu concepts

Thesetopicsshouldbeutilizedbypeoplehavingkeeninterestinfieldofaviationandthinksbeyond
Aeromodelingandatlargescale,forAeromodelingthereportprecedingabovethistopicismorethan
sufficient
CalculatingTheoreticalSpeed
Theoreticalspeedmeansthatthepropelleris100%efficientandthatthereisno
lossduetoaerodynamicdrag,etc.Aperfectairplaneflyinginaperfectworld.
That'snotgoingtohappenhereonearth,butthisstillgivesyouastartingpoint.
Forthisexamplewe'lluseanengineturninga7"pitchpropellerat15,000RPM.
ConvertRevolutionsPerMinute(RPM)toRevolutionsPerHour(RPH):
RPMx60=RPH
15,000x60=900,000RPH
FindInchesPerHourassuming100%efficiency:
RPHxPropellerPitch=InchesperHour
900,000x7=6300000inchesperhour
ConverttoMilesPerHour(12"x5280'=inchesinamile):
6300000(12x5280)=99.4MPH
Thebottomline(assuming100%propellerefficiencyandzeroairframedrag):
Speed=(RPMxPitch)1056
Inrealitytheaveragesportmodelwiththiscombinationmightdo7580MPHon
agoodday.

CalculatingPropellerEfficiency

Goingalittlefarther,wecanactuallysetupaspeedtrialtodeterminehowfast
anaircraftisgoingandthendeterminepropellerefficiencyusingthosenumbers
(timeoverdistance).
Solet'ssayyoutimeyouraircraftona100yard(300feet)course(upwindand
downwindtomakeiteven).Theaveragetimeis2.7seconds.
Convertthedistancecoveredtomilesbydividingdistancecoveredinfeetby
numberoffeetinamile.Thereare5,280feetinamile.
3005280=.0568miles
Convertelapsedtimetohoursbydividingtimeinsecondsbysecondsinanhour.
Thereare3600secondsinanhour.
2.73600=.00075hours
FindMilesPerHour:
.0568.00075=75.7mph
Ifourtimerwasaccurateandthedistanceisaccuratethenthatspeedwillbe
accurate.Aneasierwayistousearadargun,butthenyoudon'tgettodoallthis
funmath.
Goingbacktothepreviousexample,let'sdeterminetheoveralllossofefficiency
andthen,forconvenience,blameitallonthepropeller.
Divideactualspeedbythetheoreticalspeedusinga100%efficientpropellerand
anaircrafthavingzerodrag:
75.799.4=76.16%efficiency
Unlesswehaveanonboardtachometer,wedonotreallyknowwhattheRPMof
theengineis.Also,thelackofefficiencycouldveryeasilybeattributedtothe
airframedesignnotnecessarilythefaultofthepropeller.Still,itissomethingto
playaroundwithifyouaresoinclined.

Workingouttheliftcoefficient

TOcalculatetheliftcoefficientofamodelinagiventrimcondition,itisnecessarytoknowthe
speedatwhichitisflying,itswingarea,andflyingweight.Thespeediseasytodetermineifthe
modelcanbeflownseveraltimesoveramearsureddistanceandtimedwithastopwatch.

Thestamdardliftformulamayberearrangedtogiveclintermsofmodelweight,ifitscales
1kg.Thisindiacatesamassof1kg.itneedsaliftforceof1x9.81newtonstosupportit

NOTES
Theaerodynamiccenterofanairfoilisusuallycloseto25%ofthechordbehindtheleading
edgeoftheairfoil.Whenmakingtestsonamodelairfoil,suchasinawindtunnel,iftheforce
sensorisnotalignedwiththequarterchordoftheairfoil,butoffsetbyadistancex,the
pitchingmomentaboutthequarterchordpoint,Mc/4isgivenby

wheretheindicatedvaluesofDandLarethedragandliftonthemodel,asmeasuredbythe
forcesensor.

___________
horizontalstabilizer:

AsforEQUILIBRIUM,anaeroplanemustbeinbalancelongitudinallyinordertofly.Thismeans
theThismeansthattheneteffectofalltheforcesactingontheaeroplaneproducesnooverall
pitchingmomentaboutthecentreofgravity.Withoutatailplanetherewouldbeonlyone
combinationofspeedandcenterofgravitypositionforwhichthisrequirementwasmet.The
tailplaneprovidesabalancingforcetomaintainequilibriumfordifferentspeedsandcenterof
gravitypositions.Becausethetailplaneislocatedsomedistancefromthecenterofgravity,
eventhesmallamountofliftitproducescangeneratealargepitchingmomentatthecentreof
gravity.
Theissueofstability:
Anaeroplanewithawingonlyisnormallyunstableinpitch(longitudinalstability).Thismeans
thatanydisturbance(suchasagust)whichraisesthenoseproducesanoseuppitching
momentwhichtendstoraisethenosefurther.Withthesamedisturbance,thepresenceofa
tailplaneproducesarestoringnosedownpitchingmomentwhichcounteractsthenatural
instabilityofthewingandmakestheaircraftlongitudinallystable.
_______________

pitchingmomentcoefficientisimportantinthestudyofthelongitudinalstaticstabilityof
aircraft
ThepitchingmomentcoefficientCmisdefinedasfollows

whereMisthepitchingmoment,qisthedynamicpressure,Sistheplanformarea,andcisthe
lengthofthechordoftheairfoil.Cmisadimensionlesscoefficientsoconsistentunitsmustbe
usedforM,q,Sandc.
Pitchingmomentcoefficientisfundamentaltothedefinitionofaerodynamiccenterofan
airfoil.Theaerodynamiccenterisdefinedtobethepointonthechordlineoftheairfoilat
whichthepitchingmomentcoefficientdoesnotvarywithangleofattack,oratleastdoesnot
varysignificantlyovertheoperatingrangeofangleofattackoftheairfoil.
Inthecaseofasymmetricairfoil,theliftforceactsthroughonepointforallanglesofattack,
andthecenterofpressuredoesnotmoveasitdoesinacamberedairfoil.Consequently
thepitchingmomentcoefficientforasymmetricairfoiliszero.
Pitchingmomentis,byconvention,consideredtobepositivewhenitactstopitchtheairfoilin
thenoseupdirection.Conventionalcamberedairfoilssupportedattheaerodynamiccenter
pitchnosedownsothepitchingmomentcoefficientoftheseairfoilsisnegative