Review Questions for Statics: 1. Define stability?

Distinguish between the static, dynamic and neutral stability by taking a suitable example. 2. Apply the above definitions for an aircraft in flight and hit by a gust and discuss its behaviour. 3. Define aerodynamic centre. 4. What is longitudinal motion? What is lateral motion? 5. When do you say an aircraft is trimmed in longitudinal motion? What is the condition for trim? 6. Draw the pitching moment-angle of attack curve for a typical aircraft. Explain static stability using this curve. Obtain the conditions for static stability for an aircraft using this curve. 7. Discuss why a positive cambered wing cannot fly? 8. Why do you call the horizontal tail surface as the stabilizer? 9. Can a canard surface be used instead of a horizontal tail as a stabilizer? Which of the two is popular and why? 10. Sketch the wing-tail configuration for a conventional aircraft indicating the angle of incidence of the tail? Can you change this incidence angle? 11. What is the contribution of the wing to the pitching moment and how do you alter this contribution? 12. What is downwash? How does it affect the tail angle of attack? 13. What is Neutral point? Define the location of the Neutral point in terms of the aircraft parameters? Does the neutral point vary during the flight of an aircraft? 14. Show that the Neutral point can be considered as the aerodynamic centre of an aircraft. 15. What is static margin? Is this a fixed number for a given aircraft? 16. Can you use the centre of gravity location to trim the aircraft at different speeds? How? 17. Can you use the wing to trim the aircraft at different speeds? Explain. 18. How do you use the tail to trim the aircraft at different speeds? 19. What is the effect of elevator deflection on the lift curve of the tail? 20. What is elevator effectiveness? 21. Discuss the different components that make up the lateral motion. 22. What is side-slip angle? How is it different from the angle of attack? 23. What is directional stability? 24. Discuss static stability with respect to directional motion. 25. Show the yawing moment vs sideslip angle curve for stable and unstable aircraft and state the condition for static stability. How does this differ from longitudinal static stability condition? 26. What is sidewash angle? How does the sidewash angle alter the yawing moment? 27. Write the contribution of the vertical tail for the yawing moment. How do you alter this contribution? 28. What is roll stability? 29. Will the roll stability arise from banking? 30. Why should an aircraft develop sideslip when it banks? 31. Draw the rolling moment vs sideslip curve for stable and unstable aircraft and write down the condition for stability in terms of the suitable stability derivative. 32. How does the aircraft develop rolling moment due to sideslip?

33. What is dihedral of the wing? How does it help in developing rolling moment opposing the disturbance? 34. Explain how swept back wings help in roll stability. 35. Normally high wings are having very low dihedral or sometimes anhedral. Explain.

Dynamics 1. What are the dynamic equations of motion of an aircraft? How do you obtain them? 2. Discuss the axis system employed for formulating the equations of motion of aircraft. 3. List the assumptions made while formulating the equations of motion. Give suitable justification for each of the above. 4. What is an inertial frame of reference? 5. What is equilibrium? What is the condition on force and moment during equilibrium? 6. Derive the force balance equations for an aircraft? Are they linear? 7. What is angular momentum? Write the Newtons law for angular momentum balance. 8. Obtain the momentum balance equations for an aircraft. 9. Define moments of inertia? What is the implication of the assumption of X-Z is the plane of symmetry? 10. Define the equilibrium condition employed for decoupling the equations of motion. 11. What is longitudinal motion? What is lateral motion? 12. What is stability axis system? What are the advantages of employing this system? 13. Obtain the expressions for the variation of gravitational force with pitching angle. 14. How do you write the aerodynamic force and moment in a linear fashion? 15. If the thrust also needs to be accounted, how do you account for that in your equations of motion? 16. Identify the stability derivatives employed during the longitudinal motion. 17. Write the equations of motion in a matrix form and identify the contents of each matrix. 18. Why are they called stability derivatives? 19. What are control stability derivatives? Can you identify a set of control stability derivatives if thrust needs to be accounted as a control force?