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CONTENTS
PREFACE................................................................................................iii
INDEX..............................................................................................................1-1
PREFACE
Congratulations on taking the first step toward learning to becoming an Aviation Maintenance
Technician. The A&P Technician Airframe Textbook contains the answers to many of the
questions you may have as you begin your training program. It is based on the "study/review"
concept of learning. This means detailed material is presented in an uncomplicated way, then
important points are summarized through the use of bold type and illustrations. The textbook
incorporates many design features that will help you get the most out of your study and review
efforts. These include:
Bold Type 4 Important new terms in the text are printed in bold type, then defined.
This textbook is the key element in the training materials. Although it can be studied alone,
there are several other components that we recommend to make your training as complete as
possible. These include the A&P Technician Airframe Test Guide with Oral and Practical Study
Guide, the A&P Technician Airframe Workbook, AC 43.13-1A/2A, and the FAR Handbook for
Aviation Maintenance Technicians. When used together, these various elements provide an
ideal framework for you and your instructor as you prepare for the FAA computerized and
practical tests.
The A&P Technician Airframe course is one of three segments of your training as an aviation
maintenance technician. The airframe section introduces you to the concepts, terms, and
common procedures used in the inspection and maintenance of airframe structures and
systems.
Hviation maintenance Training
JEPPESEN
nte Training Products
A&PTECHNIOAN
GENERAL
WORKBOOK
A&P Technician General Workbook
Contains questions covering the general section of aviation technician
training. It is designed to be used with the A&P technician general
textbook. Answer key bound into back of workbook.
ISBN# 0-88487-212-2. 204 pages.
Item Number JS322710 $12.95
FAR Handbook For Aviation Maintenance Technicians
Contains the most current and easy-to-use FAR information available. Updated
annually to include all changes published by the FAA in the previous year, the
changes are identified to make them easy to find. The handbook contains only
those FAR parts which are pertinent to an aviation maintenance technician: 1,
13, 21, 23, 27, 33, 34, 35, 39, 43, 45, 47, 65, 91, 119, 125, 135, 145, 147, 183 as
well as applicable SFARS.
As an added bonus, each book contains a copy of applicable Advisory Circulars
including: AC 20-62, AC 20-109, AC 21-12, AC 39-7, AC 43-9, AC 43.9-1,
AC 65-11, and AC 65-19G, Inspection Authorization Study Guide.
ISBN* 0-88487-200-9.
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Special Interest Reference Books
Acceptable Methods, Techniques and
Practices/Aircraft Alterations r
ADVISORY
AC 43.13- IB with CHANGE!
AC-43.13-1B AC-43.13-1A has been cancelled effective September 8, 1998. When CIRCULAR
AC43.13-2A Combined
completing Major Altreation and Repair forms that make reference to AC-43.13-1A, ACCrpTABLfcMFTHODS,TECHN!OUαAND
RAfncr*- A!fOftn*ffv^PixnON AND REPAIR
the references must be made to the new, current advisory circular. The AC-43.13-1B
has been extensively rewritten and includes expanded information in most topics
including: 8 Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) techniques 8 Aircraft Corrosion
Control 8 Repair of fiberglass and plastic laminate structures. The AC-43.13-1B is
conviently bound together with the AC-43.13-2A Acceptable Methods, Techniques
and Practices - Aircraft Alterations manual. The textbook features 736 pages.
FAR's EXPLAINED
Jeppesen FAR's Ex-plained has quickly become an industry standard. It helps answer the
question, " I know what it says, but what does it mean?" Includes FAR Parts 1, 61, 91,
141, and NTSB 830. Recently updated and expanded.
Figure 1-5. As an airfoil moves through the air, it alters the air pressure around its surface. A typical subsonic airfoil has a
rounded nose, or leading edge, a maximum thickness about one-third of the way back, and a smooth taper into a relatively
sharp point at the rear or trailing edge.
Camber 29 the characteristic curve of the airfoil's upper and Low Pressure
lower surfaces
i High Pressure
Chord Line 29 an imaginary straight line
drawn through the airfoil from
the leading edge to the
trailing edge
The air that passes over the top of the airfoil adheres
to the upper camber, which causes it to accelerate
because of the camber's curvature. In speeding up,
some of the air's energy is converted from pressure
energy into velocity energy, which causes a
decrease in the static air pressure over the upper
camber of the airfoil. This causes an area of low Figure 1-7. Some all-metal general aviation airplanes, which
pressure to form over the airfoil surface, with the have a relatively high speed, have the wing skin attached to
lowest pressure near the thickest section. the ribs and spars with flush rivets along the leading edge
and back to about one-third of the upper camber. Behind
this, and on the bottom of the wing where the airflow is not
The air above the surface is pulled down into this as critical to produce a smooth or laminar flow, protruding
low-pressure area and, as a result, is forced down as head rivets are used for economy of construction.
the airfoil moves through the atmosphere. This
deflection of air, called the downwash, produces a
large portion of lift. In order to support an aircraft, TRANSMITTING LIFT INTO
the total pressure of the air forced downward must THE STRUCTURE
be sufficient to support the weight of the aircraft. Air deflected by the wing produces the lift that sup-
One way to increase the production of lift is to ports an airplane, but lift must be transmitted into
increase the angle of attack, and thus the downwash the structure in such a manner that the airplane can
angle. However, this is no longer true beyond a max- be balanced in every condition of flight. In addition,
imum angle of attack. Above this critical angle, the the structure must be built to support all of the
air no longer flows smoothly over the upper camber, loads without any damaging distortion. To do this,
and the airfoil reaches a stalled condition. wings are mounted on an airplane in a location that
places its center of lift just slightly behind the cen-
The amount of lift produced is also affected by the ter of gravity. The center of lift is the point at which
velocity of the airfoil traveling through the atmos- the air pressures produced by the wing can be con-
phere and the airfoil's surface area. In fact, the sidered concentrated.
greatest change in lift is affected by the speed of the
relative airflow over the airfoil. For example, with As an airplane is maneuvered and the angle of
all other factors such as air density and angle of attack changes, the center of lift also changes and
attack remaining constant, if the airspeed is dou- produces some rather large torsional loads on the
bled, the amount of lift produced will increase four wing structure. This is especially true at the point
times. On the other hand, if the area of the airfoil is where the wing attaches to the fuselage.
doubled, the amount of lift will also double. Since
at slow speeds the amount of lift may not be suffi- In addition to the twisting loads imposed on the
cient to support the aircraft, airplanes usually have structure, the wing is also subjected to bending
a method of changing the shape of the airfoil to loads. While weight is essentially concentrated at
increase the camber shape and/or wing area. This is the fuselage, lift is produced along the full length of
done with leading or trailing edge devices such as the wing. With the generation of lift, the wing tends
flaps or slats, described further in section B of this to bend upward from the root toward the tip. The
chapter. wing spars are designed to flex to carry these bend-
ing loads.
To obtain maximum performance, the airflow over
the leading edge of an airfoil is critical. A truss-type TRUSS-TYPE WING CONSTRUCTION
wing used on many slow-speed airplanes has its Fabric-covered airplane wrings utilize truss-type
leading edge covered with thin sheet metal. Ribs are structures that have changed very little throughout
spaced at intervals throughout the wing structure the design development of aircraft. As with other
and form the shape of the leading edge, camber, and wing designs, spars are the main load-carrying
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-7
A. SOLID WOOD
B. LAMINATED WOOD
C. BUILT-UP WOOD BOX SPAR
WINGLETS
Because wingtip vortices cost airplanes so much
efficiency and performance, there has been much
research to diffuse them. One of the most effective
devices is the winglet, developed by Richard
Whitcomb of NASA. These nearly vertical exten-
sions on the wingtips are actually carefully
designed, proportioned, and positioned airfoils
with their camber toward the fuselage. The span,
Figure 1-16. Winglets are used to increase performance by
taper, and aspect ratio of the winglets are optimized improving lift and reducing drag at low speeds.
to provide maximum benefit at a specific speed and
angle of attack. On most jets, this is cruise speed, the airfoil to induce buffeting to control surfaces
but turboprop airplanes use winglets to improve lift while also reducing control surface effectiveness. To
and reduce drag at low speeds. reinvigorate the airflow toward the surface of the air-
foil, vortex generators may be installed on the airfoil
The winglet combines many small factors to increase at the point where this separation is most likely to
performance. Downwash from the trailing edge of occur. Vortex generators are short, low-aspect-ratio
the winglet blocks the vortices. Even the winglet vor- airfoils arranged in pairs. The tip vortices of these
tex is positioned to counteract a portion of the main airfoils pull high-energy air down into the boundary
wingtip vortex. The leading edges of many winglets layer helping prevent the separation. The boundary
are actually canted outward about 4 degrees, but layer is the region of air that flows immediately adja-
because of the relative wind induced by the wingtip cent to the surface of the airfoil. [Figure 1-17]
vortex, the winglet is actually at a positive angle of
attack. Part of the lift generated by the winglet acts in
a forward direction, adding to the thrust of the air-
plane. Other winglets may be canted outward
around 15 degrees, which adds to vertical lift and
increases their aerodynamic efficiency, while also
contributing to dihedral effect. Depending on the
application, performance improvements due to
winglets can increase fuel efficiency at high speeds
and altitudes as much as 2656. [Figure 1-16]
VORTEX GENERATORS
Stalls are usually associated with high angle of
attack flight conditions, but a special type of stall, Figure 1-17. Vortex generators are short, low-aspect-ratio
called shock-induced separation, can occur on the airfoils installed on the wing to help prevent boundary layer
wing of a high-speed airplane when it approaches separation.
its critical Mach number. Critical Mach number is
the speed at which the airflow over any portion of EMPENNAGE STRUCTURES
an airfoil surface reaches the speed of sound. The empennage of an airplane is the assembly of the
tail structures and includes components that are
When an airfoil approaches its critical Mach num-
used both for control and stability. Regardless of
ber, a shock wave begins to form just behind the
their location, configuration or method of operation,
point at which the air is moving the fastest. A shock
these components serve the same basic functions of
wave typically first forms somewhere on the upper
stabilizing and providing control of the aircraft in
camber of the wing and tends to oscillate back and
flight, both longitudinally and vertically.
forth. The oscillating wave causes the airflow over
Longitudinal stability and control are provided by
7-74 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
the horizontal surfaces, while directional stability
and control are provided by vertical surfaces.
For propeller-driven airplanes, the location of the
horizontal control surfaces must take into considera-
tion both the effect of the propeller slipstream and
the turbulence produced by the airflow over the
wings. Some airplanes have these surfaces located
quite low on the fuselage. For example, the vertical
fin on some airplanes is quite large and is swept back
to increase its effective aerodynamic arm. This is
accomplished by moving the center of its area back as
far from the vertical axis of the airplane as practical. Figure 1-19. The horizontal tail surfaces are removed from
The extension of the vertical fin forward, nearly to wing turbulence and propeller slipstream by locating them
the back window, is called a dorsal fin. Large vertical at the top of the vertical fin.
fins are often needed to counteract the surface area Another type of tail is the V-tail that appears on
ahead of the vertical axis, sometimes even to offset older Beechcraft Bonanza airplanes. It uses two
the forces caused by a nose wheel fairing. slanted tail surfaces to perform the same functions
Turbine-powered aircraft often have a conventional as the surfaces of a conventional elevator and rud-
vertical fin and rudder, but the horizontal surfaces der configuration. The fixed surfaces act as both
may be moved up on the fin to remove them from horizontal and vertical stabilizers. The movable sur-
the exhaust area when the engines are mounted on faces, commonly called ruddervators, are con-
the sides of the tail. [Figure 1-18] nected through a special linkage that allows in and
out movement of the control wheel to move both
surfaces simultaneously. On the other hand, move-
ment of the rudder pedals moves the surfaces dif-
ferentially, thereby providing directional control.
Another interesting configuration of empennage
control surfaces is seen in a center-line-thrust twin-
engine airplane. The empennage of this airplane is
two booms extending back from the wing. The con-
Figure 1-18. Some turbine-powered aircraft have the trols are conventional, with fixed vertical fins, mov-
engines mounted on each side of the empennage. One ben- able rudders, a fixed horizontal stabilizer, and a
efit of this design is that, if an engine fails, the yawing ten- movable elevator. [Figure 1-20]
dency from adverse thrust is reduced compared to an air-
craft with the engines mounted further outboard on the
wings. To accommodate the engine location, manufacturers
sometimes use a mid-tail structure.
POSITIVE STABILITY
Positive stability can be illustrated by considering
the action of a ball in a U-shaped trough as shown
in figure 1-32. If the ball is rolled up to one edge of
Figure 1 -31. The rudder causes an airplane to yaw about the the trough and released, positive static stability will
vertical axis. The primary purpose of the rudder is to coun- cause it to roll back down towards its original posi-
teract aileron drag and keep the fuselage streamlined with tion.
the relative wind. This improves the quality of turns and
reduces drag. When the ball returns to its original position at the
bottom of the trough, it will probably overshoot its
Stability is the characteristic of an airplane in flight position of equilibrium and start up the opposite
that causes it to return to a condition of equilibrium, side. As soon as it starts up the opposite slope, pos-
or steady flight, after it is disturbed. Maneuverability itive static stability will tend to return it to the bot-
is the characteristic of an airplane that permits the tom. The ball will rock back and forth, each time
pilot to easily move the airplane about its axes and moving a shorter distance up the slope, until it
to withstand the stress resulting from these maneu- finally stops at the bottom 74 a demonstration of
vers. Controllability is the capability of an airplane positive dynamic stability. [Figure 1-32]
to respond to the pilot's control inputs.
TYPES OF STABILITY
STATIC STABILITY
An airplane is in equilibrium when there are no
forces trying to disturb its condition of steady flight.
If the plane is disturbed from steady flight, static
stability will try to return it to its original attitude.
DYNAMIC STABILITY
While static stability creates a force that tends to
return the aircraft to its original attitude, dynamic Figure 1-32. Positive static and dynamic stability, as illus-
trated by the ball in a trough, is a desirable characteristic for
stability determines how it will return. Dynamic most airplanes. Most airplanes are designed to exhibit the
stability is concerned with the way the restorative damped oscillation form of stability when disturbed from
forces act with regard to time. pitch equilibrium.
7-22 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
NEGATIVE STABILITY
If the ball is released from the top of a hill, it will
not tend to return to its original position. In this
condition, the ball is said to have negative static sta-
bility, or to be statically unstable.
HORIZONTAL STABILIZER
Figure 1-35. With the center of pressure aft of the center of gravity, an airplane wing produces a nose-down pitching moment.
To counter-balance this moment, the tail down load can be varied to make the airplane longitudinally stable over a wide range
of airspeeds.
Figure 1-36. Wing dihedral is a major contributor to lateral stability. Airplanes generally have less roll stability than pitch stability.
7-24 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
Figure 1-37. Because they are inherently more stable laterally, high-wing aircraft such as the Cessna 172 on the left are designed
with less dihedral than the typical low-wing aircraft, as exhibited by the Beechcraft Bonanza on the right.
more fuselage surface area behind the CG than for- LONGITUDINAL CONTROLS
ward of it. The most conventional longitudinal control system
consists of a fixed horizontal stabilizer on the rear
When the airplane enters a sideslip, the relative end of the fuselage, with movable elevators hinged
wind strikes the side of the fuselage and the vertical to its trailing edge. The trailing edge of the elevator
tail. Since the force exerted on the airplane aft of the may have a trim tab to adjust the down load of the
CG tends to cause the nose to turn towards the tail for hands-off flying at any desired airspeed.
sideslip, this aligns the fuselage with the relative Another means of providing the necessary trimming
wind. [Figure 1-38] force is to adjust the entire horizontal stabilizer by
rotating it about a pivot point.
CONTROL SYSTEMS
The primary flight controls of an aircraft do no more The elevator is connected to the control wheel or
than modify the camber, or aerodynamic shape, of yoke in the cockpit with steel control cables, and
the surface to which they are attached. This change moves up or down as the wheel is moved forwards or
in camber creates a change in the lift and drag pro- backwards. Pulling back on the wheel pulls the
duced by the surface, with the immediate result of elevator-up cable and rotates the top of the elevator
rotating the airplane about one of its axes. This rota- bell crank forward. The control horn on the bottom of
tion produces the desired changes in the flight path the elevator torque tube is attached to the bell crank
of the aircraft. with a push-pull rod, and as the bottom of the bell
crank
Figure 1-38. To be directionally stable, an airplane must have more surface area behind the CG than in front of it. When an airplane
enters a sideslip, the greater surface area behind the CG helps keep the airplane aligned with the relative wind.
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-25
Figure 1-39. A typical elevator-control system consists of cables connecting the control wheel with a bell crank in the rear fuse-
lage. The bell crank is connected to the elevator control horn by a push rod.
moves back, it The elevator down 1 Air
pushes the elevator spring holds a - cra
up. Pushing in on the mechanical load on ft
control wheel has the the elevator, forcing Str
opposite result. The it down. This uct
elevator-down cable mechanical force is ura
is pulled and the balanced by the l
bottom of the bell aerodynamic force As
crank moves of the trim tab, and se
forward, causing the the airplane may be mb
push-pull rod to pull trimmed for its ly
the elevator down. approach speed in an
[Figure 1-39] the normal way. If d
the airplane Ri
Many modern encounters ggi
airplanes have turbulence that ng
several rows of seats slows it down, the
or otherwise have a trim tab will lose its
possibility of effectiveness. The
inadvertently being down spring will
loaded with their pull the elevator
center of gravity too down, lowering the
far back. For such nose so the airspeed
airplanes, an will build up and
elevator down spring prevent a stall.
automatically [Figure 1-40]
lowers the nose to
prevent an
approach-to-landing
stall caused by the
excessively far-aft
center of gravity. If
an airplane with the
center of gravity too
far aft is slowed
down for landing, the
trim tab will be
Figure 1-40. When the
working hard to hold aerodynamic tail load
the nose down, and is insufficient due to an
the elevators will aft center of gravity
actually be in a condition, an elevator
slightly down down spring may be
used to supply a
position. If the mechanical load to
airplane in this lower the nose.
unstable condition
encounters
turbulence and slows
down further, the
elevator will
streamline, and at
this slow speed the
trim tab cannot force
it back down. The
nose of the airplane
will pitch up,
aggravating the
situation and
possibly causing a
stall at this critical
altitude.
Figure 1-41. A typical stabilator control system is little different from an elevator control system. The main difference is that the
entire horizontal surface pivots when control forces are applied.
Airplanes with necessary to slip the Rotation of the
stabilators have airplane. control wheel turns
essentially the same the drum to which
type of control the aileron control
system as those cables are attached.
with elevators. If the wheel is
When the control rotated to the right,
yoke is pulled back, the right cable is
it pivots and pulls on pulled and the left
the stabilator-up one is relaxed. The
cable. This pulls cable rotates the
down on the balance right aileron bell
arm of the stabilator crank, and the push-
and raises its trailing pull tube connected
edge, rotating the to it raises the right
airplane's nose up. aileron. A balance
Pushing the yoke in cable connects both
lifts the stabilator aileron bell cranks,
balance arm and and as the right
lowers the trailing aileron is raised, the
edge of the balance cable pulls
stabilator. This the left bell crank
system uses and its push-pull
stabilator down tube lowers the left
springs in the same aileron. [Figure 1-42]
way as those just
described for the Aileron drag is a
elevator, to improve big problem caused
the longitudinal by the displacement
stability of the of the ailerons The
airplane during aileron that moves
conditions of low downward is the one
airspeed with a far- that causes the
aft center of gravity. problem, as it
[Figure 1-41] creates both more
lift and drag, and
LATE this drag way out
RAL near the wing tip
AND pulls the nose of the
airplane around in
DIRE the direction
CTIO opposite to the way
NAL the airplane should
turn. The geometry
CONT of the bell cranks is
ROLS such that the
Turning an airplane aileron moving
requires rotation upward travels a
about both the greater distance
longitudinal and than the one
vertical axes, and so moving down, and
both the rudder and it produces enough
ailerons must be parasite drag to
used. In many counteract some or
modern airplanes all of the induced
there is some form drag on the opposite
of mechanical wing.
interconnection
between these two
systems, usually not
a positive one, but
one that can be
overridden if it is
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-27
Figure 1-42. A typical aileron control system also consists of cables, bell cranks and push rods. Rotation of the control wheel
pulls causes one aileron to rise and the other to lower.
There are two wheel is moved to 1 Air
expedients in use to produce a right roll, - cr
decrease aileron the interconnect aft
drag: the Frise cable and spring Str
aileron and rudder- pulls forward on the uct
aileron interconnect right rudder pedal ur
springs. The Frise just enough to al
aileron is the type prevent the nose of As
most commonly the airplane yawing se
used today, and it m
to the left. [Figure 1-
minimizes aileron bly
44]
drag because of the an
location of its hinge d
point. These ailerons Ri
have their hinge ggi
point some distance ng
back from the
leading edge. When
the aileron is raised,
its nose sticks out
below the lower
surface of the wing
and produces
enough parasite drag
to counter the
induced drag from
the down aileron.
[Figure 1-43]
BALANCE TABS
The control forces may be excessively high in some
airplanes, and in order to decrease them, the manu-
facturer may use a balance tab. This tab is located in
the same place as a trim tab. In many installations, Figure 1-48. An anti-servo tab attempts to streamline the
one tab serves both functions. The basic difference control surface and is used to make an all-moving horizon-
is that the control rod for the balance tab is con - tal tail surface less sensitive by opposing the force exerted
nected to the fixed surface on the same side as the by the pilot.
horn on the tab. If the control surface is deflected
upward, the connecting linkage will pull the tab SERVO TABS
down. When the tab moves in the direction opposite Large aircraft are usually equipped with a power-
that of the control surface, it will create an aerody- operated irreversible flight control system. In these
namic force that aids the movement of the surface. systems, the control surfaces are operated by
[Figure 1-47] hydraulic actuators controlled by valves moved by
the control yoke and rudder pedals. An artificial
feel system gives the pilot resistance that is propor-
tional to the flight loads on the surfaces.
ANTI-SERVO TABS Figure 1-49. Servo tabs provide a force to assist the pilot in
All-movable horizontal tail surfaces do not have a moving a primary control surface of a large aircraft in the
event of a hydraulic system failure.
fixed stabilizer in front of them, and the location of
their pivot point makes them extremely sensitive.
To decrease this sensitivity, an anti-servo tab may be SPRING TABS
installed on the trailing edge. This tab works in the Another device for aiding the pilot of high-speed
same manner as the balance tab except that it moves aircraft is the spring tab. The control horn is free to
in the opposite direction. The fixed end of the link- pivot on the hinge axis of the surface, but it is
age is on the opposite side of the surface from the restrained by a spring. For normal operation when
horn on the tab, and when the trailing edge of the control forces are light, the spring is not com-
stabilator moves up, the linkage forces the trailing pressed. The horn acts as though it were rigidly
edge of the tab up. When the stabilator moves down, attached to the surface. At high airspeeds when the
the tab also moves down. The fixed end of the link- control forces are too high for the pilot to operate
properly, the spring collapses and the control horn
7-30 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
deflects the tab in the direction to produce an aero-
dynamic force that aids the pilot in moving the sur-
face. [Figure 1-50]
GROUND-ADJUSTABLE TABS Figure 1-52. Many airplanes, including most jet transports,
Many small airplanes have a non-moveable metal use an adjustable stabilizer to provide the required pitch
trim tab on the rudder. This tab is bent in one direc- trim forces.
tion or the other on the ground to apply a trim force
to the rudder. The correct displacement is deter- speed and low landing speed, because they may be
mined by trial-and-error until the pilot reports that extended only when needed, then tucked away into
the airplane is no longer skidding left or right dur- the structure when not needed.
ing normal cruising flight. [Figure 1-51]
FLAPS
Perhaps the most universal lift-modifying devices
used on modern airplanes are flaps on the trailing
edge of the wing. These surfaces change the camber
of the wing, increasing both lift and drag for any
given angle of attack. The basic airfoil section, at 15
degrees angle of attack, has a lift coefficient of 1.5
and a drag coefficient of about 0.05. If plain flaps are
hinged to the trailing edge of this airfoil, we get a
maximum lift coefficient of 2.0 at 14 degrees angle
Figure 1-51. A ground-adjustable tab is used on the rudder of attack and a drag coefficient of 0.08. Slotted flaps
of many small airplanes to correct for a tendency to fly with are even better, giving a maximum lift coefficient of
the fuselage slightly misaligned with the relative wind. 2.6 at the same angle of attack and a drag coefficient
of 0.10. The total effect of Fowler flaps is not seen in
just the lift and drag coefficients, because they not
ADJUSTABLE STABILIZER only provide an excellent increase in the lift coeffi-
Rather than using a movable tab on the trailing edge cient, but they also increase the wing area.
of the elevator, many airplanes pivot the horizontal Increased wing area has an important effect on both
stabilizer about its rear spar, and mount its leading lift and drag. [Figure 1-53]
edge on a jackscrew that is controllable from the
cockpit. On smaller airplanes, the jackscrew is PLAIN FLAPS
cable-operated from a trim crank, and on larger air- These simple devices are merely sections of the
planes it is motor driven. The trimming effect of the trailing edge of the wing, inboard of the ailerons.
adjustable stabilizer is the same as that obtained They are about the same size as the aileron and are
from a trim tab. [Figure 1-52] hinged so they can be deflected, usually in incre-
ments of 10, 25, and 40 degrees. Generally speaking,
HIGH LIFT DEVICES the effect of these flaps is minimal, and they are sel-
An airplane is a series of engineering compromises. dom found on modern airplanes.
Designers must choose between stability and
maneuverability, and between high cruising speed SPLIT FLAPS
and low landing speed, as well as between high util- This is another design of flap that was used with a
ity and low cost. Lift-modifying devices give us great deal of success in the past, but is seldom used
some good compromises between high cruising today. On the extremely popular Douglas DC-3, a
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-31
Figure 1-53. Different types of flaps provide differing amounts of lift and drag. Slotted and Fowler flaps are the most effective
type and are used almost exclusively on modern aircraft.
portion of the lower have double- and even triple-
surface of the slotted flaps to allow
trailing edge of the the maximum
wring from one increase in drag
aileron to the other, without the airflow
across the bottom of over the flaps
the fuselage, could separating and
be hinged down into destroying the lift
the airstream. The they produce.
lift change was [Figure 1-54]
similar to that
produced by a plain FOWLER FLAPS
flap, but it Fowler flaps are a
produced much type of slotted flap.
more drag at low lift The design of this
coefficients. This wing flap not only
drag coefficient changes the camber
changed very little of the wing, it also
with the angle of increases the wing
attack. area. Instead of rotat-
SLOTTED FLAPS
The most popular
flap on airplanes
today is the slotted
flap. Variations of
this design are used
for small airplanes
as well as for large
ones. Slotted flaps
increase the lift
coefficient a good
deal more than the
simple flap. On Figure 1-54. Triple-
slotted flaps are used
small airplanes, the on many jet transports
hinge is located to balance the lift and
below the lower drag necessary for
surface of the flap, reasonable takeoff and
and when it is landing speeds with the
requirements for high-
lowered, it forms a speed cruising flight.
duct between the flap
well in the wing and
the leading edge of
the flap.
WINGLETS
Figure 1-58. A wing tip vortex develops as a result of air Another popular method of controlling, or reduc-
flowing around the tip due to pressure differences. All air-
planes generate them. These vortices are strongest when
ing, wing tip vortices is by the use of winglets. Used
the airplane is flying slowly at high angles of attack and can principally on high-speed airplanes, they also allow
be very dangerous to other airplanes. for drag reduction and better airflow control.
[Figure 1-61]
There are a number of methods that have been used WING FENCE
to reduce the effects of wing-tip vortices. Some For the most efficient lift production, the airflow
manufacturers install fuel tanks on the wing tips should always be chordwise across the wing. This is
that serve the triple function of increasing the range not always possible and some planforms will allow
of the airplane, distributing the weight over a air to travel spanwise at the same time. The wing
greater portion of the wing and preventing the air fence is a simple method to stop, or reduce, the
spilling over the wing tip. Smaller airplanes that do spanwise flow.
not use tip tanks may have tip plates installed on
the tip. These plates have the same shape as the air- CANARD SURFACES
foil but are larger and prevent the air spilling over Any aircraft that has the equivalent of two lifting
the tips. [Figure 1-59] surfaces, instead of the conventional horizontal
7-34 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
106106106106106106106106106106106106106106106106106 106106106106106106106106<106 106 106• 106106106106 M
■106106106106106106106106106106 M 106106106106106106 106**'
Figure 1-61. Winglets actually recover some of the energy that would be lost to wing tip vortices and not only reduce the vortex
strength but also reduce the total drag on the airplane.
stabilizer that Brothers on their first moved away from G
provides a down airplanes. the disturbed airflow
load, can be classi- of the wing, rudder E
fied as a canard. The T-TAILS effectiveness is A
canard is the forward Many aircraft today improved because of I
surface, and the cap on its end.
frequently is also a
use the T-tail
Many jet aircraft use
R
configuration. C
control surface. Although somewhat this configuration
heavier, this because it allows the R
In a conventional arrangement has engines to be A
airplane, the wing several desirable mounted on the aft
stalls, aileron fuselage. Spin F
characteristics. The
control is lost, the stabilizer is recovery may be T
CG shifts forward, improved because of As aircraft increase
then speed builds up better airflow with in size and "weight,
and control is the stabilizer moved their controls
regained. During higher and out of the become more
this sequence of turbulence of the difficult to operate
events there is wing and fuselage. and systems must be
always the chance used to aid the pilot.
that lateral control However, T-tail The power-boosted
will also be lost, aircraft may also control system is
particularly when experience a phe- similar in principle
the airplane is in a nomena known as to power steering in
turn, causing an deep-stall. In a deep an automobile. A
accidental spin. With stall, the airflow over hydraulic actuator is
a canard the horizontal tail is in parallel with the
configuration, the blanketed by, or in mechanical
sequence changes the shadow of, the operation of the
somewhat. The disturbed airflow controls. In addition
canard stalls first, from the wing. to moving the
the nose drops and Elevator control is control surface, the
speed builds back ineffective and it normal control
up. The canard may be impossible to movement by the
regains full lift and recover from the pilot also moves a
the nose comes back stall. control valve that
up. The CG never directs hydraulic
changed, and full C fluid to the actuator
aileron control is to help move the
available at all O surface. A typical
times. This virtually N boost ratio is about
eliminates the T 14, meaning that a
chance of an stick force of one
inadvertent stall/spin
R pound will apply a
accident. [Figure 1- O force of 14 pounds
62] L to the control
S surface.
Y TYPES OF
S CONTROL
T SYSTEMS
E The problem with a
power-boosted
M control system is
S that during transonic
F flight shock waves
form on the control
O surfaces and cause
R control surface buf-
Figure 1-62. The L feting. This force is
fed back into the
canard, seen at the
nose of this state-of-
A control system. To
the-art Beech Starship, R prevent these
was used by the Wright
forces reaching the A
pilot, i
r
c
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many airplanes that fly in this airspeed region use Rotation about the three axes is controlled by con-
a power-operated irreversible control system. The ventional ailerons, rudders and elevators. These pri-
flight controls in the cockpit actuate control valves mary controls are assisted by spoilers which also
which direct hydraulic fluid to control surface double as speed brakes, by an adjustable horizontal
actuators. Since the pilot has no actual feel of the stabilizer and by both leading and trailing edge
flight loads, some form of artificial feel must be flaps. [Figure 1-63]
built into the system that will make the control
stick force proportional to the flight loads on the The primary control surfaces are moved hydrauli-
control surfaces. cally by dual-tandem irreversible actuators.
As mentioned earlier, if a mechanical system Hydraulic power for each primary flight control is
exists that links the pilot's controls with tabs on supplied by the four independent hydraulic sys-
the control surfaces so that the pilot can control tems. Manual or electrical inputs from the cockpit
the airplane in the event of a complete hydraulic direct hydraulic pressure to the control surface
failure, the airplane is said to have "manual rever- actuators. There are no trim tabs installed on any
sion" capability. If sufficient redundancy is built control surface and there is no manual reversion
into the system so that loss of one or more capability such as found in other aircraft like the
hydraulic systems will not seriously affect the Boeing 727. Manual reversion is not necessary due
pilot's ability to control the airplane, manual to hydraulic redundancies and duplication of con-
reversion is not necessary. trol surfaces. Control system feel forces are com-
puted and generated artificially. The flight controls
BOEING 747 CONTROL SYSTEM are programmed so that the airplane response to
The flight control system for the Boeing 747 jet control inputs is the same regardless of speed, cen-
transport aircraft is typical for large aircraft. ter of gravity or gross weight.
Figure 1-63. The flight controls for each axis of a Boeing 747 are powered by all four hydraulic systems and are designed so that
the airplane remains controllable even after failure of any two hydraulic systems.
7-56 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
ROLL CONTROL the opposite outboard elevator control valves to
The 747 has two sets of ailerons and six spoilers on move the outboard elevator. The inboard elevators
each wing. During high-speed flight, the inboard are powered by two hydraulic systems and the out-
ailerons and flight spoilers provide roll control and board elevators by a single system. The autopilot
an outboard aileron lockout system isolates the out- controls the elevators through transfer valves which
board ailerons from the lateral control system. operate a common linkage to both inboard elevator
When the trailing-edge flaps are extended out of the control valves.
full up (retracted) position, the outboard ailerons
are unlocked and both sets of ailerons and the flight Elevator feel is provided by a computer which
spoilers operate together. receives airspeed, hydraulic and stabilizer trim
inputs. The computer varies control column pres-
The five outboard spoilers on each wing operate in sure relative to airspeed and stabilizer position.
flight. Their movement is proportional to aileron
displacement and they decrease lift on the wing the Pitch trim is provided by hydraulically positioning
pilot wants to move down. When the speed brake the horizontal stabilizer. Pilot or autopilot inputs
control is actuated in flight, the four inboard sec- move the stabilizer through two independent
tions on each wing are raised, and they produce a hydraulic motors and a gearbox which rotates a trim
great deal of drag. The innermost spoiler on each jackscrew to move the leading edge of the stabilizer
wing rises only when the speed brake control is at up or down. Arming and directional valves control
its maximum flight setting. If the control wheel is the hydraulic motors and these valves are actuated
rotated while the spoilers are deployed as speed electrically by trim switches on the pilot's control
brakes, they will move differentially, decreasing the wheels or by the autopilot. Cables from a trim lever
lift on the wing that should go down, and decreas- in the cockpit provide backup manual control of
ing some of the drag on the wing that should rise. these valves.
When the airplane lands, the ten flight spoilers and
the two ground spoilers automatically extend to the YAW CONTROL
fully raised position to dump lift and slow the air- The Boeing 747 has two independent rudders, an
plane in its landing roll. upper and lower, to provide yaw control. Each
rudder is positioned by a hydraulically powered
Both control wheels in the cockpit are intercon- control unit and is powered by two separate
nected so that movement of either wheel provides hydraulic systems. The upper rudder is powered
an input through a trim, feel and centering unit to by systems 1 and 3, and the lower rudder by systems
two central control actuators. The pilot's control 2 and 4. Inputs from the pilot's rudder pedals control
inputs are hydraulically augmented by the central a trim, feel and centering unit which is connected to
control actuators and transmitted to the aileron pro- two rudder ratio changers. The rudder ratio changers
grammers and a spoiler mixer. The central control control the amount of rudder movement as a func-
actuators also receive and augment inputs from the tion of airspeed. As airspeed increases, maximum
autopilot. rudder displacement decreases. Rudder trim is
accomplished by changing the zero position of the
The aileron programmers control the movement of trim, feel and centering unit.
the ailerons through individual dual-tandem actua-
tors which are powered by two separate hydraulic Swept-wing airplanes have a tendency towards a
systems. The design of the system is such that loss combined rolling and pitching oscillation known as
of any two hydraulic systems will cause only one of dutch roll. Dutch roll is generally of low magnitude
the four ailerons to become inoperative. The and, while objectionable from a flight comfort
ailerons are trimmed by an electric motor which standpoint, it is usually not a serious flight condi-
adjusts the neutral position of the trim, feel and cen- tion.
tering unit.
Two full-time yaw dampers provide compensation
PITCH CONTROL for dutch roll. Yaw damper computers sense the
Four elevators, powered by all four hydraulic sys- oscillation and provide signals to the rudder control
tems, provide pitch control. Elevator movement is valves to cancel it.
accomplished by inputs from either pilot's control
column through a system of cables and pulleys to FLAPS
the inboard elevator control valves. When the Each wing of the Boeing 747 is equipped with two
inboard elevators move, they mechanically position triple-slotted Fowler flaps on the trailing edge. The
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-37
leading edge is equipped with three Krueger flaps
on the section between the fuselage and the inboard
engines and unique, variable-camber leading edge
flaps from the inboard engines out to the wingtips.
The trailing edge flaps are actuated by hydraulic
motors and have an emergency backup system of
electric motors that will raise or lower them.
Engines
2 Continental O-470-B or O-470-M (installed per Cessna Dwg. Q85O000,0951560,0851000 and 0851755)
*Fuel
Grade 100 or 100LL aviaiton gasoline
*Engine Limits
For all operations, 2600 r.p.m. (240 hp.)
118-ing
.ji. (12 qi. m each engine at (0), 6 qt. unusable per engine)
See NOTE I for data on system oil.
Down
Down
Left
Down
Down
Left
Aileron Up
Elevator Up
Rudder Right
Tabs (main surface in neutral)
Aileron Up
Elevator Up
Rudder Right
a Pertinent to AIIModels
Figure 1-66. This partial example of an Airplane Type Certificate Data Sheet illustrates typical rigging information such as the con-
trol surface movement and the leveling means and all of the needed weight and balance information.
adjustments to get the controls. In A
the required control short, all of the i
surface movement, needed information r
the correct way to for assembling and c
install all of the com- rigging an aircraft is r
ponents, and the prepared by the a
proper way to manufacturer and is f
connect and adjust available to the t
technician.
S
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Normally, rigging and alignment checks should be rather than measuring the dihedral with a dihedral
performed inside a closed hangar. If this cannot be board, use a string stretched between the wing tips
avoided, the aircraft should be positioned with the at the front spar. When the dihedral is correctly
nose into the wind. adjusted, there will be a specific distance between
the wing root fitting and the string. [Figure 1-67]
Each of the required inspections for an aircraft
122 the 100-hour, the annual, the progressive, and
the continuous airworthiness inspection program
122 must include all checks that are needed to
determine whether or not all of the rigging
specifications published in the Type Certificate Data
Sheets are actually met on the aircraft.
AIRPLANE ASSEMBLY
Modern airplanes are almost all of the full can-
tilever type. This type has no external struts or brac-
ing, or are braced with a minimum of struts, gener-
ally of a fixed length. Earlier airplanes, especially
biplanes, were braced by a maze of wires and struts, Figure 1-67. When the bottom of the board is level, the wing
and their assembly and rigging was a time-consum- has the proper dihedral. Before this check can be made, the
ing process and required much skill on the part of aircraft must be leveled according to specifications.
the technician.
The assembly of a cantilever airplane consists of fol- When the dihedral is correctly adjusted, the wash-
lowing the instructions in the manufacturer's main- in or wash-out may be set. This is normally done by
tenance manual in detail. No attempt should ever be adjusting the length of the rear strut. An incidence
made to assemble an aircraft without this vital infor- board similar to a dihedral board is held under a
mation. In general, the fuselage is leveled in the specified wing rib, and the strut length is adjusted
manner specified in the maintenance manual, and until the bottom of the board is level. On airplanes
the wings are installed and the attachment bolts are having this adjustment, the initial setting will likely
torqued to specification. The fixed horizontal and have to be changed after the first flight to trim the
vertical tail surfaces are installed and all of their airplane for straight and level hands-off flight.
attachment bolts are torqued, again to the specified Increasing the angle of incidence, that angle
values. After all of the fixed surfaces are installed, between the chord line of the wing and the longitu-
the movable surfaces are installed and the control dinal axis of the airplane, is called "washing the
actuating mechanism is attached and adjusted. wing in" and it increases the lift. Washing out a
wing is done by rigging it with a lower angle of inci-
WING ALIGNMENT dence to decrease its lift. [Figure 1-68]
Cantilever wings have very little adjustment
potential, as this is all taken care of when the
airplane is built. Some airplanes have either a cam
arrangement or a serrated washer at the rear spar attach-
ment bolt, and a few degrees of wash-in may be set in
the wing to correct for a wing-heavy flight condition.
Strut-braced wings using V-struts normally have
provisions for adjusting both the dihedral angle and
the incidence angle of the wings. Install the wing
and check the fuselage to be sure that it is level both Figure 1-68. An incidence board is used to check for wing
warpage and for the proper wash-in or wash-out.
longitudinally and laterally, and adjust the fittings
in the end of the front struts to get the correct dihe-
dral. This is determined by using a dihedral board AILERON INSTALLATION
that has a specific taper. It is held against the main After the wing is installed and aligned, and all of the
spar on the bottom of the wing at the location spec- attachment bolts torqued and safetied, the ailerons
ified by the manufacturer, and the fitting in the end may be installed and rigged. It is important that the
of the strut is screwed either in or out until the bot- hinges be shimmed in exact accordance with the
tom of the dihedral board is level. Some aircraft, manufacturer's specifications, and that the control
7-40 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
rods or cable be attached to the horns with the Some ailerons are required to have a few degrees of
proper type of bolt. The attachment must be free to droop. This means that when there is no airload
pivot, yet have no excessive looseness. The cable they should both be a few degrees below the trailing
tension must be adjusted, and the stops checked to edge of the wing. If the ailerons you are rigging have
be sure that the travel is that specified in the Type this requirement, be sure that they are properly
Certificate Data Sheet. Level the aileron and install a drooped. The final check in rigging the ailerons is to
protractor such as a universal propeller protractor or be sure that all of the turnbuckles and any bolt or
a special control surface protractor. Zero the protrac- connector in the entire system are properly adjusted
tor when the aileron is in the exact trail position, and safetied. Leave nothing to chance. Start at the
and then deflect it upward until it contacts its stop control wheel, and systematically check every
and measure its travel. Next, deflect it downward connection in the system to the aileron, through the
until it contacts the stop, and measure its travel. The balance cable to the other aileron and back to the
travel must be within the specified range. If it is not, control wheel.
the stops must be adjusted. When the stops have
been reset, move the ailerons through their full FLAP INSTALLATION
travel from the control wheel to be sure they travel The flaps are connected to their hinges and actuator
through the entire range and that they are stopped by rods in a manner similar to that of the ailerons.
the stops in the wing and not by those at the control However, Fowler flaps are normally mounted on
wheel. Check to be extremely sure that the control rollers that ride in tracks, and these must be
wheel moves in the proper direction for the aileron adjusted so they ride up and down smoothly with
action. Serious accidents have been caused by no binding or interference.
ailerons being rigged backward. [Figure 1-69]
There are a number of actuation methods for wing
flaps. The simplest flaps are actuated by either
cables or a torque tube directly from a hand lever in
the cockpit. Other airplanes use electric motors to
drive jacks crews that move the flaps up or down,
and many of the larger aircraft use hydraulic actua-
tors to provide the muscle to move the flaps against
the air loads.
EMPENNAGE INSTALLATION
The tail surfaces on almost all modern airplanes are
of the cantilever type and are bolted to fittings in the
fuselage. Special care must be exercised that all the
bolts used have the proper part number and that all
of them are tightened in the proper sequence and to
the correct torque.
Figure 1-70. A typical small aircraft flap actuation system uses a series of cables, bell cranks and push rods and may be
actuated manually by a hand lever in the cockpit or by an electric motor.
CABLE SYSTEM formed, which means that the wires were shaped in
Aircraft control cable is available in both corrosion- their spiral form before the cable was wound, and
resistant steel and carbon steel. The corrosion-resis- they will not spring out when the cable is cut.
tant steel is somewhat more expensive and has a [Figures 1-71, 1-72]
slightly lower strength, but its longer life makes it
the better of the two cables for use where corrosion
may be a problem, such as in agricultural aircraft
and seaplanes.
CABLE CONSTRUCTION
There are three types of steel cable used for aircraft
control systems: nonflexible, flexible, and extra-
flexible. Nonflexible cable may be of either the 1 x
7 or 1 x 19 type. This designation means that the 1
x 7 cable is made up of seven strands, each having
only one wire. The 1 x 19 cable is made of 19
strands of one wire each. Nonflexible cable may be
used only for straight runs where the cable does not
pass over any pulleys. Flexible cable is made up of
seven strands, each of which has seven wires.
Flexible cable may be used only for straight runs or
where the pulleys are large. When cables must
change direction over relatively small diameter pul-
leys, extra-flexible cable must be used. This type of
cable is made up of seven strands, each having 19 Figure 1-71. This cross-sectional drawing illustrates the
separate wires. All aircraft control cable is pre- construction of various types of aircraft control cable.
7-42 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
Figure 1-72. The breaking strength and weight per 100 feet of various sizes and types of steel aircraft control cables can be deter-
mined from this table.
T put through the the compression
E sleeve and around, nearest the thimble,
the thimble, and the and finally the
R
end is passed back compression at the
M through the sleeve end of the sleeve.
I and it is compressed.
N The center
A
compression is
made first, then
T
I
O
N
W
o
v
e
n
Figure 1-73.Typical
woven splice is seldom
used because of its low
strength and high cost
of production.
Nicopress Process
Copper Nicopress
sleeves may be
compressed onto the
cable with a special
tool. The cable is
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-43
Use the proper swaging tool to compress the sleeve
into the cable. A special "before and after" gauge is
used to determine that the terminal is properly
compressed. The sleeve or ball should fit into the
"before" portion of the gauge before it is swaged,
and after it is swaged, it must slip through the
"after" slot. When the swaging is complete, mark
the end of the terminal and the cable with a dot of
Figure 1-75. A properly compressed Nicopress sleeve has paint to show if the cable ever slips. [Figure 1-78]
the dimension of the slot in the proper gauge.
INSTALLATION
Figure 1-90. Push-pull control rods are frequently used to Control Surface Balancing
connect cable-driven bell cranks to the adjacent control
As previously discussed, control surfaces must
surface and may provide a simple means of adjusting the
control surface travel.This is a typical push-pull rod using a remain in a balanced condition to prevent aerody-
clevis rod end and a rod-end bearing. namic flutter. In most situations, the airframe man-
ufacturer provides detailed information for the bal-
ancing procedure, and may also offer special bal-
ancing tools and equipment. The following pro-
vides one method of control surface balancing, but
each manufacturer prescribes specific procedures to
follow. [Figure l-92a]
Figure 1-91. The rod must be screwed into the rod end bear-
ing until it covers the check hole.
S
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r
Figure 1-94. A u
gyroplane is supported c
by a rotating rotor that t
is driven by
u
aerodynamic forces
rather than by power r
from its engine. a
l
SINGLE-ROTOR
HELICOPTER A
The most popular s
design, which has s
become almost e
m
universally adopted,
b
has a single main
l
rotor that provides
y
lift and thrust and a
small vertical rotor a
on n
d
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3
the tail that compensates for main rotor torque. TYPES OF ROTOR SYSTEMS
When the engine spins the rotor, according to
Newton's third law, an equal and opposite force MAIN ROTOR SYSTEM
tends to rotate the fuselage in the opposite direction. Main rotor systems are classified according to how
The main transmission drives the anti-torque rotor, the main rotor blades move in relation to the main
and the pilot controls its pitch with foot pedals to rotor. There are three basic classifications: fully
vary the amount of torque correction. [Figure 1-95] articulated, semirigid, and rigid. Some modern rotor
systems may use a combination of these types.
GROUND EFFECT
When hovering near the ground, a phenomenon
known as ground effect takes place. This effect
usually occurs less than one rotor diameter above
the surface. As the surface friction restricts the
induced airflow through the rotor, the lift vector
increases. This allows a lower rotor blade angle for
the same amount of lift, which reduces induced
drag. Ground effect also restricts the generation of
blade tip vortices due to the downward and out-
ward airflow, producing lift from a larger portion
of the blade. When the helicopter gains altitude
vertically, with no forward airspeed, induced air-
flow is no longer restricted and the blade tip vor-
tices increase with the decrease in outward air-
flow. As a result, a higher pitch angle is required to
Figure 1-106. A tail rotor is designed to produce thrust in a
move more air down through the rotor, and more
direction opposite torque. The thrust produced by the tail power is needed to compensate for the increased
rotor is sufficient to move the helicopter laterally. drag. Specifications for helicopter performance
provide the hover ceiling in two ways, IGE and
OGE. These figures provide the maximum altitude
To counteract this drift, one or more of the follow- at which the helicopter will hover at its rated gross
ing features may be used: weight in ground effect and out of ground effect.
[Figure 1-107]
• The main transmission is mounted so that the
rotor mast is rigged for the tip-path plane to have
a built-in tilt that is opposite the tail thrust, thus Ground effect is at its maximum in a no-wind condi-
producing a small sideward thrust. tion over a firm, smooth surface. Tall grass, rough ter-
rain, revetments and water surfaces alter the airflow
• Flight control rigging is designed so that the rotor pattern, causing an increase in rotor tip vortexes.
disc is tilted slightly opposite the tail rotor thrust
when the cyclic is centered. VERTICAL ASCENT AND DESCENT
• The collective pitch control system is designed For a helicopter to hover in still air, the thrust pro-
so that the rotor disc tilts slightly opposite the duced by the rotor must exactly equal the combined
tail rotor thrust when in a hover. weight and drag of the helicopter. When pilots wish
to rise vertically, they increase the pitch angle of all
DENSITY ALTITUDE of the rotor blades with the collective pitch, and at
Performance of both the rotor system and the engine the same time, add engine power. Moving one con-
depends on the density of the air. The engine must trol does all this, as we will see later. The additional
mix a given mass of air with its fuel in order to power increases the amount of torque, and the pilot
release energy, and the less dense the air, the greater must adjust tail rotor pitch with the pedals to pre-
the volume needed to release the required energy. vent the nose of the helicopter from turning. When
Lift, as you remember from basic aerodynamics, is the pilot wants to descend vertically, blade pitch
determined by the lift coefficient, the area of the angle and the power are reduced, and the pedals are
surface, and the dynamic pressure. Dynamic pres- adjusted again to correct for any tendency of the
sure is the product of one-half of the density of the nose to rotate. The helicopter will descend verti-
air and the square of the velocity of the blade cally when the thrust produced by the rotor system
through the air. becomes less than the weight.
TRANSLATIONAL LIFT
Figure 1-110. Effective translational lift is easily recognized
Translational lift is present with any horizontal flow in flight by a transient induced aerodynamic vibration and
of air across the rotor. This increased flow is most increased performance of the helicopter.
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-61
Translational lift can also be present in a stationary plane. This is the autorotative force, and it will
hover if the wind speed is approximately 16 to 24 accelerate the rotor. This autorotative force is found
knots. In normal operations, the pilot should always in the portion of the rotor from approximately 25%
utilize the benefit of translational lift, especially if to 70% of the blade span. This part of the rotor disc
maximum performance is needed. is called the autorotation region. [Figure 1-112]
AUTOROTATION
Autorotation is the state of flight where the main
rotor system is being turned by the action of relative
wind rather than engine power. It is the means by
which a helicopter can be landed safely in the event
of an engine failure. All helicopters must have this
capability to be certified. Autorotation is permitted
mechanically because of a freewheeling unit, which
allows the main rotor to continue turning even if the
engine is not running.
Figure 1-112 demonstrates the way this autorotative Figure 1-112. When the angle between the relative wind and
force comes about. Air flowing upward through the the axis of rotation is high, the resultant lift will be ahead of
rotor produces an angle of attack such as we see the axis of rotation, and there will be an autorotative force
here. From our study of basic aerodynamics, we that pulls the rotor in its direction of rotation.
know that the lift produced by an airfoil acts per-
pendicularly to the relative wind, while the From about 70% of the blade span to the tip, the
induced drag acts parallel, but in opposite direc- velocity is high and the angle of attack is low. The
tion, to the relative wind. If we consider the com- drag force that acts along the plane of rotation is
ponents of lift and drag that act along the plane of greater than the component of the lift that acts along
rotation of the rotor, we see that there is a net force this plane. The result is a force that tries to deceler-
acting in the direction of rotor rotation along this ate the rotor. This is called an anti-autorotative
Figure 1-111. During autorotation, the upward flow of relative wind permits the main rotor blades to rotate at their normal speed.
In effect, the blades are "gliding" in their rotational plane.
1-62 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
force, and the portion of the rotor disc that produces and down as a unit. The rotating swash plate is con-
this force is called the driven region. [Figure 1-113] nected to the main rotor grips by the pitch links.
[Figure 1-114]
Figure 1-114. Control rods transmit collective and cyclic
control inputs to the stationary swash plate , causing it to
tilt or move vertically. The pitch links, attached from the
rotating swash plate to the pitch arms on the rotor blades,
transmit these movements to the blades.
Figure 1-113. When the angle between the relative wind and COLLECTIVE PITCH CONTROL
the axis of rotation is low, the resultant lift is behind the axis
or rotation, and a retarding force is produced on the rotor. Moving the collective control lever in the cockpit
This occurs in the driven region of the rotor. causes the swash plate assembly to slide up and
down on the swash plate support, which is
mounted on top of the transmission or mast assem-
ROTORCRAFT CONTROLS bly. This causes all the rotor blades to increase or
decrease blade pitch angle by the same amount, or
DIRECT ROTOR HEAD TILT collectively as the name implies. As the collective
Controlling a rotorcraft is basically done by tilting pitch control is raised, there is a simultaneous and
the lift produced by the rotor. If the rotor disc is equal increase in pitch angle of all main rotor
tilted forward, the aircraft will fly forward; if it is blades, and lift increases. As it is lowered, there is a
tilted back, it will fly backward; and tilting it to the simultaneous and equal decrease in pitch angle, and
side will cause it to fly sideways. The early gyro- lift is decreased. This is done through a series of
planes and some of the simplest rotary wing aircraft, mechanical linkages, and the amount of movement
mainly amateur-built, have a control bar that in the collective lever will determine the amount of
directly tilts the rotor head. This form of direct con- blade pitch change. A friction control is adjusted by
trol usually requires the control forces to be quite the pilot to prevent inadvertent collective pitch
light. movement. [Figure 1-115]
SWASH PLATE CONTROL SYSTEM Changing the pitch angle on the blades changes the
The direct rotor head tilt system has so many limi- blade angle of attack and lift. With a change in angle
tations that a far more effective system has been of attack and lift comes a change in drag, and the
devised and is used in some form on almost all heli- speed or r.p.m. of the rotors will be affected. As the
copters. The swash plate is used to transmit control pitch angle of the blades is increased, the angle of
inputs from the cockpit controls to the main rotor attack and drag increase, while the rotor r.p.m.
blades. It consists of two main parts: the stationary decreases. Decreasing pitch angle decreases both
swash plate and the rotating swash plate. The sta- angle of attack and drag, and rotor r.p.m. increases.
tionary swash plate is mounted to the main rotor To maintain a constant rotor r.p.m., which is essen-
mast and connected to the cyclic and collective con- tial in helicopter operation, a proportionate change
trols in the cockpit by a series of pushrods. It is in power is required to compensate for the change
restrained from rotating but is able to tilt in all in drag. A correlator and/or governor is the most
directions and move vertically. The rotating swash common way to accomplish this.
plate is mounted to the stationary swash plate by
means of a bearing and is allowed to rotate with the A correlator is a mechanical connection between
main rotor mast. Both swash plates tilt and move up the collective lever and the engine throttle. When
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-63
Figure 1-115. Raising the collective pitch control increases the pitch angle by the same amount on all blades.
Some helicopters do not use correlators or governors Figure 1-116. A twist grip throttle is usually mounted at the
and require the pilot to coordinate all collective and end of the collective pitch lever. Some turbine helicopters
throttle movements together. When the collective is have throttles mounted on the overhead panel or on the
raised, the throttle must be increased; when the col- floor of the cockpit.
lective is lowered, the throttle must be decreased.
SYNCHRONIZED ELEVATORS
Some helicopters have horizontal tail surfaces that
are synchronized with the cyclic pitch control to
create a down load that increases when the cyclic
control tilts the lift forward. Without this provision,
the fuselage will assume an excessive nose-down
pitch at high airspeeds, but the elevator holds it at a
more level attitude.
The NOTAR186, or no tail rotor system is an Too much effectiveness of the stabilizer would lead
alternative to the antitorque rotor. This system uses to control difficulties. This is prevented by limiting
low-pressure air, which is forced into the tailboom the angular difference possible between the mast
by a fan mounted within the helicopter. The air is and the stabilizer bar and by installing hydraulic
forced
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-67
STABILITY AUGMENTATION SYSTEM (SAS)
Some helicopters incorporate stability augmenta-
tion systems (SAS) to aid in stabilizing the heli-
copter in flight and in a hover. The simplest of these
systems is a force trim system, which uses a mag-
netic clutch and springs to hold the cyclic control in
the position where it was released. More advanced
systems use electric servos that actually move the
flight controls. These servos receive control com-
mands from a computer that senses helicopter atti-
tude. The SAS may be overridden or disconnected
by the pilot at any time.
HELICOPTER VIBRATION
Vibration has been one of the main problems plagu-
ing helicopter designers ever since rotary-wing
flight became possible. Although not all vibration
can ever be completely eliminated, irreversible con-
trols and special vibration-absorbing engine and
transmission mounts have minimized its effects.
TYPES OF VIBRATION
Helicopter vibration is a complex subject depending
on the depth of analysis. To keep it simple and use-
ful, we categorize them basically into two frequency
ranges, two modes, and two conditions.
FREQUENCY RANGES
Some texts divide vibrations into three ranges: low
frequency, medium frequency, and high frequency.
The break between low and medium, and between
medium and high is rather nebulous, so in this text
we lump them all into either low or high frequencies.
Low-Frequency Vibration
Regardless of the actual number of cycles per sec-
ond of a vibration, we classify a vibration in which Figure 1-124. Modes of helicopter vibration are shown here.
we can feel the beat as a low-frequency vibration.
These are normally associated with the main rotor CONDITIONS OF VIBRATION
system. They may have a ratio of 1:1, 2:1, or 3:1 with We must know where vibration occurs to fully ana-
the main rotor, depending on the rotor configura- lyze it. A vibration that is felt only on the ground
tion, and may be caused by either a static or a would have one fix, while a similar vibration that
dynamic unbalance condition or by aerodynamic occurs only in flight would require a different pro-
forces acting upon the rotor. cedure to correct it.
High-Frequency Vibration
MEASUREMENT OF VIBRATION
Rather than feeling these as a thump or a beat, high- Since vibration is such an important aspect of heli-
frequency vibrations can be thought of as any that copter maintenance, much study has been made in
are felt as a buzz. Any component that turns at a analyzing and measuring it so its isolation and cure
high r.p.m. usually causes them, such as the engine, can be efficiently accomplished. With advances in
cooling fan, or some portion of the tail rotor system. technology, there are now many types of vibration
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-69
analysis equipment, which use different approaches
and techniques to determine vibration and correction.
Earlier equipment uses a combination of hand-held
strobe and analog computer to determine track and
balance. Once an observation is made, it is plotted
on a chart, which then directs us to make a move to
correct the track or balance. Generally, only one cor-
rective move is made at a time.
Some of the newer systems use infrared sensors
together with computers that direct us to which cor-
rective moves to make. In these systems, more than
one move can be made each time, thus accelerating
Figure 1-125. Chordwise balance of a two-bladed rotor con-
the track and balance procedure. sists of aligning the blades so that they are straight across
the hub.
In almost all of these systems, an electronic pickup
is used to key the system each time a rotor blade
passes a reference point. An accelerometer or just contacted the bottom of the rotor blade at the tip,
velometer measures the amplitude of the vibration or a flag that was moved into the tip plane until the
and marks the position in the blade path where this tip just touched the flag. With the marking stick
vibration occurs. By plotting this information on method, the blades were in track when each blade
special graphs furnished with the equipment and was marked the same. Before checking the track using
tailored for the specific helicopter, the technician the flag method, each blade tip was marked with a dif-
can determine the amount of weight that needs to be ferent color crayon. They left a mark of their respec-
added to one of the blades to correct for balance, or tive color when the blade tips touched the flag. If the
the amount of change that should be made in the rotor was in track, the colored marks were superim-
pitch change linkage to correct for track. posed. The drawbacks to these two methods is that
the helicopter can only be tracked on the ground and
CORRECTION OF VIBRATION not in the air where it is most important.
BLADE BALANCING
Modern tracking systems either use a strobe light
Both main rotor blades and tail rotor blades are usu- held by the technician or an infra-red light mounted
ally statically and dynamically balanced. Static bal- on the helicopter to determine blade track. The rotor
ance refers to balancing a blade while it is not mov- is turned at the proper r.p.m. and the light is trig-
ing and is generally removed from the helicopter. gered each time one of the blades passes a pickup
Dynamic balance is accomplished with the blades that is mounted on the stationary swash plate. A
mounted on the helicopter and turning. special reflector is installed on the tip of each blade,
Before a helicopter rotor is mounted on the mast, it must and they form a distinctive pattern as the strobe illu-
be balanced both chordwise and spanwise. Align semi- minates each reflector. If the blades are in track, the
rigid rotors by adjusting the drag links or blade latches images will be all in line, but if they are not in track,
until an aligning wire, which is stretched between align- the images will be staggered up and down. The dis-
ment points on each blade, passes over the correct point tinctive mark on each reflector tells the technician
on the hub. After this alignment, or chordwise balance, which blade is out of track, in which direction, and
is accomplished, balance the rotor spanwise by adding how much. [Figure 1-126]
weight to the light blade until the balance specification is
met. Some helicopters, specifically those with three or
more blades, may require the hub to be balanced without
the blades, and then the blades are installed that have
been balanced against a master blade. [Figure 1-125]
BLADE TRACKING
Rotor blades must first be statically balanced, the
rotor installed on the helicopter, and then the blades
tracked to determine that each blade follows directly
in the path of the blade ahead of it. Old methods Figure 1-126. Checking blade track using a strobe light may
made use of a marking stick, which was raised until it be done on the ground and in flight.
1-70 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
TRACK ADJUSTMENT collective pitch control governs the helicopter
Blade track adjustments are usually made two ways, power output. The rotor r.p.m. and that of the
depending on where the out-of-track condition engine are held relatively constant. As more load is
exists. Generally, if a blade is found to be out of placed on the rotor by increasing the blade angle
track on the ground, the pitch links are adjusted to with the collective pitch control, the throttle must
change the pitch angle of that blade. If the blade is be increased to maintain r.p.m. and prevent the
out of track, as seen during an in-flight track check, rotor from slowing down. This is either done auto-
it is usually corrected by slightly bending one of the matically by correlators or governors, or manually
rotor blade trim tabs. accomplished by the pilot. The pilot determines the
power that the engine is producing primarily by the
HELICOPTER POWER SYSTEMS relationship between the tachometer and the mani-
fold pressure gauge.
POWERPLANT
The piston engine and the turbine engine are the two TURBINE ENGINES
most common types of engines used in helicopters. The turbine engine and the helicopter are ideal
Piston engines are generally used in smaller heli- companions. The turbine operates best at a con-
copters because they are relatively simple and inex- stant speed, which is perfect for the helicopter,
pensive to operate. Turbine engines are more power- but the most outstanding advantage is its tremen-
ful and are used in a wide range of helicopters. They dous power output for its small size and light
produce a tremendous amount of power for their weight.
size but are more expensive to operate.
Helicopters use turboshaft engines, which differ
PISTON ENGINE from turbojets in that they have extra stages in their
The first helicopters and some of the smaller ones turbine section to extract a maximum amount of
today use piston engines similar to those in air- energy from the expanding gases. Very little thrust is
planes. While these engines are made by the same obtained from the exiting gases in a turboshaft
manufacturers and carry the same basic designation engine. [Figure 1-127]
as those used in airplanes, they differ in operational
details. There are two types of turboshaft engines used: the
direct-shaft engine and the free turbine engine. The
In some helicopters, the engine is mounted verti- direct-shaft engine uses a set of turbine wheels
cally so the transmission and the rotor mast can mounted on a single shaft that drives both the com-
mount directly on the engine crankshaft. When this pressor in the gas generator and the output shaft.
is done, the lubrication system must be changed. Reduction gearing reduces the r.p.m. of this shaft to
They are generally converted from a wet sump sys- a speed that is usable for the helicopter transmis-
tem, in which the oil is carried inside the engine sion. The free turbine engine has one set of turbines
itself, to a dry sump system, where the oil is carried to drive the compressor for the gas generator and a
in an external tank. The oil is pumped through the separate set of turbines for the transmission and
engine for lubrication and cooling and returned to rotor. The exhaust gases do not leave a turboshaft
the tank. Other helicopters have the engine engine in a straight line from the turbine section as
mounted horizontally and are connected to the they do in a turbojet engine, so it is possible to drive
transmission with several V-belts. the output shaft from either the hot or the cold end
of the engine.
The lack of a propeller to serve as a flywheel and to
provide cooling air gives a helicopter two problems The power produced by a turboshaft engine is indi-
that the airplane does not have. Since the engine car- cated to the pilot by a torquemeter and a tachometer
ries the load of the rotor system, it must be operated that is calibrated in percent of r.p.m. There are two
at a much higher idling speed, so there is not nearly tachometers on free turbine engines: Nl shows the
as wide a range of engine r.p.m. as there is with an speed of the compressor and N2 the speed of the
airplane. Since there is no propeller, a fan blows air power turbine. The exhaust gas temperature or tur-
over the engine cooling fins to remove the heat. bine inlet temperature is also critical for the opera-
tion of a turboshaft engine. It is essential that the
Engine power control is entirely different on a heli- temperature of the gases entering the turbine stage
copter compared to that on an airplane. Rather than never becomes excessive, as this can damage the
having complete control of the engine speed, the turbine.
Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging 1-71
Figure 1-127.The main difference between a turboshaft and a turbojet engine is that most of the energy produced from the
expanding gasses is used to drive a turbine rather than producing thrust through propulsion of exhaust gasses.
TRANSMISSION engagement to acceleration, as well
SYSTEM monitor rotor as in autorotation to
The transmission maintain r.p.m.
system transfers within prescribed
power from the limits. When the
engine to the main needles are
rotor, the tail rotor, superimposed or
and other married, the ratio of
accessories. The the engine r.p.m. is
main components of the same as the gear
the transmission reduction ration.
system are the main [Figure 1-128]
rotor transmission,
tail rotor drive
system, clutch, and
freewheeling unit.
Helicopter
transmissions are
normally lubricated
and cooled with their
own oil supply. A
sight gauge is
provided to check
the oil level. Some
transmissions have
chip detectors and
warning lights
located on the pilot's
instrument panel
that illuminate in the
event of an internal Figure 1-128. There
problem. are various types of
dual-needle
tachometers. When the
MAIN ROTOR needles are
TRANSMISSION superimposed or mar-
The primary purpose ried, the ratio of the
of the main rotor engine r.p.m. is the
transmission is to same as the gear
reduction ratio.
reduce engine output
r.p.m. to optimum
rotor r.p.m. This
reduction is different
for the various
helicopters, but as
an example, suppose
the engine r.p.m. of a
specific helicopter is
2,700. Achieving a
rotor speed of 450
r.p.m. would require
a reduction of 6 to 1.
A 9 to 1 reduction
would mean that the
rotor would turn at
300 r.p.m.
A dual-needle
tachometer shows
both engine and
rotor r.p.m. The rotor
r.p.m. needle
normally is used
only during clutch
7-72 Aircraft Structural Assembly and Rigging
In helicopters with horizontally mounted engines, The two main types of clutches are the centrifugal
changing the axis of rotation from the horizontal axis clutch and the belt drive clutch.
of the engine to the vertical axis of the rotor shaft is
another purpose of the main rotor transmission. Centrifugal Clutch
The centrifugal clutch is made up of an inner assem-
TAIL ROTOR DRIVE SYSTEM bly and an outer drum. The inner assembly, which
The tail rotor drive system consists of a tail rotor is connected to the engine driveshaft, consists of
drive shaft powered from the main transmission shoes lined with material similar to automotive
and a tail rotor transmission mounted at the end brake linings. Springs hold the shoes in at low
of the tail boom. The drive shaft may consist of engine speeds, so that there is no contact with the
one long shaft or a series of shorter shafts con- outer drum, which is attached to the transmission
nected at both ends with flexible couplings. This input shaft. As engine speed increases, centrifugal
allows the drive shaft to flex with the tail boom. force causes the clutch shoes to move outward and
The tail rotor transmission provides a right angle begin sliding against the outer drum. The transmis-
drive for the tail rotor and may also include gear- sion input shaft begins to rotate, causing the rotor to
ing to adjust the output to optimum tail rotor turn, slowly at first, but increasing as the friction
r.p.m. [Figure 1-129] increases between the clutch shoes and transmis-
sion drum. As rotor speed increases, the rotor
tachometer needle indicates this by moving toward
the engine tachometer needle. The engine and the
rotor are synchronized when the two needles are
superimposed, indicating the clutch is fully
engaged and the shoes are no longer slipping.