fixed-wing aircraft structure - 1. Fuselage
2. Wings
3. Tail assembly or empennage
4. Landing gear
5. Powerplant
6. Flight instruments/controls and
... [Show More] control surfaces
fuselage - body of an airplane. Contains the cockpit, the cabin, the cargo area if there is one, and attachment points for other major airplane components, such as wings, tail section, and landing gear.
cockpit - from which the pilots and the flight crew control the aircraft's operations
Two design types of fuselage construction - 1. truss
2. monocoque
Truss construction fuselages - use steel or aluminum tubing in a series of triangular shapes (called trusses) to get the necessary strength and rigidity
monocoque designs - use bulkheads, stringers, (running the length of the fuselage) and formers (perpendicular to stringers) of various sizes and shapes to support a stretched or "stressed" skin
wings - airfoils attached to each side of the fuselage that serve as the main lifting surfaces supporting the airplane in flight.
airfoil - an aircraft part or surface (such as wing, propeller blade, or rudder) that controls lift, direction, stability, thrust, or propulsion for the aircraft.
monoplanes - airplanes with one set of wings
biplanes - airplanes with two sets of wings
cantilever wing - requires no external bracing, getting its support from internal wing spars, ribs, and stringers, as well as the construction of the wing's skin or covering
semi-cantilever wing - requires both internal bracing and external support from struts attached to the fuselage
ailerons - extend from about the middle of the wing out toward the wingtip; they move in opposite directions to create aerodynamic forces that cause the airplane to roll
flaps - extend outward from near where the wing joins the fuselage (called the wing root) to about the middle of the wing's trailing edge. The flaps are usually flush with the rest of the wing surface when cruising flight; when they are extended, the flaps move downward together to increase the lift of the wing for takeoffs and landings. Most common high lift devices.
chord line - the distance from the leading edge of the wing to the trailing edge. Cuts the airfoil into an upper surface and a lower surface
mean camber line - if we plot the points that lie halfway between the upper and lower surfaces, we obtain a curve called the mean camber line.
camber - the maximum difference between the the mean camber line and the chord line. A measure of the curvature of the airfoil.
thickness - the maximum difference between the upper and lower surfaces
wingtips - the ends of the wings
wingspan - the distance from one wingtip to the other
a planform - the shape of the wing viewed from above
dihedral angle - when the left and right wings aren't truly horizontal to the fuselage, but instead meet at this angle. Built into the design for roll stability; a wing with some dihedral will naturally return to its original position if it encounters a slight displacement
Three basic wing types on modern airplanes - 1. straight
2. Sweep
3. Delta
Straight wings - mostly found on small, low-speed airplanes, as well as gliders and sailplanes. These wings give the most efficient lift at low speeds, but are not very good for high speed flight, especially that approaching the speed of sound
swept wings - (either forward swept or swept back) is the most common design for modern high speed airplanes. Creates less drag than straight wing designs, but is somewhat more unstable at low speeds.
moderate sweep - commercial jetliner, resulting in less drag while maintaining stability at lower speeds [Show Less]