Hi all,
I saw this photo on A.net and was wondering if anyone had any idea why the wing doesn’t appear to be flexed when in the air? Do you think it is becaused the aircraft is at a lower weight than it would be operationally and hence not supporting as much load, or have Airbus designed the wing so that when in flight it is straight, but ‘sags’ when on the ground? Also, are there any aerodynamic penalties for having a wing that flexes when in the air?
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/838852/L/
Cheers,
James
By: coanda - 17th May 2005 at 19:27
at limit weights the wing tip is higher than the top of the fuselage.
a lower weight requires a lower lift, therefore the wings are not as loaded as they could be, and therefore a lower aeroelastic reaction.
there are no penalties in having wings that flex, indeed it is a requirement in efficiency for the wings to flex, aeronautically and structurally.
aero elasticity provides a bit of a worry in terms of manouverability, and placement of the wing is important here, (hence why high wing aircraft tend to have some amount of anhedral) this would make the b52 worse off than say a 747 or indeed the a380, but thats not an issue in the cruise.
By: TJC - 17th May 2005 at 09:35
If you look at any plane on the groud its wings will be drooping down with enough weight, ie. fuel, inside them. As the plane gets faster on the take off roll the wings, producing lift as they’re designed to do, will lift before the rest of the plane. Looks like they take off on their own. This is natural but just seems unreal on larger types.
I’ve seen B52’s in action and the flex on the 747 or the A380 is nothing compared to it.
By: eurostar builde - 17th May 2005 at 08:34
Does anybody know if the A380 will be flying at the Paris Airshow this year, if not i guess it has to be in static
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May 17, 2005 at 6:14 am