ALBERT

Description: The relation between the elevator hinge moment parameters and the control forces for changes in forward speed and in maneuvers is shown for several values of static stability and elevator mass balance. The stability of the short period oscillations is shown as a series of boundaries giving the limits of the stable regions in terms of the elevator hinge moment parameters. The effects of static stability, elevator moment of inertia, elevator mass unbalance, and airplane density are also considered. Dynamic instability is likely to occur if there is mass unbalance of the elevator control system combined with a small restoring tendency (high aerodynamic balance). This instability can be prevented by a rearrangement of the unbalancing weights which, however, involves an increase of the amount of weight necessary. It can also be prevented by the addition of viscous friction to the elevator control system provided the airplane center of gravity is not behind a certain critical position. For high values of the density parameter, which correspond to high altitudes of flight, the addition of moderate amounts of viscous friction may be destabilizing even when the airplane is statically stable. In this case, increasing the viscous friction makes the oscillation stable again. The condition in which viscous friction causes dynamic instability of a statically stable airplane is limited to a definite range of hinge moment parameters. It is shown that, when viscous friction causes increasing oscillations, solid friction will produce steady oscillations having an amplitude proportional to the amount of friction.

Description: A study was made of the performance of a jet-propulsion system composed of an engine-driven blower, a combustion chamber, and a discharge nozzle. A simplified analysis is made of this system for the purpose of showing in concise form the effect of the important design variables and operating conditions on jet thrust, thrust horsepower, and fuel consumption. Curves are presented that permit a rapid evaluation of the performance of this system for a range of operating conditions. The performance for an illustrative case of a power plant of the type under consideration id discussed in detail. It is shown that for a given airplane velocity the jet thrust horsepower depends mainly on the blower power and the amount of fuel burned in the jet; the higher the thrust horsepower is for a given blower power, the higher the fuel consumption per thrust horsepower. Within limits the amount of air pumped has only a secondary effect on the thrust horsepower and efficiency. A lower limit on air flow for a given fuel flow occurs where the combustion-chamber temperature becomes excessive on the basis of the strength of the structure. As the air-flow rate is increased, an upper limit is reached where, for a given blower power, fuel-flow rate, and combustion-chamber size, further increase in air flow causes a decrease in power and efficiency. This decrease in power is caused by excessive velocity through the combustion chamber, attended by an excessive pressure drop caused by momentum changes occurring during combustion.

Description: Flights were made in natural icing conditions at the NACA Ice Research Project, Minneapolis, Minn. to test several designs of thermal-electric propeller de-icing blade shoes and a hub-generator design. It was found that a minimum average unit power of 2.5 watts per square inch of blade-shoe area would protect the propeller blades at the test conditions. The most satisfactory blade shoe of the three designs tested extended to the 20-percent-chord point and to 90 percent of the blade radius. A concentration of heat in the leading-edge region of this shoe was found to reduce the power input necessary for satisfactory de-icing. A satisfactory thermal design of blade shoe and a hub generator of sufficient capacity were developed.

Description: The effects of changes in aileron rigging between 2 deg up and 2 deg down on the stick forces were determined from wind-tunnel data for a finite-span wing model. These effects were investigated for ailerons deflecting equally in both directions and linearly with stick deflection. Data were analyzed for a Frise, a sealed internally balanced, and a beveled-trailing-edge aileron. The results of the analysis showed that only ailerons having linear hinge-moment characteristics are unaffected by changes in rigging and indicated that ailerons having decidedly nonlinear hinge-moment-coefficient curves, particularly for deflections near 0 deg, are very sensitive to changes in rigging.

Description: The effects of jet-motor operation on the stability and control characteristics of two fighter-type airplanes as determined by wind-tunnel tests of 1/5-scale models are presented. It is shown that the action of the jets is to cause a small loss in stick-fixed stability which is predictable from known theories.

Description: No abstract available

Description: In open box beams subjected to torsion, secondary stresses arise owing to lateral bending of the spar caps. The present paper outlines a simple method for estimating the magnitude of these stresses and gives the results of tests of an open box beam in the neighborhood of a discontinuity where the cover changed from the top to the bottom of the box.

Description: A correlation of what are believed to be the most reliable data available on duct components of aircraft power-plant installations is presented. The information is given in a convenient form and is offered as an aid in designing duct systems and, subject to certain qualifications, as a guide in estimating their performance. The design and performance data include those for straight ducts; simple bends of square, circular, and elliptical cross sections; compound bends; diverging and converging bends; vaned bends; diffusers; branch ducts; internal inlets; and an angular placement of heat exchangers. Examples are included to illustrate methods of applying these data in analyzing duct systems. (author)

Description: An investigation has been made in the Langley free-flight tunnel to obtain an experimental verification of the theoretical rudder-free stability characteristics of an airplane model equipped with conventional rudders having negative floating tendencies and negligible friction. The model used in the tests was equipped with a conventional single vertical tail having rudder area 40 percent of the vertical tail area. The model was tested both in free flight and mounted on a strut that allowed freedom only in yaw. Tests were made with three different amounts of rudder aerodynamic balance and with various values of mass, moment of inertia, and center-of-gravity location of the rudder. Most of the stability derivatives required for the theoretical calculations were determined from forced and free-oscillation tests of the particular model tested. The theoretical analysis showed that the rudder-free motions of an airplane consist largely of two oscillatory modes - a long-period oscillation somewhat similar to the normal rudder-fixed oscillation and a short-period oscillation introduced only when the rudder is set free. It was found possible in the tests to create lateral instability of the rudder-free short-period mode by large values of rudder mass parameters even though the rudder-fixed condition was highly stable. The results of the tests and calculation indicated that for most present-day airplanes having rudders of negative floating tendency, the rudder-free stability characteristics may be examined by simply considering the dynamic lateral stability using the value of the directional-stability parameter Cn(sub p) for the rudder-free condition in the conventional controls-fixed lateral-stability equations. For very large airplanes having relatively high values of the rudder mass parameters with respect to the rudder aerodynamic parameters, however, analysis of the rudder-free stability should be made with the complete equations of motion. Good agreement between calculated and measured rudder-free stability characteristics was obtained by use of the general rudder-free stability theory, in which four degrees of lateral freedom are considered. When this assumption is made that the rolling motions alone or the lateral and rolling motions may be neglected in the calculations of rudder-free stability, it is possible to predict satisfactorily the characteristics of the long-period (Dutch roll type) rudder-free oscillation for airplanes only when the effective-dihedral angle is small. With these simplifying assumptions, however, satisfactory prediction of the short-period oscillation may be obtained for any dihedral. Further simplification of the theory based on the assumption that the rudder moment of inertia might be disregarded was found to be invalid because this assumption made it impossible to calculate the characteristics of the short-period oscillations.

Description: Two graphical methods are presented for determining the stick-free neutral point, and they are extensions of the methods commonly used to determine the stick-free neutral point. A mathematical formula for computing the stick-free neutral point is also given. These methods may be applied to determine approximately the increase in tail size necessary to shift the neutral point (stick fixed or free) to any desired location on an airplane having inadequate longitudinal stability.

Description: No abstract available

Description: The effect of several armament installations on the drag of a 1/8 scale model of the B-32 airplane was determined. Turrets in the following positions were tested: nose, tail, upper forward, upper aft, and lower. The nose and tail turrets were each equipped with two.50-caliber guns. Upper turrets were of three types: two.50-caliber guns, four.50-caliber guns, and 20-millimeter cannon. Lower turrets were of two types: two.50-caliber guns and four.50-caliber guns. The effect of streamlining the upper two- and four-gun turrets and of extending the lower two-gun turret was determined. The tests were conducted in the Langley 19-foot. pressure tunnel at a Reynolds number of approximately 2,960,000 and a Mach number of 0.13. Large increases in drag coefficient were caused by the complete armament installations. At a lift coefficient of 0. 4 the installations with nonstreamlined upper turrets and the lower turret retracted increased the drag coefficient by 0.0022 and 0.0027 for the two-gun and four-gun turret installations, respectively. Streamlining the upper turrets reduced the drag of these installations by approximately 40 percent with the upper turrets streamlined, the drag increase was about the same for either the two- or four-gun turret installation. The streamlined two-cannon upper turrets increased the drag about the same amount as the two-gun upper turrets that were not streamlined. Extension of the lower turret. increased the drag slightly more than the whole streamlined gun-turret installation.

Description: This report outlines the flight conditions that are usually critical in determining the design of components of an airplane which affect its stability and control characteristics. The wind-tunnel tests necessary to determine the pertinent data for these conditions are indicated, and the methods of computation used to translate these data into characteristics which define the flying qualities of the airplane are illustrated.

Description: Problems relating to the stability and control of tailless airplanes are discussed in consideration of contemporary experience and practice.

Description: Field measurements were made on a fighter airplane to determine the approximate magnitude of the horizontal tail loads in accelerated flight. In these flight measurements, pressures at a few points were used as an index of the tail loads by correlating these pressures with complete pressure-distribution data obtained in the NACA full-scale tunnel. In addition, strain gages and motion pictures of tail deflections were used to explore the general nature and order of magnitude of fluctuating tail loads in accelerated stalls.

Description: An experimental investigation concerned primarily with the extension of test data on the drag of revolving disks, cylinders, and streamline rods to high Mach numbers and Reynolds numbers is presented.

Description: The relation between the elevator hinge-moment parameters and the control-forces for changes in forward speed and in maneuvers is shown for several values of static stability and elevator mass balance.

Description: The present report deals with the determination of the impact stresses in the bulkhead floors of a seaplane bottom. The dynamic problem is solved on the assumption of a certain elastic system, the floor being assumed as a weightless elastic beam with concentrated masses at the ends (due to the mass of the float) and with a spring which replaces the elastic action of the keel in the center. The distributed load on the floor is that due to the hydrodynamic force acting over a certain portion of the bottom. The pressure distribution over the width of the float is assumed to follow the Wagner law. The formulas given for the maximum bending moment are derived on the assumption that the keel is relatively elastic, in which case it can be shown that at each instant of time the maximum bending moment is at the point of juncture of the floor with the keel. The bending moment at this point is a function of the half width of the wetted surface c and reaches its maximum value when c is approximately equal to b/2 where b is the half width of the float. In general, however, for computing the bending moment the values of the bending moment at the keel for certain values of c are determined and a curve is drawn. The illustrative sample computation gave for the stresses a result approximately equal to that obtained by the conventional factory computation.

Description: Detail calculations are presented of the shifts in stick-fixed neutral point of the Republic XF-12 airplane due to the windmilling propellers and to the fuselage. The results of these calculations differ somewhat from those previously made for this airplane by Republic Aviation Corporation personnel under the direction of Langley flight division personnel. Due to these differences the neutral point for the airplane is predicted to be 37.8 percent mean aerodynamic chord, instead of 40.8 percent mean aerodynamic chord as previously reported.

Description: Pressure distribution and spray measurements were carried out on rectangular flat and V-bottom planing surfaces. Lift, resistance, and center of pressure data are analyzed and it is shown how these values may be computed for the pure planing procees of a flat or V-bottom suface of arbitrary beam, load and speed, the method being illustrated with the aid of an example.

Description: An analysis is made of the stability of an airplane with ailerons free, with particular attention to the motions when the ailerons have a tendency to float against the wind. The present analysis supersedes the aileron investigation contained in NACA Report No. 709. The equations of motion are first written to include yawing and sideslipping, and it is demonstrated that the principal effects of freeing the ailerons can be determined without regard to these motions. If the ailerons tend to float against the wind and have a high degree of aerodynamic balance, rolling oscillations, in addition to the normal lateral oscillations, are likely to occur. On the basis of the equations including only the rolling motion and the aileron deflection, formulas are derived for the stability and damping of the rolling oscillations in terms of the hinge moment derivatives and other characteristics of the ailerons and airplane. Charts are also presented showing the oscillatory regions and stability boundaries for a fictitious airplane of conventional proportions. The effects of friction in the control system are investigated and discussed. If the ailerons tend to trail with the wind, the condition for stable variation of stick force with aileron deflection is found to determine the amount of aerodynamic balance that may be used. If the ailerons tend to float against the wind, the period and damping of the rolling oscillations are found to be satisfactory (in a mass-balanced system) so long as the restoring moment is not completely balanced out. Unbalanced mass behind the hinge, however, has an unfavorable effect on the damping of the oscillations and so shifts the boundary that close aerodynamic balance may not be attainable.

Description: Although antispin tail parachutes have been used successfully in spin demonstrations for some time, very little published information is available concerning the size of parachute, the bridle-line length, and the type and location of pack to use for particular airplane. The present paper is an attempt to supply data relating to these factors. The paper is in two parts. The first part reviews the principles of operation of the antispin parachutes, views the principles of operation of the antispin parachutes, summarized available information on actual installations, and discusses parachute loads and pack locations. The second part of the paper reports on systematic tests in the NACA-15-foot and 20-foot free-spinning tunnels at the Langley memorial Aeronautical Laboratory to determine the minimum size and the optimum bridle-line lengths for antispin tail parachutes for current military airplanes. It is concluded that airplanes weighing between 7500 and 14,000 pounds require parachutes 8 feet in diameter and bridle-line lengths between 20 and 50 feet. A positive-ejection mechanism is desirable to throw the parachute clear of the tail and to assure rapid opening. The pack and attachment point must be so located that the equipment will not foul the tail surfaces.

Description: An extensive series of wind-tunnel tests on a half-scale conventional, nacelle model were made by the United Aircraft Corporation to determine and correlate the effects of many variables on cooling air flow and nacelle drag. The primary investigation was concerned with the reaction of these factors to varying conditions ahead of, across, and behind the engine. In the light of this investigation, common misconceptions and factors which are frequently overlooked in the cooling and cowling of radial engines are considered in some detail. Data are presented to support certain design recommendations and conclusions which should lead toward the improvement of present engine installations. Several charts are included to facilitate the estimation of cooling drag, available cooling pressure, and cowl exit area.

Description: Experience has shown that the determination of the take-off and. landing characteristics of airplanes requires specialized, equipment of a high degree of precision and reliability and demands great care in the evaluation and interpretation of data. It is believed, therefore, that a description of the apparatus and methods that have been developed by the NACA for these measurements might be of considerable interest, particularly to flight-test groups that have had little experience with landing and. take-off measurements. The basic principles and essential details of the Committee's equipment are described, the methods of utilizing the apparatus and of reducing the data are explained, and sample test results are presented.

Description: The effect of various vertical tail arrangements upon the stability and control characteristics of an XP-62 fighter model was investigated. Rudder-free yaw characteristics with take-off power and flaps deflected were satisfactory after dorsal fin modifications. Directional stability was obtained with all modified vertical tails. Satisfactory rudder effectiveness resulted partly because the dual-rotation propellers produced no asymmetric yawing moments. Pedal forces in sideslips were undesirably large but may be easily reduced.

Description: The available test results of internally balanced ailerons have been correlated and summarized herein. Although several variables have yet to-be-investigated, the results presented will be useful in the preliminary design of internally balanced ailerons and in the determination of the most promising modifications to unsatisfactory ailerons.

Description: The extent of agreement of the theoretical impact computations with the actual phenomenon has not as yet been fully clarified. There is on the one hand a certain imperfection in the theory (simplifying assumptions made) and on the other an insufficiency in the experimental data available. The object of our present paper is to show how far test results agree with the available approximate computation methods, to investigate in greater detail the physical nature of impact on water, and to perfect the experimental method of studying the phenomenon.

Description: For computing the critical flutter velocity of a wing among the data required are the position of the line of centers of gravity of the wing sections along the span and the mass moments and radii of inertia of any section of the wing about the axis passing through the center of gravity of the section. A sufficiently detailed computation of these magnitudes even if the weights of all the wing elements are known, requires a great deal of time expenditure. Thus a rapid competent worker would require from 70 to 100 hours for the preceding computations for one wing only, while hundreds of hours would be required if all the weights were included. With the aid of the formulas derived in the present paper, the preceding work can be performed with a degree of accuracy sufficient for practical purposes in from one to two hours, the only required data being the geometric dimensions of the outer wing (tapered part), the position of its longerons, the total weight of the outer wing, and the approximate weight of the longerons, The entire material presented in this paper is applicable mainly to wings of longeron construction of the CAHI type and investigations are therefore being conducted by CAHI for the derivation of formulas for the determination of the preceding data for wings of other types.

Description: The few available test data on the heat dissipation of wholly or partly heated airfoil models are compared with the corresponding data for the flat plate as obtained by an extension of Prandtl's momentum theory, with differentiation between laminar and turbulent boundary layer and transitional region between both, the extent and appearance of which depend upon certain critical factors. The satisfactory agreement obtained justifies far-reaching conclusions in respect to other profile forms and arrangements of heated surface areas. The temperature relationship of the material quantities in its effect on the heat dissipation is discussed as far as is possible at tk.e present state of research, and it is shown that the profile drag of heated wing surfaces can increase or decrease with the temperature increase depending upon the momentarily existent structure of the boundary layer.

Description: No abstract available

Description: The report presents a method for the computation of axial fan characteristics. The method is based on the assumption that the law of constancy of the circulation along the blade holds, approximately, for all fan conditions for which the blade elements operate at normal angles of attack (up to the stalling angles). Pressure head coefficient K(sub a) and power coefficient K(sub u) for the force components in the axial and tangential directions, respectively, and analogous to the lift and drag coefficients C(sub y) and C(sub x) are conveniently introduced.

Description: An approximate theory of buffeting is here presented, based on the assumption of harmonic disturbing forces. Two cases of buffeting are considered: namely, for a tail angle of attack greater and less than the stalling angle, respectively. On the basis of the tests conducted and the results of foreign investigators, a general analysis is given of the nature of the forced vibrations the possible load limits on the tail, and the methods of elimination of buffeting.

Description: An investigation has been made to determine the motions of and the flight paths describe by a Navy dive-bombing airplane in simulated diving attacks. The data necessary to evaluate these items, with the exception of the atmospheric wind data, were obtained from automatic recording instruments installed entirely within the airplane. The atmospheric wind data were obtained from the ground by the balloon-theodolite method. The results of typical dives at various dive angles are presented in the form of time histories of the motion of the airplane as well as flight paths calculated with respect to still air and with respect to the ground.

Description: A method that utilizes the Doppler effect on radio signals for determining the speed of an airplane and the distance traveled by the airplane has been developed and found to operate satisfactorily. In this method, called the NACA radio ground-speed system, standard readily available radio equipment is used almost exclusively and extreme frequency stability of the transmitters is not necessary. No complicated equipment need be carried in the airplane, as the standard radio transmitter is usually adequate. Actual flight tests were made in which the method was used and the results were consistent with calibrated air speed indications and stop-watch measurements. Inasmuch as the fundamental accuracy of the radio method is far better than either of the checking systems used, no check was made on the limitations of the accuracy.

Description: Tests of several modern airplanes indicate that control surfaces with a high degree of aerodynamic balance are likely to possess characteristics which make them unsatisfactory or dangerous in high-speed flight. Dive tests made in the spring of 1940 at the NACA on a naval fighter-type airplane illustrate one form of instability that may be encountered. During a dive at an indicated airspeed of 365 miles per hour, the ailerons suddenly overbalanced. The efforts of the pilot to bring the ailerons back to neutral resulted in a violent oscillation of the control stick from side to side. Fortunately, the force required to return the ailerons to neutral was within the pilot's capabilities. A time history of the maneuver is given in figure1 and typical frames from motion pictures of the cockpit and of the wing, taken during the maneuver, are given in figure 2. In the illustrated case, the occurrence of aerodynamic overbalance was attributed to a slight bulge, approximately 1/16 inch thick, on the lower surface of the leading edges of the ailerons, caused by the installation of additional mass balance ahead of the hinge line. A drawing showing the shape of the bulge is given in figure 3. After this slight protuberance had been eliminated, dives were successfully made at higher speeds.

Description: An investigation was carried out in the NACA low-turbulence tunnel to develop low-drag airfoil sections suitable for admitting air at the leading edge. A thickness distribution having the desired type of pressure distribution was found from tests of a flexible model. Other airfoil shapes were derived from this original shape by varying the thickness, the camper, the leading-edge radius, and the size of the leading-edge opening. Data are presented giving the characteristics of the airfoil shapes in the range of lift coefficients for high-speed and cruising flight. Shapes have been developed which show no substantial increases in drag over that of the same position along the chord. Many of these shapes appear to have higher critical compressibility speeds than plain airfoils of the same thickness. Low-drag airfoil sections have been developed with openings in the leading edge as large as 41.5 percent of the maximum thickness. The range of lift coefficients for low drag in several cases is nearly as large as that of the corresponding plain airfoil sections. Preliminary measurements of maximum lift characteristics indicate that nose-opening sections of the type herein considered may not produce any marked effects on the maximum lift coefficient.

Description: A pursuit type airplane encountered severe diving moments in high-speed dives which make recovery difficult. For the purpose of investigating these diving moments and finding means for their reduction, a 1/6-scale model of the airplane was tested in the 16-foot high-speed wind tunnel at Ames Aeronautical Laboratory. The test results indicate that up to a Mach number of at least 0.75, the limit of the tests, the dive-recovery difficulties can be alleviated and the longitudinal maneuverability improved by the substitution of a long symmetrical fuselage for the standard fuselage.

Description: No abstract available

Description: The Army Air Force has made available several pursuit-type airplanes for quantitative investigation of their flying and handling qualities. One Item of special interest obtained from the results of the investigation is a comparison of the aileron control characteristics of the P-36, P-40, Hawker Hurricane, and Supermarine Spitfire airplanes. Figure 1 shows the design characteristics of the ailerons and the control sticks of the four airplanes. Aileron effectiveness may be expressed in terms of the helix angle generated by the wing tip in a steady roll. This angle is given by the expression pb/2V, where p is the rolling velocity, b the wing span, and V the true airspeed, expressed in consistent units. This quantity is convenient to use because, although it does not rep resent directly the rolling velocity of airplanes of different spans or airplanes operating at different speeds, it provides a satisfactory basis for computing the rate of roll and the time required to bank a given amount under any given set of conditions. The ratio of pb/2V obtained in any roll to the maximum value reached with full aileron deflection indicates the fraction of the maximum aileron travel that was reached. A complete discussion of this criterion for aileron effectiveness is given in reference 1. The aileron effectiveness of the various airplanes is compared in the following table on the basis of the response obtained with stick forces of 30 and 5 pounds. A force of 30 pounds is somewhat less than the greatest stick force exerted by the pilot. Repeated flight measurements have shown, however, that this force is a reasonable upper limit for maneuvering at high speeds.

Description: The present trend is toward faster and larger pursuit airplanes. Because both speed and size increase the aileron control forces, the design of ailerons for manual operation is becoming increasingly difficult. In order to obtain a clearer picture of the future problem of balancing ailerons, and inspection has been made of the effects of airplane size and speed on the control forces. Computations were made of the aileron control forces required to meet specified rolling conditions for plain ailerons on wings with spans from 40 to 80 feet and for speeds up to 500 miles per hour. The rolling conditions were specified by two alternative criterions. One was the rolling criterion pb/2V of reference 1. For reasons, which will be discussed later, a value of 0.09 rather than the recommended value of 0.07 was assigned to this criterion. For the criterion pb/2V, the required value of the rolling velocity p varies inversely with the airplane span b. There is some question as to whether the rolling velocity of a pursuit airplane can be permitted to decrease simply because its size is increased. For the second criterion, therefore, the rolling velocity is independent of span (p/V is a constant). The value assigned to this criterion was so chosen that for a wing of 40-foot span the value of pb/2V would be 0.09. The computations neglected compressibility effects. Available experimental data and the results of tests given in reference 2 indicate that the effect of compressibility is to increase the control force. Recent flight tests have indicated that, with certain types of aileron, serious compressibility effects may cause discontinuity at speeds of approximately 400 miles per hour in the aileron control force curves.

Description: The writer sets out to prove by calculation and experiment that by extensive utilization of the skin to carry axial load (reduction of stringer spacing) the stringer sections can be made small enough to afford a substantial saving in structural weight. This saving ranges from 5 to about 40 percent.

Description: Unduly high diving speeds can be effectively controlled by diving brakes but their employment involves at the same time a number of disagreeable features: namely, rotation of zero lift direction, variation of diviving moment, and, the creation of a potent dead air region.

Description: The present paper is devoted to the theoretical and experimental investigation of one of the stationary elements of a fan, namely, the vaneless diffuser. The method of computation is based on the principles developed by Pfleiderer (Forschungsarbeiten No. 295). The practical interest of this investigation arises from the fact that the design of the fan guide elements - vaneless diffusers, guide vanes, spiral casing - is far behind the design of the impeller as regards accuracy and. reliability. The computations conducted by the method here presented have shown sufficiently good agreement with the experimental data and indicate the limits within which the values of the coefficient of friction lie.

Description: Results of a study to determine the effects on turning performance due to various assumed modifications to a typical Naval fighter airplane are presented. The modifications considered included flaps of various types, both part and full space, increased supercharging, and increased wing loading. The calculations indicated that near the low-speed end of the speed range, the turning performance, as defined by steady level turns at a given speed, would be improved to some extent by any of the flaps considered at altitudes up to about 25,000 feet. (If turning is not restricted to the conditions of no loss of speed or altitude, more rapid turning can, of course, be accomplished with the aid of flaps, regardless of altitude.) Fowler flaps and NACA slotted flaps appeared somewhat superior to split or perforated split flaps for maneuvering purposes, particularly if the flap position is not adjustable. Similarly, better turning performance should be realized with full-span than with part-span flaps. Turning performance over the lower half of the speed range would probably not be materially improved at any altitude by increased supercharging of the engine unless the propeller were redesigned to absorb the added power more effectively; with a suitable propeller the turning performance at high altitudes could probably be greatly improved with increased supercharging. A reduction in wing area with the aspect ratio held constant would result in impairment of turning performance over practically the entire speed range at all altitudes.

Description: The effects of direction of propeller rotation on factors affecting the longitudinal stability of the XB-28 airplane were measured on a 1/10-scale model in the 7- by 10-foot tunnel of the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory. The main effect observed was that caused by regions of high downwash behind the nacelles (power off as well as power on with flaps neutral). The optimum direction of propeller rotation, both propellers rotating up toward the fuselage, shifted this region off the horizontal tail and thus removed its destabilizing effect. Rotating both propellers downward toward the fuselage moved it inboard on the tail and accentuated the effect, while rotating both propellers right hand had an intermediate result. Comparisons are made of the tail effects as measured by force tests with those predicted from the point-by-point downwash and velocity surveys in the region of the tail. These surveys in turn are compared with the results predicted from available theory.

Description: The aileron characteristics of a Grumman F4F-3 airplane were determined in flight by means of NACA recording and indicating instruments. The results show that the ailerons met NACA minimum requirements for satisfactory control throughout a limited speed range. A helix angle of approximately 0.07 radian was produced with flaps down at speeds from 90 to 115 miles per hour indicated airspeed and with flaps up from 115 to 200 miles per hour. With flaps up at 90 miles per hour, the helix angle dropped to 0.055 radian; above 200 miles per hour heavy aileron stick forces seriously restricted maneuverability in roll.

Description: Development work on an arrangement using ailerons and spoilers for lateral control was carried out by the Vought-Sikorsky Aircraft Division of the United Aircraft Corporation on a small commercial airplane in flight and on an airfoil in a wind tunnel. Spoiler hinge moments were reduced by aerodynamic balance. The arrangement was then built into an experimental airplane and further improvements were adopted as the result of flight and tunnel tests. The use of ailerons for lateral control with flaps up, spoilers with flaps full down, and gradual transition as the flaps are lowered was found to provide lateral control under the flight conditions for which they were best suited. The ailerons were of short span, permitting the use of long-span flaps, and were drooped to a relatively large angle when the flaps were deflected. A high maximum lift coefficient was thus attained. With large control deflections in the intermediate flap-angle range and spoiler effectiveness near neutral improved by "ventilating" the spoiler, the lateral control was satisfactory for the experimental airplane and was a definite improvement over that of a conventional control arrangement.

Description: Aerodynamic characteristics of a tapered NACA 23012 airfoil with single and double perforated split flaps have been determined in the NACA 7- by 10-foot wind tunnel. Dynamic pressure surveys were made behind the airfoil at the approximate location of the tail in order to determine the extent and location of the wake for several of the flap arrangements. In addition, computations have been made of an application of perforated double split flaps for use as fighter brakes. The results indicated that single or double perforated split flaps may be used to obtain satisfactory dive control without undue buffeting effects and that single or double perforated split flaps may also be used as fighter brakes. The perforated split flaps had approximately the same effects on the aerodynamic and wake characteristics of the tapered airfoil as on a comparable rectangular airfoil.

Description: Cooling tests were made of a Northrop A-17A attack airplane successively equipped with a conventional.NACA cowling and with a wing-duct cooling system. The method of cooling the engine by admitting air from the propeller slipstream into wing ducts, passing it first through the accessory compartment and then over the engine from rear to front, appeared to offer possibilities for improved engine cooling, increased cooling of the accessories, and better fairing of the power-plant installation. The results showed that ground cooling for the wing duct system without cowl flap was better than for the NACA cowling with flap; ground cooling was appreciably improved by installing a cowl flap. Satisfactory temperatures were maintained in both climb and high-speed flight, but, with the use of conventional baffles, a greater quantity of cooling air appeared to be required for the wing duct system.

Description: During August 1939 a series of flight tests was made at Langley Field on the Wilford sea gyroplane, designated by the Navy as the XOZ-1. These tests were intended to permit rough evaluation of the stability and control characteristics of the machine, with particular reference to possible improvements in rigging which might be made in future machines with fixed wing and nonarticulated feathering control rotor, and to provide data on the bending and feathering motions of the rotor blades. The tests made in 1939 proved inadequate, chiefly because the machine as flown did not have sufficient propeller thrust to give it an appreciable speed range in steady flight. Further tests were therefore made in August 1940 after overhauling the engine and substituting a metal propeller for the wooded one first used. The range of speeds covered in steady flight was markedly extended. Steady-flight runs only were made in this series, since it was felt that takeoffs and landings had been covered sufficiently in the previous tests.

Description: The drag of several types of gunner's turrets, windshields, blisters, and other protuberances, including projecting guns, was investigated at speeds from 75 to 440 miles per hour in the NACA 8-foot high-speed wind tunnel. The various gunner's enclosures were represented by 1/10 and 1/7 full-size models on a midwing-fuselage combination representative of bomber types. Most of the usual types of retractable turrets are very poor aerodynamically; they caused wind drag increments, dependent upon the size of the turret relative to the fuselage and upon the speed, up to twice the drag of the fuselage alone. A large streamline blister sufficient to enclose completely one type of rotating cylindrical turret caused a drag increment of approximately one-half that of the turret and at the same time provided space adequate for two gunners rather than for one gunner. A large portion of the drag increments for some types of turret appeared to be due to adverse effects on the fuselage flow caused by the turret rather than by the direct drag of the turret.

Description: It is shown that on the basis of existing high-speed airfoil data, propeller efficiencies appreciably in excess of 40% do not appear possible at speeds above 500 miles per hour at 20,000 feet. The assumption that present propeller-blade thicknesses cannot be reduced radically, is implied. Until the reliability and applicability of the airfoil data are established, this conclusion must not be regarded as infallible. Dive tests with airplanes equipped with thrust meters and torque meters are proposed to provide an urgently needed check. The design of high-speed propellers is dictated wholly by compressibility considerations. The blade width, thickness, and pitch distribution; also the airfoil sections, the lift coefficient, the propeller diameter, and rpm must all be adjusted if reasonable efficiencies are to be maintained at airplane speeds that are now being approached. Research is urgently needed on: 1) airfoils at subsonic, sonic, and supersonic speeds; 2) propellers at high forward speeds in wind tunnels; 3)propellers in free flight at high speeds; and 4) jet propulsion and related devices. The breakdown of propeller efficiency indicated by airfoil data, should serve as an incentive for accelerated research on jet propulsion. This device may extend the attainable speed of current airplanes to the neighborhood of 550 miles per hour at 20,000 feet.

Description: A chart is presented for the values of the coefficient in the formula for the critical compressive stress at which buckling may be expected to occur in flat rectangular plates supported along all edges and, in addition, elastically restrained against rotation along the unloaded edges. The mathematical derivations of the formulas required in the construction of the chart are given.

Description: A chart is presented for the values of the coefficient in the formula for the critical compressive stress at which buckling may be expected to occur in outstanding flanges. These flanges are flat rectangular plates supported along the Loaded edges, supported and elastically restrained along one unloaded edge, and free along the other unloaded edge. The mathematical derivations of the formulas required for the construction of the chart are given.

Description: An investigation has been conducted on a full-scale model of the proposed XP-46 airplane in the N. A. C. A. full-scale wind tunnel pursuant to the request of the Amy Air Corps, Materiel Division. The primary purpose of the investigation was to determine the optimum arrangement of the various component parts to obtain the maximum high speed and to provide adequate engine cooling. Additional tests included a determination of the stalling characteristics and the effectiveness of ailerons and elevators. The profile drag of the wing was ascertained by the momentum method; the location of the transition point on the wing and the critical compressibility velocities of the various airplane components were determined from surface pressure surveys.

Description: Adjustable cowling flaps, an adjustable-length cowling skirt, and a bottom opening with adjustable flap were tested as means of controlling the rate of cooling-air flow through an air-cooled radial-engine cowling. The devices were tested in the NACA 20-foot tunnel on a model wing-nacelle-propeller combination, through an airspeed range of 20 to 80 miles per hour, and with the propeller blade angle set 23 degrees at 0.75 of the tip radius. The resistance of the engine to air flow through the cowling was simulated by a perforated plate. The results indicated that the adjustable cowling flap and the bottom opening with adjustable flap were about equally effective on the basis of pressure drop obtainable and that both were more effective means of increasing the pressure drop through the cowling than the adjustable-length skirt. At conditions of equal cooling-air flow, the net efficiency obtained with the adjustable cowling flaps and the adjustable-length cowling skirt was about 1% greater than the net efficiency obtained with the bottom opening with adjustable flap.

Description: A preliminary investigation of a number of duct entrances of rectangular shape installed in the leading edge of a wing was conducted in the NACA 20-foot tunnel to determine the external drag, the available pressure, the critical Mach numbers, and the effect on the maximum lift. The results showed that the most satisfactory entrances, which had practically no effect on the wing characteristics, had their lips approximately in the vertical plane of the leading edge of the wing. This requirement necessitated extending the lips outside the wing contour for all except the small entrances. Full dynamic pressure was found to be available over a fairly wide range of angle of attack. The critical Mach number for a small entrance was calculated to be as high as that for the plain wing but was slightly lower for the larger entrances tested.

Description: Test of 10-foot diameter, 4- and 6-blade single- and dual-rotating propellers were conducted in the 20-foot propeller-research tunnel. The propellers were mounted at the front end of a streamline body incorporating spinners to house the hub portions. The effect of a symmetrical wing mounted in the slipstream was investigated. The blade angles investigated ranged from 20 degrees to 65 degrees; the latter setting corresponds to airplane speeds of over 500 miles per hour. The results indicate that dual-rotating propellers were from 0 to 6% more efficient than single-rotating ones; but when operating in the presence of a wing the gain was reduced about one-half. Other advantages of dual-rotating propellers were found to include greater power absorption and greater efficiency at the low V/nD operating range of high pitch propellers.

Description: An investigation has been made of the effect of aerodynamic heating on propeller-blade temperatures. The blade temperature rise resulting from aerodynamic heating was measured and the relation between the resulting blade temperatures and the outer limit of the iced-over region was examined. It was found that the outermost station at which ice formed on a propeller blade was determined by the blade temperature rise resulting from the aerodynamic heating at that point.

Description: Force tests were made of a 1/8-scale model of a twin-engine low-wing transport airplane in the NACA 8-foot high-speed wind tunnel to investigate compressibility and interference effects at speeds up to 450 miles per hour. In addition to tests of the standard arrangement of the model tests were made with several modifications designed to reduce the drag and to increase the critical speed. The results show serious increases in drag at critical speeds below 450 miles per hour due to the occurrence of compressibility burbles on the standard radial-engine cowlings, on sections of the wing as a result of wing-nacelle interference, and on the semi-retracted main landing wheels. The critical speed at which the shock occurred on the standard cowlings was 20 miles per hour lower in the presence of the fuselage than in the presence of the wing only. The drag of the complete model was reduced 25% at 300 miles per hour by completely retracting the landing gear, fairing the windshield irregularities, and substituting streamline nacelles (with allowance made for the proper amount of cooling-air flow) for the standard nacelle arrangement. The values of the critical Mach number were extended from 0.47 to 0.60 as a result of the aforementioned improvements. The principal purpose of the reported tests was to investigate the effect of compressibility on the drag of the component parts of a representative large airplane and on the overall drag of such an airplane. The influence of interference on compressibility effects was also studied. In addition, it was proposed to test several modifications of the standard component parts that gave promise of an improvement in aerodynamic characteristics.

Description: This report covers a study of the generally available data on load distribution on slots and flaps. The study was made by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics at the request of the Material Division, Army Air Corps to furnish information applicable to design criteria for slots and flaps of various types. The data are presented in three main sections: slots (Handley page type), auxiliary airfoils (fixed), and flaps.

Description: One disadvantage that has been apparent in the operation of split flaps as used to date is the time and effort required to operate them. In this communication an investigation is being made of possible means for balancing them aerodynamically to make their operation easier. Several arrangements have been tested in the 7 by 210 foot wind tunnel, and the results of the wind-tunnel tests as well as preliminary flight tests on one of the more promising forms are given in this paper.

Description: Investigations with a view to increasing the lift coefficient of a wing, without greatly increasing the C(sub x min), are chiefly related to the important question of the maximum speed range.

Description: This note discusses the limitations of the conventional tank test of a seaplane model. The advantages of a complete test, giving the characteristics of the model at all speeds, loads, and trim angles in the useful range are pointed out. The data on N.A.C.A. Model No.11, obtained from a complete test, are presented and discussed. The results are analyzed to determine the best trim angle for each speed and load. The data for the best angles are reduced to non-dimensional form for ease of comparison and application. A practical problem using the characteristics of model no.11 is presented to show the method of calculating the take-off time and run of a seaplane from these data.

Description: The increased use of split flaps for the dual purpose of reducing the landing speed and shortening the landing glide of airplanes has established as acute the problem of obtaining satisfactory lateral control to be used in conjunction with the flaps with out the sacrifice of any of the effectiveness of the flaps. A large amount of work is being done on this problem by various organizations and individuals. Several of the devices developed seem usable, some of them unquestionably so. The present paper attempts to summarize the most promising results obtained to date. Topics covered include ordinary ailerons, external ailerons, floating ailerons, upper-surface ailerons, and spoilers. Although the external ailerons above the trailing edge of the wing and the spoilers at the rear of the wing appear quite promising, it would seem that probably the most satisfactory immediate solution of the problem, including the obtaining of light and smoothly graduated control forces, would in most cases be obtained by the use of the arrangement in which the flap is retracted ahead of ordinary narrow-chord ailerons and is deflected to the rear as well as downward when in use.

Description: Since the recent more or less extensive adoption of high-lift flaps on airplane wings, the problem of providing satisfactory lateral control without sacrificing a part of the span of the flaps has become one of some importance. The difficulties have been largely a matter of obtaining satisfactory rolling moments with a smoothly graduated action, together with sufficiently small control forces throughout the entire speed range. As part of an investigation including several different lateral-control arrangements to be used with split flaps, the tests reported in this paper were made on one arrangement in which conventional ailerons of narrow chord are used, and a split flap is retracted into the under surface of th wing forward of th ailerons. When the flap is retracted, the arrangement is as sketched in figure 1(a). If a simple form of split flap were used, hinged at its forward edge, the appearance when deflected would be as shown in figure 1(b). The flap if deflected with its leading edge remaining in this forward position would give somewhat less than three fourths of the lift increase of the same flap in the usual rear position. (See reference 1.). If, as shown in figure 1(c), the split flap ahead of th aileron is moved to the rear as the trailing=edge portion is deflected downward, a double advantage is obtained. The deflected flap can be located in the most effective region for high lift (reference 1), and the force required to deflect the flap is reduced. This is the arrangement used in the present tests.

Description: This report describes the Bucharest wind tunnel and presents numerous photographs and diagrams. The wind tunnel is of the closed- circuit type, the return being symmetrical with respect t o the longitudinal axis of the tunnel. Th e tunnel is of the horizontal type with a diameter of 3. 2 m (10. 5-ft.) a t the beginning of the entrance cone, and 1.5 m ( 4,92 ft.) at the entrance to the test chamber. The latter, 2 m (6.56 ft.) long, may be either of the open-jet type or enclosed in a cylindrical housing.

Description: The interpretation of the take-off resistance of seaplane floats by model test involves a problem in mechanics, the solution of which forms the basis of this report. The comparison of three float forms is confined to an angle = 5 degree trim run in order to preserve the clearness of the arrangement. But for complete comparison the corresponding curves for several trim runs should be included.

Description: This paper presents a series of tables for the simple and more common types of girders, similar to the tables given in handbooks under the heading "Strength of Materials," for determining the moments, deflections, etc., of simple beams. Instead of the uniform cross section there assumed, the formulas given here apply only to girders of "uniform strength," i.e., it is assumed that a girder is so dimensioned that a given load subjects it to a uniform stress throughout its whole length. This principle is particularly applicable to very strong structures. Girders of uniform strength are the lightest girders conceivable, because any girder, all of whose members are stressed to the limit, can not be surpassed by a lighter girder, if the two girders have the same form. The weight G of a member of length l, cross section F and specific gravity gamma is: G = Flgamma.

Description: Seamless steel tubing is today the principal material of construction for aircraft. The commercial grade of tubing containing about 0.10 to 0.20% carbon at first used is being superseded by two grades which are approved by the army and navy, and which are also becoming standard for commercial airplanes.

Description: A survey of methods and equipment used in the riveting of German aircraft. Includes descriptions and illustrations.