Aircraft specification and certification

For these four objectives we start from the most important requirements which have to be formulated for any design, when evaluating, testing and operating an aircraft:

• Useful Payload and Load ability, Action Radius, capacity

• Performance (take-off and climb, landing, cruise speeds)

• Direct Operating Cost, Direct Maintenance Cost

• Environmental match: Noise Levels, EMI en CO2/Nox

• Engines : availability of thrust class

• Aircraft equipment en – necessary infrastructure

• Manufacturing- and Structural characteristics

• Flying Qualities in comparison to competing/earlier concepts

• Certificate- en Maintenance requirements (originating from EASA/FAA et al)

Attention is given to some design steps important for any aircraft development:

• Configuration-development (market studies, speculative/concept design, feasibility and/or parametric studies, initial baseline design, design-authorised to offer)

• Preliminary spec, Baseline Configuration-development, Best conceivable Design,

• Detailed design, Final Hardware design, Design Freeze

• Support and Service, Follow-on Versions, Re-engining, Re-engineering & Mod’s, Life- Cycle & Residual Value

In order to highlight the overarching “systemic» aspect, the accent will be given on how multidisciplinary disciplines and issues have to be coordinated such as:

• Aerodynamics

• Structures

• Materials

• Production

• Maintenance

• Weights

• Equipment

• Flight test

• Operations Engineering

• Flying Qualities

• Aircraft Performance

• Financial and Economic aspects (recurring and non-recurring costs)

In this way the systemic-aspects can be grasped by means of case-study materials clearly illustrating the iterative trade-off character so typical for any design, be it for aircraft, space-craft, ships, buildings, systems and equipment.

The total amount of hours is fixed at no more than 18 hours lectures with no exercises and no theoretical exam either written or oral. For this aspect a case-study is an exercise in point to fully review and evaluate an aircraft. This is now done in team context and requires some 90 hours per individual which is coherent with the time allocation formula (Total study time calculated as: amount of hours lecturing college*3+amount of hours exercises*1.5+amount of hours self study*1).

These four general aims of this course can be reformulated as follows:

• The course aims to provide a sufficient introduction and insight into the systemic whole of every aspect of an aircraft’s design so that the student would have developed necessary knowledge and aptitudes to approach any aircraft design.

• The overall concept evaluation of an aircraft as an architectural whole and system that

  functions in an overarching air transport or defence system,

  in close connection with internal and external interacting and cooperating systems

  with both safety-related, economics-related and eco-efficiency-related constraints.

• Understanding, insight and ability to manipulate basic-concepts as “skills” towards

  concrete applications not just individually but also in team context, to integrate

  oneself in an industrial context to flexibly integrate added knowledge and experience

• Understanding, insight and ability to analyze an aircraft as a complex system including the evaluation of design choices by means of retrospective analysis of existing examples of aircraft case-studies and their subsystems,

In so doing the student can apply principles and practices of other LURU courses as well as of her or his engineering training; i.e. be them qualitative, or quantitative basics from aerodynamics, aircraft performance, structures, engines, flying qualities, weight estimations, fundamental courses, probably at the basis of her or of his choice in aeronautical engineering.

• For each topic examples are given by means of:

• industry background of civil aircraft manufacturers (not only Airbus where I am coming from, but also Boeing, Bombardier, Embraer, Mitsubishi, Chinese and Russian ventures…),

• industry background of military manufacturers ( Dassault, EADS, Northrop- Grumman, Lockheed, Boeing, SAAB, Sukhoi, Chinese and other ventures from emerging nations…),

• success stories where new concepts were introduced and became industry references e.g.:

• A300FF/A310 the digital Airbus cockpits with associated systems aiming at improved safety, A320 Fly-by-wire, A340 Radio Management Panel, A380 Hydraulic System, A350 composite structure

• short stories of industrial hurdles where an initial design had to be adapted, re-engineered, re-tested, even re-specified in order to be certificated,

• Comet (pressurization), DC-8 (wing sweep), B707 (dutch roll),CV-990 (shock waves), SAAB 2000 (pitch trim system issue) , CRJ-1000 (rudder control-by-wire system),…etc

• Airbus A300 (CAA Certification), A340 ( fuel tank inerting) , A380 ( weight savings) , A400M engines, B787 wing-body junction, …etc etc

In the course of the years we have indeed seen an ample series of aircraft being treated this way, either individually or as in the last three years in team concern coupled with weight, performance and structures recalculations and system descriptions. The main intent here is (and always was) to trigger a student’s attention for design layouts and associated specifications to familiarize themselves thoroughly with the “what and why” behind aircraft technology to enable them to act as designers (manufacturer’s point of view), as buyers (military or civilian operator or airline point’s of view) or a certificatory (airworthiness authorities and/or regulator point of view). Case-studies are presented by means of a write-up as well as by means of a “power point-presentation” as if to present the chosen aircraft publicly. Examples are available at the library of VUB’s Research Group “Stromingsmechanika & Thermodynamica” (Triomflaan 43). Every two years there is a LURU-visit to Airbus as students see fit (and can afford as this is not subsidized), feedback of which is reported as being very appropriate for this curriculum, well worth a reality-check.

The total amount of hours is fixed at no more than 18 hours lectures with no exercises and no theoretical exam either written or oral. For this aspect a case-

Références, bibliographie et lectures recommandées

Books

• Fundamentals of Aircraft Design, Leland M.Nicolai, University of Dayton, Ohio,

• The Elements of Aircraft Preliminary Design, Roger Schauffele, ISBN 0-9701986-0-4, Aries Publications, Santa Ana, California

• Aircraft Design : Parts I through VIII, Roskam, Kansas City University

• Aircraft Design: a conceptual approach, Daniel P. Rayme, AIAA Education Series, Ed by J.S.Prezemieniecki, ISBN 0 -930403-51-7

• Aircraft Propulsion Systems Technology & Design, Ed by Gordon C.Oates, J.S.Prezemieniecki, ISBN 0 -930403-24X

• Aircraft Performance and Design, John Anderson Jr, Mc Graw Hill, ISBN 0-07-001972-1

• MACH 1 and Beyond, Larry Reithmaier, TAB Mc Graw Hill, ISBN 0-07-052021-6

• Optimizing Jet Transport Efficiency, Performance, Operations & Economics, Carlos Padilla,Mc Graw Hill, ISBN 0-07-048208

• Aircraft Flight, R-H Barnard & D.R. Philpott, Longman Scientific & Technical, ISBN 0-582-23656-8

• Fundamentals of Flight, Richard S. Shevell, Stanford University, Prentice Hall, ISBN 0 -13-339060-8

• Buying the Big Jets, Fleet Planning for Airlines, Paul Clark, Ashgate, ISBN 0754613852

Journals and Periodicals

• Aviation Week & Space Technology

• Flight International

• Journal of Air Commerce

• AIAA Journal

• Jane’s “All the World Aircraft”

Contacts

Mr Geoffrey Demoulin, geoffrey@dfct.be;

Méthode(s) d'évaluation

• Autre

Autre

Examination

• Case-studies are dealt with by means of a written paper (i.e. a texst) as well as an oral presentation by means of a public presentation (i.e. a powerpoint) publiek. Prior case-studies are available at the Library of the Department “Stromingsmechanika & Thermodynamika” at the Triomflaan, 43. This is the only required course work to be performed for this course. Moreover, every 2 years a visit of the class is held at Airbus (as a function of possible subsidies) an otherwise illustrative orientation for this curriculum as well as a reality-check working in favor of student-orientation.

Construction de la note (en ce compris, la pondération des notes partielles)

Travail avec un logiciel de conception avion

Langue(s) d'évaluation

• anglais