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Flight control surfaces

Aircraft flight control surfaces are aerodynamic devices
allowing a pilot to adjust and control the aircraft's flight
attitude.

Development of an effective set of flight control surfaces was a

critical advance in the development of aircraft. Early efforts at
fixed-wing aircraft design succeeded in generating sufficient lift
to get the aircraft off the ground, but once aloft, the aircraft
Basic aircraft control surfaces and
proved uncontrollable, often with disastrous results. The
motion.
development of effective flight controls is what allowed stable
flight.

This article describes the control surfaces used on a fixed-wing aircraft of conventional design. Other
fixed-wing aircraft configurations may use different control surfaces but the basic principles remain. The
controls (stick and rudder) for rotary wing aircraft (helicopter or autogyro) accomplish the same motions
about the three axes of rotation, but manipulate the rotating flight controls (main rotor disk and tail
rotor disk) in a completely different manner.

Contents
Development
Axes of motion
Transverse axis
Longitudinal axis
Vertical axis
Main control surfaces
Ailerons
Elevator
Rudder
Secondary effects of controls
Ailerons
Rudder
Turning the aircraft
Alternate main control surfaces
Secondary control surfaces
Spoilers
Flaps
Slats
Air brakes
Control trimming surfaces
Elevator trim
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Trimming tail plane

Control horn
Spring trim
Rudder and aileron trim
See also
Notes
References
External links

Development
The Wright brothers are credited with developing the first practical control surfaces. It is a main part of
their patent on flying.[1] Unlike modern control surfaces, they used wing warping.[2] In an attempt to
circumvent the Wright patent, Glenn Curtiss made hinged control surfaces, the same type of concept
first patented some four decades earlier in the United Kingdom. Hinged control surfaces have the
advantage of not causing stresses that are a problem of wing warping and are easier to build into
structures.

Axes of motion

An aircraft is free to rotate around three axes that are perpendicular

to each other and intersect at its center of gravity (CG). To control
position and direction a pilot must be able to control rotation about
each of them.

Transverse axis

The transverse axis, also known as lateral axis,[3] passes through an

aircraft from wingtip to wingtip. Rotation about this axis is called Rotation around the three axes
pitch. Pitch changes the vertical direction that the aircraft's nose is
pointing. The elevators are the primary control surfaces for pitch.

Longitudinal axis

The longitudinal axis passes through the aircraft from nose to tail.
Rotation about this axis is called roll.[3] The angular displacement
about this axis is called bank.[4] The pilot changes bank angle by Mnemonics to remember angle
increasing the lift on one wing and decreasing it on the other. This names
differential lift causes rotation around the longitudinal axis. The
ailerons are the primary control of bank. The rudder also has a
secondary effect on bank.

Vertical axis

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The vertical axis passes through an aircraft from top to bottom. Rotation about this axis is called yaw.[3]
Yaw changes the direction the aircraft's nose is pointing, left or right. The primary control of yaw is with
the rudder. Ailerons also have a secondary effect on yaw.

It is important to note that these axes move with the aircraft, and change relative to the earth as the
aircraft moves. For example, for an aircraft whose left wing is pointing straight down, its "vertical" axis is
parallel with the ground, while its "transverse" axis is perpendicular to the ground.

Main control surfaces

The main control surfaces of a fixed-wing aircraft are attached to the airframe on hinges or tracks so they
may move and thus deflect the air stream passing over them. This redirection of the air stream generates
an unbalanced force to rotate the plane about the associated axis.

Flight control surfaces of Boeing 727

Ailerons

Ailerons are mounted on the trailing edge of each wing near the wingtips and move in opposite
directions. When the pilot moves the stick left, or turns the wheel counter-clockwise, the left aileron goes
up and the right aileron goes down. A raised aileron reduces lift on that wing and a lowered one
increases lift, so moving the stick left causes the left wing to drop and the right wing to rise. This causes
the aircraft to roll to the left and begin to turn to the left. Centering the stick returns the ailerons to

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neutral maintaining the bank angle. The aircraft will continue to

turn until opposite aileron motion returns the bank angle to zero to
fly straight.

Elevator Aileron surface

The elevator is a moveable part of the horizontal stabilizer, hinged to

the back of the fixed part of the horizontal tail. The elevators move
up and down together. When the pilot pulls the stick backward, the elevators go up. Pushing the stick
forward causes the elevators to go down. Raised elevators push down on the tail and cause the nose to
pitch up. This makes the wings fly at a higher angle of attack, which generates more lift and more drag.
Centering the stick returns the elevators to neutral and stops the change of pitch. Some aircraft, such as
an MD-80, use a servo tab within the elevator surface to aerodynamically move the main surface into
position. The direction of travel of the control tab will thus be in a direction opposite to the main control
surface. It is for this reason that an MD-80 tail looks like it has a 'split' elevator system.

In the canard arrangement, the elevators are hinged to the rear of a foreplane and move in the opposite
sense, for example when the pilot pulls the stick back the elevators go down to increase the lift at the
front and lift the nose up.

Rudder

The rudder is typically mounted on the trailing edge of the vertical stabilizer, part of the empennage.
When the pilot pushes the left pedal, the rudder deflects left. Pushing the right pedal causes the rudder
to deflect right. Deflecting the rudder right pushes the tail left and causes the nose to yaw to the right.
Centering the rudder pedals returns the rudder to neutral and stops the yaw.

Secondary effects of controls

Ailerons

The ailerons primarily control roll. Whenever lift is increased, induced drag is also increased. When the
stick is moved left to roll the aircraft to the left, the right aileron is lowered which increases lift on the
right wing and therefore increases induced drag on the right wing. Using ailerons causes adverse yaw,
meaning the nose of the aircraft yaws in a direction opposite to the aileron application. When moving the
stick to the left to bank the wings, adverse yaw moves the nose of the aircraft to the right. Adverse yaw is
more pronounced for light aircraft with long wings, such as gliders. It is counteracted by the pilot with
the rudder. Differential ailerons are ailerons which have been rigged such that the downgoing aileron
deflects less than the upward-moving one, reducing adverse yaw.

Rudder

The rudder is a fundamental control surface which is typically controlled by pedals rather than at the
stick. It is the primary means of controlling yaw—the rotation of an airplane about its vertical axis. The
rudder may also be called upon to counter-act the adverse yaw produced by the roll-control surfaces.

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If rudder is continuously applied in level flight the aircraft will yaw initially in the direction of the
applied rudder – the primary effect of rudder. After a few seconds the aircraft will tend to bank in the
direction of yaw. This arises initially from the increased speed of the wing opposite to the direction of
yaw and the reduced speed of the other wing. The faster wing generates more lift and so rises, while the
other wing tends to go down because of generating less lift. Continued application of rudder sustains
rolling tendency because the aircraft flying at an angle to the airflow - skidding towards the forward
wing. When applying right rudder in an aircraft with dihedral the left hand wing will have increased
angle of attack and the right hand wing will have decreased angle of attack which will result in a roll to
the right. An aircraft with anhedral will show the opposite effect. This effect of the rudder is commonly
used in model aircraft where if sufficient diheral or polyhedral is included in the wing design, primary
roll control such as ailerons may be omitted altogether.

Turning the aircraft

Unlike turning a boat, changing the direction of an aircraft normally must be done with the ailerons
rather than the rudder. The rudder turns (yaws) the aircraft but has little effect on its direction of travel.
With aircraft, the change in direction is caused by the horizontal component of lift, acting on the wings.
The pilot tilts the lift force, which is perpendicular to the wings, in the direction of the intended turn by
rolling the aircraft into the turn. As the bank angle is increased, the lifting force can be split into two
components: one acting vertically and one acting horizontally.

If the total lift is kept constant, the vertical component of lift will decrease. As the weight of the aircraft is
unchanged, this would result in the aircraft descending if not countered. To maintain level flight requires
increased positive (up) elevator to increase the angle of attack, increase the total lift generated and keep
the vertical component of lift equal with the weight of the aircraft. This cannot continue indefinitely. The
total load factor required to maintain level flight is directly related to the bank angle. This means that for
a given airspeed, level flight can only be maintained up to a certain given angle of bank. Beyond this
angle of bank, the aircraft will suffer an accelerated stall if the pilot attempts to generate enough lift to
maintain level flight.

Alternate main control surfaces

Some aircraft configurations have non-standard primary controls. For example, instead of elevators at
the back of the stabilizers, the entire tailplane may change angle. Some aircraft have a tail in the shape of
a V, and the moving parts at the back of those combine the functions of elevators and rudder. Delta wing
aircraft may have "elevons" at the back of the wing, which combine the functions of elevators and
ailerons.

Secondary control surfaces

Spoilers

On low drag aircraft such as sailplanes, spoilers are used to disrupt airflow over the wing and greatly
reduce lift. This allows a glider pilot to lose altitude without gaining excessive airspeed. Spoilers are
sometimes called "lift dumpers". Spoilers that can be used asymmetrically are called spoilerons and can
affect an aircraft's roll.

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Flaps

Flaps are mounted on the trailing edge on the inboard section of

each wing (near the wing roots). They are deflected down to increase
the effective curvature of the wing. Flaps raise the maximum lift
coefficient of the aircraft and therefore reduce its stalling speed.[5]
They are used during low speed, high angle of attack flight including
take-off and descent for landing. Some aircraft are equipped with
"flaperons", which are more commonly called "inboard ailerons". KLM Fokker 70, showing position of
flap and liftdumpers flight controls.
These devices function primarily as ailerons, but on some aircraft,
The liftdumpers are the lifted cream-
will "droop" when the flaps are deployed, thus acting as both a flap
coloured panels on the wing upper
and a roll-control inboard aileron.
surface (in this picture there are five
on the right wing). The flaps are the
large drooped surfaces on the
Slats
trailing edge of the wing.

Slats, also known as leading edge devices, are extensions to the front
of a wing for lift augmentation, and are intended to reduce the
stalling speed by altering the airflow over the wing. Slats may be
fixed or retractable - fixed slats (e.g. as on the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch)
give excellent slow speed and STOL capabilities, but compromise
higher speed performance. Retractable slats, as seen on most
airliners, provide reduced stalling speed for take-off and landing, but
are retracted for cruising.

Air brakes

Air brakes are used to increase drag. Spoilers might act as air brakes,
but are not pure air brakes as they also function as lift-dumpers or in
some cases as roll control surfaces. Air brakes are usually surfaces
that deflect outwards from the fuselage (in most cases symmetrically
on opposing sides) into the airstream in order to increase form-drag.
As they are in most cases located elsewhere on the aircraft, they do
Wing trailing edge flight control
not directly affect the lift generated by the wing. Their purpose is to surfaces of a Boeing_747-8. Top
slow down the aircraft. They are particularly useful when a high rate left: All surfaces at neutral position;
of descent is required. They are common on high performance Top middle: Right aileron is lowered;
military aircraft as well as civilian aircraft, especially those lacking Top right: spoilers raised during
reverse thrust capability. flight; Middle row: Fowler flaps
extended (left), extended more
Control trimming surfaces (middle), hinged with inboard slotted
part hinged even more (right);
Bottom row: spoilers raised during
Trimming controls allow a pilot to balance the lift and drag being landing
produced by the wings and control surfaces over a wide range of load
and airspeed. This reduces the effort required to adjust or maintain
a desired flight attitude.

Elevator trim

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Elevator trim balances the control force necessary to maintain the

correct aerodynamic force on the tail to balance the aircraft. Whilst
carrying out certain flight exercises, a lot of trim could be required to
maintain the desired angle of attack. This mainly applies to slow
flight, where a nose-up attitude is required, in turn requiring a lot of
trim causing the tailplane to exert a strong downforce. Elevator trim
is correlated with the speed of the airflow over the tail, thus airspeed
changes to the aircraft require re-trimming. An important design
parameter for aircraft is the stability of the aircraft when trimmed
Air brakes on the rear fuselage of a
for level flight. Any disturbances such as gusts or turbulence will be
Eurowings BAe 146-300
damped over a short period of time and the aircraft will return to its
level flight trimmed airspeed.

Trimming tail plane

Except for very light aircraft, trim tabs on the elevators are unable to provide the force and range of
motion desired. To provide the appropriate trim force the entire horizontal tail plane is made adjustable
in pitch. This allows the pilot to select exactly the right amount of positive or negative lift from the tail
plane while reducing drag from the elevators.

Control horn

A control horn is a section of control surface which projects ahead of

the pivot point. It generates a force which tends to increase the
surface's deflection thus reducing the control pressure experienced
by the pilot. Control horns may also incorporate a counterweight
which helps to balance the control and prevent it from fluttering in
the airstream. Some designs feature separate anti-flutter weights.

(In radio controlled model aircraft, the term "control horn" has a
different meaning.) [6] [7]

Spring trim Mass balance protruding from an

aileron used to suppress flutter
In the simplest arrangement, trimming is done by a mechanical
spring (or bungee) which adds appropriate force to augment the
pilot's control input. The spring is usually connected to an elevator trim lever to allow the pilot to set the
spring force applied.

Rudder and aileron trim

Most fixed-wing aircraft have a trimming control surface on the elevator, but larger aircraft also have a
trim control for the rudder, and another for the ailerons. The rudder trim is to counter any asymmetric
thrust from the engines. Aileron trim is to counter the effects of the centre of gravity being displaced
from the aircraft centerline. This can be caused by fuel or an item of payload being loaded more on one
side of the aircraft compared to the other, such as when one fuel tank has more fuel than the other.

See also
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Aircraft engine controls

Aircraft flight control systems
Aircraft flight mechanics
Flight with disabled controls
Ship motions
Six degrees of freedom
V-tail
Wing warping

Notes
1. Patents
U.S. Patent 821,393 (https://www.google.com/patents/US821393) — Flying machine — O. & W.
Wright
U.S. Patent 821,393 (http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT821393&id=h5NWAAAAEBAJ&
dq=821,393)—for those who do not have USPTO graphics plugin
2. *Centennial of flight (http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Dictionary/wing_warping/DI56.htm)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20080505105053/http://www.centennialofflight.gov/essay/Dicti
onary/wing_warping/DI56.htm) 2008-05-05 at the Wayback Machine - illustration of Wilbur Wright
invention of wing warping using a cardboard box
3. "MISB Standard 0601" (http://www.gwg.nga.mil/misb//docs/standards/ST0601.8.pdf) (PDF). Motion
Imagery Standards Board (MISB). Retrieved 1 May 2015. Also at File:MISB Standard 0601.pdf.
4. Clancy, L.J. Aerodynamics, Section 16.6
5. Clancy, L.J. Aerodynamics Chapter 6
6. "Servo Control" (http://www.pc-control.co.uk/servo_control.htm)
7. Model Aircraft: control horn FAQ (http://www.modelaircraft.org/mag/FAQ/answers/faq-q28.htm)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20130513083300/http://www.modelaircraft.org/mag/FAQ/answ
ers/faq-q28.htm) 2013-05-13 at the Wayback Machine

References
Private Pilot Manual; Jeppesen Sanderson; ISBN 0-88487-238-6 (hardcover, 1999)
Airplane Flying Handbook (https://web.archive.org/web/20140916060435/http://www.faa.gov/regulati
ons_policies/handbooks_manuals/aircraft/airplane_handbook/); U.S. Department of Transportation,
Federal Aviation Administration, FAA-8083-3A. (2004)
Clancy, L.J. (1975) Aerodynamics Pitman Publishing Limited, London ISBN 0-273-01120-0

External links
A clear explanation of model aircraft flight controls by BMFA (https://www.bmfa.org/Info/Getting-Start
ed/Getting-Started-in-R-C/Flight-Control)
See How It Flies (http://www.av8n.com/how/) By John S. Denker. A new spin on the perceptions,
procedures, and principles of flight.

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