Module 01

Aircraft Structures - General

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Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS..........................................................................................................................................................3
MODULE 01 – AIRCRAFT STRUCTURES – GENERAL.................................................................................................... 5
STRUCTURAL CLASSIFICATION...............................................................................................................................................5
ZONAL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS..........................................................................................................................................6
CONSTRUCTION METHODS OF AEROPLANES...........................................................................................................................8
STRESSED SKIN CONSTRUCTION METHOD............................................................................................................................13

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Module 01 Enabling Objectives

Learning Outcome
 Describe the general concepts of airframe structures and general construction
methods, assembly techniques and methods of cleaning and protecting surfaces
using the correct terminology

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Module 01 – Aircraft Structures – General
Structural Classification
When designing aeroplanes, loads to which the various parts are exposed must be taken
into consideration. These loads are different for each part of the construction. A difference
is made between primary and secondary constructions. When choosing materials for
maintenance work, this must be taken into account. The primary construction consists of
those parts of the aeroplane construction that bear the loads.

Fig. 5. Structural Classification

The secondary construction generally gives the aerodynamic shape to the aeroplane
construction. On the basis of the main sections, the difference between primary and
secondary can be clearly illustrated. For example, a wing section consists of a primary part
and a secondary part

Secondary

Primary

Fig. 6. Wing Structure Classification

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Zonal Identification Systems
The location identification system is used to pinpoint the various locations in an airplane.
The station numbers make it possible to indicate the location of the centre of gravity, the
distribution of the load, the location of the compartments and of parts. To localize parts
more easily and to localize where work must be done, the aeroplane is divided into:
 Major zones
 Major sub-zones
 Unit zones
Major zones are identified by hundred as follows:
 100 FUSELAGE LOWER SECTION
 200 FUSELAGE TOP SECTION
 300 STABILIZERS
 400 NACELLES
 500 LEFT WING
 600 RIGHT WING
 700 LANDING GEAR
 800 DOORS

Fig. 10. Major Zones (Examples)

Unit zones are identified by a three digit number. An example of a location identification
system is 212:
 200: upper half of body (major zone)
 10: Cockpit (major sub-zone)

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  2: zone number on the right-hand side (unit zone)
Where necessary, the uneven zone number refers to the left-hand zone, and an even
number indicates a right- hand zone. Large construction sections, including doors and
control surfaces, have their own zone numbers.

Fig. 11. Sub Zones (Example)

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 Fig. 12. Unit Zones (Example)

Construction Methods of Aeroplanes

Evolution of Aeroplane Structures
Aircraft structures have evolved fully as much as have their powerplants. The very first
airframes were made of open trusses of either wood strips or bamboo. The aerodynamic
surfaces were made of lightweight wood covered with cotton or linen fabric, shrunk and
made air tight with a syrup-like collodion product that dried to a hard film.
The next major development came with the welded steel tube fuselage structure that
replaced the wooden truss. This structure is strong, but it has the disadvantage that to give
it a streamlined shape, a superstructure must be built around the load-bearing truss. This
adds weight but is needed for aerodynamic smoothness and aesthetics.

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 Fig. 22. Truss Type Structure
In the late 1920s the Lockheed Company developed a streamlined wooden Monocoque
structure that carried virtually all of the stresses in its outer skin. This lightweight
streamlined structure was used on some of the most efficient aircraft of the time. It,
however, had the disadvantage of being extremely labor intensive in its construction.

Fig. 23. Plywood Monocoque Aeroplane (Lockheed Vega)

The next logical step in the evolution of aircraft structure was to replace the wooden
monocoque with a thin aluminium alloy monocoque. This decreased the dependence upon
skilled craftsmen for its construction and made mass production of interchangeable parts
practical and cost effective.

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Pure aluminium is weak, but during World War I, the Germans discovered that by alloying
aluminium with copper, manganese, and magnesium, they could increase its strength
without increasing its weight. This new alloy was called Duralumin, and it was the
forerunner of the high-strength and lightweight alloys (7017 aluminium alloy) that we use in
aircraft construction today.
Metal stressed-skin aircraft structure has been the standard since the 1930s, but a new
era is dawning, that of composites. Composite structure can be made stronger, lighter in
weight, more rigid, and less costly than metal. We have experienced what may be termed
a plastics revolution. Early plastic materials such as celluloid and Beetle ware gave
promise of a low-cost, easy-to-manufacture material, but they did not have the strength
needed for structural applications. One of the first plastic materials used in aviation was a
thermosetting phenol-formaldehyde resin that was reinforced with paper or linen cloth.
This phenolic material, called Micarta, pioneered in the early 1930s, is still used for control
cable pulleys and fairleads and for electrical insulators.
Glass fibres, both woven into cloth and packed into loose mat and roving, have been
reinforced with polyester resins and used for radomes, wing tips, and wheel pants since
the early 1950s. This material is truly a composite and may be thought of as being the
ancestor of modern composite structural materials.

Fig. 24. First All-Composite Commercial Aircraft (Beach Starship)

Modern composite materials use fibres of graphite and Kevlar as well as glass for most
applications, with boron and ceramic used in some special applications.
These fibres are primarily bonded into an epoxy resin matrix. Composite structural
components have the advantage over metal of being lighter in weight, stronger, more rigid,
and better able to withstand the sonic vibrations that are commonly encountered in aircraft
structure.
The military forces have been responsible for much of the development in advanced
composite structure because performance and the successful accomplishment of military
goals have always been more important than cost. The airlines have also contributed to its

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development because every pound of weight saved by replacing metal with composite
materials adds a pound of payload capability for each flight and reduces the fuel burn.

Fig. 25. Use of Composites on a Jet Airliner

Maintenance and repairs to aeroplanes must be done well, fast and at the right location.
That’s why the aeroplane maintenance mechanic must know where the part to be repaired
or replaced is.
When constructing an aeroplane, a distinction is made between the main sections and the
subsections. The main sections are connected to each other in a particular order in various
ways. The main sections of the aeroplane construction as shown in figure below are:
• The fuselage
• The wings
• The landing gears
• The empennage (consisting of the vertical and horizontal stabilisers, rudder and
elevator)
• The propulsion systems (powerplants, also referred to as engines).

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 Fig. 26. Main Sections of an Aircraft

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Stressed Skin Construction Method
To take the maximum advantage of metal, most aircraft structure is of the stressed skin. A
type of aircraft structure in which all or most of the stresses are carried in the outside skin.
A stressed skin structure has a minimum of internal structure. There are two types of metal
stressed skin: monocoque and semi-monocoque.
Monocoque Structure
The name monocoque means single shell, and in a true monocoque structure, all the
strength of the structure is carried in the outside skin. The diagram below shows a view of
a monocoque structure. The formers give the structure its shape, but the thin metal skin
riveted to them carries all the flight loads.
A monocoque fuselage is in its strength similar to a tube, its cross section is of high
bending and torsion strength. There is no need for cross-struts, which would demand to
much space from the cabin and cargo compartments. The formers are directly attached to
the skin.

Fig. 27. Monocoque Structure

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Semi-monocoque Structure
Pure monocoque structure has the serious drawback that any dent or deformation will
decrease its ability to carry the flight loads. To overcome this limitation, semi-monocoque
structure as seen in Figure 27 is widely used. In this type of structure, formers not only
provide the shape, they carry the majority of the flight loads.

Fig. 28. Semi-Monocoque Structure

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