L/D ratio / Best Angle of Climb /

Best Rate of Climb

 What is DRAG?
 DRAG acts in opposition to the direction of
flight, opposes the forward-acting force of
thrust, and limits the forward speed of the
airplane. Drag is broadly classified as either
PARASITE or INDUCED.
DRAG CONSISTS OF:
*PARASITE DRAG (caused by speed)
--Form Drag
--Skin friction drag
--Interference drag
--Increases as airspeed increases, vice versa

*INDUCED DRAG
--Caused by the presence of LIFT
--Increases as AoA increases, vice versa
AIRFOIL TERMINOLOGY
 INDUCED DRAG
 TOTAL lift vector (R) is
perpendicular to the chord
line because…

 The average relative airflow

over the wing is deflected
downward; this causes a
tilting backward of the lift
vector.

 The vertical component of

lift (L) is what balances
WEIGHT in level flight.

 The horizontal and rearward

component of the lift vector Induced Drag-"Lift dependant" drag
is induced drag (Di).
 What is LIFT?
 The TOTAL aerodynamic forced created by
an object (wing) moving through a fluid
medium (air).

 This total force VECTOR is further devided

into two vectors: The VERTICAL and
HORIZONTAL vectors
 The LIFT equation
(Dr. Huang Edition)

 L = (1/2) d v2 s CL
 The LIFT equation
(Pilot’s Edition)
 L = AoA x Airspeed

 To maintain level flight (constant L), as

airspeed decreases, AoA must increase,
vice versa.
 L/D RATIO
 In aerodynamics, the lift-to-drag ratio, or L/D
ratio, is the amount of lift generated by a wing
or vehicle, divided by the drag it creates by
moving through the air. A higher or more
favorable L/D ratio is typically one of the
major goals in aircraft design; since a
particular aircraft’s required lift is set by its
weight, delivering that lift with lower drag
leads directly to better fuel economy, climb
performance, and glide ratio.
 LIFT / DRAG RATIO
 An aircrafts lift / drag
ratio is a measure of
its efficiency.
 The best L/D Angle
of Attack will give
optimum glide, max.
endurance and
optimum holding
speed.
 L/Dmax
 L/Dmax occurs at the point of the most
efficient Angle of Attack.
 The following performance items occur at
L/Dmax:

1. Maximum Range Glide speed

2. Maximum angle of climb speed
3. Maximum Endurance speed
 Best Angle of Climb (Vx)
 Climbing using The Best Angle Of Climb (Vx)
allows pilots to maximize the altitude gain per
unit ground distance. That is, Vx allows pilots to
maximize their climb while sacrificing the least
amount of ground distance. This occurs at the
speed for which the difference between thrust and
drag is the greatest (maximum excess thrust). In a
jet airplane, this is approximately minimum drag
speed, or the bottom of the drag vs. speed curve.
 Best Rate of Climb (Vy)
 Climbing at The Best Rate Of Climb (Vy) allows
pilots to maximize the altitude gain per unit time.
That is, Vy, allows pilots to maximize their climb
while sacrificing the least amount of time. This
occurs at the speed for which the difference
between engine power and the power required to
overcome the aircraft's drag is the greatest
(maximum excess power). Climb rate is
proportional to excess power.