Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

Understanding
Flight

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 1

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do birds fly? (1/5)

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 2

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do birds fly? (2/5)

 Wings  lifting surfaces

 Wing mechanism  flapping
Birds’ wings flap with an up-and-down motion. This propels them forward.
The entire wingspan has to be at the right angle of attack, which means the
wings have to twist (and do so automatically) with each downward stroke to
keep aligned with the direction of travel.

 Energy of bird flight  kinetic energy & potential energy

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 3

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do birds fly? (3/5)

Example 1: Calculate the kinetic energy of a 6.8 kg (15 lb, about

the biggest) bald eagle which is flying at 13.9 m s–1 (about 30
miles per hour or 50 kilometer/hour; their top speed)

Example 2: How high would the eagle flying at 30 mph need to

rise to come to a complete stop, if none of the stopping power
came from wings?

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 4

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do birds fly? (4/5)

Example 1: Calculate the kinetic energy of a 6.8 kg (15 lb, about
the biggest) bald eagle which is flying at 13.9 m s–1 (about 30
miles per hour or 50 kilometer/hour; their top speed)

Example 2: How high would the eagle flying at 30 mph need to

rise to come to a complete stop, if none of the stopping power
came from wings?

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 5

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do birds fly? (5/5)

 No propulsion system  convert internal energy, wind
energy to kinetics energy and potential energy
 Could we fly like birds?

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 6

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do an airplane fly? (1/3)

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 7

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do an airplane fly? (2/3)

 Wings  lifting surfaces
 Velocity  not lower than the “stall speed”
 Energy  kinetics energy and potential energy
 Propulsion system  power source

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 8

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do an airplane fly? (3/3)

 Could we fly like an airplane?

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 9

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do an airplane fly? (4/5)

Example 3: Estimate the speed of the Alpha Jetman if we know
the wing area is 2.125 m2, the lift coefficient is 0.4, the air density
is 1.225 kg/m3, the take-off weight is 130 kg?

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 10

Flight Mechanics – Understanding Flight

How do an airplane fly? (5/5)

Example 3: Estimate the speed of the Alpha Jetman if we know
the wing area is 2.125 m2, the lift coefficient is 0.4, the air density
is 1.225 kg/m3, the take-off weight is 130 kg?

Solution: L = W  V = sqrt(2×m×g/(×Sw×CL))
 V = 49.5 m/s = 178.2 km/h

Assoc.Prof.Dr Ngo Khanh Hieu 11