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A method is suggested for predicting the stability of automatically controlled aircraft by a comparison of calculated frequency-response curves for the aircraft and experimentally determined frequency-response curves for the automatic pilot. The method is applied only to stabilization in roll. The method is expected to be useful as a means of establishing the specifications of the performance required of the automatic control devices for pilotless aircraft designed as missiles.
Though we routinely take to the air, for many of us flying remains a mystery. Few of us understand the how and why of jetting from New York to London in six hours. How does a plane stay in the air? Can turbulence bring it down? What is windshear? How good are the security checks? Patrick Smith, an airline pilot and author of Salon.com's popular column, "Ask the Pilot," unravels the secrets and tells you all there is to know about the strange and fascinating world of commercial flight. He offers: A nuts and bolts explanation of how planes fly Insights into safety and security Straight talk about turbulence, air traffic control, windshear, and crashes The history, color, and controversy of the world's airlines The awe and oddity of being a pilot The poetry and drama of airplanes, airports, and traveling abroad In a series of frank, often funny explanations and essays, Smith speaks eloquently to our fears and curiosities, incorporating anecdotes, memoir, and a life's passion for flight. He tackles our toughest concerns, debunks conspiracy theories and myths, and in a rarely heard voice dares to return a dash of romance and glamour to air travel.
This edition of this this flight stability and controls guide features an unintimidating math level, full coverage of terminology, and expanded discussions of classical to modern control theory and autopilot designs. Extensive examples, problems, and historical notes, make this concise book a vital addition to the engineer's library.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A fascinating fear of flying book from a commercial airline pilot and author of the popular website askthepilot.com. For millions of people, travel by air is a confounding, uncomfortable, and even frightening experience. When you go behind the scenes, however, you can see that the grand theater of air travel is actually fascinating. From the intricate design of airport architecture to the logistics of inflight service, here is everything you need to know about flying. Commercial airlines like to hide the truth from customers and do nothing to comfort nervous fliers. And what's scarier than the unknown? In this aviation book, pilot Patrick Smith breaks down that barr...
This book provides an introduction to the pinciples of automatic flight of fixed-wing and rotary wing aircraft. Representative types of aircraft (UK and US) are used to show how these principles are applied in their systems. The revised edition includes new material on automatic flight control systems and helicopters.
A method is presented for determining the control gearing and time lag necessary for determining a specified damping of the motions of an aircraft equipped with an autopilot having a constant-time-lag characteristics. The method is applied to a typical present-day airplane equipped with an autopilot sensitive to yawing acceleration. The types of motion predicted for this airplane-autopilot system by this method are compared with motions calculated by a step-by-step procedure.
This Second Edition continues the fine tradition of its predecessor by exploring the various automatic control systems in aircraft and on board missiles. Considerably expanded and updated, it now includes new or additional material on: the effectiveness of beta-beta feedback as a method of obtaining coordination during turns using the F-15 as the aircraft model; the root locus analysis of a generic acceleration autopilot used in many air-to-air and surface-to-air guided missiles; the guidance systems of the AIM-9L Sidewinder as well as bank-to-turn missiles; various types of guidance, including proportional navigation and line-of-sight and lead-angle command guidance; the coupling of the output of a director fire control system into the autopilot; the analysis of multivariable control systems; and methods for modeling the human pilot, plus the integration of the human pilot into an aircraft flight control system. Also features many new additions to the appendices.
This introduction to the new generation of airplane cockpit automation, now prevalent in general-aviation aircraft, provides common-sense instructions and illustrations for each step of an actual flight—from preflight, taxi-out, takeoff, cruising, descent, and landing. Autopilots, GPS navigation systems, and other colorful “glass cockpit” displays are examined as well as other modern technologies found in late model aircraft; particular emphasis is placed on the Garmin G430. Ideal for both self-study and classroom use, each chapter ends with a practice session that can be used in a simulator program or at a local flight school. The accompanying 30-minute DVD further reinforces the new material by demonstrating each skill as it pertains to specific flight scenarios.
The lateral motion resulting from a disturbance of the type produced by asymmetric loss of thrust has been determined for a hypothetical average airplane equipped with an automatic pilot. Plots of the resultant motion and the various modes that constitute the motion are presented for controls fixed and for various amounts of automatic control. The automatic control is assumed to be of a type that produces aileron deflections proportional to the angle of bank and rudder deflections proportional to the angle of azimuth. The use of an automatic control may introduce either of two modes. The first mode is primarily a rolling oscillation; the second is a poorly damped long-period oscillation in azimuth and bank . The motion following any change in trim causes the airplane to reach a state of equilibrium on a different flight heading from that existing before the disturbance and the airplane assumes a new flight attitude.