Aircraft Symmetric Flight Optimization,
Abstract
The development and application of gradient techniques to aircraft optimal performance computations in vertical plane of flight are reviewed. Results obtained using the method of gradients are presented for attitude and throttle control programs that extremize the fuel, range, and time performance indices subject to various trajectory and control constraints including boundedness of engine throttle control. Penalty function treatment is sketched of state inequality constraints that generally appear in aircraft performance problems: a minimum altitude constraint; a Mach number altitude constraint due to power plant and structural operational limitations; and a ground overpressure 'sonic boom' constraint that might be imposed on flight operations of supersonic commercial aircraft. Numerical results for maximum range, minimum fuel, and minimum time climb paths for a hypothetical supersonic turbojet interceptor are presented and discussed. In addition, minimum fuel climb paths subject to various levels of ground overpressure intensity constraint for a representative supersonic transport are shown. Discussions of the general character of these optimal flight profiles and the workings of the computational technique are given. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1972
- Accession Number
- AD0748296
Entities
People
- Henry J. Kelley
- Michael Falco
Organizations
- Grumman