Establishing Fluid Dynamics Scales Critical to Dynamic Interface Applications and their Impact on Handling Qualities
Abstract
One of the most demanding tasks for naval aviators is landing on a moving flight deck in high sea-states (i.e. the dynamic interface (DI) problem - see Figure 1). This task is made even more difficult by aerodynamic disturbances at the landing spot from the flow around the ships bow, superstructure and deck edges. This highly unsteady ship airwake can lead to significant pilot workload. Flight simulation has long been recognized as a valuable tool for augmenting engineering development and pilot training in DI operations, however, it is most effective when the underlying simulation model has appropriately characterized the complex aerodynamic interactions between the rotorcraft and ship airwake. Given the complexity of the problem, a fundamental difficulty when assessing the simulation approaches is the quantification of good enough, both from the standpoint of understanding and predicting the underlying physics and also with regards to trainer fidelity (i.e. can the pilot feel/tell a difference). The premise of the proposed effort is to quantify good enough with regards to understanding the fundamental aero-physics of a rotorcraft interacting with an external disturbance field to quantify which length and time scales - such as those present in a ship airwake or in the wake of a an upstream aircraft during formation flight/refueling - directly impact the aircrafts fundamental response and flying qualities (FQ) along with the aeromechanics modeling fidelity required to simulate interactions adequately.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 08, 2021
- Accession Number
- AD1154871
Entities
People
- Glen R. Whitehouse