More than one century after the Wright brothers' first flight, the flight still defy our intuition. You will learn here how to name the different parts of the airplane and how to describe and quantify its geometry. For that, we need now to share a precise vocabulary to describe the airplane's movement and attitude in space, and a refresher on basic general mechanic principles. You will remind how Newton's 2nd law allows you to determine what force must be applied on an apple - or on an airplane, to modify the magnitude and direction of its speed. Coming back on the concepts of kinetic energy and potential energy, you will discover the very useful concept of total height and you will be able to explain how an airplane can quickly exchange speed for altitude, while changes in total height are much slower.
Dieser Kurs ist Teil der Spezialisierung Spezialisierung Fundamentals of Flight mechanics
von


Über diesen Kurs
Was Sie lernen werden
Use precise and appropriate words to describe an airplane and its motion in the air.
Apply Newton's law to compute the evolution of the trajectory of an airplane, based on the aerodynamic forces acting on it.
von

ISAE-SUPAERO
ISAE-SUPAERO, world leader in aerospace engineering higher education, has trained over 21,000 highly skilled engineers since its creation in 1909. We have been educating students to have the most advanced scientific and engineering skills, helping the aeronautics and space industry to anticipate and adapt to the latest scientific, economic and social changes. We welcome the best students from all over the world and educate them to be future responsible leaders driving the development of our society and contributing to technological innovation in aeronautics and space. Located in Toulouse, France, we benefit from a unique ecosystem, both at the heart of the European capital for aeronautics and space and of a thriving aerospace higher education and research campus.
Lehrplan - Was Sie in diesem Kurs lernen werden
Anatomy of the plane
Along this first week, we want you to get acquainted to the airplane. We will first learn how to name the different parts of the airplane and how to describe and quantify its geometry. And we will see through an exercise that concepts that seem well defined, like the surface of the wing (wing surface), can be, in practice, difficult to measure. This part will allow us to share a common and precise vocabulary.
Vocabulary and Tools
We need now to share a precise vocabulary to describe the airplane's movement and attitude in space, and a refresher on basic general mechanics principles. You will review how Newton's second law allows you to determine what force must be applied on an apple - or on an airplane, to modify the magnitude and direction of its speed. Coming back on the concepts of kinetic energy and potential energy, you will discover the very useful concept of total height and you will be able to explain how an airplane can quickly exchange speed for altitude, while changes in total height are much slower. To conclude this week, we invite you on a tour of our full flight simulator Pegasus (Pegase in French), to see how clever use of those concepts in a Head-Up Display might allow you to conduct a perfect approach and landing without a single glance at your speed or altitude indicators.
Basis of flight mechanics
It's time to apply your knowledge to the airplane! You will discover that only a very small number of forces apply on an airplane in flight and that you are able to classify those that change its energy state and those that modify its trajectory. You will discover the concept of load factor and understand why the pilot of a combat aircraft can feel a weight nine-time greater than his actual weight! You will come on board our DR400 light airplane (not a combat airplane indeed) with Newton's apple to better understand what this load factor actually means. Finally, you will establish the lift and propulsion equations, that form the basis of flight mechanics, and you will be able to compute the lift and thrust necessary to follow a given trajectory at a given speed. No apples were harmed in the making of this course.
Graded assessment for the course
In this final graded assessment, you will check your knowledge and apply it to solve an actual flight dynamic problem : how to fly a loop in a glider.
Bewertungen
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Top-Bewertungen von FLIGHT MECHANICS - THE BASIS
It was awasome. There is some missings in me but now I know them. Thanks to you.
Superb course to get along with the basics of flight mechanics. Strongly recommended!
This course was more challenging than I expected but its a great course thank you Eric!!!!!!!!!!!!!
it is a great course for beginers to enjoy an learn about basic flight mechanics
Über den Spezialisierung Fundamentals of Flight mechanics
How do planes take off? How do they fly? How do pilots maintain control of them? And how high can airplanes fly? Get answers to all these questions and more with this specialization exploring the fundamentals of flight mechanics. You will learn how the laws of physics apply to airplanes and discover important concepts in aviation including lift, drag, and propulsion.

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