Mechanics of Flight

Rating:
Summary: The Complete Resource for Engineers, Pilots & Homebuilders
Review: "Mechanics of Flight" is an excellent textbook for students of aeronautics as well as an invaluable reference for engineers practicing in aerospace, experimental homebuilders, and pilots having a flare for science. The subject matter is well-organized, thorough in coverage, comprehensively indexed, and has an impressive bibliography. There are numerous worked examples, excellent graphics to illustrate concepts, and many aeronautical/aerodynamic relationships are plotted to demonstrate parametric relationships. Numerical solution techniques are discussed throughout the book and many problems are tailored for a programmed solution on a digital computer. Although this is a textbook, and the concepts are demonstrated using rigorous mathematical derivations, considerable insight into the mechanics of flight can be gained by simply reading the text, studying the figures and absorbing the numerous tips and rules of thumb. The reader is taken from overviews of aerodynamics and propulsion in the first two chapters through aircraft performance, aircraft controls and maneuverability, static stability and control, aircraft dynamics, handling qualities, and closing with aircraft flight simulation.

Prandtl's classical lifting-line method is the basis for much of the aerodynamic theory used in the book. The author uses the method to explore lift and drag for various wing planforms. He further develops the effects of geometric and/or aerodynamic twist and how induced drag is affected. A significant result shown is that there is an optimum washout distribution for any wing planform which will minimize induced drag. The author has also generalized lifting-line theory to allow study of the effects of wing sweep, dihedral and interaction between lifting surfaces. The method is about 4 orders of magnitude faster than panel methods and 6 orders of magnitude faster than CFD solutions. The numerical lifting-line method with parasitic drag included provides a computationally efficient method for preliminary aircraft design.

The author has presented a particularly thorough discussion of propeller theory in Chapter 2. This section may be of particular interest to pilots. Fixed-pitch and constant-speed propellers histories are included and their mechanical attributes and efficiency compared. The reader gains considerable insight into how a propeller does its job and how one might select a certain propeller for a particular aircraft and mission. Both Goldstein's vortex theory and the more common propeller momentum theory are developed by the author. He has also shown how momentum theory can be improved by incorporating slipstream rotation. The chapter on aircraft performance also provides practical insight on fuel consumption, endurance, and range. Numerous worked examples show how these parameters change with gross weight and wind, illustrating the mathematical equations with plots to simplify the information. The section on takeoff and landing performance may be of special interest to homebuilders and pilots.

The chapters on static stability and trim will also be of interest to the homebuilder. Simplified pitch stability analysis is presented for standard wing-tail and wing-canard combinations, which are useful for preliminary aircraft design as well as an estimate for downwash angle on an aft tail. Many factors affecting pitch stability and their effects are discussed in detail, including the contribution of a running propeller, and its location, on the static stability of an airplane. Lateral stability is treated with equal aplomb and some rules of thumb for aircraft design are provided. Longitudinal-lateral coupling, such as the yawing moment produced by a rotating propeller, is described and the designer alerted to the fact that static stability cannot always be separated into longitudinal and lateral motion.

Chapter 7 provides a more general formulation of the rigid-body equations of motion than presented in the preceding chapters. This chapter will thrill the mathematics enthusiast! It starts with a review of mathematical notation and coordinate systems and proceeds to develop Newton's second law for rigid-body dynamics. Ultimately, the nondimensional linearized equations of motion are derived for a symmetric configuration after applying the small disturbance approximation. The last section of this chapter discusses how inertial and gyroscopic coupling come into play if symmetry is relaxed.

Linearized longitudinal and lateral dynamics are examined in Chapters 8 and 9 and the eigenvalues obtained from the solution of the eigenvalue problem are related to the phugoid, Dutch roll, etc. Longitudinal-lateral coupling in the equations of motion is addressed by solving the full 12x12 eigen-problem associated with linearized aircraft dynamics. It is shown that a flight condition as simple as turning flight introduces this coupling, which cannot be fully analyzed using the uncoupled equations.

I personally found the comprehensive presentation of the quaternion formulation for 6-DOF flight simulation, which is presented in Chapter 11, to be unique, interesting, and understandable. This information is not available in any other single source to the best of my knowledge.

It is not possible in this brief space to do justice to the comprehensive coverage of flight mechanics provided by this textbook. The book is rich in aircraft history, modern approaches to classical solution methods and new ways to look at well-founded theories. The only possible shortcoming that I could find was the need to make my way through the challenging mathematics that supports the concepts (not necessarily a bad thing for a textbook). It will be a resource used for many years by students, practicing engineers, experimental homebuilders, pilots, and maybe even model airplane enthusiasts. This book may be destined to become a classic in the field!

Rating:
Summary: If you study or design aircraft, you must have this book
Review: "Mechanics of Flight" will become a classic in the aerodynamicist's library alongside Abbott and Von Doenhoff's "Theory of Wing Sections". Here's why:

* Coverage of topics in aircraft design is exhaustive. From balancing lift and weight for steady flight, on through off axis forces and moments from running propellers, to 6-dof formulas for aircraft dynamic modes, to how propeller location affects aircraft stability, and on and on. Great for both the beginner and the authority in aircraft.

* Often a completely thorough analysis including the minutest effects is presented along with a linearized or simplified method. The simplified analysis is so useful for rapid conceptual design and study of fundamentals, while the detailed analysis gives a complete grasp of the physics and phenomena involved. Plus, in simplifying a complex derivation, the reader is shown which parameters may be safely neglected and which require careful scrutiny, and what is engineering if not intelligently ignoring smaller effects to come up with a reasonable solution to a problem?

* The figures! Well thought out and consistent, the figures clearly illustrate the material.

* Actual aircraft data is used in the example and homework problems. I have a feel for the performance of several classes of aircraft simply from using this book.

* Phillips derives everything, and I mean everything using the fundamental laws of physics as the starting point. A student would be very well served to go through these derivations themselves. Phillips basically shows the student how to learn and how to think mathematically. No shortcuts here. I wish I had learned these things very early on in my own schooling.

* Phillips has included experimental data along with rigorous analytical derivation and computer numerical analysis. I believe that all three are necessary for a true understanding of fluid dynamics.

The bottom line: Buy and use this book! While it is true that the material is focused on subsonic flight, I work for a large airframer of supersonic aircraft and I find the principles and fundamentals to be extremely useful in my work. Whether you are a student or a professional, if you have an interest in aerodynamics this is THE book to use.

Rating:
Summary: If you study or design aircraft, you must have this book
Review: "Mechanics of Flight" will become a classic in the aerodynamicist's library alongside Abbott and Von Doenhoff's "Theory of Wing Sections". Here's why:

* Coverage of topics in aircraft design is exhaustive. From balancing lift and weight for steady flight, on through off axis forces and moments from running propellers, to 6-dof formulas for aircraft dynamic modes, to how propeller location affects aircraft stability, and on and on. Great for both the beginner and the authority in aircraft.

* Often a completely thorough analysis including the minutest effects is presented along with a linearized or simplified method. The simplified analysis is so useful for rapid conceptual design and study of fundamentals, while the detailed analysis gives a complete grasp of the physics and phenomena involved. Plus, in simplifying a complex derivation, the reader is shown which parameters may be safely neglected and which require careful scrutiny, and what is engineering if not intelligently ignoring smaller effects to come up with a reasonable solution to a problem?

* The figures! Well thought out and consistent, the figures clearly illustrate the material.

* Actual aircraft data is used in the example and homework problems. I have a feel for the performance of several classes of aircraft simply from using this book.

* Phillips derives everything, and I mean everything using the fundamental laws of physics as the starting point. A student would be very well served to go through these derivations themselves. Phillips basically shows the student how to learn and how to think mathematically. No shortcuts here. I wish I had learned these things very early on in my own schooling.

* Phillips has included experimental data along with rigorous analytical derivation and computer numerical analysis. I believe that all three are necessary for a true understanding of fluid dynamics.

The bottom line: Buy and use this book! While it is true that the material is focused on subsonic flight, I work for a large airframer of supersonic aircraft and I find the principles and fundamentals to be extremely useful in my work. Whether you are a student or a professional, if you have an interest in aerodynamics this is THE book to use.

Rating:
Summary: The Bible of Aircraft Flight Performance Analysis
Review: As a PhD student specializing in aircraft design, I greatly value excellent textbooks. Phillips' "Mechanics of Flight" is the latest of 5 textbooks that I use. The other textbooks include "Fundamentals of Aerodynamics" and "Aircraft Performance and Design" by Anderson, "Flight Stability and Automatic Control" by Nelson, and "Aircraft Design" by Raymer. "Mechanics of Flight" by Phillips is extremely well written, exhaustively researched, and by far the most useful textbook I own. It has become a popular book among my colleagues who are studying for the PhD qualifying exam at Georgia Tech because the book is truly written from the ground up. Rather than presenting results and referencing other authors, "Mechanics of Flight" exhaustively researches the fundamentals behind aircraft performance and then derives all of the supporting equations from the ground up. All assumptions and theory limitations are clearly presented. The derivations are logically developed, do not skip major steps, and are easy to follow. Phillips even documents some common misconceptions and errors that have been made in the past (and are presented as truths in other textbooks) in developing the equations of aerodynamics, flight mechanics, and stability and control. It is obvious that Phillips has not published a single equation that he has not personally derived. Every concept is also followed by example problems that are often so detailed that they cover several pages. Phillips uses actual aircraft data in his example problems to help give the reader confidence that results are in agreement with operational aircraft. In addition, each chapter contains more homework problems than a teacher or student could ever use. Some chapters have over 70 problems. It is very obvious that these problems have been carefully crafted to help the reader master the material. What is even more impressive is that so many of the homework problems contain data from actual aircraft. I definitely think that obtaining the solution manual would also be of great worth. One other area in which this textbook is superior to other textbooks is in its figures. This textbook has more than enough excellent aircraft drawings that are invaluable in helping the reader understand the concepts of aerodynamics and aircraft performance. Phillips has also generated numerous plots of data that help the reader get a feeling for what ranges of values should be expected when performing aircraft analysis. Also of extreme importance is the consistency in Phillips' notation used throughout his textbook. Phillips has been very careful to use variables with symbols and subscripts that conform to common aerodynamic notation and remain consistent throughout the whole text. I don't think that you will find a formula throughout the whole textbook that reuses a variable that means something else in another chapter in the textbook. You don't have to reread chapters to make sure that L represents lift rather than a reference length L. And now to get into the content of the textbook. Chapter 1 gives an excellent review of the basics of aerodynamics. This chapter can be used as both an intro to aerodynamics as well as a great review. Chapter 2 reviews propulsion. The basics of turbojets, turbofans, and propellers are well covered. A lot of information about Goldstein's propeller vortex theory is presented that isn't available in any other textbook. Phillips also gives a lot of information about forces and moments developed by propellers that I haven't seen anywhere else. Chapter 3 covers aircraft performance. This chapter is very exhaustive and derives all relationships from the ground up, many starting from F=ma. All the basics needed to analyze an aircraft in flight are well presented. Of great interest is the section on takeoff. Phillips goes through a grueling analysis to symbolically integrate the governing equation to provide a closed form solution for ground roll. This is by far the best takeoff documentation I have found. Chapters 4 and 5 cover longitudinal and lateral static stability and help the reader easily understand how to size aircraft control surfaces. All primary methods for achieving static stability such as dihedral, canards, empennages, etc. are well documented. Chapter 6 covers aircraft maneuverability and includes interesting subjects such as stall recovery and aileron control reversal. Chapter 7 alone would be worth buying this textbook. Phillips documents all the basics of rigid body dynamics before developing the aircraft equations of motion. Phillips clearly then goes through the liberalization of the equations and covers everything needed to know to properly use these equations. Several examples are given. With many mistakes that appear in other textbooks in developing the equations of motion, this is the only book I really feel confident in, mostly because the derivation is so detailed that readers will be able to follow all of the steps. Chapters 8 and 9 give a great background in eigenproblems and dynamic equilibrium as well as providing all of the background and examples needed to perform a dynamic aircraft analysis. Chapter 10 covers handling qualities and proves that Phillips spoke to several pilots when researching this chapter. Finally Chapter 11 covers aircraft flight simulation. This chapter contains information you won't find anywhere else. Math textbooks won't have as detailed an explanation of quaternion algebra as given by Phillips. Phillips goes through everything needed to develop a flight simulator. There is so much in this chapter that the chapter could be used as the subject for an entire graduate semester course. Overall, this textbook is a must have for anyone interested in aircraft analysis and flight performance. Even if you have other textbooks, get this book as it has so much useful information that isn't presented anywhere else. The only area that isn't exhaustively covered in this book is supersonic flow. Phillips does covers some of the supersonic basics but the book is tailored toward subsonic aircraft. I would recommend this book to all professors teaching aircraft performance and design as well to people interested in aircraft. I wish this book would have been available when I was taking aircraft design courses.

Rating:
Summary: Thorough, Meticulous, Comprehensive
Review: I am an Aerospace engineer working for the Air Force. While attending the annual AIAA aerospace convention in Reno Nevada, I met a professor from Denmark who raved about the work and research of a professor local to the west, Phillips. This seasoned scholar from Denmark wouldn't miss a session if he found Phillips' name appearing in it. I picked up the "Mechanics of Flight" which was on display for the first time at that conference. Due to the mountain of topics covered (900+ pages) I can't say that I have read every line of that book but the material I studied was impressive. I've never seen such complete derivations right from F=MA. The explanations are meticulous and thorough. I coded a real-time 6-DOF flight simulator for a midsized RCAV using this book as the main reference. I've never seen such a straightforward explanation of Quaternion algebra. If there were a "bible" of flight mechanics and dynamics, I would certainly give this my vote over any other in its class.

Rating:
Summary: Thorough, Meticulous, Comprehensive
Review: I am an Aerospace engineer working for the Air Force. While attending the annual AIAA aerospace convention in Reno Nevada, I met a professor from Denmark who raved about the work and research of a professor local to the west, Phillips. This seasoned scholar from Denmark wouldn't miss a session if he found Phillips' name appearing in it. I picked up the "Mechanics of Flight" which was on display for the first time at that conference. Due to the mountain of topics covered (900+ pages) I can't say that I have read every line of that book but the material I studied was impressive. I've never seen such complete derivations right from F=MA. The explanations are meticulous and thorough. I coded a real-time 6-DOF flight simulator for a midsized RCAV using this book as the main reference. I've never seen such a straightforward explanation of Quaternion algebra. If there were a "bible" of flight mechanics and dynamics, I would certainly give this my vote over any other in its class.

Rating:
Summary: A must have
Review: This text provides unparalled detail in it's discussion of flight mechanics. It contains clear and concise derivations of underlying equations and has well planned figures and example problems. Subject matter includes static and dynamic stability, propulsion, lifting line theory, 6-dof flight simulation with quaternions, along with many other essential topics. I particularly appreciated the straightforward way in which Phillips applies numerical methods to solving many of the problems. The equations required are located in such a manner as to make it easy to find what you need. Though mainly geared toward subsonic flight, I have found the understanding gained through this book invaluable in the design of supersonic vehicles. This is a great book for students learning the subject for the first time and a must have for engineering professionals and aircraft enthusiasts.

Rating:
Summary: A must have
Review: This text provides unparalled detail in it's discussion of flight mechanics. It contains clear and concise derivations of underlying equations and has well planned figures and example problems. Subject matter includes static and dynamic stability, propulsion, lifting line theory, 6-dof flight simulation with quaternions, along with many other essential topics. I particularly appreciated the straightforward way in which Phillips applies numerical methods to solving many of the problems. The equations required are located in such a manner as to make it easy to find what you need. Though mainly geared toward subsonic flight, I have found the understanding gained through this book invaluable in the design of supersonic vehicles. This is a great book for students learning the subject for the first time and a must have for engineering professionals and aircraft enthusiasts.

Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive Modern Subsonic Aerodynamics
Review: Warren Phillips has broken the mold with this book. I am currently a Doctoral candidate in aerospace engineering and I found his use of examples and ability to clearly explain complex topics to be unparalleled in any other text. Myths and misunderstandings about flight mechanics that have propagated down through decades of other texts are disproved or clarified. Dr. Phillips clearly understands and has thoroughly researched each topic that he presents, as the reader is never left in the dark by the ambiguous "hand-waiving" so common in other texts.

For professionals, the exhaustive index and methodical explanations make Mechanics of Flight the ideal reference.

For students in mechanical, aeronautical, or aerospace engineering, there has never been available a more student friendly text for learning flight mechanics and flight simulation.

For engineering professors, using this book will make teaching any senior or graduate level flight mechanics or flight simulation class easier for you and more enlightening for your students. Additionally, an amazing 592 page solutions manual is available from the publisher!

This book is a must buy and I predict that Mechanics of Flight by Warren F. Phillips will soon be recognized by the engineering community as the "bible" of sub-sonic flight mechanics.