Terminology Flashcards
Airfoil
ˈerˌfoil
a structure with curved surfaces designed to give the most favorable ratio of lift to drag in flight, used as the basic form of the wings, fins, and horizontal stabilizer of most aircraft.
Chord line
a line from the leading edge to the trailing edge of the airfoil. The length of this line is known as the chord length. It cuts the airfoil into an upper and lower surface
Camber line/mean camber line
a line that is equidistant at all points from the upper and lower edges of the airfoil along the entire length. It is often referred to as the mean chamber line.
Camber
describes the curviness of an airfoil and is the distance between the chord and mean camber line. The greatest distance between these two lines is the airfoil’s max camber.
Relative wind
the direction of the wind in relation to the airfoil
Angle of attack (AOA)
the angle between the chord line of the airfoil and the direction of the relative wind.
Thrust
the force that moves an aircraft forward
Drag
the pulling effect that slows an aircraft
Critical angle of attack
a certain angle of attack at which the flow of air on the airfoil changes abruptly and sharply reduces lift
Boundary layer
a layer of air molecules that stick to an airplane’s wing.
Laminar flow
At low angles of attack, the boundary layer stays attached and air flows smoothly over the wing
Stall
(of an aircraft or its pilot) reach a condition where the speed is too low to allow effective operation of the controls.
(of a motor vehicle or its engine) stop running, typically because of an overload on the engine.
Aeronautics
The science of travel through air
Level flight
When the forces of lift and gravity are equal in the air
Airspeed
The speed of the aircraft relative to the air through which it is traveling through
Friction
resistance that a surface or object encounters when moving over another. Air moving over an airplane wing creates friction
Leading edge and trailing edge
The leading edge of the airfoil is large and round and the trailing edge is narrow and tapered.
Total weight or aircraft gross weight
The aircraft gross weight is the total aircraft weight at any moment during the flight or ground operation. An aircraft’s gross weight will decrease during a flight due to fuel and oil consumption. An aircraft’s gross weight may also vary during a flight due to payload dropping or in-flight refuelling
Weight
The force of gravity acting upon an object
w = mg
Drag coefficient
Cd = D/p V^2 A/2
Propulsion
the action of driving or pushing forward.
ICAO
The International Civil Aviation Organization is a specialized and funding agency of the United Nations, tasked with the planning and development of safe international air transport.
The zero-fuel weight (ZFW) of an aircraft is _______
the total weight of the airplane and all its contents, minus the total weight of the usable fuel on board.
The “Unusable fuel” is _______
the fuel that remains in the tanks and fuel lines after all usable fuel has been used. This is fuel that is UNAVAILABLE in flight. This means that your engine will cease working if your fuel level falls under that amount.
Basic empty weight (BEW) or basic weight:
The basic empty weight is the weight of the aircraft excluding all oils, usable fuel, cargo payload, removable equipment, and crew. It includes only the airframe, engines, required fluids, permanently installed equipment and any unusable residuals/unavoidable aircraft fluids.
Basic operating weight (BOW) or operating weight:
Basic operating weight is the total weight of a fully serviced, operational aircraft, including the operating crew, all installed equipment, unusable fuel, drainable oil, hydraulic fluid, and other operating fluids. It does not include usable fuel, payload, passengers, or removable mission-specific equipment. The basic operating weight is the baseline weight of an aircraft ready for flight operations.
Landing gross weight:
The total weight of the aircraft when it lands
Outboard
situated on, towards, or near the outside of a ship or aircraft.
toward the outside of a ship or aircraft
outboard of: to the outside or on the far side of.
Cant
kant
cause (something) to be in a slanting or oblique position; tilt.
take or have a slanting position.
AGW
Aircraft gross weight
Azimuth
In navigation, azimuth is used to describe the direction of a ship or aircraft in relation to true north. It is measured in degrees clockwise from north, with north being 0° and east being 90°.
