Understanding Flight

The simplest, most intuitive book on the toughest lessons of flight--addresses the science of flying in terms, explanations, and illustrations that make sense to those who most need to understand: those who fly. Debunks long-rooted misconceptions and offers a clear, minimal-math presentation that starts with how airplanes fly and goes on to clarify a diverse range of topics, such as design, propulsion, performance, high-speed flight, and flight testing. Not-to-be missed insights for pilots, instructors, flight students, aeronautical engineering students, and flight enthusiasts.

Discover how planes get--and stay--airborne Now you can truly master an understanding of the phenomenon of flight. This practical guide is the most intuitive introduction to basic flight mechanics available. Understanding Flight, Second Edition, explains the principles of aeronautics in terms, descriptions, and illustrations that make sense--without complicated mathematics. Updated to include helicopter flight fundamentals and aircraft structures, this aviation classic is required reading for new pilots, students, engineers, and anyone fascinated with flight. Understanding Flight, Second Edition, covers: Physics of flight Wing design and configuration Stability and control Propulsion High-speed flight Performance and safety Aerodynamic testing Helicopters and autogyros Aircraft structures and materials

*Covers lightplane performance flight testing methods, measures, and computer applications *Includes CD-ROM with sample spreadsheets containing equations to help readers perform their own flight tests *Describes GPS (Global Positioning System) test method for airspeed calibration and rapid-wind camera method for takeoff performance

Explains the principles of flight and provides instruction in the actual mechanics of flying an airplane.

The most comprehensive coverage to date of Air France 447, an Airbus A330 that crashed in the ocean north of Brazil on June 1, 2009, killing all 228 persons on board. Written by A330 Captain, Bill Palmer, this book opens to understanding the actions of the crew, how they failed to understand and control the problem, and how the airplane works and the part it played. All in easy to understand terms. Addressed are the many contributing aspects of weather, human factors, and airplane system operation and design that the crew could not recover from. How each contributed is covered in detail along with what has been done, and needs to be done in the future to prevent this from happening again. Also see the book's companion website: UnderstandingAF447.com

The Physics of Flight provides a comprehensive explanatory reference on the basic physics of flight with a clear presentation of the underlying mathematics. It presents a momentum-based explanation of lift making no use of Bernoulli’s theorem. Misconceptions are disproved, such as identifying centrifugal force experienced in an airplane undergoing maneuvers as a fictitious force, and not attributing weightlessness during airplane pitch over or experienced in an airplane performing a parabolic flight path to the effects of free fall. This book places particular emphasis on Newton’s second law of motion to explain the effects of forces acting on an airplane, the mechanism of lift, and the principles of propulsion. This book is intended for undergraduate aviation and aerospace students taking courses in Flight Dynamics, Introduction to Flight, and Physics of Flight.

The #1 guide to understanding the "why and how" of fly-by-wire flight control systems. This book is an approachable and easily understandable must-read for aviation professionals! Why don't new aircraft designs allow the pilots a mechanical control connection? This book explains how fly-by-wire fixes the top 5 problems with mechanical controls for high performance aircraft. Rather than describe a particular aircraft’s design with confusing acronyms, readers will get a "behind the scenes" understanding for the critical concepts that apply to any modern aircraft. Because these design principles are easily described and understood, readers of this book will be armed with knowledge as they approach their flight manual procedures. Including: - Problems with mechanical flight controls - Advantages of fly-by-wire - How and why can fly-by-wire control systems fail? - Why are four computers better than one or two? - Explanations of the control laws used by business jets, fighters, and airliners - What sensors are needed, and how the system maintains control when sensors are lost - Design considerations for risk mitigation in case of component failures Buy this book to read on your next layover!

Now in its third, updated edition, Understanding Gliding has become one of gliding's classic works. Piggott demonstrates that the basic priciples are not in fact complex, and he answers many of the common questions which are asked by new pilots.