Flight Test Engineering Course (UA)

In the Fall of 2019, I developed and taught a course in Flight Test Engineering to a select group of undergraduates in Aerospace Engineering and Physics.

Topics were divided into 1) performance, 2) stability & control, and 3) logistics, operations & hardware.

  • Performance
    • Atmosphere
    • Airspeed
    • Airspeed & Static Port calibration
    • Takeoff
    • Stall
    • Climb Theory
    • Sawtooth climbs
    • Level acceleration & Excess power
    • Level Flight Performance
  • S&C
    • S&C Theory
    • Neutral Point Estimation
    • Stick Forces, Stick force per g
    • Maneuvering Point
    • 6 DOF Aircraft Dynamics
      • Phugoid
      • Short period
      • Spiral
      • Roll substidence
      • Dutch roll
    • Flying & Handling Qualities
    • Inertial Coupling
  • Logistics, operations, & hardware
    • Data reduction
    • Flight test instrumentation
    • Telemetry
    • System identification

Lecture note samples:

Lesson03-CloverleafCalibrationDownload
Lesson10-LevelAccelerationDownload

The students were required to learn the theory, maneuvers, and analysis necessary to conduct flight testing. We used experimental data collected by the instructor (me) and the students.

Textbook: I assigned Kimberlin’s Flight Testing of Fixed Wing Aircraft; however, Ward’s Introduction to Flight Test Engineering was a primary resource.