Barnaby Wainfan
Barnaby is a Technical Fellow for Northrop Grumman’s Advanced Design organization. A private pilot with single-engine and glider ratings, Barnaby has been involved in the design of unconventional airplanes including canards, joined wings, flying wings and some too strange to fall into any known category.
Design Process: Pitch Force Trim
For an airplane to maintain steady-state level flight it must be trimmed in pitch. The airplane is trimmed when the net pitching moment acting...
Design Process: Tail Trim Functions
In addition to stabilizing the airplane in pitch, the horizontal tail must also trim the airplane. In steady-state level flight, the airplane flies at...
Design Process: Horizontal Tail
The horizontal tail has two functions. It provides control power to trim and maneuver the airplane in pitch, and it stabilizes the airplane about...
Design Process: Tail Surfaces
The tail of the airplane performs three functions: It stabilizes the aircraft in both pitch and yaw. It provides trim. It provides control power...
Design Process: End Plates and Winglets
A wing produces a pressure difference between its upper and lower surface. The pressure on top of the wing is lower than the pressure...
Design Process: Wingtips
In our study of wing design, we have progressed from the inner portion and the flaps to the outer part of the span and...
Design Process: Aileron Types
The size and planform of the ailerons are set by the roll-control power needed to meet flying qualities and maneuvering requirements. Once the designer...
Design Process: Ailerons
Last month we looked at roll control schemes for airplanes where high lift or other requirements do not leave enough room on the wing’s...
AirVenture Hail Shields
With thunderstorms and possible hail predicted for Wednesday night, AirVenture exhibitors and visitors found a new use for bubble wrap and moving blankets.
Thunderstorms did...
Flaperons, Spoilers and Drooping Ailerons
There are some situations where there isn’t enough room on the wing’s trailing edge to split the functions cleanly between an inboard flap and...
In Case You Missed It
Firewall Forward: Engine Controls
Here's what you need to know to get your engine controls—propeller, throttle, mixture, carburetor heat, cabin heat—placed correctly and working properly.
Product Review: Dynons Handheld DX15
Dynons DX15 handheld transceiver marks the company's introduction to a crowded product category. By Paul Bertorelli
Alternative Energies
Electric vehicles and aircraft may be the future, but how will we create the energy to power them while minimizing environmental damage? By Dean Sigler.
Learning Glass
Old dog, new tricks. We see the discussion of EFIS digital instruments versus round...