Why is the aircraft alignment and symmetry check important?

A symmetry and alignment check is a dimensional verification of the aircraft’s airframe to determine whether its wings and tail are symmetrical to the longitudinal axis.

What is the effect of a change in optimal lift on the horizontal gliding distance of an aircraft?

When pitch is reduced, the glide angle increases and the distance traveled will reduce. The best speed for range corresponds to an angle of attack which gives the best lift-to-drag ratio. Any change in the gliding airspeed will result in a proportionate change in glide ratio.

What is the purpose of the grid plate used on large aircraft?

Grid plate installed. [click image to enlarge] When the aircraft is to be leveled, a plumb bob is suspended from a predetermined position in the ceiling of the aircraft over the grid plate. The adjustments to the jacks necessary to level the aircraft are indicated on the grid scale.

What are the methods adopted to check the symmetry of the aircraft?

(1) Spirit Level method (or clinometer). (2) Plumb Bob and a Transit methods, or (3) A Theodolite and Sighting Rods. (4)Use of the aircraft’s FMS (Flight Management System).

Can humans glide with wings?

Humans will never fly by flapping our arms with wings attached, says Mark Drela, Terry J. The arms and chest of a human do not have anywhere near enough muscle mass to provide the necessary power. And it’s unlikely that we will achieve flight by flapping wings powered by our legs, Drela says.

How does changing the weight of a paper airplane affect its ability to fly?

The larger the paper airplane the more it will weigh, the more it weighs the more lift will be needed to keep it flying. Eventually weight will become greater than lift and the paper airplane will descend to the ground. In addition the larger the paper airplane the larger its wings can be.

How do you make a glider fly straight?

The fuselage of the glider points straight into the airflow. When the wings are level but the yaw string is at an angle, the airflow is pushing the glider to one side. You can correct this situation by moving the rudder pedals in the opposite direction of the deflected string until it is straight again.

Why are fighter planes more maneuverable than planes?

Stability Most of the fighter aircraft today are designed to be unstable. This makes the aircraft respond to control inputs much more quickly compared to the airliners (which are usually not unstable in the roll axis). This means that the combat aircraft are capable of maneuvering much more quickly.

How do you reduce the radar reflectivity of a plane?

The first step was to find ways to reduce the aircraft’s reflectivity to radar waves by burying the engines, eliminating sharp corners and diverting any reflections away from the radar sets of opposing forces.

What are the factors that affect the turn performance of aircraft?

Also, the damping of the large wings is also to be considered. In case of fighters, however, the short wings, having smaller inertia helps in achieving high roll rates. Wing Loading The smaller the wing loading, the better the turn performance.

Why do fighter jets have so much wing area?

Many jet fighters, esp. the F15 as noted in several answer, generate lift from the fuselage, significantly increasing effective wing area. The entire wingtip-to-wingtip span is wing, because there’s no non-wing fuselage in the middle.