WING LAYOUT DESIGN

Section 1: General discussion of wing configuration design aspects:

aerodynamic as well as operational.
Section 2: Discussion of wing design integration
considerations.Mechanizations of flaps and wing mounted lateral
control
Section 3: Discussion of operational design considerations
Section 4: Examples of the overall

Section 1:
1.1 Wing size: Large or Small? Wing Loading: Low or High?
Wing size and wing loading affects the following characteristics:
- Take-off/Landing field length
- Cruise performance (L/D)
- Ride through turbulence
- Weight
Take-off/Landing field length
To achieve short field lengths, large wings (low wing loading) are
better than small wings (high wing loading).
Equations are approximations of FAR 23 and 25 fieldlength:

For Light sports A/C, we have:

W / S L=10 psf
C L =1.8
maxL

max
C L =1.6

s L =420 ft
 s =500 ft

Cruise performance (L/D):

To achieve cruise flight close to ( L/ D )max a high wing loading is

needed, so that the cruise lift coefficient can be close to that at
( L/ D )max .

An appreciation for the effect of wing loading on ( L/ D )max can be

obtained as follows:
0.5 0.5
( L/ D )max= Ae 80.7
( ) (
4CD 0
=
40.049 ) =9.474

Ride through turbulence:

Wing loading has a significant effect on the ride quality of an
airplane through turbulence. Ride response to turbulence is
proportional to the parameter n :
n =q C L /(W /S)

Low wing loading have high values of n which translates into

poor ride qualities.
Weight:
The larger the wing area, the greater the weight of the wing and
therefore the weight of the airplane.
1.2 High, Mid or Low wing?
Effect of Wing location on item
High Mid Low
Interference drag Poor Good Poor
Dihedral effect Negative Neutral Positive
Passenger Good Good Poor for some
Visibility
Loading and Easy Easy Need stairs
unloading
 Advantages Disadvantages
High wing - Increase distance - Low ground effects.
from ground to wing - Long landing gear.
so it is easy to set up - High induced drag.
engines. - Heavier weight.
- Easy to build struts.
- High lift.
Low wing - Short landing gear. - Low lift force.
- High effective take- - High stall velocity.
off. - Lower lateral stability.
- Lower weight.
- Low effective
downwash on tail.
Mid wing - Advantage of high - Heaviest weight.
wing and low wing - High price.

We decide high wing.

1.3 Forward Sweep, No Sweep or Aft Sweep?

Adding sweep to a wing has important consequences to the
following characteristics:
Compressibility drag
Weight
Stall behavior
Balance
Pitch attitude and ridde
Good looks
 Effect of Increased Wing Sweep on
item
Forward None Aft
Lift-curve Slope Low High Low
Pitch attitude in low speed, High Low High
level flight
Ride through turbulence Good Poor Good
Asymmetric stall Best Good Poor
Lateral control at stall Best Good Poor
Compressibility drag Low High Low
Wing Weight Highest Low High

No sweep

1.4 Wing Aspect Ratio: High, Low or Winglets?

2
Wing aspect ratio, A=b /S affects the following characteristics:

Induced Drag
Lift-curve slope
Weight
Span
Effect of Aspect Ratio
High Low
Induced Drag Low High
Lift-curve slope High Low
Pitch attitude Low High
(aproach)
Ride in turbulence Poor Good
Wing weight High Low
Wing span Large Small
We decide to choose A=8

1.5 Wing thickness ratio: Large or Small?

Wing thickness ratio affect the following characteristics:
Drag
Weight
 Maximum lift
Fuel volume
Effect of Thickness
Low t/c High t/c
Wing weight High Low
Wing drag: Low High
subsonic Acceptable Very high
Supers
onic
Wing fuel volume Poor Good
Maximum lift Poor Good

1.6 Wing Taper Ratio:

Effect of taper ratio
High Low
Wing weight High Low
Tipstall Good Poor
Wing fuel volume Good Poor
1.7 Wing Incidence Angle:
Large Small
Cruise drag High Low
Cockpit visibility Good Watch out
Landing attitude in Watch out No problem
terms of nose gear
hiiting runway first

1.8 Flaps: What size and Which type?

The following factors affect the dicision of wing flap size and type:
High lift requirements
Trim considerations
Drag considerations
Cost, complexity and maitenance
1.9 Lateral controls: Type, size and location?
The following types of wing mounted lateral control device are
prevalent:
Ailerons
Spoilers
1.10 Reviews of Wing drag contributions:
The wing generates most of the lift on an airplane: 90-95%. The
wing is also resposible for generating a large amount of drag: 20-
40% of the total drag:
Friction drag: is directly related to wetted area and to the
type of boundary layer
Induced drag: generated by the wing is dependent on the
amount of the lift.
Compresibility drag: is generated by a wing depends on the
Mach number, the sweep angle, the thickmess ratio and the
blending of the wing into the fuselage.
Interference drag: Depends greatly on the fairing of a
wing into a fuselage. It created by other bodies installed
under or on a wing (nacelles, tanks, radar pods, )
Profile drag:Comes about only after flow separation has
occurred.

Section 2:
Structural design considerations and examples of structural layout
design of wings:
- Typical Spar, Rib and Stiffener Spacings
- Examples of wing structural arrangements
- Examples of wing/fuselage integration
- Examples of wing cross section design
- Examples of lateral control mechanizations
- Examples of high lift device mechanizations
- Examples of wing skin gages
- Maintenance and Access requirements

2.1 Typical Spar, Rib and Stiffener Spacings:

Wing spar locations: Most airplane wings use a wing-box as the main
load carrying component. A wing box is normally closed off by a
front spar,a rear spar and an upper and lower skin.
Typical spar locations are:
Front spar: 15-30% chord
Rear spar: 65-75% chord
Wing rib locations: To help stabilize torque box skins and to serve as
attachment points for leading edge skins, trailing edge skins and
flaps, ailerons, spoilers, wing ribs are used.
Typical rib spacings are:
 Light Airplanes: 36 inches
Transports: 24 inches
Wing stiffener Spacings: vary widely and depend on the relative
stiffness of the wing skin.

2.2 Wing cross section design

2.3 Lateral control mechanizations:
Outboard and inboar mechanizations.
2.4 Wing skin gages:
The actual skin gages used depend on the V-n diagram for which the
airplane is designed.