journal article·2025-11-14Open access

Study on the Impact of Winglets’ Size on Aircraft Stability for a Tailless Configuration

Katarzyna Kania, Marcin Figat, Tomasz Goetzendorf-Grabowski

Applied Sciences· Volume 15· Issue 22

Abstract

This paper presents an aerodynamic and dynamic analysis of an aircraft in a tailless configuration. The main goal was to assess the impact of the winglets’ dimensions on the dynamic stability of the aircraft in a tailless configuration. First of all, the numerical computation of aerodynamic characteristics was conducted. The obtained stability derivatives allowed for initially evaluating the static stability of the aircraft. Next, the dynamic analysis was performed. The simplified method for selected modes was applied, as it allows for making a quick estimation. The achieved results will enable us to assess the potential impact of the winglets’ size on the aerodynamic characteristics of the aircraft, like a change in the flap deflection necessary to satisfy the trim conditions and L/D ratio under trim condition. Moreover, the winglets’ scale effect on the basic flight modes was considered. The damping ratio and the time constant versus winglets’ scale were analyzed. The obtained results allow for finding the initial winglets’ parameters for a tailless aircraft configuration.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Aeroelasticity and Vibration Control · Aerospace and Aviation Technology · Aerospace Engineering and Control Systems

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Institute of Aeronautics and Applied Mechanics, Warsaw University of Technology, Nowowiejska 24, 00-665 Warsaw, Poland

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