Compare and contrast the concepts of Stability Control and M

Compare and contrast the concepts of Stability, Control, and Maneuverability in an aircraft design.

Explain why Charles Lindberg was very happy with the lateral stability of the Spirit of St. Louis. Was it negative, neutral or positive?

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Solution

In aircraft industry differenty types of aircraft are found varying in the type of tails or wings or configurations. An aircraft is subjected to the forces which result in the deviation of flight from its normal horizontal path which is caused due to the condition such as rising hot air or down drafts or any other changing whether condition. The ability of the aircraft to remain straight and at the same level and its ability of returning to the altitude in case of disturbance. The stability of aircraft depends on the way in which itreacts if wing, nose and tail drops without preventive action from the pilot. In other words, what the aircraft will do if the pilot doesnot try to bring it back to its original attitude.Stability may be defined as static and dynamic; Static referring to the initial tendency
of the aircraft to return to its original position once disturbed, dynamic stability
referring to the overall tendency, after a series of dampened out movements, to
return to its original position. Likewise, stability may be defined as positive, neutral or
negative stability. An aircraft with a positive stability develops forces which restore it
to its original position.Neutral stability implies that the aircraft will not move further
away from its original attitude nor move back to it. A condition of negative stability, or
instability, tends to develop forces which move it further away from its original
position. On this basis, an aircraft which oscillates increasingly after a disturbance,
to the point where a stall or dive may result, is considered to have negative dynamic
stability.So why are different levels of controllability, stability and maneuverability built into
aircraft? It all depends on the designer\'s and manufacturer\'s purpose for the aircraft.
As an example, military aircraft would favor a high level of maneuverability, thus will
less stability, than civil aircraft where most flight is straight level and upright. Private
pilots are able to select from a large variety of aircraft on the market to find one which
is suited to their flying requirements. To really know the best type of aircraft for a
pilot, he/she would best be served by flying a variety of types and observe the
differences between them, which at times can be quite subtle.