High speed, low angle-of-attack pneumatic vortex control
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1998, by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Forebody pneumatic vortex control has previously been demonstrated through full-scale flight test to be effective for directional control of aircraft at low Mach number and high angle-ofattack flight conditions. The objective of the present research was to investigate the suitability of two-axis (wing, and vertical tail) pneumatic vortex lateral/directional control of a current fighter-type aircraft at high Mach number and low angle-ofattack flight conditions. The pneumatic effectors were tested for first augmenting, and then replacing the conventional aileron and rudder on a generic F- 16 XL configuration. Evaluations were conducted on a high fidelity, nonlinear, six degree-of-freedom, non real-time simulation of this aircraft. Results demonstrate that at low blowing coefficient levels and with conventional effector augmentation, aileron and rudder activity and maximum deflections can be reduced. At higher yet realistic and attainable levels of compressor bleed air, aileron and rudder can be completely replaced by pneumatic devices, yet still allow the aircraft to complete aggressive bank-to-bank maneuvers and simulated penetration strike missions.