RCAIDE.Library.Methods.Mass_Properties.Weight_Buildups.Conventional.General_Aviation.FLOPS.compute_vertical_tail_weight

compute_vertical_tail_weight

compute_vertical_tail_weight(vehicle, wing)

Calculate the vertical tail weight for general aviation aircraft using FLOPS methodology.

Parameters:

• vehicle (RCAIDE.Vehicle()) –

  Vehicle data structure containing:

  • mass_properties.max_takeofffloat

    Maximum takeoff weight [kg]

  • design_dynamic_pressurefloat

    Design dynamic pressure [Pa]

  • flight_envelope.ultimate_loadfloat

    Ultimate load factor

• wing (RCAIDE.Component()) –

  Vertical tail data structure containing:

  • t_tailbool

    Flag indicating if vertical tail is a T-tail configuration

Returns:

vertical_tail_weight – Weight of the vertical tail structure [kg]

Return type:

float

Notes

The function implements the FLOPS weight estimation method for vertical tail surfaces for general aviation aircraft. The calculation accounts for T-tail configuration, design loads, and dynamic pressure.

Major Assumptions

• Conventional type construction

• T-tail factor increases weight by 20%

• Structural weight scales with design loads and dynamic pressure

Theory

The FLOPS vertical tail weight estimation follows:

\[W_{vt} = 0.073 * (1 + 0.2H_{t}) * (N_{ult} * W_{TO})^{0.376} * q^{0.122}\]

Where:

• W_{vt} is vertical tail weight [lb]

• H_{t} is T-tail flag (1 for T-tail, 0 for conventional)

• N_{ult} is ultimate load factor

• W_{TO} is maximum takeoff weight [lb]

• q is design dynamic pressure [psf]

References

[1] NASA. (1979). The Flight Optimization System Weights Estimation Method.

NASA Technical Report.