Lecture Slides for

Aircraft Flight Dynamics

Robert F. Stengel

Princeton University
School of Engineering and Applied Science
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Aircraft Flight Dynamics is an undergraduate course that presents theory and methods for describing and predicting the motions of aircraft. The course introduces students to the performance, stability, and control of a wide range of airborne vehicles. Attention is given to mathematical models and techniques for analysis, simulation, and evaluation of flying qualities, with brief discussion of guidance, navigation, and control issues. Topics include equations of motion, configuration aerodynamics, analysis of linear systems, and longitudinal/lateral/directional motions.

The slides used as lecture materials are presented here. While the course focuses on the Science and Mathematics of flight dynamics, historical antecedents are presented as Case Studies in aircraft performance, stability, and control. The science and mathematics component is based on Flight Dynamics (2004, 2022). The case studies were initially motivated by Airplane Stability and Control: A History of the Technologies that Made Aviation Possible (2002), M. J. Abzug and E. E. Larrabee, and they are enhanced by reference to current web-based content. Each lecture is one hour and twenty minutes long.

The portable document files presented here may be downloaded for non-commercial, educational use only, with acknowledgment of the source. Several graphics found on the web are included without attribution. Any graphic material that is deemed to infringe on another's copyright will be promptly removed upon formal notification by the copyright holder.

Lecture Slides (pdf)

• Lecture 1: Introduction, Mathematical Preliminaries
• Lecture 2: Point-Mass Dynamics and Forces
• Lecture 3: Low-Speed Aerodynamics: 2-D
• Lecture 4: Low-Speed Aerodynamics: 3-D
• Lecture 5: Induced Drag and High-Speed Aerodynamics
• Lecture 6: Aerodynamic Moments
• Lecture 7: Power and Thrust for Cruising Flight
• Lecture 8: Cruising Flight Envelope
• Lecture 9: Gliding, Climbing, and Turning Flight Performance
• Lecture 10: Aircraft Equations of Motion - Translation and Rotation
• Lecture 11: Aircraft Equations of Motion - Flight Path Computation
• Lecture 12: Aircraft Control Devices and Systems
• Lecture 13: Linearized Equations of Motion
• Lecture 14: Linearized Longitudinal Equations of Motion
• Lecture 15: Linearized Lateral-Directional Equations of Motion
• Lecture 16: Analysis of Time Response
• Lecture 17: Transfer Functions and Frequency Response
• Lecture 18: Root-Locus Analysis of Parameter Variations and Feedback Control
• Lecture 19: Advanced Problems of Longitudinal Dynamics
• Lecture 20: Advanced Problems of Lateral-Directional Dynamics
• Lecture 21: Flying Qualities Criteria
• Lecture 22: Maneuvering at High Angles and Angular Rates
• Lecture 23: Aeroelasticity and Fuel Slosh
• Lecture 24: Problems of High Speed and Altitude
• Lecture 25: Atmospheric Hazards to Flight
• Lecture 26: Flight and Wind Tunnel Testing

For more details, see:

M. J. Abzug and E. E. Larrabee, Airplane Stability and Control: A History of the Technologies that Made Aviation Possible, Cambridge University Press, 2002.

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Aircraft Flight Dynamics