Provide a rigorous aerodynamic and flight-mechanics foundation for understanding how and why an aeroplane behaves in all normal and limiting flight conditions.

Core Syllabus Areas

• Subsonic aerodynamics, including lift, drag, aerofoil behaviour, drag polar, stall, boundary layer, and aerodynamic degradation.
• High-speed aerodynamics, including compressibility, critical Mach number, shock-wave effects, buffet onset, and drag rise.
• Stability, including static and dynamic longitudinal, directional, and lateral stability.
• Control, including pitch, yaw, roll, control forces, balancing, mass balance, and trimming.
• Operational and structural limitations, including manoeuvring and gust envelopes.
• Propeller principles, including thrust generation, torque-related effects, and engine-failure implications.
• Flight mechanics, including the balance of forces, asymmetric thrust, and interpretation of aerodynamic relationships.

Key Competencies

• Explain aircraft behaviour using aerodynamic principles rather than memorised effects.
• Relate lift, drag, stability, and control to handling qualities.
• Recognise the aerodynamic causes of stall, buffet, and high-speed limitations.
• Understand the flight-envelope boundaries that govern safe operation.
• Apply aerodynamic reasoning to abnormal handling situations and performance assessment.
  

42 Pages.