Recent wind tunnel tests have revealed the existence of a powerful ground effect on the rolling derivatives of a slender wing model. Analogue computer studies have been made which show the consequences of this phenomenon on the lateral behaviour of a large slender aircraft during landing approaches in the presence of side gusts. The ground effect is shown to exert a powerful constraint on bank angle disturbances for this class of aircraft, almost eliminating the effects of lateral turbulence as a control problem. Other possible consequences of this ground effect on various lateral control problems are also briefly discussed.
展开▼
