Abstract VTOL (Vertical Take Off/ Landing)

Aircraft designed on X-Plane®

By: Zak Sky Davalos King

The Need for a Jet VTOL

• Response time of a jet

• Versatility of a helicopter

• High operational flight ceiling

Existing VTOL Designs• V-22 osprey• F-35 JSF• Dornier Do.31

Design Criteria for my VTOL

• Flight ceiling of 30,000 ft

• Jet turbine engine(s)

• VTOL capabilities

• Payload capacity of at least eight people

• Light weight, under 40,000 lbs

X-Plane®

• Software I used to design planes

• Developed by Laminar research

• Utilizes several programs to design and a simulation program to test

• Allowed me to work on project easily and cheaply

Designing the Basics

• Began with the fuselage(main body) and Nacelles

Designing continued

• Wings• Misc. bodies• Landing gear

Programming the Specifications

• All the set data like engine specs and weight had to be programmed in

• Not necessarily realistic, just figures decided upon

Key designs

AVX2B Cardinal AVX3B L.E.A.W.

AVX4 Tall Tail AVX6 T.W.L.E.

The Results

• Only one true success• Several designs were capable of vertical flight• Only one able to transition to horizontal flight

AVX 6 T.W.L.E.AVX 3B A.F.T.T.E.S.

The Prize of the Project

• One true success, AVX 3B M.N.T.E.S

• Forward nozzles given lateral and vertical cants to add stability to flight during transition

Evolution

• Fuselage changed on occasion

• Wings and engine nacelles changed the most in attempt to change balance or improve aerodynamics

The “What Went Wrong” factor

• Problems were numerous

• Fixes often resulted in a new model

• Fixes often resulted in a new problem

It Works, but it Doesn’t

• The designs may work in the program, but in actuality may not be feasible

• Certain things are not applied in the software, such as material integrity and individual part weight

How they fly

• 6 designs capable of vertical flight

• 10 can only fly conventionally

• 7 cannot achieve flight at this time

• 1 capable of complete vertical flight and transition

Continuation and Completion

• Project is not finished, efficiency can be improved, and realism improved

• Time is the only needed factor at the moment

• Real models would be necessary for to validate results

• More expertise would help trial and error

Thank you

• Mr. McGinnis for introducing X-Plane and expertise

• Mr. Spangler for guidance on process and finding contacts, as well as founding the class

• Dennis for thoughtful questions and ideas

• Friends and Family for supportive attitude and asking good questions

Works Cited

• “Flight ceiling” Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia. 2004. 18 April, 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_ceiling

• “Flying Bedstead” Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia. 19 February 2007. 17 April, 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flying_bedstead

• “Flight control systems”Wikipedia: the free encyclopedia.17 April. 2004. 18 April 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_control_system

• “Dornier Do.31” Unreal Aircraft: Beating gravity. 2005. 17 April 2007 http://www.unrealaircraft.com/gravity/do31.php