Air Transportation Systems Transportation Technology

At the end of this chapter you will be able to.. Basic Concepts Define aircraft Identify aviation services Intermediate Concepts Describe how airways are used to keep the air safe Advanced Concepts Compare lighter-than-air craft to heavier-than-air craft Calculate lift in balloons

Air Transportation Rely on people and vehicles People in Air Transportation systems include: Pilots Maintenance personnel Airport employees Air vehicle designers Vehicles used are know as aircraft. An aircraft is any vehicle that transports people or cargo through the air

History of Air Transportation Only a few hundred years old Leonardo da Vinci created sketches of gliders and helicopters over 500 years ago Glider- aircraft with stable wings but no power source Helicopters- aircraft with rotating wings Montigolfier brothers developed the first hot air balloon in 1783 Traveled 5 miles in 23 minutes George Cayley created the principle of Aerodynamics The study of the motion of air and how it reacts to objects passing through it The first Hot Air Balloon

History of Air Transportation Air Transportation Pioneers: Otto Lelenthal designed both single and double winged gliders Samuel Langley was the first to add a gasoline engine to a glider Never able to successfully fly a full-sized, piloted, power glider Octave Chanute developed moveable wings to add to the control of gliders Published books and made work available to others, including the Wright Brothers

The Wright Brothers Started by building kites, small wings, and gliders Flight testing was done at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina By 1903: they had developed ways to control aircraft movement Add an engine that provided power to 2 propellers at the rear of the wing The name of the first plane was the Flyer Airborne for 12 seconds and covered 120 feet By the end of the day, the flyer improved to 59 seconds in flight and covered 859 feet The flyer was the first successful airplane Fixed-wing aircraft kept in flight by an engine or other power source Airplane History

History of Air Transportation By the 1920’s: Boeing, Douglas and Lockheed were developing new and innovative airplane designs Monoplanes (Single-wing design) replaced the biplane (two wings on top of each other) Started by moving mail and later, people By the 1940’s: Air travel become a common method of travel Planes carried passengers all over the world Planes used piston to crankshaft engines Today: Planes use jet engines to make traveling faster and more efficient

Routes Airways- a path or route airplanes follow Airways are: Designated, regulated, and controlled by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Set up in patterns like a highway system Can be divided into two different types: Airways Jet Routes

Airways and Jet Routes Airways- serve small aircraft on short routes (ground level to 18,000 ft above sea level) Jet Routes- reserved for large commercial jets and airliners (18,000 ft up to 75,000ft) Divided into 1000 ft layers, according to their distance from earth Layers assist pilots Ex. In the jet route layers, three of the layers are at 22,000’,23,000’ and 24,000’ All even numbered layers are for planes flying west All odd numbered layers are for planes flying east

Modes of Air Transportation An aircraft is a vehicle designed for navigation in the air Two types of aircraft: Lighter-than-air- Known as balloons and airships Rise and float Wind (for balloons) is the only means of propulsion How a hot air balloon works Heavier-than-air- Airplanes, helicopters and gliders Requires power to maintain its speed (needed for lift) Lift keeps the craft in the air

Other Lighter-Than-Air Craft Airships Built to carry cargo and passengers around the world Also known at a dirigible, or steerable ship Have engines and are filled with gas (hydrogen) Rigid airships have a metal frame surrounding the balloon and holding it in place The Hindenburg was a rigid airship Blimps Non-rigid airship Filled with helium (does not burn)

Heavier-Than-Air Craft Easier to control than Lighter-than-air crafts Include Gliders Airplanes helicopters

Airplanes-Basic Structure Airplanes are designed very carefully. Many special metal alloys have been developed for use in the building of aircrafts (materials must be lightweight, yet strong) Aircraft must be powerful. Their engines must be able to develop enough power so that they can overcome gravity, wind, and other forces. Aircrafts must also be designed for dependability. If a part malfunctions on an aircraft thousands of feet up in the air, disaster can result.

Basic Structure Terms Fuselage- the body of an airplane In a large commercial airplane, the fuselage contains a passenger cabin and a space below for hauling freight Also contains a cockpit for the pilot and co-pilot Wings- connected to the fuselage and provide the lift necessary to keep the airplane airborne Moveable sections of the wings help guide the airplane during flight The wings often hold the fuel tanks and the landing gear. Landing gear-usually consists of wheels. Some airplanes have landing gear that consists of skids for landing on snow or pontoons for landing on water. Tail Assembly- connected to the rear portion of the fuselage. it consists of a stabilizer and a fin. The surfaces of the tail assembly provide stability for the airplane during flight. How Airplanes are built

Airplane Controls Once airborne, an airplane can travel forward, to the left, to the right, up, or down, and can rotate about a 360- degree axis. Before an airplane can become airborne, two major forces must be overcome: Gravity Drag In level flight: lift = weight thrust = drag

Lift Gravity is overcome with wings that provide lift. The wing is curved on the top and flat on the bottom. Because of this curve, there is more surface area on the top of a wing than on the bottom. Therefore, as the wing passes through the air, the air that moves over the top of the wing travels farther than the air that moves under the wing. Because the air travels farther on the top of the wing, it must also travel faster. This increase in speed causes a decrease in pressure below the wing than there is above it, the wing is pushed upward. This difference in pressure provides lift.

Leading Edge Trailing Edge

Drag Drag is the resistance of the air to the motion of a traveling object. Once airborne, the airplane is held back by drag Is overcome by the thrust of the engine. Drag cannot be totally eliminated, but it can be reduced by a streamlined design. The less drag an airplane has, the less power is needed to propel it.

Roll Roll is the movement of an airplane when its wing tip begins to dip or rise. The pilot controls roll by operating flap-like devices called Ailerons. Ailerons - hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft.

Yaw Yaw is the movement of an airplane to the left or right. The pilot controls yaw by controlling a flap on the vertical section of the tail assembly. The flap is called the rudder. If the rudder is turned right, the plane will turn right.

Pitch Pitch is the movement of an airplane when its nose begins to dip or rise. The pilot controls pitch by operating flaps on the horizontal sections of the tail assembly. The flaps are called elevators.

Aviation Services Aviation is the term used to describe all air transportation activities. Aviation can be grouped into three general categories: Commercial Aviation Include all forms of transportation General Aviation Military Aviation Includes airplanes and flight systems designed for use by U.S. Armed Forces

Commercial Aviation Commercial Aviation describes air transportation offered by commercial airlines. Companies that provide air transportation to make a financial profit. Receive money in exchange for services. Examples? History of Commercial Aviation

Commercial Aviation Services Over 75% of the income received by airlines comes from carrying passengers. Each year over 200 million passengers fly in airplanes owned by commercial airlines. Commercial airlines provide scheduled service to over 500 airports n the US alone. The three busiest airports, in terms of the number of passengers they can handle, are: O’Hare International in Chicago Hartsfield International in Atlanta Los Angeles International (LAX)

Commercial Aviation There are four types of services offered by commercial airlines: International Includes air travel between different countries Domestic Includes air travel between major airports within a single country Regional Includes air travel between major airports and smaller airports within a specific region of a country Commuter Includes air travel between a major airport and several smaller airports in the same area.

General Aviation General Aviation is a term used to describe non-commercial air transportation The airplanes used in general aviation are usually smaller than those used in commercial aviation because they carry fewer passengers and less freight and must be able to land at smaller airports that have shorter runways. General aviation also includes the flying of small airplanes for business and for pleasure. Many companies own their own their own airplanes and use them to transport key personal quickly and conveniently from place to place. Other companies rely on small airplanes do such activities as crop dusting, surveying, and reporting traffic conditions for radio stations. Many individuals also own their own airplanes These individuals use their airplanes for personal transport and for general recreation.

Commercial Airways Map